First Independent Mena Newspaper
China is making inroads into the West African arms market and is also looking to make new allies and build influence in the region amid waning French influence there. Senegal, Côte d’Ivoire and Mali are all French-speaking and, as former colonies, historically fell under France’s sphere of influence. And although France is still the largest […]
Speculations about an upcoming normalization of ties between war-torn and de facto divided Libya and Israel came to the fore following news of a meeting between the foreign ministers of the two countries, an incident that was described as historic in Israel but led to the sanctioning of Libya’s foreign minister by her government. The […]
The Chinese Tinci Materials facility in Morocco whose construction was announced end of June this year will produce 100,000 tons of Lithium hexafluorophosphate and electrolytes. The manufactured materials are intended for electric vehicles in the European market, the European Union (EU) having announced a ban on the sale of internal combustion vehicles by 2035, reported […]
South Korea is planning to sign Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) with seven emerging countries, including Morocco, to boost growth momentum and diversify its trade portfolio. The announcement was made Friday by the South Korean Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, which affirmed that Seoul is planning to ink FTAs with Morocco, Kenya, Tanzania, Thailand, Pakistan, […]
BRICS group said it backs an enduring and mutually acceptable political solution to the Sahara issue in line with UN Security Council resolutions. This came in a statement issued at the end of the BRICS summit in Johannesburg in South Africa, whose government attempted in vain to use the summit to promote the Algeria-backed separatist […]
As was expected, the BRICS put Algeria in its place by rejecting its long sought after bid to join the group, which announced it will welcome six new countries with a diversified and higher growth economies. The group agreed to admit Saudi Arabia, Iran, Ethiopia, Egypt, Argentina, and the United Arab Emirates following its summit […]
African countries have called on China, Africa’s largest trading partner for 14 consecutive years, to shift the focus of the economic relationship from building infrastructure on the continent to supporting local industrialization. With China’ trade with Africa having surged in 2022 by 14.8% year-on-year to reach $282 billion, the Asian powerhouse has been Africa’s largest […]
Japan has secured deals with five African countries in a move aimed at mitigating Tokyo’s reliance on China for critical minerals, which comes as strategic competition between Western allies and China for access to key raw materials used in high-tech industry heats up. Japan’s Economy, Trade and Industry Minister Yasutoshi Nishimura, accompanied by Ichiro Takahara, […]
Benin’s President Patrice Talon is expected in China next Tuesday August 29 for talks with the Chinese top leader Xi Jinping, local medias report. The visit will highlight by the holding of an economic summit. The visit comes seven months after both countries signed in January 2023 a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on partial debt […]
The United Kingdom, the United States and the United Arab Emirates are top travel picks for Africans and Middle Easterners in 2023, according to a recent Mastercard report that also highlighted an increasing trend when African travelers prioritize authentic experiences over material possessions, which in turn reshapes industry dynamics. Apart from uncovering the United Kingdom, […]