The most reliable route to riches in Africa once lay via politics and “public” service. No surprise, since the state in many of sub-Saharan Africa’s 48 countries controlled the principal levers of the economy in the decades following independence.
Nigeria’s military rulers, with absolute powers over oil earnings, were among the best endowed. But the considerable fortunes they, and other politicians in resource-rich African countries, made were hidden in offshore accounts or behind webs of front companies and middlemen.
However, in the past decade more money has been invested domestically, open to public scrutiny through the continent’s proliferating stock exchanges. Two decades of economic liberalization and progress in some countries towards more accountable forms of rule have given the private sector in Africa far more clout. Read the rest of this entry »
The National Bank of Rwanda (NBR) will regulate the new mobile money transfer system that will soon be introduced by MTN Rwanda, the Central Bank Governor Francois Kanimba said.
The South African Competition Commission (SACC) has confirmed it is again investigating the country’s mobile operators for collusion, although the SACC had cleared them of the accusation only a month ago. The SACC has subpoenaed documents from the companies.
The Nigerian government has decided that the country’s GSM network operators will not be allowed to buy the mobile assets of state-owned NITEL when it is eventually privatized. Although the government was originally looking to sell the company as a single entity, the government has now agreed to split the company into its component divisions and sell them separately.
MTN’s Ugandan subsidiary has raised $100 million in debt to fund the expansion of its network. Isaac Nsereko, Chief Marketing Officer at MTN confirmed the development to the Reuters news agency. 
South Africa’s decision to block a $23 billion merger between MTN Group Ltd. and India’s Bharti Airtel Ltd. may indicate President Jacob Zuma favors more state involvement in the economy to protect jobs and local industries. 
Globacom Limited, Nigeria’s second national operator (SNO) has its eyes on Aircom, a GSM licensee in Cote d‘Ivoire in a bid to advance its plan to enter Cote d’Ivoire’s mobile telephony market. According to a report in Nigeria’s Technology Times, Globacom may have opened talks with Aircom in a bid to enter the market anytime soon but details are still very hazy for now.
