Electric Mobility Investment: Spiro secured over $270m in fresh funding to scale electric mobility across Africa, including a $55m investment from China’s NewTrails Capital, as it expands EV rollout and smart battery-swap infrastructure in markets that include Benin. Power & Grid Reliability: Traders and residents near Edo’s Egor market narrowly escaped death after TCN transmission lines exploded and caught fire, triggering voltage instability and outages that briefly disrupted electricity supply to the Lagos corridor. Elections & Voter Registration: INEC stepped up Continuous Voter Registration sensitisation in Benin City markets ahead of the July 10 deadline for the third phase, urging eligible residents and PVC holders to register or resolve card issues. Agribusiness Exports: Benin pineapple exporters extended shipments later into the year due to unusually strong European demand, after earlier export delays linked to dry-matter compliance checks. Water & Regional Planning: The AfDB is set to fund preparation of bankable water projects for the transboundary Mono River basin shared by Togo and Benin, supporting ecosystem restoration and future investment pipelines. Governance & Oversight: The ICC judges’ latest legal push against US sanctions highlights wider financial and travel restrictions affecting officials, including Benin’s Reine Alapini-Gansou.