Cameroon President Paul Biya has authorized a legal procedure to involve the UK Serious Fraud Office (SFO) in the Glencore corruption case, local media outlet Eco Matin reported on June 14, 2024. A source at the Ministry of Finance confirmed the report but provided no further details. The specifics of the request authorized by Biya remain unclear. However, the case, which was previously settled...

Senegalese residents often complain about the high cost of telecom services, particularly the Internet. On May 10, a movement -the front against expensive internet (F4C)- was formed in response. Telecom service costs, including Internet and calls, are expected to decrease soon. On June 13, Ahmadou Al Aminou Lo, the government’s secretary-general, announced that Senegal’s mobile operators...

The next Rwandan presidential and legislative elections will be held on July 15, 2024. The leader of the Rwandan Patriotic Front since 1998 is standing for a fourth term. Rwanda's President Paul Kagame (pictured) has conducted a cabinet reshuffle, Prime Minister Edouard Ngirente announced on June 12, 2024. This move comes just weeks before the country’s presidential and legislative elections...

Côte d'Ivoire's government announced an 11.5% increase in the national budget for 2025, raising it to FCFA 15,301 billion ($25.1 billion) from FCFA 13,720.7 billion ($22.5 billion) in 2024. Government spokesman Amadou Coulibaly made this announcement following a cabinet meeting on June 12, 2024. Government projections show this upward trend continuing, with the budget reaching FCFA 17,070...

The report reveals that 76% of banks surveyed in 35 African countries rank digital transformation among the top three priorities in their growth strategies, with 24% considering it important. Facing fierce competition from fintechs, neobanks, and telecom operators increasingly venturing into financial services, 60% of active banks in Africa claim to have already digitized most of their...

The World Bank has approved an additional $150 million loan to support Benin's agricultural sector. This loan will aid the Project for the Competitiveness of Agricultural Sectors and Export Diversification (PACOFIDE) running from 2020 to 2026. Benin's agriculture sector contributes nearly 30% of its GDP and employs over two-thirds of the active population. Cashew and pineapple, alongside...

Nigerians are voicing strong dissatisfaction with the current economic situation, largely attributing their concerns to reforms enacted under the Tinubu administration. While some minor changes are anticipated, significant challenges persist. President Bola Tinubu of Nigeria unveiled forthcoming plans to introduce an executive bill to the National Assembly to establish a new national minimum...

Senegal's telecommunications regulator awarded 5G licenses to Sonatel and Free in July and December 2023, respectively. Both operators commenced offering ultra-high-speed broadband on varying scales in March 2024. Guinea seeks to draw on Senegal's "best practices and expertise" for its own 5G deployment. To this end, a delegation from Guinea's Regulatory Authority for Posts and...

Gabon's raw gold exports have taken a significant hit, falling from 43.9 billion FCFA in 2022 to just 8.5 billion FCFA in 2023, according to data from the Ministry of the Economy. This 80.7% drop is attributed to the commissioning of the country's first gold refinery, the Raffinerie Gabonaise de l'Or (RGO), which was inaugurated on June 2, 2023. The new refinery, which can process 7 to 10 tonnes...

The Adumbi project hosts over 100 tonnes of gold mineral resources in the DRC. Developing a gold mine on the site would increase Congolese gold exports, estimated at 34 tonnes by 2023. Loncor Gold revealed on June 10 that it inked contracts for an 11,000m-deep-drilling program at its Adumbi gold project in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The goal is to increase the project’s mineral...