The Chairperson of the African Union, President Cyril Ramaphosa has appointed Special Envoys to mobilise international support for Africa’s efforts to address the economic challenges African countries will face as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The appointees - Dr. Ngozi Okonji-Iweala, Dr. Donald Kaberuka, Mr. Tidjane Thiam and Mr. Trevor Manuel – will be tasked with soliciting rapid and concrete support as pledged by the G20, the European Union and other international financial institutions.

In a statement, President Ramaphosa said “in the light of the devastating socio-economic and political impact of the pandemic on African countries, these institutions need to support African economies that are facing serious economic challenges with a comprehensive stimulus package for Africa, including deferred debt and interest payments.

“The impact of the coronavirus pandemic has been global in both scale ad reach, and this necessitates coordinated international action to capacitate all countries to respond to effectively, but most particularly developing countries that continue to shoulder a historical burden of poverty, inequality and underdevelopment.”

Read the full statement below: