Diplomacy & Trade: Ethiopia’s President Taye Atske Selassie received credentials from 11 newly appointed ambassadors (Saudi Arabia, Congo, Portugal, Nigeria, Sri Lanka, Malawi, Ghana, Uruguay, Slovakia, Madagascar, Uzbekistan), signalling a push to deepen economic and people-to-people ties. Aviation & Business: Gulf Wings took delivery of a Bombardier Global 8000 to manage for Africa’s BUA Group, underlining growing corporate aviation demand. Banking & Investment: Standard Bank won global awards for Investment Banking and Sustainable Finance, reinforcing investor appetite for Africa’s energy transition. Deal Scrutiny: East African Breweries (EABL) asked Kenya’s Chief Justice to intervene over conflicting court orders tied to its Sh300b Diageo-Asahi stake sale, a test for investor confidence. Telecom Expansion: Bharti Airtel increased its stake in Airtel Africa to 79% via a share swap, a major consolidation move in Africa’s mobile market. Security & Governance: Nigeria’s Senate suspended work on the State Police Bill after the death of lawmaker Yaya Tongo, while rights groups condemned the remand of activist Omoyele Sowore. Creative Economy Under Pressure: MultiChoice intensified anti-piracy efforts with Irdeto as illegal streaming threatens jobs and revenue across Africa’s entertainment value chain. Project Delivery Risk: PMI research says Sub-Saharan Africa sees more missed deadlines (44%) than the global average (35%), pointing to execution bottlenecks as investment scales. Tech & Skills: King’s College London opened fully funded online health foundation applications for Nigerian and other Sub-Saharan African students, aiming to widen access to healthcare careers. Regional Finance Signals: Algeria and Namibia exited FATF’s grey list, expected to cut compliance costs and improve access to international finance. Energy & Industry: Zambia and the US agreed to redirect $491m MCC grant toward infrastructure supporting the Lobito Corridor, boosting trade logistics.