Browsing: China

Chinese President Xi Jinping on Monday agreed in principle to a restructuring of Congo’s vast debts, an issue that was blocking negotiations with the International Monetary Fund, a minister said.

Acknowledging this Congolese Prime Minister Anatole Collinet Makosso on moday June 21 said that the financial difficulties his country has faced, delayed servicing of the debt and promised to reduce a debt that has recently increased.

The prime minister says the health crisis brought about by the Covid-19 led to an increase in borrowing that was aimed at cushioning its citizen without the ability to service it and thus it was time to make their debt sustainable going forward.

“Our debt currently stands at nearly $10,892,454,000 as of 31 December 2020, or 98% of GDP. Our objective is to bring it down to below the CEMAC community standard set at 70% of GDP,” Anatole Collinet Makosso said to the National …

Covid 19 wreaked havoc to the economy and no sector was worse hit than the tourism and hospitality sector. Air travel restrictions, mandatory quarantine of arrivals and the shutting of businesses in the tourism and hospitality sectors along with crumple of demand have led to an unprecedented shock.

So bad was the situation that last year, tourism operators in Tanzania forecast revenue contractions of 80% or more while the World Bank’s 14th Tanzania Economic Update (TEU) showed that Tanzania’s economic growth slowed down to 2.5% from the 6.9% growth reported the previous year.

But there is light at the end of the tunnel, with eased travel restrictions, Tanzania is witnessing a revamp in both the tourism and hospitality sectors. Global top brands like Onomo Hotels have opened shop in the commercial capitol Dar es Salaam.

Meet ONOMO General Manager Mark Soderlund as he gives us an inside perspective of the …

Nigeria’s oil production has fallen by 30 per cent in the last four years to 1.423 million barrels per day, mb/d in 2020 from 2.041 million barrels per day, mb/d in 2017.

This is according to a recent investigative study by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries OPEC, which includes pipeline vandalism and oil theft in the Niger-Delta.

The figure excludes 2020 condensate production, according to the data obtained by Vanguard Energy from OPEC’s monthly market reports between 2017 and 2020.

ALSO READ: KQ to launch direct flights to Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe

The nation’s output declined by 19.3 per cent to 1.648 mb/d in 2018 from 2.041 mb/d in 2017 Year-on-year, YoY.

The production level, however, rose by 6.6 per cent to 1.765 mb/d in 2019 from 2018 figure before declining again by 19 per cent to 1.423 mb/d in 2020.

THE IMPACT

The gradual drop in output is a …

The diplomatic ties between the two neighboring countries of Kenya and Somalia has been a bone of contention for months now, this is after Somalia severed diplomatic ties with Kenya in dead of night of December 14, 2020 citing interference and violation of her sovereignty and territorial integrity.

In announcement, Somalia Minister of Information Osman Abukar Dubbe said that cutting ties with Kenya at around 1:40 am Mogadishu time on state-run SNTV, hours after President Uhuru held talks with break-away Somaliland President Muse Bihi at State House, Nairobi, he said that Mogadishu will withdraw all its diplomats from Kenya and has ordered Kenyan diplomats to leave the country within 7 days.

But while everything to restore the diplomacy sanity between the two warrying nations proved to be a difficult thing Qatar stepped in overseeing the mediation of the whole process, in an interview Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign …

The government of Tanzania is working on a blue print to increase sell of the country’s agro-produce by setting up bonded warehouses in foreign markets in a bid to boost sells.

The bonded warehouses will for starters be piloted in China and Saudi Arabia and are expected to ease access to markets for agro-produce.

Well first things first. What is a bonded warehouse? These are building or other secured areas in which dutiable goods may be stored or even manufacturing without payment of duty.

Bonded warehouses provide specialized storage services such as deep freezers for perishables as well as bulk liquid storage. They also allow for commodity processing and make up an integral part of the global supply chain by giving the importer opportunity to bring in raw goods, process, package and then sell the final product all under one roof with no duty charged.

Further still, bonded warehouses may …

Zimbabwe rabbit farmers have imported 100 more pure breeds to help shore up efforts by the country’s rabbit producers to support and expand further cuniculture production.

With its significant potentiality to generate revenue for the country, its potential export market includes China and the US and farmers are leaving nothing to chance to the lucrative farming business.

Rabbit farming is a very profitable business with its demand for rabbit meat increasing in Zimbabwe. People want to try a different type of meat which is not chicken, beef, or pork.

A lot of people are switching to more healthy meat with less fat. Rabbit meat has become a perfect replacement for chicken since it is also white meat. Rabbits are easy to keep and are very profitable as the feed costs are low due to the fact that they eat a variety of foods.

An increasing number of farmers in Zimbabwe …

While Nigeria is the largest exporter for Sesame seeds, there’s still a lot of untapped potential of the lucrative export business this even as the seeds demand increases  globally.

According to United states market based research report known as Hexa Research the Global sesame seeds market size is expected to hit $17.77 billion by 2025.

The fueling market demand was associated with its Increased application of the product as an anti-oxidant in various pharmaceutical formulations.

With the world production of Sesame seeds estimated to be 4. 8 million tonnes, ten [10] countries accounts for over 80% of it which includes Myanmar, India, China, Tanzania, Sudan, Ethiopia, Nigeria, Burkina Faso, Uganda, and Niger.

Africa, accounts for over 45 per cent of the crop, and in the last 10 years has become as a fast-growing supplier of sesame seed in the world market.

Of the Sesame seeds global production, over two million …

Tobacco farmers in Zimbabwe are positive about this year’s marketing season that was officially opened on Wednesday will surpass the last year’s figures.

This year’s saw an increase in price of tobacco per Kg retailing at 4.30 U.S. dollars from 4 dollars last year.

According to estimates, about 200 million kg of tobacco will be sold this season, as compared to 180 million kg valued at 452 million dollars that were sold last year.

Tobacco Farmers from different parts of the country especially in Harare will mark the start of tobacco sales season in a market hall despite strict health restrictions.

Tobacco production in Zimbabwe is expected to grow by nearly 9% this year, according to the Tobacco regulatory authority.

“Our tobacco harvest was very good this season and we expect good profit this year and I can see good prices as well. The highest I saw was US$4.30 and …

Until 2019 Africa and china had an eccentric lending experience. This includes the lending spree featuring more than $10 billion a year from 2012 to 2017, higher than $1 billion in 2001, sadly China lending to Sub-saharan Africa has fallen short due to serious defaulting fears.

A detailed study executed by John Hopkins University’s China-Africa Research Initiative pointed out that, debt sustainability concerns have triggered lending to the African government to drop by 30 per cent in 2019.

China—the world top industrial economy has been a close lender to Africa—the world’s top raw material producer and fastest-growing economy over the past decade.

On the side of the fence, according to China’s 2021 White Paper on International Development Cooperation published in January, China has steadily increased the scale and further expanded the scope of its foreign aid, giving high priority to the least developed countries in Africa (Global Times).

Several media …

It is no brainer that many foreign countries have been eyeing Africa for trade and investments purposes. Africa is known of its rich mineral land and unexploited resources that mother countries have lacked required capital and technical skills to do it themselves from oil, diamonds, gold not to mention all the agricultural products such as coffee, tea, cocoa etc.

United States of America, one among the biggest ranked economies in the world has had interests in doing business in Africa since time immemorial, at the time when Vice President Richard Nixon after winding his trip in Africa recommended to then  President Dwight Eisenhower of the greater potential of drawing attention in Investing in Africa and so has been that not with U.S.A but the likes of China, United Kingdom, and other countries such as Japan as had their good sharable investment steps in doing business in the continent.

The Obama …