Today, ONE joined with 150 other organisations for the Put People First rally in London. I was down on the streets with the crowd of 35,000 calling on the G20 for fairness for the developing countries, and people around the world who have been adversely affected by the financial crisis.
The mood at the rally was jubilant. There were lots of families and even a makeshift marching band adding to the cheer. It was exciting to meet people brought together by so many different organisations, but sobering to remember why we were all there – the 53 million more people the World Bank estimates will slip into extreme poverty this year. Hopefully this rally, along with other efforts like our petition asking Obama to advocate for the needs of developing countries at the G20, will help.
New research commissioned by ONE found that investing $50 billion in a stimulus package for Africa would have real benefits both for Africa, and for the rest of the world, increasing global income by $250 billion over the next ten years. This research reinforces our main message to the G20 leaders ahead of their Summit in London next week — that they must include the poorest in any global solution to the current crisis, both because they will be hardest hit, and also because their economic growth can be part of the long term solution. The main findings of the research were:
As a result of the global financial crisis, sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) will lose approximately $ 40 – 50 billion in 2008-2009.
A $50 billion stimulus package for SSA will have positive effects on global trade, and would increase world GDP by 0.1% in 2009-2010. This is equivalent to an increase of $44 billion worldwide, and of this, approximately 15% or $ 6 billion benefits the world outside SSA.
If the $ 50 billion was used for productive investment in SSA infrastructure, world income will increase by $ 250 billion in 10 years, with much of it in sub-Saharan Africa, and around $20 billion in the rest of the world.
In 2009 alone, US and Chinese exports would increase by about $1.4 billion; German exports would increase by about $1.9 billion and UK exports by $ 0.7 billion.
A $50 billion stimulus in SSA will offset more than 85% of the impact of global financial crisis on GDP growth in SSA in 2009 and 2010
If this stimulus is spent on consumption like income transfers and social safety net programs like cash-for-work or school feeding programs families will feel less stretched by income losses, and incomes could increase by 4% in 2009 and a further 1% in 2010.
If the stimulus goes to productive investment, in addition to the abovementioned short term effects, there is a long-run positive impact on the level of economic output in SSA, which remains about 1.5% higher. Further, the stimulus on infrastructure could have a further sustained increase in output by an additional 1%.
The research was carried out by Overseas Development Institute (ODI) and the National Institute of Economics and Social Research, ahead of the G20 Summit held in London on 2 April. The research serves as a backbone our policy asks that we’ve put forward to G20 leaders. In the next few days, we’ll be highlighting some of the key issues we’re hoping to see addressed during the G20 Summit in London next week.
As we’ve been blogging about recently leaders from 20 of the world’s largest economies are gathering in London for the G20 Summit in a little over a week—the most important talks to date on rebuilding the global economy. For the 53 million people teetering on the edge, this is a make-or-break moment during which President Obama’s influence upon other world leaders could make all the difference.
Please sign our petition asking President Obama to provide leadership for the G20 by including the poorest nations in their solutions to the financial crisis.
President Obama,
Please advocate for the resources, reform, and regulation that developing countries need to weather the financial crisis.
ONE is advocating a specific focus on the 3 R’s—resources, reform, and regulation—to bring needed recovery in the poorest nations on Earth. Please sign our petition asking President Obama to urge other G20 leaders to include developing nations in their solutions to financial crisis.
Today President Barack Obama is running an op-ed in 31 publications around the world including the Chicago Tribune, the Arab Times, and the China Morning Post just to name a few. This comes in anticipation of the G20 Summit in London next week and is an effort to ease global concerns about the financial crisis. In it, he asserts the US’s role as a global leader through the economic situation, and makes particular mention of the effects on the world’s poorest people.
We are living through a time of global economic challenges that cannot be met by half measures or the isolated efforts of any nation. Now, the leaders of the G-20 have a responsibility to take bold, comprehensive and coordinated action that not only jump-starts recovery, but launches a new era of economic engagement to prevent a crisis like this from ever happening again.
[…] we have an economic, security and moral obligation to extend a hand to countries and people who face the greatest risk. If we turn our backs on them, the suffering caused by this crisis will be enlarged, and our recovery will be delayed because markets for our goods will shrink further and more American jobs will be lost. The G-20 should quickly deploy resources to stabilize emerging markets, substantially boost the emergency capacity of the International Monetary Fund and help regional development banks accelerate lending. Meanwhile, America will support meaningful investments in food security that can help the poorest.
Gordon Brown hosted a meeting last week, known as `Pre-G20 London Summit Africa Outreach Consultative Meeting’, with a group of African leaders ahead of the G20 Summit on 2 April. Representatives of several states including Ethiopia, Liberia and South Africa, participated in the meeting which was an opportunity for Gordon Brown to hear about these countries’ economic needs and the needs of the poorer countries more generally.
The African leaders present included President Kikwete, President Khama, President Johnson-Sirleaf, Prime Minister Odinga and Prime Minister Meles Zenawi. Trevor Manuel, as Head of the Group of the Finance Ministers that has been involved in making proposals, also attended.
During the speech Prime Minister Gordon Brown gave to the African leaders, he said:
It is our duty to do everything that we can first of all to relieve the pressure people are facing as a result of the downturn – and Africa knows more about these problems than any continent in the world – and secondly to prepare ourselves to get out of the downturn by taking the right decisions for the future.
I want us to come out of this meeting with not only a determination that every continent – and that means Africa – has its fair share of support over the next few months, but equally, that every continent feels that it can play a part in drawing up the plan for recovery.
This meeting came after an announcement by the UK Department for International Development at the weekend that £200 million will be given to the Rapid Social Response Fund which will be managed by the World Bank and help those living extreme poverty.
At the IMF conference in Tanzania, Bob Geldof took a moment to share his thoughts on what he would like to see the upcoming G20 summit in London do for Africa.
We’ve teamed up with Oxfam GB, Save the Children, Comic Relief, and Blue State Digital for the G20Voice project. We’re inviting 50 bloggers to attend the G20 Summit on 2 April in London. These bloggers will have full media access, right along with the rest of the main stream media. On top of that, we’re lining up briefings and speakers so that they will have an unprecedented level of access and information.
Besides being a great moment for citizen journalism, it will also increase the amount of media coverage of development issues around the summit since 15 bloggers from the developing world and 10 bloggers will focused on poverty reduction.
Where we need your help is figuring out what bloggers should come. 20 of the spots are being held for bloggers nominated by the world community, so take a minute to nominate a blogger who you think would provide a unique and powerful angle on the G20.
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