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South Africa: Reserve Bank Commences Feasibility Study for General-Purpose Retail Central Bank Digital Currency
May 25, 2021--The South African Reserve Bank (SARB) has embarked on a study to investigate the feasibility, desirability and appropriateness of a central bank digital currency (CBDC) as electronic legal tender, for general-purpose retail use, complementary to cash.
A retail CBDC can be defined as a digital form of cash aimed at providing the best attributes of both cash and electronic payments.
The objective of the feasibility study is to consider how the issuance of a general-purpose CBDC will feed into the SARB's policy position and mandate. The SARB is one of a growing number of central banks looking at the feasibility of the issuance of digital currencies.
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Source: allafrica.com
Nigeria: Amidst Covid-19 Challenges, Nigeria's Economy Grows Again
May 24, 2021--The latest report highlighted two consecutive quarters of growth following the negative growth rates recorded in the second and third quarters of last year.
Nigeria's economy grew 0.51 percent in the first quarter of 2021. a report published by the statistics office on Sunday shows.
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Source: allafrica.com
Africa: Top 10 Wealthiest Cities in Africa
April 9, 2021--The wealth of a city is measured by its assets like property, cash, equities, and business interest as well as all property holdings and primary residences.
According to the world report here are the 10 wealthiest cities in Africa.
1. Johannesburg-Also known as Joburg, the South African city is considered the wealthiest city in Africa with an estimated wealth of $248 billion (about Sh214 trillion).
It is also the most visited city in Africa with more than 5 million annual visitors. The city is home to 2 dollar billionaires and about 16000 millionaires.
2. Cape Town-It is the legislative capital of South Africa with a total wealth of $133 billion (about Sh13 trillion) with a population of more than 3.5 million. The city has one dollar billionaire.
3. Cairo - It is the capital city of Egypt and the largest in the country. The city accounts for 22% of Egypt's economy and is home to the most billionaires in Africa, totaling 5. Its total wealth is $129 billion (about Sh12.9 trillion).
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Source: allafrica.com
Covid-19 pandemic impetus for greater regional integration, African countries told at presentation of regional integration index report
April 19, 2021--As countries rebuild their economies following COVID-19, Africa needs to step up productive and infrastructural integration, participants heard at a regional presentation of the African Regional Integration Index (ARII) held virtually last week.
The index, a joint publication of the Economic Commission for Africa, the African Development Bank and the African Union Commission, provides up-to-date data on the status of regional integration in Africa and assesses the level of integration for every regional economic community and its member countries.
The Index report underlines the need for a renewed commitment to regional integration within Africa, speakers said. They noted that the beginning of trade under the African Continental Free Trade Area in January 2021, amid the Covid-19 pandemic and its disruptive impact on movement and economies, had thrown this into sharper focus.
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Source: afdb.org
Five Big Bets for the Circular Economy in Africa: African Circular Economy Alliance
April 15, 2021--Circular solutions can be used by African countries to attain vital climate action targets and sustainable development goals. With this in mind, the African Circular Economy Alliance (ACEA) was launched to spur the continent's transition to a circular economy that delivers economic growth, jobs and positive environmental outcomes.
Putting in place the right circular economy initiatives and policies will also support the post-COVID-19 recovery and trigger new market opportunities. This report uses four criteria to prioritize areas for further research: circularity potential, economic significance, transformative impact potential and momentum. It goes on to highlight five opportunity areas- food systems, packaging, built environment, fashion and textiles, and electronics- and identifies crucial enablers that will support the transition to a circular economy across all five themes.
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Source: World Economic Forum
Nigeria's SEC Moves Against Investment Platforms Trading Foreign Securities
April 9, 2021--The regulator warns operators to stop trading "unregistered" securities that are based in other countries.
Nigeria's Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has warned capital market operators to stop giving support to online investment trading platforms providing access to foreign securities in Nigeria.
In a statement Thursday, the regulator said those securities were not registered in Nigeria, and platforms providing access to them were acting against the law. It warned capital market operators in partnership with the platforms to desist from providing brokerage services for foreign securities.
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Source: allafrica.com
AfCFTA: Free trade bloc can be a game changer for African people and business
March 26, 2021--Exploring strategies to deepen private sector participation in the implementation African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) was the highlight of a panel session during the 2021 WTO Aid-for-Trade Stocktaking meeting.
The African Development Bank, the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) and International Trade Centre (ITC) organized the session held on Wednesday 24 March.
"The success of the AfCFTA hinges on the ability of African firms to understand and capitalize on the trade related opportunities offered by the AfCFTA," said Pamela Coke-Hamilton, International Trade Centre (ITC) Executive Director.
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Source: African Development Bank
African Economic Outlook 2021: Africa's growth prospects bullish despite COVID-19 constraints and debt burden
March 12, 2021--The economic impact of the pandemic varies across economic characteristics and regions, but the projected recovery is broad-based
the average debt-to-GDP ratio for Africa is expected to climb by 10 to 15 percentage points in the short to medium term
the time for one last debt relief for Africa is now-President Akinwumi A. Adesina
Despite the challenging backdrop of a global pandemic and external economic shocks, Africa is expected to recover from its worst recession in half a century and reach 3.4 percent growth in 2021, the African Development Bank said in its 2021 African Economic Outlook report, launched on Friday.
The outbreak of the novel coronavirus in December 2019 has taken a massive toll on Africa, hitting tourism-dependent economies, oil-exporting economies and other-resource intensive economies the hardest, as well as deepening inequality.
view the African Economic Outlook 2021 From Debt resolution to Growth: The Road Ahead For Africa
South Africa: GDP Shrinks By 7%
However, Maluleke said, the positive growth recorded in the third and fourth quarters was not enough to offset the devastating impact of COVID-19 in the second quarter, when lockdown restrictions were at their most stringent.
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Nigeria: Nigerian Stocks Make Shaky Recovery After One Week in Red
Source: African Development Bank Group
March 9, 2021--The South African economy contracted by 7% in 2020, Statistician-General, Risenga Maluleke, has revealed.
Maluleke on Tuesday briefed media on the results of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) for the fourth quarter of 2020.
The decrease was despite the economy growing by 1.5% in the last three months of the year, giving an annualised growth rate of 6.3%.
Source: allafrica.com
March 9, 2021--The all-share index inched up to 39,396.57 points, racking up 64.96 index points.
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Source: allafrica.com
