Nordgold opens Bissa mine in Burkina Faso

BISSA, BURKINA FASO — Just 15 months after starting construction, Nordgold (NORD-L) has entered production at its Bissa open-pit gold mine in Burkina Faso, located in the rural commune of Sabce, 100 km north of the capital Ouagadougou.

The mid-tier Russian gold miner had an opening ceremony at Bissa in mid-January, attended by Nordgold executives and officials from the Burkinabé government, including Prime Minister Luc-Adolphe Tiao.

Nordgold expects the US$250-million mine to produce 100,000 oz. gold this year and ramp-up to 150,000 to 200,000 oz. gold annually when it reaches peak annual production of 4 million tonnes over the next few years. Mine life is set at a minimum 10 years.

The mine is comprised of five open pits spread over 5.5 km of the northeast-trending mineralized zone, near a national highway. The majority of the Bissa ore is weathered saprolite under a layer of laterite, all of which is relatively easy to mine and process.

The 12,000-tonne-per-day mill uses crushing, semi-autogenous grinding and ball milling and conventional carbon-in-leach recovery. The total workforce is 590 people.

The mine has been built according to the most advanced engin­eering and safety standards, Nordgold’s CEO Nikolai Zelensky said at the ceremony. “Bissa will be one of our largest production facilities, and a vital part of Nordgold’s international expansion strategy.”

Nordgold chairman Philip Baum echoed that sentiment, saying that Bissa’s first gold is “an important milestone for us . . . it clearly demonstrates our team’s ability to develop these significant projects.”

According to an April 24, 2012, press release, as of January 2012, proven and probable reserves at Bissa were 29 million tonnes grading 1.83 grams gold per tonne, for 1.7 million contained oz. gold. A further 75.8 million tonnes at 1.23 grams gold stood in the measured-and-indicated resource category for 3 million contained oz. gold, while another 63.3 million tonnes at 0.95 gram gold were classified as inferred, for 1.9 million contained oz. gold. That’s a hefty 6.6 million contained oz. gold in total.

High level Microsoft executive to visit Ghana

The world’s largest software and programme developer, the Microsoft Corporation, has confirmed its Senior Vice President in charge of Corporate Business, Ali Famamwy, will pay a day’s working visit to Ghana on March 4, 2013.

Mr Famamwy’s visit will be at the invitation of rlg Communications Limited, the pioneer ICT devices assembler in Africa based in Ghana.

While in the country, Mr Famamwy will be the Guest of Honour at the official Sod Cutting Ceremony for the multi-million dollar ICT Park to be known as the Hope City in Accra next month.

He will also pay courtesy call on President John Mahama at the Flagstaff House.

The Hope City Project is an integrated village with facilities for housing, ICT, recreation, business and much more and is expected to create jobs for about 50,000 people, directly and indirectly.

In August last year, Microsoft and rlg signed an agreement which allows rlg phones and computers to run on Microsoft Windows.

The influential business magazine Forbes described the rlg-Microsoft deal as a “partnership of the future.”

The deal also granted rlg Original Equipment Manufacturing (OEM) status, making it one of the few such organizations in Africa.

“This visit by a very senior official of Microsoft excites us because it reaffirms the growing trust and confidence the international community is reposing in us,” said Roland Agambire, Founder & Chief Executive of rlg Communications Ltd.

Liberia Vows to End Violence Against Women

DAKAR — In the lead up to Women’s Day, on March 8, Liberia has become the latest nation to sign a pledge to end violence against women and girls. In Dakar, the human-rights group U.N. Women says nearly 100 countries have no specific legal provisions against domestic violence.

A 45-year-old housewife from Monrovia, Lucy Morris, says violence against women is a serious problem in Liberia.

“Many of us are beaten by our husbands.  My husband beats me almost every time.  He hurts me a lot.  I have taken the complaints to the female [rights] lawyer and they have called him for an investigation, but this is still happening," she said.

Morris is not alone.

The latest data from the World Health Organization (WHO) show 33 percent of married women in Liberia have reported experiencing domestic violence.  Up to 77 percent of Liberian women say they have been the victim of sexual violence.

Human rights groups say it is likely these numbers are even higher, as many of the cases go unreported.

Liberian Ministry of Gender and Development spokesperson Smith Toby says Liberia has laws in place against both domestic violence and rape, but many cases are never prosecuted.

Guinea-Bissau, Guinea and Sierra Leone: Tired of war

THE HEADLIGHTS OF the bus pick out the wet figure of a soldier with a gun over his shoulder standing among droopy bushes at the first checkpoint after the border. He hurries out of the rain into the warm bus and almost as an afterthought announces he will escort it on the short journey through his country. “We will make a stop,” he says, “but nobody can get off.”

A few days earlier a group of military officers had seized power in Guinea-Bissau. This was nothing unusual: the tiny country of 1.5m has seen five coups in the past decade. No president has served a full term since independence from Portugal in 1974. But this rarely poses a problem for buses from Senegal to Guinea, the country’s bigger neighbours, and then on to Sierra Leone and Liberia. The only change to the schedule today is that at the regular stop in the capital, Bissau, passengers may get on but not off.

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The soldier wrings out his cap and says he is sorry for the inconvenience: “You know how it is.” The locals nod, then start to harangue him. One shouts, “It’s your fault it’s raining.” The passengers laugh. They blame the unruly armed forces for the lack of development. The occasional killings are bad enough, says the driver, but the corruption is even worse.

Political violence has undermined state institutions, kept away foreign investment, crippled health care and education and increased inequality. Guinea-Bissau fits the picture of an African state rendered dysfunctional by violent disorder.

Yet that picture has become less common. Several big conflicts across the continent have died down. In the past decade or so Angolans stopped fighting after half a million people died and Chad lapsed into peace after four civil wars. In Ethiopia and Mozambique wars ended a decade earlier. Violence is broadly in decline, even if it does not always feel that way.

The Small Arms Survey, a Swiss research project, says that measured by the number of violent deaths per person (including in wars) only two African countries rank among the world’s leading ten, South Africa and Lesotho—though there may be some under-reporting. The number of armed conflicts in Africa has steadily declined from at least 30 at the end of the cold war to little more than a dozen today; the number of successful coups fell by two-thirds in the same period. In 2000 Robert Kaplan, an American commentator, predicted in a book called “The Coming Anarchy” that places like Africa would sink ever deeper into a violent morass. He was wrong.

Three major conflicts (defined by the Nordic Africa Institute in Uppsala, Sweden, as those with more than 1,000 deaths a year) continue, but even they may be getting closer to a peaceful resolution. Sudan is slowly sorting itself out after the south’s secession in 2011. Congo’s east remains violent, but elsewhere the country’s main concern is poverty not war. In Somalia a coalition of international forces has brought peace to the capital, Mogadishu, for the first time in many years: building sites now outnumber bomb sites. Admittedly a new cluster of conflicts has sprung up around the Sahara. Islamic extremists are defying governments in Mali and elsewhere, but regional and Western powers are belatedly fighting back.

DR Congo rebels had 'external support' for offensive: UN

UN leader Ban Ki-moon renewed claims Tuesday that rebels in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo have had "external support" and warned that conflict could erupt again.
Ban's latest report on DR Congo to the UN Security Council did not single out any country for backing the M23 rebels, who briefly seized the main eastern city of Goma in November.
But UN experts have said the rebels were aided by Rwanda and Uganda, and Ban said the group conscripted child soldiers in Rwanda. Both countries have strongly denied involvement in the uprising against the DR Congo government.
Government soldiers and troops from the UN mission, MONUSCO, held back M23's first attack on Goma, and Ban said the group's second attempt showed clear evidence of outside help.

"The subsequent speed, efficiency and success of the renewed M23 offensive were rendered possible by a sudden increase in the group's combatants, coordinated multi-pronged attacks, and attacks with coordination between infantry and fire support."

These were "capacities" that the rebels were not known to have.
UN "observations of the command and control ability of the attacking force, the effective coordination of its fire support, the quality of its equipment and its general fighting ability, particularly during nighttime, all suggested the existence of external support, both direct and indirect," added the report.
There is currently a tense ceasefire in eastern DR Congo while the UN prepares plans to beef up its peacekeeping mission. Ban hopes to sign a regional political deal to end the turmoil later this month.
He warned, however, that "the possibility of a resumption of hostilities remains a serious threat."
UN sanctions experts said in a report to the Security Council in December that hundreds of Rwandan troops had helped M23 with its offensive.

Chinese companies not favoured in Botswana

If Ian Khama has any say in the matter‚ and he most certainly shall‚ Chinese companies may not be collecting many more government contracts in Botswana in the near future.

Since he is the president of the thinly-populated and resource-rich country and since the party he leads is dominant in parliament‚ the prospects for Chinese bidders for infrastructure tenders are not looking great.

"You know‚ we have had some bad experiences with Chinese companies in this country‚" Khama said in a recent interview.

"The best way I can put it is that we are very‚ very particular now‚ we are going to be looking very carefully at any company that originates from China in providing construction services of any nature‚" he told Business Day in Gaborone.

Power generation is the key sector where China is not favoured inside the Office of the President. Frequent cuts in Botswana's power supply are affecting everyone‚ from business and retail to ordinary people.

The disruption is not what Batswana have known during the past decades of rapid growth‚ built on diamonds‚ agriculture and tourism. Power shortages will not attract the large investment in railways‚ roads and mining that are planned.

The Pistorius case and SA's legal system

South Africa woke up on Valentine's Day, 14 February, to the news that champion paraplegic athlete Oscar Pistorius had shot his girlfriend of four months, Reeva Steenkamp, in his R4-million home in Pretoria.

The state has brought a schedule 6 case of premeditated murder against the para-olympian. If he is found guilty, Pistorius will get a life sentence, which is 25 years. He will only be eligible to apply for parole after serving that term, under a schedule 6 conviction.

Pistorius began applying for bail in the Pretoria Magistrate's Court on Tuesday, with magistrate Desmond Nair saying that he would, "for the purpose of this application, at this point in time, ... consider this an offence listed under schedule 6".

Ghana government cuts fuel subsidies, prices jump

Ghana cut fuel subsidies on Sunday as its new government took measures to curb spending after the West African exporter of cocoa, gold and oil overshot its budget deficit target by almost 100 percent last year.

The National Petroleum Authority (NPA) said in a statement that fuel price hikes were necessary to cover the cost of an increase in crude oil prices and the depreciation of the local cedi currency by about 14 percent last year.

The new prices, which took effect on Sunday, saw premium petrol and diesel prices jump 20 percent per litre in cedi terms, while Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) rose 50 percent.

Prices of kerosene, marine diesel and residual fuel oil also increased 15 percent per litre.

The decision to cut subsidies came days after Fitch rating agency revised the nation's outlook to negative from stable, citing the severe deterioration of its fiscal deficit.

"The government has funded the budget deficit mainly through borrowing at high interest rates on the domestic market, at 22.8 percent for 91-day T-bills," the agency said on Friday.

"While current expenditure has surged, the share of capital expenditure has fallen, which could harm longer-term growth prospects and worsen debt dynamics," Fitch said.

Decisions by governments in the region to cut fuel subsidies have previously led to social unrest. Nigeria's government was forced last year to reinstate some subsidies it had cut after several days of strikes and protests, while Ghana's last attempt to cut subsidies more than two years ago resulted in opposition-led street protests.

Liberia: Armed Forces to Deploy to Mali in March

A platoon of the Armed Forces of Liberia, expected to take up a military assignment to war-torn Mali, is currently undergoing pre-deployment training at Camp Ware Military Barracks, Careysburg, Montserrado County, Defense Minister Brownie Samukai, has disclosed.

The move is seen as an indication that the country is now ready to send its restructured army on a peacekeeping mission abroad.

Minister Samukai made the disclosure in Monrovia Thursday at the Ministry of Information regular press briefing. He also addressed a wide range of issues including AFL deployment to Mali, a pending recruitment exercise to beef up the strength of the army amidst reports of a high level of attrition within the military, including preparation for the renovation of the Camp Todee Military Barracks.

In January of this year, President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf sent a proposal to the National Legislature for that body's approval in the AFL participation in Mali's peacekeeping operations, where the French and Mali soldiers are fighting to dislodge Al-Qaeda backed Islamist militants who have been fighting to remove the country's legitimate authority.

Guinea military chief dies in Liberia plane crash

The head of Guinea's armed forces was killed on Monday when the aircraft carrying him and five other senior military officials crashed close to the Liberian capital, Monrovia.

General Souleymane Kelefa Diallo, a staunch ally of Guinea's president, Alpha Conde, was on a security mission to Liberia. All six officials and five crew on board died. Liberia's defence minister, Brownie Samukai said the cause of the crash was not immediately clear.

Liberia's president, Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, who visited the crash site in the company of Guinea's ambassador, declared a national day of mourning.

Diallo was one of the main architects of the reform of Guinea's military, which seized power in 2008. About 4,000 soldiers were forced to retire under a UN-backed scheme to slim the armed forces.

Conde's government has been trying to organise elections for May, the final step in the transition back to civilian rule and a prerequisite to unlock millions of dollars of frozen foreign aid. The opposition, alleging bias in the electoral authority, has called protests for Wednesday.

Will ignoring West Africa’s drug hub curse world with another Somalia?

UNITED NATIONS — It should come as no surprise that a country haunted by the aftermath of civil war, challenged by military coups, mired in corruption, and facing the undertow of poverty would be a prime candidate for drug smuggling.
Add a geographic location on the nexus of transportation routes, but off the media’s political radar, and you have a near-perfect combination for what has become a narcotics trans-shipment point.
The country is Guinea-Bissau, a sliver of land and some forgotten islands on the shoulder of West Africa but astride key transportation routes between South America and Europe.

A former Portuguese colony which gained independence in 1974 under a left wing political movement, Guinea-Bissau has faced a tumultuous history of one party rule, mismanagement, and corruption.

Civil war in the 1990’s and an endemic climate of military takeovers, the most recent being in April 2012, saw the small land of 1.6 million people morph into what many security experts say is a cocaine trans-shipment hub.
The UN Security Council has expressed alarm that drug trafficking has expanded since the recent coup. There are widespread allegations that key members of the Guinea-Bissau military serve as both protectors to and often as “kingpins” of narcotics trafficking.

Gambia’s four-day work week: Maybe it’s not so crazy

Gambian President Yahya Jammeh, more often in the news for human rights violations than progressive labour practices, has cut the work week for public officials to just four days. This is not just his usual brand of crazy, says SIMON ALLISON, who thinks the president might just be onto something (shh, don’t tell our unions).

It’s not often that we get to say this, so here goes: it’s a good time to be a Gambian civil servant. Thanks to a new decree from eccentric President Yahya Jammeh, public officials in this tiny West African state will work for just four days a week, allowing them “to devote more time to prayers, social activities and agriculture,” according to the official directive.

Not everyone was happy. Opposition parties, for so long reflexively against anything the president says or does, immediately voiced their concerns. One opposition leader, Hamat Bah of the National Reconciliation Party, said it would drastically cut productivity and seriously dent growth in Gambia’s “very small and weak” economy. Another, Omar Amadou Jallow of the People’s Progressive Party, described the new working hours as ludicrous and insane.

Gambia’s opposition politicians have a lot to be angry with Jammeh about. He’s clung onto power for 18 long years, has a horrible record on human rights and development, and thinks he can cure Aids with a special concoction of boiled herbs (he can’t).But on this occasion, their criticism may be misplaced. The four-day working week is far from one of Jammeh’s worst ideas. In fact, the president might just be onto something.

The idea of a four-day work week has been around for a while and, in theory, it actually makes a lot of sense. It’s simple maths, really. If you work eight hours a day for five days, that’s 40 working hours. However, if you work 10 hours a day for just four days, that’s 40 working hours and a three- day weekend.

Add into the mix that employees are happier and well-rested because they’ve got three days off; congestion and traffic is reduced as commuting time declines; and energy costs decrease with offices being used less.

Equatorial Guinea To Deepen Ties With Ghana

The government of the oil rich Equatorial Guinea has reaffirmed her commitment to deepen socio-economic ties with Ghana. A Senior Economic Advisor to the President of Equatorial Guinea, Serapio Sima Ntutumu said his country has a lot to learn from Ghana especially in the areas of economic development and good governance.

Mr Ntutumu who is also the Deputy Director General of the Equatorial Guinea National Gas Company (SONGAS G.E), was interacting with staff of Rlg Communications Limited when he paid a working visit to the facilities of the company in Accra.

He was conducted round a number of facilities including the showroom and the mobile phones and computer Assembling Plant to familiarise himself with the assembling process of ICT devices.

According to the company’s official website (www.rlgghana.com), Mr Ntutumu is said to have been particularly excited at the ICT Module under the GYEEDA which has so far trained and equipped some 50,000 youth in Ghana.

Mauritius’ IBL Invests $33.5m In Gabon’s Seafood, Marine Sectors

VENTURES AFRICA – Ireland Blyth Limited (IBL) was to invest in a new seafood business in Gabon, the Mauritian company said on Friday, as it reported a 20 percent surge in first-half profit.

One of the largest business groups in Mauritius attributed this performance the profitability of all existing operations in the sector.

IBL operates in five main sectors of the economy including retail, financial services, seafood & marine, logistics and engineering & commerce.

According to Reuters, IBL signed an agreement with Gabon and local investment fund Fonds Gabonais d’Investissements Strategiques that will see $33.5 million (25 million euros) invested in the country’s seafood and marine industry.

The news agency reported that IBL would contribute 60 percent of the cost, with Fonds Gabonais d’Investissements Strategiques meeting the balance.

This private-public partnership is in line with our strategy to consolidate our position in Africa,” chief executive Nicolas Maigrot told Reuters on Friday.

The company said IBL’s pretax profit rose to 416 million rupees in the six months to December – its first half, driven by a 52 percent rise in earnings from seafood and marine operations.

Earnings per share rose 10 percent to 4.00 rupees.

“The double effect of a rise in profit and the signature of public-private partnership with Gabon authorities has boosted investors confidence,” Kavissen Senivassen, financial analyst at LSF Securities, told Reuters. “The market feels that the expansion into Africa will create more value for shareholders.”

Cameroon gay rights lawyer seeks US refuge

Cameroonian lawyer who has received death threats for defending gays and lesbians in a country where homosexuality is outlawed has sought refuge with his family in the United States.

In his home country, homosexuality is associated with "sorcery and black magic," said Yaounde lawyer Michel Togue, amid rising concern by international rights groups about the treatment of gays in many African nations.

"Homophobia is on the rise, and intolerance is growing," he told AFP, recalling one case where a gay person was sentenced to "six months in prison just for declaring their love in a text-message."

Many African nations outlaw homosexuality. In Uganda, proposed legislation would see the death penalty imposed for certain homosexual acts.

In such an atmosphere, Togue has gained a reputation, along with his colleague Alice Nkom, of being a tireless defender of gay rights cases.

Earlier this year, two young men identified only as Franky and Jonas, were acquitted on appeal, after an international outcry was sparked by their conviction and five-year jail sentence for having gay sex. The two have now been released and are living in secrecy for their protection in Yaounde.

But now Togue and his family have become the target of threats, which have caused him to flee to the United States.

Nigeria attracts $6b investment in Onne Free Trade Zone

Nigeria’s Federal Government said on Saturday that investments at the oil and gas free trade zone in Onne, Rivers, had hit six billion dollars and created about 30,000 jobs for Nigerians.
Mr Labaran Maku, the Minister of Information, stated this when the National Good Governance tour visited the port in continuation of tour of projects in the state.
He said that the new policy of government which established the zone had attracted 150 companies.
Maku said that aside the total investment estimated at six billion dollars, the most important thing was the job creation and the skill acquisition prospects of the investments.
He said that like China that grew its economies through industrialisation in its free trade zones, Nigeria was on the right track to becoming a global giant.
In a related development, some members of the host community where the free trade zone is located have protested the absence of the locals in the management cadres of companies operating in the zone.
Mr Josiah Olu, a member representing Eleme constituency in the House of Assembly, who spoke on behalf of the community, said that the people were not satisfied with the employment policy of the companies.

Mission travels to Cape Verde to promote Macau’s role in relationships with the Portuguese-speaking world

The promotion of Macau’s role as a platform to promote economic and trade cooperation between Cape Verde and China was highlighted by the Deputy Director of Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government in the Macau Special Administrative Region (MSAR), Gao Yan in the Cape Verdean capital, Praia.

As part of an economic mission to Cape Verde, Gao Yan said that the visit was part of the programme of the 10th anniversary of Forum Macau, which will be celebrated this year by hosting the 4th Ministerial Conference.

“Although Cape Verde and China are far away in geographical terms we are making efforts to bring our countries closer together,” she said.

On this visit, Gao Yan was accompanied by a team including the secretary for the Economy and Finance of the MSAR, Tam Pak Chuen, and by Chang Hexi, the secretary-general of the Forum for Economic and Trade Cooperation between China and the Portuguese-speaking Countries.

Mauritius tourist arrivals down 6 pct in January

PORT LOUIS (Reuters) - Visitor numbers to Mauritius in January fell 6 percent year-on-year, as arrivals from Europe declined, the Indian Ocean island's most important source market.

Amid a festering debt crisis and stagnant economic growth, Europeans have cut down on the number of long-haul holidays taken to sun-drenched destinations like the Indian Ocean.

Wary of its reliance on Europe, Mauritius and regional rivals like the Seychelles islands are increasingly looking to new markets in the Middle East and Asia to drive growth in tourism.

Statistics Mauritius said on Friday arrivals fell to 92,894 from 98,837 a year ago.

Zonta efforts strengthen ebb of HIV transmission in Rwanda

 

Helping women in developing countries has been a passion of Zontians since the organization was founded in 1919. Today, Zonta's International Service Program continues to help women in developing countries improve their legal, political, economic, educational and health status. The International Service Program has provided training, education, health, sanitation, agricultural and micro-credit assistance to women, primarily through projects implemented by the agencies of the United Nations and other recognized nongovernmental organizations.
Since 2008, Zonta International has supported efforts to eliminate mother-to-child transmission of HIV in Rwanda. The project is now at a critical turning point, with the government of Rwanda calling to eliminate MTCT of HIV in Rwanda by 2015, which would mean reaching the country’s target goal of a 2 percent transmission rate, less than the 5 percent set by other countries. The Zonta International Service Fund has pledged $1 million to this project, with funds raised through contributions from those interested in our mission of advancing the status of women.
Rwanda is one of the most vibrant and dynamic emerging democracies in Africa today. While the wounds of the 1994 genocide are still raw, the country has elaborated its vision for decentralizing authority, increasing the enrollment of girls (97 percent) and boys in school, reducing child mortality (70 deaths per 1,000 births) and electing the highest number of women to parliament (56.3 percent), while sustaining good economic growth. Despite its successes, Rwanda is still one of the poorest countries in the world. Half of the country’s 10.9 million people are children; 220,000 of whom are orphans due to AIDS, and 100,000 of whom live in child-headed households. More than 80 percent of Rwanda’s population lives in rural areas and depends on subsistence farming while land for cultivation is scarce.

Rwanda: A Stunning Turnaround On A Continent Marked By Broken Promises

At a recent gathering of business and political leaders in Kigali, President Paul Kagame, the charismatic yet controversial Rwandan leader, stated, “We have understood for a long time that you can’t cure poverty without democracy. The only cure is through business, entrepreneurship, and innovation.” His pro-business and free-market comments are the moral of the story of the “other Rwanda,” the one that has moved beyond what it is perhaps best known for—the 1994 genocide in which one million people were killed in 100 days. And, it contrasts with the current crossfire of accusations (vehemently denied by the Rwandan government) of alleged support to a rebel group in its chronically violent next-door neighbor, the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Within Rwanda, another narrative continues to unfold, with a positive impact that could extend well beyond its borders: the slow, steady, and consistent promotion of entrepreneurship and private sector development, two powerful ingredients in the progress toward full democracy in this landlocked country of 11 million people.
According to the World Bank’s Doing Business 2013 report, Rwanda ranks 52 out of 185 on “ease of doing business” and 8 on “ease in starting a business.” It is the second most improved nation globally and the top improved in sub-Saharan Africa since 2005. Through safety and security, zero-tolerance for corruption, and a stated goal to eliminate foreign aid (currently about 40 percent of its budget), Rwanda has put itself on a trajectory toward greater self-sufficiency; the evidence is in the numbers—projected 7.8% GDP growth in 2013, making it the ninth fastest growing economy in the world.
On a return trip to Rwanda last week, we saw ample evidence in Kigali: a new and fully-leased 20-story skyscraper, tower cranes that punctuate the skyline, and shiny metal roofs in rural areas that attest to growing household income. (Rwanda raised one million people out of poverty between 2006 and 2011.) Agricultural cooperatives improve efficiency and productivity. Coffee washing stations produce value-added “fully washed” coffee beans stripped of their outer hull and mucilage for export to the U.S., Europe, and Asia.

World Bank Urges Uganda to Increase Trade Further Inland Africa

The World Bank urged landlocked Uganda to dismantle trade barriers with neighbors further inland to expand exports and accelerate economic development.
The East African nation could boost export earnings by $2.5 billion by eliminating non-tariff barriers and improving infrastructure for transporting goods in the region, the bank said in an e-mailed statement from Kampala, the capital.
Uganda is Africa’s biggest coffee exporter and it has commercially viable oil reserves being developed by London-based Tullow Oil Plc and partners Total SA and CNOOC, although production hasn’t begun after repeated delays.
It is a member of the five-nation East African Community, a trade bloc that once fully implemented by 2015 is meant to allow the free movement of goods, capital and people. The other members are Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda and Burundi.

Will TV debates bring Kenya peace?

Election debates in Kenya may help prevent the horrors of the last election.

       

It’s easy to be blasé about election debates in the UK. Our experience of them is limited to the short-lived, incongruous Clegg-mania of 2010. There is always excitement about American presidential debates – but when they start, boredom soon takes over. It can be hard to argue there’s much point to it all.
Kenyans may disagree.
On Monday night, Kenya hosted its first ever presidential debate. On a stage reminiscent of that seen in American debates – the joke was that it had been borrowed from the last Kenyan to win a presidential election, Barack Obama – eight candidates sparred over three and a half hours.
The hope is that political candidates debating each other will help prevent a repeat of the 2007 election’s violence, when 1500 people were killed and arguably only the intervention of Kofi Annan prevented a full-blown civil war.
The notion might seem a ridiculous one, considering the webs of violence involved in 2007. Yet, helped by a strong and independent moderator, the debate forced the candidates to address some pertinent issues that they would have rather neglected – like the alleged role of several of them as puppet-masters orchestrating the violence for their own gain. Most memorably, Uhuru Kenyatta, deputy Prime Minister and leading Presidential candidate, was asked how he could govern "and at the same time attend trial as a crimes against humanity suspect" at the International Criminal Court. Kenyatta's trial for his alleged role in the 2007/08 violence is scheduled to begin in April, a month after the election.

New rebel group forms in DR Congo

KINSHASA (AFP) - As the Democratic Republic of Congo struggles to stem unrest in its east, another newly formed armed rebel coalition has announced it is seeking to topple President Joseph Kabila's regime.

The Union of Revolutionary Forces of Congo (UFRC) is based in Bukavu, the capital of South Kivu province.

In a letter to United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon on January 25 that was made public on Sunday, UFRC said it was a "political-military" movement founded in mid-January to bring down Kabila, who was reelected in November 2011 in contested elections.

The group, which claims to have the support of civil society members and political figures from South Kivu and "part of North Kivu", said it wants justice "for high treason" by Kabila.

DR Congo is already trying to contain rebels from the Movement of March 23 (M23) that have been fighting the army since May in neighbouring North Kivu province.

Hopes for a peace deal brokered by the UN and regional leaders failed on January 28.

Like UFRC, the M23 rebels want Kabila, who they accuse of reneging on a 2009 peace deal, to step down.

In a report last year, the UN accused the rebels of committing serious atrocities such as rape and murder and also accused Rwanda and Uganda of backing the M23 insurgents -- an accusation which both nations deny.

DR Congo: civilians suffer amid shifting centres of violence

For tens of thousands of displaced and resident families in the eastern part of the country, January has been a constant struggle to find food, water and a semblance of security. The city of Goma and nearby parts of North Kivu have been relatively calm, violence has spread to other regions.

"In the Masisi area of North Kivu, where clashes have recently taken place between the armed forces and armed groups, or in Katanga where violence continues, many people have had to flee out of fear for their safety," said Franz Rauchenstein, the head of the ICRC delegation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. “Civilians have also suffered violence, looting and extortion.”

Operations on over 100 casualties

An ICRC surgical team is continuing its work in Goma's N'Dosho Hospital, with over a hundred casualties undergoing surgery in January. The hospital also provides psychological support, especially for children. Many of the injured children are traumatized by the violence they have experienced. One nine-year-old boy arrived at the hospital in shock after witnessing the deaths of his little sister and other members of his family. He had to have a leg and a foot amputated.

Visits to detainees

The ICRC has continued visiting places of detention, including Goma’s central prison. In Bunia central prison, the organization has repaired the latrines, installed two water points and constructed a shelter, to give the inmates of this overcrowded facility more space.

6 killed, 3 missing in Madagascar cyclone

Antananarivo - Six people have died and three are missing after tropical cyclone Felleng raged through Madagascar, the national disaster management agency said on Saturday.

"Felleng has gone, it's now 500km east of [southern] Fort Dauphin. We have accounted for six deaths, three people missing and about 800 people affected in the capital" Antananarivo, Raymond Randriatahina, the agency's executive secretary, said by telephone.

While other parts of the Indian Ocean island were largely spared by the cyclone, Antananarivo, in north-central Madagascar, was particularly affected.

As the waters rose in the Mamba river, many of the capital's homes were flooded as well as several hundred hectares of rice fields, forcing residents to move to tent camps set up by the authorities.

As the cyclone weakened and travelled out to sea, rescue workers on Saturday left the northeastern part of Madagascar and all alerts were lifted.

Rwanda genocide: ICTR overturns ex-ministers' convictions

A UN-backed court has overturned the genocide convictions of two Rwandan former ministers and ordered their immediate release.

Justin Mugenzi and Prosper Mugiraneza had been sentenced to 30 years in prison in 2011 for complicity, and incitement, to commit genocide.

Analysts say Rwanda's government is likely to be angry at their acquittal.

About 800,000 people, mostly ethnic Tutsis and moderate Hutus, were killed in the 1994 Rwandan genocide.

Mr Mugenzi was the trade minister during the genocide and Mr Mugiraneza the minister in charge of civil servants.

The International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) convicted them on the grounds that they had attended a meeting where a decision was taken to dismiss the prefect of the Butare region in southern Rwanda for preventing massacres from taking place and for later being present when interim President Theodore Sindikubwabo urged people to kill Tutsis.
'Influential figure'

Senegal to inaugurate special court for Hissene Habre trial

The Extraordinary African Chambers within the Senegalese judicial system was created by agreement with the African Union (AU).
The pretrial investigation, by four Senegalese magistrates, is expected to last 15 months. The investigation will potentially be followed by a trial in 2014, over which a non-Senegalese judge appointed by the AU will preside.
Habré’s trial would mark the first time the courts of one country tried the leader of another country for alleged human rights crimes.

Fighting Corruption - What Jamaica Can Learn From Sierra Leone

Last week, while the documentary The Cost of Corruption, put out by National Integrity Action (NIA), was continuing its media rounds with strong public appeal, King's House announced the appointment of Dirk Harrison as the next contractor general. Harrison, senior deputy director of public prosecutions, will assume the office on March 1.

And Joseph Kamara, the head of Sierra Leone's Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC), was in town as the guest of the NIA and the bearer of a best-practice success story from one of the world's most challenging countries for development. NIA has been proposing a single anti-corruption agency with prosecutorial powers.

Announcing Kamara's visit, NIA, with which I am affiliated, said, "As we continue to build awareness and combat corruption in Jamaica through advocacy, training and public education, National Integrity Action will play host to Mr Joseph Kamara, commissioner, The Anti-Corruption Commission of Sierra Leone, West Africa. The objective of his visit is to expose the Jamaican public to Sierra Leone's experience in transforming that country's anti-corruption institution to make it more effective.

Re-examining the Gulf of Guinea: Fewer Attacks, Better Pirates

Along with the release of the International Maritime Bureau (IMB)’s 2012 piracy report come the onslaught of analysts seeking to explain why the crime is decreasing in certain theaters, why it is expanding in others, and where it will spread to next.

The top story is that global pirate attacks have hit a five year low, explained by a sharp decline in the activities of Somalia’s notorious marauders. When this trend is reported it is almost always followed by the caveat that a “new” piracy epicenter has “emerged” in Nigeria and that the criminal enterprise is now increasing and expanding across the Gulf of Guinea. These types of statements are an oversimplification, however, and mask the complexities of maritime crime in West Africa.

Playing with Numbers

A multitude of criminal actors have parasitically operated in the Nigerian littoral since the country’s oil boom in the 1970s—piracy, kidnapping, and oil theft are by no means “new” to the region. To say that the country has “reemerged” as an epicenter of maritime crime is more accurate, as it was only in 2007 that Somali waters became more pirate prone than those of Nigeria. The 27 pirate attacks reported for Nigeria in 2012 represents an increase over the past two years, but fall well short of the 42 attacks the IMB recorded in 2007.

Guinea Bissau cashew exports from 2012 crop disappointing so far

Jan 27 (Reuters) - Guinea Bissau's exports of cashew nuts, its top export earner, have fallen to 125,000 tonnes out of the 2012 harvest so far, far below its target due to a fall in prices and slowing demand, the government said on Sunday.

The West African nation, the world's seventh-biggest producer, had targeted exports of 170,000 tonnes from the harvest, which ended in July, after exporting 140,000 tonnes from the 2011 harvest.

"To date, Guinea Bissau has been able to export 125,000 tonnes of cashew nuts, or less than in 2011," Ibrahima Diallo, secretary of state for trade, told journalists.

Cashew production accounts for around 90 percent of Guinea Bissau's export revenues and employs some 80 percent of its population of 1.6 million.

President of Guinea-Bissau Urges Closer Ties with Iran

Speaking in a meeting with Tehran's Accredited Ambassador to Bissau Seyed Khalil Sadati Amiri, Nhamadjo said he is pleased with the steps taken for the expansion of the two countries' relations, and added that the African state is determined to expand all-out relations with Iran.

"Guinea-Bissau is fully prepared to cooperate with Iran to develop all-out cooperation in investment, industrial, agricultural and trade fields," he added.

During the meeting, Iran's envoy who submitted his credentials to Nhamadjo, stated that Africa has a special place in Iran's foreign policy.

He voiced Iran's preparedness to assist Guinea-Bissau's development and participate in the country's development projects.

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's administration has striven hard to maximize relations with the African continent.

Iran is also an observing member of the AU and has shown an active presence in previous AU summit meetings.

The country is considered as one of the AU's strategic partners along with India, Japan, China, several South American states and Turkey, while Tehran is also believed to be prioritizing promotion of its economic and political ties with the African states. 

4-day work week in Gambia sparks controversy; Labor group says gov't must reconsider + Take Friday Off Forever

BANJUL, Gambia - A Gambian labour group is calling on the government to reconsider its decision to impose a four-day work week on the tiny West African country.

A government statement in January said that beginning in February 2013 civil servants' work weeks will be reduced to four days "to allow Gambians to devote more time to prayers, social activities and agriculture."

Opposition leader Hamat Bah said the decision is bad for Gambia's economy. He said it will also burden the already poorly paid civil servants.

The Gambia Workers Confederation said the government must reconsider its decision to make Fridays non-working days.

Gambia is one of Africa's smallest and poorest countries with a population of about 1.8 million people. Jammeh has ruled the country since he came to power in a coup in 1994.
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What if your president passed a law granting you three-day weekends for the rest of your life, and you never had to work a Friday again?

That’s a reality for thousands of workers in Gambia, a tiny West African country whose President Yahya Jammeh just decreed a four-day work week for all public sector workers. That will affect schools, government institutions and infrastructure-management facilities, among others. Private businesses will continue to abide by the five-day week common to Western countries.

Equatorial Guinea supports AIDS awareness

Last week, Equatorial Guinea opened the Fourth Ordinary Session of Ministers of Health of the Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS). President Obiang Nguema Mbasogo encouraged other governments to continue to fight against AIDS, appealing to the solidarity and support of the international community. The head of state, who has championed the fight against AIDS through preventive education, condom distribution and financing of antiretroviral medicine for afflicted populations, also called for a shared responsibility globally in fighting the disease.

“With the spirit that characterizes the people of Equatorial Guinea, we join the effort with initiatives such as the UNESCO-Equatorial Guinea International Prize for Research in Life Sciences, which encourages the international scientific community to seek remedies for diseases that threaten the welfare of human existence, such as AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria,” the president said at his recent state of address.

Victor Mooney, AIDS activist and creator of the Goree Challenge, knows just how benevolent the African government can be after receiving a $30,000 donation that enabled Mooney to purchase a 24-foot custom-made ocean rowboat. When the vessel arrives in New York, Kingsborough Community College and SUNY Maritime College will prepare the boat for its trans-Atlantic journey and assist with Mooney’s nautical training. The advocate will attempt to row across the Atlantic Ocean later this year to encourage voluntary HIV testing, increased access to antiretroviral medicine for those who need it and prevention measures to bring about an AIDS-free generation.

His campaign, “Goree Challenge I,” started in May 2006 from Goree Island, Senegal, to Bahia, Brazil, the Caribbean and New York. His second trip in 2009 started in Senegal and ended in the Caribbean. “Goree Challenge III” (February 2011) started in São Vicente.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1.2 million people in the U.S. have HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, and 20 percent are unaware they are infected. There are 41,000 new HIV infections diagnosed each year in the U.S., and 14 percent of these infections occur in 13- to 25-year-olds.

Gabon pledges CFA500million for AFISMA

The pledge was made by Gabon’s ambassador to the African Union William Anguilé during the Addis-Ababa donors’ conference.

The release reads: “On behalf of Ali Bongo Ondimba, the president of the republic of Gabon, I announce that Gabon will participate in the efforts to back Mali with a financial contribution of CFA500 million.”

“In a move not to allow this type of conflict to be expanded throughout a whole region, we must come together in support for Mali. Gabon also wishes the mandate of AFISMA to be implemented as early as possible in line with the UN Resolution 2025,” it said.

AU has estimated to US$460 million the amount required for the deployment of AFISMA. The continental bloc will participate up to 10%, contributing financially for the first time to a peacekeeping operation.

Japan has pledged US$120 million.

France units comprising some 2500 soldiers have alongside Malian forces recaptured three major northern towns including Gao, Timbuktu and Kidal formerly occupied by the militants.

Bowleven has Intra Isongo discovery offshore Cameroon

Bowleven PLC said its IM-5 appraisal-development well offshore Cameroon appears to be a discovery of liquids-rich hydrocarbons in the Intra Isongo formation on the MLHP-7 block of the Etinde permit.

Estimated target depth is 3,475 m in 56 m of water. The well has reached 3,330 m measured depth, just beneath the top of the main Middle Isongo target, and the company plans to core the Middle Isongo reservoir and then drill to total depth before logging or flow-testing.

Based on logging while drilling, the well has intersected an 80-m gross reservoir interval that corresponds to the seismic event identified predrill. A preliminary analysis of provisional net pay is estimated to be between 52 and 56 m, indicating a net to gross of approximately 70%, Bowleven said.

“Based on preliminary analysis of this data, reservoir quality is believed to be good. Initial indications including data collected from the gas-chromatograph tracer suggests the presence of liquids-rich hydrocarbons, although further evaluation is required. Further logging, including the acquisition of MDT data, and testing is required to confirm reservoir quality and hydrocarbon content and type.”

The primary objective of IM-5, 1 km south of the company’s IM-3 well location, is to appraise the reservoir and fluid properties of the Middle Isongo sands. The secondary objective is to investigate the additional potential of the Intra Isongo exploration prospect, a potentially extensive amplitude-supported channel system potentially comprising both structural and stratigraphic trapping elements.

The well was also designed to intersect the Upper Isongo sands and confirm that these are present at this location and water-bearing as prognosed.

The well encountered the Middle Isongo reservoir 5 m above current well depth. Initial indications also suggest this reservoir is potentially hydrocarbon-bearing. The well also cut 32 m of high-quality reservoir sands in the Upper Isongo that, as predicted, water-bearing at this location. Sand thickness and quality were consistent with the predrill expectations.

Further detailed analysis is required to assess the implications of the potential discovery in the Intra Isongo.

Economy: Nigeria-India trade records 34 percent growth

Trade between Bilateral Nigeria-India - cooperation between Nigeria and India deepened last year with trade between the two countries rising by 34 per cent to reach $ 17.3 billion by March 31, 2012, making India Nigeria's second largest trading partner. The country's High Commissioner to Nigeria Mahesh Sachdev said this at a reception to celebrate the 63rd anniversary of India's Republic Day.

The high commissioner remarked that despite various challenges, trade between the two countries has continued to increase with expectations of a healthy figure for this year as well, albeit with more balanced trade.

Indian investments in Nigeria, too, according to him, have continued to rise with two multi-billion petrochemical complexes and a primary alcohol plant among noteworthy projects which took shape in Nigeria during the past year. Similar progress was achieved in people-to-people domain with nearly 39,600 Indian visas issued in 2012, he added.

"Among the esteemed visitors to my country during last year were former President Olusegun Obasanjo and at least 9 Nigerian Ministers and 4 Governors. Such visits underscored traditional amity and contributed immensely to bilateral understanding. In the same domain, a record number of Nigerian professionals availed of training fellowships under ITEC and IAFS-II programmes. Enthusiastic partnership by various Nigerian stakeholders was indispensible for these achievements. I am grateful for their contribution", he said.