Office of the High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States - Africa

Officials From Africa’s Least Developed Countries Stress Major Challenges But Also Bright Spots in Tackling COVID-19

Anonymous — Tue, 16 Jun 2020 19:42:00 +0000

covid19_mali_photo_world_bank_ousmane_traore.jpg

COVID-19 in Mali

World Bank / Ousmane Traore

NEW YORK 16 June 2020 – Tackling health crises is not a new experience for Africa’s least developed countries (LDCs), but the COVID-19 pandemic is presenting larger-scale socio-economic challenges few of these vulnerable countries are prepared for.

In determining the extent to which the pandemic has impacted Africa’s thirty-three LDCs, government officials* acting as focal points for their respective governments, as well as 51�Թ� officials met virtually on 11 June to discuss the impacts of COVID-19 and the mitigation measures being employed to stem the spread of the disease.

African officials shared lessons learned from treating past epidemics such as Ebola, which has led some countries to reactivate emergency response centers previously established to address that disease. However, with COVID-19, many LDCs on the continent are experiencing socio-economic impacts far beyond their capacity to manage. Projections for Sub-Saharan Africa alone, according to the IMF this past April, indicate a negative real GDP growth rate of -1.6 per cent in 2020.

From disrupted supply chains and high debt burdens to weak healthcare systems, lack of food security and less global trade demand the scale of the pandemic has put already vulnerable countries into a more fragile state of affairs.

Furthermore, African LDCs have had to make major compromises in the extent to which measures can be implemented and for how long. In implementing lockdowns, many LDCs face – in contrast to richer countries – a trade-off between protecting lives and saving livelihoods. As a result, some LDCs have only implemented partial lockdowns and some have implemented cash transfers and food assistance.

Speaking at the opening of the meeting, Fekitamoeloa Katoa ‘Utoikamanu, the UN High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States said “We know already that the least developed countries particularly African LDCs will feel disproportionately the impacts of the pandemic. COVID-19 has compounded existing development challenges. For all to see, it has laid bare the lags and utter fragility of sustainable development of African LDCs on so many fronts.”

While the pandemic is posing large scale systemic challenges, Africa’s LDCs are making major national efforts, albeit with limited resources, to quell the impacts.

Senegal has trialed the development of a $1 COVID testing kit that produces results in less than 10 minutes. Uganda, Ethiopia and other LDCs have responded to their first reported cases with aggressive contact tracing and isolation. Ethiopia completed a door-to-door survey in Addis Ababa in just three weeks. Meanwhile, in Zambia ethanol from drought resistant cassava has been turned into ethanol for hand sanitizers sold locally and to neighboring countries.

UNDP’s Chief Economist for Africa, Raymond Gilpin, stressed that strategic interaction is essential to allow African countries to build back better and attain the Sustainable Development Goals. Assistance with health support systems, building integrated crisis management and response systems as well as responses based on socio-economic impact assessments are crucial components of UNDP’s work.

The UN Resident Coordinators in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and in Malawi highlighted the UN’s work in those countries to ensure a rapid health response and a sustainable economic recovery based on socio-economic impact assessments.

A major UN conference, the Fifth UN Conference on the Least Developed Countries, which was due to take part in March 2021 in Doha to adopt a new ten-year programme of action for LDCs, has been postponed due to the pandemic. The Director for the Office of the High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States (OHRLLS), Heidi Schroderus-Fox stressed that while a new timeline for the conference has had to be adopted, the Office is undertaking efforts to ensure momentum is maintained in spite of delays forced by the pandemic.

*National Focal Points are government officials from line ministries and government agencies of LDCs that are responsible for formulation of national economic development strategies and overseeing their implementation. The NFPs are tasked to coordinate with governments in the monitoring, follow-up and review of the Istanbul Programme of Action at the country level, and are a major communication channel between the LDCs and UN-OHRLLS.

Photo: COVID-19 in Mali. World Bank / Ousmane Traore

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Statement at the Virtual Meeting of the National Focal Points of African LDCs on Response to COVID-19

Anonymous — Thu, 11 Jun 2020 17:32:00 +0000

Statement by Ms. Fekitamoeloa Katoa‘Utoikamanu, High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States

11 June 2020
New York, USA

Excellencies,
Colleagues,
Ladies and gentlemen,

Thank you ALL for joining this virtual meeting of the National Focal Points for Implementation of the Istanbul Programme of Action (IPoA).

As someone once said “the show must go on.” Not that this is a show, but I appreciate your effort to be together virtually.

I especially thank the UN Resident Coordinators for your participation.

We are here truly as one 51�Թ�. We do our best when we do it together. So, this is a good first step in the right direction to forge synergy between all of us for one goal we all want to achieve: promote implementation of the programme of action of LDCs.

Yes, we all experience an unprecedented situation with the global COVID-19 pandemic.

A virus not visible to the naked eye has put the world on pause. It has put into question how and where to go from here.

Everybody, every continent grapples with the immediate needs of this public health crisis.

We probably only just have seen the tip of the iceberg of the many shifts this pandemic will trigger in terms of the socio-economic fallouts and so much more.

We know already that the least developed countries particularly African LDCs will feel disproportionately the impacts of the pandemic.

COVID-19 has compounded existing development challenges. For all to see, it has laid bare the lags and utter fragility of sustainable development of African LDCs on so many fronts.

Chronically underfunded health systems are ravaged. There were and are few ventilators and insufficient medical workers.

Inequalities are driven even deeper.

Confinement measures have aggravated the already desolate situations of women, children, refugees and migrant workers.

The often very important informal sector is severely affected by the lockdowns.

The expected drops in exports, the plummeting oil price, and the halt of tourism have further exacerbated the economic vulnerability of African LDCs.

Sub-Saharan Africa is projected to experience its first recession in 25 years.

If this were not enough, in the Horn of Africa, LDCs are battling a locust infestation, which is estimated to leave 25 million people in East Africa in food insecurity in 2020.

The limited fiscal space and a mounting debt crisis mean limited LDCs ability to roll out stimulus packages to protect people and the economy and boost health system to save lives.

Yet, the COVID-19 reality is not just that in African LDCs.

With swift actions and global collaboration, African LDCs did not suffer explosive transmission rates and even outperformed in some aspects.

We could see some good practices and successful policy initiatives adopted by African LDCs giving all of us much needed optimism and hope for a recovery.

Take Senegal’s trials to develop a $1 COVID testing kit that produces results in less than 10 minutes. This is inspiring.

Take Uganda, Ethiopia and other LDCs responding to their first cases with aggressive contact tracing and isolation and putting considerable resources into checking. Ethiopia completed a door-to-door survey in Addis Ababa in just three weeks.

Several African countries applied the lessons learned from their experiences in Ebola preparedness. They deployed rapid-response teams, trained contact tracers, had logistics routes and public health protocols ready to contain community spread.

In Zambia, the drought resistant cassava has become a cash crop. Cassava ethanol is turned into ethanol for hand sanitizers sold locally and exported to neighboring countries.

In the middle of the pandemic, Rwanda tapped into an online trading platform to sell 1.5 tonnes of Rwandan coffee beans internationally and this saw the profits of farmers almost double.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Yes, we have a picture of both tremendous challenges but also one of hopeful signs.

The COVID-19 virus knows no boundaries nor race, nor religion.

It teaches us that only a global solution underpinned by solidarity and swift action can counter its force.

We have a choice now: let inequalities run even deeper with all the risks we know this triggers for all of us or we act in solidarity to leave no one behind.

At the 75th anniversary of the 51�Թ�, once more the great vision of the Charter and the declaration of Universal Human Rights take on great meaning that should inspire us all to act!

Let me now turn to what OHRLLS has done so far.

Since the outbreak, we intensified our advocacy efforts to amplify the voices of LDCs for global solidarity and support.

We reached out to LDCs to listen to their pressing needs and facilitate coordination of UN system wide support and mobilize resources.

Regular briefings included a briefing session by the Deputy Secretary-General of the UN, and meetings with the Global Coordination Bureau of LDCs in New York.

We regularly exchange with the Friends of LDCs and UN inter-agency consultative groups and will continue to do so.

We worked with the LDC Bureau with Malawi as the Chair to issue a statement on a global stimulus package for LDCs. This has been shared across the UN development system.

Last week, I presented the 2020 report of the Secretary-General on the implementation of the Programme of Action for the LDCs to UN ECOSOC.

The report highlights major setbacks of LDCs in achieving sustainable development further aggravated by the pandemic, and appeals for immediate actions to help LDCs mitigate the pandemic’s impacts.

It is encouraging that across the UN system and development partners, we have broad consensus on the urgency to help LDCs with targeted support and enhanced financial assistance.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

As you know, the COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted the preparatory process for the Fifth UN Conference on LDCs.

Major meetings and consultations have been postponed. They include the African regional review meeting on the implementation of the IPoA in Malawi.

What is important though is that the momentum to promote the cause of LDCs and our efforts to map out an ambitious and robust new programme of action has never stopped.

I take this opportunity to urge those who have not yet submitted your national reports to ensure your unique challenges are addressed in the next programme of action.

I would also once more like to thank the UN Resident Coordinators for providing the necessary support for preparation of national reports.

Unprecedented crises also present opportunities for transformation.

We must turn COVID-19 into a unique opportunity for African LDCs to recalibrate their development goals and design national development frameworks that can fast-track sustainable development in the next 10 years of programme of action.

OHRLLS, the UN system we are with you in every step of your recovery towards inclusive, resilient and sustainable development.

I look forward to hearing your discussions and learning from your insights.

Thank you.

Front Page Article:

Enhancing STI in Africa through the Technology Bank for the LDCs (2018)

Anonymous — Tue, 11 Dec 2018 22:18:00 +0000

uganda_arne_hoel_world_bank.jpg

Young communities use computers in an internet cafe in Kampala, Uganda.

Arne Hoel / World Bank

The analysis in this paper shows that despite the importance of STI, African LDCs are lagging far behind other countries in various STI indicators, including R&D, human resource capacity, patents and innovation. In order for African LDCs to catch-up, they will need to embrace the on-going Technological Revolution, while ensuring that the net effect on the labour market and productivity is positive. This would significantly contribute to eradicating poverty and fostering economic growth in the African LDCs. The UN Technology Bank has the potential to catalyse the on-going initiatives on STI in Africa. In general, the analysis in Table II show a significant alignment of objectives. This means that the Technology Bank has the potential, once is fully operationalised, to significantly contribute to increasing the African LDCs’ access to knowledge, especially if both acting in cooperation with the various African organizations and promoting synergies across them, and between multilateral and regional initiatives. Playing an orchestrating role by harnessing the various African initiatives may produce a useful rationalizing and ultimately a boosting effect on the ground. By doing so its efforts to increase the utilization of knowledge as global public good will be enhanced.

Downland

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Office of the High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States - Africa

Officials From Africa’s Least Developed Countries Stress Major Challenges But Also Bright Spots in Tackling COVID-19

covid19_mali_photo_world_bank_ousmane_traore.jpg

Statement at the Virtual Meeting of the National Focal Points of African LDCs on Response to COVID-19

Statement by Ms. Fekitamoeloa Katoa‘Utoikamanu, High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States

11 June 2020 New York, USA

Enhancing STI in Africa through the Technology Bank for the LDCs (2018)

uganda_arne_hoel_world_bank.jpg

11 June 2020
New York, USA