Wednesday, October 27, 2010

From Creamer Media in Johannesburg, I'm Brad Dubbelman.

Making headlines:

Releasing its new economic growth plan yesterday, the South African government said that it would weaken its rand currency to boost economic growth, threatening a deal to refrain from competitive devaluations reached by the Group of 20 (G20) major nations just three days ago. However, government spokesperson Themba Maseko said that the government did not see its growth path in conflict with G20 pledges.
The statement by Minister in the Presidency Collins Chabane appeared to mark a policy shift by President Jacob Zuma's government, which previously had resisted calls by labour unions to stimulate exports by weakening the rand. The plan also sees unemployment falling to 15% from the current level of 25,3% over the next ten years, implying the creation of five-million jobs during that period.
Analysts say that South Africa's plan could herald a more aggressive use of both a weaker currency and low interest rates over the coming years in an effort to tackle unemployment, which Zuma's government has identified as its biggest challenge.

Ministers from around the world today begin a final push for a United Nations (UN) deal to protect nature, as the World Bank urged them to value the benefits of forests, oceans and rivers on economies and human welfare.
Senior officials from nearly 200 countries have gathered in Nagoya, Japan, to set new goals for 2020 to fight animal and plant extinctions, after they missed a goal for a "significant reduction" in losses of biological diversity by 2010. The meeting hopes to push governments and businesses to commit to sweeping steps to protect ecosystems under threat, such as forests that clean the air, insects that pollinate crops and coral reefs that nurture valuable fisheries. Speaking at the start of the meeting, World Bank head Robert Zoellick said that finance ministers and businesses also need to take note of the value that nature provides for food, medicines, tourism and industry.
UN secretary-general Ban Ki-moon urged governments to work harder for a deal. "Neglecting the decline in biodiversity costs trillions of dollars each year. We are wasting our natural capital," he said.

South Africa will create a US-style development aid agency and foreign policy institute before the end of the financial year, said International Relations and Cooperation Minister Maite Nkoana-Mashabane at a regional heads of mission conference in Kenya.
The South African Development Partnership Agency, which has already been approved by the Cabinet, will operate along the same lines as USAid, an initiative that provides developing countries with funding for economic and humanitarian projects, as part of the US's foreign policy objectives. "This agency will not only enhance our contribution in institutional and capacity building on the continent, but also ensure that our postconflict reconstruction and development efforts are centrally coordinated," she said.
The proposed development aid agency also forms part of the country's plan to play a more prominent role on the continent as a major donor country. Through the multimillion-rand African Renaissance Fund, managed by the Department of International Relations and Cooperation, South Africa is one of the largest development aid providers in Africa.

Also making headlines:

African National Congress veteran Pallo Jordan says that there is a need for a "sober debate" on the Protection of Information Bill, as secrecy bills have a purpose.
An International Criminal Court pretrial chamber calls on Kenya to arrest Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir on genocide charges when he visits the country later this week.
South African Deputy Transport Minister Jeremy Cronin says that removing excess road use and improving efficiencies is the most viable option for reducing the transport sector's carbon emissions.
And, an Imperial College London report says that growing the African food sector can yield private sector returns on the back of government support.

That's a roundup of news making headlines today.