Airtel wants to improve its position in its African markets. The operator recently invested millions of dollars to acquire additional telecom spectrum in Kenya and Zambia.  Telecom operator Airtel Gabon is currently negotiating with the Gabonese government to secure 165 plots of land to expand its network coverage in the country, local media report. The initiative follows disgruntled...

The United Kingdom will provide £68.6 million (US$76 million) guarantee for the construction of the Sokode-Tchamba-Kambole road, a cross-border road in North Togo. The guarantee will be granted via UK Export Finance (UKEF), a British export credit agency, to support a loan from the Japanese bank MUFG, the British government announced last Wednesday. The announcement was made on the sidelines of...

Four African countries are among the top 15 countries that are expected to experience more than 50% growth in the number of nationals worth US$100 million or more.   The number of centi-millionaires -wealthy individuals with investable assets of US$100 million or more- is expected to grow by more than 50% over the next 10 years, according to a report released on October 18 by Henley &...

Promoting gender equality and women’s empowerment makes absolute economic sense – Malado Kaba Five new public development banks have signed onto the Paris Development Banks Statement on Gender Equality and Women Empowerment Paris Development Banks Statement on Gender Equality and Women Empowerment. . The new signatories are CAF- Development Bank of Latin America; Development Bank of Rwanda;...

The African Development Bank, the government of the United Kingdom and three globally recognized insurance companies have closed on a new and innovative risk sharing transaction known as the Room to Run Sovereign.   The Room to Run Sovereign transaction was structured with the intention of scaling up the African Development Bank Group’s commitments to climate finance by up to $2...

The African Development Bank has launched a multinational project to create jobs and improve livelihoods for youth in three African countries. The Creating Sustainable Youth MSMEs Through Urban Farming (SYMUF) initiative will support young farmers in Nigeria, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Uganda, who are attracted to urban farming. The bank is partnering with a consortium of...

The Qatari investments are expected to boost Egypt's economy, which is hit hard by the effects of the war in Ukraine.  Qatar is currently in advanced talks to acquire US$2.5 billion stakes in Egyptian state-owned companies, including the country's largest telecom operator, Bloomberg reported Wednesday, citing sources close to the matter. Qatar Investment Authority, the country’s...

In Côte d'Ivoire, telecom regulator ARTCI has established a permanent exchange framework for the protection of personal data in the country. The framework initiative was officially launched at the ARTCI’s headquarters, last Tuesday, during a ceremony attended by Ms. Namahoua Touré, Director General of ARTCI, and Mr. Philippe Kouamé, Director of Personal Data Protection at the ARTCI. The...

The classification is a necessary step to establish a legal framework governing the burgeoning crypto market.  Last Wednesday, the South African Financial Conduct Authority (FSCA) classified crypto assets as financial products to facilitate regulators' oversight of this market and protect users from potential fraud. In a notice published in the official gazette, the watchdog defined a...

Ahead of Wednesday’s official opening of the Finance in Common Summit (FiCS) 2022 in Abidjan, speakers at a research conference side event called for a new global financial architecture to tackle the impact of global shocks on developing countries.  They said it should include innovative ways to unlock greater investments from the public and private sectors. The third Finance in Common...