The Ivorian government invested CFA169.2 billion (about $288 million) to build a water treatment plant in Bouaké, a town in the central part of the country. The project, carried out by Ivorian PFO and French Veolia, will also benefit 120 surrounding localities. The soon-to-be-built facility is set to produce 4,000 m3 of clean water per hour in a town where the need is estimated at 2,500...

Egyptian fintech MoneyFellows, which offers savings and loans to individual services, raises $4 million in a Series A round from venture capital firms Partech and Sawari Ventures. The startup, which boasts more than 150,000 active users, plans to use the money to expand outside Egypt and develop new services. “Partech’s support from their African fund will help us expand into other...

In a statement published on June 18, US rating agency Moody’s announced it has changed the outlook for BMCE Bank of Africa to negative, from stable. The reason, Moody’s said, is the consequences of the coronavirus pandemic on the already weak economy in sub-Saharan Africa where the bank is present. “We expect that the coronavirus pandemic will hurt economic growth in the various...

The Tanzanian government plans to build new agricultural irrigation systems in the coming years. According to Tanzania's National Irrigation Commission (NIRC) cited by Xinhua, $426 million is planned to be invested to build 384 new irrigation systems over the next five years in eight regions of the country including Dodoma, Kilimanjaro, Mbeya, Morogoro, Mtwara, Mwanza, Tabora, and...

In South Africa, the mobile operator Cell C is planning another workforce reduction. This time, the company is targeting about 960 jobs, or about 40% of its staff. “Cell C confirmed that it is has reached a difficult decision and initiated discussions with junior management and semi-skilled staff to implement a restructuring of its operations, to align the organization with its new operating...

Over the first three months this year, the overall assets of commercial banks operating in Ghana grew by only 3.5%, down the 5.7% recorded in Q1 2019. Customer deposits followed the same trend, growing only by 0.7% compared to 6.9% over the first three months last year. This data was provided by the Central Bank of Ghana (BoG), which indicated that the downturn is primarily due to the...

This paper discusses the benefits of digital government to developing countries and strives to explain why these benefits are experienced more at an individual level rather than at an aggregate level. The main reasons identified include digital divides, lack of optimal digital skills, gaps in the regulatory framework, and a lack of market competition and absence of accountable institutions. For...

The IMF Board approved on June 19 the disbursement of $148 million to combat the economic and social shocks of the coronavirus pandemic in Guinea. The money is granted under the Rapid Credit Facility initiated by the Fund to help vulnerable countries address urgent balance of payment and fiscal financing needs stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic. It will be used to finance health spending,...

South Africa’s national treasury announced on June 20 it will receive a $1 billion Covid-19 emergency loan from Brics bank -New Development Bank (NDB). The resources will support the government’s efforts in reducing the economic and health impacts of the pandemic which has killed about 1,930 people in the country, according to the latest official stats. “The Program will contribute...

Ratings agency S&P Global on Friday affirmed its 'AAA/A-1+' long- and short-term issuer credit assessment of the African Development Bank (AfDB) with a stable outlook. The rating agency positively assessed the Bank’s very strong financial risk profile, very strong capital adequacy, strong funding and liquidity, extraordinary shareholder support and adequacy of its governance and...