World
Africa Needs Quality Data for Success of SDGs—ECA
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
Africa needs to build its statistical capacity to produce accurate, high quality and timely data to inform policies that will support the full implementation of the sustainable development goals and the continent’s Agenda 2063, says Economic Commission for Africa’s Tinfissi Joseph Ilboudo.
In a presentation on the role of data and statistics in SDG financing at the on-going high-level policy dialogue on development planning in Africa, Mr. Ilboudo, Chief of the Statistical Development Section in the ECA’s African Centre for Statistics (ACS), said investing in data for the full implementation of the 2030 Agenda for sustainable development goals was crucial if the continent is to achieve the goal of leaving no-one behind.
“Data and statistics which are timely, accurate, high quality and well packaged could influence adequate financing to support implementation and monitoring of the SDGs to ensure tangible policy formulation which will translate into the creation of inclusive societies,” he told high-level participants attending the meeting.
He said data to inform policy remained a significant challenge across Africa, adding the ECA and its partners were working hard with member States to try and plug the gap.
Mr Ilboudo said producing data for the full implementation of the 2030 Agenda requires robust statistical legislations across the continent; effective coordination of all actors in the national statistical systems; adequate resources; mainstreaming national strategy for the development of statistics with SDGs orientation in the national development planning; and most of all, political will.
He said data gaps were impacting the optimal allocation of resources for SDGs implementation.
“The Addis Ababa Action Agenda (AAAA) provides a new global framework for financing sustainable development that aligns all financing flows and policies with economic, social and environmental priorities and ensures that financing is stable and sustainable,” said Mr Ilboudo.
“The financing needs to achieve the 2030 Agenda for sustainable development are extremely large, on the order of trillions of dollars annually,” he said, adding Africa required between $200bn and $1.2trillion per annum for the SDGs to be achieved. This is about 10 to more than 50 percent of the continent’s total GDP.
“Our planners should advocate for national statistical development as the base for monitoring and evaluation of national development planning; the mainstreaming NSDS into national development planning; support resource mobilization for statistical production and use; and continuously collaborate with national statistical systems to improve data production and use for planning,” said Mr Ilboudo.
He said SDG financing should come from both private and public sources.
The HLPD is being attended by high-level participants from UN member States, including Finance and Planning Ministers. The meeting is being held under the theme; ‘Financing the SDGs in Africa: Strategies for planning and resource mobilization.’
By Adedapo Adesanya
The global markets are experiencing relief as the United States and China, the world’s two largest economies, have agreed to slash tariffs on each other, to ease effects of a trade war.
Speaking after talks with Chinese officials in Geneva, US Treasury Secretary, Mr Scott Bessent told reporters that the two sides had reached a deal for a 90-day pause on measures.
US trade representative Jamieson Greer said so-called reciprocal tariffs were now at 10 per cent each.
Business Post reports that in real terms, the deal means the US is reducing its 145 per cent tariff announced by President Donald Trump to 30 per cent on Chinese goods.
A tariff of 20 per cent had been implemented on China when President Trump took office over what his administration said was a failure to stop illegal drugs entering the US.
China has agreed to reduce its 125 per cent retaliatory tariffs to 10 per cent on US goods.
Sector-specific tariffs, such as the 25 per cent tax on cars, aluminium and steel, remain in place.
Last month, President Trump announced a 90-day pause on the reciprocal tarrifs. However, China was the only country exempt from the pause on the retaliatory tariffs above the base 10 per cent levies.
The development had impacted many markets across the world from stocks to oil to bonds and minerals.
Mr Bessent said after a weekend of negotiations in Switzerland, the countries had a mechanism for continued talks.
It is the second major trade announcement made by the US in the last week, after a deal was secured with the United Kingdom on Thursday.
The move signals a willingness from the Americans to make deals on tariffs.
The news was received positively by major markets.
Brent crude is currently up 2.9 per cent to $65.78 per barrel while the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) is up 3.1 per cent to $62.91 a barrel.
Asian stock markets on Monday as major indexes were up. In China, the Shanghai Composite stock index rose 0.8 per cent, the Shenzhen Component gained 1.7 per cent, and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index was up nearly 3 per cent.
Korea’s Kospi grew 1.1 per cent, Japan’s Nikkei was up 0.8 per cent while India’s Nifty 50 index of most valuable companies gained more than 3 per cent, as per Sky News.
CNBC reports that US stocks look set to rise on the open, based on after-hours trading. Wall Street’s tech-heavy Nasdaq is expected to rise by 3.3 per cent, and the S&P 500 index of companies relied on to be stable and profitable by 2.5 per cent.
Mr Bessent also said, “As long as there is good faith effort, engagement and constructive dialogue, then we will keep moving forward,” in response to questions from journalists.
The market will await further developments and possible ease to recent headwinds.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The new pope of the Catholic Church has been revealed as Robert Prevost of the United States, the first American pontiff in history.
Following his emergence, he will be known as Pope Leo XIV.
Voting commenced on Wednesday, and after three rounds of black smoke, white smoke billowed above the Sistine Chapel on Thursday evening.
This is the signal that cardinals had selected a new pontiff on the second day of the conclave.
Prevost, age 69, from Chicago, Illinois, is a leader with global experience. He spent much of his career as a missionary in South America and served as a Bishop in Peru. He most recently led a powerful Vatican office for bishop appointments. He is expected to build on Pope Francis’ reforms.
There were 133 voting cardinals, who had all been sequestered inside the Vatican during the conclave. Any one of them needed two-thirds of the vote to become the next pope.
“Peace be with you all,” said Leo XIV in his first remarks as pope.
“This is the first greetings of the resurrected Christ, the good shepherd who has given up his life for God,” he said, explaining the choice of his greeting. “And I should also like this greeting of peace to enter our hearts and our families.”
Leo XIV looked visibly emotional as he waved to the adoring crowd in the square below the balcony.
A leader with global experience, he spent much of his career as a missionary in South America and most recently led a powerful Vatican office for bishop appointments. He is expected to build on Pope Francis’ reforms.
He worked for a decade in Trujillo, Peru, and was later appointed bishop of Chiclayo, another Peruvian city, where he served from 2014 to 2023.
Prevost also holds a Peruvian passport and has been a Peruvian citizen since 2015.
By Dipo Olowookere
A white smoke was seen from the Sistine Chapel at the Vatican City on Thursday evening, signalling the election of a new pope for the Catholic Church.
This is coming a few days after the previous occupier of the position, Pope Francis, was laid to rest after he died on Easter Monday of 2025 at the age of 88 after an illness.
At the moment, the name of the new pope has not been announced. This would be done later by Cardinal Dominique Mamberti from the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica.
About 133 Cardinals partook in the process of electing a new pope, the largest in history, with 103 of them doing this for the first time.
On Wednesday, the Conclave could not finalise the election of a new pope, with a black smoke emanating from the the Sistine Chapel.
Details later…
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