Current Events

The Department of Trade, Industry and Competition (the “DITC”) has issued guidelines for companies performing essential services to continue operations during the extended lockdown period, in accordance with the Disaster Management Act, 2002 (Act No. 57 of 2002) (the “Act”).

The guidelines provide as follows:

  • Only essential service providers registered in

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As a complement to our March 26, 2020 blog “Covington’s Ability to Help Respond to the COVID-19 Pandemic in Africa,” you may access the audio of our briefing call here.

Key takeaways from the briefing can be accessed here.

With African governments increasingly taking strong actions to impede the spread of the COVID-19 virus,

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South Africa did not record the first case of Covid-19 in Africa, but it now has the highest number of reported cases on the continent.

Having had the benefit of watching governments respond to the outbreak of the pandemic in Asia, Europe and the United States, President Cyril Ramaphosa on March 15, 2020, with only…

The Minister of Trade, Industry and Competition, Ebrahim Patel, has announced that all businesses permitted to provide ‘essential services’ during the national lockdown period in South Africa must first seek approval from the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition (the “DTIC”). If obtained, the approval enables a business to operate during the mandatory…

With African governments increasingly taking strong actions to impede the spread of the COVID-19 virus – including in a number of jurisdictions, imposing full lockdowns – we are able to provide assistance to our clients, financial institutions, developmental finance organizations, companies and organizations on the continent. We are available to get on a call at…

The Coronavirus (hereinafter “COVID-19”) is upending lives around the world—equally in developed and developing countries. Some are already affected by the deadly impact of COVID-19 (e.g. China, Italy, and France), while others’ lives have been altered due to efforts taken to “flatten the curve,” to ensure hospital systems are not overrun with patients…

Reports project that given current activities, the world will exceed the threshold for dangerous climate change in 2030. To address this forecast, 196 States plus the European Union met in Madrid, Spain in December 2019 for COP 25—the 25th session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate…

Commencement of the AfCFTA. The landmark African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) is slated to go into force on July 1, 2020. When fully implemented, the trade agreement will eliminate tariff and non-tariff barriers, and substantially increase intra-regional trade to volumes worth over $3.3 trillion. Twenty-nine countries have deposited their instruments of ratification, and Eritrea…

Fires have ravaged Brazil’s Amazon rainforest, burning over 1,330 square miles of tree cover, and placing people, wildlife, and their habitats at risk. Experts warn that further degradation could inhibit the forest’s ability to release oxygen and absorb heat-trapping carbon dioxide—a key function for combatting climate change.

The fires in the Amazon…