First VMK store opens in Abidjan

A company founded by Vérone Mankou, the Congolese entrepreneur behind the first tablet made in Africa, announced the opening of its first VMK store in Abidjan on 19 February 2015. Located in the Treichville commune at Zone 3 C, Immeuble Rive Gauche, this point of sale – which will exclusively sell products from the VMK range – marks the beginning of the Congolese company’s expansion beyond its borders. The Abidjan VMK store, which will ultimately employ around 10 people, will be an addition to VMK’s first-ever store in Brazzaville, which was opened in partnership with the South African operator, MTN.

VMK plans to expand its store locations to five countries in the region by the end of the year. A second store is scheduled to open in the Ivory Coast economic capital, before the opening of three other VMK stores in Kinshasa, Douala and Dakar before the end of 2015. “My underlying ambition is to bridge the digital gap in Africa. These VMK stores are being set up to make new technologies accessible to as many people as possible,” explains Vérone Mankou. “We will offer a top-of-the-range selection of products, aimed at the general public.” The VMK range, which also includes two smartphone models available from FCFA 11,900 and FCFA 19,900 (EUR 18 and EUR 30 respectively) has recently been enhanced by the addition of a premium model, the Elikia L.

This outstanding handset, offered at FCFA 64,900 (EUR 99), comes equipped with a larger screen than its predecessor. Not only that, but VMK is getting ready to launch its second tablet in March. It will be available for less than FCFA 140,000 (EUR 210). “The opening of a store in Abidjan is an essential step in the extension of our Pan-African vision. It is here, at the crossroads of West Africa, that VMK has decided to embark upon conquering the new class of African consumers,” adds Vérone Mankou.

Produced in China until now, VMK devices will shortly be assembled in the soon-to-be factory in the Republic of Congo. This production unit, which is in the process of being built in the Mpila neighbourhood of Brazzaville, has required an investment of nearly two million dollars and will be used exclusively for the VMK range of products. VMK’s Chinese partner company has started training the locals who will be employed at the factory – more than 90 people in total. VMK plans to produce 350,000 units per month.

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Africa Debt and Capital Markets Summit to take place during the IMF and World Bank Meetings

The 5th Africa Debt and Capital Markets (ADCM) Summit will take place for the first time in Washington D.C. during the IMF and World Bank Spring Meetings on 16th April 2015.

Organized by the team behind African Banker magazine, this highlevel summit will provide an update on the latest trends and development in Africa’s capital markets as well as explore the growing market for international issuances by African governments.

Formerly hosted at the London Stock Exchange, the 5th Africa Debt and Capital Markets Summit is the premier event looking at the development of African debt capital markets in Africa. Over 150 guests are expected to attend, including a range of institutional investors, African Ministers of Finance, Central Bank Governors, leading international investment bankers, private companies, investors, risk advisors and rating agencies.

The event was launched to create a platform to connect African issuers to the financial community in London, the agenda this year will broaden to explore the challenges and opportunities in Africa’s Capital and Debt markets. Recent global issuances have attracted wide interest from US investors, who hold the world’s biggest pool of capital, but African debt and capital markets still remain off-radar for the majority of the investment community.

The key focus of the 5th Africa Debt and Capital Markets Summit will be on the emergence of financial hubs in Africa, and on ways to make them become drivers of growth. There will be a focus on domestic resource mobilization with the rise of sovereign wealth funds and pension funds, the opportunities presented by international capital and how to tap into this, as well as a discussion on the debt issuances and the longer term outlooks for African sovereign and corporates using this asset class.

Since its inaugural edition in 2011, the number of sovereign issuances has grown rapidly although local capital markets remain largely illiquid. This summit, by connecting policy makers, as well as the buy and sell side, will help to contribute to more dynamic capital markets and more transactional activity across different asset classes relating to Africa.

The summit, a must-attend event for financiers in the emerging market space, will take place in Washington D.C. on the 16th April.

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Mali Gives Millions of Malaysians a New Internet Identity

African nation shakes up Malaysian website industry with free domains.

Mali, one of the largest countries in West Africa, has introduced the .ML domain name registry in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, as a new Malaysian domain extension. AGETIC, the governmental agency responsible for Mali's public infrastructure, is using new technologies to offer domain name registrations to all individuals and businesses in Malaysia at no cost.

"We have introduced a new .ML domain platform to internet users in Mali two years ago. With the introduction of free internet domain names and a modern platform, we instantly became the fastest growing country code top level domain in Africa.” says Mr. Moussa Dolo, the Managing Director of AGETIC. "Over the last year we have seen a large increase of registrations from Malaysian users. We did our research and found out that the ML extension is popular in Malaysia, as it is an abbreviation of the country name. That is why we decided to create a special registration offering for the Malaysian market."

Every nation in the world receives a two letter abbreviation from the International Standard Organization (ISO), and in that process the ML code was associated with Mali. Malaysia's historical MY domain name is found to be hard to register. Registration is expensive, requires paperwork and has bureaucratic rules preventing Malaysian individuals and businesses to register MY domains quickly. With the introduction of .ML as the free new MaLaysian domain, AGETIC offers a solution that addresses the demand for domains for the 20 million internet users in Malaysia.

The introduction of ML in Malaysia comes directly after the ICANN conference in Singapore. During this meeting of the international internet governance body, African participation in the international internet community was high on the agenda. With the introduction of ML domains in Malaysia, Mali is the first African country that looks abroad for domain name distribution.

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Namibia ranks best in world press freedom

Namibia has emerged the best ranked African country in terms of media freedom according to the 2015 World Press Freedom Index released by the Reporters Without Borders.

With a score of 12.5, the country was ranked the first in Africa and 17th in the world out of 180 countries, moving five places up from last year's rankings.

Neighbouring South Africa ranked 39th globally and fourth on the African continent.

Ghana ranked 22nd, Cape Verde 36th, Botswana 42nd and Burkina Faso 46th.

"The Index is the fruit of Reporters Without Borders' constant work in defence of media freedom, the result of its day-byday monitoring of freedom of information violations," it said.

"Top of the 2015 Index are Finland, which has been in first place for five years in succession, followed by Norway and Denmark."

Zimbabwe ranked 131th with North Korea and Eritrea, coming out as the worst performers, ranked 178th to 180th.

The Reporters Without Borders World Press Freedom Index ranks the performance of 180 countries according to a range of criteria that include media pluralism and independence, respect for the safety and freedom of journalists, and the legislative, institutional and infrastructural environment in which the media operate.

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MoneyGram Reaches 25,000 Locations across Africa

Moneygram recently announced an agreement with Safaricom that enables consumers in over 90 countries outside Kenya to send funds directly to nearly 20 million customers of M-PESA.

MoneyGram, a leading global money transfer company, announces today that its agent network in Africa has now reached 25,000 locations, following a strategic expansion initiative across the continent.

Recent technology advances and new agent and sub-agent signings, including an agreement with the Mauritius Post Office to offer money transfer services at more than 100 locations, have contributed to achieving this company milestone.

“MoneyGram continues to grow throughout Africa as a result of forming strategic relationships with reputable companies, including banks, post offices and retailers, to bring added convenience and more choices for our customers,” says Herve Chomel, MoneyGram’s vice president of Africa. “Remittances are an important part of economic development and financial inclusion throughout the region and are integral to providing household essentials, education and healthcare in many countries. We are excited to be a part of the region’s growth.”

Consumers have access to MoneyGram’s services in more than 50 African countries. In a series of recent successes, the company signed an agreement with First Bank of Nigeria’s subsidiaries in Ghana, Sierra Leone, and the Gambia, and also renewed a master agreement with Standard Bank Group, one of Africa’s top banks. MoneyGram’s services are available at over 500 Standard Bank locations in South Africa and across 11 Southern and Eastern African countries.

MoneyGram is also implementing innovative selfservice channels to make it more convenient for consumers living in Africa or abroad to obtain needed funds. The company recently announced an agreement with Safaricom that enables consumers in over 90 countries outside Kenya to send funds directly to nearly 20 million customers of M-PESA, Kenya’s leading mobile wallet provider.

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Nominations open for Africa’s leading banking awards ceremony

The most prestigious event in Africa’s banking and finance sector will take place during the annual African Development Bank meetings in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire on 27th May. The 9th edition of the African Banker Awards, held under the patronage of the African Development Bank will celebrate and highlight the bankers and financial institutions who are playing a leading role in driving African growth and transformation. This year also happens to be an important year for the African Development Bank who will announce the successor to Donald Kaberuka, its president for the past ten years.

Organized by African Banker magazine in cooperation with Business in Africa Events, the African Banker Awards will continue to maintain its exclusive partnership with the African Development Bank, which over the past year has finalized its move back home from Tunis to Abidjan.

Recently the awards committee issued its call for entries for 2015, officially inviting all financial institutions operating in Africa to participate and compete. The deadline for entries has been set in a month’s time, on the 16th March.

The African Banker Awards is the landmark event on the banking calendar. Last year’s ceremony took place in Kigali, Rwanda, and attracted some of Africa’s key decision makers including Central Bank Governors and Ministers of Finance as well as those playing a key role in the banking world, from bank CEOs to financiers and deal makers transforming the continent.

“Since we launched the awards, the sector has seen phenomenal growth and is doing things unimaginable a decade ago. The banks have a responsibility to drive Africa’s transformation, policy makers have a role to play in guiding banks and financial institutions to unlock capital towards priority projects and industries. Today more than ever, the financial services industry, which is still small compared to emerging markets standards, will keep rising to the challenge, as they have over the past ten years. We are looking forward to receiving and reading the entries, which make for insightful reading, especially in terms of how banks are helping drive African growth.” Omar Ben Yedder, CEO, IC Publications.

Past awards and nominations reflect the diverse achievements of Africa’s top ranking bankers and industry leaders. Last year HE Paul Kagame, President of Rwanda, topped headlines after receiving a Special Recognition Award for his leadership and vision.

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BOAD is raising XOF115 billion to support the 2014-2015 cotton season in Benin

For the third consecutive year, the West African Development Bank (BOAD) in its capacity as Arranger, is raising funds to support the cotton season in Benin. The Agreement relating thereto was signed by and between Mr. Christian Adovelande, President of BOAD and the Managing Director of the Office national de soutien des revenus agricoles (National office for farm income support) (Borrower) and the Managers of local banks involved in the transaction.

This Agreement was signed as part of the mandate on technical and financial assistance entrusted to BOAD by the Government of Benin in February 2014 with the aim of mobilizing funds for the 2014-2015 cotton season. BOAD succeeded in rallying around itself local banks to raise a facility of XOF115 billion, to which the local banking system contributed to the tune of 79%. Members of the banking pool include ECOBANK (Agent Bank), BOA, Banque Atlantique, BGFI, Diamond Bank, BSIC and UBA. In addition to its role as an arranger, BOAD provides financing in an amount of XOF25 billion to this operation

Funds mobilized will be used to cover financial needs during the 2014-2015 cotton season, including cotton purchase from producers, ginning as well as storage, evacuation and marketing of cotton fiber and by-products. Projections for the cotton season show a cottonseed production of 360,000 tons over an area sown of nearly 400,000 hectares.

Expressing his satisfaction at the trust renewed to his institution by the Beninese Authorities, Mr. Christian Adovelande stated that “this financial support provided by BOAD, complementary to that of the local banking system, is in line with the Bank’s strategic directions as well as Policy Statement”.

This third Agreement is attributable to the success of the two previous ones. The Government of Benin requested the support of BOAD for the 2012-2013 cotton season. The sub-regional institution then rallied around itself a pool of local banks and raised XOF82 billion, with Beninese banks contributing XOF62 billion, or 76% of the facility. Those resources made it possible to sow 351,000 hectares for a production of 240,000 tons of cottonseed. The facility was fully repaid at maturity.

Based on these positive results, the Government of Benin entrusted to the Bank a second mandate for supporting and assisting in structuring and raising a facility of XOF115 billion to cover all needs associated with the 2013-2014 cotton season. For this second facility, local banks contributed to the tune of 79%. 347,000 hectares were sown for a production of 307,355 tons of cottonseed.

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