BUSINESS - The African Mirror

Oct

30

2020

A post-election crisis could scupper Ivory Coast’s economic gains

BUSINESS

ANGE ABOA and AARON ROSS AS sleek highway overpasses and shopping malls sprouted in Ivory Coast's commercial capital Abidjan following the 2010-11 civil war, investors often pointed to 2020 as the year that could unleash the country's full economic potential. A successful transfer of power when President Alassane Ouattara's second term expired, they said, would help banish memories of the disputed 2010 election that led to the war and attract other investors still wary about instability. But as Ivory Coast heads toward an election on Saturday that Ouattara is unexpectedly contesting and his main opponents are trying to sabotage, that…

Oct

29

2020

By The African Mirror

Ghana finance ministry sees swift recovery from COVID-19 slump

BUSINESS

Ghana's Finance Ministry revised up its 2020 growth forecast on Wednesday and forecast a rebound to 5.9% next year as the economy recovers from its first contraction in almost four decades due to the coronavirus pandemic. The West African nation, a major producer of gold, oil and cocoa, saw gross domestic shrink 3.2% in the second quarter after a three-week lockdown in March forced many businesses to close. But lower prices and a stabilised exchange rate have boosted business optimism and led the ministry to expect growth this year of 1.9% versus an earlier estimate of 0.9%, Finance Minister Ken…

Oct

29

2020

By The African Mirror

Nigeria stocks rise to 9-month high after curfews imposed last week eased

BUSINESS

Nigerian stocks have climbed to a nine-month high after round-the-clock curfews imposed last week to curb protests over alleged police brutality eased and investors piled into consumer goods shares. The share index rose 1.58% to 29,437 points, a level last seen in January. The index of Nigeria's top consumer goods shares gained 5.67%. - Thomson Reuters Foundation.

Oct

29

2020

By The African Mirror

Somalia’s economy to contract 2.5% this year, World Bank says

BUSINESS

DUNCAN MIRIRI SOMALIA’S economy is expected to shrink by 2.5% this year, the World Bank said on Wednesday, revising its initial forecast of 3.2% growth due to the impact of the coronavirus crisis. Apart from the pandemic, the Horn-of-Africa economy has also been hit by severe flooding this year and a widespread infestation of desert locusts, which is in its second wave. "The pandemic is projected to push the economy into contraction, increase fiscal pressures, and deepen poverty in 2020," the World Bank said in its latest review of the economy. Somalia secured the ability to receive debt forgiveness from…

Oct

28

2020

By The African Mirror

Elaborate Somali insurgent tax system collects almost as much as government

BUSINESS

KATHERINE HOURELD THE Somali insurgent group al Shabaab collects almost as much tax as the government through a sophisticated system of levies on activities from importing goods to irrigating crops, a think tank report has found. The Mogadishu-based Hiraal Institute said al Shabaab's tax collectors were bringing in an estimated $15 million per month. Its report was based on more than 70 interviews with businessmen, government officials, al Shabaab defectors and active members of the insurgents' tax collection cell. It examined receipts and income reports from religious taxes and fees charged on activities such as crossing checkpoints, running businesses, irrigating…

Oct

27

2020

By The African Mirror

Restrictions in trade to contain COVID-19 have been devastating for Africa’s urban poor

BUSINESS

ASTRID R.N. HAAS, Policy Director, International Growth Centre VICTORIA DELBRIDGE, Head of the Cities that Work initiative, International Growth Centre Trade routes have been significantly disrupted this year in efforts to contain COVID-19. The effects of this are already showing: global growth is set to contract by 4.9% and growth in sub-Saharan Africa will contract by 3.2%. This will get worse if continued restrictions further impede trade. The World Trade Organisation has warned that at worst, global trade could collapse by a third this year, and at best, it will contract by 13%, similar to the recorded drop after the…

Oct

27

2020

By The African Mirror

African money transfer firms thrive as pandemic spurs online remittances

BUSINESS

JOE BAVIER and MaCDONALD DZIRUTWE HAVING fled an economic implosion in his native Zimbabwe, Brighton Takawira was able to support his mother back home with modest earnings from a small perfume business he set up in South Africa. Then the pandemic struck. Borders closed. The buses he had used to send his cash stopped running. "I had to send something, even a few dollars," said Takawira, though it meant sometimes going without bread. So he tried out an online remittance company on a friend's recommendation. He is one of many African migrants being pushed towards digital transfer services, often for…

Oct

27

2020

By The African Mirror

Abu Dhabi Fund for Development provides $556.6 million to Sudan

BUSINESS

THE Abu Dhabi Fund for Development has provided $556.6 million to Sudan in monetary, economic, and other forms of aid, and said it will continue to provide assistance to Sudan to complete a $1.5 billion grant the UAE committed to last year. That total included a previously announced $250 million dollar deposit in Sudan's central bank, as well as $119.8 million in budget support. The aid also included 540,000 tonnes of wheat worth $144.7 million, medical aid worth $19.75 million and educational aid worth $11.4. - Thomson Reuters Foundation.

Oct

25

2020

By The African Mirror

U.S. removal of Sudan from ‘sponsors of terrorism’ list is step toward debt relief -IMF

BUSINESS

THE International Monetary Fund says U.S. government plans to remove Sudan from its list of state sponsors of terrorism would clear away one of the hurdles facing the heavily indebted African country as it seeks debt relief. "We are encouraged by the U.S. administration's formal indication to Congress of its intention to remove Sudan from (the list)," Carol Baker, the IMF's Sudan mission chief, said in a statement to Reuters. "The removal of Sudan from the (list)eliminates one of the hurdles toward possible HIPC debt relief." The Heavily Indebted Poor Countries initiative was launched in 1996 by the IMF and…

Oct

23

2020

By The African Mirror

Afreximbank ready to raise up to $5 bln for COVID-19 vaccines for Africa – CDC head

BUSINESS

DAVID LEWIS and GIULIA PARAVICINI THE African Export-Import Bank is ready to raise up to $5 billion to purchase COVID-19 vaccines for African countries, according to the head of the continent's disease control body. John Nkengasong, head of the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), said Africa needs to be pro-active in the race to secure vaccines for the novel coronavirus that has infected more than 41 million people globally. COVAX, a global COVID-19 vaccine allocation plan co-led by the World Health Organization (WHO), will only be able to secure shots for less than 10% of the continent's…