Connect with us

Business

Lionesses of Africa’s Business Confidence Report celebrates African women entrepreneurs’ optimism about business

Published

on

Entrepreneurship Day

The report is funded by the African Development Bank Group, through the Affirmative Finance Action for Women in Africa (AFAWA) Initiative

ABIDJAN, Ivory Coast, November 18, 2022/APO Group/ — 

Women entrepreneurs in Africa are expressing widespread optimism and continuing resilience despite the prevailing economic climate, according to the 2022 Lionesses Business Confidence Report (https://bit.ly/3EeO9au) and Index (https://bit.ly/3UPZdSm) launched on Global Women’s Entrepreneurship Day.

The report, prepared by Lionesses of Africa Public Benefit Corporation and New York University finds that ninety three percent of women entrepreneurs anticipate their companies will be better off a year from now, with only 2% anticipating that their companies will be worse off. The report is funded by the African Development Bank Group, through the Affirmative Finance Action for Women in Africa (AFAWA) Initiative. 

The second edition of the 2022 Lionesses Business Confidence Report and Index, comes at a critical moment, benchmarking last year’s data and evaluating African women-owned business performance, access to finance, and digital transformation. Furthermore, it allows stakeholders to learn how 100 of Africa’s top women business leaders surveyed, assess the state of their businesses and their opportunities for the upcoming year.

“The Bank, through the AFAWA Initiative, is pleased to collaborate with Lionesses of Africa on the latest Lionesses Business Confidence Report and Index. We hope women entrepreneurs, financial institutions, and governments use the rich data provided to make strong business and policy decisions to unlock the potential of women-owned businesses across the continent,” Malado Kaba, African Development Bank Group Director of the Gender, Women and Civil Society department noted.

The report also assesses women entrepreneurs’ external financing plans and their confidence levels in the willingness of financial institutions to fund their ventures, as 66% of women anticipate looking for external funding in the future (up from 61% in 2021). More of than 50% of women anticipate that financial institutions will be willing to provide loans or credit to their business in the next six months, with women in East Africa reporting the greatest confidence.

“Even before the pandemic, women-led businesses faced significant challenges accessing financing, often lacking the financial track record and collateral required to secure business loans, causing financial institutions to perceive them as risky,” said Esther Dassanou, AFAWA coordinator at the African Development Bank Group.

The Bank is committed to accelerating women entrepreneurs’ ability to access finance by unlocking up to $5 billion by 2026

“The Bank is committed to accelerating women entrepreneurs’ ability to access finance by unlocking up to $5 billion by 2026. The Bank is also committed to working with African governments to ensure that inclusive policies are in place to benefit women entrepreneurs,” she added.

Lionesses of Africa Founder and CEO, Melanie Hawken confirmed that access to finance remains a dominant concern. Lionesses financed their companies’ activities through 2021 and into 2022 largely by tapping internal sources of financing, mostly retained earnings and personal capital. There was a sizable drop off in access to Covid-19 business support programs and other government grants compared with the previous year.

Another positive trend is the strong signs of recovery from the impacts of the pandemic, with two-thirds having either returned or expecting to return to pre-COVID-19 business levels by the end of 2022.

“Two-thirds of the Lionesses anticipate looking for external financing soon but only half perceive financial institutions willing to provide the loans or credit they will need. However, this represents a larger percentage than in 2021, suggesting modest but growing confidence in securing funds from financial institutions, and that is a trend in the right direction,” Hawken said.

Download the 2022 Lionesses Business Confidence Report and Index below:

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of African Development Bank Group (AfDB).

Business

Ministers among hundreds of energy-sector leaders to attend AOW event

Published

on

Sinclair

The event kicks off with an invitation-only ministerial symposium focused on the theme of “Fostering innovation, attracting investment, and promoting sustainable growth in the oil, gas, and energy sectors”

CAPE TOWN, South Africa, October 4, 2024/APO Group/ — 

AOW: Investing in African Energy (https://AOWEnergy.com) – Africa’s leading oil, gas and energy event – has confirmed attendance for more than 80 ministers and senior officials, representing African governments, energy departments and regulators at next month’s event.

These influential stakeholders will be among the more than 1 600 senior delegates and industry leaders who will be attending the event to develop policy, share discoveries, secure investment, and shape Africa’s energy future.

The event kicks off with an invitation-only ministerial symposium focused on the theme of “Fostering innovation, attracting investment, and promoting sustainable growth in the oil, gas, and energy sectors.”

Given the recent major oil-and-gas discoveries across Africa, the energy transition and major geopolitical events, it is clear that the energy sector needs positive intervention

Among the officials and government ministers attending will be energy leaders from South Africa, Nigeria, Namibia, Cote d’Ivoire, Mozambique, DRC, Ghana, Kenya, Madagascar, Eswatini, Uganda, CAR, Guinea Conakry, Guinea Bissau, Ethiopia, The Gambia, Gabon, Malawi, Morocco, Zanzibar, Liberia, Senegal, Congo Brazzaville and Sierra Leone.

In addition, the event will feature high-level delegations from numerous national oil companies, as well as multilateral bodies including the African Union, (AU), African Energy Commission (AFREC), African Petroleum Producers’ Organization (APPO) and the Southern African Power Pool (SAPP).

AOW will see these energy leaders networking with C-suite executives and decision-makers from more than 760 top energy companies at daily networking events, to discuss insights, forge new relationships, and negotiate major energy deals.

“We are so excited to see the calibre of delegates at this year’s AOW event,” says Chief Executive Officer of Sankofa Events, Paul Sinclair. “Given the recent major oil-and-gas discoveries across Africa, the energy transition and major geopolitical events, it is clear that the energy sector needs positive intervention. The high-powered attendance proves AOW is a key platform to enable this intervention.”

Key themes to be discussed at this year’s AOW will be sustainable upstream development; expanding gas value chains; renewables and new energies; adoption of best-in-class technologies; and access to finance.

AOW: Investing in African Energy will culminate in a special anniversary party at Groot Constantia Vineyard to celebrate 30 years of the AOW event.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of AOW: Investing in African Energy.

Continue Reading

Business

Afreximbank approves US$20.8 million for Starlink Global’s cashew factory project in Lagos

Published

on

PAPSS

The facility is expected to promote value addition which will guarantee increased earnings to the company while also fostering the creation of about 400 new jobs

CAIRO, Egypt, October 4, 2024/APO Group/ — 

African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) (www.Afreximbank.com) has approved a US$20.8 million financing facility for Nigeria-based Starlink Global & Ideal Limited to enable the company construct and operate a 30,000-metric tonne per annum cashew processing factory in Lagos.

We are delighted at this partnership which promises to deliver significant impact on employment in Nigeria

According to the facility agreement signed in on July 22, 2024, Afreximbank will provide the funds in two tranches with the first tranche of US$7.48M going toward capital expenditure for the construction of the factory and the second, totalling US$13.25M to be deployed as working capital for the operations of the factory.

The facility is expected to promote value addition which will guarantee increased earnings to the company while also fostering the creation of about 400 new jobs once the factory becomes operational. It is also expected to support about 40 small and medium-sized enterprises.

Commenting on the transaction, Mrs. Kanayo Awani, Executive Vice President, Intra Africa Trade and Export Development, Afreximbank, said that by supporting Starlink Global to establish a modern processing facility, Afreximbank is making it possible for Africa to add value to its agro-commodities, thereby facilitating exports and subsequent inflow of much-needed foreign exchange into the continent.

“We are delighted at this partnership which promises to deliver significant impact on employment in Nigeria. It will contribute to value creation and to the development of the local community while also improving the lots of smallholder farmers and small business suppliers that will work with Starlink across the value chain,” Mrs. Awani added.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Afreximbank.

Continue Reading

Business

Sonangol to Lead Decarbonized Oil & Gas (O&G) Development, Says Angolan National Oil Company (NOC) Head

Published

on

Sonangol

Participating in an on-stage interview at Angola Oil & Gas 2024, Sonangol CEO Sebastião Gaspar Martins emphasized that oil and gas remains a core focus for the national oil company

LUANDA, Angola, October 3, 2024/APO Group/ — 

Angola’s national oil company Sonangol reiterated its commitment to driving sustainable hydrocarbon development during the Angola Oil & Gas (AOG) conference this week. Speaking during an “In-Conversation with” session, Sonangol CEO Sebastião Gaspar Martins stated that the company will not abandon oil and gas, but rather advance decarbonized oil and gas development.

We are looking at opportunities in the gas sector and have identified the right partner to develop non-associated gas

By investing in upstream oil and gas production while prioritizing low-carbon projects, Sonangol aims to boost national crude output, while diversifying and decarbonizing the industry. The NOC is focusing efforts on non-associated gas development, as well as alternative energy sources such as solar.

“We are looking at opportunities in the gas sector and have identified the right partner to develop non-associated gas. Gas produced from Angola LNG will be used for the production of fertilizer and we are evaluating the utilization of gas in the south of the country, linking gas with steel industries. We also have a blue carbon project, linked to the reduction of carbon through the plantation of mangroves. We have one area in Luanda and have identified four additional areas for this,” stated Gaspar Martins.

Sonangol has undergone transformation in recent years: following the creation of the National Oil, Gas & Biofuels Agency (ANPG) in 2019, Sonangol transferred its role as national concessionaire and regulator. This transformation has aimed to make Sonangol more competitive and strengthen its capacity as an upstream operator. Concurrently, the government is partially privatizing the NOC, with privatization set to be complete in 2026. This process will enhance financial capacity, allowing Sonangol to drive new upstream projects forward.

“The transformation of Sonangol started several years ago, when we passed the regulatory, concessionaire role to the ANPG. At the time, we transferred almost 600 employees to the ANPG. After that, Sonangol underwent a restructuring program where we created five core business units from 36 different entities – starting with exploration and production. We want to go public, but we want to do it properly. So, we are currently going through all the processes to do this,” stated Gaspar Martins.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Energy Capital & Power.

Continue Reading

Trending