Kenya

9 in 10 Kenyans Oppose Tax Hike on Petroleum Products – Survey

A survey in which 2,400 Kenyans were interviewed found that only three out of 10 support raising tax revenues to reduce government borrowing. The findings have been disclosed by Afrobarometer, a Pan-African, non-partisan survey research network that provides data on African experiences and evaluations of democracy, governance, and quality of life.

“Kenyans think it is better to pay less taxes, even if it means the government will provide fewer services,” the survey revealed.

While President William Ruto’s administration aims to become self-reliant and reduce borrowing through its tax strategy, six in 10 Kenyans feel the country is headed in the wrong direction and blame the government’s poor economic management for the rising cost of living, while the rest think it’s going in the right direction.

(All Africa)

Tanzania

Shilling Depreciates by 5% in Six Months

The Tanzanian shilling has depreciated by 5% over the past six months up to July, as it faces heightened demand for US dollars driven by tightening monetary policies in advanced economies and rising global commodity prices.

According to the Bank of Tanzania’s (BoT) Indicative Exchange Rate report, the exchange rate stood at 2,652/40 shillings per US dollar as of Wednesday, compared to 2,526/60 at the end of January.

The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the BoT noted in its latest report that, while the foreign exchange market continues to experience liquidity shortages, there was some improvement towards the end of June due to increased inflows from tourism, gold, and cash crops.

In the Interbank Foreign Exchange Market (IFEM), exchange rate quotes showed slower movements with narrower spreads compared to the previous quarter.

The shilling depreciated by approximately 2.2% quarter-on-quarter in June, slightly faster than the 1.8% depreciation observed in the first quarter of this year.

(Daily News)

Uganda

Museveni Directs Finance Minister, AG on Microfinance Regulation

President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni has thrown his weight behind medium and small financial sector players demanding a one-stop regulation centre, saying that multiple centres lead to confusion in which gullible Ugandans may be abused and exploited.

The President, whose message was delivered by the Minister of the Presidency, Minister Babirye Babalanda, at the close of the two-day National Microfinance and Savings Groups Conference 2024 at Hotel Africana on Friday evening. The Minister of Finance and the Attorney General were directed to deal with the issue as soon as possible.

Under the different laws governing financial institutions, savings and credit cooperatives (SACCOs) report to the cooperatives regulator, the Uganda Microfinance Regulatory Authority, but in cases of SACCOs with capital above USh 1.5 billion, to the Bank of Uganda.

The operational frameworks and conditions differ under the different regulation regimes, which some of the microfinance players complain are too harsh.

(The Independent)

Rwanda

Rwanda Slightly Improves in Financial Markets Performance

Rwanda registered a slight improvement in financial markets development in 2023 despite a difficult environment in which higher interest rates exerted pressure on markets, according to a recent study by Absa Group.

The country scored 44 points out of 100. This is a slight improvement from 2022, when it scored 43 points. However, in Africa, the country declined slightly in rankings from the 16th position in 2022 to 17th in 2023.

Despite having a relatively weak market size and liquidity, Rwanda’s financial market saw an improvement in bond market turnover to 10.5% of bonds outstanding compared to 5.1% the previous year.

“What we saw in 2023 is that it was a difficult global environment. Still, 15 out of 28 countries managed to improve. Even in the difficult environment, it wasn’t impossible,” said Jeff Gable, Head of Research, Absa Group.

(The New Times)

Ethiopia

Ethiopia Shares Experience on Integrated National Financing Framework

Ethiopia has shared its experience on the integrated national financing framework on the sidelines of the first session of the preparatory committee for the Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development (FfD) underway in Addis Ababa.

Finance State Minister Semereta Sewasew shared the major aspects of Ethiopia’s Sustainable Financing Strategy (ESFS) at the side event titled “Making Finance Work for People and Planet through Integrated National Financing Frameworks”.

Sewasew noted that the ESFS is developed to play a pivotal role in addressing the financial needs of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and national priorities.

The strategy identifies major focus areas to diversify the financial sources of the country, and aims to establish strong and resilient funding mechanisms that will reinforce the country’s future growth and development.

(ENA)

Sudan

Oil Exports, Imports, Smuggling Prolong Sudan Conflict

Decades of neglect in the maintenance of the oil infrastructure and the technical teams’ lack of access to fix breaches and repair damage to pumping units have led to the gradual disruption of the flow of oil in Sudan, according to Fueling Sudan’s War, a paper published this week by the Sudan Transparency and Policy Tracker (STPT) and New Features Multimedia. This has further accelerated the collapse of the Sudanese economy and created “a new pillar of the war economy: the importation of oil.”

 “Controlled by a small group, this importation allows for vast profits in light of the need for oil while at the same time driving up prices with devastating consequences for other sectors, especially food,” the paper further revealed.

Sudan’s oil fields, pumping stations, and parts of the pipeline sending oil from South Sudan fell into the hands of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) early in the conflict, while the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) maintained control over the export terminal in Port Sudan and parts of the pipeline in areas it controls.

(The Independent)