Latest news with #Malawi
The Herald
12 hours ago
- Politics
- The Herald
I'd speak against the untouchables, people who take drugs and tweet at night: Shivambu
Former MK Party secretary-general Floyd Shivambu has indirectly fired back at party leader Jacob Zuma and his daughter Duduzile Zuma-Sambudla, asserting his ability to speak out against wrongdoing in the party. Shivambu was recently fired as secretary-general after visiting fugitive from justice pastor Shepherd Bushiri in Malawi. Briefing the media on Thursday, Shivambu said he was not afraid of the 'untouchables' and 'people who do drugs and tweet at night' insulting him. 'All the issues I had at MK Party, I raised them internally, even against all odds,' he said. 'If there was an opportunity to raise issues about wrongdoings, I would speak and speak clearly against the untouchables there — people who take drugs, tweet at night, and insult us. We confront them and say, 'What is this about?' We never tiptoe around anyone; we always protect principles on how we deal with issues.' Shivambu's remarks come after a series of public spats with Zuma-Sambudla and Zuma's criticism of his actions. In February, Zuma-Sambudla posted scathing tweets about Shivambu in the middle of the night, discrediting Shivambu's leadership. 'Floyd, I'm not scared of you. Tell Your minions to f*** off, bloody mafikizolos [newbies],' Zuma-Sambudla said on X. 'F** you, Floyd,' another tweet read. She said Shivambu was the worst thing that had happened to the party. Early this week, Zuma took a firm stance against undisciplined members, making reference to several changes in leadership the party has had, particularly the secretary-general position. 'We've had seven secretaries-general because we're not here to play games. We don't care how great you are, how loved you are, we don't care. We talk about our party,' Zuma said. Despite that, Shivambu said he would never be afraid to speak out in the party. 'Go to the corners in the ANC, and they will tell you that 'Ramaphosa is nonsense and misleading us,' but they won't tell him. Go to EFF members, and they will share their own characterisation of their leader and what is happening there, but they don't have the courage to tell him. The same goes for MK, and we can't have a political culture like that. When we raise issues internally, you don't have to gossip about them anywhere.'
Zawya
2 days ago
- Business
- Zawya
Afrexim increasingly likely to take hit on loans, says JPMorgan
LONDON - The chances of Afreximbank getting involved in a debt restructuring have increased, JPMorgan said on Tuesday, a development that could prompt ratings agency Fitch to lower the lender's rating to junk and force some investors to sell its bonds. The African lender has been at the centre of a standoff over whether the loans it extended to Ghana and Zambia - two countries that recently defaulted - are in scope for restructuring or not. Fitch downgraded Afreximbank's credit rating to one notch above junk on June 4, with a negative outlook, sending the lender's bonds lower. The ratings agency cited high credit risks and weak risk-management policies and pegged Afreximbank's non-performing loans at 7.1% at the end of 2024. Afreximbank says that as a multilateral lender, it has preferred creditor status, which protects its loans from restructurings in Ghana, Zambia, and Malawi. "If the bank gets involved in a restructuring (the chances of which have increased...), Fitch could downgrade the bank further from IG (investment grade) to HY (high yield) at some point, which could lead to some forced selling of bonds," JPMorgan analyst Konstantin Rozantsev said in a research note. JPMorgan pointed to recent comments from the governments of Ghana and Zambia, which each said they intend to restructure Afreximbank debts. The countries owe Afreximbank $750 million and under $100 million, respectively, JPMorgan said. Preferred creditor status is a widely accepted principle under which multilateral development banks are given priority if a borrower faces distress, sheltering lenders from painful writedowns. The status is accepted by convention rather than awarded by an entity. HEATED CALL The Wall Street bank's recommendations came a day after an investor call it hosted featuring Nick Perry, director of supranationals at Fitch, and Babajide Sodipo, a senior Afreximbank official who is also acting secretary at the Alliance of African Multilateral Financial Institutions - an umbrella body for the continent's multilateral lenders. According to two sources, Perry told investors on the call that if Afreximbank restructured a loan to any member country - thus throwing its preferred creditor status into doubt - it faced another downgrade to sub-investment grade. Those on the call pressed Perry on whether Fitch's downgrade was warranted. Both sources described the questions as unusually heated. Perry told questioners that Fitch's rating included an assumption that the lender maintained preferred creditor status, but cited weak transparency from the bank as a key contributor to the downgrade. Fitch declined to comment. JPMorgan, Afreximbank, and Sodipo did not respond to requests for comment. In Tuesday's research note, Rozantsev - who moderated the call - said JPMorgan expected the impact on Afreximbank of any potential losses from stressed sovereign exposures, or from further rating downgrades, to be limited. "Afrexim operates with decent profitability, which should help it to absorb possible losses related to five of its sovereign exposures exhibiting stress," Rozantsev wrote. 7% OF LOAN BOOK Rozantsev's calculations showed Afreximbank's loans at risk - those extended to Ghana, Zambia, Malawi, and South Sudan - stood at around $2 billion, or 7% of its loan book - in line with Fitch's NPL estimate. "We also think that the bank should maintain access to funding, although likely at higher costs," Rozantsev added. Both the 2029 and 2031 bonds have slipped around 3 cents since the Fitch downgrade, trading at 89.4 cents and 83.2 cents, respectively, Tradeweb data showed. The price drop made them "attractive," with both maturities trading 75 basis points wide of the average across other BB-BBB rated bonds, Rozantsev wrote, prompting JPMorgan to change its recommendation on the bonds to overweight from underweight. "Valuations compensate for the risk of further adverse rating actions on the bank, which are possible," Rozantsev said.
Zawya
3 days ago
- Business
- Zawya
ECA capacitates Zambia, Zimbabwe and Malawi in e-commerce tools and marketing strategies
'I commend UNECA and the Government of Italy for this collaboration to organise this workshop that will provide public and private sector stakeholders with practical tools and methodologies to harness the full potential of e-commerce in driving export growth, enhancing market access, and building competitiveness in global and regional markets'. She was speaking at the workshop on E-Commerce Marketing and Business Development Strategies for the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) and Global Markets convened by the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA), through its African Institute for Economic Development and Planning (IDEP) and its Sub-Regional Office for Southern Africa (SROSA) and funded by the Government of Italy. The overall objective of the workshop was to strengthen the skills of participants from Malawi, Zambia and Zimbabwe to leverage e-trade opportunities in the context of AfCFTA. Mr. Enrico de Agostini, Ambassador of Italy in Zambia reiterated the importance of capacity building of entrepreneurs in the region to ensure sustainable development. Ms. Beatrice Mutali, United Nations Resident Coordinator, speaking on behalf of the UN family in Zambia underscored the importance of partnerships between governments, international partners, private sector and the UN to address the gaps in digital trade such as infrastructure, connectivity to payment systems and regulatory frameworks. The Director of ECA Subregional office for Southern Africa, Ms. Eunice Kamwendo, in her opening remarks, emphasised the efforts of ECA in implementing innovative and practical initiatives in order to better support member states. An example of which is this e-commerce training that was intended to provide strategic and practical tools necessary to unlock opportunities in the e-commerce space under the AfCFTA and in global markets. She further noted that, the AfCFTA, with its promise of a US$3.4 trillion single market, presents ECA and its partners with a unique platform to reimagine value chains, promote innovation, and stimulate sustainable growth driven by the private sector. 'At ECA, we believe that digitalization when guided by inclusive policies and backed by the right skills can bridge development gaps, unlock new markets, and catalyze youth employment'. To complement the training ECA-SROSA experts presented on the AfCFTA and initiatives related to the implementation of the AfCFTA Agreement. Ms. Zodwa Mabuza, Chief Sub-Regional Initiatives outlined the protocol on digital trade indicating that it helps harmonize rules to boost Africa's digital economy, cutting cross-border e-commerce costs, building trust, and supporting Small and Medium Enterprises. Ms. Bineswaree Bolaky, Economic Affairs Officer presented on the AfCFTA, its rationale and instruments, and on ECA's work on AfCFTA, e-commerce and digital trade including outlining ECA's support to member States on developing their National AfCFTA Strategies and Green Supplements to these strategies. Mr. Henry Lubinda, Programme Officer gave an overview of SRO-SA's major areas of support to member States such as inclusive industrialization, green transitions, enhanced food systems and AfCFTA-led trade in Southern Africa. The training consisting of 6 sessions, was facilitated by Mr. Fabio Santoni ASeS-CeFor, the implementing partner of the project funded by Italy. Participants were trained through scenarios and business simulation techniques. At the closing of the workshop, certificates were remitted to participants by Mr. Aime Mbatkam, coordinator of the project at ECA's training arm, the African Institute for Economic Development and Planning. This collaborative initiative between ECA and the Government of Italy aimed at supporting Member states through a capacity building programme for the effective implementation of the AfCFTA Agreement. Under Phase 2, Cameroon, Democratic Republic of Congo, Gabon, Malawi, Mauritania, Zambia, and Zimbabwe benefitted from (i) an assessment of e-trade readiness and (ii) a capacity needs assessment of stakeholders for AfCFTA implementation. These studies informed the design of the online training courses that were subseuqently delivered.
The Herald
12-06-2025
- Business
- The Herald
Peanut butter maker to pay R500k penalty for contaminated products
Peanut butter manufacturer House of Natural Butters has agreed to pay an administrative fine of R500,000 after the National Consumer Commission (NCC) received recall notifications in February 2024 from Dis-Chem and Pick n Pay due to elevated levels of aflatoxin found in certain peanut butter. NCC spokesperson Phetho Ntaba said the NCC found that the affected products had higher than legally acceptable levels of aflatoxin as set out under R1145 Regulation Governing Tolerance of Fungus-Produced Toxins in foodstuffs. Ntaba said their investigation found that between May and November 2023, House of Natural Butters imported and supplied contaminated, decayed and impure groundnuts and byproducts to South African consumers through various retailers. In its ruling the National Consumer Tribunal noted that the manufacturer imported the products from Malawi and Zambia using trucks and trailers, via land borders and port entries. It said the trucks and trailers did not have the requisite certificates of acceptability required for the transportation of food. 'Laboratory tests results from various accredited food testing laboratories established that the products were contaminated, decayed and impure,' said Ntaba.
Zawya
10-06-2025
- Business
- Zawya
Experts urge a new global agreement on carbon credit emission factors
The Project Developer Forum (PD Forum) and carbon specialists are urging the UNFCCC Clean Development Mechanism's (CDM) Board to examine the science behind the default Wood to Charcoal Conversion Factor (WCCF) and the charcoal emission factors used in carbon credit calculations. WCCF measures how much wood is required to produce one tonne of charcoal, a key parameter for carbon credit accounting, as it determines the deforestation and emissions attributed to charcoal production. New scientific evidence suggests that the proposed 4:1 default value does not reflect real-world data and could potentially under-credit clean cooking projects across sub-Saharan Africa. Low emission factors would underestimate the deleterious impact of the charcoal industry on deforestation. Field research suggests miscalculation During a webinar hosted by PD Forum on 4 June 2025, Dr Nordica MacCarty of Oregon State University presented field research from Malawi and Ghana showing that actual WCCFs consistently exceed the current 4:1 default set by CDM Tool 30 and 33. Her study analysed 12 kiln runs in each country, measuring charcoal yield, distribution, and usage inefficiencies across the value chain. 'Our findings clearly show that the majority of emissions and material losses occur during charcoal production, primarily through the release of volatiles, water loss, fines, and wood left at harvest sites," said Dr MacCarty. "Actual WCCFs consistently exceeded the conservative 4:1 value. If the goal is accurate emissions accounting, these ground realities must be incorporated into default factors." Nick Marshall, co-vice chair of PD Forum, said: "Under the disingenuous label of 'integrity', we are seeing the prioritisation of conservative carbon accounting over accuracy. The proposed WCCF default does not reflect sufficient accuracy in the accounting of clean cooking carbon project emissions, leading to an underestimation of their impact, which can undermine carbon finance flows to communities that need them most. We are urging the UNFCCC to review this parameter so that it reflects real-world conditions and ensures fair crediting for projects delivering climate solutions to low-income households. 'This is not only about carbon accounting - it's about fairness and equity. The communities adopting cleaner technologies deserve recognition for their contribution to global climate goals.' Dr Rob Bailis from Stockholm Environment Institute added: "The 4:1 default is not based on actual field data, but rather a misreading of outdated IPCC text. Using 4:1 not only underestimates emissions, it also undermines project viability. If the goal is environmental integrity, we should follow the data. On that basis, 6:1 is a much more defensible default value." Calling for alignment between emission factors and data Nathan Gachugi, director of Carbon Operations Africa at BURN, explained how conservative defaults limit carbon finance potential: "At BURN, we are seeing firsthand how these conservative defaults are limiting the potential of carbon finance to transform the lives of hundreds of millions of low-income households in Africa. Revising the WCCF and the direct charcoal emission factors to reflect science-backed field data is critical to ensuring climate finance reaches the communities that need it most." Traditional low-efficiency kilns in sub-Saharan Africa consume far more wood than current methodologies account for, yet outdated defaults remain in use. While methodologies like Verra's VMR0050 and the Clean Cooking Alliance's CLEAR methodology now recognise a 6:1 WCCF, the CDM Tool 33 and the ICVCM's Core Carbon Principles take the 4:1 value. This risks underestimating the emissions from upstream charcoal production, disincentivising investment in cleaner technologies and perpetuating unsustainable charcoal practices. The PD Forum is circulating research to key stakeholders including UNFCCC, ICVCM, Gold Standard, Verra, ICAO, national carbon market authorities, and rating agencies, urging alignment of charcoal emission factors with empirical data. All rights reserved. © 2022. Provided by SyndiGate Media Inc. (
