Grace Lamb-Atkinson

Secretary Clinton in Africa

Reuters: Clinton Says Bad Governance Fuels Nigeria Poverty Gap
Hillary Clinton yesterday blamed failed government for Nigeria’s huge poverty gap and urged the country to toughen up on corruption and fix a “flawed” electoral system. In a speech before civic leaders the Secretary of State said Nigeria — the continent’s biggest energy producer and its second biggest economy — should rank among the world’s most important developing nations, but its reputation for graft undermines its international standing.

AFP: Clinton Heads to Liberia to Show Women Power
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton heads to Liberia today, in a show of support for President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf. Africa’s first female head of state has won strong goodwill overseas, particularly in the United States, as she spearheads efforts to rebuild Liberia. But the country’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission recently recommended that Sirleaf be banned from political activities because of alleged involvement in the country’s civil wars. Johnnie Carson, the assistant secretary of state for African affairs, said that Clinton “wants to reaffirm US support” for Sirleaf.

Other news

Washington Post: In Nigeria, Sharia Fails to Deliver
The Washington Post reports that Nigeria’s Islamic legal system has turned out in a way few expected. The Post says that the utopia envisioned by backers of sharia law, who believed that it would end decades of corruption and pillaging by civilian and military rulers, has not come to pass. The people are still poor, residents complain, and politicians are still rich. Nigeria’s moderate form of sharia law may not have delivered a Muslim revolution, as many predicted, but it has fueled a growing disillusionment with democracy which could, analysts say, spark religious militancy.

Boston Globe: Global Healthcare Takes More than a Pill
Former Senator Bill Frist writes in an op-ed that as the United States works on a comprehensive global health strategy it must deliver to the poor a system-wide program of rehabilitation to increase the productivity and prosperity of their communities. Frist says that doing so requires a multi-dimensional approach and an effort to move beyond the focus on high-profile diseases to also invest in overlooked, but treatable, diseases.

Reuters: World Bank Pledges More Help for Ambitious Rwanda
World Bank President Robert Zoellick pledged yesterday to boost development aid to Rwanda to help rebuild the country ripped apart by genocide. The east African state is reviving its economy with spending on tourism, agriculture and mining. Zoellick said the World Bank wanted to bolster the areas of infrastructure, farming and private sector development, as after several years of strong growth, Rwanda has been hit hard by the collapse in global trade and commodity prices.

-Grace Lamb-Atkinson

Secretary Clinton in Africa

New York Times: Clinton Courts Good Will in Nigeria
The New York Times reports that Secretary of State Hillary Clinton today took a notably softer tone in Nigeria, an African heavyweight and crucial oil supplier to the United States, than she had in other African countries. On good governance, the Times says, Secretary Clinton’s message was muted: she simply said, “We strongly support and encourage the government of Nigeria’s efforts to increase transparency, reduce corruption.” The Secretary also refused to comment on the government’s recent crackdown on an extremist Islamic group in northern Nigeria.

IPS: Clinton Backs Agricultural Development
The Inter Press Service reports that Hillary Clinton is using her trip to Africa to promote agricultural development as an approach to food aid which she has described as a “signature element” of the new Obama administration’s foreign policy. She says that while the US will continue to provide emergency food aid to address immediate crises, the administration is focused on helping countries build mechanisms that sustain progress in agriculture over the long term.

New York Times: Clinton Presents Plan to Fight Sexual Violence in Congo
Secretary Clinton used her unprecedented visit to Goma in eastern Congo – she is the first secretary of state to go into the war zone there – to unveil a $17 million plan to fight sexual violence. She announced that the American government would train doctors, supply rape victims with video cameras to document violence, send American military engineers to help build facilities and train Congolese police officers, especially female police officers, to crack down on rapists.

Other news

Foreign Policy: Former USAID Nominee Gets Job with (the other) Clinton
Prominent physician and public health campaigner Paul Farmer is no longer a candidate for director of USAID. Farmer had reportedly been Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s choice for the job but got tripped up in the vetting process. Now, Former President Bill Clinton has appointed Farmer as United Nations Deputy Special Envoy to Haiti.

Reuters: World Bank Targets DRC Debt Relief by Next March
The World Bank and Democratic Republic of Congo are aiming to complete debt relief for the country by next March, World Bank President Robert Zoellick said yesterday. Zoellick also said there had been progress in talks between Congo and China on amending a $9 billion infrastructure-for-minerals deal. But the IMF fears that contract could plunge the central African nation deeper into debt and has delayed forgiveness of most of the $10 billion Congo already owes.

Reuters: UN Chief Warns of Dire Future Without Climate Deal
U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said yesterday that failure to act quickly on climate change could eventually lead to violence and mass unrest as global weather patterns drastically change. Ban, calling climate change a fundamental threat to mankind, called on world leaders to act quickly so that a deal can be reached at climate change talks in Copenhagen in December.

-Grace Lamb-Atkinson

Secretary Clinton in Africa

New York Times: Clinton Presses Congo on Minerals
Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton arrived in the Democratic Republic of the Congo on Monday to push the Congolese government and the United Nations to end the longstanding bloodshed in the country, taking special aim at the illicit mineral trade that helps fuel the conflict. Again on Monday, in both Angola and Congo, Secretary Clinton spoke of reformulating the United States-Africa relationship. Today she is traveling to Goma, at the heart of Congo’s conflict, where she plans to meet with several women who have been victims of rape.

AP: Oil is no Gift for Africa’s Poor
AP reports that corruption has long kept oil revenues from making life better for ordinary people in oil-rich African countries. In Nigeria and Angola, the failure of oil profits to reach the countries’ poor has resulted in growing anger, which swells the ranks of militant groups, creating instability that threatens the world’s fuel supply. Hillary Clinton’s visits to those countries underscore the increasing importance the U.S. attaches to African oil as it seeks to reduce its need for Mideast oil.

USA Today: Problems Plague State Dept’s Africa Bureau
The State Department’s Africa operations are beset with “leadership shortcomings” that “compound acute staffing problems,” according to a bluntly worded inspector general’s report released Monday in the midst of Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton’s trip to Africa. Among other issues, the report found that President Obama’s focus on African political corruption has not yet penetrated the bureaucracy.

Other news

New York Times: 800,000 More Health Workers Needed in Africa to Meet Health Goals by 2015
A new study has concluded that to reach Millennium Development Goals on maternal and child health and reduction in AIDS deaths by 2015, Africa needs an additional 800,000 health care workers. The estimates are based on the World Health Organization’s recommendations. The authors recommend that policymakers improve productivity by using more community health workers, providing incentives to motivate and retain workers and increasing training capacity.

Reuters: India Says Developing World not Split on Climate Talks
Bilateral climate agreements are no solution to fighting global warming and could trigger unwelcome competitive pressures, India’s top climate change negotiator said on Tuesday. Both India and China have made agreements with the United States to discuss climate change. But some fear that with such talks Washington could be trying to drive a wedge between the positions of developing nations.

-Grace Lamb-Atkinson

Secretary Clinton in Africa

New York Times: Clinton Praises Angola, but Urges More Reform
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton gave a gentle nudge to Angola on Sunday, urging the up-and-coming nation, a major oil producer, to push harder to democratize. She says the country needs to hold presidential elections and investigate human rights abuses. The Times writes that Angola is a crucial battleground in the contest for influence in Africa between the United States and an increasingly powerful, resource-hungry China.

Washington Post: Clinton Hails Zuma’s Policies on HIV/AIDS
Secretary Clinton on Friday welcomed the new South African government’s approach to fighting HIV/AIDS. Her visit underscored a new juncture in U.S.-South African relations after years of tensions over AIDS, the Iraq war and other issues. Clinton wants to improve ties with a country regarded as Africa’s economic powerhouse, and she and the South African foreign minister agreed to work together more closely on such areas as climate change and nuclear nonproliferation.

Other news

Washington Post: Senator Richard Lugar: Restoring USAID’s Capabilities
Senator Richard Lugar (R-Ind.) writes that “the institutional atrophy and loss of expertise at the U.S. Agency for International Development has led to a proliferation of aid programs across the government with little coordination” and that, without reform, the administration’s pledge to double foreign aid would be useless. He that the bill he and Senator John Kerry recently introduced would give USAID the lead role in American foreign assistance in the field.

New York Times: A Real Bill for the Climate
The New York Times reports that the atmosphere in the Senate surrounding the energy bill is “just short of mutinous.” The mandatory cap on emissions has virtually no Republican support and there is talk of a turf war between two key Democrats, Barbara Boxer and Max Baucus. The Times editorial board writes that this country needs not another energy bill, but a climate bill committed to reducing emissions in a way that engages the whole economy and forces major technological change.

New Vision (Uganda): No AGOA Extension Deal in Sight
African nations exporting to the US under the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) should boost sales rather than pushing to extend the agreement, US trade representative Ron Kirk said. The deal is due to expire in 2015 and African governments have asked for the term to be extended and listed products increased. At the AGOA forum in Nairobi last week, Kirk said that countries should instead focus on addressing infrastructure, tariff barriers and government and legal reforms.

-Grace Lamb-Atkinson

Secretary Clinton in Africa

Bloomberg News: Clinton Presses South Africa on Zimbabwean Crisis
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton had a meeting with South Africa’s Foreign Minister today, during which she encouraged South Africa to take a leadership role on the political crisis in neighboring Zimbabwe. She said that the government must be aware of the challenges posed by Zimbabwe because 3 million refugees have crossed over the border into South Africa. US officials say that Clinton’s meeting with President Jacob Zuma tomorrow will have the same message. Zuma recently said that he will contact Robert Mugabe over delays in implementing a power-sharing accord signed in Zimbabwe in February.

New York Times: Clinton Offers Assurances to Somalis
Yesterday the Secretary of State met with Somali President Sharif Sheik Ahmed, whom she praised as “the best hope we’ve had for some time.” Clinton said the battle for Somalia is deeply connected to American interests. She strongly warned Eritrea to stop supporting insurgents within the country, and promised President Ahmed more aid, training and equipment, in addition to the millions of dollars’ worth of weapons the United States has recently shipped to his government.

Other news

Reuters: China, Others Shove US in Scramble for Africa
Reuters writes that China has overtaken the United States as Africa’s top trading partner, and that this is one of the main problems facing Secretary Clinton on a trip meant to spread a good governance message and shore up relationships with key oil suppliers on the continent. African investment correspondent Ed Cropley notes that in contrast to President Obama’s one day, one country trip to Africa last month, in February Chinese president Hu Jintao was in a number of African countries — none of them rich in oil or minerals — offering a shoulder to lean on as world recession started to affect the continent.

AFP: Drugmakers to Supply Cheap HIV Treatments
Former president Bill Clinton has announced a deal with two major US drug companies to supply cheap HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis treatments to developing countries. Under the agreement, Mylan will make available a second-line therapy of four antiretroviral drugs for less than 500 dollars annually. In addition, Pfizer is to reduce the price and expand availability of a drug used to treat tuberculosis in patients taking second-line antiretroviral drugs. The discount will translate to 400 million dollars in savings over the next five years compared to prices usually paid for alternative regimens, the Clinton Foundation said.

Reuters: Global Fund Grants Zimbabwe $37.9 million to Fight AIDS
The Global Fund today granted Zimbabwe $37.9 million, resuming support after getting assurances from the new unity government that the money would not be misused. The head of the Global Fund’s Africa Unit said the funds, previously managed by the state-appointed National Aids Council, would now be overseen by the United Nations Development Program in Zimbabwe. Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai said the grant showed increasing confidence in the country’s unity government.

Grace Lamb-Atkinson

Secretary Clinton in Africa:

New York Times: Clinton Calls for Accountability in Kenya
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton opened her African tour in Kenya with an address to a major United States-African trade conference and other public events. At the AGOA trade forum she laid out plans to channel development dollars to agriculture and infrastructure, to increase support for African entrepreneurs and to cut back on the overhead that often goes to American contractors. But she also stressed that development depends on good governance, a message that she returned to later when remarking upon Kenya’s failure to set up a tribunal for the perpetrators of election-driven bloodshed last year. Following a meeting with Kenyan leaders she told a news conference: “We are waiting, we are disappointed.”

AFP: US Wants to be “Partner, not Patron” of Africa
AFP also reports on Secretary Clinton’s stop in Kenya, and quotes ONE’s David Lane.

Washington Post (A1): Leadership Vacancy Raises Fears About USAID’s Future
The Washington Post reports that USAID is in limbo, entering its seventh month without a permanent director despite pledges by the Obama administration to expand and improve development assistance. While Hillary Clinton has championed additional personnel for USAID, aid groups worry that the agency could be swallowed up in the State Department. In the next few weeks the White House plans to bring together roughly two dozen government agencies in an effort to shape development policy, a senior administration official said.

Other news:

Reuters: US Says African Farming has Role in Green Push
The US Secretary of Agriculture, Tom Vilsack, said in Kenya yesterday that Africa can boost global efforts to curb emissions through the absorption of greenhouse gases by developing its farming sector. He said environmental improvement from Africa is possible thanks to plants and trees that have the capacity to absorb emissions, and an increase in the amount of fuel produced from crops. Vilsack advocated that U.S. firms unable to stay within greenhouse-gas thresholds at home invest in African farming projects to offset their emissions.

Foreign Policy: Paul Farmer out for USAID?
Foreign Policy says that new reports from within the Hill and the White House may indicate that Paul Farmer is out as a candidate to lead USAID, a decision that is said to have been made at the White House. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton had sought White House permission to announce Farmer as the candidate to lead USAID when she appeared at the development agency last month, but said she wasn’t given the nod to do so.

Reuters: AfDB Sees Commitments Almost Doubling to $11 billion
The African Development Bank has seen its commitments almost double since last year due to the global financial crisis, Donald Kaberuka, the head of the bank, said today. The bank expects to loan some $11 billion this year, from $5.8 billion previously. Kaberuka said that there are a number of key projects whose original promoters pulled out because of the crisis. The impact of the crisis on Africa has been bigger than earlier feared, he added, and the AfDB has set up a $1 billion trade finance facility to help businesses cope.

-Grace Lamb-Atkinson