Browsing: West Africa

FAO’s latest update says that large numbers of desert locust swarms that have formed in Kenya and Ethiopia since January could move west in the coming weeks…

Growth in West Africa which was seen to expand by 4.0 per cent in 2020 is now projected to contract by -2.0 per cent in 2020 due to COVID-19 pandemic the African Development Bank said in its regional economic outlook report.

The virtual launch of the report on 3 July was officially launched by Ghana’s Minister of Finance Ken Ofori-Atta, in presence of other ministers of finance from the region, including Zainab Shamsuna Ahmed, Nigeria’s Federal Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning.

West Africa’s growing youth population offers a strategic workforce which can be used for employment and economic growth, despite the pandemic devastating the continent and global economies, the Bank said in its regional economic outlook report.

Also Read: East Africa holds its ground as Africa’s fastest-growing region

In 2020, growth in the West Africa region which was poised to expand by 4.0 per cent following growth of …

As part of your positive reinforcement regimen, you have probably bought junior that tasty chocolate biscuit that he loves so much or the packaged ice cream that has him agreeing to anything you say. Did you know almost all snacks are made using the most popular vegetable oil in the World, Palm Oil?

Palm oil is used in the preparation of most processed foods from biscuits to chips to instant noodles. It is also used in the manufacturing of soap and cosmetics, and with the exponential increase in population, global demand for these products has equally put pressure on the demand for palm oil.

While palm oil is indigenous to West Africa, now the continent is losing almost 7.5 million acres of land to palm oil companies. Communities are been displaced and forests are been destroyed to make room for the coveted palm tree.

“In the past decade, West Africa …

The World Bank gave $379 million to help balance and strengthen statistical systems in seven West African countries.

The seven countries include Cote d’Ivoire, Burkina Faso, Sierra Leone, Ghana, Cabo Verde, Togo and Liberia.

The project “Harmonizing and Improving Statistics in West Africa (HISWA)’ is funded by the International Development Association (IDA) credits and grants.

The project key objective is to strengthen the statistical systems of the participating countries, regional and sub-regional bodies, in order to help them balance, produce, distribute and enhance the use of core social and economic statistics.

With World Bank’s efforts to deepen regional integration in Africa, the funding will also support the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and the African Union (AU).

Also Read: Africa asks World Bank, EU and IMF for debt relief support

“High-quality and harmonised statistics are essential to support economic activity and regional integration as a way to address …

Already, the decision is sending shockwaves around the chocolate world with those opposed to the move painting a doom and gloom picture of why the plan cannot work.…

CDC Group, the UK’s publicly owned impact investor, has announced a commitment of US$39.2 million to support SMEs in West Africa. CDC is backing Verod Fund III and Adiwale Fund I, West-African based private equity funds targeting SMEs in the region, with commitments of US$19.2m and US$20m respectively.

In West Africa, banks and low levels of private equity activity are currently struggling to meet the financing needs of SMEs, hampering their potential as engines of economic growth in the region. Access to finance is cited as the top barrier for doing business in Nigeria and Ghana. Increasing access to capital to this market is a core element of the CDC’s Africa strategy by backing well-networked, experienced local teams.

This should, in turn, support private sector development, economic growth, and long-term sustainable employment, particularly for the semi-skilled and low-skilled workforce in the region, therefore contributing to Sustainable Development Goal 8: decent …

Liquid has deployed a high-capacity fibre optic backbone connecting subsea cables on the East Coast of Africa with cables on the West Coast of Africa…

Smile Train, the world’s leading cleft organization, announced their partnership with the West African College of Surgeons (WACS) to launch the Smile Train-WACS Cleft Surgical Certification. The Certification will grant 6 surgeons per year over the next five years the opportunity to specialize in cleft care across West Africa.

The one- year Post-Graduate Program will commence in February 2020. WACS will identify accredited centers to serve as training sites in Nigeria, Ghana and French West Africa. The Certification is open to applicants in all West African and CEMAC zone countries with priority being given to trainees from countries without significant Smile Train presence.

Smile Train empowers local medical professionals with training, funding, and resources to provide free cleft surgery and comprehensive cleft care to children globally.

Speaking during the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), Smile Train Program Director of West and Central Africa, Mrs. Nkeiruka Obi noted …

Tullow Oil PLC (TLW.LN) recorded a strong performance in the first half of 2019 reporting a 91.5 per cent jump in profit, as it continued with its investments in Africa’s oil space.

Profit after tax for the period ended June 30, closed at US$103.2 million up from US$53.9 million in a corresponding period last year.

This is despite a drop in sales revenue which closed the period under review at US$872.3 million; compared with US$905.1 million it recorded a year-earlier.

Operating profit however went up to US$388 million compared to US$300 million in H1 of 2018 with the British oil firm reducing its net debt to US$2.9 billion from US$3.1 billion in June last year.

“Tullow has delivered a good set of financial results in the first half of 2019, with further reductions in net debt and gearing underpinned by strong cash flow generation from our assets despite the lower …

Kenya

As the East Africa Community (EAC) member states gear towards becoming net oil and gas exporters, a latest industry report has sent mixed signals on how the region is performing in the development of its oil projects.

It has emerged that Kenya has made major development in the first half of this year compared to her neighbour Uganda which is still lagging behind in its oil projects, mainly exploration and the planned construction of a pipeline linking its oil fields to the Tanga Port in Tanzania.

Tullow Oil plc (Tullow) which has operations in both countries, through Joint Ventures, has noted that significant progress has been made over the first six months of the year in Kenya on both the Early Oil Production Scheme (EOPS) and the Foundation Stage of “Project Oil Kenya.”

“In May 2019, EOPS production was increased from 600 bopd (barrels of oil per day) to …