Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi militants have disturbed global trade with attacks on commercial ships in the Red Sea. One African country has been playing a major role in Western allies efforts to contain those attacks.

This week on the Next Africa Podcast Jennifer Zabasajja and Simon Marks discuss why Djibouti's strategic importance in the region is providing the country with an economic boost.

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Crypto mining is an energy-intensive process. So miners are always on the lookout for the best place to operate. The United States and Hong Kong are known hosts for mining. But lately another country stands out: Ethiopia.

On this week’s Next Africa Podcast, host Jennifer Zabasajja speaks with Bloomberg’s reporter Fasika Tadesse about how Ethiopia is now seen as a growth market in the crypto industry - especially for Chinese miners. A move that is not welcomed by everyone in the country.

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This week on the Next Africa podcast we look at the recent introduction of a new currency in Zimbabwe, the ZiG. This is the country's sixth attempt to have a functional local currency since 2008 when inflation crossing 231 million percent left it worthless. Bloomberg's Harare based reporter Ray Ndlovu joins host Jennifer Zabasajja to discuss if Zimbabwe may have finally struck gold with the ZiG.

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In 1994 apartheid in South Africa ended and Nelson Mandela led the ANC to a historic democratic victory. Thirty years on, the party which has ruled the country ever since, could be about to lose it's grip on power. Our South Africa Government Reporter S'thembile Cele joins host Jennifer Zabasajja to discuss how decades of scandals, corruption and internal fights have eroded support for a party which was once the default option for many.

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Over the past few weeks, cocoa prices have jumped to reach unprecedent levels. On the first episode of the Next Africa podcast, Bloomberg's Jennifer Zabasajja and Mumbi Gitau look into the reasons behind the surge and what it means for African farmers, the chocolate industry and the consumers. 

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