Leading health officials from eight sub-Saharan African countries have just completed a weeklong visit to Washington (June 21 to June 25) hosted by Global Health Progress (GHP), where they highlighted successful public-private partnerships in addressing critical health challenges in Africa and stressed the need for continued US public support to strengthen African health care systems. Continue reading
Tag Archives: Kenya
Innovation in Kenya
On a recent trip to Nairobi, I was thrilled to have the opportunity to meet with both Equity Bank and M-PESA at Safaricom. M-PESA and Equity Bank are prime examples of companies involved in a new trend in innovation. A recent Economist report on innovation in emerging markets explains that “many of the most important innovations…are aimed at the middle or the bottom of the income pyramid.” Continue reading
Obama Administration, Congress and Africa Celebrate 10-Year Anniversary of AGOA
Ten years after the enactment of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), a group of its original architects and supporters from Congress, the US government and the private sector, as well as members of the African diplomatic corps, met on Capitol Hill to celebrate its success in spurring economic development in Africa and to call for a recommitment to protect, extend and expand the landmark legislation. Continue reading
Notes from “Leaders Forum on the 10-Year Anniversary of AGOA”
April 26, 2010
Washington, DC
On April 26th, The Whitaker Group and the AGOA Action Committee co-hosted a Leaders Forum with the Africa Coalition for Trade, the African-American Unity Caucus, the Africa Society of the National Summit on Africa, the Constituency for Africa, the Leon H. Sullivan Foundation, Manchester Trade, and the Corporate Council on Africa to address remaining challenges in trade-based development for Africa and a way forward for US-Africa economic policy. The coalition also unveiled a comprehensive Africa economic policy recommendation for the Obama Administration, found here. Continue reading
“A Call to Action:” Remarks on AGOA by Rosa Whitaker
“Leaders Forum: AGOA and the Way Forward on U.S.-Africa Economic Policy”
April 26th, 2010
The Willard InterContinental Hotel, Washington DC
Remarks by Rosa Whitaker
Good morning, Ladies and Gentlemen, Honored Guests. I would like to begin by welcoming you all and by thanking my co-hosts for their support of this event: The AGOA Action Committee, the Africa Coalition for Trade, the African-American Unity Caucus, the Africa Society of the National Summit on Africa, the Constituency for Africa, the Leon H. Sullivan Foundation, Manchester Trade, and the Corporate Council on Africa. Continue reading
How Not to Use Trade Preferences
By Patrick Costello
The report on trade preference programs recently released by the Center for Global Development, while making a number of sound recommendations for reforming and harmonizing the myriad of preference programs extended to the developing world from “rich countries,” contains several points that would be harmful to nations benefiting from the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA). Continue reading
“Leaders on the Cutting Edge of Change:” Remarks by Rosa Whitaker
“Innovative Mechanisms for Maximizing Capital Flows to Africa”
April 26th, 2010
The Willard InterContinental Hotel, Washington, DC
Opening Remarks by Rosa Whitaker
Good afternoon, Excellencies, honored guests, ladies and gentlemen. We are delighted that you could all join us today. We have with us a host of senior US and African government officials, including Ministers of Finance, Ambassadors, and senior State Department advisors. We also have several senior World Bank officials, and of course we are so pleased to welcome President Donald Kaberuka today. Continue reading
Delaying the Trade Preference Reform Debate
By Patrick Costello
As 2009 comes to a close, Congress is poised to pass a one-year extension for the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) and the Andean Trade Preference Act (ATPA), both of which are set to expire on December 31, 2009. Despite rhetoric calling for reform from Senate Finance Committee Republican leadership, a full-day Congressional hearing on the issue, and the introduction of legislation harmonizing preference programs and extending benefits to non-African LDCs, Congress has decided to pitch the reform discussion to next year. Continue reading
The Base of the Pyramid: Room to Grow
by Tom Haslett
One of the most important questions facing multinational corporations today is whether they can make a profit with products and services marketed to the poor in developing countries. Many companies are actively exploring this approach with a variety of goods meant to reach consumers with limited expendable income: this is called a “bottom of the pyramid” strategy. As firms search for new opportunities, Africa represents a particularly large and attractive market to tap. Equally importantly, new innovations that earn a profit for their creators can also serve the continent’s people as a powerful tool for development. Continue reading
Congress Daily – Reaction to McDermott Bill Harsh, Muted
By Peter Cohn
Congress Daily
November 20, 2009
African nations and domestic textile interests wasted no time slamming the first serious legislative attempt in the 111th Congress to overhaul U.S. trade preferences, while Bangladesh, a key player on the opposite side of the debate, was lukewarm. Continue reading
Africa Health News September-October 2009
President Kagame calls for strong health leadership- Leaders discuss secure supply chains
- Alliance launched to eliminate malaria deaths
- Kenya to benefit from private equity health investments
- New drug targets sleeping sickness
- New public-private partnership to improve blood collection safety
- African nations seek accreditation for medical laboratories
- GSK to make a large investment in AIDS drugs for Africa
- WHO proposes preparedness response to H1N1 flu pandemic
- Leaders in Health: Dr Gunther Faber, CEO, the Healthstore Foundation
- Tanzanian anti-malarial bed net plant to expand production
Mobile Banking in Malawi
On a recent trip to Malawi, my colleague Aubrey and I drove from the capital city of Lilongwe to Blantyre and back… roughly five hours each way. The trip was longer than we expected, partly because we also made several stops so that Patrick, our driver, could distribute money to his relatives who lived in rural areas. Continue reading
Debunking Myths About AGOA
Published at allafrica.com – Trade Talk with Rosa Whitaker
by Rosa Whitaker
In the aftermath of the annual AGOA Forum held last month in Nairobi, there has been a chorus of pessimists placing AGOA in the Hall of Shame of failed policy initiatives. They could not be more wrong.
In fact, AGOA is among the most successful US policies towards Africa-especially in terms of a return-on-investment ratio. According to the OECD, over the past 50 years the US has spent well over $325 billion dollars in foreign aid to Africa – yet Africa remains the only region of the world getting poorer. The returns on investments from US aid have been dismal. Continue reading
Nuclear Power for Energy Security in Africa
by Adanma Osakwe
Due to crippling energy shortages and power blackouts in homes and businesses, African nations are facing the question of energy security. As a result, an increasing number of African countries are taking an interest in the development of nuclear power energy. Continue reading
Will Global Recession Damage US-Africa Trade Ties?
Published at allafrica.com
by Paul Collier and Rosa Whitaker
Writing after last week’s United States-Africa trade forum in Nairobi, Paul Collier and Rosa Whitaker call on both the U.S. and African nations to craft a meaningful strategy to prevent better trade relations from becoming “a casualty of the recession and of the drift towards political expediency and protectionism.”
This week in Nairobi, Kenya, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton led a US delegation to the 8th Annual African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) Forum. This Forum, a meeting of US and African ministers, business and civil society leaders, was created as part of AGOA — the first comprehensive US trade policy towards Africa. Continue reading
The New Global Reality: Africans Lead the Way at the AGOA Forum
Kenyan PM Odinga addresses the AGOA Forum. Source: KICC, 2009 AGOA 8th Forum.
The world has come to expect strong and dynamic leadership from the Obama administration. In the campaign, they promised to bring change and new ideas to domestic and international policy and to redefine and recalibrate the US’s role in the world. At the 8th Annual AGOA Forum-the annual US-Africa Summit-held this week in Kenya, however, it was the African leaders who broke new ground. Continue reading
Trade-Led Growth and Development, Even in a Recession
By Meg Dallett
Amidst the omnipresent news stories about countries and industries suffering in the global economic crisis, there’s good news coming out of East Africa: according to the African Development Bank’s African Economic Outlook 2009, growth for the region is expected to be about 5.5% for this year. This is much, much better than almost every other region in the world is expected to do. Continue reading
Multimodal Technologies for Africa
As new social phenomena, like Twitter, combine one technogical platform (SMS – short message service) with another (the internet), the feasibility of communicating has increased. This has particular relevance for Africa, which has the world’s most dense cell phone usage. (With three out of every four people using cellular numbers as their primary number, cellular numbers in Africa are the closest thing to national ID numbers in most countries). And, as the highly anticipated fiber optic cable in East Africa comes online, Africa will be well-equipped to advance these multimodal technologies. Continue reading
Africa Health News March-April 2009
Headlines: Africa on track to malaria milestone, Novartis releases child friendly antimalarial, global community redoubles efforts to eradicate polio, African initiative launched to fund local health research in Kenya and Malawi, delegation visits East Africa to explore partnerships, Coca-Cola commits $30 million for clean water in Africa, promising results for women’s microbicide gel, African entrepreneurs promote sustainable sanitation solutions. Continue reading
African Health Delegation Presents Leadership Award to Carter Center at Capitol Hill Reception Hosted by Global Health Progress and ONE
WASHINGTON, D.C. — A delegation of senior health officials from 11 African countries and the African Union presented a leadership award on April 22, 2009, to President Jimmy Carter and The Carter Center for their work over the past 25 years in combating neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) in Africa. The delegation was in Washington to promote public-private partnerships in health and to directly advocate for continued US support and funding for African health initiatives. Continue reading
