Africa Business News

The Federal Government, through the Ministry of Solid Minerals Development, generated N6.96bn in mining fees and registered 118 new private mineral buying centres in the first quarter of 2025. The Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dr Dele Alake, says the revenue reflects the outcome of the Ministry’s efforts to raise awareness and attract investors. He says the mining fees collected by the licensing parastatal, Mining Cadastral Office, came from 955 applications for title grants. He noted that 651 title applications were approved for exploration, 270 for small-scale mining, 49 for quarrying, and 24 for reconnaissance permits.

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US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has announced that the US is immediately revoking visas issued to all South Sudanese passport holders due to the African nation refusing to accept its citizens who have been removed from the US. Rubio added that the US will also block any arriving citizens of South Sudan, the world's newest country, at US ports of entry. He blamed the failure of South Sudan's transitional government to accept the return of its repatriated citizens in a timely manner. He says It is time for the Transitional Government of South Sudan to stop taking advantage of the United States

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Zimbabwe's President Emmerson Mnangagwa has announced he will suspend tariffs on goods imported from the US to build a "positive relationship" with President Donald Trump's administration. The move comes days after Trump imposed 18% tariffs on Zimbabwean exports to the US. Zimbabwe has had strained diplomatic relations with the US since it adopted a controversial land policy about 25 years ago, and because of its poor human rights record. Trade between the two countries amounted to only $111.6m (£86.6m) in 2024, US government data shows.

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The Federal Government has raised concerns over the potential negative consequences of newly imposed U.S. tariffs on Nigerian exports. The Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr. Jumoke Oduwole, warned that the move could significantly impact both oil and non-oil trade flows to one of Nigeria’s key markets. Oduwole emphasised that the newly introduced tariffs could undermine the competitiveness of Nigerian products in the U.S. market and disrupt business activities, particularly within the non-oil export sector. She noted that Nigeria’s exports to the United States over the past two years have consistently ranged between $5 billion and $6 billion annually.

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The National Health Insurance Authority has directed Health Management Organisations to authorise the treatment of patients within one hour from the time of requests by hospitals and other healthcare providers. A spokesperson for the NHIA, Emmanuel Ononokpono, says the authority's mandates included reducing delays in accessing services and ensuring that enrollees receive quality healthcare services. He says the delays in authorising treatment and issuing codes continue to negatively impact beneficiaries’ experiences. He says though the changes regarding authorisation of care were initially approved at a stakeholders’ meeting in February 2025, it came into operation on April 1, 2025.

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United States President Donald Trump says his soon-to-be-announced reciprocal tariffs will apply to all countries. Trump says that his long-anticipated tariff announcement on April 2 would “start” with all countries. Trump’s remarks come after his administration had played down the scope of the tariffs set to be unveiled on April 2, which the US president has dubbed liberation day. White House economics adviser Kevin Hassett suggested earlier this month that the measures would be heavily focused on 10 to 15 countries that account for the bulk of the US trade deficit.

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Tunisia’s transport ministry says it has seized 12 million dinars ($3.8 million) from accounts linked to several platforms, including Bolt, claiming the funds were illegally transferred abroad. Bolt says the accusations are “completely unfounded” and that the government’s actions are procedurally flawed adding that all local authority actions have been taken without the involvement of an investigating judge. The transport ministry claims its actions are part of a broader effort to “reform the transport sector” and protect the local market from foreign apps that transfer profits abroad. Bolt, however, warned that pushing out international players sets a dangerous precedent for market competition.

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Marketforce has been ordered to pay $16,000 to a former employee for wrongful termination. In 2024, ex-employees filed a now-dismissed case against Wasoko, a B2B e-commerce company, which merged with Egypt’s MaxAB in August 2024, while former business process outsourcing company Sama faces an ongoing lawsuit from its former employees. This ruling is a rare win for workers in a space where startups usually hold all the power. It sends a message: employees can push back, and courts are willing to hold companies accountable. For startups, it’s a warning—cutting costs the wrong way can end up costing more.

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Five months after blocking the Vodacom-Maziv merger deal, South Africa’s Competition Commission is standing firm on its decision to prevent the country’s second-largest telecom operator’s attempt to acquire a co-controlling stake in Maziv, the parent company of Vumatel and Dark Fibre Africa. The anti-competition watchdog argued that allowing Vodacom to take control would cement its dominance in mobile and give it undue influence over the fibre market, an industry over which it previously had limited control. Another complication for the telecom operator is that it does not have any precedent to make an argument. Telecom operators with fibre businesses have created their vertical businesses from scratch. A potential compromise for Vodacom could be to consider building a fibre business from scratch or reduce its stake in Maziv to a non-controlling position. That way, it could invest in fibre without wielding unchecked power over the market. The Competition Commission is holding its ground and the case will go before the appeal court in July.

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Somalia's breakaway region of Somaliland has rejected an attempt by the central government to give the US exclusive control of a port and airbase in Berbera. The city lies on the strategic Gulf of Aden, on the northern coast of Somaliland. The territory, which declared independence in 1991 as Somalia descended into civil war, says the facilities are not Mogadishu's to give away. Somalia's President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud also offered port and airbase within Somalia, saying all four would strengthen US security operations. Somaliland's Foreign Affairs Minister Abdirahman Dahir Aden dismissed the move as desperate.

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