LILONGWE (Reuters) &#8211; Malawi&#8217;s finance minister hopes the International Monetary Fund&#8217;s approval of a $26.9 million loan could lead to more global lenders unlocking budget support that was suspended three years ago over graft allegations.
The IMF said on Wednesday Malwai’s economy was on the right track after the fund completed its ninth and final review of the country&#8217;s economic performance under a program supported by an extended credit facility (ECF), allowing the global lender to make the loan.
<blockquote>&#8220;This is a very positive development because it signals that we are on the right track with our economic agenda and will help push for the much needed return of budget support,&#8221; Finance Minister Goodall Gondwe told Reuters on Thursday.</blockquote>
The loan brings total disbursements under the ECF arrangement, signed in 2012, to about $191.4 million.
&#8220;Strengthening public financial management, including through strong commitment controls, routine bank reconciliations, and regular fiscal reporting, remains critical to preventing the misappropriation of public funds and rebuilding trust and confidence in the budget process,&#8221; the IMF said in a statement.
Foreign aid has historically accounted for about 40 percent of the national budget.
Western donors led by former colonial ruler Britain froze budget support over a corruption scandal in which public servants siphoned millions of dollars from the public purse.
The World Bank resumed its budget aid to Malawi last month.
(Reporting by Mabvuto Banda; Editing by Olivia Kumwenda-Mtambo, Larry King)

Malawi sees IMF loan approval as signal of donor confidence

JOHANNESBURG
The South African parliament will launch a court challenge against an anti-graft watchdog&#8217;s recommendation of constitutional changes to alter the mandate of the central bank, it said.
The legislative assembly joined the central bank and lender Barclays Africa in seeking a court review of Public Protector Busi Mkhwebane&#8217;s proposal to change the central bank&#8217;s primary mandate of maintaining currency and price stability to focus on economic growth.
&#8220;Parliament believes that the remedial action (mandate change), which is binding in terms of the law, usurps the powers of the institution under the Constitution,&#8221; it said in a statement posted on its website.
&#8220;Parliament will accordingly initiate a court application to have this remedial action set aside on the basis of its unconstitutionality.&#8221;
Mkhwebane made her proposal to a Pretoria news conference on Monday where she delivered her findings on an apartheid-era bailout of Barclays Africa Group. The lender has denied any wrongdoing.
Her call threatens to further stain South Africa&#8217;s image as an investor-friendly emerging market, coming less than a week after mines minister Mosebenzi spooked investors by raising the minimum threshold for black ownership of mining companies to 30 percent from 26 percent.
The independence row over the South African Reserve Bank has also highlighted divisions within the tripartite alliance of the ruling African National Congress, the country&#8217;s biggest union, Cosatu, and the South African Communist Party.
Both the ANC and the communist party are opposed to constitutional changes aimed at altering the role of the central bank while Cosatu backed calls for amendments.
(Reporting by Tiisetso Motsoeneng)
&nbsp;

South African parliament opposes calls to change central bank mandate

Andrei Khalip
LISBON (Reuters) &#8211; A Portuguese judge has ruled that corruption and money laundering charges brought by prosecutors against Angolan Vice President Manuel Vicente were valid and all suspects in the case, which has angered Angolan authorities, should stand trial.
The former Portuguese colony, where corruption is endemic and most people live in poverty despite its vast oil wealth, has branded the charges as &#8220;a serious attack&#8221; that threatens relations between the two countries.
State-run media called the investigation &#8220;revenge by the former colonial master&#8221; and &#8220;neo-colonialism&#8221;.
An official at the Lisbon Criminal Court told Reuters Wednesday&#8217;s decision by Judge Ana Cristina Carvalho was valid for all the formal suspects in the case, including Vicente. The dates for court hearings will be set at a later phase, he said.
Vicente, who was once seen as a possible successor to President Jose Eduardo dos Santos, is accused of bribing a magistrate when he was chief executive of state oil company Sonangol.
Dos Santos plans to retire after 38 years in power after an Aug. 23 election. No one knows how wealthy he is but his daughter Isabel, who runs Sonangol and has business interests in Portugal, is worth $3.2 billion, according to Forbes.
According to Portugal&#8217;s state news agency Lusa, Vicente&#8217;s Portuguese lawyer, Rui Patricio, contends that Vicente has not been notified of the accusations against him, so the judge&#8217;s decision has no effect on him as he does not fit the status of &#8220;arguido&#8221;, or a formal suspect.
Patricio did not respond to calls and emails from Reuters, and court officials would not comment on his statement.
&#8220;Arguido&#8221; is a status in the Portuguese legal system that means a suspect can be questioned in an investigation if he is presented with evidence held against him, while being granted a wider array of rights than, for instance, a witness.
Prosecutors said in April Vicente had refused to come to Portugal to be questioned and Angolan authorities were not cooperating. But Vicente&#8217;s lawyer denied his refusal to attend.
Former Portuguese prosecutor, Orlando Figueira, who was arrested in early 2016, will go on trial on charges of receiving a bribe of 760,000 euros ($850,000) to suspend an inquiry into Vicente&#8217;s dealings in Portugal before he became vice president.
Two of Vicente&#8217;s legal and financial representatives, Paulo Blanco and Armindo Pires, both Portuguese, were also charged with corruption and money laundering for allegedly paying the bribe jointly with Vicente.
According to local media, the investigation that was suspended in January 2012 focused on the origin of funds with which Vicente had bought a luxury apartment in Lisbon.
Angola ranked 164th of 170 countries in Transparency International&#8217;s Corruption Perceptions index last year.
(Reporting by Andrei Khalip; Editing by Louise Ireland)

Portuguese judge rules Angola’s vice president must stand trial for corruption

What kind of financial system is sure to collapse if the central bank cares about people’s well-being?
The <a href="http://www.pprotect.org/library/investigation_report/2016-17/Report%208%20of%202017&amp;2018%20Public%20Protector%20South%20Africa.pdf">recommendation</a> by South Africa’s Public Protector that the Reserve Bank’s mandate change, says much about Busisiwe Mkhwebane, none of it flattering. It says just as much about mainstream economic debate &#8211; and none of that is flattering either.
Mkhwebane recommended that the central bank’s constitutional mandate, which makes protecting the currency its primary goal, be changed to one which requires it to “promote balanced and sustainable economic growth while ensuring that the socio-economic well-being of the citizens are protected”. She also said the constitution should require the bank “to achieve meaningful socio-economic transformation”.
This triggered a wave of protests, as well as an announcement from the <a href="https://www.resbank.co.za/Lists/News%20and%20Publications/Attachments/7852/PRESS%20RELEASE%20FOR%20SARB%20.pdf">South African Reserve Bank</a> that it would take the matter to court. The <a href="https://probonomatters.co.za/south-african-reserve-bank-says-public-protector-is-overreaching/">Reserve Bank</a> had no option. The constitutional court has ruled that the Public Protector’s findings are binding unless they are challenged in court. Her recommendation wildly exceeded what she is allowed to do by the constitution – or democratic good sense &#8211; and the Reserve Bank could not allow it to stand.
Democratic constitutions are changed by large majorities of the people or their elected representatives – not by individuals. By making a binding recommendation that the constitution be changed, Mkhwebane signalled that she either doesn’t understand – or does not care – for democracy.
Her report is also very useful to a faction of the governing party which wants to <a href="https://theconversation.com/pursuing-a-30-year-old-bailout-is-sending-south-africa-on-a-wild-goose-chase-79792">deflect charges of state capture</a> by claiming that white monopoly capital already controls the state. There are real questions about the fitness for office of a Public Protector whose report seems more interested in protecting connected politicians and business people than with taking the people’s will seriously.
But the reaction did not stop at insisting that Mkhwebane has no business telling the people what the constitution should say. Much of it objected not only to her saying what the Reserve Bank’s mandate should be, but to anyone at all doing that.
<h2>An important debate</h2>
The prize for the wildest reaction went to the commentator who declared that Mkhwebane’s ideas on the Bank’s mandate were <a href="https://mg.co.za/article/2017-06-21-the-holocaust-denier-the-public-protector-and-the-reserve-bank">inspired</a> by someone who denied that the Nazi genocide happened. Others stopped short of tarring constitutional change with the same brush as mass murder but were united in claiming that to suggest that the Reserve Bank’s mandate be broadened is “<a href="https://www.timeslive.co.za/ideas/2017-06-21-public-protectors-bizarre-instruction-harms-our-wellbeing/">economically illiterate</a>” and deeply damaging.
Absa, who was the subject of a separate finding by the public protector on the issue of a <a href="https://probonomatters.co.za/the-public-protector-in-her-own-words-on-the-bankorpabsa-matter/">controversial bailout</a>, asked a court to rule that her proposed change posed a “<a href="https://www.timeslive.co.za/sunday-times/business/2017-06-21-in-full-absa-goes-to-court-over-public-protector-report/">serious risk to the financial system</a>”. For its part the rating agency Standard &amp; Poor’s, happy as ever to police the boundaries of economic correctness, warned that any interference with the Reserve Bank’s independence could trigger new downgrades.
To insist that anyone who proposes changing the Reserve Bank’s mandate is economically damaging and stupid is as contemptuous of democracy and dangerous to the economy as Mkhwebane’s excess. It is undemocratic because it seeks to close down policy debate by declaring that only one view of the Reserve Bank’s mandate can ensure a healthy economy. It is dangerous because it blocks the search for economic remedies by seeking to bully even those who propose only mild changes to what the country now has.
The idea that the Reserve Bank should have a broader mandate is neither radical nor dangerous. The most famous central bank, the <a href="https://www.federalreserve.gov/aboutthefed/structure-federal-reserve-system.htm">US Federal Reserve</a>, has a broader mandate. Its dual mandate requires it to seek maximum employment as well as price stability.
The <a href="http://www.rba.gov.au/monetary-policy/">Australian</a> equivalent’s mandate includes “maintenance of full employment and economic prosperity and welfare of the people”. <a href="https://www.ecb.europa.eu/ecb/html/index.en.html">The European Central Bank</a>, famed for its love of austerity, has a mandate to seek “sustainable growth”.
And the <a href="http://www.bankofengland.co.uk/Pages/home.aspx">the Bank of England’s</a> website says that, subject to its goal of price stability, it aims to support the government’s economic objectives.
In South Africa, not only has the view that the central bank’s mandate is too restrictive been repeated periodically but it may well have been implemented for a while. In 2010, then finance minister Pravin Gordhan <a href="https://www.moneyweb.co.za/archive/pravins-letter-to-gill-marcus/">wrote</a> to then Reserve Bank governor, Gill Marcus, proposing a mandate which included growth and employment. Marcus <a href="http://m.fin24.com/fin24/Economy/Inflation-debate-not-over-20100219">reacted positively</a>, which suggests that the bank acted on Gordhan’s letter. The financial system survived.
The US, European and Australian financial systems have also not collapsed. Their mandates have not triggered a downgrade and no one has accused these societies of economic illiteracy.
So either double standards are being applied or we are being told that restrictive central bank mandates are essential only if countries are in particular parts of the world (such as Africa) and governed by particular types of people (Africans).
And why does a change in the Bank’s mandate undermine its independence? A central bank loses its independence if politicians (or anyone else) can tell it what to do, not if its mandate changes.
For all its flaws, the Public Protector’s proposal would retain the Reserve Bank’s independence, leaving it to the bank to decide what promotes the “well-being” of the people or “transformation”.
<h2>Closing down debate is common</h2>
None of this means that the Reserve Bank’s mandate must change. Or that central bank independence must go. But it does mean that no one should be discouraged from debating the issue, as people routinely do in other democracies and market economies. What, besides that prejudice which we prettify by the term <a href="http://www.encyclopedia.com/history/dictionaries-thesauruses-pictures-and-press-releases/afropessimism">Afropessimism</a>, explains the insistence that we may not debate what is freely discussed in most other places?
Closing down debate in this way is common in South Africa. It also lies behind complaints of policy uncertainty which does not mean, as it does elsewhere, that government keeps changing its mind and sending mixed messages – the macro-economic framework has been stable for more than two decades. It means, rather, that some people – who some others may take seriously – raise policy ideas the economic mainstream does not like.
This demand that people can say anything they like about economic policy as long as the mainstream likes it too offers a misleading view of the economy. It says that there is nothing wrong with it except political interference and that it will flourish if politicians simply leave alone what is done now.
The <a href="https://theconversation.com/business-needs-to-change-and-stop-blaming-others-for-south-africas-ills-64942">contrary evidence</a> is offered by mainstream organisations such as the International Monetary Fund and the South African Reserve Bank itself which have shown that the current economic rut is a product of problems in the private economy as well as what government does.
This means that the economy must change. This, in turn, requires new ideas. They will not emerge unless everything is up for debate and ideas are not silenced because they trigger the fears and prejudices of a few.

Op-Ed: South Africa’s central bank row points to dangerous levels of intolerance

The European Union has offered 85 million euros ($94.89 million) to help fund relief operations for hundreds of thousands of refugees flowing into Uganda from neighboring South Sudan, it said in a statement on Thursday.
The announcement came ahead of meeting in Uganda&#8217;s capital Kampala on Friday aimed at raising some $2 billion to plug funding shortages for the east African country&#8217;s surging refugee population. The money would fund operations for 12 months from June.
Uganda is hosting about 1.3 million refugees, of which an estimated 950,000 have arrived from South Sudan, displaced by the country&#8217;s escalating civil war.
&#8220;Many refugees have fled conflict in South Sudan, seeking sanctuary from violence, hatred and hunger. Uganda&#8217;s example of helping vulnerable people cope with displacement is an example for the whole region and the world,&#8221; Christ Stylishness, the EU&#8217;s commissioner for humanitarian aid and crisis management, said in a statement.
Fighting broke out in Africa&#8217;s youngest nation in December 2013 between forces allied to President Salvia Kirin and his then deputy, Riel Mach.
A peace deal in 2015 briefly halted the conflict, but lingering rivalry exploded into deadly warfare again in July last year.
The ensuing fighting and violence, which has often taken place along ethnic lines, has uprooted about a quarter of the country&#8217;s population, with both government troops and rebels accused of committing crimes including rape, killings and pillage.
Relief resources have become scarcer as Uganda has struggled to cope with the overwhelming numbers of South Sudanese refugees, forcing the U.N. food agency AFP to cut food rations.
Friday&#8217;s summit is jointly organized by the U.N. and Uganda and will be attended by U.N. Secretary General Antonio Gutters.
(Reporting by Elias Biryabarema; Editing by George Obulutsa and Toby Davis)

EU offers 85 million euros to help fund Uganda’s refugee response

LAGOS (Reuters) &#8211; Etisalat Nigeria had already repaid $500 million of $1.2 billion in loans owed to banks before it defaulted in February due to a currency devaluation, a senior executive told Reuters on Thursday.
Talks between Etisalat Nigeria and lenders to restructure the $1.2 billion loan agreed in 2013 have failed to produce a deal, forcing the banks to step in this month.
Ibrahim Dikko, vice president for regulatory affairs, said the company currently owed lenders $575 million and talks with lenders were ongoing.
The total amount of debt outstanding were $227 million and 113 billion naira ($358.73 mln), he told Reuters in a phone interview.
The loan agreed with 13 local banks in 2013 was a seven-year facility to refinance a $650 million loan and fund expansion of its network. Etisalat Nigeria missed payments in February after sharp falls in the value of the Nigerian naira bloated the loan value, making repayments difficult.
($1 = 315.00 naira)
(Editing by Susan Fenton)
&nbsp;

Etisalat Nigeria repaid nearly half of loan amount before default

South Africa&#8217;s top court, in a potential blow to President Jacob Zuma, ruled on Thursday that secret ballots may be held for motions of no confidence in parliament, but stopped short of ordering one.
A secret ballot is seen by Zuma&#8217;s critics as emboldening lawmakers from his own party to support his ouster by shielding them from pressure.
Chief Justice Mogoeng Mogoeng said in effect that whether a secret ballot actually takes places is up to the Speaker of parliament.
Zuma, who will be in parliament later on Thursday, has survived four no-confidence votes during his eight years in power thanks to loyal voting by African National Congress (ANC) lawmakers, who form a strong parliamentary majority.
But opposition parties believe a recent cabinet reshuffle that led to the dismissal of respected finance minister Pravin Gordhan and a slew of credit rating downgrades have angered ANC MPs sufficiently to desert Zuma.
Speaker Baleka Mbete, a top ANC official, had said parliamentary rules did not allow for a secret ballot but the court disagreed.
In handing down a unanimous ruling by the full bench, Mogoeng said a vote in parliament should not be &#8220;a fear or money-inspired sham&#8221; and the Speaker should consider the interests of the country, rather than party, when deciding the nature of the vote.
&#8220;Crass dishonesty in the form of bribe-taking or other illegitimate methods of gaining undeserved majorities must not be discounted from the Speaker&#8217;s decision process,&#8221; he said. &#8220;When that happens in a motion of no-confidence, the outcome could betray the people&#8217;s interests.&#8221;
In a statement, the Speaker noted the court&#8217;s ruling that it was up to her.
&#8220;The Court has ruled that the Speaker of the National Assembly has the Constitutional power to determine if motions of no confidence should be conducted by way of a secret ballot or not,&#8221; her office said in a statement.
After the ruling, the rand pared its gains to 0.5 percent against the dollar from 1 percent earlier. The currency had firmed on hopes Mogoeng would order, rather than simply permit, a secret vote.
The ANC &#8212; once all-powerful as heir of South Africa&#8217;s anti-apartheid struggle &#8212; has lost popularity under Zuma, underscored by its worst electoral showing in over two decades of power in local elections last year.
One ANC lawmaker, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that in a secret ballot they would vote for Zuma&#8217;s removal. &#8220;I would vote for him to go. He is ruining the country,&#8221; the legislator told Reuters.
Zuma&#8217;s administration has been best by scandals and criticized for failing to address serious economic problems.
South Africa has sunk into recession and had its credit rating downgraded to junk by two of the top three credit rating agencies. Unemployment is at a 14-year high of 27.7 percent.
SECRET BALLOT?
The main opposition Democratic Alliance party said Mbete now would have little choice but to call for a secret ballot.
&#8220;I think it&#8217;s a great day for democracy for South Africa. I think the speaker will be very hard pressed indeed to deny a secret ballot in this particular case,&#8221; said the party&#8217;s Federal Executive Chairperson James Selfe.
The ANC rallied behind Zuma, saying it will vote against the motion to remove the 75-year old leader. A successful vote of no-confidence would trigger the collapse of Zuma&#8217;s government.
&#8220;We have unqualified and unequivocal confidence in the ANC caucus not to vote in support of a motion to remove the president,&#8221; ANC&#8217;s parliamentary chief whip Jackson Mthembu said.
Zuma has suffered a string of judicial setbacks, but has held on to power with the backing of his party.
Zuma last month defeated mounting pressure against him within the ANC, surviving a no-confidence motion against him by several officials at a meeting of top members within the party.
Analysts said that there was no way the Speaker could be forced to call for a secret ballot vote against Zuma.
(Additional reporting by Wendell Roelf in Cape Town and Ed Cropley in Johannesburg; Writing by James Macharia; Editing by Jeremy Gaunt)

Zuma no-confidence vote can be secret, up to South Africa’s parliament

The issue of extreme income inequality in South Africa remains unresolved. Persistent high rates of income inequality impact negatively on political inclusion, social cohesion, and crime. Using the US CIA&#8217;s most recent GINI index estimates of income inequality, South Africa is ranked second worst behind Lesotho. 
Countries with a GINI index closer to zero, like Sweden (0.25) and Germany (0.27), have a more equal distribution of family income than countries like South Africa (0.63) and Haiti (0.61). The GINI index paints only a partial picture because a low score does not always indicate a healthy economic situation. The GINI index for Pakistan, for example, is 0.3 but most Pakistanis have much lower incomes and less economic mobility than South Africans.
Is it possible to achieve wealth, high economic mobility, and income equality within a society? In a functioning market, financial profits or losses signal to firms and people, whether their goods and services are in demand. Consequently, for this signalling to work in an unhampered market, income cannot be distributed evenly. But, if people and firms are equipped with the skills and knowledge to consistently adapt to new markets, better levels of equality can still be achieved.
<h3>Wealth generation</h3>
In the modern world, income and wealth generation are based more and more on knowledge and information. The need for workers to acquire a range of skills and to continuously adapt these skills underlies the learning economy. Productivity is driven by tapping into new ideas, innovations and technologies on a global scale. A process that relies heavily on ICT.
South Africa ranks 88 out of 175 countries on the International Telecommunication Union&#8217;s ICT Development Index, despite having high rates of mobile phone penetration and high secondary school enrolment. Ranked first on the Index is South Korea, a remarkable achievement for a country that was one of the poorest in the world 50 years ago.
Few countries have embraced the knowledge economy as much as resource poor South Korea. The country&#8217;s 15-year-olds are consistently ranked highly in reading literacy, maths and science scores in PISA tests. The working population is highly educated and unemployment is low. The country scores 0.3 on the CIA&#8217;s GINI index despite having the second lowest public social spending (10.4% of GDP) amongst the OECD countries.
A strong emphasis on the importance of education, secure property rights, an independent and efficient judicial system, a competitive private banking system, and an excellent ICT sector have helped South Koreans to prosper. The country has moved from rags to riches at an astonishing pace. Intergenerational income mobility is high, and South Koreans are wealthier than South Africans when comparing every income group, from the poorest to the billionaires.
<h3>Distribution of income</h3>
Policy makers can attempt to distribute more income from the abundantly rich to the poor to lower inequality, but this cannot be done on a global scale, and it is a strategy that views the size of the &#8216;wealth pie&#8217; as being limited. Economics is not a zero-sum game. In a resource-based economy, your potential wealth is restricted by finite resources. In a knowledge-based economy, your potential wealth is unrestricted.
Raising taxes on high income earners or creating capital movement controls will often have the opposite of desired effects. In today&#8217;s connected world, skills and businesses are mobile and wish to operate in an unrestricted business environment. Many South African entrepreneurs are choosing to move to other countries because it is difficult to take businesses beyond the incubation phase into a global market.
Mark Shuttleworth, another local tech entrepreneur who now lives in the Isle of Man, believes that exchange controls prevent small South African businesses from building global operations. South African tech entrepreneur Vinny Lingham, who now lives in California, believes that a lack of competition and Telkom are stifling the ICT industry.
<h3>Remove the glass ceiling</h3>
South Africa needs to raise and, ultimately, remove the glass ceiling that bureaucracy has placed on entrepreneurship and our information society. Capital movement controls should be lifted and a more competitive ICT industry established. The ability to move capital freely will also attract foreign investment. South Africa should fully privatise the telecommunications sector and relax regulations and the ‘spectrum bottleneck’ preventing expansion and new entrants.
Less bureaucracy, and a strong focus on ICT and education will help South Africa to embrace the information age and create new wealth opportunities for everyone. Better equality can be achieved without discouraging businesses and entrepreneurs. Taxes that redistribute income are difficult to implement fairly, administratively intensive, expensive, and open to corruption. We should focus more on implementing policies that uplift the poor, rather than trying to tackle inequality with taxes. If there is not enough pie for everyone, make more pie.
Luke Muller is an independent economist.

Op-Ed: Tackling inequality in the information age

The African Innovation Foundation (AIF) has announced its innovator shortlist for its grand prize of USD $100,000, due to be awarded in Ghana mid-July. Nnamdi Oranye takes a look at the innovators on the list.
Every year the African Innovation Foundation (AIF) runs its Innovation Prize for Africa (IPA), which recognises individuals for their contribution to innovation in Africa. Its goal is to strengthen African innovation ecosystems, something I write a lot about, through supporting a culture of innovation and competitiveness. It encourages Africans to look at African solutions to African problems, which is what true innovation looks like.
This year, it has selected ten innovators from nine African countries to be shortlisted from the prize – Democratic Republic of Congo, Egypt, Kenya, Liberia, Morocco, Nigeria, South Africa, Uganda and Zimbabwe.
“This year’s innovators have demonstrated incredible proficiency through innovative solutions addressing challenges in agriculture value chain, health care, energy, communications, service industries as well as surveillance using drone technology,” it says. The judges will include corporates, academia, technology and scientific experts representing top African innovation influencers. The prize will be awarded in Accra, Ghana on 18th July 2017.
In my view, we don’t speak enough about our innovators and our innovations, and seem to give overseas innovations more credit than our own. We love to speak about Google and Uber and Facebook, and so we should, but we don’t offset this with what’s going on in our own back yard. It’s important for us to do this, otherwise our innovation history is going to be written by others. It’s also important for us to do this properly, looking to engage and inspire young people to innovate.
Therefore, in the spirit of giving our innovators the spotlight, I want to highlight the ten innovators shortlisted for the IPA prize. Here they are:
<h3>Innovations in communications and smart solutions </h3>
<ol>
<li> Peris Bosire, Kenya: FarmDrive</li>
</ol>
FarmDrive is a financial technology company that has developed a mobile phone based application that collects data and provides an alternative risk assessment model for small holder farmers. While the continent remains largely dependent on agriculture, one of the biggest challenges facing smallholder farmers is access to credit or finance. FarmDrive assesses credit worthiness of farmers and has seen a higher acceptance rate of loan applications by its farmers while maintaining a very low default rate.
<ol start="2">
<li> Nokwethu Khojane, South Africa: Lakheni, Turning Social Capital into Buying Power</li>
</ol>
Poor people often end up paying for goods and services at a unit price higher than that paid by those with more disposable income because these goods and services are packaged into smaller units to make them affordable. This means they become less economically efficient and end up costing higher than if one was to buy in bulk or in larger units. This is often known as the ‘poverty premium’. Lakheni, however, solves this problem by aggregating poor households into buying-groups in order to negotiate favourable discounts for goods and services.
<ol start="3">
<li> Omolabake Adenle, Nigeria: Voice Recognition and Speech Synthesis Software for African Languages</li>
</ol>
Voice recognition software has come a long way, but it’s still way behind in understanding and digitising African languages. However, this software does just that – allowing Africans of all literacy levels to interact with hardware devices such as mobile phones and digital services such as call-center applications by speaking their local language. The software can be integrated into a wide range of devices and third-party software applications.
<ol start="4">
<li> Nzola Swasisa, Democratic Republic of Congo: Lokole</li>
</ol>
Lokole is a device that enables access to email anywhere with cellular coverage at a price that is one hundred to one thousand times cheaper than accessing email via regular cellular bandwidth costs. Lokole achieves this firstly by creating a shareable local area network where up to a hundred users within a 25 meters’ radius can access the network and share the costs. Secondly, it contains advanced algorithms that compress email and also schedules uploads and downloads of data to when data bundles costs are at their cheapest. This means that costs per user could be as little as $0.01/person/day.
<h3>Leveraging artificial intelligence and mechanical solutions </h3>
<ol start="5">
<li> Badr Idriss, Morocco: Atlan Space</li>
</ol>
African governments face numerous challenges in monitoring activities and operation over wide areas. This includes border patrols, deforestation, animal poaching and maritime activity. Atlan Space develops software technology that manages the operations of drones that helps to solve this problem at a very cost effective price without a need for highly skilled human intervention.
<ol start="6">
<li> Aly El-Shafei, Egypt: Smart Electro-Mechanical Actuator Journal Integrated Bearing “SEMAJIB”</li>
</ol>
SEMAJIB is a smart bearing that can change its characteristics as it operates.  It consists of a magnetic bearing imbedded in an oil-filled journal bearing, thus forming the smart controllable bearing. The flooding of the bearing with oil is a game changer as the purpose of bearings has traditionally been to expel oil.  There is a significant improvement in turbine performance using the SEMAJIB particularly in single line combined cycle plants, as well as conventional generator technology.  The device is designed to be used to support energy generating turbines and can be used to improve efficiency and reduce costs of generating energy in Africa.
<h3>Discoveries in healthcare solutions</h3>
<ol start="7">
<li> Dougbeh-Chris Nyan, Liberia: New Technology for Rapid Detection of Many Infections Using Only One Test</li>
</ol>
These sorts of innovations excite me. Doughbeh-Chris Nyan has created a device which can detect and distinguish multiple infections which bear the same symptoms, for example yellow fever, malaria, or Ebola. Most testing methods take 3 – 7 days, but this device gives test results in 10 – 40 minutes. It can be used in any setting and therefore works well for rural areas. This provides a significant step in the detection and management of infectious diseases on the continent.
<ol start="8">
<li> Olanisun Olufemi Adewole, Nigeria: Sweat TB Test, A non-invasive rapid skin test to detect Tuberculosis</li>
</ol>
TB is the second leading cause of death in Africa. Available methods to test the disease can’t be used in rural areas and are quite hi-tech, requiring certain skills. Patients have to visit the clinic several times before a diagnosis is made. However, the Sweat TB Test leverages is able to provide a diagnosis within ten minutes. It has the potential to contribute towards effectively controlling TB, reduce TB related deaths, and also holds promise to prevent drug resistance to TB in Africa.
<ol start="9">
<li> Gift Gana, Zimbabwe: Dr. CADx</li>
</ol>
Dr CADx is a software solution that helps doctors and health care workers diagnose medical images more accurately. Due to the scarcity of radiologists on the continent, most medical images are read by general doctors or other health care workers who lack expertise and end up misdiagnosing more than 30 percent of the cases that they review. As a result, millions of patients fail to get the right treatment or the treatment is delayed leading to more complications and even death. Dr CADx uses deep learning to interpret medical images and achieve an accuracy of 82 percent over the 70 percent average for radiologists. Dr CADx is designed to work in low resource settings with poor internet connectivity opening it up for use in many rural settings in Africa.
<ol start="10">
<li> Philippa Ngaju Makobore, Uganda: Electronically Controlled Gravity Feed Infusion Set (ECGF)</li>
</ol>
The Electronically Controlled Gravity Feed Infusion Set (ECGF) is medical device designed to accurately administer intravenous (IV) fluids and drugs by controlling the rate of fluid flow. Over 10 percent of children admitted to East African hospitals need immediate infusion therapy.  If this is not done right, it can have severe adverse effects or result in death. The ECGF, however, solves this problem as it is very easy to operate and has key safety features. It works off a battery than can be charged via solar power or other means.
The grand prize winner of the IPA will get to take home US$100 000. In addition to cash prizes for the runner-up and third place, there will also be investment opportunities, training, and access to AIF’s innovation network, media coverage and PR support.

Ten fantastic African innovators shortlisted for IPA 2017 grand prize

<div id="article-byline"> <a href="http://www.reuters.com/journalists/david-ingram">David Ingram</a> | SAN FRANCISCO</div>
Twitter Inc (<a href="http://www.reuters.com/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=TWTR.N">TWTR.N</a>) plans on Wednesday to launch a system for people to earn money by streaming live on its Periscope service, a first for Twitter and a way for the company to try to compete with YouTube and others in the search for internet talent.
People watching Periscope will be able to send performers and broadcasters they like a gratuity using a variety of heart shapes that are, in effect, a virtual currency they can purchase, the company said.
Broadcasters who receive the equivalent of about $175 in &#8220;super hearts&#8221; will be designated &#8220;super broadcasters&#8221; and be able to cash out the money as earnings, the company said.
At first only broadcasters in the United States will be eligible, but Periscope plans to expand to other countries soon, it said.
<blockquote>&#8220;The spirit and the goal is for all broadcasters to be able to do this,&#8221; said Sara Haider, Periscope&#8217;s director of engineering.</blockquote>
After fees and payment processing, broadcasters will get about 70 percent of the remaining revenue, Twitter said. It declined to provide an estimate of its own potential revenue from the service.
Periscope, which Twitter launched in 2015, said it streamed 77 million hours of live, user-generated video in the first three months of this year. It does not release the number of viewers.
YouTube, a unit of Alphabet Inc (<a href="http://www.reuters.com/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=GOOGL.O">GOOGL.O</a>), said in February it was rolling out live streaming from mobile devices for users with more than 10,000 subscribers, expanding its own bid to help online performers make money.
(Reporting by David Ingram; Editing by Christian Schmollinger)

Twitter to let streaming video stars collect money from fans

<div id="article-byline"> <a href="http://www.reuters.com/journalists/paola-totaro">Paola Totaro</a></div>
LONDON (Thomson Reuters Foundation) &#8211; A series of brutal, government-ordered evictions that left more than 30,000 Nigerians homeless were deemed &#8220;unconstitutional&#8221; in a landmark decision by the Lagos High Court on Wednesday, activists said.
The judge ordered a stop to future evictions in a move that could prevent an estimated 270,000 other residents of Lagos from losing their prime waterfront homes to development.
The court case against the government &#8211; launched by the Lagos-based human rights organization Justice and Empowerment Initiative (JEI) &#8211; was run on behalf of dozens of waterfront communities throughout Lagos state.
<blockquote>&#8220;People were dancing in the streets afterward. The judge began reading his lengthy ruling at about 11:30 a.m. and finished around midday,&#8221; Megan Chapman, JEI co-executive director, told the Thomson Reuters Foundation by telephone.</blockquote>
Justice Adeniyi Onigbanjo ruled that the rights of the residents had been violated and ordered that the state government stop further evictions and discuss re-settlement.
The government had no immediate comment on the ruling.
Campaigners hailed the ruling as a vindication for poorer residents, whose prime land in Nigeria&#8217;s biggest city, Lagos, is cleared to make way for luxury flats.
&#8220;It is a great victory,&#8221; said Chapman. &#8220;It issues an injunction against the government carrying out any further evictions. They must also consult and arrange for re-settlement if they are to continue with any further eviction.&#8221;
One man was shot dead and another wounded when the Lagos state police launched the fourth wave of forced removals from the Otodo Gbame waterfront communities in April.
The Lagos state government announced its intention to demolish all waterfront slums last October, saying it was for &#8220;public safety&#8221;.
A month later, bulldozers accompanied by police escorts arrived after midnight and set fire to a first community, forcing residents to flee into their canoes and leaving an estimated 30,000 without shelter.
Chapman said most had moved in with friends or relatives, although many were still living in their canoes.
&#8220;For most, conditions are terrible: if they are lucky they are staying in the homes of relatives or friends, with 10 or 15 additional people in a single, family home.&#8221; she said.
(Reporting by Paola Totaro, Editing by Lyndsay Griffiths; Please credit the Thomson Reuters Foundation, the charitable arm of Thomson Reuters, that covers humanitarian news, women&#8217;s rights, trafficking, property rights and climate change. Visit news.trust.org)

Nigerian court rules against mass eviction in Lagos: activists

<div class="storify"><iframe loading="lazy" src="//storify.com/cnbcafrica/secret-ballot-judgment/embed?border=false" width="100%" height="750" frameborder="no"></iframe><script src="//storify.com/cnbcafrica/secret-ballot-judgment.js?border=false"></script><noscript>[<a href="//storify.com/cnbcafrica/secret-ballot-judgment" target="_blank">View the story &#8220;LIVE: Secret Ballot judgment &#8221; on Storify</a>]</noscript></div>

LIVE: Secret Ballot judgment

Olivia Kumwenda-Mtambo and Sujata Rao
A row over central bank independence could worsen South Africa&#8217;s bond sell-off after foreign investors last week dumped the biggest amount of the country&#8217;s securities in nearly five months over new ownership rules for mining companies.
Any erosion of central bank independence is likely to spook investors even more.
Foreigners were net sellers of local bonds last week, dumping 2.2 billion rand ($169 million) worth of debt, the biggest weekly sell-off since early February, Johannesburg Stock Exchange data showed.
Offshore investors then sold 1.1 billion rand in bonds on Monday, after the idea of changing the central bank&#8217;s mandate was floated, buying back 1.5 billion rand worth on Tuesday when the Reserve Bank said it would fight the proposal in court.
South African pension funds have already cut their holdings in local government bonds to the lowest level in nearly 4-1/2 years because of political turbulence in the country.
But yield-hungry foreign investors &#8212; who are the largest holders of South African government bonds &#8212; have been more resilient so far.
<div class="teads-inread"> This is partly because South Africa is in the Citi WGBI index, followed by many funds, and local debt is rated investment grade by two major agencies. If it lost that rating over central bank independence, up to $10 billion could flow out, analysts have estimated .</div>
S&amp;P Global Ratings has already warned South Africa that its rating could be cut deeper if the government meddles with the central bank.
The dispute &#8212; triggered by Public Protector Busi Mkhwebane recommending that the Reserve Bank&#8217;s mandate of maintaining currency and price stability be changed so that it can focus on economic growth &#8212; could hardly have come at a worse time.
South Africa has just sunk into recession, had its credit rating downgraded, and is echoing to calls for President Jacob Zuma to resign, which he shows no sign of doing so.
John Peta, Old Mutual Global Investors head of emerging market debt, said his firm bought South African debt after a March cabinet shake-up that sent yields higher. But it had now cut back on the ongoing political noise and as yields fall.
&#8220;No previous government in South Africa has even hinted at (changing the central bank mandate) and Zuma&#8217;s people now doing it is pretty disconcerting,&#8221; Peta said. &#8220;So if they do make more noise in that direction certainly the market will take notice
TOO OPTIMISTIC
Morgan Stanley analysts said they believe investors are too optimistic about a resolution on the uncertainty.
&#8220;We are bearish on South Africa,&#8221; the analysts wrote in a note, adding: &#8220;We believe that the main factors supporting the currency and bonds – attractive real bond yields and a gradually improving terms of trade – will start to lose importance gradually as evidence grows that recent political changes continue to have negative macroeconomic consequences.&#8221;
Investors were already shaken in late March when Zuma dismissed respected finance minister Pravin Gordhan, triggering credit ratings downgrades to &#8220;junk&#8221; status.
The yield on the benchmark government bond due in 2026 rose to a 4-month high of 9.2 percent in the aftermath of Gordhan&#8217;s axing, but has since recovered to 8.55 percent.
In another blow to investor confidence Moody&#8217;s and Fitch have warned that new rules, which raised the minimum threshold for black ownership of mining companies to 30 percent from 26 percent, could deter investment. The rules are meant to redress the exclusion black people experienced during apartheid, which ended in 1994.
The Chamber of Mines, which represents mining firms, plans to challenge the new rules in court.
&#8220;There is no light in the tunnel for growth,&#8221; Richard Segal, an emerging debt strategist at Manulife Asset Management. If inflation comes down, you could see some interest rate cuts which could help a bit, but the overall picture for the South African markets is still uninspiring.&#8221;
($1 = 13.0258 rand)
(Additional reporting by Karin Strohecker and Claire Milhench in London; Editing by James Macharia/Jeremy Gaunt)

South Africa’s credibility on the line with foreign bond investors

The Angolan capital Luanda has knocked Hong Kong off the top spot in an annual survey that ranks the cost of living for expatriate workers in world cities.
The survey found the cost of renting a two-bedroom apartment suitable for expatriates in Luanda was £4,800 ($6,055) per month, while a fast food hamburger meal priced at £11.50.
It was the second time in three years that Luanda topped the survey, which compares the costs of housing, transport and clothing in 209 cities.
While Luanda rose, all UK cities fell significantly in this year&#8217;s rankings which were released on Wednesday, with 30th-ranked London dropping 13 places from 2016.
The survey, conducted by global consulting firm Mercer, suggested that the country&#8217;s vote to leave the European Union had played a role in the drop by causing the value of sterling to fall.
For those in the market for a cheaper expatriate experience, the survey found the least expensive cities are Tunis, ranked 209th, followed by Kyrgyzstan capital Bishkek and Skopje in Macedonia.
Top 10
1. LUANDA, Angola
2. HONG KONG
3. TOKYO, Japan
4. ZURICH, Switzerland
5. SINGAPORE,
6. SEOUL, South Korea
7. GENEVA, Switzerland
8. SHANGHAI, China
9. NEW YORK, U.S.
10. BERN, Switzerland
($1 = 0.7927 pounds)
(Writing by Babatunde Ayoade and Mark Hanrahan in London. Editing by Gareth Jones)
&nbsp;

Angolan capital tops list of most expensive cities for expats

NAIROBI (Reuters) &#8211; Kenya&#8217;s president signed a law on Wednesday that raises the tax rate on gambling but sets it at a lower rate than had originally been proposed.
The law will impose a tax of 35 percent of gross profits on all gambling. Until now, lotteries were taxed at 5 percent, betting firms &#8211; bookmakers &#8211; at 7.5 percent, casino gambling at 12 percent and competitions like raffles at 15 percent.
Secretary for the National Treasury Henry Rotich had originally proposed raising the tax rate to 50 percent, saying the rapid growth of on-line gambling hurt the young and vulnerable, and the proceeds from the tax would fund sports, culture and the arts.
Gambling in Kenya generally takes place on-line. Mobile- phone-based financial services like M-Pesa by Safaricom allow users to place bets, pay off losses and get winnings on their phone without needing a bank account.
Industry executives say about 7 million out of 45 million Kenyans have registered for betting services. No figures are publicly available on the industry&#8217;s profits.
(Reporting by George Obulutsa, editing by Larry King)
&nbsp;

Kenya says will raise tax rate on gambling to 35 percent

Tax evasion benefits individuals to the detriment of society, wiping out state services. It also hampers the achievement of the eight United Nations <a href="http://www.un.org/millenniumgoals/">millennium development goals</a> (MDGs), which were designed to meet the needs of the world’s poorest people.
If tax evasion takes place in the grey area between legality and illegality – such as when companies shift their headquarters to tax havens – tax fraud involves the overt breaking of laws. It is often combined with dirty money from illegal activities (trafficking, terrorism, etc.) and thus weakens the gross domestic product (GDP) of African states. The organisation <a href="http://www.gfintegrity.org/">Global Financial Integrity</a> estimates that Mauritania loses 12% of its GDP to such activity, Chad 20%, and the Republic of Congo 25%. As a result, illicit financial flows both damage African states and hold back their industrialisation and development.
<h2>Tax evasion, a major obstacle to the development of Africa</h2>
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-129465" src="http://cnbc.africa/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/Capture-300x209.png" alt="" width="300" height="209" />
The chart shows that fraud and tax evasion weigh heavily on the timing of countries that want to achieve their millennium development goals. Source: <a href="http://www.gfintegrity.org/">Global Financial Integrity</a>.
<h2>Illegal financial flows bleed Africa dry</h2>
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-129466" src="http://cnbc.africa/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/Capture_2-300x217.png" alt="" width="300" height="217" />
&nbsp;
“PIB” stands for gross domestic product (GDP). The chart shows illicit financial flows as percentage of GDP. Africa loses far more than it receives in aid and foreign direct investment.

Op-Ed: How tax evasion and dirty money are draining Africa

The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is a vast country <a href="http://www.worldbank.org/en/country/drc/overview">rich in natural resources</a> including the world’s largest reserves of cobalt, and substantial quantities of diamonds, gold and copper.
It also has the <a href="http://www.forbescustom.com/EmergingMarketsPgs/DRCongoP1.html">hydroelectric capacity</a> to light up all of Africa with enough left over to power Europe. And, it hosts the <a href="https://www.worldwildlife.org/places/congo-basin">second-largest rain forest</a> in the world, a forest that spans six countries across Central Africa.
In 1960, the republic <a href="https://history.state.gov/milestones/1961-1968/congo-decolonization">gained independence</a> from the Belgian government. By 1965, it was the second most industrialised country in Africa after South Africa, boasting flourishing agricultural and mining sectors.
Despite such a good start, the DRC has become a theatre of a complex and protracted humanitarian crisis. At least <a href="http://reliefweb.int/sites/reliefweb.int/files/resources/drc_en_2.pdf">1.6 million people</a> have been internally displaced, 90% of whom have left their homes due to armed attacks.
In 2016, more than 920,000 Congolese were <a href="http://www.internal-displacement.org/assets/publications/2017/20170522-GRID.pdf">internally displaced</a> by conflict. This compares with 824,000 in Syria and 659,000 in Iraq. 
On top of this, the DRC is <a href="http://www.unhcr.org/statistics/unhcrstats/58aa8f247/mid-year-trends-june-2016.html">rated sixth</a> on the list of countries that generate the most refugees.
The situation is really bad according to, Ulrika Blom, the Norwegian Refugee Council’s Country Director:
<blockquote>Even Syria or Yemen’s brutal wars did not match the number of new people on the move in DRC last year.</blockquote>
Since December 2016, ethnic violence has spread and worsened in the wake of President Joseph Kabila’s <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/dec/20/drc-protests-grow-as-kabila-clings-to-power-despite-his-term-ending">refusal to step down</a> after serving two consecutive terms.
The political insecurity brought on by his <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/dec/31/drc-close-to-deal-for-president-joseph-kabila-to-step-down-after-2017-elections">reluctance to call a general election</a> has aggravated long-standing ethnic tensions and <a href="http://www.internal-displacement.org/assets/publications/2017/20170522-GRID.pdf">triggered clashes</a> between armed groups particularly in the provinces of North and South Kivu to the east of the DRC.
The country is moving further and further away from the vision of Patrice Lumumba, one of its founding luminaries, a man who strongly defended human rights. What can it learn from him?
<h2>Lumumba’s vision in tatters</h2>
Lumumba declared in 1958:
<blockquote>We wish to see a modern democratic state established in our country, which will grant its citizens freedom, justice, social peace, tolerance, well-being, and equality, with no discrimination whatsoever.</blockquote>
He believed that an intelligent, dynamic and constructive opposition was necessary to counterbalance the political and administrative actions of the government in power. He <a href="http://www.blackpast.org/1959-patrice-lumumba-african-unity-and-national-independence">spoke against</a> the balkanization of the country, then known as Zaire, and was strongly opposed to a devolved system of government.
But contrary to his vision, the DRC’s political leadership has plundered the country’s resources, subduing tribal chieftains in the process. In the end, regional leaders were denied a chance to partake in the bounty and they revolted.
This can be seen from the fact that Lumumba’s vision for a united country is being tested as pockets of ethnic violence flare up in the regions, particularly in North Kivu, which remains extremely volatile.
Since the end of 2015 and all through 2016, violence meted out by Mai Mai militias, and rebel groups including the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda, and the Allied Democratic Forces of Uganda, have forced hundreds of thousands of people to <a href="http://www.unhcr.org/56ab5d576.html">flee their homes</a>.
In 2016, Human Rights Watch <a href="https://www.hrw.org/news/2016/10/07/dr-congo-protect-civilians-beni-attack">recorded the assassinations</a> of more than 700 civilians in Beni territory, killings that had taken place over two years.
It remains unclear who carried out the attacks. The Congolese government blamed an armed group that had been active in the area, while independent sources implicated Congolese army officers in some of the attacks.
While hundreds of thousands have been internally displaced, scores of others are fleeing the country. By mid-2016, 535 866 Congolese had <a href="http://www.unhcr.org/statistics/unhcrstats/58aa8f247/mid-year-trends-june-2016.html">taken refuge abroad</a>. A total of 78 090 others were seeking asylum and are still waiting to be granted refugee status.
The UNHCR and its implementing partners have launched an <a href="http://www.unhcr.org/news/press/2017/6/593e65e04/us65-million-sought-aid-drc-refugees-angola.html?query=congo">appeal for $65 million</a> to help the growing number of refugees arriving in Angola from the DRC’s Kasai region, which has been engulfed in violence since 2016.
The violence was set off by Kamwina Nsapu (“black ant”) the leader of the Bajila Kasanja clan, who led an insurrection against the central government before being gunned down. As a result of the insurrection, 400 000 children are at risk of <a href="http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=56829#.WT_CeOuGPcs">severe and acute malnutrition</a>.
<h2>Time to act</h2>
Back in 1960, speaking at the All African Conference in Leopoldville (Kinshasa), Lumumba set out a vision for the country that included:
<ul>
<li>ending the suppression of free thought and seeing to it that all citizens enjoyed freedoms laid down in the Declaration of the Rights of Man</li>
<li>doing away with discrimination</li>
<li>bringing peace to the country, not by using rifles and bayonets, but through good will.</li>
</ul>
To achieve this, he said, the country could
<blockquote>count not only on our tremendous strength and our immense riches, but also on the assistance of many foreign countries, whose collaboration we will always accept if it is sincere and does not seek to force any policy of any sort whatsoever on us.</blockquote>
His vision is as prescient today as it was then. It’s time the DRC put Lumumba’s words into practice.

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Malawi sees IMF loan approval as signal of donor confidence

South African parliament opposes calls to change central bank mandate

Portuguese judge rules Angola’s vice president must stand trial for corruption

Op-Ed: South Africa’s central bank row points to dangerous levels of intolerance

EU offers 85 million euros to help fund Uganda’s refugee response

Etisalat Nigeria repaid nearly half of loan amount before default

Zuma no-confidence vote can be secret, up to South Africa’s parliament

Op-Ed: Tackling inequality in the information age

Ten fantastic African innovators shortlisted for IPA 2017 grand prize

Twitter to let streaming video stars collect money from fans

Nigerian court rules against mass eviction in Lagos: activists

LIVE: Secret Ballot judgment

South Africa’s credibility on the line with foreign bond investors

Angolan capital tops list of most expensive cities for expats

Kenya says will raise tax rate on gambling to 35 percent

Op-Ed: How tax evasion and dirty money are draining Africa

The DRC can learn from Lumumba as its internal crisis deepens

News Tips

Advertise With Us

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