Denmark's Queen Margrethe (C) gives a toast to German Chancellor Angela Merkel (3rd L), U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon (L), China's Premier Wen Jiabao (3rd R), South Africa's President Jacob Zuma (2nd R), Mexico's President Felipe Calderon (R) and other guests during a dinner at the United Nations Climate Change Conference 2009 in Copenhagen December 17, 2009.
As the economic powerhouse of sub-Saharan Africa, South Africa has long dreamt of being a global player since the end of apartheid – and been frustrated by the fascination of so many economists with the big four emerging economies, the so-called BRIC nations (Brazil, Russia, India, and China), to the exclusion of South Africa.
Now, however, South Africa is daring to dream again, as is Jacob Zuma, its sometimes controversial leader, who just may have found a compelling geopolitical theme for his nine-month-old presidency.
Much has been made of the dramatic final evening at December’s climate change conference in Copenhagen when Barack Obama paid a call on the Chinese delegation, only to find that a meeting was already under way between Chinese, Brazilian, Indian, and South African leaders. Read the rest of this entry »
Tony Elumelu, Outgoing MD/CEO, United Bank for Africa (UBA)
Lamido Sanusi, who took over as CBN Governor in June, has already rocked the financial sector in Africa’s second largest economy, dismissing the executives of eight banks during a debt crisis brought on by reckless lending. The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) bailed out stricken banks to the tune of $4 billion.
In the latest move, the country’s 24 banks have been instructed to place a 10-year limit on the tenures of chief executives. “All CEOs who would have served for 10 years by July 31, 2010 shall cease to function in that capacity and shall hand over to their successors,” the CBN said.
Jim Ovia, Outgoing MD/CEO, Zenith Bank
Three chief executives would be affected, including the heavyweights who run two of the continent’s largest banks, people familiar with the situation said.
One is Tony Elumelu, who emerged as chief executive at United Bank for Africa (UBA) following a power struggle that followed its 2005 merger with Standard Trust Bank, which he had run since 1997. UBA’s board has just appointed Phillips Oduoza as the MD/CEO designate to replace Tony Elumelu.
UBA says it has assets of more than $19 billion, seven million customers in 14 African countries, and offices in New York, Paris and London. In 2008, US regulators fined UBA $15 million for failing to implement an adequate anti-money laundering program. The bank has since appointed new risk managers. Read the rest of this entry »
