Browsing: Business in Africa

• Funding aimed at increasing the efficiency of domestic resource mobilization and public expenditure. 
• The move will enable the government to have more resources to finance public services and respond to economic shocks. 
• The program targets more inclusive access to e-declaration and performance-based management in customs administration.

In order to assist Benin in improving the effectiveness of domestic resource mobilization and public expenditure, the World Bank has granted financing from the International Development Association (IDA) totaling $150 million.

The Economic Governance for Service Delivery Program for Results (PforR) will support projects aimed at increasing the effectiveness of domestic resource mobilization and public expenditure. This will to provide the government with greater funding to support public services and react to economic shocks.

The program aims for performance-based management in customs administration and more inclusive e-declaration access.

Additionally, it encourages the creation of a setting favorable to citizen scrutiny of public finances and …

• Newly appointed directors on the board of KEPSA take charge and embrace new strategies.
• Change of leadership also seen at KEPSA’s Governing Council where new sector chiefs will steer industry boards.
• KEPSA, which is celebrating its 20th anniversary later this year, has made a significant contribution to Kenya’s economic growth.

Jaswinder Bedi of Bedi Investment is now the Chairperson of the Board of Directors of the Kenya Private Sector Alliance (KEPSA), ushering in a new era at the head of guiding the role of private investments in the nation’s economy.

American Chamber of Commerce

On the occasion of the organization’s 19th Annual General Meeting, Brenda Mbathi of the American Chamber of Commerce, Kenya, was also elected as Vice-Chairperson. Bedi, who has served as the Vice-Chairperson of the Board since 2021 will be succeeding Flora Mutahi after her two-year tenure at the helm of KEPSA Board.

The KEPSA Board also received …

Africa’s youth unemployment is one of the many “poly-crises” destabilising many countries and impeding economic recovery following recent disruptions and challenges. According to the just-released International Labor Organization’s (ILO) annual Monitor of the World of Work study, low-income African nations are unlikely to return to pre-pandemic levels of unemployment this year.…

• Dubai-based logistics giant DP World will be given berths five to seven in the Port of Dar es Salaam to manage. The move comes as rising number of ports in Africa go private as governments seek to boost import/export trade.
• Tanzania plans to increase the port’s revenue collection by 233.7 per cent over the next 10 years under the DP World deal.
• The port handles various types of cargo, including containers, bulk cargo, and petroleum products for Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi, DRC, and Uganda.

The port of Dar es Salaam, which the World Bank has labelled East Africa’s busiest and most modern, could see its fortunes rise following a deal by Tanzania with DP World to manage and develop it even further.

The Dubai-based logistics multinational DP World has entered into an Intergovernmental Agreement with Tanzania for the development of one of the vital harbours in East Africa.

Private sector infusing

• President Yoweri Museveni is optimistic that Uganda’s oil revenue will finance mega roads, railways and other infrastructure projects.
• Uganda expects to ship the first consignment of oil in 2025.
• The government will hasten the acquisition of the right of way for the construction of Standard Gauge Railway. 

Uganda’s oil revenues will finance roads and railway among other key infrastructure projects to revamp the country’s productivity. 

Uganda has significant oil reserves, particularly in the Albertine Graben region, which is located in the western part of the country.

The country discovered commercially viable oil deposits in 2006, and since then, exploration and development activities have been ongoing. According to estimates, Uganda’s discovered oil reserves are around 6.5 billion barrels. These reserves consist of both crude oil and condensates.

There have been efforts to establish a legal and regulatory framework to govern the sector and ensure transparency, environmental sustainability, and equitable distribution …

• Most countries in North Africa are struggling with searing poverty and economic vulnerabilities.
• Work opportunities in the region are limited especially for the women and youth. Most workers are engaged in low-productivity informal jobs. 
• The World Bank’s Built to Include: Reimagining Social Protection Systems in the Middle East and North Africa report argues that social protection policies could help.

One of the root causes of poverty and vulnerability in North Africa is the decades-old system driving youth and women exclusion in the labour market, a new World Bank report reveals. 

According to the World Bank, most countries in North Africa have been struggling with poverty and vulnerability for decades. Increasingly, work opportunities in the region are getting limited, particularly for women and youth. Across the economies, most workers are engaged in low-productivity informal jobs. 

Safety nets to mitigate youth and women exclusion

The report, Built to Include: Reimagining Social Protection …

• Ongoing wars in Africa are bleeding billions from poor economies as investors flee the region.
• Sudan army is spending about $1.5 million per day fighting the Rapid Support Forces.
• IMF says Ethiopia’s GDP contracted from 9 percent in 2019 to 6.1 percent in 2020 as Tigray war intensified.

Wars in Africa are costing an arm and a leg, and throwing an awful wrench on poor economies that are hardly providing the bare minimum to their citizens. Take for instance the latest ongoing war in Sudan. Sudan Tribune notes that it is costing roughly $1.5 million every day for the Sudanese army to fight the Rapid Support Forces (RSF).

For Sudan, a country whose poverty rate rose from 64.6 percent in 2021 to 66.1 percent last year, $1.5 million is a huge sum of money to be wasted on senseless fighting.

Wars in Africa yielding economic crisis

Sudan is one of …

Kenya

Tax, costs ‘bigger threat to businesses than COVID-19’

According to a survey by the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK), the majority of Kenyan company chief executives said that the high cost of doing business and taxation posed the biggest threat to their business operations over the next 12 months belittling the financial fallout caused by the pandemic.

The CEOs survey pointed out that progression has been hindered by a challenging business environment despite business leaders projecting a substantial economic rebound in the second quarter of the current fiscal year counting on the improving sales and orders.

CBK said that the effects of the pandemic were lesser compared to taxation issues like the introduction of new taxes and withholding tax/VAT refunds and excise duty on fast-moving consumer goods.

“Businesses were also concerned about the effects of the third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly the success or otherwise of the …

Data centers are Information Technology (IT) facilities responsible for the management of data in an organization. Data centers house state-of-the-art computing infrastructure with very powerful machines. Traditionally, data centers were associated with extensive use of space and a lot of hardware components to support big data storage and management services. 

As technology evolves, the use and development of software-based data centers requiring less space are increasingly becoming more common. 

Cloud computing, a modern model used for data centers is growing in popularity in Africa. This technological innovation allows for an integrated approach to data management services such as storage, applications, and servers. Cloud-based data centers have lower costs compared to traditional physical data centers. Most cloud computing services are outsourced from well-established companies that have the resources and experience to do so. Companies such as Microsoft, Amazon, and Teraco continue to invest significantly in cloud infrastructure, globally.

High growth