Ethiopia
UNHCR Chief Appreciates Ethiopia for Hosting Refugees, Supports for Their Safety
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), Filippo Grandi appreciated the government of Ethiopia for hosting refugees and providing the necessary supports to protecting their safety. Read More

PM Abiy Confers with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni
Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni accompanied by their delegation discussed various facets of Ethio-Italian cooperation and partnership. Read More

Ambassador Ayele Presents Credentials to AU Chairperson Commission
The Permanent Representative of Ethiopia to the African Union and UNECA, Ambassador Ayele Lire, presented his letters of credentials today to the Chairperson of the African Union Commission, Moussa Faki Mahamat, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Read More

Referendum Conducted in SNNP Warps Up Peacefully: Peace and Security Bureau
The referendum conducted in six zones and five special districts of the Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples’ Region warped up peacefully, according to the regional security and peace bureau. Read More

Kenya
Funding of Kenyan Tech Startups Increases to KES 71 Billion in 2022
Kenyan tech start-ups received a total funding of USD 574.8 million last year, representing a near doubling from USD 292 million in 2021. Read More

State Chokes DAP Fertiliser Use to Control Soil Acidity
The government has cut the supply of DAP fertiliser in a bid to stem soil acidity that has been attributed to the continuous use of this type of farm input, especially in the North Rift. Read More

Current Account Deficit Falls, Exports, Remittances Up
Kenya’s current account deficit to GDP for 2022 has come in nearly a percentage point lower than earlier projected by the Central Bank of Kenya following a better-than-expected performance of export earnings and higher diaspora inflows in the last quarter of the year. Read More

Uptake of Expensive Thermal Energy Hits Four-Year High 
The share of thermal energy fed to the national grid hit a four-year high in the first nine months amid a sustained decline in electricity drawn from the hydro dams. Read More

Rwanda
Elon Musk’s Starlink to Launch High-Speed Internet in Rwanda
The Rwanda Space Agency has announced that it has issued a license to Starlink, satellite internet constellation, to operate in the country. Its operations are set to begin in the first quarter of 2023. Read More

Tanzania
Kwala Satellite City is Set to Change Millions of Lives
Over one million people are expected to benefit from the construction of an industrial park in Kwala Area, Kibaha District in Coast Region. Read More

Hope as Key Dry Port is Set to Commence Services
Kwala Dry Port in the Coast Region is eventually set to begin operations this month, a key development that would decongest the Dar es Salaam seaport. Read More

Shipment of Equipment from China Resumes for Walkabout’s Tanzanian Mine
ASX-listed Walkabout Resources has announced that the latest batch of equipment it has ordered has left China, bound for the Lindi Jumbo graphite mine, in Tanzania. Read More

Uganda
CTI and IST Assure Market Women of Access to Healthcare
“Market Women” are the ubiquitous vendors who populate local markets throughout Uganda and sub-Saharan Africa. In many ways, they are the lifeblood of most African economies. Read More

Algeria
Chevron Looks to Seal Gas Exploration Deal in Algeria
U.S. supermajor Chevron has increased efforts to reach an energy exploration agreement with Algeria and is assessing the North African country’s estimated huge shale gas resources, The Wall Street Journal reported, quoting sources with knowledge of the plans. Read More

Egypt
Egypt-Serbia Economic Relations Improving Significantly
Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouli said Egypt-Serbia relations are developing, pointing out to President Abdel Fattah El Sisi’s visit to the European country in July 2022. Read More

Badr Petroleum Company Produced 9M Barrels Since 2014: Egyptian Minister
Egyptian Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, Engineer Tariq Al-Mulla, stated that Badr Petroleum Company, has produced 9 million barrels since 2014. Read More

Value of Egyptian Exports to Croatia Grows by 304.8 Percent in 1 year
The Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS) indicated in a report that the value of Egyptian exports to Croatia spiked by 304.8 percent in the first 10 months of 2022, and that of imports rose by 19.7 percent compared to the same period in the previous year. Read More

Egypt, Romania Sign MoU on Gas Transportation
Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouli and his Romanian counterpart Nicolae Ciucă attended the signing ceremony of a memorandum of understanding on gas transportation between the two countries. Read More

Morocco
Morocco, Turkiye, Tunisia to Receive Over 300,000 Tonnes of Russian Diesel
Morocco, Turkiye, and Tunisia are set to receive 346,000 tonnes of low-sulfur diesel from Russia as part of Moscow’s strategy of rerouting its energy exports. Read More

African Startups Raised Record-Breaking USD 4.8 Billion in 2022
African startups have broken records in terms of the value of funding, raising at least USD 4.8 billion in 2022, a recent report by Max Cuvellier and Maxime Bayen indicated. Read More

Morocco, Spain Relaunch Gibraltar Strait Tunnel Project
Spain and Morocco are taking new steps to construct the 40-kilometer tunnel that will link the two countries under the Strait of Gibraltar, Spanish outlet La Razon reported. Read More

Firms Paying Huge Premiums to Access Forex, Says Group
The National Working Group on Trade Policy says companies are paying huge premiums to access foreign currency, particularly dollars, due to rising trade deficit. Read More

Cooperative Impresses Parliamentary Committee
Parliamentary Committee on Government Assurance and Public Sector Reforms has expressed satisfaction with how Lilongwe-based Acades Cooperative Group is empowering the youth. Read More

Mozambique
CCM Welcomes Mozambican Ambassador to Russia
The Chamber of Commerce of Mozambique last week received the Ambassador of Mozambique in Russia, Mateus Katupha. Read More

Mozambique will Invest in Electric Bus Assembly Line
Mozambique is going to invest in an assembly line for electric passenger transport buses. This is a private initiative sponsored by the Government, through the Ministries of Transport and Communications and Industry and Commerce under the National Program to Industrialize Mozambique. Read More

World Bank Ranks Beira Port as the Most efficient in Southern Africa
The World Bank recently published the new Container Terminal Performance Index and the Port of Beira stood out by achieving the highest ranking of all Container Terminals in Southern Africa, ahead of Ports such as Durban, Cape Town, Dar Es Salaam and Walvis Bay. Read More

South Africa
Sasol Flags Mixed Results as Operational Challenges Offset Upsides
Sasol flagged a mixed set of results as weaker global economic growth, lower chemical prices and higher energy costs offset benefits from the stronger oil price, refining margins and the weaker exchange rate. Read More

Sibanye’s Lithium Project in Finland Secures Environmental Permit
Sibanye-Stillwater has secured an environmental permit in Rapasaari mine and the Päiväneva concentrator, a step in the process that seeks to position the SA mining group as one of the key suppliers of the minerals required for batteries used in electric vehicles in Europe. Read More

Payfast Rebrand Brings PayGate and SiD Under One Roof
South Africa’s leading payment gateway provider Payfast has undergone a major rebrand. Having joined forces with PayGate and SiD under Network International, the company has created a new home for its consolidated offering. Read More

Stage 6 Load Shedding Costs South Africa ZAR 900 Million a Day
South Africa’s electricity crisis is costing the economy as much as ZAR 899 million (approx. USD 51 million) per day, according to central bank estimates. Read More

Zambia
StanChart, UNDP Partner on SDG Financing
Standard Chartered Bank Zambia and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to promote collaboration on sustainable finance and help the country attain the United Nations, Sustainable Development Goals. Read More

ILO Calls for Policy to Favour Local Products
International Labour Organisation (ILO) boss George Okutho has called for a policy to ease procurement and marketing of products locally produced by young Zambian entrepreneurs as an effective way of creating jobs in the economy. Read More

Cote d'Ivoire
Vitalité to Recruit Health Workers from West African Countries Facing Even Worse Shortages
Vitalité partnering with Opportunities New Brunswick to recruit health-care workers in Senegal, Ivory Coast. Read More

Studies Claim 45 Percent of Ivory Coast Cocoa Crops Cannot be Traced to Buyers
Sector concerns have been raised in the wake of a new industry study on transparency and traceability of cocoa supply chains in Ivory Coast, revealing that 45 percent of crops cannot be tracked back to the original buyer, writes Neill Barston. Read More

Ghana
Finance Minister’s Speech on DDEP Deadline Eve
Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta addressed the nation recommending that bondholders accept the Domestic Debt Exchange Programme otherwise, reviving the economy will be a Herculean task for Akufo-Addo’s government. Read More

SMEs Without Certification Could Lose Out on ACFTA Benefits
The Ministry of Trade and Industry is warning of the possibility of Small and Medium Scale Enterprises without Ghana Standards Authority’s certification losing out on the African Continental Free Trade Area deals. Read More

New Property Rate Rollout: GRA, MMDAs Target GHS 1.77 Billion
The Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA), in collaboration with the Ministry of Local Government, Decentralisation and Rural Development and the Lands Commission, has collected data required to bill all properties in the country. Read More

Domestic Debt Exchange to Bring Economic Stability Ends
With the deadline for signing onto the domestic debt exchange programme (DDEP) set to expire, the Minister of Finance, Ken Ofori-Atta, has appealed to bondholders to fully embrace the programme. Read More

Nigeria
FG Backs NEPZA’s Bid to Designate Varsities as Economic Zones
The federal government has commended the Nigeria Export Processing Zones Authority (NEPZA)’s accelerated initiatives towards designating willing universities as Special Economic Zones. Read More

FG Awards Over NGN 85 Billion Census Contract to Zinox Technologies
The Federal Government through the National Population Commission has signed a landmark deal with Nigeria’s integrated technology brand, Zinox, for the supply of the tech components and other accessories for the 2023 national census project, further justifying President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration’s commitment to local content promotion. Read More

MFB in Nationwide Campaign to Drive Financial Inclusion
Hope PSBank, a Unified Payment Services subsidiary, has commenced a community inclusion initiative to bring more people into the financial system. Read More

NGN 613 Billion Sukuk Loan Spent on Roads, Bridges
The Federal Government has spent NGN 612.56 billion (approx. USD 1.3 billion) raised through Sovereign Sukuk between 2017 and 2021 for the construction and rehabilitation of 77 road projects and 23 bridges. Read More