China committed more than $75 billion to Africa in the past decade, coming close to the level of US money although the nature of Beijing’s support was far different, a study said Monday. The database released by the Center for Global Development aims to be the most comprehensive account yet of foreign assistance by China, [...]
Rescue workers in Savar, Bangladesh hunted for survivors overnight Thursday amid the rubble of a collapsed garment factory building where 127 people died and more than 1,000 were injured. Working under floodlights with industrial cutters and cranes, teams of fire service and army rescue workers struggled to break through the mountain of concrete and mangled [...]
JOHANNESBURG (AFP) – Fast-paced African countries may have growth rates that are the envy of developed economies, but the continent’s boom has failed in recent years to significantly dent poverty levels, economists say. Sub-Saharan Africa is set to grow by 5.6 percent this year, according to latest figures from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), with [...]
Fitch on Friday stripped recession-threatened Britain of its top triple-A rating, moving it down one notch to ‘AA+’ as a weaker economic outlook continues to push up the country’s debt. In response, the coalition government indicated that the downgrade would not sway it from finance minister George Osborne’s controversial policy of deep cuts to state [...]
Dangote Group, Nigeria’s biggest listed company, has begun talks to raise a debut syndicated loan for $3.5 billion to fund fertiliser and oil refinery projects, two sources with knowledge of the situation said. The seven-year loan for Nigeria’s biggest cement producer is split equally between Nigerian and international lenders via lead banks Guaranty Trust Bank, [...]
India’s Supreme Court rejected Monday a patent bid by Swiss drug giant Novartis in a landmark ruling that activists say will protect cheap generic drugs and save lives in developing nations. Novartis fought a seven-year legal battle to gain patent protection for an updated version of its blockbuster leukaemia drug Glivec, arguing the compound was [...]
Despite threats of terrorism in Northern Nigeria and kidnapping of locals and foreigners, Nigeria is the ninth most visited country by foreigners in Africa. With 1.4 million arrivals, according to findmehotels.com, Nigeria is also the leading destination of foreigners in West Africa and is more favoured by usual tourist destinations such as Kenya and Namibia. [...]
