Browsing: South Africa

• Leaders of Africa’s big economies such as South Africa and Kenya are in Beijing seeking loans for big infrastructure projects.
• Kenya, for instance, is eager to secure additional financing to complete stalled BRI projects.
• In return, analysts say China is keen on creating avenues for accessing minerals and market opportunities for their finished products.

This week, the city of Beijing will be hosting a gathering that could shape the future of Africa’s economic landscape for years to come. The Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) is set to welcome a delegation of African leaders eager to secure substantial financing for key infrastructure projects back home.

Amidst intensifying global competition and shifting economic dynamics, this year’s China-Africa summit promises high-stakes discussions.

The Beijing Summit comes at a critical moment not only for Africa but also for China and the broader international community. Over the past decade, China has solidified its position as …

• South African Johann Rupert has overtaken Dangote, becoming Africa’s richest person in a move that highlights the tectonic shifts sweeping across Nigeria and South Africa’s economies.
• While Rupert’s wealth soared, Dangote’s fortune took a gut punch, contracting by $1.7Bn this year to $13.4Bn.
• Richemont, with its portfolio of luxury brands, operates in a global market that is less vulnerable to the economic woes of any single country unlike the Dangote Group.

The crown for Africa’s richest man has left Nigerian industrialist Aliko Dangote to South African luxury goods icon Johann Rupert. For over ten years, Aliko Dangote seemed unassailable, with his name often being synonymous with wealth, increasingly representing a new breed of modern-era industrialists, and power in Africa.

In the latest disclosures according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, however, South African Johann Rupert has overtaken Dangote, becoming Africa’s richest person. This change underscores some of the tectonic shifts …

• Though encouraging that the number of female CEOs has risen from 230 (9.6%) in 2023 to 310 (11.1%) in 2024, these numbers show a tech segment that is still heavily dominated by men.
• Interestingly, smaller ecosystems such as Zambia, Rwanda, and Senegal are outperforming traditional hotspots like South Africa, Nigeria, Egypt, and Kenya in terms of female leadership.
• Between January 2022 and June 2024, startups with female co-founders raised $747M, representing just 11.9% of the total, while those led by female CEOs secured only $289M.

The African tech ecosystem, renowned for its dynamic growth and innovative potential, is transforming. Yet, a pressing issue remains, gender diversity within leadership roles. This year’s “Diversity Dividend: Exploring Gender Equality in the African Tech Ecosystem” survey by Disrupt Africa highlights the gender disparities that continue to plague this burgeoning industry.

Despite recent improvements, the representation of women in leadership positions within African …

• In July, South Africa’s private sector posted the quickest fall in output and new orders since March
• Official statistics show that the country’s inflation was at a near four-year low.
• Business confidence was however at the highest levels since February 2022.

As South Africa stepped into the second half of 2024, the country’s economy continued to face challenges, with the private sector contracting for the second month in a row.

The latest Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) report from S&P Global paints a complex picture—while the contraction deepened in July, there are also signs of optimism that could signal a brighter future.

A deepening contraction in South Africa’s private sector

The S&P Global South Africa PMI for July registered at 49.3, a slight decline from June’s 49.2. While the change may seem minor, it is significant as it marks the second month in a row that the PMI has remained below …

• Jersey has just been recognized as a global center for responsible finance, demonstrating its commitment to combating money laundering and terrorist financing.
• The island’s achievement has far-reaching implications for the global financial system, including for economies in Africa struggling with money laundering.
• African countries can take lessons on how to establish robust legal and regulatory frameworks for AML from Jersey to help plug vulnerabilities in their financial systems.

The scourge of money laundering continues to be a serious pain point for authorities across Africa, with many countries struggling to fight illicit flows albeit with persistent risks.

Currently, South Africa, the continent’s most advanced economy is under close watch according to the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) to institute tough measures to check money laundering avenues by October 2024.

In West Africa, persistent challenges of human trafficking, poaching, and wildlife trafficking, and runaway corruption continue to weaken the financial system of …

• AI in agriculture is being used to drive the sourcing of real-time data, perform predictive analysis, and run algorithms that optimize farming practices.
• In South Africa, Kenya, and Zimbabwe, ITIKI, an innovative project is tapping indigenous environmental knowledge among African communities, integrating it with AI to predict droughts with better precision.
• GSMA: AI in agriculture is poised to enable the deployment of innovative digital financial solutions such as credit and insurance products for millions of farmers.

In Africa, a continent of over 1.2 billion people, agriculture remains the primary economic activity, accounting for 17 percent of the GDP on average while offering jobs to nearly 60 percent of the population.

The bulk of the food produced in Africa or about 80 percent is, however, attributable to the effort of smallholder farms, where women provide much of the workforce. Unfortunately, these smallholder farmers continue to face multiple …

• Google is rolling out Umoja cable, the first-ever fibre optic link directly connecting Africa with Australia, aiming to enhance global digital infrastructure and foster economic growth.
• The Umoja project, developed in collaboration with Liquid Technologies, will improve connectivity and drive digital inclusion across Africa.
• This initiative is part of Google’s long-term commitment to Africa’s digital transformation, with investments in infrastructure, cybersecurity, and AI innovation to support growth.

In a deal set to revolutionize digital connectivity across continents, tech heavyweight Google has announced the launch of Umoja, the first-ever fibre optic link directly connecting Africa with Australia. This project is poised to enhance global digital infrastructure, foster economic growth, and drive digital inclusion on a new level scale.

The Umoja cable, anchored in Kenya, will traverse a diverse array of African countries, including Uganda, Rwanda, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Zambia, Zimbabwe, and South Africa, before crossing the Indian Ocean …

• Africa private capital deals fell to to 450 deals in the past one year.
• The continent’s total private capital deal value stood at $5.9 billion, the fourth largest value on record since 2012.
• Decline in Africa private capital deals marked the continent’s steepest year-over-year decline in volume in 12 years.

Africa recorded a 28 per cent year-over-year (YoY) decline in the total private capital deal volume for the first time since 2016, falling to 450 deals. This downturn is attributed to the global economic turmoil, which led to inflation spikes and the devaluation of continental currencies.

In Kenya and Nigeria for instance, the Shilling and the Naira plunged to historic lows in 2023, while in Egypt, a shortage in foreign currency led to increased controls over its usage in the country.

According to the 2023 African Private Capital Activity Report, the depreciation of local currencies and the depletion of foreign …

• South Africa’s Strategic Fuel Fund (SSF) operates Block B2 in South Sudan in collaboration with Nilepet.
• The company has just completed a major phase of its oil and gas exploration in Jonglei state.
• SSF recently completed undertaking the largest geophysical survey ever done in South Sudan, covering 47,000 square kilometres.

In a move marking the strengthening bilateral relations between South Africa and South Sudan, the Strategic Fuel Fund (SFF), South Africa’s state-owned petroleum company, convened a key meeting with South Sudan’s national oil company, Nilepet, in Juba last week.

The meeting was a highlight of South African President Cyril Ramaphosa’s state visit, underscoring the growing economic ties between the two nations.

The SFF, which operates Block B2 in South Sudan and collaborates with Nilepet through the Nile Orange joint venture, has recently completed a major phase of its oil and gas exploration campaign in Jonglei state. The initial aerial survey …

• 121 African startups secured $466M, marking a 27 per cent drop from the previous quarter; women-led startups got 6.5 per cent of the capital.
• About 87 per cent of startup funding in the three months to March went to entities in Nigeria, Kenya, Egypt, and South Africa.
• Gender imbalance persists as only 6.5 per cent of the financing went to female-led startups in Africa.

The big four economies of Nigeria, South Africa, Kenya, and Egypt continue to attract the highest share of funding going to startups in Africa, even as the ecosystem suffered a 27 per cent drop in financing to $466 million in the three months to March 2024.

The latest analysis from Africa: The Big Deal shows that 87 per cent of startup funding in the three months to March went to upcoming entities in Nigeria, Kenya, Egypt and South Africa.

Attracting $160 million, Nigeria’s economy accounted for …