The South African rand strengthened on Monday against a weaker U.S. dollar, after hitting a three-month low earlier in the day amid concerns about persistent power cuts.
KENYA MARKETS
The Kenyan shilling lost ground to the dollar on Monday on the back of unmatched demand from oil importers and the manufacturing sector, traders said.
GHANA DEBT
The Ghanaian finance ministry said on Tuesday its domestic debt exchange programme (DDEP) had closed on Feb. 10 with more than 80% participation of eligible bonds, taking it a step closer to securing a $3 billion International Monetary Fund bailout.
GUINEA HEALTH
Equatorial Guinea has confirmed its first outbreak of the Marburg virus, a highly infectious and deadly disease similar to Ebola, following the deaths of at least nine people, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Monday.
SOUTH AFRICA FLOODS
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has declared a national state of disaster to enable an intensive response to widespread flooding that has affected seven of the country's nine provinces.
NIGERIA ELECTION
Nigeria's electoral commission head said on Monday that 240 polling centres will not be used in upcoming elections, as no one had chosen them due to insecurity in the surrounding areas.
ZAMBIA DEBT
Zambia's finance minister criticised the prolonged nature of the country's debt restructuring talks, the Financial Times reported on Monday, after a Chinese call for the World Bank and other multilateral lenders to offer debt relief sparked concern about further delays.
GABON POLITICS
Gabon President Ali Bongo on Monday proposed shortening the presidential mandate from seven to five years as he began consultations to prepare for elections this year and measures to prevent violence.
UGANDA POLITICS
Two legislators allied to Uganda's pop star-turned-politician Bobi Wine, the main opponent to President Yoweri Museveni, were granted bail on Monday after spending 17 months in jail on murder charges the opposition says are politically motivated.
IVORY COAST COCOA
Ivory Coast cocoa exporters are close to defaulting on their contracts due to a lack of beans and urgently need up to 150,000 tonnes to honour their commitments, seven sources who attended a crisis meeting with the regulator on Friday told Reuters.
UGANDA RIGHTS
A move by Uganda's government to close the United Nations' local human rights office has drawn strong criticism from opposition leaders and activists, who say it highlights the country's worsening record on civil liberties.
KENYA CENTRAL BANK
Kenya's President William Ruto has nominated Susan Koech, a career banker who has also served in top government posts, to be the second deputy governor of the central bank, a parliamentary document showed.
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