A new bilateral commission will oversee energy, education, and security projects. The initiative follows President Traoré’s visit to Russia in May 2025. Trade reached $753.5 million in 2024 and is expected to grow further. Burkina Faso and Russia have set up a joint intergovernmental commission to strengthen their strategic partnership. The announcement was made on July 30,...

The government of Côte d’Ivoire will allocate CFA25.3 billion (about $44 million) to support its cotton sector in the 2025/2026 season, Agriculture Minister Kobenan Kouassi Adjoumani announced on July 31. This is more than double the CFA11.9 billion ($20.7 million) granted for the previous campaign. The increased subsidy will help maintain the producer price for first-grade seed cotton...

 NDPHC aims to commercialize 200 MW from idle plants, pending regulator approval. Nigeria generates only 4,000-6,000 MW despite 14,000 MW installed capacity. Poor coordination and delays block power sales, straining producers like NDPHC. Nigerian power company Niger Delta Power Holding Company (NDPHC) plans to commercialize 200 megawatts (MW) of its unused electricity...

 MSC to launch Iroko service on Sept 10, directly linking China, Singapore, and West Africa. Route reduces transshipment, cutting transit times to ports like Pointe-Noire and Lagos. Part of MSC's expansion amid growing Asia-Africa trade; includes 24,000-TEU ships. Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) announced a new direct service, Iroko, connecting China and Singapore with...

• COBAC orders CEMAC banks & MFIs to comply with Islamic-finance rules by 31 Dec 2025, using only approved Islamic windows.• Regulation 04/22/22 defines instruments, mandates Sharia boards, enables Islamic windows or standalone banks in CEMAC.• By July 25 Islamic finance runs via windows: no standalone bank yet, BDEAC’s window active, SME usage & events rising. Banking and microfinance...

Rawbank announced in a statement dated 23 July 2025 the appointment of Françoise Lungangi Kitundu as an independent director, with the approval of the Central Bank of Congo (BCC). She has also been appointed Chair of the bank’s Audit Committee and now sits on the Remuneration Committee. The purpose of this appointment is to strengthen the oversight and governance bodies of the country’s...

• Attijariwafa Bank’s H1 2025 net income rose 19.8% to 5.9B dirhams.• Strong loan growth and lower risk costs boosted performance.• Operating cash flow fell sharply to -11.6B dirhams, raising short-term concerns. Moroccan banking group Attijariwafa Bank reported a net income (group share) of 5.9 billion dirhams ($645 million) as of June 30, 2025, a 19.8% increase from 4.9 billion...

• Ain Sokhna port received new cranes for Terminal 1, set to launch by year-end.• The terminal, led by Hutchison Ports, will handle 3.5M TEUs annually.• It supports Egypt’s Red-to-Med corridor linking ports via electric rail. Egypt's Ain Sokhna port has received its first shipment of new handling equipment for Terminal 1, including three ship-to-shore (STS) cranes and 12 rubber-tyred...

• Zambia seeks a 12-month extension of its $1.7B IMF program beyond October 2025.• The extension supports reforms for economic stability and debt sustainability.• Zambia has restructured major debts, with talks ongoing with remaining creditors. Zambia's government announced Wednesday, July 30, that it is considering a 12-month extension for its financial program with the International...

• Esri, Space42, and Microsoft launched Map Africa to map all 54 African countries.• Space42 provides imagery, Esri offers mapping tools, Microsoft hosts data.• Project supports development, services, and local tech startups. Esri, a U.S.-based geographic information systems company, announced Tuesday, July 29, the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Space42 and Microsoft....