First Independent Mena Newspaper
In their post-Covid recovery plans, East African countries are promoting niche products, such as cruise, adventure, culture and sports tourism, in emerging tourist markets such as China, in a strategy expected to spur growth in the sector. To reduce over-reliance on traditional source markets in Europe and the United States, East African countries are shifting […]
China Natural Resources (CNR) has acquired Zimbabwe’s Williams Minerals lithium mine from Feishang Group and Top Pacific for $1.75 billion, the aim being to strengthen the Chinese company’s position in the lithium market and increase its capacity to supply the critical resource to its customers. This strategic move by CNR was motivated by the rising […]
The meeting of financial chiefs of the Group of 20 (G20) leading economies held in Bengaluru, India, on 24-25 February 2023 failed to issue a proposed final communiqué in the face of Russian and Chinese objections, which has again brought into spotlight the self-proclaimed ‚neutrality’ of South Africa and many other countries on the continent. […]
As Russia, China and South Africa have started joint naval drills amid Ukraine war, Moscow said its military will not test-fire a hypersonic missile during the exercises, contradicting earlier reports in Russian state media. A senior Russian naval official told a news conference that the contentiously-timed war games this week would not include Russia’s military […]
Antonio Tajani, Italy’s top diplomat, on Sunday slammed China’s influence in Africa arguing that leaving the continent in the hands of China is a mistake. “Taking an interest in Africa is crucial for the future. Leaving Africa in the hands of China is a big mistake for everyone here,” Tajani said at the Munich Security […]
Despite regular warnings by US military commanders about a possible second Chinese military base in Sub-Saharan Africa and rumors about new footholds in countries like Equatorial Guinea, China’s strategic interest in Africa is relatively low, especially when compared with regions like Southeast Asia and the Middle East, according to a new policy brief published by […]
China-Africa digital services hub focused on facilitating trade established in Hunan China’s Hunan province has unveiled a China-Africa Digital Services Hub that focuses on cross-border communications support and data-sharing between Chinese companies working in Africa. The China-Africa economic and trade digitalization service based in Changsha, the provincial capital, aims to support Chinese companies’ trade with […]
Africa’s bilateral trade with China surged to a record high in 2022, highlighting how Beijing’s commercial influence over the continent continues to dwarf that of the United States. Beijing’s push to promote imports from Africa and rising commodity prices pushed trade up 11% to $282 billion last year. China’s exports to Africa were $164.49 billion, […]
The number of endangered rhinos poached in Namibia reached the highest level on record in 2022, as twice as many animals — 87 compared to 45 — were killed in 2021, official government data showed on Monday (30 January). Africa’s rhino population has been decimated over the decades to feed demand for rhino horn, which, […]
Top American, Chinese and Russian officials — US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov — are all scrambling to visit several African nations in January to pledge their countries’ commitment to the world’s fastest-growing continent. As President Joe Biden prepares for a visit to Africa later […]