Axa Mansard, the Nigerian arm of French Axa, which provides fire, accident, and miscellaneous risk insurance services, disposed of 4.37 billion naira ($11.3 million) of financial assets during the first quarter of 2020 to maintain a high level of cash flow amid the coronavirus pandemic. The insurer also sold 1.4 billion naira of rental investments. These transactions enabled it to limit cash...

After having completed a dozen transactions valued at $400 million in sub-Saharan Africa, private equity firm Carlyle Group has withdrawn from direct investments in sub-Saharan Africa. Analysts point to the fact that most of the businesses in the region are young and only seek to attract capital, while they offer few opportunities for profitable exits. In 2014, the American investment firm...

The Appeals Chamber of the International Criminal Court said on May 28 it has eased conditions for the release of former Ivorian president Laurent Gbagbo and former minister Charles Blé Goudé. Revoked conditions include: (1) a ban on movement outside the municipality where they reside in their host country unless otherwise agreed by the court; (2) surrender to the Registry all identity...

The government of Benin announced it is closing its embassy in Niger as of July 31, 2020. The information was reported on May 26 by Noël Koumba Koussey, the current ambassador. As part of a review of its diplomatic map, “the government of Benin has decided to reduce its number of representations across the world and the decision touches the embassy in Niamey,” the envoy said in an address...

Swedish financial institution Swedfund announced an investment of SEK2.2 million in three healthcare facilities in Africa and Southern Asia. The loan conditions have not been disclosed. In Africa, the company is investing in Nigeria-based Express Pharma, which distributes safe medicines across the country’s strategic points. The Malagasy Opham, which provides pharmaceutical products to...

The United States offered Niger 10 military Mercedes Atego trucks and a logistical warehouse to support the fight against terrorism in the region. The equipment is valued at CFA895 million ; CFA626 million (about $1 million) for the trucks and CFA269.1 million (about $430,000) for the 300m2 warehouse. The donation was received on May 27 by the Defense Minister Issoufou Katambé....

The Ivorian government adopted on May 27 a decree ratifying a loan agreement of CFA10 billion (about $17 million) from the West African Development Bank (BOAD) for a water project in Abidjan. The agreement was signed since July 2, 2018. This funding will make it possible to build two water towers with a capacity of 5,000 m3 each in the communes of Marcory and Port-Bouët, to deploy 210 km...

In South Africa, authorities have decided to grant 30 GB of free internet to students in high schools for 3 months. The government will also support students by providing laptops to help them follow online courses, in this pandemic context. “We acknowledge that the cost of connectivity remains a huge barrier for students who want to use the digital learning mode as part of our multi-modal and...

The Board of Directors of the African Development Bank on 25 May, 2020 approved a $500,000 emergency assistance grant to Egypt to provide food relief, and to contribute to restoring the livelihoods of vulnerable populations severely affected by COVID 19. The intervention will seek to complement ongoing activities by Egypt’s government to mitigate the effects of the virus pandemic on...

SA’s Standard Bank, the largest banking group in Africa by revenues ($7 billion in 2019), has finalized the preparation of a medium-term borrowing program of around $4 billion, we learn. The transaction will be carried out in several tranches and according to market conditions at the time of issue. In this context, the group plans to issue subordinated debt, commercial paper and...