The Central Bank of West African States (BCEAO) is mulling over issuing a digital currency. Gisèle Keny Ndoye, Head of financial inclusion at BCEAO, said, during the first edition of the Africa Economic and Financial Press Forum that ended on March 26 in Abidjan, that the digital currency issue is on the agenda of all central banks. According to her, BCEAO wants to give itself time to better...

The sub-Saharan part of Africa is expected to experience an economic recovery of between 2.3% and 3.4% this year. The good news is featured in a statement issued yesterday March 31 by the World Bank. The institution said this rebound should happen despite the overall recession of 2% in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic. Because of the rapid spread of the virus, countries in the region were...

The new contract for the provision of telecoms services to the government of the Republic of South Africa was awarded on Tuesday 30 March by the Treasury. Operators MTN, Vodacom, Cell C, and Telkom are selected to operate the contract. Through this agreement, which comes into effect on April 1, 2021, and ends on March 31, 2026, each operator will have to provide tailored mobile bundles for voice,...

South Sudan will benefit from an emergency aid of $174 million provided by the International Monetary Fund as part of the Rapid Credit Facility (RCF) signed with the country. In a related statement, the Fund said the resources will be used to meet the country’s urgent balance of payment needs while allowing for a fiscal wiggle room. This should, according to IMF, help sustain spending...

Between 2015 and 2020, West Africa has attracted $5.4 billion in private equity investment, according to a report recently issued by the African Private Equity and Venture Capital Association (AVCA). This makes the region the part of the continent to have captured the most PE investment during the period under review, accounting for 24.8% of the $21.7 billion attracted over the...

In a letter sent to the South African Finance Minister Tito Mboweni on March 24, Health Minister Zweli Mkhize said the Pfizer lab had made delivery of its Covid-19 vaccine to South Africa conditional on the signing of a commitment agreement by the government. According to the document relayed by Bloomberg, the lab demands that both ministers personally sign a deal that would “give the...

The government of Portugal announced it will send military backups to help fight the terrorist threat in Mozambique. The announcement was made by Portuguese Foreign Minister Augusto Santos Silva (pictured), in a statement on national television. "A team of about 60 Portuguese soldiers is being prepared [...] It will be sent in the next few weeks to the field in Mozambique," the official told...

The trial of three suspects in the bombing of the French camp in Bouake in 2004 opened yesterday March 29 at the Criminal Court of Paris. The three men are accused of leading the attack that took the lives of nine French soldiers and one American civilian. The Belarusian mercenary Yury Sushkin and the Ivorians Ange Magloire Gnanduillet Attualy and Patrice Ouei will be sentenced in absentia at...

US investor Root Capital, which targets agricultural businesses in sub-Saharan Africa, has mobilized financing of $35 million with the US development bank DFC to pursue its activity. The company founded in 1999 by Willy Foote is seeking to expand in the eastern part of the continent, specifically in Uganda, to support farmers in adopting climate-smart agricultural practices; and in the...

The government of Madagascar will benefit from $312.4 million from the International Monetary Fund (IMF). In a statement issued yesterday March 29, the institution said the money will be granted under the Extended Credit Facility (ECF) set to last 40 months. The money will mainly be used to help the country mitigate the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on its economy, maintain...