Something I often hear when talking to clients and members of my staff is the growing interest in information for Africa.

17 - 23 September 2016

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From the CEO OF EMIS

Last week I had the great pleasure of visiting Bogota where EMIS has an accomplished team and a large and loyal base of customers. Colombians will go to the polls next Sunday to vote on whether or not to ratify the peace agreement between the government and the rebel FARC movement. The general consensus from those I spoke to was that the vote will go in favour of the agreement. This really would be a momentous event in Colombia’s recent history and will mark the end of one of the world’s longest-running conflicts.

The war has long been factored in to Colombia’s economic performance and, as the security situation has improved over recent years, the country has already benefited from increased tourism and foreign investment. So no one is expecting an instant economic boost from ratification but there is a lot of optimism that it will lay the foundations for stronger medium and long-term prosperity.

Economics aside, Colombia will have much to deal with once peace is finally achieved. According to the UN, there are more than seven million displaced people as a result of the conflict – more than in Syria or Iraq. The government will need to help many of them to return to their old way of life in rural areas and to better assimilate others who want to remain in the cities where they sought safety. There is also the small matter of absorbing thousands of guerrilla fighters into mainstream life again.

The scars of the conflict clearly run deep and criminal acts will be hard to forgive but I sensed a strong conviction from those I met that this is an unmissable opportunity for the country to move ahead with a clean slate.


Guy Dunn
Chief Executive Officer.


P.S. Here are some articles on the Colombian peace agreement from the EMIS platform in the past week.

ONCE LITTLE KNOWN, COLOMBIA'S PEACEMAKER HAILED AS HERO

Younger Colombians knew almost nothing about Humberto De la Calle in 2012 when he was named the government's chief peace negotiator for talks with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia.

Read more  

THE FINAL WEEK OF COLOMBIA'S FARC GUERRILLAS

Colombia’s largest guerrilla group, the FARC, entered its last week of existence on Monday. During its National Guerrilla Conference the rebels are expected to disband and define their future.

Read more  

COLOMBIA'S ARMED CONFLICT FOR SOME ALSO A FAMILY AFFAIR

The granddaughter of President Guillermo Leon Valencia who ordered the first attack on the rebels, is campaigning against the peace deal with the same guerrilla group.

Read more  



Infographic of the week

With the news that both the US and China have ratified the Paris Agreement, new hopes of the emissions-cutting treaty being brought into effect before the end of the year have been raised. As producers of close to 38% of the world's carbon emissions they were key to the agreement becoming a reality.

Click to view it full screen

Weekly News summary

Below are the most read articles in the past week on EMIS Perspectives, our daily blog of emerging market news and insights.

ENVIRONMENTAL MINISTER TELLS MINING COMPANIES TO “GET ACT TOGETHER”

Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) secretary Gina Lopez stated that mining companies operating in the Philippines “need to get their act together” in order to continue their business in the country.




Read more…
THAILAND ESTABLISHES MINISTRY OF DIGITAL ECONOMY AND SOCIETY

As part of the government’s "Thailand 4.0" policy, the Information and Communications Technology (ICT) Ministry will be officially replaced by the Ministry of Digital Economy and Society (MDE).



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PHILIPPINE SEAWEEDS ATTRACT PROSPECTIVE BUYERS

Growing interest in Philippine seaweeds has prompted the government to give the carrageenan industry a boost. This follows concern from agriculture senate committee chair Francis Pangilinan regarding the industry’s competitiveness.



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BOLIVIA PICKS CHINESE COMPANIES FOR $1BN HYDRO PROJECT

Bolivia has picked Chinese companies China Three Gorges Corp and China International Water & Electric to carry out a $1 billion hydropower project, BBJ - Energy Today citing the Bolivian government.




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CANADIAN ENIRGI GROUP TO INVEST $720 MN IN ARGENTINA

Canadian company Enirgi Group plans to invest $720 million to open the world’s largest lithium carbonate plant in Argentina, M-Brain - News Monitoring reported on Thursday.





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IMF SAYS ECUADOR’S ECONOMY TO CONTRACT 2.3% IN 2016

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has improved its forecast for Ecuador’s economy contraction this year, M-Brain - News Monitoring reported on Monday.




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POLAND COULD GENERATE 6 GW FROM OFFSHORE WIND FARMS BY 2030

Poland could generate 6 GW from offshore wind farms by 2030, PNB - Polish News Bulletin reported on Friday citing a report by McKinsey & Company.



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GAZPROM SAYS DEMAND FOR NORD STREAM-2 GAS EXCESSIVE

The demand for Russian gas in the countries along the route of the Nord Stream-2 pipeline is excessive, newswire Prime reported on Friday citing Gazprom CEO Alexei Miller as saying.



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IMF APPROVES $1BN TRANCHE TO UKRAINE

The International Monetary Fund has approved a $1 billion tranche of a financial aid to Ukraine, newswire Prime reported on Thursday. This tranche brings the total disbursements under a country’s arrangement with the global lender to some $7.62 billion.



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SAUDI ARABIA TO CREATE 5.7 MILLION JOBS BY 2020

Saudi Arabia’s economy is expected to create up to 5.7 million jobs by 2020, Al Bawaba reported on Friday citing a study on ther ability of the national economy to generate jobs. Saudis are expected to get 45% of these jobs and expats the rest.


Read more…

DUBAI-BASED GFH SELLS STAKE IN ENGLISH FOOTBALL CLUB LEEDS UNITED

Dubai-based GFH Capital has sold its 18% sells stake in English football club Leeds United to Eleonora Sport, AMEinfo - Finance News.




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IRAN AND CHINA IN $1.2 BN OIL REFINERY PROJECT

Iran and China will develop jointly a $1.2 billion oil refinery in Iran, Daily News reported on Tuesday citing Abbas Kazemi, Iran's deputy oil minister, as saying.




Read more…

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