British mining company International Mining and Infrastructure Corporation (IMIC), who acquired the assets of Affero Mining in Caminex, the Cameroonian law firm developing the Nkout Iron project, in the Southern part of Cameroon; just announced the successful realization of a convertible bonds offering worth 22 million FCFA (13 billion FCFA). With a four-year maturity, this operation has an...

The International Energy Agency (IEA) estimated, in its annual prospective study made public on 10 November, that oil prices should gradually rebound during the coming years to around USD 80/barrel by 2020 thanks to a reduced offer. “The adjustment process of the oil market is rarely done smoothly, but in our central scenario, the market will find back its balance at USD 80 per barrel in 2020,...

Based on a recent 3D seismic study on the Chad basin, Nigeria is on the brink of discovering an important quantity of oil in Lake Chad, according to the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC). Ibe Kachikwu, Managing Director of NNPC, revealed this information during a conference at the Petroleum Club of Lagos. He added that the company will expand efforts on oil exploration in...

In Nigeria, the late rains observed during October and November will benefit the 2015/2016 cocoa season. Indeed, the country is now looking forward to a production of 295,000 tons (+5.4% compared to the previous season). “Our initial forecast for this season was of 240,000 tons, but the good weather of the two months has helped in the production of more pods and this is sufficient for us to...

The Indian conglomerate Hinduja Group is considering investing USD one billion in several sectors in Africa during the coming five years, the Economic Times of India reported on 4 November, citing a manager of the company. “We have significant plans for expansion in Africa. We are looking to invest USD one billion during the next five years”, the group’s president for Europe, Prakash...

The Kenyan subsidiary of Barclays Bank has just announced the launch of a unit dedicated to agribusiness. This business unit will be responsible for giving loans to small and medium enterprises (SME) of the agro-sector from a 30 billion shillings fund (1,000 shillings = USD 9.8) Apart from financing SMEs, this new unit could also support more important projects such as the establishment of...

In Madagascar, there is growing anger among the litchi producers. They are outraged by prices used by some collectors which are out of sync with the prices observed on the local market. These prices, which have not moved for some years, prevent producers from investing in quality, their representatives explained to L’Express de Madagascar. “It has been three years now where the prices of...

The American president Barak Obama threatened, on 5 November, to leave South Africa out of the AGOA programme (Africa Growth and Opportunity Act), a system of trade preferences granted by the United States to sub-Saharan African countries. According to the White House, this threat is driven by the fact that Pretoria maintains barriers which prevent the entry of American poultry products on the...

In Uganda, the pump prices of petrol have increased as the Shilling rate rises against the dollar by 200 contradicting previous forecast. Last week the price of a litre of petrol in Kampala was at Shs 3,800 but has now risen to Shs 3,900 per litre while it costs Shs 4,000, in other parts of the country. Experts blame the increased prices on the foreign exchange and the costs of borrowing that...

Today in Nigeria, it’s not a surprise anymore as President Mohammadu Buhari finally names himself as the new Minister of Petroleum Resources. Buhari declared this at the swearing in of ministers at the Presidential Villa in Abuja. He is to be assisted by Ibe Kachikwu, the Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) who is now the Minister of State for...