It never rains but pours for former Confederation of Zimbabwe Industries (CZI) chief executive Farai Bwatikona Zizhou who was ordered by the High Court to pay his ex-personal assistant Rita Marque Mbatha US$180 000 damages for sexual harassment in 2021. Zizhou has lost his property worth the same amount after failing to pay the judgement […]
Tag: Debt
Public debt in the region has risen to levels not seen in decades The average debt ratio in sub-Saharan Africa has almost doubled in just a decade–from 30 percent of GDP at the end of 2013 to almost 60 percent of GDP by end-2022. Repaying this debt has also become much costlier. The region’s ratio […]
The Executive Boards of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank’s International Development Association (IDA) have approved[1] the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) Initiative Completion Point for Somalia, which provides total debt service savings for the country of US$4.5 billion.[2] Following HIPC Completion Point, Somalia’s external debt has fallen from 64 percent of […]
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has welcomed the news by the creditor committee for Ghana formed by countries with eligible claims on the country for the swift adoption by the IMF Executive Board to address Ghana’s urgent financing needs. Ghana is seeking an IMF $3 billion bail out to address its balance of payments. It […]
Despite the propensity of the administration of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed (PhD) to paint a rosy picture about the state of the Ethiopian, the hard truth is it continues to be in a precarious position and will take a long time to stand on its own two feet. The impressive growth it’s touted to have […]
Shandong — The Minister of State for Economic Coordination, José Massano, clarified Sunday, in Shandong, that the debt relief agreement between Angola and the People’s Republic of China does not mean a moratorium (delay or suspension of payment). Speaking to the press, regarding the results of President João Lourenço’s visit to China, the official said […]
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Africa: The Economic Challenges In Africa
Cape Town — More and more Africans are experiencing poverty. coupled with the impact of Covid-19 and the war between Russia and Ukraine that intensified just over a year ago, weighs heavily on global trade and the supply of goods. And even more so, Internal conflicts between government forces and rebel groups, the refugee crisis, […]
Harare — The crisis in Zimbabwe is having “terrible consequences” for the whole of Southern Africa by delaying the building of roads, railways and power lines, says former Mozambique president Joaquim Chissano. Speaking at a high-level debt resolution forum on May 15 in Zimbabwe’s capital, Harare, he said that since Zimbabwe is located in the […]
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Africa: Ruto Hustles to Dodge a Debt Trap
For all its economic and governance woes, Kenya seems to be on a better long-term trajectory than South Africa. Ten months into his presidency, Kenya’s President William Ruto is battling strong headwinds. He won office as the champion of the ‘hustlers’ – the little guys battling to make ends meet in a country he said […]
Zimbabwe’s president is preparing to restart talks on $14bn of unpaid debt as deep divisions persist over disputed elections in the southern African country. Emmerson Mnangagwa is betting that international concerns over his re-election and increasing signs of cronyism will not block a potential deal to restructure longstanding debts to the World Bank, African Development […]
The World Bank Country Director for Nigeria, Shubham Chaudhuri, on Wednesday, said the bank has committed over $11 billion in the past three years for government at both the federal and the sub-national levels. Chaudhuri stated this while giving his goodwill message at the opening of a three-day cabinet retreat for ministers, presidential aides, permanent […]
The African Development Bank has moved to fast-track Zimbabwe’s $3.5 billion compensation to white farmers whose land was seized under former president Robert Mugabe’s reforms. The bank is leading efforts to clear Zimbabwe’s crippling debts. “A revived Zimbabwe is good for Africa. A revived Zimbabwe is good for the world,” said Akinwumi Adesina, president of […]
Lagos — Nigeria’s foreign debt is expected to rise further to about $51 billion, following President Bola Tinubu’s request to the Senate, seeking approval to borrow additional $7.8 billion and €100million, as part of his 2022-2024 borrowing plan. Some financial analysts have debunked the official reasons given for the borrowing, claiming it was rather meant […]
China has rapidly become Africa’s most important infrastructure builder, and the footprint of Chinese construction companies is seen in cities, towns and villages across the continent. With the launch of Beijing’s “Go Global” policy in 2000, and President Xi Jinping’s Belt and Road Initiative in 2013, the volume of roads, bridges, railways, power stations and […]
The present ongoing developmental aspiration of Ghana is known as Ghana Beyond Aid Agenda. And this gigantic developmental aspiration is aimed at setting Ghana free from dependence on foreign aid in her striving for economic growth, development and prosperity. This is indeed a laudable developmental strategy for Ghana as a fast developing African nation in […]
China isn’t the main cause of Africa’s debt crisis, but concerns about transparency and collateral agreements cannot be ignored. Africa’s mounting debt crisis could undermine the continent’s economic progress and stability. The problem has worsened with the economic fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic, the war in Europe, and the impacts of climate change. The current […]
Kampala, Uganda — The Ministry of Finance has revealed that the Government will spend up to UGX 24.9 trillion on servicing Uganda’s public debt. This comes months after the Bank of Uganda reported that Uganda’s public debt as of August 2023 stood at UGX 88.807 trillion. The August debt figures do not include the UGX […]
Lagos — The Debt Management Office, DMO, yesterday attributed Nigeria’s growing debt stock to budget deficits, continuous issuance of promissory notes and other borrowings as well as low revenue generation. On the way out of the debt quagmire, the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry, LCCI, asked the government to re-strategise on revenue generation, such […]