BII and Ghana International Bank (GHIB) have announced a partnership to finance cross-border trade in Sierra Leone, Liberia, Gambia, Benin, the DRC, Rwanda, and Tanzania. The deal aims to improve access to credit and reduce Africa’s trade finance gap. British International Investment (BII) has teamed up with Ghana International Bank (GHIB), a London-based Ghanaian bank, to launch a $50...

Egypt, the leading importer and producer of wheat, heavily relies on imports, estimated at 55 to 60%, to meet its wheat consumption. To strengthen its food security, the country plans to build six wheat silos to increase its storage capacity. Egypt has secured a concessional financing deal worth 90 million euros ($94 million) from the European Investment Bank to boost food security in the...

Traditional telecom models are becoming outdated, prompting a shift to cloud-based platforms that reduce operational costs while enhancing scalability and efficiency. This move future-proofs MTN’s operations, ensuring long-term growth and sustainability. MTN South Africa has partnered with LotusFlare, a cloud-native digital commerce and monetization platform provider, to drive innovation and...

Nigeria’s retail mobile network Liv.ing launched its Mobile Virtual Network Operator (MVNO) on February 25. It aims to transform how Nigerians connect and live. Besides talk time, the platform provides access to Ductour, a Healthcare-as-a-Service platform for quality healthcare and nutrition, and Roducate, a digital education hub supporting students, parents, teachers, professionals, and...

The Middle East has surpassed Africa as the top recipient of Chinese commitments under the Belt and Road Initiative, launched by China in 2013. However, Guinea, Liberia, the Republic of Congo, and Morocco still rank among the top five countries where Chinese investments saw the highest growth rates over the past year. China has committed a total of $29.2 billion to projects across Africa in...

Generative artificial intelligence (AI) is reshaping industries across the globe, but in Africa, it is also being used for increasingly sophisticated fraud. Criminals are harnessing AI tools to create fake documents, synthetic voices, and hyper-realistic images, driving a new wave of scams and financial crimes. This rise in AI-powered fraud is creating major security and identity verification...

During the fifth "Finance in Common" forum held in Cape Town, Ecofin Agency spoke with Rémy Rioux, CEO of the French Development Agency (AFD). At a time of growing geopolitical tensions, skepticism about multilateralism, and budget cuts in major economies, this summit brought together public development banks from around the world to rethink financing models and strengthen cooperation between...

The Africa-China Centre for Policy & Advisory (ACCPA) hosted an insightful webinar on February 25, analyzing the post-FOCAC landscape. Experts from leading institutions discussed Africa’s evolving position in negotiations with China, the shift toward high-impact investments, and the practical implementation of FOCAC commitments since last September. The event featured Dennis Munene Mwaniki,...

In 2023,  Mali adopted a new Mining Code, which increased the state's stake in mining projects to up to 35%, against 20% before. At a Council of Ministers meeting on February 26, the Malian authorities announced several implementing decrees for this code. These decrees establish five key funds to support the mining industry. One of these is the Local Development Mining Fund, which will...

Africa is warming faster than the rest of the world, the report warns. Despite accounting for just 3.8% of global greenhouse gas emissions, the continent is likely to bear the heavy price of extreme weather events, with severe consequences for agriculture. Africa is expected to surpass the 1.5°C global warming threshold by 2050, exceeding the most ambitious target set by the Paris Agreement,...