Thousands of farm workers in Kenya are on the verge of losing their jobs due to closure on sell of ‘non-essential’ items by supermarkets and florists during the lockdown in France. On Friday, France began its second lockdown in just seven months in a nationwide effort to curb the country’s renewed surge in Covid-19 cases….
Aspen Pharmacare, has announced that it has reached an agreement with American drugmaker Johnson & Johnson to commercially manufacture its COVID-19 vaccine candidate in South Africa. Aspen, South Africa’s largest pharmaceutical company, will also perform formulation, filling and secondary packaging of the vaccine for the U.S. firm, the company said. Currently, the vaccine candidate is…
South Sudan’s President Salva Kiir has fired Central Bank governor Jamal Wani, as the country battles a struggling economy. The announcement was made in a presidential decree read on State-run TV SSBC, which also included the appointment of Dier Tong to replace Mr. Wani. The president did not give reasons for firing Mr. Wani, but…
Sudan and South Sudan inked a joint military pact on Thursday aimed at providing armed training, opening borders and promoting peace and development between the two countries. The memorandum of understanding was signed by Sudan and South Sudan’s Ministers for Defence, Ibrahim Yassin and Angelina Teny. It also mandates both sides to resolve the issue…
Eskom, South Africa’s major power utility, trimmed its net loss to $1.3 billion in the 2019/20 financial year, though it projects a larger loss in the next financial year owing to the financial impact of the coronavirus pandemic. The firm’s debt grew to $29.8 billion – equivalent to 9% of South Africa’s gross domestic product…
Multinational gold miner AngloGold Ashanti has announced that it will double its dividend payout ratio following an increase in its profits and reduced debt. A rise in global gold prices is responsible, with the price of the precious metal surging to record highs of above $2,000 an ounce in the beginning of the year due…
Trump’s rhetoric versus Biden’s policies. If ever words could summarize a story. The most powerful country in the world is heading to the polls in an election that pits the incumbent President Donald Trump and former Vice President Joseph Biden, who served under Trump’s predecessor, Barack Obama – the first head of state with African…
After a contested election victory that leading opposition candidate described as a travesty and the United States said was marred by widespread irregularities, Tanzania’s President John Pombe Magufuli has vowed to bury the hatchet and work with his rivals for the good of the country. The once peaceful country that is among a handful in…
Mali’s interim President Bah N’daw has announced that the government will review mining conventions signed with companies by previous administrations. The directive follows recommendations that were issued from the country’s auditor general citing corruption and undervaluing of the country’s interests in the contracts. While Mali is one of Africa’s largest gold producers, it remains one…
Ivory Coast is the world largest cocoa producer, and this year it has been unable to sell most of its produce due to the ongoing pandemic. The coronavirus pandemic has led to global grinding dropping 4% on average and general demand for the produce drop sharply. As a result, the West African nation has been…
South African Airways (SAA) has received a new $650 million bailout in the mid-term budget released by the South African government. The state-owned airline has been under bankruptcy protection since December, and after the government imposed a strict coronavirus lockdown in March, has flown only repatriation and cargo flights. South African Airways financial woes have…
Sudan has doubled domestic fuel prices as it aims to reduce a gaping budget deficit. The government which has long fixed fuel prices at one of the lowest levels in the world raised prices of locally produced diesel by 23 Sudanese pounds ($0.8364) a litre. The move will anger most of the nation’s impoverished citizens…
Total has announced a second significant gas condensate discovery in the Outeniqua Basin, located 175 kilometers off the southern coast of South Africa. The French oil giant’s announcement follows an adjacent discovery made in 2019, which provided huge hopes of petroleum riches for Africa’s most developed nation, South Africa produces 41,319 million cubic feet of…
A report released by the Mogadishu-based Hiraal Institute has revealed that Somali Islamic extremist group al Shabaab collects as much tax as the government through a sophisticated system that involves levies on activities ranging from importing goods to irrigating crops. The report was based on 70 interviews with businessmen, government officials, al Shabaab defectors and…
The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) has warned that Africa is suffering from the impacts of climate change, and worse is yet to come for the continent’s food supplies, health and economy. According to the U.N. climate agency, temperatures have been rising in Africa at a comparable rate to other continents but the region is exceptionally…
Even before the euphoria in Sudan had settled down following the country’s removal from the U.S. list of state sponsors of terrorism, protests began as citizens came into reckoning with the entirety of the deal. Not only had Sudan agreed to pay $335 million as compensation to the victims of the U.S. Embassy bombings in…
President John Pombe Magufuli is a no nonsense man. That doesn’t need to be said again. Through his no non-sense administration, he has steered what was once a resource rich but sluggish economy to a level where it is challenging the region’s economic powerhouses. Picture this. Before Magufuli was sworn in 2015 to begin his…
Physical fitness and wellness has long been associated with the wealthy class, the elderly or people suffering from lifestyle diseases such as obesity. Statistics show that the level of obesity in Kenya is approaching 50% of the population as at 2018 with the most affected group being women between the ages of 19-49 years. Jackie…
Heightened corruption fears have led South African investigators to begin a widespread probe of the government’s coronavirus spending worth $636.2 million. In a submission to parliament, the Special Investigation Unit (SIU) revealed that the amount they are investigation is more than double a previous figure that was under investigation two months ago. South Africa has…
U.S. president Donald Trump is known for making short outbursts that shock the world. But most people, even his critics, admit that such comments that often sound irrational, threatening, outside the realm of reality, and belonging to a drunk man who’s had seven rounds at the bar, are laced with some deep truths. Especially when…