Next Africa: Fugitive Brothers From India Flourish in Nigeria
By
William Clowes+Follow
6 June 2023 at 14:26 CEST
Your’re reading Next Africa.
The ambitions of a continent of 1.3 billion — all in one place, delivered to your inbox twice a week.EmailBloomberg may send me offers and promotions.
By submitting my information, I agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Service.
Welcome to Next Africa, a twice-weekly newsletter on where the continent stands now — and where it’s headed.
Companies founded by Indian brothers have become the largest exporters of crude from Nigeria other than energy giants like Shell and Exxon Mobil, even as New Delhi pursues them as alleged criminals.
Nitin and Chetan Sandesara built a group over almost two decades that pumps about 50,000 barrels of oil a day from two onshore licenses and now aims to double that output with a third permit.
One of their firms is also the state’s key partner in a development launched last November to bring commercial oil production to northern Nigeria for the first time — a pet project of former President Muhammadu Buhari who stepped down last week.
His successor, Bola Tinubu, also praised the initiative, saying the “discovery will provide a multiplicity of opportunity and great prosperity” for Africa’s largest crude producer.
Yet, the authorities back home in India take a far less rosy view of the brothers’ track record.
That country’s top investigating agency accuses them of absconding after defrauding public banks of more than $1.7 billion and filed charges in 2019. It’s “one of the largest economic scams in the country,” according to the Central Bureau of Investigation.
From the 1980s in India, the brothers transformed a family tea-trading business into a conglomerate spanning oil and gas, health care, construction and engineering. They also owned one of the world’s largest manufacturers of pharmaceutical-grade gelatin that was sold last year in a deal approved by India’s bankruptcy court.
The tycoons — who left the South Asian nation six years ago — deny cheating their lenders and say they wanted to reach a settlement with the banks. They argue that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government is waging a political vendetta against them.
While their troubles in India are showing no signs of abating, the brothers’ ties in the West African nation are deepening, and their fortunes growing.
Click here to listen to a podcast about how the Indian brothers are flourishing in Nigeria.
News Roundup
A Nigerian industrial court barred the country’s main labor union from stopping work to protest the removal of gasoline subsidies that cost the government $10 billion last year. The authorities had urged the industrial court to prevent the Nigerian Labour Congress, an umbrella union of civil servants and public sector workers, from withdrawing their services because it is capable of “disrupting economic activities, the health and education sector.”
Ghana’s presidential election next year presents a test for whether the government will stick to economic reforms outlined under a $3 billion International Monetary Fund bailout package. The vote scheduled for December 2024 will come about midway through the three-year program. “One of the weaknesses in Ghana over the years has been these election-related spending cycles,” Abebe Selassie, who heads the IMF’s Africa Department, said. “That I think has done a lot to undermine confidence in public accounts in Ghana.”
Nelson Mugisha’s community near the shores of Uganda’s Lake Albert is lush — and woefully underdeveloped. Now, more than 15 years after oil was discovered in the area, a $4 billion pipeline project promises to change everything. The consortium behind it — including the Ugandan and Tanzanian governments, TotalEnergies and Cnooc — say the pipeline will create jobs and generate revenues. Opponents, including Ugandan activists, European Parliament members and environmental groups, argue it will destroy delicate ecosystems.
Malaria is preventable and curable, yet nearly half the world’s population remains at risk of catching the mosquito-borne disease. In Africa, which accounted for 95% of the 247 million global cases in 2021, bed nets and indoor spraying of insecticide are the primary tools to curb infections. New vaccines are also being used. Entrepreneur Arnon Houri-Yafin says policymakers should pursue an additional approach: Stop the bugs from reproducing in the first place with the help of a mobile app.
At least 15 people were killed as protesters clashed with police in Senegal after a Dakar court sentenced popular opposition leader Ousmane Sonko to two years in prison. Stores were looted and torched in some of the most violent protests since President Macky Sall came to power in 2012. On Friday, the government deployed the army in an attempt to curb the violence. Soldiers could be seen along Dakar’s seaside embankment and outside French-owned Auchan supermarkets.
Chart of the Week
Industries Behind South Africa’s 1Q Economic Growth
Food & beverages made the largest positive contribution to manufacturing
Source: Statistics South Africa
South Africa’s economy escaped recession in the first quarter and is once again bigger than before the coronavirus pandemic hit, as most sectors grew. Gross domestic product expanded 0.4% in the three months through March, after contracting a revised 1.1% in the previous quarter. The economy’s lackluster performance was largely due to record power cuts and the prospects for the rest of the year remain bleak.
— With assistance by Gordon Bell and Monique Vanek
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Next Africa: Fugitive Brothers From India Flourish in Nigeria
By
William Clowes+Follow
6 June 2023 at 14:26 CEST
Your’re reading Next Africa.
The ambitions of a continent of 1.3 billion — all in one place, delivered to your inbox twice a week.EmailBloomberg may send me offers and promotions.
By submitting my information, I agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Service.
Welcome to Next Africa, a twice-weekly newsletter on where the continent stands now — and where it’s headed.
Companies founded by Indian brothers have become the largest exporters of crude from Nigeria other than energy giants like Shell and Exxon Mobil, even as New Delhi pursues them as alleged criminals.
Nitin and Chetan Sandesara built a group over almost two decades that pumps about 50,000 barrels of oil a day from two onshore licenses and now aims to double that output with a third permit.
One of their firms is also the state’s key partner in a development launched last November to bring commercial oil production to northern Nigeria for the first time — a pet project of former President Muhammadu Buhari who stepped down last week.
His successor, Bola Tinubu, also praised the initiative, saying the “discovery will provide a multiplicity of opportunity and great prosperity” for Africa’s largest crude producer.
Yet, the authorities back home in India take a far less rosy view of the brothers’ track record.
That country’s top investigating agency accuses them of absconding after defrauding public banks of more than $1.7 billion and filed charges in 2019. It’s “one of the largest economic scams in the country,” according to the Central Bureau of Investigation.
From the 1980s in India, the brothers transformed a family tea-trading business into a conglomerate spanning oil and gas, health care, construction and engineering. They also owned one of the world’s largest manufacturers of pharmaceutical-grade gelatin that was sold last year in a deal approved by India’s bankruptcy court.
The tycoons — who left the South Asian nation six years ago — deny cheating their lenders and say they wanted to reach a settlement with the banks. They argue that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government is waging a political vendetta against them.
While their troubles in India are showing no signs of abating, the brothers’ ties in the West African nation are deepening, and their fortunes growing.
Click here to listen to a podcast about how the Indian brothers are flourishing in Nigeria.
News Roundup
A Nigerian industrial court barred the country’s main labor union from stopping work to protest the removal of gasoline subsidies that cost the government $10 billion last year. The authorities had urged the industrial court to prevent the Nigerian Labour Congress, an umbrella union of civil servants and public sector workers, from withdrawing their services because it is capable of “disrupting economic activities, the health and education sector.”
Ghana’s presidential election next year presents a test for whether the government will stick to economic reforms outlined under a $3 billion International Monetary Fund bailout package. The vote scheduled for December 2024 will come about midway through the three-year program. “One of the weaknesses in Ghana over the years has been these election-related spending cycles,” Abebe Selassie, who heads the IMF’s Africa Department, said. “That I think has done a lot to undermine confidence in public accounts in Ghana.”
Nelson Mugisha’s community near the shores of Uganda’s Lake Albert is lush — and woefully underdeveloped. Now, more than 15 years after oil was discovered in the area, a $4 billion pipeline project promises to change everything. The consortium behind it — including the Ugandan and Tanzanian governments, TotalEnergies and Cnooc — say the pipeline will create jobs and generate revenues. Opponents, including Ugandan activists, European Parliament members and environmental groups, argue it will destroy delicate ecosystems.
Malaria is preventable and curable, yet nearly half the world’s population remains at risk of catching the mosquito-borne disease. In Africa, which accounted for 95% of the 247 million global cases in 2021, bed nets and indoor spraying of insecticide are the primary tools to curb infections. New vaccines are also being used. Entrepreneur Arnon Houri-Yafin says policymakers should pursue an additional approach: Stop the bugs from reproducing in the first place with the help of a mobile app.
At least 15 people were killed as protesters clashed with police in Senegal after a Dakar court sentenced popular opposition leader Ousmane Sonko to two years in prison. Stores were looted and torched in some of the most violent protests since President Macky Sall came to power in 2012. On Friday, the government deployed the army in an attempt to curb the violence. Soldiers could be seen along Dakar’s seaside embankment and outside French-owned Auchan supermarkets.
Chart of the Week
Industries Behind South Africa’s 1Q Economic Growth
Food & beverages made the largest positive contribution to manufacturing
Source: Statistics South Africa
South Africa’s economy escaped recession in the first quarter and is once again bigger than before the coronavirus pandemic hit, as most sectors grew. Gross domestic product expanded 0.4% in the three months through March, after contracting a revised 1.1% in the previous quarter. The economy’s lackluster performance was largely due to record power cuts and the prospects for the rest of the year remain bleak.
— With assistance by Gordon Bell and Monique Vanek
Share this article
Gift this article
Subscriber Benefit
Bloomberg subscribers can gift up to 5 articles a month for anyone to read, even non-subscribers! Learn more
SubscribeSign In
Have a confidential tip for our reporters?Get in touchBefore it’s here, it’s on theBloomberg Terminal
Up Next
Will Putin Win the War in Ukraine? The Russian Elite Isn’t Convinced
Copy Link
More from Bloomberg
Americans Are Leaving Portugal as Golden Visa Honeymoon EndsDonald Trump Charged in Florida Over Secret Documents CaseRussian Elite Is Souring on Putin’s Chances of Winning His War
Leaving New York for Miami Can Save Nearly $200,000
Top Reads
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