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Vol 59 No 13

Published 29th June 2018


Burkina Faso

Adieu à Françafrique

The investigation of Vincent Bolloré highlights how the old business networks are losing influence in French former colonies

When the French billionaire industrialist Vincent Bolloré was placed under formal investigation by Paris prosecutors on suspicion of bribing foreign officials in Africa, commentators wondered whether it was the end of an era. The Chief Executive of the sprawling transport, construction and investment group Bolloré, which counts the media giant Vivendi among its many subsidiaries, has played a crucial role in the development of logistics across West Africa over the past two decades. But the investigation into the circumstances under which port concessions in the Guinean capital, Conakry, and Lomé in Togo were awarded to Bolloré between 2009 and 2010 has cast a shadow over the group's future in sub-Saharan Africa and shaken investor confidence.

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