After months of dispute, Barrick Mining and the Malian government reached an agreement in November to restart the Loulo-Gounkoto gold mine. While tensions have since eased, key issues behind the dispute remain unresolved. The Malian government announced on Friday, February 13, that it had adopted a decree renewing the operating license for the Loulo mine, part of the Loulo-Gounkoto gold complex,...

Green hydrogen projects are multiplying across Africa, promoted as a driver of the continent’s low-carbon transition. Whether they can generate large-scale, sustainable employment remains an open question. Green hydrogen projects are emerging as a pillar of Africa’s energy strategy, with major economic implications for the coming decades. According to an analysis published jointly by Masdar...

On November 13, 2025, the U.S. government reopened after a 43-day shutdown, the longest in its history. The move was met with relief by agricultural analysts who had been waiting for the U.S. Department of Agriculture to resume operations. Here is why the agency plays a pivotal role in global agricultural statistics. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is one of the main benchmark sources...

In the Gulf of Guinea, oil producers have steadily multiplied. Nigeria paved the way, followed by Niger, Ghana and, more recently, Côte d’Ivoire. Benin, however, has spent 26 years on the sidelines after nearly 16 years of exports that ended in 1998. The country is now preparing to restart production. Here is how that return is taking shape. 1968: Oil Discovery The story begins off Benin's...

SENELEC to electrify 6,471 villages by 2029 $724 million programme backed by World Bank support Senegal targets universal access, expanding gas and renewables Senegal’s national power utility plans to connect 6,471 villages to electricity by 2029 under a 400 billion CFA franc ($724 million) programme. Djiby Dieng, SENELEC’s director of infrastructure and equipment, announced the...

While Afrobeat has evolved into what is now known as Afrobeats, there is little dispute that the movement was pioneered by Fela Kuti. A musical genius and an almost mythical figure in the early years of independent Nigeria, he has since become the first African to win a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. The Recording Academy awarded Fela Kuti a posthumous Lifetime Achievement Award in Los...

Most food traded within West Africa moves by truck and largely escapes official records, highlighting both the scale of informal cross-border commerce and the economic gains that could come from reducing non-tariff barriers. Trucking is the main driver of food trade in West Africa, according to a report published in September 2025 by the Sahel and West Africa Club (SWAC) of the Organisation for...

Faure Gnassingbé visits agricultural zones in northern Togo Government pushes for greater food sovereignty and self-sufficiency Farmers receive tractors and equipment to boost productivity Togo’s President of the Council, Faure Gnassingbé, visited planned agricultural development zones (ZAAP) in the Dankpen and Binah prefectures in northern Togo last week. During the visit, he met...

AD Ports signs 30-year concession to build dry bulk terminal in Douala €73.4m investment planned for first phase between 2026 and 2028 Project aims to strengthen regional supply chains amid competition UAE-based AD Ports has partnered with Africa Ports Development (APD) under a 30-year concession agreement to design, build, and operate a new dry bulk terminal at the Port of Douala in...

Mobile games account for 87% of gaming in Africa, although the share of console and PC gaming is expected to grow as hardware becomes more affordable and a middle class more open to pay-to-play models emerges. Africa’s video game market generated more than $2.29 billion in revenue in 2025, fueled largely by the rise of mobile app-based games. The figures come from a report published on...