Browsing: Europe

The crisis has thrown the energy market into chaos, sending fossil fuel prices soaring. This has birthed the global demand for thermal coal, especially from the Asian and European markets; with most countries in both regions having been dependent of Russia, as the country is the world’s third largest supplier of thermal coal used chiefly for power generation. Coal plants that had been scheduled for closure in Europe have been reopened, to fill the deficit in mitigating fuel costs and generating electricity; as the alternative gas, is inarguably more expensive. With energy security under threat, climate policies and commitments have taken a back seat. The EU recently declared that natural gas now qualifies for green investments.

The African coal market is projected to enjoy double its revenue for the next one year. The prevailing energy gap has created a window of opportunity for African coal producing nations. According to a …

What is good for the goose must also be good for the gander. However, the EU commission has commissioned the Baltic pipe project, somewhat similar to the EACOP. The Baltic Pipe project was inaugurated on September 27, 2022, at an opening ceremony in Goleniów, Poland.…

Due to globalization, countries worldwide are increasingly interdependent. This is why a conflict between two countries in Europe will cause ripple effects that the rest of the world feels. On this basis, the World Bank projects that economic growth in 2022 will slump. Not slow down but slump. The choice of words is intentional.

Malpass now believes that the world is in for several years of above-average inflation and below-average growth. This projection will most likely lead to destabilizing consequences for low- and middle-income economies. These low- and middle-income countries are largely on the African continent. Stagflation which the world last saw in the 1970s, will have a devastating effect on countries in Africa. Most countries in the continent do not have the resources like Germany to muster multibillion Euro or multi-billion United States dollar packages to subsidize the economic plight of their citizens.

World Bank forecasts a sharp downgrade …

Africa is considered largely the main source of natural resources needed to support and sustain the economic growth of developed and emerging developing countries, and, as noted above, the engagement is often concentrated in a few countries, particularly where they have strategic interests.

African countries do not have adequate capacity to engage emerging developing economies individually.

According to Aileen Kwa, Coordinator, Trade for Development Programme, South Centre, one of the Commonwealth’s mission is to reduce poverty in its member countries, especially the developing ones.

But looking at the poverty levels in Africa, they have been high over the last 30 years, at 74 per cent and 73 per cent in 1981 and 2005, respectively, despite policy reforms undertaken over that period. When translated into absolute numbers, the number of people living on less than US$ 2 per day increased from 295 million in 1981 to about 556 million in 2005.…

• In reality, Russia’s assault on Ukraine will spark an African energy transformation, leapfrogging fossil fuel use in Africa and Europe.
• Improved infrastructure is required to increase gas flows from Africa to Europe.
• The European Union (EU) imported 155 billion cubic meters of natural gas from Russia in 2021, accounting for about 40 per cent of total EU gas consumption.
• Solar energy can also scale up quickly, potentially outpacing plans to develop new liquefied natural gas ports.

Europe’s Energy crisis has been born from the European Union imposing sanctions on Russia. The EU imported 155 billion cubic meters of natural gas from Russia in 2021, accounting for about 40 per cent of total EU gas consumption.

Because of their persistent reliance on Russian oil and natural gas, Europe continues to support Putin’s economy – and, indirectly, his war machine – with hundreds of millions of Euros every day in return …

A few African countries have also imposed similar restrictions on entry into their territories. The southern African countries include Lesotho, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Namibia and Eswatini.
Russia and South Africa, which later joined in 2011, are both members of the BRICS, and since the outbreak of the coronavirus in December 2020, have discussed some aspects as well as the prospects for collaborative work in fighting the disease.
Russia and South Africa previously proposed localizing production of Russian vaccines, but the key setback was that the vaccines were yet to be approved by the World Health Organization. As a result, there were neither concrete practical results nor effective collaboration between the two countries.…

The reason there is so much interest in Latin America as an investment destination is that there is little value left in seed and early stage companies in North America, Europe and even India.

Over the coming years LatAm will also lose its appeal as valuations start to exceed value. There is therefore no doubt that the next geographical location in which this arbitrage will be practised is sub-Saharan Africa.…

The Moroccan government is now shifting focus to developing its south which in other words was neglected development wise.

The south of Morocco, has largely benefitted the country from its number of natural resources which includes Pelagic fish, solar power, and mineral reserves hence the government’s efforts to transform this region will not only improve the living standards of its citizens but also open new business opportunities.

With some of the richest fishing waters in the world, desert and coastal scenery, and opportunities for agricultural development and mining exploration, Morocco’s southern provinces have solid resources on which to base growth.

Phosphate reserve which is found in the southern region produced nearly 2 million tons to the Moroccan economy in 2018 according to Forbes.

The government is on target to transform the region from being resource-based to a wider development framework. The new ambitious development model for Morocco consists of a …

Africa is at the heart of tomorrow, it is an important region in the world, it is definitely a growing region and a clear focus market for us. In the big picture, Africa is among Alcatel-Lucent’s most promising markets with ultra-broadband access and IP networking being very important for the development of the continent.

Many Countries across the world have felt the ravaging effects of Covid-19, ever since the first case was reported in Wuhan, China and spread all across other Continents that prompted to measures and directions imposed aimed to curb the spread of the lethal virus that has since claimed millions of people across the globe.

Historically, sectors like education and healthcare have been points of issue for many African countries, as governments strive to improve access to, and experiences in, these sectors.

The fight with COVID-19 has put a spotlight on the way these industries are operating …

South Africa remains one of the most important trading partners for Zimbabwe; with Zimbabwe importing 40% of its total imports and exporting 75% of its total exports to South Africa.

Since 2007, South Africa has always maintained a trade surplus with Zimbabwe with the surplus widening over the review period mainly attributed to the economic instability experienced in Zimbabwe and the volatility of the South African Rand to the US dollar.

But with the violent events that unfolded in South Africa this past week continually present renewed purpose for some serious soul searching by Zimbabwe’s economic decision makers on how to model the economy out of the dependency on its neighbor to the south for raw materials and other essentials, according to the economic experts.

South Africa’s KwaZulu Natal and Gauteng provinces the two strategic economic areas broke into mayhem last week as looters ransacked major retail shops, banks and …