Africa Business News

Vice President Yemi Osinbajo says Nigeria is set to utilise its legal provisions that empower the Federal Government to collect taxes on profits made in the country by global technology and digital firms not based in the country, but with a significant economic presence here.
The Vice President says it is already empowered to widen the tax net, including through the collection of taxes on the Nigerian income of global tech giants with a significant economic presence here, even if they have not established an office or permanent establishment and are currently not paying taxes in Nigeria.
He says they have had severe economic downturns which of course imply that we may not be able to collect taxes with the aggressiveness that would ordinarily be expected.

U.S. President Joe Biden approved an emergency declaration in the state of Florida and ordered federal assistance to supplement state and local response efforts after a building collapse near Miami left at least one dead and nearly 100 missings.
The White House says the President's action authorizes the Department of Homeland Security, Federal Emergency Management Agency to coordinate all disaster relief efforts.
Rescue crews picked through tons of rubble on Thursday looking for survivors after the collapse of part of the oceanfront apartment tower in Surfside near Miami.

Algeria’s president has accepted the prime minister’s resignation, paving the way for the formation of a new government following parliamentary election results.
A statement by the Algerian presidency says Abdelmadjid Tebboune accepted the resignation of the government led by Abdelaziz Djerad and appointed him as caretaker premier until a new cabinet is formed.
Djerad’s resignation follows a parliamentary election on June 12 that was marked by a low turnout and no majority winner after two years of mass protests and political turmoil.

Afghan leaders Ashraf Ghani and Abdullah Abdullah will meet United States President Joe Biden at the White House on Friday for a high-stake discussion likely to shape Afghanistan’s future as the US withdraws forces nearly 20 years after invading.
President Biden is expected to offer assurances of US backing for the Afghan government in Kabul and is likely to press Ghani and Abdullah to unify their rival political factions in the face of rising Taliban assaults, analysts say.
Ghani and Abdullah are expected to appeal to Biden for specific and concrete pledges of financial and diplomatic support, including continued technical assistance for embattled Afghan military forces.
Director of the Afghanistan programme at the US Institute of Peace, Scott Worden, says the security situation is alarming and it’s deteriorating.

A war of words between Moscow and London escalated on Thursday as both sides accused one another of giving inaccurate accounts of an incident involving a British warship and Russian forces in the Black Sea.
Russia says it fired warning shots and dropped bombs in the path of HMS Defender on Wednesday as it sailed off the coast of the Crimea peninsula, accusing the Royal Navy destroyer of breaching its territorial waters.
The United Kingdom disputed Russia’s account, saying no warning shots were fired and no bombs were dropped but suggested a Russian gunnery exercise had been taking place in the area.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson told reporters that HMS Defender was acting legally in international waters and described the vessel’s route as wholly appropriate.

The World Food Programme says Communities in Madagascar are on the verge of starvation, with women and children walking for hours to reach food after the worst drought in four decades devastated the south of the island.
The WFP says acute malnutrition has almost doubled over the last four months with more than a quarter of people suffering in one area.
WFP executive director, David Beasley in a statement says there have been back-to-back droughts in Madagascar which have pushed communities right to the very edge of starvation.
He added that families are suffering and people are already dying from severe hunger.
WFP says $78.6 million was needed to fight the crisis.

The International Air Transport Association says the continent's aviation sector is unlikely to recover to pre-Covid-19 levels for another two years.
IATA says that vaccination should not become a mandatory requirement for air travel, owing to Africa’s slow vaccine rollout.
IATA’s vice-president for Africa and the Middle East, Kamil Al-Awadhi, says passenger numbers are unlikely to pick up any time soon.
IATA is now asking African governments to adopt a single digital platform for verifying coronavirus tests and vaccine certifications, as part of efforts to standardise ways to keep track of the health of passengers.

President Muhammadu Buhari has tasked the National Space Research and Development Agency to effectively utilise the satellite facilities at its disposal towards resolving the critical issues confronting Nigeria, particularly in the areas of security, improved communication, and digital penetration, as well as agriculture.
The President expressed a renewed commitment to the space sector, describing it as the foundation of cybersecurity and a vibrant digital economy.
President Buhari directed the Minister of Science and Technology to prepare and submit a revised 25-year roadmap for the implementation of the National Space Policy to the Federal Executive Council for consideration and approval.
He noted that there was a need to put in place the necessary infrastructure required for the actualisation of the goals and objectives of the nation’s space policy and programme.

President Muhammadu Buhari has allocated a three-bedroom flat each to members of the 1994 African Cup of Nations winning squad, 27 years after the federal government made the promise.
The President approved the allocations in their states of preference, noting that six players and three technical crews received their houses already.
Former Nigerian captain and coach Stephen Keshi, Uche Okafor, Wilfred Agbonavbare, and Thompson Oriha – all squad members who won the competition in Tunisia – have died.

President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan, has explained why it is important for the Nigerian government to continue to borrow responsibly to fund critical projects in the country.
He believes it is not feasible for the government to tax the people further in the face of the present economic situation and the nation’s infrastructure must be developed.
The Senate President says the options are really very limited for the country with no necessary revenue.