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African Development Bank and Central African Republic forge stronger alliance to tackle fragility and drive sustainable development

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African Development Bank

Despite fragility stemming from political and security factors, the Bank has remained resolute in supporting the country’s sustainable development objectives

ABIDJAN, Ivory Coast, April 9, 2024/APO Group/ — 

The African Development Bank (www.AfDB.org) and the Central African Republic (CAR) have reinforced their partnership during an official visit by Marie Laure Akin-Olugbade, Vice President for Regional Development and Business Delivery, from 25-27 March.

Akin-Olugbade engaged with key stakeholders and government leaders, including President Faustin-Archange Touadera and Prime Minister Felix Moloua, reaffirming the Bank’s commitment to advancing the Central African Republic’s development agenda. She also met with development partners and beneficiaries of Bank-funded projects.

Prime Minister Moloua expressed satisfaction with the fruitful cooperation with the Bank, emphasizing its pivotal role in advancing national objectives. “The Bank’s support has been instrumental in advancing our national development agenda and addressing key challenges, and we look forward to continued collaboration to further drive progress and prosperity for our nation,” he said.

The Bank’s current partnership with the Central African Republic focuses on two primary pillars: supporting agricultural development and infrastructure for social inclusion, and enhancing institutional capacity building and governance. This framework aims to facilitate the country’s emergence from fragility and lay the foundation for robust and inclusive economic growth.

The Bank’s support has been instrumental in advancing our national development agenda and addressing key challenges

“I am proud to say that the Bank’s investments are not just merely financial; they are truly transformative enablers of progress and prosperity in the lives of the people of the Central African Republic,” Akin-Olugbade said. She reiterated that the portfolio reflects alignment with the country’s strategies, particularly in infrastructure, governance, and agriculture.

Despite fragility stemming from political and security factors, the Bank has remained resolute in supporting the country’s sustainable development objectives.

During the visit, Akin-Olugbade inspected key Bank-funded initiatives, including the Fibre Optic Backbone Project, which is pivotal in propelling the country towards a digital future. The project encompasses 900 km of fiber optic infrastructure, 11 technical sites, and a cutting-edge National Data Center.

Another transformative project supported by the Bank is the Multimodal Transport Corridor Project to connect Pointe-Noire, Brazzaville, Bangui, and N’Djamena—major cities in the Republic of Congo, the Central African Republic and Chad, respectively. A component of this project is the $280 million Brazzaville-Bangui river corridor initiative, which will provide landlocked CAR and Chad a second maritime access to catalyze trade, foster job creation, and expand market access, thereby boosting regional integration for over 6 million people across Central Africa.

Despite economic challenges, including a modest growth rate of 1% in 2023, the Central African Republic is poised for progress. Projections indicate potential increases in key sectors such as industrial agriculture, forestry, and gold mining could spur growth to 2.9% in 2025.

As of the end of March 2024, the Bank’s active portfolio in CAR comprised 20 public projects with a total commitment of $454.6 million, spanning transport, energy, agriculture, and social infrastructure sectors.

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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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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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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