Lack of funds dogs Africa’s Agenda 2063

Written by ROSE ATHUMANI in Addis Ababa

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Ethiopian Minister of Finance and Economic Development, Dr Abraham Tekeste

SECURING funds to implement Africa’s Development Agenda 2063 is the biggest challenge facing most countries on the continent.

Ethiopian Minister of Finance and Economic Development, Dr Abraham Tekeste, made the remarks at the opening of the 8th Joint Annual Meetings of the African Union Specialised Technical Committee and the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) Conference for African Ministers of Finance, Planning and Economic Development.

Dr Tekeste underscored the need for African nations to mobilise domestic resources, as the viable options to finance implementation of Agenda 2063.

“There is significant untapped resources that could be raised from within Africa, enough to cover about 70 per cent of development financing needs,” he explained.

He said a comprehensive resource mobilisation strategy driven by incremental investments in focus areas such as skills revolution for 21st century, economic transformation or infrastructural connectivity was needed.

“This strategy will form the basis for developing and implementing financing plans at national, regional and continental levels,” he noted.

He added that recent data confirm the success of many indigenous African growth and development initiatives through domestic finances.

In his remarks at the opening, the UN Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) Deputy Executive Secretary, Dr Abdalla Hamdok, said the continent has recorded impressive economic growth, but has however, been largely dogged by joblessness and non-inclusive in nature.

“Economic transformation and industrialisation has been identified as the surest pathway to inclusive and prosperity for the continent, but this will not be miraculously delivered by the invisible hand of markets,” he noted.