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New Horizons Newsletter Rise awarence among the public on all spheres of life in Sudan Africa and the world

16/10/2022

Crime and insecurity on the rise in Sudan capital

October 7 - 2022 KHARTOUM Sudan's economic and political crisis has led to much unrest and many strikes and protests but it is also having another, very problematic effect: increased crime and insecurity. Kidnappings, looting, and theft are becoming increasingly common in Khartoum and some seem to believe that the authorities deliberately allow and even encourage the chaos to distract from their failed policies and intimidate revolutionaries.

Armed groups with machetes have reportedly raised terror in Khartoum North (Bahri), assaulting and robbing people and shops. Apparently, the police responded by firing tear gas but did not pursue any of the perpetrators. Police inaction is common in Khartoum and activists accused security forces of not carrying out their duties. The military junta is also accused of exploiting these events to maintain control after failing to curb political unrest or gain popular support

16/10/2022

KHARTOUM

16/10/2022

AfDB President Named 2022 Man of the Year

Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, has been named 2022 Man of the Year (Africa) by Exclusive Men of the Year (EMY). The EMY Africa awards celebrates Leaders, Young Achievers, Community Builders to Captains of Industries across the continent. The Awards ceremony has become one of the biggest events celebrating the best in men’s achievements across the local industry, community, culture and public service since 2016. During the award ceremony, EMY Africa said Dr. Adesina was chosen for his visionary leadership as the president of the African Development Bank Group and his outstanding contribution to Africa during his period as agriculture minister of Nigeria. “When we look around, we see different people making their contributions to society. We know Africa is going to be Africa if we harness our agricultural value and go up the value chain. One man has stood up for his inspiration, for his motivation and for making us believe with a vision and strategy that we can achieve this,” said UN Resident Coordinator in Ghana, Charles Abani, who announced the prize during a ceremony held on 1 October in Accra, Ghana.

16/10/2022

The Status of VC Funding in Africa

Across the globe, startups raised much less venture funding in the second quarter of this year than in the same period in 2021. Africa was the only exception to this trend. No other region came close to the continent’s funding growth between January and June. It closed the first half of 2022 at $3.5 billion, a 133% increase from the first half of last year. Last year, Africa recorded $5.2 billion in funding across 650 deals. However, a report by the African Private Equity and Venture Capital Association (AVCA) projects that figure to reach $7 billion by the end of this year, should Africa maintain that momentum. Notably, Africa raised only 1% of global VC funding this year, a reminder that Africa still gets the bare minimum share of the world’s startup funding largesse. However, the funding momentum is slowing down in Africa. According to The Big Deal, a newsletter that tracks fundraising in Africa, VC funding for African startups decreased by 53% in the third quarter of this year compared to the same period last year. It marked the end of six quarters of year-on-year quarterly growth and the first quarter since Q3 2021 in which Africa failed to raise $1 billion. This fact brings AVCA’s lofty projection under question. But whether or not we reach the $7 billion mark, will this be another record year? The answer lies in Africa’s tech progress for the year.

16/10/2022

Creating a Common Market for Africa's Cocoa Producers

Cameroon and Nigeria have requested to join the Cote d’Ivoire-Ghana Cocoa Initiative (CIGCI), a joint body spearheading the interests of the two countries in the cocoa trade. The initiative was set up after a 2018 declaration by Ivory Coast and Ghana, the world’s first and second-largest cocoa producers, on willingness to define a common sustainable cocoa strategy that would raise prices paid to farmers. It was created with the view of including other African countries. Representatives from Cameroon and Nigeria were invited to a CIGCI meeting in Abidjan to begin the process of joining the initiative, the head of the initiative Alex Assanvo told reporters after the meeting. “With Cameroon and Nigeria, we are going to represent around two-thirds of global cocoa production,” Yves Brahima Kone, chief executive of the Ivory Coast Cocoa and Coffee Council, said at the meeting. “This will allow us to have more leeway in discussions with the industry on imposing a decent price for our cocoa farmers.”

16/10/2022

The Cost of Fuel Across Africa

Some countries are currently struggling with their gas prices, which is inevitably taking its toll on said economies. While others are suppressing the negative impact as best as can be suppressed. In Africa, both sides of the coin are prevalent, as countries that are currently struggling to manage the crises have some of the most absurd gas prices in the world, whereas African countries that are procuring solutions to the crises have some of the very lowest gas prices in the world. Libya has the second lowest gas price in the world. It is second only to Venezuela which has a gas price of $0.016 per liter. Libya’s gasoline price is $0.030 per liter. Algeria has the fourth-lowest gasoline price at $0.328 per liter. As of June, Angola had a fuel price of $0.37 per liter, it now has a fuel price of $0.362, making it one of the few African economies that are mitigating the energy crises effectively. Nigeria despite struggling with oil theft all year round currently has a fuel price of $0.436 per liter. Countries that sit atop this list are largely oil-producing regions, and Egypt is no exception. The current price of gas in this historically rich nation is $0.546 per liter. Not exactly a large oil producer, government officials in Tunisia have no less decided to make oil affordable at $0.734 per liter. Ranked 128th out of 195 countries in oil production, Benin managed to secure a spot on the list of 10 African countries with the cheapest gasoline. Its gasoline price is $0.888 per liter

16/10/2022

Burj Zanzibar Tipped to be an Architectural Landmark Attracting Visitors

The Indian Ocean Island of Zanzibar aims high with plans for a 28-story, 96-meter-tall apartment tower named Burj Zanzibar, designed in hybrid timber technology that its developers say will make it the first timber structure of its kind in the world. The project, expected to be completed at the end of 2026, will be in Fumba Town, an eco-town developed by German-led engineering firm CPS. “Burj Zanzibar promotes the use of timber for construction and contributes to the development of the local value chain using widely available timber resources in Tanzania,” says the project’s Dutch-born architect, Leander Moons, to FORBES AFRICA. When complete, it’s expected to overtake the 86.6-meter Ascent Tower in Milwaukee, US, recently certified as the world’s tallest timber hybrid building. The project will be executed by specialists from Switzerland, Austria, Germany, South Africa, Tanzania, and the US. However, the new concept does come with its challenges, being the first of its kind on the continent. Yet the popularity and fast growth of Fumba Town as an investment opportunity is a possible indication of the increasing demand for more sustainable solutions that also benefit local communities. Tanzania’s top skyscraper is the 157-meter Ports Authority building in Dar es Salaam.

16/10/2022

Africa’s Biggest Oil Refinery is Almost Complete

The Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) says the Dangote Refinery project is now 97 percent completed. NMDPRA said this a in a tweet while receiving the company’s 2022/2023 work plan this week. The authority said the work plan showed that the project is in its advance stages. Farouk Ahmed, chief executive officer, NMDPRA, while speaking at the event, reiterated the importance of the refinery to the country while assuring that the authority will give all necessary support to ensure timely completion and kickstart operations. The Dangote Refinery, situated on 6,180 acres (2,500 hectares) of land, is Africa’s biggest oil refinery and the world’s biggest single-train petroleum facility. Upon completion, the refinery will be able to process 650,000 barrels of crude oil per day into refined petroleum products, which will help Nigeria become an oil refining country. The Group Executive Director, Strategy, Portfolio Development & Capital Projects, Dangote Industries Limited, Devakumar Edwin, hinted that the refinery would allow for smooth transhipment of refined petroleum products to international markets and ultimately eliminate the overreliance on fuel import from other regions into Nigeria

16/10/2022

Luanda on Drive to Diversify Oil-dependent Economy

Angola is taking advantage of higher oil prices to accelerate its debt-reduction plans and smooth out repayments to China, its largest creditor. Africa’s second-largest crude producer owes China $18 billion, which is about 40% of its total external debt, after settling loans totalling $1.32 billion this year. Repayments will be stepped up next year, and the southern African nation’s debt as a proportion of the gross domestic product is projected to fall to about 61% in 2023, down from 66% this year and more than 100% in 2020, Finance Minister Vera Daves de Sousa. She attributed the improvement in the metric to a rebound in the economy and the nation’s currency and the government’s conservative approach toward taking on new loans and determination to reduce interest costs. Angola’s kwanza has gained 21% against the dollar this year, supported by steady oil prices and high-interest rates. The government said it aims to free up money by diversifying its sources of funding and further reducing its borrowing costs, although its options are limited in the current global environment.

16/10/2022

'The Crane' is Bringing Young African Voices to the Africa-China Debate

With episodes exploring tough questions such as “Is China a neo-colonial force?” or “What role did China play in African liberation?” the show co-hosted by South African and Zambian social researchers, Mikaela Nhondo Erskog and Amadeus Musumali, is bringing young African voices to the Africa-China debate. The bi-monthly podcast is highly critical of the West—both the US and EU—and has landed both hosts interviews on popular newscasts such as Break Through News and has steadily increased its audience after only broadcasting its seventh episode. One reviewer AmritHxH of Canada wrote: “I’m really excited to listen to more of this podcast directly from African and Chinese people talking about the reality of Africa’s development. I’m just so over the west’s constant barrage of propaganda that is all projection. Thanks for this podcast. It’s going to be a much-needed resource in the years to come.” A Ghana-based Afrobarometer survey reported last year that Africans have a “somewhat positive” or “very positive” view of Africa-China relations but are concerned about allegations of China’s human rights abuses, exploitative mining methods, and secretive ‘debt-trap’ loan programs which are a burden to many African nations.

16/10/2022

It is Vital that the AfCFTA’s Rules are Clear and Widely Understood by African Businesses

Over 50% of CEOs surveyed about the impact of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) do not know where to access useful information on the project, according to a new survey. The 2022 CEO Trade Survey Report by PAFTRAC, in association with African Business, Afreximbank and other partners, surveyed over 800 private sector players between March and June 2022. It found that there was significant optimism that the AfCFTA will revitalise Africa trade but significant demand for information on how the project will work. Without the right information, positive legislative moves could be stymied by hesitancy on the ground, leading to confusion in border posts and boardrooms, the authors write. Fifty-nine percent of CEOs surveyed called for a designated in-country office for information, while 70% called for a fully functioning online one-stop shop for information. Sixty-seven percent called for workshop and information sessions, while 71% called for the availability of more trade information and market opportunities. Speaking on a webinar to discuss the findings of the report, Cynthia Gnassingbe-Essonam, senior advisor at the office of the secretary-general at the AfCFTA Secretariat, said that plans are in the works to improve the information flow to businesses. Plans include developing a thorough understanding of the AfCFTA among the business community, including SME education, skills development and targeted support, said Gnassingbe-Essonam

16/10/2022

African States Propose a UN Tax Convention Where they Have More of a Say

The digital economy is bringing Africans together. The same cannot be said for attempts to tax it. Levies on mobile and internet services have sparked street protests in Uganda, cabinet squabbles in Nigeria and a parliamentary brawl in Ghana. In August Congolese officials even confiscated the passports of telecoms executives to try to make them cough up. African governments are willing to take unpopular measures because they need to fill a hole in their coffers. In the worst months of the pandemic their tax take fell by an average of 15%, even as spending rose. They have long struggled to collect income taxes, relying instead on taxes on goods and services for about half of their revenues. Now they see untapped potential in new sectors which barely existed 20 years ago, including social media, e-commerce, mobile internet, and mobile money. One priority of governments everywhere is to ensure that non-resident businesses pay their share: if the likes of Netflix and Amazon have customers in Africa, they should be taxed there too. A global tax deal was agreed to by 130 countries last year with the aim of forcing multinational companies to pay more tax in the places where they make their sales, irrespective of where they register their assets.

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