Author: Giza Mdoe

• Egypt and Ethiopia have been onboarded into the BRICS bloc.
• BRICS has announced increased investment and trade with Africa.
• Africa stands to gain with increased representation in BRICS.

The presence of BRICS in Africa has grown exponentially with the onboarding of two of the continent’s most populous economies, Egypt and Ethiopia. This move is poised to give Africa a much larger representation in the growing economic formation even as other economies, such as Kenya, express interest in joining the BRICS ecosystem.

“The expansion of BRICS in 2024 has undoubtedly increased Africa’s weight in international affairs and contributed to the ongoing discussion on the complexities of multipolarity,” reports Daria Zelenova, Head of the BRICS African Strategy Centre and Institute for African Studies.

In the wake of the 16th BRICS in Kazan, Russia, Zelenova said, “The development of strategic and commercial ties between BRICS and Africa reflects the pragmatic interest in the …

• African countries lag in terms of clean water and sanitation for all investments.
• The World Bank warns that failure to achieve SDG 6 will affect the achievement of most other goals.
• Tanzania was recognized for achievements of the Water Sector Development Program (WSDP) phase three.

Africa is not on track to achieve Sustainable Development Goal Six (SDG 6), which advocates Clean Water and Sanitation for all, yet its achievement would lead to the realization of multiple Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The assertion was made by the African Development Bank Group, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina who noted that failure to achieve SDG 6 will significantly impact the elimination of poverty (SDG 1), zero hunger (SDG 2), good health and well-being (SDG 3), gender equality (SDG 5), clean energy (SDG 7) and decent work and economic growth (SDG 8) as well.

He said that while there are strong relationships between water security and …

• Enza Zaden’s global subsidiaries hit 26 with a new venture in Tanzania.
• The seed company is a welcome boost to Tanzania’s horticulture sector whose exports clocked 175,000 tonnes in 2024 alone.
• Tanzania horticulture is projected to grow at an annual rate of 11 per cent.

Enza Zaden, the Netherlands’ major seed grower, has announced the expansion of its venture in Tanzania, boasting 16,000 square meters of international vegetable breeding grounds and state-of-the-art facilities. The firm’s Chief Executive Officer made the announcement at the launch of Enza Zaden, Tanzania, in the country’s horticulture seat, Arusha City.

“Today, we operate in 26 countries, employing over 3,000 people, of these, at least 1,000 are involved in research projects working to develop new vegetable varieties,” he announced.

Several dignitaries graced the launch event, including Ambassador Wiebe de Boer, envoy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Tanzania. The diplomat praised Enza Zaden’s choice to …

• Graphite mining firm Pula Group sues South African billionaire Patrice Motsepe for $195M.
• Motsepe’s ARM mining faces breach of non-complete contract by investing in Australian firm Evolution Energy Minerals near Pula’s graphite project.
• ARM denies all claims, maintaining that they ‘considered’ but did not breach contract.

South African billionaire Patrice Motsepe is facing a $195 million lawsuit in Tanzania following allegations of a breach of contract by his mining companies in the East African country. The high profile case is being heard in Tanzania’s Commercial Court and is one of the biggest suits before the corridors of justice in recent years.

Patrice Motsepe owns a number of mining heavyweights including African Rainbow Minerals (ARM), African Rainbow Capital and ARCH Emerging Markets. He also has shares in Tanzanian mining company Pula Group.

In the roiling legal showdown, Pula Group is accusing billionaire Motsepe of breaching a 2021 non-compete contract by …

• Statistics show that the spread of mpox continues to worsen in Africa with over 2,500 new cases recorded in the last week alone.
• Epicentres the DRC and Burundi account for 86.7% of all new confirmed cases reported during the past week.
• To counter the disease spread, partners are supplying vaccines to nine hard-hit countries.

Mpox outbreak is reportedly worsening in Africa as the number of cases crossed 50,000 mark, the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) has warned.

The threat was announced at a media brief on Thursday by Africa CDC Director-General Jean Kaseya, who highlighted that 19 African countries have reported 50,840 mpox cases, with 10,741 confirmed and 1,083 deaths since the start of this year.

“During last week alone, the continent reported 2,532 new cases, including 345 confirmed cases and 32 new deaths,” he reported.

According to the CDC Director-General, data from …

• More than 63.5 million people are facing food insecurity in East Africa.
• Over three million people have fled war-torn Sudan, while11 million remain internally displaced in the country.
• Double whammy of conflict, and bad weather crises are exasperating food insecurity in the region.

The World Food Program (WFP) has raised concern that food security and poor nutrition in East Africa is taking an “alarming” tangent in a region where a double whammy of conflict and poor weather patterns are conspiring, pushing millions at risk.

WFP says that as of October, more than 63.5 million people were under food insecurity in Eastern Africa with the situation particularly dire in conflict stricken countries such as Sudan.

The UN agency stated that conflict, inflation, disease outbreaks and poor access to nutritious diets as well as poor access to safe drinking water are to blame for the worsening state of food security and nutrition …

• Bad weather is severely affecting Brazil, and Vietnam’s coffee output.
• Coffee prices are soaring as global supply decreases from the South American countries.
• As Brazil and Vietnam take a hit, East African coffee producers stand to gain as prices increase.

Coffee output in Brazil and Vietnam has taken a hit owing to bad weather affecting global supply, a scenario that could turn the tide in favour of the bean producers from East Africa.

At the moment, Brazil, which is the world’s largest coffee supplier, is facing worsening drought that is expected to further affect the optimum production of the crop in this year.

Since April 2024, rainfall in Brazil has been below the required amount, which has in turn severely affected the flowering of coffee trees and therefore, overall production.

According to the ICE, there is a drastic decline in arabica coffee stocks which are reported to be at a …

• Uganda has digitized land management system to ease transactions.
• Real estate stakeholders urged to align with the new digital system.
• Stakeholders cautioned to conduct due diligence along with use of the new system.

Authorities in Kampala have launched what they call as the Uganda National Land Information System (UgNLIS), a digital platform which the country’s Ministry of Lands, Housing and Urban Development is banking on to modernize management of the key resource.

According to an update from the ministry, the initiative seeks to eliminate inefficiencies in land management in the country. The ministry says that by digitizing land records, they will be able to enhance transparency and accessibility to vast array of land records.

“The system is a significant step toward transforming land services and boosting public trust…the UgNLIS manages spatially-referenced data for land registration, valuation, planning, and administration across Uganda,” reads the report in part.

“The digital system is …

• Drought and bad weather in Russia have left the country staring at record-low production. This is bad news for key importers including countries in East Africa.
• Russian wheat crop is expected to fall to an 11-year low this season.
• Prices of wheat are expected to rise even higher globally.

The worsening numbers of Russia wheat production are hitting the headlines in East Africa as the region braces for higher consumer prices in 2025. A dip in Russia wheat output poses huge risk to East Africa, a market that heavily relies on imports to plug its own production gaps.

For farmers in Russia, bad weather, is projected to cut their output of the key ingredient that makes a variety of foods for millions in East Africa. As a result, economists project that prices for wheat in East Africa—a key importer of Russian wheat—will soar in the coming months.

In a report …

• Russia and Tanzania are holding trade talks aiming at revamping commercial ties between the two nations.
• At the moment, Russia projects at doubling trade with Tanzania.
• Russia to use Tanzania as a single port of entry to access the African market.

Russia has pledged to double current trade value with Tanzania as authorities from the two countries met in Dar es Salaam Tanzania. The pledge was made at the first Russian-Tanzanian Intergovernmental Commission on Trade and Economic Cooperation at the start of the week in Tanzania’s commercial port city where the meeting is being held.

Russian Economic Development Minister Maxim Reshetnikov visited the country along with a delegation of Russian businessmen representing more than 50 Russian companies.

“Based on our estimates, trade between our countries could double,” Mr. Reshetnikov said. “We stand ready to help the Tanzanian economy maintain the high pace that has achieved in the energy, agriculture, infrastructure …