Category: Country Reports
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August 2024
1st August 2024 Apart from Prime Ministers, things rarely change in Pakistan … but we are seeing a slight shift. The Supreme Court is beginning to put the law first and forced loyalty second. Recent rulings by the highest judges in the land have, unusually, gone against the will of the military, favouring the people…
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August 2024
This month’s news cycle was dominated by the student-led protests for quota reforms in government jobs, which ultimately turned deadly and underscored a dark few days in the country’s history. The economy took a backseat in the face of the aforementioned event, but many sectors were hurt by the curfews and internet blackouts.…… Read the…
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August 2024
This is the summer of sport. World leaders headed to Paris for the Olympic Games and were filmed sitting in the rain looking less than impressed with the festivities. President Tokayev, however, chose to stay home and dry. His office said his “working schedule… does not provide for his participation”. This is a good cover…
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August 2024
Overview. Israel’s recent actions against her foes in Lebanon, Iran, and Yemen are making Egypt, and others, nervous. President Sisi and his government are watching developments on their border with Israel closely. There remains real prospect for a significant escalation between Israel and Hezbollah, and perhaps the only thing holding Netanyahu back is his domestic…
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July 2024
Overview. The first round of the presidential election took place on 28th June, with a further round of voting now set for 5th July after no candidate won 50% of the vote. The second round will see surprise reformist Masoud Pezeshkian compete against arch hardliner Saeed Jalili; they polled 43% and 39% respectively.…… Read the…
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July 2024
June was a busy month in Bangladesh, with the celebration of the ruling party Awami League’s 75th The main opposition party, BNP, have accused the ruling party of providing shelter to corrupt individuals. On the economic front, there was the announcement of a record USD 68 billion budget for the next fiscal year.…… Read the…
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July 2024
Kazakhstan is opening the door, to what President Tokayev describes as “new oil”, and going after mineral mining investment and is actively drawing up a plan for the development of this extremely lucrative sector. At the same time, stronger and stronger trade ties with China and other neighbours are bringing optimism right across the board.………
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July 2024
Overview. Egyptians are sitting in the dark – literally – about what comes next. All eyes look to Israel and what it will do next. The worry of an escalation of violence and fighting on the nation’s doorstep is keeping people glued to their chosen news sources. This is good for President Sisi.…… Read the…
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July 2024
We see nothing but a positive outlook when looking at inflation figures and investment trends. President Hassan’s government encounters the occasional bump in the road as it pushes on with its investment initiatives, strategic reform and taxation reforms but nothing that cannot be overcome appears to be on the horizon at this time.…… Read the…
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June 2024
May was a relatively stable month politically. On the economic front, the government’s GDP growth calculations show a GDP growth rate of 5.82% for the current fiscal year, which is around the estimations of international financial institutions such as the World Bank and the IMF. The central bank has also stopped regulating lending rates for…