14 million euros. That is the amount of the facility provided to Madagascar by German development bank KfW for a rural electrification project. The funds will be used to build five hydropower dams, with a total capacity of 13.3MW, in the Sava region. The plants’ output will help cut by 80% the budget dedicated to the purchase of fuel used to generate electricity in the region. “The...

In Senegal, a commission will be put in place by the Louga municipal council, in the northern part of the country, to “shed some light into multiple cases involving fragmentation of lands which are later given out cheaply”, in some areas of Ndiambour. This was reported by the Agence de Presse sénégalaise (APS). Concerned about land management in the area, municipal authorities, will the...

In the Democratic Republic of Congo, the two remaining consortiums competing for the project regarding the construction of the Inga II hydropower dam were invited to submit a joint bid for the project. This was announced by the Agency in charge of the development and promotion of the Great Inga Project (ADPI-RDC). “The two consortiums have been invited, after examination of their respective...

The Federal Government is currently collaborating with the Nigerian Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA), the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), amongst others, to assemble a $600 million investment fund for the mining sector, Acting President, Yemi Osinbajo (photo), revealed on Tuesday. This aims to remove all bottlenecks discouraging investment in the sector. “The mining sector is a...

The African Development Bank (AfDB) has approved a $40 million corporate loan for the expansion of the Afe Babalola University (ABUAD) in Ado Ekiti, Nigeria. The expansion exercise involves the construction of new facilities which includes a 400-bed teaching hospital, an industrial research park, a post-graduate school, student hostels, a central library, and a small scale hydro power...

The ex-depot price of diesel dropped by more than 30% between February and June this year due to the instability in forex and crude oil prices in the global market. Unlike petrol which has a price cap, the price of diesel is being controlled by market forces of demand and supply. With the global market price of crude above $53 in February, the prices of refined products also rose making the...

The Debt Management Office (DMO) has said that Nigeria will sell its initial $328 million sovereign sukuk in the local market this June. This will be used to finance road projects in the country. “The issue is part of plans to fast track the development of infrastructure and engage in project-tied capital raising,” the debt office said adding that the country has road, railway and power...

Finland has expressed its readiness to construct a cyber-security system in Nigeria and establish new ICT services in the country. In addition, the Northern European nation also plans to invest in infrastructure development, as it would facilitate changes in Nigeria. Speaking during a visit to her Nigerian counterpart, Adebayo Shittu, Finland’s Minister of Transportation and Communications,...

Seven Chinese trawling vessels have been arrested off the Casamance coast in the south western part of Senegal for illegal fishing. This was revealed to Reuters by Karim Maram, naval Captain and head of the patrol mission responsible for the arrest. Recalling that “the trawlers were caught in the flagrant offence”, the official said Chinese fishermen as well as employees from Guinea-Bissau...

Zimbabwe has banned maize imports to protect farmers’ interests and insure a good harvest this year, Agriculture’s deputy minister, Davis Mharapira, told Reuters. The country expects to produce this year 2.1 million tons of the crop, thus four times last year’s volume (511,000 tons) which was impaired by the a severe drought induced by the El Niño weather phenomenon, one of the worst...