Browsing: Egypt

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From sand to silicon: Why Egypt is surpassing Nigeria in tech funding

Tech & Business
  • Egypt has overtaken Nigeria by raising $540 million in tech startup funding in the year to June 2023.
  • This year, Egypt achieved a major milestone by creating its first unicorn, MNT-Halan.
  • In the year to June 2022, the Big Four—Nigeria, Kenya, South Africa and Egypt—jointly raised $4.6 billion. This was a 25 per cent drop from the $710 million raised previously. 

Egypt is today the leading market across Africa with total equity in tech funding raised by start-ups in the last one year surpassing rival Nigeria. Data from the African Private Equity and Venture Capital Association (AVCA) shows that the North African country overtook Nigeria as start-ups raised $540 million in funding in the year to June 2023. 

This was, however, a 25 per cent drop from the $710 million raised the previous year. The least decline recorded among the big four African countries

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Infrastructure development in Africa for economic growth

Investing

Population growth and economic development have necessitated speeding up and scaling up infrastructure development in Africa. Over 28 African nations have seen population growth of more than double in the last 30 years. The population of 26 other African countries will quadruple over the next 30 years. Consequently, funding for the continent’s infrastructure has become essential.…

Africa’s private sector ‘missing in action’ on climate change financing

Industry and Trade
  • Lender AfDB is looking to harness global equity funds to finance climate change mitigation in Africa.
  • AfDB statistics show that only 14 percent of $29.5 billion that was invested in climate finance for Africa in 2020 was from the private sector.
  • AfDB is set to hold climate change financing meeting in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt, this May.

An increasing number of people across Africa are grappling with unpredictable but definite cycles of failed rains, flash floods or severe drought as climate change-induced weather patterns become the norm in the continent that is one of the least polluters globally.

“Africa, the continent that pollutes the planet the least, is today one of the world’s most vulnerable to climate risks,” admits the African Development Bank.

In many countries in Africa today, it is nearly impossible for farmers to practice rain-fed agriculture, which is the primary option for 99 percent of agricultural production

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Green Bonds: A possible solution to the Zimbabwe power crisis

Zimbabwe
  • Zimbabwe is experiencing crippling power outages characterized by black-outs that can extend to as much as 19 hours a day.
  • The electricity shortage is now common place with South Africa recently announcing Stage 6 power cuts.
  • The debt capital markets, specifically the issuance of green bonds is a possible solution to rolling black-outs.

Zimbabwe is in the middle of a power crisis that can be attributed to the low water levels at the country’s Kariba Dam which has in times past been used to supplement the country’s power needs. Power outages are a part of every day living in the country.

However, the latest power crisis seems to be more intense threatening to scupper economic growth. Businesses and citizens have had to adjust to erratic power supply schedules. It is now commonplace for people to wake up at midnight to iron their clothes and use their electric appliances as this …

COP27: Africa’s Struggle to win against the carbon tide

Industry and Trade

COP27 outcomes were far and few for Africa, yet the UN announced an Executive Action Plan for the Early Warning for All initiative, which calls for initial new targeted investments of US$3.1 billion between 2023 and 2027, which is equivalent to a cost of just 50 cents per person per year.  

This warning system comes to address crucial issues of extreme weather conditions such as disaster risk knowledge, observations and forecasting, preparedness and response, and communication of early warnings.

A couple of the notable outcomes for Africa included the continent's rainforest giant, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) collaboration with Brazil and Indonesia, to launch a partnership to cooperate on forest preservation after a decade of on-off talks on a trilateral alliance.…

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Central Bank of Egypt hikes key interest rates by 2%

Industry and Trade

The CBE also announced in a statement that it will begin a process of phasing out Letters of credit (LCs) for import finance by December 2022.

Egyptian Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly announced an exceptional bonus to public employees and pensioners of the state administrative apparatus and state-affiliated companies at a value of EGP 300 to meet the cost of living. The government also froze household electricity prices through June 2023.

The National bank of Egypt (NBE) issued new three-year-maturity saving certificates with an annual yield of 17.25 per cent.

Banque Misr also has raised the annual yield of the three-year saving certificates to 17.25 per cent.…

Julius Nyerere hydro-dam main body complete

Industry and Trade

The Julius Nyerere Hydropower dam is an ambitious energy project and one of its kind across East Africa, with the capacity to generate 2,115 megawatts. The project cost $2.6 billion and is currently the most significant contract handled by Egyptian companies in Africa.

In August, it was reported by the Tanzanian Minister of Energy, January Makamba, that construction of the dam reached 67.18 per cent. The real work on the ground kickstarted in December 2018, which spanned out Tanzania’s government’s ambition to enrich its energy capacity from all fronts.

Further, the dam is 131 meters high and 1,025 meters long at the summit. The constructors managed to complete the tasks 687 days after the diversion of the river in November 2020 (Tanzania Times).

Tanzania’s electricity generation is comprised of several sources. Hence the dam stands to vitalize power availability and change the state of installed capacity. At least 48 per …

Mozambique fires up export terminal targeting LNG exports to Europe

Industry and Trade

According to an article by Maritime Executive published August 17, 2022, since May Senegal and Germany have been working together to fast-track the completion of the BP-led Greater Tortue Ahmeyim (GTA) LNG project. The offshore field straddles the border between Senegal and Mauritania and is set to produce 2.5 million tons of LNG in the first phase. Plans call for output to double to 5 million tons in the second phase.

Earlier, Kosmos Energy, which is developing the GTA field with BP, said phase one is 80 percent complete. Senegal is now reporting that it will be ready to export its first LNG cargo to Europe in 2024 when production at Tortue Gas project is scheduled to start.

“Senegal will be able to sell its quota to Europe, especially Germany already, in the second half of 2024,” Mamadou Fall Kane, deputy permanent secretary of COZ-Petrogas, the government committee that monitors …

Largest fertiliser-producing countries in Africa and their output

Industry and Trade
  • The African Fertiliser and Agribusiness Partnership (AFAP) notes that over 40 per cent of African soils face nutrient depletion because of failure to apply sufficient levels of fertilisers
  • Farmers in most countries are increasing their application levels, with the fertiliser application rate in Sub-Saharan Africa expected to increase to 22 kilograms per hectare by the end of 2022
  • In Africa, the production of the material is concentrated in the northern parts of the continent

A study by the African Development Bank Group in 2019 revealed that most African countries depend on imported fertilisers for agricultural production.

The imports are mainly due to the lack of low-cost raw materials for production, low utilisation and high capital requirements for investment in production facilities.

According to the African Fertiliser and Agribusiness Partnership (AFAP), over 40 per cent of African soils face nutrient depletion, partly because of a failure to apply sufficient levels of

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Africa’s richest countries in 2022

Countries
  • According to the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the continent holds 30 per cent of the world’s mineral reserves
  • Despite being endowed with these resources, the continent still lags in development partly due to colonisation and corruption
  • By 2050, the African economy is expected to reach a Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of US$29, driven by agricultural, trade, and natural resources investments
  • Nigeria has the largest economy in Africa, followed by South Africa and Egypt
Africa is a blessed continent with a large quantity of natural resources, renewables and non-renewables.
According to the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the continent holds 30 per cent of the world’s mineral reserves, eight per cent of the world’s natural Gas and 12 per cent of the world’s oil reserves.
“The continent has 40 per cent of the world’s gold and up to 90 per cent of its chromium and platinum. The world’s largest reserves
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