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UN forum calls for more funding, steps towards slavery reparations

UN forum calls for more funding, steps towards slavery reparations

A United Nations forum on people of African descent opened with calls for extra funding to support its work and progress towards reparations for transatlantic slavery and its legacies in contemporary society. For over four centuries at least 12.5 million Africans were kidnapped, forcibly transported thousands of kilometres (miles)by mainly European ships and merchants and sold into slavery. Those who survived the brutal voyage ended up toiling on plantations in the Americas, mostly in Brazil and the Caribbean, while others profited from their labour. In a video message at the opening of the third session of the Permanent Forum on…
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EU to bolster Egypt ties with billions of euros in funding

EU to bolster Egypt ties with billions of euros in funding

THE European Union announced a 7.4 billion euro ($8.06 billion) funding package and an upgraded relationship with Egypt, part of a push to stem migrant flows to Europe that has been criticised by rights groups. The agreement, which lifts the European Union's relationship with Egypt to a "strategic partnership", was announced as a delegation of leaders visited Cairo. It is designed to boost cooperation in areas including renewable energy, trade, and security while delivering grants, loans and other funding over the next three years to support Egypt's faltering economy. The proposed funding includes 5 billion euros in concessional loans and 1.8 billion euros…
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UN urges reversal of funding pause for Palestinian refugee agency

UN urges reversal of funding pause for Palestinian refugee agency

U.N. officials urged countries to reconsider a pause in funding for the U.N. agency for Palestinians, pledging that any staff found involved in Hamas' attack on Israel would be punished and warning that aid for some two million people in Gaza was at stake. At least nine countries, including top donors the U.S. and Germany, have paused funding for the UNRWA refugee agency after allegations by Israel that a dozen of its 13,000 staff in Gaza were involved in the October 7 rampage. "While I understand their concerns – I was myself horrified by these accusations - I strongly appeal to the governments that…
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Musicians launch drive for more funding for arts in Africa

Musicians launch drive for more funding for arts in Africa

PERFORMERS from Ghana, Ethiopia and Tanzania have helped launch a five-year project to try to secure more funding for arts and culture, aiming to persuade African governments to allocate at least 1% of their budgets. The project, called Connect for Culture Africa (CfCA) has been started by the African Union in collaboration with Selam Ethiopia, a non-governmental organisation that uses film, music and circus performances to address issues such as women's rights. "We want to empower artists. A lot of artists want to participate in these discussions about good governance, human rights but they are scared of the consequences," Lucy…
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Climate tech funding opens the way for African entrepreneurs

Climate tech funding opens the way for African entrepreneurs

BONFACE ORUCHO, BIRD STORY AGENCY A surge in funding for nature-based solutions worldwide is opening opportunities for green startups in Africa, with a resultant increase in cleantech startups, according to a recent report. AfricaGoGreen Fund (AFGGF), a pan-African fund that supports climate-friendly projects on the continent, recently secured US47 million in its second fundraising round. The fund focuses on the installation of rooftop solar and battery storage for residential, commercial, and industrial consumers, as well as the purchase of high-efficiency appliances and industrial equipment, and retrofitting existing and new green buildings. The International Finance Corporation (IFC) provided US$17 million in…
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IMF approves $171.9 mln to Madagascar to address COVID-19 pandemic

IMF approves $171.9 mln to Madagascar to address COVID-19 pandemic

THE International Monetary Fund (IMF) has approved $171.9 million of funding to Madagascar, bringing the total COVID-19 emergency support to the country to $337.9 million. "This is the second emergency disbursement since the onset of the pandemic and will help finance the country's urgent balance of payments and fiscal needs," the IMF said in a statement. - Thomson Reuters Foundation ADVERTISEMENT
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The IMF’s $4bn loan for South Africa: the pros, cons and potential pitfalls

The IMF’s $4bn loan for South Africa: the pros, cons and potential pitfalls

DANNY BRADLOW, SARCHI Professor of International Development Law and African Economic Relations, University of Pretoria THE International Monetary Fund (IMF) has approved a R70 billion (US$4.3 billion) loan for South Africa to help the country manage the immediate consequences of the fallout from COVID-19. The Conversation Africa’s editor, Caroline Southey, asked Danny Bradlow to shed some light on what South Africans should expect. What conditions has the IMF attached to the disbursement? The IMF has provided the funding through its Rapid Financing Instrument. This is designed to support countries facing an urgent need for financing due to a crisis such…
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S.African airports group ACSA gets new funding, shelves projects

S.African airports group ACSA gets new funding, shelves projects

WENDELL ROELF SOUTH Africa's state-controlled airports company ACSA has signed a new 3 billion rand ($174 million) loan with domestic banks and shelved major projects to shore up its finances in the coronavirus crisis, its finance chief said on Thursday. Since March, when South Africa declared a state of disaster to contain the COVID-19 pandemic, major domestic airports such as the continent's busiest, OR Tambo in Johannesburg, have closed, knocking revenue at Airports Company SA (ACSA). "We've got facilities of 3 billion rand confirmed," Chief Financial Officer Siphamandla Mthethwa told Reuters. The deal with Standard Bank, Rand Merchant Bank and…
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IMF to approve $1.6-billion for Egypt

IMF to approve $1.6-billion for Egypt

THE International Monetary Fund expects to provide an additional $1.6 billion in financing to Egypt after its executive board approves the funding in coming weeks. The IMF said its staff reached an agreement with Egyptian authorities about the additional funding after a second and final review of Egypt's economic program and a $5.2 billion 12-month stand-by arrangement. "Egypt's economy has shown resilience, with the impact of the COVID-19 crisis mitigated by the authorities' swift, and balanced policy response," the IMF said in a statement. It said Egypt's fiscal and monetary policies should continue to support the economic recovery, and called…
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