AI and the Future of Work in Africa-White Paper
June 23, 2024--Generative AI presents a powerful tool for shaping a dignified future of work in Africa. By proactively addressing the challenges and harnessing the opportunities, Africa can leverage AI to drive economic growth, empower its workforce, and become a leader in socially responsible AI development.
Overall, the recommendations for a Dignified Future of Work for all with Generative AI include
Invest in infrastructure and education: Africa needs strong infrastructure and a skilled workforce to maximize the benefits of AI.
Develop inclusive AI policies: National and regional AI policies focused on inclusive education, worker protection, and stakeholder involvement are essential.
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Source: nepad.org
Global Foreign Investment Declines for Second Year As Geopolitical Tensions Rise, UN Trade Body Reports
June 20, 2024--Foreign direct investment (FDI) fell by two per cent to $1.3 trillion in 2023 amid global economic slowdown and rising geopolitical tensions, according to a report released on Thursday by the UN trade and development body, UNCTAD.
The 2024 World Investment Report highlighted that insufficient funding is hindering efforts to achieve the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, underscoring the urgent need for policies to bolster finance.
"Investment is not just about capital flows; it is about human potential, environmental stewardship and the enduring pursuit of a more equitable and sustainable world," said Rebeca Grynspan, Secretary-General of the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).
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Source: allafrica.com
Kenya: Blackrock Liquidates Em Fund With Equities in Kenya, Nigeria
June 19, 2024--American asset manager BlackRock has announced the liquidation of its emerging market (EM) funds in Kenya and Nigeria.
The decision follows ongoing liquidity challenges in several frontier markets, which have been exacerbated by delays in the repatriation of funds in dollars.
Its board concluded that liquidating the fund is in the best interest of both the fund and its shareholders.
One of the significant factors impacting the liquidation process is the conversion of local currencies, including Nigeria's Naira.
As a result, the liquidation will be extended over a longer period.
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Source: allafrica.com
Nigeria: Stock Investors Gain N619bn in May Despite Rates Hike
June 3, 2024--Analysts expect bearish outlook in June
The equities market defied the persistent hike in interest rate by the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, at the end of trading in May with investors recording a marginal gain of N619 billion.
This is a sharp contrast from the previous month when the market declined by 6.16 percent after losing more than N3.5 trillion in value following a 200 basis points increase in the monetary policy rate, MPR, to 24.75 percent by the central bank. This had resulted in migration of assets to the fixed income market.
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Source: allafrica.com/
Fast progress at Ethiopian Securities Exchange
May 17, 2024--The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA), the EU's financial markets regulator and supervisor is publishing today the Statistics on Securities and Markets (ESSM) Report, with the objective of increasing access to data of public interest.
A big milestone was the strong response to the capital raise for the exchange, a for-profit company. It announced on 4 April that investors had offered $26.6m (ETB 1.51bn) in response to its targeted capital raise of $11.1m.
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Source: africancapitalmarketsnews.com
Nigeria: Domestic Investors Stake N1.335trn in Equities in Q1
April 25, 2024--Total transactions by domestic portfolio investors in the stock market rose by 86.23 per cent as they invested a total value of N1.335 trillion in the first quarter (Q1) of 2024.
The domestic investors have continued to hold ground on the floor of the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited despite rising inflation and currency volatility in the foreign exchange market as they were major drivers of the Domestic & Foreign Portfolio Investment.
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Source: allafrica.com
Nigeria: Foreign Investment in Stock Market Rises 168 Percent to N118.92bn
April 23, 2024--Foreign portfolio investment, FPI, into the stock market rose by 167.8 percent, Year-on-Year (YoY), to N118.92 billion in February 2024 from N44.52 billion in the corresponding period in 2023 buoyed by improved liquidity in the foreign exchange (FX) market following reforms by the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN.
The Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) disclosed this in its Domestic and Foreign Portfolio Investment report for February 2024, which showed a 0.3 percentage point increase to 11.78 per cent in share of FPI in the total equities transaction of N1.009 trillion during the period.
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Source: allafrica.com
Nigeria: Equities Market Posts Biggest Loss in April As Investors Lose N1.1trn
March 17, 2024--The Nigerian Exchange (NGX) market capitalisation recorded the biggest loss in the month of April with investors losing N1.1trn.
For eight consecutive trading days, the Nigeria bourse extended its losing streak as the benchmark index closed 1.93% weaker-the biggest single day decline since 19 February-to close at 99,808.34, according to analysis of yesterday's trading.
The market's weak performance was attributed to selloffs in telco heavyweight, MTNN (-1.32%) alongside Tier-1 banking tickers, GTCO (-3.66%), FBNH (-5.61%).
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Source: allafrica.com
African Economies Projected to Grow by 3.4 % in 2024, But Faster and More Equitable Growth Needed to Reduce Poverty
April 8, 2024--Increased private consumption and declining inflation are supporting an economic rebound in Sub-Saharan Africa. However, the recovery remains fragile due to uncertain global economic conditions, growing debt service obligations, frequent natural disasters, and escalating conflict and violence, according to the World Bank's latest Africa's Pulse report.
Transformative policies are needed to address deep-rooted inequality to sustain long-term growth and effectively reduce poverty.
The report projects that growth will rebound in 2024, rising from a low of 2.6 percent in 2023 to 3.4 percent in 2024, and 3.8 percent in 2025. However, this recovery remains tenuous. While inflation is cooling across most economies, falling from a median of 7.1 to 5.1 percent in 2024, it remains high compared to pre-COVID-19 pandemic levels. Additionally, while growth of public debt is slowing, more than half of African governments grapple with external liquidity problems, and face unsustainable debt burdens.
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Source: worldbank.org
Nigeria banks: Likely winners and losers from the central bank's new capital rules
April 8, 2024-- Excluding retained earnings from the new capital threshold puts Nigerian bank shareholders at the sharp end.
New capital requirements for Nigerian banks are likely to trigger a process of industry consolidation, experts say.
Commercial banks in Nigeria with international authorisation will need capital of N500bn ($380m), or 10 times the current requirement, according to new rules issued by the central bank at the end of March. Domestically authorized banks will need N200bn, an eightfold increase.
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Source: theafricareport.com