In 1998, when President Bill Clinton's infamous dalliance with Monica Lewinsky became a public scandal and resulted in him facing charges of perjury, I recall Africans and African comedians cracking jokes and having serious conversations saying "What's all the furor about? What's the big deal? So the President had a...
There are many aspects of African culture that are admirable and have tremendous merits, e.g., our respect for age, our appreciation of community, recognition of marriage as a union of two families and not two individuals, etc. However, there are aspects of our culture that contribute directly to our...
As the threat of a COVID-19 pandemic emerged earlier this year, many felt a sense of apprehension about what would happen when it reached Africa. Concerns over the combination of overstretched and underfunded health systems and the existing load of infectious and non-infectious diseases often led to it being...
WTO members made history yesterday when the General Council agreed by consensus to select Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala of Nigeria as the organization’s seventh Director-General.
History is made: Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala chosen as Director-General
When she takes office on 1 March, Dr Okonjo-Iweala will become the first woman and the first African to be...
An extraordinary meeting of the ECOWAS Commission has ended in Accra with heads of states giving extended timelines to the coup countries of Mali, Burkina Faso and Guinea to initiate processes towards the return to democratic and constitutional rule.
According to the Commission, states that may fail to comply with...
As the rest of the world prepares for a vaccine-driven return to normal over the next few months, at her community health center in a poor, working class neighborhood of Cape Town, Andrea Mendelsohn is dreading the arrival of April and May—that’s when the weather will get cooler in...
The United Republic of Tanzania announces the opening of its new consulate in Ghana, having received the Exequatur of the President of the Republic of Ghana through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration of the Republic of Ghana. The new consulate will be located in Accra, the...
Higher debt levels, weaker debt affordability, and low buffers pose significant challenges, given limited institutional capacity
Growth recovery will vary throughout the region
Tourism-dependent economies like Kenya, Mauritius and Tanzania will particularly see a slow recovery
Low domestic revenue mobilisation will continue to plague SSA sovereigns; particularly Nigeria, Ethiopia...
There is a need to focus on fundamentals: producing more of what Africa consumes and consuming more of what Africa produces
The COVID-19 pandemic and its health and economic impacts have forced a global rethink of the current multilateral framework and what it means for the future. For Africa, COVID-19...