German car maker BMW announced on July 6, that it would use its South African unit as a base to expand across the sub-Saharan African region. “BMW South Africa will take over the car and bikes distribution and marketing duties from the group in sub-Saharan Africa,” said BMW South Africa’s CEO, Tim Abbott. “We will first concentrate on Nigeria, Senegal, Cote d’Ivoire, Togo, Ghana,...

According to the United Nations (UN), close to $4 billion is needed to fight food shortage in countries which were affected by the El Nino weather phenomenon. The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) added that out of the 60 million people in need of food support in the world, 40 million are in the Eastern and Southern parts of Africa. The organization further indicated that...

American car manufacturer Delphi plans to develop in Morocco 7 new projects over the next five years. Agreements for these projects which include the construction of a new plant to manufacture electronic distribution systems, at Meknès’ Agropolis industrial park, and that of a car systems-focused research and development center, were signed on July 4th at the Palace in Casablanca, in the...

The government of Guinea called Rio Tinto to respect its commitment regarding the development of Simandou iron project after the firm’s CEO said the company might abandon the project which is the world’s largest iron-ore deposit. The Mining Ministry in a recent statement said the country was counting on Rio and other investors, including Aluminum Corporation of China and International...

Proparco, the private sector arm of the French Development Agency (AFD), signed with Société Générale a funding agreement to support its operations across Africa. According to this agreement, the French institution is to provide a €15 million credit line to Société Générale Burkina Faso. The money will be used to support, financially, local SMEs, the institution said in a...

The Commonwealth Development Group (CDC Group) said it will invest $55.5 million in Africa Internet Group (AIG) to improve the group’s current operations and support its expansion across Africa. “CDC’s investment in AIG means that we’re backing a business that is playing a leading role in Africa’s growing ecommerce market. The investment will help create thousands of jobs and...

Canadian insurer Fairfax Financial Holdings announced in a statement published on July 6, the acquisition of Zurich Insurance’s South African subsidiary. Fairfax without disclosed the amount of the deal said it was still to receive the necessary regulatory approvals. However, it should be sealed by the fourth quarter of 2016. The Toronto-based company wants through this acquisition to...

Barclays Africa reaffirmed its commitment to improve economic and socio-economic growth in Africa. The group presented a $182 million project to reinforce skills and finance loans to SMEs in the region. “Real development means access to capital, to business development expertise and corporate procurement chains,” Barclays Africa’s chief executive Maria Ramos, told the press in...

The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) has revealed that the country’s current untapped gas potential stands at 600 trillion Cubic Feet. According to the Group Executive Director/Chief Operating Officer, Gas and Power Companies, NNPC, Saidu Mohammed (photo), Nigeria has a huge economic potential and currently the 9th largest proven gas reserves in the world. He said in spite of...

From 2010 to 2015, Chinese companies have invested $13 billion in the sub-Saharan African power industry. This was revealed in a study carried out by the International Energy Agency (IEA). This sum mostly came as public loans. Chinese energy developers won contracts to develop close to 30% of electric capacities in the region, representing 17 GW for more than 200 projects which are planned...