African leaders gathered in Paris on Tuesday for a summit dedicated to supporting the continent's financial recovery from the damage wrought by Covid-19.
French President Emmanuel Macron wants to discuss helping African countries deal with debt and find solutions to the economic crisis.
Kristalina Georgieva, managing director of the International Monetary Fund, said the summit sought to reverse the “dangerous divergence” between advanced economies and the developing world.
“We have to go back to the strong development Africa had before Covid, for Africa and for the rest of the world. We have to put our resources strongly behind growth and social improvement in Africa.”
Ms Georgieva said Africa’s economy was expected to grow only 3.2 per cent in 2021 compared to an average of six per cent for the rest of the world.
“We have to boost growth, public and private investment in Africa,” she said. “We can do that by mobilising financing from international organisations, from bilateral donors and of course from the countries themselves.”
Mr Macron said there was scope not only "to respond to urgent needs … but also to make from that situation an opportunity to tackle problems we've seen for a long time".
Congolese President Felix Tshisekedi, the current head of the African Union said that Covid-19 had “left our economies impoverished because we had to use all the means we had, the few means we had, to fight against the disease".
“This is a great opportunity for Africa,” he said.
The IMF said in late 2020 that Africa faced a $290 billion shortfall up to 2023 in money needed for future development.
French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said Africa “does not have the financial means today to relaunch its economy”.
In comments to RFI radio, he warned of the risk of a “great economic divergence between Africa, which would go backwards, while the United States, Europe and Asia recover strongly”.
Last month, Mr Macron said a failure to properly support the African continent would hamper economic progress and see a surge in migration.
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France to lend Sudan $1.5bn to clear IMF debt
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
UK-EU trade at a glance
EU fishing vessels guaranteed access to UK waters for 12 years
Co-operation on security initiatives and procurement of defence products
Youth experience scheme to work, study or volunteer in UK and EU countries
Smoother border management with use of e-gates
Cutting red tape on import and export of food
2018 ICC World Twenty20 Asian Western Sub Regional Qualifier
Event info: The tournament in Kuwait is the first phase of the qualifying process for sides from Asia for the 2020 World T20 in Australia. The UAE must finish within the top three teams out of the six at the competition to advance to the Asia regional finals. Success at regional finals would mean progression to the World T20 Qualifier.
Teams: UAE, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Maldives, Qatar
Friday fixtures: 9.30am (UAE time) - Kuwait v Maldives, Qatar v UAE; 3pm - Saudi Arabia v Bahrain
Ferrari 12Cilindri specs
Engine: naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12
Power: 819hp
Torque: 678Nm at 7,250rpm
Price: From Dh1,700,000
Available: Now
Dust and sand storms compared
Sand storm
- Particle size: Larger, heavier sand grains
- Visibility: Often dramatic with thick "walls" of sand
- Duration: Short-lived, typically localised
- Travel distance: Limited
- Source: Open desert areas with strong winds
Dust storm
- Particle size: Much finer, lightweight particles
- Visibility: Hazy skies but less intense
- Duration: Can linger for days
- Travel distance: Long-range, up to thousands of kilometres
- Source: Can be carried from distant regions
MATCH INFO
Norwich 0
Watford 2 (Deulofeu 2', Gray 52')
Red card: Christian Kabasele (WatforD)
Washmen Profile
Date Started: May 2015
Founders: Rami Shaar and Jad Halaoui
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Laundry
Employees: 170
Funding: about $8m
Funders: Addventure, B&Y Partners, Clara Ventures, Cedar Mundi Partners, Henkel Ventures
Moving%20Out%202
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDeveloper%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20SMG%20Studio%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPublisher%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Team17%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EConsoles%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Nintendo%20Switch%2C%20PlayStation%204%26amp%3B5%2C%20PC%20and%20Xbox%20One%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%204%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
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