Africa

1. S. Africa’s tariff response
2. Rwanda takes US migrants
3. US starts new visa bonds
4. Shoprite exits Ghana
5. Orange’s AI push
6. Dangote’s oil financing
7. Nigeria’s new fuel tax

Somalia’s camel milk revolution.

S. Africa unveils tariff response

The South African government announced steps to support businesses that will be impacted by the 30% US tariff taking effect this Friday. Measures include setting up an “export support desk” to help firms diversify their markets and offering “fund support” to affected companies, the details of which are still being finalized.

Political backlash against South Africa’s ruling coalition “for botching the tariff negotiations” is growing, reported the Financial Times. The US is South Africa’s third-biggest trading partner after the European Union and China, accounting for 7.5% of its global exports. While neighboring countries such as Lesotho and Eswatini saw reductions in the tariffs Washington first threatened, the one imposed on South Africa, together with those placed on Algeria and Libya, are the highest on the continent to date.

Pretoria said on Monday that it is committed to further negotiations with Washington to forge “a mutually beneficial trade deal,” stressing that South African exports “do not compete with US producers and do not pose a threat to US industry.”

Rwanda-US deportation deal

Rwanda agreed a deal to receive people deported from the US, beginning with an initial target of 250 deportees that can be increased by mutual consent, Reuters reported.

A Rwandan government spokesperson said the East African country will be able to approve each resettlement case, and will provide workforce training, health care, and accommodation for the deportees to settle in the country. Under the deal signed in June, the US will pay Rwanda in the form of a grant, the value of which is unknown. Child sex offenders will not be part of the agreement, nor will people with unfinished or outstanding prison sentences.

The deportation deal makes Rwanda an example of the “safe third country” concept that the Trump administration has pressed African nations to accept, in exchange for leniency on proposed visa restrictions. Rwanda in recent weeks also signed a peace deal with DR Congo that was brokered by the US.

New US visa bonds

US visa applicants from Malawi and Zambia will need to pay bonds of up to $15,000 for some tourist and business visas under a new pilot program. The new rules will apply from Aug. 20, the US State Department said in a notice on its website, as part of a move to discourage visa overstays: The bond amount will be returned once the applicant leaves the country as per the terms of their visa. Immigration has been a key target of US President Donald Trump’s administration, with Washington imposing a travel ban in June that fully or partially blocks nationals from 19 countries — the majority in Africa – from entering the US on security grounds. Other nations may also be added to the list of countries facing bond rules, depending on “high overstay rates, screening and vetting deficiencies,” a State Department official told Reuters.

Shoprite to exit Ghana, Malawi

South African supermarket store Shoprite is selling its operations in Ghana and Malawi. The move, announced by the retailer on Tuesday, is part of the chain’s efforts to focus on its home market. The planned sales follow the retailer’s exits from DR Congo, Kenya, Madagascar, Nigeria, and Uganda in the last few years.

The retrenchment follows years of expansion across the continent during which the grocery store became Africa’s top food retailer in around 15 countries. Shoprite changed course after encountering currency volatility, double-digit inflation, restrictive import regulations, and leases pegged to the US dollar — problems which were most pronounced in Angola and Nigeria.

Shoprite’s departure from other African markets contrasts with its expansion within South Africa. It has launched hundreds of new stores in its home market over the last year, scaled up its Sixty60 e-commerce delivery service, and diversified into pet supplies, health care, and outdoor gear.

Orange taps OpenAI models

French telecom company Orange will deploy two new artificial intelligence models from OpenAI for a project aimed at fine-tuning large language models to translate African languages.

Orange is one of Africa’s major mobile network and internet service providers with a presence in 18 countries. It signed a deal last year with OpenAI that would give it access to new models from the Silicon Valley company. OpenAI released the two new models this week, describing them as capable of performing “advanced problem-solving” while giving organizations the freedom “to run and customize AI on their own infrastructure.”

Orange will integrate the models to enable its African customers to communicate in local languages and plans to later make its customized AI models free for governments to adapt for public services.

Dangote’s $4 billion refinancing

Nigerian conglomerate Dangote Industries secured a $4 billion syndicated loan to refinance capital spent on building its 650,000 barrel-a-day refinery in Lagos. The Dangote Refinery, which cost about $20 billion to build over nearly a decade, began supplying refined fuel to Nigerians last year. It started exporting gasoline to Asia in June.

The financing will allow the refinery to more easily sell its refined products across Africa, the company said. The African Export-Import Bank contributed $1.35 billion — the largest portion of the syndicated loan.

Afreximbank has in recent months faced heightened scrutiny of its lending practices under Nigerian economist Benedict Oramah, the outgoing president. Two of the big three credit ratings agencies have downgraded the bank’s rating since June, with some analysts arguing that its overall finance strategy is unorthodox.

Nigeria’s new fossil fuel tax

The size of a new tax on refined fossil fuels that the Nigerian government plans to levy from January. The surcharge, which has been signed into law by President Bola Tinubu to encourage clean energy use, could raise more than half a billion dollars annually. The fee will apply to petrol and diesel, while cooking gas and compressed natural gas — which the government has tried to promote — are exempted. Nonprofit group ActionAid Nigeria said the policy will “disproportionately impact the poor” and deepen inequality, noting that Nigerians have not recovered from the inflationary effect of the removal of fuel subsidies in 2023.

The next wave of global growth starts here. Against the backdrop of the UN General Assembly, Semafor will host a landmark gathering on one of the greatest social and economic opportunities of our time: connecting the unconnected. The Next 3 Billion will explore the forces accelerating economic and societal growth across the world’s most ascendant regions.

Join world leaders, top executives from the world’s most powerful companies, and leading investors in the region for a full day of dialogue on connecting the next three billion people to the digital economy.

September 24, 2025 | New York City | Delegate Application

Business & Macro

🇪🇹 Ethiopian Airlines said its revenue rose 8% to $7.8 billion in the financial year that ended July 7, as passenger numbers increased by 11% to 19 million.

🇰🇪 Kenya’s foreign exchange reserves fell by $509 million in the last three weeks due to external debt payments.

Climate & Energy

🇳🇬 🇹🇿 Nigerian oil and gas firm First E&P signed a deal with the Tanzania Petroleum Development Corporation to undertake preliminary studies in southern Tanzania’s Mnazi Bay North Block area with a view to exploring its gas reserves.

🇳🇪 The African Development Bank approved a $144 million loan for a program in Niger that aims to expand energy access to 30% of the population by 2026.

Geopolitics & Policy

🇸🇩 Sudan said it has “irrefutable evidence” that the United Arab Emirates financed Colombian mercenaries to join the Rapid Support Forces paramilitary group’s fight against the Sudanese military.

🇨🇲 Cameroon’s constitutional council ruled that Maurice Kamto, a former government official seen as President Paul Biya’s main electoral rival, will not be reinstated on the list of candidates for October’s election.

Tech & Deals

🇬🇭 Ghana said it will suspend the broadcasting license of pay-TV provider MultiChoice if the company fails to slash its DStv subscription prices by 30% before Aug. 7.

🌍 The Emerging Africa & Asia Infrastructure Fund managed by South African firm Ninety One secured a $100 million debt facility from the Australian government’s credit agency Export Finance Australia.

Camel milk — long a staple for rural herders in Somalia — is becoming increasingly commercialized in the East African nation, offering new opportunities for farmers as well as consumers. “The benefits of camel milk are countless,” Kasim Abdi Moalim, Director of Animal Health at Somalia’s Ministry of Livestock, told The Associated Press. Compared to cow’s milk, camel’s milk contains much higher levels of iron and vitamin C, plus it’s safe for those who are lactose intolerant. A new wave of camel dairies is now emerging around Mogadishu as demand for camel milk grows. “In countries like the UAE, camel milk is also used for cosmetics. Somalia must catch up and develop the full value chain,” Moalim said. Projections have suggested that by 2030, the global camel milk market could reach $24 billion.

If you’re enjoying the Semafor Africa briefing and finding it useful, please share with your family and friends. We’d love to have them aboard too.

Let’s make sure this email doesn’t end up in your junk folder by adding africa@semafor.com to your contacts. In Gmail you should drag this briefing over to your ‘Primary’ tab.

You can reply to this email and send us your news tips, gossip, and good vibes.

— Alexis Akwagyiram, Preeti Jha, Alexander Onukwue, and Paige Bruton.