Month: June 2024

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Africa needs $402.2bn annually to boost structural transformation by 2030 – AfDB


Africa needs to close a financing gap of about 402.2 billion dollars annually by 2030 to fast-track its structural transformation.

Dr Akinwumi Adesina, President, African Development Bank (AfDB), said this during the presentation of the African Economic Outlook (AEO) 2024 at the ongoing AfDB Annual Meetings in Nairobi.

‘The report highlights the glaring inadequacies of the current global financial system in closing Africa’s financing gap for structural transformation, estimated at 402.2 billion dollars annually between now and 2030.

‘To rectify these disparities, the report proposes a bold agenda for reforming the global financial architecture, including in the five following key areas,’ Adesina said.

According to him, the AEO 2024 calls for overhauling the global financial architecture to transform African economies.

He said this included giving Africa a greater voice in Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs) and International Financial Institutions (IFI), reflecting its growing global gross domestic pro
duct share and rich natural resources.

Adesina said: ‘let us be clear. By seeking to transform the global financial architecture, Africa is just asking for a fair share of access and availability of resources to build on our vast economic opportunities.’

‘The AEO advocates for greater private sector participation to complement public investments, particularly in areas with high social returns such as climate action and human capital development.

‘The report calls for streamlining the global climate finance architecture to enhance coordination and facilitate access for African countries disproportionately affected by climate change.’

Adesina said the report urged MDBs to revise their business models to provide long-term concessional financing at scale to developing countries to bolster their capital positions.

‘It urged the channelling of a portion of the IMF’s Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) to MDBs and ensured a healthy replenishment of the concessional windows of the AfDB, the World Bank, ADF and the In
ternational Development Association.

‘Recognising the slow and cumbersome nature of existing debt resolution mechanisms, the African Economic Outlook advocates for reforms to expedite debt workouts.

‘It said this will ensure sustainable debt management, including innovative market-based solutions like ‘Brady bonds,’ debt relief for climate purposes, and sovereign debt authority systems,’ he said.

Adesina said the report emphasised the importance of strengthening domestic revenue mobilisation through improved tax policies and enhanced government revenue collection and utilisation efficiency.

He reiterated the importance of combating illicit financial flows, tax avoidance, and leveraging Africa’s abundant natural resources.

‘Domestic resource mobilisation is good, but so is the prudent use of such resources. Countries should, therefore, strengthen their capacity to improve public finance management.

‘Every year, the African Economic Outlook report provides timely evidence and analysis crucial for African
policymakers, empowering them to make informed decisions,’ Adesina said.

For his part, the bank’s Vice President and Chief Economist, Prof. Kevin Urama, underscored why strategic policies and firm political commitment are key to effectively using resource wealth for domestic revenue generation.

Urama described hard infrastructure, including roads, railways, and bridges, and soft infrastructure, including knowledge and institutional governance capacity, as ‘two wings of an aircraft’.

He said: ‘investing in productive infrastructure is key to accelerating Africa’s structural transformation.

‘Growth prospects vary across Africa’s regions, reflecting differences in economic structure, commodity dependence, and policies.’

Source: News Agency of Nigeria

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13 years Anniversary: FOI Act work in progress, says Solicitor General


Mrs Beatrice Jeddy-Agba, the Solicitor General of the Federation says the Freedom of information Act (FOI) in Nigeria is still a work in progress.

Jeddy-Agba, said this in Abuja at a ceremony marking the 13-year anniversary of the advocacy and implementation of the FOI Act in the country on Friday,

She was represented by Mr Godwin Garba, Head, FOI Unit, Federal Ministry of Justice.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the theme of this year’s anniversary is `Evaluating the Role of Freedom of Information Act and its Implementation Towards Building Strong Institutions For Good Governance.

She noted that the implementation of the FOI Act, 2011 in the past 13 years has been both challenging and work in progre.

The solicitor general noted that the Act is as a guide through which the public can access vital information or record from government.

‘The essence of the Act is to guarantee the right of access to information held by government institutions as well as to deepen governance and government ref
orms by addressing corruption and improving the credibility of the Country.

‘It is to promote citizens’ participation in governance, enhance and develop the country’s democracy by ensuring openness, transparency and accountability in the conduct of government business.

‘Nonetheless, the implementation of the FOI Act in the last thirteen years has come with a series of benefits and challenges”.

Jeddy-Agba said although the FOI unit has improved on the level of awareness of FOI, there are still many challenges facing the implementation of the Act.

‘There is still lack of functioning record management system in public institutions, lack of political will on the part of leaders to ensure the prompt release of information or records and culture of secrecy in government as big challenges”.

She commended the courts on their prompt rulings on FOI matters which have deepened its implementation.

Also speaking, Mr Shofola Osho, the Company Secretary and Legal Adviser of the Development Bank of Nigeria in his go
odwill message commended the FoI unit for pushing through despite all odds.

Osho urged for more commitments from all stakeholders and also called for review of the Act for more participation in open governance and accountability.

Mr Jubril Shittu, CEO Public and Private Development Centre, said with that with good working relationships, the ministry’s FOI unit has made significant progress.

In her own remarks, the Program Officer, Right to Know (R2K), Ms Vicky Etim noted that the annual FOI report has grown over the years but that experiences still needed to be shared on how challenges were overcame.

She advised that the Public Service handbook should be updated or reviewed to meet new laws and regulations that make it difficult to achieve more.

There were goodwill messages from the FOI standing Committee of National Assembly, Public Institutions, the media and Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) as well as robust interactions by all the participants at the event.

NAN reports that the FOI Act was enacted
on May 28, 2011.

The purpose and objectives of the FOI Act are to make public records and information more freely available and to provide for public access to public records and information.

Others are to protect public records and information to the extent consistent with the public interest and the protection of personal privacy and to protect serving public officers from adverse consequences for disclosing certain kinds of officials information without authorisation, among others.

Source: News Agency of Nigeria

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Agenda Gathering Process Inclusive, Participatory: Coalition of Ethiopian Women Association


Addis Ababa: Coalition of Ethiopian Women’s Association Director Convener of Women’s Voice in the National Dialogue, Saba Gebremedhim, said that the process of collecting agendas for the national consultative process has been observed to be inclusive and participatory.

In an interview with ENA, the director said Women’s Voice in the National Dialogue has been engaged in activities since the beginning of the consultative process in by incorporating more than 50 organizations.

The coalition has stated that it has organized various women’s forums in the districts of Addis Ababa and held discussions on the agendas that should be raised in the consultative process.

Stating that the national dialogue agenda setting process initiated in the city has ensured inclusiveness by involving various segments of the society including women, and that it has been a participatory process, she said everyone needs to play a positive role for its successful continuation until the end.

The Director, who mentioned that the discu
ssions held during the current agenda setting process will lay the foundation for the main national dialogue, underscored that the dialogue is crucial to creating consensus through democratic and peaceful means and to bring about justice.

She stressed that all segments of the society need to properly utilize the national consultative process, which presents a great opportunity to permanently resolve conflicts and other fundamental challenges facing the country, and work responsibly for its success.

Saba Gebremedhim called on women to actively participate in the efforts to ensure lasting peace as they are part of the solution.

The Ethiopian National Dialogue Commission, which was established by Proclamation No. 1265/2014 to conduct inclusive national dialogues on fundamental national issues to build better national consensus, has now embarked on implementing the third phase.

The inclusive national consultative process has phases of pre-preparation, preparation, consultative process, implementation and moni
toring.

The agenda setting process, which is part of the consultative phase, was officially launched last Wednesday in Addis Ababa, and representatives of various community groups have concluded three days of discussions on agenda items.

Accordingly, they have identified the agendas they want to be discussed in the consultations at the city administration level and submitted them to the Commission. The Ethiopian National Dialogue Commission announced that they have elected 121 representatives to present their agendas during the national dialogue.

Source: Ethiopian News Agency

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Ethiopia Provides Training for South Sudanese Diplomats


Addis Ababa: The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ethiopia and the Institute of Foreign Affairs organized a training program for South Sudanese diplomats.

The 20 diplomats who are departing Juba on 03 June 2024 to attend the training offered by the collaboration of IFA and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ethiopia are expected to serve as a vital link in enhancing relations and mutual growth between the two brotherly countries.

During the briefing session which was taken place at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of South Sudan, the Undersecretary of the Ministry, Ambassador John Samue highlighted the significance of this training.

The training not only does enhance capacity building but also strengthen the diplomatic relations between the two countries, he said.

In the same vein, Nebil Mahdi, Ethiopian Ambassador to South Sudan congratulated the diplomats and pointed out the unwavering commitment of Ethiopia and its leaders to the people of South Sudan.

Thus, the continuous s
upport being extended in various fields for South Sudan is a demonstration of solidifying the historic relations between our two countries, he said.

In this regard, the Ambassador explained that Ethiopia has been working aggressively to promote economic cooperation with South Sudan through infrastructure development such as roads and electricity, among others.

Finally, the Ambassador advised the diplomats to attend the training actively and to visit Addis Ababa as it is one of the fastest growing city in Africa.

Source: Ethiopian News Agency

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PM Abiy Calls for Seizing Opportunity of National Dialogue


Addis Ababa: Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has underscored the significance of the ongoing national dialogue process, calling on all Ethiopians to seize this opportunity to achieve a comprehensive victory by resolving outstanding issues through discussion.

In a message posted on his Face-book page, the Prime Minister reflected on Ethiopia’s past experiences with conflict and missed opportunities for dialogue.

He stated, “We have experienced war. We have solved some of our problems. We have repeated uprisings. We have solved some problems. However, the remaining path to address the unsolved problems is through dialogue. We have not tried this path.”

Acknowledging the limitations of war and uprisings, PM Abiy noted, “War and uprisings do not bring a complete solution as they create winners and losers. The defeated will continue to struggle to defeat, while the victor will strive to maintain their victory.”

He contrasted this with dialogue, stating, “Dialogue, on the other hand, makes everyone a winner. Even if
we were once defeated, we all fought for our country.”

The Prime Minister outlined three key benefits of the dialogue process saying ” It will solve, if not all, at least the major outstanding problems.

According to him, the dialogue will promote a culture of dialogue rather than conflict.

It will foster rapprochement and consensus among opposing forces, he said, adding this rapprochement will enable continued engagement on issues in the future.

Urging Ethiopians not to squander this opportunity, PM Abiy appealed, “I ask that we do not miss this chance to achieve a comprehensive victory.”

The Ethiopian National Dialogue Commission, which was established by Proclamation No. 1265/2014 to conduct inclusive national dialogues on fundamental national issues to build better national consensus, has now embarked on implementing the third phase.

The inclusive national consultative process has phases of pre-preparation, preparation, consultative process, implementation and monitoring.

The agenda setting process
, which is part of the consultative phase, was officially launched last Wednesday in Addis Ababa, and representatives of various community groups have concluded three days of discussions on agenda items.

Accordingly, they have identified the agendas they want to be discussed in the consultations at the city administration level and submitted them to the Commission.

They have elected 121 representatives to present their agendas during the national dialogue.

The Commission revealed that the dialogue will next move to the regional states.

Source: Ethiopian News Agency

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Gov’t Committed to Implementing Consensus Reached through National Dialogue: PM Abiy Ahmed


Addis Ababa: Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has declared his government’s commitment to implementing the consensus that would be reached through the national dialogue.

At the inaugural session of the nationwide agenda setting consultative chapter held at the Adwa Victory Memorial Museum today, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed took part as a stakeholder representing the government.

In his remarks at the event, the premier said Ethiopia is a country that has been experiencing wars and facing numerous challenges.

Dialogue is the solution to break this vicious history of war and upheaval, the premier noted.

“Today is a new chapter for Ethiopia,” the PM said, calling for active participation of all in this new chapter.

According to him, the aim of the national dialogue is to make Ethiopia a nation of hope by strengthening unity instead of division.

He further pointed out that properly utilizing this rare and historic opportunity for dialogue will make all winners. The prime minister urged all stakeholders not to miss th
is opportunity.

Stressing that the government has no intention of interfering in any way with the work of the Ethiopian National Dialogue Commission, Abiy expressed his belief that the commissioners with extensive knowledge and experience have also no other desire than to work for the benefit of the country.

The prime minister pledged that the government is determine to implement the consensus reached through the dialogue.

In the case of agendas we do not agree, they will be subject to a referendum. And after the decision of the people, we all must respect the decision, he stressed.

Abiy stated that attempts to resolve differences and disagreements by force only create temporary winners and losers, failing to provide a lasting solution to the challenges.

He concluded that through this dialogue Ethiopia will emerge victorious without any losers.

Source: Ethiopian News Agency

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