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African Development Bank, African Guarantee Fund kick off Affirmative Finance Action for Women in Africa (AFAWA) Finance Series Nigeria

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Women in Africa

The series of events will bring together representatives of government, policymakers and financial institutions for an introduction to AFAWA’s partnership services for the Nigerian market

LAGOS, Nigeria, October 18, 2023/APO Group/ — 

The African Development Bank Group (www.AfDB.org) and the African Guarantee Fund have made a strong case for the positive impact of increasing women’s financial inclusion on Nigeria’s economy before an audience of senior Nigerian government and banking leaders.

The two institutions opened the AFAWA Finance Series Nigeria, part of the African Development Bank’s Affirmative Finance Action for Women in Africa (AFAWA: https://apo-opa.info/3FnCEi0) initiative, on 17 October. Representatives of AFAWA donor countries, including the Netherlands, France and Italy also took part in the opening ceremony.

The series of events will bring together representatives of government, policymakers and financial institutions for an introduction to AFAWA’s partnership services for the Nigerian market.

Grace Ogbonna, Director for Economic Research and Policy Management in the Ministry of Finance, spoke during the opening ceremony on behalf of Nigeria’s Minister of Finance, Wale Edun. She said, “the topic of women’s empowerment is one that demands our attention, our commitment, and our collective efforts to ensure that women have equal opportunities so as to fully participate in our nation’s economic growth.”

Participants will explore ways to enhance regulatory frameworks that can boost access to finance for women-led small and medium enterprises. The event will also build understanding of AFAWA’s guarantee mechanism and how the program can help de-risk financial institutions that on-lend to women-led start-ups.

Through AFAWA, the African Development Bank is changing the perception and narrative that women entrepreneurs are a risky investment

The event will also showcase the AFAWA Guarantee for Growth program, a partnership between the African Development Bank and the program’s implementing partner, the African Guarantee Fund. The partners in 2021 established this risk sharing facility to unlock up to $2 billion in financing for women-led small and medium enterprises in Africa through financial institutions.

“In Nigeria, there is a real opportunity for scale,” said African Development Bank Vice President for Agriculture, Human and Social Development, Dr Beth Dunford. “Micro, small and medium-sized enterprises make up more than three-quarters of Nigeria’s workforce. With the right support, they have the potential to accelerate the country’s progress towards its economic development goals,” Dunford added.

The AFAWA Guarantee for Growth program also offers assistance and incentives to financial institutions to increase their appetite to lend to women-led SMEs. Research shows women are better at repaying loans than men, and typically reinvest up to 90% of their income in the education, health and nutrition of their families and communities.

African Guarantee Fund CEO, Jules Ngankam, said, “In Africa, 70% of women are excluded financially, including in the areas of access to credit, land ownership, job opportunities, leadership positions and wealth creation. These imbalances have been one of the factors limiting Africa from reaching its full potential.”

He commended the Nigerian government promoting women-led small and medium enterprises and noted that through AFAWA, the Fund is eager to collaborate with the government and policy makers to further enhance the business environment for women entrepreneurs.

The Finance Series also provides training that will enable financial institutions to evaluate their products and services through a gender-smart lens to better address the needs of women entrepreneurs.

African Development Bank Director General for Nigeria, Lamin Barrow said, “Through AFAWA, the African Development Bank is changing the perception and narrative that women entrepreneurs are a risky investment. The Bank recognises Nigeria’s immense potential for AFAWA-related activities. That is why we are partnering and supporting the private sector to enhance women’s access to finance through innovative financing instruments”

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

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

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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.

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

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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.

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

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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.

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