African markets and business updates

The Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment, Ms Nqabisa Gantsho joins the global community in commemorating the International Day of Clean Air for Blue Skies, observed annually on 7 September, and calls for renewed commitment to protecting the constitutional right of all South Africans to an environment that is not harmful to their health or wellbeing. The day serves as a reminder that clean air is fundamental to human health, environmental sustainability and economic development.…

Vodafone Business and Cassava Technologies ( www.CassavaTechnologies.com ) announced a strategic partnership to develop and enable advanced sovereign AI infrastructure in Egypt through the launch of the country’s first AI factory for operating diverse AI applications and use cases locally. This step aims to position Egypt as a regional hub for artificial intelligence and technology, enhance the country’s ability to host and process data, and leverage NVIDIA accelerated computing technologies through Vodafone’s partnership with Cassava Technologies, the first NVIDIA cloud partner in Africa. .…

Seharti and Mai-Nefhi high schools in Gala-Nefhi sub-zone, as well as Limat and Dembe-Sembel high schools in Asmara, have recognized outstanding students who attained high scores in the national school-leaving examination for the 2025/2026 academic year. At programs organized on 6 and 7 September, Seharti and Mai-Nefhi high schools recognized 62 outstanding students, while Limat High School recognized 50 outstanding students. Dembe-Sembel High School recognized 75 outstanding students who attained high scores in the national school-leaving examination and 64 outstanding students, including 41 female students, who attained high marks in the eighth-grade national examination.…

Senegal is taking a major step forward in transforming its education system. For the first time, the Government has adopted a structured national advocacy agenda in favor of foundational learning, with the institutional validation of the National Advocacy Strategy to support the scale-up of the Harmonized Bilingual Education Model in Senegal. Held at the Diamniadio Ministerial Sphere under the leadership of the Ministry of National Education, this meeting marks the shift from a reform that has demonstrated its potential to a national ambition driven by the State, with a clear objective: ensuring its institutionalization, sustainability and scale-up.…

Merck Foundation ( www.Merck-Foundation.com ) , the philanthropic arm of Merck KGaA Germany, in partnership with the Africa’s First Ladies, also the Ambassadors of “Merck Foundation more Than a Mother” announced the winners of their Fashion, Song, and Film Awards 2025 , under two themes: “More Than a Mother” and “Diabetes & Hypertension”. The theme of “More Than a Mother” Awards was to raise awareness on social issues such as: Breaking Infertility Stigma, Supporting Girl Education, Women Empowerment, Ending Child Marriage, Ending FGM, and/or Stopping GBV at all levels.…

South Africa is globally recognized for its exceptional biodiversity, hosting high levels of species richness, endemism, and ecosystem diversity across three global biodiversity hotspots. But 36% of the country’s terrestrial ecosystems and 65% of inland aquatic ecosystems are threatened. Declining government budgets and competing socio-economic priorities demand innovative, cost-effective conservation solutions. Biodiversity Stewardship emerged in the early 2000s as South Africa's response to these challenges — enabling conservation authorities to enter into voluntary agreements with private and communal landowners to secure biodiversity priority areas.…

The Board of Directors of the African Development Bank Group ( www.AfDB.org ) has approved a new framework to mitigate the impact of the global energy and fertilizer crisis on African countries. The Global Energy And Fertilizer Crisis Response Framework (GEFCRF), approved on 1 September 2026, enables the Bank Group to deliver timely, targeted support to address the immediate needs stemming from the crisis and to strengthen African member countries against future shocks.…

Through legal and institutional reform, capacity building, operational development and maritime security, EUCAP works alongside Somali partners to strengthen capabilities, accountability, command and control, and national ownership. Our approach is clear: from training individuals to strengthening institutions; from externally supported capacity to Somali-owned capability; and from fragmented assistance to coordinated international partnership. Effective police cooperation is about building trust, connecting institutions and creating sustainable security together. Distributed by APO Group on behalf of EU Capacity Building Mission in Somalia (EUCAP Somalia).

“You guys should try fonio, it’s really good.” That was the verdict from one of the many visitors tasting fonio at the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) stand at a diplomatic community event hosted by Ghana’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Accra on Saturday. FAO set up the stand as an advocacy initiative to introduce more people to fonio, an ancient West African grain with significant potential for food security, nutrition, climate resilience and livelihoods. Visitors were served fonio jollof prepared by FAO Regional Goodwill Ambassador for Africa Chef Fatmata Binta , a leading advocate for fonio and indigenous African foods.…

The COMESA Monetary Institute (CMI), in collaboration with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the Office for National Statistics (ONS), UK Statistics Authority, conducted a training on Big Data for Macroeconomic Statistics from 31 August to 4 September 2026 in Nairobi, Kenya. The training was attended by officials from ten (10) COMESA member central banks, namely: Democratic Republic of Congo, Djibouti, Egypt, Eswatini, Kenya, Mauritius, Rwanda, Sudan, Uganda, and Zambia. Speaking during the opening session, Dr. Lucas Njoroge, Director of the CMI, emphasized the growing importance of big data in supporting evidence-based policymaking.…