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Palace Intrigues
Alassane Ouattara, Antonio Guterres, Gianni Infantino, Ahmed Kogri

Intrigues big and small: every Tuesday, Africa Intelligence takes a peek into the corridors of power in Africa and beyond.

Ivory CoastOuattara plies pressure on banks

EthiopiaAntonio Guterres in Tigray

AfricaFIFA's Infantino's gesture to CAF federations

Chad-EgyptChadian spymaster Ahmed Kogri's 24h Cairo stopover

DRC
M23 rebels force massive rise in DRC military spending

The resurgence of M23 rebels is costing the DR Congo army a fortune in military expenditure. But despite the massive increase in funding - from $459m in 2021, to $700m in 2022 - the Congolese army is failing to subdue the insurgents.

Central African Republic
MINUSCA still waiting for Ivorian peacekeepers

The deployment of a Quick Reaction Force (QRF) of Ivorian peacekeepers to boost the UN mission, MINUSCA, in the Central African Republic was first broached in 2021 but has not yet happened. The troops should however arrive by mid-2023.

Mali
Millionaire Aliou Boubacar Diallo enjoys quiet new life, far from the junta

After long supporting Assimi Goita's coup, the Malian millionaire, who came third in the 2018 presidential election, has fallen out with the junta leader. He has discreetly moved to Dakar, from where he hopes to reboot his political aspirations.

Ivory Coast
Otokar's armoured vehicles en route to troubled northern border

The Turkish defence flagship, Otokar, signed two contracts in December to equip the Ivorian army and the gendarmerie with armoured vehicles. Both have put in orders for its Cobra II model to help with their fight against armed groups on Ivory Coast's northern border.

Uganda
Museveni cuts security spending and MPs expenses to finance oil pipeline

Several state entities in Uganda have been ordered to trim their budgets so that more funds can be allocated to national oil firm UNOC. The police and army are among those set to take a hit.

Kenya
Ruto and his cohorts plot to tear the opposition apart

The president and his entourage are banking on the rivalry between Kenya's two main opposition figures, Raila Odinga and Kalonzo Musyoka, to divide their camp and split it into radicals and moderates.

South Africa
Transparency initiative seeks to curry favour with Ramaphosa

Gwede Mantashe, South Africa's powerful minister of mines and energy, is reluctant to divulge the ownership of mining permits, one of the key principles of the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative. With Senegalese President Macky Sall's help, EITI hopes to convince Ramaphosa to attend June's global GA in Dakar and join the initiative.

Libya
Abdelhamid Dabaiba turns to public-private partnerships for infrastructure investment

To get round the lack of a state budget, which House of Representatives members are struggling to agree on, the Libyan prime minister is looking to public-private partnerships to finance the country's infrastructure projects.

Algeria
Algiers continues to curb access to new foreign banks

As has been the case for the past fifteen years, the annual list of banks approved of by Algiers does not feature any foreign newcomers. The situation, which is down to lack of political will and an uncompetitive business environment, does not look likely to change.