First Independent Mena Newspaper
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in Namibia on Wednesday (9 July), marking the final leg of his five-nation tour with a visit focused on securing critical minerals and deepening digital and defense cooperation. This is the first visit by an Indian prime minister since Namibia’s independence in 1990. Namibia, Africa’s top uranium producer and […]
China has officially launched its first rail-sea logistics corridor to Morocco, marking a significant milestone in Sino-African trade connectivity. The new route begins in Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan province, and travels by rail through Poland, Germany, and Spain, before containers are transferred to ships in Barcelona and shipped to Tanger Med, Morocco’s largest port, […]
China’s long-held strategy of “regime-agnostic” engagement in Africa is under strain as mounting instability in Niger threatens billions in Chinese investments, says a new study. A new report by the Washington-based Africa Center for Strategic Studies warns that China’s transactional diplomacy — prioritizing control over constitutional legitimacy — has left its state-owned enterprises (SOEs) vulnerable […]
The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), the world’s top cobalt producer, has extended its export ban on the metal for an additional three months, intensifying its grip on a turbulent global market. The extension, announced Saturday (21 June) by the strategic minerals regulator ARECOMS, comes as prices remain depressed and cobalt stockpiles high. Originally imposed […]
In a strategic move to reduce global reliance on the U.S. dollar, China has welcomed six new financial institutions from Africa, the Gulf, and Central Asia into its Cross-border Interbank Payment System (CIPS). The expansion, announced during a ceremony in Shanghai, brings direct participation in the yuan-based payment network to 174 institutions, as China steps […]
China has announced plans to eliminate tariffs on nearly all imports from 53 African countries with which it maintains diplomatic ties, extending a previous policy that offered zero-tariff treatment to only 33 least-developed African nations. The announcement was made during a ministerial meeting in China’s city of Changsha, as African leaders gathered to review the […]
The United States is urging African nations to take greater responsibility for their own security as it scales back its military footprint on the continent — a move that analysts warn could shift the regional power balance and fuel militant resurgence. General Michael Langley, head of U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM), emphasized “burden-sharing” as Washington pivots […]
Africa’s energy investment landscape is undergoing a dramatic shift as China’s once-dominant role in fossil fuel infrastructure gives way to diversified, cleaner, and more commercially driven models. According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), Chinese development finance for African energy projects has plummeted by over 85% since 2015, contributing to an overall drop in public […]
The Trump administration has launched a bold new strategy to reshape U.S.-Africa relations, shifting focus from aid to aggressive commercial engagement. Announced in Abidjan on 14 May, the U.S. Commercial Diplomacy Strategy repositions diplomacy to prioritize trade, private investment, and strategic deal-making, aiming to counter China’s dominant economic presence across the continent. “From Washington we […]
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 […]