Musings From Abroad

Kenya wants fresh $1 billion loan, reviewed repayment period from China

Published

1 year ago

October 6, 2023

Kenya’s Deputy President, Rigathi Gachagua has revealed that the country plans to seek a $1 billion loan from China to complete stalled road construction projects.

Gachagua said President William Ruto would make the request when he travelled to Beijing later this month. He claims that Ruto’s proposal, which also asks that the maturities of existing loans be extended, represents a change in Ruto’s position on Chinese debt following criticism from his coalition of his predecessor’s borrowing binge from China during the election campaign last year.

The former government of President Uhuru Kenyatta used the Chinese loans, which totalled more than $8 billion, to build roads and other infrastructure, but many of these projects have already halted as a result of contractors’ unpaid invoices.

Gachagua said on the local Inooro FM radio station that President Ruto would tell Chinese officials “Can we talk to see if you can add us time, so we can pay slowly, and add us a little money so we can finish road construction?”

“If we get $1 billion we can be able to give these people (contractors) the money they are owed so they can return so even as we pay the debt, the roads are completed,” he said.

“It is true that many people have been travelling abroad, spending a lot of money, and that is why the president ordered that even ministers and governors can only travel with two people,” Gachagua said.

Kenya is one of the nations in Africa dealing with a debt issue. According to official figures, it is currently under financial hardship since it must spend around half of its income to pay off obligations that are about to become due. Foreign loan obligations and a sharp devaluation of the Kenyan shilling have made the situation worse.

On Tuesday, the president’s office placed some restrictions on government employees’ travel abroad, and the cabinet ordered all ministries to reduce their budgets by 10%.#}

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Musings From Abroad

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

Published

21 hours 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.

Musings From Abroad

Blinken to reveal UN Sudan funding additions

Published

2 days ago

December 20, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

Additional financing for humanitarian aid to Sudan and initiatives to strengthen civil society in the nation, where a conflict has killed tens of thousands of people and displaced millions, will be announced by U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken at the United Nations on Thursday.

Blinken will make many announcements when he leads a UN Security Council meeting on Sudan on Thursday, which will centre on humanitarian aid and civilian protection, Deputy U.S. Representative to the UN Ned Price told reporters on Wednesday.

According to Price, the announcements would include more money for humanitarian help, initiatives to strengthen civil society, and the return of democracy.

“Sudan, unfortunately, has risked becoming a forgotten conflict,” Price said.

“So part of the reason the secretary … opted to convene a signature event on this very topic is to make sure it remains in the spotlight,” Price said.

For almost 18 months, the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces and Sudan’s army have been engaged in combat, resulting in a severe humanitarian crisis that has forced over 12 million people from their homes and made it difficult for U.N. organisations to provide aid.

A power struggle between the RSF and the Sudanese Armed Forces preceded a planned shift to civilian administration, which sparked the conflict in April 2023.

Although the army declined to join this year’s U.S.-mediated peace negotiations in Geneva, the warring parties did pledge to increase assistance access, which prevented any movement towards a ceasefire.

Price stated that before President Joe Biden’s term ends next month, the United States would keep collaborating with allies to enhance humanitarian access in Sudan and eventually end hostilities.

“We are going to leave nothing on the field in our efforts to work with allies, with partners, with the Sudanese stakeholders themselves, on the issues that matter most – humanitarian access, the provision of humanitarian assistance, ultimately, the process by which we can work to get to a cessation of hostilities, which is most urgently needed,” he said.