Harare, Zimbabwe | AFP | Zimbabwe has banned the importation of fruit and vegetables to save scarce foreign currency in the face of a worsening economic crisis, state media reported Tuesday. Agriculture Minister Joseph Made told The Herald that President Robert Mugabe had directed that the importation of horticultural products be …
Read More »Airbnb rentals boom across Africa
Johannesburg, South Africa | AFP | Rent-a-room giant Airbnb said Tuesday that it had provided accommodation for 1.2 million visitors to Africa over the last year — double the previous year as tourism expands across the continent. The website now offers more than 100,000 accommodation options in Africa, global public affairs …
Read More »Deloitte: Uganda economy can expand with better SME financing
Kampala, Uganda | JULIUS BUSINGE | Audit firm Deloitte says Uganda’s economy could expand further once cheap financing to small and medium enterprises is offered. “With sufficient financing and access to business advisory services to foster continual improvement of operational efficiency and productivity, SMEs can become more competitive and resilient, …
Read More »Angola’s new leader vows to revive moribund economy
Luanda, Angola | AFP | Angola’s new president unveiled a programme of corporate tax sweeteners on Monday intended to boost foreign investment and ease the oil-rich country’s dependence on the lacklustre price of crude. “We expect to adopt tax incentives for businesses that invest in the country,” President Joao Lourenco said …
Read More »US-world divide spills out at IMF-World Bank meetings
Washington, United States | AFP | The growing split between the United States and the rest of the world spilled into the annual meetings of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank in Washington this week. The US administration showed a diminished view of the Bretton Woods institutions that shaped …
Read More »IMF worried over Venezuela, ‘no solution in sight’
Washington, United States | AFP | The International Monetary Fund expressed grave concerns Friday over Venezuela’s unending political crisis, seeing no end to the economic downturn and suffering of the population. Venezuela “remains in a full-blown economic, humanitarian, and political crisis with no end in sight,” the Fund said in a …
Read More »Global economy chiefs told to reform while going is good
Washington, United States | AFP | Finance chiefs from around the world were warned Thursday to get their houses in order while the global economy is strong and to be ready for possible shocks in the future. World Bank President Jim Yong Kim and International Monetary Fund Managing Director Christine …
Read More »Samsung Electronics CEO resigns, even as record profits expected
Seoul, South Korea | AFP | The CEO of Samsung Electronics Kwon Oh-Hyun resigned Friday, saying the South Korean tech giant was facing an “unprecedented crisis”, even as it expected profits to hit an all-time high in the third quarter. Kwon’s resignation comes as the company struggles to overcome a bribery …
Read More »INDEPENDENT: Has Museveni become Uganda’s problem?
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT| These are the top stories in this week’s The Independent. COVER STORY Has Museveni become Uganda’s problem?: Experts reveal sectors suffering because of President. THE LAST WORD Africa’s real intellectual crisis: Why Museveni is not the cause of the problems of Uganda but rather their …
Read More »Sudan receives first US dollar transfers since sanctions lifted
Khartoum, Sudan | AFP | Sudan’s central bank said Wednesday it had received its first overseas fund transfer in US dollars since Washington announced the lifting of a 20-year-old trade embargo against Khartoum. Washington last week announced the lifting of sanctions from this Thursday onwards, saying Khartoum had made progress on …
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