China and Russia stand for global governance reforms

China and Russia have renewed their antiWestern confrontation during high-level meeting in early April 2024 in Beijing. China demonstrates greater readiness to team up with Global South to “promote reforms in the global governance system” while Russia vehemently confronts “Western-led bloc” during talks in Beijing. But both further pledged to strengthen multilateral strategic security coordination in BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) association and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization across Europe. Chinese President Xi Jinping and Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said China and Russia would defend a multipolar world as opposed to unilateral order.

Lavrov arrived there shortly after Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, who also wrapped up her visit to China on April 8. The significance of Lavrov’s April trip to Beijing was for Moscow to consolidate ties and in forging with developing countries in the Global South which widely seen as coordinated attempts to counter the Western-led global order. China and Russia are leading the construction of a new order and also working at the frontline to reshape global architecture. Despite the fact that Western and European powers are experiencing falling influence, China has more economic footprints than Russia. Across the global China’s economic influence and impact are visible than Russia.

Obviously, Russia has taken the most difficult task – reminiscent of the Cold War, and needs to take concrete steps for its economic aspects of the multipolar become practical reality rather remain as mere rhetoric. The fundamental interests of bringing developing countries into their fold for photo opportunities after the comical display of projects. Undoubtedly, Russia’s approach brings only little concrete results relating to badly-needed economic development, investment in infrastructure and the agricultural sector to ensure food security, and providing finance for its African partners. In practical terms, Russia has to jostle for the same global competitive economic influence. Financial institutions within the Eurasia region and that of BRICS New Development Bank have to operate more broadly in order to catch up the similar scope of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.

In fact, China has a comprehensive economic plans for Europe and Africa. The United States, meanwhile, is also stepping up strategic coordination in the Asia-Pacific with an eye on Russia and China. The leaders of Japan and the Philippines headed to Washington for a three-way summit and the US, Britain, and Australia are considering cooperation with Japan under the Aukus security pact.

As expected generally, Lavrov in deed reiterated the excellent points that have dominated his previous speeches: that China and Russia to increase strategic coordination with Russia within multilateral frameworks to “promote reform” and make united stand to reform West-led international system.

“China has always attached great importance to the development of Sino-Russian relations and is willing to work with Russia to intensify bilateral communication, strengthen multilateral strategic coordination in the BRICS association and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, demonstrate greater responsibility, unite the ‘Global South’ countries … and promote reform of the global governance system,” state broadcaster CCTV quoted Xi as saying.

The media reports have repeatedly emphasized that Russia and China’s trade has increased. Bilateral trade between Russia and China has increased to an estimated $230 billion. And that China and Russia will continue to … advocate inclusive economic globalization, jointly oppose unilateralism, protectionism, fence-building and decoupling, and work together to maintain the stability of international industrial and industrial chains.

Analysts say China holds the upper hand in the relationship with Russia, with its sway growing as Moscow’s international isolation deepens following its invasion of Ukraine. That asymmetry is still “changing in China’s favour” as it enables Moscow “to continue the war by providing very necessary materials for the Russian war machine”, Alexander Gabuev, director of the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center, told AFP.

“Integrating Russia’s economy, brainpower, and military technology into… a Chinese-led order with Eurasia at its geographic heart, is the only way Russia can sustain its confrontation with the West,” he wrote in Foreign Policy magazine this week. “China has stronger bargaining power and many more options than does Russia, and its leverage over its northern neighbour is growing all the time. Russia is now locking itself into vassalage to China.”

In this couple of years, their contacts have grown closer since the start of the ‘special military operation’ in neighbouring Ukraine. China and Russia hold permanent seats on the United Nations security council and working together to block initiatives by the United States. Last year, China worked on peace plan for Ukraine which Russia considered as “inadequate” for attaining the long-term solution to Russia-Ukraine crisis. It therefore means that China’s peace proposal has found little traction and lack of vision for the future resolution. Both still hold the view to formally organize another round of peace talks.

Russian experts interviewed by Vedomosti financial newspaper explained that Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov went to Beijing preparing for the official visit for President Vladimir Putin planned take place in May. If it happens, it would be the president’s first foreign trip since his inauguration. The two countries have navigated a difficult political landscape as they try to boost economic ties. The Moscow-Beijing’s priorities also cover bilateral cooperation and international security issues, including the Ukraine crisis and the situation in the Asia-Pacific region.

Under the strong leadership of President Putin, the Russian people will have a bright future. Over the past decade at least, under the the leadership of China, Russia has admittedly achieved considerable successes. And China would continue supporting the Russian people to follow a development path that suits their national conditions, and supports Russia in combating terrorism and maintaining social security and stability. As a force for peace and stability, China indicated that it would stick to playing a constructive role on the international stage…and would never add greasy oil to the flames. In a nutshell, both Russia and China renewed the joint pledge to stand “back-to-back and shoulder to shoulder” against any destabilizing attempts by the United States and Europe in this emerging multipolar world.

Infections acquired in healthcare facilities are costing Ghana US$1.57bn each year, leading to thousands of preventable deaths. At least half of these infections could be prevented by improved water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) in these facilities, WaterAid unveiled yesterday in brand new research.

The new data, using World Bank methodology, highlights that if healthcare-acquired infections were to halve, then at least 31,300 lives could be saved across Ghana every year and a staggering US$72million could be saved from the national budget.

Ghana is one of seven African countries featured in the data alongside Nigeria, Malawi, Ethiopia, Zambia, Uganda and Mali. In total, the new data shows that infections caused by lack of handwashing facilities, clean water and decent toilets are costing Sub-Saharan Africa US$8.4billion each year.

The new data shows that poor cleanliness and hygiene during medical care and recovery are major causes of infection transmissions. According to WaterAid, the most common healthcareacquired infections are surgical site infections, bloodstream infections and respiratory tract infections, including pneumonia. The highest rates are found in intensive care units, neonatal wards and paediatric medical wards.

These findings paint a bleak picture not only of the needless loss of life from entirely preventable causes, but of the fact these infections cost an average of 1.98 percent of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) – while treating the illnesses consumes an average of 4.6 percent of total health budgets every year. This is a cost that will only increase as a greater share of these infections becomes resistant to antibiotics, warns WaterAid.

Right now, 45 percent of healthcare facilities in Ghana lack access to clean water. The continued suffering caused by these infections in lower-middle income countries only highlights the deep inequalities within global society and the inadequacy of sustainable water, sanitation, and hygiene access among the most vulnerable communities.

Increased investment from donors and international financial institutions for healthcare facilities is essential to break the chain of infection, decrease the demand for antibiotics and reduce the opportunity for a resistant infection to become dominant.

WaterAid is calling for increased investments in Ghana’s healthcare system to ensure every healthcare facility in the country has clean water, sanitation and hygiene services – our first line of defence against antimicrobial resistance (AMR) for both people living this reality daily and the global economy.

Donor countries, multilateral development banks and other financing sources must support local governments with financing as a matter of priority to tackle the AMR crisis and to deliver improved water, sanitation and hygiene, as identified in country national action plans.

Reacting to the World Bank data, Ewurabena Yanyi-Akofur, Country Director, WaterAid Ghana, said: “The absence of basic sanitation and hygiene facilities along with clean water is not just a health crisis, it’s an economic one. We call for immediate action to secure increased financing from the Ghanaian Government, alongside contributions from donors, multilateral development banks and the private sector to support Ghana’s national WASH Infection Prevention/Control action plans. Ensuring every healthcare facility in Ghana has access to clean water, sanitation and hygiene services is imperative. The moment to take action is now”!

The new data comes ahead of the UN High Level Meeting on AMR this September, which will see global leaders gather to discuss the critical need for all countries to prepare and fight against future pandemics and antimicrobial resistance.

Clean water, decent sanitation and good hygiene are the first line of defence against infections in healthcare settings. Yet, WaterAid says that half of the world’s healthcare facilities do not have basic hygiene services – rising to two thirds across the 46 least developed countries. When hospitals and clinics do not have these essential services, infections can rapidly spread – putting all patients, including new mothers and babies, at risk and leaving doctors with little choice but to prescribe antibiotics.

Bukari, the physician in charge at the Worikambo Health Center, Upper East Region, shared his experience prior to a WaterAid intervention which constructed a limited solar mechanised water system for the facility. Bukari painted an appropriate before and after scenario, linking improved access to WASH and a reduction in infections.

“It posed a lot of challenges; people were using the pit latrine and couldn’t wash their hands but then went on to eat, cook, handle babies – causing infections. For the patients, not having water posed a threat to them. They would use a pit latrine or open defecation which exposed them to snakes and other dangers in the bush. Not having water led to infections. We also could not sterilise our equipment, and that led to poor wound care as well as transfer of infections between patients. Poor sterilisation led to more infections.”

Linking access to clean water to a decreased rate of infections, Bukari added: “We used to have a lot of diarrhoea and we prescribed a lot of antibiotics; but now we have less cases and our use of antibiotics has drastically reduced”.

WaterAid Ghana has, so far, helped millions of people in the hardest to reach and most marginalised communities across the country with clean water, decent toilets and good hygiene services. Right now, about 1.3million people in Ghana still live without clean water, and 17 percent practise open defecation because they lack access to a decent toilet. WaterAid’s goal to ensure everyone everywhere has access to these basics is not one that can be achieved alone.

To enhance cross-border trade through trade facilitation and finance, the negotiation team on the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Protocol on Women and the Youth should prioritise addressing challenges faced by women traders, a report has said.

The challenges include time constraints, burdensome customs requirements, limited access to finance and exposure to harassment.

The AfCFTA Protocol on Women and the Youth aims to promote sustainable and inclusive socio-economic development, the equal opportunity for women and youth in intra-Africa trade, and the structural transformation of African economies.

The report titled: “Situational Analysis on Women and Youth for Ghana on the Africa Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA),” said these challenges were particularly pronounced for small-scale women traders in developing and least-developed economies of which Ghana is no exception.

Conducted by a gender research organisation, the Aya Institute for Women, Politics and Media, with support from the Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH(GIZ) Ghana, under the ‘Programme Support Scheme for the AfCFTA’, the report provides a situational analysis and position paper on women and youth in trade for Ghana towards the negotiations on the AfCFTA.

It also assessed the current institutional, regulatory and policy/ strategy frameworks as well as international trends and national practices regarding aspects of women and youth in trade and how Ghana can best position itself to take advantage of the protocol and how to advance its specific objectives, interests, and positions within negotiations.

Presenting the report at a stakeholder workshop for women-led Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) and youth in Accra, the programmes and Communications Coordinator for Aya Institute for Women, Politics and Media, Bridget Biney, said the design and implementation of effective trade facilitation measures hinged on identifying the specific challenges and barriers faced by cross-border traders, including women.

“The adoption and implementation of domestic policies in compliance with commitments established under the World Trade Organisation (WTO) Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA) can be a catalyst for women traders by creating predictable and efficient customs processes, reducing clearance times and trade costs, reducing the opportunity for fraudulent practices at the border, and increasing the involvement of women in trade facilitation decision mechanisms,” she said.

Findings

Highlighting a myriad of issues and challenges faced by women-led businesses in trading across Africa, Certification processes emerged as a major hurdle, with concerns about its complexity, cost and impact on competitiveness.

“Access to finance and credit, discriminatory social and cultural norms, limited representation in decision-making processes, and unequal access to market information were also significant challenges.

Regulatory issues, high taxes and difficulty in accessing trade finance added to the obstacles. Participants emphasised that these challenges were persistent, often leading to financial losses and hindering the growth of women-led businesses,” the report said.

“The need for a more streamlined certification system, improved access to finance, and gender-inclusive policies across African countries was a common theme in the responses,” it added.

Support

The Gender Sub-Committee Chairperson on Trade at the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MoTI), Naa Densua Aryeetey, said the government has been collaborating with women and the youth to ensure these two significant demographics can sign up to the trade agreement.

She said more women-led businesses have emerged since the inception of AfCFTA, adding that the women and youth protocol would ensure that gender-specific challenges that affected Ghanaian traders such as harassment at the borders would be addressed to make trading conducive for women.

For his part, a representative of the Ghana Chamber of Young Entrepreneurs (GCYE), Emmanuel Agbesi, said young entrepreneurs needed an enabling environment to effectively trade and contribute to the local economy.

A representative from GIZ Ghana, Angela Benefo in her remarks said GIZ Ghana was partnering with gender organisations such as the Aya Institute for Women, to conduct research on women and AfCFTA with the aim of improving gender-specific trade outcomes in MSMEs in Ghana.

GIZ Ghana has been supporting the Aya Institute for Women since 2022 to carry out research in the area of trade and women-led MSMEs in Ghana.