Latest news with #DevelopmentReimagined
Malay Mail
26-05-2025
- Business
- Malay Mail
Trump-era cuts loom as African Development Bank elects new chief in Abidjan
AfDB kicks off annual meeting in Abidjan Election of new bank president to take place on Thursday New head to confront US funding cuts, other challenges NAIROBI, May 26 — The African Development Bank will meet in Ivory Coast this week to pick a new president at a time when the continent's biggest multilateral lender faces unprecedented challenges from funding cuts by the United States government, analysts said. The US federal government wants to cut US$555 million in funding to the AfDB and its African Development Fund (ADF), which offers low-priced financing to the continent's poor nations. 'This is going to be a major task and it is effectively the new president's first test,' said Hannah Ryder, founder of Development Reimagined, an Africa-focused consultancy. The annual gathering of heads of state and finance officials, taking place this year in the Ivorian city of Abidjan, is one of the biggest finance meetings on the continent. Africa's largest development finance institution is owned by 54 African states and G7 nations like the US and Japan. Its biggest shareholder is Nigeria. The next round of replenishment for the ADF window, which is held on a three-year cycle, is scheduled to take place in November this year. The new president will have to try to persuade the US to reinstate the funding, seek additional funds from non-regional members of the bank like China, or Gulf countries like Saudi Arabia or the United Arab Emirates, in return for more say, or ask African states to contribute more, Ryder said. Five candidates from South Africa, Senegal, Zambia, Chad and Mauritania, are vying to replace outgoing President Akinwumi Adesina, who will step down in September after serving the maximum two five-year terms. The winner, who must secure 50.01 per cent of the votes from the 54 African member states of the bank, and in a second vote from all 81 members, including non-African ones, will be announced on Thursday. The bank is grappling with the challenges of a changing global economy after US President Donald Trump returned to the White House, including higher US import tariffs. 'We expect the meeting to discuss implications of current global events arising from the Trump administration,' said Fred Muhumuza, a lecturer at Makerere University's business school in Kampala. 'Many of the key contributors have been cutting bilateral support to African countries.' — Reuters
Yahoo
21-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
How Trump's trade war could bolster the Africa-China relationship
Kenyan President William Ruto heads to China tomorrow, the first African leader to be hosted by Beijing since US President Donald Trump's administration unveiled its unprecedented global tariffs. Ruto is expected to try to position Kenya in a volatile and shifting geopolitical landscape, alongside more focused discussions on loans and infrastructure financing. The closely watched trip comes amid an escalating trade war between Washington and Beijing and as China moves to shore up export markets beyond the US. Last week, Chinese leader Xi Jinping used a Southeast Asia tour to emphasize regional ties in the face of global trade upheavals. Sino-African ties are robust: China has been Africa's largest bilateral trading partner for the last 15 years and trade between the two hit a record $295 billion last year. But the relationship is heavily skewed in Beijing's favor — in 2023, China exported $178 billion worth of goods to Africa, importing only $116 billion in return. In an era of new tariffs imposed by Washington, ties between Beijing and countries on the continent could be strengthened and reconfigured, analysts told Semafor. African businesses in particular are thinking 'how do we diversify and make sure that we don't depend on the US,' Hannah Ryer, CEO of the consultancy Development Reimagined, told Semafor. 'This is where China can come in. Especially in terms of diversifying the type of trade that goes to China… This is what African governments will be certainly seeking for leverage.' One important fallout of Washington's tariffs is the expected arrival of new imports from China as well as Europe to Africa. There is 'a threat of just being a displaced market for products that would otherwise go to the US, especially for middle-income and upper-income consumers,' said Ryder, a former diplomat and economist with a focus on China. To counter this, she added, African governments need to be more demanding around manufacturing. Most of Africa's exports currently consist of raw materials and commodities that are then processed elsewhere. 'What needs to be done is to really increase the value addition' on the continent itself, Ryder said. Examples of countries that have started to buck the trend in recent years include Ethiopia and Rwanda, who sell coffee to Chinese retailers using e-commerce platforms, two experts noted in an article for the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, a Washington-based think tank. Washington's tariffs highlight the much deeper relationship that Africa shares with China. 'The manner in which the US has gone about its protectionist turn (and aid cuts before that) will reinforce the idea that China is a much more responsible and reliable development partner,' Ken Opalo, a Georgetown University political scientist, told Semafor. 'Countries that already had strong relationships with Beijing will perhaps now find reason to strengthen those ties.' Others will likely want to hedge their bets, said Alex Vines, head of the Africa program at UK think tank Chatham House: 'Most African states wish to avoid being pigeonholed. They will increasingly try to maintain multiple partnerships — including [with] China, Gulf states, Turkey, Europe, Russia, and others. The US will still be in the mix.' The geopolitical undertones of Ruto's visit to Beijing, and the prospects for Kenya, is explored in an analysis for the Nation.
Yahoo
02-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
African Designers Want Chinese Market, and Investment, to Grow Local Fashion Industry
LONDON — Would the Chinese buy African fashion? Hannah Wanjie Ryder, chief executive officer of Development Reimagined, a Beijing-based consultancy that promotes Sino-Africa trade and development, certainly hopes so. With funding from the African Export — Import Bank, some 22 designer brands from 12 African countries came to China last week and took over a sizable area within Shanghai Fashion Week's official trade show Mode under the name Africa Reimagined to show their latest work to local press and buyers. More from WWD Designers Stick to What They Know Best in Shanghai Amid Tough Trading Environment Meet Oude Waag, Where Avant-garde Meets Eastern Sensibility Penhaligon's Debuts Exhibition Centering Britishness With Local Artisanal Touch in Shanghai The brands later staged a runway show on March 29 with the hope of unlocking business and investment opportunities from China that can ultimately transform Africa's local fashion sector. By shining a light on high-end, sustainable African brands in China, helping them reach new audiences and unlock long-term commercial opportunities, Ryder said Africa Reimagined offers a place to showcase the continent's diverse styles, rich culture, and rising talents to China. 'China's a diverse market. We want people to see that the African continent is like that, too. In terms of the different styles of fashion, you can get very heavy prints, you can get totally different fabrics. One of our designers here sources fabrics from 15 different African countries but then brings them together into her designs. There's some incredible talent on the continent, and we just thought that we should showcase them here,' Ryder said. There is a broader vision behind it, too. Ryder said Africa Reimagined also serves as an opportunity to attract Chinese investment in African manufacturing, drive industrial growth, job creation and deeper trade relations between Africa, Asia and the global fashion ecosystem. 'When you think about the future of the African continent, we want to be a manufacturing hub, just like China. But you don't get there by doing small things. You have to be very intentional. And we have a long way to go to become the kind of manufacturing hub that China is now,' she said. 'We have to use fashion as a gateway, especially the textiles and apparel sector. You help people see that you have the highest-quality, most beautiful products. It can help people think, OK, maybe some really great things can be produced on the continent. We will go and invest, moving our factories or opening new factories there for that market and also for China,' Ryder continued. Designers traveling to China with Africa Reimagined included South Africa's David Tlale, Imprint Za by Mzukisi Mbane, Rich Mnisi, and Mantsho; Senegal's Adama Paris; Ghana's Studio 189; Nigeria's Ejiro Amos Tafiri and Bloke; and Egypt's Maison Farah Wali, and more. Tlale, a seasoned designer who started 21 years ago and has shown in New York and Paris, said Africa Reimagined creates a gateway for African brands to expand across Asia and marks a historic development in China-Africa cultural relations. 'African craftsmanship is exceptional, and the world is finally recognizing its influence on luxury fashion. Shanghai Fashion Week provides the perfect stage for African designers to prove that African design is not just relevant, it is essential to the future of global luxury fashion,' said Tlale. 'Not everybody gets to travel to South Africa or anywhere else in the continent. Here, you get to see and feel what Africa has to offer. We are a beautiful cohort of designers who are creative and talented and have been in the industry for some time. We can say we are the voice of the current Africa, and we can represent our continent with pride,' he added. The South African designer said that while his designs are all manufactured in Africa, he has been sourcing in China since 2014. 'South Africa is part of BRICS. It's very important that we cross-pollinate and grow together. I believe that between the two continents, there's a lot that we can share. The world is not ready of what's going to come out of China, and the world is not ready what's going to come out of Africa. And if we collaborate, I think we are able to change the game in every aspect,' said Tlale. Best of WWD The Definitive Timeline for Sean 'Diddy' Combs' Sean John Fashion Brand: Lawsuits, Runway Shows and Who Owns It Now What the Highest-paid CEOs at U.S. Fashion and Retail Companies Make Confidence Holds Up, But How Much Can Consumers Take?
Jordan Times
09-02-2025
- Business
- Jordan Times
Developing countries need a new approach to long-term financing
LONDON/BEIJING – The world is in the midst of a financing crisis. As world leaders work to mobilize trillions of dollars to meet climate and development goals, expensive public debt is limiting governments' ability to make long-term investments. A long-term framework for low-interest financing of global public goods is urgently needed. While debt burdens have increased dramatically almost everywhere, the danger is particularly acute in developing countries, where government debt repayments are growing twice as fast as in developed economies. Faced with unbearable debt repayment burdens, many developing countries cannot make the necessary investments to reduce poverty and adapt to a rapidly warming planet. For most developing countries, the size of the debt is not the primary issue. In fact, it is too small to support development at the pace required. Moreover, developing countries' debt is a small proportion of overall global debt, while their debt-to-GDP ratios are often barely half those of richer countries. The real challenge lies in the structure of the debt. As many bilateral lenders have scaled back their lending capacity over the past two decades, developing countries have had no choice but to rely on private-sector financing that is not suitable for vulnerable borrowers. Meanwhile, exogenous shocks, including the COVID-19 pandemic, climate-related disasters, and high inflation, have triggered a sharp rise in interest rates. This has driven up borrowing costs, strained public budgets, and threatened political stability. Even countries that took on minimal levels of debt to fund infrastructure projects are struggling. The need for affordable finance will only become more acute in the coming years. The Independent High-Level Expert Group on Climate Finance estimates that emerging and developing economies (excluding China) will need to mobilize an additional $2.5 trillion annually by 2030, and $3.5 trillion by 2035. Similarly, Development Reimagined's analysis of 13 African countries finds that delivering on the SDGs and the African Union's Agenda 2063 will require $109-150 billion in annual infrastructure financing. But instead, according to the Debt Service Watch database, the world's poorest countries are spending, on average, 50% of their revenue on debt service. Over three billion people currently live in countries that spend more on debt payments than on essential services like health or education. China's experience offers valuable insights into how to tackle today's financing challenges. During a recent visit, we traveled on the high-speed rail from Beijing to the Shandong province, completing the 403-mile journey in just over three hours. This remarkable feat of engineering is a testament to China's commitment to long-term investment in sustainable development, a strategy that helps explain how 800 million people have been able to lift themselves out of poverty within two generations. Equally important is China's recognition of the need for flexibility in managing short-term financing. In November, Chinese Minister of Finance Lan Fo'an announced a CN¥10 trillion ($1.4 trillion) debt-swap plan for local governments as part of the government's fiscal stimulus package. The debt-relief plan, described by Lan as China's 'most significant measure introduced in recent years,' was accompanied by a bond issuance designed to reduce local governments' debt burdens and free resources to stimulate economic development, boost business confidence, and safeguard public services. China's ability to combine long-term investments and adaptive short-term financing provides a useful model for mitigating the current debt crisis and easing tensions between developed-country creditors and developing countries. The G7 countries and multilateral institutions should replace their rigid and outdated approach to sovereign debt, rooted in Western corporate bankruptcy laws and restructuring rules, with a framework that enables governments to respond quickly to unexpected shocks and prevent liquidity shortages from escalating into insolvency crises. For example, to resolve liquidity problems caused by high borrowing costs, developing countries need support in taking swift, preemptive steps to stabilise their debt positions while expanding access to affordable borrowing for productive investments. But achieving this requires reforming the G20's Common Framework, long hampered by slow implementation and a pro-lender bias. Such an effort should also involve innovative, cross-country fiscal mechanisms, such as currency-swap arrangements and the proposed African Stability Mechanism. The Finance for Development Lab's Bridge to Climate Action proposal, developed in consultation with a diverse coalition of borrower and lender countries, philanthropic organisations and NGOs, offers one possible solution. It envisions a tripartite deal whereby multilateral development banks would increase climate-linked financing, creditors would agree to reschedule debt, and borrowing countries would be supported in pursuing a strategy for growth based on country-led development plans. The IMF's '3-pillar approach' incorporates similar principles. Development Reimagined offers another option. Its ambitious Borrowers Club initiative advocates placing borrowers, rather than lenders, at the center of the international financial system. Such a shift could facilitate short-term debt relief while making long-term borrowing cheaper through coordinated action. Other crucial steps include adopting resilient debt instruments, such as disaster clauses and outcome-linked bonds that better tailor private-sector financing for vulnerable borrowers, reforming the International Monetary Fund's quota system and debt-sustainability assessment process, and overhauling the credit-rating ecosystem. The solutions are well understood. But without a fairer and more adaptive global financial system, we stand little chance of meeting our climate and development goals. To ensure a just green transition, developing countries must have a stake in the economic opportunities it creates. Hannah Wanjie Ryder, a former diplomat, is CEO of Development Reimagined and Senior Associate at the Center for Strategic International Studies Africa Programme. Kate Hampton is CEO of the Children's Investment Fund Foundation
