Africa Briefs

World Bank helps to battle locust swarmsThe World Bank on Thursday approved a record US$500 million in grants and low-interest loans to help countries in Africa and the Middle East fight swarms of desert locusts that are eating their way across vast swaths of crops and rangelands.Four of the hardest-hit countries - Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya and Uganda - will receive US$160 million immediately, Holger Kray, a senior World Bank official, told Reuters. He said Yemen, Somalia and other affected countries could tap funds as needed."The Horn of Africa finds itself at the epicenter of the worst locust outbreak we have seen in a generation, most probably in more than a generation," he said, noting the new coronavirus pandemic is exacerbating the crisis.Locust swarms have infested 23 countries across East Africa, the Middle East and South Asia, the biggest outbreak in 70 years, the World Bank said. It threatens food supplies in East Africa where nearly 23 million people are facing food shortages.The World Bank estimates the Horn of Africa region could suffer up to $8.5 billion in damage to crop and livestock production by year-end without broad measures to reduce locust populations and prevent their spread. Even with the measures, losses could be as high as US$2.5 billion, it said. – Nampa/ReutersZambia, China sign solar power contractsZambia's state-owned electricity company Zesco Ltd has signed contracts worth US$548 million with Power China to develop three solar power plants that will add 600 megawatts (MW) to the national grid, the company said in a statement.The three contracts are a step towards diversifying renewable energy for Zambia, which relies heavily on hydropower and has faced electricity shortages partly because of droughts."The three-grid solar PV projects will have a capacity of 200 MW each," Zesco managing director Victor Mundende said in the statement. He added the power plants would boost access to electricity and enhance industrial development, although he did not say when they would start generating.Zambia's power supply deficit has grown by nearly 20% since September, state power utility Zesco said in March, despite hefty price hikes and the government's fast-tracking of support for green energy projects. – Nampa/ReutersEthiopia issues new telecom operator licencesEthiopia's communications regulator said on Thursday the country would proceed with the privatisation of the telecommunications sector despite the novel coronavirus outbreak.The Ethiopian Communications Authority said it had issued requests for expressions of interest for two telecom licences to be awarded to multinational mobile companies, breaking the state monopoly.The issuing of licences will open up one of the world’s last major closed telecoms markets in the country of around 110 million.It said the licences would be awarded through a "competitive bidding process," but did not give a deadline for the allocation of the licences.It added it had hired the World Bank's International Finance Corporation (IFC) as transaction adviser. – Nampa/ReutersAlgeria plans solar power projectsAlgeria plans to build several photovoltaic solar plants at an estimated cost of US$3.2-US$3.6 billion to meet growing domestic demand for electricity and to sell power abroad, the government said on Thursday.Algeria, an OPEC member and a major gas supplier to Europe, has repeatedly stressed the need to launch renewable energy projects to diversify energy sources and save gas for export.Gas is currently used to generate 98% of total electricity output in the North African country, which is keen to boost its exports of gas and oil, the main source of state revenue. Solar electricity accounts for the remaining 2%.The government gave no details on where the electricity might be sold abroad or how much the proposed plants would contribute to domestic supply. – Nampa/Reuters

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