Africa

1. Kenya’s economy
2. Nigerian banks
3. Biotech push
4. ANC’s falling support
5. Tech investment

Also, tracing the ancestry of leopards in South Africa.

Karibu! That’s very much the welcome greeting in Washington DC this week for Kenyan President William Ruto’s historic state visit to meet with President Joe Biden, other administration officials, and political leaders. Regular readers will know this visit is historic because it’s the first by an African president in 15 years, and the run-up to it has been fascinating to observe.

There’s little doubt that the White House sees this as a moment to reset its much heralded Africa policy since December 2022’s US-Africa Leaders Summit. Biden’s stated “all in on Africa” ambitions have been overshadowed by geopolitical events on the continent and, frankly, the White House’s own inadequate focus and time investment as it’s turned energies towards matters in Ukraine and Gaza. Now Biden is again talking about visiting the continent as soon as February. Of course, there’s the small matter of an election in November to consider first.

Ultimately, from the Kenyan perspective, this week has been a huge win already. Sure, it might not have played well for President Ruto at home, as we’ve noted. And there might have been a kerfuffle over his mode of transport. But he’ll be returning with a substantive package in economic terms with deals like the $1 billion Microsoft digital investment and Coca-Cola’s planned $175 million investment in its Kenya operation. It’s also been a win in geopolitical terms. Kenya’s relationship with the US has been upgraded as a major non-NATO ally.

At one of the US-Kenya business side events here, I spoke with James Mwangi, chief executive of Equity Bank, East Africa’s largest financial institution. He summed up the week with a wry smile: “You could say America is retracing its steps.”

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Agriculture exports drive Kenya’s economic growth

Kenya’s economic growth in 2023, up from 4.9% the previous year. New data from the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) shows that the accelerated growth was driven primarily by an increase in agriculture export earnings, as favorable weather conditions prompted better output. Growth was also aided by increased tourism earnings, as international tourist arrivals jumped 35.4% to more than 2 million people, surpassing pre-pandemic levels in 2019.

Nigerian lenders adapt to new rules

Nigeria’s top banks have set out to raise millions of dollars in fresh capital to meet new central bank requirements for the financial sector. Of the seven companies in the top tier of banks with international licenses, five have proposed specific fundraising targets — the highest coming from Access, Nigeria’s largest bank by assets. Access plans to raise $1.5 billion and 365 billion naira ($250 million) to increase its capital base, and continue an expansion spree across Africa. Banks in the lower tiers of the Nigerian financial system are also pushing to meet the central bank’s stated goal of supporting President Bola Tinubu’s ambitions to grow Nigeria into a $1 trillion economy, up from less than $400 billion.

South Africa’s Afrigen targets local diseases with mRNA vaccines

THE SCOOP

KIGALI, Rwanda — South African biotech company Afrigen is collaborating with a Nobel Prize-winning scientist to develop groundbreaking gene therapy treatments that target diseases that have plagued Africa for decades.

The Cape Town-based company is working with the University of Pennsylvania’s Drew Weissman, who won a Nobel Prize for developing mRNA vaccines used to fight COVID-19.

“My people are in his labs working with some of his top scientists on mRNA. And, of course, we are extremely interested to further collaborate,” Afrigen CEO Petro Terblanche told Semafor Africa. She said the company is exploring “opportunities to bring gene therapy to Africa” through its ties with scientists at the University of Pennsylvania.

Gene therapy refers to forms of treatment that add a new gene or repair a mutated one inside the human body.

Afrigen’s model involves developing the technology and expertise to create vaccines and therapeutic drugs which it then shares with partner manufacturers.

Terblanche, speaking to Semafor Africa on the sidelines of the Africa CEO Forum in Kigali, said the company shared information with 15 partners — made up of vaccine manufacturers and research institutions — in South Africa, Senegal, Nigeria, Kenya, Tunisia, and Egypt.

Afrigen is developing a new generation of mRNA vaccines for a range of diseases including HIV, tuberculosis (TB), Rift Valley fever, and gonorrhea, she said.

ANC approval ratings drop ahead of election

Approval ratings for South Africa’s ruling party are at record lows, portending its worst election result since taking power 30 years ago after the end of apartheid. The African National Congress’ mismanagement of Africa’s largest economy is the main driver of its plummeting approval rating, according to polling by Gallup. Unemployment at around 33%, soaring crime rates and a series of corruption scandals have also eroded public trust in the party ahead of the general election on May 29. Despite all that, the ANC is still expected to win the largest share of votes next week. “The ANC’s greatest gift is this gift of a weak opposition,” an expert told Foreign Policy. But it may fail to secure the 50% share of the vote needed to form a government. If so, the ANC would need to form a coalition government with smaller parties for the first time.

Ruto secures major tech investments in US trip

The United States is lining up major investments in Kenya’s tech sector, with deals announced during President William Ruto’s state visit.

Microsoft and UAE’s G42 investment group on Wednesday announced a $1 billion investment in Kenya’s digital economy. Microsoft President Brad Smith described the investment, focused on the development of a green data center and AI, as the “single largest and broadest private digital investment in the country’s history.”

The data center will be powered by geothermal energy and will run Microsoft Azure, enabling Microsoft to offer cloud and AI services to businesses and organizations across the region.

A letter of intent formalizing the project is set to be signed on Friday in Washington DC. Microsoft said the letter was “crafted with the assistance” of the US and UAE governments.

US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo separately revealed plans to make Kenya the first African country to access funding through the CHIPS Act. The partnership would see the US government support the development of Kenya’s semiconductor assembly, testing, and packaging sector. It is part of a bid to diversify the global semiconductor ecosystem and strengthen US supply chains.

“This partnership is bigger than technology itself,” Ruto said. “It is about the coming together of countries with a common vision of a nation empowered by technology.”

— Martin K.N Siele in Nairobi

Zambia’s president was this month announced by the Association for the Development of Education in Africa as taking on a role aimed at raising awareness about literacy and numeracy standards. His government’s education minister is Douglas Syakalima.

Governance

🇨🇩 DR Congo’s national assembly elected Vital Kamerhe as speaker, paving the way for President Felix Tshisekedi to name a government after winning last December’s election. The home of Kamerhe, Tshisekedi’s ally, was violently attacked on Sunday in an attempted coup.

🇳🇬 Nigeria’s central bank on Tuesday increased lending rates by 150 basis points to 26.25%, the third such increase this year to combat runaway inflation. The bank raised rates by 200 bps in March, and 400 bps in February.

🇹🇩 Chadian Prime Minister Succes Masra on Wednesday said he had handed in his resignation, days after the Constitutional Council upheld the election of military government chief Mahamat Idriss Deby as president.

Tech

🇬🇭 PAIX Data Centres increased the capacity of its facility in Ghana to 1.2 megawatts to expand reach to internet service providers.

🌍 Liquid Intelligent Technologies will roll out enterprise-grade Low Earth Orbit satellite services in Africa after agreeing to be a distributor partner for French satellite group Eutelsat.

🇳🇬 BlackCopper, a digital lending startup in Nigeria, has racked up 1.2 billion naira ($820,500) in debt to investors after running into difficulties recovering loans it offered to customers.

Geopolitics

🇰🇪 An advance group of Kenyan special forces police, who are part of the larger UN-backed multinational security support mission to stabilize Haiti, landed in the capital Port-au-Prince on Monday. A total of about 1,000 Kenyan agents are expected to join the mission.

🇸🇹 Portugal said it was concerned by a new agreement between its former colony São Tomé and Principe and Russia which calls for military training, logistical support, and “possible collaborations” involving Russian ships and planes. The deal was signed last month and reportedly implemented on May 5.

Energy

🇿🇦 The chief executive of South Africa’s utility company Eskom said the country was in talks with partners in its green transition about delaying the closure of some coal plants until March 2030. The country received $8.5 billion in pledges in 2021 from developed economies to help it cut emissions and move away from coal.

🇹🇿 Canadian firm Rocky Mountain GTL is set to build a $420 million plant that will produce diesel and jet fuel from natural gas in Tanzania. The plant, expected to be completed within two years, will initially produce 2,500 barrels of fuel per day.

Deals

🇰🇪 UBA Kenya received $282 million from its Nigeria-based parent company to offer loans to small businesses in Kenya over a three year period.

🇳🇬 Husk Power Systems signed a memorandum of understanding with Nigeria’s Rural Electrification Agency to deploy up to 250 megawatts of renewable energy projects, including mini grids.

🇹🇿 Infrastructure company TowerCo of Africa said it had secured $30 million in financing from British International Investment to help build 200 additional telecommunications sites across Tanzania.

Leopards in South Africa’s Mpumalanga province trace their ancestry to two unique sub-families that lived in southern and central Africa approximately 800,000 years ago, new research has found. Scientists at the University of Johannesburg Wildlife Genomics laboratory found that the leopards moved to new regions during the Ice Age. The cool and dry weather cycles, which alternated with warm and wet climates in sub-Saharan Africa at the time, led to the repeated expansions and contractions of savanna grasslands, forcing the leopards to relocate to new grasslands where they could hunt their prey, one of the study authors said. The study is the first to classify leopards in the country. It may be helpful in conservation efforts related to the leopards.

• Big Oil needs a hydrogen reality check.
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• The Washington Post downplays Prince Harry’s allegations against its CEO.

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— Yinka, Alexis, Alexander Onukwue, Martin Siele, Muchira Gachenge, and Jenna Moon