KENYA

Shilling falls to a new low of Sh160 to the dollar

The shilling’s official exchange rate has hit Sh160.23 to the dollar, extending its record decline against the US currency on the back of pressure from importer demand and efforts by the Central Bank to report the true trading value of the local unit. Currency dealers said that dollar demand from the energy and manufacturing sectors has put pressure on the shilling over the past week. The move by the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) to adopt actual traded rates in the interbank market to determine the official rate has also caused a sharp upward adjustment in the CBK rate, which was previously criticised for being out of line with the effective market rates.

(Business Daily)

TANZANIA

WEO: Tanzania to register the lowest inflation in EA in 2024

The World Economic Outlook issued by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) says the East African Community (EAC) is poised for 5.9% economic growth this year, but Tanzania will top the bloc in inflation reduction for 2024. Tanzania will record the lowest inflation rate among the EAC member countries this year. The country is set to maintain stability with a projected inflation rate of 4%

(The Citizen)

UGANDA

Uganda still importing oil through Kenyan firms

Uganda is still relying on transit fuel imported by Kenyan Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs), even after the neighbouring country announced that it would start directly buying the commodity from Vitol Bahrain this month. A schedule of the importation cargoes of fuel from November last year to this month shows that the volumes of fuel for the transit market have largely remained unchanged, indicating that Uganda is still relying on Kenyan OMCs.

Uganda, through the state-owned Uganda National Oil Company (UNOC), was expected to start directly buying fuel from Vitol Bahrain effective January 1, 2024, putting an end to reliance on the transit fuel imported by Kenyan OMCs. UNOC would then use the facilities owned by Kenya Pipeline Company (KPC) to handle the imports and transport them to Uganda.

(Business Daily)

RWANDA

WEF: Rwanda, UNDP launch Africa’s largest innovation fund

Kigali is set to domicile the headquarters of the United Nations Development Programme’s (UNDP) innovation financing facility, also known as Timbuktoo, following the official launch of the initiative at the ongoing World Economic Forum (WEF) in the Swiss town of Davos. Expected to be hosted at the Kigali International Financial Centre (KIFC), the initiative aims to invest over $1 billion in the catalytic and commercial capital over the next 10 years to build a distributed innovation network of eight pan-African hubs located in key ecosystems. Under the development, over 1,000 startups are targeted from across the continent as part of UNDP’s efforts to spark Africa’s startup revolution.

(The New Times)