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Civics Groups Slam ‘Rigid’ Kimberley Process as Russia Emerges Unscathed

Activists in Botswana have slammed the Kimberley Process, which is intended to prevent diamonds from financing wars, after meetings this week failed to censure Russia.

The European Union (EU) and allies sought to expand the definition of conflict diamonds to include top supplier Russia for its invasion of Ukraine.

A push to get Russian diamonds censured during a week-long meeting in the resort town of Kasane came up empty.

The EU, Ukraine and the United States had wanted the Kimberley Process inter-sessional meeting to broaden the definition of conflict diamonds in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February.

Russian is the world’s largest producer of diamonds.

Speaking at the closing meeting Friday, Kimberley Process Chairperson Jacob Thamage said the efforts of the EU and its allies failed to go through due to lack of consensus.

“You will recall that when we started on Monday afternoon, it took quite an ordinate amount of time to reach consensus on the agenda as initially we had the EU proposing an inclusion of an agenda item around which there was no consensus,” Thamage said. “Ideas and proposals were tabled for inclusion on the agenda. For instance, those who supported the EU’s initial proposal, with a modified proposal that spoke to preventing diamonds from fueling conflict.”

World Diamond Council Chairperson Edward Asscher says there is a need for reforms, particularly with the definition of conflict diamonds.

“This year, throughout our engagement with many government participants here in Kasane, there seems to be strong support for further reforms, including that of the conflict diamond definition,” Asscher said. “We joined an inter-session hosted by the civil society coalition and we were pleased to have been able to conduct an open and honest dialogue about the reform of the KP. We would like to see this dialogue continued within the KP.”

Asscher says he still has confidence and belief in the Kimberley Process despite recent criticism the diamond trade body is losing relevance.

However, Hans Merket, a member of the Kimberley Process Civil Society Coalition, was disappointed with the outcome of the Botswana meeting.

“The consensus system makes it too easy for a small minority to hold everyone hostage,” Merket said. “The consensus model is being used to veto any progress. The world is bypassing the Kimberley Process.”

Merket adds it is disappointing that discussions on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine were blocked.

“We had somewhat expected a discussion on whether Russian diamonds must be seen as conflict diamonds with the invasion of Ukraine,” Merket said. “That discussion was blocked. We were prepared that veto power will be used to avoid KP to address that. What is worse is that we could not have a discussion on what the KP’s general weakness are and how the KP falls short in breaking the link between diamonds and violent conflict.”

The world’s leading diamond producers, drawn from 85 countries, will return to Botswana in November for plenary discussions.

Source: Voice of America

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Survivors Recount Mali’s Deadliest Attack Since Coup

Moussa Tolofidie didn’t think twice when nearly 100 jihadis on motorbikes gathered in his village in central Mali last week.

A peace agreement signed last year between some armed groups and the community in the Bankass area had largely held, even if the gunmen would sometimes enter the town to preach Shariah to the villagers. But on this Sunday in June, everything changed — the jihadis began killing people.

“They started with an old man about 100 years old … then the sounds of the weapons began to intensify around me and then at one moment I heard a bullet whistling behind my ear. I felt the earth spinning, I lost consciousness and fell to the ground,” Tolofidie, a 28-year-old farmer told The Associated Press by phone Friday in Mopti town, where he was receiving medical care.

“When I woke up it was dark, around midnight,” he said. “There were bodies of other people on top of me. I smelled blood and smelled burnt things and heard the sounds of some people still moaning.”

Two days of attacks

At least 132 people were killed in several villages in the Bankass area of central Mali during two days of attacks last weekend, according to the government, which blames the Group to Support Islam and Muslims jihadi rebels linked to al-Qaida.

The attack — the deadliest since mutinous soldiers toppled President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita nearly two years ago — shows that Islamic extremist violence is spreading from Mali’s north to more central areas, analysts have said.

The conflict-riddled country has been battling extremist violence for a decade since jihadis seized control of key northern cities in 2012 and tried to take over the capital. They were pushed back by a French-led military operation the following year but have since regained ground.

The Associated Press spoke to several survivors on Friday who had sought treatment at a hospital in Mopti and were from the villages of Diallassagou, Dianweli and Dessagou. People described hearing gunfire and jihadis shouting, “Allahu akbar,” Arabic for “God is great,” as they ran into the forest to save their lives.

Mali’s government blamed the attacks on the Group to Support Islam and Muslims, or JNIM, which is backed by al-Qaida, although the group denied responsibility in a statement on Friday.

UN says violence has displaced population

The United States and France condemned the attacks and the United Nations peacekeeping mission in Mali (MINUSMA) issued a statement on Twitter saying the violence has caused casualties and displaced the population.

Conflict analysts say the fact that the attacks happened in an area where local peace agreements were signed could signify the end of the fragile accords.

“The resurgence of tension is perhaps linked to the expiration of these local agreements but also can be linked to the intensification of military operations by the defense forces,” said Baba Dakono, director of the Citizen Observatory on Governance and Security, a local civil society group.

Ene Damango, a mechanic from Dialassagou, fled his village when the shooting started, but he said his uncle was shot in the leg and severely wounded.

“When I returned to the village. I discovered the carnage.”

Source: Voice of America

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Groups in Spain, Morocco Push for Border Deaths Inquiry

Human rights organizations in Spain and Morocco called on both countries to investigate the deaths of at least 18 Africans and injuries suffered by dozens more who attempted to scale the border fence that surrounds Melilla, a Spanish enclave in North Africa.

Moroccan authorities said the casualties occurred when a stampede of people tried to climb the iron fence that separates Melilla and Morocco. In a statement released Friday, Morocco’s Interior Ministry said 76 civilians were injured along with 140 Moroccan security officers.

Local authorities cited by Morocco’s official MAP news agency said the death toll increased to 18 after several migrants died in the hospital. The Moroccan Human Rights Association reported 27 dead, but the figure could not immediately be confirmed.

Two members of Morocco’s security forces and 33 migrants who were injured during the border breach were being treated at hospitals in the Moroccan cities of Nador and Oujda, MAP said.

Traffickers blamed

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez on Saturday condemned what he described as a “violent assault” and an “attack on the territorial integrity” of Spain. Spanish officials said 49 Civil Guards sustained minor injuries.

“If there is anyone responsible for everything that appears to have taken place at that border, it is the mafias that traffic in human beings,” Sánchez said.

His remarks came as the Moroccan Human Rights Association shared videos on social media that appeared to show dozens of migrants lying on the ground, many of them motionless and a few bleeding, as Moroccan security forces stood over them.

“They were left there without help for hours, which increased the number of deaths,” the human rights group said on Twitter. It called for a comprehensive investigation.

In another of the association’s videos, a Moroccan security officer appeared to use a baton to strike a person lying on the ground.

Rights groups protest

In a statement released late Friday, Amnesty International expressed its “deep concern” over the events at the border.

“Although the migrants may have acted violently in their attempt to enter Melilla, when it comes to border control, not everything goes,” said Esteban Beltrán, the director of Amnesty International Spain. “The human rights of migrants and refugees must be respected and situations like that seen cannot happen again.”

Five rights organizations in Morocco and APDHA, a human rights group based in the southern Spanish region of Andalusia, also called for inquiries.

The International Organization for Migration and U.N. refugee agency UNHCR also weighed in with a statement that expressed “profound sadness and concern” over what happened at the Morocco-Mellila border.

“IOM and UNHCR urge all authorities to prioritize the safety of migrants and refugees, refrain from the excessive use of force and uphold their human rights,” the organizations said.

In a statement published Saturday, the Spanish Commission for Refugees, CEAR, decried what it described as “the indiscriminate use of violence to manage migration and control borders” and expressed concerns that the violence had prevented people who were eligible for international protection from reaching Spanish soil.

The Catholic Church in the southern Spanish city of Malaga also expressed its dismay over the events.

“Both Morocco and Spain have chosen to eliminate human dignity on our borders, maintaining that the arrival of migrants must be avoided at all costs and forgetting the lives that are torn apart along the way,” it said in a statement penned by a delegation of the diocese that focuses on migration in Malaga and Melilla.

Thousands tried, hundreds succeeded

A spokesperson for the Spanish government’s office in Melilla said that around 2,000 people had attempted to make it across the border fence but were stopped by Spanish Civil Guard Police and Moroccan forces on either side of the border fence. A total of 133 migrants made it across the border.

The mass crossing attempt was the first since Spain and Morocco mended relations after a year-long dispute related to Western Sahara, a former Spanish colony annexed by Morocco in 1976. The thaw in relations came after Spain backed Morocco’s plan to grant more autonomy to the territory, a reversal of its previous support for a U.N.-backed referendum on the status of Western Sahara.

Source: Voice of America

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UN Chief Says World Faces ‘Real Risk’ of Multiple Famines This Year

NEW YORK — U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told an international conference on food security Friday that the world is facing the “real risk” of multiple famines this year and that 2023 could be even worse.

“The war in Ukraine has compounded problems that have been brewing for years: climate disruption; the COVID-19 pandemic; the deeply unequal recovery,” Guterres said by video message to the Uniting for Global Food Security ministerial conference in Berlin.

He said rising fuel and fertilizer prices are dramatically affecting the world’s farmers.

“All harvests will be hit, including rice and corn – affecting billions of people across Asia, Africa and the Americas,” Guterres said. “This year’s food access issues could become next year’s global food shortage.”

He warned that no country would be immune to the social and economic fallout.

Russia’s February 24 invasion of Ukraine has led to availability and supply chain disruptions. The United Nations says more than 36 countries get half or more of their grain supply from the Black Sea region.

In addition to destroying and stealing some Ukrainian grain, Russia’s military has blockaded the country’s key southern port of Odesa, preventing more than 20 million tons of Ukrainian grain from being exported. The Kremlin has also held back some of its own grain and fertilizer production from global markets, claiming Western sanctions are obstructing their export.

“Nothing – nothing — is preventing food and fertilizer from leaving Russia,” U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said of the sanctions. “And only one country is blocking food and fertilizer from leaving Ukraine and that is Russia.”

Japan’s foreign minister noted that Russia’s own statistics show its wheat exports had doubled this May over last year.

“Despite this, Russia is spreading disinformation to the contrary,” Yoshimasa Hayashi said.

Ending the blockade

Guterres has been conducting intense, private diplomacy with Russia and Ukraine, as well as Turkey, which could soon host grain talks between the warring parties, and key actors the United States and European Union. His goal is a package deal that would let Ukraine export its grain, not only by land but also through the Black Sea, and would bring Russian food and fertilizer to world markets.

Getting the port of Odesa open and safely functioning again is a top priority.

“We have got to get the port of Odesa open right now,” World Food Program chief David Beasley told the conference. “Failure to do so is a declaration of war on global food security — it is that simple.”

The grain in the silos must be exported before it begins to rot. It also needs to be moved to make way for the next grain harvest that will begin in September.

In the meantime, neighbor Romania has been stepping up to help Kyiv get its grain out.

“We are receiving Ukrainian grain by road, rail, sea and the Danube River,” Romanian Foreign Minister Bogdan Aurescu told the meeting. “Since the start of the invasion, the Romanian Black Sea port of Constanta, which is the largest port on the Black Sea, has become the main gateway for Ukrainian grain shipments to the outside world.”

He said Romania is working to make Constanta a European food hub and increase its processing capacity. In 2021, he said more than 25 million tons of grain were exported through Constanta.

The African continent has been badly hit by the impacts of the grain and fertilizer shortages, as many of those nations receive large quantities of these imports from the Black Sea region.

“My country, the Democratic Republic of Congo, it had to lift value added tax on basic foods, had to subsidize products such as fuel, in order to avoid uprisings as a consequence of the general price increases,” said Minister of Planning Christian Mwando Nsimba Kabulo. “Of course, this has enormous consequences for the national budget of my country, and it makes the efforts for greater resilience more difficult.”

“There is a straight line between the actions in the war in Ukraine and the suffering we see in the [global] South,” U.N. humanitarian chief Martin Griffiths said.

Action and announcements of assistance for the most vulnerable nations are expected in the coming days, as members of the world’s largest economies meet in Germany for the G-7 summit.

Source: Voice of America

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Africa Mobile Network Operators and MVNOs Market Report 2022 – Regional Mobile Network Operators Gain from New Spectrum Releases – ResearchAndMarkets.com

The “Africa – Mobile Network Operators and MVNOs” report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com’s offering.

Africa’s regional mobile network operators gain from new spectrum releases

The vast majority of voice and internet connections in Africa are via mobile networks. These networks also carry almost all internet traffic in the region. During the last few years, the capabilities of these networks have been constrained by a number of factors, including the lack of adequate spectrum to provide the operators with sufficient bandwidth.

This has become increasingly acute following recent investments made by operators to extend the reach of their 3G and LTE networks. While GSM services still carry much traffic across Africa, there is a steady migration to 3G and LTE, while there is also the beginnings of 5G deployment, though thus far this had been on a very limited scale.

This migration away from GSM is enabling a greater proportion of Africa’s varied populations to engage in m-commerce and m-banking, as well as a wide range of related services. Together, these services help people participate in national digital economies.

The higher data traffic requires not only upgraded networks, but also additional spectrum resources. National regulators and governments across the region have been slow to auction spectrum. This has been less out of policy than of poor stewardship of the resource, with the result that announced auctions have been cancelled or delayed repeatedly.

However, with governments more than ever focused on developing their economies with the support of digital services, there is now greater urgency to release sufficient spectrum to enable a digital ecosystem to develop with minimal constraints. This additional spectrum is also enabling networks operators to improve quality of service, an area which telecom regulators have been keen to address.

Key Topics Covered:

Telecoms Maturity Index – Africa

Market characteristics

Market Leaders

Market Challengers

Market Emergents

TMI vs GDP

Mobile and mobile broadband penetration

Fixed versus mobile broadband penetration

Regional mobile market overview

Algeria

Market analysis

Operator statistics

Algerie Telecom (Mobilis)

Djezzy

Ooredoo Algeria

Angola

Market analysis

Movicel

Unitel

Africell

MVNOs

Benin

Market analysis

Operator statistics

MTN Benin (Spacetel Benin, Areeba)

Moov

Libercom (Benin Telecoms)

BBCom (Bell Benin)

Glo Mobile Benin (Globacom)

Botswana

Market analysis

Operator statistics

Mascom Wireless

Orange Botswana (formerly Vista Cellular)

BTC (beMobile)

MVNOs

Burkina Faso

Market analysis

Operator statistics

Orange Burkina Faso (formerly Airtel, Zain, Celtel)

Telmob (Onatel)

Telecel Faso (Moov)

Burundi

Market analysis

Econet

Africa Cellulaire

Viettel (Lumitel)

Smart Telecom

Onamob

Cameroon

Market analysis

Operator statistics

MTN Cameroon

Orange Cameroon

Viettel Cameroon

Camtel Mobile

MVNOs

Chad

Market analysis

Operator statistics

Airtel Chad

Moov Africa Chad

Salam Mobile

Cote d’Ivoire

Market analysis

Operator statistics

MTN Cote d’Ivoire

Orange CI

Comium (KoZ)

Moov (Etisalat)

Green Network (Oricel, Lap Green)

Warid Telecom

Globacom

Democratic Republic of Congo

Market analysis

Operator statistics

Vodacom Congo

Airtel Congo

Tigo Congo (Millicom, Oasis)

Orange DRC (CCT)

Africell

Djibouti

Market overview

Egypt

Market analysis

Operator statistics

Orange Egypt (Mobinil, ECMS)

Vodafone Egypt

Etisalat Misr

Telecom Egypt

Eritrea

Market overview

Operator statistics Eri Tel

Ethiopia

Market analysis

Operator statistics

Ethio Mobile

Gabon

Market analysis

Operator statistics

Airtel Gabon

Moov Gabon (Gabon Telecom)

Telecel Gabon

Azur (USAN, Bintel)

Gambia

Market analysis

Operator statistics

Gamcel

Africell Gambia

Comium

QCell

Giraffe Telecom

Ghana

Market analysis

Operator statistics

Vodafone Ghana

MTN Ghana

Tigo Ghana (Millicom Ghana, Mobitel)

Airtel Ghana

Expresso

Glo Mobile

MVNOs

Guinea

Market analysis

Operator statistics

MTN Guinea (Areeba)

Sotelgui (Lagui)

Orange Guinea (formerly Spacetel Guinee)

Intercel Guinea (formerly Telecel Guinea)

Cellcom Guinea

Kenya

Market analysis

Operator statistics

Safaricom

Airtel Kenya

Essar Telecom Kenya

Telkom Kenya

MVNOs

Lesotho

Market analysis

Vodacom Lesotho

ETL

Liberia

Market analysis

MTN Liberia (LoneStar)

Orange Liberia (Cellcom)

Novafone GSM (Comium)

LiberCell

JamCell

LTC Mobile

Libya

Market analysis

Al-Madar

Libyana

LibyaPhone

Madagascar

Market analysis

Airtel Madagascar (formerly Madacom, Zain/Celtel)

Orange Madagascar (formerly SMM)

Telma Mobile (Telecom Malagasy)

Madamobil

Blueline

Malawi

Market analysis

TNM

Airtel Malawi

G-Mobile (GAIN)

Celcom Malawi

Lacell Private (Smart Mobile)

Mali

Market analysis

Operator statistics

Malitel

Orange Mali

Alpha Telecom Mali

MVNOs

Mauritania

Market analysis

Moov Mauritel

Mattel

Chinguitel

Mauritius

Market analysis

My.t mobile

Emtel

Mahanagar (MTML)

Morocco

Market analysis

Operator statistics

Itissalatt Al-Maghrib (IAM, Maroc Telecom)

Orange Morocco (Meditel)

Inwi (Wana)

Mozambique

Market analysis

Operator statistics

Tmcel

Vodacom Mozambique

Movitel

Namibia

Market analysis

MTC

Telecom Namibia Mobile

Paratus Telecom

MVNOs

Niger

Market analysis

Operator statistics

Airtel Niger

Zamani Telecom

Moov Niger

Niger Telecom

Nigeria

Market analysis

Operator statistics

Major GSM mobile operators

Major CDMA mobile operators

Rwanda

Market analysis

Operator statistics

MTN Rwanda

Rwandatel (formerly Terracom Mobile)

Tigo Rwanda

Airtel Rwanda

Senegal

Market analysis

Operator statistics

Orange Senegal

Free Senegal

Expresso Telecom (Sudatel)

MVNOs

Sierra Leone

Market analysis

Mobile licensing

Orange Sierra Leone

Comium

Africell (Lintel)

Sierratel

Cellcom

Ambitel/GreenN

Smart Mobile

QCell

Somalia

Market analysis

South Africa

Market analysis

Vodacom South Africa

MTN South Africa

Cell C

Telkom Mobile

Mobile Virtual Network Enablers (MVNEs)

Mobile Virtual Network Operators (MVNOs)

South Sudan

Market analysis

VivaCell

Gemtel

Zain South Sudan

MTN South Sudan

Sudani (Sudatel)

Digital Telecom

Sudan

Market analysis

Operator statistics

Zain Sudan

MTN Sudan

Sudani (Sudatel)

Swaziland

Market analysis

MTN Eswatini

EPTC

Eswatini Mobile

Tanzania

Market analysis

Operator statistics

TTC Mobile

Vodacom Tanzania

Airtel Tanzania

Tigo Tanzania

Zanzibar Telecommunication (Zantel)

Halotel (Viettel Tanzania)

MVNOs

Tunisia

Market analysis

Operator statistics

Tunicell (Tunisie Telecom)

Ooredoo Tunisia (Tunisiana)

Orange Tunisie

MVNOs

Uganda

Market analysis

MTN Uganda

Airtel Uganda (formerly Zain, Celtel)

Warid Telecom

Uganda Telecom (UTL)

Africell (Orange Uganda)

Smile Communications

Smart Telecom, Sure Telecom

Vodafone Uganda

MVNOs

Zambia

Market analysis

Airtel Zambia (formerly Zain/Celtel, Zamcell)

MTN Zambia (formerly Telecel)

Zamtel Mobile (formerly Cell Z)

Vodafone Zambia

UZI Zambia

Beeline Telecoms

Zimbabwe

Market analysis

Operator statistics

Econet Wireless Zimbabwe (EWZ)

NetOne

Telecel Zimbabwe

MVNOs

Source: Business Wire

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Ukraine Appeals for African Support on War With Russia and Food Crisis

NAIROBI, KENYA — Ukraine’s foreign minister says Kyiv is ready to export much-needed grain to Africa as soon as Russia lifts its Black Sea blockade. In a U.S.-arranged online briefing to journalists Thursday, he blamed Russia for the global food crisis affecting millions of Africans and called for more African support against Moscow.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dymtro Kuleba said his country and Africa need each other to overcome the global food crisis, which he blamed on Russia’s aggression.

“We want to export our agricultural products to you as badly as you want to receive them,” Kuleba said, “and there is only one reason why both ends of this supply chain – which is us and you – cannot benefit from these exports. It’s the Russian blockade of Ukrainian ports as a result of the Russian military aggression against Ukraine.”

Ukraine is a major supplier of wheat, corn and sunflower oil to African countries and, since Russia’s invasion began in February, Africa has faced food and cooking oil shortages that have left an estimated 400 million people on the continent food insecure.

While drought and conflict have also played a role in the food crisis, Kaleba focused on the actions of Russia. He said Russian forces have taken 400,000 tons of grain crops from Ukraine.

“Russians also steal agricultural equipment from Ukrainian farmers – tractors, combine harvesters, and other tools in Donetsk, Kherson, Kharkiv and Sumy regions of Ukraine,” he said.

“Russian forces have riddled Ukrainian fields with mines to prevent farmers from cultivating their crops for years. According to the recent preliminary estimate, about 13 percent of Ukrainian territory has been contaminated by Russian mines and other explosive remnants. This creates threats of a multiyear global food crisis.”

Fred Munene, an agronomist and farmer in Kenya, said Africa, for now, should fight to get the food stuck in Ukraine out and invest in its farm economy to be food secure.

“The short term is getting the food that is already produced,” Munene said. “In the long term, look for other suppliers or industries in Africa that will supply fertilizers and other farm inputs because that’s the biggest challenge.”

Kuleba said Africa can play a role in ending the conflict between the two neighbors.

“African states have a crucial role in this, and many already work together with us to achieve it,” Kuleba said. “African capitals matter and they do influence Russia’s position.”

However, African countries on the U.N. Security Council have been reluctant to pressure Russia based on historical ties to Moscow and current geopolitical concerns.

Hassan Khannenje, head of the Horn Institute for Strategic Studies, said that Africa’s say in the conflict is limited.

“They do not have the leverage outside diplomatic engagement and are trying to appeal to both parties to see the need to unblock the wheat supply which Africa relies on heavily on,” Khannenje said.

Senegalese President and African Union Chairperson Macky Sall is expected to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in coming days but no firm date has been set.

Source: Voice of America

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Global Directional Drilling Services Market Report to 2027 – Offshore Segment Expected to Witness Significant Growth – ResearchAndMarkets.com

The “Directional Drilling Services Market – Growth, Trends, COVID-19 Impact, and Forecasts (2022 – 2027)” report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com’s offering.

The directional drilling services market is expected to grow at a CAGR of approximately 6% during the forecast period 2022-2027.

The COVID-19 outbreak witnessed a severe impact on the market due to stringent lockdown protocols implemented by respective governments. Factors such as drilling in unconventional reserve, which involves directional or horizontal drilling to increase contact with the pay zone, as well as increase the production significantly are expected to drive the directional drilling services market during the forecast period.

Moreover, global crude oil demand is expected to grow by 1.2 mb/d in the next four years, further increasing pressure among the top oil and gas operating companies to increase their production is promulgating the market. However, the volatile crude oil prices and low investments in regions excluding North America is likely to hinder the growth of the market being studied.

Companies Mentioned

Schlumberger Ltd

Weatherford International PLC

Halliburton Company

Baker Hughes Company

Scientific Drilling International Inc. (SDI)

China Oilfield Services Limited

PHX Energy Services Corp.

Gyrodata Inc.

Nabors Industries Ltd

Leam Drilling Systems Inc.

Key Market Trends

Offshore Segment Expected to Witness Significant Growth

The offshore oil and gas industry accounts for about 30% of the global crude oil production. The Middle East, North Sea, Brazil, the Gulf of Mexico, and the Caspian Sea are the major offshore oil and gas producing regions.

Declining costs of oil production with more significant cost savings make deepwater the economical source of supply. The average breakeven price for all unofficial projects has come down to approximately USD 50 per barrel, declining close to 10% in the last years. This scenario is likely to raise the demand for directional drilling services in deepwater during the forecast timeline.

The deepwater oil production is majorly concentrated in four countries, Angola, Brazil, Nigeria, and the United States. Significant offshore reserves are likely to institute a favorable business scenario for the industry participants operating in the directional drilling services market in the near future.

The combined production from tight oil, oil sands, and deepwater is estimated to reach 21 mb/d by 2040 and is expected to account for almost a quarter of the global crude oil production. The changing economics and the exhaustion of some shallow offshore resources have compelled the producers to shift toward deepwater and ultra-deepwater resources.

Therefore, owing to the above points, offshore segment is expected to witness a significant growth in directional drilling services market during the forecast period.

North America Expected to Dominate the Market

Mainly owing to the demand from the United States and Canada, North America leads the directional drilling services market and is expected to be the largest market as of 2020.

The United States has one of the largest technically-recoverable shale gas reserves, and the second-largest tight oil reserves in the world. The technological development in the hydraulic fracturing and low breakeven prices have supported the oil and gas directional drilling activity in the region.

In the United States, the directional drilling services market is primarily driven by new offshore projects and redevelopment of matured fields. Due to the recovering drilling activity, the gas output is expected to reach an average of 47 billion cubic foot per day by 2020. The production from Marcellus/Utica shale and new oil wells is expected to account for most of the growth in gas production.

In Canada, the biggest increase in activity is expected from the country’s main crude oil and gas producing region, Alberta. Consequently, the directional drilling services market is estimated to grow at a moderate pace in Canada.

Therefore, rapid growth in the drilling activities and the increase in many horizontal wells in the region are expected to drive the directional drilling services market during the forecast period.

Key Topics Covered:

1 INTRODUCTION

2 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

3 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

4 MARKET OVERVIEW

4.1 Introduction

4.2 Shale Reserve by Country

4.3 Technological Advancement in Directional Drilling

4.4 Market Size and Demand Forecast in USD billion, till 2027

4.5 Onshore CAPEX Forecast in USD billion, till 2027

4.6 Offshore CAPEX Forecast in USD billions, by Regions, 2019-2027

4.7 Key Upstream Projects

4.8 Recent Trends and Developments

4.9 Market Dynamics

4.9.1 Drivers

4.9.2 Restraints

4.10 Supply Chain Analysis

4.11 Porter’s Five Forces Analysis

5 MARKET SEGMENTATION

5.1 Location of Deployment

5.1.1 Onshore

5.1.2 Offshore

5.2 Type

5.2.1 Rotory Steerable System (RSS)

5.2.2 Conventional

5.3 Geography

5.3.1 North America

5.3.2 Asia-Pacific

5.3.3 Europe

5.3.4 South America

5.3.5 Middle-East and Africa

6 COMPETITIVE LANDSCAPE

6.1 Mergers and Acquisitions, Joint Ventures, Collaborations, and Agreements

6.2 Strategies Adopted by Leading Players

6.3 Company Profiles

7 MARKET OPPORTUNITIES AND FUTURE TRENDS

Source: Business Wire

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Ukraine Tops Agenda at China’s BRICS Summit

JOHANNESBURG — Ukraine: It was a word barely mentioned but often alluded to as the leaders of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa — collectively known as BRICS — gave their opening remarks at a virtual summit Thursday hosted by Beijing.

In his address, Chinese President Xi Jinping said the group’s purpose was to “make the world a more stable place” and “speak out for equity and justice.” He then appeared to take aim at the West, though the U.S. was never referred to by name.

“We must abandon cold war mentality and bloc confrontation and oppose unilateral sanctions and the abuse of sanctions,” the president of the world’s second-largest economy said in apparent reference to U.S. and European Union sanctions against Moscow.

Of the BRICS member states — emerging economies that position themselves as an alternative to the U.S.-led liberal world order — only Brazil voted against Russia’s invasion of Ukraine at the United Nations earlier this year. China, India and South Africa all abstained from condemning the invasion.

Xi’s remarks Wednesday at the BRICS business forum ahead of the main summit were even less equivocal.

“We in the international community should reject zero-sum games and jointly oppose hegemony and power politics,” he said.

Avoid ‘spillovers’

“Major developed countries should adopt responsible economic policies and avoid negative policy spillovers that may take a heavy toll on developing countries. It has been proved time and again that sanctions are a boomerang and a double-edged sword,” he added.

Unlike the others, Xi did refer directly to Ukraine, saying: “The combination of the COVID-19 pandemic and the Ukraine crisis has resulted in disruptions to global industrial and supply chains … and emerging markets and developing countries bear the brunt.”

For his part, Russia leader Vladimir Putin on Thursday thanked Xi and “all our Chinese friends” and took aim at the “selfish actions of certain states” that he said had thrown the global economy into a crisis, referring to sanctions against his government.

Countries in the global South have been hard hit by food insecurity and rising oil prices caused by the Ukraine crisis, and Putin noted that Russia could “count on the support of many Asian, African and Latin American states striving to pursue an independent policy.”

On Wednesday at the business forum, Putin said Russia was actively “redirecting its trade flows” and increasing oil deliveries to India and China. Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro said that instead of closing itself off in the face of disrupted supply chains, Brazil would be seeking to “deepen our economic integration.”

South Africa, one of the democracies in BRICS, has been widely criticized for taking a neutral stance on the Ukraine conflict. At the Thursday summit, President Cyril Ramaphosa was less strident than other leaders.

“In line with our foreign policy principles, South Africa continues to call for dialogue and negotiation toward a peaceful resolution of conflicts around the world,” he said.

Different views

Later, a joint declaration by the group was vague, underscoring the different countries’ divergent views on the matter.

“We have discussed the situation in Ukraine and recall our national positions as expressed at the appropriate fora, namely the UNSC [U.N. Security Council] and UNGA [U.N. General Assembly]. We support talks between Russia and Ukraine” the statement said, adding that BRICS supported U.N. humanitarian assistance to the region.

Not all the talks focused on the Ukraine crisis, however, with leaders, including Xi and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, also stressing the need to enhance international cooperation in the fight against COVID-19.

On this matter, Ramaphosa took aim at the West for not adhering to “the principles of solidarity and cooperation when it comes to equitable access to vaccines.”

“We call on developed economies, international agencies and philanthropists that procure vaccines to purchase from manufacturers in developing economies, including in Africa,” he said.

Despite aiming to present a united front against the U.S. and its allies, BRICS member states also have disagreements among themselves, though those do not necessarily stop their cooperation. Bolsonaro has previously made anti-China statements, while India has challenged Beijing on its disputed Ladakh border.

On Wednesday, ahead of the BRICS summit, China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi met with India’s ambassador to China, Pradeep Kumar Rawat. In the ministry’s summary of the meeting, Beijing stated the two countries should continue to look for “solutions through dialogue and consultation” on the “boundary issue” and that “common interests between China and India far outweigh the differences.”

BRICS expansion

Additionally, China has supported the expansion of BRICS to include other countries. “Bringing in fresh blood will inject new vitality into BRICS cooperation and increase the representativeness and influence of BRICS,” said Xi in his remarks at the summit.

China’s Wang said that “to strengthen the solidarity and cooperation between emerging markets and developing countries,” for the first time, officials and foreign ministers of Argentina, Egypt, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Nigeria, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, and Thailand, described as BRICS Plus countries, were invited to a May virtual meeting of BRICS foreign ministers.

The BRICS joint statement declared the countries were in favor of further discussions about expanding bloc membership but “stressed the need to clarify” the details of the process.

Source: Voice of America

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South Africa Releases Damning Report Into Zuma-Era Graft

JOHANNESBURG — South Africa’s Chief Justice Raymond Zondo has released a final and damning report after a long-running inquiry into influence-peddling and corruption during former President Jacob Zuma’s nine years in office. It recommends several high-ranking officials face investigation and prosecution.

Acting Chief Justice Zondo late Wednesday gave the final report on the plunder of state resources under Zuma to his former deputy and successor, President Cyril Ramaphosa.

The latest installment of the five-part report focused on alleged wrongdoing by the state security agency and at the public broadcaster and other state-owned enterprises.

It said Zuma’s former spy chief should be prosecuted for graft and targeting the president’s foes.

It also found that Zuma’s son, Duduzane, acted as a conduit between the wealthy Gupta family — business friends of Zuma’s whose influence over the president was said to amount to state capture.

The report said Duduzane should also be investigated.

Ramaphosa said the inquiry had presented evidence of abuse of power and praised the whistleblowers and journalists who helped uncover it.

“State capture was an assault on our democracy and violated the rights of every man, woman and child in this country,” he said.

Previous parts of the report recommended Zuma be further investigated with a view towards prosecution and that the Guptas and several ministers face prosecution.

Two of the Gupta brothers were arrested in Dubai this month and are facing extradition to South Africa.

The inquiry ran for almost four years, with South Africans watching the daily televised hearings shocked by repeated witness testimony on corruption at the highest levels of government.

Zondo spoke of some of the challenges the commission had faced while probing the graft.

“A few members of the legal team that I know went through situations when their security needed to be beefed up because of the work that they do, that they did, in the commission,” he said.

Ramaphosa said the inquiry was vital to ensuring the survival of South Africa’s democracy.

“The report is far more than a record of widespread corruption, fraud and abuse; it is also an instrument through which the country can work to ensure that such events are never allowed to happen again,” he said.

But the report was also critical of Ramaphosa as Zuma’s deputy for failing to do more against “state capture.”

It was also highly critical of the ruling African National Congress (ANC) party.

Independent political analyst Ralph Mathekga praised the inquiry for surviving political attempts to interfere with the process.

“The major finding actually here is that the ANC dropped the ball, the ANC-led government, the state capture inquiry speaks about major lapses in governance,” he said. “President Jacob Zuma comes out as the chief suspect.”

Zuma, who was forced to step down in 2018, is already facing trial on multiple counts of corruption in a separate case. He’s denied all wrongdoing.

Spokesman for the Jacob Zuma Foundation Mzwanele Jimmy Manyi told VOA the report was “a lot of hogwash.”

Ramaphosa has four months to make his recommendations to parliament on what action must be taken. South Africans will be waiting to see what arrests and prosecutions might follow.

Source: Voice of America

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Cameroon Woos Potential Diaspora Investors, But Faces Distrust of Government

YAOUNDE — Cameroon’s President Paul Biya has for the first time sent a delegation to Europe to try to encourage well-off Cameroonians living there to invest back home. But members of Cameroon’s diaspora say undemocratic practices and corruption in Biya’s government put off investors.

Government officials say a delegation led by Youth Affairs and Civic Education Minister Mounouna Foutsou was dispatched to Germany this week to ask Cameroonians there to invest in their country of origin.

Foutsou said his wish is for all Cameroonians in the diaspora to put aside their differences and help develop Cameroon.

“The head of state reiterated his call to the Cameroonian diaspora to come and build Cameroon. We seize this opportunity to come and exchange with the whole Cameroonian diaspora here in Europe so that we can present the different opportunities offered by the president of the republic and his government so that the Cameroonian diaspora can come back and participate in the development of the nation,” said Foutsou.

Foutsou said the government will offer tax exemptions of up to 40 percent for diaspora investments in Cameroon, and loans of up to $10,000 with no interest rates for diaspora youths who return to invest in agriculture and livestock.

Kennedy Tumenta is a Cameroonian investor who lives in Germany. He said many in the diaspora find it hard to trust promises made by their government.

He said corruption, high taxes and a lack of confidence in President Biya, who has been in power for 40 years, scare investors.

“Freedom is restricted and they are afraid to move around in Cameroon and do their businesses and speak freely. Most diasporans believe that there is widespread corruption when it concerns opening businesses in the country or the Northwest-Southwest crisis is not being taken into consideration seriously by the government in place. It makes them frustrated and the only way to express this frustration is either to withdraw their investments in the country or attacking the head of state,” said Tumenta.

Separatists have been fighting to carve out an independent English-speaking state in mainly French-speaking Cameroon, since 2016. The U.N. says 3,300 people have died in the fighting.

Some disgruntled Cameroonians in the diaspora have become hostile to the government, and at least seven Cameroonian embassies have been attacked or ransacked since January 2020.

Felix Mbayu is a top official with Cameroon’s Ministry of External Relations. He said Cameroonians taking part in such protests are hurting the country’s image.

“Those who left Cameroon unhappy and have not been able to make it there are those who would speak ill of Cameroon. Those who left Cameroon to better their lot in life and have made it there are those who come back to invest in Cameroon. That is why you see medical doctors who have built hospitals, built clinics, who bring back home medical supplies. You don’t see them in the idle marches abroad. In fact, when you talk ill of your own home, you tarnish your own image,” said Mbayu.

An estimated five million Cameroonians live abroad. The government says the largest diaspora population is in Nigeria where about two million live.

There are also high concentrations in Belgium, France, Germany, the United Kingdom and the United States.

Source: Voice of America