Political Risks |

Malawi’s Ex-President Withdraws From Vote, Backs Opposition

MALAWI (Capital Markets in Africa) – Former Malawian President Joyce Banda withdrew her candidacy from elections scheduled for May 21 and said she’d back opposition leader Lazarus Chakwera in the vote. It’s the second time since February that Banda, who ruled Malawi from 2012 to 2014, has pulled out of the race. Last month, she announced she wouldn’t compete in the ballot, before announcing her candidacy two days later. “Malawi is bigger than individuals,” Banda said in a joint…

South Africa’s ANC Support Drop Risks Richest Province, Poll Shows

Posted on by The Editorial Team

JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in Africa) – Support for South Africa’s ruling African National Congress has slipped ahead of May elections and the party could lose its majority in the Gauteng province, home to the country’s industrial hub and capital, a quarterly poll conducted by the South African Institute of Race Relations shows. Of 1,611 registered voters surveyed last month, 54.7 percent said they supported the ANC on the national ballot, down from 56 percent in…

Buhari Triumphs in Nigeria Election as Opposition Rejects Result

Posted on by The Editorial Team

LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – Nigeria’s Muhammadu Buhari easily won a second term as president of Africa’s biggest oil producer with promises to revive an anemic economy and tackle security threats including a devastating insurgency by Islamic State. His main opponent rejected the results. Atiku Abubakar said Wednesday he’ll go to court to challenge official results showing Buhari won the Feb. 23 ballot by a margin of 56 percent to 41 percent. He alleged the ruling party used the…

South African Tender Bust Bolsters Ramaphosa’s Anti-Graft Fight

Posted on by The Editorial Team

JOHANNESBURGH (Capital Markets in Africa) – South Africa’s Hawks special investigative unit detained seven people on Wednesday in the first major arrests following revelations that a services company, Bosasa, looted billions of rand from the state by bribing officials. The arrests follow an investigation that found almost 1.6 billion rand ($119 million) may have been misappropriated when the Department of Correctional Services awarded prison tenders to Bosasa or its units, the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation said…

JPMorgan Asks U.K. Court to Toss $875 Million Nigerian Lawsuit

Posted on by The Editorial Team

LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – JPMorgan Chase & Co. asked a London court to dismiss a lawsuit brought by the Nigerian government that accuses the bank of failing to prevent $875 million in corrupt payments. The lender said it got the correct approvals from Nigerian officials before transferring the funds to accounts controlled by a former oil minister who’s been convicted of money laundering, and that the government’s claim has no real prospect of success. After…

Zimbabwe Attacks Said to Be Organized in Defiance of Mnangagwa

Posted on by The Editorial Team

HARARE (Capital Markets in Africa) – Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa is being defied by members of his ruling party who are orchestrating a violent crackdown after demonstrations this month, government and military officials said. Door-to-door raids in urban townships by police and men in military uniform are continuing more than a week after a three-day strike was called following a more than doubling of fuel prices, the people said on the condition of anonymity. Abuses range from…

Fracture in Kenyan Ruling Party May Revive Rift Valley Tensions

Posted on by The Editorial Team

NAIROBI (Capital Markets in Africa) – An alliance that helped deliver Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta two terms in office is fracturing, reviving tensions in the country’s Rift Valley region that was wracked by widespread violence a decade ago. The deputy chairman of the ruling Jubilee Party stepped down on Sunday after saying Deputy President William Ruto shouldn’t be allowed to succeed Kenyatta. That undermines an arrangement in which Ruto delivered the backing of his Rift Valley constituents for Kenyatta’s…

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