7, December 2022

Qatar 2022: The Big boys gear up for quarter-finals ⁰

Brazil, France and other World Cup heavyweights started the build-up to their quarter-final matches in earnest on Wednesday after Portugal made a huge statement of intent against Switzerland.

Five-time winners Brazil, defending champions France, Lionel Messi’s Argentina and England are all still in the mix as the tournament in Qatar paused for a first rest day.

But 2010 winners Spain were licking their wounds after crashing out to Morocco, ruminating on an identity crisis as they jetted home.

Portugal added their name to the list of favourites with a 6-1 hammering of Switzerland on Tuesday, with young gun Goncalo Ramos smashing in a hat-trick after replacing Cristiano Ronaldo.

Ramos was only two years old when Ronaldo made his debut for Portugal and has often spoken of his admiration for the 37-year-old, who came on as a late substitute to a raucous reception.

“Not even in my wildest dreams did I think of making my first start in a World Cup knockout game and scoring three goals,” said the 21-year-old.

“But we have to think game by game and prepare for the game (quarter-final with Morocco). This result doesn’t matter now. We’re going to go all out in the next game.”

Spain were sent packing, knocked out by Morocco on penalties after a match they totally dominated — a familiar story for their long-suffering fans.

They attempted over 1,000 passes but ended up with nothing to show for it, forcing Yassine Bounou into only one save before an embarrassing penalty shootout, which they lost 3-0.

Spain’s exit means they have not lifted a major trophy since Euro 2012, while they have not won a single knockout game at the World Cup since triumphing in South Africa in 2010.

“We dominated the game but we lacked a goal,” lamented Luis Enrique.

“We could have been more effective in the final third, but I am more than satisfied with what my players did.

“They represented perfectly what my idea of football is.”

But there was joy for Morocco, who qualified for the World Cup quarter-finals for the first time in their history.

“We had agreed not to take possession — not out of fear,” Regragui said. “We are humble enough to say that we are not yet France, Germany or England, to compete with them in terms of possession.

“Nobody managed to steal the ball from them, so I accepted not having the ball. I’m not a magician.”

‘Best ever’

FIFA president Gianni Infantino on Wednesday hailed the World Cup group stage in Qatar as the “best ever”.

The opening phase featured some eye-catching shocks, with Saudi Arabia’s win over Argentina the first major upset.

Japan also beat Germany and Spain to finish top of their group, while Morocco saw off Belgium and drew with Croatia to finish top of their pool.

“I have seen all the matches, indeed, and put very simply and very clearly, this has been the best group stage of a FIFA World Cup ever. So, it’s very promising for the remainder of the FIFA World Cup,” said Infantino.

“The matches have been of great, great quality in beautiful stadiums — we knew that already. However, as well, the public who was there was incredible. Over 51,000 on average.”

Brazil, who face beaten 2018 finalists Croatia in the first of the quarter-finals on Friday, remain favourites to lift a sixth World Cup in Qatar after their 4-1 mauling of South Korea.

Argentina, who have hit their stride since their shock defeat against Saudi Arabia, will come up against an in-form Netherlands team, who remain unbeaten.

On Saturday, Morocco take on Portugal before focus shifts to the late kick-off between England and France.

England midfielder Declan Rice missed training on Wednesday due to an unspecified illness.

Source: AFP

7, December 2022

Debt-Service Payments Put Biggest Squeeze on Poor Countries Since 2000 ⁰

The poorest countries eligible to borrow from the World Bank’s International Development Association (IDA) now spend over a tenth of their export revenues to service their long-term public and publicly guaranteed external debt—the highest proportion since 2000, shortly after the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative was established, the World Bank’s new International Debt Report shows.

The report highlights rising debt-related risks for all developing economies—low- as well as middle-income economies. At the end of 2021, the external debt of these economies totaled $9 trillion, more than double the amount a decade ago. During the same period, the total external debt of IDA countries, meanwhile, nearly tripled to $1 trillion. Rising interest rates and slowing global growth risk tipping a large number of countries into debt crises. About 60% of the poorest countries are already at high risk of debt distress or already in distress.

At the end of 2021, IDA-eligible countries’ debt-service payments on long-term public and publicly guaranteed external debt totaled $46.2 billion—equivalent to 10.3% of their exports of goods and services and 1.8% of their gross national income (GNI), according to the report. Those percentages were up significantly from 2010, when they stood at 3.2% and 0.7% respectively. In 2022, IDA countries’ debt-service payments on their public and publicly guaranteed debt are projected to rise by 35 percent to more than $62 billion, one of the highest annual increases of the past two decades. China is expected to account for 66% of the debt-service payments to be made by IDA countries on their official bilateral debt.

“The debt crisis facing developing countries has intensified,” said World Bank Group President David Malpass. “A comprehensive approach is needed to reduce debt, increase transparency, and facilitate swifter restructuring—so countries can focus on spending that supports growth and reduces poverty. Without it, many countries and their governments face a fiscal crisis and political instability, with millions of people falling into poverty.”

On the surface, debt indicators seem to have improved in 2021, the report shows. As economic growth resumed following the global recession in 2020, public and publicly guaranteed external debt as a share of GNI returned to pre-pandemic proportions. However, this was not the case for IDA countries, where the debt- to-GNI ratio remained above the pre-pandemic level at 25%. Moreover, the economic outlook has deteriorated considerably.

In 2022, global growth is slowing sharply. Amid one of the most internationally synchronous episodes of monetary and fiscal policy tightening the world has seen in 50 years, the risk of a global recession next year has been rising. Currency depreciations have made matters worse for many developing countries whose debt is denominated in U.S. dollars. The 2021 debt-to-GNI improvement, as a result, is likely temporary.

Over the past decade, the composition of debt owed by IDA countries has changed significantly. The share of external debt owed to private creditors has increased sharply. At the end of 2021, low- and middle-income economies owed 61% of their public and publicly guaranteed debt to private creditors—an increase of 15 percentage points from 2010. IDA-eligible countries owed 21% of their external debt to private creditors by the end of last year, a 16-point increase from 2010. Also, the share of debt owed to government creditors that don’t belong to the Paris Club (such as China, India, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, and others) has soared. At the end of 2021, China was the largest bilateral lender to IDA countries, accounting for 49% of their bilateral debt stock—up from 18% in 2010. These developments have made it much harder for countries facing debt distress to quickly restructure their debt.

The rising debt vulnerabilities underscore the urgent need to improve debt transparency and provide more complete debt information to strengthen countries’ ability to manage debt risks and use resources efficiently for sustainable development.

“Poor debt transparency is the reason so many countries sleepwalk into a debt crisis,” said Indermit Gill, Senior Vice President and Chief Economist of the World Bank Group. “Complete, transparent debt data improves debt management. It makes debt sustainability analyses more reliable. And it makes debt restructurings easier to implement, so that countries can return quickly to economic stability and growth. It is not in any creditor’s long-term interest to keep public debt hidden from the public.”

The new International Debt Report reflects an advance in debt transparency. It draws from the World Bank’s International Debt Statistics database—the most comprehensive source of comparable cross-country information on the external debt of low- and middle-income countries. It improves on the earlier International Debt Statistics reports by adding substantive analysis and expanding both the breadth and specificity of the data in it.

Over the past five years, the International Debt Statistics database has identified and added $631 billion of previously unreported loan commitments, and an additional $44 billion were identified in 2021. The total of these newly documented additional loan commitments over the past five years is equivalent to more than 17% of the total outstanding public and publicly guaranteed debt stock in 2021.

7, December 2022

Oil and Gas: Biya and Obiang set to seal shameful deal ⁰

A cross-border energy cooperation deal between Cameroon and Equatorial Guinea, which has been stalled for several years, is now set to go ahead and should boost Yaoundé and Malabo gas operations, Africa Intelligence reported.

Africa Intelligence also added that the deal would also benefit Marathon Oil and its Bioko liquefaction plant as well as Chevron, which operates in both countries.

However, the signing is coming at a time when Equatorial Guinea recently deported several hundred Cameroonians, some of whom say they were fleeing terrorist and rebel attacks at home.

The oil-rich country has a history of always targeting Cameroonian migrants who render services such as mechanics, electricians, and bricklayers including miners.

Innocent Cameroonian citizens have over the years been victims of what many political commentators have painted as Biya regime’s lack of interest in the plight of its citizens outside the country.

By Chi Prudence Asong

7, December 2022

Germany arrests 25 suspected of plot to overthrow state ⁰

German authorities on Wednesday detained 25 members and supporters of a far-right group that the prosecutor’s office said were preparing a violent overthrow of the state, with some members suspected of plotting an armed attack on the parliament.

One active soldier and several reservists are among those being investigated, a spokesperson for the military intelligence service told Reuters. The active soldier is a member of the Special Forces Command, it said.

A former parliamentary lawmaker from the far-right Alternative For Germany (AfD) who serves as a judge in Berlin was also among those detained, along with a former member of a German royal family.

Investigators suspect individual members of the group had concrete plans to storm the Bundestag lower house of parliament in Berlin with a small armed group, the prosecutor’s office said.

One of the suspects, identified as Heinrich XIII P. R. under Germany’s privacy law, had reached out to representatives of Russia, whom the group saw as its central contact for establishing its new order, the office said. It said there was no evidence the representatives had reacted positively to the request.

Heinrich, who comes from the royal House of Reuss, which had ruled over parts of eastern Germany, was seen as the designated leader in the group’s future state while another suspect, Ruediger v. P., was the head of the military arm, the office said.

The House of Reuss had previously distanced itself from Heinrich, calling him a confused man who pursued conspiracy theories, according to local media. The house did not immediately respond to request for comment.

Prosecutors said the raids were conducted by more than 3,000 police officials and security forces across 11 German federal states. Suspects were arrested in the German states of Baden-Wuerttemberg, Bavaria, Berlin, Hesse, Lower Saxony, Saxony, Thuringia as well as in Austria and Italy, said the office.

The suspects are accused of preparing, since the end of November 2021 at the latest, to carry out actions based on their ideology, according to the office. These actions include procuring equipment, recruiting new members and holding shooting lessons, it added.

The focus of the recruitment efforts were primarily members of the military and police officers, the office said.

The group was aware its plan would involve deaths, the office said, adding that its members considered this scenario to be a “necessary intermediate step” towards overarching system change.

The group’s ideology is in the same vein as the far-right Reichsbuerger movement and QAnon conspiracy theorists who share the deep conviction that Germany is ruled by a “Deep State”, the office. It did not name the suspected group.

Members of the Reichsbuerger (Citizens of the Reich) do not recognise modern-day Germany as a legitimate state, and insist the former, far larger “Deutsche Reich” still exists despite Nazi Germany’s defeat in World War Two.

The BAMAD said it had worked with the prosecutors on their investigation and shared information with the domestic intelligence service and federal criminal investigators in the run up to Wednesday’s raids.

The detained suspects will appear before a judge at the Federal Court of Justice on Wednesday and Thursday who will issue the arrest warrants and decide on their pre-trial detention.

(Source: Reuters)

6, December 2022

Ramos bags hat-trick as Portugal crush Swiss to reach World Cup quarters ⁰

Goncalo Ramos justified the shock decision to drop Cristiano Ronaldo by scoring a hat-trick on his full debut as Portugal demolished Switzerland 6-1 on Tuesday to power into the World Cup quarter-finals.

The 21-year-old Ramos, who started instead of Ronaldo, became the youngest player to strike three times in a World Cup knockout match since Pele in 1958.

Pepe, Raphael Guerreiro and Rafael Leao were also on target for a rampant Portugal, who booked a showdown with Morocco on Saturday for a place in the last four in Qatar.

Ronaldo, 37 and now without a club after his departure from Manchester United, has hogged the headlines during the tournament while looking a shadow of his former self.

The only man to score at five World Cups, Ronaldo was left out by coach Fernando Santos against the Swiss following his angry response to being substituted in the last group game.

It was a bold call to omit a player with a record 118 international goals in favour of giving a full debut to Ramos, the Benfica striker who had played just 33 minutes across three previous appearances.

But it took just 17 minutes for Ramos to reward Santos’ faith, and to achieve something Ronaldo has never done — score in a World Cup knockout game.

Joao Felix clipped delicately into the feet of Ramos, who quickly swivelled past Fabian Schaer and rifled into the roof of the net past a stunned Yann Sommer.

Otavio, who returned to the Portugal midfield after injury in their opening match, shot straight at Sommer before Ramos did likewise moments later.

Xherdan Shaqiri drew a fingertip stop from Diogo Costa with a dipping free-kick from distance, but Portugal soon had their second.

Bruno Fernandes whipped in a corner and the 39-year-old Pepe towered above the Swiss defence to powerfully head home.

Diogo Dalot hacked Remo Freuler’s header off the line after Diogo Costa failed to properly deal with a cross, but the Swiss simply had no answers against an irresistible Portugal.

Ramos turned in his second from close range six minutes into the second half from Dalot’s cross down the right.

He then turned provider by playing in Guerreiro to lash in another just four minutes later as the Swiss defence was ruthlessly ripped apart.

It was also Ramos who inadvertently glanced a corner towards Manuel Akanji at the far post as the Manchester City centre-back pulled one back for Switzerland.

Ramos completed his treble after more outstanding work from Felix, nonchalantly dinking over Sommer with one of his final touches before making way for Ronaldo.

The five-time Ballon d’Or winner’s introduced elicited the biggest roar of the night. Ronaldo did have the ball in the back of the net but it was ruled out for a clear offside.

Leao capped off a sensational Portugal performance with a terrific curling strike in stoppage time.

Source: AFP

6, December 2022

Moroccans celebrate ‘historic’ World Cup win over Spain ⁰

With shouts, songs, cries and tears, Moroccans exploded with joy Tuesday as their football team beat Spain to reach the quarter-finals of the World Cup for the first time.

“There were millions behind Morocco — this team represents a spirit, a union,” said Imad Ait Ounejjar, from a noisy, crowded restaurant in the coastal city of Casablanca.

“This victory is for Morocco, Africa, the Arab world and all the nations that believed in us. We are proud to be Moroccans,” added the young man, who works as a project manager.

Morocco is the last remaining team from Africa and the only Arab team left in Qatar, and will face either Portugal or Switzerland in a quarter-final on Saturday.

“I can’t believe it, this team is performing miracles! It’s so beautiful!” said Lamia Afria, 24. “I feel proud, we did the unthinkable.”

For the loyal supporters of the Morocco’s team — dubbed the “Atlas Lions” — it was a dream come true after long years of waiting and frustration.

Supporters, both men and women, wrapped in red national flags or wearing the team strip, kept up a solid chant of support for their sporting heroes.

After the victory, the crowd chanted as one: “Next!” and then “Always with Morocco.”

Morocco are just the fourth African team to reach the last eight of the World Cup — after Cameroon in 1990, Senegal in 2002 and Ghana in 2010.

Before Tuesday’s game, Morocco’s best result at the football World Cup had been in 1986, when they reached the last 16.

Neighbouring derby

The epic duel took on the appearance of a derby: mainland Spain is only some 14 kilometres (nine miles) from Morocco, visible across the Strait of Gibraltar at the entrance of the Mediterranean Sea.

But beyond the sporting clash, Rabat and Madrid share common interests, including economic, as well as the fight against irregular immigration.

After a diplomatic quarrel lasting almost a year over the issue of the disputed territory of Western Sahara, Spain and Morocco drew a line under the spat in mid-March.

Several Moroccan internationals play in the Spanish league, including striker Youssef En-Nesyri and goalkeeper Yassine Bounou, for Sevilla, forward Ez Abde at Osasuna, and defender Jawad El Yamiq at Real Valladolid.

National team star Achraf Hakimi, whose chipped kick settled the penalty shootout for Morocco, was born in Madrid and has played for Real Madrid.

But the Atlas Lions have also won hearts outside Morocco, with scenes of jubilation erupting in Syria, Saudi Arabia and the Palestinian enclave of Gaza after the kingdom’s group matches.

Palestinian supporters even improvised a song in honour of the Moroccan team.

Morocco’s players unfurled a Palestinian flag during their on-pitch celebrations after their stunning World Cup victory.

Even in a context of acute tension between Morocco and neighbouring North African nation Algeria, football has managed to bridge a gap.

“Your brothers and neighbours are with you,” wrote Algeria’s DZfoot Twitter account, which has more than one million followers.

Several Algerian internationals also praised the Moroccan feat on social media.

“Far from all the hateful and malicious trolls of social networks, the Algerian people are behind the Moroccan people”, DZfoot added.

Source: AFP

6, December 2022

Inter Milan boss Inzaghi says goalkeeper Onana paid the price for Cameroon ‘misunderstanding’ ⁰

Inter head coach Simone Inzaghi attributed Andre Onana’s suspension by Cameroon at the World Cup to a “misunderstanding”.

The 26-year-old Nerazzurri goalkeeper was dropped for his country’s second group game against Serbia, subsequently leaving Qatar before their final game against Brazil.

Onana issued a statement in the wake of his shock demotion, which Cameroon team officials put down to undisclosed “disciplinary reasons”.

Reports suggested Onana’s omission came after a disagreement with boss Rigobert Song over his playing style in the 1-0 loss against Switzerland, when he had the most touches outside the box by a goalkeeper ever recorded in a World Cup match (26).

Inzaghi has spoken to Onana since his departure and does not believe he has been affected by the situation.

“I’ve spoken to all the guys involved in the World Cup,” he said. “We have four who made it to the quarter-finals.

“Romelu Lukaku and Onana are out; they will arrive between Friday and Saturday and join the group. Physically they are all fine, we are expecting them.

“There was a misunderstanding that he [Onana] paid for, but I spoke to him and he is calm.

“I can talk about what happened at Inter. He’s a positive guy; when he had to be on the bench he stayed there, when he had to play he played.

“On Friday he’ll be in Appiano and will start working with us.”

Inzaghi also had his say on Lukaku, who endured a torrid time as Belgium crashed out in the group stage with a 0-0 draw against Croatia in their final game.

The Inter striker was brought on at half-time by Red Devils boss Roberto Martinez, but conspired to miss a host of wonderful chances to win the game for his side.

“Clearly he was disappointed,” Inzaghi added. “It’s a World Cup and he cares so much about his national team.

“He played 45 minutes and he had three chances. If you are getting the chances, a striker has to stay calm.”

Inter return to Serie A action on January 4 against Napoli, but have friendlies against Salzburg, Real Betis, Reggina and Sassuolo before then.

Source: Yahoo News

6, December 2022

CPDM gov’t approves 10-bln-USD budget for 2023 financial year ⁰

Cameroon’s parliament on Monday approved a budget of 6,345.1 billion xaf (about 10 billion U.S. dollars) for the 2023 financial year, representing an increase of 4.4 percent compared to the previous financial year.

Edgard Ndongo Eteme, General Rapporteur of the Committee on Finance and the Budget, while presenting the budget said the money will be used to implement the country’s development plan, support national security and health system and rehabilitate displaced citizens.

“The new budget also seeks to create jobs, boost exports and economic stabilization measures and mobilize revenue,” said Louis Paul Motaze, Minister of Finance who defended the budget on behalf of the government.

Cameroon projects an economic growth rate of 4.2 percent in 2023 compared to a forecasted growth of 3.7 percent in 2022, said Motaze.

Source: Xinhua News Agency

6, December 2022

Francophone Problem: Eto’o apologizes for ‘violent altercation’ with supporter at World Cup in Qatar ⁰

Samuel Eto’o – the Cameroon Football Association president – was filmed having his photo taken with fans following Brazil’s win over South Korea on Monday; the 41-year-old then appears to take exception to a comment made by one of the individuals before chasing them; there was then a physical altercation

Former Cameroon and Barcelona striker Samuel Eto’o has apologised for what he described as a “violent altercation” at the World Cup in Qatar on Monday night.

A video circulating on social media appears to show the 41-year-old kneeing a man in the head outside Stadium 974 in Doha.

In a statement, Eto’o, who is the Cameroon FA president, said he was provoked by a fan who was “probably” an Algeria supporter as part of an ongoing campaign of harassment following Cameroon’s qualifying win over Algeria in March.

“After the Brazil-South Korea match, I had a violent altercation with a person who was probably an Algerian supporter,” Eto’o wrote on his social media channels.

“I would like to apologise for losing my temper and reacting in a way that does not match my personality. I apologise to the public for this unfortunate incident.”

The video initially appears to show Eto’o happy to pose for pictures with fans in the area outside the stadium, which staged the last-16 match between Brazil and South Korea on Monday.

However, he then seems to react to something and is initially restrained from attacking a man by those around him.

He breaks away from those individuals and appears to strike the man in the head with his knee.

The former Inter Milan and Chelsea striker has been a global ambassador for Qatar’s World Cup organising committee since 2019.

Algeria filed a complaint over the performance of the referee in the qualifying play-off in Blida, in which Cameroon’s Karl Toko Ekambi scored the winner with the last kick of the match.

Eto’o added: “I pledge to continue to resist the relentless provocation and daily harassment of some Algerian supporters.

“Indeed, since the Cameroon-Algeria match on 28 March in Blida, I have been the target of insults and allegations of cheating without any evidence.”

Sky Sports News has asked for comment from the Cameroon FA, FIFA and the Qatari authorities.

Eto’o, who retired from football in 2019, scored 56 goals in 118 caps for Cameroon and represented his country at four World Cups between 1998 and 2014.

Reported by Sky Sports News

5, December 2022

Samba returns as Brazil brush aside South Korea to reach World Cup quarters ⁰

Neymar returned from injury to help inspire Brazil to a 4-1 victory over South Korea on Monday as the favourites cruised through to the quarter-finals of the World Cup.

The world’s most expensive player had sat out his team’s last two matches with a sprained ankle suffered in their first game in Qatar, a 2-0 win over Serbia.

But he came back for this last-16 tie as Tite’s team clicked into gear and delivered an ominous message to their rivals, at least before easing off in the second half.

Vinicius Junior opened the scoring inside seven minutes before Neymar added another from the penalty spot to move to 76 goals for his country, leaving him just one away from equalling Pele’s all-time record tally.

Richarlison’s brilliant goal made it 3-0 and Lucas Paqueta added another before half-time to leave South Korea shellshocked.

Paik Seung-ho pulled one back but by then Brazil were thinking about Friday’s quarter-final clash with 2018 runners-up Croatia.

The five-time World Cup winners had not scored four goals in a knockout game at the tournament since 1998.

Here they played at times with the joy associated with the Brazilian national team, the players coming together to celebrate each goal by showing off their dance moves and their coach even joining in.

If they finished playing within themselves, their first-half display was superb and a fitting tribute to the great Pele.

The Brazilian legend had said he would watch the game from the Sao Paulo hospital to where he was admitted last week amid ongoing treatment for colon cancer, and supporters in Doha’s Stadium 974 unfurled a banner with a get well soon message to him.

All of it was a chastening experience for Son Heung-min and South Korea, who have still never won a World Cup knockout match outside their own country.

Tite made 10 changes to the Brazil team after rotating his squad for the 1-0 loss to Cameroon which came after qualification for the last 16 had been secured.

Danilo also returned from injury at left-back, while Eder Militao was the only player to keep his place and shifted across to right-back.

Richarlison stars again

With Alisson Becker back in goal and Thiago Silva and Marquinhos playing too, this was Brazil’s first-choice defence but their forwards quickly put the tie to bed.

The opener came from their first shot on target in the seventh minute as Raphinha burst away from Kim Jin-su on the right and his ball across goal came to the feet of Vinicius who coolly picked his spot.

They then won a penalty as Richarlison was caught by Jung Woo-young and Neymar duly beat Kim Seung-gyu — his last six goals for Brazil have now all come from the spot.

Alisson was then called into action to tip over a vicious long-range effort from Hwang Hee-chan, but Brazil then scored their third in style just before the half-hour mark.

Richarlison juggled the ball on his head three times just outside the area before laying it off to Marquinhos and then continuing into the box to get on the end of Silva’s pass which he slotted home for his third goal at this World Cup.

Paqueta then got their fourth nine minutes before the break with a first-time finish as he connected with a Vinicius ball held up from the byline.

They could have added more in the second half had they not taken their foot off the pedal, although Raphinha was denied on more than one occasion by the goalkeeper.

Korea though deserve credit for keeping going and they were rewarded inside the final quarter-hour as substitute Paik brought down a headed clearance and sent in a ferocious shot from 25 metres that brushed off Silva to beat Alisson.

The Brazil goalkeeper was then taken off for the final 10 minutes to be replaced by Weverton, while Neymar was also withdrawn with Tite’s mind on Croatia.

Source: AFP