VenturesNow

AfDB demands improved terms, $25 billion to prevent “lost decade”

Published

4 months ago

June 7, 2024

According to the director of the continent’s development bank, Akin Adesina, Africa needs $25 billion, faster debt restructurings, and more favourable financing terms for the Africa Development Fund to prevent a lost decade.

Adesina, the continent was suffering from “long fiscal COVID” and the world was not doing enough to support it in getting past the years of hardship brought on by the pandemic and interest rate spikes, which had forced many countries into default.

“The G20 Common Framework, which is the bilateral and multilateral path to do (debt restructuring), must work faster for Africa,” Adesina said in a speech on Friday at London’s Chatham House, adding: “We can’t afford to have a lost decade.”

He also demanded a $25 billion restocking of the African Development Fund, the African Development Bank’s concessional lending division that provides loans to economically disadvantaged nations. The most ever replenishment committed, at $8.9 billion, during the funding cycle spanning 2023 to 2025.

This week, Zambia became the first nation to complete a debt rework under the Common Framework, a framework created by the G20 to assist developing nations in renegotiating unsustainable debt with all creditors, including China, which has significantly increased its loans to developing nations over the previous ten years.

However, Zambia’s authorities and others have complained that the nearly four gruelling years it took were too long for the procedure. In addition, Adesina reported that 22 African nations are at significant risk of financial trouble and that debt servicing obligations will reach $74 billion this year, up from $17 billion in 2010. Ethiopia and Ghana are also in default.

“This is because concessional financing has declined,” he said, adding: “You can’t do development at commercial rates. We have to make sure that the global financing system delivers more for Africa and avoid economic divergences that are coming about because of slow economic recovery in Africa from COVID.”

Adesina subsequently to journalists that the Paris Club, the established consortium of mostly Western creditor countries, needed to be permanently enlarged and that the Common Framework needed to incorporate quicker credit committee formation.

“The Paris Club was all about concessional lenders. But the world has changed,” he said, adding that expanding it was important “because it will allow you to reach a faster dialogue and a resolution”.

VenturesNow

Zambia eyes recovery following worst drought

Published

8 hours ago

September 28, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

As it emerges from its worst drought in living memory, Zambia hopes to achieve a fast recovery in economic growth and a halving of its budget deficit in the following year, the country’s finance minister announced on Friday.

In contrast to a projected 2.3% growth in 2024, the copper producer aims for 6.6% growth in 2025, according to Finance Minister, Situmbeko Musokotwane, in a budget speech.

The El Nino-caused drought destroyed Southern Africa’s crops, resulting in food shortages and harming the region’s economic prospects this year.

Zambia’s finance minister said on Friday that the nation, which is coming out of the worst drought in living memory, intends to quickly recover economic growth and cut its budget deficit in half the next year.

Finance Minister Situmbeko Musokotwane stated in a budget address that the copper producer is targeting 6.6% growth in 2025 as opposed to a projected 2.3% increase in 2024.

A UNICEF study in March 2024 states that the majority of the country’s central and southern regions have been impacted by the dry spell since mid-January. These regions have gotten less rainfall than usual, which has resulted in the destruction of one million hectares of maize—nearly half of all the corn grown in the nation.

Since hydropower generates more than 80% of Zambia’s electricity, the analysis also predicted that the drought would cause a power shortage of 430 megawatts and have an impact on surface and groundwater levels. These projections would have serious ramifications for industries other than agriculture.

The minister further stated that following the conclusion of a Eurobond restructuring exercise, Zambia was still negotiating restructuring arrangements with certain commercial creditors.

He reported that the China Development Bank and the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China have just struck provisional restructuring agreements with Zambia.

It has been demonstrated that the agreements are in line with Zambia’s IMF program and the “Comparability of Treatment principle,” which aims to prevent the wealthier creditor nations that make up the Paris Club from making disproportionate concessions in comparison to other creditors.

The lengthy debt restructuring process in Zambia has hurt local financial markets and discouraged investment.

VenturesNow

Ghana central bank cuts key rate as inflation cools

Published

21 hours ago

September 27, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

The governor of Ghana’s central bank has stated that the country’s economy is still recovering strongly and that inflation is continuing to decline, causing the bank to drop its main interest rate by 200 basis points to 27%. This was the first rate cut since January.

At a press conference Friday, Bank of Ghana Governor Ernest Addison stated that economic indicators point to a proceeding disinflation, with price increases continuing to moderate in the direction of the year’s short-term range target of 13% to 17%.

“Such a strong signalling of the monetary policy rate by reducing it by 200 basis points tells you that the central bank is quite satisfied with the progress of recovery of this economy,” Addison said, adding that all indicators including growth, inflation and fiscal policy are improving.

According to Reuters polled economists in July, Ghana’s interest rate is predicted to drop by 200 basis points by year’s end.

“This easing of policy is understandable, given that the recent falls in inflation had caused real interest rates to rise, something that this cut will partially reverse,” said Leslie Dwinght-Mensah, economist and research fellow at Accra-based Institute for Fiscal Studies.

“The strong rate of economic activity, which official data recently revealed, also gave the central bank the comfort to take this step.”

Economists surveyed by Reuters in July expected that by year’s end, Ghana’s interest rate will have decreased by 200 basis points.

“The strong rate of economic activity, which official data recently revealed, also gave the central bank the comfort to take this step.”

Economists surveyed by Reuters in July expected that by year’s end, Ghana’s interest rate will have decreased by 200 basis points.

“The strong rate of economic activity, which official data recently revealed, also gave the central bank the comfort to take this step.”

Following the completion of preliminary debt restructuring negotiations with two bondholder groups, Ghana extended an invitation to holders of its approximately $13 billion worth of international bonds to exchange their holdings for new instruments.

Bondholders can accept the offer until September 30.