Corporate Council on Africa’s latest news

DFC CEO Scott Nathan leads U.S. Government delegation to Corporate Council on Africa’s U.S.-Africa Business Summit
Prosper Africa
Scott Nathan, CEO of the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC), will lead a high-level U.S. delegation to the U.S.-Africa Business Summit, July 11-14 in Gaborone, Botswana. The event is hosted by the Corporate Council on Africa and the Government of Botswana and builds on the momentum of the successful 2022 U.S.- Africa Leaders’ Summit. Prosper Africa, the U.S. Government initiative to increase two-way trade and investment between the United States and African countries, is a sponsor of the U.S.-Africa Business Summit… Read More>>

AGRIBUSINESS

Female Agripreneurs in Africa Need IP Protection to Incentivize Innovation
IAfrica
As part of Rwanda’s agriculture transformation efforts to enhance agribusiness competitiveness, a growing number of women are now engaged in agribusiness, where many have been able to generate business benefits throughout the value chain. Official estimates show that in Rwanda, more women than men are primarily engaged in agriculture, yet female farmers face more challenges in starting successful agribusinesses than their male counterparts…Read More>>

Kenyan women, youth in agribusiness get Sh3.4bn support
MSN
The African Development Bank (AfDB) Group has approved an equity investment of €19.2 million (about Sh3.4 billion) for women entrepreneurs in Kenya’s agricultural value chain.The funding was provided in partnership with the European Union (EU). Ms Nnenna Nwabufo, the bank’s Director General for East Africa, termed the move a major milestone. She said the approval signals the significance of women and youths in the agriculture sector…Read More>>

Nigeria- Scrapping fuel subsidy will spur e-mobility market. 
Esi Africa
The Nigeria Fuel Subsidy Removal: Time for Electric Mobility report by Clean Technology Hub and Africa E-Mobility Alliance (AFEMA) says the move would yield long-term benefits. These include fiscal sustainability, investment in the downstream oil industry and the stimulation of new industries and solutions such as mass transit and electric mobility. This is notwithstanding the short-to-medium term burden that increased fuel prices causes for Nigerians, the report noted. During his inauguration speech on May 29, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu announced that subsidies on petroleum motor spirit (PMS) were no longer in place… Read More>>

Egypt starts $1.8 billion gas exploration wells programme -minister
Reuters
Egypt has begun a $1.8 billion programme to drill natural gas exploration wells in the Mediterranean Sea and Nile Delta, petroleum minister Tarek El Molla told UAE state news agency WAM on Tuesday. The programme is in cooperation with Eni (ENI.MI), Chevron (CVX.N), ExxonMobil (XOM.N), Shell (SHEL.L) and BP (BP.L)… Read More>>

ICT

Implementaton of an Interoperable Cloud Governmental Platorm
Unidade De Gestao De Projectos Especiais
The Government of the Republic of Cabo Verde has received from the Internatonal Development Associaton (hereafer named “World Bank”), the Credit ref. 6792-CV to fund the Digital Cabo Verde Project, aiming to contribute to transforming the country into a regional digital hub for acceleratng its digital economy through an enhanced digital infrastructure and strengthened demand of digital services and skills, and intends to apply part of the proceeds for consultng services…Read More>>

HEALTH

South Africa: SA Aids 2023 – New Treatments and Guidelines to Benefit Kids, With More Advances On the Horizon
AllAfrica

Several sessions at the 11th SA AIDS conference, recently held in Durban, highlighted the worrying fact that key HIV numbers such as treatment coverage are much lower in children than in adults. There is hope, however, that new treatments and new treatment guidelines might help close the gap. In a plenary session, Dr Sandile Buthelezi, Director General of the National Department of Health, told delegates that on UNAIDS’ 95-95-95 targets, children in South Africa are at 81-65-68… Read More>>

The Government of Kenya has unveiled initiatives to increase domestic health financing and achieve Universal Health Coverage (UHC).
Capital Business
Kenya’s private sector and civil society representatives have also committed to supporting the Government’s efforts. These commitments were made at the ‘Kenya High-Level Dialogue on Health Financing for Universal Health Coverage’ stakeholder event, the first ever held in Kenya, where representatives from the Government, Ministry of Health and The National Treasury, policymakers, private sector, and civil society convened to discuss ways to better work together to mobilize domestic financing for healthcare and speed up progress towards UHC… Read More>>

INFRASTRUCTURE

Nigeria’s Abia state gets $263m loan to strengthen infrastructure
Esi Africa
Nigeria’s Abia state will start a project to rehabilitate roads, create erosion control infrastructure and prepare of solid waste management facilities. The project is expected to be completed in 2029, with 248.46km of road-58.03km of roads Umuahia, Abia’s capital and 190.43km of roads in Aba, its commercial hub-rehabilitated to asphaltic concrete standards at varying cross sections. Financing for the project, estimated at a total cost of $263.80 million…Read More>>

De Beers renews diamond sales deal with Botswana
Mining Technology
Diamond producer De beers Group and the Botswana Government have reached an agreement in principle on renewing their rough diamond sales agreement for another ten years through to 2033.This new agreement is expected to drive Debswana, the joint venture between De Beers and the Botswana Government, through long-term investment. The parties also agreed on a 25-year extension of Debswana mining licences until 2054.It will focus on four key areas, namely demonstration of industry leadership, Debswana’s future, economic diversification, and job creation in the country… Read More>>

FINANCE

South Africa inflation seen falling within range by Q3 -central bank governor
Reuters
South Africa’s inflation is expected to decline to within the central bank’s target range of 3% to 6% by the third quarter, which would be sooner than previously forecasted, governor Lesetja Kganyago said on Tuesday. At its last meeting in May, the SARB monetary policy committee surprised the market by implementing a 50-basis point increase to its interest rate. It was the 10th consecutive rate hike since November 2021 as the bank battled to bring down stubbornly high inflation… Read More>>

Uganda becomes Kenya’s fastest-growing source of diaspora dollars
Business Daily Africa
Uganda has emerged as the fastest growing source of diaspora dollars flowing into Kenya at a time the remittances from top global sources are slowing down on inflationary pressures squeezing earnings for citizens working abroad. Diaspora remittances from Uganda doubled in the first five months of the year compared to last year, according to the official data, despite total flows growing 1.81 percent… Read More>>

Despite concerns, Zimbabwe’s Stock Market outpaces global competitors with stunning 800% growth
Business Insider Africa
Gains occur at breakneck speed in Harare, Zimbabwe, the location of the largest stock market surge in history: 5%, 10%, and even 20% in a single session. Add them all up, and the market has increased by an astounding 800% year-over-year. The rapid rally, though, should raise more anxiety than excitement in a nation where up often comes down and the next currency crisis is always just around the horizon. This is based on a report put out by American news agency, Bloomberg… Read More>>