China's CIPS Threatens USD

The Cross-Border Interbank Payments System (CIPS) has expanded across a hundred and eighty five countries, allowing international payments in Chinese yuan without using the US Dollar, according to data from the New Development Bank (NDB). 

CIPS was launched by China and managed by its central bank as “a real alternative for global trade settlements”. At the Shanghai Oil and Gas Exchange, liquefied natural gas contracts are now priced for and paid in yuan. Same thing with soybeans from the Shenzhen Qianhai Joint Trading Center. 

China has reportedly signed 40 settlement agreements with other countries, with total settlements through CIPS hitting 52 trillion yuan earlier this year, equal to 58% of China’s total cross-border transactions, a figure that tops the Dollar in some measures. And trade between China and Russia has been settled in local currencies for three straight years, covering 95% of their total trade volume. 

Still, not every country has joined the yuan system. Europe, North America, and Australia have kept their distance, while developing economies in Africa, Asia, and Eastern Europe are using CIPS more frequently, especially for Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) loan repayments. 

And BRICS nations are already developing their own proposed payment system, referred to as BRICS Pay – a prototype was demonstrated in Moscow in October 2024 but the operational target date is supposedly set to around 2030 – which would also facilitate local currency transactions and reduce dependence on the existing global financial system. 

Methinks, it's just a matter of time before we see the end of Dollar dominance. And it's about time too.

In the meantime, the NDB are diversifying their financing. Since 2015, the NDB have issued loans in yuan and rand. They now plan to roll out rupee-denominated bonds by 2026, targeting between $300 million and $500 million in three- to five-year tranches. This fits the bloc’s larger plan to reduce dependence on the Dollar and rely on member-state currencies instead.

The above graphic shows the countries with the most forest loss since 2015, based on data from the UN Food and Agriculture Organization. 

Since 2015, the world has lost an average of 10.9 million hectares (ha) of forest each year. 

Deforestation has been most severe in South America and Africa, largely driven by agricultural production. In Brazil, for example, cattle ranching and pasture expansion have played a major role in clearcutting across the Amazon. 

While deforestation rates have slowed, the scale of loss is more than the next nine countries combined. More promisingly, however, Brazil’s president Lula da Silva plans to bring deforestation to zero by 2030. The country is home to 486 million ha of forest, the second-highest in the world.

New Ebola Outbreak in DRC

The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has declared a new Ebola outbreak in Kasai Province.

It’s caused by the most severe strain: the Zaire Ebola virus. This outbreak began with a 34-year-old pregnant woman who was admitted to hospital on August 20 and died five days later. Two health workers who treated her also became infected and died. 

By September 15, there were 81 confirmed cases and 28 deaths, including four health workers. 

The DRC has had 15 prior Ebola epidemics, with the largest in 2019 and the most recent in 2022. But genetic analysis shows the outbreak likely began after a spillover from an animal to a human, rather than a continuation of earlier outbreaks. 

Although Kasai Province is fairly remote, the risk of further spread is increased by the proximity to the provincial capital, Tshikapa city, and the neighbouring country of Angola, where people travel for trade and work.

But a vaccine adds to the defence this time. The World Health Organization (WHO) are supporting vaccination efforts, sending 400 doses, with more to follow. 

“Ring vaccination” of contacts of known cases has started, as well as vaccination of front-line workers. 

In addition to vaccination, Ebola outbreaks can be controlled by early isolation of suspected cases, tracing contacts and quarantining them. Adequate hospital capacity for infected people is critical. Setting up field hospitals to increase capacity was key to controlling the 2014 West African epidemic. 

Additionally, practising safer funeral rituals by avoiding traditional practices, such as washing or touching bodies, helps prevent transmission. Early supportive care, including rehydration, electrolyte replacement and monoclonal antibody drugs, can save lives. 

Yet challenges remain. Vaccination campaigns need cold storage and safe transport to remote areas. Contact tracing is difficult in insecure settings. Infection prevention, particularly through protective gear for staff, demands a constant supply. And of course, early detection is always important.

At the Egypt Open yesterday, 18-year-old world No. 5 Amina Orfi earned a place in the last four with a hard-fought 3-1 win over Malaysian No. 7 seed Sivasangari Subramaniam in 62 minutes. 

The Egyptian made a strong start, controlling proceedings in game one 11-6 and then coming through a tighter game two 11-8. 

As the ball softened, the attack-minded Sivasangari had more success, disrupting Orfi’s relentless rhythm with an 11-4 win. 

Game four was the best of the set, with neither player able to stay ahead for long as they traded the lead. Eventually, though, the No. 4 seed was able to break through, capitalising on a crucial Sivasangari error to clinch the match 11-9. 

Germany Apologizes for Leopard Jibe

The German foreign ministry had wanted to poke fun at the Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov (left) during his tour of Africa – South Africa, Eswatini, Angola and Eritrea – and they tweeted on January 24 that he wasn't there looking for leopards, but using the trip to try and justify Russia's "full-scale invasion" (actually, it's a Special Military Operation) of Ukraine. And to stress their point, they added a leopard emoji.

 

The tweet, and the 🐆 emoji played off Germany's decision to send Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine to help the country fight off Russian forces. But the whole thing backfired when Africans were aggrieved. 

 

An upset African Union official said the continent was being portrayed as only about wild animals. 

 

Ebba Kalondo (right), the spokesperson for AU Chairperson Moussa Faki Mahamat, tweeted back two days later to the German government account questioning if Africa, its people and its wildlife was “just a joke to you”? 

 

And in a follow-up tweet on the same day, she wrote: “Foreign policy is not a joke nor should it be used to score cheap geopolitical points by illustrating an entire Continent with colonial tropes”. 

 

Of course, on January 26 itself, the Krauts apologized, saying that the tweet wasn't meant to offend. 

 

Germans are being laughably childish!