Zambia’s Debt Crisis, Kenya Airways’ Remarkable Turnaround, Nigeria’s Legal Action Against Binance, Ethiopia’s Recovery of Lost Funds, and Concerns over Used Clothes Imports in Kenya: A Roundup of Sub-Saharan Africa’s Business Developments

In sub-Saharan Africa, there were significant developments in the debt crisis and profitability of various businesses. On Monday, Zambia announced that they had reached an agreement with private creditors to restructure $3 billion of international bonds, marking a major step towards resolving their debt issues after defaulting over three years ago.

Meanwhile, Kenya Airways reported a remarkable turnaround on Tuesday when they swung to an operating profit of 10.53 billion shillings or over $80 million. This was driven by a 53% increase in revenue and a 35% increase in passenger numbers. The airline had faced insolvency in 2018 due to debts accumulated during an expansion drive.

Nigeria has taken legal action against Binance’s regional manager for Africa who fled custody last week. The country also filed tax evasion charges against the cryptocurrency platform. However, Binance has confirmed that they are working with authorities to address the situation.

In Ethiopia, the Commercial Bank of Ethiopia has recovered more than three-quarters of the $14 million lost due to a software glitch that allowed customers to withdraw more funds than they had in their accounts. The bank’s president blamed university students for the “theft” and stated that names of over 500 people who have not returned the money have been published.

Lastly, there is concern among second-hand clothes sellers in Kenya about a proposal by France, Denmark, and Sweden to restrict imports of used clothing from the European Union. While Teresia Wairimu Njenga, chair of the Mitumba Consortium Association of Kenya, emphasized that used clothes support livelihoods for two million Kenyans and generate tax revenues for the country, Europe argues that clothes that cannot be resold end up in dumps.