UNICEF Sierra Leone handed over 113 laptops and 23 projectors to the Ministry of Communications, Technology, and Innovation for young people in 39 schools across the country as part of the Giga project.
Giga is a UNICEF-International Telecommunications Union (ITU) initiative to connect every school to the Internet and every young person to information, opportunity, and choice.
“This strategic move is expected to empower students to emerge as leaders and driving forces of development across the nation in line with national priorities that reflect a collective commitment to advancing education, technology, and youth empowerment,” said Ms Salima Bah, Minister of Communications, Technology and Innovation as she received the items. “These will foster innovation, facilitate employment opportunities, and constructing a robust digital economy for youths in the country.”
Currently, less than 1 per cent of schools in Sierra Leone are connected to the Internet and only three out of ten people have access to the Internet.
“We need to bridge the digital divide by increasing access to technology and empowering young people with the skills they need to navigate and benefit from opportunities in this digital era,” said Rudolf Schwenk, UNICEF Representative in Sierra Leone. “With limited access to technology and the internet, thousands of children and young people lack the digital skills they need for their future.”
A 2021 global report by the Economist Intelligence Unit found that a 10% increase in school connectivity can increase effective years of schooling by 0.6 per cent and increase GDP per capita by 1.1 per cent.
The initiative will contribute to the transformative potential of empowering young people with technology to bridge the digital divide by setting up tech-enabled learning hubs, connecting schools to the internet, and supplying essential equipment so that young people could be equipped with modern digital skills.
Kelechi Deca
Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry
The Republic of Congo and Nigeria, Africa’s leading oil producers and members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), have affirmed their commitment to efforts by OPEC and OPEC+ and its member countries to stabilize the global oil market in 2024 and beyond.
During the 36th OPEC and non-OPEC Ministerial Meeting held in November, the organization and its member countries, reached an agreement with participating countries over the production quota for 2024. As part of the agreement, the Republic of Congo will target a production quota of 277 billion barrels of crude oil per day (bpd). Simultaneously, Nigeria has agreed to a production quota of 1,500 bpd as from January 2024. The aim is to ensure a stable and balanced oil market at the helm of various factors, including the energy transition and changes in energy consumption patterns, impacting the global oil market and oil-producing countries.
“The Republic of Congo reaffirms its steadfast commitment to the strategic policy defined by the Secretary-General of OPEC and OPEC+. We strongly support the efforts to stabilize and promote sustainable development of the oil markets, a crucial approach for the future of our sector and the global economy. Furthermore, the Republic of Congo highlights the remarkable harmony prevailing among the members of the OPEC and OPEC+ Ministerial Conference,” stated Bruno Itoua, Minister of Hydrocarbons for the Republic of Congo, adding that “This harmony reflects our common commitment and shared willingness to work together for mutually beneficial goals. The Republic of Congo is committed to continuing close and constructive collaboration with all member countries. We are determined to foster initiatives that serve the collective interest of the oil industry, while positively contributing to overall economic well-being.”
Sen. Heineken Lokpobiri, Minister of State for Petroleum, Nigeria reaffirmed Nigeria’s unwavering commitment to OPEC in addressing the changing dynamics of the global energy sector. He said “Our collaboration within the organization remains pivotal in fostering stability and sustainability in the oil market. We are resolute in our dedication to OPEC’s objectives while actively engaging with the organization to address concerns that resonate not only within our nation’s borders but across the entire continent. Nigeria stands ready to contribute constructively to the ongoing dialogue, ensuring that the unique challenges and opportunities of our region are duly recognized and addressed.”
NJ Ayuk
The African Energy Chamber (AEC), as the voice of the African energy sector, strongly supports the Republic of Congo and Nigeria, for their commitment to foster the growth and stability of both the African and global oil markets through collaborative efforts on market sustainability and expansion with OPEC, OPEC+ and member countries.
For decades, OPEC has positioned itself as a reliable consortium for global oil producing countries such as the Republic of Congo and Nigeria to strengthen upstream operations, local content development and resource monetization strategies while navigating the shifting global market. At the same time, the Republic of Congo and Nigeria with the support of OPEC, OPEC+ and member countries have placed themselves as key contributors to global energy security. With substantial proven reserves of approximately 1,811 million barrels and through cooperation with global players such as TotalEnergies, bp, Eni Perenco, Chevron and Kosmos Energy, Congo represents one of the world’s most important oil producers. On the hand, Nigeria has for decades ranked as Africa’s top producer and one of the world’s most important oil exporters.
The Chamber believes that with the energy transition taking center stage and global climate policies disrupting the oil industry, at a time African countries maximize oil production and monetization to address growing energy poverty and demand at global scale while accelerating industrialization, OPEC has a huge role to play. Through enhanced cooperation with OPEC and OPEC+ member countries, the Chamber is confident that Congo will accelerate oil production and continue to shape the growth of the African industry and resilience of the global market.
“The Republic of Congo and Nigeria, through cooperation with OPEC, OPEC+ and global member countries, have succeeded in ensuring the sustainable growth of the African oil sector. Their commitment to adhere to principles laid by OPEC to ensure the continued growth of the sector, is a huge testimony of the organization’s obligation and ability to contribute to the growth of African economies on the back of optimal exploitation of oil resources. We welcome and support Nigeria and Congo’s commitment to OPEC and future expansion and stability of the oil sector,” stated NJ Ayuk, the Executive Chairman of the AEC.
Kelechi Deca
Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry
Agritech solutions and digital marketing can help empower agricultural startups. As literacy increases in rural areas and infrastructure improves, young farmers and agri-processors working with the International Trade Centre (ITC) can integrate new tech solutions into their operations.
ITC’s Alliances for Action, under the Netherlands Trust Fund V (NTF V) programme, has partnered with Bopinc, which works on tech solutions for businesses, to close the gap between small agribusinesses and the tech sector. They’re working with small and medium-sized processors of cocoa in Ghana, coffee in Ethiopia, and cashews and other crops in Senegal.
The goal is to upscale their operations to generate better profits, improve incomes, and create more jobs by processing local crops in-country.
Activities focus on market research, product development, sustainable processing, packaging, marketing, and developing targeted commercial linkages. To ensure a holistic approach, tech tools and platforms are integrated into business operations.
This also prepares small businesses for the new EU Corporate Sustainable Due Diligence Directive (CS3D) through more precise data collection, greater transparency, and improved traceability.
Ready, game, set and match: Agritech pilots are underway
Grounded in a tested methodology and a participatory approach, Bopinc assessed the digital needs of selected businesses in Ghana, Ethiopia and Senegal to match them to service providers.
They found that the businesses need to digitalize their processes through enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems. That allows for more transparency and traceability of operations to comply with rules like the EU CS3D directive.
In Senegal, cashew nut processor Zena was matched with tech solutions tailored to improve the competitiveness and market access of their ‘made in a Senegal’ operations. These target local consumers who want local products – a nascent trend that is rapidly growing in Dakar.
In Ghana, the pilot involves a Fair Trade-certified farmer cooperative, the Kuapa Kokoo Cooperative Cocoa Farmers and Marketing Union Limited (KKFU). This collaboration promises to usher in a new era of digitalization and technological advancements, offering exciting possibilities for KKFU’s 100,000 cocoa farmers.
In Ethiopia, the pilot is currently underway, with a focus on setting up an automated system to track the coffee production and increase efficiency of the Bench Maji Coffee Farmers’ Cooperative Union, which has 21,000 farmer members.
A second pilot in Ethiopia will match the Oromia Coffee Farmers’ Cooperative Union with tech company AgUnity to develop co-op manager systems that also targets compliance with EU legislations.
The GPS coordinates of 3,000 farmers from four primary cooperatives have been registered. GPS is a key tool to comply with the EU’s regulation on deforestation-free products.
The businesses will also have access to a directory of digital tools created in Ethiopia – a groundbreaking initiative that ITC aims to replicate across other countries.
The pilots are conceived to be sustainable beyond the life of the project as they benefit from co-funding from the beneficiaries. The pilots are part of capacity building to business service organizations to ensure transfer of know-how and tools at the national level in support of digital transformation of the agribusiness sector.
Kelechi Deca
Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry
ITC is supporting small cashew processors and brands in Senegal to reach new markets and grow their operations. They organized a training on packaging for 30 cashew processing businesses in Senegal.
West Africa exports more cashews than any other region in the world. Senegal is part of that boom, along with Cote d’Ivoire, Ghana, Burkina Faso and Nigeria.
Established and new brands in Senegal want to turn raw cashews into higher-value products, creating innovative products for export and the local market. Cashew jams, juices, bars, and flour are just some of the products appearing on the shelves.
Looking at this context ITCs Alliance for Action sustainable agribusiness initiative organized a training course on product packaging for 30 participants from 11 small businesses working with cashews. In Senegal, under the Netherlands Trust Fund programme ITC is working with cashew businesses to grow their operations sustainably, improve their competitiveness and reach new markets. Improved packaging will be one step in the right direction.
The training was facilitated by Frederic Couty, a packaging and continuous improvement consultant at ITC. He guided the businesses on how best to develop packaging with efficient systems that improve profits and sustainability.
A step-by-step methodology goes through the process of choosing packaging materials, graphic design, labelling, equipment, packaging for transportation, and more.
In line with consumer trends that favor environmentally friendly businesses, a special focus was placed on sustainable packaging. This will allow the brands to tap into European Union and other international markets as well as better accessing their existing local and regional markets.
He also delivered tailored coaching to eight companies from the NTFV cohort with factories in and around Dakar and in Casamance, Senegal’s biggest cashew-producing region.
Cashew apple juice company Casadeliz, is working on a new packaging and marketing strategy that is more adapted to the UK market with the use of cans and tetra packs.
‘To promote the “made in Senegal” model, we need quality packaging because at the international level, the competition is not only on product quality but also on packaging,’ said Fatou Mbod, manager of the Casamance Verte GIE.
Mireille Dovonou, sales and marketing assistant at Lysa & Co, was most interested in the tailored approach of packaging. ‘We understood that packaging must be aligned with the company’s vision and mission. Packaging must also be adapted to the customer’s needs, which can be identified through surveys and test trials before validating and commissioning the final packaging.’
Moving on, ITC-Alliances for Action will be supporting the businesses as they implement the new methodology. The ITC teams will replicate this strategy for cocoa in Ghana and coffee in Ethiopia.
Kelechi Deca
Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry
Earlier this month, the African energy sector learnt of Simbi Wabote’s replacement from his position as executive secretary of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB). He was appointed to the position by President Muhammadu Buhari in September 2016. Wabote’s abrupt exodus (which was not explained) has sparked a range of reactions, highlighting the complexity of his legacy in championing domestic participation in the oil and gas industry.
We at the African Energy Chamber (AEC) were disheartened to hear of this development. Throughout his years of service, Wabote demonstrated an unwavering commitment to fostering local content policies that not only benefited Nigerians but also created opportunities for other Africans. He did not use local content as a wedge issue to drive resource nationalism, but instead promoted intra-African collaboration and worked with his counterparts in other African countries to support their local content initiatives. Nigeria lead and shared lesson learned.
We greatly respect Wabote’s push for transparency in local content and contracting issues, as well as his advocacy for Africa’s oil and gas industry: He never shied away from speaking out for a just energy transition.
Simbi Wabote
Wabote can take pride in his achievements with the NCDMB. By encouraging a balanced, market-friendly approach to local content, he fostered a generation of African entrepreneurs.
Championing Local Content
Wabote was no stranger to developing local content in complex situations when he arrived at NCDMB.
He spent 26 years at Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) Nigeria Limited where he rose to the position of general manager of business and government relations for Shell Companies in Nigeria (SCiN). During his time with the company, he held numerous senior positions inside and outside of the country and spent years overseeing the development of local content strategy and framework, including a stint as the general manager of local content for Shell companies worldwide.
As the NCDMB executive secretary, Wabote was tasked with steering strategic national programs to build capacity and locate industry activities within Nigeria. His global experience was key in re-engineering the board’s business processes to achieve maximum impact on the country’s content development.
Wabote’s success with the NCDMB included establishing a number of highly impactful funds. With the creation of the USD350 million Nigerian Content Intervention Fund (NCIF,) for example, Wabote and the NCDMB were able to provide affordable credit for Nigerian oil and gas service companies and local contractors.
“This contributed greatly in addressing the challenge of affordable capital which hamper the growth of many indigenous service providers,” Wabote wrote in a 2022 opinion piece published by Premium Times.
Under Wabote’s leadership, the NCDMB also launched a fund to drive local manufacturing of oil and gas industry equipment and components, a research and development fund to solve energy industry problems, and a working capital fund to help oil and gas companies overcome the damaging effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.
I applaud these efforts, along with the NCDMB’s USD40 million Women in Oil and Gas Intervention Fund, created in partnership with the Nigerian Export-Import (NEXIM) Bank to benefit oil and gas firms where women hold majority shares or manage the companies.
Throughout Wabote’s tenure on the board, he pushed for increased indigenous participation in oil and gas contracts, and drove investments in local manufacturing and skills development. He forged strategic collaborations with international oil companies, universities, and training institutions to enhance local capacity building and technology transfer. And he implemented initiatives to improve transparency in NCDMB operations and combat corruption within the oil and gas sector.
Overcoming Challenges That Remain
Despite Wabote’s NCDMB work toward policy advancements, critics argue that the actual implementation of local content requirements has fallen short, with loopholes and lack of enforcement hindering progress. Concerns exist about the unequal distribution of benefits from local content initiatives, with larger companies often benefiting more than smaller enterprises and local communities.
Wabote created an environment where the NCDMB cannot pick winners and losers and pit industry sectors against each other in order to achieve sustainable local content goals. We saw him push to drive up Nigeria’s and Africa’s competitiveness, our oil and gas sector cannot continue to be faced with over overregulation that sometimes hurts businesses when it comes to creating jobs and opportunities for everyday people.
The AEC hopes that Wabote’s successor, Felix Ogbe, will continue the efforts toward robust local content development, building upon Wabote’s initiatives while addressing implementation gaps and any other concerns.
We would love to see the board continue to foster inclusivity and empower local communities. And we are anxious to see whether the new leadership will uphold the high standards of transparency and combatting corruption that are essential to maintain public trust and ensure the effectiveness of local content initiatives.
”(President) Tinubu expects this highly qualified body of experts to discharge their duties with a patriotic resolve to significantly enhance indigenous industry participation in the energy sector,” the President’s media advisor said in a statement regarding the new board members, adding that the Tinubu administration has a mandate to achieve 70% indigenous content in Nigeria’s energy industry during the president’s years in office.
Let’s hope that this comes to fruition and that the NCDMB continues to build upon the foundation Wabote supported throughout his leadership.
Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry
MTN Group has launched multiple satellite trials across Africa, with Starlink, AST SpaceMobile and Lynk Global as some of its partners. MTN is running the trials to test the feasibility of different forms of satellite broadband connectivity across the continent. The telecommunications group has partnered with low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellite service providers including Elon Musk’s Starlink and AST SpaceMobile in exploring satellite technology for direct-to-cellular connectivity and backhaul connectivity.
“Multiple initiatives are under way, including upcoming direct-to-cell trials with Lynk Global in South Africa and Ghana. Discussions are also taking place with providers like AST SpaceMobile for trials in Nigeria and South Sudan,” said MTN Group chief technology and information officer Mezan Mroué. “Concurrently, there are ongoing engagements with SpaceX’s Starlink, with enterprise-grade trials under way in Rwanda and Nigeria. In parallel, we are advancing discussions with Eutelsat OneWeb for a planned pilot in South Africa,” said Mroué.
Group CEO of MTN, Rob Shutter
A partnership with Starlink is not possible in South Africa because the American multinational is yet to launch operations here. There has been much speculation regarding SpaceX’s apparent reluctance to enter the local market, including licensing conditions for black economic empowerment, but the company has never given any formal commentary on the matter.
Mobile operators sometimes geostationary satellites for backhaul connectivity, but the satellites’ distance from Earth (around 35 000km) increases latency and the power required to send signals back and forth. Direct-to-mobile connectivity, on the other hand, aims to connect remote subscribers via satellite without them needing to change their mobile device. Vodacom Group CTO Dejan Kastelic was recently quoted as saying that direct-to-mobile satellite connectivity is going to be a “game changer” for mobile telecommunications. “There is a race going on now to see who will be first to provide direct-to-mobile connectivity,” said Kastelic.
Vodacom is following a two-pronged approach similar to MTN’s. For backhaul connectivity, Vodacom has partnered with Amazon-owned Project Kuiper, while its parent Vodafone Group’s 5% stake in AST SpaceMobile is an indicator of its confidence in direct-to-mobile solutions.
A third use-case that MTN is exploring is the use of satellite to connect remote internet-of-things devices to its network. The mobile operator has partnered with Washington-based Omnispace, a company founded in 2012 that has made significant inroads into space-based IoT networks and 5G.
“The companies will explore combining MTN’s terrestrial mobile networks with Omnispace’s non-terrestrial network, leveraging 3GPP standards to service consumer mobile and enterprise IoT services. We will also consider opportunities to work together in developing and growing an ecosystem of devices and software,” said Mroué.
MTN said its partnerships with satellite service providers are mostly based on a shared revenue model, but that each agreement is negotiated on a case-by-case basis.
Despite the promise of broader coverage that satellite connectivity brings, Mroué noted that without stronger smart device penetration, connectivity rates would still remain low on the continent. “As excited as we are by the LEO opportunity, it is important to note that most LEO satellite providers will be offering 4G as the mainstream technology, which means that we need to continue our work to get affordable 4G devices to customers,” he said.
Kelechi Deca
Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry
If 2022 was the year that “broke bitcoin”, 2023 has been the year of trauma recovery. Bitcoin has bounced pluckily in the face of depressed crypto prices, low trading volumes and tough economic conditions. It even found a second wind in October following a midyear slump.
“We’ve had a nice recovery, but we’re just in the cusp of the new cycle,” said Kelvin Koh, co-founder and managing partner at investment firm Spartan Group.
Indeed, 2023 has been a surprisingly good year for bitcoin.
Changpeng Zhao, CEO of Binance
The king of cryptocurrencies has leapt 164% since 1 January and is trading above $40 000. It has outpaced traditional assets, including gold which has risen 10% and the S&P 500 which has gained 20%.
Bitcoin also increased its share of the total cryptocurrency market, from 38% to above 50%, according to CoinGecko data. The overall crypto market cap has swelled to US$1.7-trillion from $871-billion at the end of 2022, with ether’s price jumping 95%.
Much of bitcoin’s gains came later in the year as a potential US spot bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) and hopes of easier monetary policy renewed investor energy.
Trading volumes have picked back up, too, with the combined spot and derivatives trading volume on centralised exchanges hitting $3.6-trillion in November, up from about $2.9-trillion in January, according to CCData.
Stablecoins
Meanwhile, stablecoins — cryptocurrencies whose value is pegged to a real-world asset like the US dollar — have also grown. Tether, the largest such coin, has seen its market cap soar to an all-time high of more than $90-billion. After a torrid 2022 saw the downfall of FTX and Sam Bankman-Fried, 2023 has seen more crypto giants come a cropper.
Binance chief Changpeng Zhao pleaded guilty to breaking US anti-money laundering laws, most notably, part of a multibillion-dollar settlement with regulators. The co-founder of Voyager Digital also found himself on the wrong end of American regulatory action, while Celsius founder Alex Mashinsky was arrested in the US in July, pleading not guilty to criminal counts including securities fraud.
And not forgetting SBF — after a whirlwind trial, the former industry poster child was convicted of fraud in November.
On a brighter note, Ripple’s XRP token clocked gains of 82% for the year after a key legal victory for the industry when a US judge ruled Ripple Labs’ sales of the token on public exchanges did not violate securities law.
Most of bitcoin’s 55% run in the fourth quarter has been attributed to bets that a spot bitcoin ETF will be approved in the US and pull in money from retail and institutional investors alike on the ease of gaining exposure to the digital asset on a regulated stock exchange.
Asset management giants like BlackRock and Fidelity are among the 13 companies that have submitted applications to the US Securities and Exchange Commission for the multibillion-dollar product.
Such a fund is expected to pull in as much as $3-billion from investors in the first few days of trading and billions more thereafter.
Not everyone is as bullish though.
To some market watchers, it looks like the current bitcoin recovery is still in early stages
JPMorgan, which expects the crypto market recovery to continue through the expected approval in early 2024, however remains sceptical of the magnitude of success in adoption that broader market is pricing in.
JPMorgan expects the bitcoin ETFs to pull in assets in the low or low to mid-single digit percentage range of the $1.7-trillion crypto market compared to some optimistic outlooks of 10%.
If adoption falls short of investor expectations of around 10%, crypto markets could reverse their recent gains, it said. To some market watchers, though, it looks like the current bitcoin recovery is still in early stages.
Bitcoin profits
The net dollar-denominated realised profit locked in by bitcoin investors has reached $324-million/day, which remains an order of magnitude below the peaks experienced during the later stages of the 2021 bull market, which eclipsed $3-billion/day, according to analytics platform Glassnode.
This suggests the large cryptocurrency’s current performance remains very much within the bounds of an early rather than a late-stage bull market, Glassnode said.
Kelechi Deca
Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry
Mobile phone brands from China have consistently shown super grips on the African markets even as Apple and Samsung remain the most popular smartphone brands worldwide, with a combined market share of just over 56% in the first half of the year. In South Africa, however, Samsung dominates the market with 52.2% share followed by Apple in distant second place at 16.6% and Huawei at 15.4%, while the rest of Africa is increasingly being dominated by low-cost Chinese brands such as Itel and Tecno.
This is according to a new report by tech review and research website John’s Phones, which found that despite impressive growth of Chinese brands Huawei, Xiaomi and Oppo, sales figures for 2023 reveal the continued dominance of Apple and Samsung on the global stage.
These two phone makers – one headquartered in California in the US and the other in Suwon in South Korea – were responsible for all of the 10 best-selling smartphones in the world in the first six months of this year, said the John’s Phones report.
smart phones
The data shows Apple’s key markets include the US, Russia, Australia and Europe. Samsung, on the other hand, is the market leader in Africa, Eastern Europe, South America and parts of the Middle East. Rather than maintaining a proportionate share of each market, Chinese contenders such as Xiaomi, Tecno and Oppo tend to dominate specific markets or regions.
Oppo has taken off in parts of the Far East, holding the number-one spot in Indonesia, the Philippines and Singapore. Low-cost smartphone brand Tecno has a strong foothold in Nigeria, Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Researcher IDC’s Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker report for the second quarter of 2023 shows similar trends. According to the company, worldwide smartphone shipments declined by 6.8% year on year in the second quarter.
Apple iPhone sales have been in steady decline since they peaked in the second quarter of 2022, while Samsung’s resurgence in the first quarter was offset by a decline in sales in the second quarter.
“There is a real concern about when volume picks up and what the horizon is for iPhone sales growth,” said Daniel Newman, CEO and principal analyst at research firm Futurum Group.
IDC, however, said manufacturers are optimistic about the market heading into the new year. “We are finally hearing optimism from key original equipment manufacturers and supply chains and expect the market to return to growth by the end of the year and into 2024,” said Nabil Popal, research director with IDC’s mobility and consumer device trackers, in a blog post. “As the market ramps back up, it is also an opportunity for newer vendors to gain share.”
Among the relative newcomers making a dent in the smartphone market is Shenzhen Transsion Holdings, which owns the Tecno, Itel and Infinix brands. In stark contrast to the sales declines experienced by other manufacturers in IDC’s data, Transsion sales rose 34% year on year in the second quarter and the company, which focuses on emerging markets, shipped 25.3 million units in the period.
IDC ranks Transsion as fifth-largest smartphone manufacturer in the world, with its share of the market estimated at 6.5%. “IDC expects a shift in the vendor rankings at the bottom of the stack, as we already see happening this quarter with Transsion entering the top five for the first time,” it said.
John’s Phones data shows that Transsion has made significant inroads into key African markets. Through its Tecno (26%) and Infinix (21%) brands, the company holds 45% of the Nigerian smart phone market.
A similar picture presents itself in the DRC, where Transsion has more than 40% of the market through its Tecno and Itel brands. Transsion’s share of the Ugandan market at 26%, meanwhile, is outpacing Samsung’s 20%.
Kelechi Deca
Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry
A new report shows that remittances to low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) grew an estimated 3.8% in 2023, a moderation from the high gains of the previous two years. Of concern is the risk of decline in real income for migrants in 2024 in the face of global inflation and low growth prospects, according to the World Bank’s latest Migration and Development Brief released today.
In 2023, remittance flows to LMICs are estimated to have reached $669 billion as resilient labor markets in advanced economies and Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries continue supporting migrants’ ability to send money home.
By region, remittance inflows grew for Latin America and the Caribbean (8%), South Asia (7.2%), East Asia and the Pacific (3%), and Sub-Saharan Africa (1.9%). Flows to the Middle East and North Africa fell for the second year, declining by 5.3% mainly due to a sharp drop in flows to Egypt. Remittances to Europe and Central Asia also fell by 1.4% after gaining more than 18% in 2022.
The United States continued to be the largest source of remittances. The top five remittance recipient countries in 2023 are India ($125 billion), Mexico ($67 billion), China ($50 billion), the Philippines ($40 billion), and Egypt ($24 billion). Economies where remittance inflows represent substantial shares of gross domestic product (GDP) – highlighting the importance of remittances for funding current account and fiscal shortfalls – are Tajikistan (48%), Tonga (41%), Samoa (32%), Lebanon (28%), and Nicaragua (27%).
Based on the trajectory of weaker global economic activity, growth of remittances to LMICs is expected to soften further to 3.1% in 2024. Driving the moderated forecast are a slowing economic growth and the prospect of weaker job markets in several high-income countries. Additional downside risks include volatile oil prices and currency exchange rates, and a deeper-than-expected economic downturn in high-income countries.
Contactless Payments
“During crises, migrants have weathered risks and shown resilience to support families back home. But high inflation and subdued global growth is affecting how much money they can send,” said Iffath Sharif, Global Director of the Social Protection and Jobs Global Practice at the World Bank. “Labor markets and social protection policies in host countries should be inclusive of migrants, whose remittances serve as a vital lifeline for developing countries.”
According to the Bank’s Remittances Prices Worldwide Database, remittance costs remain persistently high, costing 6.2% on average to send $200 as of the second quarter of 2023. Compared to a year ago, sending money to all regions was more expensive, with the Middle East and North Africa being the exception. Banks continue to be the costliest channel for sending remittances (with an average cost of 12.1%), followed by post offices (7%), money transfer operators (5.3%), and mobile operators (4.1%).
“Remittances are one of the few sources of private external finance that are expected to continue to grow in the coming decade. They must be leveraged for private capital mobilization to support development finance, especially via diaspora bonds,” said Dilip Ratha, lead economist and lead author of the report. “Remittance flows to developing countries have surpassed the sum of foreign direct investment and official development assistance in recent years, and the gap is increasing.”
A special section of the Brief describes how diaspora finances can be mobilized for development and strengthening a country’s debt position. Diaspora bonds can be structured to directly tap diaspora savings held in foreign destinations. Many countries provide for nonresident deposits to attract diaspora savings. However, unlike diaspora bonds, such savings tend to be short-term and volatile. Future inflows of remittances can be used as collateral to lower the costs of international borrowings by developing countries. Due to their large size relative to other sources of foreign exchange, counter-cyclical nature and indirect contribution to public finances, remittances can also help improve a country’s sovereign ratings and its ability to repay debt.
Regional Remittance Trends
Remittances to East Asia and the Pacific increased by an estimated 3% to reach $133 billion in 2023. Excluding China, remittances to the region grew an estimated 7% to $83 billion in 2023, supported by the sustained growth in remittance flows to the Philippines, which has migrants in a well-diversified set of host destinations across the world. The average cost of sending $200 to the region was 5.9% in the second quarter of 2023. In 2024, remittance growth to the region is estimated to be 2.4%.
Remittance flows to Europe and Central Asia are estimated to have declined by 1.4% to $78 billion in 2023. The subdued growth in 2023 is due mainly to an unusually high base level posted in 2022, driven by huge amounts of money transfers from Russia, and a lingering weakness in flows to Russia and Ukraine. Depreciation of the Russian ruble against the U.S. dollar has also decreased the value of money transfers from Russia. The average cost of sending $200 to the region was 6.9% in the second quarter of 2023 (excluding Russia). In 2024, remittances are projected to post a decline of 1.2%.
Remittance flows to Latin America and the Caribbean are expected to increase by 8% to reach $156 billion in 2023. The strong labor market in the United States positively impacted remittance flows. Remittances to Mexico, the region’s biggest recipient, are projected to increase by 9.7%. The growth of remittances is expected to be 45% in Nicaragua, 9% in Guatemala, and 7.5% in Colombia. The average cost of sending $200 to the region was 6.1% in the second quarter of 2023. Growth in remittances to the region is expected to slow to 4.4% in 2024.
Remittances to the Middle East and North Africa are expected to decline again in 2023, falling by about 5.3% to $61 billion in 2023, driven mainly by a sharp drop in flows to Egypt. For Egypt, a significant gap between the official exchange rate and the parallel market likely caused a large part of remittances to be unrecorded. Meanwhile, remittance flows to the Maghreb countries experienced a gain, offsetting some of the decline. Sending $200 to the region cost 5.9% on average in the second quarter of 2023. In 2024, remittance flows are projected to recover to a 2.1% gain based on an expected turnaround in flows to Egypt.
Remittance flows to South Asia are estimated to have grown 7.2% in 2023 to reach $189 billion, tapering off from the over 12% increase in 2022. The increase is attributable entirely to remittance flows to India, which are expected to beat previous forecasts by $14 billion and reach $125 billion in 2023. The key drivers of remittance growth in 2023 are a historically tight labor market in the United States, high employment growth in Europe reflecting extensive leveraging of worker retention programs, and a dampening of inflation in high-income countries. Sending $200 to the region cost 4.3% on average in the second quarter of 2023. In 2024, growth in remittance flows is expected to fall to 5% due to projected weaker economic growth in the United States, the Euro Area, and GCC countries, major hosts of migrant workers from the region.
Remittance flows to Sub-Saharan Africa are expected to have increased by about 1.9% in 2023 to $54 billion, driven by strong remittance growth in Mozambique (48.5%), Rwanda (16.8%), and Ethiopia (16%). Remittances to Nigeria, accounting for 38% of remittance flows to the region, grew by about 2%, while two other major recipients, Ghana and Kenya, posted estimated gains of 5.6% and 3.8%, respectively. Fixed exchange rates and capital controls are diverting remittances to the region from official to unofficial channels. In 2024, remittance flows to the region are projected to increase by 2.5%. Sending $200 to the region cost 7.9% on average in the second quarter of 2023.
Kelechi Deca
Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry
To meet their green agendas, the European Union, United States, and China are engaged in the modern-day equivalent of a gold rush. This time, though, fortune seekers aren’t panning for shiny nuggets in Canada, America, or Australia. Instead, all eyes are on the critical minerals of Africa — cobalt, graphite, lithium, and others — raw materials essential to the production of clean technology, including electric vehicles (EV).
To say that Africa is generously endowed in this regard seems almost like an understatement. Africa holds more than half of the world’s reserves of cobalt, 46% of its manganese, and 21% of its graphite, all used in EV batteries, and about a quarter of its bauxite, which is required for solar photovoltaic technologies. Beyond reserves, mining and production are already in full swing in a number of countries: Nearly 70% of all cobalt produced globally comes from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and that country is tied with Peru as number two behind Chile in the mining of copper, a key component in electric wiring. Lithium, which has applications in everything from EV batteries to the lubricants that help wind turbines spin, is also being mined in the DRC, as well as in Zimbabwe and Namibia, while Ghana and Mali have lithium deposits that aren’t being exploited yet. Namibia is also the world’s second-largest producer of uranium, which is used in nuclear energy.
Given the urgency of the energy transition, it’s no surprise that the market for critical minerals and rare earth elements (a group of 17 light and heavy metals and alloys integral to the performance and efficiency of motors and turbines; there are 100 rare earth element deposit sites in Africa) is strong and growing. For example, the International Energy Agency (IEA) predicts that as the world moves away from fossil fuels manufacturers of clean energy technologies will require exponentially more critical minerals than they do today. Specifically, the IEA says that by 2040 demand for lithium will be more than 40 times what it is now; over the same period, the need for graphite and cobalt will be 20-25 times higher. As far as copper, the expected expansion of the electric grid over the next 17 years means demand will likely double.
In short, opportunity abounds for Africa, especially considering the shortage of critical minerals nearly everywhere else — if we can only harness it.
This is a particularly timely topic as the 2023 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP28) wraps up and voices around the globe continue to weigh in on what Africa should do (or not do) with its oil and gas.
If we’re going to be honest, we must admit that we don’t always have the best track record when it comes to turning resource wealth into actual wealth for our people. But I believe we can break away from that pattern.
Out of our hands
For too long, for lack of will and domestic policy, we’ve allowed our raw materials, including oil and natural gas, to be exported, meaning we’ve had no hand in the processes that happen next or the sale of finished goods.
As a result, we’ve missed out on the job creation, industrialization, and economic diversification that downstream development represents, not to mention the money that comes with it: It’s just an economic fact of life that processed materials command a premium price compared to raw materials.
Consider the DRC’s massive cobalt and copper mine, Tenke Fungurume, which has been in production since 2009 and is projected to have 32 years’ worth of reserves.
China Molybdenum Co. (CMOC), the world’s largest cobalt producer, owns 80% of the mine, with Gecamines, DCR’s state-owned mining firm, holding the remaining 20% stake.
As if controlling the mine’s output — some 125,387 tonnes of copper and 10,465 tonnes of cobalt in the first half of 2022 alone — wasn’t enough, CMOC also controls 72% of the refining capacity for the mine’s output. But CMOC doesn’t refine those minerals in Africa; instead, they transport unprocessed minerals to ports in Durban, South Africa, and Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania, for overseas export.
That’s a lot of potential revenue — a lot of potential, period — we’ve let leave our shores.
To take full advantage of the critical minerals beneath our feet, we must break free from our “mining-only” mindset. The value chain doesn’t have to stop with extraction.
Yes, I understand the argument that minerals should be manufactured into products closer to where they will be used, and that Africa lacks, for example, both the manufacturing capacity to turn cobalt into EV batteries, and the market for EV cars. (Young African entrepreneurs have taken aim at this deficit, as you’ll see in a moment.).
But with sufficient investment and collaboration, we can build capabilities and catalyze the market.
The good news is that we’re seeing progress in that direction.
In April 2022, the DRC and Zambia signed a cooperation agreement to make EV batteries in Katanga province, the mineral-rich region where Tenke Fungurume is located. That was followed in December by the U.S. entering into a trilateral memorandum of understanding (MOU) with those countries to develop a complete value chain around EV batteries, “from extraction to the assembly line. To move the deal along, earlier this year, the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) and the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) are helping the DRC and Zambia form special economic zones (SEZ) for the production of battery precursors, batteries, and EVs. According to the United Nations, “the Afreximbank and UNECA will play a central facilitating role, acting as the project’s financial and technical partners respectively. The two institutions will lead the establishment of an Operating Company (OpCo) in consortium with investors (both public and private) from DRC and Zambia, as well as international investors such as Afreximbank’s impact fund subsidiary, the Fund for Export Development in Africa (FEDA).”
Both the DRC and Zambia, along with Mozambique, Namibia, and Tanzania, attended the recent Minerals Security Partnership (MSP) meeting to discuss how to improve mineral supply chains and ensure that countries can benefit economically from their critical mineral resources. The U.S., U.K., Australia, Canada, France, and Japan were among the MSP partners who participated in the event. The goals of the MSP are to attract public and private investment, increase transparency, and promote Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) standards in critical mineral supply chains.
In addition to Toyota setting up shop in Durban, South Africa, to assembly hybrid EVs from “semi-knocked down” imported vehicles and Uganda’s Kira Motors converting internal combustion engine-powered buses into EVs, a small industry of EV motorcycle manufacturers has cropped up in Rwanda, Nigeria, Uganda, Kenya, and South Africa, potentially accelerating the growth of a much-needed domestic market and circumventing the need for the expensive, grid-scale charging infrastructure four-wheeled vehicles require. These companies are building EV motorcycles from the ground up and subbing EV motors for conventional ones in existing bikes. As Dr. Marit Kitaw, interim director of the African Minerals Development Centre (AMDC), noted, this is evidence that “the continent’s technical and manufacturing capabilities can be scaled up with supportive policies, skill-building programs, infrastructure development, and a favorable investment climate.”
Speaking of the AMDC, the organization, which the African Union established in 2013, has developed the African Green Minerals Strategy (AGMS) to help African nations make the most of their extractive resources, participate more fully — and do it sustainably. According to Dr. Kitaw, the objectives of the AGMS are to accelerate local manufacturing of inputs for mining and processing strategic green minerals; build more processing facilities on the continent, which would enable African countries to capture a greater share of the value chain; and expand Africa’s technical expertise and to increase resources for research, development, and innovation.
This is what progress looks like.
Work to do
Still, obstacles remain. And we have to proceed with caution.
While agreements like those between DRC and Zambia are a start, our nations must collaborate more closely, especially when it comes to issues like establishing a common external tariff (CET). That would serve to avoid a patchwork approach to imports and make it easier for African countries to do business across borders.
We have to build up our energy infrastructure so we can support processing and refining.
We have to ensure our governments are stable and our streets are not pocked with violence, which turn potential investors away in droves.
We must avoid the human rights violations that have plagued other extractive industries in Africa, ensuring workplaces are safe; indigenous people are not at risk; workers’ living conditions meet universally accepted standards; the physical environment is protected; and children are not put to work when they should be in school.
As the world pivots to a low-carbon future, Africa has a chance to change where we sit on the critical minerals value chain and, in turn, to change our destiny. But there’s tremendous work to do, and it has to be done right. With the right partners and support, within our continent and worldwide, it will be.
Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry
