Comedian Volodymyr Zelenskyi leading in Ukrainian presidential polls

Jason Melanovski & Clara Weiss

Some three weeks ahead of the first round of the Ukrainian presidential elections on March 31, the most recent polling of voters in Ukraine reveals that actor-comedian Volodymyr Zelenskiy is now leading a crowded field of 44 presidential candidates.

According to the Rating polling agency, 25.1 percent of potential voters support Zelenskiy. The second place is almost evenly split between current President Petro Poroshenko and former prime minister Yulia Tymoshenko who both received support from just over 16 percent of those polled.

As none of the candidates are expected to garner an outright majority to win the first round, a second runoff round between the top two candidates will almost certainly be held in May.

Reflecting widespread disillusionment with the country’s official politics, 31.9 percent of respondents said they did not plan to participate in the elections at all.

Prior to his entrance into politics, leading candidate Volodymyr Zelenskiy had worked his way through a series of Ukrainian popular television shows to become one of the country’s most famous media figures, hosting his own programs and producing shows and movies for viewing in both Ukraine and Russia. Foreshadowing his current political campaign, in 2015 Zelenskiy appeared in a TV series called “Servant of the People” in which he portrayed a high school history teacher who unexpectedly becomes president of Ukraine after a viral video spreads showing him criticizing corruption in the country.

That a popular entertainment figure such as Zelenskiy has become the frontrunner, is indicative of the advanced political and social crisis in the country. The political establishment, which is associated with both Poroshenko and the former prime minister Tymoshenko, is widely hated and discredited.

Several polls have shown that there are more people who dislike and would refuse to vote for the next two closest candidates, Poroshenko and Tymoshenko, than people who actually support them and would be willing to vote for them.

Zelenskiy has been able to garner support for his criticism of Poroshenko’s promotion of far-right nationalism and an overt war drive against Russia, as well as by tapping into widespread social discontent by exposing corruption.

Zelenskiy is a native Russian speaker and generally speaks and performs in Russian. His comedy regularly lampoons the obvious corruption of the country’s ruling class and criticizes the exclusionist, violent and reactionary nature of Ukrainian nationalism. He has previously spoken out against the country’s banning of Russian language media and has called for language rights to be protected in traditionally Russian-speaking areas of the country, such as in eastern Ukraine.

Zelenskiy has also ridiculed Poroshenko’s campaign slogan of “Army, Language, Faith” as really meaning “To steal from the army, to selectively split people by language, so that there will be no faith in you.” He has gone further in acknowledging the truth about the imperialist-backed 2014 far-right coup that removed President Viktor Yanukovych when stating that Poroshenko “came to power through blood.”

In stark contrast to Poroshenko’s full backing of the bloody five-year-long war in the Donbass, Zelenskiy’s campaign has called for a cease-fire and negotiations while maintaining that both the Donbass and Crimea should be returned to Ukraine. He also announced that he was willing to engage in direct negotiations with Russian President Vladimir Putin over East Ukraine.

However, despite his social and political demagogy, Zelenskiy is running as a candidate of a section of the Ukrainian oligarchy.

While Zelenskiy is now demagogically criticizing Poroshenko from the left, he previously supported both the Western-backed Maidan and the war in the Donbass. He has said little about his plans for the country’s devastated economy that would differentiate him from other candidates and speaks in purposefully vague terms regarding his actual political agenda. Ukraine is currently the poorest country in Europe and the working class is being subjected to various IMF-enforced austerity measures.

Exposing his real political orientation toward sharp attacks on the working class, according to Bloomberg, Zelenskiy has cited French President Emmanuel Macron and Brazilian far-right president Jair Bolsonaro as role models for his politics.

Zelenskiy enjoys what he calls a close “working” relationship with billionaire Ukrainian oligarch and former head of Ukraine’s PrivatBank Ihor Kolomoyskyi. Zelenskiy’s shows appear on Kolomoyskyi’s 1+1 television and he made his campaign announcement on the same channel.

Kolomoyskyi also enjoys close ties with another presidential candidate and former prime minister, Tymoshenko, and many Ukrainians speculated that Zelenskiy’s entrance in the race was just a ploy to tear away support from Poroshenko and ensure a Tymoshenko win.

While both Zelenskiy and Kolomoyskyi have denied that they have any quid pro quo agreement in the elections, a member of Petro Poroshenko’s political party revealed on Monday that Kolomoyskyi’s PrivatBank previously transferred $41 million to bank accounts of a film production studio belonging to Zelenskiy.

Kolomoyskyi was later accused of stealing $5 billion from PrivatBank and fled the country. He is now living in Israel after coming into conflict with the Poroshenko regime. It is widely speculated that Kolomoyskyi is backing both Tymoshenko and Zelenskiy to be able to return to Ukraine and regain control over his vast business empire.

Especially because of Zelenskiy’s declared stance on the war in East Ukraine and on Russia, the possibility of his winning the election is viewed with a great deal of nervousness and suspicion by the imperialist powers and has already triggered discussions about a renewed intensification of direct imperialist intervention in the country to prevent any reorientation of Ukrainian foreign policy that would run counter to the immediate interests of imperialism.

The Washington-based think tank Atlantic Council , which has earlier made a case for a Tymoshenko presidency, warned that a Zelenskiy presidency would be a “disaster for Ukraine.” It noted menacingly that, in the case of a deadlocked and fragmented legislature coming out of the parliamentary elections in the fall, “another Euromaidan Revolution” would become “perfectly possible, perhaps even within a few months of Zelenskiy’s election. This time, however, it would likely be violent from the start, as Ukraine’s population has an unusually large supply of privately owned guns and Ukraine’s army would almost certainly side with protesters against the comedian-in-chief.”

Cuts to hours for Whole Foods workers exposes fraud of Amazon pay increase

Tom Hall

A report in the British Guardian newspaper on Wednesday revealed that workers at Whole Foods have seen their hours slashed after the Amazon-owned grocery chain raised its starting wages to $15 per hour last year.

Amazon’s CEO Jeff Bezos announced the pay raise across all of Amazon and Amazon-owned businesses last October as a cynical public relations ploy in response to mounting public outrage following revelations of brutal exploitation at the world’s largest online retailer.

According to the Guardian, an Illinois-based Whole Foods worker told them that “once the $15 minimum wage was enacted, part-time employee hours at their store were cut from an average of 30 to 21 hours a week, and full-time employees saw average hours reduced from 37.5 hours to 34.5 hours. The worker provided schedules from 1 November to the end of January 2019, showing hours for workers in their department significantly decreased as the department’s percentage of the entire store labor budget stayed relatively the same.” The reduction in working hours per-employee has not been made up for with new hires, forcing workers to accomplish the same tasks in less time.

The worker said that he or she had received an email explaining that the cut to hours was “the direct result of guidance from our regional team,” i.e., from upper levels of management. That this is a company-wide policy was confirmed by accounts from workers from across the country. “This hours cut makes that raise pointless as people are losing more than they gained and we rely on working full shifts,” one Maryland worker told the Guardian. Some workers have had to resort to taking paid time off in order to compensate temporarily for the loss in hours.

“Things that have made [the cut to hours] more noticeable are the long lines, the need to call for cashier and bagging assistance, and customers not being able to find help in certain departments because not enough are scheduled, and we are a big store,” a California worker told the paper.

The cut in hours to Whole Foods workers lines up with the experience of workers at Amazon itself, who discovered that their modest pay increase was tied to the elimination of stock bonuses and other benefits. Shannon Allen, the well-known Amazon whistleblower whose story was first broken by the World Socialist Web Site, walked the WSWS through the figures and showed how the elimination of the stock vesting and variable compensation programs meant she would lose thousands of dollars in total compensation under the new plan.

“It makes me so mad,” Shannon said at the time. “I want to know who Bezos asked about doing this. Bezos said that he supposedly heard from his workers. Who did he ask? It wasn’t me. We didn’t get to vote. They didn’t pass out a ballot. Nobody asked me. Now I have an option to buy my own stock. It just pisses me off.”

Amazon’s announcement of the $15 per hour pay raise was hailed at the time by Bernie Sanders as a “shot heard round the world.” The Democratic Party-aligned media followed suit, writing that this was “how democracy and capitalism are supposed to work,” (The New York Times ) and “inspiring” (the Bezos-owned Washington Post ).

This has now been exposed as a sham. All of those praising Amazon knew from the start that the company would find ways get their pound of flesh back, as had been widely acknowledged by industry analysts.

Predictably, Senator Sanders, who last week announced his candidacy for the 2020 presidential elections, has said nothing about the Guardian report. Sanders had spent months last year campaigning against Amazon’s CEO Jeff Bezos as one of his “Faces of Greed” and proposed a bill in the Senate called the STOP BEZOS Act, which had no chance of passing, to tax low wage employers such as Amazon.

After Amazon announced its cosmetic pay increase, Sanders made a sudden about face, exchanging mutual praise with Jeff Bezos as though the two were longtime friends and admirers.

Sanders said nothing about the cuts to benefits and actively worked to shield Amazon from criticism as the details of the pay increase became clear. “Our understanding is that the vast majority of Amazon workers are going to see wage increases, including some very significant increases as the minimum wage goes up to $15 an hour,” Sanders told the Fox Business Channel last October in response to mounting criticism of Amazon.

Sanders still cites the bogus pay raise as one of his major accomplishments, and was introduced in a recent appearance in Chicago as “the man who stood up to Amazon and said you will pay $15/hour.”

European Central Bank announces major policy reversal

Nick Beams

The European Central Bank has reversed its policy of slight monetary tightening and announced a new stimulus package in the face of data which show a sharp downturn in growth in the euro zone. The unanimous decision was taken at the meeting of the ECB’s governing council held in Frankfurt yesterday.

The decision came just three months after the central bank announced it was phasing out its asset purchasing program. The bank indicated it would keep interest rates at historic lows at least until next year and potentially indefinitely and set out a new program to offer cheap loans to euro zone banks.

It also indicated it would continue to reinvest the proceeds of bonds which mature under its €2.6 trillion quantitative easing program for an “extended period of time” with reinvestments amounting to about €20 billion a month.

The decision is the first by a major central bank to reverse monetary tightening in the face of growing signs of a slowing global economy. The US Fed has indicated that it has put interest rate rises on hold but has not yet taken steps to ease monetary policy.

The decision by the ECB came as a result of what president Mario Draghi characterised as a “substantial” downward revision of growth estimates for the region. He said the new outlook for annual growth in gross domestic product was 1.1 percent for 2019, 1.6 percent for 2020 and 1.5 percent in 2021.

This compares with estimates just last December of 1.7 percent for 2019 and 1.7 percent and 1.5 percent for the following two years. This means that so sharp has been the fall-off in economic activity that the ECB has slashed its growth estimate for this year by more than one third.

A similar projection has been made by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development. On Wednesday it cut its growth forecast for the euro zone to 1 percent from the prediction of 1.8 percent which it made just last November.

The revised figures come after the euro zone experienced its biggest increase in growth in 2017 for a decade. This was accompanied by claims that the world economy was experiencing synchronised growth and that it was finally starting to turn the corner following the economic devastation resulting from the global financial crisis of 2008–2009.

But from the beginning of 2018 the growth momentum began to slow and the deceleration increased throughout the year, with Germany, the region’s largest and most significant economy, barely escaping a recession in the final two quarters.

Growth in China has also been slowing and last year hit its lowest level in three decades, with a further lowering expected for 2019. The US managed to buck the trend, largely as a result of the stimulus provided by the Trump administration’s tax cuts. But there are signs that this is starting to wear off with the US recording lower than expected growth in the fourth quarter of last year.

Reviewing the factors which had led to the decision to reverse course, Draghi pointed to weaknesses particularly in the manufacturing sector, “reflecting the slowdown in external demand” compounded by some country and industry specific factors.

“The risks surrounding the euro area outlook are still tilted to the downside, on account of the persistence of uncertainties related to geopolitical factors, the threat of protectionism and vulnerabilities in emerging markets,” he said.

The ECB also significantly reduced its forecast for inflation in an indication that its target of around 2 percent for the area—regarded as sign of a steadily growing economy—is further away than ever. It reduced the forecast of inflation for 2019 to 1.2 percent, down from the projection of 1.6 percent in December with similar reductions for the following two years.

Other economic data also indicate deep-seated problems. According to Eurostat, productivity shrank in the second half of 2018 for the first time since the financial crisis. Output per hour fell by 0.4 percent on a year-on-year basis in the last quarter of 2018, the sharpest rate of contraction since 2009. This followed a contraction of 0.1 percent in this third quarter.

The contraction was driven by Germany which recorded an annual 0.9 percent decline in output per hour worked. In the third quarter of last year, the German economy contracted for this first time since 2015, with growth remaining flat in the last quarter.

In Italy output per hour fell 0.3 percent in the last quarter, its third consecutive fall.

According to Andrew Harker, associate director at IHS Markit, which publishes purchasing managers indexes that track business sentiment, its data suggested that “the manufacturing sector was the main source of the latest reduction, with industrial productivity decreasing to the greatest extent in almost a decade.”

The ECB decision sent European markets down—a trend which extended to the US—indicating market concerns over global growth. The Dow fell 200 points, the S&P 500 dropped by 0.8 percent and the Nasdaq lost 1 percent, with traders indicating that the decision pointed to a softening of the euro zone economy and added to “uncertainty.”

In a comment published on Bloomberg, the chief economic adviser to the global insurance and financial giant Allianz, Mohamed El-Erian, said the ECB move was as dramatic as the Fed’s “flip-flopping” in January. It showed that ten years after stocks hit their low following the global financial crisis, investors could still rely on “exceptional liquidity support from systemically important central banks.”

He wrote that the “great hope” had been that after “prolonged period of unconventional monetary policies (which almost by definition, don’t offer sustainable solutions but merely buy time at the risk of collateral damage and unintended adverse consequences)” the central banks would be able to hand over to governments. Instead, he continued, as demonstrated by the ECB decision “central banks remain stuck in a morass.”

US deaths from alcohol, drugs and suicide at all-time high

Kate Randall 

More than 150,000 Americans died from alcohol and drug-induced fatalities and suicide in 2017. This is more than twice as many as in 1999 and the highest number since recordkeeping began in that year. This skyrocketing rate of so-called deaths of despair was confirmed in a new analysis released this week by Trust for America’s Health (TFAH) and Well Being Trust (WBT).

TFAH and WBT analyzed data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) between 2016 and 2017 and found that the national rate for deaths due to alcohol, drugs and suicide increased 6 percent over that year, from 43.9 deaths per 100,000 to 46.6 deaths per 100,000. While the rate of increase is lower than in the previous two years, it is still higher than the 4 percent average annual increase since 1999.

The new analysis provides insight into the CDC’s findings last years that showed a drop in life expectancy from 78.7 years to 78.6 years, the third consecutive year-on-year decline. In the years since the 2008 financial crisis many workers and their families have confronted an unprecedented crisis of social misery, which is literally cutting life out from under them.

Certain groups of Americans have been hardest hit by the “deaths of despair” examined in the new analysis:

• Ages 35–54: The rate of death from alcohol, drugs and suicide was 72.4 per 100,000. This was a 35 percent increase over 2007 figures.

• Males of all ages: A death rate of 68.2 deaths per 100,000 was found among men.

• Regional disparities: West Virginia, with 81 deaths per 100,000, and New Mexico, with 77, had the highest rates of “deaths of despair” among the 50 US states.

Death by suicide

The suicide rate in 2017 was 4 percent higher than in 2016, rising from 13.9 deaths per 100,000 to 14.5 deaths per 100,000. In 2017, 47,200 Americans died as a result of suicide. Deaths by suicide were particularly high among males (22.9 per 100,000), whites (16.6 per 100,000) and people living in rural areas (19.4 per 100,000)

Over the past decade suicide rates increased by 22 percent. Suffocation and hanging suicides have risen by 42 percent since 2008, while firearm suicides saw a 22 percent increase. These methods are often chosen by suicide victims over less violent means because they are more likely to result in death.

One of the most disturbing trends over the last decade has been the rise in deaths by children ages 1–17. Although suicide deaths in 2017 were still lower than for other age groups, at 2.4 per 100,000, they have risen by 16 percent since 2016. Over the last decade, 12,660 youth under the age of 17 took their own lives, according to the CDC.

Suicide rates over the past decade have also increased proportionally more among blacks (30 percent rise) and Latinos (36 percent) than among other racial and ethnic groups.

Research published by the CDC last year showed that the overall suicide rate increased by 25 percent across the US over the two decades ending in 2016. These figures paint a picture of a social crisis driving increasing numbers of people, both young and old, to take their own lives in the face of personal crises, mental health issues, substance abuse and economic despair.

In 2017, 35,800 Americans died of alcohol-induced causes. The TFAH/WBT report included deaths from alcohol induced causes, including alcohol poisoning, liver and other diseases. It did not include alcohol-related vehicle accidents, violence or accidental fatalities.

Alcohol-induced deaths rose 2 percent in 2017 over 2016, the smallest increase since 2008–2009. The alcohol death rate has increase by 38 percent since 2008. Alcohol-related deaths were highest among males (16.2 per 100,000), whites (12.2 per 100,000), adults ages 55–74 (26.4 per 100,000) and in rural areas (13 per 100,000).

People 55–74, who should be enjoying their retirement, instead are abusing alcohol in record numbers. Those 18–34—who should be gainfully employed, studying or embarking on new careers—have seen a 69 percent rise in alcohol-related deaths over the past decade, as they suffer through unemployment and layoffs and drown in college debt.

Drug deaths

The synthetic opioids fentanyl and carfentanil are 50 to 100 times and 10,000 times more potent than morphine, respectively. Natural/semisynthetic opioids include hydrocodone, oxycodone, morphine and heroin.

Two decades ago, synthetic opioids were responsible for less than 10 percent of all drug deaths in the US. In 2017, they accounted for 38 percent of all drug deaths, with an average of 547 Americans succumbing to opioid overdose deaths every week.

The synthetic opioid crisis has taken its toll on every segment of American society, but has especially hit males (with 12.8 deaths per 100,000 in 2017), blacks (8.6 deaths per 100,000), whites (9.5 deaths per 100,000), adults ages 18–54 (15.2 deaths per 100,000) and those living in metropolitan areas.

A recent study showed that opioid overdose death rates among US teens and children have tripled over the past 17 years. The study, published online in JAMA Network Open, found that young children died from either accidentally ingesting narcotics or from intentional poisoning. Teens more often died from unintentional overdoses, using prescription painkillers found in their homes or drugs bought on the streets.

The Northeast region had the highest opioid mortality rate in 2017 (15.7 deaths per 100,000), followed by the Midwest (12.1 deaths per 100,000). Drug deaths in the Midwest, which includes the Rust Belt ravaged by industrial decline, saw a 122 percent increase from 2007 to 2017.

The surge in synthetic drug deaths must be laid at the feet of the multibillion-dollar pharmaceutical companies, who have flooded neighborhoods with these potent opioids. Drug companies have pushed prescription narcotics through bribing doctors to prescribe the addictive substances, and by secretly and deliberately increasing their addictive properties.

While politicians of both big business parties have feigned outrage at such practices, they are on the payroll of Big Pharma, receiving millions of dollars from drug company lobbyists. In 2018 alone, the pharmaceutical and health products industry spent a record $280 million on their lobbying efforts.

The war against the health and lives of American workers has been a bipartisan conspiracy conducted over decades as part of a conscious strategy to claw back the gains of the working class begun over a century ago.

For the 150,000 Americans who died from alcohol and drug-induced fatalities and suicides in 2017, millions more have been affected—family, friends, co-workers. But for politicians in Congress and pharmaceutical CEOs this devastating toll is seen as the “cost of doing business.”

The US health care crisis—exemplified by these “deaths of despair” and falling life-expectancy—is a true national emergency, in contrast to the “national emergency” on the Southern US border fabricated by Donald Trump and his fascistic advisers.

The epidemic of alcohol-, drug- and suicide-related deaths is a social crisis that requires a socialist response. Such social misery cannot be battled under conditions where the health and welfare of the vast majority is subjugated to the private wealth of the pharmaceutical and insurance companies and giant healthcare chains. These capitalist enterprises must be expropriated, transformed into public utilities and run on the basis of social need, not profit.

Record US deficit in traded goods

Nick Beams

US President Donald Trump has made a reduction of the trade deficit a cornerstone of his economic policies, insisting it drains wealth from the American economy and results from concessions made to rivals by previous administrations.

But data released by the Commerce Department yesterday show that the deficit in traded goods hit an all-time high of $891.3 billion last year, an increase of 10 percent. After tourism, education and banking were taken into account, it was still $621 billion, the highest level in ten years.

The deficit with China, the major target of Trump’s trade war measures, reached a new record, as did the deficit with Mexico. The goods deficit with China widened by $44 billion last year to reach $419 billion, almost half the total.

Overall, US imports rose by 7.5 percent last year, driven by increased spending on consumer goods, industrial supplies and capital goods. Exports rose as well, but only by 6.3 percent, leading to a wider trade gap.

It appears that the expansion of the trade gap is accelerating. It increased by 18.8 percent in December to almost $60 billion, larger than economists’ predictions, as exports fell by 1.9 percent and imports increased by 2.1 percent.

One of the main impacts on the US of the Trump trade war measures against China is in the area of agriculture. As a result of retaliatory measures imposed by Beijing, China’s purchases of American soybeans, wheat and sorghum fell by almost $10 billion last year.

The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported that, as a result of a fall in prices, due to China shifting its source of supplies, US producers had held on to their product in the hope of a better price. But they had now been forced to sell at a loss. The WSJ cited one farmer who said there were “a lot of farms that are going bankrupt now.”

Overall, the increased deficit is an expression of the inherent contradictions of Trump’s “America First” trade agenda, within the framework of a globalised economy.

Trump has sought to boost the American economy, pledging to lift its growth rate to more than 3 percent, compared to the 2 percent achieved during the Obama administration. But increased US growth means that the American economy sucks in more imports from the rest of the world, leading to an ever-wider trade deficit.

One of the key factors in this process over the past year has been the administration’s tax cut policy. To the extent that it provided a boost to the economy, it led to increased demand for consumer goods—many of them imported—and increased demand from businesses.

This took place at the same time as growth in the rest of the world in 2018 slowed markedly, which led to an increase in the US trade gap.

As Barclay’s economist Pooja Sriram Sriram told the WSJ: “Higher take-home incomes for households have definitely proven to be very conducive to imports. The outcome has been in almost the opposite direction of what the administration has wanted.”

Another factor was the decision by the US Federal Reserve to increase interest rates four times in 2018. This tended to push up the value of the American dollar in the second half of the year, cheapening imports and pushing up the price of American exports.

Caught up in the contradictions of his own policies, Trump lashed out at the Federal Reserve in a speech directed to his electoral base at the Conservative Political Action Conference last weekend, saying the American economy was doing well, despite the Fed.

“I want a strong dollar but I want a dollar that does great for our country, not a dollar that’s so strong that it makes it prohibitive for us to do business with other nations and take their business,” he said.

Without directly naming Fed chairman Jerome Powell, he said there was a “gentleman at the Fed” that liked a “very strong dollar.”

Trump views trade as a zero-sum game, in which the US benefits if other countries lose. But this creates further contradictions, which found expression in his remarks to the CPAC.

The US, he said, was “booming like never before,” while other countries were “doing very poorly and that makes it even harder for us to be successful.”

However, the obvious economic irrationalities of the administration’s nationalist trade agenda are not going to reverse the situation. Rather, they are more likely to result in a doubling down, with increased pressure being brought to bear on US rivals.

China is not the only target; the administration has also placed the European Union firmly in its sights.

Last July, Trump secured an agreement from European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker for negotiations on a trade deal. It was obtained under the threat that the US would impose tariffs on autos and auto parts that would significantly hit Germany.

From the outset, the European side made clear that, so far as they were concerned, agriculture and increased access to EU markets for US products were not on the agenda.

The US has insisted, however, that agriculture be included, even if it were not part of the Trump-Juncker agreement.

Last week, the director of Trump’s National Economic Council, Larry Kudlow, said: “We were aware of that issue from Day 1.” But he insisted that the US had always assumed agriculture would be included in any deal, saying: “You’re not going to have a far-reaching EU trade deal without agriculture.”

Last month, Trump again raised the threat of auto tariffs. “We’re trying to make a deal,” he said. “They’re very tough to make a deal with, the EU. If we don’t make a deal, we’ll do the tariffs.”

In a worsening situation for US farmers—partly as a result of Trump’s own policies—pressure on the EU to have agricultural products included is likely be intensified, with the threat that if they are not, auto tariffs will be invoked.

On the China front, reports continue to be published that Trump is pushing for a deal, in order to be able to announce victory and boost his 2020 campaign for the US presidency. Bloomberg has reported that Trump is fixated on the performance of the stock market.

While the announcement of an agreement, the agency declared, would not provide a major boost, largely because a favourable outcome had been “priced into” the markets already, resulting from administration comments about the progress of the negotiations, that “failure risks roiling stocks.”

But any deal that fails to meet the demands of the anti-China hawks, key sections of which are in the Democratic Party, will create significant opposition, including from media outlets that have backed Trump.

On Tuesday, Senate Democrat leader Charles Schumer warned Trump not to settle for a weak deal.

“But now, when you’re getting close to victory, to relent at the eleventh hour, without achieving meaningful, enforceable and verifiable structural reform to China’s trade policies, would be an abject failure of the president’s China policies and people will shrug their shoulders and say what the heck did he begin this for if he won’t complete it.”

The essential content of what is meant by the “completion” of “verifiable structural reform” was revealed by one of the leading anti-China hawks on the Republican side, Florida Senator Marco Rubio.

In a report issued last month, entitled “Made in China 2025 and the Future of American Industry,” he wrote:

“A common defence of expanded trade with China is that the US would maintain or increase its position on the high end of the value chain, while China would supply the US with lower-value inputs. This has not happened for the US economy as whole. In important areas, China has moved up the value chain, relative to the US.”

In other words, what is necessary is nothing less than a policy aimed at preventing China’s economic and technological advance, and imposing semi-colonial status upon it.

Kaduna State Government Kashim Ibrahim Fellowship 2019 for Young Nigerian Leaders

Application Deadline: 20th March 2019

Eligible Countries: Nigeria


To Be Taken At (Country): Nigeria

About the Award: Kaduna State Government is set to introduce its inaugural class of the Kashim Ibrahim Fellows Programme commencing in June, 2018. The programme’s objective is to develop and nurture leadership ability across Nigeria, with specific focus on the promising leaders of the future.
The one-year programme aims to create a network of high potential young Nigerians who are expected to rise to top leadership positions in the public sector and other spheres of activity over the next decade.
The overall mission of the non-partisan programme, as envisioned by His Excellency, Mallam Nasir el-Rufai, is in his words, “to raise the next generation of leaders who will most likely be absorbed into the Nigerian public sector having had a first-hand experience of its workings and challenges”

Kashim Ibrahim Fellows Programme comprises of four components, namely;

1. Work Placement
2. Education Programme
3. Community Service
4. Fellowship

Type: Fellowship (Professional)

Eligibility: To be eligible as a Kashim Ibrahim Fellow, applicants must demonstrate a public interest orientation.

Selection Criteria:The most important criterion is to have a real commitment to put your new leadership skills into use to benefit your community, State and Nigeria upon the successful completion of the programme.
Selection Criteria Include:

• Diversity: The programme will admit sixteen (16) Fellows representing diverse ethnic, religious, and gender backgrounds, with varied educational, economic, and geographic experiences; working from all angles and with different perspectives to strengthen their communities and civic life.
• An established record of integrity and exemplary achievement.
• Commitment to engaging in crucial issues and to making a difference at the national or international level.
• Promise of a future career of leadership and notable impact.
• Special capacity for critical, creative, entrepreneurial, and strategic thinking.
• Commitment to a rigorous programme of activities, to full-time residence in Kaduna for the entire duration of the programme.
• Fellowships are available for individuals who are working to solve important public problems in creative and powerful ways.
• Proficiency in English: Fellows must be fluent in spoken and written English as all programmes will be conducted in English.
• Applicants must be Nigerian citizens between 25 to 35 years of age.
• Applicants must be graduates of a recognised university, and must have completed the mandatory national youth service.

Number of Awards: Not specified

Value of Award:

• A salary and benefits equivalent to that of Special Assistant to the Governor from the Ministry, Department or Agency for which Fellows work.
• Accommodation in a nicely furnished one-bedroom apartment for the duration of the programme, and breakfast

Duration of Program: 1 year

How to Apply: 

• Please note that application for admission to the Kashim Ibrahim Fellows Programme is entirely an online process. There are no paper forms to complete or mail.
• There is no application fee or any cost to apply.
• Prior to the deadline of 20th March 2019, you may work on your application at any time and submit it when you are ready. After creating an account and accessing the online application, you can upload materials and request your letters of recommendation.
• Applicants are required to submit a Résumé/Curriculum Vitae (maximum 3 pages), two letters of recommendation and an essay on the change and leadership in Nigeria (maximum 1000 words).

Apply Here

Visit the Program Webpage for Details

Africa-China Reporting Project Grants 2019 for African Journalists

Application Deadline: 14th April 2019

Offered annually? Yes


Eligible Countries: African countries and China

About the Award: The Project is seeking applications from journalists for two different types of reporting grants:

• Audio/visual reporting grants: For audio or video reporting projects by journalists established at media houses and preferably with the necessary equipment readily available, as the grant will likely not be sufficient to cover hiring of equipment and full production costs
• Investigative reporting grants: For print and/or online investigations by journalists working at media houses as well as freelance journalists. Preference will be given to applicants able to include established publishing platforms and the involvement of investigating or other partners in their proposals

This is the first time that the Project has opened a call specifically for audio/visual reporting grants; in 2018 the Project launched the first call for investigative reporting grants. Via this call for both audio/visual and investigative reporting grants the Project seeks to promote dynamic storytelling and reporting of Africa-China investigations focusing on specific issues that are in the public interest and have a relevance to China’s and Chinese interests’ roles, activities and impact in Africa.
The Project encourages journalists to submit proposals that aim to bring to light fresh and nuanced investigations with new findings about complex Africa-China relations, and if possible that involves other partners and institutions who can collaborate on and expand the investigations (the Project can potentially assist applicants to form partnerships with investigating partners in Asia and elsewhere). Of importance is for applicants to present fresh and important ideas and a feasible plan to carry them out.

Fields of Research: Within the Africa-China framework there are various issues where fresh and ground-breaking reporting can be undertaken, such as the following:

• Economy: Corporate activities, criminal networks, business links, etc.
• Development and infrastructure: Ground-breaking and/or problematic projects and deals, community impact, etc.
• Social: Health, public services, etc.
• Governance: Government dealings/engagements, aid and development assistance, education and sponsorships, etc.
• Environment: Following-up on the ban in ivory trade, complexities of implementation; poaching & trafficking; pollution, etc.
• Agriculture: Ground-breaking agricultural developments/exchanges, crop yields and new strains, etc.

• And more topics such as Industrialisation; Chinese company activities; Dangerous and/or illegal industrial operations; Community engagement & mobilization; Chinese support and activities in favor of regional integration; Chinese private security in Africa and the arms trade; Activities of and engagements with Chinese communities in Africa; Anti-piracy measures; Chinese corporate social responsibility in Africa, etc.

These are suggested themes, but there could be many others, and as long as the focus is within the broad Africa-China framework the Project will consider each proposal on its own merits.

Type: Grants

Eligibility:The Project is looking for experienced investigative journalists who have new and fresh ideas and the means to deliver them.

Number of Awardees: Not specified

Value of Grants: 

• The grants are intended to provide funding for travel, accommodation and sundry daily expenses, but not car hire, purchase of equipment or professional fees, or to buy publication space
• Grants are generally as much as $3000
• Grant recipients will be paid 75% of the grant total at the outset, and the remaining 25% when (and if) the feature is published on a news media platform/publication

Duration of Grants: The reporting project should be completed and published within three months of the receipt of the grant funding unless otherwise agreed

How to Apply:  Please address an email with the heading APPLICATION: AUDIO-VISUAL REPORTING GRANT or APPLICATION: INVESTIGATIVE REPORTING GRANT and containing the following items (in attachments in MS Word or PDF formats) to ACRPapplications@gmail.com by no later than 14 April:

• Applicant CV, and list of previous Africa-China reporting and/or previous investigative or audio/visual journalism reporting
• Proposal for story to be investigated, with a clear proposed headline at the start and a brief report of WHAT will be investigated and HOW, including a detailed methodology for how and where the investigation will be undertaken
• Audio/visual reporting proposals should include a draft production storyboard to support the methodology
• An indication of where the investigation will be published or aired, and which partners if any will be used or required and how this will expand the investigation
• A detailed budget with specific line items totalling as much as US$3,000

Visit Grants Webpage for details

Orange Social Venture Prize for Entrepreneurs in Africa and the Middle East 2018

Application Deadline: 30th May 2019

Offered annually? Yes


Eligible Countries: Countries in Africa and the Middle East

About the Award: The Orange Social Venture Prize rewards entrepreneurs developing products or services that use ICT in an innovative way to meet the needs of people in Africa or the Middle East in fields such as health, agriculture, education, energy, industry or trade.
Over the past five years, the thousands of projects which have been submitted for the Orange Social Venture Prize display the dynamism of entrepreneurs and the potential of the telecommunications sector in the region.
Once again this year, internet users can vote online for their favourite project on Entrepreneur Club, the entrepreneurship section of StarAfrica, the Orange portal. The project thus elected as the “favourite project” will be introduced to the jury along with ten others shortlisted by the experts, and will therefore maximise its odds of receiving one of the monetary grants.

Offered Since: 2011

Type: Entrepreneurship

Eligibility: Any entrepreneur (aged 21 or over) or legal entity that has been in existence for fewer than three years at the time of the competition may participate at no cost and with no restriction on nationality. Submitted projects must be designed to be deployed in at least one of the African or Middle Eastern countries in which Orange operates (as listed in the rules) and must use information and communications technology in an innovative way to help improve the living conditions of the populations in these countries.

Number of Awardees: 3

Value of Contest: 

• 1st Grand Prize: €25,000
• 2nd Grand Prize: €15,000
• 3rd Grand Prize: €10,000

Orange experts provide the winners with customised digital mentoring and advice. These international awards complete the various prizes delivered locally to national winners.

Apply

Visit Contest Webpage

Foreign Language Teaching Assistant Program (FLTA) 2019/2020

Application Deadline: 30th April 2019

Offered annually? Yes


Eligible Countries: Nigeria

To be taken at (country): United States of America (USA)

About the Award: The Foreign Language Teaching Assistant (FLTA) program is a nine month non-degree course funded by the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs and administered by the Institute of International Education. The objective of the program is to strengthen foreign language instruction at U.S. colleges, universities, and some high schools, while providing future teachers from abroad the opportunity to refine their skills, increase their English language proficiency, and expand their knowledge of U.S. society and culture.  FLTA fellows must return to their home countries upon completion of their programs to teach English at the secondary or university level.

Type: Short courses, Job

Eligibility: All applications must meet the following criteria:

• Applicants must be teachers of English or in training to become teachers of English.
• Applicants must possess a university degree in English, Language Arts, or combined honors.
• Applicants must be fluent in English, demonstrated by a TOEFL score of 79-80 (Internet based testing) or 6.0 (overall score International English Language Testing System-IELTS).
• Applicants must be between 21 and 29 years old at the time of application.
• Applicants must demonstrate maturity, dependability, integrity and professionalism.
• Applicants must be physically present in their home country throughout the nomination and selection process.

Number of Awardees: Not specified

Value of Scholarship: Fully-funded

Duration of Scholarship: 9 months

How to Apply:  

• Applications must be completed and submitted online.
• Applicants should request that the academic office of their institution send a stamped copy of their transcripts in a sealed envelope to: The Public Affairs Section, U.S. Embassy, Plot 1075 Diplomatic Drive, Central Area, Abuja, Attention: Cultural Affairs Officer.
• Other documents to be submitted include academic credentials, signed and stamped letters of reference, and the photo page of a valid Nigerian passport.
• The application can be accessed at: http://apply.embark.com/student/fulbright/flta.

Visit Scholarship Webpage for details

L’Oréal-UNESCO Sub-Saharan Regional Fellowships 2019 for African Women in Science

Application Deadline: 29th April 2019

Offered annually? Yes


Eligible Countries: Sub- Saharan African countries listed below

To be taken at (country): Sub-Saharan African Universities

About Fellowship: Founded in 1998, the L’Oréal-UNESCO For Women in Science Sub-Saharan Africa Fellowships aims to promote and encourage young African women in science. Its programs reward established women scientists whose outstanding achievements have contributed to the advancement of scientific knowledge and of its benefits to society and provide support to promising young women who are already making significant contributions in their scientific disciplines.

Eligible Field of Study: This program identifies and rewards talented young female scientists in the field of Life Sciences (such as biology, biochemistry, biophysics, genetics, physiology, neurosciences, biotechnologies, ecology and ethology) as well as Physical Sciences (such as physics, chemistry, petroleum engineering, mathematics, engineering sciences, information sciences, and earth and universe sciences).

Offered Since: 2010

Eligibility: Applicants must meet the following general criteria:

• Having obtained Ph.D. degree in Life or Physical Sciences or pursuing studies leading to a Ph.D. degree
• Having the nationality of a Sub-Saharan African country
• Working in a Research Laboratory or Institution in one of the region’s countries or being- enrolled in a doctoral programme at a University in Sub-Saharan Africa
• Candidates must be no more than 40 years old by the end of the application period for- PhD and not more than 45 years for Post-doctoral.

Selection Criteria: The selection criteria of the candidate by the jury are the following:

• The candidate’s outstanding academic records (including number, quality and impact of the publications (impact factors to be submitted), conference presentations, patents…)
• The scientific quality of the research project
• The innovative nature and productivity of the research and its potential application in science

Number of Awards:

• The Program honors 15 doctorates and 5 post-doctorates every year.

Value of Award:

• €10,000 each will be granted to Ph.D. Students enrolled in- an African University.
• €15,000 each will be granted to 2 postdoctoral researchers- working in a laboratory or research institute registered in one of the region’s countries.

Duration of Program: 

Eligible Countries: South Africa, Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Comoros, Congo, Côte d’Ivoire, Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Equatorial Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Mozambique, Namibia, Níger, Nigeria, Uganda, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, Sao Tomé & Principe, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Sudan, South Sudan, Swaziland, Tanzania, Chad, Togo, Zambia and Zimbabwe

How to Apply: Applications can be only made  here  by the candidates themselves.  An application is considered complete only if it includes all documents below:

• A detailed Curriculum Vitae (including outreach activities among youth, tutoring, etc.)
• Certified copies of the degrees or recent diplomas-
• A proof of having obtained a Ph.D. degree for postdoctoral candidates-
• A proof of being enrolled in an African University for doctoral candidates-
• A detailed project of maximum 2 pages, including:
  • The research project description
  • The proposed use of the grant motivating the candidature with some budget indications
• Letters of recommendation from the research supervisor and/or the director of the- scientific institution where the research project is carried or the Dean of the University under which the candidate is running her research
• The list of publications and patents

Incomplete files or received after the deadline for application, as well as candidatures that do not meet the requirements mentioned above, will not be taken into consideration.
It is important to download and go through application rules and regulations from the Fellowship Webpage below before applying

Visit Fellowship Webpage for details

Indonesian Government Scholarships 2019/2020 for Students from Developing Countries

Application Deadline: 12th April 2019 (Extended from 1st March)

Offered annually? Yes


Eligible Countries: Developing Countries

To be taken at (country): Scholarships will be taken at the following universities in Indonesia.

Accepted Subject Areas? Agricultural Sciences, Education, Engineering, Humanities, Multi-Disciplinary Studies, Social Sciences and Sciences

About Scholarship: The Government of the Republic of Indonesia is annually offering the Darmasiswa Scholarship, a non-degree scholarship program offered to all foreign students from countries which have diplomatic relationship with Indonesia to study Bahasa Indonesia (Indonesian Language), art and culture. Participants can choose one of selected universities (59 universities) located in different cities in Indonesia. This program is organized by the Ministry of Education and Culture (MoEC) in cooperation with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA). The scholarship will be awarded to 650 applicants.
The main purpose of the DARMASISWA program is to promote and increase the interest in the language and culture of Indonesia among the youth of other countries. It has also been designed to provide stronger cultural links and understanding among participating countries.


Offered Since: 2002

Type: Undergraduate, Masters

Eligibility and Selection Criteria: Each student has to fulfill these requirements as the follows:

1. Preferably Student;
2. Completed secondary education or its equivalent;
3. Minimum age 17 years and Not older than 35 years of age;
4. Able to communicate in English and additional Bahasa Indonesia is required (Proven by English Language Proficiency Certificate : TOEFL/ TOEIC/IELTS or OTHER CERTIFICATE if applicable);
5. In good health as proven by Medical Certificate;
6. Unmarried
7. Have basic knowledge of the field you’re applying.

Number of Scholarships: Several

Scholarship Benefit

• Living Allowance and accomodation
• Research and book allowances (will be given during the Master Program)
• Health insurance

Duration of sponsorship

• 8 months of Indonesian Language Program
• 4 months of Preparatory Program
• 24 months (4 semesters) of Master Programs

How to Apply: Apply Here

Visit the Scholarship Webpage for Details


Sponsors: Indonesian Government

Women in Engineering (WomEng) Africa Innovation Fellowship 2019 for Female Leaders

Application Deadline: 1st April 2019.

About the Award:The Africa Innovation Fellowship, powered by WomEng and the Royal Academy of Engineering’s  Africa Prize for Engineering Innovation is a nine-month leadership and business development opportunity for female African innovators with an early stage engineering innovation or startup. The Africa Innovation Fellowship aims to develop the talent pipeline for future cohorts of the Africa Prize for Engineering Innovation.


Type: Fellowship, Entrepreneurship

Eligibility: 

• Applicants must be female individuals or small groups with a female lead applicant.
• Individual applicants must be citizens of a country within Sub-Saharan Africa*. For teams of two or more, the lead applicant must be a citizen of a country within Sub-Saharan Africa.
• The innovation must be based in a country in Sub-Saharan Africa.
• Applicants must have an engineering innovation, though are not required to be an engineering graduate or student themselves.
• Industrial researchers and establishments are not eligible to apply.
• The lead applicant must be over the age of 18. There is no upper age limit.
• The applicant’s innovation can be any new product, technology or service, based on research in engineering defined in its broadest sense to encompass a wide range of fields, including: agricultural technology, biotechnology, chemical engineering, civil engineering, computer science, design engineering, electrical and electronic engineering, ICT, materials science, mechanical engineering, and medical engineering. If you are in any doubt that your area of expertise would be considered engineering, then please contact aif@womeng.org to discuss your application.

• Applicants should have an early stage engineering innovation and/or startup that:
  • Will bring social and/or environmental benefits to a country/countries in Sub-Saharan Africa
  • Is accompanied by an ambitious but realistic business plan which is near-ready or has been tested for commercial viability
  • Has strong potential to be replicated and scaled up

Number of Awards: Not specified

Value of Award: 

• The prize for the winning idea will be an all-expenses paid trip to London to attend the Global Grand Challenges Summit in September 2019.
• Fellowship candidates who apply and are subsequently shortlisted for the Africa Prize for Engineering Innovation will additionally receive individual coaching and mentoring to support to get them pitch ready.

Duration of Programme: The Africa Innovation Fellowship (AIF) kicks off with an in-person training week in Kampala, Uganda from the 2 – 5 June 2019, focused on idea and business incubation, leadership development, networking and getting pitch-ready. The Fellowship training week is followed by nine months of personalised virtual support with regular check-ins and milestones, ending in March 2020.

Eligible countries: Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Côte d’Ivoire, Djibouti, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Liberia, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Sao Tome and Principe, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Africa, South Sudan, Sudan, Swaziland/eSwatini, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

How to Apply: APPLY NOW

Visit the Programme Webpage for Details