Year 8 | Edition 15 | 3 December 2021
 

[Nigeria] AFEX launches $100m Food Security Fund

AFEX, a leading commodities market player in Nigeria, has today announced a new $100m 10-year bond called The Food Security Fund (FSF). The financing will strengthen Africa's food security and produce three million MT of food annually on the continent.

AFEX’s fund will support the financing of 250,000 hectares of land for commercial and smallholder farming, initially consisting of 30,000 hectares in the Nigerian states of Kano, Kaduna, Oyo, Ogun, Cross River & the FCT, before covering...

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Africa Data Centres selects DPT to provide renewable energy for its data centres in South Africa

Africa Data Centres has selected Distributed Power Technologies (DPT) to provide renewable energy and storage solutions for its data centres across South Africa. The partnership will initiate with the deployment of renewable energy generation facilities to meet the more than 10 MW power requirements at Africa Data Centres’ Cape Town facility.

Africa Data Centres is the continent’s largest network of interconnected, carrier and cloud neutral data centre facilities, and they are continually expanding across the region...

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Burger King opens first outlet in Nigeria

American multinational fast food chain Burger King has opened its first outlet in Nigeria in partnership with local firm Allied Food & Confectionary Services Limited.

Burger King’s market entry was supported by the Commercial Service (CS) of the U.S. Mission.  CS assists American companies to find Nigerian partners who are interested in U.S. goods and services, including franchising.  CS supports American businesses coming to trade shows in Nigeria, sends Nigerian delegations to U.S. trade shows, and facilitates...

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Liquid Intelligent Technologies launches Microsoft Teams Essential platform for SMEs in Africa

Liquid Intelligent Technologies has announced that it's the launch partner for the new Microsoft Teams Essential offering. A solution that brings the Teams collaboration platform into an affordable package targeting small, medium and micro-enterprises across the continent.

With around seventy-three per cent of workers around the globe affirming that they prefer flexible remote work options, hybrid work will inevitably be the norm going forward. Teams Essentials expands on the success of Microsoft Teams by...

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Lekela reaches commercial operation of 250 MW West Bakr wind farm in Egypt

Lekela, the renewable power generation company that delivers utility-scale projects across Africa, announced it reached commercial operation of its West Bakr Wind farm in Egypt.

The project has taken less than two years to build since construction work started on site in February 2020. Comprising of 96 turbines, installed by Siemens Gamesa, West Bakr Wind will produce over 1000 GWh renewable electricity every year and prevent more than 530,000 tonnes of carbon...

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Mastercard and Meta join forces to support digitization of SMEs in MEA

Mastercard is collaborating with Meta to support the digitization and growth of SMEs across the MEA region.

The two plan to organize a training webinar on Wednesday, 8 December that will provide SMEs insights from industry experts, and a masterclass on how to manage uncertainty from renowned author and academic Nathan Furr, Associate Professor of Strategy at INSEAD. Access to credit, data, training and digital tools are among the key challenges for SMEs, further compounded by infrastructure limitations and...

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South African proptech firm e4 expands to the UK

After 21 successful years in the South African PropTech industry, digitalisation specialist e4 is expanding into European markets. Having recently launched a new group in the UK, long-standing executive director from South Africa, Simon Slater, has relocated to the UK to head up the venture.

Slater’s focus will be on building e4's relationship with various mortgage lenders, conveyancing firms and other partners in the UK. He will be supported by a global team of analysts, developers and staff to help build out the new group...

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Siemens Gamesa delivers 250 MW of clean wind energy to Egypt

Siemens Gamesa, a global company in the renewable energy industry, has bolstered its presence and commitment to the growth of clean energy in Egypt, with the commercial operation of the 250 MW West Bakr Wind farm located 30 kilometres north-west of Ras Ghareb in the Gulf of Suez area.

The company has successfully installed 96 SG 2.6-114 wind turbines for the renewable power generation company Lekela through a turnkey engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) contract. The company will provide a long-term...

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OPEC Fund extends $80 million loan to Afreximbank to boost regional integration in Africa

The OPEC Fund for International Development (OPEC Fund) has signed an $80 million term loan agreement with the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) to finance international trade activities directly among corporates or through financial intermediaries.

The OPEC Fund’s support will assist in boosting Afreximbank’s liquidity to grow its loan portfolio as it finances exports and imports in critical sectors across Africa such as agriculture, manufacturing and healthcare. The African continent is still...

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TotalEnergies commences drilling of ultra-deep Venus-1 well in Orange Basin offshore Namibia

French major TotalEnergies has commenced drilling its ultra-deep Venus-1 well in the Orange Basin offshore Namibia. On-trend, Pancontinental has mapped the very large Saturn turbidite complex in PEL 87. Saturn is geologically similar to Total’s Venus Prospect.

Venus and Saturn overlie the same high-quality mature Oil Source Rock, and both lie immediately below the major Regional Seal. The Maersk Voyager drillship has commenced Venus drilling in 3,000m of water. Partners in the well are...

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Scatec’s green hydrogen consortium in Egypt selects Plug Power for delivery of 100 MW Electrolyser

Scatec and its partners, OCI NV, Fertiglobe, The Sovereign Fund of Egypt (TSFE) and Orascom Construction, have selected Plug Power as the technology provider of electrolyser for the 100 MW green hydrogen facility to be built at the Egyptian Basic Industries Corporation SAE (EBIC)’s facility in Ain Sokhna, Egypt.

The hydrogen will be used to produce green ammonia. Orascom Construction is expected to execute the local works for the 100 MW electrolyser project. The 100 MW PEM...

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First phase of 3D seismic project commences on Ruvuma PSA in Tanzania

Africa-focused oil and gas company Aminex announced that the first phase of the 3D seismic project has commenced on the Ruvuma PSA in Tanzania.

ARA Petroleum Tanzania (APT), has confirmed that the seismic contractor commenced preparatory works as planned on 15 November 2021, has now established the GPS control points and survey equipment is being calibrated for ground staking. The Joint Venture expects line clearing and mobilisation of the camp to commence next week. The contractor is making...

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EBRD launches e-learning programme to advance Morocco’s capital markets

The European Bank for Reconstruction (EBRD) is supporting Morocco’s financial system by launching a capital markets e-learning programme in association with Intuition, a digital financial learning provider. The EBRD initiative offers participants the opportunity to update their capital markets knowledge and skills.

The programme was launched in cooperation with the Moroccan Ministry of Economy and Finance, the Moroccan Capital Market Authority (AMMC) and the Casablanca Stock Exchange (CSE). Financial-sector organisations in Morocco...

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'Agribusiness and Fintech are a winning combination' - Samirah Ade-Adebiyi, AFEX Investment

Samirah Ade-Adebiyi, Managing Director at AFEX Investment Samirah Ade-Adebiyi is the Managing Director at AFEX Investment, an organization dedicated to mobilizing farmers and agriculturists to a point of higher productivity and efficiency.

Could you introduce AFEX and tell us something about its function in the Nigerian market?

Africa is fundamentally driven by agriculture, accounting for 15% of the continent’s GDP, with 80% of farming being smallholder and subsistence. Within this context, AFEX is building the physical and technology-enabled infrastructure...

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[Nigeria Business Week] Andrea Ayemoba: Industries unanimously look toward renewable, sustainable practices

The Covid-19 crisis has been cause for numerous economic slumps round the world; companies were shut down, production halted, industries crippled and prices skyrocketed the world over.

Several countries responded by using unaffected sectors to stay afloat while working hard to reactivate the more damaged ones, such as hospitality and tourism. Nigeria’s response has not been different. The government encouraged citizens to rely on land and food production – agriculture is and will...

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[Column] Simon Ngunjiri: The public cloud market is getting bigger in Africa

Despite the growth of cloud over the past decade, for most organizations, only 20 per cent of workloads have made their way to the public cloud according to an IBM report

Public cloud is the most popular model of cloud computing where computing services and infrastructure are managed by a third-party provider and shared with multiple organizations using the public Internet. It makes computing resources available to anyone for purchase. Globally public cloud services market is forecast to grow 6.3 per cent in 2020 to a total...

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[Column] Dumisani Moyo: Three rules for marketing in the post-pandemic era

The COVID pandemic has changed the way businesses sell and market their products and services to customers, and there is likely no return to the old normal.

Prior to the pandemic, enterprise marketing efforts were largely focused on in-person activities, such as conferences, exhibitions, trade shows and activations. Fast-forward eighteen months and the overwhelming majority of marketing activities now take place in the digital realm. This raises some fundamental questions. The role of marketing has changed...

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[Column] Gilbert Lungu: How seamless payment experiences make retail brands more valuable and relevant

As established brands in the retail sector aggressively compete to acquire, cultivate, and defend their share of the Zambian consumer’s spend, those that connect, engage, and transact in the most unified and frictionless ways will be best positioned to grow wallet and market share.

The grocery store of today, be it a multinational retailer or your neighbourhood corner shop, has morphed into a shopping destination where consumers can buy everything from a fresh cup of coffee to sip on as they walk through the aisles, to...

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[Column] Helen Kruger: Protect apps and data while improving productivity

The potential for compromised data is growing rapidly as more people work remotely and as apps move to the cloud. With the average cost of a breach at an all-time high of $4.2 million, businesses cannot afford a single overlooked threat.

Increased reliance on personal devices, internet browsers, and unsecure networks are all increasing risks - particularly for companies accustomed to relying on VPNs and on-premises security solutions. Many traditional IT solutions aren’t capable of protecting against the latest cybersecurity threats and...

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[Column] Vianey Rweyendela: Unlocking Tanzania farmers' potential to mitigate against climate change

President Samia Suluhu’s reaffirmation at the recently concluded COP26 that Tanzania is fully committed to mitigating the effects of adverse climate change across all key sectors (including agriculture) is very commendable. President Samia addressed the 26th United Nations (UN) Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP26), at  Glasgow, Scotland, in the UK. 

It is great news for over 22,407,487 smallholder crop growers, over  4.5 million pastoralists households, and thousands of fisherfolks and foresters in Tanzania. She called for global...

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[Column] NJ Ayuk: Oilfield services companies represent important opportunities for Africa’s energy sector in 2022

Oil and gas in Africa especially the central African region is just starting to hit its stride, OPEC Secretary General H.E. Mohammed Barkindo, told a meeting of major oil companies a few months ago, and the future is especially bright in sub-Saharan Africa.

“With a significant portion of the African population still lacking access to electricity and clean cooking solutions, the role of IOCs and national oil companies has been emphasized,” he said. “The time for oil and gas in Africa is just beginning, as...

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[Africa Tech Review] Duncan Mochama: Africa Data Centres unveils 10MW data centre in Lagos, Nigeria

The demand for data centres in African continues to increase. The establishment of these data centres has positioned a number of companies as public cloud providers offering cloud services on the continent.

On Monday, Africa Data Centres officially opened its new 10MW data centre facility in Lagos, Nigeria. The new facility, the company says, will pave the way for Africa Data Centres hyperscale customers to deploy digitisation solutions to West Africa. This latest announcement as we mentioned in our...

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News Headlines

28-03-2024 | 13:03:44
Unilever accelerates Growth Action Plan by launching productivity programme
Unilever has announced steps to accelerate its Growth Action Plan (GAP) through the separation of Ice Cream and the launch of a major productivity programme.


27-03-2024 | 14:51:22
JW Marriott unveils second property in Kenya
Standing as the tallest hotel in the country with 35 stories in the Westlands commercial district, JW Marriott Hotel Nairobi captures the essence of Kenya’s natural beauty and heritage.


27-03-2024 | 13:22:16
Uganda set to join Single African Air Transport Market
So far, only fourteen countries out of 29 that belong to the Eastern Africa, Southern Africa and Indian Ocean Community (IOC) have acceded to the Single African Air Transport Market, six years since it was launched.


27-03-2024 | 13:19:37
German manufacturer Karcher invests €3 million in the Kenyan market
This investment was made to operationalize the business into a full subsidiary, which includes a regional distribution center at the Freight Forwarders Solutions warehouse, Tatu City, the 5,000-acre mixed-use Special Economic Zone (SEZ) on Nairobi's doorstep, positioning Kenya as a hub for East Africa.


27-03-2024 | 13:13:32
Nissan Africa announces regional appointments 
Jordi Vila, currently Nissan Divisional Vice President Marketing and Sales Europe has been appointed as President Nissan Africa, as DVP.


26-03-2024 | 14:56:32
Radisson Hotel Group targets to have 25 hotels in Morocco by 2030
As Morocco continues to be a crucial market for development, the Group is accelerating its expansion in the country and has therefore extended the portfolio of Erwan Garnier, Senior Director for Development, to include Morocco.


22-03-2024 | 13:48:59
Kenya Airways and Virgin Atlantic announce new codeshare agreement
The first phase of the agreement will allow customers booking through Virgin Atlantic to directly purchase flights on Kenya Airways’ Heathrow to Nairobi service.  


22-03-2024 | 10:43:33
Mark-Anthony Johnson: Is Africa splitting in two?
Mark-Anthony Johnson: Is Africa splitting in two?


22-03-2024 | 10:18:00
Africa’s vibrant and sustainable creations
In many African communities, creativity knows no bounds. A unique and fascinating trend has emerged, where individuals repurpose flip-flops into remarkable crafts.


21-03-2024 | 07:58:00
Nissan Navara to fly the flag up through Africa in daring expedition
Dubbed Nissan Daring Africa 2024, the expedition will visit Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Malawi, Tanzania and Kenya before ending in Egypt.


20-03-2024 | 14:38:00
[Column] Anthony Mwangi: Road towards gainful employment in Kenya: The Dual TVET approach
The evolving employment landscape demands a fresh perspective, one that champions the pragmatic alternative of Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET).


20-03-2024 | 13:25:30
 TradeMark Africa launches Ghana Country Programme Oversight Committee
The Committee will play a critical role in overseeing trade and customs development programs designed to enhance trade growth and competitiveness not only within Ghana, but also along the Abidjan-Lagos Corridor.


20-03-2024 | 09:53:00
[Webinar] Complimentary expert session for Telecom leaders and Startups in Africa, March 21
Designed for telecom leaders and startups, thia event offers invaluable strategies for expanding services, managing FX risks, enhancing cross-border payments, and establishing credibility in the international arena.


19-03-2024 | 15:00:43
Xsolla unveils new payment methods for gamers in Africa
This move addresses the unique financial landscape of Africa, where a significant portion of the population, particularly in regions like Ghana and Uganda, remains unbanked.


18-03-2024 | 11:12:30
[Column] Hassan Egeh: Somalia's battle with climate change effect
Climate change has significant effects on Somalia, impacting various aspects of the country. Droughts and water scarcity have become more severe, leading to a loss of vegetation and livestock deaths. This has resulted in food insecurity, with crop failures and reduced agricultural productivity.


 


 
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