(Posted 10th April 2025)
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Angola Rail Line Offers Clues to Trump’s Africa Policy United Airlines Expands Global Reach with New Long-Haul Routes to Adelaide, Cape Town and Johannesburg |
U.S.-AFRICA RELATIONS
Assessing The Impact Of Trump’s Tariffs On Africa
Next Africa
President Trump imposed the steepest American tariffs in a century as he steps up his campaign to reshape the global economy. Many African countries have been hit with the so-called reciprocal tariffs including a 31% levy on South Africa and 50% on Lesotho. Bloomberg Economics Africa Economist Yvonne Mhango joins Jennifer Zabasajja to explain what the impacts of these tariffs will be on African Economies – and what the global trade war could mean for hopes of growth…Read More>>
Trump’s tariffs could be death knell for US-Africa trade pact
BBC
Thursday was a “terrible” and “devastating” day for people involved in Lesotho’s textile sector as they digested the news that the country’s exports to the US would be hit by a 50% import tax, or tariff. Teboho Kobeli, who founded Afri-Expo Textiles and employs 2,000 people in the country, could barely disguise his distress as he told the BBC about the impact of potentially losing a huge chunk of the US market because the prices of his goods will have to increase…Read More>>
ENERGY
Mauritania Secures World Bank Support for Energy, Mining Initiative
Energy Capital Power
The World Bank has approved funding for the Mauritania Development of Energy Resources and Mineral Sector Support (DREAM) Project aimed at strengthening the country’s green hydrogen, energy storage and mining sectors. The project will support geological surveys across critical mineral basins and advance the Green Hydrogen Law. Mauritania will Finance its first large scale energy storage system to harness solar and wind power… Read More>>
Southern African countries launch climate-resilient health initiative with WHO support
World Health Organization
Brazzaville – Eight Southern African countries have embarked on a landmark effort to bolster emergency preparedness and response systems in the face of increasing climate-related health threats. With financial support from the Pandemic Fund, and technical assistance from World Health Organization (WHO) in the African Region and other partners, Botswana, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa and Zimbabwe are advancing their capacity to protect public health, and respond to emergencies….Read More>>
Trump Tariffs Will Make it Harder for African Countries to Finance Health
Health Policy Watch
The tariffs imposed by the United States on goods from several African countries on Wednesday will make it even more difficult for African countries to increase their health spending, said Dr Jean Kaseya, Director General of the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC). These tariffs – ranging from 10% for Kenyan goods to 50% for impoverished Lesotho – come on top of the loss of billions of dollars of US aid for health programmes including vaccinations, maternal and child health, HIV, tuberculosis and malaria...Read More>>
Health in the Balance: How the USAID Pullout Exposed East Africa’s Over-Reliance on Donor-Driven Systems
Public Services International
When the Trump administration announced in January 2025 that the United States would scale back USAID funding to “non-strategic partners,” the shockwaves hit hard across East Africa. Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, and Burundi, nations already juggling overstretched health systems, are now grappling with the consequences of long-standing donor dependency…Read More>>
INFRASTRUCTURE
The reality of infrastructure investment in Africa – it’s attractive
African Business
At Africa50, our position is clear. We breathe and live infrastructure investments in Africa. They are transformative, impactful, and profitable. And once you get the formula right, they are replicable and scalable.The year 2024 was a coming of age for our young institution. After seven years of operation we have achieved significant successes; but these are modest compared to the magnitude of the continent’s infrastructure gap. ….Read More>>
How shared digital infrastructure can bridge the gap in Africa
World Economic Forum
In Uganda’s Buheesi village, a school that once lacked electricity or internet now downloads digital textbooks and files reports in real time. The transformation came when a pilot programme combined rural electrification with fibre deployment, bringing both power and connectivity to the heart of the community…Read More>>
AGRIBUSINESS
St. Kitts and Nevis and Nigeria strengthen agribusiness ties
Business Insider Africa
In late March, a 12-member delegation from St. Kitts and Nevis participated in the inaugural Afri-Caribbean Investment Summit (ACIS 25) in Abuja, Nigeria. The Summit sought to open new avenues for collaboration between Nigeria and St. Kitts and Nevis, particularly in the realm of food security and agribusiness. Across three days of bilateral meetings, the Summit served as a catalyst for deepening economic ties between Africa and the Caribbean more widely…Read More>>
ICT
US tariffs could hurt Africa’s telecom industry, MTN Group CEO warns
Techpoint.Africa
Ralph Mupita, MTN’s Group President and CEO, is sounding the alarm on how global trade tensions — particularly US moves to impose new tariffs on tech imports — could impact African economies, affecting everything from mobile coverage expansion to 5G deployment….Read More>>
AI Summit in Rwanda signals Africa’s push to join the global tech race
LaCroix International
Artificial intelligence is projected to generate $2.9 trillion for Africa by 2030, along with half a million new jobs each year and a path out of poverty for more than 11 million people, according to Yves Iradukunda, permanent secretary at Rwanda’s Ministry of ICT and Innovation….Read More>>
FINANCE
ATIDI Helps Strengthen Benin’s Fiscal Resilience with Second-Loss Guarantee for Deutsche Bank’s EUR507.5 Million Loan
African Trade & Investment Development Insurance
The African Trade & Investment Development Insurance (ATIDI) supported the Republic of Benin’s latest financing transaction, providing a second-loss guarantee for Deutsche Bank’s EUR 507.5 million loan to the country. This milestone transaction reinforces ATIDI’s commitment to unlocking access to innovative financial solutions that enhance economic stability and sustainable development across Africa….Read More>>
