The joint bid by Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania to host the coveted 2027 African Cup of Nations is banking more on the commercial viability of the project than on the region's football excellence.
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Politics 
Following Gabon's coup d'état last month, several shifts within the Republican Guard suggest its French officers are being quietly reshuffled.
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Defence Following the visit to Kinshasa in mid-September by a technical mission under the Extended Credit Facility agreement, the IMF expressed concern at an increase in spending in the run-up to the forthcoming elections.
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Finance 
Mamoutou Touré, the president of Mali's football federation, has been in prison since early August after falling foul of the country's military junta. His detention did not prevent him from being re-elected president of the body and from receiving the support of FIFA and CAF.
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Politics Private investors are impatient for the new electricity code legislation to be ratified by parliament before the end of this year. However, the military coup makes its future uncertain.
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Energy 
Facing setbacks in Khartoum, Sudan's military leader embarked on a diplomatic tour aimed at restoring his legitimacy and statesmanship. While he managed to secure a series of high-level meetings in Sudan's neighbouring countries and in New York, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan had to abandon some of his plans.
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Diplomacy 
Portuguese coffee giant Nabeiro's Angolan subsidiary, Angonabeiro, will celebrate its 25th anniversary in late October. Alongside Nabeiro's CEO, Rui Miguel Nabeiro, the Angolan president João Lourenço's presence at the festivities in Luanda is a sign of the firm's importance for the country's economy.
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Commodity traders 
French engineering heavyweight Setec International and South Korea's Heerim Architects & Planners lose out on Casablanca airport's infrastructure development programme.
