Musings From Abroad

Prince Charles slams British government over plan to send refugees to Rwanda

Published

3 years ago

June 12, 2022

UK’s Prince Charles has slammed the British government over its plans to deport asylum seekers to Rwanda, describing the move by Prime Minister Boris Johnson as appalling.

The heir to the British throne who is not allowed to publicly criticise the government by law, is reportedly concerned that the controversial asylum agreement the UK entered into with the African country will overshadow a Commonwealth Summit in Rwanda where he is due to represent his mother, Queen Elizabeth, at the end of June.

Under the UK’s unwritten constitution, the royal family should remain politically neutral and while Queen Elizabeth has steadfastly kept her opinions to herself during her seven-decade reign, Prince Charles, however, has in many instances, expressed his views about subjects close to his heart.

As the first flight which is scheduled to leave UK on Tuesday with about 30 migrants confirmed after a judge rejected lawsuits filed in attempts to halt the deport bid, Prince Charles is said to have been heard criticising the policy.

“He said he was more than disappointed at the policy. He said he thinks the government’s whole approach is appalling. It was clear he was not impressed with the government’s direction of travel,” a palace source revealed to a journalist.

A spokesperson for Prince Charles did not also deny he had expressed his personal opinions about the policy in private when contacted by the journalist.

“We would not comment on supposed anonymous private conversations with the Prince except to restate that he remains politically neutral. Matters of policy are decisions for government,” the spokesperson reportedly said.

The British government had announced in April it had struck a deal worth £120 million with Rwanda to send tens of thousands of asylum seekers to the East African country in a bid to undermine people-smuggling networks.

Up to 130 asylum seekers have been notified they could be sent to Rwanda and lawyers for almost 100 of the migrants had submitted legal challenges asking to stay in the UK.

On Friday, a British judge, Jonathan Swift, refused a request from a group of the asylum-seekers, backed by a trade union and refugee groups, for an injunction grounding the flight scheduled to airlift 30 of the migrants to Rwanda on Tuesday, June 14.

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Musings From Abroad

World Bank doubts Ethiopia-IMF debt assessment

Published

2 days ago

December 24, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

Some officials of the World Bank have questioned if the study supporting Ethiopia’s debt restructuring may be “faulty” after criticising an evaluation of the country’s finances done with the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

World Bank consultant, Brian Pinto, and its head economist, Indermit Gill, evaluated the July Debt Sustainability Analysis (DSA), which was created by the IMF and employees of the International Development Association (IDA), the World Bank’s fund for the world’s poorest countries, in an internal document seen by Reuters.

According to the authors, Ethiopia is experiencing a short-term cash shortage rather than a long-term solvency problem, which is a source of conflict between the government and holders of its $1 billion international bond that is in default, based on the DSA.

“We found that the bondholders have interpreted the DSA correctly, but the DSA itself may be faulty,” Pinto and Gill wrote in the paper from earlier this month. “The disagreements about Ethiopia’s debt sustainability will be repeated as other countries become debt distressed.”

A World Bank representative responded to a question regarding the paper by saying, “We generally don’t comment on internal deliberations between the World Bank and the IMF or any of our partner institutions.”

As part of the most recent review of the Fund’s loan program, Ethiopian State Finance Minister Eyob Tekalign told Reuters that the DSA had just been reviewed by IMF and World Bank teams and that the status had not changed significantly.

Without providing further details, an IMF representative acknowledged that its officials travelled to Ethiopia in November for the second review of the Fund’s loan program and added that every review incorporates an update to the DSA. Regarding the memo, the spokeswoman remained silent.

A request for comment from Pinto and Gill was not answered. There has been a tense confrontation between Ethiopian officials and bondholders.

The main point of contention is whether, as bondholders contend, Ethiopia is experiencing a liquidity shortage that may be resolved by rescheduling debt or if it is experiencing longer-term financial issues that necessitate haircuts, or debt write-downs.

According to the DSA, certain statistics on exports indicated pressures on both liquidity and solvency.

It was reported in October that the DSA indicated a solvency problem and that writedowns were inevitable. Investors have criticised a government proposal that suggests an 18% haircut in addition to rejecting the evaluation.

Musings From Abroad

Swiss company Mercuria partners Zambia’s IDC in new metals trading firm

Published

5 days ago

December 21, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

According to a statement released by Swiss commodities trader, Mercuria, on Thursday, it has established a metals trading arm with Zambia, the second-largest producer of copper in Africa.

The trading unit is jointly owned by Mercuria and an arm of Zambia’s Industrial Development Company (IDC), and its purpose is to allow Zambia to engage directly in the minerals trading market.

The joint venture “envisages the establishment of a vehicle to market and trade Zambian copper by mutual leverage,” according to a statement from Cornwell Muleya, the CEO of IDC.

The southern African nation wants to increase copper output to roughly 3 million metric tonnes within the next ten years, and in 2023, it produced roughly 698,000 tonnes of copper, down from 763,000 metric tonnes the year before.

In June, the Zambian government announced that it would establish a minerals trading unit.

Investors including First Quantum Minerals and Barrick Gold are ramping up production, with output set to receive a further boost once Vedanta Resources’ Konkola Copper Mines restart activity.

“Our joint venture with IDC marks a significant milestone for Zambia as it positions itself more strategically in the global minerals market,” Kostas Bintas, Mercuria’s global head of metals and minerals, said in the statement.