First Independent Mena Newspaper
Despite Africa’s burgeoning tech sector and ambitious continental trade plans, outdated border systems and restrictive visa policies are poised to cost the continent an estimated $80 billion in lost economic potential over the next decade. According to a recent report from the International Air Transport Association (IATA), Africa’s aviation growth is being stunted by paper-based […]
The United Kingdom is intensifying its defense partnerships with Kenya, Somalia, and Nigeria as part of a renewed strategic focus on African security outlined in its newly released Strategic Defence Review (SDR). The review, adopted by Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s government, identifies the three nations as critical allies in combating global threats and securing vital […]
Morocco hosts currently 23 data centers, becoming the leading host country in Africa, said Global Finance Magazine, affirming that the Kingdom’s desire to secure its data sovereignty has also contributed to the boom of this high-tech & IT business. The North African kingdom has adapted quickly to the digital age. In 2020, the Agency for […]
Africa, home to one-third of the world’s critical mineral reserves, stands at a crossroads: remain a source of raw exports or become a central player in the global energy transition. Despite abundant resources — including cobalt, lithium, copper, and rare earth elements — Africa received just 10.4% of global mineral exploration investment in 2024, down […]
The IMF urged African and other emerging economies to develop domestic financial markets to reduce reliance on volatile external borrowing. In its April 2025 Global Financial Stability Report, the IMF warns that high real interest rates globally have made external financing more expensive and less accessible, especially for frontier markets in Africa. Tunisia was identified […]
The Central African Republic has joined 33 African nations in adopting the Enhanced General Data Dissemination System (e-GDDS), the IMF’s intermediate standard for harmonizing macroeconomic data publication. This move highlights a critical challenge facing African economies: balancing international transparency requirements with local political constraints. The IMF classifies 52 African countries into three statistical tiers. At […]
Morocco has established a new civil engineering benchmark for Africa with the groundbreaking perforation of the Al Massira dam, addressing increasing water stress in the Marrakech region, according to the African Development Bank (AfDB). Engineers successfully drilled through Morocco’s second-largest water reservoir, with a capacity of approximately 2.6 billion cubic meters, to create a new […]
The U.S. State Department’s top official for Africa indicated Tuesday that any renewal of a major U.S.-Africa trade deal would likely require greater “reciprocity” from African nations. The African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), which allows many African products duty-free access to the American market, expires in September 2025. Its future remains uncertain amid protectionist […]
The US has scaled down its aid to Africa but kept supporting and funding for the Lobito corridor which will give its industry access to rare minerals, key to the energy transition. The Lobito Corridor is a major trans-African infrastructure project designed to connect the mineral-rich regions of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and […]
Severe austerity measures imposed by international financial institutions on some of the poorest African countries led to public spending cuts, which affected the wages of teachers and health workers in particular, ActionAid said. Teachers across Africa are bearing the brunt of austerity, losing up to 50% of their real income over five years, while nearly […]