We continue to forecast an external debt burden of US$10.4bn (119% of GDP) and US$10.5bn (105% of GDP) in 2009 and 2010, respectively. The IMF currently conducts a feasibility study to determine whether a mining deal with China will jeopardise the DRC's debt forgiveness eligibility. Only confirmation by the IMF that it will continue the HIPC programme with the DRC will lead to... 2009-07-01

President Michel Suleiman has designated Saad al-Hariri as Lebanon's next prime minister. As the son of former prime minister Rafik al-Hariri, who was assassinated in a Beirut car bombing in 2005, his appointment carries deep symbolism. Hariri's pro-Western March 14 alliance beat out the Hizbullah-led opposition in June's parliamentary elections. Although Hariri has pledged to... 2009-06-30

In response to the recent intensification of terrorist activity in Algeria and the wider Saharan region, the Africa Centre for Studies and Research on Terrorism (CAERT) recently held a three-day conference in Algiers to prepare an anti-terrorism action plan for 2010-2013. The conference, which was attended by anti-terrorism officials from the UN and the European Union, preceded... 2009-06-29

In the State of the Nation address at the beginning of June, President Jacob Zuma announced that employment creation will be a top priority for the African National Congress over the coming years. The government will try to create 500,000 additional workplaces by the end of 2009 and a total of 4mn job opportunities by 2014. Given the sharp downturn in domestic economic growth... 2009-07-01

In April, Qatar's M2 money supply fell by 5.7% y-o-y, backing up our view that consumer prices will remain subdued for several months to come. The official methodology for measuring monetary aggregates was recently changed - the current series only goes back to the start of 2007. However, the 'old' data series shows that M2 had not exhibited negative annual growth since the beginning... 2009-07-01

President Omar Bongo, who ruled Gabon continuously for 41 years, died of a heart attack on June 8 at a clinic in Barcelona. The president had taken a temporary leave of office on May 7 2009 to mourn the death of his wife, and then flown to Europe, where it was rumoured he was seeking medical attention. His death was initially reported on June 7, but this report was denied by the... 2009-07-01