Author: june njoroge

Africa is home to at least 47 foreign military outposts, with the US controlling the largest number. Djibouti is the only country in the world to host both American and Chinese outposts.

A recent survey by Afrobarometer across 34 countries indicated that 63 per cent of the population see China’s influence in Africa as positive, whilst 60 per cent made similar comments about the US. Are there benefits to be extracted from this searing rivalry?

Africa’s Agenda 2063 on the ‘Africa we want’ set by the African Union, advocates under its first aspiration, a ‘Prosperous Africa based on inclusive growth and sustainable development’ and ‘A Strong, United, Resilient and Influential Global Player and Partner’ under aspiration 7.…

The scope of green finance is broad and encompasses initiatives taken by both public and private entities such as financial institutions, governments and international organizations in developing and supporting sustainable impacts through key financial instruments which lay the foundations of sustainable business models and investments.
Projects that fall under the green finance umbrella include the reduction of industrial pollution and lowering the carbon footprint, climate change mitigation, biodiversity conservation, promotion of renewable sources of energy plus energy efficiency, circular economy initiatives, sustainable use of natural resources and many more.
For Africa to tackle the climate menace, it needs concerted efforts from all the above parties for desired outcomes to be reaped. …

In 1991, Ethiopia was among the poorest in the world having endured a devastating famine and civil war in the 1980s and by 2020 it was one of the fastest-growing economies in the world averaging 9.9 per cent of broad-based growth per year.
The GERD will help secure the future water supply not only in the Nile Basin but in the entire region, thereby curbing the occurrence of severe drought and famine.
The flow of the River Nile has been nothing but winding, peacefully meandering its way downstream, oblivious of the decade-old tension that besieges its much-needed waters.
Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia are neighbours that have been embroiled in a row over the construction of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) by Ethiopia on the Blue Nile causing a diplomatic standoff among the countries.
Being the longest river in Africa, the Nile bears paramount significance across several African nations that …

 A blue bond is a relatively new form of a sustainability bond, which is a debt instrument that is issued to support investments in healthy oceans and blue economies, wherein earnings are generated from the investments in sustainable blue economy projects.

According to IDB Invest, Blue bonds can raise capital for projects and companies seeking to have a direct impact on the ocean and water-related issues while advancing in social inclusion, economic growth, environmental protection, and the broader 2030 agenda.

The World Bank is the biggest multilateral funder for ocean and water projects in developing countries and is committed to working with investors to highlight the critical need to support the sustainable use of ocean and marine resources which inarguably includes better waste management. …

As part of the requirements under the Kenyan Act, the government additionally established an Integrated Monitoring Reporting and Verification (Integrated MRV) system and published Kenya’s National Climate Change Action Plan 2018-2022 (NCCAP). The five year plan requires the government to develop “action plans”, providing mechanisms to assist stakeholders in bringing about low-carbon climate-resilient development. 

Angola boasts some of the most ambitious targets for transition to low carbon development in Africa, albeit having ratified the Paris Agreement in November 2020. Since then the country has launched a national development plan, established a climate observatory and implemented a continuous national emissions monitoring system.

In addition, Gambia is committed to reducing its GHG emissions unconditionally, by 2.4 per cent by 2025 having implemented the Sustainable Energy Action Plan in 2015, which sets out the country’s renewable energy targets and corresponding measures necessary for their achievement. It has also committed to terminating oil importation …

Albeit marred with difficulties, green manufacturing in Africa is possible and the continent stands to greatly benefit from the transition. It will promote inclusive economic transformation through domestic manufacturing and a commodity-based industrialization process, capitalizing on the continent’s resources and opportunities presented by the dynamic nature of the global structure of production.

Green industrialization has been identified as the holy grail of Africa’s socio-economic transformation; infusing green initiatives into value chain activities for instance, during sourcing and processing of raw materials to the marketing and selling of finished products. The Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) economic report on Greening Africa’s Industrialization, deduces that it is imperative for African countries to identify green industrialization entry points, set policies that support green industrialization and mobilize resources from the public and private sectors, as it is a precondition for sustainable and inclusive growth. …

Deposits formed the bedrock of the source of funding for assets, notwithstanding impacts associated with the pandemic, DT-Saccos were still able to mobilize deposits at a near similar rate as the growth in their assets’ portfolios.
Gross loans increased by 13.16 per cent in 2020 to Kshs 474.77 B compared to Kshs 419.55 B of 2019.
Net loans and advances increased markedly by 12.60 per cent to reach Kshs 450.58 B in 2020, compared to Kshs 400.16 B in the previous year. …

Suicide has become a major urgent public health crisis in the continent and has led to the premature death of especially productive youth in their prime—the future builders of the continent.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), more than 700,000 persons die by suicide every year globally and it is the fourth leading cause of death among 15 to 29-year olds.  From job losses, trauma, abuse, mental health disorders and barriers to accessing health care these are just but a few triggers to committing suicide by many millennials. …

Despite the wealth and abundance of African stories, writers continue to encounter numerous obstacles, such as the diminishing of advances or the complete lack thereof, which discourage the writers, who want to pursue it on a full-time basis. Racism has greatly asphyxiated this budding industry, with priority being given to white as opposed to black writers.

Data from the New York Bestseller list, from 24 December 2017 to 8 June 2020, indicated that 69% of the bestseller titles, were from white authors, whilst 9%, from black. A social media campaign tagged #PublishingPaidMe created on June 6 2020, by urban fantasy writer L.L. Mckinney, as part of the ongoing conversations on racism in the US; revealed the disparity in book advances, between black and white authors, with the latter being paid more.  …