Economy in Central Africa

  • Africa’s economic growth in 2016 was driven by East Africa

    BOTSWANA, 2017/08/20 While the continent’s major economies were hit by the fall in commodity prices in 2016, Africa retained its position as the second-fastest growing continent globally recording an average of 2.2% GDP increase, behind only South Asia, according to the African Development Bank Group (AfDB). Much of Africa’s increase in 2016, AfDB says, was driven by East Africa where several nations recorded “strong performances.” In general, of the continent’s sub-regions, East Africa posted the highest increase rate with 5.3%, led by Ethiopia.
  • Africa: G20 Should Build Digital Economy Friendly to Growth, Jobs - Xi

    CHINA, 2017/07/10 Chinese President Xi Jinping says the Group of 20 (G20) members should build a digital economy that is friendly to increase and employment. He made the remarks while attending the two-day G20 summit in the German port city of Hamburg. "We should actively adapt ourselves to digital evolution, foster new economic drives, advance structural reforms and promote integrated development of digital and real economy," said President Xi.
  • Global economic gravity rapidly pulling towards Africa

    BOTSWANA, 2017/06/20 The second International Conference on the Emergence of Africa (ICEA) was held in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, in March 2017. Since the initial conference in 2015 — at a time of robust economic increase on the continent — hopes for economic evolution have dimmed because of a crash in the price of commodities, volatile world financial markets and a slowdown in world increase. Before departing New York to attend the second ICEA conference, jointly organised by the World Bank, the African Development Bank and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Assistant Secretary-General of the UN and chief of UNDP’s Regional Bureau for Africa Abdoulaye Mar Dieye sat down for an interview with Africa Renewal’s Kingsley Ighobor to talk about Africa’s economic development opportunities and challenges.
  • Take responsibility for transforming your countries – Akufo-Addo

    BOTSWANA, 2017/06/15 President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has urged African leaders to assume responsibility for the transformation of their economies, and depart from the mindset of aid, dependency and charity. “If we, Africans, are to transform our stagnant, jobless economies, built on the export of raw materials and unrefined goods, to price-added economies that provide jobs, to build strong middle-class societies and lift the mass of our people out of dire poverty, again we must take our destinies into our own hands and assume responsibility for this,” he stated on Monday at the same time as addressing the G-20 Partnership for Africa Summit, currently taking place in Berlin, Germany.
  • Economic headwinds look set to revive African M&A

    EGYPT, 2017/05/07 Two-thousand and sixteen was relatively quiet for African banking markets on the merger and acquisition (M&A) front. In most of the continent’s larger economies, inclunding Nigeria and South Africa, major transaction announcements were absent despite the challenging economic conditions of recent times. Buy-ins to African banks from European and Middle Eastern players were as well low, according to data from Mergermarket. This contrasts sharply from 2015 at the same time as buyers from Norway, Kuwait and the UK all made significant acquisitions on the continent. These deals were complemented by several bold intra-regional transactions, inclunding Kenya’s Equity Group acquiring a stake in a microfinance provider in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Morocco’s Banque Centrale Populaire buying a position in BIA Niger.
  • Economic headwinds look set to revive African M&A

    EGYPT, 2017/05/07 Two-thousand and sixteen was relatively quiet for African banking markets on the merger and acquisition (M&A) front. In most of the continent’s larger economies, inclunding Nigeria and South Africa, major transaction announcements were absent despite the challenging economic conditions of recent times. Buy-ins to African banks from European and Middle Eastern players were as well low, according to data from Mergermarket. This contrasts sharply from 2015 at the same time as buyers from Norway, Kuwait and the UK all made significant acquisitions on the continent. These deals were complemented by several bold intra-regional transactions, inclunding Kenya’s Equity Group acquiring a stake in a microfinance provider in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Morocco’s Banque Centrale Populaire buying a position in BIA Niger.
  • Rise of middle class, fact or fiction

    BOTSWANA, 2017/04/26 White-walled tyres on his bike appear to elevate a trendy young man from the lower classes but the question is whether he is contributing towards sustainable economic increase. THE middle classes in the world south have gained growing attention since the turn of the century, mainly through their rapid ascendancy in the Asian emerging economies. A side result of the economic increase during these “fat years” was a relative increase of monetary gain for a growing number of households. This as well benefited some lower gain groups in resource-rich African economies. A lot of part these crossed the defined poverty levels, which were raised in late 2015 from $1.25 (R16) a person a day to $1.90. As some economists had suggested, from as little as $2 they were considered as entering the “middle class”.
  • African bankers scrutinize German minister’s ‘Marshall Plan with Africa’

    GERMANY, 2017/03/08 German Development Minister Gerd Müller has been canvassing support for his ‘Marshall Plan with Africa’ at the African Development Bank in Ivorian capital city of Abidjan. Some bankers thought his discussion paper lacked detail, reports Adrian Kriesch. In the modern premises of the African Development Bank (AfDB) in the Ivorian commercial hub of Abidjan, around twenty board members are gathered around an enormous table. Almost all of them are bankers with years of experience in development finance. They meet each week to discuss applications for loans, around 300 each year. Last year they disbursed almost US$11 billion (10.5 billion euros) in loans.
  • TIME FOR AFRICAN ECONOMIC MIRACLE

    AFRICA, 2017/03/07 In the 20th century, Africa gained political independence but fell behind economic boom. In the 21st century, it is Africa’s turn – but not without stronger national and new external push. Next struggle against corruption, lawlessness and terror, President Buhari’s government has outlined an economic recovery plan targeting 7 % GDP increase rate from 2017 to 2020. While a lot of African economies are hoping for takeoff in the coming years, Nigeria represents the region’s greatest economic potential.
  • Gabon looks to tax reforms and non-oil growth to boost revenues

    GABON, 2017/03/06 Approved by Parliament on January 10, Gabon’s budget for 2017 seeks to pare back spending, maintain stable monetary conditions and engender economic diversification. The budget caps total spending for this year at CFA2.47trn (€3.8bn), a 5.7% decrease on last year. This readjustment comes despite the Gabon government expecting revenue to hit CFA1.85trn (€2.8bn) in 2017 – a 10% increase on the IMF’s 2016 estimate of CFA1.68trn (€2.6bn). Gain from oil is expected to total CFA478.6bn (€727.5m) this year. Meanwhile, capital spending will be significantly reduced year-on-year, from CFA562bn (€854.2m) in 2016 to CFA372bn (€565.4m) this year, while current spending will as well be scaled back by CFA185.6bn (€282.9m) to CFA1.4trn (€2.1bn).