Special

Diaspora opens new chapter in Russian-Nigerian business ties

As part of efforts to connect Russia with Nigeria and to lure potential Russian investors and businesspeople to Nigeria and vice versa, a business lecture platform “Doing Business with Nigeria” has been created in November. Its primary aim is to get the Russian business community to understand the economic and investment potential as well as the current market conditions in …

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Interview: How UK start-up is powering Rwanda with solar energy

ARC Power, a British Startup, is currently helping Rwanda, a member of the Southern African Development Community (SADC), with Solar Business Parks alongside its roll-out of solar mini-grids – a collection of solar-powered commercial units – the latest energy initiative to light up Rwanda. Rwanda is increasingly adopting solar energy due to its affordability and easy accessibility to electricity for use in both …

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Webb Fontaine wins big at Nigeria Technology Awards 2020

Webb Fontaine has been presented with a double header of prestigious titles at this year’s Nigerian Technology Awards (NiTA). A leading provider of solutions for Trade Facilitation powered by Artificial Intelligence, Webb Fontaine was one of the event’s big winners, landing the two of the most sought-after honours: Most Enterprising Tech Company of the Year and Most Enterprising Tech CEO …

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COVID-19: Africa to lose 30 million jobs by end of 2020 — AfDB president

President of the African Development Bank Group, Akinwumi Adesina, has said up to 30 million jobs would be lost in Africa by the end of 2020. According to the former Nigerian agriculture minister, while speaking at the ‘Virtual 2020 International Forum on African Leadership’ in Ivory Coast, the lockdown occasioned by the COVID-19 pandemic earlier this year dealt a terrible …

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New partnership launched to accelerate STEM education in Africa

PRESS RELEASE – ESPRIT Group and Honoris United Universities Join Forces to Accelerate STEM Education in Africa.  Tunis, 1 December 2020 – Today, Honoris United Universities, the first and largest pan-African network of private higher education institutions, deepened its focus on STEM education for the next generation of African leaders and entrepreneurs by welcoming ESPRIT Group into the organization. Founded in 2003 …

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First female African of the Year honouree awarded

Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, chair of Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, has been unveiled as the recipient of its 2020 African of the Year Award.  The former Nigerian finance minister was ceremoniously awarded during a special broadcast on CNBC Africa on Monday night. This year marks the 3rd annual instalment of the African of the Year Award, an honorary category of the …

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Nigeria appoints Bayern’s David Alaba SDG campaign ambassador

Austrian professional footballer David Olatokunbo Alaba has been appointed by the government of President Muhammadu Buhari as a Clean Nigeria Campaign Ambassador. Alaba, who plays for German club Bayern Munich and the Austria national team, was appointed to support the country’s efforts towards the attainment of the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) Number 6, aimed at providing clean water and sanitation …

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G-PAD 2020: Experts advocate strategies for Africa’s post-Covid economic recovery

How to support Africa’s recovery from the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic through increased multilateral co-operation was the focus of G-PAD 2020, which took place on 27-28 November. Several speakers at the virtual conference, organised by the Germany-based global non-governmental organisation Lead Africa International e.V., agreed that the global crisis had revealed the fundamental structural weaknesses in African economies and …

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G-PAD 2020: How digitalisation can support Africa’s post-Covid recovery

How to deploy digital solutions to drive post-Covid African recovery was a major focus at the 2020 Global Partnership for African Development (G-PAD) forum, which took place on 27-28 November. At a panel discussion on how digitalisation can help promote economic growth and development in Africa, entitled Digitization and Development: The African Perspective, Sunil Geness, Director for Global Government Affairs …

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G-PAD 2020: Increased formalisation of African economies needed to confront post-Covid challenges – AfDB chief

The global coronavirus pandemic is having a devastating impact on the economies of countries around the world. Africa is one of the regions worst affected as state revenues have taken a big hit. The structure of the continent’s external trade is to blame for the particularly harsh effect of COVID-19 on African countries, Khaled Sheriff, Vice President, Regional Development, Integration …

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African designers championing sustainable fashion

Across the globe, Africa is putting its spin on the fashion industry. Major fashion markets like Berlin are embracing African fashion, art and culture, and locally, the apparel market is worth USD$31 billion, according to estimates by Euromonitor International. While the African fashion retail industry remains in its infant stages, there has been notable progress in recent years as the industry embraces …

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Group presents plan to revive German-Africa trade post-Covid

In view of the negative impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on international trade, a group representing German companies doing business with Africa has warned that the Corona crisis could reverse the continent’s economic successes of the past decade if counter measures are not taken. It’s calling on the German government to take concrete steps to stabilise German-African economic relations in …

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G-PAD 2020: Creating more opportunities for African youths post-Covid

The coronavirus pandemic is dealing a heavy blow to economies across the world with unemployment, especially among youths, soaring in most countries.  African youths are the worse affected, considering the situation of the continent even before the outbreak of the global health crisis. For example, whereas about 12 million young Africans enter the labour market every year, only 3 million …

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Saudi offers scholarship to 424 Nigerian students

424 scholarship slots have been offered to Nigerian students to study various courses in Saudi universities, the kingdom of Saudi Arabia has said. In a statement on Monday from the Saudi embassy in Abuja, 150 slots are also given to students from the Republic of Benin annually. It said the slots are part of the 6,597 scholarship the kingdom distributes …

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41 Sierra Leonean students on Chinese scholarships get online support

A total of 41 Sierra Leonean students awarded Chinese Government scholarships this year have received financial support to augment their online studies, the Chinese Embassy in Sierra Leone said on Friday. The Embassy said that the students were awaiting their departure for various universities in China in 2021. “Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, all the international students have to take …

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Lead Academy: Application closes on 15 November, Apply now!!

An invitation has gone out to young people of African descent in Germany to participate in the Lead Academy 2020 via Zoom on 24-26 November. The event is organised by Lead Africa International e.V., a global non-governmental organization dealing with development issues. The three-day virtual event precedes the Global Partnership for African Development (G-PAD) 2020 Forum, with the theme Strengthening …

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Solar on the Rise in Africa – New report

Africa has immense potential for photovoltaics which has barely been utilized up until now. But a pioneering spirit is spreading across the continent, with many countries paving the way for ambitious photovoltaics projects. This is the conclusion of the Intersolar Solarize Africa Market Report 2020, prepared by the Becquerel Institute and the German Solar Association (BSW-Solar) with support from Intersolar …

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Should a growing business hire employees or contractors?

Business is booming in Africa, tipped as a continent to watch in the coming years. This is principally because African economies have experienced an influx of foreign investment interest and an explosion of local entrepreneurship in recent years. From the continent commanding the spotlight on solar energy to the businesses propelling the ‘Made In Africa’ label across the globe, the business world …

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Germany: Scholarship for journalists from countries in crisis

Journalists from countries in crisis or war can apply to stay in Berlin for three months. Reporters Without Borders Germany, in cooperation with taz Panter Foundation, will host three journalists in 2021. The Rest and Refuge Scholarship will provide travel, an apartment, a living stipend and transportation in Berlin. “We offer travel expenses, a decent apartment, a monthly stipend of …

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Chinese products top Nigeria’s imported goods list

A total of 31.41 per cent of goods imported into Nigeria are from China, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has reported. The NBS revealed in its latest report on ‘Foreign Trade in Goods Statistics’ for the second quarter of 2020, that Spain topped the list of Nigeria’s exported goods. “Nigeria’s imports, by country of origin, shows goods were imported …

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