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The 97Fund, a Ugandan based Open-end Investment Vehicle (HoldCo) launched a $1 Million COVID-19 Relief Fund (the “Fund”) to bail out small businesses in Uganda that have been affected by the pandemic.

The 97Fund invests in high growth early-stage companies in Africa and is managed by Ortus Africa Capital.

The fund targets companies in sectors such as  healthcare, tourism, education, finance, New Ways of working (NWoW) such as supply chains and logistics and the digital economy providing market places to businesses.

Kenneth Legesi, Manager of the 97Fund said that the pandemic has  disrupted Uganda’s social and economic landscape as seen through the different sectors across the board.

“The Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development projected economic growth would decline from 6 per cent to 5.2 per cent, with an estimate of 2.5 million Ugandans likely to fall back into poverty due to the pandemic. Businesses are feeling the effects …

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In this column called “The Indicator,” we will be taking an economic or financial statistic from East Africa and breaking it down into bite-sized nuggets of knowledge for investors. 

This month’s indicator figure is 816. 

816 of what? 

There are a total 816 innovation professionals in East African Community (EAC) countries as identified by inclusion of the word “innovation” in their current public job description according to a series of searches using the popular professional social networking site, LinkedIn.     

This Indicator figure certainly does not incorporate all people involved in innovation, but seeks to use this metric as a rubric to stimulate discussion on the importance of innovation in East Africa for business competitiveness.   

What do you mean by innovation professionals?  

Innovation is defined as the process of creating a new method, process, product, or service.      

People whose job is focused on innovation are considered innovation professionals who are typically

The United Nations will invest a total of $106 million in the social and economic projects of Angola until 2021.

The outgoing UN resident coordinator in Angola, Paolo Balladelli said the organization intends to invest $53 million per year.

He said that Angola needs billions of dollars to solve major problems and the UN will continue to support. He said that funds will help implement academic, government and civil society programmes.

Mr Balladelli also added that the UN agencies are promoting various initiatives to support Angolan government in social and economic areas with a focus on projects supporting the fight against COVID-19  and prevention programme.

The UN official praised the Government of Angola for putting in place measures to prevent and combat the COVID-19 pandemic, most importantly the timely adoption of the State of Emergency, which allowed the postponement of the spread of the new coronavirus and prepare material …

Gemstone mining company Gemfields said on Friday an auction of predominantly commercial quality rough emerald held in the Zambian capital Lusaka this week raised US$18.6 million in revenue.

In a statement, Gemfields said the stones were extracted by Kagem Mining, in which it has a 75 percent stake while the Industrial Development Corporation of Zambia owns 25 percent.

“The proceeds of this auction will be fully repatriated to Kagem in Zambia, with all royalties due to the government of … Zambia being paid on the full sales prices achieved at the auction,” the company said.

Gemfields said a 15 percent Zambian export duty imposed on emeralds since January 1 remained Kagem’s biggest impediment.

The auction saw 34 companies placing bids, with 37 percent of the offered carats being sold.

Gemfields’ 33 auctions of emeralds and beryl mined at Kagem since July 2009 have generated US$608 million in total revenue.

Its …

South Africa’s trade and industry deputy minister Nomalungelo Gina and Tunisian secretary of state for foreign affairs Sabri Bachtoji have committed to strengthening bilateral economic relations in order to increase trade and investment between their two countries, the government said on Wednesday.

During a meeting in Pretoria, the two emphasised the need to establish a framework and create a conducive environment for the two countries’ business communities to work together.

“Our countries have enjoyed historically strong political ties but it is incumbent upon us to strengthen our economic ties and increase economic cooperation between our countries,” Bachtoji said.

“As the government, we need to work together in setting up a framework and creating an environment that will encourage our business communities to explore the economic opportunities that are available in both countries.”

He said a number of sectors in the Tunisian economy were teeming with opportunities that South African companies …

A lobby group consisting of organizations that advocate for sustainable agriculture is pushing for the immediate withdrawal of harmful pesticides in Kenya.

These are pesticides containing active ingredients that are toxic to human health and the environment, and that threaten food security and affect food safety in the country.

According to the group, at east 32 per cent of pesticide active ingredients that are currently registered and being sold in products in Kenya, have been withdrawn from the European market, due to their serious potential impact on human and environmental health.

The group comprises the Route to Food Initiative (RTFI), Biodiversity and Biosafety Association of Kenya (BIBA-K), Kenya Organic Agriculture Network (KOAN) and Resources Oriented Development Initiatives (RODI).

READ ALSO:Obstacles to food tourism development in Tanzania

Informed by a White Paper on pesticide use in Kenya that was commissioned by the RTFI, the organizations are calling for the withdrawal

The Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) project, is a railway under construction in Tanzania which was seeded in 2016, linking the country’s strategic regions and neighboring countries including, Rwanda, Uganda, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), the anticipated project with the line length of approximately 1,800 kilometers, intends to revolutionize mobility and distribution of commodities in Tanzania, through replacing the ineffective meter-gauge railway system.

The Turkish (Yapi Merkez)  contractor, is on the clock to bring to life the awaited transportation machine that, might transform Tanzania’s economy (for starters; production, labor supply, and consumption). Tanzania Railway Corporation (TRC), the state-owned railway company, oversees a strategic railway network of 2,561 kilometers length, of which is a 112-year-old German colonial transportation remnant. Running from Dar es Salaam (nation’s
business hub) to Kigoma, then having a north-south connection Korogwe to Ruvu. More than USD 1.2 billion has been attached to the project, which …

A region in Tanzania that focused on improving obstetric care services potentially averted an estimated 2,100 maternal deaths between 2011–2018, according to data released by the CDC Foundation. The data include the results of treatment provided by all emergency obstetric care facilities in the Kigoma Region, where maternal deaths were among the highest in Tanzania, a nation which has the sixth-highest number of maternal deaths in the world.

The Maternal and Reproductive Health in Tanzania Project began in 2006 as a collaborative effort with the Tanzanian government to prevent maternal deaths and increase access to emergency obstetric care and other reproductive health services by upgrading health facilities and training health workers. The CDC Foundation has supported the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in monitoring and evaluating the program since 2010.

The new data released by the CDC Foundation provide new information related to maternal mortality and …

Demand for affordable and reliable energy is on the rise in Tanzania owing to the fast paced economic growth of the country.

The African Development Bank (AfDB) estimates the demand for energy is growing by 10 per cent every year which the bank says ‘reflects the country’s high economic growth.’

To meet this demand, PanAfrican Energy Tanzania (PAET), the first fully Tanzanian owned company has entered into a long-term Gas Sales Agreement (“GSA”) with the Tanzania Petroleum Development Corporation (“TPDC”).

The agreement provides for the supply of up to 20 million standard cubic feet per day (MMscf/d) of natural gas to the TPDC operated National Natural Gas Infrastructure (“NNGI”) in Songo Songo Island, from where the gas will be processed and transported to Dar es Salaam, primarily for power generation.

This new GSA comes only months after last year’s short-term sales agreement that was also inked with TPDC and TANESCO …

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