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UN Chief Says Africa ‘Source Of Hope’ For The World

Published

3 years ago

February 6, 2022

The UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, says Africa is “a source of hope” for the world, highlighting the examples of the African Continental Free Trade Area and the decade of financial and economic inclusion for African women.

Guterres also said that in the last 20 years, the African Union (AU) “has helped to bring this hope to life, in order to enable the continent to realize its enormous potential.”

UN chief said this in his address to the 35th Assembly of the Heads of State and Government of the AU in Addis Ababa on Saturday via video message.

He was represented in the Ethiopian capital, by Deputy Secretary-General, Amina Mohammed.

According to Guterres, the collaboration between the UN and AU “is stronger than ever”, with the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and Agenda 2063, Africa’s blueprint for a peaceful, integrated and more prosperous continent, as the central pillars.

The secretary-general argued that “injustice is deeply embedded in global systems”, but it was the Africans who “are paying the heaviest price.”

He remembered that the vaccination rate in high-income countries was seven times higher than in Africa and stated that “a morally bankrupt global financial system has abandoned the countries of the South.

“The unethical inequalities that suffocates Africa, fuel armed conflict, political, economic, ethnic and social tensions, human rights abuses, violence against women, terrorism, military coups and a sentiment of impunity,” he said.

Because of that, Guterres said, tens of millions of people are displaced across the continent and the democratic institutions are in peril.

The secretary-general then offered the UN’s support to ignite “four engines of recovery.”

First, he said, everyone needed to get their vaccines.

In this regard, he highlighted the African Vaccine Acquisition Task Force (AVATT) and the benefits that greater vaccine production in South Africa and other African countries will generate.

“I urge you to create the conditions for the number of African countries capable of producing tests, vaccines and treatments to multiply, including by addressing intellectual property issues, and providing the technical and finance needed,” he said.

Second, Guterres said Member states needed to ignite the engine of economic recovery by reforming the global financial system.

“But the deck is stacked against Africa. Sub-Saharan Africa is facing cumulative economic growth per capita over the next five years that is 75 per cent less than the rest of the world,” he said.

He called for re-directing Special Drawing Rights – an IMF-created reserve currency asset – to countries that need support now, reform of the international debt architecture, and more concessional forms of finance.

Thirdly, the UN chief pointed to a green recovery across the continent.

The vast continent contributes just 3 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions, but many of the worst impacts of climate change are being felt there.

“To address today’s tragic reality, we need a radical boost in funding for adaptation and mitigation on the continent,” the UN Correspondent of the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) quoted Guterres as saying.

According to him, the Glasgow COP26 commitment to double adaptation finance, from 20 billion dollars, must be implemented, but it was not enough.

He called on wealthier countries to make good on the $100 billion dollars climate finance commitment to developing countries, starting this year, and hold to account private sector partners who have also made similar commitments.

He said “We are in emergency mode, and we need all hands on deck,” he said, pointing to the next UN Climate Conference (COP27), happening later this year in Egypt, as “an essential opportunity for Africa and our world.”

Lastly, the UN chief said peace across the continent could also work as an engine for recovery.

In multi-ethnic, multi-religious and multi-cultural states across Africa, Guterres believes an organisation like the African Union “is about showing how people can co-exist – even flourish – by working together.”

According to him, this requires “inclusive and participatory structures” and so member states need to make them a reality through good governance.

Guterres added that young Africans specially need more connectivity to access information and benefit from faster communication, better education and jobs.

(NAN)

Headline

Trump Threatens Extra 10% Tariff On BRICS Nations

Published

6 minutes ago

July 7, 2025

Editor

US President, Donald Trump has warned that countries supporting BRICS policies that clash with US interests will face an additional 10% tariff.

“Any country aligning themselves with the Anti-American policies of BRICS, will be charged an ADDITIONAL 10% tariff.

“There will be no exceptions to this policy,” Trump wrote on social media.

Trump, who has long criticised the BRICS alliance—comprising China, Russia, India and other emerging economies—has ramped up trade pressure as part of his economic strategy.

The US had set 9 July as a deadline for countries to finalise trade agreements.

However, according to US officials, tariffs will now kick in from 1 August.

Trump said he would begin sending letters to various countries, notifying them of the tariff rate they will face if no deal is reached.

Since returning to office in January, Trump has introduced multiple import tariffs, arguing they are necessary to protect American manufacturing and jobs.

Back in April, during what he dubbed “Liberation Day,” he rolled out a wave of new tariffs—some reaching as high as 50%—but later paused the more extreme measures to allow for negotiations until 9 July.

During this interim period, a general 10% tariff has been in place on goods entering the US from many of its global trade partners.

So far, Washington has only secured full trade agreements with the UK and Vietnam, alongside a partial deal with China.

Yet, the UK and the US are still at odds over tariffs on British steel.

Asked whether the tariff changes would take effect on 9 July or 1 August, Trump responded vaguely: “They’re going to be tariffs, the tariffs are going to be tariffs.”

He added that between 10 and 15 countries would receive letters on Monday outlining their new tariff rates if they don’t reach an agreement.

US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick later confirmed that the new tariffs will take effect on 1 August.

Trump also warned Japan last week that it could face a “30% or 35%” tariff if it fails to strike a deal with the US by Wednesday.

In May, the European Union was told it would face tariffs of up to 50% without an agreement in place.

Reports last week suggested the EU was considering a temporary arrangement to maintain a 10% tariff on most goods, while also negotiating to ease existing tariffs—such as the 25% tax on cars and car parts, and the 50% rate on steel and aluminium.

Last year, Brics expanded beyond its founding members—Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa—to include Egypt, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates.

Together, the bloc represents more than half of the world’s population and aims to elevate its global influence in opposition to Western powers.

In 2024, Trump threatened to impose 100% tariffs on BRICS countries if they proceeded with plans to launch a rival currency to the US dollar.

Sunday’s fresh threat came after BRICS finance ministers, meeting in Rio de Janeiro, denounced the US tariff strategy and proposed changes to the International Monetary Fund and global currency valuations.

They issued a statement warning that such tariffs pose a risk to the global economy by creating “uncertainty into international economic and trade activities.”

Andrew Wilson, deputy secretary general of the International Chambers of Commerce, said it would not be easy for countries to sever trade ties with China.

“Shifting away from China…in a number of sectors is far more difficult to achieve in the world in practice,” he said.

“You look at the dominance China has in a number of sectors—EVs, batteries [and] particularly rare earths and magnets, there are no viable alternatives to China production.”

(BBC)

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After Fallout With Trump, Elon Musk Says He’s Forming ‘America Party’

Published

1 day ago

July 6, 2025

Editor

Billionaire Tesla owner Elon Musk, has disclosed that he is forming a third political party, which he called the ‘America Party,’ after a dramatic falling out with Donald Trump over a tax and spending bill recently signed into law by the President.

Musk, who was the largest individual donor to Trump’s 2024 presidential campaign, worked with the current US President as the lead of his cost-cutting government agency—the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE)—until his recent resignation.

After bowing out of the DOGE role, Tribune Online reports that Musk started criticizing Trump’s “big beautiful bill” because of estimates that he said would add trillions of dollars to the federal deficit.

Speaking via his X social media platform, Musk said, “When it comes to bankrupting our country with waste & graft, we live in a one-party system, not a democracy.”

Musk, a former ‘first buddy’ of the US President, declared that the new party is for freedom: “Today, the America Party is formed to give you back your freedom.”

Meanwhile, Musk’s rift with President Trump last month after intense criticism of the spending bill appeared to have cooled after Musk regretted and deleted the most incendiary posts he made linking Trump with disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein and calling for the President’s impeachment. According to Musk, those posts ‘went too far.’

However, the world’s richest man reignited the feud over the last several days as the bill neared passage and eventually passed by the House before it was subsequently signed at a White House ceremony.

According to CNN, the extent to which Musk has taken steps to legally form the party is unclear, as party formation requires registering with the Federal Election Commission. The most recent FEC filings showed no indication that this has happened, CNN reports.

The owner of X, who has made threats during the social media scuffle with Trump, had indicated he wants a party that is fiscally conservative and reins in spending, but has offered few other details about what the party’s platform would be.

While Musk and Trump reportedly share similar views on contemporary social issues, the former has argued the Republican policy agenda will increase the debt, calling it “debt slavery.”

The two-party system in the United States has long been criticized by both registered Democrats and registered Republicans, but efforts in the last century to form a third party have shown little success. Billionaire Ross Perot ran for president as an independent in 1992, winning nearly a fifth of the popular vote, but carried no states in the election, which was won by Bill Clinton.

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Australian Actor Julian McMahon Is Dead

Published

2 days ago

July 5, 2025

Editor

Australian actor Julian McMahon, best known for his roles in Nip/Tuck, Charmed, and Fantastic Four, has died at the age of 56.

McMahon passed away in Clearwater, Florida, on Wednesday following a private battle with cancer.

His death was confirmed in a statement released on Friday by his wife, Kelly.

The statement read,”With an open heart, I share with the world that Julian McMahon, my beloved husband, died peacefully this week after a valiant effort to overcome cancer.

“His deepest wish was to bring joy into as many lives as possible.

“We wish all of those to whom Julian brought joy to continue to find joy in life.

“We are grateful for the memories.”

Born into a prominent political family, McMahon was the son of former Australian Prime Minister Sir William McMahon.

In a nod to his family’s legacy, he portrayed an Australian prime minister in the Netflix drama ‘The Residence.’

McMahon’s career spanned decades, earning him international recognition for his roles as Dr. Christian Troy in ‘Nip/Tuck’, Cole Turner in ‘Charmed’, and Victor Von Doom in ‘Fantastic Four’.

He was married three times, including a high-profile marriage to Australian singer and actress Dannii Minogue, sister of pop icon Kylie Minogue.