Vol 55 No 24 | ANGOLA Good banks from bad 1st December 2014 The authorities have created a new lender out of the ashes of BESA but mystery surrounds the state’s exposure – and the identity of the new bank's shareholders The central bank, the Banco Nacional de Angola (BNA) has come to the rescue of the country's second-largest bank, the Banco Espírito Santo Angola. BESA went into administration...
Vol 55 No 19 | ANGOLA Changing faces 25th September 2014 It looks as if the one-time external security boss, General Fernando Garcia Miala, is being groomed for a key role in the Palace. Sacked in 2006 from the...
Vol 55 No 14 | ANGOLA Toxic loan fears grow 11th July 2014 The reported bail-out of a major bank risks destabilising the financial sector and affecting the country’s sovereign rating A huge state guarantee to a major local bank is causing concern about corporate governance and has the potential to destabilise the economy. The state has set aside...
Vol 55 No 12 | ANGOLA Alarm as oil production falls 12th June 2014 Falling output is affecting the economy but it’s unlikely to change the habits of the elite The policy of 'de-dollarising' the economy has gained unexpected momentum as a dip in oil production reduces the availability of the US dollar. The budget and much-needed infrastructure...
Vol 55 No 11 | ANGOLACONGO-KINSHASA Kinshasa challenges Luanda 30th May 2014 In a row that could affect the oil industry, Congo-Kinshasa is again raising the temperature over maritime rights which Angola disputes A long-simmering dispute about rights to the sea has worsened. Last year, Angola submitted a map to the United Nations Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf...
Vol 55 No 9 | ANGOLAFRANCE Dos Santos turns the page 2nd May 2014 The lavish reception for President José Eduardo dos Santos at the Elysée Palace on 29 April promoted France's growing investments in Africa's third biggest economy and drew a...
Vol 55 No 6 | ANGOLANORWAY Statoil on the spot 21st March 2014 Norway’s biggest parastatal comes under scrutiny over business partners whose reputation for probity is far from the Scandinavian image The bearer of Norway's reputation for high principles in international business, Statoil, is now on the defensive after revelations in the local media about the shady backgrounds of...
Vol 55 No 1 | ANGOLA The MPLA sticks to its course 10th January 2014 Secretive and fearful of change, the ruling circle sees no reason to rock the boat with reforms. New major projects are likely to suffer delay Whether or not the speculation about President José Eduardo dos Santos being in poor health turns out to be correct, 2014 could be the year that his successor...
Vol 54 No 24 | ANGOLAPORTUGAL Luanda cows Lisbon 28th November 2013 Portugal appears to have succumbed to Angolan pressure to drop more investigations of top officials in Luanda. Last week, the Portuguese Central Investigation and Criminal Prosecution Department, the...
Vol 54 No 23 | ANGOLAPORTUGAL Luanda shouts back at Lisbon 14th November 2013 A government newspaper calls Portugal corrupt and ignorant after it starts an investigation into allies of Dos Santos for financial crimes Reports of criminal investigations in Portugal into Angolan money-laundering have angered President José Eduardo dos Santos. Relations between the two countries were ‘not well’, he said last month....