Author: Albert Savana

The growth of the world economy, which was around 6% before the outbreak of the health crisis linked to the coronavirus which led to the recession, should take time to pick up again and stabilize for the duration. The United Nations is counting on difficult prospects, especially since the pandemic has exacerbated poverty and inequalities. This slowdown is partly explained by the end of economic and fiscal stimulus plans and by severe disruptions due to supply chains. According to a study by the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, after a revival of activity punctuated by a growth…

During the launch of the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System (Papss), the pan-African payment and settlement system in Accra on January 13, the managing director of Smart Africa, Lacina Koné, announced that his institution and Afreximbank have recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding to support and advocate for the development of pro-Papss policies and regulations across the continent. During a moderated panel with the Governor of the Central Bank of Ghana, Dr Ernest Addison, the Governor of the Bank of Zambia, Dr Denny Kalyalya and the Managing Director of the West African Monetary Institute ( IMAO), Dr. Olorunsola Olowofeso, Lacina…

The president of the African Import-Export Bank (Afreximbank), Benedict Oramah, revealed this Thursday, January 13 in Accra (Ghana) that his institution intends to forge relations with at least 500 African banks by providing them with lines of nearly $ 8 billion to facilitate commercial transactions with the Papss (Pan-African Payment and Settlement System), the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System. “This will represent the largest banking relationship ever forged by a financial institution on the continent. Currently, the bank has integrated more than 480 banks ”, he noted at the official launch of the new instrument. Adding that the current payment…

In November 2021, Senegal’s industrial production excluding cotton ginning increased by 7.1% compared to the same period of 2020, according to data from the National Agency for Statistics and Demography (ANSD) based in Dakar. “This development is in relation to the performances noted in the environmental (+ 62.7%) and extractive (+ 51.8%) industries”, underlines the ANSD. Still according to this structure, the situation observed in the extractive industries is explained by the good performance of the production of metal ores (+ 66.3%) and other products of the extractive industries (+ 33.3%). Likewise, production in the first eleven months of 2021…

The French public airline Air France announced, on January 12, 2022, the cancellation of its flights to and from Bamako (Mali). Information confirmed by the Minister of Transport and Infrastructure of Mali, Dembélé Madina Sissoko. “The Ministry of Transport and Infrastructures informs national and international opinion that the airline company Air France has decided, according to the information notified to the airport authorities of Mali by its representative in Bamako, to suspend all its flights to destination and leaving Bamako until further notice ”, we can read in a press release from the supervisory department. According to the document dated…

Morocco’s Minister of Economy and Finance Nadia Fettah Alaoui (photo) said on January 10, 2022 that her country intends to regulate the use of virtual currencies through new legislation. Specifying that his department is also examining the possibility of setting up a 100% Moroccan cryptocurrency, developed and guaranteed by Bank-Al-Maghrib, the central bank. These announcements, made during a plenary session of oral questions in the House of Representatives, come in a context where cryptocurrencies are prohibited in financial transactions by Moroccan law. They are, however, increasingly popular in the country which ranks 24th in the 2021 ranking of the Global…

Operations in the treasury securities market of the Economic and Monetary Community of Central Africa (CEMAC) will be particularly animated from January 10 to 14, 2022 through issues of Assimilable Treasury Bonds (BTA) where Cameroon, Congo and Gabon globally intend to mobilize CFAF 175 billion ($ 302 million) on the market of the Bank of Central African States (BEAC). In detail, Cameroon, through the Domestic Syndication Issue (ESD), plans to mobilize 150 billion FCFA ($ 259 million) from BTA. With a maturity of 26 weeks for an interest rate of 2.75%, this operation, the minimum share of which is FCFA…

Growth estimates for the year 2021 indicate an increase in the economic activity of the West African Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA) of 6.1% against 1.8% in 2020, according to data from the Department of Economic Policies and the internal taxation (DPEFI) of the UEMOA Commission based in Ouagadougou in Burkina Faso. “The negative effects of the health crisis on the economies of the Member States of the Union have clearly diminished”, indicates the DPEFI. Still according to this structure, the growth rate by Member State is quite disparate: + 7.0% for Benin, + 7.1% for Burkina Faso, + 6.5%…

French President Emmanuel Macron declared on Tuesday January 11 that his country and the European Union support the “unprecedented sanctions” taken last weekend in Accra (Ghana) by the heads of state of the Economic Community of the States of West Africa (ECOWAS) and the West African Economic and Monetary Union (Uemoa) against Mali. “We support” these diplomatic and economic measures, he told the Élysée Palace during a press conference with European Council President Charles Michel. These sanctions are, among others, the closure of land and air borders between Mali and the other ECOWAS member states, the recall of ambassadors in…

Malian President Assimi Goïta spoke on Monday evening in a televised speech on the conclusions of the double summit of the heads of state of the West African Economic and Monetary Union (Uemoa) and of the Economic Community of the States of the West Africa (ECOWAS) held the day before in Accra. And its share of sanctions taken against his country. “Reading the ECOWAS and WAEMU press releases gives the impression that the complexity of the situation in Mali has unfortunately not been taken into account. It is regrettable that the efforts of the transitional authorities were ignored, ”the junta…

After hitting $ 68,992 in November 2021, Bitcoin is now down to $ 42,000, at times approaching the $ 40,000 mark. Overall, cryptocurrencies are in free fall, with their market capitalization shrinking by $ 300 billion in one week. The bearish wave is linked on the one hand to the expected decisions of the Fed to hike rates. The long period of easy money is said to have fueled the rise of cryptocurrencies. Behind the Fed’s arbitrations, there are also the consequences of the Chinese decision to ban bitcoin mining activities (May 2021) and the political unrest in Kazakhstan, a…

With more than 80% of the African market capitalization, the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) has exploded its counters in 2021. The composite index of the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, the FTSE / JSE Africa, achieved an increase of more than 20% in 2021. A performance not achieved since 2012 and which contrasts with the fall of 7% recorded by the market index emerging markets (MSCI Emerging Market). Despite this performance, the valuation level (PER) of the JSE remains below the emerging market average, indicating significant upside potential in 2022. Expressed in dollars, the rise of the South African market reached 10%…

The Malian transitional authorities reacted to the “illegal and illegitimate” sanctions taken by the heads of state of ECOWAS and UEMOA on January 9, 2022 in Accra. And reserve the right to review their country’s participation in these entities. Bamako’s response to the hailstorm of sanctions was swift. In a press release dated January 9 and read by Colonel Abdoulaye Maïga, Minister of Territorial Administration and government spokesperson on the night from Sunday to Monday on national television, the soldiers in power in Mali express their amazement at the sanctions which they consider “illegal and illegitimate” and which, according to…

Nigerian Benedict Oramah, President of the African Import-Export Bank (Afreximbank), was received on January 6, 2022 by Faure Gnassingbé in Lomé. An opportunity for him to discuss with the Togolese head of state on strengthening the institution’s funding programs in the country. These discussions mainly concern the development of the second phase of the Adétikopé industrial platform (PIA), the developer of which, ARISE IIP, a subsidiary of Singaporean Olam, received support from Afreximbank in the first phase of the work. “We are ready to participate in the implementation of the second phase of the project,” said Benedict Oramah. The infrastructure,…

Pending the conclusions of the summit of heads of state of the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU) held this Sunday, January 9 in Accra on the political situation in Mali and the transition timetable proposed by Bamako, Burkinabé President Roch March Christian Kaboré has already sounded the death knell in his opening speech. “As much as we are aware of the complexity of the situation in this country, we believe that the economic and social reforms aimed at the Refoundation of Mali could only be carried out by democratically elected authorities”, declared the Burkinabé, president of the conference.…

Is the Central African Economic and Monetary Community (Cemac) becoming less and less petro-dependent? In its 2020 annual report published on January 7, 2022, the BEAC, the region’s central bank, indicates a decline in the share of the oil sector in gross domestic product (GDP). Indeed, the 162-page document states that the share of the oil sector in regional GDP stood at 13% in 2020, against 18% in 2015. That is a decrease of 5 percentage points in the space of 5 years. For their part, the oil revenues of the six countries of the region (Cameroon, Central African Republic,…

It seems like he creates a billion dollars with every snap of his fingers or with every sip of Coca Cola, a drink he particularly enjoys as a consumer, not an investor. Between 2016 and 2018, Warren Buffet’s Berkshire Hathaway company acquired 5% of Apple for $ 36 billion. Three years later, as Apple crossed $ 3 trillion in market capitalization, Oracle’s share of Omaha is valued at $ 160 billion. Isn’t this dizzying gain likely to distract big investors from the real economy and its constraints? In addition to the dramatic rise in Apple stock, Warren Buffet can comfortably…

This Sunday January 9 marks the start of the 33rd African Nations Cup (CAN). Until February 6, Cameroon will be the epicenter of continental football. For the first time, the competition will take place with 24 teams * who will each try to give their best to win the precious holy grail. Between the favorites, the outsiders and the losers, the competition will be tough, impossible and only one nation will be in the firmament. Beyond the winner, who will be known on the evening of February 6, the most important is the celebration of continental football and all fans…

The eyes of the Malian authorities of the transition are on Accra (Ghana) where a double summit is being held this Sunday, January 9, on their draft timetable transmitted at the end of December to the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS ). Even if a new schedule of shorter duration would have reached the president of the instance, according to our sources. From his palace in Bamako and on the plane to Accra where two summits devoted to Mali are being held, Assimi Goïta, the Malian president of the transition and his Minister Abdoulaye Diop of Foreign Affairs…

The Moroccan Interprofessional Pension Fund (CIMR) increased its shares to 11.55% of the capital of the Banque Centrale Populaire (BCP), with 23,484,710 shares in total. The announcement was made on January 3, 2021 by the Moroccan Capital Market Authority (AMMC). The CIMR, which thus crosses the only 10% in the capital of BCP, indicated that it had acquired on the block market, on December 28, 2021, 5,056,366 shares of the bank at a unit price of 277 dirhams. And that she plans to stop buying BCP in six months. BCP carried out, between August and September 2021, an operation to…

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi begins this Tuesday, January 4, his first foreign visit for the year 2022 on the African continent. The countries involved in this four-day tour are Eritrea, Kenya and the Comoros. This journey aims to help these East African states “to defeat the pandemic” of Covid-19, to “achieve an economic recovery” and to “integrate new measures of cooperation between China and Africa “. It takes place a little over a month after the holding of the Sino-African summit (Focac) in Dakar (Senegal). Since 1991, the Chinese Foreign Minister has started his visits of the year to…

Digital Realty Trust Inc, an American company specializing in data center management, announced on Tuesday (January 4th) that it had agreed to take a majority stake in Teraco Data Environments Pty, Africa’s largest data center operator based in South Africa. . After the deal closes, Digital Realty will own approximately 55% of the total stake in Teraco, while the remaining 45% will be held by a consortium of existing shareholders, including management, Berkshire Partners LLC, Permira, van Rooyen Group, Columbia Capital, Stepstone Ventures and Teraco Connect Trust. The transaction, estimated at more than $ 3.5 billion, is expected to close…

Central Africans will be slightly better paid from the start of this year, following the government’s decision to revalue the guaranteed minimum interprofessional wage on (SMIG) from 18,850 to 29,000 FCFA. This increase of 35% in absolute value constitutes the first revaluation in thirty years. In the process, the guaranteed minimum agricultural wage (SMAG) has also been increased, since it can no longer be less than 1000 FCFA per day. Despite a difficult economic situation reinforced by the health crisis linked to Covid-19, these increases only partially satisfy the unions who would have liked a 100% revaluation. According to trade…

In office since 2016, Nigerian Mohammed Barkindo, secretary general of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), is about to step down after two successive terms. The identity of his successor was announced on Monday, January 3 by the cartel in a statement released on the eve of its monthly meeting. This is Kuwaiti Haitham al-Ghais (photo) who will take office on August 1 for a three-year term. Presented as a “veteran of Kuwait Petroleum Corporation (KPC)”, a state conglomerate of which he is the current deputy director of international marketing after having been the director of the office…

This is one of the recommendations resulting from the National Conference on Refoundation in Mali, launched on December 11, 2021 in various circles and municipalities across the country. The participants, indicates a note read on Thursday 30 at the end of the proceedings, voted in favor of the extension of the transition in order to be able to carry out structural institutional reforms and allow credible, fair and transparent elections. “The deadlines put forward vary from six months to five years”, specifies point 7 of the 46-page document read in the presence of Colonel Assimi Goïta, the president of the…

Togolese President Faure Gnassingbé announced, in a speech delivered on the night of Thursday 30 to Friday 31 December, a loan of one month’s salary to civil servants, in response to inflation observed for several months. The measure was the least expected: “after reflection, I instructed the government to grant civil servants in the public and parapublic sectors and retirees, from next week, an advance of one month’s salary, which will be repayable in installments. monthly until December 2022. I encourage the private sector to take similar action, ”he said. “For retirements from 2020, the expected payment of allowances equivalent…

The Democratic Party of Côte d’Ivoire (PDCI) reacted to the statement by the public prosecutor, Adou Richard. Who announced, last Monday, the possibility of launching legal proceedings against the former Ivorian head of state Aimé Henri Konan Bédié (photo), in his capacity as leader of the opposition. On Wednesday, December 29, the spokesperson for the PDCI, Soumaila Bredoumy, affirmed that the party will respond “without fear or fear” to legal proceedings in connection with the abuses of the presidential election of 2020. Taking into account article 54 of law number 2005-201 of June 16, 2005 on the status of former…

The African air transport sector, faced with a difficult economic situation reinforced by the onset of the health crisis linked to the Covid-19 pandemic, is expected to regain color next year. The African Airlines Association (AFRAA) specifies in its annual report that traffic could reach 67 million passengers in 2022, an increase of 55.81% compared to forecasts for the current year. “For 2021, we estimate that African airlines will carry 43 million passengers, or about 45% of 2019 traffic,” she said. A gradual improvement in activity which is explained by the reopening of air borders closed due to the pandemic…

Facing the press on Monday, December 27, the Attorney General of the Republic of Côte d’Ivoire, Adou Richard, threatened to prosecute those who caused acts of violence during the 2020 presidential election. “All those who contributed to the civil disobedience of the presidential elections of 2020 will be prosecuted … They will be subjected to all the rigors of the criminal law, the objective being to fight against the impunity of the perpetrators of serious offenses committed especially during each electoral period” , did he declare. As for the charges, the public prosecutor indicates that the judges who will be…

In Senegal, the official launch of the commercial circulation of the Regional Express Train (TER) was held on Monday, December 27. This train aims to relieve congestion in Dakar, which concentrates 25% of the population and 70% of the country’s economic activity. After its inauguration in January 2019, the Regional Express Train made several demonstration trips on Monday as part of the effective start of commercial operations initially planned from January 15, 2020, after a free period offered to the populations. According to the President of the Republic, who enumerated the various points which motivated the realization of this project,…