Seychelles opposition leader Wavel Ramkalawan wins presidency vote after 30 years of trying
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Seychelles opposition leader Wavel Ramkalawan wins presidency vote after 30 years of trying

ByBrian Kithinji

Seychelles opposition leader Wavel Ramkalawan has won the country’s presidential poll, marking the first time an opposition candidate has won the presidency since 1977. The electoral commission announced that Ramkalawan, a former Anglican priest, garnered 54.9% of the vote while President Danny Faure captured 43.5%. The win was slightly unexpected as Ramkalawan, at his sixth…

Ethiopia imposes two-year jail term punishment for non-mask wearers
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Ethiopia imposes two-year jail term punishment for non-mask wearers

ByBrian Kithinji

Ethiopia has gazette a new law that could see people jailed for up to two years if they deliberately violate restrictions aimed at curbing the spread of COVID-19. The new decree from the attorney general’s office comes amid heightened concern that citizens are becoming lax after a state of emergency was lifted. Alongside the new…

South Africa to impose export tax on chrome ore
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South Africa to impose export tax on chrome ore

ByBrian Kithinji

South Africa’s cabinet has approved sweeping policies to lift the domestic ferrochrome industry including through an export tax on chrome ore. While reading the cabinet statement, Minister in the Presidency Jackson Mthembu said, “The interventions include the proposed introduction of the export tax on chrome ore, the usage of energy efficiency technologies on smelters, and…

Botswana’s government seeks World Bank budgetary support
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Botswana’s government seeks World Bank budgetary support

ByBrian Kithinji

Botswana’s government has approached the World Bank for budgetary support as the country’s economy suffers from a dip in revenues due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Botswana’s economy dropped by 24% in the second quarter of 2020, as coronavirus enforced lockdowns at home and across the world slowed down domestic economic activity and limited diamond…

PayPal launches cryptocurrency service triggering surge in bitcoin prices
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PayPal launches cryptocurrency service triggering surge in bitcoin prices

ByBrian Kithinji

Global payments provider firm PayPal has announced that it will allow customers to hold bitcoins and other virtual coins its online wallet, and shop using cryptocurrencies at the 26 million merchants on its network. Through this move, the California based company could aid bitcoin and rival cryptocurrencies gain wider adoption as viable payment methods across…

U.S. firm Stripe buys Nigerian startup Paystack in $200 million deal
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U.S. firm Stripe buys Nigerian startup Paystack in $200 million deal

ByBrian Kithinji

American firm Stripe has purchased Nigerian fintech startup Paystack, as it aims to taps into the fast growing online market in Africa. Bothe companies announced the acquisition, which is believed to be worth $200 million. The figure is reflection of the strength of Nigeria’s and Sub-Saharan Africa’s online market. “The African internet economy is expanding…

Uganda’s extension of bids for oil blocks hits dead end
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Uganda’s extension of bids for oil blocks hits dead end

ByBrian Kithinji

Uganda’s Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Energy Robert Kasande has confirmed that the second extension of bids for the country’s second oil licensing round expired in September without any new expressions of interest received from oil companies. Uganda had invited companies in March to explore five new blocks on offer in the Albertine Graben,…

Burundi’s former president Buyoya sentenced to life imprisonment for killing another president
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Burundi’s former president Buyoya sentenced to life imprisonment for killing another president

ByBrian Kithinji

Former Burundian president Pierre Buyoyoa has been sentenced to life in prison by Burundi’s top court for the murder of another president who defeated him in elections in 1993. The death of Melchior Ndadaye who had defeated Buyoya to become Burundi’s first freely elected president plunged the country into a 10-year civil war that killed…

Sudan completes transfer of $335 million to U.S. victims of terror attacks as government moves to eliminate debt
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Sudan completes transfer of $335 million to U.S. victims of terror attacks as government moves to eliminate debt

ByBrian Kithinji

Sudan’s central bank has transferred the compensation the nation agreed to pay U.S. victims of militant attacks and their families, allowing for the lifting of sanctions. Sudan agreed to make the payment of $335 million, as part of a deal with the United States to get the country removed from its list of state sponsors…

Mastercard Foundation provides lifeline to Nigerian farmers with $20 million grant
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Mastercard Foundation provides lifeline to Nigerian farmers with $20 million grant

ByBrian Kithinji

Mastercard Foundation has issued a $20.4 million grant that will be distributed among 65,000 Nigerian farmers as part of a broader plan aimed at revitalizing the agriculture sector from the negative effects of the coronavirus pandemic. The Foundation has teamed up with Alluvial Agriculture in an arrangement that will enable farmers access a farming collective,…

Botswana’s economy to grow 7.7% in 2021 as diamond industry picks up
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Botswana’s economy to grow 7.7% in 2021 as diamond industry picks up

ByBrian Kithinji

Botswana’s finance minister has revealed that the country’s economy will grow by 7.7% in 2021, from a contraction projection of 8.9% in 2020, on the back of improved sentiment in the global diamond industry. Botswana’s economy dropped by 24% in the second quarter of 2020, as coronavirus enforced lockdowns at home and across the world…

Ethiopia’s economy rose 6.1% in 2019/20 financial year
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Ethiopia’s economy rose 6.1% in 2019/20 financial year

ByBrian Kithinji

Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has announced that the country’s economy grew 6.1% in 2019/20 financial year. The Ministry of Finance in June, said that the economy was projected to grow 9% for the same period. In a speech to lawmakers, PM Abiy said, “For eight months we registered a healthy economic growth but after…

NASA to launch 4G mobile network on the moon
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NASA to launch 4G mobile network on the moon

ByBrian Kithinji

As the world hurtles towards 5G mobile network, NASA has selected Finish tech company Nokia to construct the first-ever 4G mobile network on the moon. Nokia’s U.S. industrial research arm, Bell Labs, is offering up its infrastructure to NASA to assist build out the lunar network. An announcement from Nokia claims that the network will…

Kenya’s economy dropped by 5.7% in second quarter
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Kenya’s economy dropped by 5.7% in second quarter

ByBrian Kithinji

Kenya’s economy contracted by 5.7% in the second quarter of 2020, from a growth of 5.3% in the same period in 2019, data from the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) indicates. The main sectors of the economy that were hit hardest include accommodation & tourism, and the education sectors, recording declines of 83.3% and…

South Africa President Ramaphosa outlines COVID-19 recovery plan, warns debt levels are unsustainable
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South Africa President Ramaphosa outlines COVID-19 recovery plan, warns debt levels are unsustainable

ByBrian Kithinji

President Cyril Ramaphosa unveiled a plan on Friday, to return South Africa’s economy back on track by focusing on massive public works and job-creation. Following a record gross domestic product (GDP) contraction in the second quarter, Ramaphosa said that his plan will unlock more than 60 billion dollars in investment in the next four years…

Zimbabwe’s 2020 inflation rate projected to fall to 134%
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Zimbabwe’s 2020 inflation rate projected to fall to 134%

ByBrian Kithinji

Zimbabwe’s average annual inflation rate will drop to 134% in 2020, according to a new report published by the Ministry of Finance. The Southern African country has been grappling with dire economic declines for more than ten years, with runaway inflation hitting the 659.4% mark in September. As a result, there have been severe shortages…

The new gold in town; why Kenyan real estate firms are moving into agribusiness
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The new gold in town; why Kenyan real estate firms are moving into agribusiness

ByBrian Kithinji

Welcome to Isinya; in the heart of Kajiado County, 58 kilometers south of Kenya’s capital Nairobi. The area is sparsely populated majorly because it falls within Kenya’s pastoralism belt. But in the last four years, this area has witnessed an influx of real estate companies, as developers move away from the more expensive satellite towns….

Uber to offer medicine delivery services in South Africa
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Uber to offer medicine delivery services in South Africa

ByBrian Kithinji

Uber Eats has launched a new app-based over-the-counter medicine delivery service in South Africa. The unit of the U.S. ride-hailing service, Uber Technologies, holds a dominant share in South Africa’s $600 million food dispatching market. However, the company believes that it can also hold a huge swathe in the lucrative medicines delivery market, currently held…

World Bank calls for $25 billion in emergency financing for world’s poorest nations
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World Bank calls for $25 billion in emergency financing for world’s poorest nations

ByBrian Kithinji

The World Bank has issued an urgent call for $25 billion in further COVID-19 emergency financing to assist the world’s poorest nations tackle the challenges raised by the pandemic. David Malpass, the World Bank’s president, spoke to finance ministers and central bank governors of the G20 major economies that he would lay out a supplemental…

Piracy incidents in the Gulf of Guinea up 40%
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Piracy incidents in the Gulf of Guinea up 40%

ByBrian Kithinji

The International Maritime Bureau (IMB) has revealed that piracy kidnappings have increased by 40% in the Gulf of Guinea in the first nine months of 2020; and the regions accounts for 95% of global maritime kidnappings. This region off West Africa’s coast has become the new front for piracy, as eight more seafarers were kidnapped…