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High-Level Kenya-China Meeting on Security

Kenya hosted a high-level delegation from China to discuss improving the security of Chinese workers and project sites in the country. Raymond Omollo, Kenya’s Principal Secretary of Internal Security and National Administration and Coordination, met with Zhang Xumin, China’s Deputy Director ...

China E-Mobility Weekly Digest: Kenya Builds EVs as China Floods Markets With Gasoline Vehicles

This is a free preview of the upcoming Africa EVs Weekly Digest, part of the new CGSP Intelligence service. Africa is emerging as a critical, increasingly complex space in global electric-vehicle strategy. No longer viewed solely as a source ...

Transsion, Africa’s Mobile Phone Powerhouse, Seeks Hong Kong Listing to Fuel Global Expansion

Shenzhen-based Transsion Holdings, the longtime dominant cell phone maker in Africa and other developing regions, filed an application last week with the Hong Kong Stock Exchange for a secondary listing. The company already trades on the tech-heavy Shanghai STAR market with ...

To Build a Kenyan EV, an Engineer Turns to China… for Know-How, Not Cars

On the outskirts of Nairobi’s industrial zone, Engineer Tadesse Tessema, a soft-spoken power electronics graduate who built Ethiopia’s first car assembly plant nearly two decades ago, is once again trying to do something no one has done in East Africa: create a locally manufactured electric vehicle — ...

Kenya Sees a Third Wave of Chinese Investment, Led This Time by Shandong

Over more than a decade in Kenya, the popular WeChat commentator Xiao Nie  “小聂说事儿,” witnessed three waves of Chinese investment. The first came from Guangdong and Fujian, who are small-scale commodity traders. The second was led by Zhejiang entrepreneurs in manufacturing, wholesale, and e-commerce, followed by a ...

Analysis from Cobus van Staden

The G20 Summit and the Half-Life of a Joke

When it was announced in 2023 that the African Union would become a full member of the G20, I darkly joked on a podcast that the AU’s entry into the body could very well mark the moment the G20 lost its status as one of the most important global coordination forums. Mark my words, I said, soon The Economist will be like “Uhhh, the G20 is OVER – it’s the ...

China E-Mobility Weekly Digest: Africa Edges Into the EV Era With Universal Charging Hubs And More Funding

This is a free preview of the upcoming Africa EVs Weekly Digest, part of the new CGSP Intelligence service. Many African nations find themselves in a paradoxical moment regarding electric mobility. They sit atop some of the world’s richest ...

The Silent Crisis Killing African EV Manufacturing

Kenya's electric vehicle innovations and adoptions are well documented but beneath the veneer lies a challenge that many do not speak of loudly- the capacity for local production of basic components. This is an issue that slows down growth not only ...

Kenya Launches $1.5 Billion Road Project With Chinese Firms

Kenya on Friday launched a $1.5 billion road expansion project financed by Chinese firms, including a state-owned company. Beijing is among Kenya's top five development lenders, with Nairobi owing China some $4.7 billion, according to official 2025 data. ...

Uber Deploys Chinese EV Minicars For its Budget Option in South Africa

Uber is deploying compact electric vehicles from China, introducing a fully electric ride-hailing option to the South African market. At the center of the rollout is the Henrey four-seat minicar, imported by Valternative Energy, a South Africa–based clean-mobility company. Valternative, ...

A Chinese Upstart Takes On Big Tobacco in Kenya — by Playing It Straight

In a sector long dominated by counterfeit trade and British American Tobacco's (BAT) near-monopoly of the Kenyan cigarette market, a Chinese distributor did something no one expected: it played by the book.  The popular Kenya-based Chinese online commentator Xiao Nie “小聂说事儿,” ...

How a Chinese Couple Built Africa’s Diaper Empire

When Softcare debuted on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on November 10, few outside Asia had heard of it. Yet the “King of African Diapers” saw its shares jump 33% on day one, valuing the company at over $2.57 billion. Unlike the tech startups dominating headlines, ...

China E-Mobility Weekly Digest: From Pixii to Yango: Africa’s Next Wave of Electric Vehicle Innovation

This is a free preview of the upcoming Africa EVs Weekly Digest, part of the new CGSP Intelligence service. Changes in electric vehicle (EV) manufacturing and trade dynamics worldwide are unlocking business innovation. African countries, which largely lag ...
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