World
Russia, Côte d’Ivoire Agree to Elevate Bilateral Relations
By Kester Kenn Klomegah
The ways and means of invigorating bilateral relations in political, trade, economic, educational and humanitarian areas were the centrepiece of the first diplomatic encounter between Foreign Minister Marcel Amon-Tanoh of Côte d’Ivoire, also known as Ivory Coast, and his counterpart Sergey Lavrov of Russia, in Moscow.
The two Foreign Ministers also exchanged views on major global and regional issues, such as crisis settlement and peacekeeping in Africa. Countering international terrorism and extremism in the context of collective efforts to neutralize these threats in Africa and beyond too topped their agenda.
Promoting business partnerships in the energy sector, the fuel and energy complex, infrastructure development and agriculture were yet another topic of discussion between Amon-Tanoh and Lavrov. These concluded with a bilateral memorandum on ministerial consultations.
“We have thoroughly discussed preparations for the first Russia-Africa Summit scheduled to take place in Sochi in October (2019). It will be the first such summit in history, an economic forum will precede it,” Lavrov noted at a joint press conference with Amon-Tanoh. “We expect that these events will give impetus to the development of ties, become a major milestone in Russian-African relations and will also help define our future partnership.”
Lavrov described the relations between the two countries as friendly. “We confirmed our mutual interest in boosting bilateral relations, agreed to take further steps to develop promising projects in the energy sector, infrastructure and agriculture, which is the backbone of Côte d’Ivoire’s economy.”
Acknowledging, without any reservation, that the participation of an Ivorian delegation in the recent St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF-19) was very useful, Lavrov and Amon-Tanoh agreed to encourage business circles to build direct contacts and increasingly avail of the two countries’ chambers of commerce and industry.
On the sidelines of the SPIEF-19, held June 6-June 9, the Adviser to the President of the Russian Federation, Anton Kobyakov, held a bilateral meeting with Vice-President of the Republic of Côte d’Ivoire, Daniel Kablan Duncan.
During the discussions, both parties agreed to form a working group made up of representatives of the Government of Côte d’Ivoire and the Roscongress Foundation to participate in the forthcoming Russia-Africa Summit in Sochi.
The working group will be responsible for developing a roadmap for organizing investment and trading cooperation. The parties will create a list of priority industries and target projects and other goods and services for export-import operations.
Contributing to the discussions, the Côte d’Ivoire Vice-President Duncan underlined the importance of strengthening bilateral relations between Russia and Côte d’Ivoire. He said that 2017 marked half-a-century since the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries. “We enjoy friendly relations that encompass many areas of interaction, including political dialogue, security, trade, economic and technical military ties, energy, and scientific, cultural, and cultural exchanges,” Duncan noted.
Côte d’Ivoire is one of Russia’s largest trading partners in sub-Saharan Africa, and the beginning of 2019 has been marked by a significant increase in mutual trade.
The outlook for cooperation in energy seems promising, he explained, adding that the development of gas production is associated with capital-intensive deep-sea projects (more than 3,000 meters), and therefore “we are interested in involving a major Russian company in the development of projects of this nature”.
The processing of agricultural products could also be included in a list of key areas of trade and investment cooperation with Russia, he said.
“We are, particularly, pleased to learn that President of Côte d’Ivoire, Alassane Ouattara, will be participating in the Russia-Africa summit. Even more significant is the fact that the upcoming visit of Côte d’Ivoire’s head will be the first in the history of bilateral relations between our countries,” said Kobyakov.
In closing the meeting, he stressed: “The key for the development of bilateral trade and investment cooperation will be the search for and joint development of important areas for a mutually beneficial partnership between Russia and Côte d’Ivoire.”
Historically, Côte d’Ivoire has close ties to France since independence in 1960. The diversification of agricultural exports and encouragement of foreign investment have been the key factors in the economic growth of the country.
In recent years, that west African country has been subject to greater competition and falling prices in the global marketplace for its primary agricultural crops: coffee and cocoa. That, compounded with high internal corruption, makes life difficult for the grower and for those exporting to foreign markets.
Côte d’Ivoire exports cocoa, mainly to Europe. With a population of nearly 24 million, the country shares border with Liberia and Guinea to the west, Mali and Burkina Faso to the north and Ghana to the east.
Kester Kenn Klomegah writes frequently about Russia-Africa and the BRICS.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Nigeria regained its position as Africa’s leading destination for equity startup investment in the first half of 2026, raising $214 million in equity financing and a total of $254 million across equity and debt, according to the latest Africa: The Big Deal report.
The report, titled H1 2026: Mapping the Money, showed that Nigeria ranked second on the continent in total funding, behind Egypt, which attracted $327 million, while Kenya and South Africa followed with $126 million and $83 million, respectively.
However, the report noted that Egypt’s top position was largely driven by a single fundraising by electric mobility company Spiro, which secured $327 million, including $270 million in equity and $57 million in debt. Excluding debt financing, Nigeria emerged as Africa’s largest equity funding market in the first six months of the year.
According to the breakdown by Africa: The Big Deal, Nigeria’s equity funding of $214 million was higher than Egypt’s $183 million, while South Africa and Kenya attracted $66 million and $46 million, respectively.
Beyond funding value, Nigeria also led the continent in the number of startups that raised at least $100,000 during the review period, reclaiming the top spot after what the report described as an “underwhelming” second half of 2025.
The publication observed that Nigeria’s fundraising performance has remained relatively stable over the past few years and exceeded the $250 million mark for the first time since 2022, pointing to renewed investor confidence in the country’s startup ecosystem.
It also found that while the Big Four startup markets—Nigeria, Egypt, Kenya and South Africa—continued to dominate Africa’s investment landscape, their combined share of total funding stood at 58 per cent in the first half of 2026.
“Zooming back on the Big Four (110 out of 190 $100k+ deals, i.e. 58%), Nigeria is head and shoulders above its peers, with Egypt and Kenya almost tying, and South Africa in fourth position again,” the report noted.
The report highlighted contrasting performances among the continent’s largest startup ecosystems. While Nigeria and Egypt maintained strong funding momentum, Kenya recorded its weakest funding performance since early 2021 after a strong second half of 2025, and South Africa failed to attract $100 million in funding during the period despite leading the continent a year earlier.
Africa: The Big Deal also noted a broader shift in investor behaviour, with funding increasingly concentrated in larger transactions while early-stage investments continued to decline. According to the publication, the drop in smaller funding rounds reflects growing concerns about limited capital available for early-stage startups across Africa.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
Accessing the US Dollar in the East Africa region has now been made easier with the expansion of the stablecoin settlement infrastructure of SCRYPT.
This development enables banks, payment providers and corporate treasury teams to move value into and out of the continent in real time.
Businesses paying international suppliers frequently have to convert local currency into USD before purchasing stablecoins for settlement, incurring FX conversions and spreads before any payment is made.
But SCRYPT is eliminating this intermediate conversion by enabling direct settlement corridors for local African currencies into stablecoins.
This development allows businesses to move from local currency to stablecoin settlement in a single licensed transaction, without first sourcing rationed bank dollars, as stablecoins are increasingly becoming settlement infrastructure rather than an investment product.
The expansion adds settlement support across four African currencies: the Kenyan shilling (KES), Tanzanian shilling (TZS), Rwandan franc (RWF) and Ugandan shilling (UGX). Each corridor is delivered through the same full-stack infrastructure our clients already use for trading, custody and treasury operations.
Speaking on this, the chief executive of SCRYPT, Norman Wooding, said, “Across Africa, stablecoin adoption is driven by economic need, not speculation.
“Businesses here are not chasing yield; they are trying to pay suppliers and manage treasury without losing margin to a banking system that rations dollars. Licensed, fair-rate dollar access is the clearest proof of what this infrastructure is for.”
Also commenting, the Managing Director of Markets & Trading at SCRYPT, Mr Gabriel Titopoulos, said, “Until now, reaching stablecoins from local African currencies meant buying scarce dollars and incurring several layers of conversion costs.
“SCRYPT removes this friction. Firms and payment providers can now settle straight from local currencies through live corridors, with local partners.”
World
African Graduates Association Promoting Multifaceted Initiatives With Russian Educational Institutions
By Kestér Kenn Klomegâh
In preparations for the third Russia-Africa Summit, scheduled for late October 2026, Dr Francois Ngan, deputy chairman of the Union of Associations of African Graduates of Soviet and Russian Universities, during an official working visit, has held a consultative meeting with Professor Vladimir Filippov, the President of the Russian University of Peoples’ Friendship (RUDN), and former Minister of Higher Education of Russia, Chairman of the National Commission for Accreditation of Higher Education.
RUDN is an educational institution established in 1960, primarily to provide higher education to Third World students. It has now become a popular multidisciplinary spot for many students, especially from developing countries. The university offers various academic programmes and has research infrastructure that comprises laboratories and interdisciplinary centres. The university is named after the former Congolese leader, Patrice Lumumba.
Dr Francois Ngan and Professor Filippov discussed the importance of the Graduates Association as a continental platform dedicated to strengthening unity, cooperation, and promoting shared progress among African graduates who studied in the former Soviet Union and in the Russian Federation. They also reviewed multifaceted initiatives that could bring together alumni associations from across Africa, whose members obtained education and professional training, and cultural experiences in Soviet and Russian institutions of higher learning.
Professor Filippov expressed optimism in addressing emerging challenges as a result of shifting geopolitical changes, emphasised strategic cooperation in the educational sphere with Africa, in general, and with the Republic of Cameroon, in particular, and further about the integration of African students during their studies in the Russian Federation.
The meeting also touched on academic and scientific work, the possibility of rewriting a scientific thesis, and the official organisation of transferring versions translated into six languages for the library of RUDN. Significant questions relating to Russia’s educational opportunities, collaborations and partnerships involving African countries were thoroughly discussed.
The Union of Associations of African Graduates of Soviet and Russian Universities was created under one continental umbrella to promote friendship, for professional networking, to engage in cultural exchange, and with particular emphasis on forging strategic cooperation between Africa and Russia.
