🔅 Africa Now a Permanent Member of G20 & Ghana Sweetening the Deal for Cocoa Farmers
Plus, Congolese Street Teens Sing for Change and the Risk of Former Jihadis Re-Arming
Photo of the day
Sewaswe Birhan St.Paul Church, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Markets — Year to Date:
🟢 Nigerian SE: 68,143.34 (+0.09%)
🟢 Johannesburg SE: 73,652.67 (+0.83%)
🟢 Ghana SE: 3,071.83 (+25.69%)
🔴 Nairobi SE: 98.70 (-22.57%)
🟢 US S&P 500: 4,457.49 (+16.56%)
🟢 Shanghai Composite: 3,116.72 (+0.01%)
*Data accurate as of the close of markets across the continent
Brief & Bright: Africa's Top Five
Africa Gets an Upgrade at the G20
Big news from this weekend's G20 summit: Africa is now a permanent member! Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India, made the announcement at the summit in New Delhi, giving the African Union the same status as the European Union, which is the only other regional bloc with a full membership. The move was proposed by Modi in June and now it's official. African Union Chairperson Azali Assoumani was invited to take a seat at the table of G20 leaders, which is made up of the world's richest and most powerful countries, representing around 85% of global GDP, 75% of global trade and two-thirds of the world's population. With Africa now part of the G20, it strengthens the global south's voice in the world's most influential political and economic group.
Remembering Mangosuthu Buthelezi: A Towering Figure in South African Politics
The great Mangosuthu Buthelezi has passed away at 95, leaving behind a complicated legacy. He was a Zulu chief, a shrewd but controversial politician, and the founder of the Zulu Inkatha party. During apartheid, he disagreed with the ANC’s tactics of armed action against white-minority rule, and instead trod a moderate path. His views didn’t always align with the ANC, and at one point, thousands were killed in clashes between supporters of the two parties in the early 1990s. But Buthelezi was later welcomed back into the fold, serving as President Nelson Mandela's minister of home affairs. The president paid tribute to Buthelezi, saying he had “played a significant role in our country's history for seven decades.” A member of the Zulu royal family, Buthelezi was born into greatness and will be remembered as a towering figure in South African politics.
Ghana is Sweetening the Deal for Cocoa Farmers
Ghana is upping the ante for cocoa farmers. President Nana Akufo-Addo announced that the state-guaranteed cocoa price for the 2023/2024 season would be 20,943 Ghana cedi ($1,837) per tonne, a staggering 63% increase from the previous year. This means that Ghana is now offering the highest cocoa price in West Africa in over 50 years. The reason for the increase? Cocoa futures have been soaring, reaching 46-year highs due to supply concerns in the wider region, which sources around 70% of the world’s chocolate main ingredient. Crop problem, including black pod disease have contributed to the global cocoa deficit. To sweeten the deal, the President promised that the government would continue to honour farmers with good prices in the years ahead. Ghanaian farmers had been smuggling beans to neighbouring countries due to a weaker cedi currency and lower farmgate cocoa prices, but now they can keep their cocoa at home.
The Power of Music: Congolese Street Teens Find a Voice Through Rapping
The Mokili Na Poche Cultural Centre in Kinshasa has become a safe space for homeless teens to rap and sing about their lives on the streets. And boy, do they have a lot to say. These lyrics are no joke—they’re about sexual abuse, theft, and run-ins with the police, and they’re the raw and real experiences of their daily lives. But it’s not all doom and gloom—rapping is a source of hope and pride for the young people. The centre also offers music, art, and literacy classes, and it’s an opportunity for these teens to make up for lost opportunities. As 19-year-old Osé Mavakala put it, “Life belongs to the courageous.” The founder, Cedrics Tshimbalanga, plans to release an album of their tracks soon, and we can’t wait to hear it.
A Defection Program at Risk: How a Coup Could Put Former Jihadis Back in Arms
Before a recent coup in Niger, the government had a plan to encourage former jihadis to lay down their arms and reintegrate into society. The program offered amnesty, housing, and a chance to learn a trade or work in the public sector—all in exchange for intel on the militants and help convincing other jihadis to come home. It was a plan that seemed to be working. Attacks on civilians decreased by nearly 50% in the first half of 2023, the only jihadi-hit country, including Burkina Faso and Mali, to see an improvement in security. But the recent coup has thrown the program's future into doubt, and former jihadis like Mouhamadou Ibrahim are wondering if they should return to fight with the extremists. It’s a reminder of the fragility of peace and the importance of solid foundations of trust.
Food for Thought
“When you show the moon to a child, it sees only your finger.”
— Zambian Proverb.
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