Africa Briefs

ANC still pursuing SARBThe ANC intends to re-table a Parliamentary motion to nationalise the South African Reserve Bank by doing away with its private shareholders. On Tuesday, just hours before it was set to be heard, the ANC withdrew its initial motion to debate the nationalisation of the bank. It said it needed more time consult on the matter within its structures and with key stakeholders.In a media statement issued after the motion was withdrawn, the ANC affirmed its "intent to re-table the motion which will be fully aligned with the outcomes of its 54th National Conference on the Reserve Bank". It did not say when the new motion would be tabled. The party said the motion would affirm the bank's independence, while also noting the "historical anomaly of the bank having private shareholders", and advocating for full state ownership of the SARB.The Reserve Bank raised concerns that changing its ownership structure could heighten financial and economic risks for South Africa, especially at a time when political tensions were running high. - Fin24Ghana GDP growth seen at 8.3%Ghana’s economy is expected to grow 8.3% in 2018, higher than the 6.8% estimated in the government’s budget, President Nana Akufo-Addo said on Tuesday.The major commodities exporter is in its final year of a US$918 million International Monetary Fund aid programme designed to lift growth and reduce public debt and inflation.Akufo-Addo, who assumed office in January last year, vowed to continue to manage the economy in a disciplined and sound framework aimed at making Ghana less dependent on aid.The West African country is on target to narrow fiscal deficit to 4.5% of GDP this year compared to 5.9% previously, he said. - Nampa/ReutersNuclear still part of SA energy mixNuclear power will still remain part of South Africa’s energy mix, Parliament has heard.At a briefing by the Independent Power Producers (IPP) Office to the portfolio committee on energy on Tuesday, director general of the energy department, Thabane Zulu, said that it should not come as a surprise that nuclear energy is part of SA's new Integrated Resources Plan, or IRP.Zulu said that the courts last year raised issues with the implementation of SA's nuclear programme, not its viability within the country's energy mix.The department is currently working on a “roadmap” for nuclear power in SA, he said. This would take into account legal processes and issues raised during last year's court cases. – Fin24‘S.Sudan oil money corruptly funds civil war’South Sudan’s state-owned oil company has been “captured by predatory elites” and is being used to fund the country’s civil war, including a government-aligned militia accused of human rights abuses, according reports by two investigative organisations.Millions of US dollars in oil revenue are being funneled from Nile Petroleum into the nation’s national security service, footing the bill for the war, now in its fifth year, says Global Witness, in a report released Tuesday.More than US$80 million was paid to South Sudanese politicians, military officials, government agencies, and companies owned by politicians and members of their families, according to The Sentry, an investigative group co-founded by George Clooney. The oil company made security-related payments from March 2014 until June 2015, according to The Sentry, which obtained a log of payments kept by the ministry of petroleum and mining. - Nampa/APKenya bans meat imports from SAKenya's health ministry on Tuesday banned import and sale of ready-to-eat meat products from South Africa after a listeriosis outbreak was linked to factories in the country.Kepha Ombacho, director of public health, announced the ban on Tuesday, following similar bans imposed by other African nations such as Namibia, Malawi, Mozambique and Zambia.Ombacho also directed all retail outlets in the country to remove such products from their shelves.According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), the outbreak in South Africa was the largest ever recorded globally, after some 900 cases since January 2017. – Nampa/Xinhua

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