In the wake of COVID-19, African countries are set to receive special drawing rights to boost their economies. However, there is a need to increase African agency in development financing – including in the deployment of SDRs to best meet African development agendas such as Agenda 2063. During COVID-19, Development Reimagined estimates that African governments spent a US$130 billion to address COVID-19’s economic and health effects. Given this, this session will reimagine how the continent effectively engages with SDRs to deliver prosperity across the continent with a focus on utilizing China’s bilateral SDR reallocation.
This panel of experts will discuss:
- Africa’s relationship with SDR general allocation – including disbursement levels and bilateral commitments – in particular China’s bilateral commitment.
- African priorities for SDR usage including what sectors/areas they should be allocated to.
- Options for SDR channeling in the future – e.g. through African-owned institutions such as AfDB and innovative development finance mechanisms.
- This event is in partnership with Development Reimagined and the Finance for Development Lab.
FEATURING
Mark Plant, Keynote Speaker, Senior Fellow at the Center for Global Development
Mavis Owusu-Gyamfi, Executive Vice President of the African Center for Economic Transformation (ACET)
Jason Braganza, Executive Director at the African Forum and Network on Debt and Development (AFRODAD)
Hanan Morsy, Deputy Executive Secretary and Chief Economist at United Nations Economic Commission for Africa
Gyude Moore, Senior Policy Fellow at the Center for Global Development (CGD) and former Minister of Public Works for Liberia
MODERATOR
Hannah Ryder, CEO of Development Reimagined