Author: Editor

Adenia Partners, a prominent private equity firm focusing on sustainable investments in Africa, has reached an agreement to acquire 12 subsidiaries from Air Liquide, a global leader in industrial and medical gases. The acquisition encompasses Air Liquide entities across West and Central Africa as well as the Indian Ocean region, specifically in Benin, Burkina Faso,...

Airtel Africa, a leading provider of telecommunications and mobile money services with a presence in 14 countries across Africa, has officially broken ground on its first data centre in Lagos, Nigeria.  Nxtra by Airtel is set to be one of the largest networks of data centres in Africa, with high-capacity data centres in major cities located strategically across Airtel Africa’s footprint, complementing its existing edge sites. This development underscores the company’s commitment to meeting the continent’s data management needs by providing trusted and sustainable data centre capacity to serve the fast-growing African digital economy. The ground-breaking ceremony of the new…

  Unlimit, the global fintech company, today announced its entry into the Tanzanian market and the receival of the Bank of Tanzania (“BOT”) licence, marking another significant step in the company’s expansion within the region. The approval of Unlimit as an authorised payment service provider by the BOT will allow the fintech to provide a range of new offerings such as business payments, merchant services and outbound payments, among other things, to the Tanzanian market. The launch of Tanzanian operations marks an important step in Unlimit’s broader strategy of expanding into Africa, and follows the approval of similar licences last year in Nigeria and…

Avisen’s story began in 2000 with the meeting of two veterinarians in Senegal, sharing a common idea: develop the animal feed industry to facilitate access to animal protein. Twenty years later, the modest initial artisanal unit has grown into Senegal second largest poultryfeed manufacturer. Avisentoday produces over 100,000 tons of feedstuff per year and processes broilers in its brand-new slaughterhouse. To pursue this success story, the shareholders have decided to seek a successor able to take Avisen to the next stage while preserving the vision of the founders: to offer high-quality products at an affordable price for the benefit of…

In 2020, the World Bank Group’s Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) and the Eastern and Southern African Trade and Development Bank (TDB) signed a first-of-its-kind credit enhancement facility providing a 10-year EUR 359 million guarantee for commercial bank financing extended to TDB for trade finance, with longer tenors and lower interest rates. In December 2023, MIGA and TDB expanded their cooperation, with MIGA issuing an additional EUR 349 million 7-year guarantee for a loan provided by Standard Chartered Bank (SCB) as agent on behalf of a syndicate of banks, including Citibank as arranger. The TDB-MIGA partnership has so far succeeded…

The Government of Kenya and ATIDI, the African Trade Insurance Agency, have today signed the Regional Liquidity Support Facility Memorandum of Understanding. RLSF, a joint initiative of ATIDI, the KfW Development Bank and the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (Norad), is a credit enhancement instrument provided by ATIDI to renewable energy Independent Power Producers (IPPs) that sell the electricity generated by their projects to state-owned power utilities. The instrument’s scope has recently been extended to provide support for eligible transmission projects; allowing for possible private sector participation in this key sub-sector. ATIDI will issue liquidity instruments, or “RLSF policies”, backed…

Nairobi, Kenya – The banking industry is on the cusp of a digital revolution, and Nairobi, Kenya, is set to host the 11th Edition Connected Banking Summit – Innovation & Excellence Awards East Africa 2024. This summit, organized by The International Center for Strategic Alliances (ICSA), promises to be a pivotal event in shaping the future of banking across the region. The Connected Banking Summit will also feature the esteemed Innovation & Excellence Awards 2024, recognizing leaders and organizations driving innovation and excellence in the banking sector. This prestigious event will unite global executives, experts, and leaders for an insightful…

Kinshasa, February 12, 2024 – The Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has announced significant progress in structural reforms within the downstream petroleum sector. These measures are part of an overall strategy to clean up and rationalize petroleum subsidies, aiming to ensure more efficient and transparent management of public financial resources. Initially, in 2022, the Ministries of Finance and National Economy jointly initiated a comprehensive audit of the Petroleum Products Price Structure (PPPS) conducted by Mazars. The audit findings, released in May 2023, highlighted several reform avenues to improve governance and efficiency in the sector. Based on…

The Pan African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS) is proud to announce the entry of Banque Centrale de Tunisie (BCT) into its network as its thirteenth Central Bank member, further strengthening its commitment to promoting seamless cross-border payment services and enhancing financial integration across the African continent. PAPSS, developed by African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) in collaboration with the African Union and the AfCFTA Secretariat, facilitates real-time settlement of intra-African trade and payments, in African currencies, across the continent. By uniting central banks from across Africa, PAPSS seeks to address the existing challenges faced by African businesses and individuals in accessing efficient…

Africa50, the pan-African infrastructure investment platform, today announced that the Republic of Mozambique has started the onboarding process to become its new shareholder during a signing ceremony in Maputo. Honourable Ernesto Max Elias Tonela, Minister of Economy and Finance of the Republic of Mozambique signed the Share Subscription Agreement on behalf of the Government, committing the country to take the necessary steps to become an Africa50 shareholder. In joining Africa50, Mozambique will benefit from accessing world-class project development and financing expertise, fast-track the implementation of its infrastructure programme by catalyzing the participation of the private sector significantly contributing to spurring…

The Board of Directors of CGF BOURSE has appointed Mr. Kalidou DIALLO as the new Chief Executive Officer of CGF BOURSE. He will assume his role on March 16, 2024, succeeding Madame Marie Odile SENE. “Mr. DIALLO, a distinguished and respected figure in the financial sector, has an in-depth knowledge of financial markets and their instruments, investment strategies, portfolio management, and asset allocation,” states the press release from CGF Bourse.Already deeply embedded in the company’s ecosystem since 2016, as the director of CGF Gestion, an asset management subsidiary, Mr. Diallo has enhanced our management capabilities and expanded our portfolio. Before…

Abidjan, Paris 30 January 2023 – Joliba Capital, an African private equity firm majority-owned by LBO France, a multi-specialist and multi-country investment platform, and founded by two seasoned African investment professionals Hamada Tour (Managing Partner) and Yann Pambou (CEO & Managing Partner), is pleased to announce a first close of its inaugural fund, Joliba Capital Fund I, at EUR 89 million. This Rolling First Close reflects the trust and confidence that investors have placed on our vision and strategy. The Fund will principally target investment opportunities across Francophone countries in West and Central Africa to develop a diversified portfolio composed…

Kinshasa, 05 February 2024 – On the occasion of the Mining Indaba Forum, the world’s largest gathering of mining players, Rawbank, the leading bank in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), announces that it has raised 200 million dollars on the international market to support the mining sector value chain in the DRC. Rawbank has now confirmed its position as a strategic bank for the Congolese mining sector. Rawbank continues to support the financing needs of the Congolese economy In order to meet the needs of players in the mining sector value chain – which contributes 25% of the country’s jobs…

Peak orderbook of $6 billion reached The African Development Bank, rated Aaa/AAA/AAA/AAA (Moody’s/S&P/Fitch/Japan Credit Rating, all stable) has successfully launched and priced its first Sustainable US dollar-denominated 750 million perpetual subordinated hybrid capital notes. On the 30th of January 2024 the African Development Bank launched a hybrid capital transaction with a coupon of 5.75% until August 2034, with a 10.5 year first call date at the Bank’s discretion. The Bank achieved a top quality and granular orderbook with over 275 investors, of which over 190 were allocated. Investor demand was very strong with a peak orderbook of over USD 6…

The African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank), is pleased to announce that it has successfully acted as Joint Global Coordinator on the inaugural EUR 500M RegS-only senior unsecured social bond issuance by the Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa (BADEA) under its newly-established Euro Medium Term Note (EMTN) program listed on the London Stock Exchange. BADEA is a development finance institution established in 1974 by 18 member countries of the League of Arab States (LAS) to provide targeted developmental financing to 44 non-Arab Sub-Saharan African countries, with total assets of USD 5.7bn as of June 2023. BADEA, rated Aa2/AA/AAA (positive/positive/stable) by Moody’s/S&P/JCR,…

The Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa (BADEA), with a rating of ‘Aa2/Positive Outlook’ (Moody’s), ‘AA/Positive Outlook’ (S&P), and ‘AAA/Stable Outlook’ (JCR), has successfully made its debut on the international financial market by completing an inaugural fundraising operation of 500 million euros under a social label with a maturity of 3 years, a yield rate of 3.806%, and a coupon of 3.75%. This operation, the first since its establishment 50 years ago, generated strong enthusiasm with a final order book of more than 1.2 billion euros from over 50 high-quality investors based in more than 27 countries across 4…

Nigerian business aviation firm, Falcon Aerospace Limited, has appointed Jean-Claude Kouyo as its Director of Growth for the Europe, Middle-East and African (EMEA) regions. With this appointment, Mr. Kouyo will join the leadership of the company as its operations become increasingly globalized. An Ivorian based in France, Jean-Claude Kouyo had his education in France and the United States, and is fluent in both English and French. The flight safety and flight support specialist will be driving the growth of business for Falcon Aero in the EMEA regions. Falcon Aero is an aviation firm offering multiple customized services including aircraft charter…

The African Development Bank, rated Aaa/AAA/AAA/AAA (Moody’s/S&P/Fitch/Japan Credit Rating, all stable), has launched and priced a USD 2 billion 3-year Social Global Benchmark due 25 February 2027, its first social bond issued under its new Sustainable Bond Framework, established in September 2023. The Sustainable Bond Program seamlessly consolidates and enhances the African Development Bank’s existing Green and Social Bond programs, facilitating the issuance of green bonds, social bonds, and sustainability bonds. This new 3-year Social Benchmark is the Bank’s first global benchmark of the year, strategically aligning with the robust reopening of primary markets in January 2024. This issuance is…

During their last meeting on January 11 and 12, 2024, in Nouakchott, Presidents Macky Sall of Senegal and Mohamed Cheikh Ghazouani of Mauritania extensively discussed the Grand Tortue Ahmeyim gas field, which has been led since 2021 by Azerbaijani Emil Ismayilov, Senior Vice President of BP Mauritania and Senegal. According to our sources, the conversation...

The 59th Annual Meeting of the Board of Governors of the African Development Bank and the 50th Meeting of the Board of Governors of the African Development Fund will take place at the Kenyatta International Conference Center in Nairobi, Kenya from 27–31 May 2023. The African Development Fund is the concessional arm of the Bank Group. The theme of the 2024 Annual Meetings is Africa’s Transformation, African Development Bank Group, and Reforms of the Global Financial Architecture. The Annual Meetings comprise Member States’ invitation-only sessions, closed bilateral meetings, as well as events open to all attendees, including the Press. They provide a forum for Bank Group…

Africa50 Group, the pan-African infrastructure investment platform has announced the successful first close of the Africa50 Infrastructure Acceleration Fund (Africa50 – IAF) on December 29th, 2023. securing $222.5 million in commitments. In an African first, Africa50-IAF secured participation from 16 African institutional investors, including sovereign wealth funds, pension funds, social security funds, insurance companies, banks and Development Finance Institutions (DFIs), underlining the commitment of regional stakeholders to drive transformative change on the continent. First close investors include notable names such as the African Development Bank (AfDB) and the International Finance Corporation (IFC). Africa50-IAF is a 12-year closed-ended infrastructure private equity…

Thanks to its various subsidiaries, between 2017 and 2023, Africa Global Logistics (AGL), logistics partner of the Confederation of African Football (CAF), successfully carried out the logistics operations for the construction of the six stadiums that will host the 2023 TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations matches in Côte d’Ivoire from 13 January to 11 February. AGL Côte d’Ivoire was responsible for the transport, transit and customs procedures for nearly 2,000 TEU containers, or approximately 32,000 tonnes of equipment, for the construction and renovation of the Alassane Ouattara Stadium in Ebimpé, the Félix Houphouët Boigny Stadium in Abidjan, the Charles…

AGL, a major player in transport and logistics in Africa, today announces that it has obtained the certification of its QHSE Integrated Management System according to ISO 9001 (Quality Management), ISO 14001 (Environmental Management) and ISO 45001 (Occupational Health and Safety Management) standards). This triple certification, issued by Bureau Veritas Certification, covers 154 of the group’s sites in 28 countries. This approach, initiated at the beginning of 2023, demonstrates AGL’s commitment to its stakeholders (customers, employees, suppliers, shareholders, etc.) to comply with legal, regulatory and contractual requirements in terms of quality, environment and safety. It also reflects the company’s desireto…

In 2023, remittances to low and middle-income countries reached an impressive $669 billion, bolstered by the resilience of labor markets in advanced economies and Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries. These funds are vital for migrants sending money back home. Latin America and the Caribbean saw an 8% increase in remittances, South Asia 7.2%, East Asia and the Pacific 3%, and Sub-Saharan Africa 1.9%. Conversely, the Middle East and North Africa experienced a 5.3% decline for the second consecutive year, primarily due to reduced flows to Egypt. Remittances to Europe and Central Asia also decreased by 1.4%, a significant shift from…

The President and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development (EBID), Dr. George Agyekum Donkor, has once again been recognized as one of the 100 personalities transforming Africa by Financial Afrik, a leading business news magazine. The annual ranking, now in its ninth year, highlights influential individuals for their accomplishments over the preceding 12 months, their impact, and contributions to Africa’s socio-economic development. In December 2022, Dr Donkor was recognized as Development Banker of the Year. In 2023, he featured on the list as an “Integrator”. This speaks not only to his efforts…

The President of the African Development Bank Group, Akinwumi Adesina, has been awarded the prestigious Obafemi Awolowo Prize for Leadership. The award which promotes the legacy and democratic ideals of the late Nigerian nationalist and federalist leader Chief Obafemi Awolowo, also “recognises and celebrates excellence in leadership.” The Foundation’s Executive Director, Ambassador Dr Tokunbo Awolowo-Dosumu said, “Dr Adesina was the unanimous choice of the Foundation’s Selection Committee, which described Adesina as possessing the attributes for the award to the highest degree.” According to Ambassador Awolowo-Dosunmu, “The attributes considered to have characterised Chief Awolowo’s excellent leadership, include integrity, credibility, discipline, courage, selflessness,…

Rwanda Fertilizer Company (RFC), a collaborative venture between OCP Africa – subsidiary of OCP Group, a global leader in plant nutrition and the world’s largest producer of phosphate-based fertilizers – AGACIRO Fund, and APTC, was honored to welcome a Rwandan ministerial delegation led by HE Jean Chrysostome Ngabitsinze, Minister of trade with the presence of HE Ildephonse Musafiri, Minister of agriculture to the state-of-the-art blending plant in Bugesera. This significant visit represents a pivotal step in the production of high-quality fertilizers, commenced since August 2023, underscoring RFC’s and OCP Africa’s commitment to enhancing food security and fostering agricultural development, not…

The Economic Commission for Africa, Executive Secretary, Claver Gatete, and Zimbabwe’s Finance Minister, Mthuli Ncube today in Harare signed the 2024 Conference of Ministers (COM) Host Country Agreement. Zimbabwe is set to host the 56th Session of the ECA Conference of African Ministers of Finance, Planning and Economic Development from 28 February to 5 March, in Victoria Falls. “To drive industrialization that is sustainable and creates jobs, eradicates poverty and contributes to sustained economic growth, Africa must build climate resilience, be able to access finance for its development and reap benefits from its natural resources” said Mr. Gatete at the signing ceremony…

Climate-induced catastrophic events have led to severe humanitarian crises in Africa. Between 2000 and 2022, a total of 407.5 million people in Africa were affected by natural disasters. During this time, 4.2 million people became homeless, 53,610 people died and 52,205 were injured. This is according to the Economic Report on Africa 2023 (ERA2023) which will be launched on December 18, 2023, in Abuja, Nigeria. Titled: “Building Africa’s Resilience to Global Economic Shocks”, the report shows that climate shocks generally are highly correlated with the cyclical component of GDP growth and not with the long-term trend in Africa, which suggests that part of…

The ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development (EBID) extended a line of credit totaling EUR 30 million to MANSA Bank in a ceremony held in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire on December 6, 2023. This facility which is exclusively dedicated to SMEs/SMIs operating in the agricultural value chain, will support agribusiness in various ways including transport, storage and processing of agricultural products. In his remarks, Dr. George Agyekum Donkor, President and Chairman of the Board of Directors of EBID expressed that the facility is in line with the Bank’s strategy of investing in SMEs operating in key sectors in the sub-region, through…