Economy
Egypt, Eurasian Union to start negotiating free trade agreement
During signing the document – Press Photo
Egypt and the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) signed a framework document for negotiations on the free trade agreement between the two sides, as they both decided to hold the first tournament of negotiations in mid- January in Cairo.
The document was signed by Egypt’s Minister of Trade and Industry Amr Nassar and Minister for Trade of the Eurasian Economic Commission Veronika Nikishina.
The Egyptian minister noted that this agreement came as a result of President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi’s visit to Russia in October, where he agreed with Chairman of the Eurasian Economic Commission Tigran Sargsyan on speeding up the negotiations related to the free trade between both sides.
According to Nassar, both sides agreed to hold a joint business forum during the first half of 2019 to boost the economic and trade partnership between businessmen of both sides and stressed on the necessity to complete a free trade agreement between Egypt and the Union’s countries in 2019.
Nassar said that this document targets to generate continued talks and negotiations about the bilateral economic and international cooperation between both sides and to enhance the economic and trade relationship as well as the liberalization of trade between them through the establishment of a long-term and stable institutional legal framework.
He explained that this agreement will contribute to the enhancement and development of the joint relations between Egypt and the Eurasian countries, including Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Armenia and Kyrgyzstan.
The minister pointed out that Egypt is a major hub for the Union’s exports to various African and Arab markets and other economic blocs,with which Egypt has free trade agreements. The Eurasian countries also represent a distinct window for Egyptian exports in North and Central Asia as well as Europe.
Trade exchange between Egypt and Eurasian Union countries hit $6.78 billion in 2017, in which $6.24 billion represented Egypt’s imports and $544.7 million went for exports, according to the minister.
Nassar said that this agreement is expected to raise the trade volume between both sides to reach $15.7 billion, and to upgrade Egypt’s exports to the Union’s countries to $1.9 billion.
The minister referred that the most important Egyptian exports to Eurasian countries are agricultural commodities, machinery, equipment and pharmaceutical products, while the main imports to Egypt include wheat, minerals, chemical products, plastic products, cars and tractors.
He reiterated the need to encourage the business community and industrial companies from the Eurasian countries to increase their investments in Egypt during the coming period, especially in light of the Egyptian government’s adoption of a number of mega projects, including the New Administrative Capital project,the development project of the Suez Canal and the Russian industrial zone in Egypt.
Nassar also emphasized the importance of the role played by the private sector in enhancing trade and investment relations between Egypt and the union’s countries.
For her part, Nikishina said that Egypt is one of the most important markets in the Middle East and Africa, and is a focal point for the transit of the products of the union countries to African countries.
She pointed out that the next phase will witness more cooperation between the two sides, especially after the signing of the Free Trade Agreement, which will make a quantum leap in the level of trade and economic relations Between Egypt and the Eurasian Union.
– EGYPT TODAY
Meta recently hosted its first Youth Summit in Lagos, Nigeria, bringing together over 200 young professionals, students, recent graduates, creatives, tech enthusiasts and aspiring entrepreneurs.
Themed ‘Empowering Youth Through Technology, Innovation and Entrepreneurship’, the summit included a series of thought-provoking panel discussions, a mentoring session and an interactive workshop designed to equip young Nigerians with the skills, insights and networks needed to thrive in today’s tech-driven world.
Commenting about the event, Phil Oduor, Head of Policy Programs, Sub-Saharan Africa said, “At Meta, we believe that today’s youth are tomorrow’s change-makers. Through initiatives like the Youth Summit, we aim to foster innovation, promote digital literacy and empower young Nigerians with the tools and opportunities to realise their potential and contribute to Nigeria’s growing digital economy.”
Delivering the keynote address, Femi Aluko, CEO/Co-Founder, Chowdeck, shared his journey of breaking barriers to achieve success in tech. He encouraged attendees to embrace the limitless opportunities within today’s technology ecosystem.
A panel discussion, led by Chinny Francis, Public Policy Manager at Meta, featured panellists Nifemi Akinwamide, Head of Operations, Alt School; Adaora Mbelu, Co-Founder of Lumination Global and Obaloluwa Adeagbo, Marketing Lead at Talstack. They shared valuable insights about the future of work, emphasising the importance of storytelling to build a personal brand, practicing self-awareness, developing soft skills, lifelong learning and honing problem-solving skills to thrive in a digitally transformed world.
Francis Sani, Technical Adviser for Innovation, Entrepreneurship & Capital at the Federal Ministry of Communications, Innovation & Digital Economy, spoke at the event. He highlighted the 3 Million Technical Talent (3MTT) program, emphasising that the program aims to build Nigeria’s technical talent backbone to drive the digital economy and position Nigeria as a net talent exporter. He encouraged youth to take advantage of this opportunity.
Another panel of industry experts took the stage during the ‘Lunch and Learn: Navigating Entrepreneurship in a Rapidly Changing Landscape’ session, moderated by Sade Dada, Head of Public Policy for Anglophone West Africa at Meta. Seye Bandele, CEO of PaidHR and Damilola Teidi-Ayoola, Head of Platform and Networks at Ventures Platform Fund, shared their invaluable insights. Seye highlighted the importance of grit, curiosity and candour, while Damilola reinforced the need to understand one’s target audience, deliver value through their business and embrace data-driven decision-making in the dynamic entrepreneurial landscape.
The event also featured inspiring conversations with leading figures in the creative industry. Miss Techy, an award winning tech content creator and Salem King, a creator, storyteller, author and speaker, shared their experiences and advice on achieving long-term success. Attendees also benefited from an interactive workshop and a mentoring session, where industry experts shared practical advice and strategies for entrepreneurs and tech enthusiasts.
Meta’s Youth Summit 2024 highlights a commitment to driving positive change, championing youth empowerment and advancing economic opportunities in Nigeria. Through investments in key areas—such as the creative industry, digital literacy, economic impact and youth job training—Meta is dedicated to empowering young Nigerians to thrive in today’s tech-driven world.
Cross-section of some of the attendees at the Meta Youth Summit 2024 in Lagos
L-R: Chinny Francis, Public Policy Manager, Meta; Nifemi Akinwamide, Head of Operations, Alt School; Adaora Mbelu, Co-Founder of Lumination Global and Obaloluwa Adeagbo, Marketing Lead at Talstack.
L-R: Sade Dada, Head of Public Policy, Anglophone West Africa, Meta; Damilola Teidi-Ayoola, Head of Platform and Networks, Ventures Platform Fund, and Seye Bandele, Chief Executive Officer, PaidHR during the Lunch and Learn: Navigating Entrepreneurship in a Rapidly Changing Landscape panel session.
Salem King, a creator, storyteller, author and speaker and Miss Techy, an award winning tech content creator
During a mentoring session workshop
Femi Aluko, Chief Executive Officer and Co-founder, Chowdeck.
Francis Sani, Technical Adviser to the minister of communications and digital economy of Nigeria
Economy
Tosin Eniolorunda: Fighting fraud related issues in financial ecosystem requires collaboration
Nigeria’s financial system has come under renewed scrutiny against the backdrop of the increase in the value of electronic payment transactions in Q1 2023 and the challenges posed by bad faith actors who exploit gaps in the payment systems even as Nigerian financial institutions have reported ₦159 billion ($201.5 million) lost to fraud since 2020. There is a need for all players in the financial services sector to come together in tackling these challenges.
Group CEO, Moniepoint Inc., Tosin Eniolorunda during a courtesy visit to the Chief Executive Officer, Fidelity Bank, Nneka Onyeali-Ikpe in Lagos. Onyeali-Ikpe, who welcomed the Moniepoint boss, used the opportunity to reaffirm her bank’s appreciation for the patience and understanding demonstrated during its banking channel integration optimization which resulted in service disruptions and the inability of Moniepoint customers to receive financial inflow.
It will be recalled that Fidelity Bank had recently announced to its customers and the general public, the resumption of interbank transfers to all licensed financial institutions in the country. This was following speculative reports from various media publications that the bank had imposed transaction restrictions on some neo banks operating in the country.
During conversations around the growth of the digital payments segment and contributions of the financial services to Nigeria’s socio-economic development, Tosin Eniolorunda used the occasion to stress the point that Moniepoint as a responsible and compliant organization takes customer KYC very seriously. “KYC is not merely an acronym but indeed a cornerstone in establishing trust, ensuring security, and complying with regulatory standards. All accounts created on our platform have BVN verification and in addition to this we perform a liveliness check at the point of onboarding. This is a comparison of the account holder’s life picture and the BVN image as a way to reduce impersonation,” Eniolorunda maintained.
He continued, “we have zero tolerance for fraud and typically go all out to ensure that we track fraudsters and fraudulent transactions on our platforms. We have deployed and utilize robust fraud detection systems and technologies that can analyze patterns, identify anomalies, and detect suspicious activities in the system. As such we are better empowered to identify potential fraud incidents and trigger alerts for further investigations and remedial actions.”
As partners in deepening the CBN’s mandate of ensuring provision of adequate and convenient financial services to consumers and guaranteeing their protection as well as the various undercurrents in the financial services industry, Moniepoint and Fidelity agreed to work closely together to develop a tightly knit mechanism to stem the menace of fraudulent transactions and collaboratively push through in addressing payment challenges in the country.
The Republic of Angola has become the 21st African Member State and the 1st Lusophone Member State of pan-African insurer, Africa Trade Insurance Agency – ATI, after paying a capital subscription of USD25 million. The membership was funded the Angolan National Treasury resources and proceeds from the landmark BITA water project – a strategic public investment for the construction of infrastructure for the treatment, supply and storage of drinking water that will benefit 2.5 million people in Angola.
Welcoming Angola’s membership, ATI’s Chief Executive Officer, Manuel Moses, noted the country’s demonstration of its commitment to diversify its economy through ATI’s trade and investment risk mitigation solutions.
“We are happy to support Angola in its quest to economic diversification and becoming an agricultural powerhouse on the African continent. Angola’s membership is timely as ATI’s risk mitigation and credit enhancement services will act as a catalyst for strengthening and diversifying Angola’s economy, supporting both increased investment, exports and trade under Africa’s continental framework of the AfCFTA,” Mr. Manuel said.
Under this one of a kind blended finance and guarantee innovative structure, the Republic of Angola – along with the lenders covered by ATI under the transaction – agreed for the use of proceeds under the syndicated loan to also include the financing for the purpose of Angola becoming a member of ATI. ATI provided guarantee and insurance support for this World Bank’s partially guaranteed facility to the Government of Angola for the expansion and improvement of water supply service in the urban and peri-urban belts of Luanda.
Current exposure
ATI’s gross exposure in Angola, the largest country in Southern Africa Region, currently stands at USD467M mainly in construction, energy & gas, trade & transport, water supply and wholesale & retail sectors, with transactions valued at USD1.4B.
“This development was made possible because of ATI’s pan African mandate that allows the organization to cover transactions in Angola and beyond, despite ATI non-membership. Now that Angola is a fully-fledged shareholder of ATI, the country can fully access more of ATI’s guarantee solutions to attract more Foreign Direct Investments and boost its internal and external trade across the region,” Mr. Manual explained.
Angola’s economy is mainly driven by its oil sector but the country seeks to pursue new growth models for economic diversification through the agricultural sector and private sector development.
With ATI’s support, Angola is on the path to fiscal consolidation, manage their debt ceiling, increase in public and private investment, in order to resume the ascending curve of sustainable and inclusive economic growth as well as human development.
ATI has grown from a small African start-up in 2001 into a pan-African institution with presence across Africa and with a significant global reach. Besides Angola, other member countries include Benin, Burundi, Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Madagascar, Malawi, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, South Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
Institutional members include African Development Bank, African Reinsurance Corporation, Atradius Group, Chubb, CESCE (Spanish ECA), Ministry of Finance India (represented by ECGC), SACE SIMEST, The Common Market of Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), Trade and Development Bank (TDB), Kenya-Re, The PTA Reinsurance Company (Zep-Re), and the UK Export Finance.
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