Author: Ibrahima jr Dia

The Islamic Development Bank (IDB) Group, through the Islamic Corporation for Private Sector Development (IDC), has signed a USD 10 million Shariah Compliant Credit Facility Agreement with TuranBank Azerbaijan. These resources should make it possible to finance private sector companies operating in the country, including small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) affected by the Covid-19 pandemic. “The funds will be used to further develop long-term funding opportunities. This by diversifying financial resources and developing the country’s non-oil sector,” commented Fazil Musayev, Chairman of the Board of Directors of TuranBank. Established in November 1999, ICD works for sustainable economic growth in its…

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OPay, an Africa-focused digital payment startup, has announced the opening of its first “OPay” store in Egypt to offer services and products to individuals and businesses. The initiative is part of its expansion plan in Egypt where the structure plans to open other stores in the country. Now, the company’s customers will be able to top up their phone balance and make electronic payments for a number of services, including paying mobile phone bills. Hesham Ezz El-Din, Director of Digital and Cards Business Line at OPay Egypt, said the company is “delighted to launch its first OPay store in the…

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Kenyan mobile network operator Safaricom is in talks with Ethio Telecom to share towers in Ethiopia, we learned on Monday February 28 from sources familiar with the matter. Kenya’s largest telecommunications provider is currently working closely with Ethiopia’s state-owned telecommunications operator and the Ethiopian Communications Authority (ECA) to fine-tune the details of the partnership. The Safaricom-led consortium is expected to invest $8 billion in critical infrastructure and services in Ethiopia by 2032. During that time, the company may be forced to use cell sites, cell towers and other active elements of its competitor, such as network roaming, during installation. “As…

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The ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development (EBID) has announced that its investment volume has reached USD 397 million in Côte d’Ivoire. In a press release published earlier this week, the regional institution based in Lomé specifies that this amount invested affects key sectors of the economy such as transport, infrastructure and the environment. According to the same source, this figure should increase significantly thanks to the implementation of new projects that have just been approved by the bank for Côte d’Ivoire. The document also mentions that EBID authorities paid an official visit to this West African country. During their…

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Kenyan startup MarketForce, a B2B platform for the retail distribution of consumer goods and digital financial services, announced Tuesday (February 22) that it has raised $40 million in Series A funding. The round was led by V8 Capital Partners , a London and Lagos-based company with participation from Ten13 VC, SOSV Select Fund and Vu Ventures, among others. These mobilized resources should enable the company to accelerate its growth in the retail segment in Africa. They now bring the company’s portfolio to 42.5 million USD after its pre-Series A financing round last year amounted to 2.5 million USD. “Our major…

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In Ethiopia, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed inaugurated this Sunday, February 20, the production of electricity from the great Renaissance dam built on the Nile. This project, destined to be the largest on the continent, is thus taking shape nearly 11 years after the start of construction work. “The path to prosperity is open to us. Nothing can stop Ethiopia now. We will unite, come together and work together on projects like the Renaissance Dam rather than focusing on fratricidal struggles and battles that divide us,” said Abiy Ahmed, referring to clashes between his army and the rebels of the Tigray…

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The World Health Organization (WHO) has designated the six African countries that will benefit from technology transfer to produce their own mRNA vaccines. These are Egypt, Kenya, Nigeria, South Africa, Senegal and Tunisia. Speaking on Friday 18 February on the sidelines of the EU-Africa summit, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus hinted that it has become an imperative for the companies producing the vaccines to share their technology with others. in order to effectively fight against the coronavirus pandemic which has already claimed more than 5 million lives worldwide. “The best way to deal with health emergencies and achieve universal health…

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The South African bank Standard Bank Group Limited plans to buy additional shares in its Kenyan subsidiary Stanbic Holdings, through its investment vehicle Stanbic Africa Holdings Limited (SAHL). The banking establishment intends to increase its stake by the end of December 2022 to 75% against 72.25% previously. Indeed, the Kenyan Capital Markets Authority (CMA) has granted the South African bank a period of time until the end of December 2022 to finalize this acquisition transaction. This is the latest extension to the buying window since the multinational began acquiring Stanbic shares in May 2018 by offering a buyout price of…

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Dark Fiber Africa (DFA), a South African company specializing in the provision of open access fiber optic infrastructure and connectivity, announced on Monday, February 14, the appointment of Heydon Hall as Chief Information Officer. The new manager has more than 20 years of experience in the field of IT and telecoms. With a PhD in Commerce from the University of Johannesburg, he has also been involved in several successful tech start-ups. His “role within the company would be focused on developing and overseeing the implementation of a robust and integrated information technology strategy, as well as overall digital transformation and…

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The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has warned that South Africa will face lackluster growth despite a faster-than-expected recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic. In a press release published on Friday, February 11, the Bretton Woods institution forecasts that growth will rebound to 4.6% in 2021, after contracting by 6.4% in 2020. However, the monetary institution was optimistic. Believing that the economic recovery should increase in the context of low vaccination rates and foreign travel bans decided because of the Omicron variant. Despite this positive note, the IMF maintains that the economic recovery remains fragile because it has been accompanied by a…

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Veritas Kapital Assurance Plc, one of Nigeria’s leading insurance companies, has announced the appointment of Paul Oki as an independent nn-executive director. The company has notified shareholders and the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) of the proposal, which has been approved by the National Insurance Commission. The new director has more than 23 years of experience in the areas of corporate law, telecommunications, aviation, energy, among others. He has expertise at the administrative level, which means that he is courted by many international establishments. Holder of a Bachelor of Laws from the University of Benin in 1997 and admitted to the…

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LOLC Holdings Plc, a Sri Lankan holding company, will acquire nearly 73.2% of the shares of Key Microfinance Bank Plc, a microfinance bank operating in Kenya. Sri Lanka’s second-largest listed company by revenue recently obtained regulatory approval for the deal. The holding company now takes control of the national microfinance bank licensed by the Central Bank of Kenya. Under the terms of the agreement, LOLC is expected to purchase 31.4 million shares at a price of $0.07 each, valuing the transaction at $2.1 million. The multinational should help Key Microfinance to reorganize its basic banking system in order to improve…

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Telecommunications tower company IHS Towers announced on Monday (January 31st) that it has appointed Sandile Msimango as Vice President and CEO of IHS South Africa. The new resident was the head of passive infrastructure investments and management for MTN Group between 2009 and 2015. This appointment comes in a context where IHS Towers has acquired 5,709 telecommunications towers from MTN for 412 million USD in South Africa. The South African multinational telecoms company had said it will use these resources to reinvest in strategic growth initiatives such as securing high-demand spectrum. According to IHS, Sandile Msimango was instrumental in MTN’s…

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MTN Nigeria made a net profit of 298.65 billion naira (719 million USD) in 2021, according to financial results released recently by the telecommunications company. At this level, the profit of the subsidiary of the South African multinational MTN Group increased by 45.5% over one year. Operating margins – calculated from earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (Ebitda) – increased by 2.1 percentage points to 53%. Regarding the group’s revenue, it has seen an increase of more than 70 billion naira (169 million USD) in 2021 thanks to value-added services which include airtime lending and mobile money (Fintech ),…

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