Monday, September 7, 2009
From Creamer Media in Johannesburg, I'm Amy Witherden.
Making headlines:
South Africa's Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan said yesterday that the country must continue with the stimulus package, involving spending on infrastructure, it adopted as a response to the financial crisis. Addressing a briefing on return from the Group of 20 (G20) Finance Ministers' meeting in London, Gordhan said that stimulus packages globally have to remain in place until economic recovery is secured.
Gordhan explained that G20 countries remain committed to the formulation of a credible exit strategy which will be underpinned by effective coordination between fiscal and monetary authorities, international cooperation and communication among countries regarding policy actions.
He added that there is "cautious hope" for recovery, with some countries recovering well and others lagging. There is a global danger that as credit lines begin to work properly again, bankers may try to "go back to normal." There will be no "back to normal", said Gordhan, adding that this is the key message of the G20.

Southern African leaders will seek a united position on ensuring the implementation of Zimbabwe's power-sharing deal at a summit in Democratic Republic of Congo this week, where the precarious political situation in Madagascar will also feature prominently.
Director-general for South Africa's Department of International Relations and Cooperation, Ayanda Ntsaluba, said it is important that the Southern African Development Community (SADC) acts in unison going forward.
Analysts expect President Jacob Zuma to take a tougher stance than his predecessor, Thabo Mbeki, in seeking an end to the impasse in Zimbabwe. However, South Africa's efforts to put pressure on Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe at the summit, could meet with resistance from other regional governments, which, with the exception of Botswana, have largely shied away from openly criticising the Zimbabwean President.
Former Mozambican President Joaquim Chissano, tasked with leading talks on Madagascar where Andry Rajoelina ousted former President Marc Ravalomanana in a March coup, is expected to present a report on the progress of the power-sharing negotiations. However, it is unclear how much leverage SADC, which has suspended Madagascar's membership, can have on the island's political leaders.

Group of 20 (G20) finance leaders have agreed to coordinate a removal of emergency economic packages when recovery takes firm hold, but struggled on the detail of measures to rein in bank pay and lending rules that were at the root of the recent crisis.
With the global economy looking brighter than it did at the last G20 meeting in April, the focus shifted from crisis fighting to figuring out how to establish a safer financial system for the future.
On the public stage, the message was one of solidarity as policymakers agreed that they must keep spending the $5-trillion already earmarked as economic stimulus and delay any unwinding of emergency fiscal and monetary measures until economies are sturdy enough to stand on their own. But behind the scenes, some G20 sources expressed frustration that there was not more progress made in curbing excessive pay packages for bankers - particularly those employed by firms that have received billions of dollars in government support.

Also making headlines:
The National Interfaith Leadership Council says that South Africa's judicial battle over the Judge John Hlophe matter is cause for grave concern.
The International Monetary Fund forecasts strong economic growth for Zambia in 2009.
And, trade ministers meeting in New Delhi last week, were mostly confident that a Doha deal is possible as countries are more willing to compromise, but say that negotiations need sustained political impetus.
That's a roundup of news making headlines today.