The Covid-19 pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine war have caused inflationary pressures on economies, reduced the purchasing power of La Francophonie citizens while raising the cost of living. Members of the Parliamentary Assembly of La Francophonie (APF)’s committee on cooperation and development made the observation on Thursday, July 7, at a meeting in Kigali, rooting for strategies meant to lower prices for basic commodities such as food for citizens. During the session, different MPs shared the economic situation of their respective countries, concurring that the Covid-19 and the Russia-Ukraine war are threatening to undo the registered economic gains, or make them lose the economic momentum. While giving a brief on Rwanda’s economic situation, MP Veneranda Uwamariya said that, according to data from the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning, Rwanda’s registered a good performance. Data shows that the Gross Domestic Product grew by 10.9 percent in 2021, thanks to recovery strategies and efforts to tackle the Covid-19 pandemic. This economic growth was achieved after the country’s economy contracted by 3.4 percent in 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic impact. Regarding the shock induced by the Covid-19 pandemic on the economy, Uwamariya said that Rwanda established the Covid-19 economic recovery fund in order to support businesses much affected by the pandemic, in which it has so far invested $350 million (over Rwf350 billion). “This is intended to increase access to finance and continue to support the recovery and the resilience of businesses,” she said. According to the International Monetary Fund (IMF)’s April 2022 World Economic Outlook (WEO), the global economy is estimated to grow at 3.6 percent in 2022 compared to the 6.1 percent recorded in 2021. In 2022, Rwanda’s economic growth is expected to moderate to 6 percent. The decline in economic growth worldwide reflects the negative impacts of Covid-19 and the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war and sanctions on Russia, which have been resulting in rising energy and food prices, fertilisers and supply disruptions that fuel higher inflation all over the world. Data from the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning suggest that Inflation or overall increase in prices of goods and services is projected at 9.5 percent in 2022. For Africa, in May this year, the African Development Bank (AfDB) announced that the price of wheat had soared on the continent by over 45 percent since the war in Ukraine began, while fertiliser prices had gone up by 300 percent. Francis Drouin, an MP from the House of Commons Canada said that as all countries, Canada is confronted with high inflation, where it is at 7.7 percent, specifically pointing out that food price increase is at 9.7 per cent this year. Bruno Fuchs, Acting Secretary General of APF, said that one would think that providing economic situations in every country of La Francophonie is just a routine, but indicated that through a review, it is realised that this point is important. For example, he said, in France, there is a draft law on purchasing being debated on with a view to protect citizens from the difficulties linked to inflation, the Ukrainian crisis, prices of energy, barley and the shortage of raw materials or necessities. “I think this could help everyone to better find ways and means to overcome difficult situations in which our fellow citizens are,” he said. “We think that by enriching ourselves with the experiences from one another, we might come up with a report on purchasing power … that would be a point that could be analysed,” said Angélique Ngoma, Chairperson of the Committee on Cooperation and Development, while referring to the increasing costs associated with Covid-19 and Russia-Ukraine war.
