In Africa, last mile distribution continues to be one of the biggest challenges that governments, donors and firms face when attempting to deliver products and services at scale.

The challenge is particularly acute in rural areas, where infrastructure and connectivity are often poorer and educational levels lower. Cultural and language differences between regions, along with more recent challenges brought by the COVID-19 pandemic, further complicate matters.

Cheryl Buss, Chief Executive for Absa International discusses leadership in the financial sector

As somebody who occupies a leadership role in one of the largest financial hubs in the world, I spend a lot of time thinking about role models and the type of people you need to drive a successful, ethical and value-driven organisation.

Without question, 2020 has been a watershed year for those occupying leadership positions and those tasked with steering us through this crisis are in uncharted waters. The decisions they take today will impact generations for years to come.

We are pleased to present the latest edition of our Africa newsletter.

In this month’s newsletter, we’ve looked at some of the trends that are emerging across the continent in terms of dispute resolution and, in particular, increasing activity in the international arbitration space. As one of our contributors pointed out, the role of corporate counsel in Africa is diverse and challenging. This brings home the necessity of resolving disputes effectively and efficiently, so that management resource can remain focused on core business and revenue producing activities.

The fast-moving foreign exchange market trades more than $6 trillion daily. Understanding why it moves is half the battle. The AFEX Monthly Currency Outlook offers insight into market dynamics and currency pairs that may affect your business. However, we recognise every business is different and may have its own internal hedging policies. Speak with one of our specialists to discuss your business requirements and what works best for you.

Global law firm Clyde & Co is pleased to announce the opening of an associated office in Nairobi, Kenya. Clyde & Co’s association with Kenyan firm Kangwana & Co complements its three existing Africa offices and further expands its “on the ground” presence in East Africa.

Operating as “Kangwana in association with Clyde & Co”, the association will see the firms work together, refer work to one another, and provide a more integrated service for existing clients in the East Africa region and globally.

The Governor of the CBN, Mr. Godwin Emefiele, has said the bank will pursue expansionary monetary policies to fight recession because the fiscal policy was already constrained. Mr. Emefiele said this was necessary to curb the rising inflation and address recession in the economy. He said this was part of the resolutions of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting held last week.

The world’s largest law firm to combine with an elite firm in Tanzania

In 2020, Dentons has added 20 new offices

Dentons’ combination with East African Law Chambers (EALC) in Tanzania further strengthens the foundation for Dentons to become the leading Pan-African law firm owned and controlled by Africans across 14 locations on the continent.

September 22, 2020 – Dentons, the world’s largest law firm, is announcing today a proposed combination with leading Tanzanian law firm, East African Law Chambers (EALC). Prior to this announcement, in 2020, Dentons has added 20 new offices around the world in an environment where other law firms are standing still, contracting or withdrawing from key markets.

Aon plc (NYSE: AON), a leading global professional services firm providing a broad range of risk, retirement and health solutions, has published its 2020 Risk Maps report, which finds that the novel coronavirus (COVID- 19) pandemic will likely transform the geopolitical landscape. Extraordinary public health measures and a precipitous drop in global trade will continue to exert significant pressure on economies and governments and will reshape long-standing geopolitical norms.

Cape Town, 9 September 2020: The Covid-19 pandemic is paving the way for a new era of collaboration between business, government and labour as they seek solutions for South Africa’s dire economic and fiscal outlook. “Never before have we seen this much collaboration between government and the private sector; it is the first time since 1994 that a meaningful social compact is becoming a reality,” said Elias Masilela, Chairman of recently-established Impact Investing South Africa (IISA) and Chairman of DNA Economics. Collaboration was among the key themes that emerged amongst panellists during a webinar hosted by Sanlam Investments on 4 September 2020. The panel reflected on what optimal capital allocation should be in a post-pandemic South Africa.

Mediterrania Capital Partners’ portfolio company Groupe Scolaire René Descartes establishes a financial partnership with Banque Zitouna to support students’ families

Tunis. Mediterrania Capital Partners, the Private Equity firm focused on growth investments for SMEs and mid-cap companies in North and Sub-Saharan Africa, announces the signing by its portfolio company Groupe Scolaire René Descartes of an agreement with Banque Zitouna to financially support families impacted by the Covid-19 crisis.

I would like to take this opportunity to step back and take stock of all that has occurred in the last three to four months. With colleagues from across PIDG, I have been reflecting upon the huge effort that has taken place to keep originating new infrastructure projects and to continue developing those already in our varied pipelines. We have also examined the impact of our coordinated response to COVID-19 and our efforts to ensure the health and welfare of our teams, partners and of people living in the communities close to where we work.

Knight Frank has released the Africa Residential and Office Dashboards that provides occupiers, landlords, and investors with regular analysis of the rental performance and trends of prime residential and office markets across Africa.

The H1 2020 dashboards examined the residential and office market performance in 29 African cities during the COVID – 19 pandemic.

This month’s theme is the impact of the recent petroleum price developments on the sector in Africa. We’ve included an article that examines options for African Governments to engage with international oil companies and to respond to the potential long term impact triggered by the COVID crisis. We’ve also included articles from some of our preferred law firm partners in Africa and guest authors with operations in Africa.

Bboxx makes solar energy accessible at scale in Africa with the launch of the bPower20 product

Tuesday 25th August 2020 – Bboxx, a next generation utility that manufactures, distributes and finances decentralised solar powered systems in developing countries, has launched the bPower20 product, to make solar energy more accessible at scale.

Designed for customers who are at the beginning of the energy ladder, the new bPower20 product has been created to power rural households and micro-businesses. Bboxx’s research identified a gap in the market to better serve the significant proportion of the population in the developing world with lower energy requirements, but who still demand a superior customer experience and the provision of reliable, high quality electricity. The product will be rolled out initially in key markets Rwanda, Kenya, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Togo, with further markets lined up for 2021.

In the face of delayed or belated GDP releases, PMIs give us a sense of how the crisis is affecting some of Africa’s key economies. They also give us a sense of the health of private sectors coming into the crisis. Indications are that Kenya, Ghana and South Africa will see strong GDP recoveries in Q3 following deep contractions Q2. In turn, the latest readings show that Nigeria and Egypt did not enter the third quarter with strong momentum. While all these economies are expected to record some form of mechanical bounce-back in Q3, the recoveries in Egypt and Nigeria could disappoint.

DEG promotes authenticity proof for pharmaceuticals in Africa

• German tech company authentic.network develops digital authenticity proof

• Pilot project to be launched in Côte d’Ivoire

• DEG contributes around EUR 340,000 from develoPPP.de funds

Counterfeit medicine is a problem in many developing countries. This also applies to Côte d’Ivoire, where, according to the World Health Organization, 30 to 60 per cent of medicine offered is counterfeit, including ineffective medicine as cure for COVID-19. Chemnitz-based start-up authentic.network developed a digital authenticity proof that is to make medicine and protective equipment counterfeit-proof via blockchain technology. DEG – Deutsche Investitions- und Entwicklungsgesellschaft mbH is co-financing a pilot project to introduce this technology in Côte d’Ivoire contributing around EUR 340,000 from funds from the develoPPP.de programme of the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ). authentic.network and its partners contribute the same amount.

The “new normal.” It’s a term that we first started using after the Global Financial Crisis of 2007. Then again in the wake of the 2008 – 2012 global recession. And once again now, as we’re trying to make sense of life with the COVID-19 pandemic.

To labour the point – earlier this month authorities have locked down Beijing over a new COVID-19 outbreak linked to a seafood supermarket in the world’s most populous capital city. Just as the world started taking comfort in the thought that the country at the centre of the pandemic was settling into the “new normal.”

ABIDJAN, Cote D’Ivoire – August 11, 2020 – Agility, a leading global logistics and warehousing provider, has leased warehouse space in the Agility Logistics Park (ALP) in Abidjan to CDCI, Cote D’Ivoire’s top retailer, for a new nationwide warehousing and distribution centre.

CDCI, which operates supermarkets in Cote D’Ivoire, will use the ALP facility as a central distribution centre to hold stock and distribute a wide range of food and non-food consumer products to support its retail operations across Cote D’Ivoire.

CDCI chose to lease at the Agility Logistics Park because of it offers secure, international-standard warehousing and facilities and services available to support CDCI’s expanding business across the country.

We are pleased to present the latest edition of our Africa newsletter.

This month’s newsletter focuses on technology and innovation across the African continent. Technology and connectivity are transforming and developing at incredible pace, a trend which presents great opportunities for economic growth, commercialisation and upwards social mobility. This includes the roll-out of 5G in parts of South Africa and of 4G in sub-Saharan Africa (with the help of hot air balloons no less!), such as Eldoret and Nakuru in Kenya, where the editor’s parents were born. With thanks, as always, to our contributors – if you would like to contribute content to our next newsletter, please get in touch.

YPO Africa and Invest Africa Partner to Further Scale YPO’s Lead COVID-19 Response Impact Initiatives

Cape Town, 5 August 2020 ‒ Today, YPO Africa, a global leadership community of chief executives, and Invest Africa, the leading trade and investment platform for Africa, announced that they have entered into a unique bilateral alliance. The key aim of this groundbreaking agreement is for YPO Africa and Invest Africa to support each other in their African impact efforts, with an initial focus on YPO’s Lead COVID-19 Response to begin making the right connections between organisations to start conversations and drive investment.