app_store_button

google_play_button

DK - Details page - Device banner - 894x1036

Lyt når som helst, hvor som helst 

Bloomberg

Next Africa is a weekly podcast about where Africa is going and why it matters to everyone.

Each episode tells a story from the continent and follows it through real life, business, politics and culture. From electricity and climate to jobs, migration, technology, sport and music, the podcast looks at the forces shaping daily life and how those changes connect to the wider world.

The show covers challenges and breakthroughs side by side. It explains the impact of energy shortages and climate risk, but also the rise of new industries, creative economies and young entrepreneurs. Stories are reported on the ground and told with clarity, combining data, context and lived experience.

Hosted by Jennifer Zabasajja and built on original journalism from reporters on the ground, Next Africa puts local voices at the centre of the story, delivering clear, factual reporting without cliché or assumption.

Whether you live on the continent or want to better understand a region shaping the future, Next Africa offers insight, perspective and stories worth listening to.

Next Africa

We wanted to bring you one of our favourite episodes from the last 12 months this week.
 
In Ethiopia, the share of electric vehicles on the road has jumped to 6% from just 1% after a 2024 ban on new gasoline-car imports. 
 
Across Africa, EV adoption is now among the fastest-growing globally — with Chinese automakers capturing the lion’s share of the market.
 
On today’s episode, Bloomberg’s Fasika Tadesse joins Jennifer Zabasajja to unpack what this surge looks like on the ground in Addis Ababa, while Asia transport reporter Linda Lew explains why companies like BYD are targeting African markets.
 
For more stories from the region, subscribe to the Next Africa newsletter here

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Replay: China's Growing Grip on Africa's EV Fastlane

A sovereign-rating upgrade and a stabilizing currency are helping restore Kenya’s appeal investors. Two years after deadly protests rattled sentiment, the markets have staged a recovery. Kenya’s all-share index has more than tripled in dollar terms since the start of 2024 making it the world's third-best performer.
 
On this week’s special Next Africa podcast, Tiwa Adebayo is joined by Kenyan investment experts Joel Korir, head of Business Development Retail and Private Wealth at Old Mutual Investment Group in Nairobi and Winnie Koech, head of wealth and investment at Stanbic Bank Kenya. They discuss what's driving Kenya’s markets, where investors see the biggest opportunities, the sectors to watch and risks that could derail the rally.
 
For more information on investing in Kenya, read our special feature on Where to Invest 10 Million Kenyan Shillings. For more stories from the region, subscribe to the Next Africa newsletter

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Why Investors Are Bullish on Kenya

A $200 million project in Malawi, one of the world’s poorest countries, is testing a radically simple approach to aid: giving about $700 directly to as many as 230,000 adults and letting them decide how best to spend it.
 
The hope is that recipients will use the money to start businesses, invest in farms and generate economic activity, providing evidence that direct cash payments can help communities become more self-reliant and reduce their dependence on aid.
 
On this week’s Next Africa podcast, Bloomberg’s Antony Sguazzin discusses what he found when he visited the project in Malawi, how researchers will determine whether it’s working, and whether similar programs could be replicated in other impoverished countries.
 
For more stories from the region, subscribe to the Next Africa newsletter.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What If You Give Everyone $700?

Zambia had been the shining light for democracy in sub-Saharan Africa, but president Hichilema's recent reelection has been tainted by accusations of irregularities, the killing of a former minister and what the UN has called arbitrary arrests. 
 
On this week’s Episode, Bloomberg’s Matthew Hill who’s been on the ground in Zambia explains how the election became so controversial, and Nicole Beardsworth from the University of the Witwatersrand discusses her group’s analysis of the voting numbers. 
 
For more stories from the region, Subscribe to the Next Africa newsletter

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

How Zambia’s ‘Better Democracy' Has Come Under Threat

As the Iran War broke out and the Strait of Hormuz closed, fuel prices surged and supplies became disrupted. The African countries that thought they had supply deals in place found deliveries being cancelled. But the world’s largest oil trader turned the Hormuz crisis to its advantage. Vitol was able to strike exclusive deals to become a dominant supplier of fuel to at least five countries in East and Southern Africa covering more than 180 million people.
 
On this week’s next Africa podcast, Jennifer Zabasajja is joined by Chief Commodities Correspondent Jack Farchy to discuss his latest investigation into how Vitol was able to strike these deals, how much countries had to pay for security of supply, and just how long the price premium could last.
 
For more stories from the region, Subscribe to the Next Africa newsletter

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

How the Iran War Reshaped Africa’s Oil Trade — At A Cost

The Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo has become the country’s worst ever, with more than 2,000 confirmed deaths and a fatality rate of more than 46%. The World Health Organization says it's the fastest-growing Ebola outbreak on record, and has warned that contact tracing isn't keeping up with the number of cases.
 
On this week’s Next Africa podcast, Bloomberg’s global health editor, Jason Gale, joins Jennifer Zabasajja to explain what’s behind the increasing death rate in Congo, what agencies on the ground are facing, and whether there’s any sign of turning the outbreak around.
 
For more stories from the region, subscribe to the Next Africa newsletter.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Why The Deadly Ebola Outbreak Is Accelerating

South Africa's Public Investment Corp., the $220 billion manager of civil servants' pensions and a major shareholder in many of the country's biggest companies, has lurched from one crisis to another. Its chief executive was suspended before a court ordered his reinstatement, while the chairman — who also served as deputy finance minister — resigned amid the fallout.
 
On this week's Next Africa podcast, South Africa Bureau Chief Alexander Parker joins Jennifer Zabasajja to explain the turmoil at the PIC, trace how one of Africa's most influential investors became mired in repeated governance crises, and assess whether long-delayed reforms recommended by a judicial inquiry will be implemented.
 
For more stories from the region, subscribe to the Next Africa newsletter
 
 

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Why South Africa's $220 Billion Pension Fund Manager Is in Crisis

Nigeria's stock market is the world's best-performing equity market this year. Its benchmark index has outpaced every major market, including South Korea, delivering the highest dollar returns to investors.
 
Ghana, Tunisia and Kenya have also ranked among the world's top-performing markets, as economic reforms and improving investor sentiment fuel a rally across parts of the continent.
 
On this week's Next Africa podcast, we explore what's driving Africa's stock market surge, whether the rally can last, and what it means for investors.
 
Jennifer Zabasajja is joined by Bloomberg's emerging markets reporter Ray Ndlovu and Peter Nalitolela, chief executive officer of the Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange. She also speaks to Emre Akcakmak, Head of Frontier Markets at East Capital, on whether Africa's resurgence is attracting global investors.
 
For more stories from the region, Subscribe to the Next Africa podcast

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Why African Stocks Are Beating the World

Eighteen months after the Trump administration shut down USAID, a painstaking Bloomberg investigation into abandoned water projects in Kenya using interviews, satellite imagery and data analysis has revealed the stark consequences of that decision.
 
On this week’s Next Africa podcast, Bloomberg’s Senior East Africa reporter, Simon Marks, discusses his findings. Former East Africa USAID director Amanda Robertson then explains what happened when they found out their projects had to be halted immediately.

Get the full story here: Trump's Chaotic USAID Cuts Unleashed Floods, Disease and Poverty
 
For more stories from the region, subscribe to the Next Africa newsletter.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

How USAID Cuts Caused Floods in Kenya

Flying has never been easier. Airlines are competing to offer cheaper fares and more routes across Europe, North America and Asia. But while connections to and from Africa have expanded, travelling within the continent remains difficult and expensive.
 
On this week's Next Africa podcast, Ghana-based reporter Bilal Qureshi discusses his latest feature on why intra-African air travel continues to lag behind the rest of the world. Bloomberg Global Aviation Editor Benedikt Kammel also explains the challenges facing Africa's fragmented aviation sector — and what it will take to make flying across the continent easier and more affordable.
 
For more stories from the region, subscribe to the Next Africa newsletter

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Why It's Still So Hard to Fly Across Africa

With influencer ads and high-profile marketing campaigns, Russia’s global outreach program is operating across Africa, offering young women work-study opportunities in the Alabuga Special Economic Zone. Fliers and promotional materials for the program feature images of smiling young African women working as technicians and waitresses. However, reports in international media suggest that the reality of working in Alabuga is far grimmer than the version being marketed.
 
On this week’s episode, Senior Reporter Antony Sguazzin joins Jennifer Zabasajja to explore whether the scheme’s claims hold up under scrutiny and how Interpol is investigating allegations that the program amounts to human trafficking. Instead of providing genuine job opportunities, it may be placing young African women at risk in a war zone.
 
You can read Antony’s reporting on the Alabuga Start programme here.

For more stories from the region, subscribe to the Next Africa newsletter here

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Is Russia Recruiting Young African Women To Make Drones?

Lyt når som helst, hvor som helst

Other podcasts you might like ...