7 Nov 2023 Kinshasa (DRC) Reuters. A trucker’s strike is blocking exports of copper and cobalt mined by producers United Kingdom-headquartered Glencore Plc and China-headquartered CMOC Group Ltd.;

7 Nov 2023 Nairobi (Kenya) Reuters. Chief economic advisor to the president David Ndii says the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has agreed to increase Kenya’s lending programme by $650m;

7 Nov 2023 Kigali (Rwanda) The New Times. National carrier RwandAir announces plans to double its fleet to 25 planes in the next five years to help its international reach and serve other African markets;

7 Nov 2023 Dar es Salaam (Tanzania) The Citizen. Petroleum Upstream Regulatory Authority (Pura) management tells a media briefing that it and Mozambique’s National Institute of Petroleum (INP) are close to signing an agreement on the equal share of the natural gas reservoir in their shared border area;

7 Nov 2023 Kampala (Uganda) Reuters. Airtel Uganda announces that its initial public offering received a subscription rate of 54.5% for the USh 800m ($213m) worth of shares offered for sale. Once the listing process is completed, Airtel Uganda will become the second telecommunications company to be listed on the Ugandan Stock Exchange, following in the footsteps of MTN Uganda;

6 Nov 2023 Bujumbura (Burundi) The Standard. At least 300 Kenyan micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) confirm they will attend Burundi’s 23^rd MSME Exhibition and Trade Fair scheduled for 5 to 15 December;

6 Nov 2023 Kinshasa (DRC) Reuters. United States secretary of state Antony Blinken urges DRC’s President Félix Tshisekedi and Rwanda’s President Paul Kagame to de-escalate tensions and prevent a worsening humanitarian crisis along their shared border;

6 Nov 2023 Kigali (Rwanda) The New Times. At least 20 executives from Dubai-based businesses arrive to connect with Rwandan counterparts, with officials confirming that Dubai’s non-oil exports to Rwanda reached $143.8m in 2022 and imports from Rwanda reached $514.5m, a 33% increase from 2021;

6 Nov 2023 Dar es Salaam (Tanzania) The Citizen. Uganda and Bahrain-headquartered Vitol Bahrain choose to import oil through Dar es Salaam Port as part of efforts to promote economic relations between Tanzania and Uganda;

6 Nov 2023 Kampala (Uganda) Bloomberg. President Yoweri Museveni claims that Uganda can still achieve its development targets without United States (US) support, a week after US President Joe Biden terminated Uganda’s preferential trade status over its Anti-Homosexuality Bill 2023;

5 Nov 2023 Djibouti (Djibouti) ENA. Ethiopia’s ambassador to Djibouti, Birhanu Tsagaye, says that long-standing diplomatic relations between the two countries are continuing to strengthen in all spheres including political, economic, trade and infrastructure;

5 Nov 2023 Kinshasa (DRC) The East African. Information and communication minister Patrick Muyaya calls on the leaders of the East African Community (EAC) to cooperate and capitalise on DRC’s unique position with its rich mineral deposits to drive the green agenda in Africa;

5 Nov 2023 Dar es Salaam (Tanzania) Daily News. Permanent secretary in the transport ministry Godius Kyaharara says Tanzania is ready to serve the Central Corridor countries (Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Malawi, Zambia, Zimbabwe, South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo) through the Kwala Dry Port, noting that each of these countries has already been allocated areas for storing transit cargo;

4 Nov 2023 Asmara (Eritrea) AFP. United States secretary of state Anthony Blinken calls on Eritrean soldiers to withdraw from Ethiopia to help the peace agreement between the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) and the Ethiopian government progress further;

3 Nov 2023 Dar es Salaam (Tanzania) IMF. International Monetary Fund (IMF) announces it has reached a staff-level agreement with authorities on its second review of Tanzania’s Extended Credit Facility (ECF), allowing Tanzania to access approximately $150m from its $452.7m programme;

2 Nov 2023 Addis Ababa (Ethiopia) Fitch. United States-headquartered credit rating agency Fitch downgrades Ethiopia’s Long-Term Foreign-Currency (LTFC) Issuer Default Rating (IDR) to ‘CC’ from ‘CCC-‘ and affirms the Long-Term Local-Currency IDR (LTLC) at ‘CCC-‘, citing an increased likelihood of default;

2 Nov 2023 Kigali (Rwanda) The Independent. President Paul Kagame announces visa-free travel for African citizens, making Rwanda the fourth African country to make this move;

2 Nov 2023 Kigali (Rwanda) Region Week. Rwanda hosts the 23^rd World Summit of the World Travel and Tourism Council attended by leaders including Tanzania’s President Samia Suluhu Hassan, Togo’s President Faure Gnassingbé and Burundi’s vice president Prosper Bazombanza;

2 Nov 2023 Dar es Salaam (Tanzania) Daily News. National Assembly unanimously endorses the government bill that aims to attain universal health coverage (UHC), proposing six measures to help 15.8 million Tanzanians access UHC with funding drawn from service levies on products such as carbonated drinks, liquor, betting, cosmetic products and motor vehicle insurance;

2 Nov 2023 Dar es Salaam (Tanzania) The Citizen. East African Community Competition Authority (EACCA) and Tanzania’s Fair Competition Commission (FCC) sign a memorandum of understanding (MoU) aimed at boosting trade by establishing a working group which will implement prioritised activities;

2 Nov 2023 Dar es Salaam (Tanzania) The Africa Report. Minerals ministry reports that it will end exports of unrefined lithium in May 2024 and require miners to add value of at least 5% for export licences to be granted;

2 Nov 2023 Kampala (Uganda) Times Live. Special presidential advisor Odrek Rwabwogo criticises the United States for removing Uganda and other African countries from its African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) trade programme;