The Board of Directors of the African Development Bank has approved a new Water Strategy for 2021-2025: “Towards a Water-Secure Africa.” The five-year strategy, approved on 17 November 2021, aims to increase water security in Africa, and to foster its sustainable, green and inclusive socio-economic growth and development. “This is a significant milestone for the Bank in terms of seeing...

Egypt’s National Telecom Regulatory Authority (NTRA) approved new frequencies in the 2600 MHz band to Vodafone Egypt, Etisalat Misr and Telecom Egypt. The information was reported by the Minister of Information and Technology, Amr Talaat, on November 22. In detail, Vodafone Egypt will operate at a frequency of 40MHz while the two others at 20 MHz. The companies spent $1.17 billion overall...

The European Investment Bank (EIB) announced that it has partnered with the Rwanda Development Bank (BRD) to support businesses affected by the Covid-19 pandemic in the country. Under this agreement, the beneficiaries will receive €30 million ($33 billion) from both partners. “The covid-19 pandemic has hit Rwandan companies hard and new investment is essential to overcome health,...

Last year, the Ghanaian government failed to meet its budgetary targets due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The various coping measures initiated by the government have further widened the public debt. By 2022, the authorities plan to leverage the e-payment segment to lessen the burden. In Ghana, the government imposes a 1.75% tax on electronic financial transactions. The Minister of Finance Ken Ofori...

Senegal’s telecom regulator has initiated since 2017 a strategy to improve the quality of mobile service outside Dakar. Last June, the institution took the first step towards achieving its goal with the inauguration of the first regional frequency control centre. The construction of the second centre is underway. The Telecoms and Postal Regulatory Authority (Artp) of Senegal announced the...

Covid-19 has been a heavy blow to the Ghanaian economy but the country is gradually getting back on track. However inflationary risks remain. To cope with this situation, the central bank regularly adjusts its policy rate. The Central Bank of Ghana (BoG) has raised its benchmark rate by 100 basis points to 14.5%, from 13.5%. The information was made public by the Monetary Policy Committee in a...

Ivorian MPs adopted for the next fiscal year a state budget of CFA9,901.1 billion (about $16.9 billion), up 17.9% compared to 2021. Of this amount, $49.3 million (CFA28.8 billion) will go for the Ministry of Communications, Media and the Francophonie. The new budget was presented last week by Minister Amadou Coulibaly (pictured) when the 2022 Finance Act was adopted. For next FY, the...

After 4 gloomy years, Société Générale Côte d'Ivoire (SGCI) has become attractive again on the BRVM. It is now the second most valued company on the market. The value of the Ivorian subsidiary of French group Société Générale jumped 5.86% on November 19, to nearly CFA11,000 ($18.9). Market data reveals that this is its highest level for the last three years to date. Since January 1,...

Jean-Yves Le Drian threatened sanctions against Mali's current leaders, saying the current Malian government is nothing but a coup government. The opposition continues with Russia, which for its part, supports the Malian authorities. Jean-Yves Le Drian, the French foreign minister, announced possible sanctions against Malian officials. "The first requirement for Malian authorities is to fulfil...

Following his trips to Kenya and Nigeria, the U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken ended his African mini-tour in Senegal. With Senegalese authorities, the U.S. envoy discussed security challenges in West Africa and explored ways to strengthen cooperation in various areas. The United States has signed new memoranda of understanding worth $ 1 billion with Senegal. The announcement was made...