Asia-pacific

The Malian transitional President Bah N’Daw signed a decree Sunday, appointing former foreign minister Moctar Ouane head of government. The appointment was announced two days after the swearing-in ceremony of Transitional President Bah N’Daw, and following a meeting Saturday evening with junta officials and the transitional president. Since 2016, the newly appointed Prime Minister was Delegate for Peace and Security at the Commission of the Economic and Monetary Union of West Africa (UEMOA) in Ouagadougou. The man also served as representative of Mali to the United Nations and diplomatic adviser to the presidency. His relatives describe him as an independent man; very fussy about principles. Like the transitional president, he believes that one cannot do everything in 18 months, but h...

OCP Africa and the International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, have announced this Monday a partnership to strengthen value chains of rice in Côte d’Ivoire and millet in Senegal, and to help improve the living conditions of thousands of smallholder farmers. These crops, essential to ensure food security in these two West African countries, operate at yields well below their full potential due in part to a lack of professionalization, inadequate agricultural practices, and lack of access to financing, OCP Africa, a subsidiary of Morocco’s OCP Group, the world leader in the phosphate and derivatives market, and IFC said in a joint statement. As part of this partnership, IFC will provide consulting services to farmers and agricultural groups that are members o...

Morocco has sent Mali a message of support, friendship and solidarity with the Malian authorities and people following the important developments unfolding on the ground for a peaceful transition. The message was conveyed Tuesday by Moroccan Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita, who, upon the instruction of King Mohammed VI, paid a visit to Bamako. Bourita, the first senior official of a friendly country to visit Mali following the developments there, was received by interim president Bah N’daw, transitional vice-president Col. Assimi Goita and PM Moctar Ouane. Bourita also met with religious dignitaries including Bouye Haidara and Mahmoud Dicko.   Bourita reaffirmed Morocco’s commitment to accompany Mali through this important phase of its history, noting that the North African Kingdo...

How to revive the Senegalese economy? The question was at the heart of a presidential council on Tuesday, September 29. Representatives of the government, the private sector, and partners of the country were gathered around Macky Sall. The authorities presented a plan worth €22.4 billion and defined priority sectors. “After the defense, it is necessary to pass to the attack” to find the growth according to the sporting formula used by Head of State. And to do this, the authorities have adjusted their strategy, with new priorities: Accelerate food sovereignty by strengthening autonomy in basic products, where Senegal is on the right track, especially rice; sanitary and pharmaceutical sovereignty; the industrialization and digital transformation of the economy, explains Amadou Hott, Minist...