Online Reporter
Africa needs US$1,6 trillion to achieve its Sustainable Development Goals by 2030. This translates to additional funding requirements of US$194 billion per annum.
Rising debt levels and projected double-digit declines in official development assistance have highlighted the dire need for action plans that will enable Africa to pay for its own development, the African Tax Administration Forum (Ataf) cautions.
“This is a tall order for Africa,” says Mary Baine, the newly appointed executive secretary of Ataf.
In its recently published policy brief, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) projected a drop in development assistance of between 9 percent and 17 percent for Africa in 2025.
According to the OECD, least developed countries are projected to see a 13 percent to 25 perce fall in net bilateral assistance from countries like France, Germany, the UK and the US. Countries in sub-Saharan Africa could face a 16 percent to 28 percent decline. Bilateral development assistance for health is projected to decline by 19 percent to 33 percent in 2025 from 2023.
Baine says there has been a lot of dependence on the US Agency for International Development (USAID) for the health needs of African countries. “We now know that is a thing of the past and therefore countries have to look internally to service the health needs of their people.” US president Donald Trump has cut all aid and dismantled USAID, the country’s international development agency, soon after his inauguration earlier this year. Some countries in the central Africa region had been relying on USAID for up to 60 percent of their healthcare funding. — Moneyweb
