Africa

1. Kenya’s Q2 growth
2. Nuclear power
3. Up and away
4. Cocoa farmers v EU
5. Gulf investment
6. Digital nomads

Also, deforestation in Madagascar.

Kenya’s growth slows

The rate at which Kenya’s economy grew between April and June 2024, according to new data from the country’s statistics agency. The figure, down from 5.6% in the corresponding quarter last year, represented the lowest growth rate since the end of 2022. The decline was caused by lower output and consumer spending. Growth in the agriculture sector slowed to 4.8%, compared with 7.8% in the same period last year.

Nuclear energy is set to grow

The share of nuclear energy in Africa’s electricity production is set to more than triple to 4.1% over the next two decades, according to the International Atomic Energy Agency. The IAEA projects that would follow a 14-fold increase in electricity generated from nuclear sources, reaching 144 terawatt hours (TWh). Nuclear energy is a long way from catching up to fossil fuels, which account for 74% of electricity production in Africa. South Africa leads the continent in nuclear electricity, with 4.5% of its total output from nuclear sources. In 2022, its output ranked 26th in the world for nuclear electricity production.

Africa only accounts for 0.4% of the world’s nuclear electricity generation at present, but that share could rise to 2% by 2050, according to the IAEA’s data. Ghana signed a pact with the US government in August to build small modular reactors. It followed a race against countries including Russia, France and China to help the West African country diversify its power sources.

Drones are going mainstream

US drone maker Zipline and the Nigerian government have struck a deal that will see the company take a central role in moving medical products such as blood and vaccines around the country.

The partnership will “raise the quality of healthcare services available to all Nigerians,” said Health Minister Ali Pate as part of the announcement on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly.

It reflects the increasing use of drones to bypass sometimes poor road and rail networks for everything from e-commerce deliveries to military operations targeting insurgents.

Zipline has broken through as one of the largest players in Africa. Valued at $4 billion by Silicon Valley investors, it began using drones to deliver medical products in Rwanda in 2014 and has since extended its presence to Ghana, Kenya, and Côte d’Ivoire. Two years ago, it started delivering non-medical products for online retailer Jumia in Ghana.

But other companies are entering the market.

In April, Terrahaptix, a startup in Nigeria’s capital Abuja, began producing drones. Co-founder Nathan Nwachukwu told Semafor Africa the startup has banked “over $1 million in revenue” from commercial customers in the oil, mining, and agriculture industries in Nigeria, Ghana, and Kenya. Companies that buy their drones use them mainly as part of their security hardware, he said.

And in Cape Town, startup Aerobotics has had success using drones to collect data on the quality of fruits to predict yield for large-scale farmers.

Cocoa producers take on EU

Cocoa-producing countries have asked the European Union to delay the implementation of new rules aimed at preventing the import of products of deforestation into Europe. They cited the potential adverse effects on farmers.

Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana account for half of the world’s cocoa production, but more than a third of cocoa bean processing occurs in Europe. Implementing the rules will “add uncertainty in an already highly disrupted market,” the International Cocoa Organization, an industry body based in Côte d’Ivoire, reportedly said in a request for an extension made in September.

The group said the Dec. 30, 2024 deadline is “unrealistic” because the European Commission had not shared all documents necessary for complying with its directives, reports French broadcaster RFI.

The EU’s drive for deforestation-free products goes beyond cocoa to include cattle, wood, cocoa, soy, palm oil, coffee, and rubber. The bloc is targeting a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions and biodiversity loss. It places the burden of proof on operators and traders to show that their products do not come from recently deforested land.

South Africa lands Abu Dhabi giant’s investment

Abu Dhabi’s largest listed firm, International Holding Co., is partnering with South Africa’s sovereign wealth fund for mining, green energy, and railway projects in Africa’s biggest economy.

The conglomerate’s resources unit plans to invest in projects that move South Africa off coal-dominated power generation, according to a joint statement. South Africa’s ailing state power company, Eskom, has previously said it will delay the decommissioning of some of its coal-fired power stations to address electricity shortages that have choked the economy in recent years.

The agreement would also “bring underperforming and undeveloped mining assets” in South Africa to full production capacity, according to the statement. Inefficiencies at South Africa’s state-owned logistics company Transnet have caused freight train shortages and port backlogs which cut the country’s income from exports, particularly mining.

South Africa’s coalition government, which took office in June, is trying to significantly increase investment as part of its plans to tackle the country’s logistics and energy problems.

Kenya woos digital nomads

Kenya is rolling out a digital nomad work permit program to attract remote workers from around the world and boost tourism revenues. Last year it brought in 352 billion Kenyan shillings ($2.7 billion) and more than 2 million tourists.

President William Ruto said the permit would attract a new set of tourists to wildlife safaris and beaches while fostering a “vibrant ecosystem that supports innovation and entrepreneurship.”

Kenya is the only African country consistently ranked among the top 20 countries worldwide for expatriate workers, according to data from expat community platform InterNations.

The digital nomad work permit may yet attract even more expatriates to the country. But some activists in the capital, Nairobi, fear an influx of digital nomads could drive up prices of housing and various services. The launch of a digital nomad working visa in South Africa earlier this year prompted social housing activists to raise concerns over the expected impact on rents.

— Martin K.N Siele

Governance

🇰🇪 Kenyan lawmakers launched an impeachment motion against Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua on Tuesday. The move follows allegations that he played a role in anti-government protests earlier this year and stirred ethnic hatred — claims he denies.

🇨🇮 Côte d’Ivoire’s ruling party endorsed 82-year-old President Alassane Ouattara to run for a fourth term in October 2025 elections.

Mining

🇺🇬 Uganda’s energy minister said the country had formed a state-owned mining company to manage the government’s equity interests in mining operations.

🇿🇼 Zimbabwe’s Bikita Minerals told the country’s lawmakers that a lack of basic infrastructure in lithium-rich regions, compounded by foreign currency regulation, was hindering the extraction of lithium reserves.

Tech

🇿🇦 South Africa’s first electric minibus tax service, eKamva, was unveiled this week in Johannesburg. It will hit the road in early 2025.

🇳🇬 Winich Farms, a Nigerian online marketplace connecting farmers and food processors, raised $3 million in a mix of equity and debt from a number of African venture capital firms.

Geopolitics

🇲🇺 The UK agreed to hand over the Chagos Islands to Mauritius following negotiations that began in 2022, bringing to an end dispute over the sovereignty of Britain’s last African colony. Under the agreement, announced on Thursday, Britain will retain control of the UK-US military base on Diego Garcia, one of the islands.

Energy

🇿🇦 The board of Brazil’s state oil company Petrobras approved the acquisition of a 10% stake in the offshore Deep Western Orange Basin oil block in South Africa, it said on Tuesday. It follows a competitive process held by French oil major Total which operates the project.

🇳🇬 Exxon Mobil’s $1.28 billion deal to sell its Nigerian onshore assets to Seplat Energy is set to be approved in the coming days, President Bola Tinubu said on Tuesday.

Deals

🇰🇪 African Development Bank invested $10 million for an equity stake in Nairobi-based financier Dhamana Guarantee Company.

🇰🇪 The Kenyan government chose Indian company Larsen & Toubro, and Paris-headquartered Grid Solution SAS for a $95 million project to construct a new electricity control center in the country.

A new study suggests farming in Madagascar is causing as much damage to local rainforests as mining. Researchers found agriculture remains the biggest contributor to deforestation in parts of the island nation, even in areas where artisanal or small-scale mining operations are ongoing. The research focused on the protected rainforests of the Ankeniheny-Zahamena Corridor in eastern Madagascar, where significant sapphire deposits were discovered eight years ago. “More than 10,000 people mining in the area did not cause more deforestation than several hundred people clearing forest for farming,” wrote researcher Katie Devenish in The Conversation. Researchers identified the main driver of deforestation as the practice of cutting and burning forest patches to grow rice in a rotational cycle. They explained that mining damage had been limited because sapphires were found in river sediments, which confined mining to the valley floor.

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— Yinka, Alexis, Alexander Onukwue, Martin Siele, Muchira Gachenge