In the Extreme-North region of Cameroon, the price of a 50-kg bag of millet and maize increased by FCfa 2,000 over the last four months, we learned from local sources. On top of the low rainfall observed in this area of Cameroon, which led to a drop in the production of cereals, traders also point out exports to Nigeria. Indeed, after being closed for several months due to the violence committed...

Due to a global degradation of conditions in the steel market, various firms operating in the manganese industry have closed many of their production sites in the beginning of 2016. The mining firm COMILOG which is part of those has halted production at its Moanda mine in the south-eastern part of Gabon, while Chinese CICMHZ has stopped its activities at the Njole mine (in the centre). This has...

A recent report released by the Famine Early Warning System Network has shown that Nigeria will witness famine in 2017, due to non-stop conflict, severe drought and economic instability. The agency, which is supported by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), said the Boko Haram crisis in the country continues to add to large-scale population displacement, reduce market...

The Port Harcourt Refinery Company (PHRC), one of Nigeria’s four refineries is expected to make over N1.5 trillion (about $5billion) per year from refined petroleum products, once Eni completes renovation. According to PHRC Managing Director, Bafred Enjugu, once the renovation has been completed, the refinery would produce 210,000 barrels, about 47% of the 445,000 bpd apportioned to state...

Fitch Ratings has lowered the outlook on Nigeria’s long-term foreign and local currency issuer default ratings (IDRs) from stable to negative, placing it at ‘B+’. Credit rating is usually used by sovereign wealth funds, pension funds and other investors to measure the creditworthiness of a country, therefore having a big impact on the country’s borrowing costs. This downgrade means that...

As part of moves to eliminate threats of insufficient supply of petroleum products, the Federal Government of Nigeria has ordered the payment of N150 billion ($492 million) to independent oil marketers across the country. This new development is coming a day after Petroleum marketers in the country proposed a new pump price of N165 per litre for Petrol, saying that the present price of N145 per...

Nigeria, a country of more than 180 million people, has maintained its position as 136th out of the 176 on the list of world’s most corrupt countries in 2016, according to global anti-corruption agency, Transparency International (TI). The Organization, in its Corruption Perception index 2016, placed Nigeria in the same position as 2015 with 28 points, two points higher than 2015. According to...

Over the next three years, the World Bank will provide Madagascar $1.3 billion to boost power supply and improve nutrition in the country. The commitment was confirmed by Makhtar Diop, World Bank’s vice-president for Africa, while he visited the nation. “The World Bank will work with the government on two major axes: human development and access to power. The project will focus on...

The Algerian firm Tifra Lait has inked on Jan. 23, 2017, an agreement with U.S. consortium American International Agriculture Group (AIAG), to establish an Algeria-U.S. joint-venture (JV) in Algeria’s agribusiness sector. The news was reported by the Algerian Press Agency APS. The agreement was signed by the heads of the two groups in the presence of Abdesselem Chelghoum, Algerian minister of...

A Nigeria-based investment bank, Afrinvest West Africa Limited, in its 2017 economic outlook announced that the official exchange rate of naira may fall by about 31% to N400 per US dollar by 2017-ending. According to Ike Chioke (photo), the Group Managing Director, Afrinvest, forced by possible development in the currency market the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) might have no choice than to...