(Posted 17th February 2022)
| CCA MEMBERS IN THE NEWS Fintech Startup Flutterwave Raises $250 Million at Over $3 Billion Valuation Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission Africa-focused fintech firm Flutterwave said on Wednesday it had raised $250 million in its single-biggest funding round to date, valuing the startup at more than $3 billion, as it targets mergers and acquisitions, and a growing existing customer base… Read more>> Global Investors to increase stake in Africa Daily Maverick Global investment into Africa is poised to grow exponentially and technology giant Google is determined not to miss out, kicking off with a $1bn investment over the next five years… Read more>> Alice Albright Sworn in as Millennium Challenge Corporation CEO Millennium Challenge Corporation Alice Albright was sworn in as the Millennium Challenge Corporation’s (MCC) sixth Senate confirmed Chief Executive Officer (CEO) today at the agency’s headquarters… Read more>> U.S.-AFRICA RELATIONS US Lobbying: Kenya fights to preserve Trump’s trade deal World News Times The US leader announced his intent to negotiate a free trade agreement (FTA) in February 2020 following his White House meeting with President Uhuru Kenyatta. Six months later, America’s trade representative Robert Lighthizer and Kenya’s cabinet secretary for trade Betty Maina formally launched negotiations. The US was looking to move beyond its two-decade-old African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) duty-free scheme… Read more>> Liberia: Pres. Weah to Officially Launch Bicentennial Celebrations Today as Pres. Biden Sends Delegation Front Page Africa President George Weah will today officially launch the year-long celebration of the Bicentennial to make the return of the Africans freed from slavery in the United States back to Africa and settling on the Providence Island – an occasion that eventually created Monrovia, the country’s capital… Read more>> AGRIBUSINESS UN: Horn of Africa drought kills over 1.5 million livestock AP News Drought in the Horn of Africa has killed more than 1.5 million livestock and drastically cut cereal production, “and we are most definitely now sitting on the brink of catastrophe,” a senior official for the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization said Monday… Read more>> ENERGY Ethiopia won’t wait indefinitely to operate dam, warns minister Middle East Monitor Ethiopian Foreign Minister, Redwan Hussein, yesterday stressed that Ethiopians would not wait “indefinitely and they expect the green light to use their country’s resources”,in reference to operating its dam project… Read more>> Why Uganda is investing in oil despite pressures to go green BBC News At the beginning of the month, Uganda, the China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC) and France’s TotalEnergies signed the Final Investment Decision (FID), a major step towards developing the country’s oil and gas industry… Read more>> HEALTH WHO Okays 3 Nigerian Varsities For Next Stage of Vaccine Production – TETFund Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission THE Management of Tertiary Education Trust Fund has revealed that the huge investment of the Federal Government in research and development (R&D) is yielding positive results with three Nigerian universities receiving certification from the World Health Organisation (WHO) for advancement to the next stage of their research work…. Read more>> DRC in danger of ‘fifth wave’ of Covid-19, warns Minister The East African Health workers perform a Covid-19 test at a private residence in Goma, DRC. Public Health, Hygiene and Prevention Minister Jean-Jacques Mbungani on Monday said the country has seen lowest infection rates in the last three weeks, but warned there is a threat of a fifth wave, if Covid-19 protocol were ignored now… Read more>> WHO gets supplies to Ethiopia’s Tigray but distribution lags AP News The U.N. health agency says it has been granted access to send medical supplies to Ethiopia’s embattled Tigray region for the first time in six months, but fuel shortages are hampering distribution… Read more>> INFRASTRUCTURE EU Chief Announces $172 Million Investment for Africa VOA News European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen Thursday announced a more than $172 billion investment plan for Africa, as part of the European Union’s Global Gateway infrastructure initiative…. Read more>> Africa needs smarter investment in digital infrastructure: Strategies for enticing the private sector Brookings Weak infrastructure is widely accepted as a fundamental limitation to growth in Africa. Governments in the region struggle to meet the basic needs of residents, including access to food, education, health, and livelihoods, much less invest in critical, reusable infrastructure that could provide long-term solutions to social problems…. Read more>> AfDB to Close Infrastructure Gap in Africa with Approved PPP Frameworks Energy Capital & Power Development finance institution, the African Development Bank (AfDB), has approved its first strategic framework for the development of public-private partnerships (PPPs) in an attempt to address and close Africa’s investment gap, which is estimated at over $100 billion a year…. Read more>> ICT African tech startups could unlock $90 billion with reforms African Business Africa could secure tech startup funding of more than $90bn by 2030, if policymakers pursue significant reforms to drive growth, according to a new report from the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change…. Read more>> Kenya is considering using a central bank digital currency Quartz Africa The Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) has issued a discussion paper assessing the applicability of a central bank digital currency (CBDC) in the country and seeking comment from the public on the technology… Read more>> Africa embraces Huawei technology despite security concerns DW Shunned in the Global North due to privacy and security issues, Huawei is a front-runner in Africa. But the Chinese giant’s data collection methods may also appeal to authoritarian regimes as a way to cling to power… Read more>> TOURISM Zimbabwe reopens borders after a year The East African Zimbabwe is reopening its land borders after closing them for over a year for ordinary travellers due to a surge in Covid-19 cases… Read more>> SPECIAL OFFER: CCA Members & Partners receive 30% off advertising space in The Africa Report – Offer ends March 2, 2022 For more information, email Pierre Bessiere at p.bessiere@theafricareport.com. CCA EVENTS African Economic Outlook 2022 Webinar Series Session One | February 21st | 9:00 am – 10:00 am ESTAdmassu Tadesse, President Emeritus & Group MD/CEO, Trade and Development Bank Click here to register for Session One Session Two | February 23rd | 11:30 am – 12:30 pm ESTDr. Albert Zeufack, Chief Economist for Africa, World Bank Group Click here to register for Session Two |
