Next Africa

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, jo...

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 Bure...

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 ...

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 expl...

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. Bloo...

The man who helped turn Morocco into a World Cup contender is now being urged to take on an even bigger challenge: becoming the country’s next prime minister.

On this week’s Next Africa podcast, we examine the Atlas Lions’ impressive run at the 2026 FIFA World Cup and why two political parties are courting Fouzi Lekjaa to lead them into the next election.

Jennifer Zabasajja speaks with Bloomberg North Africa repor...

Thousands of people joined anti-migrant protests in South Africa on Tuesday, watched over by a massive police contingent that was deployed to prevent violence and intimidation. The rallies, which marked the culmination of weeks of protests that have displaced thousands of mainly African expatriates, were mostly peaceful bar a few isolated incidents.

In this week’s Next Africa Podcast, Bloomberg’s Ntando Thukwana ...

The Iran war has put billions of dollars in remittances at risk as conflict disrupts the incomes of migrant workers across the Gulf. For many African economies, where money sent home helps pay for food, healthcare and education, a prolonged slowdown could weigh on growth well beyond the battlefield.

On this week's episode, Jennifer Zabasajja speaks with Bloomberg's Prinesha Naidoo about her reporting on the disruption to remittance...

An El Niño weather pattern forming in the Pacific Ocean is expected to bring hotter, drier weather to much of east and southern Africa while increasing flood risks in parts of West Africa, stoking fears of another difficult spell for the continent’s farmers.

On this week’s episode, Jennifer Zabasajja talks to Bloomberg weather reporter Lauren Rosenthal about how El Niño is shaping up, and to soft commodities reporter Mu...

Ethiopia’s ruling party has established a commanding lead in preliminary election results, leaving Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed on track to secure another five-year term.

On this week’s episode, Tiwa Adebayo speaks with Bloomberg Senior East Africa Reporter Simon Marks and Ethiopia Reporter Fasika Tadesse about why the election outcome was rarely in doubt, the political and security risks that persist, and what Abiy’...

Here's a bonus episode from another Bloomberg podcast we think listeners to Next Africa might enjoy

Could Africa’s long-misunderstood population boom become its greatest economic advantage? Economist and author Joe Studwell joins host Merryn Somerset Webb to discuss his book, How Africa Works: Success and Failure on the World's Last Developmental Frontier. He argues that rising population density is already transforming the c...

The 2014-16 Ebola epidemic in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone triggered one of the most severe health-related economic shocks in modern African history. While the current outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo remains a serious concern, analysts expect its economic impact to be far more contained.

On today’s Next Africa podcast, Bloomberg Economics Africa Economist Yvonne Mhango joins Jennifer Zabasajja to discuss her ...

African startups are rewriting their funding playbook as the global artificial intelligence boom channels venture capital toward the US, leaving founders across emerging markets scrambling for capital.

As Bloomberg publishes its 2026 list of 25 African Startups to Watch, Bloomberg Senior Technology Reporter Loni Prinsloo joins the podcast to discuss the state of the continent’s startup ecosystem. We also speak to Tendekayi Ka...

An Ebola outbreak in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, which has already killed more than 130 people, may have been spreading for months, according to the World Health Organization.

On this week’s episode of the Next Africa Podcast, Jennifer Zabasajja is joined by healthcare reporter Janice Kew and Congo Country Director for the Danish Refugee Council, Caitlin Brady who is on the ground in Goma. They discuss how this Ebol...

Ugandan lawmakers have passed a contentious new law that imposes steep fines and jail terms for those receiving foreign funding without state approval. On this week's Next Africa podcast opposition leader Bobi Wine, who fled the country earlier this year, speaks to Bloomberg's Jennifer Zabasajja about the legislation and his plans to challenge Uganda’s political status quo after January elections that he says his party won. B...

Anti-Migrant protests and violence in South Africa have escalated in recent weeks, leading to condemnation from Governments across the continent.

On this week’s Next Africa Podcast, Bloomberg’s government reporter Ntando Thukwana gives the latest on the protests, and then political commentator and Bloomberg Opinion columnist Justice Malala explains what he thinks is behind the problem and how the government should tackl...

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 Abab...

Aliko Dangote plans to sell about 10% of his oil-refining company on multiple African stock exchanges to help fund the next phase of the tycoon’s business empire. 

The IPO comes nearly five decades after a landmark share sale in Asia that went on to mint the continent’s richest person. In 1977, Dhirubhai Ambani sold shares in Reliance to thousands of domestic investors and reshaped equity culture in India. In this ...

Starlink, SpaceX’s Satellite Internet Service is pushing for changes to South Africa’s equality rules which it says blocks the company from operating in Africa’s most industrialised economy.  

South Africa requires companies in some sectors to have at least 30% Black ownership. These laws were introduced after the end of apartheid and they compelled companies in industries including banking, mining and teleco...