Author: Giza Mdoe

Global actors race to fund Africa’s digital connectivity as the new investment frontier.  Blue-Raman undersea cable to lower internet prices across EAC. Improved connectivity bridges Africa’s to next phase of development. The European Union has committed $42.8 million to extend Google’s Blue-Raman undersea cable into East Africa, Kenya’s President William Ruto has announced. Speaking following talks with European Commission Executive Vice-President Henna Virkkunen in Brussels, Kenya’s President William Ruto said the extension of Google’s Blue-Raman the cable will improve internet connectivity, reduce bandwidth costs and strengthen the EAC  digital economy. Ruto said the cable extension will connect Kenya, Tanzania, Somalia…

Belarus agrees to extend agriculture mechanisation services to Tanzania. The two countries agree to expand trade of cash crops. Tanzania to adopt Belarus’ model of agro-mechanisation and after sale services. Tanzania and Belarus have entered a second round of diplomatic talks for agriculture mechanisation and to expand its cash crop market particularly export of coffee, tea, cashew nuts and horticultural products. The development comes following this week’s state visit to Tanzania by the Belarus Speaker of the House of Representatives, Natalya Kochanova. This state visit to Tanzania by a high ranking Belarus official is the second one in as many months…

Tanzania-Russia partnership is on the verge of a new era after President Samia Suluhu, who’s facing increasing isolation from the West, woos foreign investment at St. Petersburg International Economic Forum. In the latest edition of this global forum, Tanzania and Russia agree on over $2 billion worth of investments. Key projects include development of economic zones, Rostum uranium, Roscongress Foundation tourism investment. Tanzania and Russia have entered several investment agreements at the just ended St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF). The high-level forum attracted more than 24,000 participants from over 140 countries, including heads of state, investors and executives from world…

Four years to go, can Kenya still achieve its universal electricity ambitions? President William Ruto cautions against ‘over reliance’ on foreign funding. Last mile electrification program running to schedule – Kenya Power MD. Kenya set out to achieve universal electricity access by 2030, with only four years remaining, stakeholders question whether the goal is achievable. “The government is on course to mobilise necessary capital both private and public  towards connecting the identified customer clusters both on-grid and off-grid,” the Kenya Power Managing Director and CEO Dr. Eng Joseph Siror reassures stakeholders and the nation at large. At the 2026 Energy…

Analysts say DRC’s over-subscribed eurobond indicates investor confidence despite conflict and rare ebola ravaging the country. DRC now poised to access international capital instruments. DRC eurobond has beat critics doubt upon first issuance. Against all odds, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has managed to hold and grow investor confidence evident in the over-subscription of its debut eurobond issue that is to be listed on the London Stock Exchange. According to an official government statement from the DRC, the eurobond racked in more than $5.2 billion, representing an oversubscription of more than four times the expected value. “Sometimes the most revealing…

In Africa, renewable energy from solar and wind power is transforming the economics of freshwater production, but brine disposal risks and financing challenges remain unresolved. We highlight the countries pioneering the revolution. By 2050, at least 800 million Africans will live in regions of acute water scarcity, where renewable freshwater resources fall below 1,000 cubic metres per person per year, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). Agriculture, already the continent’s largest water consumer, will face the steepest shortfall. For decades, desalination offered a technical solution but at prohibitive cost. High electricity consumption made large-scale plants unaffordable for all…

Budget-friendly, ‘Swahili speaking’ electric cars modelled to capture unique needs of Africa’s market are fast gaining popularity. Chinese auto dealers are currently dominating South Africa’s vehicle market. African drivers wary of quality and availability of spare parts for Chinese cars. ‘Umefikia!’ ‘You have arrived! We have all become accustomed to the digital GPS female instructor’s voice. This automated artificial instructor will soon be speaking in Swahili thanks Chinese automobile companies drive to capture the fast growing Africa Electric Vehicle (EV) market. Africa’s demand for Electric Vehicles (EVs) is growing fast and global automobile dealers are driving to seize this niche…

China is aggressively investing in electric vehicles’ production in Morocco’s free zones, giving it access to the lucrative EU markets. Data shows over 200 Chinese companies to set shop in Morocco. Morocco denies ‘bridging’ China EV products to the EU and US markets. China’s Electric Vehicles (EVs) and related complimentary components face heavy tariffs imposed by Europe and the U.S. to protect their domestic industries. To cleverly circumvent this hurdles, Beijing is setting up shop in strategic locations that have zero tariffs deals with the EU and U.S. such as Morocco, the North African country that has overtaken South Africa…

Lemongrass value chain offers industrial development options in Tanzania.  AI applications speeding up lemongrass market growth.  Industrial development incentives in Tanzania can expand lemongrass market reach. Tanzania lemongrass production is growing thanks to favourable global consumer behavior change towards organic products and the related global growth of the wellness market. While the Asia-Pacific region is currently the world’s leader in lemongrass production with India, Sri Lanka, and Vietnam providing over 70% of worldwide output, Africa is catching up. In East Africa, Tanzania’s lemongrass production is gaining ground to meet the spiked global demand. Lemongrass, locally known as Mchaichai is a growing…

From preferential tariffs to tractor-for-hire models, East Africa’s agricultural value chains are being rewired for private capital. With EAC protective duties of up to 100% and a two-tractor-per-1,000-hectare deficit, equipment rental and logistics emerge as the new frontier. As Tanzania, along with the rest of East Africa, looks to industrialize, it has extended various incentives that promise high returns on investment, so much that investors from across the world are flocking in. Agro-industrialisation, the phrase has been conjured from cyclic nature of Africa’s industrialisation ambitions. Until recently, agriculture was seemingly the aspect of development stagnation in Africa but now, it is…