NEW YORK (AP) — This week’s Global Citizen NOW conference featured appeals for long-term investments in the African continent’s fast-growing youth population and increased outreach to young changemakers worldwide, as the international advocacy organization seeks to drive resources toward antipoverty causes.
The conflict-riddled international scene has made it even more vital that political, business and philanthropic leaders support education and health care in the least-developed nations, Global Citizen CEO Hugh Evans said. Some of the week’s biggest asks included up to $6 billion for economic development in Africa and $600 million for a United Nations-administered fund supporting education during emergencies.
“I don’t need to lecture anyone about polarization,” Evans told The Associated Press. “But I do think that the corollary of that is that sometimes people can feel completely hopeless and disempowered. My one hope is that our platform continues to stand for clear, decisive, practical actions that citizens can take to change the world for good.”
To further its goals, the two-day conference in New York leaned on the star power of longtime ambassador Hugh Jackman, Oscar-winning actress Michelle Yeoh and Brazilian singer Anitta. Doug Emhoff, the husband of Vice President Kamala Harris, even made a previously unpublicized appearance Wednesday to discuss the need for men to actively fight sexism and champion reproductive rights.
“The Walking Dead” and “Black Panther” star Danai Gurira said more Western aid alone is not enough. African nations need true self-determinism because “we are so far from uprooting ourselves from colonialism,” according to the Iowa-born actress who was raised in Zimbabwe.
“We are ridiculously wealthy, from the cobalt to the lithium to the diamonds to the rubber to the oil,” she said. “But often you don’t see us in control of it.”
About 60% of Africa’s population is younger than 25 years old — a tremendous asset that two-time Super Bowl champion Osi Umenyiora said only needs more opportunity. The former defensive end discussed his work spearheading the National Football League’s efforts there to provide the training necessary for international athletes to get college scouts’ attention and eventually play professionally.
The NFL has academies in the United Kingdom and Australia. Umenyiora said he hopes to add facilities by 2030 in countries including Nigeria, Kenya and Morocco.
“The best athletes in the world, in my estimation, are in Africa,” Umenyiora told the AP. “It’s just they haven’t been developed. They haven’t been trained.”
The conference followed the announcement that Global Citizen will co-present an economic summit in Ivory Coast this fall. The goal is to boost foreign aid to Sub-Saharan Africa, where the working-age population is expected to double by 2050 but many lack access to electricity.
Speakers emphasized that global leaders must help bridge those gaps now if they want to tap the region’s full potential. Foreign aid can work, they said, despite recent moves from once-generous, debt-saddled governments to decrease the amounts allocated toward developing countries.
Former Swedish Prime Minister Stefan Lofven pitched development assistance as a mutually beneficial investment, not a one-sided act of charity.
“Why not use the whole potential of the world?” asked Lofven, who set a target to spend 1% of Sweden’s gross national income on aid while in office.
The conference also marked Global Citizen’s efforts to draw Gen Z into its 12 million-member network. The organization recently paired more than 300 young leaders with officials including World Bank President Ajay Banga at the first international edition of Global Citizen NOW.
Nonpartisan civic engagement groups HeadCount and I Am A Voter announced a merger during a Thursday panel, seeking to leverage the power of musicians and brands to increase youth voter registration as the U.S. presidential election ramps up.
Other speakers shared strategies for engaging authentically with young people online. Anitta told the AP that she hosts classes on Instagram Live so that her fans can learn with her about environmental issues like rainforest protection.
Actor Jordan Fisher acknowledged that seemingly insurmountable student loans or the unaffordable housing market might make young people feel politically lost. He emphasized that voting is just one way to begin getting involved.
Fisher is also identifying new platforms to empower members of Global Citizen. An avid gamer, he is advising the organization as it develops a gaming division. He said livestreaming services like Twitch can be a great tool for raising money and awareness among audiences tuning in to watch their favorite creators.
“It’s some of the most authentic work that can be done. It’s just people. And it’s just us. It’s human beings,” Fisher told the AP.
“The power of gaming is massive.”
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TORONTO – Canada’s main stock index was higher in late-morning trading, helped by strength in energy stocks, while U.S. stock markets also moved up.
The S&P/TSX composite index was up 34.91 points at 23,736.98.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was up 178.05 points at 41,800.13. The S&P 500 index was up 28.38 points at 5,661.47, while the Nasdaq composite was up 133.17 points at 17,725.30.
The Canadian dollar traded for 73.56 cents US compared with 73.57 cents US on Monday.
The November crude oil contract was up 68 cents at US$69.70 per barrel and the October natural gas contract was up three cents at US$2.40 per mmBTU.
The December gold contract was down US$7.80 at US$2,601.10 an ounce and the December copper contract was up a penny at US$4.28 a pound.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 17, 2024.
TORONTO – Strength in the base metal and technology sectors helped Canada’s main stock index gain almost 100 points on Friday, while U.S. stock markets climbed to their best week of the year.
“It’s been almost a complete opposite or retracement of what we saw last week,” said Philip Petursson, chief investment strategist at IG Wealth Management.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was up 297.01 points at 41,393.78. The S&P 500 index was up 30.26 points at 5,626.02, while the Nasdaq composite was up 114.30 points at 17,683.98.
The S&P/TSX composite index closed up 93.51 points at 23,568.65.
While last week saw a “healthy” pullback on weaker economic data, this week investors appeared to be buying the dip and hoping the central bank “comes to the rescue,” said Petursson.
Next week, the U.S. Federal Reserve is widely expected to cut its key interest rate for the first time in several years after it significantly hiked it to fight inflation.
But the magnitude of that first cut has been the subject of debate, and the market appears split on whether the cut will be a quarter of a percentage point or a larger half-point reduction.
Petursson thinks it’s clear the smaller cut is coming. Economic data recently hasn’t been great, but it hasn’t been that bad either, he said — and inflation may have come down significantly, but it’s not defeated just yet.
“I think they’re going to be very steady,” he said, with one small cut at each of their three decisions scheduled for the rest of 2024, and more into 2025.
“I don’t think there’s a sense of urgency on the part of the Fed that they have to do something immediately.
A larger cut could also send the wrong message to the markets, added Petursson: that the Fed made a mistake in waiting this long to cut, or that it’s seeing concerning signs in the economy.
It would also be “counter to what they’ve signaled,” he said.
More important than the cut — other than the new tone it sets — will be what Fed chair Jerome Powell has to say, according to Petursson.
“That’s going to be more important than the size of the cut itself,” he said.
In Canada, where the central bank has already cut three times, Petursson expects two more before the year is through.
“Here, the labour situation is worse than what we see in the United States,” he said.
The Canadian dollar traded for 73.61 cents US compared with 73.58 cents US on Thursday.
The October crude oil contract was down 32 cents at US$68.65 per barrel and the October natural gas contract was down five cents at US$2.31 per mmBTU.
The December gold contract was up US$30.10 at US$2,610.70 an ounce and the December copper contract was up four cents US$4.24 a pound.
— With files from The Associated Press
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
TORONTO – Canada’s main stock index was down more than 200 points in late-morning trading, weighed down by losses in the technology, base metal and energy sectors, while U.S. stock markets also fell.
The S&P/TSX composite index was down 239.24 points at 22,749.04.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was down 312.36 points at 40,443.39. The S&P 500 index was down 80.94 points at 5,422.47, while the Nasdaq composite was down 380.17 points at 16,747.49.
The Canadian dollar traded for 73.80 cents US compared with 74.00 cents US on Thursday.
The October crude oil contract was down US$1.07 at US$68.08 per barrel and the October natural gas contract was up less than a penny at US$2.26 per mmBTU.
The December gold contract was down US$2.10 at US$2,541.00 an ounce and the December copper contract was down four cents at US$4.10 a pound.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 6, 2024.
