An ambitious flagship project, the long-awaited construction of a trans-African gas pipeline connecting Nigeria via Morocco to Europe, might finally advance. The project was officially announced in December 2016 during a visit of King Mohammed VI to Nigeria. The 4 000 km pipeline will run along the Gulf of Guinea countries and will help create industrial hubs, and thereby will also boost regional economic integration beyond the energy sector. Read on

Opposition leader Nana Akufo-Addo won Ghana’s presidential election on 9 December 2016 with 53.85% of the vote against incumbent President John Dramani Mahama who won 44.40% of the vote. The voter turnout was 68.62%. It was Akufo-Addo’s third time running for president in Ghana. “Ghana is open for business again,” was one of the newly elected president’s key messages. Indeed, President Akufo-Addo won the election with his promise of “Change: an Agenda for Jobs - Creating Prosperity & Equal Opportunity for All.” Read on

Social and business networks: West African migration forms the basis of strong social and business networks. These networks contribute to the regional integration of agribusiness markets such as the maize market. Read on

The food economy: a primary source of employment: Agriculture represents only 60% of the food economy. The economic activities that take place upstream (input supply, seeds) and downstream (processing, trade) account for 40%. The food industry is growing faster than agricultural production. It consists of numerous and increasingly complex value chains. Read on