World
Russia Shows Interest in Sierra Leone’s Economy
By Kester Kenn Klomegah
Sierra Leone, after the civil war, has been looking for foreign investors to assist overcome the challenges leveraging on resources, to resuscitate the economy, develop its infrastructure and invest in its agricultural and mining sectors.
Sierra Leone is cash-strapped and currently looking for external credit lines to fix its long-term planned development projects, and the new government has to fulfil its election campaign pledges and promises made to the electorate.
With these in mind, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of the Republic of Sierra Leone, Alie Kabba, went on a late January working visit to Moscow.
Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov held talks with him, they agreed on invigorating political, trade and economic, cultural and humanitarian cooperation between Russia and Sierra Leone.
Lavrov and Kabba reviewed prospects for expanding bilateral business contacts as well as implementing new joint projects in the mining industry, fisheries and the fuel and energy sector.
Under the new leadership of the Sierra Leone People’s Party, President Julius Maada Bio, it was necessary for continuity in bilateral cooperation, noted Lavrov, while stressing to take additional steps to implement promising projects in such areas as mining, energy, and fisheries.
The Russian Foreign Minister proposed that the research center for epidemiology and prevention of infectious diseases, which has been operating in Guinea with Russia’s assistance since 2017, could extend its programs to the neighboring countries, including Sierra Leone.
An important aspect of cooperation is healthcare. For instance, Moscow finances the fight against Ebola in West African countries by allocating over $60 million.
With cooperation in fisheries, there are opportunities for assistance in organizing the educational process and raising the level of skills of local specialists in the special institute in Freetown.
He said that the sides agreed to continue cooperation in the preparing personnel for Sierra Leone in higher educational institutions in Russia. Already, more than 2,000 Sierra Leonean citizens graduated from higher educational institutions in Russia.
Both Ministers talked at length about the situation in Africa, and exchange opinions on pressing regional and international issues.
Lavrov underlined that “Russia believes the world community should be guided by the African problems – African solutions approach to any crises in Africa.” In reality, it therefore means that African leaders have to determine the national priorities and strategies, destiny and fate of their own development for their respective African countries.
Experts, however, reiterated that the people of Sierra Leone have voted for a change. They suggested that the new government under the leadership of President Julius Maada Bio has to use its foreign policy to initiate and focus on improving the economic sectors especially infrastructure, modernizing agriculture and industrialization to create employment for the youth, the best way addressing sustainable development goals (SDCs). Sierra Leone has relied on mining, especially diamonds, for its economic base. It is among the largest producers of titanium and bauxite, is a major producer gold, and has one of the world’s largest deposits of rutile. Despite this natural wealth, 58% of its population lived in poverty in 2015. Sierra Leone is a member of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).
Experts, however, reiterated that the people of Sierra Leone have voted for a change. They suggested that the new government under the leadership of President Julius Maada Bio has to use its foreign policy to initiate and focus on improving the economic sectors especially infrastructure, modernizing agriculture and industrialization to create employment for the youth, the best way addressing sustainable development goals (SDCs).
Sierra Leone has relied on mining, especially diamonds, for its economic base. It is among the largest producers of titanium and bauxite, is a major producer gold, and has one of the world’s largest deposits of rutile. Despite this natural wealth, 58% of its population lived in poverty in 2015. Sierra Leone is a member of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).
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.
