Côte d’Ivoire successfully raised on February 11 a total of CFA60 billion (about $100 million) on the regional securities market through the issue of 12-month treasury bills (BATs) and 36-month fungible treasury bonds (OTAs). Initial target was CFA55 billion (about $31 million). The country mobilized CFA22 billion (about $36.5 million) with BATs while CFA37.7 billion came from...

South Africa’s event ticket booking platform Howler has secured a round of funding from US firm Techstars, the investment firm Platform Growth, and the software development company Platform45. Howler will use the resources to grow its foothold in sub-Saharan Africa and expand in Europe and Asia-Pacific. The company, founded in 2014 by Shai Evian and Steve Cuzen, says it has handled R1.5...

US tech giant Google announced the launch of a $1 million fund to support innovative ideas on online privacy, trust, and security in sub-Saharan Africa. “The fund will be administered by a third-party partner on behalf of Google.org, and we will be sharing details on application criteria and deadlines soon,” said Seember Nyager, the Head of policy and government relations at Google...

Nigeria and Ethiopia have reached a visa waiver deal for diplomatic and official passport holders. The agreement was signed on February 11 in Addis Ababa on the sidelines of the 33rd AU ordinary session, between Geoffrey Onyeama, Nigeria’s Foreign Affairs Minister and his Ethiopian counterpart, Gedu Andargachew. “The visa waiver agreement is expected to ease the travels of officials and...

Last week, Ivan G. Brown, the Director-General of the Liberia Telecommunications Authority (LTA), signed the country's Act of Accession to the Memorandum of Understanding on Basic Principles for the Implementation of Free-Roaming as part of the ECOWAS Roaming Reduction Initiative. This was in Conakry, at the premises of the Post and Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (Arpt) of Guinea, which...

Uganda will benefit from a $1.9 billion concessional loan program approved by the World Bank over the next three fiscal years. According to Tony Thompson (pictured), the World Bank’s country manager for Uganda, the program will finance various projects in infrastructure, energy, healthcare, education, agriculture and water. The first tranche is expected to be disbursed in the next fiscal...

Last year, Senegal recorded a trade gap of CFA2,244 billion ($3.7 billion), compared to CFA2,246 billion in 2018, according to data provided by the national statistics agency (ANSD). This deficit was caused by an 8% augmentation in the volume of imports (mainly rice and petroleum products) which reached CFA4,229.3 billion ($7 billion). On the other hand, although exports recorded higher growth...

Turkey has agreed to review the free trade deal it has with Morocco, Moulay Hafid Elalamy (pictured), the Moroccan Trade Minister announced on February 10. Signed in 2004, the deal aimed at giving Moroccan companies duty-free customs access to the Turkish market and in return, Turkish goods will benefit from a gradual reduction in customs duties on the Moroccan market. The agreement covered...

The European Investment Bank (EIB) is providing a total of €2.7 million to support two railway projects in Egypt. Related agreements were signed with the Egyptian National Tunnels Authority (NAT) and the Ministry of International Cooperation. The first project, the rehabilitation of Cairo Metro Line 2, will receive €1.2 million. Backed by the Economic Resilience Initiative Fund...

The UN Economic Commission for Africa announced the launch, in partnership with Standard Bank, of a new fund created to further empower women across the continent. The partnership deal was signed February 9 in Addis Ababa during the AU 33rd ordinary session. The facility, African Women Leadership Fund (AWLF), will raise $100 million to support female-led businesses. Over $20 million...