STORY: Here are the stories catching the business eye in sub-Saharan Africa this week.
1. The Kenyan shilling fell on Thursday (27th June) and Friday (28th June) as markets awaited the outcome of protests against shelved tax hike plans.
Investors and analysts say President William Ruto’s withdrawal of a controversial finance bill has called into question the country’s commitment to meeting International Monetary Fund targets and could make borrowing costs even higher.
2. A senior executive at Nigeria’s Dangote Refinery has accused oil majors of blocking access to domestic crude oil by selling it at above market prices or claiming it is unavailable.
Devkumar Edwin said the $20 billion refinery was struggling to find enough crude to meet its production capacity of 650,000 barrels a day and was forcing it to turn to costly imports.
3. Drought-stricken Namibia is on track to begin construction of its long-awaited second desalination plant in January 2025, the country’s agriculture minister announced on Wednesday (June 26).
:: April 16, 2010
The world’s third-largest uranium producer is seeing increased demand for water due to a surge in exploration activity and acquisitions, as well as an ambitious green hydrogen plan.
4. China Nordic Industries Group has agreed to buy the assets of struggling Democratic Republic of Congo-based cobalt miner Chemaf SA, Chemaf SA announced on Thursday (June 27).
:: Lubumbashi, Democratic Republic of Congo
Chinese mining companies, most of which are state-owned, have become Congo’s largest investors as the world’s second-largest economy aggressively pursues supplies of copper and cobalt for its rapidly expanding electric vehicle industry.
5. And finally, South Africa’s Cilo Cybin on Tuesday (June 25) became the first medical cannabis company to list on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange’s Alternative Exchange.
The company said the global medical cannabis market is forecast to grow from $12.6 billion in 2023 to about $40.5 billion by 2032, and that it would use the proceeds from the listing to “capitalize on growing global investor appetite.”
