• Onafriq and PAPSS launched a pilot for local-currency payments from Nigeria to Ghana.

• The partnership bypasses the dollar to reduce costs and speed up cross-border trade.

• The initiative supports AfCFTA implementation and intra-African commerce growth.

On February 2, Onafriq Nigeria Payments, a fintech licensed by the Central Bank of Nigeria, announced a partnership with the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System. The partnership pilots a service that allows users to send money from a wallet or bank account in Nigeria to a beneficiary in Ghana. The initiative aims to facilitate payments between the two countries in local currencies without using the dollar in order to support intra-African trade under the African Continental Free Trade Area.

PAPSS, which AfCFTA authorities adopted as a reference platform for implementation, operates as a shared infrastructure that routes and settles payments between African banks, fintechs and mobile money operators. The platform offers an alternative to traditional correspondent banking networks, which often impose higher costs and longer settlement times for cross-border payments. By relying on this platform, Onafriq converts connected mobile wallets and bank accounts into access points to a pan-African real-time payment network.

Today, a small or medium-sized enterprise that imports from Ghana to Nigeria or exports in the opposite direction typically uses international banking channels. These channels impose multiple layers of fees, processing delays that stretch over several days, and near-systematic conversion through the dollar or the euro. These constraints weigh more heavily on small firms, which face limited capacity to absorb foreign exchange costs and payment delays.

The Onafriq–PAPSS pilot offers near-instant local-currency payments between Nigeria and Ghana through familiar wallet and banking application interfaces. Mxolisi Msutwana, managing director for Anglophone West Africa at Onafriq, said: “This is how we open bidirectional trade corridors, reduce costs for businesses and empower African enterprises to trade confidently in their own currency. The vision is continental, but it starts with concrete actions like this.”

Ositadimma Ugwu, chief information officer at PAPSS, added: “With this move, we challenge this mindset by enabling Nigerians to send money to their neighbors as easily as they send a text message.”

A Key Component of AfCFTA Implementation

According to Afreximbank’s Africa Trade Report 2025, intra-African trade reached $220.3 billion in 2024, representing a 12.4% increase from 2023. The figure remains below the estimated potential of $296.3 billion. The report states that AfCFTA can help close this gap if countries also strengthen financial infrastructure. In this context, solutions such as PAPSS, combined with private mass-payment networks, represent practical tools to convert trade agreements into real transactions and support AfCFTA implementation.

“The Pan-African Payment and Settlement System reduces dependence on foreign currencies and improves the efficiency of intra-African trade, while national digital payment ecosystems expand rapidly and generate billions of dollars in annual revenues,” Afreximbank said in the report.

This article was initially published in French by Melchior Koba

Adapted in English by Ange J.A de BERRY QUENUM

• Ivory Coast plans to regulate and organize digital content monetization by 2026.

• The government opened talks with regulators and industry partners to define revenue-sharing mechanisms.

• Streaming growth highlights rising economic stakes but exposes persistent income gaps for artists.

The Ivorian government announced its intention to make digital content monetization effective by 2026 in response to demands from cultural, music and media stakeholders. Culture and Francophonie Minister Françoise Remarck opened discussions on February 2, with the High Authority for Audiovisual Communication (HACA) and several sector partners to define mechanisms to valorize locally produced digital content.

The initiative seeks to establish a regulatory and operational framework to capture and redistribute a significant share of revenues generated from online listening, music streaming, video and audiovisual content. The executive branch aims to structure an ecosystem in which local and international digital platforms compensate artists and creators under clear rules while authorities strengthen copyright regulation and distribution contracts.

The issue carries growing economic weight. The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry said in its Global Music Report 2025 that sub-Saharan Africa recorded a 22.6% increase in recorded music revenues in 2024, reaching a record $110 million, or nearly five times the global growth rate of 4.8% over the same period.

In Ivory Coast, music streaming platforms such as Boomplay, Spotify, Apple Music and Deezer continue to expand their user bases. Compensation models vary across platforms and markets. By way of indication, one million streams on Spotify can generate about CFA1.2 million, or roughly $2,155, for rights holders, highlighting both the economic potential of streaming and persistent revenue disparities.

Despite expanding digital audiences, monetization remains limited for many artists in Francophone Africa. Contract structures and regulatory frameworks continue to allow a significant share of value creation to escape local creators.

The Ivorian initiative also aligns with a broader push to develop the national digital economy. The country benefits from relatively solid mobile infrastructure. Fourth-generation network coverage reached 76.88% in the first quarter of 2025, improving access to digital services and content distribution platforms.

By structuring digital content monetization, Abidjan aims to integrate the creative economy more fully into the formal sector, strengthen revenues for local artists and producers, and position digital culture as a driver of economic growth and employment as streaming and digital content markets continue to expand across Africa.

This article was initially published in French by Samira Njoya

Adapted in English by Ange J.A de BERRY QUENUM

• Mourana Soumah takes charge of Guinea’s Ministry of Communication, Digital Economy, and Innovation, merging information, telecom, and digital portfolios.

• He brings extensive finance experience, having modernized state treasury operations and represented Guinea at the IMF, World Bank, and AfDB.

• Key priorities include expanding connectivity to over 600 unserved areas, strengthening cybersecurity, and promoting digital innovation in public services and education.

Guinea appointed Mourana Soumah as Minister of Communication, Digital Economy, and Innovation on February 2, President Mamadi Doumbouya’s office announced. The new ministry merges the former Ministry of Information and Communication, previously led by Fana Soumah, with the Ministry of Posts, Telecommunications, and Digital Economy, formerly overseen by Rose Pola Pricemou.

Soumah holds a degree in economics from Université Gamal Abdel Nasser de Conakry, a master’s in economic policy management from CERDI-Université d’Auvergne, France, and a diploma from the ENA Paris-Strasbourg in public finance. He also completed specialized training at the IMF, French Ministry of Finance (Bercy), BCEAO, and institutions in Canada and Morocco.

He served as Minister of Economy and Finance from March 2024, implementing reforms to modernize state financial management, strengthen public treasury operations, and enhance budget credibility. He represented Guinea at the IMF, World Bank, and African Development Bank, and chaired strategic national committees including the Simandou Strategic Committee and the C2D Steering Committee.

Prior to government service, Soumah led the General Directorate of the Treasury and Public Accounting (2021–2024) and the Central Accounting Agency of Treasury Deposits. He contributed to reforms such as the implementation of the Single Treasury Account (CUT), the Integrated State Accounting System (SCIE), and the national payments system.

In his new role, Soumah will focus on modernizing public communication, accelerating digital transformation across government, strengthening national digital sovereignty, and promoting innovation as a driver of economic growth, transparency, and inclusion. Officials plan to expand connectivity to more than 600 unserved areas, develop digital services in education and public administration, and reinforce cybersecurity and local data hosting.

Guinea had 14.2 million mobile connections in 2025, covering roughly 95% of the population, while Internet penetration reached 26.5%, or about four million users, according to DataReportal. Mobile Internet subscriptions have surged nearly 97.4% in recent years, reflecting rapid adoption of digital services and emphasizing the urgency of the government’s digital agenda.

This article was initially published in French by Samira Njoya

Adapted in English by Ange J.A de BERRY QUENUM