Africa

1. Nigeria courts investors
2. US visa pause hits Africa
3. Museveni takes lead
4. DP World stays in Somaliland
5. Investing in gold mines
6. Sadio Mané eyes farewell

Weekend Reads, and Hollywood director Spike Lee drives a wave of Benin citizenship.

Nigeria eyes non-Western investment

Nigeria is in talks to secure trade agreements with several Global South countries and Gulf states as it seeks to spur investment into critical infrastructure, the country’s trade minister told Semafor, characterizing the push as a “clear evolution” in Abuja’s approach to trade.

A bilateral trade deal agreed this week with the United Arab Emirates will see the mutual elimination of tariffs on thousands of goods. It is one of many future partnerships that Nigeria hopes will increase investment in its energy, power, road, and rail projects, said Trade Minister Jumoke Oduwole in an interview. China, Brazil, India, the Gulf region, and Latin America have been the main partners with which Nigeria has been cultivating relationships in recent years that could yield potential further deals.

“We have been pursuing some other agreements that are at different stages,” said Oduwole. “We are looking at countries whose investors want to invest in big infrastructure projects.”

Semafor’s Liz Hoffman, Reed Albergotti, Tim McDonnell, Mohammed Sergie, and Ben Smith will be in Davos next week for the World Economic Forum to cover what’s happening on the big stage as the most powerful leaders gather to plan for the future, make deals, and defend their hard-won status.

They’ll be delivering our frank and transparent reporting on global power in all its deal-making, gossipy, productive, and pretentious grandeur from one of its true centers in a pop-up newsletter, Semafor Davos Daily. Sign up here.

On Thursday, Jan. 22, Semafor will convene leading experts including Kara Hurst, Chief Sustainability Officer of Amazon, at our Next 3 Billion event in Davos to explore how digital skills and AI literacy must evolve in parallel with infrastructure expansion in Africa and beyond. Request an invitation.

US immigrant visa pause hits Africa

The US will freeze immigrant visa processing from 75 countries — including 26 in Africa — in the Trump administration’s latest crackdown on migration. The indefinite pause will take effect on Jan. 21 and only affects people applying to live in the US permanently rather than tourists or short-term visa holders. The suspension, which will impact African countries such as Ethiopia, Nigeria, and Rwanda, is being applied to nationals whom US authorities believe rely on government welfare.

The Guardian noted research that contradicted the Trump administration’s assertions about immigrant welfare use: A Feb. 2025 paper from the Cato Institute, a libertarian think tank in Washington, found that immigrants consumed 21% fewer welfare and entitlement benefits than native-born Americans on a per capita basis in 2022.

The latest visa rules follow an expansion in December of a list of countries whose nationals face a travel ban to the US, with 38 nations now affected by a full travel ban or partial restrictions.

Uganda’s Museveni takes lead

Uganda’s longtime President Yoweri Museveni took a commanding lead in early election results as reports of deadly violence emerged following Thursday’s vote. A senior member of the Ugandan opposition told AFP that security forces shot dead 10 members of his campaign team inside his home on polling day. Museveni’s administration imposed an internet blackout across the country ahead of the general election and stands accused of brutal repression by multiple rights groups. The 81-year-old incumbent’s main challenger, the former musician Bobi Wine, has effectively been placed under house arrest, the opposition leader’s party said, with police and military officers surrounding his home in Kampala. Initial electoral commission results showed Museveni, who has ruled Uganda since seizing power in 1986, with just over 76% of the vote.

DP World stays course in Somaliland

Dubai port operator DP World said its Berbera facility in the breakaway region of Somaliland continues to operate under existing agreements, despite Somalia’s move to annul all deals with the UAE. Israel became the first country to recognize Somaliland last month, a move condemned by the African Union and many Muslim-majority countries, but thought to have been facilitated by Abu Dhabi. The territory was allegedly used by the UAE to evacuate a Yemeni separatist leader this month, and Riyadh has reportedly urged Mogadishu to curb ties with the Emirates.

DP World has invested around $450 million to develop the port of Berbera and is developing a logistics and industrial zone there. The UAE has also funded the expansion of an airport in nearby Puntland and trains security forces there.

Betting on Zimbabwean gold

The amount Caledonia Mining Corporation plans to spend this year to launch what would become Zimbabwe’s largest gold mine. Caledonia, backed by investors including Allan Gray and BlackRock, is tapping into gold prices’ record run. The firm already operates the Blanket gold mine in Zimbabwe, and plans to develop the new Bilboes mine in the southwest of the county, with production expected to begin in late 2028.

Rising gold prices have triggered increasing tensions between industrial and informal miners in some parts of the continent where unofficial mining operations provide critical income for millions of people. In the three Sahel states of Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger — which combined produce more gold than any other single country in Africa — jihadist groups and junta-ruled governments are competing for control over many small-scale gold mines.

Aliko Dangote, President and CEO of Dangote Group, is joining the Semafor World Economy Global Advisory Board — a forum of visionary business leaders guiding the largest gathering of global CEOs in the US. The expanded board represents nearly every sector across the US and G20.

Joining the Advisory Board at this year’s convening will be our inaugural cohort of Semafor World Economy Principals — an editorially curated community of innovators, policymakers, and changemakers shaping the new world economy with front-row access to Semafor’s world-class journalism, meaningful opportunities for dialogue, and touchpoints designed for connection-building. Applications are now open.

Person of Interest: Sadio Mané

Veteran Senegal striker Sadio Mané is hoping for a fairytale ending to his last ever appearance at the Africa Cup of Nations. The former Liverpool forward, who now plays in Saudi Arabia, scored the winning goal in Senegal’s semi final against Egypt. Victory in Sunday’s final against tournament hosts Morocco will cap a career in which Mané has been involved in more goals than any other player at Afcon, since records began.

Senegal’s 33-year-old talisman has previously recalled his humble beginnings. As a child, he was forbidden to play the game by his father, an imam, who wanted his son to focus on religion. But his family later supported his passion and, aged 15, he was spotted by scouts while playing in Dakar. He attained superstar status with a move to the English Premier League team Liverpool, where he played from 2016 to 2022. Now, in the twilight of his career, only Morocco can prevent Mané from realizing his dream of winning the tournament for a second time.

• As the UAE seeks to expand its regional partnerships in countries such as Sudan and Somalia, it is increasingly coming into competition with regional heavyweights and power brokers, The Geopolitical Desk writes. In Sudan, Cairo backs the Sudanese Armed Forces, while the Rapid Support Forces are backed by the UAE. Between them, the opportunistic Libyan National Army has strategically positioned itself as a gatekeeper for UAE interests: “The LNA is milking Abu Dhabi for weapons, equipment, political backing, and regional legitimacy. Sudan is the price of admission,” The Geopolitical Desk explains.

• Stablecoins offer an opportunity to boost financial inclusion across Africa but they also pose risks, Iwa Salami, a professor of law at the University of East London, writes in The Conversation. US dollar-denominated stablecoins account for 99% of the stablecoin market, and overuse of the currency could threaten African countries’ monetary sovereignty and “drive capital flight” from local economies.

• The increasing number of people dredging Lagos’ lagoons for sand is disrupting traditional fishing communities, The Independent reports. The price of sand — vital for concrete — has risen steadily in Lagos as development has accelerated, driving the formal and informal dredging industry. As a result, fish populations have retreated and the shrinking catches have left many out of work. “We are not powerful,” a community leader in Makoko, one of Lagos’ oldest fishing communities, says. “Dredgers have spoiled the entire waters.”

• Leveraging storytelling could transform Africa’s tourism sector, documentary filmmaker Tunde Alabi-Hundeyin II writes in a blog for the London School of Economics. While the number of tourists travelling to African countries — mostly for safaris — is booming, highlighting other cultures and experiences could help diversify tourist destinations across the continent. From a ski resort in Lesotho’s highlands to an ancient town in Nigeria’s Idanre Hills that is filled with folklore, African tourism should narrativize its heritage beyond a single story, Alabi-Hundeyin II argues.