The fourth edition of the Africa Resilience Forum opened on Tuesday, as the continent’s most vulnerable communities confront the triple challenges posed by the Covid-19 pandemic, conflict and climate change. An estimated 39 million Africans could slip into extreme poverty this year, as a result of the pandemic. At the same time, countries are facing higher fiscal costs, reducing capacity for...

The Ministers of Health, Security, and Transport of WAEMU countries met today September 28 to discuss the upcoming reopening of their land borders. For the past 18 months, the borders were closed to passenger transport to limit the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic, and plans to reopen them have first been hindered by the third wave of infections, which has led to an increase in the number of...

The African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) and the Secretariat of the African Continental Free Trade Area announced today the rollout of the Pan African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS). It is aimed at enabling African countries to make instant cross-border payments in local currencies. “PAPSS would serve as a continent-wide platform for the processing, clearing, and settling of...

Nigerian fintech InfiBranches has secured a pre-seed financing to pursue its expansion strategy. The company raised $2 million in a deal led by All On, an investment firm backed by oil and gas giant Shell. The money will be used to deliver financial services and solar systems to underserved rural and remote areas. “Through this investment, Infibranches plans to speed up customer...

Bolloré Transport & Logistics has been named the Best Regional Cargo Logistics Provider at the East Africa Maritime Awards held on Friday 17th September at the Sarova Whitesands Hotel, Mombasa. The award seeks to recognize a Logistics Company in the East Africa Region that has demonstrated its ability to consistently contribute to the development and implementation of best practices in Global...

Initially scheduled for October 1, the eNaira will finally be launched on October 4. The announcement was recently made by Godwin Emefiele (pictured), governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), in New York. The main reason for the rescheduling is the national holiday protests to be held on October 1. “The central bank would not want the event to take the shine away from the Independence...

The international community continues to push for the establishment of a democratic civilian-led government in Mali in scheduled time. The transitional government however said many challenges could lead to a rescheduling. The U.S. calls for the election of a democratic civilian government in Mali by April 2022. The announcement was made last September 23 by General Stephen Townsend, commander of...

A year after it was born from the merger between Atlanta and Sanad, AtlantaSanad Assurance has released its financial results for the six months ended June 30, 2021. The company posted a turnover of MAD3.02 billion ($335 million), up 4.6%. The performance was driven by the life segment which grew by 13.5% thanks to the recovery of the savings and pension activity. The non-life segment increased...

The M&A industry was particularly active in the MEA region (Middle East and Africa) during the first half of 2021; 457 deals were announced over the period, according to data from Capital IQ. This is the highest number of M&A deals in the region since 2018. Q2 2021 alone recorded 242 deals, up 207.2% compared to Q2 2020. This QoQ comparison is however diluted by two factors. First, the...

US satellite company Lynk has upstaged the UK’s airborne 5G masts by launching cell towers in space. This week Stratospheric Platforms reveals its plan to address the 5G UK market by broadcasting from planes. Lynk has moved up one level in the celestial stack with a low earth orbit (LEO) satellite that aims to bring connectivity to Africa. Lynk’s LEO satellites...