Africa Briefs

Tanzania denies blocking release of scathing IMF reportTanzania on Tuesday denied blocking the publication of a critical International Monetary Fund report that accuses president John Magufuli's government of undermining economic growth with "unpredictable and interventionist" policies.In the leaked report, seen by Reuters last week and which the IMF said was not made public after Tanzanian authorities did not consent to its publication, the fund said a weak business environment and the implementation of projects that may not have high rates of return were likely to constrain annual GDP growth."The government is still holding consultations with the IMF. We have not blocked the report in any way whatsoever," Tanzania's finance and planning minister, Philip Mpango, told parliament.The IMF projected a rate of GDP growth of around 4-5% in the medium term, should current policies continue. That differed from the government’s projection that the economy will grow by 7.3% in 2019 after an estimated 7.2% expansion last year."Delays or little progress in implementing structural reforms, unpredictable and interventionist policies, and a rushed scaling-up of public investments that may not have a high rate of return will have a detrimental effect on growth and development," the IMF report said. – Nampa/AFPMalawi rolls out ground-breaking malaria vaccineMalawi on Tuesday rolled out the world's first licensed malaria vaccine in a landmark campaign against a disease that each year kills hundreds of thousands of people, especially African children.After more than three decades in development and almost US$1 billion in investment, the new vaccine began to be distributed in Malawi's capital Lilongwe. It will be extended to Kenya and Ghana in coming weeks.Known by its lab initials as RTS, but branded Mosquirix, the vaccine has passed lengthy scientific trials, which found it to be safe and reduced the risk of malaria by nearly 40% - the best-ever recorded. It was approved by European regulators in 2015.The three-country programme aims to immunise 360 000 children aged two years and under, partly to get a wider view on the vaccine's effectiveness but also to see whether the delivery process is feasible.The WHO says malaria killed 435 000 people in 2017. The number of cases climbed to 219 million in 2017, two million more than in 2016. More than 90% of cases occurred in Africa. – Nampa/AFPEgypt to turn to private sector to restore historic buildingsEgypt's government is drawing up a plan to turn over as many as 150 crumbling historic buildings to the private sector to refurbish and lease out for profit, the minister of public enterprise said on Tuesday.The plan could potentially save an eclectic mix of neo-classical, beaux arts, art nouveaux, art deco and early modern styles built mostly in the first half of the 20th century then nationalised in the early 1960s.It could also revitalise important tourism districts in central Cairo, Alexandria and Port Said on the Suez Canal.The buildings have fallen into various degrees of disrepair for lack of funding and maintenance, with many tenants paying tiny sums for units that have remained rent-controlled for more than half a century.Minister Hesham Tawfik said the government would follow the model of privately owned Al Ismaelia for Real Estate Investment, which has been slowly renovating 23 historic buildings it has bought in downtown Cairo. – Nampa/ReutersUN to help raise billions for Lake Chad projectUN secretary-general Antonio Guterres has agreed to help raise US$50 billion for a project to help revive drought-stricken Lake Chad, Nigerian president Muhammadu Buhari said on Tuesday.The lake, which borders Nigeria, Niger, Chad and Cameroon, has lost 90% of its surface area due to poor water management and climate change, and the United Nations has warned that millions of people need help to avert famine.The area is also a stronghold for militant groups including Islamic State in West Africa (ISWA) and Nigeria's Boko Haram. – Nampa/Reuters

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