Frontier Markets News

The tiny East African nation of Djibouti plays an outsize role in tackling conflicts and crises in the Horn of Africa region. We talk to Mohamed Siad Doualeh, Djibouti’s ambassador to the US, about Djibouti’s responsibility as a peacemaker in the Horn of Africa region, and its determination to expand its role as a trade and diplomatic hub. 

All of Africa will benefit if the region’s problems can be solved, Doualeh says. “Africa is losing billions of dollars a year to conflict, and it’s high time we turned that around.”

There’s no doubt South Africa is in the midst of a crisis. But how deep is it? According to John Steenhuisen, the head of the country’s leading opposition party, it’s existential.

Steenhuisen explains to FMN why the need for South Africa to repair and enhance its weakening relationships with traditional partners such as the US and the European Union is so urgent, and why his party — which by his own admission has no chance of forming a majority government in next year’s general election — is working to build a coalition that can break the long-ruling African National Congress party's stranglehold on power. Even if that means partnering with the ANC itself.

At stake: South Africa’s relationship with the West, its appeal to foreign investors and the welfare of its 60 million people.

Charlie Robertson, chief global economist at frontier- and EM-focused Renaissance Capital, joins us to dig into the new Saudi story, whether emerging markets investors got a bit too excited early this year, how long we can expect the dollar to retain its primacy and when African nations will reach escape velocity. 

Charlie also spills the beans on questions he’s asking about his own portfolio. Should he go ex-China? Listen on to find out.

If you’re wondering whether the blistering rally in emerging markets assets can continue, fear not! Razia Khan, chief economist for Africa and the Middle East at Standard Chartered bank, has the answer. She also deciphers what’s been happening with African debt, drills into Zambia’s prospects, flags some good news from Angola … and, while she scrupulously doesn’t frame it as such, she also has some very helpful advice for Nigeria’s leading presidential candidates. 

Curious about Africa’s prospects? Listen on! You might hear something like this: “Despite all the shocks, there is still a growth dynamic in Africa that is surprising positively.”

Green bonds as a leading indicator for credit upgrades, reform stories in Indonesia, Vietnam, Saudi Arabia and beyond, a look at what’s coming down the pike for Pakistan (as well as what it can learn from Egypt) and a few tips for investors looking for that hidden gem, off the beaten path. Spoiler alert: It might be Oman. 

Matt Vogel, Head Strategist and Portfolio Manager at frontier- and emerging-markets fund manager FIM Partners, shares his thoughts on the promises and pitfalls facing frontier and growth market investors in 2023.

As frontier markets find themselves—and in some cases place themselves—at the heart of some of the most important challenges the planet and the world’s economies are facing, investors are seeing new opportunities that simply couldn't have existed just a few years ago. We meet up with pioneering frontier-markets investor Alison Graham of Voltan Capital Management to talk about digitizing supply chains, the management of waste, tackling climate change … and blockchain. Cutting edge stuff, indeed!

Tina Jabeen left a cushy job at a venture capital firm in Silicon Valley to help startups and women entrepreneurs in Bangladesh build their businesses. Six years later, she describes a thriving startup ecosystem supported by investments from some of the world's biggest and most successful venture capitalists. 

With decades of experience as an investor and years of academic research under his belt, Marshall Stocker, co-head of emerging markets debt at Morgan Stanley, has pinpointed how changes in economic freedom correlate with potential investment performance. Along the way he’s learned a thing or two about the power investing can have — and how to wield that power responsibly.

After three brutal years that saw Sri Lanka battered by global forces and crippled by self-inflicted wounds, the South Asian island nation could be poised for recovery. Asia Frontier Capital’s Ruchir Desai and Auerbach Grayson’s Abhijit Kukreji join FMN host Dan Keeler to discuss the prospects for the former frontier-investor darling.

Capital Economics’ chief emerging markets economist William Jackson shares his thoughts on what 2023 will serve up. Spoiler alert: Frontier and emerging markets might recover before the West sees a turnaround.