African leaders welcomed the opening of a regional office of the Global Center on Adaptation on Wednesday, voicing hopes it will spur the continent’s efforts to combat climate change. In speeches marking the virtual launch of GCA Africa, the leaders said the Center could also provide an impetus for a more resilient recovery after COVID-19, which they said had compounded climate-induced vulnerabilities. “In the post-COVID period, our objective should not only be to recover and build better but to do so in a climate-conscious way,” said Ethiopian President Sahle-Work Zewde.…
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New Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office will lead global action to ensure world’s poorest are protected from ravages of coronavirus and famine
Foreign Secretary urges countries to step up alongside the UK to fight back against coronavirus and growing risk of famine in developing countries. The UK will lead a global call to action to protect the world’s poorest people from coronavirus and the increasing threat of famine, the Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab announced today (2 September 2020). Foreign Secretary urges countries to step up alongside the UK to fight back against coronavirus and growing risk of famine in developing countries UK announces a new £119 million aid package to combat threat…
Read MoreJapanese Ship Operator to Put $9.4M Toward Mauritius Oil Spill Recovery
The operator of a Japanese-owned bulk carrier that crashed into a reef in late July, causing a widespread oil spill in Mauritius, will pay at least $9.4 million over several years to fund environmental projects and support local fishing communities. The spill took place near the coastal areas of southeast Mauritius, an area of international importance because of its environmentally protected ecosystems and wetlands. Experts say about 1,000 tons of fuel leaked from the ship into the surrounding blue lagoons — a favorite location for the filming of numerous Bollywood…
Read MoreWorld Bank Provides $130.8 Million to Upgrade Road Infrastructure in Areas Hosting Refugees in Uganda’s West Nile sub-region
WASHINGTON, September 10, 2020 – The World Bank Board of Directors today approved a grant of $130.8 million from the International Development Association (IDA) to ease the movement of goods and people and improve access to social services and job opportunities in the refugee hosting districts in the West Nile sub-region of Uganda. It is financed through the IDA18 Window for Host Communities and Refugees. The Uganda Roads and Bridges in the Refugee Hosting Districts Project will upgrade 105 kilometre (km) Koboko-Yumbe-Moyo road from gravel to bitumen and strengthen the…
Read MoreCameroon Says Conflict Destroying Anglophone Regions’ Economies
YAOUNDE – Cameroon says the economies of its troubled English-speaking western regions are collapsing as a result of the country’s four-year separatist conflict. Officials say the ongoing fighting has made tax revenues in the English-speaking Northwest region drop from $800,000 annually to just $1,000 last year. The lack of government funds has had devastating effects on the region. Fotso Dominique, the most senior government economic official in the English-speaking Northwest region, says separatist fighters have succeeded in chasing customs and tax officials from almost all crossing points along the border…
Read MoreOil Companies Want Kenya to Loosen Strict Stance on Plastics
NAIROBI – The oil industry has asked the United States to pressure Kenya to change its world-leading stance against the plastic waste that litters Africa, according to environmentalists who fear the continent will be used as a dumping ground. The request from the American Chemistry Council, whose members include major oil companies, to the Office of the United States Trade Representative came as the U.S and Kenya negotiate what would be the first U.S. bilateral trade deal with a country in sub-Saharan Africa. That deal is expected to be a…
Read MoreWorld Bank Group Exceeds 2020 Climate Finance Target for 3rd Consecutive Year – $21.4 Billion in Funding for Climate Action
STORY HIGHLIGHTS • In fiscal year 2020, the World Bank Group allocated nearly $21.4 billion to climate-related investments, surpassing its climate-finance target for the third year in a row. • Bank Group climate finance exceeded $83 billion over the 5 years that the first Climate Change Action Plan (2016-2020) was in effect. • Three country snapshots illustrate ways in which climate change considerations were integrated into projects in Malawi, Bangladesh and Tunisia. Facing a Development Challenge Like No Other As countries struggle with COVID-19, they are also being hit by…
Read MoreAfrica Looks to Tax Tech Giants as Economic Fallout From COVID Bites
ADDIS ABABA – Tax officials in Africa estimate that government revenues will drop between 10 and 30 percent in 2020 as a result of the economic fallout stemming from the coronavirus pandemic. But while businesses in the hospitality, construction and retail sectors have suffered, digital companies have boomed as more people stay home and conduct their activities online. This is driving talks in Africa about how to make sure big multinationals such as Google and Facebook, which do not always have a physical presence in the countries where they make…
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