BUSINESS - The African Mirror

Jun

30

2021

Kenya secures $130 mln from the World Bank for COVID vaccines

BUSINESS

KENYA has secured $130 million of additional funds from the World Bank to help buy vaccines to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic, the bank has announced. Like other countries around the continent, the East African nation has been hit by deadly waves of COVID-19 infections this year, forcing it to re-impose strict, partial lockdown measures. "This additional financing comes at a critical time when the Government of Kenya is making concerted efforts to contain the rising cases of COVID-19 infections," said Keith Hansen, the World Bank's country director in Kenya. The financing will help Kenya buy vaccines through an African Union…

Jun

30

2021

By The African Mirror

U.S. welcomes Sudan clearance of $1.4 billion in IMF arrears

BUSINESS

THE U.S. Treasury said on Tuesday it welcomed Sudan's clearance of about $1.4 billion in arrears to the International Monetary Fund, paving the way for the first phase of debt relief under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries initiative. Treasury said in a statement that it committed to contribute up to $120 million in grant resources to fund IMF debt relief for Sudan in the first phase under HIPC. The Treasury provided bridge financing of about $1.15 billion in March to help Sudan clear its arrears at the World Bank. U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said that Sudanese authorities were committed…

Apr

16

2021

By The African Mirror

Risks for South Africa’s food couriers surge during the pandemic

BUSINESS

KIM HARRISBERG and AVI ASHER-SCHAPIRO MORE than a year after Malawian driver Matthew was hit by a car while delivering food on his motorbike in South Africa, he lives with shooting pain in his foot and fears for his life every time he hits the road. His injuries, including a broken toe and various cuts, left him unable to work for a month, but the company he was riding for - Uber Eats - told him he did not qualify for compensation as he was in hospital for less than 48 hours. "I felt totally abandoned," Matthew - who asked…

Jun

28

2021

By The African Mirror

Tanzania considers reviving $10 billion port project

BUSINESS

PRESIDENT Samia Suluhu Hassan has announced that Tanzania will look to revive a $10 billion stalled port project on the eastern coast of the country. Tanzania inked a framework agreement in 2013 with China Merchants Holdings International to construct the port and a special economic zone that aimed to transform the east African country into a trade and transport hub to rival its neighbours. The government of the late president John Magufuli, whom Hassan succeeded after he died in March, had complained that the conditions proposed by the investors, which included Oman's State General Reserve Fund, were commercially unviable. China…

Apr

22

2021

By The African Mirror

South Africa’s Nedbank to stop funding new coal mines

BUSINESS

SOUTH Africa's Nedbank has announced that it will stop financing new thermal coal mines from 2025 and cut direct funding of new oil and gas exploration projects with immediate effect, amid growing pressure on banks from climate activists. South Africa's lenders - some of the biggest banks on the continent - are facing pressure from environmental groups to stop funding fossil-fuel power projects that are seen as a major risk to global plans to tackle climate change. South Africa, the continent's biggest greenhouse gas emitter, gets most of its power from coal-fired power stations. Nedbank, one of the country's four…

Jun

28

2021

By The African Mirror

Africa’s $2.5 trillion infrastructure pipeline

BUSINESS

BIRD NEWSROOM THE Africa Infrastructure Development Index (AIDI) by the African Development Bank (AfDB) shows that Seychelles led the continent in terms of value for money with an impressive 96.73 points out of the possible 100 points in 2020, compared with the 73.82 points it scored 10 years earlier. Egypt and Libya scored 88.39 and 82.97 points respectively during the period under review, compared with 56.57 points and 58.63 points scored in 2010, while South Africa and Mauritius came fourth and fifth, registering 79.34 points and 79.12 points respectively, against 53.8 and 53.2 points in 2010. Undertaken in June 2020…

Apr

21

2021

By The African Mirror

Kenyan insurer Pula offers lifeline to African farmers hit by climate change

BUSINESS

EDWIN WAITA WHEN Kenyan farmer Waki Munyalo's crop of lentils shrank by three quarters last year because of unusually low rainfall, disaster was averted thanks to a simple remedy that was previously unavailable to most African farmers - insurance. Munyalo, a 38-year-old mother-of-three, had taken out an insurance policy with Kenyan start-up Pula, which aims to reach a vast, untapped pool of African farmers grappling with new disruptions linked to climate change. Munyalo made a claim on her Pula policy and received a compensation payment of 12,000 Kenyan shillings ($110), close to what she would have earned if her crop…

Jun

24

2021

By The African Mirror

Africa continues to dominate world mobile money trade

BUSINESS

BIRD NEWSROOM AFRICA is projected to maintain its impressive streak as the global leader in mobile money services, a result of the steady adoption of no-contact payments and more recently the fear of contracting COVID-19, according to a report by the Global System for Mobile Communications, or GSMA. In 2020, Africa made up more than half of the total live mobile money services globally, recording 548 million mobile money wallets, of the total 1.2 billion registered accounts globally. Out of 310 live mobile money services, 157 operate in Africa, representing 50.7% of the world total, according to the latest report…

Apr

21

2021

By The African Mirror

J&J reports $100 million in vaccine sales as results top forecasts

BUSINESS

JOHNSON & Johnson beat expectations for quarterly earnings and raised its dividend payouts to shareholders yesterday, while reporting $100 million in sales of its COVID-19 vaccine, whose use was paused by U.S. regulators last week. The company, which has previously said the vaccine will be available on a not-for-profit basis until the end of the pandemic, also tightened its forecast for adjusted profit this year, suggesting it was largely performing as previously expected. Use of the company's vaccine was temporarily halted by U.S. regulators as they investigate reports of blood clots in six women, prompting a similar pause in South…

May

11

2021

By The African Mirror

‘Innovation helped our business to survive COVID-19’

BUSINESS

MOST entrepreneurs battled to find alternative solutions to keep their business operations going after the COVID-19 pandemic hit South Africans in March 2020, with devastating effects to people’s lives and the economy. Over 50 000 people lost their lives and thousands of businesses suffered massive financial losses as a result of the lockdown and many did not survive. For others, however, this crisis presented a test to adjust accordingly to keep their doors open. Among them was James Matshubeng, managing director of Matoto Technologies, an Information, Communications and Technology (ICT) Consultancy firm. Said Matshubeing: “One of the difficult adjustments the…