How to break into Castel’s moat? Well, you undercut its prices. This seems to be Heineken’s strategy in Ivory Coast, where the Dutch brewer opened its first brewery near the capital of Abidjan in November 2016.

Who was the practical joker who uploaded this video on Youtube on 6 October 2016 – the day SABMiller was taken off the stock exchange following its takeover by AB-InBev?

As could be expected, The Coca-Cola Company said on 10 October 2016 that it plans to buy AB-InBev’s stake in Coke's largest African bottler. Coke exercised its right to acquire the bottler under a change-of-control clause.

Never mind the Ethiopian government declaring a six-month state of emergency on 8 October 2016, beer companies still place great hopes on beer consumption going up at the Horn of Africa.

There were not many compelling reasons for AB-InBev to take over SABMiller, except for one: AB-InBev wanted SABMiller’s African business. If projections hold true, the African continent with its 1.2 billion people will become a critical driver for the future growth of AB-InBev’s business. Between 2015 and 2025 beer volumes in Africa are expected to rise over 30 million hl to reach to 175 million hl. With global beer volumes in decline since 2013 all hopes now rest on Africa to replace China as the driving force in the brewing industry. Imagine that: brewers will be saved by Africa, a continent that has long struggled to shake off its image as ‘lost’.

Heineken’s introduction of Sol Mexican lager to South Africa in September 2016 forms part of a plan to boost its market share in a country soon to be dominated by AB-InBev. Fearing that AB-InBev may bring with it Corona Extra plus a host of other international brands, Heineken decided to be the first to offer a Mexican beer.

A shortage of foreign currency has forced Guinness Nigeria, which is majority-owned by Diageo, to ask the drinks maker for a USD 95 million loan. The loan became necessary because Nigeria is in recession due to a slump in oil prices, which has hurt its currency and government revenues.

All things considered, Carlsberg’s investment in Malawi would not have given the Danish a lot of joy over the years. In fact, it must have been a near-disaster because it remained Carlsberg’s sole investment in Africa. Today, it is listed under the group’s Asian businesses.

While over in the US craft brewers are eying the impending merger of AB-InBev and SABMiller warily, craft brewers in South Africa are genuinely worried. Although SABMiller controls nearly 90 percent of the local market, it has proved a friendly competitor, essentially refraining from throwing its weight around. How craft brewers will fare once the Brazilians take over is a much debated topic these days. Will they come in and start buying up breweries as they have in the US, or will they try to nip the local craft beer industry in the bud to ensure it never poses a threat to their business?

Perhaps it was a mistake to club Africa, the Middle East and eastern Europe into one unit. All these markets appear to be in trouble. Heineken reported on 1 August 2016 that second-quarter beer volumes dipped 5.9 percent on an organic basis across Africa, the Middle East and eastern Europe, hurt by a weakening environment in Russia and Nigeria, where low oil prices and falling currencies are denting growth.