Browsing: debt distress in Africa

• President Ruto calls for reforms in the IMF to address emerging global challenges and seeks flexible lending instruments, equitable special drawing rights, and debt financing plans.
• He also advocates for governance reforms to better represent the Global South’s economic and demographic contributions.
• These changes are crucial for maintaining the IMF’s relevance and effectiveness in fostering stability and sustainable development.

In a rapidly evolving global economy, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) finds itself at a critical moment as President William Ruto of Kenya articulates in the latest issue of the IMF’s Finance and Development Magazine. With over eight decades of history, the IMF’s journey from supporting the gold standard to promoting flexible exchange rates and development financing mirrors the dynamic changes in the global financial architecture.

President Ruto says that the IMF has to adapt once again, highlighting four key areas for reform: lending instruments, special drawing rights (SDRs), addressing …

• Experts project that Côte d’Ivoire seeks to sell its Eurobond and around 8.50 per cent to 8.75 per cent for a ticket size of between US$1 billion to US$1.25 billion.
• Ghana, Senegal, Nigeria, and Côte d’Ivoire have been key players, with the values of their Eurobond issuances typically ranging from $200 million to $1 billion.
• The annual value of Eurobonds issued by West African governments witnessed a remarkable surge, increasing from $200 million in 2007 to $2.25 billion in 2014.

As the markets open in the new year, all eyes turn to Côte d’Ivoire, which has announced a plan to lead the continent in issuing a Eurobond—the first in Africa after a nearly two-year break.

Positioned on the verge of economic resurgence in 2024, Côte d’Ivoire is poised to become the first sub-Saharan African nation to issue a Eurobond as the global financial markets ease following a period of high …

Into a menacing economic quick sand African economies have been sinking, taking hefty blows from numerous unprecedented challenges birthed by the overarching global crisis. The status quo has instigated a clarion call to cushion them from dipping further beneath the horizon, by casting different viable iron rods, as the ‘one shoe fits all’ approach is not feasible due the dynamic nature of African economies. Inarguably, Africa has not been left unscathed amid the ongoing global ‘polycrisis’, as described in the 2023 World Economic Forum’s (WEF) Global Risks Report, to mean  a cluster of related global risks with compounding effects, such that the overall impact exceeds the sum of each part.

In light of this, on day three of the WEF in Davos, Switzerland, UN Secretary General António Guterres in his speech, stated that at present the world faces “a category five” storm of challenges that need urgent action. These include …