Africa

A F-35B Lightning Jet is seen between night sorties on the HMS Queen Elizabeth in the Mediterranean Sea on June 21. (Photo courtesy of the Royal Navy)
Indo-Pacific

Japan to hold first drills with UK aircraft carrier off Africa

Counter-piracy exercise in Gulf of Aden likely next week

10 July 2021
BlackRock is leading a public-private 55 billion yen ($500 million) fund aimed at developing infrastructure for the transportation of green energy in emerging markets. (Source photos by AP and Reuters) 
Climate Change

BlackRock to launch green infrastructure fund in Asia

The public-private partnership also eyes projects in Africa and Latin America

5 July 2021
The Chinese music streaming app Boomplay is focusing on the African market. (Photo by Takeshi Kumon) 
Media & Entertainment

Popular Chinese music streaming app Boomplay growing fast in Africa

Impetus comes from the dominant presence of smartphones made by parent

4 July 2021
A cargo ship is moored outside Dar es Salaam Port in Tanzania. (Photo courtesy of Trafigura Images) 
Indo-Pacific

China looks to East Africa for second Indian Ocean foothold

A Tanzanian naval base would ease Beijing's 'Malacca Dilemma,' analyst says

30 June 2021
Workers unload cargo from a ship in the harbor of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. (Photo courtesy of the International Labour Organization)
Indo-Pacific

Tanzania to revive $10bn Indian Ocean port project with China

Bagamoyo has potential to be East Africa's export hub

27 June 2021
Ethiopia's telecommunications sector has been dominated by state-run Ethio Telecom.
Telecommunication

Sumitomo teams with Vodafone to win Ethiopia telecom project

Cellular bid marks first foray into Africa by Japanese company

24 May 2021
China's homegrown Shandong aircraft carrier: The Djibouti base is capable of accommodating both aircraft carriers and the latest amphibious assault ships.
Indo-Pacific

China adds carrier pier to Djibouti base, extending Indian Ocean reach

Beijing looking for other basing opportunities in Africa, US commander says

27 April 2021
A frontline worker receives a shot of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine in Machakos, Kenya. India's export restrictions have dealt a major blow to vaccination efforts in Africa. 
COVID vaccines

Africa's vaccination push hampered by India export curbs

China presses vaccine diplomacy as slow supplies stymie continent's recovery

22 April 2021
The containership Ever Given is pictured while it was stranded in the Suez Canal on March 26. The 400-meter-long vessel remains in Egypt even after being refloated.
Transportation

Ever Given impounded in Suez Canal

Reckoning insurance damages for Japan-owned vessel could take years

14 April 2021
Gen. Koji Yamazaki, chief of staff of the Joint Staff, speaks to reporters in Tokyo on April 8. (Photo by Junnosuke Kobara)
Coronavirus

In Djibouti, 21 Japan defense force members come down with COVID

Sporting event and large gathering blamed for infection at African base

9 April 2021
The freighter Shinas Max carrying 400,000 tons of iron ore is berthed at Zhoushan Port in China's Zhejiang Province. China currently relies on Australia for more than 60% of its iron ore imports.
Commodities

China determined to build iron ore hub in Africa as Australia goes Quad

World's largest untapped reserve in Guinea could be online by 2025, expert says

31 March 2021
Tugboats sail Thursday beside the Ever Given, the giant containership that became lodged in the Suez Canal. (Photo courtesy of the Suez Canal Authority)
Economy

Suez Canal faces prolonged blockage, sparking fear for exporters

Ever Given operator seeks new plan to dislodge massive containership

26 March 2021
A lone excavator works to dislodge the Ever Given container ship at the Suez Canal Wednesday. (Photo courtesy of Suez Canal Authority)
Transportation

Blocked Suez Canal raises new threat to global supply chains

Crude prices gain as crucial world shipping choke point is cut off

25 March 2021
Stream article image
25 February 2021
Unicharm diapers at a store in Vietnam: The company believes demand for diapers will increase when per capita GDP tops $3,000. (Photo by Keiichiro Asahara)
Consumer

Japan's Unicharm turns to India and Africa after China setback

Toiletries group to ramp up diaper production where it sees demand rising

22 February 2021
Jack Ma talks to young entrepreneurs at the University of Nairobi in July 2017: he viewed that Africa was the China of 20 years ago.
Opinion

Clipping Jack Ma's wings will undermine China's Africa push

Regulatory reckoning likely to stoke fears of unwarranted state-intervention

9 February 2021
Port Louis, the Mauritian capital, is getting busier as the free trade agreement with China comes into play, but observers are concerned that the balance of trade is already in Beijing's favor by a factor of over 30. (Photo by Yuji Kuronuma)
International relations

Beijing expands Indian Ocean FTAs westward with Mauritius

Concern among small island nations over huge trade imbalances with China

2 February 2021
China is set to lay the final leg of a cross-border fiber optic cable in Pakistan, linking to a cable in the Arabian Sea. (Source photo by Getty Images)
Belt and Road

China builds Digital Silk Road in Pakistan to Africa and Europe

PEACE cable will reduce Pakistani internet traffic going through India

29 January 2021
Stream article image
Coronavirus

Mutated strains of the new coronavirus mapped out

Interactive tracker shows how British and South African variants are spreading

28 January 2021
Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi, left, meets with Senegalese Foreign Minister Aissata Tall Sall on Jan. 11. This was his second trip to Africa in as many months. (Photo courtesy of Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs)
International relations

Japan and China woo Africa in dueling diplomatic blitz

Motegi makes second recent visit to continent, along with Latin America swing

15 January 2021
A colorized image of a cell, red, infected with the virus particles, yellow, that cause COVID-19. (National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, NIH via Reuters)
Coronavirus

As coronavirus mutates, countries scramble to put up defenses

Brazil variant joins UK and South African forms confronting authorities from Asia to US

13 January 2021
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi is expected to wrap up his tour of five African countries on Saturday.
International relations

China shores up support in Africa as it braces for Biden

President-elect has vowed to speak out on Beijing's human rights violations

6 January 2021
A medical worker transports a patient Dec. 21 at Kenyatta National Hospital in Nairobi, Kenya: The loan program will support purchases of medical equipment to combat the COVID-19 pandemic.
Coronavirus

Japan's MUFG lends $520m to help Africa fight COVID-19

Institutional investors purchase loans guaranteed by government

22 December 2020
Ali Kooli, Tunisia's minister of economy, finance and investment, said medium-income countries also need help from creditors. (Photo by Takeshi Kumon)
Interview

Tunisia finance minister urges G-20 countries to ease loan terms

Ali Kooli looks to China-led AIIB to help promote relations with Asia

16 December 2020
Prime Minister Narendra Modi needs island and archipelago nations to come on board with India for maritime security in the vast Indian Ocean. (Nikkei montage/AP and Getty Images)
Indo-Pacific

Seychelles in crosshairs of India's maritime security axis

New Delhi's priorities in the Indian Ocean dovetail with US Indo-Pacific strategy

11 December 2020