Africa Is Awakening, Helped by Free Trade – Daniel Yohannes, CEO of the Millennium Challenge Corporation and Mo Ibrahim, Sudanese entrepreneur and ONE board member, say that while six of the 10 fastest-growing economies of the last decade were in sub-Saharan Africa, Africa still faces great challenges in terms of infrastructure and steep tariffs. They argue that development assistance can help overcome these obstacles, pointing to the MCC as an example, which funds projects that build trade capacity for African countries. (Daniel W. Yohannes and Mo Ibrahim Wall Street Journal)
Annan Cites Africa as Answer to Global Food Crisis - Former Secretary General of the UN Kofi Annan speaking at the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization said Africa is “the key to ensuring global food security in the future.” With predicted rising food prices expected to hit Africa the hardest, Mr. Annan called for “an African revolution” with a concentration on smallholder farmers, saying “Africa is the continent which has perhaps the greatest opportunities to help find solutions to global food insecurity.” (Caroline Henshaw, Wall Street Journal)
Malaria funding rise fills drug pipeline – report – A report published yesterday said “annual funding for research and development in the fight against malaria has quadrupled over 16 years,” creating “the strongest pipeline of potential treatments in history.” The report also found “relatively modest increases” are needed for annual funding to reach $690 million by 2015; however, even a slight drop in funding could “derail development of much-needed products.” (Kate Kelland, Reuters)
Bug Buster? New Chemical Compound Could Ward Off Deadly Mosquitoes – A team of researchers may have found a way to make humans less appetizing to mosquitos, an approach that would not disrupt the ecosystem, while stopping the spread of malaria. They believe the “behaviorally disruptive olfactory compound” they have discovered could be “thousands of times more effective than the most commonly used insect repellent” DEET, but will take at least five years and millions of dollars before a product based on this compound becomes available. (Kimberly Brown, ABC News)