Morocco’s National Telecommunications Regulatory Agency (ANRT) charged the incumbent operator, Maroc Telecom, with a fine of MAD3.3 billion (€310.2 million) for anti-competitive practices. The fine comes as a sanction for the slowdown in the local loop unbundling, for which Maroc Telecom has already received a warning in October 2016. ANRT points out that the offender started using these...

South African pharmaceutical company Aspen Pharmacare Holdings has completed the sale of its Japanese operation- Aspen Japan K.K- to Sandoz. When the sale was initially announced in November 2019, Sandoz said it would invest €300 million ($331.9 million) to obtain full stake in Aspen Japan. The company had also agreed, subject to the fulfillment of certain conditions, to pay an additional...

Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (pictured) arrived in Entebbe, Uganda today 3 February 2020 for a one day trip, I24 reports.The visit is part of the Israeli strategy to strengthen ties with Africa. “Israel is making a big return to Africa, and Africa has already returned to Israel. These are important ties politically, economically and in terms of security,” the official...

The United Arab Emirates announced plans to invest $2 billion in development projects in Mauritania. The announcement was made on the sidelines of a recent visit by Mauritanian President Mohamed Ould Ghazouani to the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. According to Emirates News Agency, the financing will be provided as concessional loans. “Our countries have a long...

Nigerian city Lagos was ranked as the best startup ecosystem in Africa, according to Startup Blink’s 2019 Global Startup Ecosystem Rankings report based on data from 1,000 cities around the world. The report said Lagos has the highest concentration of quality startups and offers enabling environment for business expansion. The city ranks 99th worldwide ahead of many US cities such as Kansas...

African nations would need to inject more funds into human capital to ease inclusive growth and propel productivity, the AfDB revealed in its 2020 African economic outlook entitled “Developing Africa’s workforce for the future.” According to the report, the economic outlook in Africa continues to improve. Real GDP growth rate, estimated at 3.4% for 2019, is expected to accelerate to 3.9%...

Unicef Niger will benefit from a two-year support program from the British Department for International Development (DFID) to further the fight against child malnutrition in Niger. Under this deal, the UN body will receive a total of $6.7 million (about CFA4 billion), in addition to the support received last year by the British institution. “This new contribution will be key in...

Over the last year, Africa recorded a 3.4% growth, the African Development Bank (AfDB) indicated in the 2020 African Economic Outlook published yesterday. This growth, which is roughly at the same level as that estimated by the institution for 2018, was driven by an increase in exports, particularly from countries producing raw materials which benefited from a recovery in oil prices during the...

Internet interconnection service provider, Asteroid International, has set up an Internet exchange point in Mombasa, a port city in southern Kenya, 440 km from the capital Nairobi. The telecom infrastructure, housed in the neutral data center of icolo, a company specializing in IT support and services, will contribute to improved Internet connectivity in Kenya and the East African sub-region, as...

The I&P Afrique Entrepreneurs 2 (IPAE 2) fund welcomes two new African companies to its portfolio, thus pursuing an active investment rhythm, less than two years after its launch. Fully in line with the fund’s mandate, these new investments will strengthen I&P’s footprint in Anglophone Africa and allow a first entry into Nigeria, monitored from I&P’s office in Ghana. Two investments with...