World
Adesina Suggests Strategic Engagements in Addressing Trump’s Tariffs
By Adedapo Adesanya
The President of African Development Bank (AfDB), Mr Akinwumi Adesina, has warned that Africa cannot afford a trade confrontation with the United States, amid recent tariff announcements.
Recall that in April, President Donald Trump announced some base tariffs and some reciprocal tariffs on trade partners. Although the tariffs were suspended for 90-days, many are looking ahead to the deadline.
In an interview with CNN’s Christiane Amanpour, Mr Adesina revealed that 47 of Africa’s 54 countries would be impacted directly by the new US trade policies, with potential declines in export revenues and foreign exchange reserves, noting that the continent accounts for only 1.2 per cent (approximately $34 billion) of America’s global trade—with a trade surplus of just $7.2 billion.
He warned that the measure could trigger significant economic disruptions across Africa, affecting numerous nations and accelerating a strategic shift in global partnerships.
“When those currencies weaken, two things will happen: first, you will find that most of these countries are import-dependent. So, you’re going to find that high inflation becomes a problem,” said Mr Adesina.
“Secondly, you find that the cost of actually servicing a lot of their debt, which is foreign currency debt, but in local currencies, is going to get worse.”
Business Post reports that almost all African countries have been hit by higher tariffs announced by the Trump administration, with at least 22 nations facing up to a whopping 50 per cent for almost all their products.
Among the hardest hit countries are Lesotho, Madagascar, Mauritius, Botswana, Angola, Algeria, and South Africa. Nigeria was hit with a 14 per cent rate.
The impacts of these higher tariffs are further exacerbated by significant cuts to USAID programs, which have already begun affecting access to essential medical supplies and humanitarian services in many countries, raising serious concerns about the future trajectory of US-Africa relations.
Providing some solutions, Mr Adesina proposed a pragmatic three-point strategy for the continent: Engage the US through flexible and constructive trade negotiations, diversify export markets to reduce dependency on any single partner, and accelerate the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) implementation to unlock the potential $3.4 trillion market.
He stressed the need to expand Africa’s domestic market and boost domestic savings to develop consumption as a bigger share of its GDP, leveraging its massive population growth.
The Nigerian added that more importantly, the continent must take advantage of the increasing external interest in its natural resources, such as cobalt and lithium, to negotiate a better trade and investment deal.
Addressing speculation that Africa may shift more decisively toward China in response to the higher US tariffs, Mr Adesina dismissed any notion of binary alignment.
“US is a key ally of Africa—and so is China,” he stated. “Africa is building bridges, not isolating itself.”
“I think at the end of the day, we want to make sure that whatever deals that are being done with Africa are transparent, fair, equitable, and led by Africa and in Africa’s interests,” Mr Adesina reiterated.
Mr Adesina, who concludes his second and final term as president of the bank in September, firmly rejected the long-standing paradigm of foreign aid dependency.
“The era of aid as we’ve known it is completely gone,” he declared, calling instead for bold investments in domestic resource mobilization, infrastructure, and value-added industrialization.
He said aid must be turned into concessional financing to allow multilateral financial institutions to do more for the continent by mobilizing more private capital to develop and derisk projects.
By Kestér Kenn Klomegâh
For the first time in its history, the World Public Summit will be held on the African continent. On 29–30 July 2026, Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia, will host the World Public Summit. Africa — “A New World: Africa in Shaping a Shared Future.”
The Summit is organised by the World Peoples Assembly in cooperation with African partner organisations. It will bring together leaders of public diplomacy, representatives of international intergovernmental and non-governmental organisations, academics, experts, representatives of the education and cultural sectors, youth leaders, socially responsible businesses, media professionals, and civil society institutions from across Africa and other regions of the world.
The World Public Summit. Africa continues the work initiated during the First World Public Assembly “A New World of Conscious Unity,” held in Moscow in September 2025, and serves as one of the key milestones in preparation for the Second World Public Assembly “A New World: Values That Unite,” which will take place in Moscow on 18–19 September 2026.
Today, Africa is emerging as one of the principal centres of global development. Rapid demographic growth, expanding entrepreneurship, strengthening regional integration, rich cultural heritage, and the growing role of civil society institutions make the continent an increasingly important contributor to the future architecture of international cooperation.
The Summit will focus on issues of genuine sovereignty and sustainable development, public diplomacy, preservation of cultural and historical heritage, international cooperation in education and science, youth engagement, innovation-driven development, creative industries, and the formation of new partnerships among countries and peoples.
The main business programme of the Summit will take place on 30 July 2026 at the headquarters of the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) in Addis Ababa. Holding the Summit at UNECA highlights its pan-African dimension and creates opportunities for broad international dialogue on humanitarian cooperation and public diplomacy.
The programme will include plenary sessions, strategic dialogues, and expert panels dedicated to values-based development, education, culture, youth leadership, innovation, and international cooperation.
Participation has already been confirmed by Professor Saidou Madougou, Director of the Department of Education, Science, Technology and Innovation of the African Union; Rita Bissoonauth, Director of the UNESCO Liaison Office to the African Union and UNECA in Addis Ababa; Zuzana Schwidrowski, Director of the Macroeconomics, Finance and Governance Division of UNECA, as well as ministers, leaders of public organisations, and representatives of the business community from a number of African countries.
On the same day, the ADWA Victory Memorial Museum—Ethiopia’s national memorial complex dedicated to the Victory of Adwa and an important centre for preserving the historical memory of the Ethiopian people—will host the award ceremony of the regional stage of the V International Competition “Leader of Public Diplomacy”, followed by a large-scale cultural programme.
One of the key outcomes of the Summit will be the adoption of the African Communiqué, reflecting proposals and recommendations aimed at strengthening humanitarian, educational, cultural, and public cooperation between African countries and other regions of the world.
The outcomes, initiatives, and recommendations were developed during the World Public Summit. Africa will be presented at the Second World Public Assembly “A New World: Values That Unite”, to be held in Moscow on 18–19 September 2026.
According to Andrey Belyaninov, General Secretary of the World Peoples Assembly, “the Addis Ababa Summit is an important step toward building a new world founded on mutual respect, cultural diversity, dialogue and sustainable development.”
By Adedapo Adesanya
The United Kingdom will get its seventh Prime Minister in 10 years as Mr Keir Starmer announced his resignation on Monday.
The Minister said he is stepping down as leader of the governing Labour Party and will leave office within weeks, scarcely two years after being elected in a landslide.
Mr Starmer says he will remain caretaker prime minister until a new Labour leader is chosen by the party.
Mr Starmer made the announcement after facing growing pressure to hand over to a new leader who can try to revive the government’s flagging fortunes.
He led Labour to a landslide election victory in July 2024, but since then, his popularity and that of the party have plummeted.
His departure was triggered by the victory of Mr Andy Burnham in a special election last week. The popular ex-mayor of Greater Manchester planned to challenge the existing PM for the Labour leadership.
Mr Starmer made the announcement outside the prime minister’s 10 Downing St. residence with a brief statement on Monday.
“The question my party is asking now is whether I am best placed to lead us into the next general election,” Mr Starmer said. “I have heard the answer of my parliamentary party to that question, and I accept that answer with good grace.
Mr Starmer is the sixth prime minister in a decade to stand outside 10 Downing Street and announce a premature departure.
It comes the day before Britain marks the 10th anniversary of its vote to leave the European Union, a decision that still affects the country’s economy and politics.
Over the past decade, 10 Downing Street has had six occupants, including Mr David Cameron, who left office in 2016 after the Brexit referendum and was succeeded by Ms Theresa May. She was followed by Mr Boris Johnson, whose tenure covered Brexit and the COVID-19 pandemic. After Mr Johnson came Ms Liz Truss, whose 49-day premiership was the shortest in British history. Mr Rishi Sunak then took office before being succeeded by Mr Starmer, the outgoing occupant of Number 10.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
A financing facility of up to $60 million has been secured by AXIAN Energy, the energy division of the AXIAN Group.
The funding package was provided by MCB, one of the leading financial institutions in the Indian Ocean region.
It comprises a $40 million revolving credit facility with a three-year tenor and extension option, and $20 million in unfunded instruments, providing AXIAN Energy with enhanced financial flexibility, enabling the company to rapidly mobilise resources and seize development opportunities across its target markets.
The energy firm is expected to use the capital to deliver large-scale energy infrastructure projects across Africa.
Over the past two years, AXIAN Energy has significantly accelerated its growth by expanding its renewable energy project pipeline, with solar projects currently under development in Senegal, Benin, Zambia, Côte d’Ivoire, Madagascar, and Burkina Faso.
Building on this momentum, AXIAN Energy now operates a portfolio comprising 350 MW of installed renewable energy capacity, supported by 77 MWh of energy storage capacity, positioning the AXIAN Group as a major contributor to Africa’s energy transition.
The chief executive of AXIAN Energy, Mr Benjamin Memmi, said, “This transaction marks a key milestone in AXIAN Energy’s growth trajectory. It provides us with the financial capacity to sustain the momentum we have built over the past two years, further strengthening our renewable energy portfolio and expanding our presence across new African markets.”
Also commenting, the Global Head of Structured Finance at MCB, Mr Mathieu Delteil, said, “We are proud to support AXIAN Energy in structuring this facility, reaffirming our commitment to enabling transformative projects across Africa.
“By leveraging our sector expertise and deep understanding of regional markets, we have delivered a tailored financing solution that aligns with AXIAN’s long-term renewable energy ambitions.
“This partnership highlights our role as a strategic financial partner, mobilising capital towards investments that drive sustainable growth and accelerate the energy transition across the continent.”
The financing agreement between the two organisations strengthens their long-standing relationship because it is driven by a shared commitment to supporting infrastructure development and economic growth across Africa.
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