Djibouti pursues its ambitious growth projects in 2021
In spite of the particularly challenging international economic situation arising from the health crisis, the Republic of Djibouti has entered the year 2021 with determination. According to the World Bank’s Global Economic Prospects report, Djibouti is expected to experience the strongest GDP growth in Africa this year with a projected rate of 7.1%.
Lacking natural wealth, exposed to a demanding and arid environment, Djibouti has been able to build on its main asset: its geostrategic location at the entrance to the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait, at the intersection of major global shipping routes, used by a mega ship every 25 minutes.
Accordingly, Djibouti has developed a business model based on unique port and logistics solutions. Since 2013, when the Vision 2035 development plan was implemented, Djibouti has been committed to modernizing its legislation and financial system, upgrading its human resources and building efficient infrastructure geared to the requirements of the international market.
In February 2018, after ending DP World’s unfair concession of the Doraleh Container Terminal (DCT), which undermined the state’s sovereign powers on its own coastline, and this after multiple attempts at amicable renegotiation, the government took back control of this essential infrastructure, effectively restoring its sovereignty.
Today, the container terminal has established itself as one of the most efficient in the region. Moreover, alongside the Doraleh facility, Djibouti has developed a first-rate ecosystem that encompasses the commissioning of the new railway line to Addis Ababa (October 2016), the commissioning of the Doraleh Multipurpose Port (DMP, 2017), the entry into service of the Djibouti International Free Zone (DIFTZ, July 2018), the mineral ports in Ghoubet (June 2017) and Tadjourah (June 2017), extended by the road corridor linking Balho, a border post with Ethiopia.
New patient-friendly tuberculosis preventive therapy to be rolled out in five countries
A new fixed-dose combination (FDC) of “3HP”, a short-course tuberculosis (TB) preventive treatment (TPT) combining two drugs, rifapentine and isoniazid, is starting to be rolled out in five TB high burden countries in Africa. This will reduce the number of pills that people who need the treatment have to take every week from nine to three. Enough treatments for up to 3 million patients are expected to be made available for eligible countries this year.
As the result of an agreement concluded by Unitaid, the Clinton Health Access Initiative (CHAI) and the manufacturer of the FDC, Macleods, the latter has agreed to offer a ceiling price of US$15 (ex works) for a three-month patient course of weekly rifapentine and isoniazid. Five initial countries from a total of 12 targeted by the end of the year will start providing the FDCs in February and March 2021: Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Mozambique, and Zimbabwe. Other countries are expected to receive supplies with the support of PEPFAR and the Global Fund to Fight HIV, Tuberculosis and Malaria.
