Afrique

Le secteur privé lance un symposium pour une croissance inclusive des Micros, Petites et Moyennes Entreprises (MPME). En prélude à l'événement, les organisateurs ont tenu une conférence de presse lundi 6 octobre au siège de la Chambre de Commerce et d'Industrie du Bénin (CCI Bénin) à Cotonou.

Le Groupe de Travail Croissance et Développement Inclusif (GTCDI) a annoncé ce lundi à Cotonou la tenue, les 16 et 17 octobre 2025, du premier Symposium national sur la croissance et le développement inclusif des MPME.

L'événement, soutenu par la Coopération allemande (GIZ) et la Chambre de Commerce et d'Industrie du Bénin (CCI Bénin), se déroulera à l'hôtel Golden Tulip Le Diplomate.

Placé sous le thème « Accélérer la croissance des MPME : défis, opportunités et leviers stratégiques », il rassemblera décideurs publics, entrepreneurs, chercheurs et partenaires techniques autour d'un même objectif : renforcer la compétitivité et l'inclusion économique du tissu entrepreneurial béninois.

Trois priorités au cœur du plaidoyer

Selon le président de la CONEB et chef de file du GTCDI, Albin Fèliho, cette initiative marque « le point de départ d'un élan collectif » pour un secteur privé « acteur structuré et déterminé du développement national ».

Le symposium servira de plateforme de dialogue public-privé autour de trois axes majeurs : faciliter la mise sur le marché des produits Made in Bénin ; alléger le coût du financement à travers la bonification des taux d'intérêt pour les MPME ; garantir un accès équitable à la commande publique et aux marchés institutionnels.

« Ce que nous lançons aujourd'hui, ce n'est pas seulement un symposium. C'est une promesse d'avenir pour nos entrepreneurs et pour notre nation », a déclaré Albin Fèliho.

La cheffe de file adjointe du GTCDI, Huguette Akplogan, a insisté sur la place des femmes dans la démarche. « Les MPME dirigées par les femmes ont une place essentielle dans ce processus. Nous voulons créer un dialogue entre les pouvoirs publics et les acteurs de terrain pour lever les obstacles au développement inclusif », a-t-elle affirmé.

Elle a aussi souligné la nécessité de soutenir les entreprises féminines dans l'obtention des attestations de mise sur le marché et l'accès aux financements. « L'inclusion financière doit permettre aux femmes de saisir pleinement les opportunités économiques », a-t-elle plaidé.

Un cadre pérenne de réflexion et de dialogue

Pour Madjidi Zin, coordonnateur technique du GTCDI et directeur exécutif de la CONEB, le groupe de travail se veut « un creuset de réflexion où les acteurs identifient ensemble les problèmes et co-construisent les solutions ».

Il a précisé que le GTCDI ambitionne d'instaurer un dialogue régulier avec les pouvoirs publics et les institutions, afin d'élaborer des réformes concrètes pour la durabilité des entreprises.

Le symposium sera ponctué de panels thématiques, de conférences inaugurales et de communications scientifiques. Les échanges aboutiront à des recommandations destinées à alimenter un agenda commun de réformes en faveur des MPME.

Soutenu par la CCI Bénin et la GIZ, le GTCDI entend, à travers ce premier symposium, faire des MPME « le moteur vivant, inclusif et transformateur de la croissance nationale ».
Marc MENSAH

France's leadership seems confident that the government crisis will soon be resolved. A new prime minister could be appointed by Friday evening, the Élysée Palace has stated. Macron and Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu, who resigned on Monday, are now trying to get the Socialists on board. The latter are demanding that the country's controversial pension reform be withdrawn.

In an interview with the Hungarian website Partizán, former German chancellor Angela Merkel said that she had sought to establish a new EU format for dialogue with Russian President Vladimir Putin before the outbreak of the Ukraine war in summer 2021, but the initiative failed due to resistance from the Baltic states and Poland. Merkel's statements have drawn criticism from Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland in particular. Europe's press takes stock.

In recent years, the international relations of African countries have been increasingly analysed through the lens of multipolarity and the growing economic, political and strategic competition between external powers. This debate started to gain prominence around 2018–19, when The Economist identified a “new scramble for Africa”. It has since intensified in the context  of the COVID-19 pandemic. Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine finally
exposed the sharp divides as Russia, on one side, and Ukraine and its Western partners, on the other, sought to mobilise African governments in pursuit of international support for their respective positions within the UN.
The world’s political superpower – the US – has been in a process of relative disengagement from Africa for more than a decade now. By contrast, China, India, Turkey and, to a lesser extent, Brazil and Middle Eastern countries such as the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Qatar have expanded their presence on the continent in the areas of trade,
investment, diplomatic support and security engagement. At the same time, Russia, a major player during the Cold War, has renewed its engagement, although, arguably, its activities remain more limited both in scope and in scale. The increasing presence in Africa of the BRICS – South Africa became a member in 2010, while Egypt and Ethiopia followed in 2024 –
is another manifestation of today’s shifting power relations and multipolarity. Similarly, the recent entry of the African Union (AU) into the G20 underscores the external recognition of Africa’s importance. Moreover, it demonstrates the continent’s growing ambition to shape international politics and defend its interests vis-à-vis the rest of the world. [... ]A common thread running through all the chapters in this volume is that in Africa, multi-polarity is not simply a tale of the decline of the West and the rise of competitors like China, Russia, the UAE and Turkey. Rather, there is a complex reconfiguration of power relations under way in which African governments, institutions and societies have their say in negotiating the terms of engagement with the rest of the world, despite the undeniable persistence of asymmetries in terms of material power.

Over the past few years, European political elites have increasingly viewed the EU’s and China’s engagement in Africa through the lens of a political rivalry between democracy and autocracy. As early as 2019, the European Commission described China as a strategic rival aiming to normalize its authoritarian model as an alternative to Western democracy. This perception has only deepened in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, further reinforcing concerns among  policymakers in Brussels and other European capitals. While Chinese leaders avoid publicly framing the relationship as a systemic rivalry, in practice they invest heavily in public diplomacy and international networks, at least partly in order to promote China’s political model and modernization approach. When it comes to democracy and political regimes more generally, multipolarity in Africa’s external relations thus takes the form of systemic political rivalry, at least in the view of Western and Chinese policymakers.

Over the past few years, European political elites have increasingly viewed the EU’s and China’s engagement in Africa through the lens of a political rivalry between democracy and autocracy. As early as 2019, the European Commission described China as a strategic rival aiming to normalize its authoritarian model as an alternative to Western democracy. This perception has only deepened in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, further reinforcing concerns among  policymakers in Brussels and other European capitals. While Chinese leaders avoid publicly framing the relationship as a systemic rivalry, in practice they invest heavily in public diplomacy and international networks, at least partly in order to promote China’s political model and modernization approach. When it comes to democracy and political regimes more generally, multipolarity in Africa’s external relations thus takes the form of systemic political rivalry, at least in the view of Western and Chinese policymakers.

The global rush for critical minerals has intensified amid a changing and complex world order. Multiple powers, including China and the United States, as well as the European Union (EU) and others, are vying for influence in Africa, which holds vast reserves of cobalt, lithium, rare earths, and other minerals essential for the clean energy transition. Demand for these resources is surging; for example, global lithium demand is expected to increase tenfold by 2050, driving billions in new mining investments, with Africa likely to attract a substantial share. African countries collectively hold around 30 per cent of the world’s known mineral reserves – including 70 per cent of global cobalt reserves, a metal crucial for batteries. Historically, African economies were trapped in a “primary commodity” model, exporting
raw materials under conditions shaped mainly by external powers, thereby limiting African agency and development.[...]

The global rush for critical minerals has intensified amid a changing and complex world order. Multiple powers, including China and the United States, as well as the European Union (EU) and others, are vying for influence in Africa, which holds vast reserves of cobalt, lithium, rare earths, and other minerals essential for the clean energy transition. Demand for these resources is surging; for example, global lithium demand is expected to increase tenfold by 2050, driving billions in new mining investments, with Africa likely to attract a substantial share. African countries collectively hold around 30 per cent of the world’s known mineral reserves – including 70 per cent of global cobalt reserves, a metal crucial for batteries. Historically, African economies were trapped in a “primary commodity” model, exporting
raw materials under conditions shaped mainly by external powers, thereby limiting African agency and development.[...]

Africa’s digital transformation is deeply intertwined with questions of power, strategic influence, and an evolving world order.1 As multipolarity reshapes international relations, the continent has become a focal point in the intensifying competition among major global powers for digital supremacy. Key actors that embrace techno-optimistic narratives and stand ready to partner with the region include the European Union (EU) and its member states, the United States (US), China, and India, among others.

Le Festival International de la Bande Dessinée d’Alger (FIBDA) s’est clôturé en beauté, laissant derrière lui un vent d’enthousiasme et une annonce qui a fait […]

L’article NARUTO débarque en Algérie avec Jumbo Noodly : une collaboration inédite révélée au FIBDA 2025 est apparu en premier sur .

Le Parlement européen a fait appel d’une récente décision de la justice européenne donnant raison à l’ancienne vice-présidente du Parlement, Eva Kaili, qui fait toujours l’objet d’une enquête dans le cadre du scandale Qatargate.

The post Le Parlement européen conteste la victoire d’Eva Kaili dans une affaire judiciaire appeared first on Euractiv FR.

On n'a pas besoin d'être expert pour séduire. Parfois, de gestes simples comme dire des mots sympas et doux ou lancer un regard intense suffisent pour mettre du piment dans une relation ou la démarrer.

On n'a pas besoin d'être expert pour séduire. Parfois, de gestes simples comme dire des mots sympas et doux ou lancer un regard intense suffisent pour mettre du piment dans une relation ou la démarrer.

With European Parliament elections and leadership changes for both the EU and the AU focusing attention elsewhere, 2024 could in some respects be considered a ‘slow news’ year and continued the longer paralysis felt in the continent-to-continent relationship. Fundamental changes in the Sahel were ongoing. Elsewhere, progress was made in trade relations while the EU continued to place strong emphasis on its Global Gateway initiative to promote investment and increase its visibility. Changes at the European level, notably a new balance of power in the European Parliament and European Commission (also reflecting ongoing electoral shifts in the member states), pointed to a more transactional and assertive approach to the EU’s cooperation with Africa.