Ivorian Mgbékpon Sévi Samuel is the winner of the special prize of the 2015 Young Inventor prize ceremony. The 21-years old youth who was awarded a prize of CFA 1million francs was rewarded thanks to an invention which would help protect rubber harvests during the rainy season: the rubber cup collector protector. The inspiration for the device, which looks like a rubber umbrella attached to...

The French Engie (formerly GDF Suez) has acquired the renewable energy producer SolaireDirect. Finalised at €200 million, the sale gives Engie 95% shares of SolaireDirect's capital, making Engie the leader of solar energy in France with a raw capacity of 383MW. The contract has provisions for an increase of SolaireDirect's capital by €130 million. Moreover Engie has, by virtue of...

The Office of the High Commissioner for Planning Commission (HPC), Morocco's national economic planning institution, announced on 30 June that the rate of economic growth would slow down to 2.6% in 2016, from 4.3% in 2015, due in part to the drop in agricultural production which reached an unprecedented level this year. The primary sector (agriculture and fishing), representing 15% of the...

After Méditel and Inwi, it is the turn of Maroc Telecom subscribers to benefit from 4G technology. The national telecommunications operator announced the launch for 13 July 2015. Though the last operator to offer 4G, Maroc Telecom does not seem daunted by the head start of its competitors. The company is even confident of being able to turn the tide to move to lead position. And to do this,...

Accompanied by a delegation of about 50 businessmen, French president François Hollande begins this Wednesday 1st July a 2-day tour in 3 African countries: Benin, Angola and Cameroon. This lightning tour targets countries with which France has weakened relationships. The last visit from a French head of state to Benin dates back to 1983, 1999 for Cameroon and 2008 for Angola. François...

Luc Magloire Mbarga Atangana, the Cameroonian minister of Trade, officially opened the first hypermarket of the French group Super U, launched by the Mercure International group, headed by Adnan Houdrouge, also owner of the Casino supermarkets, in Douala the economic capital on 30 June 2015. This hypermarket, which opened for business in early May and for an undisclosed investment amount, is the...

Nothing can be refused to Nigeria, leading economic power on the continent, with its 177 million inhabitants and emerging middle class. The country has just achieved an impressive performance of its capacity of influence and lobbying. This September 2015, 3 Nigerians will simultaneously take the command of 3 major Pan African financial institutions being the African Development Bank (AfDB), the...

The World Bank announced in a press release published on 25 June that a loan of US$ 100 million has been awarded to Ivory Coast and Burkina Faso to bring down the cost of transportation between the two neighboring countries. Each of the two West African countries will receive US$50 million to start a series of reform measures in road transport, ports and land ports of entry, the institution...

Following the deadly terrorist attack on 26 June targeting a seaside resort hotel in Sousse (Central East), Tunisia's Minister for Tourism Salma Elloumi announced that the country is expecting to see its yearly tourist business income drop by a quarter, which corresponds approximately to US$ 515 million. The Tunisian tourism sector revenue rose to US$ 1.95 billion in 2014, equivalent to 7% of...

Tractafric Motor Côte d’Ivoire annonce avoir réalisé un Résultat Net de 2,416 milliards de FCFA (4,832 millions de dollars) durant l’année 2012, a-t-on appris le 11 avril 2013 des résultats financiers provisoires de l’entreprise publiés sur le site de la Bourse Régionale des Valeurs Mobilières (BRVM) d’Abidjan où elle est cotée. Durant la même période, le chiffre...