June 23, 2022
African Union urges countries against restrictions on food exports
The chairperson of the African Union, Senegal President Macky Sall, has urged Ukraine to remove mines from the port of Odessa to ease grain exports. According to Sall, Africa is highly dependent on Ukrainian and Russian grain imports and fertilizers and without the resumption of exports it will be in a very serious famine situation that could destabilize the continent.
President Yoweri Museveni tells Algeria to import milk from Uganda President Yoweri Museveni met with a Special Envoy from Algeria, Ramtane Lamamra and the State Minister of Foreign Affairs of Uganda, John Mulimba to discuss bilateral cooperation between the two countries in the fields of trade, agriculture and security, among others. Museveni used this opportunity to lobby the Algerians to invest in Uganda and asked them to start importing milk from Uganda.
Anglo-Swiss company convicted of bribery
The Anglo-Swiss mining corporation Glencore was convicted of bribing officials in Nigeria, Ivory Coast, Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea and South Sudan. They pled guilty at Court in London. The Glencore company admitted that its employees and agents paid bribes worth $28 million, with the company’s authorization, to gain access to oil.
Energy projects partner joins McDermott
According to Andrew Mizner at African Law and Business, a London-based lawyer who specializes in projects across emerging markets, including Sub-Saharan Africa, has joined the energy and infrastructure practice at McDermott Will & Emery. The lawyer, Shah Jahan Khandokar, focuses on emerging markets, particularly those in Africa, the Middle East and Asia. Transactions practice head Harris Siskind said the hire “will further bolster [the practice’s] global energy offering as we continue to focus on guiding our clients through the challenges of the highly-specialized energy sector”.
Promoting Trade, Industrialization, and Economic Diversification in Central Africa
This past June 2022, economic modeling, trade, and development experts from around the world met virtually for the 25th Annual Conference on Global Economic Analysis hosted by the Center for Global Trade Analysis (GTAP) at Purdue University, USA, and the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA). Mr. Mastaki, the ECA Regional Integration and Trade Director, discussed the importance of the AfCFTA, the largest trade area in the world, for integrating markets and developing intraregional trade which is still very low in Central Africa.
The Opportunity of Green, Social, and Sustainable (GSS) Bonds to Finance Development in Africa
The Economic Commission of Africa (ECA) and the World Bank held a virtual workshop to explore Green, Social, and Sustainable (GSS) bond market development in West Africa. The workshop was the first in a series of workshops to build awareness across Africa about the GSS bond market and initiate a program to aid countries interested in the issuance of bonds. According to Vice President and Treasurer of the World Bank, Jorge Familiar Calderon, sustainable finance presents a critical opportunity for Africa to recover from the Covid-19 crisis and protect itself from further global conditions that could impede development.
EVENTS- 06.23.2022
"The Arbitral Process Step-by-Step." Mauritius International Arbitration Center. Virtual. June 30, 2022.
"Introduction to International Arbitration." Chartered Institute of Arbitrators. Virtual or Dubai, United Arab Emirates. 7-8 July, 2022.