
Small Is Beautiful
Encouraged by government stimulus programs, banks are finding new ways to finance SMEs. Once the economy recovers, will the surge of interest recede?
AFRICA Kaberuka: Cereal export limits imperil 150 million Africans' lives. Food shortages continue to cause severe disruption in many African countries, prompting the African Development Bank (AfDB) to pledge up to $1 billion in subsidies and grants to ...
COUNTRY REPORT / NIGERIA Despite vast hydrocarbon reserves and a government committed to economic diversification, Nigeria still faces tremendous problems. A resurgence in its banking sector may help accelerate future progress. Oil is Nigeria’s lifeline, accounting for some 80% ...
AFRICA Long ignored by mainstream investors and corporations, Africa has suddenly found itself in the spotlight. Its resilience in the recent credit crunch is just part of the reason. An oil worker stands on the deck of ...
DR NEWS Zhaikmunai, an independent oil and gas exploration business based in Kazakhstan, has concluded the first-ever listing of global depositary receipts on the London Stock Exchange by a limited partnership. Zhaikmunai raised $100 million in its offering last ...
AFRICA Botswana's new president, Seretse Ian Khama. Economic growth in sub-Saharan Africa is set to continue strongly this year, according to the International Monetary Fund, which says the region is “better placed today to withstand a worsening of ...
NEWS The Overseas Private Investment Corp. (OPIC), a US development finance organization, has committed up to $100 million in initial funding for a sub-Saharan debt fund to be managed by Standard Bank of South Africa. The Standard Africa Development ...
Dr News African issuers of global depositary receipts could benefit from the fact that they are remote from the effects of the US-centric credit crunch, says Stuart Matty, partner at White & Case, the law firm ...
COUNTRY REPORT: SOUTH AFRICA Flagging global growth, an ongoing energy shortage and increasing wage and inflation pressures are weighing heavily on South Africa’s economy. In a hole: South Africa's mining industry has been badly affected by recent power ...
News The Rwanda Stock Exchange opened for business in the capital city of Kigali at the end of January, but so far the exchange has not traded any stocks. It has listed two government bonds and ...