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An Overlooked Engine of Economic Growth: Delivering Products – and Enabling Livelihoods – in Refugee Communities
The Kakuma and Kalobeyei refugee camps in Kenya are home to nearly 200,000 people from 22 countries. Contrary to the stereotype of refugee settlements, these are thriving communities with around 2,500 businesses and over $56 million in economic activity per year. But as Sasha Kapadia at Mastercard points out, their economic growth is stifled by a lack of reliable electricity. She discusses a public-private partnership co-chaired by Mastercard and USAID, which is training people in these communities as sales agents for solar energy products, to spur entrepreneurship and boost access to energy and other essential products.
- Categories
- Energy
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Analysis: International Trade: Year in Review 2020
The Covid-19 pandemic profoundly disrupted global trade in 2020. However, it has also caused new paradigms to emerge, some of which point to potentially positive outcomes over the medium term.
- Categories
- Coronavirus
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UK Government Aims Fintech Industry at Africa
UK government is building fintech relationships with developing countries, beginning with a pilot programme in Africa.
- Categories
- Finance, Technology
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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Viewpoint: Improving Cross-Border Payments Is Critical To Support Global Economic Growth, Trade And Financial Inclusion
Resolving longstanding frictions and challenges in cross-border payments has been a major objective of the Committee on Payments and Market Infrastructures (CPMI).
- Categories
- Finance
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Press release: Ambitious new Innovation Partnerships with African countries
A series of ambitious new Innovation Partnerships between the UK and Africa are expected to stimulate significant economic growth and support the creation of thousands of new jobs. Initiatives in South Africa, Kenya and Nigeria will include teams to boost innovation in technology, an accelerator programme and entrepreneurship schemes.
- Categories
- Technology
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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A Mini-Grid Milestone: Can the Industry’s First Trade Association Help Electrify Rural Africa?
In April, the mini-grid industry got its first-ever trade association, as the Africa Mini-grid Developers Association (AMDA) launched with chapters in Kenya and Tanzania – and ambitious goals for expansion across the continent. Though AMDA's membership currently includes about a dozen companies providing 11,000 connections, it aspires to represent 90 percent of the mini-grid sector by the end of 2021. In a Q&A with Scott Anderson, AMDA co-founder Jessica Stephens discusses its plans to transform the mini-grid industry from a feel-good alternative to a power player in the energy sector.
- Categories
- Energy
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Pakistan Poverty Alleviation Fund and International Trade Centre ink Memorandum of Understanding for mutual cooperation
Rob Skidmore, Chief, Sector and Enterprise Competitiveness Division of Enterprises and Institutions, ITC, said, “ITC is delighted to combine our knowledge of SME competitiveness and value chains with PPAF’s deep expertise in grass roots development SME competitiveness and improving value chains and PPAF’s deep expertise in grass roots development to make a real difference in the lives of the poor.”
- Region
- South Asia
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Bitcoin – an opportunity for African trade?
Bitcoin continues to be the subject of much debate and controversy, but for many African companies the choice is simple. For them, the cryptocurrency is not at all related to anonymous black market business – it’s about enabling them to flourish. Sanne Wass speaks with Elizabeth Rossiello of BitPesa to find out more.
- Categories
- Technology
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa