The African Union (AU) Commission has issued an urgent call for de-escalation in the Red Sea region, expressing grave concern over attacks targeting regional economic infrastructure and ongoing threats to international commercial shipping through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait. In a statement released on September 17, the AU Commission condemned attacks launched by Houthi forces against…
The 45-page New Delhi declaration was adopted on Saturday, the first day of the BRICS leaders’ annual summit. The BRICS group of nations adopted a new declaration calling for conflict prevention, stronger multilateral ties, and condemning terrorism as well as unilateral trade measures. The declaration also expressed concerns over the 7-month-long war in the Middle…
The Federal Government has reduced the processing time for African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Certificates of Origin to 24 hours, down from over five days, in a bid to boost intra-African trade and ease business for Nigerian exporters. The Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr. Jumoke Oduwole, disclosed this on Thursday in Abuja…
Alastair Long has been deployed to Africa as His Majesty’s Trade Commissioner (HMTC) for Africa, where he has now formally begun leading the UK’s trade and investment relationship with the continent. A statement by the UK High Commission in Nigeria on Monday said Alastair will work with governments, investors, businesses and institutions to deepen economic…
Conflicts in the Strait of Hormuz, the Red Sea and the Black Sea are disrupting the movement of food, fuel and fertilizer, with devastating consequences across the world. The flow of food, fuel, fertilizer and food between countries is essential to global food security, from farmers growing their crops to trucks being able to deliver…
Canada’s retaliatory tariffs on a range of US goods came into effect on Tuesday, with no sign of a trade deal on the horizon. The counter-tariffs will apply to nearly C$28bn ($20bn; £15bn) worth of American products, from steel to furniture to cotton T-shirts, and will be as high as 50%. Fresh fish and lobster…
The focus on agricultural development at the Southern African Development Community‘s 46th summit in August 2026 reflected a clear understanding that the sector can still play a key role in the region’s economic development. Agriculture accounts for around 10% of the GDP of many of the regional community’s members. The conversations about agriculture focused on…
The AfCFTA offers African cotton, textile and clothing businesses the opportunity to build cross-border production networks, attract investment and retain more value on the continent. And it can do so while providing the shared rules and larger market needed to strengthen factories and trade corridors. More than five years after trading began under the African…
Rwanda’s Minister of Trade and Industry, Antoine Marie Kajangwe, has called for African countries to reduce taxes, fees and levies on air travel, saying high costs are limiting movement and business opportunities across the continent. ALSO READ: Kagame criticises expensive air travel in Africa Kajangwe made the remarks during the closing session of the two-day…
The apparent rise of trafficking by older adults could reflect a new criminal adaptation rather than individual criminality. Adults aged 50 and over are becoming more visible in West African drug operations, although data availability and official understandings of this phenomenon vary across states. Nigeria’s National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) website suggests that at…
