NIGERIACHINA Cementing new relations 6th November 2008 Image courtesy of Panos Pictures View site An ambitious new African-Chinese partnership could fuel the continent's next construction boom Agreements signed this month between Dangote Industries of Nigeria and China's Sinoma International Engineering Company to build 13 cement production lines across Africa at a cost of US$2.8 billion will give the new partners a leading edge over their multinational rivals. Aliko Dangote, Chief Executive of Dangote Industries, confirmed to Africa-Asia Confidential in Abuja that the agreements with Sinoma would amount to China's single biggest private sector deal in Africa.
INDIAAFRICA Speedy motors miracle 6th November 2008 Image courtesy of Panos Pictures View site Surprising customers and competitors, India's car exports are now beginning to capture Africa's markets After a long courtship India's biggest car manufacturers are looking for rapid expansion in African markets. Indian vehicle makers are bullish on Africa and engaged in steadily e...
AFRICAASIA Single-minded politics 6th November 2008 Image courtesy of Panos Pictures View site Smaller Asian states are expanding relations with Africa, in the wake of China and India A visit from North Korea's elite and reculsive leadership is rare for any region, especially Africa. On 18 March Kim Yong-nam, President of the Supreme People's Assembly and North ...
JAPANWEST AFRICA From Tokyo to Bamako 6th November 2008 Japan is increasing its visibility in Mali and the rest of Africa in preparation for the TICAD IV and G8 summits Malian President Amadou Toumani Touré (ATT) finally has something to show for his consistent performance as one of Japan's biggest proponents in Africa with the opening of t...
SÃO TOMÉ & PRÍNCIPETAIWAN All politics is international 6th November 2008 Taiwan's Presidential elections on 22 March have delayed the appointment of Taipei's new ambassadors to Gambia and São Tomé e Príncipe. Taipei may also be wa...
MALAWIMALI Lights off 6th November 2008 The abrupt closure of the Malaysian textile company Ramatex Group's operations in Windhoek with a loss of 3,000 jobs in early March has sparked a political row with trades union...
JAPANWEST AFRICA West Africa looks east 6th November 2008 Mali is not the only Francophone West African country courted by Japan. President Abdoulaye Wade of Senegal was invited, along with the Presidents of Algeria, Egypt, Ethiopia, ...
MOZAMBIQUEINDIA Firing up the coal 6th November 2008 India needs coal to fire up its growth, freight rates from Australia's mines have soared, and India's own coal-mines are crippled by price controls and labour regulations. So imp...
CHINALATIN AMERICA Szechwan samba 6th November 2008 Why are China's importers of raw materials so interested in Africa rather than other continents, such as Latin America? Latin America's natural resources are largely controlled b...
SÃO TOMÉ & PRÍNCIPETAIWAN Changing horses 6th November 2008 In the latest diplomatic challenge to Taiwan, the tiny Atlantic archipelago is again flirting with Beijing The appointment of a new Prime Minister in São Tomé e Príncipe could herald a reverse for Taiwan, according to regional diplomatic sources, who say politic...
ZAMBIACHINA The copper clashes 6th November 2008 Tension and recriminations continue to mark relations between Zambian workers and Chinese investors, two months after the end of a two-day strike at a US$200 million copper smeltin...
CHINA Justin Yifu Lin 6th November 2008 Chief Economist for Development Economics, World Bank At the end of May, Justin Yifu Lin will succeed France's François Bourguignon as Chief Economist at the World Bank. The Peking University professor will be the first econ...
SOUTH KOREA Lee Won-gul 6th November 2008 CEO Korea Electric Power Corporation Born in Busan in 1959, Lee attended the prestigious Sungkyunkwan University, majoring in public administration. He joined the Ministry of Trade and Industry in 1978 and held post...
INDONESIA Purnomo Yusgiantoro 6th November 2008 Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources, Indonesia Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources, Indonesia n A native of Semarang, Central Java, Purnomo Yusgiantoro, 56, holds a bachelor's degree in engineering from the Bandung Inst...
VIETNAM Nguyen Tan Dung 6th November 2008 Prime Minister of Vietnam Hailing from Ca Mau, the southernmost province of Vietnam, Dung joined the National Front for the Liberation of South Vietnam (aka the Viet Cong) in 1961. He was 12 years old. In...