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“Win-win cooperation between Africa and the G20 will find its natural place in the African Free Trade Area”
Abdelmadjid Tebboune at the G20 Summit in Johannesburg (South Africa)
The President of the Republic, Abdelmadjid Tebboune, insisted on Saturday in Johannesburg (South Africa) on the need to combat illicit financial flows and fairly manage the continent’s natural resources. “Win-win cooperation between Africa and the G20 will find its natural place in the African Free Trade Area, essential for the development of regional integration and the promotion of inclusive and sustainable growth,” he said in a speech delivered on his behalf by the Prime Minister, Sifi Ghrieb, during the 2nd session of the G20 Summit, held in Johannesburg under the theme “Contribution of the G20 to a resilient world”.
Referring to the issue of debt, the Head of State recalled that Africa and developing countries face major challenges such as poverty, unemployment, inequality, the scarcity of resources, food and energy crises, without forgetting unprecedented levels of sovereign debt.
Insisting on the urgent nature of a coordinated international approach to relieve the burden of these nations, by proposing the erasure of part of the debt or its transformation into direct investments. “Algeria, he said, has taken initiatives in this area, by carrying out a census and reducing the debts of 18 African countries, which contributes to reducing the burden of debt on local economies.” Recalling that Algeria considers that the issue of debts is not limited only to their amount, but that the complexity lies in the technical aspects linked to the rating and risk management policies of international financial institutions, which make debt service extremely burdensome for the economies of these countries.
Deep reforms of international financial organizations are necessary in order to guarantee fair, transparent and representative treatment of African countries in decision-making bodies, taking into account their growing demographic and economic weight, said Abdelmadjid Tebboune.
Calling for global cooperation on climate, food security and disaster management linked to major risks.
Recalling, in this regard, the initiatives of Algeria, which created, on a regional and continental scale, an African civilian force for disaster prevention and is working to activate the Arab Center for the prevention of earthquakes, based in Algiers and attached to the Arab Union, the Head of State affirmed that this device will make it possible to strengthen its contribution in the areas of scientific research applied to the prevention of earthquakes, the exchange of expertise between Arab countries and the transfer advanced technologies on a global scale.
Regarding food security, Algeria, Abdelmadjid Tebboune stressed that self-sufficiency and food security are absolute priorities for my country and highlighted the agricultural partnerships developed in the South with sister and friendly states. Insisting, on occasion, on Algeria’s support for all initiatives aimed at increasing international financing for disaster prevention and rapid response to humanitarian crises, not without proposing that banks and international financial institutions set up a special financing mechanism for rapid response to disasters, to be activated as soon as a disaster-stricken country requests it.
Returning to the effects of climate change, the Head of State affirmed that Algeria was one of the most exposed countries, recalling that the country had recently experienced an unprecedented increase in numerous phenomena, including the increasing rise in average seasonal temperatures, heat waves and drought, which cause the scarcity of water resources and basic foodstuffs, but also desertification, forest fires, earthquakes, torrential rains and resulting floods, causing enormous human and material losses in different sectors, such as infrastructure, facilities and agricultural projects, not to mention the impact on different ecosystems.
Rabah Mokhtari