The West Africa-focused investment management and advisory firm, Brightmore Capital, will support the K-pital Race program recently launched by the Centre Urbain de Business et d’Entreprenariat (CUBE) and 20 other African incubators. 

Based in Dakar and Abidjan, Brightmore Capital, which specializes in impact investing, “will intervene in the selection, capacity building and preparation for the financing of projects in their final phase,” said CUBE’s executives.  

Established in 2016, the Brightmore Capital empowers SMEs, in the WAEMU and Guinea Conakry, that need financing going from €150,000 (about CFA99 million) to €3 million (CFA1.97 billion). Investments are made in the form of loans, equity investments or a combination of both.   

“We look for companies that have been in existence for an average of 2 to 5 years and have generated between 50 and 800 million in the sub-region. That's the potential. The growth should be exponential and not linear for many of these companies,” says Ndeye Thiaw, associate manager of Brightmore. 

The fund invests mainly in agribusiness, but also in small and medium industries, transport, and logistics. 

Klétus Situ

In the next few days, the five modern cassava flour (gari) production units projected in the Vo prefecture will be operational. The announcement was made last week by the Shared-risk Agricultural Financing Incentive Mechanism (MIFA) which is behind the project. 

“The gari factories in the VO prefecture will soon be operational. The machines have finally arrived and are being installed in the five chosen sites in the prefecture,” said an official. 

The project, it should be noted was announced after President Gnassingbé visited the concerned prefecture in November 2019. 

According to the ministry of agriculture, the facilities should boost the agricultural processing capacity of cassava in the country and improve food security subsequently. 

At the moment, Togo produces around 900,000 tons of cassava per year and it is one of the crops the country processes most. Every year, however, there is a surplus of nearly 400,000 t.

The Urban Center for Business and Entrepreneurship (CUBE) announced that from September 13 to 18, 2021, the city of Aneho would host the sixth edition of the AGAU RÂ meetings. The event, which didn’t take place in 2020 as initially planned (due to the pandemic), will be officially launched on May 8, via a webinar.

Called K-pital - Race, the coming edition, more than previous ones, should be an opportunity for young African entrepreneurs to raise funds. In this framework, CUBE’s promoter, Urbain Amoussou, and his staff teamed up with the Réseau Africain pour la Formation, la Science et l'Émergence des Talents (RAFSET), and around 20 other incubators based in 12 African countries.  

Also present will be 20 young entrepreneurs seeking financing for their projects. These project carriers will be co-opted beforehand, following a selection and support process that will take place in several stages, from May to July. Investors, business angels, and incubators’ representatives will attend as well. 

Over the first five days of the meetings, a Masterclass on investment readiness will be organized. On September 18, entrepreneurs will present their projects to investors and secure some financing commitments. 

The event is backed by Nunya Lab and the UNDP, and any entrepreneur interested in participating can subscribe through the Prime web platform.

Klétus Situ

A new legislative framework was adopted in Togo to boost the practice of physical activities. Last Tuesday, the parliament passed a bill setting new rules for organizing, developing, and promoting these activities.

The new regulation, which has 67 articles, is “an updated version of the 2011 charter which became fully obsolete given the country’s new ambitions.” Among other changes, it introduces three major innovations: the transfer of the supervision of the teaching of physical education and sports (PSE) to the ministries responsible for national education, the final attachment of the National Institute of Youth and Sports (INJS) to the University of Lome, and the creation of two new federations (respectively for school sports and university sports), replacing the old federation (FETOSSU) which included both. 

In addition, the new legislation also emphasizes professionalization, gives special attention to amateur sports, and promotes sports for all, especially in the workplace and for people with disabilities.  

“The introduction of these innovations is driven by the commitment to make sports a lever for inclusion and socio-economic development in Togo,” explained the Minister of Sports, Dr. Commander Lidi Bessi-Kama during the vote in Parliament. 

For the official, the adoption of this new tool must “mark a new beginning,” “allow the Togolese youth to write new pages” of national sports, and make the “Togolese sportsmen and women more competitive” to “provide intense moments of communion and joy to sports fans.”

Octave Bruce

After Togo and Benin, Gozem, the Lomé-based Uber-like startup, is now operational in Gabon, Libreville. 

“We are very pleased to start our operations in Gabon with a simplified, safer and more convenient cab booking solution. We are confident that our innovation in the Gabonese market will create real value for passengers and drivers. Very soon, we will expand our range of services in Gabon with delivery services,” said Cecilia Kouna, Deputy Country Director, Gozem Gabon. 

The app users can pay with cash, via Airtel Money, Moov Money or with their credit card, the startup added. 

The next country Gozem eyes is Cameroon. In Benin and Togo, the company provides transportation and delivery services. 

Only a few days after getting the Gnassingbé Eyadéma International Airport (AIGE) accreditation, for its level of security and safety being higher than the world average, Togo is considering a new project to improve the existing regulatory framework.

According to Akodah Ayewouadan, one of the spokespersons for the Togolese government, this new project is the result of an audit that praised the government's efforts and provided the airport a certification. And if “the conclusion that can be drawn is that the country is particularly well rated in terms of safety of air navigation, we must continue and go further,” said the Togolese minister of communication.

A note presented during the recent council of ministers aimed “to review the laws applicable to the field of safety and security and see how we could further improve, and continue to get good positions in international rankings,” stressed Prime Minister Victoire Tomegah-Dogbe.

As a reminder, after the audit that led to Togo obtaining accreditation for its airport, experts of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) recommended that the country takes some corrective actions.

Togo aims to become a leading logistics hub in the sub-region by 2025, leveraging primarily its international airport, AIGE. 

Séna Akoda

The African and Malagasy Robusta Coffee Agency (ACRAM) will open its training center, the Acram Coffee Academy. 

This was decided during the Agency’s 9th ordinary general assembly recently held in Lomé. The talks focused mostly on ways to revamp the Robusta coffee industry in Africa, as it greatly suffered from the Covid-19 pandemic.  

Overall, “the resolutions adopted at the General Assembly constitute a real roadmap to ensure in the short and medium-term, a good resilience of the Robusta coffee sector in Africa and this, in a currently sensitive context,” said Abe Talime, Secretary-General of the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Local Consumption.

While the country where the Academy will be established is yet to be revealed, it is known that it will produce human resources for the Robusta coffee sector and promotes its development. 

Séna Akoda

Togo’s minister of finance, Sani Yaya, ended his mandate as chairman of the Board of Governors of the ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development (EBID). He has been replaced by Benin’s minister of finance, Romuald Wadagni. 

Yaya was appointed as president of the Board a year ago amid the rise of Covid-19 in the region, and as ECOWAS member States were implementing efforts to support countries affected by the pandemic. 

During his mandate, EBID’s governors drew a five-year strategy to support the economic recovery of member States while elaborating a policy to fight corruption and fraud. 

Based in Lomé, EBID is the main financial arm of ECOWAS. Its purpose is to help West African economies become strong, industrialized, and prosperous.