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Banking / Investment in North Africa

  • Egypt's micro-credit NGO lifting women out of poverty

    EGYPT, 2016/07/04 Low gain earning women are generally considered risky in the banking industry. That means they cannot borrow and as a result have no credit history. That’s as well the story of Egyptian women who though have small businesses supporting their families, cannot raise credit to expand. Sabah, owns a small business and has experienced the difficulty in doing business with traditional banks.
  • Morocco set to approve 10 Islamic banks before the end of 2016

    CASABLANCA, 2016/07/04 Morocco’s Central Bank has said it would start approving Islamic banks this year with the aim of allowing business to begin in early 2017. The central bank said it had received seven requests to open Islamic banks and three to open windows selling Islamic products. Two Gulf banks want to establish fully owned subsidiaries while four others are partnering with local banks, an official said.
  • Sweeping reforms put Egypt back on the investment map

    EGYPT, 2016/01/16 Reforms undertaken by President El Sisi’s government have restored Egypt’s position as a world-class investment destination Over the completed 18 months, President Abdel Fattah El Sisi has embarked on a bold reforms programme designed to revitalise the country’s economy. Presently, with over £130billion of new deals secured at the initial Egypt Economic Development Conference(EEDC), it seems that Mr El Sisi’s reforms are starting to take result. Inclunding reforming a notoriously bureaucratic and cumbersome economic system, the government has been doing all it can to attract foreign investors – acutely aware that it needs foreign capital to tackle its deficit and deficit. The new investment law presented a few months ago – just prior to the EEDC – goes a long way towards achieving this.
  • Five tips for spotting overlooked African investment opportunities in 2016

    AFRICA, 2016/01/10
  • Morocco Approved 36 Investment Projects For MAD 63 Billion in 2015

    MOROCCO, 2016/01/05 Morocco’s Investment Commission (AMDI) approved 36 investment projects in 2015 totalingMAD 62.86 billion, to generate 8,452 jobs, Minister of Industry, Trade & New Technologies, Moulay Hafid Elalamy, said. “The year 2015 posted a significant increase in terms of investment all with additional than MAD 47.36 billion and doubling the number of direct jobs to be created, that is 4,395 jobs,”Elalamy said at a press conference on Wednesday, following a conference of the Inter-MinisterialInvestment Committee, held in Rabat under the chairmanship of Chief of Government, AbdelilahBenkirane. Elalamy noted the predominance in the industrial sector in terms of investment and job creation in 2015.
  • Cairo, Riyadh to sign 12 investment deals on Jan. 5

    EGYPT, 2016/01/02 Egypt and Saudi Arabia will sign 12 memorandums for Saudi investments in Cairo as a joint committee by both nations convenes in Riyadh on January 5, according to an Egyptian government official. The committee’s conference will be chaired by Egypt’s Prime Minister Sherif Ismail and Saudi Deputy Crown Prince Mohamed bin Salman along with a number of ministers from both governments.
  • Morocco’s insurance industry

    MOROCCO, 2015/12/26 Credit expansion and growing awareness yielded robust increase across Morocco’s insurance market, with life and savings products in particular posting strong performances in the initial half of 2015. While the domestic insurance market continues to provide steady returns, Moroccan institutions are as well building up their networks in sub-Saharan Africa, where low penetration rates and rapid economic development signal formidable increase prospects. Thanks to the expansion efforts of recent years, Moroccan insurers have emerged as major players on the continent and, according to recent rankings by Jeune Afrique magazine, presently account for five of the top-15 insurers on the continent by premiums written.
  • Egypt's infrastructure projects get a $1.5B boost from Kuwait fund

    EGYPT, 2015/11/25 The Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development has announced it is allocating $1.5 billion to finance Egyptian projects, particularly in housing, national news agency MENA reported on Monday. The fund's money will be delivered in annual instalments of $300 million over five years, according to Abdulwahab Ahmed Al-Bader, the fund's general director. It is not from presently on clear whether the financing constitutes a loan or a grant. The fund as well signed a $95 million loan agreement with the Egyptian minister of international cooperation to assist in financing the Egyptian side of the power interconnection project between Egypt and Saudi Arabia, the fund said on its official website.
  • The Africa Enterprise Challenge Fund (AECF)

    AFRICA, 2015/09/29 Almost 7 million Africans have benefited from a fund that seeks to boost entrepreunership in the region in 2014, according to a statement released on Tuesday. The Africa Enterprise Challenge Fund (AECF), set up in 2008, has funded projects that generated around 117 million U.S. dollars for poor households in 2014 alone, said the statement released on the sidelines of the on-going 2015 Africa Green Revolution Forum in Lusaka, the Zambian capital. The fund as well helped create 5,100 jobs in supported businesses, providing improved access to clean, sustainable energy to over 200,000 families since 2008, the statement said.
  • Sudan makes remarkable progress in growth, stability and making business easier

    SUDAN, 2015/09/28 Khartoum’s doors open for international investment amidst wealth of opportunities