BUSINESS - The African Mirror

Dec

19

2020

How sub-Saharan Africa can rethink its approach to agriculture

BUSINESS

In response to the economic devastation caused by the coronavirus pandemic, most sub-Saharan governments are developing economic recovery plans. These will require some different thinking, particularly when it comes to agriculture. Wandile Sihlobo, the chief economist of the Agricultural Business Chamber of South Africa, explains to Michael Aliber, a professor of agricultural economics at the University of Fort Hare, what that new thinking might look like. MICHAEL ALIBER, Professor of Agricultural Economics, University of Fort Hare WANDILE SIHLOBO, Visiting Research Fellow, Wits School of Governance, University of the Witwatersrand You have argued that governments should use the post-COVID environment to…

Dec

18

2020

By The African Mirror

MTN could complete Nigerian sim card order within six months – executive

BUSINESS

MTN could be compliant with Nigeria’s order that telecommunications firms add valid National Identification Numbers (NIN) to all registered sim cards within six months, while a ban on sales of new sim cards was unlikely to last that long, executives said. The current and incoming CEOs of MTN Nigeria, Ferdi Moolman and Karl Toriola, made the comments on a call to brief investors on the change after Nigerian regulators made the announcement earlier this week, giving the industry a two week deadline to complete the task.

Dec

17

2020

By The African Mirror

Morocco’s central bank holds benchmark interest rate steady at 1.5%

BUSINESS

MOROCCO'S central bank kept its benchmark interest rate unchanged at 1.5% as it seeks to help the economy deal with the fallout of the coronavirus pandemic. The central bank expects economic growth to contract 6.6% this year, citing the impact of COVID-19-related restrictive measures and a decline in farm output hit by drought. Growth is projected to rebound to 3.6% in 2021. Inflation, triggered mainly by food prices, is seen at 0.7% in 2020 and 2021, before picking up to 1.3% in 2022.

Dec

17

2020

By The African Mirror

Sudan welcomes U.S. move to clear $1 bln in arrears to World Bank

BUSINESS

SUDAN's finance ministry has welcomed the U.S. Treasury's move to clear $1 billion in Sudanese arrears to the World Bank after its removal from Washington's list of terrorism sponsors. The move allows Sudan to access $1.5 billion annually in funds from the International Development Association (IDA), which is an arm of the World Bank. Sudan's presence on the list had cut it off from much-needed financial assistance and foreign investment in the midst of an economic crisis marked by shortages in wheat and fuel. Acting finance minister Heba Ahmed said on Monday that the U.S. Export-Import Bank would also provide…

Dec

17

2020

By The African Mirror

Access Bank subsidiary rejects money-laundering allegations in Congo

BUSINESS

STANIS BUJAKERA THE Congo subsidiary of Nigeria's Access Bank on Wednesday rejected allegations of money laundering by the Democratic Republic of Congo's anti-corruption agency. The Agency for the Prevention and Fight Against Corruption (APLC) is investigating allegations by a former Access Bank employee that it laundered money for companies which were under U.S. sanctions. Access Bank said in a statement that an independent audit "did not reveal any anomalies or malfunctions that could confirm these illicit practices". Congo's President Felix Tshisekedi set up the APLC after making tackling corruption a campaign promise before he was elected two years ago. The…

Dec

16

2020

By The African Mirror

Lloyd’s, Parsyl to insure emerging market COVID-19 vaccine rollout

BUSINESS

NOOR ZAINAB HUSSAIN and CAROLYN COHN LLYOD’S of London and insurtech firm Parsyl have launched a programme to insure the distribution of COVID-19 vaccines in emerging markets as drugmakers race to address the biggest global logistical challenge since the Second World War. The Global Health Risk Facility (GHRF), made up of 14 insurers and reinsurers, has been set up to address the challenges of transporting temperature-sensitive vaccines, and will be supported by $26.7 million in funding from the U.S International Development Finance Corporation, the companies said on Tuesday. The DFC loan will be used to capitalize a new public-private Lloyd's…

Dec

15

2020

By The African Mirror

COVID-19 will likely widen yawning migrant pay gap – U.N.

BUSINESS

EMMA BATHA MIGRANTS earn up to 42% less than national workers in high-income countries, with the COVID-19 pandemic likely to exacerbate the pay gap and women worse affected than men, according to U.N. labour experts. The pay discrepancy has widened markedly in many countries in the last five years, notably Cyprus, Italy, Portugal and Ireland, according to research by the International Labour Organization (ILO). The U.N. agency said much of the overall migrant pay gap could not be explained by differences in education, skills or experience, and was likely due to entrenched discrimination. There are an estimated 164 million migrant…

Sep

30

2021

By The African Mirror

The currency for all? Grass-roots drives crypto adoption rate in Africa fastest in the world

BUSINESS

SETH ONYANGO, BIRD AFRICA amassed 105.6 billion dollars worth of cryptocurrencies in forecasts for the year ending June 2021, driven by peer-to-peer (P2P) transactions in key growth markets. Markets like Kenya, Nigeria, South Africa, and Tanzania had some of the highest grass-roots adoptions in the world and ranked in the top 20 Global Crypto Adoption Index. Digital analytics firm, Chainalysis’s latest figures show transactions volume made up of retail-sized transfers in Africa was 7 per cent, against the global average of 5.5 per cent. “No region uses P2P platforms at a higher rate than African cryptocurrency users, as they account…

Dec

12

2020

By The African Mirror

Libya economic talks set for Geneva next week – U.N.

BUSINESS

THE U.N. acting envoy on Libya Stephanie Williams will host an economic working group from December 14-15 in Geneva, to discuss policy reforms, a U.N. spokeswoman has announced. The talks, co-chaired by Egypt, the European Union and the United States, will include representatives of the main Libyan institutions, U.N. spokeswoman Alessandra Vellucci told a Geneva briefing, without elaborating. - Thomson Reuters Foundation.

Dec

12

2020

By The African Mirror

The profile of South African entrepreneurs surviving against unbelievably heavy odds

BUSINESS

SOUTH Africa is battling one of the highest unemployment rates worldwide. A concentrated number of unemployed people live in marginalised and under-resourced communities, where the estimated unemployment rate is 60%. MELINDA DU TOIT, Post-doctoral Research Fellow at the Centre for Social Development in Africa, University of Johannesburg Entrepreneurship is proposed by a number of socioeconomic researchers working in the field of unemployment as one possible, but not a simple, panacea for the employment crisis. To start a successful business, a person needs, among others, finances, business acumen, an interest in entrepreneurship, a marketing strategy, a space ideal for attracting customers,…