Browsing: Mozambique

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 …

Mozambique—another African country endowed with plenty of natural gas reserves holding 100 trillion cubic feet (Tcf), has suffered another blow within the lucrative industry as security concerns forced French oil and gas giant company Total to postpone its work at a liquified natural gas (LNG) project in the country.

Internal conflicts have been occurring in Mozambique rather often. On March 27 Jihadis seized a town and allegedly attacked a convoy of fleeing civilians, which includes foreign workers, as fighting continued (Further Africa).

According to various media sources, including BBC, dozens of people are dead following an attack by Islamist militants on a town in northern Mozambique (Palma), where the LNG project is underway.

READ:Total’s Mayotte base not a threat to Mozambique’s Oil and Gas ambitions

According to information from Reuters, on Saturday Total said that none of the LNG project workers was among the victims.

However, according to BBC …

Unrelenting Conflict outbreak in Mozambique is threatening billions of dollars’ worth of energy projects, this is after a Dozens of people were reported killed in a raid that is suspected to have been carried by Islamist Militants in one of the Africa’s poorest nation.

The fighting was also reported early Monday morning, with Foreign companies suspending its operations triggered by the violence that began on march 20. According to the government sources the armed attackers assaulted the northern coastal town of Palma, close to a $20 billion liquefied natural gas project being developed by France’s Total SE, prompting the suspension of its operation on weekend.

ALSO READ: Bean Farmers Reap Big Benefits In Rwanda

The attack is the latest in a series of incidents that are undermining the southern African country’s hopes of developing some of the continent’s biggest private investment projects. As much as $120 billion of investments by …

Oil and gas projects are very complex due to a variety of challenges that need to be overcome. Risk management and financial burden are some of the hottest issues currently on these projects.

Now imagine you add Covid-19 and insurgent movements near the project area.

“The French oil and gas company Total is considering setting up a logistical base for its Mozambican operations, not only in part of Mozambique, but on the French Indian Ocean possession of Mayotte, according to a report (…)” as per the digital news portal Club of Mozambique.

It shouldn’t come as a surprise at all.

Being part of the French territory, Mayotte offers the best option for Total as a preferential hub for their project in Mozambique. France operates a military base in Mayotte, in the form of a detachment of its Foreign Legion, making the island a super safe place.

Mayotte is very well …

Mozambique’s natural gas production is operated by Sasol (South Africa) in Inhambane Province, which holds proven reserves of 2.6 trillion cubic feet (TCF).…

For the past few years, the thoughts of BREXIT have been a constant part of my thoughts. As we approach the deadline, I have been looking closer into its aftermath and the consequences for Southern Africa.

I’ve acknowledged before and I will mention again the fact that the actions taken by the UK regarding Africa have been truly remarkable. The enormous effort that the government has and still is undertaking, in order to keep the UK a strong and competitive trade player in the continent are nothing short of extraordinary and we are already beginning to see results.

In a much-anticipated virtual visit to Mozambique last week, Her Majesty’s Deputy Trade Commissioner for Africa, Alastair Long held a number of meetings with some of the country’s senior government officials and key players in the private sector.

The meetings included the Ministry of Natural Resources and Energy Permanent Secretary H.E. …

BREXIT trade impacts in Southern Africa

If everything goes according to plan (and that’s a big statement), January 1st shall see the departure of the United Kingdom from the European Union, its single market and customs agreements.

As much as I would like to, it is becoming increasingly hard to believe that the parties will conclude a trade deal in time for the official divorce date. I am sceptical of a “hard” BREXIT as I believe that some sort of policy extension will remain in place for quite some time; anything else would be economic madness and given the current pandemic no politician would allow that to happen. (I know what you might be thinking but, luckily, that kind of stupid is currently reserved for leaders across the Atlantic).

The EU is South Africa’s largest trade partner while South Africa has long and in-depth trade relations with the United Kingdom. …

The World Bank board of directors approved a $104 million in support of skills development programmes for youths in Mozambique.

The grant came from the bank’s International Development Association (IDA) and will invest in Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) and Higher Education (HE) subsystems.

In response to Mozambique’s priorities and economic sectors,  the project seeks to improve quality and access of educational curriculums and skills development training.

The project is targeting to help increase access to quality education and training at the institutions in priority areas relevant to future economic development, focusing on engineering, science, technology, mathematics and climate change.

“Empowering its youth by developing higher-level skills through quality post-secondary education, while working on policies to incentivise the creation of jobs linked to modern productive systems, are among the most important challenges facing the country if it’s to reap the benefits of its demographic dividend,” noted Idah Z. Pswarayi-Riddihough, …

The Mozambique business sector reported a loss of $453 million in the first half of 2020 due to the pandemic of COVID-19, the Confederation of Economic Associations of Mozambique (CTA) said.

The Confederation of Economic Associations of Mozambique (CTA) warned that depending on the evolution of the pandemic and of the economic dynamics in the second half of the year, the situation could worsen. The business lost revenue could rise to 951 million dollars, equivalent to about seven per cent of Mozambique’s Gross Domestic Product.

Presenting a report on the impact of the pandemic in Maputo, the CTA’s acting chairperson, Alvaro Massinga, said that the level of economic activity fell by about 65 per cent in the first half of this year. The hotel and tourism industry were most affected by their level of activity shrinking by more than 75 per cent.

The report also showed that companies were forced …

Mozambican President Filipe Nyusi will later this month take over the Chairmanship of the Southern African Development Community (SADC).

The 40th Heads of State summit will be held virtually as Mozambique takes helm of the regional organization to speak on peace, security and regional co-operation.

Up to this year, the Chairman of the 16-member regional bloc was under the leadership of Tanzania’s fifth President, Dr. John Magufuli.

President Magufuli, the seating chairperson, assumed the leadership of the trade bloc last year in August. Arguably, President Magufuli had to deal with one of the worst crisis that the SADC trade bloc has ever had to face, Covid-19.

As it did for the European Union and other World trade areas, the Covid-19 global pandemic rendered business asunder across all 16 member states. Most all SADC member states were forced to close their borders effectively disrupting business flow across Africa’s largest trade bloc.…