<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/GettyImages-1239257303-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-423239" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/GettyImages-1239257303-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/GettyImages-1239257303-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/GettyImages-1239257303-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/GettyImages-1239257303-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/GettyImages-1239257303-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/GettyImages-1239257303-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">BRAZIL &#8211; 2022/03/16: In this photo illustration the Meta Platforms logo seen in the background of a silhouette woman holding a mobile phone. (Photo Illustration by Rafael Henrique/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)</figcaption></figure>



NAIROBI, Feb 21 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Facebook parent company Meta&nbsp;META.O&nbsp;has filed an appeal in Kenya challenging a ruling that said the company could be sued in the East African country even though it has no official presence there.



A Kenyan labour court earlier this month&nbsp;<a href="https://www.reutersconnect.com/all?search=all%3AL8N34M1ZK&amp;linkedFromStory=true" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">ruled</a>&nbsp;that Meta could be sued in the country after a former content moderator filed a lawsuit alleging poor working conditions.



In the appeal, seen by Reuters on Tuesday, the U.S. company disputed the court&#8217;s finding that Kenyan courts had jurisdiction over Meta.



Meta outsourced its content moderation work via Sama, a U.S.-headquartered company with operations in Kenya. Sama said last month it would no longer provide content moderation services for Meta.



The lawsuit was filed by former content moderator Daniel Motaung on behalf of a group of former Sama employees.



It seeks financial compensation, an order that outsourced moderators have the same healthcare and pay scale as Meta employees, that unionisation rights be protected and an independent human rights audit of the office.



(Reporting by Humphrey Malalo; Writing by Ayenat Mersie; Editing by Mark Potter)

In this photo illustration the Meta Platforms logo seen in

Meta appeals Kenyan court’s decision it can be sued in Kenya

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="615" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/GettyImages-1239412494-820x615.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-423221" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/GettyImages-1239412494-820x615.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/GettyImages-1239412494-300x225.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/GettyImages-1239412494-120x90.jpg 120w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/GettyImages-1239412494-768x576.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/GettyImages-1239412494.jpg 1280w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">MAURITIUS ISLAND, MAURITIUS &#8211; MARCH 22: A view from a seaside with turquoise water and white sand on the exotic island of Indian Ocean in Mauritius on March 22, 2022. (Photo by Kenan Irtak/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)</figcaption></figure>



PORT LOUIS, Feb 20 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Mauritius on Monday grounded flights and shut its stock exchange as Tropical Cyclone Freddy approached, posing a &#8220;direct threat&#8221; to the Indian Ocean island.



A Class III cyclone warning was in force in Mauritius, allowing about six hours of daylight before the occurrence of wind gusts of 120 kilometres per hour.



Mauritius, along with other Indian Ocean countries like Madagascar and African coastal nations like Mozambique, is regularly affected by severe storms and cyclones capable of destroying homes, infrastructure and crops.



Its weather service said in a bulletin issued at 1010 local time (0610 GMT) that at its closest distance, Freddy may pass at about 120 km (75 miles) to the north-northwest of the island late in the afternoon, saying it represented a direct threat.



&#8220;As Freddy approaches Mauritius, (a) storm surge is likely to cause coastal inundation in risk areas. It is, therefore, strictly advised not to go at sea,&#8221; the bulletin said.



(Reporting by Villen Anganan; Writing by George Obulutsa; Editing by Alexander Winning and Bernadette Baum)

Africa’s undiscovered travel destination: Mauritius Island

Mauritius halts flights, shuts stock exchange as cyclone Freddy approaches

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="592" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/GettyImages-1234493050-1-820x592.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-423201" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/GettyImages-1234493050-1-820x592.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/GettyImages-1234493050-1-300x217.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/GettyImages-1234493050-1-125x90.jpg 125w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/GettyImages-1234493050-1-768x554.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/GettyImages-1234493050-1-1536x1109.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/GettyImages-1234493050-1-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">General view of the flag of Kenya at Shiokaze Park on the fourteenth day of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games in Japan. Picture date: Friday August 6, 2021. (Photo by Mike Egerton/PA Images via Getty Images)</figcaption></figure>



NAIROBI, Feb 17 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Kenya may opt to issue a Eurobond with a different tenor to manage next year&#8217;s maturity of a $2 billion, 10-year bond, the director of its debt management office told Reuters on Friday.



Markets are keenly watching how the East African nation will manage the large maturity after the government&#8217;s debt-servicing costs shot up in recent years and its currency&nbsp;KES=&nbsp;weakened significantly against the dollar in the past three years.



&#8220;There is a likelihood that we may issue an instrument that is not of the same tenor,&#8221; Haron Sirima said, adding it would be structured in two or three tranches, depending on the advice received from bankers.



Such a move could give Kenya more flexibility to attract different investors and smooth out future maturities.



The bond&nbsp;US491798AE43=TE&nbsp;is trading with a yield of 11%, having come off a peak of 22% in July last year. It was trading with a yield of 6-7% when it was issued nine years ago.



The Kenyan shilling has depreciated 29% to 125.50 per dollar since the bond was issued, prompting concerns among market participants and government officials.



&#8220;We may not want to see such huge maturities in the future. It poses a risk. $2 billion is significant,&#8221; Sirima said.



The government is about to conclude a deal to raise $600 million from a syndicate of banks, details of which were not disclosed, he said, part of the planned $900 million commercial borrowing for this financial year to the end of June.



A third of the amount has already been raised.



Kenya&#8217;s debt-to-GDP ratio could fall significantly if the country sticks to the fiscal consolidation path set out by the government, Sirima said.



Public debt stood at 60% of GDP at the end of last year, the ministry of finance said, citing a debt sustainability analysis prepared by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank.



&#8220;Public debt sustainability indicators are projected to begin improving in 2026 after settlement of major maturities,&#8221; the ministry said in a debt management strategy published this week.



Total debt could fall below the ideal threshold of 55% of GDP by then, the Treasury said in the document. Although Kenya is classified by the IMF and the World Bank as at a high risk of debt distress, its debt load is sustainable, the ministry said.



(Reporting by Duncan Miriri; Editing by Mark Potter)

Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games – Day Fourteen

Kenya may issue different tenor Eurobond to manage upcoming maturity

<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="800" height="533" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/download-60.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-423083" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/download-60.jpg 800w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/download-60-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/download-60-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/download-60-768x512.jpg 768w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">FILE PHOTO: Zambia&#8217;s Finance Minister Situmbeko Musokotwane attends the Annual Meetings of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank in Washington, U.S., October 15, 2022. REUTERS/James Lawler Duggan</figcaption></figure>



Feb 13 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Zambia&#8217;s finance minister rejected a call from China for the World Bank and other multilateral lenders to join a restructuring of the country&#8217;s debt and warned that delays were holding up the economy, the Financial Times reported on Monday.



In an interview with the newspaper, Situmbeko Musokotwane said that &#8220;time is of the essence&#8221; to finish a restructuring of about $13 billion of external debt this year and signalled that China&#8217;s demand was a distraction from talks for reducing the loans.



&#8220;Discussions at higher levels like those just make our situation worse, because what we are looking for is urgent solutions, not discussions that may drag out the matter,&#8221;&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ft.com/content/b136a36b-5822-4647-8efe-67fc18b00ea3" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">the report</a>&nbsp;quoted Musokotwane as saying.



The People&#8217;s Bank of China and the Ministry of Finance both did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.



Zambia became the first African country to default in the COVID-19 era in 2020, but the restructuring of its external debts of almost $15 billion with creditors including China and Eurobond holders has been greatly delayed.



Government data showed Zambia owed Chinese creditors nearly $6 billion of the total of $17 billion external debt at the end of 2021.



U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and other Group of Seven have grown increasingly frustrated about what they see as foot-dragging by China in moving forward on debt rescheduling for countries seeking help. China, for its part, argues that multilateral institutions should also be required to accept reductions in the debt they are owed.



(Reporting by Akriti Sharma in Bengaluru; Editing by Kim Coghill &amp; Simon Cameron-Moore)

download-60

Zambia rejects China’s call for World Bank to join its debt restructuring – FT

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/GettyImages-849116266-1-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-422984" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/GettyImages-849116266-1-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/GettyImages-849116266-1-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/GettyImages-849116266-1-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/GettyImages-849116266-1-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/GettyImages-849116266-1-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/GettyImages-849116266-1-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">View of the 36th session of the Human Rights Council of United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland on 15 September 2017. Annual discussion on the integration of a gender perspective throughout the work of the Human Rights Council and that of its mechanisms. (Photo by Siavosh Hosseini/NurPhoto via Getty Images)</figcaption></figure>



KAMPALA, Feb 8 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Uganda has said it will not renew the mandate of the United Nations&#8217; human rights office in the East African country, citing the development of its own sufficient capacity to monitor rights compliance.



In a letter by Uganda&#8217;s Foreign Affairs Ministry sent to Office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) on Feb. 3 and seen by Reuters on Wednesday, the ministry noted progress Uganda had made in developing a domestic capacity to monitor rights as the main reason for its decision.



&#8220;The ministry wishes to convey the government&#8217;s decision not to renew the mandate of the OHCHR Country office in Uganda beyond the current term,&#8221; said the letter, which the ministry confirmed to Reuters as authentic.



OHCHR Uganda country office spokesperson Bernard Amwine told Reuters he had no comment.



President Yoweri Museveni&#8217;s government has over the years been&nbsp;<a href="https://www.reutersconnect.com/all?search=all%3AL8N2UI1PC&amp;linkedFromStory=true" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">criticised</a>&nbsp;by the opposition, human rights activists and Western countries for various rights violations including torture, illegal detentions and extrajudicial killings of opponents and critics.



Officials have denied almost all of the accusations and said all security forces implicated in rights abuses have been duly punished.



Museveni, 78, who came to power after a five-year guerrilla war, has ruled Uganda since 1986 and the opposition and critics have accused him of grooming his son, a general in the country&#8217;s military, to take over from him. Museveni has repeatedly denied doing so.



The OHCHR Uganda office was established in 2006 and was initially allowed to focus only on human rights issues in conflict-plagued areas in Uganda&#8217;s north and northeast, according to the Uganda government. It was later allowed to cover the rest of the country.



In the letter, the ministry said the government had since gained enough commitment to the promotion and protection of human rights and that there was &#8220;peace throughout the country, coupled with strong national human rights institutions and a vibrant civil society.&#8221;



Uganda&#8217;s next election is in 2026 and Museveni is widely expected to seek another term, although he has not indicated if he will stand.



(Reporting by Elias Biryabarema; Editing by George Obulutsa and Jamie Freed)

GettyImages-849116266-1

Uganda says it will not renew mandate of U.N. human rights office

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/GettyImages-924883576-1-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-422955" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/GettyImages-924883576-1-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/GettyImages-924883576-1-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/GettyImages-924883576-1-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/GettyImages-924883576-1-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/GettyImages-924883576-1-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/GettyImages-924883576-1-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Uganda shillings. Uganda. (Photo by: Godong/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)</figcaption></figure>



KAMPALA, Feb 6 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Uganda&#8217;s central bank held its key lending rate&nbsp;UGCBIR=ECI&nbsp;at 10.0% on Monday, saying it expected inflation would slow to hit its target by the end of the year despite a pick-up in January that it thought would be short-lived.



The decision, announced by deputy governor Michael Atingi-Ego at a news conference, was the second time in a row the bank has kept its policy rate unchanged.



Last year it raised rates by 350 basis points to fight inflation.



Inflation was 10.4% year-on-year in January&nbsp;UGCPIY=ECI&nbsp;from 10.2% a month earlier, but Atingi-Ego said core inflation was expected to decline to the 5% target by the end of 2023.



Risks to the inflation outlook include the potential impact of international financial conditions on the Ugandan shilling&nbsp;UGX=&nbsp;exchange rate, and higher food and energy prices, he added.



&#8220;The current CBR (Central Bank Rate) would contain domestic demand pressures, while accommodating and supporting economic recovery,&#8221; Atingi-Ego said.



(Reporting by Elias Biryabarema; Writing by George Obulutsa; Editing by Alexander Winning and Andrew Heavens)

GettyImages-924883576-1

Uganda holds rate, sees inflation hitting target by year-end

<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="728" height="477" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/4PTCTAGMZJJ7LLDMMXNBAWEJB4.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-422934" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/4PTCTAGMZJJ7LLDMMXNBAWEJB4.jpg 728w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/4PTCTAGMZJJ7LLDMMXNBAWEJB4-300x197.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/4PTCTAGMZJJ7LLDMMXNBAWEJB4-137x90.jpg 137w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 728px) 100vw, 728px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Members of Kenya Defence Forces (KDF), part of the troops to the East Africa Community Regional Force (EACRF) prepare to depart on their deployment as part of a regional military operation targeting rebels, at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport in Nairobi, Kenya November 16, 2022. REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya</figcaption></figure>



BUJUMBURA, Feb 5 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;East African regional leaders on Saturday renewed their call for an immediate ceasefire by all sides in the conflict in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo that pits the country&#8217;s military against a rebel group it has accused Rwanda of supporting.



At a summit in Burundi&#8217;s capital Bujumbura, the leaders of the regional East African Community (EAC) bloc called for an &#8220;immediate ceasefire by all parties,&#8221; according to a communique issued at the end of the meeting.



The M23 rebel group has seized large areas of eastern Congo&#8217;s North Kivu province in a rapid onslaught since Oct. 20 that has threatened the provincial capital, Goma.



The conflict has inflamed regional tensions with Congo accusing neighbour Rwanda of backing and sponsoring the Tutsi-led rebellion. United Nations experts and Western powers have also accused Rwanda of backing the M23, although Rwanda has denied any involvement.



Saturday&#8217;s meeting was the latest diplomatic effort to try to end the insurgency, which has displaced at least 520,000 people since March 2022 in North Kivu, a territory long plagued by conflict.



Earlier this week, Pope Francis&nbsp;<a href="https://www.reutersconnect.com/all?search=all%3AL1N34H0IG&amp;linkedFromStory=true" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">visited Congo</a>&nbsp;and called for an end to violence.



Regional leaders had brokered an agreement in November under which the rebels were meant to cease fire and withdraw from recently seized positions by Jan. 15, but that did not happen.



A U.N.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.reutersconnect.com/all?search=all%3AL8N33Q4AT&amp;linkedFromStory=true" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">internal report</a>&nbsp;said the rebels were flouting the ceasefire and withdrawal terms.



Saturday&#8217;s summit was attended by heads of state from Rwanda, Congo, Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania and Burundi and senior officials from the region.



They also demanded the withdrawal of all foreign and armed groups from Congo and asked regional military chiefs to meet within one week and set a timeframe for the withdrawal.



&#8220;The summit reiterated its call to all parties to de-escalate tensions,&#8221; the communique read.



At the summit Congo&#8217;s President Felix Tshisekedi warned the commander of an East African regional military force deployed in eastern Congo, Jeff Nyagah, a Kenyan, against showing bias toward the rebels.



&#8220;Do not favor the M23. It would be a shame for the population to turn on you,&#8221;&nbsp;Tshisekedi is seen telling Nyagah in a video tweeted by his spokeswoman,&nbsp;Tina Salama.



&#8220;You came to help us and not to have problems. Pay attention to that. Communicate with the population,&#8221; Tshisekedi said.



Kenyan President William Ruto&nbsp;was visible standing nearby&nbsp;as Tshisekedi warned the commander. The EAC agreed on a regional force in April last year to be deployed in eastern Congo to help end decades of bloodshed in the area.



On Jan. 27, M23 rebels took control of the town of Kitshanga in Masisi territory and control of a new road, further isolating the provincial capital Goma.



(Additional reporting by Sonia Rolley; Writing by Elias Biryabarema; Editing by Mark Potter and Toby Chopra)

Members of Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) depart from Jomo Kenyatta airport in Nairobi

East African regional leaders demand ceasefire in eastern Congo

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/GettyImages-1246347995-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-422804" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/GettyImages-1246347995-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/GettyImages-1246347995-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/GettyImages-1246347995-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/GettyImages-1246347995-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/GettyImages-1246347995-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/GettyImages-1246347995-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Patrick Njoroge, governor of Kenya&#8217;s central bank, during a panel session during a panel session on day three of the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland, on Thursday, Jan. 19, 2023. The annual Davos gathering of political leaders, top executives and celebrities runs from January 16 to 20. Photographer: Stefan Wermuth/Bloomberg via Getty Images</figcaption></figure>



NAIROBI, Jan 31 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Kenya&#8217;s foreign exchange market will be stable this year, mainly due to an improvement in the current account deficit, the governor of the central bank said on Tuesday.



The deficit narrowed to 4.9% of gross domestic product at the end of last year, Patrick Njoroge told a news conference, better than the bank&#8217;s projection of 5.9%.



He said that the current account deficit is expected at 5.4% this year, well around the &#8220;sweet spot of about 5%&#8221;.



The improvement in the deficit was driven by higher export earnings from tea and manufactured goods, Njoroge said, as well as an increase in the amount of cash remittances sent home by Kenyans living abroad.



The Kenyan shilling&nbsp;KES=&nbsp;weakened 9% against the dollar last year, he said. The currency has so far this year lost 0.8% against the dollar, Njoroge said.



The central bank&#8217;s foreign exchange reserves remained adequate despite slipping below the statutory requirement of four months worth of import cover last week, the governor said, citing expected hard currency inflows.



&#8220;We don&#8217;t have any concerns there. We expect that the cover will increase and the reserves we are holding are adequate,&#8221; he said.



Hard currency reserves slid to $7 billion last week, worth 3.92 months of import cover, the central bank said, from $7.38 billion the previous week, or 4.13 months worth of imports.



The central bank did not say why the reserves fell, but market participants attributed the drop to the repayment of foreign loans.



&#8220;Given the shocks we have had&#8230; we accept lower reserve cover,&#8221; Njoroge said, citing a jump in yields of dollar-denominated bonds last year, which prevented Kenya from issuing a new euro bond.



Kenya is expecting to receive fresh financing from the World Bank and a $300 million tranche from an existing lending programme with the International Monetary Fund by the end of June this year, which will bolster reserves, Njoroge said.



(Reporting by Duncan Miriri; Editing by Sharon Singleton)

Day Three of The World Economic Forum (WEF) 2023

Kenya’s central banker sees stable FX market on benign external deficit

<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="728" height="485" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/CORIUWLHAJI4LNBBJBT32ZAVTI.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-422769" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/CORIUWLHAJI4LNBBJBT32ZAVTI.jpg 728w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/CORIUWLHAJI4LNBBJBT32ZAVTI-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/CORIUWLHAJI4LNBBJBT32ZAVTI-135x90.jpg 135w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 728px) 100vw, 728px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Kenya Central Bank Governor Patrick Njoroge displays Kenyan shilling bank notes during a news conference at the Central Bank in Nairobi, Kenya, June 3, 2019. REUTERS/Baz Ratner</figcaption></figure>



NAIROBI, Jan 30 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Kenya&#8217;s central bank held its benchmark lending rate steady at 8.75% on Monday, its monetary policy committee said, saying its last hike in November was still working its way through the economy.



Six out of nine market participants&nbsp;<a href="https://www.reutersconnect.com/all?search=all%3AL8N3490G0&amp;linkedFromStory=true" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">polled</a>&nbsp;by Reuters had predicted the bank would hold the rate&nbsp;KECBIR=ECI&nbsp;steady, while three expected it would be raised.



The move bucks the trend among major African central banks who have maintained a tightening stance into this year. Policymakers in Nigeria and South Africa hiked rates last week, while their Ghanaian counterparts hiked earlier on Monday.



Apart from letting past hikes take effect, there had been others measures which could help to lower inflationary pressure, Kenyan policymakers said.



&#8220;This action will be complemented by the recently announced government measures to allow limited duty-free imports on specific food items, which are expected to moderate prices,&#8221; they said.



Inflation inched down to 9.1% in December, the second straight month of decrease, but still above the government&#8217;s preferred band of 2.5-7.5%.



Policymakers raised the policy rate for the first time since 2015 during their meeting in May last year, when they increased it by 50 basis points, citing growing inflation.



They followed that with a 75 basis points hike in September and another one of 50 basis points in November.



(Reporting by Duncan Miriri and George Obulutsa; Editing by James Macharia Chege and Christina Fincher)

Kenya Central Bank Governor Patrick Njoroge displays the newly designed Kenyan shilling bank notes during a news conference at the Central Bank in Nairobi

Kenya central bank holds its benchmark lending rate at 8.75%

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="560" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/GettyImages-1455568140-820x560.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-422548" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/GettyImages-1455568140-820x560.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/GettyImages-1455568140-300x205.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/GettyImages-1455568140-132x90.jpg 132w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/GettyImages-1455568140-768x525.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/GettyImages-1455568140-1536x1050.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/GettyImages-1455568140-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">WASHINGTON, DC &#8211; JANUARY 10: U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen participates in a meeting with Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister of Canada Chrystia Freeland at the Department of the Treasury on January 10, 2023 in Washington, DC. Secretary Yellen agreed to stay on as Treasury Secretary following a request from President Biden. (Photo by Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)</figcaption></figure>



LUSAKA, Jan 23 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said on Monday during a visit to Zambia that it was critically important to restructure&nbsp;the country&#8217;s&nbsp;debt, and she&nbsp;believes&nbsp;progress could be made after her frank talks with key creditor China last week.



Yellen added that Zambia&#8217;s debt overhang was a drag on its whole economy and that China had been a barrier to resolving the southern African country&#8217;s debt problem.



However, she said she was encouraged that progress could shortly become possible following her meeting with Chinese officials in Zurich last week.



&#8220;I specifically raised the issue with Zambia (with Chinese officials) and asked for their cooperation in trying to reach a speedy resolution. And our talks were constructive,&#8221; Yellen said.



She told Zambian Finance Minister Situmbeko Musokotwane that the timely finalization of Zambia&#8217;s debt treatment was a top priority for the Treasury.



&#8220;We will continue to press for all official bilateral and private-sector creditors to meaningfully participate in debt relief for Zambia, especially China,&#8221; she said.



Yellen said she was keen to continue talks with Musokotwane and other Zambian officials about the country&#8217;s &#8220;impressive progress&#8221; on economic reforms, and how regional economic integration and deepening trade ties could support the country&#8217;s growth.



However, Musokotwane said at the start of a bilateral meeting with Yellen that the debt restructuring process has been moving slowly and its outcome was not certain.



Calling for the help of global leaders to move the restructuring process forward, he said it was needed to create conditions conducive to investments and to reduce pressure on Zambians to migrate.



Yellen was also slated to meet with Zambian President Hakainde Hichilema, who took charge in August 2021.



Yellen told reporters it was important for Zambia to address corruption and human rights, and to create a business environment that would promote investment and trade.



She lauded Hichilema for making the fight against corruption an important part of his agenda.



&#8220;It&#8217;s something that needs continued focus,&#8221; she said. &#8220;I would say the work isn&#8217;t done, but there clearly has been an important focus on it.&#8221;



Yellen&#8217;s meeting with Musokotwane took place at Zambia&#8217;s finance ministry, where large signs with slogans such as &#8220;This is a corruption-free zone&#8221; and &#8220;Say NO to corruption. Integrity is a virtue&#8221; were on prominent display in the hallways.



Yellen is on a three-country visit to Africa. In Senegal&nbsp;<a href="https://www.reutersconnect.com/all?search=all%3AL1N3450T8&amp;linkedFromStory=true" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">she said</a>&nbsp;Russia&#8217;s war in Ukraine was hitting Africans particularly hard by exacerbating food insecurity and putting an unnecessary drag on the continent&#8217;s economy.



(Reporting by Andrea Shalal; Writing by Anait Miridzhanian, Bhargav Acharya and Alexander Winning; Editing by Estelle Shirbon, Christina Fincher and Mark Porter)

Treasury Secretary Yellen Meets With Visiting Canadian Officials

Yellen says critically important to restructure Zambia debt

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/CWUIN7YMUJM4RCNKGAU2HLA2HA-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-422614" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/CWUIN7YMUJM4RCNKGAU2HLA2HA-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/CWUIN7YMUJM4RCNKGAU2HLA2HA-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/CWUIN7YMUJM4RCNKGAU2HLA2HA-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/CWUIN7YMUJM4RCNKGAU2HLA2HA-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/CWUIN7YMUJM4RCNKGAU2HLA2HA.jpg 960w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Zambia&#8217;s President Hakainde Hichilema presents his national statement as a part of the World Leaders&#8217; Summit at the UN Climate Change Conference (COP26) in Glasgow, Scotland, Britain November 1, 2021. Andy Buchanan/Pool via REUTERS</figcaption></figure>



LUSAKA, Jan 23 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Zambian President Hakainde Hichilema urged the country&#8217;s creditors on Monday to agree to a quick debt restructuring to aid economy recovery efforts.



Hichilema made the remarks during a visit to Zambia by International Monetary Fund (IMF) Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva, who met Hichilema, Finance Minister Situmbeko Musokotwane, central bank governor Denny Kalyalya and other senior government officials.



Zambia defaulted on its sovereign debt in 2020, becoming the first African country to do so during the COVID-19 pandemic.



In August last year it won IMF approval for a $1.3 billion, three-year loan&nbsp;<a href="https://www.reutersconnect.com/all?search=all%3AL1N30734Z&amp;linkedFromStory=true" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">programme</a>&nbsp;intended to help ease pressure on its public finances while it conducts&nbsp;<a href="https://www.reutersconnect.com/all?search=all%3AL1N3432D2&amp;linkedFromStory=true" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">$13 billion restructuring discussions</a>.



&#8220;If (the debt restructuring is) not concluded soon, it is going to distort all the good efforts that we have been making to reconstruct the economy and bring investment,&#8221; Hichilema told Georgieva, in remarks with reporters present.



He added that if the restructuring was concluded by a government target of the end of the first quarter of this year it could &#8220;help a lot to open up areas that are sometimes causing negative sentiment&#8221;.



Georgieva commended the government for moving away from wasteful expenditure to use funds more prudently. She said the IMF would like to work with Zambia to boost its economic growth.



Georgieva, who has pushed hard for quicker movement on debt relief,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.reutersconnect.com/all?search=all%3AL1N33X31I&amp;linkedFromStory=true" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">has said</a>&nbsp;she hopes Zambia will become the second nation after Chad to complete a debt treatment process under the Group of 20 major economies&#8217; Common Framework.



(Reporting by Chris Mfula; Writing by Anait Miridzhanian and Alexander Winning; Editing by Estelle Shirbon and Angus MacSwan)

CWUIN7YMUJM4RCNKGAU2HLA2HA

Zambian president wants quick debt restructuring to aid recovery

<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="728" height="485" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/UCYGVOHD4JP7JPIOBH22IWOMJA.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-422570" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/UCYGVOHD4JP7JPIOBH22IWOMJA.jpg 728w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/UCYGVOHD4JP7JPIOBH22IWOMJA-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/UCYGVOHD4JP7JPIOBH22IWOMJA-135x90.jpg 135w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 728px) 100vw, 728px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Ruth Nankabirwa Ssentamu, Ugandan minister of energy and mineral development speaks to Reuters at the Africa Oil Week 2022 conference at the Cape Town International Convention Centre 2, Cape Town, South Africa, October 4, 2022. REUTERS/Shelley Christians/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



KAMPALA, Jan 20 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Uganda said on Friday it plans to announce a third oil licensing round in May&nbsp;in an effort to further develop a sector on track to produce its first oil in 2025.



Energy Minister Ruth Nankabirwa Ssentamu said in a statement detailing developments in the sector that the next licensing round would be announced at a regional petroleum conference due to take place in Uganda&#8217;s capital Kampala in May.



She did not say how many blocks would be put up for auction.



The East African country discovered commercial hydrocarbon deposits near its western border with Democratic Republic of Congo in 2006. Production is projected to begin in 2025.



Uganda is&nbsp;also&nbsp;developing a crude export pipeline and a domestic crude refinery that will help to commercialise the country&#8217;s oil resources.



A U.S. firm, Albertine Graben Energy Consortium Partners (AGEC), is planning to build and operate a $4.5 billion, 60,000 barrel-per-day refinery to produce a range of refined products and liquefied petroleum gas for the regional market.



It will also build&nbsp;a 213-kilometre (130-mile) refined products pipeline from the oilfields to storage facilities near Kampala.



Ssentamu&nbsp;said a final investment decision on the refinery was expected this year.



She added&nbsp;the pipeline and refinery would be developed&nbsp;concurrently&nbsp;and &#8220;when both projects are operational, the refinery will have the first call on crude oil&#8221;.



All of Uganda&#8217;s existing oilfields are jointly owned by France&#8217;s TotalEnergies&nbsp;TTEF.PA, China&#8217;s CNOOC&nbsp;0883.HK&nbsp;and the state-run Uganda National Oil Company.



(Reporting by Elias Biryabarema; editing by Jason Neely)

Ruth Nankabirwa Ssentamu, Ugandan minister of energy and mineral development at the Africa Oil Week in Cape Town

Uganda to announce oil blocks licensing round in May

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="543" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/SF4EAWJFM5MEJL6MPGZVITISBM-820x543.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-418602" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/SF4EAWJFM5MEJL6MPGZVITISBM-820x543.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/SF4EAWJFM5MEJL6MPGZVITISBM-300x199.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/SF4EAWJFM5MEJL6MPGZVITISBM-136x90.jpg 136w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/SF4EAWJFM5MEJL6MPGZVITISBM-768x509.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/SF4EAWJFM5MEJL6MPGZVITISBM-1536x1017.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/SF4EAWJFM5MEJL6MPGZVITISBM-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Kenya&#8217;s Deputy President William Ruto of United Democratic Alliance (UDA) and Kenya Kwanza political coalition speaks at an interview with Reuters ahead of the forthcoming presidential elections, at his Karen residence in Nairobi, Kenya, July 20, 2022. REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya</figcaption></figure>



NAIROBI, Jan 19 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Kenya will set a net external financing target of 198.6 billion shillings ($1.60 billion), or 1.2% of&nbsp;its gross domestic product, for its 2023/24 financial year&nbsp;ending in June, the ministry of finance said in a draft budget policy statement.



The government will aim for a net domestic borrowing target of 496.6 billion shillings,&nbsp;or&nbsp;3% of GDP, for the same period, it said in the policy statement.



The new targets are lower than those set for the current financial year, which stood at 280 billion shillings from external sources and 581 billion shillings locally.



President William Ruto&#8217;s administration, which came into office last September, plans to slash the budget deficit to 4.3% of GDP in&nbsp;the 2023/24&nbsp;financial year, from an estimated 5.8% in the current period, before cutting it further to 3.6% in&nbsp;the 2026/27&nbsp;period.



($1 = 123.9500 Kenyan shillings)



(Reporting by Duncan Miriri; Editing by Jacqueline Wong and Christian Schmollinger)

Kenyan Deputy President Ruto speaks in Nairobi

Kenya eyes lower local and foreign borrowing targets as it cuts deficit

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/GettyImages-1239385959-1-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-422519" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/GettyImages-1239385959-1-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/GettyImages-1239385959-1-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/GettyImages-1239385959-1-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/GettyImages-1239385959-1-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/GettyImages-1239385959-1-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/GettyImages-1239385959-1-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">MANACACIAS, COLOMBIA &#8211; MARCH 15: A person is seen wearing a World Wildlife Fund (WWF) t-shirt at the Mountain-range of ManacacÃ­as during International Day of Forest in Manacacias, Colombia on March 15, 2022. The ManacacÃ­as Mountain Range is considered an earthly paradise due to its environmental richness not seen anywhere else in the country. The ManacacÃ­as mountain range, located in the department of Meta, is a paradise. Not surprisingly, scientists have managed to record up to a quarter (460) of the bird species in Colombia (1,900), the country with the greatest diversity of birds in the world. This natural paradise encompasses ecosystems such as dissected savannahs (also known as undulating savannahs) and gallery forests that are poorly represented in the National System of Protected Areas. (Photo by Juancho Torres/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)</figcaption></figure>



LONDON, Jan 18 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Zambia received a &#8216;debt-for-nature swap&#8217; proposal as part of its $13 billion restructuring discussions, a move that while complex to secure and not part of current talks, could set an eco-friendly precedent for other debt crises if eventually included.



Zambia has become a test case for the G20-led &#8216;Common Framework&#8217; restructuring vehicle launched during the COVID-19 pandemic, but&nbsp;<a href="https://www.reutersconnect.com/all?search=all%3AL8N33C2NL&amp;linkedFromStory=true" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">differences</a>&nbsp;with some of its main creditors about the debt relief required means progress has been slow.



The government confirmed to Reuters on Wednesday a previously undisclosed detail &#8211; that the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) provided a blueprint last year on how conservation pledges could be part of the deal.



In their simplest form, debt-for-nature swaps replace expensive bonds or loans with cheaper financing, usually with the help of a credit guarantee from a multilateral development bank.



It is an approach that helped both Belize and Seychelles secure writedowns that put tens of millions of dollars into ocean protection and conservationists see Zambia, known for the iconic Victoria Falls, as an obvious candidate.



Its vast swathes of national parks are home or migration routes for some of Africa&#8217;s most impressive wildlife including lions and elephants. Their habitats, though, are under increasing threat from climate change and deforestation.



&#8220;The Ministry of Finance and National Planning has received a proposal from the World Wildlife Fund regarding the consideration of debt-for-nature swaps,&#8221; the ministry said in an emailed response to whether it was looking at a swap.



The idea has not been factored into the International Monetary Fund&#8217;s current debt sustainability analysis but that wouldn&#8217;t prevent it being added later, especially if creditors made it clear that they might back it.



&#8220;We will be considering all debt restructuring options that are in the framework (G20 Common Framework)which falls within the DSA (debt sustainability analysis) parameters&#8230; and that are acceptable to all parties,&#8221; the ministry&#8217;s response added.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-common-framework">COMMON FRAMEWORK</h2>



WWF&#8217;s Zambia country head, Nachilala Nkombo, told Reuters that the most recent talks with the government took place last month.



While some of Zambia&#8217;s private sector bond holders are expected to be open to the idea, it is not known where China, France and other key &#8216;<a href="https://www.reutersconnect.com/all?search=all%3AL8N33X4C4&amp;linkedFromStory=true" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">official sector</a>&#8216; creditors stand, given that talks have already dragged on for two years.



Sri Lanka, another Common Framework restructuring country, has&nbsp;<a href="https://www.reutersconnect.com/all?search=all%3AL8N31G064&amp;linkedFromStory=true" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">said</a>&nbsp;that it would like to do a debt-for-nature swap and with Zambia still hoping to wrap up its deal this year it would likely set a precedent.



IMF head Kristalina Georgieva will&nbsp;<a href="https://www.reutersconnect.com/all?search=all%3AL1N33X31I&amp;linkedFromStory=true" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">visit</a>&nbsp;Zambia in two weeks. Her trip will coincide with the country&#8217;s&nbsp;<a href="https://www.reutersconnect.com/all?search=all%3AL8N33V3V3&amp;linkedFromStory=true" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">rationing</a>&nbsp;of electricity supply to mining firms due to critically low water levels of the country&#8217;s hydroelectric dams that provide most of its power.



The Victoria Falls, the country&#8217;s main tourist draw,&nbsp;have been reduced to a trickle at times in recent years. Farmers have see crop yields plunge, poaching remains a scourge and deforestation rates are among the worst in the world.



&#8220;That is somebody&#8217;s job, somebody&#8217;s food and that is the country&#8217;s future at risk,&#8221; Nkombo said.



KAZA conservation area<a href="https://tmsnrt.rs/3GSx3k7" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://tmsnrt.rs/3GSx3k7</a>



Debt-for-nature swaps<a href="https://tmsnrt.rs/3AmVX94" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://tmsnrt.rs/3AmVX94</a>



(Editing by Elaine Hardcastle)

GettyImages-1239385959-1

Zambia received ‘debt-for-nature’ proposal from WWF for $13 bln restructuring

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/GettyImages-1239984716-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-422365" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/GettyImages-1239984716-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/GettyImages-1239984716-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/GettyImages-1239984716-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/GettyImages-1239984716-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/GettyImages-1239984716-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/GettyImages-1239984716-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Tug boats prepare to pull out an LNG Tanker vessel at the Cheniere Sabine Pass Liquefaction facility in Cameron, Louisiana, U.S., on Thursday, April 14, 2022. Cheniere Energy, Inc. is the largest producer and exporter of liquefied natural gas (LNG) in the United States and the second-largest LNG operator in the world. Photographer: Mark Felix/Bloomberg via Getty Images</figcaption></figure>



LONDON, Jan 13 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;The British government&#8217;s funding of up to $1.15 billion for a liquefied natural gas (LNG) project in Mozambique is lawful, a London court ruled on Friday, dismissing an appeal by Friends of the Earth.



The environmental campaign group had asked London&#8217;s Court of Appeal to rule the British government wrongly decided funding the project, led by French energy company TotalEnergies&nbsp;TTEF.PA, was compatible with the Paris Agreement on climate change.



UK Export Finance (UKEF) has committed to provide direct loans and guarantees to banks to support the design, build and operation of the $20 billion project.



Friends of the Earth&#8217;s legal action over the decision failed in a lower court and was dismissed by the Court of Appeal in a written ruling on Friday.



Judge Geoffrey Vos said the Paris Agreement was &#8220;only one of a range of factors&#8221; UKEF took into account when reaching the decision to fund the project.



The judge added that UKEF&#8217;s view that funding the project was aligned with the UK&#8217;s obligations under the Paris Agreement was &#8220;tenable&#8221; and that there was no requirement for it to be &#8220;certain that the decision complied with those obligations&#8221;.



Friends of the Earth described the ruling as &#8220;extremely disappointing&#8221; and said it is considering an appeal to the UK Supreme Court.



&#8220;This extremely disappointing judgment doesn&#8217;t alter our firm belief that the UK government should not be supporting the Mozambique gas project, or any fossil fuel project at home or abroad,&#8221; Rachel Kennerley, an international climate campaigner with the group, said in a statement.



UKEF did not immediately respond to a request for comment.



A spokesperson for TotalEnergies welcomed the ruling, saying the project &#8220;will deliver a range of social and economic benefits to Mozambique and is a key part of Mozambique&#8217;s aim to diversify its economy&#8221;.



&#8220;TotalEnergies supports the goals of the 2015 Paris Agreement, which calls for reducing greenhouse gas emissions in the context of sustainable development and the fight against poverty,&#8221; the spokesperson added.



(Reporting by Sam Tobin; editing by Sarah Young, Kylie MacLellan and David Evans)

Inside The Cheniere Sabine Pass Liquefaction Facility

UK’s $1.15 bln funding for Mozambique LNG project lawful -court

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/GettyImages-1242420790-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-419241" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/GettyImages-1242420790-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/GettyImages-1242420790-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/GettyImages-1242420790-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/GettyImages-1242420790-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/GettyImages-1242420790-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/GettyImages-1242420790-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">TIHANGE, BELGIUM &#8211; AUGUST 10: Electricity pylon is seen near from the Tihange Nuclear Power Station on August 10, 2022, in Tihange, Belgium. As the European Union prepares for the drastic reduction of Russian gas imports, some users are concerned about the risk of heating and electricity cuts next winter. (Photo by Thierry Monasse/Getty Images)</figcaption></figure>



LUSAKA, Jan 10 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Zambia has started rationing electricity supply to mining firms following reduced power generation after a big drop in water levels in lake Kariba, the chairman of state-owned power utility Zesco said on Tuesday.



Water levels in the lake were down at 1.66% of usable storage on Monday for the Kariba North Bank Power Station in Zambia and the Kariba South Bank Power Station on the Zimbabwean side of the lake, said the Zambezi River Authority, which manages the dam.



The north bank power station has an installed capacity of 1,080 megawatts (MW), while the south bank power station in Zimbabwe has a capacity of 1,050 MW.



Hydropower contributes to more than 75% of Zambia&#8217;s electricity generation.



&#8220;We requested them to give away 180 MW but after negotiations we went down to 110 MW,&#8221; the utility&#8217;s chairman Vickson Ncube told Reuters, referring to mining companies in Africa&#8217;s No. 2 copper producer.



Last week, Zesco doubled the number of hours it cut supply to domestic customers to 12 hours from six hours daily as the low water levels in the lake threatened power generation.



Water levels in the lake have fallen due to reduced inflows from the Zambezi river and its tributaries and heavy use by power generation companies in Zimbabwe and Zambia.



Ncube said power rationing was expected to be reduced by the middle of next month as water levels increased and full generation was to likely resume in March.



(Reporting by Chris Mfula; Editing by Bhargav Acharya and David Evans)

Tihange Nuclear Power Station

Zambia extends electricity rationing to mining firms

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="505" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/CU3BVSAMDJMBHIKHFANV7T7UCQ-820x505.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-422280" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/CU3BVSAMDJMBHIKHFANV7T7UCQ-820x505.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/CU3BVSAMDJMBHIKHFANV7T7UCQ-300x185.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/CU3BVSAMDJMBHIKHFANV7T7UCQ-146x90.jpg 146w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/CU3BVSAMDJMBHIKHFANV7T7UCQ-768x473.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/CU3BVSAMDJMBHIKHFANV7T7UCQ-1536x945.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/CU3BVSAMDJMBHIKHFANV7T7UCQ-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">FILE PHOTO: Kenya Airways planes are seen through a window as the Jomo Kenyatta international airport reopens after flights were suspended following the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in Nairobi, Kenya August 1, 2020. REUTERS/Njeri Mwangi/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



NAIROBI, Jan 10 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Kenya Airways&nbsp;KQNA.NR&nbsp;is experiencing flight disruptions due to delays in securing aircraft components required for maintenance, the carrier said late on Monday.



The airline, which is one of Africa&#8217;s biggest, may be forced to cut some flights if the challenges of getting the parts persist, Chief Executive Officer Allan Kilavuka said in a statement.



&#8220;The challenges have been occasioned by the Ukraine war crisis, which has significantly crippled the Russian supply chain crucial to global aviation,&#8221; he said.



He cited titanium from Russia as one of the key raw materials used by the aviation industry, and is crucial to the maintenance of planes.



Kenya Airways, whose strategy hinges on connecting African travellers to the world and vice-versa through its Nairobi hub, operates a fleet of Boeing and Embraer planes.



(Reporting by Duncan Miriri; Editing by Jacqueline Wong and Sherry Jacob-Phillips)

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