African Grey Parrot has Global Summit to Thank for Protected Status

Posted in Environment, Investment by DeputyGD8FTM

The loquacious African grey parrot, one of the most illegally trafficked birds in the world, has been talking itself towards extinction for years thanks to its reputation as a gregarious and long-living pet.

On Sunday it was given extra protection after a global wildlife summit agreed a ban on the international trade.

“If this bird could talk, the African grey parrot would say thank you,” said Susan Lieberman, of the Wildlife Conservation Society. “Now, with the protection, the voice of the African grey parrot will not be silenced across the great forests of Africa.”

Between 2 and 3 million of the parrots have been taken from the wild in the past 40 years and populations of the species have plummeted across its range in west, central and eastern Africa.

The 182 nations gathered in Johannesburg for the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (Cites) tackled the crisis on Thursday, but only after an acrimonious debate and a rare secret vote. The result went 95 to 35 in favour of awarding the African grey the highest level of protection, which bans all international trade. Captive-bred birds can still be traded but only if facilities register with Cites.

African Grey Parrot

The Democratic Republic of the Congo, home to the largest African grey parrot population, argued strenuously against the new ban, saying it was based on a “doubtful hypothesis yet to be proved”. But the proposal, put forward by Gabon and six other African nations plus the EU and US, was passed, with the Ivory Coast delegate saying: “Birds know no borders, so we have to work together.”

Colman O’Criodain, of WWF, said: “A total ban on international commercial trade in wild African grey parrots is a huge step forward and will help to protect this extraordinary species from the rampant trapping and trading that has contributed to population collapses and local extinctions across Africa in recent decades.

“Fraud and corruption have enabled traffickers to vastly exceed current quotas and continue to harvest unsustainable numbers of African grey parrots from Congo’s forests to feed the illegal trade. Banning the trade will make it easier for law enforcement agencies to crack down on the poachers and smugglers and give the remaining wild populations some much-needed breathing space.”

The African grey parrot is a popular pet not only for its ability to chat, but also for its longevity: it can live up to 50 years. One famous African grey, called Alex, lived to 30 and was able to communicate using 100 words.

The African grey is a gregarious bird, making it easy for trappers to cast nets over flocks of dozens at a time. But about 50% of the birds die before reaching their destination.

Feathers flew among the Cites nations over a proposal to downgrade the protection for the world’s fastest creature, the peregrine falcon. It currently has the highest level of protection, following a plunge in its population from the 1950s to the 1970s as pesticides, including DDT, wrought havoc. Persecution by farmers and egg collecting also hit the falcons’ numbers.

Peregrine Falcon

However, the population has rebounded and there are now about 300,000 spread all over the globe. The raptor has adapted to the spread of towns and cities by learning to catch feral pigeons. Furthermore, only 500 or so falcons are officially traded every year, almost all of which are bred in captivity, according to Canada, which led the proposal.

The downgrade was supported by Arab states, where falconry is popular. “It is part of our history and heritage,” said the delegate from the UAE, who said falcon “passports” ensured only captive-bred falcons were used. Some conservation groups also backed the downgrade. “The recovery of this species from catastrophic decline is one of the great conservation success stories,” said O’Criodain. “It is time this is recognised.”

However, the Pro-Wildlife conservation group said several local populations were still vulnerable, especially those with unusual colour variations, which can fetch $50,000 on the black market.

The EU opposed the downgrade, arguing it would increase the demand for wild-caught falcons. Iran’s delegate also opposed it, claiming that 300 illegally caught peregrines had been seized in one operation in 2014. “We have a very big problem with poachers all around the country, and even the injuring or killing of wildlife rangers,” he said.

The proposal was forced to a vote and was defeated 57-52.

Originally reported by The Guardian.

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24Sep2015

The Most Promising Retail Markets in Africa Are in Countries People Rarely Talk About – Investment Advice by CWIIL Group

Posted in Investment by DeputyGD8FTM

It is rarely mentioned countries, like Gabon, Botswana and Angola, that are increasingly becoming attractive for multinational retailers looking to launch and expand on the African continent, according to a new report. These countries are small and dynamic, their income levels are growing and their retail markets are unsaturated – offering ample opportunity for the enterprising retailer.

AT Kearney’s 2015 Africa Retail Development Index (ARDI) ranks the top 15 retail markets on the continent based on how they fare on four indicators: market attractiveness, market saturation, risk levels and the time pressure to launch or expand operations.

“The challenge in Africa’s retail sector is not looking at one opportunity, but a set of unique differences that give rise to distinct opportunities,” says Jaco Prinsloo, Principal at AT Kearney’s Johannesburg office and co-author of the index.

This is why a small country like Gabon – with a population of 1.7 million people and one of the highest income per capita levels in sub-Saharan Africa – at $21,600 according to AT Kearney – tops the index. There’s little competition in its retail sector, compared to South Africa, a country with a highly saturated retail market.

Country	Retail market stage of development
1. Gabon	Developing
2. Botswana	Mature
3. Angola	Basic
4. Nigeria	Developing
5. Tanzania	Basic
6. South Africa	Mature
7. Rwanda	Basic
8. Namibia	Mature
9. Ghana	Developing
10. Senegal	Basic
11. Gambia	Basic
12. Zambia	Basic
13. Cote d’Ivoire	Basic
14. Ethiopia	Basic
15. Mozambique	Developing

While Gabon may top the index, the consulting firm argues its small size might be a downside: its retail market may not be ideal for a big retailer who is interested in big volumes and scaling their operations for example, but it may be ideal for a specialty retail chain in fashion.

Marieke Witjies, a consultant with AT Kearney and co-author of the index said that despite African markets broad challenges, retailers who are in it for the long-haul and those that take considered risks could reap the benefits.

“To stay ahead of the curve in Africa’s, retailers need to ask themselves this question: Do I want to be a first-mover, or will I follow once the infrastructure is set up?,” says Witjies.

Africa’s largest retailer, Shoprite, now with 189 stores across 15 African countries, is a good example of this. After struggling to find real estate for its expansion plans in a number of African countries, the retailer decided to form its own real-estate arm. In Nigeria, the retail giant has set aside $125 million to build 10 malls that will have anchor Shoprite stores, as well as provide retail space for other retailers.

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6Sep2015

Africa’s Debt Challenge – Specialized Advice From CWIIL Group of Companies

Posted in Investment by DeputyGD8FTM

It’s been a rough year for the West African countries most affected by the Ebola virus that has ravaged their communities and crippled their economies, disrupting agriculture and trade.

Forecast to lose a combined $1.6 billion in predicted economic growth in 2015, the people of Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone breathed a collective sigh of relief when the International Monetary Fund (IMF) forgave a combined $100 million in loans, shortly after disbursing $130 million in aid last September. The intention was to free up funds for relief and recovery efforts.

But with the need to overhaul their health systems, these countries are once again accumulating debt—like the $160 million interest-free loan awaiting approval by the IMF executive board.

The acquisition of new debt is an emerging pattern among beneficiaries of the world’s most comprehensive debt reduction programme to date. The 1996 Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) Initiative, supplemented by the 2005 Multilateral Debt Relief Initiative, has helped 35 sub-Saharan African countries cancel $100 billion in external debt. These internationally coordinated relief programmes, managed by the World Bank, IMF and the African Development Bank, were designed to find a sustainable solution to Africa’s debt burden.

No longer forced to divert scarce resources to repay costly loans amassed during the Cold War period by corrupt and repressive regimes, the poorest and most indebted countries on the continent were able to lower their public debt and increase social spending by almost 3.5% of their gross domestic product between 2001 and 2012, the World Bank and IMF claim. For example, Benin used its savings from debt to invest in rural primary health care and HIV programmes. Tanzania abolished primary school fees and Mozambique began offering free immunization to children.

Freeing up additional resources for development was another aim of the HIPC Initiative. However, a lot of the money forgiven was already tied up in arrears, meaning it was owed but had not yet been reimbursed, so there was no new cash flow and no real savings in terms of resources.

In some countries the write-off just helped mop up overdue debt. And while the initiative did erase most of the foreign debt of these countries, it did not clear all of it. What the whole process did achieve, according to a Huffington Post article by Marcelo Giugale, a World Bank director, was instilling “discipline” that came in handy when the price of oil, gas and minerals climbed in the mid-2000s and the technologies to look for these natural resources got better. To qualify for a debt cancellation, countries had to be transparent in their operations and open to scrutiny, and they had to monitor and report their poverty reduction strategies, invest savings into social programmes and refrain from accumulating expensive debt. Which is why, according to Mr. Giugale, African governments had “more money to spend and new offers to borrow – this time from private bankers.”

Faced with the phasing out of the HIPC Initiative and a decline in official development assistance, some countries seized the opportunity provided by their healthier balance sheets and continued economic growth to explore new sources of funding. China, leading the group of emerging economies called BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa), has been investing heavily in infrastructure.

International bond markets provide another avenue. According to Amadou Sy, the director of the Africa Growth Initiative at the Brookings Institution, a US think tank, 12 countries in sub-Saharan Africa have issued a total of $15 billion in international sovereign bonds. Investors are also keen to snatch up these bonds, seduced by the continent’s favourable growth outlook and promise of high returns. The World Bank reports average GDP in sub-Saharan Africa is projected to remain broadly unchanged at 4.6% in 2015, rising gradually to 5.1% in 2017.

Some observers worry that countries are borrowing too much and too fast. “Africa may have the fastest-growing continental economy on the planet,” freelance journalist Richard Walker writes in the Economist, “but growing fastest of all is debt – personal, corporate and government.”

Mr. Walker points to Ghana’s issuance in late 2014 of $1 billion in euro-denominated bonds, although the country is deep in debt and has what he calls Africa’s “worst-performing currency.” The West African nation was one of the first beneficiaries of the HIPC initiative.

Côte d’Ivoire, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Gabon, Namibia, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal and Zambia also beneficiaries of the debt cancellation programme, have also issued similar bonds.

Even with the recent surge in borrowing, most of the post-HIPC countries are not at risk of “debt distress,” a group of economists with the World Bank insists. Dino Moretto, Tihomir Stucka and Tau Huang concede that “some countries may be borrowing too quickly,” but they also specify that “overall, governments have been borrowing responsibly since receiving debt relief.”

The trio explain that one of the objectives of the debt relief programme was to clear debt overhang and allow countries to borrow again, responsibly. Many countries have been careful in taking on loans at commercial terms, and the World Bank and other development banks have been giving grants in lieu of loans to riskier, poorer countries.

Africa’s Current Debt

Africa’s current debt is the lowest it has been in decades, Oxford University professor Mthuli Ncube and Economic Advisor at the African Development Bank Zuzana Brixiova concur in their review for the European Centre for Development Policy Management. The fastest decline, they stress, is posted by the most indebted countries, because of debt relief and accompanying prudent policies.

Aid has been critical in helping low-income countries lift people out of poverty, but financing to the region has also increased in quality and quantity, spurred by the 2002 Monterrey Consensus and subsequent 2008 Doha Conference. These UN-backed global conferences brought together heads of state and top leaders in finance, business and humanitarian groups to realize a vision called Financing for Development (FfD). The Monterrey Consensus was also the impetus behind the HIPC Initiative, since it called for innovative mechanisms to address the debt owed by poor nations.

Meanwhile, the FfD July 2015 conference in Addis Ababa is intended to advance the debate on “responsible lending and borrowing” by tabling issues on improving domestic resource mobilization, including strengthening tax administration, curbing illicit financial flows, scaling up infrastructure investment and attracting private sector financing.

“Despite misgivings about certain countries, Africa is still in a fundamentally different place than it was 20 or 30 years ago when old debts were taken on,” Todd Moss, a senior fellow at the Washington-based Centre for Global Development, told Reuters, adding that taking out loans from private creditors puts a “higher burden” on leaders to be responsible.

To keep from reverting to old ways, analysts say, post-HIPC African countries will have to be smart with their handling of new loans. Borrowing strategies need to be put in place so governments can get a return on their investments in order to service their debts. Governments also need to be prepared to withstand shocks from price fluctuations on the natural resource markets and must reduce their dependency on commodity exports. Diversifying borrowing sources is another way to sensibly manage public debt, says Citigroup economist David Cowan in the Africa Research Institute publication, Counterpoints, referring to sovereign bonds as an alternative to concessional loans.

While concessional loans come with no strings attached, help raise a country’s debt profile and put it on the radar of international debt markets, Mr. Cowan cautions that they do present currency risks and can expose a defaulting borrower to specific legal risks, notably from hedge funds or private equity funds, also known as “vulture funds.”

Good old-fashioned tax collection, transparency and tapping into local currency debt markets are avenues that should not be ignored. In the end, sound fiscal and complementary monetary policies will prevail. It’s too soon to predict whether the post-HIPC African countries will maintain sustainable levels of public debt while wrangling with bottlenecks such as weak institutions, infrastructure investment gaps, poverty and (in some places) instability. Only time will tell.

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Tag Archives: Gabon

African Grey Parrot has Global Summit to Thank for Protected Status

The Most Promising Retail Markets in Africa Are in Countries People Rarely Talk About – Investment Advice by CWIIL Group

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