Tag Archives: Africa

Zimbabwe adopts Chinese yuan as legal tender

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“As China slowly began to enter African markets, it sought out countries overlooked or shunned by Western investors: Zimbabwe fit the bill perfectly. Beijing sought to court Zimbabwe with the deep pockets of state run companies, and shadowy investors such as Sam Pa (a man with seven known names and ties to the Chinese intelligence service.)  China is now Zimbabwe’s largest trading partner, purchasing 27.8% of the country’s exports. Moreover, bilateral trade has grown from $500 million in 2010 to $1.24 billion in 2014, with Beijing having provided Zimbabwe with $1 billion in low-interest loans since 2010.”

http://globalriskinsights.com/2016/01/zimbabwe-adopts-yuan-as-legal-tender/

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Kenyan slums dispense clean drinking water through ATMs

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“The Nairobi City Water and Sewerage company has just opened four ATM-like kiosks that will dispense 20 liters of potable water for just half a Kenya shilling (about half a US penny). That’s 100 times less expensive than what vendors charge for the same amount. Residents simply have to swipe a smart card and put a jug under the spigot, and the access card balances can be refilled either at the kiosk itself or via mobile phone.  The plan is not new — it’s actually been in use in rural Kenya for a while now — but it’s thought to be the first time such a distribution scheme has been tried in an urban city center.”

http://www.engadget.com/2015/06/22/kenyan-slums-dispense-clean-drinking-water-through-atms/

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Kenya, home to Africa’s ‘Silicon Valley’, is set to be the continent’s tech hub

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“Dubbed ‘Silicon Savannah’, this is an area in Kenya that has attracted a range of tech start-ups and venture capital firms. International tech giants such as Google, Intel, Nokia and Microsoft have sites in Nairobi and IBM has recently opened a new tower block, the IBM Innovation Centre, which is the company’s first research lab in Africa.   Furthermore, in Konza, 60 kilometres away from Nairobi, construction of a new techno-city is planned. These investments are clear votes in confidence in Kenya’s status as a globally-recognised hub for technology and innovation.  Kenya’s technology services sector has grown from £11m in 2002 to more than £300 million in 2013.”

http://mgafrica.com/article/2015-02-19-why-kenya-is-africas-tech-hub

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Dallas Puts the Brakes on Hard-Working Mechanic

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“Hinga Mbogo immigrated to Dallas from Kenya to live the American dream—but Dallas officials had other plans for him.  City officials are demanding that Hinga stop repairing cars at his popular shop, Hinga’s Automotive Company, because it doesn’t fit in with their plans to reimagine the up-and-coming neighborhood. The city barred Hinga from using his land for auto repair and told him to close his business after letting an ‘amortization’ period pass.  Dallas officials are using this technique to avoid compensating Hinga for the time and money he invested in his business and property. So even though the city is wrenching away this hard-working mechanic’s livelihood, the city isn’t paying him a dime.”

http://www.ij.org/dallas-puts-the-brakes-on-hard-working-mechanic

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Tanzania: Our Case For Investment

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“The Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange (DSE), founded in 1996, has a market cap of approximately USD $13 billion and has been perceived as unexciting by investors in recent years. That may be about to change, however. For years the government restricted the level of foreign ownership of domestic companies to 60%, but in September it scrapped the cap on foreign ownership, making listings by local companies in search of foreign capital more attractive and likely.  DSE CEO Moremi Marwa says he expects up to six new listings in 2015.  In 2014, the Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange was the best performing market in sub-Saharan Africa with a USD return of 23.4%.”

http://seekingalpha.com/article/3103096-tanzania-our-case-for-investment

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Why is the Tanzanian government making information illegal?

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“Despite global attention to recent corruption scandals in Tanzania, public opinion data indicate that domestic awareness of the scandals is shockingly low. The graph below — which would be illegal to publish under the Statistics Bill — indicates that less than half of citizens in mainland Tanzania ‘knew of’ five recent high-level corruption scandals. These corruption scandals have been consequential for Tanzania’s good standing amongst donors. In October 2014, donors withheld nearly $500 million in aid until action was taken in response to the multimillion-dollar energy scandal. As of last month, only $44 million had been released, following the resignation of three cabinet ministers.”

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/monkey-cage/wp/2015/04/15/why-is-the-tanzanian-government-making-information-illegal/

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The Anti-Hong Kong: Tanzania Bans Private Statistics

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“The government did what any embarrassed, fearful autocrats would do: they passed a bill to outlaw ‘false’ statistics — meaning only official numbers will be allowed. Another of six similar bills rushed through the legislature makes it illegal to publish information that is ‘defamatory,’ likely to ‘disturb the public peace,’ or ‘misleading or inaccurate.’  What are ‘false statistics’? What counts as ‘misleading’ or ‘disturbing’? Nobody is sure, since the government hasn’t bothered to publish the final versions of the acts it passed, but we do know who will get to decide — and the punishment could include a prison sentence of up to three years.”

http://fee.org/anythingpeaceful/detail/tanzania-becomes-the-anti-hong-kong-bans-private-statistics

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Why Are so Many Refugees Drowning? And Why Don’t They Fly?

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“It’s not because it’s too expensive. Rosling points out that a seat on these boats costs €1,000 or more, while a flight from Ethiopia to Sweden is only €400; from Lebanon to the UK is also €400; and from Egypt to Italy is only €320.  It’s not because their governments are stopping them, either. By and large, these states have no real ability or interest in stopping emigration.  Rather, it is about incentives.  Rosling points to EU Directive 2001/51/EC, which states — in essence — that to combat illegal immigration, ‘Every airline and boatline that brings a person without the proper documents for entry has to pay all the costs for returning that person back to their country of origin.'”

http://fee.org/anythingpeaceful/detail/why-are-so-many-refugees-drowning

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Nigerian Currency Touches Record Low After Official Devaluation

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“Nigeria’s currency touched a record low against the dollar on Wednesday, a day after the central bank devalued it by 8 percent.  Falling world oil prices and a retreat from emerging markets have put pressure on the currencies of several oil exporters, including Angola, where the Kwanza also hit a record low, as well as that of Nigeria — Africa’s top producer.  The country grows most of its own food but imports a number of staples such as wheat and rice, making currency weakness extremely sensitive for a poor population — around 60% of whom were living on less than a dollar a day in 2010.  Falls in the naira have spooked bond investors who had been wooed by Nigeria’s high yields.”

http://www.voanews.com/content/nigeria-naira-touches-record-low-after-official-devaluation/2535204.html

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Firestone Did What Governments Have Not: Stopped Ebola In Its Tracks

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“Firestone detected its first Ebola case on March 30, when an employee’s wife arrived from northern Liberia. She’d been caring for a disease-stricken woman and was herself diagnosed with the disease. Since then Firestone has done a remarkable job of keeping the virus at bay. It built its own treatment center and set up a comprehensive response that’s managed to quickly stop transmission. Dr. Brendan Flannery, the head of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s team in Liberia, has hailed Firestone’s efforts as resourceful, innovative and effective.  Currently the only Ebola cases on the sprawling, 185-square-mile plantation are in patients who come from neighboring towns.”

http://www.npr.org/blogs/goatsandsoda/2014/10/06/354054915/firestone-did-what-governments-have-not-stopped-ebola-in-its-tracks

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