Paris conference promotes financial, vaccine in Africa ‘New Deal’ | Business and Economic Affairs

The Paris conference on Tuesday promised to help Africa deal with the coronavirus and the “New Deal” by using global funds to replenish lost funds and implement a lazy vaccine.

The summit, which brought together African leaders and financial institutions from around the world, established the “New Deal for Africa and by Africa”, French President Emmanuel Macron told a news conference.

According to a recent report by AFP, about 130,000 people died of coronavirus among Africans during the epidemic, compared to about 3.4 million worldwide, although experts believe the toll on African countries could be eliminated. to be less.

The economic impact of the epidemic is alarming, with the International Monetary Fund warning by the end of 2020 that Africa will face $ 290bn by 2023, undermining all development efforts.

Meanwhile, the slow release of the vaccine has raised concerns that species could occur in an African country that could spread around the world.

The summit was filled with fears that even though rich countries were developing economic strategies, Africa lacked the right approach, putting it at risk of inequality and the reason for it.

“We will not be able to leave the African economy behind,” the summit said in a statement.

Check for vaccine vaccines

Macron says there are also significant inequalities with regard to the reduction in access to Africa in the coronavirus vaccine, and the conference hopes that patents will be lifted for Africa to begin making its own jabs.

Citing a shortage of vaccines as a major problem in the country, Macron wanted a vaccine for 40% of the population in Africa by the end of 2021.

“What is happening here is unstable, unethical and unhelpful,” he said.

“We call on the World Health Organization (WHO), the World Trade Organization (WTO) and the Medicines Patent Pool to remove all barriers based on personal information that prohibits the production of certain types of vaccines,” added Macron.

Senegalese President Macky Sall praised the “change of mind” in the process, as G20 countries realized that their well-being depended on vaccine development in Africa.

“We have a common responsibility; Vaccination does not mean health protection, ”he said.

“This is a great opportunity for Africa,” said Congolese President Felix Tshisekedi, the current African Union president. The plague “left our economy poor because we used all we had, the little we had, to fight the disease.”

IMF chief Kristalina Georgieva warned that failure to develop vaccines in Africa could also lead to economic hardship.

“Obviously there is no way to solve the financial crisis unless we get out of the financial crisis,” he said.

On the economic front, “we will use the global economy to secure the most important financial resources in Africa,” he concluded.

The signatories have demanded a special $ 650bn of IMF funding for all its members, of whom about $ 33bn has gone to Africa.

SDRs are reserves used to raise funds for IMF members, based on a fundraiser, which can be converted into valuable dollars.

The United States has been pushing for such IMF payments to address the economic crisis of COVID-19, including low-income countries.

Macron told a news conference that several rich countries had agreed to convert their SDRs to African countries because of $ 33bn “less”, hoping that voluntary donations could increase Africa’s share to $ 100bn, while the IMF could increase some of its gold reserves.

Some analysts have criticized the SDRs for being easy money in developing countries, and Tuesday’s announcement urged countries to “use the new products more openly and efficiently”.

‘The greatest hero in all the world’

Conference leaders have pledged to support the SDRs with “debt volatility and inflation”, but also urged countries to make “significant international changes”.

Italian President Mario Draghi, a former European Central Bank chief, has promised that the talks on the summit will be facilitated by the G20 group, as well as “by various organizations around the world”.

Debt restructuring could be a major factor in efforts to help Africa, says Draghi.

Georgieva said there was “a very serious gap between the future economy and developing countries, especially in Africa”.

French President Emmanuel Macron holds African Development Bank President Akinwumi Adesina next to Ivory Coast President Alassane Ouattara, right, before the first summit on Tuesday. [Ludovic Marin/Reuters]

Africa’s economic growth was at 3.2% this year, down from 6% global, he said.

The African Development Bank has predicted that 39 million people could live in poverty this year, with many African countries at risk of becoming economically vulnerable to the virus.

The conference saw the suspension of a government loan service approved in April by credit providers around the world.

The meeting came a day after a conference held on Monday in which several government leaders aimed at strengthening the Sudanese government.

Leaders present at Tuesday’s summit are also expected to discuss ways to finance debt and how to reduce the interest rate of African financial institutions in order to boost investment and growth.