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ExxonMobil’s Angolan Discovery: Another Beacon from Africa’s Prosperous Future

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4 years ago

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ExxonMobil

The discovery, the company’s first in the region since 2003, lies approximately 365km to the northwest of Luanda’s coastline at a depth of 1,100m

JOHANNESBURG, South Africa, November 29, 2022/APO Group/ — 

By NJ Ayuk, Chairman, African Energy Chamber (www.EnergyChamber.org)

ExxonMobil’s recent discovery in Block 15 off Angola in the Bavuca South prospect adds further credence to the notion of Africa as a significant contender in future energy markets.

The discovery, the company’s first in the region since 2003, lies approximately 365km to the northwest of Luanda’s coastline at a depth of 1,100m and is expected to contribute to an eventual production capacity of 40,000 barrels of oil per day.

This find would not have been possible without a welcoming disposition to exploration and the agreeable conditions established by the government of Angola. The African Energy Chamber regards every outcome like this as a great success and another step closer to a prosperous future for Africa as a whole. However, our perspective is not shared by many who attended and spoke at COP27, the UN climate summit held this month in Egypt.

Voices of Opposition

South Africa-based climate activist Bhekumuzi Bhebhe, apprehensive of the environmental impact that African partnerships with international oil companies could lead to, led chants of “Don’t gas Africa” outside the event. Radical environmental group extinction rebellion,  Chloe Lebrand and their sponsors that don’t hire Africans with an Anti-African agenda have joined the chorus. 

Omar Elmaawi, an activist from Kenya who opposes the construction of the East African Crude Oil Pipeline, fears that government corruption would lead to the exploitation of African resources.

“My assessment has always been either our government leaders are really ignorant and stupid, or some of them have been compromised, and they are not working in the best interest of their people,” Elmaawi said.

Critics of African oil industry expansion suggest that investments should divert toward developing renewable energy for the continent instead.

German nonprofit Urgewald contributed to the 2022 Global Oil & Gas Exit List, an annual report that details the investment activities behind global oil and gas production. This year’s report revealed that despite their declared commitments to the UN’s Net Zero emissions goals, many financial institutions continue to back oil and gas companies, encouraging expansion for 96% of the industry.

Noted environmentalist Heffa Schuecking, executive director of Urgewald, spoke to journalists at COP27 on the difference between the stated intentions of the oil and gas industry and its real-world actions.

“We see new fossil fuel projects in 48 out of 55 African countries and these projects can be traced back to 200 companies,” Schuecking said. While the discussions are ongoing here at COP, we see a disconnect with what is happening in Egypt and in the rest of Africa. In Egypt alone, we have 55 companies prospecting for new gas discovery.”

Regarding Africa’s potential for renewable energy and the $5 billion currently at play in African oil and gas exploration, Schuecking said, “If we compare the investments going into the fossil side and going into the renewable side, it’s a huge gap. It’s enormous. We’re investing in the wrong place.”

The African Energy Chamber holds a differing view. We believe that these investments are targeting exactly the right place, at the right time, and we encourage more investors to follow suit.

My assessment has always been either our government leaders are really ignorant and stupid, or some of them have been compromised

An Overdue Reality Check

Climate protestors around the world have made headlines in recent months for blocking roadways, defacing buildings, and vandalizing priceless works of art while calling out for an end to oil. As they glue their hands – and even their heads – to gallery walls and showroom floors, they sport clothing, footwear, and accessories made from petroleum.

Some of these attention seekers have disrupted professional tennis matches, tangling themselves in the nets while demanding a cessation of airline travel or prophesizing environmental doom in the days ahead. One went so far as to set himself on fire, but none of them have offered any viable alternatives to fossil fuels.

Aside from their moments of questionable zealotry, these activists likely lead normal, modern lives in first-world nations that would be impossible if not for the incredible conveniences that oil and gas have delivered.

Despite the fact that fossil fuels deserve credit for enabling the technological revolution, massive improvements in quality of life across the globe, and the fastest population growth in human history, the dominant opinion shared by world leaders today is that we should stop using them as soon as possible.

While many of the COP27 discussions on timelines for ending global CO2 emissions often included improbable dates in 2050 or even 2030, one voice in the crowd offered a dose of realism.

In a statement given to UN News, Miriam Hinostroza, an environmental economist with the UN Environment Programme, laid out the stark truth of our current situation.

“Sometimes, a priority for countries is economic growth, which they only get from using fossil fuels – they are still cheap, the technologies are there, there are many power plants [and] they cannot [all of a sudden] just get rid of these plants. So, there is this issue on the stranded assets – what to do with all these investments, all these technologies,” Hinostroza said, suggesting that the idea of mandates banning fossil fuels within the next decade is “not a reality.”

A Handout or a Leg Up?

Considering that Africa is responsible for only 4.8% of global CO2 emissions but suffers under a disproportionate impact from climate change, the COP27 consensus is that Africa should leave its fossil fuel reserves in the ground and collect financial reparations from the nations fortunate enough to have already profited from their own petroleum resources.

Such pledges, however, often amount to no more than lip service. It has been two years since the Paris Agreement committed $100 billion per year to developing countries, but those promises remain unrealized.

As we watch China build more than half of the world’s new coal plants and Germany replace wind farms with coal mines, it becomes increasingly difficult to seriously consider the recommendations of the G20, given that they do not adhere to the practices they espouse.

Africa deserves to profit from the assets that lie in its soil and beneath its coastal waters, just as so many resource-rich nations already have. Rather than placing itself at the mercy of foreign aid that may never come, Africa must leverage its holdings to garner the greatest possible reward and wide-ranging advancements for its people.

Achieving the Right Balance

Exxon’s discovery in Angola serves as a case study on the correct course of action for African nations to follow. The generous tax incentives and red tape-slashing industry reforms put in place by Angolan leadership were significant enough to draw the U.S. oil giant’s focus away from South America for the first time in years. Furthermore, Angola’s plan to implement natural gas as a transitionary fuel while investing in solar energy projects and conducting green hydrogen and biofuel research will support an eventual conversion to renewables on a timeline that makes the most economic sense.

The idea that Africa’s oil and gas could remain untapped forever is a fantasy. The collection of our vast resources isn’t subject to debate. It is inevitable. International oil companies will continue to extract petroleum wherever it is available for as long as it is economically advantageous – a timeframe that will likely last decades. The only question is how to proceed. Will it be to our detriment, or will it be a net benefit?

The African Energy Chamber agrees that government corruption should be rooted out and barred from any seat at the negotiating table. We agree every measure should be taken to protect the African environment from harm, but addressing the issues of energy poverty and wealth inequality and ensuring a future where our children can flourish is of equal importance. By following the example Angola has set, welcoming exploration and pursuing mutually beneficial relationships with partners capable of erecting the needed infrastructure, we’ll find ourselves on the best path forward.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of African Energy Chamber.

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Creative Africa Nexus (CANEX) WKND 2026 opens in Lagos, bringing together leading African and diaspora creatives, investors and policymakers

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22 hours ago

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November 6, 2026

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The four-day gathering will convene leading voices from film, music, fashion, sport, publishing, gastronomy and business to advance trade, investment and commercial opportunities across Africa’s creative economy

LAGOS, Nigeria, November 5, 2026/APO Group/ –Creative Africa Nexus (CANEX) WKND 2026 has opened today in Lagos, bringing together leading creatives, investors, policymakers, business leaders and cultural figures from across Africa and the diaspora for four days of conversations, deal-making, performances, exhibitions and industry-focused sessions.

 




  

Hosted by the Federal Government of Nigeria and organised by African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) through its Creative Africa Nexus (CANEX) programme, this year’s event runs from 5 to 8 November under the theme “One People, United in Culture, Creating for the World.”

The 2026 programme spans film and television, music, fashion, sport, literature and publishing, gastronomy and visual arts, with a strong focus on finance, intellectual property, technology, skills, investment and market access.

Across the four-day programme, CANEX WKND will provide platforms for deal-making, industry dialogue and sector-specific engagement, including the CANEX Deal Room, with the aim of turning creative talent and ideas into stronger businesses, partnerships and commercial opportunities.

That ambition reflects the evolution of Afreximbank’s commitment to Africa’s creative and cultural industries in 2020, subsequently doubling this to US$1 billion before quadrupling the original commitment financing available to US$2 billion.

The expansion reflects Afreximbank’s wider objective of helping African creators and creative businesses build scalable enterprises, strengthen ownership of intellectual property and retain more of the economic value generated by African culture and creativity.

The opening ceremony is expected to feature addresses by Ministers of Culture and Creative Industries across 11 African countries, Dr George Elombi, President and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Afreximbank, H.E. Dr Olajumoke Omoniyi Oduwole, Nigeria’s Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, H.E. Wamkele Mene, Secretary-General of the African Continental Free Trade Area Secretariat, and H.E. Babajide Sanwo-Olu, Governor of Lagos State among other dignitaries.

The programme will bring together some of Africa and the diaspora’s most influential cultural and industry figures. Participants include Nobel Laureate, writer and playwright Professor Wole Soyinka; Emmy Award-winning actor Uzo Aduba; filmmaker and actor Funke Akindele; actors Richard Mofe-Damijo and Thuso Mbedu; former professional footballers Didier Drogba and Jay-Jay Okocha; alongside leading figures from Africa’s music, film, fashion, sport and creative business sectors.

The event will also include performances and appearances from musicians and entertainers such as Davido, Fally Ipupa, Flavour, Libianca and Charlotte Dipanda, reflecting CANEX WKND’s combination of industry engagement with live cultural programming.

Beyond the headline names, the programme places a strong emphasis on the business of Africa’s creative economy.

On 6 November, a high-level conversation titled “One Market, One Culture: Building the Creative Economy of Global Africa” will examine the steps required to convert the growing global influence of African culture into stronger creative businesses, exports and investment. Speakers include Professor Wole Soyinka; ministers responsible for culture and the arts from Côte d’Ivoire, South Africa and Rwanda; International Finance Corporation representatives; and from Afreximbank.

Financing will also be central to the programme. The Creative Economy Finance Summit, presented by Afreximbank in partnership with the Creative Economy Practice at Co-Creation Hub, will bring financial institutions and investors together to examine how creative-economy transactions can be structured, financed and de-risked.

CANEX Creations Inc. will lead discussions on unlocking investment in African intellectual property, while the CANEX Deal Room and Creative Pitch Sessions will connect creative entrepreneurs directly with financiers and investors considering opportunities across film and television, music, fashion, sport, publishing, gastronomy, visual arts and creative infrastructure. Technology and the changing economics of creative production will feature prominently. Sessions will examine artificial intelligence, authorship and intellectual property; the use of technology to reshape creative businesses; and how African creators can use digital tools to develop globally competitive products.

The CANEX CreaThon, delivered with pan-African technology company Gebeya, will bring creators, developers and innovators together around projects in music, video and gaming, supported by African-built digital tools, mentorship, computing resources and a US$50,000 prize pool. Film and television programming will explore both storytelling and the commercial infrastructure required to take African content to wider audiences. Sessions include “Stories Without Borders: Africa, Hollywood & the Global Diaspora”, featuring former Afreximbank President Professor Benedict Oramah, and “Made in Africa, Watched in Africa”, which will examine research into film distribution, audiences and financing across Egypt, Kenya, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal and South Africa.

Sport will form another major strand of CANEX WKND 2026. Discussions will examine athlete development, management, commercialisation and the links between sport and the broader creative economy. Didier Drogba and Jay-Jay Okocha are scheduled to participate in “When Giants Speak: The Business of the Game,” while the weekend will conclude with a Legends Football Match at Onikan Stadium on 8 November. Fashion programming will include masterclasses on building profitable African brands, textile value chains, market access and intellectual property, alongside the CANEX Fashion Show and Awards Night.

In gastronomy, the CANEX Junior Chefs Competition, Africa Jollof Wars Competition and a series of live demonstrations and conversations will explore how African food, ingredients and culinary traditions can become stronger commercial propositions across domestic, continental and global markets. Publishing and literature will feature through the CANEX Book Factory, Book Fair, writers’ workshops, manuscript pitching and the CANEX Prize for Publishing, while visual arts programming will combine exhibitions, collector engagement and practical sessions for artists navigating Africa’s growing art ecosystem.

On 7 November, CANEX WKND 2026 will host a major concert bringing together artists from across Africa and the diaspora, before the programme continues into its final day on 8 November with cultural excursions, gastronomy activities, the CANEX Music Factory Songwriting Camp and the Legends Football Game.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Afreximbank.

 




 

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Coca-Cola system invests USD 1.22 million to strengthen water security in Namibia

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22 hours ago

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November 6, 2026

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Coca-Cola

The initiative represents a nearly USD 25 million investment focused on helping address critical water-related challenges across 20 African countries by 2030

WINDHOEK, Namibia, November 5, 2026/APO Group/ –As Namibia continues to face recurring droughts and growing water demand, the country’s water resources are under increasing pressure. Windhoek is situated in one of the most water-stressed regions in sub-Saharan Africa, where low and unpredictable rainfall, combined with high evaporation rates, continues to challenge water availability and long-term water security.[1]

 




  

To help address these shared water challenges, the Coca-Cola system is investing USD 1.22 million in the //Gam-i Swakop Basin Resilience Project, designed to help strengthen water security and support ecosystem restoration in the Swakop River Basin, a vital water source for the city of Windhoek and surrounding communities.

The //Gam-i Swakop Basin Resilience Project aims to support improved water availability and help strengthen the resilience of the Swakop River Basin through nature-based solutions that support sustainable water resource management across the catchment area.

Implemented in collaboration with the Global Water Challenge (GWC) and World Wildlife Fund (WWF) Namibia, the project includes the construction of two sand storage dams, restoration of 235 hectares of land through the clearing of invasive alien plants, and the planting of 750 trees in river buffer zones and environmentally degraded areas within Windhoek’s informal settlements. In addition, two boreholes will be drilled to support groundwater recharge in the Windhoek aquifer, and a water resilience action plan has been developed.

Through the Africa Water Stewardship Initiative, the system aims to help protect important watersheds and to improve access to water and sanitation in local communities

This work forms part of the Coca-Cola system’s Africa Water Stewardship Initiative, launched in 2024. The initiative represents a nearly USD 25 million investment focused on helping address critical water-related challenges across 20 African countries by 2030.

“Because water challenges are local, our approach to water security is focused on local action and collaboration,” said Alfred Olajide, Vice President of East and Central Africa Operations at Coca‑Cola. “The Coca‑Cola system remains focused on helping to promote water stewardship, increasing water use efficiency, and treating and returning safe water to communities.”

Henry Friedrich, General Manager of Coca-Cola Namibia Bottling Company (CCNBC) added: “As part of the Coca-Cola Beverages Africa group, we have a responsibility to assist those who face water scarcity and to help protect local water resources where we operate, especially in places with the biggest challenges. Through the Africa Water Stewardship Initiative, the system aims to help protect important watersheds and to improve access to water and sanitation in local communities.”

WWF Namibia Country Director, Dr Juliane Zeidler, said: “Water is one of Namibia’s most precious and increasingly vulnerable resources. This project is an opportunity to demonstrate how investing in healthy ecosystems can deliver tangible benefits for people, while also helping communities become more resilient to future climate pressures. We hope the lessons and partnerships developed through this initiative can inform similar approaches elsewhere in the country.”

“Collaboration is essential to addressing shared water challenges effectively. Coca-Cola and its authorised bottlers continue to work with governments, businesses, and civil society organisations to design and implement strategic interventions,” concluded Olajide.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Coca-Cola Beverages Africa.

 

 




 

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‘Power, Protect, Purchase’: Africa Made It unveils blueprint to capture USD 34B in GDP and accelerate African industrial sovereignty

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22 hours ago

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November 6, 2026

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Africa

Africa Practice research shows that Africa exports up to 98% of its raw cotton overseas and captures only 2% of its total value while incurring a USD 35 billion annual trade deficit

African culture, design, and storytelling influence global fashion, music, and media like never before

LAGOS, Nigeria, November 5, 2026/APO Group/ –Africa Made It (https://AfricaMadeIt.co/), the continental movement driving Africa’s industrial sovereignty, today officially launched its campaign, “Power, Protect and Purchase,” at the CANEX weekend in Lagos, Nigeria. Aimed at unlocking USD 34 billion in annual GDP contribution through a structural transition from unprocessed raw cotton exports to end-to-end local garment processing, the initiative seeks to turn Africa’s vast natural wealth into sovereign, self-sustaining economic power.

 




  

Africa Made It is driven by a consortium of leading pan-African organisations, advocacy groups, and media organisations who are positioning Africa as a global investment hub. Its flagship campaign, spotlighting the fibre-to-fashion value chain, presents a clear roadmap for continental industrialisation: securing competitive energy power for local industrial mills, enacting policy measures to protect emerging domestic manufacturers from unfair foreign imports, and rallying African consumers to purchase locally manufactured apparel. Together, these three pillars ensure that value created from African resources remains on African soil.

 

Africa Practice research shows that Africa exports up to 98% of its raw cotton overseas and captures only 2% of its total value while incurring a USD 35 billion annual trade deficit.  Building the continent’s domestic processing capacity in spinning, weaving, and sewing locally produced cotton will sustain nearly two million permanent industrial jobs and inject approximately USD 33 billion directly into domestic household incomes every year, in addition to a recurring contribution of USD 34 billion to the continent’s GDP.

 

While these figures reveal the immense macro-economic potential of the value chain, the true heart of this transformation lies in its human impact. Industrial wages and local lint purchases leading to increased capital circulation in rural communities can drive community micro-economic vitality and contribute to rural poverty reduction. Additionally, formal employment opportunities can expand drastically for women, as they currently make up between 70-90% of garment factory workers on the continent.

 

Realising this vision and changing the lives of millions of people requires a deliberate combination of targeted investments, supportive trade policies, and consumer mobilisation. A USD 1.8 billion capital allocation toward critical structural enablers for garment transformation is the foundation for bridging Africa’s missing middle in the fibre-to-fashion value chain.

 

Marie Wilke, editor-in-chief of the Africa Made It magazine, said, “African culture, design, and storytelling influence global fashion, music, and media like never before. Yet, without domestic manufacturing infrastructure, Africa’s creative authority yields very little economic return. Linking raw cotton harvest directly to local processing ensures that the intellectual property, commercial margins, and industrial jobs remain on the continent. It is time to wear our power.”

 

To learn more about the potential of Africa’s fibre to fashion value chain, watch the campaign video (https://apo-opa.co/4BKAIvY) or read the Africa Made it (https://apo-opa.co/4zvA5VF)magazine (https://apo-opa.co/4zvA5VF). Access the campaign website and resources in English (https://apo-opa.co/4zvA5VF) and French (https://apo-opa.co/4zrK8e2).

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Africa Made It.

 

 




 

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