- South Africa’s Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana delivered a revised version of the 2025 Budget Speech in Parliament on Wednesday, the third iteration this year, following internal disputes over a controversial proposal to raise the country’s Value Added Tax (VAT). The speech comes after weeks of…
- In 2024, a group of Australian researchers (Boafo et al.) asked a pertinent question: “The race for critical minerals in Africa: A blessing or another resource curse?” The continent is abundant with natural resources, but this has often been to our detriment. As the African Development Bank (AfDB)…
- The move reflects a cautious approach as inflation slows and macroeconomic indicators begin to stabilize in Africa’s former largest economy, according to analysts. Nigeria’s central bank held its benchmark interest rate unchanged at 27.5% on Tuesday, marking the second pause this year following a…
- Key Facts Crucial Quotes “President Ramaphosa will meet with President Donald Trump at the White House in Washington DC to discuss bilateral, regional and global issues of interest,” said the office of South Africa’s presidency in a statement last Wednesday. Dr Lumkile Mondi, economist and senior…
- “The season is going to blow your mind,” Connie Ferguson tells FORBES AFRICA a month before the release of the long-awaited Netflix South African drama series, Kings of Joburg. “I think at the core, Kings of Joburg is about family,” adds the popular South African actor, filmmaker, producer and…
- Topline All three major U.S. stock market indexes rose Monday afternoon, following an earlier selloff sparked by long-dated Treasury yields surpassing the 5% mark after the financial ratings agency Moody’s downgraded the U.S. government’s credit rating late last week, citing rising debt and…
- Min-soo and Ji-young Kim are 67 and 65 years old respectively. They live in Incheon, South Korea. They don’t have children. They never felt like they could afford them. Both were lucky enough to work through the AI revolution of the 2030s. Min-soo as a logistics coordinator and Ji-young as a care…
- The continent has great potential in the global electric vehicle (EV) battery value chain. But is its automotive industry ready to lead a future where African-made batteries power locally-assembled EVs? For the first time in its 31-year history, the Investing in African Mining Indaba saw the…
- Opportunities abound in South Africa’s vintage car market. It’s like a treasure hunt, with some incredibly rare classic vehicles scattered across the continent, sometimes in the most remote villages. If you’ve ever driven past an old Mercedes-Benz rusting in a field, or spotted a forgotten VW Kombi…
- Artificial intelligence (AI) is no longer a futuristic concept in today’s hyper-connected and fiercely competitive global landscape. It is overhauling even the bedrock of business operations. Pricing, once the carefully-guarded territory of economists, marketing experts, and strategists, is now…
- Pet-parents can rest easy: thanks to AI, pet technology is being rewritten with smart wearable tools and services emerging–tailored to each pet’s needs–to understand and care for them better. “These come in handy for raising alerts when something needs a pet parent’s attention.” – Andrey Klen…
- Alan and Renée Friedland are in the panel-beating business, but three lions changed their story. By day, Alan and Renée Friedland run a panel-beating business in Johannesburg, South Africa. But in their spare time, they’re rescuing lions, cheetahs and other animals, while creating one of South…
- As the African Development Bank (AfDB) prepares to elect its 10th president this month, its shareholders should seize the strategic opportunity of naming a woman to fill this critical post. The AfDB plays an important role in support of economic and social development in 54 African countries, with…
- As an entrepreneur, or even otherwise, are you looking to build a very basic website? The tools: You don’t have to use ChatGPT, you can also use Grok, Claude, Gemini or Copilot. The prompt: Please help me build a basic website ‘About Me’ page. I have never done this before, so kindly provide me…
- One of the country’s most favorite exports is grounded in its roots. The reddish-brown rooibos is being sipped around the world, and could soon have a unique use in petrol stations. “Drinking rooibos tea could then be something that individuals can do to look after their own health if they are…
- At university, students are often encouraged to pursue internships or work experiences closely aligned with their field of study. Gaining real-world experience in a relevant business setting seems like an ideal way to prepare for a career. From a business perspective, internships offer a chance to…
- Topline President Donald Trump met with Syrian President Ahmad al-Shara in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday, a day after announcing plans to lift U.S. sanctions on Syria, offering a significant boost to the country’s new leadership as it attempts to shore up international support after a nearly a decade…
- The mobile internet gender gap in sub-Saharan Africa continues to shrink, falling from 36% in 2022 to 29% in 2024, according to the Mobile Gender Gap Report 2025 published today by the GSMA, a global organization unifying the mobile ecosystem. This marks the second consecutive year of progress in a…
- In discourse about technological adoption and revolution, the piles of old monitors, phones, cables, mouses, and keyboards are often forgotten. With every new phone or laptop release, thousands of devices and their accompanying attachments are discarded without much thought. As Annie Leonard, the…
- The lithium-manganese-rich cell, developed with LG Chem, uses far less cobalt and nickel than current lithium-ion cells. It’ll be produced in the U.S. and show up in large pickups and SUVs in 2028. General Motors, which sells the biggest lineup of electric vehicles in the U.S., plans to slash the…
- South Africa’s workforce contracted in the first quarter of 2025, as unemployment continued to climb, heightening economic concerns. According to Statistics South Africa’s latest Quarterly Labour Force Survey (QLFS), the number of unemployed persons rose to 8.2 million, a 237,000 increase from 2024…
- The World Bank estimates that for Nigeria to achieve its ambition of becoming a $1 trillion economy by 2030, it would need to grow five times faster than its current pace. Nigeria’s economy expanded by 4.6% year-on-year in the final quarter of 2024, pushing annual growth to 3.4%—its fastest pace in…
- Topline The White House announced it has lowered the tariff rate charged for small and low-value packages shipped from China from 120% to 54%—which could provide some relief to e-commerce platforms like Shein, Temu and AliExpress—after the two countries announced plans to cut back tariffs on each…
- Starting with a $38 computer, they amassed over 50,000 downloads in the first five months. Where there is a will, there is a way, even if it’s inalittle village in South Africa’s Limpopo province. Childhood friends Shibambu Mikhongelo Marvel (22) and Malunghelo Mathonsi (25) are defying the odds…
- Good leaders and managers also need to be good communicators and effective public speakers. Some have used it as a tool for business and personal transformation and perfected it enough to be paid millions to talk. Even in the age of screens and scrolls, nothing stirs the soul quite like a voice…
- The passion for rugby is alive and well, from Cape Town to Cairo. The game is being developed too in countries such as Uganda, the Ivory Coast, Ghana and Madagascar. But what else needs to be done? Rugby Africa president Herbert Mensah is leading what he terms a “change in mindset” that he hopes…
- In 1930, British economist John Maynard Keynes predicted that by 2030, technological advancements would reduce the average workweek to just 15 hours. His logic seemed solid. Between 1900 and 1930, United States’ GDP quadrupled, while the average workweek shrank from 53 to 47 hours. Clearly,…
- Topline The U.S. and China on Monday announced they would significantly cut back tariffs placed on each other’s goods for at least 90 days as both sides plan to continue negotiations on a trade deal, triggering a major surge in U.S. stock futures and global markets. Key Facts As per a joint…
- The wearable tech space is transforming with smart rings emerging as a promising new category since the release of the Samsung Galaxy Ring. The smart ring arrived in South Africa in April with a price tag of ZAR8,000 ($438), making it the first mainstream launch by a smartphone brand. It is…
- South African golfer Casandra Alexander has the ambition to be the best in the world in the coming years and given her form over the last few seasons, you would be foolish to rule it out. Alexander, 25, won the 2025 Investec Order of Merit after sizzling on the home circuit, and also tied for […]
- If he’d never given away a dime or sold a share of the software giant, Gates would have nearly 10 times more to give away. On Thursday, Bill Gates publicly reiterated that he’ll give away almost all of his remaining wealth and wind down the namesake charitable foundation he cofounded with his ex-…
- We are entering an era where technology no longer waits to be engaged; it anticipates, adapts, and quietly integrates into our surroundings. This is the promise of ambient intelligence: environments embedded with sensors, artificial intelligence (AI), and the Internet of Things (IoT) designed to…
- There are four clubs from Africa among the 32 teams that have qualified for the FIFA Club World Cup, which will kick off on June 15. World football’s governing body FIFA are hoping the new-look Club World Cup, which will be hosted in the United States next month, will mark a new era for the […]
- For countries like Nigeria—the continent’s most populous nation—and Ghana, which has made notable progress in maternal health but still struggles with regional disparities, such funds are crucial. A new alliance has launched the Beginnings Fund, a $500 million initiative aiming to reduce maternal…
- Topline Robert Francis Prevost, who was selected as the Catholic Church’s first American pope Thursday and took the name Leo XIV, has a family history that some were celebrating as uniquely diverse, with one genealogist claiming he has ties to “free people of color” in New Orleans. Key Facts The…
- As winter approaches and the mercury dips, business leaders are bracing for the usual seasonal discomfort–cold mornings, foggy windscreens, and the annual return of thermal underwear. But while many seek warmth and shelter, a growing number are doing quite the opposite. They’re flinging themselves…
- Your cheat sheet to working smarter with machines. AI is rapidly disrupting Africa’s job market, many becoming redundant at a rapid rate while other roles are at risk because of AI’s ability to process large volumes of tasks across multiple skillsets and fields. It’s a challenging time–one that the…
- The continent made its fashion statement at the Met Gala, where, among prominent others, South Africa’s Dr Precious Moloi-Motsepe of AFI wore a gown designed by David Tlale that took over 60 hours to make. Also in attendance was billionaire Patrice Motsepe. South African businesswoman and…
- Topline White smoke billowed from the Sistine Chapel just after 6 p.m. local time—indicating the cardinal electors have chosen a successor to Pope Francis, ending a two-day conclave more than two weeks after Francis died. Key Facts The white smoke signifies a candidate received the necessary two-…
- Speaking at the official opening ceremony of the facility’s hub in the capital city, Praia, on Monday, May 5, the Prime Minister said the TechPark brings together established companies, startups, and entrepreneurs—both seasoned and just starting out—into a shared working environment. According to…
- Topline The papal conclave begins at the Vatican Wednesday, the secretive process by which cardinals seclude themselves for what could be several days as they elect a new leader for the Catholic Church, weeks after the death of Pope Francis. Key Facts On Wednesday afternoon, 133 cardinal electors…
- The development comes exactly 120 days since President John Dramani Mahama returned to office, marking a critical checkpoint in his administration’s efforts to stabilize the economy after years of fiscal distress. Ghana’s consumer inflation eased for a fourth consecutive month in April, falling to…
- Zimbabwe is now set for one of its biggest cricket seasons in over two decades. There was a time not so long ago when cricket in Zimbabwe was deep in the doldrums, with the national team battling for fixtures against quality opponents and financial issues curtailing the progress of the game in the…
- Topline India launched missile strikes in Pakistan early on Wednesday, two weeks after it accused Pakistan of being involved in a terrorist attack on the tourist town of Pahalgam that killed over two dozen people. Key Facts The Indian Ministry of Defense said in a statement said the strikes…
- Glitz and glamor took centerstage as fashion moguls and style devotees descended for the latest instalment of the South African Fashion Week (SAFW) SS25 in Johannesburg. For three nights in late April at The Forum Hyde Park, African fashion was rescripted by the continent’s emerging and established…
- Topline Ferrari on Tuesday said tariffs imposed by the U.S. pose a potential risk to the luxury car maker’s profitability, becoming the latest company to warn about a hit to earnings or cut financial forecasts as many cite market uncertainty aggravated by President Donald Trump’s levies. Timeline…
- Aliko Dangote, Africa’s richest man, recently announced the launch of a large-scale sugar refinery in Ghana that is set to more than double the country’s formally irrigated farmland through a single initiative. The Dangote Sugar Refinery, located in Kwame-Danso in Ghana’s Bono Region, will…
- Topline The Met Gala, an arts fundraiser more commonly known to fans as an extravagant, star-studded night for fashion, will honor fashion pioneered by Black men throughout history Monday night, with celebrities including A$AP Rocky and Colman Domingo set to host. Key Facts The Met Gala will take…
- Artificial Intelligence (AI) is creeping into every walk of life these days and the world of sport is no different, with data and the use of science behind the numbers becoming more prevalent. But that is not just at the elite level. Could AI help uncover the next superstars in South Africa’s…
- Topline The most valuable pure entertainment company in the world got a little less valuable Monday, as shares of California-based streaming giant Netflix fell following President Donald Trump’s announcement he’d slap a high penalty on films produced abroad. Key Facts Netflix stock fell 4% to $1,…
