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Nigeria cuts off power supply to Niger as pressure mounts on junta

Published

1 year ago

August 3, 2023

As part of measures to pressure the military leadership in Niger Republic to back down and return power to a civilian government after a coup that ousted President Mohamed Bazoum last week, regional giant, Nigeria has cut off power supply to Niger.

The regional bloc, the Economic Community of West Africa States (ECOWAS), after an extraordinary meeting on Sunday, issued a one-week ultimatum to Niger to restore constitutional order or risk suspension of financial transactions and possible military intervention. ECOWAS has now decreed the freezing of “all service transactions, including energy transactions.”

Reliable sources in the Nigerian power industry corroborated the news that the nation had stopped supplying electricity to Niger. Another source close to the administration of the Nigerien Electricity Company, NIGELEC, quoted in the media, said that the action was in line with the sanctions established by ECOWAS.

A NIGELEC agent indicated that the capital, Niamey, was “supplied, thanks to local production.” However, industry experts called for caution and advised that the Nigerian government should be diplomatic in handling the matter as NIGELEC was under contract with a power firm in Nigeria, Mainstream Energy, for the supply of electricity.

NIGELEC, Niger’s sole supplier, had said in a report that in 2022, 70% of its share of electricity would come from purchases made by the Nigerian firm.

“Nigeria disconnected since yesterday (Tuesday) the high voltage line that carries electricity to Niger”, the source said.

The most recent coup, which added the Niger Republic to the list of junta-ruled states in the West African subregion, was headed by General Abdourahmane Tiani, the former commander of Bazoum’s presidential guard, who had locked Bazoum in his palace and declared himself the nation’s leader last week.

Nigeria is a major powerhouse in ECOWAS and its president, Bola Tinubu is the current Chairman of the regional bloc and is taking a lead role in reinforcing the return to democratic rule in the country. But experts have called for caution in the country’s handling of the Niger crisis given, among other things, the peculiarity of its shared border with Niger and Nigeria’s internal troubles with jihadist terrorists for which it relies on Niger for military cooperation.

Related Topics:#niger Featured Niger coup Nigeria

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IMF mission concludes 4th loan program assessment in Egypt

Published

5 hours ago

November 22, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

Following the completion of a recent visit to Egypt, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has announced that its mission had achieved significant strides in policy talks aimed at concluding the fourth review of the IMF loan program.

The review is the fourth in Egypt’s most recent 46-month IMF loan program, which was authorised in 2022 and increased to $8 billion this year following an economic crisis characterised by high inflation and chronic foreign exchange shortages. It may unleash more than $1.2 billion in financing.

Along with reaffirming its commitment to maintain a flexible exchange rate system, the IMF stated that Egypt “has implemented key reforms to preserve macroeconomic stability,” including the unification of the currency rate that facilitated imports.

Earlier on Wednesday, Egypt’s Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly said Cairo has asked the IMF to modify the targets for the programme not only for this year, but for its full duration, he added without giving more details.

“Discussions will continue over the coming days to finalize agreement on the remaining policies and reforms that could support the completion of the fourth review,” the IMF added in its statement.

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Kenya seeks $750m from World Bank, obtains $200m from AfDB— Official

Published

2 days ago

November 20, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

The head of debt management for the finance ministry told Reuters that Kenya had obtained a $200 million loan from the African Development Bank (AfDB) and was negotiating a fresh $750 million loan with the World Bank.

After being forced to abandon proposed tax rises costing more than 346 billion shillings ($2.68 billion) in June due to fatal demonstrations, the East African nation’s administration, which has been grappling with significant debt, has been frantically seeking fresh funding.

The Finance Ministry’s public debt management office director general, Raphael Owino, told Reuters that the IMF’s October clearance of the seventh and eighth reviews, which opened the door for a $606 million loan tranche, had aided the ministry’s talks for more loans.

“The World Bank is coming on board, riding on the back of IMF receipts,” Owino said. “The AfDB is already on board.”

The discussions for more assistance, which came under the World Bank’s “Development Policy Operations” (DPO) with the government, were confirmed by a representative at the organization’s Kenya office.

“The amount of the current (loan) is yet to be determined. The amount will also depend on the implementation of the policy reforms agreed upon,” the spokesperson told Reuters, adding that past DPO loans averaged about $750 million.

In May, the World Bank approved the latest round of DPO loans, totalling $1.2 billion.

According to a statement made last month by Finance Minister John Mbadi, Kenya has set a foreign borrowing goal of 168 billion shillings for the fiscal year ending in June 2025.