Supporting clients operating in the CEMAC region, trusted legal adviser Daoudou Mohammad has been appointed as Director of Tax&Legal at CLG’s Pointe-Noire office (www.CLGGlobal.com). Mohammad brings a wealth of demonstrated expertise that will be instrumental to the law firm’s Africa-wide practices, as the Republic of Congo and wider Central African region sees rapid growth in the energy sector.  

Mohammad holds over 15 years of experience in business and tax law, developing a solid competence in handling complex legal issues and providing effective client support. Prior to joining CLG, Mohammad served as Senior Manager at PwC’s Tax&Legal Department in Pointe-Noire, managing the tax and legal coordination center for Francophone African countries, supervising quality and risk management operations, ensuring legal due diligence and supervising restructuring operations for groups of companies – including mergers and acquisitions and company transfers – among other key responsibilities.

Having also held a managerial role at PwC’s South Africa office, Mohammad maintains an in-depth knowledge of different international systems and compliance with the highest standards of practice and service delivery, adapting to varied legal and cultural environments. Specializing in business, tax and labor law, as well as foreign exchange regulations and intellectual property, his multidisciplinary background represents a major asset to CLG and will enable the provision of integrated solutions to client needs and up-to-date advice on the latest legislative and regulatory developments. Mohammad holds a dual Master’s Degree in Intellectual Property Law and Business Law from Cameroon’s University of Yaoundé II.

The Republic of Congo is in the midst of a major investment drive, as it aims to accelerate oil and gas exploration and transform into a major LNG hub on the back of multiple large-scale LNG export projects and new exploration and appraisal drilling activities. To attract further investment and streamline regulatory processes, the country is launching a comprehensive gas code, recently approved a new Gas Master Plan led by national oil company Société nationale des pétroles du Congo, and plans to establish a dedicated national gas company. As a result, specialized tax, legal and regulatory advisory expertise is needed by companies operating in the Congo to navigate evolving energy sector legislation. 

CLG represents an experienced team of legal professionals, offering an in-depth understanding of African markets and a flexible and innovative approach to meeting the diverse needs of its clients. Serving as the preferred professional services partner in Africa, CLG is equipped to offer on-the-ground support across multiple sectors and has a rich history of spearheading transformative oil and gas transactions across the continent, providing top-tier legal services and strategic advice to clients across the energy spectrum, and guiding clients through complex regulatory landscapes and contractual negotiations. In addition to the Republic of Congo, CLG operates in South Africa, Nigeria, South Sudan, Mauritius, Ghana, Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, Mozambique and Germany.     

“Navigating local laws, including taxation on oil and gas revenues, production-sharing agreements, and environmental regulations, demands thorough understanding to ensure compliance and optimize returns. We are excited to have Daoudou Mohammad head up CLG’s tax and legal services in Pointe-Noire, who offers expert guidance on mitigating risks, avoiding costly legal disputes, and ensuring that investments are structured to meet both local obligations and international standards,” states Zion Adeoye, CEO of CLG.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of CLG.

The President of the Republic of Liberia, His Excellency Joseph N. Boakai, Sr., has issued a proclamation to extend the special regular session of the 55th legislature for a period of one (1) week commencing Friday, September 20, 2024 and ending Thursday, September 26, 2024 to discuss and act upon critical national issues amongst which is the recast National Budget of the Republic of Liberia. According to a Foreign Ministry release, the proclamation is in accordance with Article 32(b) of the constitution of the Republic of Liberia, which provides that the President shall, on the President’s own initiative or upon receipt of a certificate signed by at least one-fourth of the total membership of each house and by proclamation extend a regular section of the legislature beyond the date of adjournment or call a special section of that body to discuss or act upon matters of national emergency and concern.

The proclamation states that during the special session these critical national issues including the Recast Budget were not fully resolved, and cannot await the return of the Legislature in October 2024, thereby prompting the legislature to again laid before the President another Certificate signed at by at least one-fourth of the total membership of each House to extend the special session in order to resolve those issues including the recast Budget. The proclamation concludes “Now, Therefore, I, Joseph Nyuma Boakai, SR. President of the Republic of Liberia, by virtue of the Authority in me vested, do hereby issue this proclamation extending the special regular section of the 55th legislature for a period of one (1) week, commencing Friday, September 20, 2024, and ending Thursday, September 26, 2024.”

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Liberia.

On 19 September 2024, Ambassador Han Jing met with Hon. Mwabashike Nkulukusa, Minister of Central Province of Zambia.

Ambassador Han said that during the 2024 Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC), President Xi Jinping announced ten partnership actions that China would take with Africa to advance modernization in the next three years, which provided broad opportunities for deepening China-Zambia cooperation. Under the strategic guidance of the two Heads of State, China-Zambia relations have reached a new level. It was hoped that the two countries take the opportunity of the establishment of sister province relationship between Jiangxi Province and Central Province to further promote cooperation in various fields within the framework of FOCAC.

Minister Nkurukusa said that Zambia and China have enjoyed a profound traditional friendship and thanked China for its long-term support for Zambia. Central Province has huge potential for development in agriculture, mining and tourism. The Zambia-Jiangxi Economic Cooperation Zone has been successfully operating since last year. Chinese companies are welcome to invest and start businesses in Central Province.

Minister Nkurukusa handed over to Ambassador Han the signed text of Agreement on the Establishment of Sister Province Relationship between Central Province of the Republic of Zambia and Jiangxi Province of the People’s Republic of China.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in the Republic of Zambia.

On the last day of the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) 2024 Provincial Week Programme, the Eastern Cape’s Permanent Delegates to the NCOP expressed their displeasure with the rising number of delayed infrastructure development projects in the province.

The delegation reiterated this displeasure during the last day of its week-long oversight visit to the selected infrastructure projects in the Chris Hani District Municipality as part of the NCOP’s Provincial Week Programme. The delayed projects included Fikile Gwadana Road, Louis Rex Primary School and the Komani Economic Industrial Park.

The delegation heard that the newly established Queenstown Economic Industrial Area project started on 14 February 2022 and was expected to be completed on 13 February 2023. However, due to a court action, the project was delayed for eleven months, from August 2022 to July 2023. The new completion date was 30 September 2024, but the project is still far from completion, mainly due to budgetary constraints.

The Louis Rex Primary School in the Enoch Mgijima Local Municipality has 33 prefabricated temporary classes. The project, which is at 54% completion, encountered a delay mainly due to poor performance by the first contractor.

The school’s principal informed the delegation that the school is overcrowded and has no recreational facilities, school clerk, staff room, or security guards. As a result, the school is vulnerable to all forms of crime emerging in the region, including extortion.

The Komani Industrial Park, situated within the greater Komani urban area, comprises two existing industrial areas of Queendustria and Ezibeleni township and is one of the district’s economic hopes.

The delegation heard that the park is faced with problems that include relocation of investors due to, among other things, water shortage, insufficient electricity supply, lack of ICT connectivity, insecurity, and lack of funding for park operations.

The delegation called on the leaders of the district and local municipalities where these projects exist to ensure that all of them are resuscitated and accordingly budgeted for so that they can be completed.

The leader of the delegation, Chief Mwelo Nonkonyana, said, “It is high time that we commit ourselves to salvaging the situation. Let us engage all the roleplayers to ensure that all these projects become alive and the objectives for which they were planned are fulfilled.”

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Republic of South Africa: The Parliament.