News
tralac’s Daily News selection: 10 September 2015
The selection: Thursday, 10 September
Ground-breaking declaration to curb illegal timber trade in East and Southern Africa (TRAFFIC)
The national forest agencies of Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Madagascar and Mozambique have launched a historic declaration jointly to combat illegal timber trade in Eastern and Southern Africa, taking a significant step towards addressing this growing driver of forest loss. The declaration was launched at a side event in Durban, South Africa, at the XIV World Forestry Congress, one of the largest gatherings of world forestry leaders. The event was facilitated by TRAFFIC, WWF and the Southern African Development Community. “The Zanzibar Declaration signals a firm commitment by the five countries concerned to curtail the illegal and unsustainable timber trade that is benefitting criminals and depleting the natural resources of the region,” said Julie Thomson, TRAFFIC’s East Africa Programme Co-ordinator. There is growing intra-regional and inter-regional illegal trade of timber and other forest products flowing across Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda, Madagascar, Zambia, Mozambique, Malawi, as well as further towards the Western and Central Africa termed Africa’s "Green Heart." [Zanzibar Declaration]
DRC timber trade tracker (Global Witness)
Africa Day at the XIV World Forestry Congress (AU)
Official development finance for infrastructure by multilateral and bilateral development partners (OECD)
Key findings for 2013 include the following:
Total infrastructure investments in developing countries amounted to roughly USD 1 trillion a year, of which more than half was financed by developing country governments and a third by the private sector.
Official development partners generally financed 6-7% of infrastructure investments, which amounted to about USD 60 billion. Of the development partner financing, 46% was from bilaterals and 54% from multilaterals.
Among development partners, China, India, Turkey and Arab partners provided about 13% of total official support for infrastructure through south-south development co-operation. Among those reporting to the DAC, the top 10 development partners, which included multilaterals, G7 countries and Korea, provided over 80% of ODF to infrastructure.
Asia received half of ODF for infrastructure, Africa 28%, Americas 12% and Europe 10%. Lower Middle Income Countries received 43% of ODF to infrastructure, Upper Middle Income Countries 33%, and Low Income Countries 24%.
Transport received 45% of ODF to infrastructure, followed by energy at 32%, water & sanitation at 19%, and communications at 4%. Support for green infrastructure was 37% of ODF to infrastructure.
Note: Readers can access the extensive list of supporting documents, submitted to the G20 Finance Ministers meeting, with individual links for downloads, on pages 4-5 in the official G20 communique.
South Africa will become the sixth country, and the first in Africa, to host the International Renewable Energy Conference. Convened by the Renewable Energy Policy Network for the 21stCentury (REN21), IREC is a high-level political conference series hosted by a national government. Previous hosts include: Bonn (2004), Beijing (2005), Washington (2008), Delhi (2010), Abu Dhabi (2013). SAIREC 2015 will attract an estimated 6000 delegates from around the world. The event will be hosted from 4–7 October at Cape Town International Convention Centre, South Africa. [Further details can be obtained from the conference www]
African ministers attend China Energy Forum (CAJ News Agency)
Energy ministers from the continent are set to attend the upcoming fourth Annual Africa Infrastructure and Power Forum in China. The event is scheduled for the capital Beijing on October 15-16. EnergyNet is organising the event that once again partners with the China Africa Development Fund, who will be seeking new projects to receive some of the $5 billion under their management. Officials to attend are drawn from Democratic Republic of Congo, Kenya, Namibia, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, South Africa and Uganda.
Turkey's engagement in Sub-Saharan Africa: shifting alliances and strategic diversification (Chatham House)
This paper considers the nature, balance and effectiveness of Turkey’s expanded relationships in SSA. It examines the extent to which Turkish ‘soft’ power in SSA is a matter of policy design and therefore is reaping the benefits of strategic engagements, or whether it is instead the result of a confluence of cultural, trade and humanitarian engagements that have fed into the policy agenda. [The author: David Shinn]
India opens up services market to least developed countries (LiveMint)
Taking the lead among developing as well as developed countries, India on Wednesday opened up its services market to least developed countries (LDCs) by waiving business and employment visa fees for applicants from such countries. The Cabinet decision to provide preferential treatment in services trade to LDCs comes ahead of the Nairobi ministerial meet of World Trade Organisation countries in December where the decision is expected to be notified.
South Africa: Govt eyes business opportunities in DRC (SAnews)
"Currently, South Africa is the DRC's number one import source in the world at 21.40%. Total trade between South Africa and DRC is reflective of the regional trend that continues to characterise SA's trade with African countries. There is considerable growth in both exports and imports, however South Africa continues to dominate the terms of trade between the two countries," he said on Wednesday. Minister Davies said the trade initiative was aligned with the dti's post-conflict reconstruction strategy for the DRC, which also entails infrastructure rehabilitation and development, as well as the facilitation of investments into that country's economy by South African entities.
Tanzania: BoT backs illicit money flow watchdogs (IPPMedia)
The Bank of Tanzania wants uninhibited autonomy granted to financial institutions and agencies that monitor illicit financial flows in the country. In an exclusive with The Guardian, central bank Governor Prof Benno Ndulu also called for the watchdog institutions to be given human and financial support to enable them to operate more efficiently and effectively. He said Tanzania has in place independent government institutions and agencies responsible for preventing illicit financial flows and emphasised that they should be given candid independence if they are to discharge their duties as expected of them. Entities mandated to deal with IFFs in Tanzania are the Police Force, the Prevention and Combating of Corruption Bureau (PCCB), the Immigration Department, the Tanzania Revenue Authority and the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU). “Currently, the Bank of Tanzania, under Norwegian sponsorship, is undertaking a study on IFFs which is expected to be finalised in December 2015,” the Governor announced.
Zimbabwe: IMF staff conduct Second Review of Zimbabwe’s Staff-Monitored Programme (IMF)
Economic difficulties have intensified this year. Growth has slowed more than anticipated and we expect it to remain weak in 2015. Despite the favourable impact of lower oil prices, the external position remains precarious and the country in debt distress. The authorities are committed to laying the foundation for sustained strong, private sector-led growth. The policy reform agenda for the remainder of the SMP consists of the following major areas:
Domestic resource mobilisation spurs Zimbabwe, says Chinamasa (The Herald)
Nigeria: Why FG is against devaluation (ThisDay)
The presidency has thrown its weight behind the Central Bank of Nigeria on its decision not to devalue the naira and lift its currency curbs, which culminated in the decision on Tuesday by US investment bank JP Morgan & Chase to phase out Nigerian government bonds from its Government Bond Index for Emerging Markets (GBI-EM) by the end of October. Speaking on the issue to THISDAY on Wednesday, a top presidency official who preferred not to be named, said the CBN, Federal Ministry of Finance and Debt Management Office had the endorsement of the presidency in their joint statement reacting to JP Morgan’s announcement on the delisting of Nigeria’s bonds from its indices starting from September 30.
JP Morgan to remove Nigeria from government bond index (The Africa Report)
Kenya launches new global trade and investment campaign (CPI Financial)
The President of Kenya Uhuru Kenyatta has officially launched ‘Make it Kenya’, a new international brand campaign to promote investment. In addition to the new campaign brand, the launch included the activation of a new digital portal, MakeItKenya.com and supporting social media platforms. Make It Kenya aims to engage, inform and advise investors looking to invest into Kenya. The platform will offer the latest information on the country’s economic performance, sector-specific investment opportunities, and Government incentives and support available to global companies seeking to open or grow their business in Kenya.
Amina Mohamed: 'Kenya looking at the world, not east or west' (CapitalFM)
Uhuru assures Italian investors of easy access to visas (CapitalFM)
Multimedia: How Kenya can improve its cross border trade (CNBC Africa)
Namibia: Government looking at cheaper options than Kudu (New Era)
President Hage Geingob yesterday said he has ordered a review of the Kudu gas-to-power project. During an interactive town hall meeting at the Khomas Regional Council with members of the Windhoek business community, Geingob said government was working on less expensive options to provide reliable electricity for the country. He was responding to concerns raised by the business community through the Namibia Chamber of Commerce and Industry (NCCI) about the security of electricity supply, which is crucial for industries to thrive, and to attract investment.
Namibia: International treaties not being implemented – Cabinet (New Era)
Digital Jobs Africa Forum: partnerships and opportunities for digital jobs (World Bank Blogs)
In partnership with the Digital Jobs Africa Initiative, the World Bank has undertaken a number of activities to increase and enhance opportunities for digital job creation in Africa, including development of an information technology park in Ghana, capacity building for digitization of public records, and online work/microwork awareness building and training in Nigeria. Recently, the global online outsourcing study was also released to analyze the holistic picture of rapidly growing online outsourcing market (please visit www.ictforjobs.org for more information). [The author: Saori Imaizumi]
East Asia’s challenge: ensuring that growth helps poor (World Bank Blogs)
How can East Asia sustain strong growth and create better opportunities and more prosperity for everyone? The topic will be a central theme at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation finance ministers’ meeting to be held on Sept. 10-11 in the Philippines. Apec, with 21 member-economies from North and South America, Asia and the Pacific, and Russia, will discuss strategies for structural reforms and integrated approaches to build resilient and sustainable economies.
High-Level Forum on a Culture of Peace: UNGA debate summary
WASCOF urges ECOWAS to limit presidential term in West Africa (Leadership)
Zimbabwe: Crop target set (The Herald)
Companies struggle to comply with rules on conflict minerals (New York Times)
Vietnam, Egypt to increase trade value (Viet Nam News)
Tanzania: Govt resumes talks for $800m to support the shilling (IPPMedia)
European Union ratifies WTO Trade Faciliation Agreement (Borderlex)
AfDB, Japan sign private sector assistance loan (AfDB)
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This post has been sourced on behalf of tralac and disseminated to enhance trade policy knowledge and debate. It is distributed to over 300 recipients across Africa and internationally, serving in the AU, RECS, national government trade departments and research and development agencies. Your feedback is most welcome. Any suggestions that our recipients might have of items for inclusion are most welcome. Richard Humphries (Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.; Twitter: @richardhumphri1)
