The Heads of the International Energy Agency, International Monetary Fund, World Bank Group and World Trade Organisation met on May 28 as part of a high-level coordination group established in April to maximise institutional responses to the energy, trade and economic effects of the war in the Middle East.

Zimbabwe has signed a resource agreement with Australian upstream oil and gas company Invictus Energy for development of the Cabora Bassa gas project in northern Zimbabwe near the Mozambique border, in a move seen as a possible contribution to southern Africa’s energy supply.

Zambia’s small businesses are set for a financing boost after the African Development Bank approved a $20 million Trade Finance Transaction Guarantee for Access Bank Zambia, with the facility expected to unlock up to $240 million in trade over the next five years.

The Mozambican government has announced plans to redirect gas revenues towards rebuilding infrastructure damaged by post-election protests and floods, a move that has drawn criticism from Institute for Security Studies researcher Borges Nhamirre.