Author: Editor

Emerging Capital Partners (ECP), a pan-African leader in private equity, announced on February 3, 2021 that it had crossed the threshold of 5% of the capital of the Tunisian group Société d’Articles Hygiéniques (SAH), better known under the name of Lilas , Tunisian champion of hygiene and cleaning products. This operation reflects the group’s willingness to support the economic champions of North Africa, who for many are showing strong resilience in the face of the Covid-19 crisis. The partnership between ECP and SAH Lilas began in 2008, when the company created by Jalila Mezni and Mounir El Jaiez opened its…

Banker Mamadou Sène announces the publication of his book “The Bank Explained to All – Focus on Africa” ​​on March 4, 2021. The preface is written by Mohamed EL Kettani, Chairman and CEO of Attijariwafa bank. The book is edited by RB Edition of the Revue Banque group. Written in the form of questions and answers, this book answers the questions that everyone might have about banking. The two hundred and a few questions which constitute its framework are of all kinds and relate to its definition, its history, its different forms, its functioning and its operations. The topics covered…

Following a successful digital revolution, Estonia – a small Baltic state considered today as one of the most technologically advanced countries in the world – exports its digital know-how abroad and seeks to strengthen its cooperation with various actors, including Africa. What are the ingredients of its success? How could the continent benefit from this collaboration? Mari Hanikat, CEO of Garage 48, sheds some light on this issue for Kapital Afrik. By Kapital Afrik Financial Afrik: Estonia is considered as the most technologically advanced society in Europe. Can you briefly explain how Estonia’s digital revolution occurred? Mari Hanikat: After…

Terminal 3 of MPS (Meridian Port Services Limited) in Ghana is the backbone of the maritime service between Africa and South America. The container terminal at the port of Tema enables the CMA CGM and MSC ship owners to connect Africa with the South American market. MSC benefits from a berthing window on the MPS docks for its connections between Africa and South America. Meanwhile, CMA CGM recently launched the “SAMWAF” (South America – West Africa) service that makes the port of Tema a leading hub for containers coming from or going to Ghana and countries in the sub-region. These…

Organised in partnership with the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the inaugural Africa Financial Industry Summit will be held online this coming 10 and 11 March and gather the most influential voices and institutions in African finance. The Africa Financial Industry Summit’s extensive list of speakers includes executives from the largest banks and insurance companies operating on the continent, Africa’s most dynamic mobile money operators and microfinance institutions, as well as the continent’s most innovative fintech firms and influential regulators and finance ministers. A cohort of 400 high-profile decision-makers representing every segment of Africa’s financial industry will gather to collectively address…

After a year on stand-by because of Covid, the French-African Foundation’s flagship programme is back on track with the launch of its recruitment campaign on 17 February. Objective: to identify 100 Young Leaders from among several thousand applications from Africa and France and bring them together at various key events in France and Senegal, in order to jointly build the solutions of tomorrow, on the theme of resilience. For the 2021 edition of the Young Leaders programme, the French-African Foundation has chosen the theme of resilience, more relevant as the global pandemic persists and to significantly increase its recruitment. Whereas…

Minister of Economy and Finance of Benin since April 2016, Romuald Wadagni saw in 2020, in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic, his country accede to the category of Middle-income countries. The Harvard Business Of School graduate is of the opinion that priority should be given to relaunching while preserving country signatures with major rating agencies, a decision hailed by S&P and, at the dawn of the year 2021 confirmed by Fitch and made concrete by a fanfare outing from Benin on the occasion of a Eurobond * subscribed by an enthusiastic market. In 2020, Cotonou should register a growth…

Nairobi, 17th February, 2021 – African Guarantee Fund has issued a loan portfolio guarantee amounting to USD 10 million to Afriland First Bank to support SMEs, women entrepreneurs and green economy in Cameroon. The signing ceremony took place at African Guarantee Fund’s head office in Nairobi. Signed by Alphonse Nafack, Managing Director of Afriland First Bank and Jules Ngankam, Group Chief Executive Officer of African Guarantee Fund, this agreement will enable Afriland First Bank, on the one hand, to strengthen its commitment to the SME/SMI sector and, on the other hand, to promote the development of green entrepreneurship and women’s…

Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, 17 February 2021 – The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and the African Development Fund (ADF) – the concessional arm of the African Development Bank Group – on Tuesday signed a loan agreement of 73.6 billion Japanese yen ($668.1 million) to support the 15threplenishment of the African Development Fund (ADF-15). During a virtual ceremony, African Development Bank Group President Dr. Akinwumi A. Adesina and Japanese Ambassador to Côte d’Ivoire Kuramitsu Hideaki signed an Exchange of Notes, while the loan agreement was signed by the JICA Chief Representative in Côte d’Ivoire, Fujino Kojiro, and Acting African Development Bank…

Bolloré Transport & Logistics has been recertified as a Regional Authorized Economic Operator (AEO) in East Africa. The certification, which covers Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi and Tanzania, recognizes Bolloré Transport & Logistics as a secure and reliable trade partner and offers the benefit of expedited clearance procedures through pre-arrival clearance, reduced physical inspection and priority service channels among other benefits. “As a global logistics player operating in East Africa, the AEO certification allows us to extend the privilege of fast-tracked cargo handling to the numerous importers and exporters in our client base. It is a boost to efficiency in the…

World No1 asset manager BlackRock has put its considerable weight behind a global zero emission economy. Larry Fink, the multinational investment giant’s CEO, has told companies within BlackRock’s $8.67 trillion investment portfolio to show how they will achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2050, and prove that the plans have been signed off by their own board of directors. Blackrock made waves last year by stating it would put environmental sustainability at the heart of its investment strategy, including divesting itself of fossil-fuel producers. Fink’s latest message is now expected to push companies into revealing details they have avoided so far. Fink’s…

Tunis, February 13, 2021. Kgenci, the Tunisian agency specializing in information technology and electronic commerce and the pan-African newspaper Financial Afrik, leader in financial and economic information in Africa, have opened a liaison office in Tunis to closely cover the economic news of Tunisia, Algeria and Libya. This strategic partnership allows the Tunisian financial market and the country’s companies to benefit from a media platform for exchange and communication with the rest of the continent from the high-tech studio of the Kgenci agency, in the center of Tunis. On the other hand, African companies present on the Financial Afrik site…

MEDI1TV, a Moroccan continuous information bouquet, reveals its key digital and social media figures. After recording strong digital performance in 2019, 2020 turned out to be even more exceptional at all levels. MEDI1TV’s digital audience on social networks grew by 25% with increased user engagement, particularly in terms of news video consumption, exceeding the 2 billion video viewed mark. MEDI1TV in phase with the strong growth of social networks in 2020 MEDI1TV’s digital performance is part of a context of strong digital growth, in the uses of the internet, mobile phones and social networks in Morocco and elsewhere. In fact,…

Lagos, Nigeria – 15th February 2020 – Interswitch Group, Africa’s leading technology-driven company focused on the digitization of payments in Africa, is pleased to announce the launch of Quickteller Business, a new comprehensive corporate solution focused on empowering businesses of all sizes facilitate payments and manage transactions from anywhere in the world, through one, simple integrated platform. Complementing Interswitch’s existing Quickteller platform, Quickteller Business will broaden its payment management capabilities to businesses and merchants of all sizes, allowing them to access a wide range of integrated payment offerings, ranging from disbursements to value financing. The addition of Quickteller Business to the…

Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, 11 February 2021 – The Mozambique Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) Area 1 Project and the African Development Bank have jointly received the prestigious Global Multilateral Deal of the Year 2020 award by the print and online publication Project Finance International (PFI). The project, the single largest foreign direct investment in Africa to date with a value of over $24 billion, will exploit Mozambique’s immense offshore natural gas reserves, which can potentially transform global energy markets. The African Development Bank signed an agreement for a $400 million senior loan to finance the project in July 2020. In signing the loan…

Bakalilou Yabi had spent 7 years headhunting IT profiles and recruiting in Europe. With his associate, they needed to undertake a business on his behalf. Along with his associate Seynabou Thiam, they have launched an HR consulting and high-level profile recruitment company in Geneva, named BK Search, in 2014. Now more than ever, both partners intend to put people at the heart of their new challenge. He was a formidable head hunter that discovered this profession in 2007. She is a human ressources expert who worked for many years in extracurricular services as Director at Paris City Hall. In 2006,…

2 February 2021 – As a highly infectious new strain of COVID-19 spreads through Southern Africa, health workers in Mozambique, Eswatini and Malawi are struggling to treat escalating numbers of patients with little prospect of a vaccine to protect them from the virus. International medical organisation Médecins Sans Frontières/Doctors Without Borders (MSF) calls for COVID-19 vaccines to be distributed equitably, prioritising and protecting frontline health workers and people at highest risk of severe illness and death from COVID-19 in all countries, including in Africa. “We are appalled by the inequitable distribution of COVID-19 vaccines across the world,” says MSF director…

Following the revaluation of PALMCI’s ratings, the Bloomfield Investment Corporation Rating Committee decided to maintain the A rating (investment rating) for the long term, with a stable outlook and to maintain in the short term , the A1 rating (investment rating), with a stable outlook. The Rating Committee notes that the global production of palm bunches increased by 18% in 2019 (1,365,104 tonnes compared to 1,152,239 tonnes in 2018) due not only to the end of the vegetative rest phenomenon, but also to actions carried out in favor of improving the yield of plantations (village and industrial). This increase in…

CDC Group appoints CEO of Amadeus Capital and former Global Head of Venture Capital at IFC as new Investment Committee members as it expands its venture capital programme Anne Glover CBE, CEO of Amadeus Capital Partners and Bank of England Non-Executive Director joins CDC’s Investment Committee Nikunj Jinsi, former Global Head for Venture Capital at International Finance Corporation (“IFC”) also appointed CDC to scale up VC interests across Africa and S. Asia CDC Group (CDC), the UK’s publicly owned impact investor, has appointed two of the best-known names in the venture capital industry as investment committee members, as it prepares…

Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire 01 February 2021 – Ratings agency S&P Global has affirmed its “AAA/A-1+” foreign currency issuer credit rating of the African Development Bank with a stable outlook. The ratings agency said its outlook reflected the expectation that the African Development Bank (AfDB) would, over the next two years, “prudently manage its capital while maintaining solid levels of high-quality liquidity assets and a robust funding profile. We also assume extraordinary shareholder support to the bank will remain unchanged.” In a letter, dated 29 January 2021, S&P Global Ratings noted the Bank’s $115 billion capital increase, approved by its shareholders…

VIENNA–(BUSINESS WIRE/AETOSWire)– The OPEC Fund for International Development (the OPEC Fund) and Africa Finance Corporation (AFC) have signed a $50 million loan agreement to help finance and build infrastructure needed for Africa’s post-COVID recovery. This represents the first direct financing co-operation between the two institutions. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210127005070/en/ The proceeds of the 10-year loan to AFC will help address the continent’s well-known infrastructure financing gap. The loan will also support increased financial flows to Africa and contribute to COVID-19 recovery efforts in African economies by freeing up government funds to meet urgent financing…

Office funded by a new $2 million commitment from Hazem Ben-Gacem ’92. Cambridge, MA – Harvard’s Center for Middle Eastern Studies (CMES) announced today that it will continue to provide a wide range of research opportunities and programming through its Tunisia Office for a further six years, supported by a $2 million gift from Harvard alumnus Hazem Ben-Gacem ’92. The office, which opened its doors in Tunis in January 2017 with the support of an initial gift from Ben-Gacem, provides students and scholars with a bridge to renowned Tunisian archival facilities, serves as an incubator for analysis of the evolving…

By decision No. 230/2020 / CREPMF dated December 16, 2020, the Regional Council for Public Savings and Financial Markets (CREPMF) withdrew the approval granted on December 17, 2010 to the Société Générale des Finances SA, based in Lomé, Togo, as a business provider on the West African Monetary Union (WAMU) financial market. This decision, which takes effect as from its notification, was motivated by four cumulative failures of the Générale des Finances. The first is the failure to comply with the transmission of periodic reporting information to CREPMF in accordance with Instruction 53/2017 relating to the authorization of business introducers.…

Long paralyzed by the Joe Biden program to cancel the tax incentives put in place by his predecessor, Wall Street has turned tack, welcoming the inauguration of the 46th President of the United States with new records set on Wednesday, January 20 while the whole world was focused on Donald Trump’s absence from the handover ceremony. Thus, the Nasdaq soared 260 points, or 1.97%, to 13,457 points and this after having seen red the day after the announcement, in early January, that the Democrats would control the two chambers of Congress. , on the grounds that they would be more…

The Banque Populaire Foundation took part, on January 18, 2021 in partnership with the Regional Academy of Education and Training (AREF) of Casablanca-Settat, in an operation to distribute digital tablets to some 350 students in disadvantaged neighborhoods of Casablanca. The ceremony took place in the premises of the AREF in Casablanca-Settat, in the presence of its Director, Mr. Abdelmoumen TALIB, and Ms. Asma Lebbar, President of the Banque Populaire Foundation. Under this partnership, the Banque Populaire Foundation donated digital tablets, which will allow students to continue their education, in particular through the TELmidTICE distance learning and support platform of the…

Johannesburg, January 19, 2021 — Following the announcement by the African Union Chairperson, President Cyril Ramaphosa on the 14th of January 2021 that the African Union has secured a provisional 270 million COVID-19 vaccine doses for Africa through its COVID-19 African Vaccine Acquisition Task Team (AVATT), the Africa Medical Supplies Platform (AMSP), on behalf of the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC), today commences the COVID-19 vaccines pre-order programme for all African Union Member States. Afreximbank will facilitate payments by providing advance procurement commitment guarantees of up to US$2 billion to the manufacturers on behalf of the…

At 76 years old and all his teeth, Yoweri Museveni is still there, embodying the African leader. The man who broke the lock on the term limit in 2005 and the age limit in 2017, is running for a sixth term in the presidential elections on January 14, 2021 in one country, Uganda, which it presents, supported by international statistics, as one of the fastest growing economies over the past ten years.

Amsterdam, 4 January 2021.  FCI along with Afreximbank announce the appointment of Mr. Nassourou Aminou as the new Regional Manager for Africa. The recruitment of the Africa Chapter Regional Manager is a joint effort of FCI and Afreximbank. Mr. Nassourou Aminou is a Cameroonian and joins FCI with tremendous experience in factoring, credit insurance and IT support solutions for factoring and receivables finance. He was previously a consultant specializing in the development and implementation of factoring software in African countries. Before then he worked with Coface as Regional Head of Factoring Projects. During this period, he launched the first factoring…

The National Telecommunications Company of Senegal (SONATEL) will proceed, on January 16, 2021, to the payment of half-yearly interest on its bond loan called “Sonatel 6.50% 2020-2027” for an amount of 3.250 billion FCFA (4.875 million of euros). In order to finance its 2020 investment plan linked to its operations in Senegal (its main market), Sonatel had launched on the financial market of the West African Monetary Union (UMOA) a bond loan by public offering. for an amount of 100 billion FCFA. An interest rate of 6.50%, payable semi-annually from the vesting date of the securities (acquired since July 16,…

Le Journal de l’Economie Sénégalaise (Lejecos) has just released its third special issue entirely devoted to the recovery plan (PAP 2) of Senegal. In his editorial, the director of publication, Ismael Bâ, salutes the leadership of President Macky Sall, architect of the revival. The involvement of the private sector is strongly encouraged by the Head of State. “The call of the Head of State to the private sector in the PAP2A budgeted at 22.4 billion euros, in particular up to 42% of this amount, is commensurate with the role that the private sector must play in mobilization of resources, ”recalls…