African Economy

Trafficking in counterfeit medicines in Africa has increased, especially since the 1980s. On 17 and 18 February 2020, the Lomé Declaration obliged seven countries on the continent to impose criminal sanctions to criminalize trafficking in human beings for substandard and counterfeit medicines. Last week, this topic was at the center of an online debate, initiated by the associations Les Afriques vous…

Food insecurity has reached a new peak, stated the Sahel Food Crisis Prevention Network (RPCA). This is again worrying for the region. During a virtual meeting that ended on Friday, April 9, the RPCA takes stock of the food security situation in the Sahel region and looks at forecasts for the summer month.19.6 million people…

In Burkina Faso, the station "Ouaga Inter" gets a makeover. It has just been rebuilt with funding from the French Development Agency.

Funding to fight Covid-19 is creating controversy in Kenya. On April 2, the IMF approved $ 2.34 billion in aid for the country. An envelope planned for Nairobi to fight the pandemic and avoid the risk of over-indebtedness. But since the announcement on April 2, criticism has flowed in on social media. On social networks, the hashtag#stoploaningkenya (stop borrowing in Kenya, in French) has been buzzing in recent days. Critics directly question the IMF. They are also forwarding a petition requesting the cancellation of the…

Mauritius has been a model of economic success in Africa for decades and bears the brunt of the consequences of the coronavirus pandemic. The industrial activity is experiencing a decline of 15.2%, which translates into the island's worst economy in 40 years. This is the consequence of the containment from last year. And the reconstruction in a month should intensify this brutal economic slippage.…

On Wednesday, March 31, the head of the Congolese mining company Gécamines launched a new subsidiary called the General Company of Cobalt. ECG aims to establish the state monopoly on the purchase, processing, conversion, sale and export of artisanal cobalt, which corresponds to 20% of the total cobalt mined in the country. Democratic Republic of Congo is the leader in the sector with 67% of world…

In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, civil society in Kolwezi is concerned about the continuing persistence of school-age children in particularly artisanal cobalt mining sites. Despite protective legislation, the fight against child labor in mines is not yet achieving the desired results. The Provincial Ministry of Mines says that attempts are being made to combat this phenomenon.…

In Burkina Faso, Apollinaire Compaoré, the president of the employer, is he involved in smuggling to finance terrorist groups? In any case, this is the conclusion of five journalists from four countries, including Burkina Faso, after an investigation as part of the reporting project on organized crime and corruption. According…

Uncertainty remains in northeastern Mozambique, where the French hydrocarbon group Total announced on Wednesday the resumption of construction work on the gas site, which would be operational in 2024. On the same day, suspected jihadists attacked the city of Palma. After withdrawing its staff from the Afungi plant in early…

About 70,000 producers have joined the organic sector, when they were just under 4,000 in 2009. The organic agricultural sector is therefore flourishing, but production is primarily intended for export. Locals still consume little of this type of product due to excessive costs. To facilitate the development of the sector, the country adopted in July 2020 a law on organic farming and a national strategy that is almost unique in its kind on the continent. .