African Business articles from January 2008

African Business archives from January 2008

Ibrahim Index on governance: classroom theories, not fact.(THIS MONTH'S PRIZE LETTER)(Letter to the editor)
January 1, 2008... For a number of reasons, I was disappointed with the article on the Ibrahim Index of Good Governance (Cover story, African Business, November 2007). As I began reading, I was hoping to see a more informed, more thoughtful approach to...

Plants and healing: keeping it local.(THIS MONTH'S PRIZE LETTER)(Letter to the editor)
January 1, 2008... I found your article by Dominique Magada on Africa's healing plants highly encouraging ("Africa's Healing Plants Find International Markets", African Business, December 2007). How often do you hear such positive news coming from our...

African Unity: whither Africa at 40?(THIS MONTH'S PRIZE LETTER)(Letter to the editor)
January 1, 2008... Africa is one continent that suffers from a painful, heart rending and throbbing past, a past enshrined in darkness, haunted and traumatised by harsh, callous and humiliating experiences like slavery and colonialism. Experiences which not only...

International remittances: correcting the record.(THIS MONTH'S PRIZE LETTER)(Letter to the editor)
January 1, 2008... I refer to the Telecoms article that you recently published (African Business, November 2007). You write of a 'world first' in the Safaricom M-Pesa international remittance service, a pilot scheme established with UK partners Vodafone plc and...

Uganda to assemble Chinese cars.(Automotives)(MFK Corporation and China Aero-Technology Import-Export Corp. in marketing agreements)(Brief article)
January 1, 2008... Uganda's MFK Corporation and the Chinese conglomerate China National Aero-Technology Import and Export Corporation (Catic) have announced plans to assemble 3,000 Geely cars a year in a new plant outside Kampala. Two Geely models are to be...

Libya's multibillion infrastructure budget.(Infrastructure)(Brief article)
January 1, 2008... Libya has unveiled plans to allocate 150bn Libyan Dinar ($123bn) on a five-year plan that will see more than half a million new housing units and water and sewerage installations built across the country. Libya's Strategic Projects...

France Telecom buys Telkom Kenya.(Telecoms)(Brief article)
January 1, 2008... Kenya's mobile phone market looks set for a shake-up with the virtual duopoly enjoyed by Safaricom (part-owned by Vodafone) and Celtel (owned by Zain of Kuwait) being challenged by France Telecom, which has taken a $390m, 51% stake in Kenya's...

IMF slams manual trading.(Stock markets)(International Monetary Fund )(Report)(Brief article)
January 1, 2008... A new study published by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) says that in order that African stock markets can grow and meet their full potential, automated trading systems must be introduced. There are currently 16 African stock markets with...

African operators losing revenues.(Telecoms)(Industry overview)(Brief article)
January 1, 2008... African telecom operators are losing revenues totalling more than $1bn that should be paid to them by overseas operators who are failing to properly bill when international calls are placed to Africa, according to Intec Telecom Systems, a...

BHP Billiton approves Klipsruit project.(Mining)(Brief article)
January 1, 2008... BHP Billiton, the world's largest mining company currently embroiled in a bid to gain control of rival RioTinto Zinc, has announced its board's approval of the $450m Klipsruit project, a key asset in the company's energy coal operations in...

South Sudan girls to be schooled.(Education)(Brief article)
January 1, 2008... A five-year Gender Equity through Education Programme has been launched in the Southern Sudanese capital of Juba. Launched by the USAid in co-operation with the South Sudan government, a total of $6.5m has been budgeted to promote gender equity...

New planes for Virgin Nigeria.(Aviation)(Brief article)
January 1, 2008... Nigerian airline, Virgin Nigeria, has placed an order for eight Embraer 170 and two Embraer 190 advanced range aircraft. The deal also includes options for another six Embraer 190 and purchase rights for eight Embraer 190 or 195 jets. The...

New help for start-ups.(ICT)(Umsobomvu Youth Fund)(Krazyboyz)(Brief article)
January 1, 2008... Young South African entrepreneurs are being given a helping hand onto the information superhighway thanks to a new social entrepreneurship initiative by South African digital agency Krazyboyz Digital. Internet access, hosting and website...

AB guide to African currencies.(Briefs)(Statistical table)
January 1, 2008... AB guide to African Currencies Country Currency [pounds sterling]STG $US Algeria (Dinar) 135.80 66.92 Angola (New Kwanza) 152.24 ...

Africa's scientific tradition.(Editorial)
January 1, 2008... This year India will roll out another batch of half-a-million engineers; China will produce enough scientists to populate a small African country. The industrialised world, including Japan, will continue to pump in several billion dollars in an...

The Lisbon EU--Africa Summit: Africa stands firm.(Conference news)
January 1, 2008... The significance of last month's EU-Africa Summit in Lisbon, Portugal, goes well beyond immediate trade and diplomatic concerns. It marks a seismic change in the relationship between the two continents. It is likely to go down in history as the...

Runaway oil prices--the causes: crude oil prices have more than quadrupled since 2002 and until recently were within a whisper of the magical $100 a barrel mark. What factors are fuelling this remorseless surge and how will African businesses and consumers be affected?(View from the City)
January 1, 2008... Many people (myself included) dismissed a warning from Wall Street bank Goldman Sachs in 2005 that the oil market was entering a 'super peak' cycle, where $105/barrel was possible. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] That prediction now seems more...

How safe are African miners? While mining is crucial to Africa's economic wellbeing, just how safe are African miners compared to others in the rest of the world? Neil Ford investigates.(Topic)
January 1, 2008... The recent miners strike in South Africa and a report by War on Want have thrust the social and environmental consequences of mining activities into the spotlight. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] In common with the oil and gas industry, the...

Record FDI for Africa; The stream of good news about Africa's economic performance continues with the release of the UN's The World Investment Report 2007: Foreign direct investment has doubled both as a result of growing interest in the continent and a friendlier climate for investors. Neil Ford reports.(Investment)(Report)
January 1, 2008... The World Investment Report 2007 Transnational Corporations, Extractive Industries and Development, produced by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (Unctad), revealed that foreign direct investment (FDI) into Africa doubled...

Chogm--when the circus finally came to town: Andrea Bohnstedt, who is based in Nairobi, Kenya, attended the Commonwealth Business Forum, part of the last Commonwealth Heads of Summit programme held in Kampala, Uganda. Here are her observations.(Guest Column)(Column)
January 1, 2008... Kwashie Gbedemah, Sheraton's food and beverages manager, must have run an entire marathon in supervising lunches and dinners for the Commonwealth Business Forum, and he breathed a huge sigh of relief when it was all over. 'Nothing has...

Access Bank opens in Sierra Leone.(AFRICAN BANKER'S WORLD)(Access Bank Sierra Leone Ltd.)(Brief article)
January 1, 2008... Access Bank Sierra Leone Ltd. is Access Bank's third licensed bank on the African continent. The bank opened its doors to the public after receiving approvals from the Bank of Sierra Leone and the Centra Bank of Nigeria. Access Bank commenced...

UBA's heavy investment in Afrinvest.(AFRICAN BANKER'S WORLD)(Brief article)
January 1, 2008... Nigeria's UBA Plc announced that it has made a substantial equity investment in Afrinvest. Afrinvest is a privately owned investment bank specialising in African securities based in London. The investment extends UBA's presence outside Africa...

HSBC signs deal with Algeria BEA.(AFRICAN BANKER'S WORLD)(Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Ltd.)(Brief article)
January 1, 2008... The External Bank of Algeria (BEA) and HSBC signed a cooperation agreement in Algiers providing funding for large Sonatrach and Sonelgaz projects. Sonatrach, Africa's biggest firm by revenue, generates about $1bn a week. The company plans to...

LonZim established.(AFRICAN BANKER'S WORLD)
January 1, 2008... Lonrho, the reborn pan-African conglomerate, raised $58.5m on London's AIM market to establish its new subsidiary LonZim. LonZim has been established to make investments in Zimbabwe and the Beira transport corridor in Mozambique. Whilst having...

New ownership structure for Moz's BCI-Fomento.(AFRICAN BANKER'S WORLD)(Caixa Geral de Depositos S.A.)(Brief article)
January 1, 2008... BCI-Fomento, Mozambique's second largest bank, has a new ownership structure after the sale of shares to the Mozambican group INSITEC. BCI is dominated by Portuguese capital. The Portuguese state bank, the Caixa Geral de Depositos (CGD), is its...

Actis sells Lagos Palms Mall interest.(AFRICAN BANKER'S WORLD)(Tayo Amusan)(Brief article)
January 1, 2008... Actis, a leading private equity investor in emerging markets has realised its investment in the Palms Mall in Lagos, the path-breaking shopping centre development in Nigeria. Actis has sold its majority ownership stake to its Nigerian partner,...

National Bank of Kenya launches Islamic banking.(AFRICAN BANKER'S WORLD)(Brief article)
January 1, 2008... The National Bank of Kenya has developed a shariah compliant product for the Muslim community. This is in line with the Bank's strategy to enhance and reposition its brand in the market. The product named Al-Mu'min has been developed and...

Intercontinental Bank's new corporate identity.(AFRICAN BANKER'S WORLD)(Brief article)
January 1, 2008... Intercontinental Bank has a new corporate logo. The new logo has the hexagon as its primary identity icon with two dominant colours--blue and yellow. According to the Group CEO of the bank, Dr Erastus Akingbola, the hexagon symbolises the...

China cancels Sierra Leone debt.(AFRICAN BANKER'S WORLD)(Brief article)
January 1, 2008... China has cancelled Sierra Leone's $22m debt. During a visit to Sierra Leone, the Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Zhai Jun and Sierra Leone's Foreign Minister Zainab Bangura signed the debt relief agreement. "We want to achieve Sino-Sierra Leone...

Austral Bank now Barclays-Mozambique.(AFRICAN BANKER'S WORLD)(Brief article)
January 1, 2008... Mozambique's Austral Bank, which was owned 80% by the South African giant Absa, now bears the name of Barclays-Mozambique. This follows the 2005 takeover by Barclays of Absa when Barclays paid $2.6bn for a 56% per cent stake in the South...

Financial support for East African Submarine Cable System.(AFRICAN BANKER'S WORLD)(Brief article)
January 1, 2008... The African Development Bank, along with other development financial institutions, have signed loan agreements for the East African Submarine Cable System (EASSy). The landmark fibre-optic cable project will connect 22 coastal and land-locked...

Ecobank posts strong third quarter results.(AFRICAN BANKER'S WORLD)(Financial report)(Brief article)
January 1, 2008... The Ecobank Group recorded strong growth for the third quarter of 2007. Total assets of the Group grew by 64% to $4.96bn, compared with the same period in 2006. Profit before tax recorded a 41% increase over 2006 to $118.9m and profit...

Kenya, Madagascar, Gambia to receive $200m from ADF.(AFRICAN BANKER'S WORLD)(African Development Fund)(Brief article)
January 1, 2008... The African Development Fund (ADF) has approved $264m in loans and grants for Kenya, Madagascar and the Gambia. Kenya will receive UA156.9m to finance the Nairobi-Thika highway improvement project as well as for support services to the boards...

Western union awards winners.(AFRICAN BANKER'S WORLD)
January 1, 2008... Educating young orphans in Cameroon, giving HIV/Aids sufferers in Ethiopia a voice, singing to deeounce the mutilation of young girls in Niger and lighting a village from the fruit of a small bush--these were the inspiring stories to emerge...

Maatcard to be launched in Cameroon.(AFRICAN BANKER'S WORLD)(Brief article)
January 1, 2008... An innovative payment card, the Maatcard, is to be launched in Cameroon. Besides offering the traditional facilities of a standard pre-paid debit card, the Maatcard has another level of security with an acoustic chip using nCryptone technology....

KCB spreads its wings.(FOCUS ON EAST AFRICA)(Kenya Commercial Bank Group)(Brief article)
January 1, 2008... Kenya Commercial Bank Group (KCB) will open branches both in Rwanda and Burundi anticipating greater cross-border regional trade with these two new entrants to the East Africa Community. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] KCB, which already has...

EADB launches housing loan initiative.(FOCUS ON EAST AFRICA)(Brief article)
January 1, 2008... The East African Development Bank (EADB) is planning to establish the first wholesale mortgage institution to help meet a current housing shortfall of 3.8m units in the region's five countries, according to the bank's director general, Godfrey...

Rwanda micro-finance start-up.(FOCUS ON EAST AFRICA)(Brief article)
January 1, 2008... Rwanda's first micro-finance bank has been formally launched by Rwanda's central bank governor, Francois Kanimba. The Urwego Opportunity Finance Bank, headquartered on Commercial Street in the capital Kigali, is the country's first formal...

Kenya's Equity Bank looks for growth.(FOCUS ON EAST AFRICA)(Brief article)
January 1, 2008... One of Kenya's fastest growing financial services groups, Equity Bank, is awaiting approval from its shareholders, the Central Bank of Kenya, the Capital Market Authority and the Nairobi Stock Exchange to proceed with the sale of 90m new...

Barclays Kenya raises nearly $15m.(FOCUS ON EAST AFRICA)(Brief article)
January 1, 2008... Kenya's largest commercial bank, Barclays (K), has successfully raised Kshibn ($14.9m) from local capital markets with a seven-year bond issue. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The local currency, the Kenya shilling, is riding on an eight-year...

Burundi's new finance ministry building.(FOCUS ON EAST AFRICA)(Brief article)
January 1, 2008... Burundi is planning to build a new office to house the country's Ministry of Finance which currently has to share its headquarters with other ministries. The projects' costs are being funded by the Economic Management Support Project, a World...

Tza banks wants courts computerised.(FOCUS ON EAST AFRICA)(Brief article)
January 1, 2008... Tanzania's bankers have called for an urgent computerisation of Tanzanian courts to speed up the resolution of commercial disputes. They say the country's court systems have tied up some Tsh100bn ($86.75m). Speaking at an international...

Douglas Hoto to head Altfin Holdings, Zimabwe.(RECENT APPOINTMENTS)(Altfin Holdings Limited )(Brief article)
January 1, 2008... Actuary Douglas Hoto has been promoted to head of Altfin Holdings Limited (AHL). Altfin Holdings comprises Altfin Insurance Company (AICO) and Altfin Life Assurance (ALAC). AHL was the result of a 2003 merger between Orion Insurance Company...

New interim management for NICON--Nigeria.(RECENT APPOINTMENTS)(Brief article)
January 1, 2008... The Federal Government of Nigeria has appointed an interim management for NICON Insurance PLC and Nigerian Re-insurance after the recent controversial dismissal of the boards and management and takeover of the companies from Mr. Jimoh Ibrahim....

Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala appointed WB managing director.(RECENT APPOINTMENTS)(Brief article)
January 1, 2008... Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala has been appointed Managing Director of the World Bank. The President of the World Bank, Robert B. Zoellick said "Ngozi brings a unique set of skills and experience to the World Bank Group. As an outstanding Minister of...

Sterling Bank's Mallam Baffa retires.(RECENT APPOINTMENTS)(Mallam Sulaiman S. Baffa)(Brief article)
January 1, 2008... The planned merger between Ecobank Nigeria Plc and Sterling Bank Plc has led to the retirement of Mallam Sulaiman S. Baffa as Chairman and W. Babatunde Dabiri as Group Managing Director from the Board of Sterling Bank Plc. The board...

The global remittances boom: billions pour into Africa.(MONEY TRANSFER)
January 1, 2008... The volume of remittances back home by migrant workers worldwide is bigger, in many cases, than all other official forms of money transfer. The figure for Africa alone was around $20bn in 2006. This income is crucial in the several ways, but,...

Rama Sithanen, Mauritius finance minister: the secret of our success.(Interview)
January 1, 2008... The island nation of Mauritius continues to be one of the most successful economies in Africa. Apart from its top ranking in several economic indexes, it also came first in the recently published Mo Ibrahim Index on African Governance....

South Africa's interest rate annus horribilis: after a year of relentless rate hikes in South Africa, the squeeze is beginning to tell and the poor are getting the worst of it. President Thabo Mbeki and reserve bank governor Tito Mboweni are at daggers drawn. Who is right?(INVESTMENT)
January 1, 2008... South Africans are having to dig deep to survive financially after seven straight interest rate hikes to the prime bank rate, taking it to 14.5% at mid December, and while third quarter GDP growth came in at a surprising 4.7%, most analysts...

Neil Harvey of Renaissance Capital: Africa is the new Russia.(STAR INTERVIEW)(Interview)
January 1, 2008... Renaissance Capital is a relatively new entity to Africa. It made a name for itself in Russia and the CIS in the late 1990s and the 2000s becoming one of the region's biggest deal makers and most influential investment banks. Its founder and...

Emmanuel Tumusiime-Mutebile: governor--Bank of Uganda; Bound up in history, shaping the future.(PROFILE)
January 1, 2008... Emmanuel Tumusiime-Mutebile, the governor of the Bank of Uganda, is widely credited with introducing financial discipline to a previously chaotic economy. Stephen Williams profiles the man who has steered Uganda's economic recovery. ...

KCB's Martin Oduor Otieno: managing dynamics of growth.(PROFILE)
January 1, 2008... Kenya has been undergoing a sustained economic recovery since the end of the Daniel arap Moi era in 2002. A major component in the country's economic progress has been the role played by KCB, which has more branches than any other bank in the...

Seeking water solutions for Africa.(Special Report)(Report)
January 1, 2008... Although Africa possesses water resources of over five trillion cubic metres a year, only 3.8% of this figure has been developed. Some 300m people in Africa do not have access to safe drinking water. Clearly, the reliable supply of clean water...

GE's Nani Beccalli-Falco Africa can bypass technology gap.(Interview)
January 1, 2008... Ferdinando 'Nani' Beccalli-Falco was appointed president and CEO of GE International 2005, based in Brussels, Belgium. He joined GE in 1975 and is today primarily responsible for directing the strategies of one of the world's largest companies...

Europe, Asia flock to Tripoli: Given its geographic position and the enormous potential of its oil and gas reserves, the world's energy companies are beating a path to Libya's door. Neil Ford has the details.(Special Report)
January 1, 2008... While much has been made of the return of US firms to Tripoli and growing investment by Asia's oil and gas companies in the country, it is European companies that have made the biggest commitment to Libya. BP's investment in the North...

The need for a genuine Marshall Plan: a newfound confidence shared by government and international donors alike should enable the country to pursue its ambitious economic development programme, says the DR Congo's Minister of Planning, Olivier Kamitatu, in this interview with African Business.(Special Report: DR Congo)(Interview)
January 1, 2008... African Business: In this period of reconstruction, what are the main priorities of the DR Congo's economic and social development plan? [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Olivier Kamitatu: The new government is committed to reconstructing the...

We want to attract investors: as the governor of the richest provinces of the DR Congo, Moise Katumbi Tchalue has managed to introduce new initiatives inspired by best-practice business management.(Special Report: DR Congo)(Interview)
January 1, 2008... African Business: Shortly after your election you undertook a review of the salaries paid to mining employees. What made you take this decision? [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Moise Katumbi Tchalue: If you visit the website of the London Metal...

South Africa passes first big test: South Africa's first major test as the host of the 2010 tournament went without a hitch when the draw for the competition was made in Durban, reports Tom Nevin. He also discusses the special plans in place to beat crime before and during the event.(2010)
January 1, 2008... If any of the 2010 soccer World Cup local organisers had denied an attack of butterflies when the preliminary draw was held at Durban's International Convention Centre at end November, he or she would surely have been a stranger to the truth....

Top marks for Classmate: schoolchildren in Africa are set to get a major boost to their education through the use of very affordable computers. Andrea Bohnstedt describes the launch of Intel's Classmate initiative in Kenya.(Information Technology)
January 1, 2008... It's small. It's got coloured handles. You can drop it on the floor, or spill some of your soft drink on it, and nothing much will happen. In fact, it looks a bit like a kid's toy, and that's because it practically is--Intel's Classmate mini-PC...

Russians to restart aluminium smelter: the mothballed Aluminium Smelter Company of Nigeria plant is due to reopen this month on the back of investment by Russia's United Company, the world's largest aluminium producer. Neil Ford reports.(NIGERIA)
January 1, 2008... The Aluminium Smelter Company of Nigeria (Alscon) was built in 1997 at a cost of $2.5bn but closed after just two years and has remained out of operation, until now. Abuja hopes that Russia's United Company (Rusal) management will provide a...

Who will pay for biofuels development? For a while longer at least it looks as if South African sugar will be used to sweeten coffee rather than make fuel for motor vehicles. The reason: a standoff between cane growers and the government over how to pay for fuel-from-sugar research and development. Tom Nevin reports.(SOUTH AFRICA)
January 1, 2008... When the South African government announced an aggressive fuels initiative that would see biofuels providing up to 75% of its renewable energy needs in just five years' time, the local sugar industry sat up and took notice. Next to maize, sugar...

Portuguese finally relinquish Cahora-Bassa: the handover of Africa's massive dam sweeps away the last vestiges of Portuguese colonialism and provides Mozambique with its 'second independence'. Report by Tom Nevin.(MOZAMBIQUE)
January 1, 2008... For a consideration of $950m and a wait of more than 30 years, Mozambique is finally the owner of Cahora-Bassa, the biggest dam in sub-Saharan Africa. The handover effectively ends Portugal's ownership of the project more than three decades...

The long haul to normality: slowly but surely, Liberia is hauling itself back to normality. A deal with an Israeli diamond company, debt cancellation and a brave attempt to come to terms with the trauma of the war all point to a brighter future for the country. Report by Neil Ford.(LIBERIA)
January 1, 2008... Liberia remains one of the world's weakest economies, with a very limited budget, a weak infrastructural base and biting poverty. But the government is working hard to improve the situation and real headway has recently been made on several...

Zimbabwe's crisis: seeking a solution.
January 1, 2008... The Day After Mugabe Prospects for Change in Zimbabwe Africa Research Institute ISBN 978-1-906329-00-6 This book, we are told in the introduction, is not a partisan project. Rather, the book's stated objective is to assess the...

More from Mali: ngoni masters.(Sound recording review)
January 1, 2008... Segu Blue By Bassekou Kouyate and Ngoni ba Out Here Records Cat: OH 007 This is the first solo album by Malian musician and composer Bassekou Kouyate. He is one of the true masters of the ngoni and Segu Blue is a tour de...