Dear Friends,

Before we get into the weekly briefing, here are a few podcast recommendations: The Rachman Review — Coups make a come back in Africa and The Intelligence — Genocide returns: slaughter in Sudan.

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• Eritrea. Eritrean authorities said they would not be drawn into conversations about Ethiopia's desire to access the Red Sea. Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed said Ethiopia cannot remain silent over its right to access the sea (BBC).

• FOCAC. The 16th session of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) has officially kicked off in Beijing with 53 African states represented. China’s Vice Foreign Minister recommitted China’s role in “upholding solidarity and mutual trust with Africa” and will “work with Africa to strengthen cooperation on innovation, safeguard peace and stability and promote cultural exchanges” (ChinaDaily).

• Maputo Protocol. It's been 20 years since the African Union adopted one of the world's most comprehensive and progressive gender equality instruments — but 11 of Africa’s states still need to ratify the protocol (Devex).

• Namibia. The first European Union-Namibia Business Forum focused on green energy and critical raw materials was held this week in Brussels. The hosting country boasts the world’s best geography for hydrogen production (European Union). More below.

• Niger. Niger's military rulers said they foiled an escape attempt by former President Mohamed Bazoum who was ousted in a recent coup. Since he was toppled by the military on 26 July, Bazoum continues to refuse the notion of resignation. His lawyers in September said he filed a legal case with a court of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) against those who deposed him. They also said they were taking his case to the UN Human Rights Council (Fin24).

• Nigeria: Nigeria’s capital Abuja is looking to toughen up its licensing rules for foreign mining companies. The hope is to encourage foreign miners to invest more in local refining and processing (Reuters). Meanwhile, the country's inflation rate jumped for a ninth straight month in September on rising transport and food prices, reaching 26.7% (Bloomberg).

• Rwanda. Growth Teams write about Rwanda’s development bargain, the concept that states can pursue both growth and development as outlined by Oxford Prof. Stefan Dercon’s “Gambling On Development” (Growth Teams).

• Senegal. The 2nd Africa Air Force Forum on evolving security challenges was held this week in Dakar, Senegal (Military Africa).

• South Africa. South Africa secured US$676 million in grants from high-income nations for its transition to green energy — but this is still only a fraction of the total package promised (Reuters). Meanwhile, inflation in the country accelerated to 5.4%, meaning that interest rates will likely stay higher for longer (Bloomberg).

• Tanzania. Tanzania has signed a 30-year port management deal with Dubai Ports World which will see the company run four quays at Dar es Salaam, Tanzania’s largest port. Opponents to the deal say it will favour the Emirati company at Tanzania’s expense (BBC). More below.

• The Netherlands. The Dutch king apologized for his family’s role in slavery, but some South Africans are seeking a more direct apology and subsequent reparations from the Netherlands (New York Times).

The New York Times produced a fabulous article detailing Baaba Maal’s Senegal. The Senegalese singer-songwriter known as the “voice of Wakanda” from the “Black Panther” films detailed his top spots to visit in the West African city.

South Africa’s Cabinet approved the Green Hydrogen Commercialisation Strategy (GHCS) for implementation, with the goal of positioning the country as a major producer and exporter of green hydrogen. The government estimates that the hydrogen economy has the potential to add 3.6% to gross domestic product by 2050 and create a whopping 370 000 jobs (Polity).

Further up Africa’s East Coast in Tanzania, DP World announced it had won a bid to operate part of the country’s Dar es Salaam port for 30 years – DP world intends to invest more than US$250 million to upgrade the port's facilities. The deal expands the Dubai-based company’s reach across East Africa, where it already has interest from Somalia to Mozambique. President Samia Suluhu Hassan hopes the company will triple revenue from the harbor to US$10.7 billion over the next decade. Tanzania is also seeking private investors to operate a container terminal after a lease agreement with Hutchison Ports expired (Bloomberg).

Staying in Tanzania, South Korea is looking to Africa to secure graphite as China (the world’s largest producer of the critical mineral) tightens its hold on how much is used in EV battery making in the country. Tanzania and Mozambique are among the handful of countries that South Korea plans to tap to make up for potential shortfalls, according to the trade ministry (Bloomberg).

Husk Power Systems raised US$103 million to help the owner of the world’s largest number of mini-grids to pay for an expansion in India and Africa. The money will mostly go toward increasing the number of grids operated by Patna, an India-based company, to more than 1,500 from about 200 over the next four years, said Manoj Sinha, the company’s Founder and CEO. Currently, around 600 million people in Africa don’t have access to electricity (Bloomberg).

The first European Union-Namibia Business Forum focused on green energy and critical raw materials was held in Brussels this week (Voice of America).

Namibia’s geography, blessed with plenty of sun and wind, makes it the world’s prime location for the generation of green hydrogen. European Commissioner for International Partnerships, Jutta Urpilainen, said: “Namibia and the EU are strategic partners, with the joint ambition to deliver a fair digital and green transition, developing local value chains and industry in Namibia while securing supply of raw materials and renewable hydrogen for the EU.”

Nigeria will carry out a vaccination campaign against the human papillomavirus (HPV) for some 7.7 million girls in the country. Cervical cancer is the third most common cancer in the country (UN News).

Moving to Kenya – the ongoing food security situation has improved as the number of people facing food insecurity fell from 4.8 million to 1.5 million people according to the Food and Agriculture Organization (Xinhua).

Senegal’s President Macky Sall asks if democracy can work in Africa’s coup-belt, warning that a “syndrome of chaos” threatens Senegal (The Economist).

Investors are taking a second look at African tech startups after Dash’s spectacular fall from grace – its CEO, Prince Boakye Boampong, was found to have inflated and overstated the number of users, while at least $25 million was found missing from the company’s account (TechCrunch).

United States in Africa

The first week of November will see the 20th Agoa Forum kick off in Johannesburg, South Africa with the theme: Partnering to Build a Resilient, Sustainable, and Inclusive Agoa to Support Economic Development, Industrialization and Quality Job Creation (Agoa). The summit is an important one. The Agoa Act requires US legislators to conduct yearly eligibility reviews of the trade pact’s beneficiaries. Eligibility criteria includes that (1) beneficiaries should not engage in gross violations of internationally recognised human rights or provide support for acts of international terrorism, and (2) countries may not engage in activities that undermine US national security or foreign policy interests. Under the Act, Sub-Saharan African countries are granted preferential access to US markets. Should the US Congress approve a bill introduced by Louisiana Senator John Kennedy, the Act would be extended 20 years to 2045. Kennedy hopes for this extension because it would help deter ‘China’s growing influence throughout the region’. He said it would allow the US to keep working closely with African nations ‘to grow our economies, reduce poverty and ensure that US values prevail in the region’ (BusinessDay).