The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has set several incentive measures to increase the inflows of the US dollar into the local economy. In a document published last March 5, the Bank said it will grant rewards to citizens that receive remittances via the formal system. According to the document, the “Naira 4 dollars scheme” will start today March 8, and last until May 8. During this period,...

Morocco announced on March 5 it has suspended air links with Egypt and Algeria. The ban, in force for an initial period of 3 weeks, follows the resurgence, in the kingdom, of cases of infection with the new variants of Covid-19. This new measure brings to 20 the number of countries to which Morocco has closed its borders since mid-December 2020. Belgium and Italy were added on March 2, joining...

The government of Burkina Faso plans to mobilize CFA52 billion (about €79 million) to finance the second phase of the Greater Ouaga Urban Mobility Project (PMUGO).This second phase "is intended for the development of road infrastructure (roads and intersections) and street furniture (bus stops) [...] and the construction of a multimodal exchange station at Naaba Koom Square," explains the...

Kenya bans importations of maize from Tanzania and Uganda following tests that revealed high levels of toxic substances in the grains. The information was reported last week by the Agriculture and Food Authority (AFA). “The test results for maize imported from Uganda and Tanzania have revealed high levels of mycotoxins that are consistently beyond safety limits,” explained Kello Harsama,...

Ethiopia received its first batch of Covid-19 vaccines as part of the Covax initiative led by the World Health Organization. In an official statement issued on March 5, the authorities said 2.2 million doses of vaccines should arrive in the country on March 7. “The ministry is making detailed plans and preparation for the introduction of this COVID-19 vaccine to prioritized population groups...

Sport News Africa (SNA), the media of reference for African sports news, has published a first-of-its-kind study on “The 100 most influential African athletes on Twitter.” This Top-100 offers a ranking of athletes of African nationality who competed or have recently competed in Africa or elsewhere, while contributing to the influence of the continent on a daily basis. The study was conducted...

The High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet (pictured), expressed the need to access the disputed region of Tigray to prove the possible war crimes committed in the area. In a statement published yesterday, she said it’s urgent to assess the facts objectively and independently, given the persistent reports of serious human rights violations and abuses.  "Deeply distressing...

The government of Rwanda announced it will mobilize $51 million to acquire doses of Covid-19 vaccines by next year.  Health Minister Daniel Ngamije said two-thirds of the budget will first be used for vaccine acquisition, as the country is also relying on the WHO Covax initiative. The goal is to vaccinate about 7.8 million people, or 60% of the population, by the end of 2022. "We...

Tidjane Thiam’s (pictured) Freedom Acquisition I Corp is getting ready to step into the e-health market. The company, which recently raised $345 million in an IPO on the New York Stock Exchange, unveiled a plan to acquire an e-health company in North America. “We are exploring various opportunities, but our first target is a telemedicine platform on which we can incorporate other...

Africa 50, an investment vehicle dedicated to infrastructure projects in Africa, and Togolese financier Oragroup announced the disbursement of $90.3 million in the form of a bridge loan to support the Malicounda power plant in Senegal. The terms and conditions of this loan were not disclosed. The loan facility was structured and arranged by Oragroup. The holding company, which is...