SENEGAL:
Illegal enrichment in Gabon: four files sent to the prosecutor: "In Gabon, the National Commission for Combating Illegal Enrichment (CNLCEI) said in a statement issued on Friday (March 24th) that it had forwarded to the public prosecutor for the initiation of the prosecution the files of four persons Physical or moral, whose investigations on the diversion of public funds are entirely completed. An announcement that must create fear among the old and new managers of public goods. Established in 2002 under the auspices of the IMF and the World Bank to track down major financial criminals, the National Commission for the Fight Against Illegal Enrichment referred to society as a circus lion that does not scare anyone . His latest release is a real change of course. The Commission claims to have investigated seven cases. One was abandoned. Two remain in training. Four well-crafted files were forwarded to the prosecutor for public action. That is to say, arrest of the persons concerned and opening of trials. The commission created suspense. No names were quoted. Fear must win the camp of power and opposition. The diversions involved would have occurred between 2006 and 2012. During this period many current opponents were in business at juicy jobs. Almost all of them were creditors. In any case, the exit of the Commission comes at a time when the Mamba operation, launched by the government, continues to make waves in the country. Former Petroleum Minister Etienne Dieudonné Ngoubou and his colleague of Public Works Magloire Ngambia are in prison as part of this clean hands operation. The great unpacking goes on ..... "
Emerging Markets Forum: Africa will develop according to its own conditions according to Adesina: "" Africa will develop according to its own conditions, without counting on the benevolence of others. This is the only way to accelerate development and focus on our needs, driven by a deep sense of urgency and responsibility. "These were the words of the President of the African Development Bank (AfDB) Group, Akinwumi Adesina, when he delivered a keynote address at the Emerging Markets Conference in Abidjan on Monday, the 27th of March. Government of Ivory Coast. More than 300 participants came from all over the world, listening to President Adesina speaking on the theme "Africa, forty years from now", during a session of the Forum of Emerging Markets 2017. Among them were prominent business leaders, government officials, financial decision-makers, and representatives of the most influential public and private sectors on the African continent. Adesina said she would prefer to talk about Africa's promise to transform in the next decade, a period corresponding to the AfDB's top five development priorities (Top 5) - to shed light on Africa and feed it Energy, feed Africa, industrialize Africa, integrate Africa and improve the quality of life of people in Africa - rather than imagining the continent in 40 years. "Over the next 40 years, the world will have completely changed," he said, noting that "Africa's future is still postponed. Before, we were talking about the 2020 horizon, and today we are talking about the 2063 horizon. I would rather talk about Africa's promise to transform itself in the next ten years, the expected duration of the Five Top Priorities (Top 5)....."
"The Gim-Uemoa is a real tool for integration in the service of the economy ..." according to Blaise Ahouantchede: "The Gim-Uemoa's General Manager points out that the Gim is a vital tool for the development of UEMOA states. He chaired the sensitization workshop of the Senegalese press on the theme "The Gim Uemoa: a tool for regional integration and financial inclusion of public and private administrations and populations". "The Gim-Uemoa is a right arm of the central bank and a real tool of integration in the service of the economy. The States do not even measure the capacity and nature of the Gim's economic and financial instrument. For instance, it can allow States to better collect taxes from citizens by identifying them but also to improve tax transparency ". The Gim network is not a bank, but it has an important mission to circulate financial services and funds within UEMOA and even internationally with partners such as Visa and Mastercard, "says Blaise Ahouantchede, the Managing Director of Gim-Uemoa, the Director of Gim-Uemoa also made a plea for the promotion of payment by credit card in order to reduce the high circulation of cash in our countries. Pursuing this, the GIM-Uemoa intends to pursue its mission by facilitating the access of the populations to the financial and banking services, thanks to its acquired and fifteen years of experience in the electronic integration between its members. And with this in mind, the GIM-Uemoa's main challenge is to broaden its working platform in partnership with all the players and leaders of the global digital financial transaction industry.... "
Military genius: Grumbling about the sales: "The tone is suddenly mounted in the ranks. According to our sources, at the level of the Military Engineer in Bamako, a non-commissioned officer would have taken his courage with both hands to go and claim his right and that of his subordinates (the famous balances of the month) to his chiefs. The message was apparently well received as just before the end of Friday, all balances had been settled. Only those who are domiciled in the banks will have to wait for the 27th and the 28th of March. Constitutional Review: Soon a Manifesto of Protestment High executives of the place do not intend to cross arms and let the current authorities of the country bring any alteration to the Constitution in force. At their head, we were told, a famous lawyer, the former Minister, in the person of Me Abdoulaye Garba Tapo. According to indiscretions, this Manifesto would lay bare the incongruities that the power would try to insert in the Fundamental Law, but also and above all to prove to Malians and Malians that one would only want to reserve cakes to the prince of the day ..... "
CAMEROON:
A directory of sources of financial and non-financial support made available to the Small Medium Companies, SMC: "The Agency for the Promotion of SMC, APSMC, a public body responsible for coaching and supporting these companies, has just officially presented the directory of sources of financial and non-financial support to SMC. This document, it has been learned, will now serve as a compass to SMC in their search for funding and other existing support for the development of their activities. According to APSMC, the design of this document is the result of a study carried out by the agency on the real needs of SMC Cameroonians. On 133 pages, the directory lists the sources of financial and non-financial support coming from the public sector, the private sector, or programs implemented with development partners. Presented as the main driver of economic growth in Cameroon, SMC, which account for more than a 80% of the enterprises surveyed in the country, face numerous challenges. The first is access to finance, the main sources of which have just been listed in the document designed by Apme. BRM Read also: 17-11-2016 - MTN Cameroon and the SME promotion agency join forces to tune 20 000 local SMC to ICTs 14-11-2016 - Less than a 25% of the 100 000 Cameroonian SMC meet the requirements of Coverage 24-08-2015 - Cameroon: Jean Marie Louis Badga takes over the management of the SME promotion agency ... "
Focus:"All the members of the Choir of the University of Yaoundé 1 returned to Cameroon at the invitation of the Italian President Sergio Mattarella, the Choir of the University of Yaoundé 1 stayed in his country as a part of the State visit of the President of the Republic Mr. Paul Biya. The rumors that have spoken of the runaways are now unfounded, as the 50 students left in Italy returned to Cameroon in the 23rd of March 2017. Contrary to what the rumor said, all the members of the choir "The Glorious Voices" of the University of Yaoundé 1 returned to Cameroon in the 23rd of March 2017. The newspaper Mutations, published in the 28th of March 2017, reports that just a few days after their departure for Italy, it was said that choristers from "The Glorious Voices" took the key to the fields as soon as they arrived. This choir was invited by Sergio Mattarella the Italian President as part of the State visit of Head of State Paul Biya to his country. All 50 students responded to the call. They were welcomed in the 23rd of March 2017 by the administrators of the University of Yaoundé 1. "We are all here, no one has fled," said one of the chorus singers. Esther Nkeh, the vice-president of the choir, said "nothing bad happened and nobody had the idea to flee. We came back 50 as usual. "Kenneth Tabit Tabot, the president of The Glorious Voices, noted that the choir members had the opportunity to flee, but they did not. An attitude saluted by the Rector of the University. "The University of Yaoundé 1 is proud of its choir which after its stay in Italy, had to occur before two Heads of State. You are there to find that they left 50 and they came back 50, "he said. Camernews-mise ...... "
Unemployment insurance: Macron considers the draft agreement "coherent" with his "philosophy": Emmanuel Macron, candidate of En Marche! In the presidential election, said on Tuesday that the draft agreement on unemployment insurance proposed by the employers to the trade unions was "consistent" with his "philosophy", and was in favor of his "dynamics". "This agreement, if it is finalized ... is very coherent with the philosophy that is mine," said Mr. Macron, auditioned by Medef, while the last negotiating session between the social partners takes place in parallel . "I am in favor of this dynamic of agreement (...), I will take it, if I am elected, as such," continued the candidate of En Marche !. "However, it does not exhaust the field that I open otherwise and therefore what I want to do more broadly," he added. In his program, Mr. Macron proposed that the State should take over the management of Unédic. He advocates a system of bonus-malus on employer contributions to limit the use of short contracts. "I am not for a bonus penalty by the law that would tax inconsiderately," he said Tuesday. "At the same time in the same sector, under the same macroeconomic conditions, it is normal to reward those who do well and that there is a penalty for those who do wrong," the candidate added. The social partners on Tuesday began a final round of negotiations on a draft employer's agreement which proposes a slight increase in employers' unemployment contributions. The proposal is considered insufficient by the unions which unanimously call for an increase in short contracts ... "
IVORY COAST:
Agriculture: "A national workshop on the analysis of cocoa poisoning risks is held since Tuesday in Yamoussoukro, and this until Saturday, at the initiative of the national center of agricultural research (Cnra)," said a statement sent to the AIP. This workshop is part of the implementation of the project "Integrated Management of Pests and Pathogens of Cocoa in Africa", funded by the CFC, Chocolatiers and Togo, Nigeria, Cameroon, Ghana and Côte d'Ivoire. The trainer, Dr Ayodélé Maria, ICCO consultant, taught the participants on the basics necessary for the correct recognition, theoretical and practical, of the main endogenous and exogenous constraints of the cacoyer, in order better to pose the analysis of phytosanitary risks related to this agricultural speculation Lighthouse for Côte d'Ivoire. They come from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the Cocoa Coffee Council, the National Rural Development Support Agency (ANADER) and the Customs services. The representative of the Director General of CNRA, Dr Zakra Nicodème and Dr Obiété Henri, Regional Coordinator of the project "Integrated Management of Cocoa Pests and Pests in Africa" at the opening ceremony of the training workshop drew the attention of the participants to the importance of their leading role in the development of an effective surveillance system Different diseases and pests that represent enormous risks for the Ivorian cocoa. Their daily actions, they stressed, will serve to remove from national cocoa production the various threats that could arise from the presence of one or more of the endogenous and exogenous constraints (diseases and pests) by the rapid detection of signs Of these diseases and pests ..... "
Entrepreneurship / Tony Elumelu program results known: "In a statement issued by the United Bank of Africa, UBA, the bank brings to the knowledge of candidates to the entrepreneurship program initiated by its founder Mr. Tony Elumelu that the results are available. "www.tonyelumelufoundation.org/programme" is the site on which candidates for the annual African Entrepreneurship Program are invited to visit the results of the 2017 edition. 1,000 young contractors are again selected out of 93,000 applications distributed across 54 countries, double the number of applicants in 2016 and quadruple in 2015. Nigerian billionaire Tony Elumelu, founder of the program, expressed concern about the 92,000 applicants whose projects could not be selected. "To keep me here today to announce the successful candidates has a bitter-sweet taste for me; We have 92,000 aspiring contractors who have not been selected for our program and these young African men and women have demonstrated a lot of energy, innovation and creativity in their application files. We must not slacken in our efforts until we can help them all to realize their aspirations. "He said at the announcement ceremony. Faced with the impact of this program at the African level, Parminder Vir OBE, Managing Director, maintains partnerships with organizations, including Microsoft, GE and ECOWAS, to provide more opportunities for contractors. Over the next nine months, the 2017 winners will be trained and supervised, using skills acquired to develop a business plan, before being eligible to receive up to 10,000 Dollar, or 5 million CFA of seed capital. Agriculture leads the sector with a 29% of the candidates, followed by ICT (an 11%) and manufacturing (a 9%), a reflection of sectors of interest for African startups. Nigeria, Kenya, Ghana, Uganda and Cameroon produced the majority of candidates. Since its first edition in 2015, the program initiated by the Nigerian billionaire banker has supported 2,000 contractors and created hundreds of jobs across the continent. At the end of 2014, the Foundation pledged to finance 10,000 African contractors over 10 years with 100 million Dollar. And this in the africapitalist vision of the founder ...... "
BURKINA FASO:
The FAO values the skills of women: "The UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) is organizing a training workshop in Ouagadougou from the 28th to the 31st of March 2017 on" Gender mainstreaming in the development of agri-food value chains " , For the benefit of its stakeholders. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations wants to ensure that the current development and commercialization of the agricultural sector does not have a negative impact on the empowerment of women and girls. For instance, under the project "Enabling women to benefit more equally from agri-food value chains", it initiated a training of trainers on the theme: "Mainstreaming gender Development of agri-food value chains ", which will take place in Ouagadougou from the 28th to the 31st of March 2017. This training aims at strengthening the capacities of the Organization's teams, developing value chains and developing their coaching skills so that they can accompany collaborators and partners in the analysis, strategic planning and Monitoring and evaluation, integrating gender issues. The General Manager of Fisheries Resources, Mr. Henri Zerbo, said that the socio-economic development of Burkina Faso is based largely on the rural sector. According to him, despite the efforts made, rural entrepreneurship is very weakly developed, reducing the possibilities for valorisation, diversification and marketing of domestic products. In his view, this workshop is of great importance because, as a part of the National Plan for Economic and Social Development, NPESD, the best way to address gender inequalities from the human To strengthen the capacity of women and to increase the opportunities available to them. A lever for women's empowerment "From this point of view, the development of agri-food value chains is an important lever for the empowerment of women," Mr. Zerbo said. Moreover, during this training workshop, different activities will be carried out. On the one hand, participants will familiarize themselves with gender roles and their implications for agri-food value chains and the concepts of gender equality. On the other hand, learning how to map gender issues in their value chains, identify gender constraints at the level of a family enterprise in the value chain, and assess user satisfaction Agricultural services. For the consultant on sustainable markets, Marcello Vicovaro, also trainer, will be given a final module on coaching. One way, according to Mr Vicovaro, is to follow the various actors in the value chain, in order to enable them to develop women's entrepreneurship. The expectations of this training of trainers on the integration of gender issues are enormous. Obviously, the FAO experts wish to ensure that relevant stakeholders, namely value chain development specialists, agricultural and agricultural advisory services, those responsible for the management and implementation of development programs, Knowledge on the identification of related constraints and seek strategies to remove these constraints at different levels, in line with FAO's policy framework ..... "
MALI:
"Panama Papers" The Achcar family, a fortune in Mali and bundles at HSBC in Switzerland: "In the small Central American country of Panama, the Achcar family is firmly committed to the services of the law firm, Mossack Fonseca, in order to make its business prosperous, far from the eyes of the Malian tax authorities. In Mali, Gérard Achcar has developed a small family empire. Achcar Mali Industries, AMI, inherited from his father, has established itself in the agri-food sector, notably the Grands Moulins du Mali and a pasta factory. However, if he makes a fortune in Mali, Mr. Achcar prefers the financial services of HSBC Private Bank in Geneva and those of Mossack Fonseca in Panama. According to the "Panama papers", it is in effect shareholder and main beneficiary of the company Grieta Consulting SA created the 19th of February 2014. According to the hundreds of e-mails and confidential documents consulted by the Investigator, the Lebanese-Malian magnate enjoys a power of action "without limitation" on this company administered by employees of Mossack Fonseca. A financial vehicle closely linked to the AMI Group, under a technical and financial assistance contract which stipulates that Grieta Consulting SA "undertakes to provide assistance to the beneficiary (AMI Group) in accordance with its corporate purpose: Management of purchases of raw materials and packaging on the world market, especially wheat ". The General Manager of the AMI group, Gérard Achcar's son, Cyril, but also his brothers Emile and Pascal, are regularly mentioned in the documents consulted by L'Investigateur. Contacted, the special adviser of the general manager of the group AMI, Sidi Dagnoko, emphasizes the "inoperation" of Gérard Achcar for eight years and even disputes the existence of Grieta Consulting SA. "After tax evasion, it's up to the control services to prove it," he sighed calmly. Preferential tariffs on the purchase of wheat In the "Panama papers", Grieta Consulting SA and AMI intermingle. Among the services provided by Grieta Consulting SA is the availability of offices in Luxembourg and Geneva, as well as the guarantee of "financing of documentary credits" and preferential rates from European suppliers and banks on the purchase of wheat. Grieta Consulting SA is also a representative of the financial and technical services of the Grands Moulins of Mali, according to a 2007 contract. Services that have a price: over 200,000 Dollar per month (179,639 Euro) depending on the year, settled by Grands Moulins du Mali and Mineral Waters of Mali. Mr. Achcar is therefore charged himself. Mr. Achcar's AMI Group signed its first contract with Grieta in 2004 to buy wheat. The Panamanian company then sends an invoice of $ 82,000 to the private banker of Grieta in Monaco. It is the kick-off of a relationship rich in financial movements. In 2014, Grieta received from Monegasque private bank, CFM Monaco, almost 3.3 million Dollar a year. The following year, the Panamanian firm billed nearly 2 million Dollar in commission fees from the Grands Moulins du Mali and Mineral Waters of Mali. In addition, the fees of 200,000 Dollar per month. In 2015, following a change in regulations in Panama concerning the concealment of shareholder identities, the Monegasque private bank asks Mossack Fonseca to anonymize its client in their exchanges. "Please note not to put the name of the customer in your e-mail but only in the following form: G *** ACH *** (for reasons of confidentiality that you will understand)," reads in an e-mail. If the group of Gérard Achcar disputes the very existence of Grieta Consulting SA, the documents consulted by Le Monde show that everything has been done to conceal it in offshore financial circuits. In February 2015, the name of Gérard Achcar was quoted in the SwissLeaks documents, revealed by Le Monde, while the Lebanese-Malian businessman had already been pinned for facts dating back to 2005. At the time, there was questioned, in particular, a cancellation of a tax debt by the then Minister of the budget, Jean-François Copé. The Franco-Lebanese businessman Ziad Takieddine had then played the role of intermediary ... "
At the opening ceremony of the National Understanding Conference, the President of the Republic, Ibrahim Boubacar Kéita, said: "This National Understanding Conference is a train that starts. And those who have not taken it in this station can always catch it at another station, at another station. The main thing is that upon arrival, the whole family is assembled. And the last station, the terminus of this journey bears the name: National Entente. This call by the Head of State was heard by the Azawad Movement Coordination (CMA), whose absence had weighed on the opening ceremony of the Conference. At a time when media commented on the absence of the CMA, its spokesman, Almou Ag Mohamed, posted on Facebook this message: "Following the discussions this afternoon under the aegis of the High Representative of the President of the Republic, Of the international mediation team and which have resulted in the management of its major concerns, the CMA will join the process of the National Understanding Conference tomorrow. "Later, a communiqué signed by the High Representative of the President of the Republic for the implementation of the Agreement was made public. "Following the opening ceremony of the National Understanding Conference on Monday, the 27th of March 2017, a working session was held between the International Mediation, the signatory movements of the Agreement and the high representative of the President of the Republic for the implementation of the Agreement for Peace and Reconciliation. Following the exchanges, the High Representative informs national and international opinion that the Coordination of Movements of Azawad, CMA, is committed to taking part in the work of the said conference as from Tuesday, the 28th of March 2017, after the speech delivered by the President of the Republic of Mali, the Head of State, in which all parties noted the assumption of their concerns, "the statement said. As announced, the CMA delegation participated yesterday in the work of the Conference, which dealt with the presentation of the terms of reference of the meeting and the synthesis reports of the regional consultations. The entrance of the CMA delegation into the hall was welcomed by the chairman of the National Understanding Conference, Baba Hakhib Haidara. In any case, the participation of the CMA in the Conference raises a lot of hope so that it can achieve its objectives for the honor of Mali and the happiness of the Malians ... "
Mining Resources: Money to Monitor the Extraction of Gold in Our Countries: "The Regional Training Council of the Supreme Audit Institutions of Sub-Saharan Francophone Africa (Crefiaf), based in Cameroon since 1997, has just received a donation of 500,000 Dollar (nearly 300 million CFA) from the World Bank With a view to financing a project relating to the supervision of extractive industries in member countries of the Council. Piloted by the Regional Institutional Strengthening Committee, the executive body of Crefiaf, the initiative concerns eight supreme audit institutions with anchorage in Gabon, Guinea, Niger and the Democratic Republic of Congo. This is a follow-up to the Extractive Industry Monitoring Project in Sub-Saharan Francophone Africa (Pasie), currently funded by World Business Canada (AMC) for Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Madagascar and Mali. It should be recalled that the objective of all these initiatives is to increase control, transparency and accountability in the extractive sector (exploitation of mineral resources). Their implementation will lead to the emergence in the target countries of an environment conducive to sustainable and inclusive economic growth for all stakeholders, through improved control and monitoring of extractive activities ... ... "
BENIN:
Gontran Mégnigbèto and his team at work: "The Festival of the Arts of Cultures and Tourism of Toffo" FACTO "is at its fourth edition this year. Potential candidates are invited to submit their participation file. The Festival of the Arts of Cultures and Tourism of Toffo is an official event of the Association "Plurielles Actions". It is open to artists, artisans, tourists, buyers of artistic and artistic works from all over the world. The 2017 edition will take place from 03 to 08 August 2017 in the commune of Toffo and, like previous editions, the following sections have been selected: Theater; Folklores; Conte; Ballet, Music; Plastic arts; Crafts and Tourism. "The troops and companies are free to choose the theme of their creations, but given the technical conditions, the participants are asked to present performances to the material conditions of modest representations. For this edition, the duration of the performances is 30 to 45 minutes. All languages are allowed. But French is the official language of the festival, "says developer Gontran Mégnigbèto. As regards the artistic theme chosen for this edition, it is entitled "Culture, tourism and development" and the social theme chosen is "Woman. Yes to its empowerment; No to the violence which is done to him "...."
Use of local flour in bakery and pastry: The Ministry of Commerce reviews the situation: "In the 28th and the 29th of March 2017 in Cotonou, the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Handicrafts is organizing a workshop on the state of the use of baking flour in bakery and pastry in Benin. The work was launched yesterday by Minister Lazare Seouheto. Due to the problems encountered in recent years in the production of good quality bread and the difficulty of controlling the quality of imported meal in Benin, the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Handicrafts takes the bull by the horns. It engages reflections on the insertion of local flours in the production of quality bread. According to Minister Lazare Sèhouéto, who opened the workshop, the aim of this workshop is to find a mechanism for inserting local flour into bakery and pastry. "The problem of the use of bread-making flour to accompany the manufacture of bread dates from about twenty years. We think everything, but we do nothing. There is no objective reason for clinging to wheat flour. It is better to exploit what we produce, "he suggested. He adds that "Nigerians do not do worse by consuming the cassava produced on their territory". At the same time, he encouraged the actors of the bakery to turn to the use of mixed flour in bread making. For, he said, it is since 2008 that a decree was made to encourage them to turn to mixed flour. According to FAO statistics, Benin imports 70 000 tonnes of wheat each year, while Benin has several varieties of flour that it is now time to upgrade. Long before Minister Séhoué, the General Secretary of the Ministry, Amzat Salami, suggested the creation of binding regulations that could push bakers and pastry chefs to respect the recommendations of the workshop as is the case in Nigeria. ... "
Crédit : IMPERIUM MEDIA
