Egypt will benefit from $1.1 million granted by the International Islamic Trade Finance Corporation (ITFC) to finance imports of oil products and commodities next year. According to the petroleum and supply ministries, the financing is part of a $3 billion deal signed in January 2018 between Egypt and ITFC to finance the import of basic commodities such as oil and its byproducts, gas,...

Talia Limited, a UK-based company that provides communication solutions via satellite, announced it has successfully completed testing of its Ka-band High Throughput Satellites (HTS) in five new African countries namely Cameroon, DR Congo, Gambia, Ghana, and Congo.Talia also announced the signing of contracts for the resale of its satellite capacity with three local resellers. In Africa, Talia...

Next year, the World Bank-backed Rural Accessibility Improvement Project (PAAR) in Mali will receive XOF13.07 billion. The project mainly focuses on building roads in rural areas. This new financing will help develop 400 km of road, including 200 km in the Sikasso region and 200 km in Koulikoro. For 2020, PAAR also aims to build three bridges in the villages of Joungoula, Faniéna and...

Madagascar reached a deal to benefit from China’s expertise for the modernization of its telecom network. The document was signed on Dec 2 between the Malagasy Prime Minister, Christian Ntsay, and the Chinese Ambassador, Yang Xiaorong, at the headquarters of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Anosy, in the presence of the Minister of Posts, Telecommunications and Digital Development, Christian...

Tunisia’s leasing company Compagnie International de Leasing (CIL) has secured a €5 million ($5.5 million) expansion loan from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). CIL will use the resources to strengthen its activity in financing SMEs which employ more than half of the population but still struggle to access funding. In H1 2019, the company saw an...

The World Bank has pledged $175 million to support development projects in Comoros, the institution announced at the Development Partners Conference for Comoros held in Paris on December 2 and 3, 2019. This funding, consisting of grants and concessional credits, is expected to strengthen the human capital through higher investment in nutrition and welfare programs. Funds will also be pumped...

The World Food Program (WFP) will double its food assistance to Zimbabwe, the institution announced today on its website. The program is slated to benefit over 4.1 million people by January 2020 and the WFP is calling on donors to back its efforts, amid growing needs. “We’re deep in a vicious cycle of sky-rocketing malnutrition that’s hitting women and children the hardest and will be...

The Central Bank of Nigeria will intensify its policy measures to reach $4 billion in non-oil revenues next year, Governor Godwin Emefiele (pictured) announced last weekend. This is double the non-oil export revenue achieved this year ($2 billion). According to him, the target aligns with the government’s strategy to protect the Nigerian economy from global “macroeconomic headwinds”...

Infervision Technology Coroporation, a Chinese company specializing in AI-based tech solutions, plans to build a National Artificial Intelligence Infrastructure in Ethiopia. A Memorandum of Understanding was signed in this regard on November 29 in Addis Ababa between the Ethiopian Minister of Innovation and Technology, Sisay Tola and Chen Kuan, CEO of the Chinese firm. This new partnership...

In the face of the current security challenges, marked by recurrent terrorist attacks, Mali’s economic activity remained resilient and growth is expected at 5% this year. The good news was announced yesterday by Boriana Yontcheva (pictured, left), who led an 11-day International Monetary Fund -IMF- mission to the country from Nov 19 to 29. The mission was conducted as part of the first review...