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WTF — MUSK’S TWITTER PURGE: Global Insider’s commitment to you is to not react to each last Elon Musk provocation. But there’s one that ought to catch your eye this morning. Twitter suspended the accounts of several distinguished journalists covering Musk on Thursday evening, prompting criticism from U.S. lawmakers and bewilderment from the media elite.
It’s not complicated: Musk is glad to have revolt supporters on Twitter, and journalists off. We’re all talking about Twitter, again, in any case. The victims include Ryan Mac (Latest York Times), Drew Harwell (Washington Post), Donie O’Sullivan (CNN) and Steve Herman (Voice of America).
AFRICA SUMMIT WINS AND MISSES
Fifty African delegations showed up in Washington this week for the U.S.-Africa summit, showcasing Washington’s convening power, but additionally gaps in america’ Africa strategy.
The Biden administration has progressed from his predecessor’s dismissals of Africa into well-received but relatively minor infrastructure deals (equivalent to the Benin-Niger Regional Compact) and vision statements for African partnership. “To create real change, we want real partnerships,” per Secretary of State Antony Blinken.
But Washington isn’t yet outplaying Beijing’s infrastructure juggernaut, which has delivered a potent legacy of stadiums, rail lines and broadband connections that contrast with the West’s Covid legacy of shuttered embassies, choked-off trade, limitless visa lines and late vaccine arrivals.
The messaging this week flip-flopped from embracing business opportunities to sanctioning the Zimbabwean president’s son.
Senegalese President Macky Sall — current head of the African Union — told Biden “we appreciate your attachment to the African-American partnership,” and thanked him for his support of the AU being given a seat on the G-20. But Sall felt obliged to share his worries in regards to the Countering Malign Russian Activities in Africa Act, saying it turned a complete continent into “the goal” and “could gravely harm the connection” with the U.S.
There’s still no needle-loving climate finance effort from Washington, either. Africans didn’t cause climate change, Sall said: They’re “the least polluting continent but probably the most vulnerable.”
INTERVIEW — IVOR ICHIKOWITZ
Global Insider spoke to at least one summit-goer and long-time advocate for stronger U.S.-Africa ties, South African industrialist and philanthropist Ivor Ichikowitz, the person behind the biggest annual survey of African youth.
Western myopia: Ichikowitz said he launched the survey to supply evidence of “a recent Africa.” Western boardroom inhabitants still see risk where Ichikowitz sees “this incredibly colourful, dynamic, vibrant, exciting, future-looking young continent.”
U.S. vs. China: “I’ve seen exactly what the Chinese have been in a position to achieve: The continent has developed and grown within the last 15 years in a vacuum, since the U.S. has been absent.”
“I attended the Obama Africa summit. It was almost like any individual had said to Obama at the top of his term, ‘Oh shit, we forgot Africa, we have got to call some Africans.’ It was ticking a box and there was no sense of commitment.”
“The Trump presidency was really interesting: the primary time any individual within the White House said ‘We got an issue’ and recognized America’s energy transition was connected to Africa. But they turned that into ‘We’d like to get Africa back from the Chinese,’ and Trump spoke of Africa as if it was a rustic.”
China’s Covid win: When the world and embassies and diplomatic travel shut down, Africans were left with “Chinese roads, Chinese stadiums, Chinese telecoms, Chinese electricity. Whereas there was no trade with the U.S. because transport wasn’t possible” and vaccines got here only in a trickle once available.
Biden’s sweet spot: They’ve “stopped talking nearly trade and aid, and commenced talking about partnerships and collaboration. There’s now an acceptance of the proven fact that this can be a huge pie. It’s the primary time I’ve heard a U.S. government official discuss investment in Africa backed by the federal government. It’s totally different rhetoric,” with specific initiatives as follow-up.
He was impressed by the Benin-Niger Regional Compact: “It’s one which the Chinese have not seen as a serious priority, but which completely changes that a part of the continent.”
“The U.S. was lagging behind China. Europe is now lagging behind each of them very significantly,” he said.
Commerce department holds the important thing: “Helping embassies turn out to be business-focused, with an investment guarantee scheme, is perhaps America’s superpower against the Chinese.”
Democracy, Africa-style: “Numerous the younger generation do think democracy is a great idea, but don’t think that a Western-style democracy is the appropriate style for Africa. I think that they saw Trump as a really refreshing type of icon.”
TREND CORNER
DRONES TO THE RESCUE IN RWANDA: Have you ever heard of autonomous logistics? It’s not only ground robots to the rescue: In Rwanda, it’s autonomous aircraft. The federal government of Rwanda has signed a deal with Zipline to make “autonomous fast deliveries to its entire population.”
The goal: deliver medicine including vaccines, medical supplies, food and animal health products to hard to achieve places not served by traditional infrastructure, like roads and rail. Zipline already delivers 75 percent of the country’s rural blood supply. Researchers from the University of Pennsylvania found Zipline deliveries cut maternal deaths by hemorrhage by 88 percent.
TAX — TRACKING CORPORATE TAX RATE TRENDS: Six countries — Colombia, South Sudan, Netherlands, Turkey, Chile and Montenegro — increased their top corporate tax rates, while 10 countries, including France and Greece, cut them, per Tax Foundation evaluation.
Puerto Rico has the second-highest rate on the earth (37.5 percent), while 16 countries don’t have any corporate tax in any respect. The worldwide average rate is 23 percent, while Asia has the bottom regional average rate at 19.5 percent.
TECH — TRACKING GLOBAL INVESTMENT PLANS: A recent Morning Seek the advice of poll of 4,000 businesses within the U.S., China, Japan, India, Germany, U.K., Brazil and Canada, commissioned by IBM, found:
— Contrary to expectations of a wider economic slowdown, 4 in five marketing strategy to maintain up tech investment, particularly to assist them monitor and hit their Environmental, Social and Governance goals, including through greener IT and provide chain management solutions.
— The highest areas for investment will likely be 5G, cybersecurity, Web of Things, AI and cloud computing.
— Missing in motion: corporate plans for quantum computing investment; firms appear to not have caught up with government interest in quantum R&D.
KLEPTOWATCH
QATARGATE SCANDAL HIJACKS EU LEADERS SUMMIT: The 27 leaders were presupposed to agree on their response to U.S. subsidies and judge on tips on how to cap gas prices after they met Thursday. As a substitute, leader after leader was forced to make use of their press engagements to confess the scandal risked shaking trust in your complete EU system, and allowing EU-bashed Viktor Orbán to induce Europeans to “drain the Brussels swamp.”
Back within the European Parliament itself, lawmakers voted Thursday to suspend all work referring to Qatar — which incorporates the ultimate approval of the bloc’s aviation agreement with the Gulf state.
POLITICAL MISFIRE: Europe’s center-right Conservatives used the Qatar scandal to fireside the starting gun on their 2024 election campaign platform — targeting socialist hypocrisy. But hours afterward Thursday, the European Public Prosecutor’s Office announced they were going after a conservative MEP, too: Maria Spyraki of Greece for budget fraud, alongside Eva Kaili, one other Greek MEP at the middle of the Qatar scandal.
Sealed-off offices and cash-filled suitcases: POLITICO’s European influence reporter, Sarah Wheaton, explains why the Qatar scandal was inevitable.
POLITICO also has this video explainer on how all of the players are connected
BRITISH POLITICIANS’ SEX TOURISM SCANDAL: It’s not only EU politicians who subject themselves to undue influence. Of their latest dispatch on Britian’s All-Party Parliamentary Groups system, POLITICO’s Esther Webber and Cristina Gallardo reveal claims that MPs have indulged within the services of sex employees on overseas trips, drank far an excessive amount of and have been general embarrassments.
Fed up with the tourists: Overseas representatives have grown wary of MPs wanting to make trips to their countries, with some resorting to packing MPs’ agendas with as many visits and meetings as possible with the intention to reduce the “free time” for potential misbehavior.
A report by the House of Commons standards committee earlier this 12 months warned these trips could “represent the subsequent great parliamentary scandal.”
NEW RUSSIA SANCTIONS: A recent EU package of sanctions has been agreed, but only after a dispute over fertilizers. Six countries argued that the prevailing sanctions regime made it too difficult to provide fertilizers to 3rd countries, increasing the danger of famine in Africa at a time when Russia’s war on Ukraine has already disrupted global food supplies, Eddy Wax reported.
Did you recognize? Europeans take this fertilizer policy disputes seriously. There’s even a Dutch minister for nitrogen — one in every of the largest elements of economic fertilizers.
SPOTTED AT AMÉTHYSTE: What began as a one-off effort to cheer Covid spirits in 2021 is now quickly cementing itself as a D.C. social calendar institution. Held at French Ambassador Philippe Etienne’s residence Wednesday night, and co-hosted with Heather Podesta, Steve Clemons and Isiah Thomas, Global Insider spotted: U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai, infrastructure czar Mitch Landrieu, Rep. Jason Crow (D-Colo.), U.K. Ambassador Karen Pierce, Assistant Secretary of State Lee Satterfield, White House senior adviser Mike Donilon, OMB director Shalanda Young, White House director of digital media Rob Flaherty, deputy political director Carla Frank, POLITICO CEO Goli Sheikholeslami and editor-in-chief Matt Kaminski, MSNBC’s Jesse Rodriguez, Symone Sanders, NBC’s Carrie Budoff Brown and Garrett Haake and seemingly a lot of the White House press team.
ENI PARTY: The Italian energy company was overwhelmed with 350 guests at their holiday soirée — an additional sign of the dearth of holiday parties this season as many tech and media firms undergo layoffs.
Spotted with host Marco Margheri: Italian Ambassador Mariangela Zappia, Italian MP Lapo Pistelli, and energy gurus Dan Yergin, Helima Croft, Paula Dobriansky and Varun Sivaram. Christian Douglas sang with the American Pop Orchestra.
MOVES
The World Health Organization appointed Jeremy Farrar as Chief Scientist.
BOOK:To Ukraine With Love — Essays on Russia’s War and Europe’s Future, by Benjamin Tallis.
REPORT: The National Endowment of Democracy has a recent report by Beth Kerley, Roukaya Kasenally, Bárbara Simão and Blenda Santoson on “the large vulnerabilities to democracy that may include smart cities initiatives.”
Using examples they studied in Brazil and Mauritius, the report authors concluded that “without firm democratic guardrails, smart cities can undermine privacy, erode good governance norms, and amplify the influence of authoritarian actors,” including Beijing.
Due to editor Heidi Vogt and producer Hannah Farrow.
Ryan Heath’s husband works for the IBM team that commissioned the Morning Seek the advice of poll.
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