Latest news with #Mbuyisa
The Citizen
10 hours ago
- Politics
- The Citizen
Kokstad to Vatican: Local Bishop get big job from Pope Leo XIV
Bishop Thulani Victor Mbuyisa CMM of Kokstad Diocese is among five new members ministering in Africa who have been appointed. Pope Leo XIV has appointed a South African Bishop from Kokstad in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) to the Vatican dicastery for Institutes of Consecrated Life and the Societies of Apostolic Life (ICLSAL). Bishop Thulani Victor Mbuyisa CMM of Kokstad Diocese is among five new members ministering in Africa who have been appointed to the ICLSSAL. In the appointments made public on Tuesday by the Holy See Press Office, Pope Leo XIV appointed Cristóbal Cardinal López Romero of the Catholic Archdiocese of Rabat in Morocco, Archbishop Jude Thaddaeus Ruwa'ichi of Tanzania's Catholic Archdiocese of Dar-es-Salaam, and Bishop Mbuyisa. Biography Born in KZN in the Archdiocese of Durban in February 1973, Bishop Mbuyisa joined the Congregation of Mariannhill Missionaries (CMM) in 1992. He was ordained a CMM Priest in March 2000, appointed Local Ordinary of Kokstad in April 2022 and ordained a Bishop in June 2022. ALSO READ: Election of Pope Leo XIV a 'profound moment', says Ramaphosa 'Proud moment' The ANC said the appointment of Bishop Mabuyisa is 'a proud moment for South Africa'. 'This distinguished appointment is both a proud moment for South Africa and a recognition of Bishop Mbuyisa's deep spiritual leadership, unwavering dedication to justice, and his pastoral commitment to the upliftment of the poor and marginalised. 'His role within the Vatican's Dicastery is strategic, as it guides the global Church on matters concerning religious orders, missionary communities, and the vital role of consecrated life in society,' the ANC said. SA religious leaders The ANC said Bishop Mbuyisa's appointment affirms the global stature of South African religious leaders and reflects the 'profound contribution that African voices continue to make to the moral, ethical, and spiritual discourse shaping our world'. 'We extend our best wishes to Bishop Mbuyisa as he takes up this sacred responsibility, and we trust that he will serve with the same compassion and integrity that has long defined his ministry.' Pope Leo XIV, whose name is Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, became the first pope from the United States in May, after cardinals from around the world elected him leader of the world's 1.4 billion Catholics. He is the 267th pope of the Catholic Church. ALSO READ: Pope Francis' will says he wants to be buried in 'simple tomb' in Rome [VIDEO]
Daily Maverick
3 days ago
- Politics
- Daily Maverick
Africa's G20 priorities kick off with a push for climate and financial reform
Tired of a system that favours polluters and perpetuates debt, African leaders are demanding climate and debt justice ahead of the G20. Their proposal would fundamentally change how green technology is rewarded and how the continent funds its future. The International Symposium on Global Justice and Africa's G20 Priorities kicked off at UCT on Monday 23 June, introducing an Ecological Impact Fund, a proposal designed to scale up green technology and reward environmental preservation in the Global South, and a reimagined global debt framework. Researchers, civil society, faith leaders, economists and policymakers spent Monday diagnosing the roots of financial inequality, hoping to shape actionable proposals on debt justice to present to the G20. 'At this moment of global fracture… the G20 Presidency of South Africa is not merely a diplomatic opportunity; it is a summons for Africa to raise its moral voice rooted in our lived reality and our spiritual heritage. We must speak not just with economic data, but with the cries of our people and the ethical agency of our faith,' said Bishop Thulani Mbuyisa. Mbuyisa is the Catholic Bishop of Kokstad Diocese and chairperson of the Southern African Catholic Bishops' Conference (SACBC) Department of Social Action. He issued a prophetic call to action for planetary justice, ethical governance and intergenerational responsibility during the discussion. The speakers and attendees were adamant about moving beyond talkshops, to use the G20 as a platform for Africa's voice in the global agenda on equity, solidarity, justice and sustainability at a time when multilateral cooperation was at a crossroads. They sought to present the Ecological Impact Fund and a more just and accountable global debt architecture for the Global South. Ecological Impact Fund Two weeks ago, South Africa saw its latest natural disaster with the Mthatha flooding, resulting in almost 100 deaths, along with 1,600 structures and 5,000 people affected by the Eastern Cape floods. Worse is to come, as climate change increases the severity and frequency of natural disasters such as floods, fires, storms, droughts, mudslides, heat waves, rising sea levels, failed crops and spreading tropical disease vectors. But thus far, symposium moderator Mahadi Buthelezi said, other pollution-caused harms did even greater damage to human health, such as air pollution from burning fossil fuels, estimated to cause 8.7 million human deaths annually, accounting for 15% of all deaths and 8% of the global burden of disease. A new proposal for the G20, the Ecological Impact Fund (EIF), tackles the dual crises of climate change and pollution by fundamentally reshaping the incentive structure for green technology in the Global South. Professor Thomas Pogge, director of the Global Justice Program at Yale University, conceptualised the EIF – a proposed international financing system to accelerate the development and adoption of green technologies in lower-income countries of the Global South. High-income countries would offer a reward of up to $25 per ton of CO2e emissions avoided by the deployment of green technologies in Africa. The core problem the EIF seeks to solve is that patents, while incentivising innovation, also make green technologies expensive and slow their adoption, especially in developing nations, which need them the most. Pogge said this was particularly harmful for green technologies because 'most of the benefit of using a green technology goes to third parties'. Innovators in the Global North hold the vast majority of patents of green technology, according to Pogge, creating a financial flow from the South to the North and forcing developing countries to pay high licensing fees to 'help clean up the mess that really, the North has made'. How the Ecological Impact Fund works The EIF may offer a solution by giving green innovators a new choice. Pogge explains that 'you give up your patent privileges in the Global South, and in exchange, we will give you impact rewards that are based on the emission reduction that is achieved through your green technology and the health burden reductions achieved through your green technology.' Key features of the proposed fund include: Innovators can choose to register their technology with the EIF. Impact Rewards: For five years, the EIF would reward each registered technology based on the amount of pollution or harm it averts in the 'EIF zone' (low-income countries). In return, the innovator grants permanent royalty-free licences for that technology in the EIF zone, forgoing all income from monopoly patent rents. Pogge said that the fund would be financed by a small fraction of existing global climate finance commitments – 1% of the $300-billion annual climate finance pledged to developing nations at the COP29 conference in Azerbaijan last year. In the long run, he said, it could be sustained by a capital endowment built from state funding and private contributions. A 'brutally effective' model Pogge said the EIF was designed to be 'brutally effective' by focusing on outcomes rather than promises. Unlike traditional funding models that give money upfront, the EIF operates on a pay-for-performance basis. The fund declares that 'we will pay you if and when there is success.' In this way, Pogge said, 'success is not a prototype; it is defined as actually reducing pollution and the health harms that stem from pollution.' The proposal's architect hoped this would create a competitive market where innovators were rewarded based purely on their measurable ecological impact, ensuring that funding flows to the most effective solutions. Pogge noted that current climate finance was often distributed as loans and was not tracked for effectiveness. The EIF seeks to counter this by directly linking funding to proven ecological benefits. The ultimate goal is to foster multilateral cooperation and create a significant global public good with the support of South Africa's G20 presidency and COP30 in Brazil, both taking place in November. Africa's debt crisis and a continental solution A reimagined global debt framework was also presented at the symposium, arguing that Africa's recurring debt crisis was a symptom of a fundamental economic injustice rooted in the continent's colonial economic structures. Professor Horman Chitonge, from the UCT Centre for African Studies, said this structure, oriented to serve outside interests rather than the needs of the African people, had left African economies dependent on exporting their natural commodities. The consequences of this debt burden are severe, with many African nations spending more on debt repayments than on essential social services such as health and education. Chitonge said that Africa's external debt had surged to about $1.15-trillion as of early 2024. The symposium said these financial pressures were not only unsustainable but also exacerbated social inequalities and hindered development. The proposed solution shifts focus from reforming the global financial architecture to building Africa's 'collective agency' and self-reliance. Chitonge said that the continent had sufficient domestic resources to fund its own development and transition to a value-adding economy. Chitonge said that true resilience could be built only by transforming this structure. Data from Zambia shows a clear trend where rising debt service directly corresponds to declining social sector expenditure. Protests, such as the Finance Bill protests in Kenya in 2024, were a direct public reaction to governments prioritising debt payments over the wellbeing of citizens. Calls for debt cancellation have long echoed across the Global South. The symposium sought to amplify these calls, not as isolated appeals, but as part of a transformative agenda for global financial justice. From commodity exporter to production powerhouse According to Chitonge, an estimated $4-trillion in capital is available within the continent through commercial banks, pension funds, insurance companies and other institutional investors. Chitonge said that mobilising domestic capital was key to unlocking this, by changing the investment mentality that sent African capital (particularly raw material and mineral exports) abroad and instead channelling it into bankable projects on the continent. To achieve economic and monetary sovereignty, Chitonge said the continent had to transition from being a commodity-dependent exporter to a region with strong productive capabilities. This involved implementing industrial policies that supported value addition, like domestically processing raw materials such as platinum and cotton into finished goods. By doing so, Chitonge said, African nations could capture a significantly higher share of the value chain – up to 67% for textiles, compared with the current 4-5% from raw cotton exports. The other aspect was to strengthen continental institutions. Chitonge said supporting initiatives such as the new African Credit Rating Agency was needed to counter biased ratings from international agencies, and implementing cross-border listings on African stock exchanges to improve liquidity and access to capital. Beyond African borders The symposium is driven by the Global Justice Programme at Yale University and the group Academics Stand Against Poverty in collaboration with the University of the Western Cape (UWC), the South African Catholic Bishops' Conference, the Jesuit Justice and Ecology Network – Africa (Jena), and the Bakhita Partnership for Education. It was organised in partnership with the South African Government, the University of Cape Town, UWC, the African Union, the Nelson Mandela Children's Fund and others. Chitonge said South Africa's G20 was important, partly because it was the first time that an African country was hosting the gathering, and partly because G20 countries control much of the resources and processes that feed into what happens to Africans. 'This is why it gives us an opportunity to articulate our views, so that we can be heard beyond our borders,' said Chitonge. DM
