Social spending floors sit in IMF programmes as indicative targets, so they carry no consequence when they break. Across Africa the adjustment lands on unpaid care work.
Last week I wrote about the nurse in Manchester who wires her sister’s school fees to Harare every month. Look closer at what her money buys. School fees. A grandmother’s blood pressure tablets. Crèche fees so a cousin can keep her market stall. The wire
Every month, a nurse in Manchester wires her sister’s school fees to Harare. A driver in Houston sends rent money to his mother in Lagos. A teacher in Johannesburg pays a cousin’s hospital bill in Bulawayo. None of them call this development finance. They call
It has been some months since I last wrote here. One question pulled me back: as the world scrambles for Africa’s critical minerals, who carries the cost, and who captures the value? Africa is setting new terms Something is shifting across the continent. In February
When I entered the High-Level Dialogue on Rethinking Debt Sustainability and Exploring Africa’s Alternative Financing Models on 17 November 2025 in Johannesburg, I felt the pulse of a continent refusing to be defined by its liabilities. Convened by the African Union Commission, AFRODAD, UNDP, UNECA,
In the early 2000s, Zimbabwe went on to default on its external debt obligations as its political and economic crisis turned ugly with the Fast Track Land Reform Programme causing internal chaos, volatility and shocks to capital. Arrears and penalties began to accumulate and currently
While digitalization and automation are not new, they have accelerated in recent years, and the wave of innovation has reshaped the whole global economy. Many governments, public institutions, and private players speak to the need to digitalise with the view that it is the panacea
Continued from Part (1) Turning to the meaning of macro-economic stability from the government priorities, this entails the stability of prices: A low inflation of under 10% per annum is considered as the benchmark. Also, the exchange rate must be stable, characterized by parallel market
The benefits and the vast opportunities that are offered by digitalisation on the economy were shared in Part 1 and Part 2 of this series. In this Part 3, we look at the blind spots that the government has to check and be aware of,
The United Nations Special Rapporteur on the negative impact of unilateral coercive measures on the enjoyment of human rights, Ms. Alena Douhan, will undertake an official visit to Zimbabwe from 18 to 28 October 2021 following the invitation from the Government of Zimbabwe. The UN