Statement by Hany Kadry Dimian, Deputy Minister of Finance – Egypt,

On behalf of H.E. Dr. Youssef Boutros-Ghali, Minister of Finance for Egypt


29 March 2010, Lilongwe, Malawi

Your Excellency, Ngazi Dr. Bingu wa Mutharika, President fo the Republic of Malawi, and Chairperson of the African Union
Your Excellency, Mr. Ken Kandodo, Honourable Minister of Finance, Republic of Malawi,
Your Excellency, Mr. Abdoulie Janneh, UN Under-Secretary-General and Executive Secretary of ECA,
Your Excellency, Mr. Jean Ping, Chairperson of the African Union Commission,
Honourable Ministers,
Excellencies,
Distinguished Delegates,
Ladies and Gentlemen


Firstly, allow me to convey Minister Youssef Boutros-Ghali’s, Egypt’s Minister of Finance highest regards and considerations, and his most sincere regrets for not able to be here today in Lilongwe
It gives me great pleasure to address this year’s meeting of the AU Conference of Ministers of Economy and Finance and the ECA Conference of African Ministers of Finance, Planning and Economic Development, on behalf of the outgoing Bureau. I want to start by thanking the Honourable Minister of Finance of Malawi, Mr. Ken Kandodo, and through him, the Government and people of Malawi for hosting this important Conference, and for the warm welcome we have received since our arrival in Lilongwe.
I would also like to thank Mr. Jean Ping, Chairperson of the African Union Commission, and Mr. Abdoulie Janneh, Executive Secretary of ECA for their leadership in preparing us for this Conference.
In the same vein, I welcome The Governors of Central Banks who are here with us today.  Our deliberations will be enhanced by your participation.

Introductory

  1.  Today’s Theme “Promoting High Level Sustainable Growth to Reduce Unemployment in Africa” is a right choice at a right time.
  2. Irrelevant of the recent global crisis, time has come to draw a Growth Vision for Africa. Vision not Targets.  (a vision for a sustained and diversified growth for Africa)
  3. Allow me to explain this vision through Three Dimensions
    • hort and Medium Term vision “Invest Africa”
    • onger-Term vision :  “Educate Africa” …. “Train Africa”
    • vision for dealing with the Global Political Economy:  “Voice Africa”

First Dimension:  Short to Medium Term Vision:  “Invest Africa”

  1. Promoting Investments for Africa. Rather Promoting Africa as an Investment Venue;
  2. C-10 Proposal (Invest Africa Initiative);

But we have a lot of Homework to do:

  1. We have relatively fragile and fragmented economic institutions;

  2. Primitive or not sophisticated Economic structure in most of our countries;

  3. Private and financial sectors are not yet deep enough;

  4. Savings and investments ratios and their propensities are far below our ambitions to grow;

  5. A “twin developmental deficit”: Huge Infrastructure Gap & Enormous Energy Deficit;
  •  All this put Africa below its potential and needs to grow. 
  • It also makes our Continent quite vulnerable to shocks:   the first to be hit with a crisis, and the last to be out of it. 
  • True that Africa cruised fairly well in the recent global crisis, on the backdrop of a decade of structural reforms, but here I refer to our developmental goals, including poverty alleviation and meeting the MDG goals, rather than plain numeric growth rates.

 

We need to change the mindset of the entire economic policy formulation and its Institutional Apparatus:

    • Changing the mindset of fiscal policy and its targets (taxes, spending, )
    • Changing the mindset of monetary policy (promote growth while saving long term price stability as a key element for sustaining growth)
    • Changing the mindset of our external and interregional policies  (less protectionism);
    • Changing the mindset of the legal framework towards a more enabling business environment,  (more difficult)
    • Changing the mindset of the institutions… of the people in the institutions to allow for such enabling environment (most difficult)
    • Political will and empowerment for change.  (Most Important driving force of them all).

Second Dimension:  Longer-Term Vision:  Educate Africa…. “Train Africa”

Better exploration and utilization of our Endowments:

  1.  Better exploration and utilization of our Human Capital
    • Better (not more) education for all:  We are in utter need for education systems that meet our Continent vision and challenges;
    • Better (not more) vocational training: We are in utter need for vocational training systems that meet our Continent vision and challenges;
    • High population growth is a problem, but a bigger problem we are still not exploring, or utilizing our large Human Capital, which can be a driving force for growth.  Look East: China and India;
    • This needs a new initiative to be grandfathered by our Pan-African institutions:  “Educate Africa” … “Train Africa”, and should be the focus of most of the developmental assistance we get.

     2. Better utilization of our natural resources for the good of African people

    • Two weeks ago, I raised a question in an ECOSOC high level meeting:  How far African people are benefiting from endowments of the Developed World, in comparison to how the developing world is building its prosperity on African resources?
    • Allow me to put a Tougher question to the floor:  How far African people are rather benefiting from their own resources versus the rest of the world?

 

Third and last Dimension: Africa in the Global Economy “Voice Africa”

  •  We need to have a stronger voice and better representation on all international institutions and main groups of countries to ensure that super economic powers are carrying their full role and responsibilities towards a better, more balanced, and more sustained global economy for the good of all, especially the poorest and most vulnerable.
  • The recent crisis has managed to get the world economy work in an unprecedented coordinated way.  Countries lined up resources, lined up policies, and most importantly lined up their will for a better world. 
  • We too need to line up our vision and targets for a better life for all Africans.  We need to “Voice Africa”

We need a vision to “Invest Africa”  “Educate Africa”  “Train Africa”, and “Voice Africa”

 

Transferring Chairmanship

Now time has come for a new vision.  A new vision to lead our economic policy formulation for the coming year.  A continued effort, but with new vision.

I would call on the Kenyan Delegation to announce the new proposed Bureau based on consultations held during our Experts meetings.
Let me conclude by congratulating you Honorable Minister Ken Kondodo, Minister of Finance for Malawi, on your election as Chairperson of the Bureau of the Conference.  I am confident You will bring to this Conference a wealth of experience and I am confident that under your able leadership our Conference will break new ground.  I also take this opportunity to extend my felicitations to other members of the new Bureau. I have no doubt that this Conference and the new Bureau will enjoy the same level of support on many of the issues and challenges that they will be addressing over the next one year.

 I trust that our deliberations over the next two days will be fruitful
I thank you all for your kind attention.
 

Thank you very much.