Blog

The Pan-African Economy in Brief: Saturday, April 21, 2018

TANZANIA:
The executive wants to inject $68 million into the construction of grain storage facility: "The Tanzanian Government plans to spend about 155 billion shillings ($68 million) to build grain storage infrastructure, says The Citizen. This plan should be launched by next week by Prime Minister Kassim Majaliwa and will initially cover regions like Mtwara, Katavi, Njombe, and Dodoma, explains Charles Mwijage, Minister of Industry. The move is to facilitate the stockpiling of rice and maize for export..."


BURKINA FASO:
The Government announces 14.6 billion CFA francs in support for the cotton sector: "In Burkina Faso, the cotton sector will receive financial support of 14.614 billion CFA francs from the Government. This was indicated yesterday by Rosine Coulibaly, Minister of Economy and Finance at the end of a Council of Ministers. This envelope should serve to "restore the solvency of the actors and facilitate access to inputs for the start of the 2018-2019 campaign." "This exceptional support from the Government reflects the strategic importance of the cotton sector for the national economy and its contribution to improving living conditions, particularly in rural areas," says a statement from the executive..."


GUINEA:
World Bank grants $25 million for electricity: "The signing of this additional financing agreement relating to the electricity sector recovery project took place in Washington DC on Tuesday, April 17, 2018. Malado Kaba, Minister of Economy and Finance, has reversed the efforts made since 2011. "We have doubled energy production with the construction of our Kaleta dam and will increase it to over 700MW with the construction of Souapiti and the rehabilitation of other hydropower plants. These efforts have had significant induced effects on growth despite the electricity subsector's marginal share of our GDP in 2016. These efforts reflect the importance of this sector which is the cornerstone of the economic transformation and diversification sought in our PNDES, said the boss of the Guinean economy..."


NIGERIA:
The new rate plan for 2021 will increase investment in the electricity sector: "Nigeria aims to revise its electricity tariff system by 2021 to attract new investors in the electricity sector. The National Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) has put in place a recovery plan that should address tariff issues, said Sanusi Garba, the commission's vice chairman. According to the official, the increase in Nigeria's electricity tariff, lower than the cost of electricity production, is difficult because of the lack of regulation and the reduced number of subscribers paying their bills, only 8 million currently..."


GHANA:
Siemens will inject $200 million into the construction of a 660 MW gas-fired power plant: "The German energy company Siemens has committed to invest over $200 million in Ghana's electricity sector. This investment will be made as part of the construction of a 660 MW thermal power plant to boost the country's installed electrical power..."