Business
Africa’s cities are writing a new economic story
From Nairobi to Lagos, a new generation of entrepreneurs and institutions is building growth that looks less like a trend and more like a transformation.
Today in Africa
The bigger picture.
Independent reporting and sharp analysis for a continent in motion.
The lead investigation
Economy & markets
The forces shaping growth
Business
The quiet rise of Africa’s next generation of builders
Meet the founders and makers reshaping the continent’s business landscape.
Reader interest
Recorded views across economy and markets stories
Africa’s cities are writing a new economic story5
The quiet rise of Africa’s next generation of builders1
Why resilient food systems are becoming the continent’s biggest investment story7
A new playbook for patient capital in emerging markets1
The numbers
Inflation
11.3%
Annual consumer price inflation
2016–2025 · 51 countries
World Bank sourceLending interest rate
16.7%
Commercial bank lending rate
2016–2025 · 37 countries
World Bank sourcePublic debt
—
General-government gross debt as a share of GDP
Source data temporarily unavailable.
IMF WEO sourceGDP-weighted Africa-wide estimates. Refreshed daily; underlying annual data is released less frequently and may cover different years. World Bank data last updated 2026-10-08. IMF debt observations are limited to the latest reported years, not forecasts.
Markets at a glance
African markets, in focus.
USD / KES · 7-day trend
129.83 KES
▲ 0.04%
7 days agoLatest available
Indicative daily USD exchange rates · data for 2026-10-16 · sourced from currency-api under CC0.
The NM brief
Context for the decisions ahead.
Our editors follow the signals beneath the headlines — the capital flows, policy shifts and human stories that matter next.
Explore insights