Military-led transitions return to the spotlight as Sudan crisis rages

Since 15 April, the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) have been clashing for control of the capital Khartoum and other parts of Sudan. More than 420 people have been killed in the violence, and over 3,700 injured, while thousands have fled to safer parts of Sudan or into neighbouring countries.…

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Blended finance: Mobilising capital to avert Africa’s climate crisis

This month, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), an advisory body to the UN, published its latest report on global warming. The conclusions were alarming: hitting the target of ensuring that the world’s temperature does not rise by more than 1.5°C is all but impossible, with this ceiling likely to be breached by as…

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Mining Elites in Africa 2023: Health and Safety Winner – AngloGold Ashanti

To counter the problem, AngloGold Ashanti’s Iduapriem mine in Ghana has introduced a successful fatigue management system to limit the health and safety risks related to fatigue. Called ‘Life by SmartCap’, the system has shown an 18% increase in alertness levels among employees over a 12-month period. This improvement was seen at all hours of…

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World powers on a charm offensive in Africa

Africa is becoming the destination of choice for senior officials from the world’s superpowers. Since the beginning of 2023, China’s Foreign Minister Qin Gang, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, and US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen have all visited the continent. French President Emmanuel Macron also embarks on a four-country African tour this week, while US…

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African elections to watch in 2023

This year, a series of high-profile elections will take place across Africa. Voters will decide whether to give incumbents another term to address existing challenges, or take a chance on a new set of leaders. Inflation and interest rates, while improving, remain high, and supply chains are constrained. Progress has been made, but growth in…

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An interview with Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi: Kenya’s priorities for foreign investment

Last month, Africa Matters Limited (AML) co-Managing Director Piers Dawson and Associate Joy Kibaki were in Nairobi, Kenya, meeting senior-governments officials and private sector investors. Their engagements came three months after President William Ruto was declared the winner of Kenya’s presidential election by the electoral commission, with his 13 September inauguration marking the end of…

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The route to food security in Africa: Advancing climate change resilience for smallholder farmers

The 27th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP27) was held this month in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt. Dubbed “Africa’s COP”, it foregrounded many of the issues that countries on the continent are facing as a result of climate change. COP27 also saw discussions on the interrelation between climate change, agriculture, and food security take a more…

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Democratic Republic of Congo: A challenging year ahead

October has been a busy month for the Democratic Republic of Congo’s high-level diplomacy. The government has made efforts to present the country as open for business, as a reliable partner, and as a crucial solution country for the climate crisis. The beginning of the month saw pre-COP27 hosted in Kinshasa, with ministerial delegations flying…

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Meeting Africa’s carbon finance challenge

High profile events this year will foreground Africa’s role in the struggle against climate change. Global leaders will come together this November at the UN Climate Change Conference COP27 in Egypt, while preliminary ministerial and scientific meetings are being held in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) at pre-COP27 across September and October. In the…

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