28, November 2018
Brexit deal to make Scotland ‘poorer’ 0
Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has denounced as “unacceptable” the UK government’s draft Brexit deal, warning that divorce from the European Union will make Scotland “poorer.”
During a news conference in Edinburgh on Tuesday, the Scottish leader outlined her government’s opposition to the Brexit deal negotiated by British Prime Minister Theresa May and said no Scottish government could possibly accept a deal which left the country poorer.
Referring to a new report from the Scottish government, Sturgeon warned that the draft deal to leave the 28-member bloc could result in “loss equivalent to £1,610 per person in Scotland compared to EU membership by 2030.”
Investment in Scotland could be 7.7 percent lower by that date compared to if the UK stayed in the EU, according to the report.
“The analysis shows why the deal agreed by the Prime Minister is unacceptable to the Scottish Government and damaging to the people of Scotland,” Sturgeon said.
“No government of Scotland with the interests of this and future generations at heart could possibly accept it,” she added.
The Scottish leader also said the “special deal” being put in place to prevent the return to a hard border in Ireland would leave Scotland at a “serious competitive disadvantage” to Northern Ireland, and that, “In short, it will make us poorer.”
Sturgeon added that the Scottish government would support a second Brexit referendum with the option of remaining in the EU when the time is “right for the people of Scotland.”
Scots supporting independence from Britain failed to emerge victorious from a referendum in 2014 in which some 55 percent of the voters voted for the region to remain in the UK. However, they launched a fresh call for secession after a Brexit referendum in June 2016 in which Britons voted 52 to 48 to leave the EU.
The pro-independence camp in Scotland defies London’s assertion that the region, which is one of the UK’s four nations, should abide by the results of the Brexit referendum. They insist that some 62 of the voters in Scotland voted for continued EU membership.
May ‘governing by threat’ on Brexit deal
Meanwhile, Sturgeon criticized the British premier and said May is “governing by threat,” as she has been seeking to impose the Brexit deal on Scotland.
“The Prime Minister has made it clear at every turn that she is not interested in compromise; in fact she seems to have given up any attempt at governing by consensus and is now governing by threat,” the Scottish leader said.
Sturgeon stressed that the draft agreement was “a bad deal,” which Westminster was “seeking to impose on the people of Scotland regardless of the damage it will cause.”
The First Minister said, “It will not end uncertainty. It will extend it. We are being asked to accept a blindfold Brexit with all the difficult decisions kicked down the road.”
The draft agreement was signed with the EU on Sunday and will need to be approved by UK lawmakers next month.
May faces a daunting task of gaining the approval of the parliament for her Brexit deal as many from both the opposition and her own Conservative Party have vowed to reject it on December 12, when the House convenes to vote on the agreement.
The Brexit deal, comprised of two separate agreements on departure and future relations, has sparked widespread concerns in Britain.
The pro-EU camp believes the deal will deprive the UK of normal privileges of membership while offering almost nothing in return. The anti-EU camp says it will make Britain a colony of the EU and London would have no right to challenge the EU’s decisions, including those affecting its province of Northern Ireland, for many years to come.
There is a high chance that Britain would be forced to leave the EU on March 29, 2019, without an agreement if the parliament rejects May’s Brexit deal.
Source: Presstv
29, November 2018
African Development Bank approves €17.96 million loan to finance North West Ring-Road 0
The African Development Bank has approved a €17.96 million loan to the Republic of Cameroon to finance the construction of a Ring-Road Project in the North-West Province of the country.
The Ring Road project, which falls under phase three of the country’s Transport Sector Support Programme, aims to improve the movement of goods and people. It will also strengthen the foundations for strong and sustainable growth by promoting domestic and regional trade.
The loan for the 365 km Ring Road is the Bank’s third intervention in the implementation of this important road network rehabilitation and upgrading project. The loop road crosses five of Cameroon’s seven divisions of the North West Region and includes several links to the Nigerian border.
The project will also include institutional support for the transport sector and related works such as the development of rural roads, the rehabilitation of socio-economic infrastructure for improving women and youth living conditions.
The road project is line with the government’s Growth and Employment Strategy Paper (GESP) 2010-2020, to build an integrated and efficient transport network at low-cost that covers the entire country opening the country to neighbouring countries to effectively enhance economic growth and reduce poverty.
The Transport Sector Support programme under which the project falls is also consistent with Pillar I of the Country Strategy Paper (CSP) 2016-2020 for Cameroon, which focuses on strengthening infrastructure to support agricultural value chains for inclusive growth and aligns with the Bank’s High 5 priorities.
Cameroon’s northwestern region has enormous economic potential, particularly in agriculture, which stands to benefit from the road. Other lucrative sectors include livestock and fisheries; tourism, particularly the spectacular natural landscapes such as the Menchum Falls, Lakes Awing, Oku and Nyos, the Mbengwi Caves.
The project is also expected to have a positive impact on transportation – greatly reducing travel time ; increase in traffic of passenger and goods; foster job creation for women and lead to work for 30,000 youths. The road will result in savings on vehicle operating costs; increase in household income and reduction in post-harvest losses.
The total cost of phase one of the Transport Sector Support Programme is estimated at €255 million (XAF 167.270 billion). It will be implemented from December 2018 to June 2024, with the Bank’s co-financing loan of €179.60 million, an Africa Growing Together Fund (AGTF) loan of €42 million and the Government’s counterpart funding of €32.84 million.
At the end of August 2018, the Bank’s portfolio in Cameroon comprised 24 operations (18 national and five multinational operations) for total net commitments of €1,369.02 million. The public sector accounts for €1,218.03 million for 19 operations, while the private sector accounts for four projects valued at €150.99 million. (Transport and ICT sectors account for 63% of the portfolio).
Since 1972, when the Bank started operations in Cameroon, it has participated in financing 28 transport sector operations.