Plan to nurture African economies unites fractious G20

Yahoo – AFP, March 18, 2017

The Plateau commercial district of Abidjan, Ivory Coast is seen in 2014
(AFP Photo/SIA KAMBOU)

Baden-Baden (Germany) (AFP) - Ministers from the world's top economies heralded plans to boost development in Africa on Saturday, at an otherwise fractious G20 gathering in Germany.

Berlin, which holds the presidency of the powerful nations' club this year, has made a hoped-for "Compact with Africa" a top priority for 2017.

Africa's future represents "a major geopolitical risk" but also a "chance", German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble told reporters Friday as the meeting got under way in the genteel western spa town of Baden Baden.

In their final communique, G20 ministers committed to "fostering private investment including in infrastructure," aiming at "sustainable and inclusive growth" for the continent.

It was "revolutionary" to see Africa so high on the agenda of the G20 for the first time, said Senegal's Finance Minister Amadou Ba on the sidelines of the conference.

Along with counterparts from Ivory Coast, Morocco, Rwanda and Tunisia, Ba was invited to join the world's biggest financial powers at the table in Baden Baden.

South Africa is the only nation from the continent to hold G20 membership.

"This G20 initiative is well timed with its philosophy of suggesting rather than enforcing, as well as the idea of working together," Moroccan Finance Minister Mohamed Boussaid said, emphasising that it was not an "aid programme".

'Win-win partnership'

While the conference has seen bitter wrangling over trade and climate commitments, consensus was easier to achieve on the Africa plan.

The G20 hopes to encourage private investment to build up jobs and infrastructure in African partner countries by offering political support.

Members are, however, offering no financial commitment of their own.

German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble attends a press conference after

 the G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors Meeting in Baden-Baden, 

southern Germany, on March 18, 2017 (AFP Photo/Thomas Kienzle)

"Africa needs infrastructure, some efforts are already underway and should be sped up. We'll need to step on the accelerator and finally allow our countries to participate meaningfully in worldwide free trade," Senegal's Ba said.

European nations might find fewer African migrants and refugees coming to their shores if populations were able to flourish at home thanks to improved infrastructure, healthcare, and education, he argued.

But the African nations were "not here to lend a hand" to European politicians faced with rising popular disquiet over migration, Ba said.

Instead, they hope for "a win-win partnership" with wealthier countries.

To offer the continent a "hopeful and flourishing future, Africa needs the rest of the world by its side," European Union economic affairs commissioner Pierre Moscovici told AFP.

'Insufficient'

Before the German plan can be declared a success, G20 countries will themselves have to make financial commitments, said Friederike Roeder of NGO One -- failing that, the plans announced Saturday would remain "insufficient, short-sighted and one-dimensional".

For now, she said, ministers have done little but "reiterate existing plans" concentrating on private-sector investment, even though "these remain countries in need of international aid".

G20 representatives are slated to flesh out the Africa plans at a Berlin conference on June 12 and 13, before a heads of state and government summit in Hamburg in July.

In Baden Baden, there was "a real desire and engagement for this initiative to have concrete results," Morocco's Boussaid said.

Argentina, which will take the baton of the presidency from Germany in 2018, plans to keep the Africa scheme running under its stewardship -- in itself an encouraging sign, Senegal's Ba said.

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New set-up for Rabobank in Africa to pool interests

"The Recalibration of Awareness – Apr 20/21, 2012 (Kryon channeled by Lee Carroll)  - (Text version)

“… The Future of the Illuminati

Now, I want to tell you something that you didn't expect and something I've reported only one other time. What about all of the money that the Illuminati has? There are trillions and trillions of euro in banks, under their control, waiting. What are they going to do with it and where are they going to use it? It's still here. They're waiting.

This group is waiting for something to happen that they know is going to happen, for they see it coming as much as I do. However, I would like to tell you something that they don't expect. With awareness comes generational shift. Those in charge of this money will not always be elders. The indigos eventually will have it.

They are waiting for something to happen in Africa - the building of a new civilization, a continent that has nothing to unlearn. Once Africa is cured, once it's ready, a new civilization can be created from the ground up. Africans will be ready to learn everything about building a foundation for the most advanced civilization ever and will do it with the most modern and inventive systems available. Eventually, this new continent will even beat the economics of China.

This is the prediction and always has been, and the Illuminati's money will fund it. Did I say the Illuminati will fund it? [Kryon laugh]The Illuminati's money will fund it, but there is a difference from the past, dear ones. The ones who inherit the positions in the Illuminati will be a different consciousness. Listen, they are not suddenly going to be the ones who have the good of everyone in their hearts - hardly. They want to make money, but what they will see instead is a way to make a great deal of money through this investment. In the process, it will automatically help hundreds of thousands, and they will be at the beginning, the foundation, that builds the new Africa. The new African states of unification eventually will create a continent stronger than any of the others, and it will have one currency. The resources alone will dwarf anything in the world.

"Wow, Kryon, how long is that going to take?"

The Humans in the room control that and those listening later and reading. When you leave this room, what are you going to do? Go home, report this, rub your hands together, and wait for it to happen? It won't. For the Humans in the room and the old souls hearing and reading have got work to do, and I've told you this before. You've got work to do.

There's an alliance that you're going to have to create with one another and with another group - the young people of Earth. The youth of this earth are changing the way things work. Can you see it? You're not supposed to sit around and watch them either, because they need you, old soul.

It's time for you to align with the indigos and the concepts of the youth of the planet. Do not think for a moment that their age shows their wisdom. These two attributes are not commensurate with one another; they're not linear. These young people may be older souls than you are! Don't think that because they've got technology that you don't understand that you can't be one with them. Their technology is social networking, the very thing we are talking about, where everyone can talk to everyone. The new consciousness on the planet starts in two areas - the children and the old souls.. …”

"The End of History"- Nov 20, 2010 (Kryon channeled by Lee Carroll) - (Text-Version)

" .... Africa

Let me tell you where else it's happening that you are unaware - that which is the beginning of the unity of the African states. Soon the continent will have what they never had before, and when that continent is healed and there is no AIDS and no major disease, they're going to want what you have. They're going to want houses and schools and an economy that works without corruption. They will be done with small-minded leaders who kill their populations for power in what has been called for generations "The History of Africa." Soon it will be the end of history in Africa, and a new continent will emerge.

Be aware that the strength may not come from the expected areas, for new leadership is brewing. There is so much land there and the population is so ready there, it will be one of the strongest economies on the planet within two generations plus 20 years. And it's going to happen because of a unifying idea put together by a few. These are the potentials of the planet, and the end of history as you know it.

In approximately 70 years, there will be a black man who leads this African continent into affluence and peace. He won't be a president, but rather a planner and a revolutionary economic thinker. He, and a strong woman with him, will implement the plan continent-wide. They will unite. This is the potential and this is the plan. Africa will arise out the ashes of centuries of disease and despair and create a viable economic force with workers who can create good products for the day. You think China is economically strong? China must do what it does, hobbled by the secrecy and bias of the old ways of its own history. As large as it is, it will have to eventually compete with Africa, a land of free thinkers and fast change. China will have a major competitor, one that doesn't have any cultural barriers to the advancement of the free Human spirit.. ...."

New set-up for Rabobank in Africa to pool interests

DutchNews, March 16, 2017

Rabobank’s headquarters in Utrecht. Photo: Depositphotos.com

Dutch cooperative bank Rabo, which has a broad presence in the African agricultural sector, has joined new consortium Arise to pool the interests of its three partners in Africa, the Financieele Dagblad said on Thursday. 

Arise, which now has investments in more than 20 African countries with a total valuation of $660m, expects to expand its investment portfolio to €1bn. Rabobank has a 25% stake in Arise. Its partner Dutch development bank FMO holds 27% and Norway’s Norfund own the remaining shares. 

Arise bought a 27.7% stake in CAL Bank of Ghana for €24m last month. CAL had a balance sheet total of €737m in mid-2016. The bank booked after-tax profit of €14.3m in the first six months of last year. 

The consortium also bought parts of Ghana-based Crane Bank for an undisclosed sum at the end of January. Crane was formerly owned by Ghana’s richest man Sudhir Ruparelia but after irregularities were discovered it was placed under the protection of the Ghana central bank.

African bankers scrutinize German minister's 'Marshall Plan'

German Development Minister Gerd Müller has been canvassing support for his 'Marshall Plan with Africa' at the African Development Bank in Ivory Coast. Some bankers thought his discussion paper lacked detail.

Deutsche Welle, 3 March 2017

German Development Minister Gerd Müller (left) with AfDB Senior
Vice-President Frannie Leautier

In the modern premises of the African Development Bank (AfDB) in the Ivorian commercial hub of Abidjan, around twenty board members are gathered around an enormous table. Almost all of them are bankers with years of experience in development finance. They meet every week to discuss applications for loans, around 300 every year. Last year they disbursed almost $11 billion (10.5 billion euros) in credit.

At this particular meeting they have a guest. He is Gerd Müller, Germany 's development minister, who has been expounding on his African "Marshall Plan." This is a 30-page discussion paper which envisages "a new level" in development cooperation with Africa in the areas of economic development, trade, education and energy. Müller is seeking partnership with Africa, that is his reason for his presence in Ivory Coast, he explains. "I see you as the voice of Africa," Müller tells the bankers."You are the experts."

The experts thank Müller politely for his display of initiative and his engagement with Africa. Then come words of criticism. "The strategy and the vision covers a lot of ground. I think the focus needs to be narrowed," said one board member. The plan concentrates on creating jobs for young people and offering them a better future. "Is 'Marshall Plan' really the right name for this?" the board member asks. "There aren't enough figures," another banker observes. "Exactly how much could Germany contribute?"

Müller (standing at head of table) faced some tough questions from African
bankers about his African "Marshall Plan"

Closer cooperation instead of capital injection

Unlike the original Marshall Plan, which was enacted in Europe shortly after the end of World War II, Müller's plan does not foresee handing out billions of dollars in loans. Instead, he wants to overhaul development aid, work closer with development partners and hold Africa's elites more accountable for their actions. Müller wants to stop the illegal flight of capital out of Africa and close down the tax havens being used by multinational corporations. Boosting Africa's private sector is also a key component of the German minister's scheme. Unfair trade barriers would be dismantled and African products given better access to European markets.

"I must take you up on that point, Minister," said a banker from Nigeria. "Everybody at this table knows that the current agriculture policy is unfair to Africa. Statistically speaking, a cow in Europe receives more in subsidies than a farmer in Africa." Müller nods but the question as to how exactly he intends to bring about a fairer system remains unanswered.

Müller's plan is currently just a discussion paper drawn up by the development ministry. He has no influence over trade policy, even though he may wish that he did. Many of his ideas have been bandied about in development policy circles for years, prompting  Müller's critics to describe the name "Marshall Plan" as misleading. Others believe that it is a brilliant move, because it guarantees Africa and Müller's ministry a lot of attention in Germany.

As well as meeting development bankers, Gerd Müller (left) also visited a
chocolate factory in Abidjan

German policymakers have started taking more interest in Africa since the start of the migration crisis. Finance Minister Wolfgang Schäuble wants to seal investment partnership agreements with selected African countries within the framework of Germany's G20 presidency. Chancellor Angela Merkel who has already made trips to Mali and Niger - both of which are on the migration route - is now visiting Egypt and Tunisia. Müller is trying to drum up support for his "Marshall Plan" both inside and outside Germany and has received backing from the president of the European Parliament, Antonio Tajani.

AfDB as partner

Müller's ideas fit in well with the AfDB's priorities, said Senior Vice-President  Frannie Leautier. It is also in line with the goals of the African Union. Müller stresses that it would a "Marshall Plan with Africa." "I think the words "with Africa", are very important, Leautier, herself a banker from Tanzania, said. "It is the first time that something is being done about Africa and with Africa," she added. She also welcomed the proposal for the creation of a European Union Commissioner for Africa.

Müller hopes that cooperation with the AfDB will lead to new financial products and financial risk management instruments which will help boost investment and the African private sector. One example would be a loan program for young entrepreneurs. "We are moving in the same direction and the bank is an important strategic partner," Müller told DW. With regard to the financial instruments he would like to see developed, there is a large measure of agreement between himself and the bank's executive management, he said.

But what about the criticism that was voiced by the board? "Journalists only hear the two percent that is criticism. Criticism is stimulating - and highly desirable," Müller said. But the development minister barely addressed the criticism directed at him and so a number of board members are no doubt still wondering how he is going to implement certain aspects of his plan. How is he going to reduce dependency on donors or boost industrialization? Or work together with overstretched public administrations which have little interest in reform? "We are aware of a number of initiatives that were launched in the past and didn't lead anywhere," one banker said. Müller's "Marshall Plan" was a good basis for discussion, but was in need of improvement. He wished Müller "much success and courage" in pursuit of this idea.