🔅 The Mystery of the Nile: Where's the Source?
Plus: Zimbabwe’s Gold Mafia Makes Waves, Nigeria's Rail Project is Moving Again, Kenya's Space-High Ambitions, And much more... ☕
Hi folks 👋. We'll be taking a few days off this weekend, so you won't find us in your inbox until Tuesday next week. And to those of you that celebrate Easter, have an egg-cellent break!
Photo of the day: New Mulungushi International. Lusaka, Zambia.
Markets:
🔺 Nigerian SE: 53,018.97 (+1.88%)
🔺 Johannesburg SE: 76,656.42 (+1.04%)
🔻 Ghana SE: 2,758.76 (-0.04%)
🔻 Nairobi SE: 112.79 (-0.01%)
🔻 US S&P 500: 4,089.17 (-0.28%)
🔺 Shanghai Composite: 3,312.56 (+0.49%)
Global Markets: America's biggest bank, JPMorgan Chase, is warning us that the banking crisis is “not yet over” after the collapse of two major US banks. According to CEO Jamie Dimon, the aftermath of this mess will stick around for years to come. He believes that the current crisis is “nothing like 2008,” but that it’s still important to take steps to prevent a similar situation in the future. He believes that regulators should look into risks that arise from having a high proportion of uninsured deposits, as well as risks from changes in interest rates.
*Data accurate as of the close of markets across the continent
GEOGRAPHY
The Mystery of the Nile: Where's the Source?
For thousands of years, the source of the River Nile has been shrouded in mystery.
Even with today’s technology and satellites, Africa’s longest river's source is still up for debate.
One thing that is agreed upon is that it is made up of two streams: the Blue Nile from Ethiopia, which contributes two-thirds of all Nile discharge, and the White Nile from the African Great Lakes.
The debate on the river's true source goes back, at least, to the times of Ancient Romans, who were so stumped, they described the search for the source as an “unattainable, mad endeavor”.
Emperor Nero sent a mission down through Africa in 60 to 61 CE, led by a group of his personal guards. Nobody's sure where they ended up...
The Ancient Egyptians gave it a go too. It’s thought they traced the Nile to Khartoum, Sudan, and attributed its source to the Blue Nile from Lake Tana, Ethiopia.
That was a good start, but they never explored the White Nile.
These days, the two sources are generally agreed upon. The Blue Nile comes from Ethiopia’s Lake Tana, while the White Nile appears from further back in Lake Victoria, exiting at Jinja, Uganda.
So isn't Lake Victoria the source of the Nile?
That’s what we thought.
But, in 1996, renowned adventurer, Sir Christopher Ondaatje, made the point that Lake Victoria and the White Nile are fed by other rivers, including from the Ruwenzori Mountains... which means that, ultimately, "The [water from the] Ruwenzoris are just as important a source of Nile water as is Lake Victoria."
Share Baobab with friends and colleagues for free daily updates on African business, money, and current affairs.
OTHER HEADLINES
Across the Continent
🇿🇼 The Gold Mafia: Zimbabwean Scandal Makes Waves | It's the documentary that's making waves in Zimbabwe and beyond: The Gold Mafia. An Al Jazeera investigation, it exposes a shady network of shell companies, fake invoices, and bribed officials who are smuggling gold out of Zimbabwe and laundering money in the process. Uebert Angel, Presidential Envoy and Ambassador-at-Large to Europe and the Americas, was even secretly filmed bragging about being able to move $1.2 billion due to his diplomatic immunity. It's a scandal that's sparked outrage in the country, and it's one that hits close to home for President Emmerson Mnangagwa: his niece, Henrietta Rushwaya, has been implicated in the scheme. Illicit gold trading is costing Zimbabwe an estimated $100 million per month, while the World Bank reports that half of the population is living in extreme poverty. Since the release of the documentary, the government has announced it will launch investigations into several of the people who are involved.
🇳🇬 Nigeria's Rail Project Moving Again | It’s been a long time coming, but the Kaduna-to-Kano rail project in Nigeria is finally moving forward—thanks to the approval of China Development Bank as the new financier. Nigeria’s Senate approved the new loan agreement, which will grant $973 million to the project over a 15-year period. The funds are sorely needed in Nigeria, where transport and power networks have been holding back economic growth for decades, and the government has been unable to get the funds from Chinese lenders.
🇰🇪 Kenya's Space-High Ambitions | Kenya is set to make history next week with the launch of its first-ever earth observation satellite, Nation-1 or Taifa-1, aboard the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from the Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. Kenyan engineers, in collaboration with a Bulgarian aerospace manufacturer, designed and developed the satellite to provide data for use in agriculture, food security, and environmental management. The mission is a helpful accomplishment for the country, which is suffering its worst drought in decades after five failed rain seasons.
FOOD FOR THOUGHT
Proverb of the Day
“It is better to be poor when one is young, rather than becoming poor at old age.”
— Kenyan Proverb.