AfricaFocus Bulletin
January 26, 2021 Africa/Global: Distant Horizon for Vaccine Equity
“I need to be blunt: the world is on the brink of a catastrophic
moral failure – and the price of this failure will be paid with
lives and livelihoods in the world’s poorest countries. Even as
they speak the language of equitable access [to Covid vaccines],
some countries and companies continue to prioritize bilateral
deals, driving up prices and attempting to jump to the front of the
queue. This is wrong. … The situation is compounded by the fact
that most manufacturers have prioritized regulatory approval in
rich countries where the profits are highest, rather than
submitting full dossiers to WHO.” - Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus,
WHO Director-General
December 14, 2020 Africa/Global: State of Tax Justice 2020
“Of the $427 billion in tax lost each year globally to tax havens,
the State of Tax Justice 2020 reports that $245 billion is directly
lost to corporate tax abuse by multinational corporations and $182
billion to private tax evasion. Multinational corporations paid
billions less in tax than they should have by shifting $1.38
trillion worth of profit out of the countries where they were
generated and into tax havens, where corporate tax rates are
extremely low or non-existent. Private tax evaders paid less tax
than they should have by storing a total of over $10 trillion in
financial assets offshore.” - Tax Justice Network, November 2020.
November 30, 2020 USA/Africa: Build Back Better on Africa Policy
“President Trump's overt contempt for Africans is encapsulated in
his famously crass remark about African countries. But the
principal damage to Africa has stemmed from his administration’s
broader policy choices, such as the disastrous rejection of the
World Health Organization (WHO) and the Paris climate accords;
harsh curbs on legal immigration and asylum; and gutting of gender
equality programs. … Nevertheless, the Biden administration should
not merely go back to the pre-Trump status quo. … We argue that an
even more fundamental questioning of U.S. Africa-related policy is
needed.” - Imani Countess and William Minter
November 30, 2020 USA/Global: On Climate, How Much Will Be New?
“One of the most powerful pieces of climate change legislation the
Biden administration will need has already been passed: the Dodd-
Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010. This
legislation, known for creating the Consumer Financial Protection
Bureau and other public safeguards against financial wrongdoing,
also empowers key agencies including the Treasury Department, the
Federal Reserve and the Securities and Exchange Commission to limit
systemic risks to financial stability.” - Justin Guay, Sunrise
Project
November 18, 2020 Ethiopia: Not Too Late to Step Back from War?
“We, the undersigned citizens of countries of the Horn of Africa,
condemn in the strongest possible terms the outbreak and escalation
of open warfare in Ethiopia. We are saddened by the attendant
losses of life, property, infrastructure and opportunities. We
deplore in equally strong terms further stoking of the conflict. …
This conflict will not have winners; the only winners in war are
those who are wise and courageous enough to avoid it.”
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AfricaFocus Archive:
by date | by place | by topic
October 23, 2020 Nigeria: A New Generation Steps Up
October 13, 2020 Africa/Global: The Future's Not in Plastics
September 28, 2020 USA/Global: Millions Displaced by US Post-9/11 Wars
September 23, 2020 USA/Global: Overhauling U.S. Foreign Policy
September 14, 2020 India/Africa: Common Threads of Kanga and Vitenge
August 24, 2020 USA/Global: Divest from Violent Policing and Endless Wars, Part Two
August 24, 2020 USA/Global: Divest from Violent Policing and Endless Wars, Part One
August 3, 2020 Africa/Global: Preventing the Next Pandemic
July 20, 2020 South Africa: Covid-19 Response Failing; How to Do Better
July 6, 2020 Africa/Global: Not Pessimism or Optimism but Possibilism
June 22, 2020 Africa/Global: Fossil Fuel Viability to Decline Sharply
June 8, 2020 USA/Global: Racial Pandemic and Viral Pandemic
June 8, 2020 Africa/Global: Thinking Post-Covid-19
May 25, 2020 Africa: Remote Learning with African Storybooks
May 12, 2020 USA/Global: Contesting Health and Workers' Rights
April 27, 2020 Africa/Global: Pandemic Mobilization amid High Vulnerability
April 13, 2020 Mozambique: Cumulative Shocks, Local and Global
April 2, 2020 Africa: Covid-19, New Africa-Specific Links
March 26, 2020 Africa/Global: Coronavirus Reflections and Updates
March 16, 2020 Africa/Global: Coronavirus Updates
March 9, 2020 USA/Africa: Transnational Lives in Kentucky
February 24, 2020 USA/Global: National and Global Inequalities Are Intertwined
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