African markets and business updates

Torrential rain and severe thunderstorms struck Tunis on 17 September, flooding roads, disrupting traffic, and forcing schools and universities to suspend afternoon classes from 3 p.m. local time.

There were tense scenes in Ceuta on Friday between police and a group of migrants, who were being moved to a temporary camp in the port area.

Increasingly severe drought conditions mean Africa is in a race against time to deploy technology to boost resilience. Across large parts of Africa, drought is a reality that farmers will have to face in the coming months. In Kenya, for example, maize yields are expected to be 28% below normal this year, following a recent "extremely poor rainfall performance", according to the Famine Early Warning Systems Network. Meanwhile, the rapidly developing 'Godzilla El Niño' is set to wreak havoc in southern Africa towards the end of this year and into 2027.…

The race to contain the Ebola disease outbreak in Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is far from over, warns Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF). While some indicators, such as declining patient admissions and slower transmission, may suggest the outbreak is easing, MSF teams are observing a worrying trend: cases are emerging and spreading into new, underprepared areas while basic response measures are still not in place in the original hotspots, making containment efforts increasingly challenging. “Assuming the outbreak is under control because some Ebola treatment centres are admitting fewer patients would be a mistake,” says Anthony Kergosien, MSF emergency coordinator in DRC.…

“Well, within the refinery, the workforce will practically become double, except in the water treatment section, because there we already have substantial capacity,” Edwin Devakumar, vice president, oil & gas and fertiliser at Dangote Industries Limited, told journalists at the refinery in Lagos on Friday.

GEODIS has opened its first directly owned freight forwarding office in the Philippines, replacing its previous agent-based model in the country. Located in Manila, the new operation will provide air and ocean freight services, project logistics and supply chain management. It will also give customers in the Philippines direct access to the company’s global logistics […] GEODIS has opened its first directly owned freight forwarding office in the Philippines, replacing its previous agent-based model in the country. Located in Manila, the new operation will provide air and ocean freight services, project logistics and supply chain management.…

The promotion of sustainable mountain tourism requires the development of a structured, accessible offering that embraces new trends and practices in the sector, Moroccan and French tourism stakeholders said Wednesday in Lyon. The event was attended by representatives of the Ministry of Tourism and Handicrafts, as well as institutional stakeholders and professionals from both countries, with a shared ambition of rethinking mountain areas as genuine destinations for tourism, experiences and economic development.…

Nigeria’s tilting dependence on domestic borrowing is creating an increasing contest for bank credit, raising anxieties that government’s capacity to offer attractive yields on its securities could inhibit the flow of affordable credit to businesses and households even as banks surface from a major recapitalisation exercise.

Yesterday, we told you something big was cooking in Lofa County. Today, we can finally share it. The Ministry of Education has officially turned over and dedicated the newly constructed Barkedu Senior Secondary School in Quardu-Gboni District, expanding a school that has served the community since 1966 from junior secondary to senior secondary level. And this is much more than a new building. Students now have access to furnished classrooms, science laboratories for Biology, Chemistry and Physics, solar-powered electricity, improved water and sanitation facilities, and better spaces for teachers and school administrators. But we did not stop there.…

The Department of Health is urging citizens to remain vigilant of mpox symptoms as the country is experiencing a rapid increase in laboratory-confirmed mpox cases in the past few weeks. As of 17 September 2026, the country has recorded 18 confirmed and one probable case, and this requires immediate and sustained public cooperation to contain. The majority (15) of these cases were reported in the Western Cape, City of Cape Town in particular, 3 in Gauteng and 1 in KwaZulu-Natal. Of concern is that 13 of the total cases were recorded between 13 August and 17 September, which suggests a rapid local transmission of this preventable viral infection.…