Africa
Will Beijing boycott Macron's Africa Summit?

Palace Intrigues
Alassane Ouattara, Ibrahim Traoré, Faustin-Archange Touadéra, Hamza Abdi Barre, François Perrodo

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

Ivory Coast Alassane Ouattara takes a break in Mougins

Burkina Faso Captain Traoré opens dialogue with neighbours

Central African Republic GainJet helps Touadéra fly

Djibouti First visit of Somali PM Hamza Abdi Barre

United Kingdom Perenco boss Perrodo's London rave party

Africa
Senegal, Benin, Kenya, Somalia

Every Wednesday, Africa Intelligence reveals the next generation of movers and shakers in business and politics.

Africa, Europe
Groupe Agir Europe-Afrique puts positive spin on African elections

The association, which is officially based in France and coordinated by the Ivorian Jean Amoikon Eba, has been observing elections across the African continent for the last decade.

Kenya
Britain's Atkins unveils plans for Nairobi train station mega-project

Atkins Global consulting firm has beaten off competitors from Korea and the Arabian Peninsula with its plans for Nairobi's giant new train station, which were unveiled last month with great fanfare.

Spotlight | Chad
Middleman Chafi comes to Qatar's rescue in the Chadian 'pre-dialogue' process in Doha

The best-connected intermediary in the Sahel, Mustapha Chafi, has been asked by Qatar to try to get the Chadian "pre-dialogue" process back on the rails, as it drags on without result to the despair of the authorities.

Africa
Heads of state get ready to attend Malabo's African Union summit

A handful of African heads of state are expected to be heavily involved in the African Union counter-terrorism summit, which Teodoro Obiang Nguema will host in Malabo from 25 to 28 May.

The New Guard
Kenya, South Africa, Congo, Guinea, Morocco

Every Wednesday, Africa Intelligence reveals the next generation of movers and shakers in business and politics.

KenyaSolomon Kuria, the link between Kenyatta and Odinga.

South AfricaNonceba Mhlauli, President Ramaphosa's youth champion

CongoSteven Moussala, Prime Minister Anatole Makosso's Franco-Congolese sherpa

GuineaMohamed Lamine Solano, Conakry's voice in Washington.

MoroccoOmar Chraibi, the man behind Voltalia's solar victory.

Senegal
Gérard Askinazi's J5 Co, low-key organiser for Macky Sall's Water Forum

Just as the 9th edition of the Water Forum ended in Dakar, the Senegalese state called on a handful of subcontractors for the occasion. Among them: the J5 Co group, headed by the French PR specialist Gérard Askinazi.

West Africa
OECD prepares to enlist banks in fight against gold fraud

Recognising that high banking fees are among the factors contributing to illegal gold trafficking, particularly in the west of the continent, the OECD plans to shortly engage in discussions with financial institutions and governments in the region.

Cape Verde, Portugal
Lisbon gives Praia another break over debt to maintain influence

In September, Lisbon froze the servicing of Cape Verde's debt to the Portuguese state. Now, at its own expense, it has extended its repayment guarantee over Praia's loans from Portuguese banks.

Africa
Several African heads of state to attend Paris Peace Forum

Over ten African heads of state will travel to France for the Paris Peace forum, due to be held 11 November.

West Africa
West Africa on lobbying spree to recover developed countries' share of IMF SDRs

With France's active support, the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU) is on a mission to obtain some of the special drawing rights (SDR) funds attributed to developed countries to offset the impact of Covid-19.

Angola
Former Iraqi general Georges Sada looks to Lourenço, Biya and Tshisekedi for oil contracts

The former Iraqi general has now turned to the oil industry and is eyeing markets in Angola, the DRC and Cameroon with the help of a local consultancy.

Spotlight | Ethiopia
Ethiopia to test new China-G20 compromise on debt

As Ethiopia's public debt weighs increasingly heavily on its public finances, the committee which will negotiate a reduction of its debt under the aegis of the Paris Club has still not been constituted. It is set to be one of the first to test the new debt treatment rules negotiated last year by China and the G20.

Mozambique, Russia
Russian miners play a part in Moscow's humanitarian diplomacy

As it struggles to establish robust cooperation with southern African countries, despite Moscow's historical ties with the region, Russia is relying heavily on the networks and finances of locally based miners.

Southern Africa
LSE Consulting negotiates for EU with Zimbabwe and Indian Ocean

The European Union is trying to rework its economic partnership with East and Southern Africa but is struggling to make a mark on the continent.

Central Africa
CEMAC leaders brood over exclusion from Paris summit

Denis Sassou NGuesso, much to the irritation of his fellow Central African heads of state, was the only one among them who managed to get himself invited to the Paris summit on the financing of African economies.

Guinea
Under IMF's watchful eye, Conakry cracks down on money-laundering

At the end of April, Prime Minister Ibrahima Kassory Fofana had to give the International Monetary Fund proof of progress in the fight against financial crime. The National Assembly passed a law on the subject the same month.

Xi Jinping invites foreign experts into closed-door meetings on China's challenges

The Chinese Communist Party is increasingly relying on small meetings with foreign participants to tackle the country's problems. It has launched a new LinkedIn recruitment campaign with the aim of building a database of foreign experts who can be called upon at short notice when needed.

Communist party's gene giant MGI sets foot in Europe

Restricted in the US, Chinese Communist Party's DNA collection rep MGI takes root in Europe.

Xi Jinping and Zelensky set to speak

Everyone is waiting to see what China will do about the war in Ukraine, but Xi Jinping and Zelensky's upcoming conversation may not give any concrete answers.