- Twiga Foods raises undisclosed funding despite massive layoffs
- No more excuses: Commonwealth to call for accelerated action on climate crisis at COP28
- London’s Verto and UBA spearhead cross-border payments in East Africa
- Mozambique’s $80 Billion Green Energy Gamble: A Strategic Shift with Global Implications
- Financial professionals must lead Africa’s switch to sustainable growth
- Africa-Europe team pioneers study for severe malaria response in isolated rural areas
- Building bridges: President Biden invites Angolan counterpart João Lourenço for talks
- Russia’s charm-offensive for ties with Africa continues
Industry and Trade
- Cash-strapped Kenyan startup Twiga Foods has raised an undisclosed funding amidst operational restructuring attributed to tough market conditions.Â
- The firm announced that it has successfully closed a capital raise to fund its transformation and growth plans, anchored by Creadev and Juven, with participation from other existing shareholders.Â
- The move comes months after the firm announced that it will lay off a third of its 850 permanent employees.Â
Cash-strapped Kenyan startup Twiga Foods has raised an undisclosed funding amidst operational restructuring attributed to tough market conditions.Â
The firm on Monday, announced that it has successfully closed a capital raise to fund its transformation and growth plans, anchored by Creadev and Juven, with participation from other existing shareholders.Â
The move comes months after the firm announced that it will lay off a third of its 850 permanent employees.Â
Twiga Foods chairman says firm on track to digitize retail economy
“The company …
- The Commonwealth Secretary-General Patricia Scotland KC has called for accelerated action on the climate crisis in light of intensifying threats to small and vulnerable member countries.
- Speaking ahead of the COP28 in Dubai Scotland says there can be no more delays and no more excuses.
- COP28 comes just months after Commonwealth environment ministers committed to accelerating climate action at their inaugural meeting held alongside the 78th Session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York City.
The Commonwealth Secretary-General, Patricia Scotland KC, has called for accelerated action on the climate crisis in light of intensifying threats to small and vulnerable member countries.
Speaking ahead of the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP28) in Dubai, Scotland states that there can be no more delays and no more excuses. “The worst predictions of climate change have become a daily reality. In the Commonwealth’s most vulnerable countries, fertile lands are turning to …
- The East African Community (EAC) will approach the upcoming COP 28 Climate Summit, to be held in Dubai from November 30th to December 12th, 2023, as one bloc.
- No country should have to choose between its development aspirations and climate change mitigation; there is a need for complementarity as opposed to competition among Partner States.
- The move comes as the continent faces the most severe challenges, including the ongoing El-Nino floods and drought that have caused havoc due to climate change.
The East African Community has revealed its intention to present a united front at the upcoming COP 28 Climate Summit scheduled to take place in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates, from November 30th to December 12th, 2023.
Addressing participants at the EAC High-Level Forum on Climate Change and Food Security in Arusha, Tanzania, EAC Secretary-General Peter Mathuki emphasized the significance of the EAC having a unified stance as it …
- COP28, which will attract over 70,000 attendees will center on Africa’s specific problems and demands.
- Africa will be focusing on four main issues: getting developing nations to agree to climate finance, fixing the loss and damage fund, getting fossil fuels out of the system, and making sure everyone has a fair chance to transition to low-carbon future.
- At COP28, world leaders will talk about how to finance climate action by attracting private investment from emerging and developing economies.
From November 30–December 12, 2023, in Dubai, UAE, will be held the forthcoming COP28 meeting, which will mark the beginning of a new age in climate financing. The climate finance conference, which is projected to attract over 70,000 attendees—including heads of state, government officials, and other stakeholders—will center on Africa’s specific problems and demands.
The Priorities of Africa at COP28 on Climate Financing
At COP28, Africa will be focusing on four main …
- Tanzania’s tea auction hopes to benefit economically and directly from local tea producers by relocating tea trading to local ports rather than routing through Mombasa.
- The tea auctions in East and Central Africa have made African teas competitive on a worldwide scale by enforcing and maintaining quality standards.
- Tanzania has the potential to become a global leader in the tea industry with the right mix of technology investment, and innovative product development.
With the recent success of its first tea auction in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania has taken a major stride forward in the international tea trade. More than just a business deal, the historic exchange of 65 tonnes of tea is an effort to increase local autonomy and regional clout. Tanzania hopes to benefit economically and directly from local tea producers by relocating tea trading to local ports rather than routing through Mombasa.
Tea auctions have historically sustained …
- High protection and heavy import dependency have left industries in Africa poorly prepared for international competition.
- The tendency of many African governments to assign a leading role to the state in creating and operating manufacturing firms makes industries in Africa hard to thrive.
- For decades, investments by African governments are often made with little regard to efficiency and the managerial capacity in target industries.
Africa Industrialization Day on November 20 is here, yet the region’s skies remain smokeless. While the region is endowed with $82 trillion worth of discovered natural resources, with the potential to contribute $30 billion a year in government revenue over the next 20 years, this potential remains untapped.
Africa’s failed industrialization
Sadly, Africa’s industrialization has been failing if not stagnating as many nations continue turning into customers of established manufacturing zones in China, Europe and India. For instance, Africa exports around 69 per cent of the …
- Kenya seeks to attract $10 billion in Foreign Direct Investments (FDI) in the next four years despite dwindling inflows over the past years.Â
- The Kenya Investment Authority has partnered with UNDP and the World Bank to develop and implement an Investment Facilitation Framework and FDI Attraction Strategy.
- The framework is aimed at creating a transparent, predictable, efficient and trusted mechanism for effective investment facilitation.
Kenya aims to attract $10 billion in Foreign Direct Investments (FDI) in the next four years despite experiencing declining investment inflows in recent years. The East African country, in collaboration with the Kenya Investment Authority, has partnered with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the World Bank to formulate and implement an Investment Facilitation Framework and FDI Attraction Strategy.
Rebecca Miano, the Cabinet Secretary (CS) for the Ministry of Investments, Trade, and Industry (MITI) in Kenya, stated that the framework seeks to establish a transparent, …
United States officials and politicians have shown much interest and support for renewing the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) as its expiration date approaches in September 2025. The fate of this landmark legislation, which provides duty-free access to the US markets for some African countries, remains uncertain for the next 22 months but has significant implications for trade between the United States and Africa.…
- US-Kenyan company Kentegra Biotechnology Holding has announced plans to set up a plant in Kenya.Â
- The company is constructing a processing plant in Naivasha that will benefit Kenya’s small-scale pyrethrum farmers.
- Kentegra Biotechnology, which produces and sells pyrethrin extracted from dried pyrethrum flowers to global insecticide and pesticide manufacturers, seeks to work with over 90,000 small-scale pyrethrum farmers.Â
US-Kenyan company Kentegra Biotechnology Holding has announced plans to set up a pyrethrum plant in Kenya. The company is constructing a processing plant in Naivasha, which will benefit Kenya’s small-scale pyrethrum farmers.
The company, known for producing and selling pyrethrin extracted from dried pyrethrum flowers to global insecticide and pesticide manufacturers, is in the process of signing contracts with roughly 90,000 small-scale pyrethrum farmers.
This development follows the firm’s recent deal to receive $15 million in equity and loan financing from Finnish development financier Finnfund and the United States Development Finance …