The International Air Transport Association (IATA) announced that the Wings of Change Focus Africa Conference (WOCFA) will return for its second edition under the theme ‘Towards a More Resilient and Sustainable African Aviation’. WOCFA is taking place in Johannesburg, South Africa, on 2-3 July 2024 with South African Airways as the host airline. 

WOCFA will delve into priorities under IATA’s Focus Africa initiative to strengthen aviation’s contribution to the continent’s economic and social development, along with improving connectivity, safety and reliability for passengers and shippers.

“Africa’s aviation market holds immense untapped potential, with expectations for traffic to double in the next 15 years. The Focus Africa Initiative has identified key priorities that, if addressed collaboratively and effectively, will bolster Africa’s aviation industry and enhance its socio-economic impact. A year into the Focus Africa Initiative, we have seen progress in areas such as safety, but there is still a long way to go. This year’s IATA’s Wings of Change Focus Africa Conference builds on this progress by addressing critical areas such as safety, security, sustainability, economic development, and the overall resilience of the industry,” said Kamil Alawadhi, IATA’s Regional Vice-President for Africa and the Middle East.

Shega, one of the leading Ethiopian media, data, intelligence, and advisory firms, announced the launch of the DFS (Digital Finance Service) Ethiopia Hub, an innovative platform designed to provide comprehensive data, insights, and resources into the finance sector in Ethiopia.

Developed by Shega, the hub is part of the three-year AKOFADA (Advancing Knowledge on Financial Accessibility and DFS Adoption) project, which aims to improve financial inclusion by enhancing the knowledge base of stakeholders, supporting relevant services to end users, and building trust and confidence in digital financial services.

The launch event was held today at the Hyatt Regency Hotel, with officials, local and international players, and various stakeholders in attendance.

The DFS Ethiopia Hub represents a significant step forward in Shega’s mission of empowering individuals and businesses with comprehensive data and insights. Leveraging innovative technology and quality data and content, the platform aims to redefine how we understand and deliver digital financial services, facilitating more informed decision-making as well as supporting the deepening of financial inclusion in rural and underserved areas.

The African Development Bank has invested $1.44 billion to support the development of energy and power, transport, water, and sanitation infrastructure in Nigeria.
The Bank’s Nigeria Country Department, Director General Lamin Barrow disclosed this at the Nasarawa Investment Summit 2024, held from 15 – 16 May in Lafia, the Nasarawa State capital. The event was attended by local and foreign investors, representatives of the private sector, and senior government officials.

Acknowledging the resonance of the Summit theme against the backdrop of turbulence in the global economy, Barrow noted that Nasarawa State, and indeed Nigeria, face a huge infrastructure deficit, inhibiting the country’s efforts to diversify its non-oil production and achieve international competitiveness for exports.

According to the 2020 National Integrated Infrastructure Master Plan, Nigeria requires, between 2020 and 2043, total infrastructure investments estimated at $2.3 trillion, to raise its infrastructure stock to the international benchmark of 70% of GDP. The energy sector alone will require $759 billion, while the transport sector needs $575 billion.

The African Union Commission (AUC) and Europe’s meteorological satellite agency, EUMETSAT, have signed an agreement to further strengthen cooperation on Earth observation.

The memorandum of understanding opens the way for access by African environmental and meteorological services to EUMETSAT’s data from its next-generation satellite systems. It provides the framework for EUMETSAT and AUC to cooperate on deploying new infrastructure to receive data and build educational materials to ensure the biggest possible impact from the satellite data.

EUMETSAT has begun to deploy its Meteosat Third Generation (MTG) satellite system, with the launch of MTG-Imager 1 in December 2022. The satellite’s imagers have a constant view of Africa, as well as Europe, and its data will be released for operational use soon. The organisation’s next-generation of polar-orbiting satellites, EUMESAT Polar System – Second Generation, will begin to be launched in 2025-26.

“EUMETSAT is a key partner of the African Union in projects aiming to strengthen Africa’s meteorological, environmental and climate services,” EUMETSAT Director-General Phil Evans said. “We have provided African nations with data and capacity building support for more than two decades, within the framework of the European Union-Africa Partnership.