East Africa








Oil & Gas

Fossil Fuels

Fossil Fuels

South Sudan: US visas revoked due to refusal of entry to non citizen

South Sudan stated on Monday that the U.S. decided to revoke visas for South Sudanese nationals because Juba refused to accept a deportee of another nationality. The U.S. announced on Saturday that it will cancel all visas for South Sudanese passport-holders because South Sudan has refused to accept its repatriated citizen's return. Juba's Foreign Ministry said that the deportee from the Democratic Republic of Congo was denied entry to South Sudan by South Sudanese officials. He claimed in an interview with immigration at the Juba Airport that he had been forced there. "Comprehensive Verification Processes confirmed that this individual was...

Fossil Fuels

Ugandan Museveni arrives at South Sudan amid political crisis

The Ugandan President Yoweri Mueveni arrived on South Sudan's border on Thursday. This was the highest-level mission to the country since the clashes in the region and the arrest of the vice president raised fears that civil war could return. Salva Kiir of South Sudan met Museveni at the airport. His administration accused First Vice-President Riek Makar of igniting rebellion and placed him under house arrest. In public remarks made at Juba Airport, the Ugandan leader did not directly refer to the crisis. His military had been invited to South Sudan to assist in securing the capital last month. This...

Fossil Fuels

Salva Kiir is the former rebel leader of South Sudan.

When South Sudan declared independence from Sudan in 2011 to a chorus of worldwide congratulations and celebrations, rebel-leader-turned-president Salva Kiir promised his people freedom and democracy. He fired his vice president, Riek Makar, two years later. This sparked a civil conflict that splintered his young nation on ethnic lines. The international and regional powers demanded a resolution. Kiir has now detained Machar for a decade, and his administration is threatening to ignite conflict once more in an impoverished nation in the middle of a fragile region. The scandal has highlighted the depth of ethnic and social rifts in the country...

Energy Markets

Zambia's CEC invests $500 million to improve transmission

Copperbelt Energy Corp. in Zambia will invest $500m over the next 2 years to double its capacity of an electricity transmission line into the Democratic Republic of Congo and increase the output of solar power, according to a senior official of the company. Copperbelt Energy Corporation owns the only power transmission line connecting Congo with the Southern African Power Pool. CEC's Chief Financial Officer Mutale Mukuka stated that CEC was looking to attract investors in order to finance projects, as the country is emerging from a four-year default on its sovereign debt. Mukuka said that he was looking to invest...

Fossil Fuels

Germany temporarily closes its embassy in South Sudan amid civil war fears

The German Foreign Ministry announced on Saturday that the embassy had temporarily been closed in Juba, the capital of South Sudan. This was due to rising tensions which have brought this East African nation to the brink of civil war. Salva Kiir, the president of South Sudan, sacked this week the governor of Upper Nile State, where escalating clashes between government troops, and an ethnic militia he claims is allied with his rival First Vice President Riek Makar, have taken place. The standoff has raised concerns that the world’s newest nation, which emerged from a civil conflict that claimed hundreds...

Fossil Fuels

South Sudan withdraws partially from peace process

Major party in South Sudan’s coalition government announced on Tuesday that it had suspended its participation in a key part of a 2018 deal to end violence and improve relations between Riek Machar, its leader, and President Salva Kir amid clashes. The agreement ended a 5-year war between forces loyal both to Kiir, and Machar who is now the First Vice-President of the SPLM-IO. The two men do have a fractious relation, and it has gotten worse in recent weeks after clashes occurred in the east of the country. Earlier this week, security forces arrested several SPLM-IO leaders, including the...

Fossil Fuels

EU sanctions Rwandan officers and M23 rebels for Congo violence

An official EU Journal publication revealed that the European Union sanctioned nine people, including the leader of Congo’s M23 rebel group and Rwandan army officials, for violence in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Since January, the Tutsi M23 rebels led by the Rwandan genocide of 1994 and the struggle to control Congo's minerals have escalated a long-running war. On the list of sanctions are M23 leader Bertrand Bisimwa and commanders from Rwanda's army - the Rwanda Defence Force. Also on the list is the M23 appointed governor for Congo's North Kivu Province. Bisimwa and a Rwandan Government spokesman did not...

Fossil Fuels

Uganda deploys special forces in South Sudan's capital amid tensions

Uganda's chief of the military said on Tuesday that his country has deployed special forces to South Sudan's capital Juba in order to "secure" it, as tensions between Salva Kiir's and his First Vice-President Riek Machar stoke concerns about a return to civil conflict. In recent days, tensions in South Sudan have risen after Kiir’s government arrested two ministers, as well as several senior military officials who were allied to Machar. Since then, one minister has been released. The arrests and clashes that took place in the town of Nasir, a northern town, are seen by many as a threat...

Fossil Fuels

Vice presidency of South Sudan says that South Sudan security forces have released the peacebuilding Minister.

After the arrests and tensions escalated, a spokesman of Machar announced that the South Sudanese loyalists to President Salva Kir have released the minister of peacebuilding, a key ally for First Vice President Riek Machar. Security forces have arrested or placed under house arrest, between Tuesday and Thursday, several allies to Machar. These include the Petroleum Minister, the Peacebuilding Minister and a Deputy Head of the Military. This has put at risk a peace agreement that ended the civil war between fighters loyal Kiir and Machar. Stephen Par Kuol, the minister of peacebuilding who was illegally detained by National Security...

Fossil Fuels

Two signatories claim that Sudan's RSF and allies have signed a charter to form a parallel government.

Signatories al-Hadi Idris, and Ibrahim al-Mirghani said that Sudan's Rapid Support Forces had signed a charter late Saturday night with allied political groups and armed forces to create a "government for peace and unity". Abdelaziz al-Hilu is one of the charter's signatories. He is a powerful leader in South Kordofan who controls large swathes territory and has troops there. This government is unlikely to be widely recognized, and has already raised concerns from the United Nations. It is another sign of the country's splintering during the civil war, which has lasted for almost two years. RSF has taken over most...

Fossil Fuels

Kenya turns to the UAE for railway funds after China cut financing

Kenya has actually begun conversations with the United Arab Emirates to secure funding to finish a regional railway, President William Ruto stated, after China cut facilities funding to the task. The railway connecting the Kenyan port of Mombasa with landlocked neighbours, as part of China's Belt and Road Effort, ended in the Rift Valley in 2019, 468 kilometres ( 290 miles) short of the border with Uganda, after Beijing withdrew support. We are checking out a partnership arrangement with the United Arab Emirates to extend the Requirement Gauge Railway to link Kenya, Uganda and South Sudan, Ruto stated on X...

Oil & Gas Refining

Indian criteria end flat as earnings worries counter gains in Dependence, TCS

India's benchmark indexes ended largely the same on Wednesday as concerns over slowing corporate revenues and the increasing possibility of fewer U.S. rate cuts balance out a rise in Reliance Industries and Tata Consultancy Providers. The Nifty 50 shed 0.08% to 23,688.95, while the BSE Sensex was down 0.06% at 78,148.49. Both the benchmarks fell about 0.8% each during the session before paring losses in the last two hours. Recent company updates from business, including Dabur India and Hero MotoCorp, have actually not led financiers to believe that business earnings growth in the 3rd quarter will be any better than...

Environment

Climate Change

BRICS nations discuss a shared response to Trump's trade policies

Foreign Ministers of BRICS Group of Developing Nations met on Monday, to discuss a common defense of the global trading system and coordinate their response to President Donald Trump's barrage of new duties. The group, which was formed by Brazil and Russia but has recently been expanded to include China, South Africa, India and South Africa, is expected to issue a joint statement in Rio de Janeiro criticizing the "unilateral trade measures" of this group. Brazilian Ambassador Mauricio lyrio stated that the ministers were negotiating a statement to reaffirm multilateral trade agreements as the primary axis for action in the...

Environment

Malawi's female sandminers trapped by climate change dilemma

Sand mining is a growing industry for women after floods and drought The work is hard and the pay is low Sand mining is a major contributor to land degradation By Charles Pensulo The 37-year old sand-miner has no time to appreciate her surroundings. A tourist hotspot centred around the vast body of waters known as the Lake of Stars because of the brilliance of the nighttime reflections. Wilson notices that the shoreline is receding and thinks it may be her fault. She says that she is stuck with no choice. She said, "We think that (sand-mining) contributes to erosion....

Climate Change

U.N.: Global temperatures are increasing and melting glaciers around the world.

According to a report by UNESCO released on Friday, glaciers are disappearing more quickly than ever. The last three years saw the greatest loss of mass on record. Michael Zemp of the Switzerland-based World Glacier Monitoring Service said that the 9,000 gigatons (or a quarter of a million tons) of ice lost by glaciers since 1975 is roughly equivalent to an ice block as large as Germany and with a thickness of 25 meters. This was revealed at a Geneva press conference to announce the report. Climate change caused by fossil fuels will likely cause global temperatures to rise, accelerating...

Mining

Mineral Resources

Mineral Resources

Sources: Congo and M23 delegations have left Doha after peace talks stagnate.

Sources from both camps said that the delegations representing Congo's Government and Rwanda-backed M23 Rebels left Qatar without immediate plans to return after failing to make significant progress in a ceasefire. M23's unprecedented march since January has seen it seize the two largest cities in eastern Congo and raise fears of a regional war. Qatar mediated a surprise meeting between the Congolese president Felix Tshisekedi, and Rwandan president Paul Kagame last month. The two leaders demanded a ceasefire during this unexpected sit-down. The goal was to have direct talks between M23 and the Democratic Republic of Congo this month. Sources...

Mineral Resources

Congo suspends the former President Kabila's Political Party

The government of the Democratic Republic of Congo has suspended the political party of former President Joseph Kabila and ordered the seizure of his assets over allegations that he supported rebels in eastern Congo backed by Rwanda. The 53-year old, who ruled the country from 2001 to 2019 and only stepped aside after violent protests against him, said that he wanted to return to Congo in order to find a resolution to the conflict. In a statement issued late Saturday, the interior ministry stated that his party had been suspended for assisting the M23 rebels. The justice ministry also said...

Mineral Resources

Alphamin, a Congo tin mining company, says that production has resumed after the rebels withdrew.

Alphamin Resources announced that it had restarted the tin production in its Bisie mine, located in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. This was after rebels retreated from the nearby town of Walikale. In a statement, the miner stated that it was processing tin-ore stockpiled and plans to resume activities at its underground mining facility later this month when more employees return to their jobs. Alphamin temporarily halted its operations in Bisie in March, which produced about 6% of the global tin supply a year. A rebel group backed by Congo’s eastern neighbor Rwanda advanced into Walikale, a town adjacent to...

Mineral Resources

Sources: Congo government and M23 rebel delegations are in Doha to hold talks

Four sources confirmed that Congolese officials, as well as negotiators from the M23 rebels, who are supported by Rwanda, have arrived in Doha to hold talks on a ceasefire. The aim is to end months of fighting which have caused fears of an expanded regional conflict. M23's rapid advances this year have left thousands of civilians killed, hundreds of thousands displaced and the rebels in control of much of eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, an area rich with tin and gold. Both delegations confirmed they were in Qatari capital, saying that there had been a face to face meeting on...

Mineral Resources

Tin production resumes at major mine in Congo after two-month slump

The price of tin fell to a two-month low on Wednesday, after Alphamin Resources Corp announced that it would resume operations in phases at its Bisie Mine in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Alphamin stopped operations at Bisie a month ago. The plant produces about 6% global tin supply a year. This was as M23 rebels, backed by Rwanda, advanced in the area and took over the strategic town Walikale. In a Wednesday statement, Alphamin said that the insurgents had now withdrawn to Walikale. This is more than 130km (80miles) east of the mine. The price of soldering material on...

Mineral Resources

Sources: US trying to negotiate deal for reopening Alphamin tin mining in war-hit Congo

Four sources familiar with the negotiations said that the United States was trying to broker a deal which would guarantee a reopening of an important tin mine located in eastern Congo. Massad Boulos' recent trip to Kinshasa as the senior Africa advisor for U.S. president Donald Trump included a discussion on the fate of Alphamin’s Bisie Mine, according to the sources, even though Washington’s involvement dates back several weeks. Washington and Kinshasa are also in talks about a broader deal on critical minerals partnerships, after Congo pitched a minerals-for-security deal to the Trump administration. Bisie produced around 17,300 tons of...

Mineral Resources

Official: Madagascar faces the loss of 60,000 textile jobs due to U.S. Tariffs

An industry official said that Madagascar's textile sector could lose around 60,000 jobs due to President Donald Trump’s 47% tariff against the country. The latest U.S. Tariffs were calculated using a formula that meant low-income countries such as Madagascar, which imported small quantities of U.S. products, faced the highest tax rates. According to an ILO report from 2023, the textile and clothing industry in Madagascar employs approximately 180,000 people. It accounts for about one-fifth the gross domestic product of the country. In 2024, the country of 31,000,000 people will export $733 million worth of goods to the U.S. Most of...

Mineral Resources

Former President Kabila has said he will return home to Congo

He said late Tuesday that the former Congolese President Joseph Kabila would return to central Africa to help solve the crisis in war-ravaged eastern Congo, where Rwandan-backed M23 M23 rebels had seized large swathes. Since January, the M23 rebels have launched a lightning-fast offensive in the mineral-rich eastern part of Democratic Republic of Congo. This has resulted in thousands of deaths and hundreds of thousands of people being forced to flee their homes. It also stoked fears of an escalating regional conflict. Sources from the Congolese government, M23 and other sources confirmed this week that the peace talks between Congo...

Mineral Resources

Ethiopian PM Abiy names new leader of Tigray Administration

Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmad appointed Tadesse Worede on Tuesday to lead the interim government in the northern Tigray Region, where divisions within the ruling party has sparked concerns of a new war between Ethiopia and Eritrea. Tadesse was a commander of the Tigray People's Liberation Front during the war between Ethiopia's Federal Government and the Tigray People's Liberation Front in 2020-2022, which resulted in the deaths of tens thousands of people, as well as the forced displacement of millions. Eritrean troops fought alongside Ethiopia's Federal army during the conflict. However, relations between the two long-time rivals has soured since...

Mineral Resources

Trump claims he had a productive call with Canadian PM Carney

Donald Trump, the U.S. president, said that he and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney had a productive phone call on Friday. The two leaders will meet next month after the Canadian election. Trump posted on his Truth Social social media platform that the call was "extremely productive". We agreed on many points and will meet immediately after Canada's next election to discuss elements of Business, Politics and other factors. He added that the work would be great for both Canada and the United States. Carney's office and Carney himself have yet to comment on this call. It comes a day...

Mineral Resources

East Congo ceasefire is troubled as rebels remain in strategic town

The de facto ceasefire that had been agreed between Congolese and Rwandan rebels in Walikale, a town located in eastern Congo, appeared to have collapsed on Monday. The rebels reneged on their promise to withdraw from the area and accused the army of breaking its own promises. The M23 rebels are hopeful about a possible ceasefire in Walikale. Captured last week The hope that diplomatic efforts would be revived to end the largest conflict in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo for decades was briefly sparked. This conflict is rooted in the long-lasting fallout of the 1994 Rwandan genocide and the...

Mineral Resources

Angola will end its mediation role in the east Congo conflict, says the presidency

Angola is stepping down as the mediator for parties in an intensifying Rwanda-backed rebel offensive against eastern Congo. A different African country will now take over to help bring peace talks back to track, announced the presidency on Monday. M23, led by ethnic Tutsi, has escalated its long-running rebellion in this year. They have taken control of east Congo's largest cities since January. Angola President Joao Lurenco, who is currently rotating African Union (AU), has tried to mediate a ceasefire lasting and reduce tensions between Congo, and Rwanda, the neighbouring country, which was accused of supporting M23. Rwanda denies that....