Author: Kang'ethe Njoroge

• Swiss authorities say SICPA was “criminally liable” for failing to prevent its staff from bribing foreign officials
• SICPA has been slapped with 91.5 million fine for bribing officials in Brazil, Colombia and Venezuela.
• The Swiss firm has been contracted by the Kenya Revenue Authority to supply tax stamps.

A Swiss firm contracted by Kenya Revenue Authority to supply tax stamps has been fined $91.5 million on graft claims. Security ink company SICPA has been ordered to pay the fine by Swiss Attorney General citing corporate criminal liability.

The Swiss Attorney General identified organisational deficiencies that saw SICPA staff bribe public officials in Brazil, Colombia, and Venezuela. 

“Organisational deficiencies were particularly evident in the areas of corporate governance, risk management and compliance,” reads the press release by the Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland (OAG).

Ordered to pay a fine

“With the penalty order issued in accordance with Art. 102 …

• A finance-focused panel at the 2023 Namibia International Energy Conference explored new pathways to financing and developing capital-intensive African energy and infrastructure projects.
• As global financial institutions continue to reduce or eliminate fossil fuel lending, emerging producers such as Namibia are seeking to drive local and regional financial participation in capital-intensive projects and trade infrastructure.
• In addition to leveraging foreign investment as an end within itself, panelists discussed how the sector can leverage foreign support as a means of creating local capacity through regional debt and credit-support instruments.

Namibia is looking to increase local investment in large-scale energy projects moving forward, a panel at the 2023 Namibia International Energy Conference, has concluded. 

Under the theme, “Financing Energy & Power Projects: Trends, Outlook & Forecast,” a strategic panel examined how the southern Africa country can finance massive projects and structure deals that benefit regional economies. 

As global financial institutions continue to …

• The program, which runs for 18 months, aims to support political stabilization and reconciliation in Somalia, a fragile country in the Horn of Africa.
• In line with the National Stabilization Strategy the financing will go to water infrastructure, security, and reconciliation initiatives. 
• The EU is making tangible progress in supporting Somalia’s transition to a peaceful and stable nation. The project also seeks to enhance the legitimacy of Somali authorities in locations recently liberated within Hirshabelle, Galmudug, Southwest, and Jubaland State.

The European Union alongside the Nordic International Support Foundation have launched a $4.9 million Rapid Nationwide Stabilisation project in Somalia aimed at further strengthening the fragile country’s water infrastructure, security and reconcilliation initiatives. 

The European Union to the Federal Republic of Somalia together with the Somali authorities and its implementing partner the Nordic International Support Foundation recently launched the new program which will run over an 18-month period.

“We are …

• In a fresh strategy, Kenya Tourism Board (KTB) says arrivals from China hold massive potential in contributing to the country’s tourism earnings.
• China accounted for 82,180 and 83,388 arrivals in 2018 and 2019 respectively positioning itself as Kenya’s sixth largest source market.
• Before the pandemic, China was the world’s largest outbound travel market with over 150 million travelers, whose spending contributed up to $255 billion to global tourism industry. 

The Kenya Tourism Board (KTB) is looking to capitalize on outdoor and nature-based tourism experiences, a move aimed at attracting a significant number of Chinese tourists to sample the sector’s offerings in East Africa’s largest economy. 

KTB Chairperson Francis Gichaba says the initiative is part of the state agency’s efforts to shore up tourism numbers from the growing Chinese market even as the industry recovers from Covid-19 pandemic-induced hit.

Mr Gichaba said the new strategy is aimed at increasing arrivals from …

• The hub is a digital platform that will enable fintech associations across Africa to pool resources and knowledge, strengthen relationships and partnerships, as well as showcase the work of fintech on the continent, including those which are female-led or owned.
• The one-stop shop will be delivered through a strategic partnership between AFN and the Centre for Financial Regulation and Inclusion (Cenfri), which will provide technical support in the development of the Hub, as well as promote research, knowledge creation and other innovative initiatives.
• Although fintechs have great potential to contribute to digital financial inclusion across the continent, the African fintech sector significantly lags behind those in other regions such as Latin America and South-East Asia.

Financial Technology (Fintech) firms in Africa are set for a major boost as the African Development Bank (AfDB) and the Africa Fintech Network agreed to develop a one-stop shop for all fintech activities across the …

• The programme, being implemented with the support of the World Customs Organisation (WCO), is aimed at bolstering the region’s private sector by encouraging participation in both regional and international trade.
• Intra-regional trade within the East African Community (EAC) is on an upward trajectory, standing at $10.17 billion as of September 2022 while total trade with the rest of the world stood at $62 billion, highlighting a need for further improvement. This represents a 20 percent share of Intra-trade to global trade.
• The digitisation of the CETs will see the region’s business community — exporters and importers- gain access to trade information from the private sector in international trade.

The East African Community (EAC) secretariat has embarked on the digitising its Common External Tariffs (CET) a move that is billed to encourage the countries’ participation in regional and international trade.

The CET is meant to protect the member countries of the …

• Top government officials from across Africa have confirmed attendance at the Annual Investment Meeting (AIM Global 2023), the world’s leading investment platform.
• Two weeks from now, the officials will gather under one roof to uphold solidarity and develop economic relations among nations to ultimately achieve global prosperity.
• Among many other goals, AIM Global 2023 seeks to provide governments with access to a diverse demographic of audiences to promote investment opportunities in their respective countries. They will bring with them a wealth of experience and expertise in driving economic development that is both sustainable and inclusive.

Top government officials from across Africa have confirmed attendance of the Annual Investment Meeting (AIM Global 2023), the world’s leading investment platform where business leaders are set to exchange ideas on driving sustainable and inclusive business.

Two weeks from now, top officials will gather under one roof to uphold solidarity and develop economic relations among …

• The project is billed to help African countries play catchup as the continent is still relatively behind when it comes to global consumer banking habits.
• The African Development Fund in partnership with Smart Africa Alliance will evaluate policy gaps in the digital trade and e-commerce ecosystems in selected countries that are lagging behind their counterparts in terms of digital trade and e-commerce adaptation.
• Data by the International Trade Administration (ITA) indicates that the continent is forecast to surpass half a billion e-commerce users by 2025.

The African Development Fund has partnered with Smart Africa Alliance to launch a $1.5 million project aimed at streamlining digital trade and e-commerce policies across 10 African countries.

In a project dubbed Institutional Support for Digital Payments and e-Commerce Policies for Cross-Border Trade (IDECT), the two institutions will evaluate policy gaps in the digital trade and e-commerce ecosystems in the selected countries that are lagging …

• Top financial sector employees working for the world’s richest companies use very poor passwords to secure business accounts, new research by NordPass shows.
• While cybersecurity experts keep urging businesses to take better care of corporate accounts, passwords such as “password,” “123456,” and “aaron431” still make it to the top of the financial industry’s list.
• Interestingly, people working for corporations in the financial industry seem to be seriously longing for a break, since “vacation”, “sunshine” and “summer” feature among their top 20 password picks.

A large number of people working for the world’s richest companies use very poor passwords to secure sensitive business accounts, leaving data for millions of customers and institutions vulnerable to hacking, a new study by NordPass shows. While cybersecurity experts repeatedly urge businesses to roll out military-grade data safety measures, passwords such as “password,” “123456,” and “aaron431” still make it to the top of the financial industry’s …