THE
NORTH AFRICA JOURNAL
144th. Issue
entire PDF
version
Embarking on a New Development Course
Analysis
by:Dr. El Iza Mohamedou
Mauritania has been eyed by global oil companies as a potential source of energy and hydrocarbons. As interest grows, understanding Mauritania, its people, history, economy and challenges is critical for those seeking to do business there. The North Africa Journal is pleased to publish Dr. El-Iza Mohamadou analysis and profiling of Mauritania.
Not a paying subscriber? Sign
up for free email newsletter]
More Consolidation in the Financial Sector in Morocco:
Consolidation in the Moroccan Financial Sector Continues: Wafasalaf Absorbs Credor
Insurance, banking and other financial activities in Morocco have been going through an intense consolidation phase, and the consumer credit sector has not been spared from such restructuring. After the merger of leading providers, Eqdom and Sogecredit on one hand and Sofac Crédit and Caisse de Dépôt et de Gestion on the other, it is now the turn for Wafasalaf to announce its acquisition of Credor.
[Continue here...
Not a paying subscriber?
Sign up for free email newsletter]
Changes in the consumer credit business began with the acquisition of Eqdom by the Groupe Societe Generale. A reform of the sector was bound to accelerate as the financial authorities and the central bank, Bank Al-Maghrib, issued new regulation emphasizing on more prudent practices, favoring entities that are linked to cash-rish banks and other big financial insitutions.
[Continue here...
Not a paying subscriber?
Sign up for free email newsletter]
Environment:
Depleted Fish Stocks, Impoverished Cities
Growing appetite for fish among consumers in Europe, North America and particularly in Japan, is causing devastation in North African regions previously known for their amazing biodiversity and richness in fish stocks. Not only fish stocks have been depleted by excessive and uncontrolled extractions, but also many regions that grew rapidly in the 1990s to support the fishing industry are now in the brink of disappearance. Entire communities and industries are now on the path of extinction, just as they have led the extinction of the very fish that helped them raise their fortunes.
[Continue here...
Not a paying subscriber?
Sign up for free email newsletter]
Poaching in Western Algeria
The Return of Libya:
[By Arezki Daoud]
After being the target of widespread sanctions and nearly two decades of an economic embargo, Libya is now the target of global corporations seeking to do business with the North African nation. Over the past year, Muammar al-Qadhafi managed a successful diplomatic coup, which led to a rather speedy reintegration of his country into the global community of nations.
[Continue here...
Not a paying subscriber?
Sign up for free email newsletter]
[By Alessandro Bruno] British Prime Minister Tony Blair met Libyan leader Muammar Al-Qadhafi in Tripoli at the end of March. The two leaders symbolically shook hands and closed a long chapter of difficult relations spanning twenty years between Britain and Libya.
[Continue here...
Not a paying subscriber?
Sign up for free email newsletter]
Moroccan Telecom Sector:
Timid Liberalization, Weak Performance
Moroccan companies and consumers have long been waiting for the liberalization of the telecommunications sector. For companies, which core business depends on the various means of communicating with suppliers, clients and partners, restructuring of the sector is long overdue. And although the sector itself is technologically on par with what is practiced abroad, the government has yet to push for more openness.
[Continue here...
Not a paying subscriber?
Sign up for free email newsletter]
Markets and Industries:
Tension on the Chlorinated Product Market in Algeria
As summer approaches demand for chlorinated products, such as bleach, grows enormously, while supply has failed to follow. A growing shortage of chlorinated products is the direct result of the closing of the Enip-owned Skikda production plant in September 2003. Outdated equipment and a new safety reassessment highlighting the risks of the Skikda plant led to its temporary closing. Meanwhile, users of chlorinated products, in particular businesses, say their needs for such products cannot be reduced and is expending. This is the case of state water company Algerienne des Eaux and localities that rely on the product to treat water used by households.
[Continue here...
Not a paying subscriber?
Sign up for free email newsletter]
Tunisia:
A Thriving Public Phone System Despite Strong Mobile Phone Sector
The fast growth in mobile phone usage in Tunisia does not appear to harm the public telephone system and the use of public phones made available across the country and in thousands of locations. Although many have long predicted their demise, the public phones, called Taxiphones, are resisting the ongoing trend toward personal mobile phones, which have found a fertile ground among Tunisian consumers, boosted by continuous price decreases, and massive marketing campaigns led by mobile phone operators to lure consumers.
[Continue here...
Not a paying subscriber?
Sign up for free email newsletter]
Regions and Towns:
Algeria to Redraw Territorial and Administrative Map, and Reform Local and Regional Governments
Algerian provinces and local communities are promised more independence in decision making and more means to help grow their economies. This is what the program of prime minister Ahmed Ouyahia calls for. This program, which is now being debated by law makers, introduces new steps towards decentralization to “accompany the movement of democratization and economic liberalization at the local and regional levels.”
[Continue here...
Not a paying subscriber?
Sign up for free email newsletter]
Trade:
Chinese Companies Explore for Export Opportunities in the Maghreb
Chinese companies are finding a fertile ground in North Africa. To make their products more visible, Chinese companies organized an import fair in Casablanca in mid December, at the invitation of the Moroccan employer organization CGEM. While the North African business elite is generally aware of China’s economic strength, the general public still could not position China as a manufacturing powerhouse and a fast emerging technology hub.
[Continue here...
Not a paying subscriber?
Sign up for free email newsletter]
subscribe
| about us | current
issue | archive
| home | weekly
news
copyright information ©1997 to present The
North Africa Journal. E-mail us.