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The world got confirmation of two new leaders of major countries, the United Kingdom and Kenya, on Monday. So what will they mean for the development community?
Also in today’s edition: Peacekeeping problems in the Democratic Republic of Congo, and a warning from Pakistan.
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In Liz they Truss
Former U.K. Foreign Secretary Liz Truss has been declared the winner of the Conservative Party leadership contest and will replace Boris Johnson as prime minister later today. Her rival, Rishi Sunak, will not be missed by many in the development community — as chancellor, he was in charge of cutting the aid budget and threatened to withhold aid from certain countries in order to control migration if he were named leader.
I dug into Truss’ development record at the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office — and found concern and apprehension among officials in the department about her taking the top job.
She becomes prime minister at an extremely challenging time for the United Kingdom, with a severe energy and cost-of-living crisis emerging. Could the job actually be a poison chalice? Truss was elected by party members, which means she lacks an obvious mandate from Conservative members of Parliament or the general public.
Devex readers should note that an unpredictable political leader hostage to factions of MPs — and an economy in dire straits — are exactly the same set of circumstances that saw the Department for International Development shuttered and 0.7% aid budget cut.
Read: What could a Liz Truss premiership mean for development?
It doesn’t need to be that way though. Professor Meera Tiwari of the University of East London set out what Truss could do to oversee the revival of the government’s international development program.
Opinion: Liz Truss, today is a chance to reestablish UK aid leadership
Stay tuned: Former FCDO Minister James Cleverly is widely tipped to replace Truss as foreign secretary. I’ve been speaking to those who’ve worked for him — and the picture emerging of the man is one that contrasts greatly with my reporting on Truss. The story will drop once his appointment is confirmed tonight.
Victory to the hustlers
In recent weeks Kenyans have been holding their breath as courts analyzed whether last month's presidential election results were free and fair. On Monday, the nation's highest court upheld the victory of William Ruto as the next president, despite claims from his rival Raila Odinga that the election was hacked.
While there are perennial concerns around Kenyan elections that violence could break out due to the post-election instability of 2007-2008, the nation was calm in the wake of Monday's results. Amref Africa CEO Dr. Githinji Gitahi tweeted in response: "It’s indeed possible to entrench the peoples will in the constitution!" adding that he looked forward to working with Ruto on achieving universal health coverage in the country.
Ruto’s campaign focused on uplifting the nation’s “hustlers” — ambitious, hardworking, young people held back by a defunct economy. Devex Pro members can read reporter Anthony Langat’s dispatch on what his presidency could mean for development in the country.
ICYMI: What William Ruto's manifesto means for development (Pro)
Emergency rations
Famine is likely to occur in parts of Somalia this year, Martin Griffiths, the U.N. humanitarian chief, said Monday. Amid the crippling drought, food shortages are even affecting therapeutics used to treat child malnutrition. The situation has deteriorated so much that the International Rescue Committee has radically changed its treatment for child malnourishment.
Devex contributor Sophie Edwards spoke to Assumpta Ndumi, IRC’s East Africa technical adviser for nutrition, about how the food crisis is affecting the organization’s work and what changes it made to its malnutrition regimen.
Q&A: IRC simplifies wasting treatment as child malnutrition surges (Pro)
+ This Q&A is part of a new Devex Pro series on how organizations are responding to the food crisis. Start your 15-day free trial of Devex Pro to read the series.
A war on peacekeepers
July protests against MONUSCO, the U.N. peacekeeping mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo, killed four peacekeepers and at least 32 others, rattling international agencies and Africa watchers. Now, there are fears the attacks on personnel could negatively impact other peacekeeping and United Nations operations in the region.
Devex contributor Al-hadji Kudra Maliro tracked down some of the protestors, who revealed the disillusionment with MONUSCO held by many in the DRC.
"These tourists have been based here for more than 20 years, but armed groups continue to be created,” one of the protestors told him.
Read: Will anti-peacekeeping protests hinder other UN operations in the DRC?
Warning from Pakistan
The flooding that inundated Pakistan will not be the end of the country’s woes and could trigger a crisis of health and unemployment as the country struggles to recover. Asad Khan, the newly arrived Pakistani ambassador to the EU, Belgium, and Luxembourg, tells Brussels Correspondent Vince Chadwick about the challenges that remain: rescuing people from the flooding, the potential spread of waterborne diseases, and knock-on effects on the country’s food supplies and economy.
“I think the world community must come together because this is a very unusual, unprecedented situation,” Khan says. “The needs are enormous.”
Attempts to drain the Manchar Lake, the country’s largest, reportedly failed on Monday, threatening to cause even more flooding as its banks near bursting point.
Read: Pakistani ambassador to EU warns of looming health, livelihood crises
Read more: How Islamic NGOs’ response in Pakistan is being hampered by systematic financial discrimination
In other news
Parts of the Amazon might never recover from deforestation, according to a major new study. [The Guardian]
About 80% of the billions of dollars pledged by high-income nations for South Africa's climate plan will be loans, not grants. [Reuters]
African leaders criticize the absence of their counterparts from high-income countries at the Africa Adaptation Summit in Rotterdam. [France 24]
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About the author
William Worley@willrworley
Will Worley is the Climate Correspondent for Devex, covering the intersection of development and climate change. He previously worked as UK Correspondent, reporting on the FCDO and British aid policy during a time of seismic reforms. Will’s extensive reporting on the UK aid cuts saw him shortlisted for ‘Specialist Journalist of the Year’ in 2021 by the British Journalism Awards. He can be reached at william.worley@devex.com.
