The African Development Bank, the United Nations, and the African Union on Saturday acknowledged the significant progress made in implementing Agenda 2063 and urged African countries to go further to fast-track economic transformation.
The call was made on Saturday at the launch of the first report on the implementation of Agenda 2063 ahead of the 33^rd African Union Summit in Addis Ababa. The report provides an assessment of the progress and performance of Africa’s development between 2013 and 2019.
Unveiling the implementation report, President Alassane Ouattara of Côte d’Ivoire noted that while remarkable progress had been made, the continent still had a long way to hit its development targets.
“In five years, we have come a long way in implementing Agenda 2063. To go further, Agenda 2063 must be the responsibility of all the member states of the AU,” said Ouattara, who is also an Agenda 2063 champion.
In January 2013, the African Union adopted Agenda 2063: The Africa We Want as a blueprint for sustainable development and economic growth. The first Ten-Year Implementation Plan of Agenda 2063, which runs from 2014 to 2023, outlines a set of goals, priority areas and targets that the continent aims to achieve at national, regional and continental levels, the report notes.
Referencing the African Development Bank’s critical role in spurring development across the continent, Ouattara said: “The Bank is in good hands under President Adesina. He is executing the mandate we gave him with brilliance and vigour – very exemplary.”
First continental report on implementation of Agenda 2063 unveiled
Dubai Chamber launches 2nd cycle of mentorship programme
Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry recently participated in the Africa Tech Summit 2020 in Kigali, Rwanda, where the organisation launched the second cycle of its GBF Mentorship Programme, which pairs innovative UAE and African startups with mentors who can provide them with valuable expertise, support and guidance.
Over 250 participants visited Dubai Chamber’s stand at the summit where they learned about the criteria for participating in the programme and the various benefits and opportunities it offers to startups and mentors, while African startups and mentors submitted their applications for the second cycle of the programme.
The first phase of the programme aims to foster cooperation between UAE and African entrepreneurs and create a framework for a holistic mentorship programme designed to help selected startups develop their businesses and access global growth opportunities.
The second phase will see the selection of several expert mentors who will be matched with startups who require support in key areas where they can offer their specialised expertise.
The programme will culminate at the 6th Global Business Forum Africa, taking place at Expo 2020 Dubai. At the upcoming forum, participating startups will get an opportunity to exhibit, participate in panel discussions and pitch to potential investors.
Standard Bank unlocks $50m in funding for Coca-Cola Beverages Africa’s Ethiopia expansion
Standard Bank has successfully arranged and structured USD50 million in financing facilities for Coca-Cola Beverages Africa (CCBA) to support its expansion strategy in Ethiopia over the next five years.
The Coca-Cola Company holds a majority stake in CCBA, which is the largest bottler of Coca-Cola beverages in Africa – serving 13 countries on the continent – and eighth largest in the world by revenue.
Standard Bank, Africa’s largest bank by assets, “started its journey with CCBA a few years back and, as the relationship developed, has established itself as a primary banker to CCBA across key Africa geographies in which it operates. We have demonstrated the importance of our partnership with CCBA by offering unique solutions to key concerns, of which this transaction is a prime example,” says Simon Reeves, Standard Bank’s relationship manager for CCBA.
“This closely aligns with our key business imperative of driving sustainable growth across the continent,” says Stephen Lovell, Head, Corporate Financing Solutions, Africa Regions for Standard Bank. “Standard Bank’s position as sole funder to the deal demonstrates the bank’s ability to provide innovative financing solutions, leverage the strength of its balance sheet and Africa expertise to bring deals like this to life.”
With a presence in markets that match CCBA’s operations in Africa and having established a representative office in Addis Ababa in 2015, Standard Bank was able to provide insight into the local market that best supported CCBA’s growth ambitions in Ethiopia – a high growth region for Coca-Cola.
Ethiopia boasts the second-largest population on the African continent. While consumption of soft drinks is low compared to major markets, demand is expected to swell as the middle class rises and consumers are empowered with spend.
The bottling company, East Africa Bottling S.C, has already invested USD 70 million in a new plant that is set to become its largest in Ethiopia with a manufacturing capability of 70 000 cases per day.
World leaders and celebrities call for greater investment to end hunger and poverty
Heads of state, ministers, development leaders, and celebrities today called for greater investment in rural areas to accelerate progress to achieve a world free from poverty and hunger in the next 10 years.
The call was made at the 43rd Session of the Governing Council of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) attended by its 177 Member States. This comes at a time when hunger is rising. More than 820 million people go hungry every day, 736 million people still live in extreme poverty, and the wealth gap continues to widen.
IFAD President Gilbert F. Houngbo called reaching the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to eradicate extreme poverty and hunger in 10 years “an abstract vision, a distant mirage” unless serious commitments are made to invest more in rural areas where 79 per cent of the world’s poorest people and the vast majority of the hungry live.
“The road ahead is clear: the road to achieving the SDGs must run through rural areas,” Houngbo said. “We must travel to the end of that road and invest in the most marginalized people – small-scale producers, women, youth and indigenous peoples – to deliver on our SDG commitments.”
The President of the Republic of Mali, Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta, opened the two-day event. Like other countries in the Sahel region, Mali is struggling under the dual scourge of conflict and climate change, which is making bumper harvests practically insignificant against the food shortages the country faces, as farmers abandon their fields to escape the crisis.
“Mali will never give up. Neither us nor the other countries of the Sahel. We are bleeding but we shall prevail,” Keïta said, adding that “IFAD has enabled a people faced with the worst kind of attacks to uphold their values and keep their dignity.”
