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President of Ghana, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo said Ghana advocated that innovative financing should also address structural challenges beyond responding to immediate fiscal needs, by providing mechanisms to facilitate investments in health infrastructure, technology, environment and people that would build resilience and equitable recovery.
He said that the unprecedented International Monetary Fund (IMF) Special Drawing Rights (SDR) allocation of six hundred and fifty billion dollars ($ 650 billion) provides a unique opportunity to provide additional financial resources to address vast and growing inequalities that the pandemic has caused. revealed, and a crisis to come.
Speaking at the 76th session of the United Nations General Assembly on Wednesday, September 22, Akufo-Addo said Africa’s allocation is around $ 33 billion ($ 33 billion dollars).
“If there ever was a time for an African Marshall Plan, it is now! “, did he declare.
He added: “The injection of SDRs should be used as a catalytic effort to take Africa to the next level of human development and ensure sustainable global prosperity.
“African leaders have called for the prudent and transparent channeling of twenty-five to thirty-five percent (25% -35%) of SDRs, or one hundred and sixty to two hundred and thirty billion dollars, from the richest countries to the vulnerable countries, one hundred billion dollars ($ 100 billion) should be spent on Africa.
“We welcome the support of the European countries represented at the Africa summit in France, the IMF, the G7 and the G20, for a certain redistribution of SDRs. Mr President, the proceeds of channeled SDRs should finance the acquisition and manufacture of vaccines, climate and green investments, as well as a pan-African stability mechanism, such as the European Stability Mechanism, which would preserve financial stability on the continent. .
“Part of the redistribution should also help finance the recapitalization of the African Development Bank and Afreximbank to support industrialization, private sector job creation and the African continental free trade initiative. 5 Third, we need to reposition key multilateral organizations and international financial institutions such as the United Nations, other Bretton Woods institutions and the G20 to reflect inclusiveness, support countries’ investments in global public goods, and secure financial support accelerated to rebuild better and prepare for future pandemics. “
“For example, the key to the effectiveness of the G20 is that it achieves representative coverage of the global population and economy with a sufficiently diverse number of leaders at the table, to allow for speed and flexibility in deliberations. and decision making. “
On August 2, 2021, the IMF Board of Governors approved a general allocation of SDR 456.5 billion, equivalent to US $ 650 billion, of which about US $ 33.7 billion for African countries, including Ghana, to stimulate global liquidity and economic recovery from the devastating impact. of the Covid-19 pandemic on lives and livelihoods.
The new SDR allocation that came into effect on August 23, 2021 will increase the additional financing needs of countries, especially low-income countries, caused by the impact of the pandemic on public finances.
AfDB estimates that African governments need additional funding of around US $ 484.6 billion over the next three years to close the funding gap and emerge from the COVID-19 crisis stronger and more resilient .
According to the IMF, the SDR allocation will benefit all members, meet long-term global reserve requirements, build confidence, and promote resilience and stability in the global economy. This historic allocation of SDRs will particularly help the most vulnerable countries to cope immediately with the impact of the pandemic on economic recovery.
This SDR allocation is in response to a global call to action, following the devastating effects of the pandemic, including an Africa-wide effort championed by Minister Ken Ofori-Atta and his colleague Les African finance ministers, the AU, the ECA, and supported by the main international partners (including the IMF, the WB, the G20, the EU).
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