Tag Archives: economy

Kinshasa, DR Congo | AFP |  The Democratic Republic of Congo’s new leadership is under mounting pressure to diversify the country’s economy from its dependence on raw materials following the plunge in the price of cobalt. Economic experts currently visiting the country have a sobering figure on which to base …

Monrovia, Liberia | AFP |   Liberian President George Weah faces a key test on Friday when demonstrators take to the streets of Monrovia to protest at inflation and corruption. The nation’s football icon is being challenged over the same issues on which he campaigned in his historic ascent to the …

  Blantyre, Malawi | AFP |  Malawi’s President Peter Mutharika, 78, is a former Washington law professor with two successive election victories to his name and a political career clouded by claims of corruption, even treason. He won his first term in a closely-contested poll in 2014 — two years after …

Pretoria, South Africa | AFP | Cyril Ramaphosa vowed a “new era” Saturday after he was sworn in as president of South Africa at a colourful ceremony in the capital, as he looks to revitalise his push to revive the economy and fight corruption. Foreign heads of state from more than …

  Pretoria, South Africa | AFP |  Newly-elected South African President Cyril Ramaphosa faces herculean tasks after he gets down to work after Saturday’s inauguration. They include: – Fixing the economy – South Africa has the most advanced infrastructure in the continent, but its commodities-dependent economy has been in a …

    Harare, Zimbabwe | AFP |  Zimbabwe on Tuesday announced a fresh increase in fuel prices, months after a price hike triggered nationwide protests and a brutal security crackdown as the country’s economy woes deepen further. Upping prices by about 46 percent, the Zimbabwe Energy Regulatory Authority (ZERA) said …

Paris, France | AFP | Revamping global food production, retooling the financial sector, moving beyond GDP as a measure of progress and other “transformative changes” are needed to save Nature and ourselves, a major UN biodiversity report is set to conclude. Delegates from 130 nations wrap up week-long negotiations in …

Johannesburg, South Africa | AFP | The election 25 years ago of South Africa’s first black president, the late Nelson Mandela, who inspired the struggle against apartheid, was a time of soaring hope that the bruised country would reconcile after decades of discrimination and inequality. “You have mandated us to …

Kiev, Ukraine | AFP | Ukraine’s election has catapulted Volodymyr Zelensky, a 41-year-old standup comedian and television star with no political experience, into the nation’s top job. As leader of a country dependent on international aid and battling separatists, Zelensky will have to deal with Russian President Vladimir Putin, deep …

London, United Kingdom | AFP |  Worldwide music sales rose by nearly 10 percent in 2018, a fourth consecutive year of growth fuelled by online streaming, according to figures released on Tuesday by an industry body. Revenues reached $19.1 billion last year, the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry, which …