Connect with us

Musings From Abroad

Brazil’s Lula da Silva keen on resuming ‘good and fruitful’ relations with Africa

Published

on

Brazilian President, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva says he is keen on strengthening bilateral relations with African states which existed when he was in office for the first time in the 2000s.

Lula wants to resume the “good and fruitful” relations his country once enjoyed with Africa.

Lula said he looked forward to visiting “several” African countries this year and the next as “Brazil has the potential to help Africa in several aspects.”

Lula, who took office in January for his third non-consecutive term, mentioned that his country could have helped African nations to purchase COVID-19 vaccines during the pandemic.

“Now I want to have meetings with African leaders so we can see how Brazil can advance in helping the African continent,” the leftist leader said after meeting with Cape Verdean President, Jose Maria Neves.

Brazil and Africa have had diplomatic ties since the 16th century when the slave trade was at its height. Around five million Africans were sent to Brazil during this time, making it the transatlantic slave trade’s primary destination. Three factors served as the foundation of Brazil’s colonial economy: foreign dependence, extensive land ownership, and slavery.

Many African leaders were quick to congratulate Brazil’s President on his election. They are counting on da Silva to improve relations.

Africa’s relations with Brazil suffered under former President Jair Bolsonaro. The re-election of President da Silva drew hopeful comments from Africa when he returned to power in January. One of such comments was credited to Guinea-Bissau’s President, Umaro Sissoco Embalo who remarked that “Africa will again be a priority in Brazil’s relations with the world.”

The chairperson of the South Africa-based Democracy Works Foundation, William Gumede, was also credited in an international publication with the quote, “I think we’ll get back to the original Lula strategy of a closer relationship with Africa and much closer relations again with South Africa and BRICS.”

At the moment, South Africa is the only African state in the BRICS, but interest in joining has continued to grow in African countries.

Membership in BRICS could facilitate the strengthening of Africa/Brazil relations as the South American country is a critical stakeholder in the group, sharing the space with China, India, and Russia, which experts believe will be the dominant suppliers of manufactured goods, services, and raw materials by 2050.

Musings From Abroad

Nigeria, China extend $2bn currency swap deal

Published

on

A 15 billion yuan ($2 billion) currency-swap arrangement between China and Nigeria has been extended to boost investment and commerce between the two countries.

According to the People’s Bank of China, the agreement is anticipated to strengthen financial cooperation and encourage the wider use of the yuan and naira in bilateral transactions, as reported by Bloomberg and Chinese local media on Friday.

“The agreement is valid for three years and may be renewed upon mutual consent,” the central bank said in a statement.

The bank stated that by lowering reliance on third-party currencies like the US dollar, the currency-swap agreement renewal is expected to strengthen economic linkages, promote investment, and ease cross-border commerce.

When the Central Bank of Nigeria and the People’s Bank of China inked an agreement worth renminbi (RMB) 16 billion (about $2.5 billion) in May 2018, the currency-swap framework was first implemented.

Yi Gang, the former governor of the PBoC, and Godwin Emefiele, the suspended governor of the CBN, signed the deal.

The original agreement was intended to eliminate the need for third-party currencies like the US dollar by giving companies and industries in both nations direct access to the yuan and naira.

“This agreement will provide naira liquidity to Chinese businesses and RMB liquidity to Nigerian businesses respectively, thereby improving the speed, convenience, and volume of transactions between the two countries,” the CBN had said at the time of the signing.

To promote flexible and varied regional monetary and financial cooperation, including local currency swaps, to ease commerce between the two countries, President Bola Tinubu and President Xi Jinping of China met in September.

The leaders also talked about how currency-swap programs contribute to global financial stability.

Nigeria and China agreed to strengthen international collaboration on financial intelligence, emphasizing anti-money laundering and fighting the funding of terrorism, since commerce between the two nations makes up around 30% of Nigeria’s total trade.

Continue Reading

Musings From Abroad

World Bank suspends loan fees for impoverished countries

Published

on

To lower borrowing costs for vulnerable nations, the World Bank has announced the elimination of several loan fees. The action is a component of larger initiatives to increase financial capacity and tackle pressing global issues including inequality, climate change, and economic instability.

This was revealed by the international bank in a statement on Wednesday. The bank has extended its lowest pricing to tiny, fragile nations, removed the prepayment cost on International Bank for Reconstruction and Development loans, and instituted a grace period for commitment fees on undisbursed amounts.

“The bank is working hard to make it easier for countries to borrow and to pay back their loans more easily by removing some fees on IBRD loans,” the financial institution stated.

The financier claims that these adjustments are intended to relieve the financial strain on countries that require development funding the most.

“These measures are designed to make borrowing easier and more affordable for countries facing significant challenges,” the bank said. It added that the reforms align with its vision of building a “better, more efficient, and bigger” institution capable of addressing overlapping global crises.

The World Bank’s larger financial reforms, which include fee eliminations, are intended to boost lending capacity by $150 billion over the next ten years.

As part of the changes, the IBRD’s equity-to-loans ratio was lowered from 20% to 18%, allowing for an additional $70 billion in lending over ten years.

According to the statement, $1 billion was obtained through a guarantee from the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, and an additional $10 billion has been released through bilateral guarantees.

“The adjustments to our capital framework reflect our commitment to scaling up resources while maintaining financial stability,” the bank said.

The international lender highlighted that these adjustments are essential to tackling the billions of dollars that are required each year to help fragile governments, fight climate change, and advance digital inclusion.

It did concede, nevertheless, that states and multilateral organisations are insufficient to discharge these financial obligations on their own.

The Bank has created a Framework for Financial Incentives to close the gap, promoting investments in cross-border issues like pandemic prevention, energy access, water security, and biodiversity.

Continue Reading

EDITOR’S PICK

VenturesNow1 week ago

Nigeria: Marketers predict further price cut as another refinery begins operations

Oil marketers and the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority expect refined petroleum product prices to reduce as another...

VenturesNow1 week ago

Kenya: Consumer inflation rises to 3.0% from 2.8%

Kenya’s statistics agency said on Tuesday that Kenya’s consumer price inflation increased slightly to 3.0% year-over-year in December from 2.8%...

VenturesNow1 week ago

South Africa’s Transnet’s half-year deficit hits $117m

Transnet, a state-owned logistics company in South Africa, announced on Tuesday that it had lost 2.2 billion rand ($117.48 million)...

Musings From Abroad1 week ago

Nigeria, China extend $2bn currency swap deal

A 15 billion yuan ($2 billion) currency-swap arrangement between China and Nigeria has been extended to boost investment and commerce...

VenturesNow1 week ago

Egypt’s central bank maintains overnight rates

As anticipated, Egypt’s central bank has maintained its overnight interest rates, stating that although inflation was predicted to drop significantly...

VenturesNow1 week ago

Illicit flows cost Nigeria, others $1.6bn daily— AfDB

According to the African Development Bank (AfDB), illicit money flows and profit shifting by multinational corporations doing business in Africa...

Metro2 weeks ago

‘Don’t start what you can’t finish’, ex-Nigerian official replies President Tchiani

Former Nigerian Aviation Minister, Femi Fani-Kayode, has told President Abdourahamane Tchiani of Niger Republic to refrain from making infantile and...

Tech2 weeks ago

Again, Starlink raises prices of its services in Nigeria

Elon Musk’s satellite internet service provider, Starlink, has again jacked up the prices of its services in Nigeria after an...

Sports2 weeks ago

Former President of Moroccan club Raja sentenced to 3 years in prison

The former President of Moroccan top club, Raja Casablanca, Mohamed Aouzal, has been sentenced to three and a half years...

Metro2 weeks ago

Zambia announces second case of Mpox as country battles cholera outbreak

The Zambian Ministry of Health has reported a second case of Monkeypox, popularly known as Mpox, in Kitwe region of...

Trending