Author: Albert Savana

The axe fell on Friday evening, after the markets closed: Fitch Ratings downgraded France’s sovereign rating from AA- to A+. One notch, one might say, but a change in category that sounds like an admission: Paris has moved from the club of “high quality” issuers to the soft underbelly of “upper middle quality”. In other...

At the end of the first semester of 2025, the profit of the National Telecommunications Office (ONATEL) SA decreased by 1.225 billion CFA francs (2.205 million dollars) compared to the same period in 2024, announced the leaders of this telecommunications company based in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso. According to the financial data in IFRS (International Financial...

At the end of a simultaneous auction of Treasury assimilable bills (BAT) of 364 days and Treasury assimilable bonds (OAT) of 3, 5 and 7 years organized on Tuesday, September 10, 2025 at the West African Monetary Union (UMOA) financial market, the Public Treasury of Burkina Faso replenished its coffers with a total amount of...

Historically, for the first time, Côte d’Ivoire is surpassed by Senegal, Burkina Faso, and Mali. The provisional total volume of public securities issuances by auction projected by the member countries of the West African Economic and Monetary Union (UMOA) financial market for the period from September to November 2025 amounts to 1,300 billion CFA francs...

Addis Ababa, September 8, 2025 – At the opening of the second African Climate Summit (ACS2), Djiboutian President Ismaïl Omar Guelleh delivered an ambitious speech calling on Africa to “change its paradigm” in terms of development and to place energy transition at the heart of its priorities. For the head of state, carbon finance represents...

The total production of cereal crops in Senegal decreased by 24.4% at the end of the 2024-2025 agricultural season compared to the 2023-2024 agricultural season, according to data from the Directorate of Analysis, Forecasting and Agricultural Statistics (DAPSA) based in Dakar. The provisional results of the 2024-2025 agricultural season established by DAPSA indicate a production of 2,310,018 tonnes compared to 3,056,139 tonnes for the 2023-2024 agricultural season, representing a difference of 746,121 tonnes in absolute value. These cereal crops occupied less cultivated area compared to the 2023-2024 season, amounting to 1,173,356 hectares against 1,440,821 hectares, a decrease of 18.6%. DAPSA…

The World Citizenship Index (WCI) 2025 report, published by CS Global Partners, ranks Mauritius (45th worldwide) and Seychelles (47th) as the two most attractive citizenships in Africa, ahead of Cape Verde (59th). This ranking evaluates 188 countries based on criteria such as security, economy, mobility, and quality of life, confirming the progress of some African...

on August 28th by Amazon, the book Without Prejudice by Tidjane Thiam is already making waves. Becoming a bestseller in the category of “leaders’ biographies,” the book by the president of the Democratic Party of Côte d’Ivoire (PDCI) and candidate for the Ivorian presidential candidacy in October 2025 reveals unknown aspects of Ivorian politics, while...

Senegalese President Bassirou Diomaye Faye has endorsed the MSGBC Oil, Gas & Power forum, scheduled from December 8 to 10, 2025 at the Abdou Diouf International Conference Center (CICAD) in Diamniadio. The forum is organized by Energy Capital & Power (ECP), a platform that serves as a bridge between states and investors in the energy...

“I stand before you today, I can boast that Nigeria no longer borrows any money from local banks. We have reached our revenue target for the entire year, we achieved it in August,” says President Bola Tinubu of Nigeria. It was on September 2 at the Nigerian presidential palace in front of members during a...

The governor of the Central Bank of Ethiopia, Mamo Esmelealem Mihretu, threw in the towel on September 3. Officially, he is leaving “to pursue other passions and challenges.” Unofficially, his departure appears to be a political rebuke, given the surprising timing. Appointed in January 2023, this technocrat trained in the school of international donors held...

Lomé, September 3, 2025 – The Regional Stock Exchange (BRVM) has listed the first social bond of the Union, the “Social Bond CRRH-UEMOA 6% 2025–2040”, issued by the Regional Mortgage Refinancing Fund (CRRH-UEMOA) for an amount of 60 billion FCFA. The subscription, open from July 15 to July 30, 2025, generated strong interest from investors,...

Lomé, September 3, 2025 – The Regional Stock Exchange (BRVM) has listed the first social bond of the Union, the “Social Bond CRRH-UEMOA 6% 2025-2040”, issued by the Regional Mortgage Refinancing Fund (CRRH-UEMOA) for an amount of 60 billion FCFA. The subscription, open from July 15 to July 30, 2025, generated strong interest from investors,...

On September 2, 2025, the Ivory Coast, a regional mastodon, raised 65.999 billion CFA francs on the WAEMU Securities market, equivalent to 119 million dollars, through a simultaneous issuance of Treasury bills with a maturity of 364 days and bonds with maturities of 3, 5, and 7 years. The operation, initially launched for 60 billion,...

Abidjan, September 3, 2025 – Ivory Coast has reached a major milestone in sustainable financing by mobilizing 433 million euros (507 million dollars) through a foreign currency loan linked to sustainability criteria, a first of its kind on the continent. Supported by guarantees from the World Bank, this operation illustrates the growing focus on responsible...

Romuald Wadagni is faced with the heavy responsibility of entering the race to succeed Patrice Talon. At 49, the Minister of Finance, in office since 2016, knows better than anyone that the legacy is daunting. Beyond the popular vote he will have to secure, with the handicap specific to technocrats – more pragmatic than orators – he will have to replace a man who embodied the determination to transform Benin and summed up his creed in a subliminal phrase: “the economy is everything”. The former Deloitte executive in Paris, Lyon, Boston, and New York is not lacking in talent or…

Cairo, August 29, 2025 – The main Chinese agency, China Chengxin International Credit Rating (CCXI), has just confirmed Afreximbank’s AAA/Stable rating. This recognition comes as the Bank is going through a pivotal moment, marked by both a change in governance and an increasingly clear divide between Asian and Western rating agencies. In April, Afreximbank raised...

The consolidated revenue of Mutandis industrial group, specialized in household consumer goods, recorded a 7% decrease in the first half of 2025 compared to the same period in 2024, announced the leaders of this company based in Casablanca. This revenue stood at 902 million dirhams ($99.220 million) compared to 965 million dirhams ($106.150 million) at...

Five years after the overthrow of Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta (August 2020) and the consolidation of power by Colonel Assimi Goïta, the Malian economy presents a paradoxical picture: real resilience despite repeated political, security, and climate shocks, but a potential still hampered by regulatory uncertainty, high domestic financing costs, and mining dependence. The years 2022-2024 have...

By signing a $12 billion agreement on Thursday, August 21, 2025 with Botswana’s president, Duma Boko, Qatar crosses a new threshold in its international projection. Behind the polished facade of economic diversification, the operation, led by Al Mansour Holding under the guidance of Sheikh Mansour Bin Jabor Bin Jassim Al Thani, an influential member of...

“Carbon: Africa asserts its right to collect its own contributions” In an exclusive interview with us, Ahmed Araita Ali, Secretary General of the Africa Sovereign Carbon Registry Foundation, reacts to a recent press article reporting on letters that were allegedly sent by major international professional organizations of maritime transporters to the presidents of Djibouti and Gabon. This information, reported on July 29 by TradeWinds, a professional media outlet in the sector, conveys the concerns of international maritime transporters regarding the recent establishment of their own sovereign carbon contribution initiatives by Djibouti and then by Gabon, in accordance with the “Polluter…

Announced on August 1st from the Grand Théâtre de Dakar in a meticulously staged setting, the Economic and Social Recovery Plan “Jubbanti Koom” emerges as the founding act of the economic doctrine of the Diomaye-Sonko government. Designed for the decade, anchored in the presidential Vision 2050, this program aims to lift Senegal out of dependence and short-term management through strategic, rigorous, and assertive planning. The context allows for no naivety. Fifteen months after an unprecedented and conflictual change in power, the State inherits a deteriorated situation: persistent twin deficits, public debt estimated at nearly 77% of GDP (even higher if…

Benin and Nigeria are embarking on a new era of enhanced economic cooperation, focused on cross-border trade, security, and customs regulation. Cotonou, August 2, 2025 – In a joint statement issued following a bilateral meeting held in Cotonou, the governments of Benin and Nigeria announced an agreement to revitalize their commercial cooperation, with a particular focus on facilitating trade at the Sèmè-Kraké border post. This move marks a major turning point in the economic relations between the two West African neighbors, which have long been marked by tensions stemming from Nigeria’s unilateral closure of borders in 2019. Objective: Facilitate trade…

For his very first official visit to the African continent, the new president of BADEA, His Excellency Abdullah Al Musaibeeh, chose Kenya. A highly symbolic visit, marked by the signing of a strategic agreement with Shelter Afrique Development Bank (ShafDB) on July 29, 2025, at the institution’s headquarters in Nairobi. Alongside Thierno-Habib Hann, CEO of ShafDB, the president of BADEA sealed a major concessional financing agreement, part of Shelter Afrique’s capital increase program. This commitment will enable eligible member states to strengthen their capital subscriptions and support financing for affordable housing and climate-resilient urban infrastructure. This strategic partnership aims for…

In a candid interview with Alain Foka, Tidjane Thiam, former CEO of Credit Suisse and declared candidate in the Ivorian presidential election, dismisses any comparison with Alassane Ouattara. “Comparing our paths is pure ignorance,” he says, visibly exasperated by the recurring parallels between the two men. “He is an international civil servant at the IMF....

The West African Development Bank (BIDC), a regional development financing institution based in Lomé, closed the 2024 fiscal year with an increase in performance. Its net profit stands at 6,430 million units of account (UC), equivalent to 8,545 million dollars or 5,165 billion FCFA, marking a 13% increase compared to the 5,700 million UC achieved...

The Central Bank of West African States (BCEAO) updated its official list of approved payment institutions in the UMOA area on June 25, 2025. This new version includes three new approvals, notably marking the entry of Togo and Guinea-Bissau among the countries now with regulated fintechs operating under BCEAO approval. The new approved institutions are: – INTOUCH Guinea-Bissau – SAMIR Money Senegal SA – INTOUCH Togo With these approvals, the INTOUCH group confirms its regional expansion, now present in Senegal, Mali, Burkina Faso, Guinea-Bissau, and Togo. On the other hand, SAMIR Money, a Senegalese actor, becomes the fifth approved institution…

As global economic power shifts, Abu Dhabi’s sovereign wealth funds are emerging as leading driving forces, combining strategic returns, economic diplomacy, and targeted deployment across the African continent.  In recent years, Abu Dhabi has developed a centralised but diversified investment strategy, with sovereign wealth funds managing over USD 1.7 trillion in assets. Moving beyond oil, these funds focus on technology, infrastructure and value chains, with Africa as a key area of expansion. Rather than short-term speculation, they follow a long-term approach, using Mubadala, ADIA and ADQ to build influence through targeted, strategic investments.  The year 2024 marked a turning point.…

1 USD = 9.16690 MAD. Wafa Assurance has made a strong start to the 2025 financial year, reporting a consolidated turnover of MAD 4.35 billion in the first quarter—a 6.2% increase compared to the same period in 2024. This performance reflects balanced growth across both Life and Non-Life segments, underpinned by strengthened positions in international markets. Non-Life: Growth Boosted...

Western Union has opened its first “concept store” in Morocco in partnership with Cash Plus. Located in Errahma, near Casablanca, this store offers a new experience for customers sending and receiving international funds. This opening is part of Western Union’s global “Evolve 2025” strategy, aimed at providing dedicated locations for smoother and more accessible money transfers. Mohamed Touhami el Ouazzani, Western Union’s Regional Vice President for Africa, expressed his satisfaction: “Morocco is a key market for our growth in Africa. We are delighted to collaborate with Cash Plus to improve accessibility and financial inclusion.” In 2023, Morocco received approximately $12…