The Ministry of Energy and Mines announced that it is working to expand the supply and use of renewable energy.
Noting that the Ministry has been working to improve household energy supplies and enhance the efficiency of household energy appliances, Mr. Tesfay Gebrehiwet, Director of Renewable Energy at the Ministry, said that training is being organized for those engaged in producing smokeless ovens and other household appliances.
Indicating that the Ministry of Agriculture’s initiative to introduce smokeless ovens in 2000 is one notable example of these efforts, Mr. Tesfay said that the number of beneficiaries using smokeless ovens has increased to about 200,000.
Mr. Tesfay also said that efforts to introduce and expand the use of renewable energy for household, agricultural and other purposes, including solar, wind, geothermal, green-hydrogen and bioenergy, are yielding encouraging results.
Regarding solar energy, Mr. Tesfay said that the 34 megawatts of solar power installed in Dekemhare, 2 megawatts installed around Asmara and 2.25 megawatts installed in Areza and Mai-Dima are notable examples.
Mr. Tesfay went on to say that theoretical and practical capacity-building training has been provided by foreign and national experts and will continue in earnest. He also called for increased public understanding of solar energy systems and their proper use.
Today, World Rugby Chairman Brett Robinson and Rugby Africa (www.RugbyAfrique.com) President and World Rugby Executive Board Member Herbert Mensah held high-level bilateral discussions with the Honourable Minister of Sport, Recreation, Arts and Culture, Lt. Gen. (Rtd.) Anselem Nhamo Sanyatwe, to discuss the future development of rugby in Zimbabwe beyond the 2027 Rugby World Cup.
Organised by Zimbabwe Rugby Union, the governing body of rugby in Zimbabwe, the meeting formally acknowledged Zimbabwe’s qualification for the Men’s Rugby World Cup 2027 in Australia, marking the Sables’ first appearance at the global tournament since 1991, while also focusing on governance stability, high-performance planning and the long-term development of the game in Zimbabwe. During the meeting, the Honourable Minister Sanyatwe was joined by Hon. Emily Jesaya, Deputy Minister, and Dr. Biggie Samwanda from the Arts and Culture Directorate.
Honourable Minister Sanyatwe commended World Rugby’s global support and emphasised that governance reforms within the Zimbabwe Rugby Union have restored institutional stability, affirming the Government of Zimbabwe’s full backing for the national team as they prepare for fixtures across Australia.
“Thank you to the Government of Zimbabwe and the Honourable Minister for the warm welcome and for the support they continue to provide to rugby in this country. Zimbabwe’s return to the Rugby World Cup in 2027 is incredibly important, but equally important is the legacy we can create for rugby in this country beyond 2027. We applaud the governance structures that have been introduced, and it is very important that we see continuity. We want to continue to invest alongside the Zimbabwe Rugby Union and the Government of Zimbabwe in the future of the sport. Ultimately, our aspiration is to change the lives of young men and women through our sport, creating an environment where they can have aspirations, develop themselves and believe in what they can achieve,” said Brett Robinson, Chairman of World Rugby.
“Zimbabwe’s qualification for the 2027 Rugby World Cup is a great achievement, but we must see 2027 as the beginning, not the destination. There is so much more that Zimbabwe can achieve in rugby, and having the full support of the Government of Zimbabwe is critical to making that progress possible. I would like to thank the Honourable Minister, Lt. Gen. (Rtd.) Anselem Nhamo Sanyatwe, for his leadership and commitment to rugby and for the Government’s support of the Zimbabwe Rugby Union. With strong leadership, government support and the right structures in place, we can build on this momentum and create opportunities that will continue well beyond 2027,” said Herbert Mensah, President of Rugby Africa and Executive Board Member at World Rugby.
The World Rugby delegation was led by Chairman Brett Robinson and included Rugby Africa President Herbert Mensah, World Rugby Chief of International Federation David Carrigy and Dave Gilbert, Advisor to the President of Rugby Africa and former President of Botswana Rugby Union. The Zimbabwe Rugby Union was represented by Interim Management Committee Chair Paddy Zhanda and General Manager Takunda Chifokoyo.
The delegation reviewed the Sables’ competition and preparation programme, including their integration into World Rugby’s expanded international competition pathway and upcoming November 2026 Nations Cup fixtures. The discussions also centred on expanding grassroots participation and elevating Rugby Sevens as a key development vehicle ahead of the Los Angeles 2028 and Brisbane 2032 Olympic Games.
Rugby Africa will also continue to work closely with the Zimbabwe Rugby Union to support long-term governance continuity and ensure that the country is well positioned to maximise the opportunities presented by its return to the Rugby World Cup stage in 2027.
The bilateral engagement underlined the shared commitment of the Government of Zimbabwe, World Rugby, Rugby Africa and the Zimbabwe Rugby Union to use the momentum of Rugby World Cup qualification to strengthen the game from grassroots to elite level and build a legacy for rugby in Zimbabwe.
To commemorate the milestone, Robinson formally presented the Honourable Minister of Sports, Recreation, Arts and Culture, Lt. Gen. (Rtd.) Anselem Nhamo Sanyatwe, and Deputy Minister Emily Jesaya with an official World Rugby ceremonial salver and the official Rugby World Cup 2027 match ball featuring Australian Indigenous artwork, formally welcoming Zimbabwe back to the pinnacle of world rugby.
– on behalf of Rugby Africa.
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About Zimbabwe Rugby Union:
The Zimbabwe Rugby Union (ZRU) is the national governing body for rugby in Zimbabwe, responsible for the administration, development, promotion and growth of the sport across the country. ZRU oversees Zimbabwe’s national teams and rugby pathways, including the Sables, Cheetahs and age-grade representative teams. Through its development programmes, competitions, high-performance structures and partnerships, ZRU works to grow rugby at grassroots, schools, tertiary, club and provincial levels while creating opportunities for players, coaches, match officials and administrators to progress within the sport. ZRU is committed to strengthening Zimbabwe’s position on the international rugby stage while using rugby as a platform for national pride, youth development, community engagement and opportunity.
About Rugby Africa:
Rugby Africa (www.RugbyAfrique.com) is the governing body of rugby in Africa and one of the regional associations under World Rugby. It unites all African countries that play rugby union, rugby sevens, and women’s rugby. Rugby Africa organizes various competitions, including the qualifying tournaments for the Rugby World Cup and the Africa Sevens, a qualifying competition for the Olympic Games. With 40 member unions, Rugby Africa is dedicated to promoting and developing rugby across the continent. World Rugby highlighted Ghana, Nigeria and Zambia as three of the six emerging nations experiencing strong growth in rugby.
Lasale Elementary, Junior and High School in Keren recognized 98 outstanding students who attained high scores in the eighth-grade and national school-leaving examinations during the 2025/2026 academic year, as well as exemplary teachers and parents.
The award recipients included 55 students who scored over 90 points in the eighth-grade national examination and 43 students who attained GPAs above 3.0 in the national school-leaving examination. Sixteen teachers and five parents were also recognized for their outstanding contributions.
Highlighting the significance of recognizing outstanding students in motivating their peers, Mr. Habtom Haile, Director of the school, said that the increasing number of students attaining high scores in national examinations attests to the value of such initiatives.
The Chairman of the parents’ committee, for his part, called for strengthened cooperation among students, parents and teachers to achieve better results.
Noting that the school’s achievements attest to the strong cooperation among students, parents and teachers, Mr. Kiflai Andemicael, Head of the Education Office in the Anseba Region, said that the school serves as an example to other schools.
According to the report, of the 218 students from Lasale Elementary, Junior and High School who sat for the 2025/2026 eighth-grade national examination, 214 achieved passing marks. Of the 134 students who sat for the national school-leaving examination, 86 attained scores qualifying them for degree programs and 28 for diploma programs.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Ministry of Information, Eritrea.
A seminar focusing on the eradication of harmful practices was conducted for partner institutions in the Southern Red Sea Region from 19 to 21 August. The seminar was attended by representatives of the Ministry of Justice, the police, social service institutions, and reconciliation committees.
The seminar, organized in collaboration with the Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare, the Ministry of Health, and the National Union of Eritrean Women branch in the region, focused on women’s and children’s rights; the objectives and significance of public registration; traditional values and their influence; cases and their resolution; harmful practices from a legal perspective; and the consequences of female genital mutilation, among other topics.
The objective of the seminar was to enhance public understanding and participation in efforts to eradicate harmful practices, particularly underage marriage and female genital mutilation.
Ambassador Mohammed Sid Mantai, Governor of the region, called on the participants to play a leading role in efforts to eradicate harmful practices.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Ministry of Information, Eritrea.
AFC Capital Partners (ACP), the asset management subsidiary of Africa Finance Corporation (AFC) (www.AfricaFC.org), has launched the Infrastructure Climate-Resilient Fund Nigeria (ICRF Nigeria) as a dedicated platform to mobilise domestic institutional capital for investment in climate-resilient infrastructure projects across Nigeria and the wider African continent.
Registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) as a closed-end fund, ICRF Nigeria is designed to channel capital from pension fund administrators (PFAs), insurers, asset managers and other Nigerian institutional investors towards a diversified portfolio of commercially viable high-impact infrastructure opportunities.
ICRF Nigeria forms part of ACP’s US$750 million Infrastructure Climate-Resilient Fund (ICRF), a pioneering vehicle designed to strengthen the resilience of Africa’s infrastructure by embedding climate considerations throughout the asset lifecycle—from planning and design to construction and operation. The Fund addresses a critical challenge for the continent: ensuring that the infrastructure underpinning Africa’s growth can withstand increasingly severe and unpredictable climate impacts.
ICRF has attracted participation from leading global and African institutional investors, including a US$253 million first-loss commitment from the Green Climate Fund (GCF)—its largest equity investment in Africa to date—alongside the European Investment Bank (EIB), Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA), Cassa Depositi e Prestiti (CDP), the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA), and several African pension funds. ACP expects to mobilise up to US$3.7 billion in total financing through ICRF and build a diversified portfolio of 10 to 12 infrastructure projects across Africa.
Samaila Zubairu, AFC’s President and CEO, commented: “Africa is not short of capital. The continent holds more than US$4 trillion in domestic resources, including significant pools of long-term capital in pensions, insurance and sovereign wealth funds. Yet too much of this wealth remains invested in low-risk, short-term instruments rather than being channeled into productive sectors such as infrastructure, industry and innovation.
“The opportunity before us is to create investment vehicles that connect Africa’s long-term savings with its long-term development needs. ICRF Nigeria is an important step in that direction, enabling Nigerian institutional capital to participate in the infrastructure that will drive more resilient and sustainable growth across Nigeria and the continent.”
Ayaan Adam, CEO of ACP, said: “ICRF Nigeria gives Nigerian institutional investors a dedicated route into high-quality, climate-resilient infrastructure investments across Nigeria and Africa. By combining institutional capital with AFC’s infrastructure expertise and the catalytic power of blended finance, we can address both the financing needs of critical infrastructure and the growing risks posed by climate change.
“Importantly, this creates an avenue for Nigeria’s long-term savings to contribute to infrastructure development while giving investors access to a diversified portfolio of opportunities across the continent.”
ICRF combines concessional and commercial capital to overcome barriers that have historically constrained investment in climate adaptation across Africa. Through blended finance and targeted de-risking mechanisms, the Fund integrates climate resilience into infrastructure from the outset, helping to unlock private capital for investment in projects that might otherwise be difficult to finance.
The Fund’s target sectors are critical to Africa’s economic transformation, including renewable energy, transport and logistics, digital infrastructure and industrial development. Its investment approach considers both physical and transition climate risks, including exposure to extreme weather, emissions pathways and climate governance. Each investment undergoes climate risk screening and assessment to embed resilience throughout the infrastructure lifecycle.
The Green Climate Fund plays a catalytic role through its provision of first-loss capital and technical assistance for climate risk assessment and monitoring, helping to de-risk investments and crowd in additional institutional capital.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Africa Finance Corporation (AFC).
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Africa Finance Corporation
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Email: yewande.thorpe@africafc.org
About AFC:
AFC was established in 2007 to be the catalyst for pragmatic infrastructure and industrial investments across Africa. AFC’s approach combines specialist industry expertise with a focus on financial and technical advisory, project structuring, project development, and risk capital to address Africa’s infrastructure development needs and drive sustainable economic growth.
Nineteen years on, AFC has developed a track record as the partner of choice in Africa for investing and delivering on instrumental, high-quality infrastructure assets that provide essential services in the core infrastructure sectors of energy, natural resources, heavy industry, transport, and telecommunications. AFC has 48 member countries and has invested over US$20 billion in 36 African countries since its inception.
About AFC Capital Partners:
AFC Capital Partners (ACP) is the wholly owned asset management subsidiary of Africa Finance Corporation (AFC), established to transform AFC’s institutional expertise, investment track record and Africa-wide platform into investable products for third-party capital. ACP manages investment vehicles that provide institutional investors with access to high-quality infrastructure opportunities across Africa, leveraging AFC’s deep sector expertise, origination capabilities and project development platform.
ACP is registered in Mauritius and Nigeria and is a Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)-licensed fund manager in Nigeria. Through its fund management platform, ACP mobilises institutional capital and deploys it into investments that support Africa’s infrastructure development and long-term economic transformation.
A ministra deu recomendações concretas e mecanismos de cooperação que possam contribuir para melhorar a qualidade dos serviços de colocação e cedência temporária de trabalhadores, assim como reforçar o cumprimento da legislação laboral aplicável, promover maior transparência na relação entre operadores, trabalhadores e empregadores.
A governante quer também melhorar o reporte e a qualidade dos dados relactivos às colocações e
cedências de trabalhadores, permitir uma leitura mais precisa das áreas profissionais, sectores e regiões
com maior procura e colocação, assim como fortalecer a articulação entre o INEFOP e os operadores privados, alargar progressivamente o acesso aos serviços de intermediação laboral nas diferentes regiões do país.
Segundo a ministra, o Governo pretende colher subsídios e contribuições para a actualização do Regulamento de Base
da Agências Privadas de Colocação, de modos a adequar-se aos desafios contemporâneos e contribuir para a criação de mais e melhores oportunidades de emprego para os cidadãos.
Teresa Rodrigues Dias reforçou que o MAPTSS vai continuar empenhado em promover políticas que favoreçam o emprego, a empregabilidade, qualificação profissional, protecção social e a melhoria das relações laborais.
Para este percurso, reconheceu, conta com o INEFOP, que através da nossa Unidade de Intermediação de Mão-de-Obra (UIMO), deve igualmente, continuar a servir de ponte entre quem procura emprego e as empresas que precisam de trabalhadores.
A ministra espera que as conclusões do encontro não permaneçam apenas nos documentos, mas se traduzam em medidas concretas, compromissos assumidos e melhorias efectivas no funcionamento do mercado de trabalho.
Distribuído pelo Grupo APO para Angola, Ministério da Administração Pública, Trabalho e Segurança Social.
Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Ikechukwu Opara, Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Stellenbosch University
South Africa can produce enough food for its population, according to official statistics. But millions face hunger, partly because food is lost and wasted in the value chain. An estimated 10.3 million tonnes of food are wasted annually in the country, 19% of it fresh produce.
A substantial portion of this loss and waste occurs during harvesting, transportation and marketing in the form of handling problems and inadequate infrastructure.
We are agri-food systems specialists who have studied food waste both at the farm level and further along the chain towards consumers. For example, I (Opara) have found that for pomegranates, 15.3% to 20.1% of the harvest is lost at the farm (for several reasons, but mainly sunburn and cracks) and 6.74% to 7.69% at the packhouse (as a result of superficial injuries and missorted fruits from the farm).
Another study (Opara) measured post-harvest waste at a produce market. This ranged from 0.68% to 1.26%.
The research confirms that food waste is partly due to inadequacies or failures in the cold chain, especially during summer when temperatures are high, affecting the physical quality of fresh produce. A cold chain is a temperature-controlled supply chain that keeps perishable products safe and fresh.
Better cold storage would reduce waste.
Impact of seasons on fresh produce waste
My (Opara) recent study set out to assess the magnitude and seasonal variations of postharvest waste at the wholesale level using a case study of a fresh produce market in Gauteng province, South Africa. The study used the historical fresh produce waste data of the market over three years (2021 to 2023).
The results show that fresh produce is affected by seasonal heat and humidity, which affect the physical quality and consumer acceptability of fresh produce. Fresh produce is marketed and sold on claims of its freshness.
High temperatures typically result in increased moisture loss. If that’s uncontrolled, the produce deteriorates and can’t be sold or safely eaten. Across the seasons in South Africa, temperatures and humidity levels vary considerably.
Much of the fresh produce waste occurs during summer, often requiring improvement in handling, storage and maintaining the cold chain to preserve quality.
The study shows that about 9,124 to 17,969 tonnes, which is about 0.68% to 1.26% of the supplied fresh produce, are discarded annually at the fresh produce market. Much of it is a result of high temperatures during summer, which is a period when cold storage facilities are stretched the most due to high demand.
Cold chain for food security
That’s why an efficient cold chain system and storage is so important. Cold chain systems involve a sequence of supply chain processes that are temperature-controlled, aimed at managing the temperature of perishable items from the moment they are harvested until they reach store shelves. This can involve storing fresh produce under shades immediately after harvesting, and insulating them from heat or direct sunlight through refrigeration throughout the supply chain.
This regulation slows down biological deterioration and spoilage. The cold chain is crucial for extending the shelf life of fruits and vegetables by ensuring optimal transport, storage and sales conditions. Maintaining a consistent cold chain preserves food quality and enhances safety, reducing the risk of foodborne diseases. This increases the availability of fresh produce and helps keep prices affordable for consumers.
Solutions to reduce fresh produce waste
One key to solving food waste problems in the country is investment in cold chain facilities. The wholesale markets in South Africa are formalised and the cold chain system is advanced compared to many sub-Saharan African countries. But more investments are needed in cold chain logistics, packhouses and storage, especially at the National Fresh Produce Markets, which serve as storage, distribution and wholesale hubs.
Small-scale farmers and packhouse operators need financial help to build refrigeration infrastructure, especially for first-mile cooling, and temporary storage before fresh produce is processed for the market. One instrument is blended investment: a mix of public funds and private capital. This approach attracts private investors as public money takes the first financial hit if an investment fails, thereby protecting private investors. It can drive innovation and investment in the food system.
Collaboration between research institutions and industry will aid in measuring food loss and waste effectively, enabling evidence-based decision-making to reduce food waste.
In addition to these solutions, studies elsewhere in the world have shown that integrating AI could enhance cold chain systems to reduce waste, improve food quality, lower costs and increase access to nutritious foods.
AI enhances the efficiency of the cold chain system. The national fresh produce markets can benefit from the automation and efficiency of AI integration to monitor cold storage temperatures. Advanced algorithms can help manage cold storage demand using real-time data and predictive modelling to balance energy use, cut costs and keep temperatures stable, especially during periods of high demand. This would minimise waste and ensure fresh produce reaches consumers in good condition.
A collective effort from farmers, cold chain operators, transport and logistics, research institutions and the government is vital. South Africa must focus not just on food production but on preserving what is produced through improved cold chain infrastructure.
– South Africa produces enough food, yet millions face hunger. Better cold storage could help change that – https://theconversation.com/south-africa-produces-enough-food-yet-millions-face-hunger-better-cold-storage-could-help-change-that-288445
Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Luicer Anne Ingasia Olubayo, Visiting Researcher at Sydney Brenner Institute for Molecular Bioscience, University of the Witwatersrand
In 2025, an estimated 11.5 million (29%) people living with HIV were aged 50 years and older. This is projected to increase to 20.2 million by 2040. That would account for more than half (51%) of all people living with HIV. And, crucially, 96% will live in low- and middle-income countries. Sub-Saharan Africa is continuing to shoulder the greatest burden of the global HIV epidemic.
Much of this change reflects the success of antiretroviral therapy (ART), which has enabled millions of people who acquired HIV earlier in life to grow older. The challenge has gone beyond helping people live longer, to ensuring they age well – that they maintain good health, independence and quality of life throughout older age.
Older adults are also acquiring HIV and being diagnosed later in life. But prevention and testing campaigns remain focused on younger people.
Older adults are often assumed to be at low risk because of the misconception that they are no longer sexually active. Healthcare workers may be less likely to discuss sexual health, recommend testing or offer prevention options such as PrEP. Moreover, older people may not see themselves reflected in HIV messaging that’s directed to younger people. These assumptions contribute not only to delayed diagnosis and treatment, but also to discrimination within healthcare, where opportunities for prevention and early detection may be missed.
African context
Our recent Lancet Healthy Longevity study, using data from the Africa Wits-Indepth Partnership for Genomic Research (AWI-Gen), provides an important longitudinal (long-term) African perspective that reinforces the Lancet Commission’s message. We analysed data from more than 7,000 adults 40 years and older in Kenya and South Africa, including rural and urban populations. The data was collected in 2013-2016 and 2019-2022. Data like this helps us examine what is changing over time: whether treatment outcomes are improving, and which groups remain overlooked.
Our findings also show that older adults are not one uniform population. HIV risk was shaped by gender, education, socioeconomic circumstances and place.
Widowed women had the highest HIV prevalence, at 30.8%. This may reflect economic insecurity and persistent gender inequalities that continue to influence HIV vulnerability later in life. Prevention must respond to these gendered and social realities.
Stigma and ageism compound the problem. The perception that HIV is a disease of younger people can make diagnosis in later life feel especially shameful. Older adults may delay testing or avoid discussing their sexual health because they do not perceive themselves – or are not perceived by others – as being at risk. This can affect testing, disclosure, mental health and continued engagement with care.
Comorbidity
The Lancet Commission supports our findings that the population over 50 is more likely to receive a delayed HIV diagnosis, and calls for tailored HIV prevention and screening for this age group. It further recognises the need for thoughtful screening and management of age-related comorbidity. In addition it calls for the integration of HIV services with health services provided to the general public.
A distinctive strength of our work is that we do not study HIV in isolation.
Through the long-term research undertaken be the MRC/Wits Agincourt unit and AWI-Gen, we have spent years examining ageing and health in African populations. Our longitudinal data allow us to consider HIV alongside hypertension, diabetes, obesity and other chronic conditions, and to investigate how these conditions accumulate and interact as people age.
A person may be taking ART with medicines for hypertension and diabetes while also coping with reduced mobility, depression or financial insecurity. Several individually appropriate treatment guidelines can become unmanageable when applied to the same person. Care must consider physiological rather than chronological age (what’s happening to a person’s body, not just how old they are in years), functional ability (what they are still able to do), polypharmacy (being on multiple medications) and what matters to the individual.
Health systems must also adapt to these new circumstances where more people are living with different chronic (long-term) conditions. An older person should not have to attend separate clinics and make repeated journeys. This is particularly burdensome in rural areas. HIV, chronic disease and healthy-ageing services need to be brought closer together, with HIV testing available through chronic disease services and HIV care routinely addressing noncommunicable diseases and mental health.
Looking ahead
The Lancet HIV Commission provides a timely roadmap for responding to this changing epidemic, but its success will depend on evidence generated where the need is greatest.
The international value of this evidence is clear. Historically, much of what’s known about ageing with HIV has come from wealthier settings, yet the overwhelming majority of older adults living with HIV now live – or soon will live – in low- and middle-income countries, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa. The HIV response must prepare for people growing older with HIV while recognising that older people remain at risk of acquiring it.
– Ageing with HIV: global report highlights the need to prepare health systems – https://theconversation.com/ageing-with-hiv-global-report-highlights-the-need-to-prepare-health-systems-289168
East Africa, a region that has been working to deepen economic integration for more than 25 years, has a history of disagreements about the location of energy infrastructure. Uganda discovered oil in 2006 with the potential to pump an estimated 210,000 to 230,000 barrels of oil per day at peak production. Back in 2014, Kenya and Uganda agreed on a joint crude oil pipeline from Uganda’s oil fields at Lake Albert to the Indian Ocean. But the plan was shelved in 2016. Eventually, Uganda chose a southern route through Tanzania, forcing Kenya back to the drawing board.
This year, Kenya’s president William Ruto and Uganda’s Yoweri Museveni announced plans for a new east African oil refinery, reportedly in Tanzania by Nigeria’s Aliko Dangote, Africa’s richest person and the founder, president and chief executive of the Dangote Group. The refinery plans looked like a win for east African solidarity and sovereignty. However, days later, President Samia Hassan said she hadn’t been consulted on the plans to build it in Tanzania.
The Dangote refinery has now been slated for Lamu, Kenya’s new port north of Mombasa. That should have closed the matter but it did not. Uganda and Tanzania have since signed a memorandum of understanding with commodity trader Vitol Bahrain to build a US$20 billion regional energy hub in Tanga, Tanzania complete with petroleum storage, refining, logistics, trading and distribution facilities.
Brendon J. Cannon and Stephen Mogaka have written about east African politics, pipelines and security for over a decade. They shed light on these latest developments.
You studied the regional energy rivalry in east Africa over a crude oil pipeline. How did it play out?
Uganda and Kenya agreed in 2014 to jointly build a pipeline from Uganda’s oilfields to Kenya’s planned port at Lamu.
The deal collapsed within two years. Kenya’s push for its northern route, inflated security concerns and land compensation issues all played a part.
But the decisive factor was Total, the French oil major developing Uganda’s fields. It lobbied for and helped finance an alternative pipeline bypassing Kenya entirely to Tanzania’s port of Tanga. Landlocked Uganda’s chronic unease about depending on Kenya did the rest.
Author provided
By 2016, the pipeline deal was dead. The Uganda-Tanzania route, known as the East African Crude Oil Pipeline, is becoming a reality, at reportedly 90% complete as of August 2026. The first oil is expected in early 2027.
The heated pipeline will carry Uganda’s waxy crude oil from its Lake Albert oilfields to Tanga in Tanzania for export.
What drives mistrust and competitive statecraft in the east African region?
Competitive statecraft in east Africa, particularly between Kenya and Tanzania, is old and deep. It is rooted in divergent post-independence ideologies, and in recent decades by rival ambitions to be the region’s main commercial gateway to international markets.
Kenya’s post-independence leaders were once dismissed by Tanzanian president Julius Nyerere as running a “man-eat-man” society on account of Nairobi’s capitalism. Kenyan attorney-general Charles Njonjo shot back, calling socialist Tanzania a “man-eat-nothing” society.
The legacy of mutual suspicion continues to cast a shadow despite some improvements in bilateral relations between Kenya and Tanzania.
Kenya has pushed for decades to fully develop its northern transport corridor. Tanzania has attempted to do the same for its central and southern routes. As early as 2016, journalists were already describing Kenya’s planned port at Lamu and Tanzania’s answer at Bagamoyo as rivals in the race to become east Africa’s most important port.
Each has courted landlocked Uganda and Rwanda, and more recently Uganda’s oil, as the prize that determines which corridor prevails. But the biggest prize of all would be a pipeline corridor to South Sudan and its oil, with proven reserves of of 3.5 billion barrels, making it the third-largest holder of oil reserves in sub-Saharan Africa and the primary major oil producer in east Africa.
Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania have been consulted on the Dangote-financed refinery. Does the Lamu decision mark a break from past rivalries?
The decision to build what is billed as east Africa’s only refinery in Lamu seems, at first, to be more of the same politics of intrigue.
But it’s worth pointing out that the Tanga idea began as a joint regional concept: Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania and others floated a Dangote-style refinery in early 2026.
And Dangote offered to lead its construction if governments agreed on a site.
Ruto’s early embrace of Tanga was itself widely misread in Kenya as him favouring Tanzania over his own country. It prompted uncomfortable questions about his motives before Dangote’s own commercial preference for the Kenyan coast settled the matter. His public rebuke by Tanzania’s president only added to the ill will.
As with the east African pipeline saga in 2014, an external investor’s commercial calculus, not regional consensus, decided the outcome.
Dangote does not need east African solidarity. If one government proves difficult, he can build elsewhere, exactly as Total once did.
Kenya, chastened by its clumsy pipeline diplomacy circa 2014, appears to have lobbied more skilfully this time. It has reportedly pledged seed capital totalling KSH 21.5 billion (approximately US$166 million) and invited its neighbours to take stakes.
Yet within weeks, Uganda and Tanzania answered with their own Tanga hub, framed around retaining more value from regional oil rather than exporting crude and importing refined fuel.
Uganda, notably, keeps hedging: attempting to finance its own Hoima refinery while backing both Lamu and Tanga.
Rivalry has not disappeared from east Africa. It has simply been repackaged as parallel, competing “regional” projects.
How strong is the case for a regional refinery?
The underlying economic logic for a refinery is strong.
East Africa refines almost none of its own fuel despite an estimated 4.7 billion barrels of reserves across Uganda, Kenya, South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Iran’s threats and attacks against shipping in the Gulf this year underscored how vulnerable the region is to Middle Eastern supply shocks.
A Lamu refinery sits at the terminus of a multi-country corridor: the Lamu Port-South Sudan-Ethiopia Transport project. This is a multi-decade, multi-billion-dollar plan to link the deep-water port at Lamu with road, rail, pipeline and airport infrastructure reaching South Sudan and Ethiopia.
It will also potentially carry South Sudan’s abundant, higher-quality crude (still shipped mostly through Sudan), plus Kenya’s own onshore reserves in Turkana and prospective offshore fields.
Linking this to a refinery, rather than only a crude export pipeline, would give Lamu a far more durable rationale than the aborted Uganda-Kenya pipeline ever had. Whether this happens depends less on engineering than on east Africa’s politics and financing.
Today in New Alamein City, President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi met with Prime Minister, Dr. Moustafa Madbouly, Minister of Education and Technical Education, Mohamed Abdel Latif, and Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research, Dr. Abdelaziz Konsowa.
Spokesman for the Presidency Ambassador Mohamed El-Shennawy said the meeting discussed recent developments with regard to the work of the Ministries of Education and Technical Education, and Higher Education and Scientific Research, within the framework of ongoing preparations for the launch of the new academic year 2026/2027 across all schools, institutes, and universities in Egypt.
President El-Sisi gave directives to increase efforts to organize exhibitions for the sale of school supplies at affordable prices before the start of the academic year, while stressing the importance of ensuring the application of the minimum wage in schools for all categories, including teachers, technicians, administrators, and others. The President also emphasized the need to strengthen the governance of school fees in a manner that alleviates the financial burdens on students and their families.
The meeting also reviewed the mechanisms for implementing the Egyptian Baccalaureate system and its examination framework, including the regulations governing study and evaluation methods. These measures are designed to ensure flexibility in educational pathways and provide students with multiple opportunities to enhance their academic performance.
The Minister of Education and Technical Education explained that the curricula of the Egyptian Baccalaureate have received accreditation from the International Baccalaureate Organization, marking a qualitative development that reflects the ongoing modernization of Egyptian curricula.
In this context, President El-Sisi emphasized the necessity for the Ministry to ensure that examinations are drawn exclusively from the official school textbooks and assessment materials issued by the Ministry, in addition to the relevant preparatory tests. The President also underscored the importance of giving due attention to subjects such as Arabic language, religious education, and history, and of teaching them in accordance with the Ministry’s curricula.
With regard to the development of university programs and curricula, the Minister of Higher Education indicated plans to launch international programs, dual degrees, and joint degrees, as well as expand partnerships with international universities. He reviewed efforts made to foster cooperation between Egyptian and foreign universities and open branches of foreign universities in Egypt. He also reviewed efforts to develop and operate university hospitals and the Ministry’s vision for their development. President El-Sisi stressed the necessity of taking all necessary measures to ensure the quality of university education and services provided by university hospitals. The President also emphasized the importance of the involvement of universities and research centers in the study and analysis of the problems and challenges facing the Egyptian state, examining and evaluating them, and proposing practical recommendations and solutions. Furthermore, the President stressed the need to continue efforts to implement automation in various Egyptian universities to ensure the quality of education and the objective assessment.
The Minister of Higher Education reviewed the status of university admissions for high school graduates in Egyptian colleges and universities. The President emphasized the importance of preparing qualified cadres who meet the needs of the local and international labor market. This is in addition to launching initiatives to support talented individuals and nurture gifted students using the best professional methods and innovative investment solutions. The Minister also reviewed the preparations for hosting the 12th African University Games, scheduled to be held in Cairo from September 8 to 16, 2026. The President stressed the need for the tournament to be a success.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Presidency of the Arab Republic of Egypt.
