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A round-up of recent news from the UK, Africa and around the world.

ImageA round-up of recent news from the UK, Africa and around the world.

 

Lloyds TSB Foundation for Scotland Resumes Grant Making Activities

The Foundation has restarted its charitable programmes.The Foundation is one of the leading independent charitable funders in Scotland, and since its establishment in 1985 it has made over 12,000 awards totalling £85 million to disadvantaged communities across the country. The Foundation has now raised £2 million through the sale of shares and is expected to distribute this money before the end of the year. To view the Lloyds TSB Foundation for Scotland website click here.

Training Scheme for West Midlands Workers

A new £3 million scheme is set to give more than 10,000 West Midlands workers the chance to boost their skills. The three-year West Midlands Business Operations – Business Leadership project aims to help firms across the region boost productivity and performance. Funded by Advantage West Midlands, the programme will bring together businesses, colleges and universities, as well as specialist training providers Foundation Degree Forward, who will deliver a series of "easily accessible, bite-sized" training modules so that workers can study for graduate-level qualifications.

Sustainable Food Lab and SAI Platform launch global climate project to help farmers grow greener

The Sustainable Food Lab, in conjunction with Sustainable Agriculture Initiative (SAI) Platform, have announced the start of a comprehensive global climate project to evaluate the greenhouse gas footprint of specific farming systems and identify and implement the greenhouse gas reduction potential from practice alternatives. The goal of the project, which will take place over the next 12-18 months, is to empower food companies to engage the agricultural sector of their supply chain in the evaluation and effort to curb greenhouse gas emissions and to provide an assessment of barriers that farmers face, and the solutions needed to efficiently address climate impacts from agriculture. The first-of-its-kind global climate project uses a combination of resources including available data, interviews with key players in each farming system, and the newly created "Cool Farm Tool" GHG calculator to estimate the current carbon footprint of each farming system being evaluated. The project has already attracted the support of some of the largest and most influential organizations in the food and agriculture space including Unilever, PepsiCo, Heinz, Sysco, Pulse Canada, Oxfam and the Canada Canola Growers Association. Each organization will support the research by evaluating at least one or in some cases more than one farming system. These farming systems will consist of a diverse range of geographies including, the U.S., Latin America, Europe, Africa and Asia as well as a wide variety of crops such as canning tomatoes, potatoes, dairy, beef, cotton, lettuce, mixed vegetables, pulses, tea and coffee.

WellPoint Ranked 7th in Diversity MBA Magazine's Best Places for Diverse Managers to Work

WellPoint, Inc. has been ranked 7th by Diversity MBA Magazine in its rankings of the "50 Out Front for Diversity Leadership: Best Places for Diverse Managers To Work" Diversity MBA Magazine is a niche publication targeting people of color and women in leadership, professionals, students, and the business community. Diversity MBA Magazine expanded its research evaluations in its ranking of the 2010 "50 Out Front Companies" list to include companies that implement intentional strategies based on accountability, succession planning, representation, retention, and recruitment systems that allow and encourage managers and women of diverse backgrounds to excel and develop into leadership roles.

Nearly Half of UK Young Men would take Paternity Leave

Almost half (44%) of men under 35 who are living with a long-term partner say they are likely to take advantage of new flexible paternity leave, a survey has found. The YouGov research, commissioned by workplace consultancy Croner, revealed that 63% of men aged 1-24 and 40% of those aged 25-34, expected to take up the new rights. Under legislation due to take effect from April 2011, fathers will be able to take an additional period of leave of between 2 and 26 weeks – paid at statutory rates – if the mother goes back to work after the child is 20 weeks old. Wanting to spend more time with the new baby (73%) was the main reason given for desiring the extra leave, with only one-fifth saying they wanted a break from their career. The survey seems to contract government predictions that only 6% of dads would want the leave.

PricewaterhouseCoopers Announces $500,000 in Grants to Expand Diverse Talent Pipeline

As part of a broader effort to promote and support the recruitment and advancement of diverse students within the accounting profession, PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP (PwC) has announced it is awarding $500,000 in grants to four universities. The four schools - Bryant University, the University of Southern California, Wake Forest University and Florida International University - will use the funds for scholarships and hands-on career exploration programs for students from groups that have historically been underrepresented in the accounting field, including African-Americans/blacks, Latinos and Native-Americans. The initiative is part of PwC's broader efforts to identify, attract and develop talent and foster an inclusive culture. The PwC grants expand existing programs to address a need to attract and develop more diverse talent in the accounting profession. As of 2008, the latest data available, African-Americans/blacks represented only four percent of public accounting professionals at all career levels and Latinos represented just five percent, according to the "Minorities in Tax 2010" report from TaxDiversity.com. The firm is also focused on building awareness of the need for diversity among all professionals and students, and promoting education and support for these efforts across the entire student and faculty population.

Extra Cash for Entrepreneurship Scheme

More than £1 million extra funding is being made available for an initiative that helps young entrepreneurs in Wales start their own business. The Prince's Trust Cymru has secured an additional £1.3 million from the European Regional Development Fund over the next five years for their Business Programme. The scheme, which is also available in England and Northern Ireland, offers mentoring, training and financial support for young people aged 18-30 who want to start their own business. Assistance is available to people that are unemployed or only working up to 16 hours a week. It is hoped that the additional funding will help 600 more young people to go on and start their own company, while a further 2,000 individuals will receive extra training in key business topics such as marketing, business planning and budgeting. For further information about the programme, visit the Prince's Trust website.

Job Satisfaction Plummets in Public Sector

Job satisfaction among public-sector workers has fallen alarmingly as staff fear for their jobs, the CIPD's quarterly Employee Outlook survey has shown. The survey of 2,000 employees found that that net job satisfaction (calculated by subtracting the numbers dissatisfied from the numbers satisfied) in the public services has fallen to +34, compared with +45 this time last year. Job insecurity is likely to be the main reason for the fall. Nearly one in five (18 per cent) of public-sector workers now think it likely they could lose their job as result of the current climate, compared with just 7 per cent in April 2009. Almost four in ten (39 per cent) public-sector employees say their organisation is planning to make redundancies, up from 14 per cent a year ago.

Workers also say they are under increasing pressure, with one in four (23 per cent) saying that they feel under excessive pressure at work every day – compared to 13 per cent in spring 2009. The finding follows a prediction from the CIPD that cuts after the election could see 500,000 public-sector workers losing their jobs.

Employee Diversity 'crucial for UK businesses' claim Recruiters

Employee diversity is crucial to all organisations, according to the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC). Sarah Gordon, chair of the diversity and inclusion at the industry body, noted that inclusion policies should be embedded throughout organisations as they bid to maximise the value of their employees. "More often than not, recruiters find that decisions made at the top to improve the diversity of an organisation do not filter through to the rest of the organisation," she noted. She suggested that improvements can be made by establishing a network of diversity champions within businesses, and having them report back to HR on a monthly basis.

Lloyds TSB Foundation for Scotland Re-opens Grant Programme

The Foundation has reopened its grant programme in honour of Henry Duncan. The Henry Duncan Awards remember the legacy of Reverend Henry Duncan, founder of the first Trustee Savings Bank 200 years ago. The Foundation had ceased all grant-making activities in October 2009 following a funding crisis caused by the impact of the recession on Lloyds TSB Banking Group's profits, upon which the foundation previously relied on for income. The Foundation owes its existence to the Reverend Henry Duncan, who founded the Trustee Savings Bank so that everyone, regardless of wealth or position, could benefit from a savings bank. For further information please visit the foundation's website.

More Women 'entering part-time work'

Increasing numbers of women are now securing part-time work, it has been revealed. Indeed, according to the Government Equalities Office, more UK females than ever before are working part-time, equating to 42 per cent of working women. However, the office has warned that too many such employees are having to downgrade when they leave a full-time position. As a result, the new cross-government women's employment strategy has proposed more highly skilled quality part-time jobs for women are needed in order to help boost the economy. Furthermore, Vera Baird, solicitor general and lead minister for the Equality Bill, has said flexible working needs to become the norm.

Managers believe Racial Discrimination Still Exists

Racial discrimination still exists in the workplace and is preventing many ethnic minority managers from progressing in their careers, a new study suggests.

The report, from the Chartered Management Institute (CMI), the Department for Work & Pensions and the Institute for Employment Studies, examines the recruitment trends of under-represented groups. It reveals that one third of Asian managers believe racial discrimination stands in the way of their career progression and 20 per cent of black managers believe it acts as a barrier. This contrasts with just one per cent of white managers who cite racial discrimination as a factor preventing them from climbing the career ladder.

CIPD Quarterly Survey Report Shows more than ¼ of UK Workers are Job Seeking

Just over a quarter of all employees (27%) are currently looking for a new job. This has increased from 22% last quarter and 25% in spring 2009. Voluntary sector employees are most likely to be looking for a new job this quarter (29%), compared with 27% of private sector employees and 24% from the public sector. Of the 4% of employees who have moved jobs in the last six months, half (50%) are receiving more money and 21% less. This seems to have shifted favourably for new employees. Last quarter 36% were receiving more money and 40% receiving less. When asked if they would ideally like to change jobs in the next year, 41% of employees said they would. This represents a slight increase from last quarter (37%) and compared with spring 2009 (37%). While public sector employees are least likely to be looking for a new job currently, they are the group that would ideally most like to change jobs within the next year (46%). A third of employees (33%) are very or fairly optimistic that they will be able to change jobs within the next year. This is the same as last quarter and less than a year ago in spring 2009 (39%).

NEPAD unveils Project to attract Investments into Africa

The African Union's (AU) NEPAD Planning and Co-ordinating Agency (NPCA) has today kick-started 'The Best of Africa 2010 - 2015' project which is aimed at attracting investments into Africa. 'The Best of Africa 2010' project is focused on showcasing Africa as a business and investment destination. It is an inward investment, trade promotion and capacity building legacy project that is running from 2010 - 2015. The project aims to take advantage of the presence of the international and African business representatives that will be in South Africa for the World Cup. The idea is to get these representatives to engaThe project is designed to showcase Africa by leveraging 3 broad platforms of engagement which include a business conference, an exhibition and a cultural festival. Participants will include the AU member states, civil society and the business community. According to Mr. Adedapo Adelegan, the Executive Chairman of PR Africa International, "in the long term 'The Best of Africa' conference and exhibition will be sustained as a global road show showcasing Africa in terms of its people, products and potentials – that is 'Africa Under One Roof'".'The Best of Africa' initiative will take place at the Gallagher Convention Centre during the first week of the World Cup (13 – 18 June 2010). After 2010 roadshows on the project will also be held in China (2011), United Kingdom (2012 at the Olympics), US (2013), Brazil (2014) and Asia (2015). As an initiative, this project draws on the declaration of the 8th Assembly of the African Union (AU) Heads of State and Government through which the AU reaffirmed its commitment to make the 2010 World Cup a truly African tournament, committing its countries to full and substantive involvement in the preparations leading to the 2010 World Cup. The initiative is also informed by the African Legacy Programme which is bent on ensuring that the 2010 FIFA World Cup is not only positioned as an African event, but also as an event that will have a substantial and enduring legacy on the continent.

Zambia Woos Investors in Agro Sector

Zambian President Rupiah Banda has said his Government will continue to invite foreign investors to develop the agriculture sector, which he said requires a lot of investment to make the country self-sufficient in food. The president said Zambia required investors who would develop the agriculture sector and particularly invest in agro-processing industries to add value to various livestock and food produce. The president made the remarks when he addressed farmers and scores of their workers and families at the Coventry Farm in Mazabuka District in Southern Province where he had gone to visit some commercial farmers. President Banda toured the Coventry Farm with Commerce, Trade and Industry Minister Felix Mutati, Southern Province Minister Daniel Munkombwe among other Government officials. He was impressed with the development at the Coventry Farm and urged Zambians working at various commercial farms in the district to work hard and co-operate with the investors so that food production can be increased in the country. He also commended the farmers for having built a school at the farm to cater for the children of the workers.

Italian Support for Gambian Farmers

A US$2 million Italian government-funded Food Security through Commercialisation of Agriculture project was launched in The Gambia in March by the deputy minister of agriculture Momodou Seedy Kahn. According to the deputy minister, the project has three components: to strengthen farmer support services and farmer groups to equip them with relevant capacity building skills to give support to value addition and marketing, which he said will build the skills of farmers and agro-processors in market-oriented production value-addition methods, business development and management and input-output linkages; and to assist in project coordination, monitoring and evaluation.

Big Japan Project for Mozambique

The Japanese International Cooperation Agency (JICA) has announced a major plan for agricultural development in Mozambique in partnership with the Brazilian government. The aim is to cooperate with the Brazilian government to transform 5.5 million hectares of bush into a vast agricultural region, as it did in Brazil with the Cerrado area, which has similar geographical and weather conditions. Research work will begin in Mozambique in October to decide on the varieties of seeds and plants that are appropriate for the land and how to enrich it for cultivation.

Ghana's Ambassador to China Ready for Ghanaian Entrepreneurs

Hon. Mahama Ayariga, Deputy Minister of Trade and Industry has concluded arrangements with the Ghana Embassy in Beijing – China and the leadership of the China-Africa Business Council for the hosting of Ghanaian companies and entrepreneurs who will participate in the Ghana – China Business Partnership programme which seeks to organize various investment partnership building missions to various industrial provinces in China. This is a unique and major move aimed at convincing Chinese manufacturing enterprises in the various Chinese provinces who have built up excess manufacturing capacity and those who are unable to cope with the intense competition in China to set up additional manufacturing plants or re-locate to Ghana in partnership with Ghanaian entrepreneurs with the hope of servicing their large African clientele and customers.Ghana's Ambassador to China, H. E. Mrs. Helen Mamle Cofie, has intimated that there are several Chinese businesses with considerable manufacturing capability are seeking to re-locate to Ghana and should be encouraged and supported to do so. at the World Expo. The investment missions have been scheduled at the time of the World Expo to be held in Shanghai, China, from May to October this year in order to take advantage of the massive gathering of manufacturers and businesses from all over the world in Shanghai.

China Firm to invest $600 Million in Zambian Copper Mines

China Nonferrous Metal Mining (CNMC) plans to invest $600 million (R4.4 billion) in Zambia between 2010 and 2011, encouraged by the country's abundant mineral resources and political stability, company president Luo Tao said.

Luo said the money would be used to buy new mining equipment, develop a new copper mine, expand an existing copper mine and smelter facility, develop a tax-free economic zone and expand a copper processing plant.

Luo said $300 million would go to the Luanshya copper mine, which CNMC took over last year, and most of that money would be spent on developing the Mulyashi copper project. China is the world's largest consumer of copper and Zambia is Africa's biggest producer of the metal.Luo said CNMC had over the last 12 years invested $1 billion in Zambia and would spend $5 million on feasibility studies to establish whether it was viable to recover the residue copper in the Mufulira tailings dams. CNMC would invest more in Zambia because of its rich mineral resources and political stability, Luo said.

African Minerals, China Railway Sign Iron-Ore Accord

African Minerals Ltd., an explorer for metals and diamonds in West Africa, signed an agreement with China Railway Materials Commercial Corp. to develop an iron-ore project in Sierra Leone. China Railway will spend 167.8 million pounds ($256 million) to buy 33.6 million new shares of African Minerals for 500 pence each, the explorer said today in a statement. That will provide most of the funds for the first phase of production at the Tonkolili project, Guernsey, Channel Islands-based African Minerals said. China, the world's biggest buyer of iron ore, has invested billions of dollars in projects globally in an effort to become less dependent on Vale SA, Rio Tinto Group and BHP Billiton Ltd., the three largest suppliers. The country promised $10 billion in cheap loans to Africa and pledged to cut customs duties to the continent at a China-Africa Cooperation conference in November. China Railway will own a 12.5 percent stake in African Minerals, according to the statement. The Beijing-based, state- owned company agreed in September to pay $34 million for stakes in two Australian iron-ore producers.

China-Africa Development Fund Opens Office in Addis Ababa

The China-Africa Development Fund (CADFund) has opened its second representative office in Ethiopia. The first office opened was in Johannesburg, South Africa. Chief Executive Officer of CADFund, Chi Jianxin, said since the establishment the fund has been serving as bridge between Chinese companies and African projects. According to the CEO, CADFund has invested on over 30 projects in Africa amounting to over 800 million U.S. dollars which will drive Chinese companies to invest more than 3 billion U. S. dollars in Africa in various sectors including, among others, electricity, transportation and industrial parks. CADFund was established to support Chinese companies to undertake Sino-African cooperation projects and facilitate them to invest in African countries. It is one of the eight major Sino-African cooperative measures announced by Chinese President Hu Jintao at the Beijing Summit of the Sino-African Cooperation Forum in November, 2006. CADFund was established in June 2007 with initial funding of 1 billion U.S.dollars, which was completely funded by the China Development Bank. The Ethiopian CADFund Representative Office facilitates investment activities in Ethiopia, Burundi, Djibouti, Eritrea, Kenya, Rwanda, Seychelles, Somalia, Tanzania, and Uganda. The office pledged to play crucial role in attracting more Chinese investors and enhancing investment activities in the Eastern Africa in general and in Ethiopia in particular, according to Xinhua.

Chinese government Hands over Refurbished Stadium to Zimbabwe

The Chinese government has handed over the refurbished Zimbabwe national sports stadium to the Zimbabwean government. The stadium was built with the assistance of the Chinese government in 1987, but had been closed for renovations for the past three years. Chinese ambassador to Zimbabwe Xin Shunkang handed over the new-look 60 000-seat stadium to the Zimbabwean government at a colourful ceremony where the government was represented by Media, Information and Publicity Minister Webster Shamu, Public Works Minister Teresa Makone and several senior government officials. The Chinese ambassador revealed that the refurbishment was done at a total cost of 10 million U.S. dollars. He hailed bilateral relations between Zimbabwe and China, saying these had continued to expand over the years.

Liberia and Brazil Jumpstart Relations

Liberia and Brazil have taken major steps to jumpstart longstanding relations between the two countries. Following bilateral discussions Wednesday in Brasilia, President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf and the President of Brazil, Luis Lula da Silva, the two countries agreed to promote cooperation in the areas of energy and mining as well as education. According to an Executive Mansion dispatch, the agreement calls for the training of teachers and academicians in graduate and undergraduate programs in Brazil and an alignment of teaching programs between higher institutions of learning in Liberia and Brazil. Both countries also agreed to recognize the credentials issued by their respective institutions of higher learning.

Rwanda Receives £121.6 Million from the World Bank

Rwanda and the World Bank have signed two grants totalling $121.6 million to support the land-locked nation's budget as it recovers from the global downturn and aid reforms. Mimi Ladipo, the World Bank's country manager in Rwanda said $115.6 was earmarked to bolster the 2009/10 budget, a little higher than the previous fiscal year because it included almost $30 million to help mitigate the impact of the global downturn. Rwanda is often applauded for its significant strides in rebuilding its economy after the 1994 genocide of 800,000 ethnic Tutsis and politically moderate Hutus. The government has focused on restructuring the tea and coffee industries and the financial system, while investing in energy, transport and telecommunications infrastructure. The global economic slowdown halved the nation's economic growth last year, curbing coffee and mineral exports and squeezing tourism revenues. Last year the World Bank ranked Rwanda as the best global reformer for a string of improvements to the finance and private sector.

Malawi to Outlaw Polygamy

The Malawi government will soon draft a law that will outlaw polygamy. Minister of Gender, Women and Children Development Patricia Kaliati said the move intends to help stop growing rates in HIV and AIDS cases. The minister said those that currently have more than three wives will be barred from marrying anyone more, and that the law will not be altered by religious or any other factors. Currently, a majority of Moslem Malawians practice polygamy. Malawi has a prevalence rate of 12% and about a million people live with the virus.

New Broadband Network Approved for Africa

Funding for the first phase of an initiative to connect African research centres and link them to an existing European network has been approved by the European Commission. The approval follows a report that identified sufficient IT infrastructure in Africa to support the AfricaConnect Initiative, which aims to improve research collaborations and access to information. The report, released in March, is based on a one-year Feasibility Study for African–European Research and Education Network Interconnection (FEAST), funded by the European Commission and carried out by the Royal Institute of Technology, Sweden. Most national research and education networks (NRENs) in Africa are now near, or will soon be near, one of several recently-landed undersea fibre optic cables, the report said. This may enable them to join GÉANT, an existing pan-European research and education network. The FEAST report also found that high bandwidth costs and under-developed or poorly enforced telecommunication regulations are also likely to delay implementation of the project.

Africa: Profiling Cash Drains

Estimates for the period 1970-2008 show that over the 39-year period Africa lost an astonishing US$854 billion in cumulative capital flight--enough to not only wipe out the region's total external debt outstanding of around US$250 billion (at end-December, 2008) but potentially leave US$600 billion for poverty alleviation and economic growth. Instead, cumulative illicit flows from the continent increased from about US$57 billion in the decade of the 1970s to US$437 billion over the nine years 2000-2008, according to a report by Global Financial Integrity. These estimates based on available data, the report authors also note, are without doubt conservative underestimates. Adjusting for some of the known data flaws, they suggest the figure might be more than double, at $1.8 trillion. And even this larger figure, they note, does not include proceeds that are never recorded, such as from drug trafficking and smuggling. Strikingly, the report argues that explicit corruption, such as bribes, account for only a small portion of capital flight. By far the largest component is, instead, generated by commercial tax evasion through trade misinvoicing.

Nigeria's Rice Revolution will Triple Production, Boost Processing and Marketing

A major plan for tripling domestic rice production, improving indigenous processing capacity and enhancing the marketability of rice grown and processed in Nigeria was launched by the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Water Resources on 5 April as the key thrust of the country's National Rice Development Strategy (NRDS) which was developed in 2009. The NRDS is part of a global initiative known as the Coalition for Africa Rice Development (CARD), which was launched at the Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD IV) in May 2008 with the sole aim of doubling rice production in sub-Saharan Africa within the next ten years. CARD was jointly developed by the Alliance for Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and, it was noted, the initiative is expected to be implemented "in full respect of African ownership and leadership embodied in the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP), and with strong links to existing structures, programmes, networks and initiatives such as the Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa (FARA), and the African Rice Initiative (ARI)." Nigeria is one of the 12 pilot countries selected for the first phase of the CARD programme implementation. And, each of the 12 countries was required to develop a National Rice Development Strategy as the first step towards achieving the CARD objective of doubling rice production by 2020. The country has been working diligently on the strategy since then and the new campaign is expected to be the beginning of a revolution that would triple rice production in the country by 2020. The main thrust of the strategy is to increase rice production in Nigeria from 3.4 million tonnes to 12.85 million tonnes within a decade. This expected increase is nearly 300 percent. One of the immediate effects of the strategy, if faithfully executed, would be that the country would save more than $500 million expended on rice importation annually. It would also impact positively on food security, job creation, balance of trade, poverty reduction and national productivity. According to the NRDS, Nigeria is the highest importer of rice in Africa, and the second highest in the world.

Turning Mozambique into an Agricultural Breadbasket

To encourage increased agricultural production in Africa, both to help prevent another global food crisis and to deter a land grab by foreign enterprises across the continent, the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) is involved in a bold project to develop the extensive tropical grasslands in the southern state of Mozambique. The plan is based on Brazil's Cerrado region, which turned out to be a great agricultural success after a decade-long JICA project JICA, Mozambique and Brazil signed a tripartite agreement last year to launch the project which hopes to parallel the results of a scheme in the 1970s which turned the South American country's own savannah or cerrados into an agricultural breadbasket. The project has been described as one of the most successful stories in international cooperation that Japan has been involved in. The Mozambique project is aimed at helping to reduce overall poverty by enhancing the agricultural productivity of small farmers and at the same time stimulating wider regional growth with related programmes such as establishing agricultural processing systems. As many as 80% of the country's 20 million population work in agriculture and though Mozambique is considered by donors as a country rich in potential it is still ranked 172 out of 182 nations on the 2009 UN Human Development Index, a measure of a country's general standard of living, literacy, life expectancy and education.

Gateway Bolsters West Africa's Mobile Networks

Gateway Communications has further increased its presence in West Africa having signed two deals in Guinea, expanding its work with Intercel and agreeing an exciting new contract with ETI SA. Gateway is now working with two major mobile operators and an ISP in Guinea, a country with a mobile penetration of 21.43% (ICT Indicators Database 2007) and five mobile phones for every landline. Guinea's telecommunications industry is flourishing and this is an exciting time for Gateway to continue to expand its presence in Francophone Africa. Gateway also has established carrier customers in Senegal, as well as Benin, Chad, Niger and Ivory Coast. In 2009 Gateway Communications upgraded its agreement with Intercel Guinea to provide inbound and outbound voice and cellular backhaul services. Throughout this six year partnership with Intercel Guinea, Gateway has built a national backbone of cellular links, connecting five major cities via cellular backhaul including Kankan, Labé, Mamou and Nzékoré. Gateway continues to do business throughout West Africa, helping customers achieve their commercial goals. A reliable telecommunication network is essential to enable West Africa's progressive and successful businesses to continue to thrive. In neighbouring Senegal, Gateway is working with Sonatel to provide international voice services for its ever-growing subscriber base. As part of the France Telecom group Sonatel holds about a two thirds market share. Senegal is seeing a rapid increase in voice traffic with mobile penetration rates now at 51.63%. Gateway has played an essential role in creating an enabling environment for voice traffic growth by working closely with customers in Africa and Europe to maintain high quality routes for Sonatel and its roaming customer base.

Giant Leap for Science in Ethiopia

Ethiopia has launched its first science academy in the capital city of Addis Ababa with the aim of developing scientific research and education in the country. The Ethiopia Academy of Science (EAS) says its objectives are to promote the advancement of basic and applied sciences, enhance innovative technologies, support and recognise excellence in scientific research performed by Ethiopian scientists, and promote contacts among Ethiopian scientists and those throughout the world. Academy president Demissie Habte said the EAS also plans to advise government on both natural and social science issues. "Growing political interest in science in Ethiopia has helped get the academy off the ground. There is a much better appreciation in the government for the role science can play in development," he said. Habte said scientists first considered the idea for an Ethiopian academy in the early 1960s, but political instability in the country during the 1970s and 1980s saw the plans being put on hold. Researchers at Addis Ababa University, with the support of the UK Royal Society, revived the idea a few years ago. The Royal Society is one of oldest and most respected scientific academies in the world and has been working closely with Ethiopian scientists for the past 18 months in setting up the EAS. It said it is confident the academy has the potential to be a force for positive change and for practising evidence-based policy in Ethiopia.

New Skills Council for South Africa

The South African government has launched the Human Resources Development Council (HRDC) to tackle high levels of unemployment and grow the country's economy. Comprising leaders from different sectors of the economy, the council will drive skills development in South Africa. Although part of its aim is to ensure government helps job-seekers become more competent, the HRDC will see that all divisions of employment and training assume a more meaningful role in the country.The council is led and chaired by the deputy president and Nzimande leads its secretariat, which is tasked with ensuring that all the HRDC's objectives are implemented. The secretariat includes a technical working group to "execute the decisions of council on matters relating to human resource development and advise council". The council will also ensure improved access to quality education and schooling up to grade 12 level "that is purposefully focused on achieving an improvement in education outcomes for the poor". Furthermore, it will seek to adequately equip pupils to pursue post-school education, "including vocational education and training, or employment".

Uganda's Media industry on the Move

Uganda's Vision Group is planning to overhaul the process of printing newspapers in the East African country following the acquisition of a high-capacity R65.6-million (US$9-million) printing press. The group said in a report on 4 April that its new printing press will "boost efficiency and improve delivery times of its products onto the market". The "ultra-modern printing press" was assembled in a purpose-built R36.4-million ($5-million) factory in China and is already in use; its first task was printing the 2 April, 48-page edition of New Vision. Vision Group, listed on the Uganda Stock Exchange, is owned by both the government and public, with the latter holding 47% of shares. It publishes New Vision, a leading newspaper with about 65% market share of total daily newspaper sales in Uganda. It also brings out four leading regional titles, including Bukedde and Orumuri. It boasts four magazine titles, including City Beat and Flair, and an online division. Their new machine, the group said, is able to print 40 000 copies per hour with 64 pages of full colour "in one run". It's part of the group's R101.98-million ($14-million) expansion project. The press will help Vision Group reach deadlines more efficiently, it said. It will also make it easier to include breaking news and advertisements that arrive late for print.

Yahoo! and Nahdet El Mahrousa Launch Social Entrepreneurship Competition for Young Professionals in Egypt

Yahoo! Inc. has underscored its commitment to the Arabic-speaking world by announcing a new social entrepreneurship campaign and competition in partnership with Nahdet El Mahrousa, an Egypt-based nongovernmental organization (NGO). Yahoo! Inc., Yahoo! Middle East, and Nahdet El Mahrousa are spearheading an unprecedented online campaign called "Social Innovation Starts With YOU" to encourage social entrepreneurship among young Egyptians. Today there are more than 16.5 million Internet users in Egypt, representing one of the largest Arab Internet populations. The "Social Innovation Starts With YOU" campaign is aimed at inspiring and motivating young online Egyptians. Starting in April, two successful Egyptian social entrepreneurs will be featured on the "Social Innovation Starts With YOU" website (http://eg.socialinnovation.yahoo.com), sharing their compelling stories and providing advice to up-and-coming entrepreneurs. In June, up to 10 entrepreneurs will be featured, and visitors to the website can vote for the entrepreneur who they think has made the biggest impact on their communities. The winner will be featured on the front page of Maktoob.com and invited to be a judge for the campaign's Social Innovation Competition. Nahdet El Mahrousa (NM), in Arabic meaning the Renaissance of Egypt, is an Egyptian youth-led non-governmental organization, established in November 2003 and registered with the Ministry of Social Solidarity. NM seeks to make a positive and lasting impact on Egypt's cultural, economic and social development through activating and engaging Egyptian youth in the country's development, public work and decision-making arenas.

Impact of World Cup will be 'massive'

R93-billion gross, 695 000 annual jobs sustained, once-in-a-lifetime profiling of the country, and 370 000 foreign tourists – a smaller number, but staying longer and spending more than originally forecast. Consultancy Grant Thornton's post-recession projections on the economic impact of the 2010 Fifa World Cup make for encouraging reading. Although Grant Thornton's projected number of World Cup visitors is 373 000, down from 483 000, it is expected that many of the visitors will stay longer and spend more. Indications are that overseas tourists will stay an average of 18 days compared to the 14 days used in the original projections, while average overseas tourist spend per trip is also forecast to be up, at R30 200 compared to the R22 000 used before. The average spend forecast is based on an analysis of current tourist spends in South Africa as well as dipstick surveys of potential visitors and expenditure by visitors to SA for other sporting events such as the 2009 British and Irish Lions rugby tour. Foreign World Cup visitors are expected to attend an average of five soccer matches per person, up from the 3.4 matches previously expected. This compares to an average of 2.6 matches attended by foreigners at the World Cup in Germany in 2006. Going to more matches means visitors are likely to stay in the country for a longer period and therefore, while daily spends remain similar, total trip spend increases. The gross economic impact will be R93-billion, with 62% expected to be generated pre-2010 and 38% during the course of the year. Foreign tourism will account for 16% of the gross impact. The majority of economic spend comes from the government's spend on infrastructure and some operational expenditure. This has increased significantly compared to original budgets, from R17.4-billion (2007) to R30.3-billion, with a further R9-billion or more spent by cities and provinces.In terms of the World Cup impact on jobs, Grant Thornton finds the figures very encouraging. The number of annual jobs sustained in total is 695 000. Of these, 280 000 annual jobs will be sustained in 2010 and 174 000 by the net additional economic activity in this year. This is an economic measure of equivalent annual jobs sustained by this amount of economic activity, and not new jobs created.

World Bank Gives First Loan to Chinese Firm in Africa

The World Bank's private-investment arm agreed to make its first loan to a Chinese company doing business in sub-Saharan Africa. The International Finance Corp. said it will lend $10 million to a joint venture of China Railway Jianchang Engineering Co. and a Tanzanian non-governmental organization to help finance a retail and office building in Dar es Salaam. "Supporting Chinese enterprises for development and cooperation with Africa is one of IFC's strategic priorities," Lars Thunell, the IFC's chief executive officer, said in a statement. "This investment will contribute to Tanzania's competitiveness as a regional center, and we believe it will be the first of many transactions bringing sustainable Chinese investment to Africa."

WISCO Starts Work on Iron Ore Project in Liberia

South Africa's Richards Bay Coal Terminal, Europe's biggest source of coal burned for electricity, is boosting supplies to India and China as rebounding Asian economies build new power plants. India's imports in the first quarter rose about 27 percent to 4.55 million metric tons from 3.59 million a year earlier, based on data e-mailed by Zama Luthuli, a spokeswoman for RBCT. China purchased about 1.9 million tons during the first three months of this year compared with 1.38 million tons in 2009. South Africa is boosting sales to Asia after recession curbed consumption in Europe. India and China, whose economies are growing at rates faster than 8 percent, together accounted for about 42 percent of RBCT's shipments in the first quarter of this year compared with about 25 percent a year earlier.

$520m Electricity Loan for 2,200 Communities from Chinese Exim Bank to Ghana

The government has secured a $520 million loan facility to expedite the extension of electricity to 2,200 communities across the country. The Exim Bank of the US granted the nation a $350 million loan, while the government contracted $170 million from the China Exim Bank.

China donates $40 million opera house to Algeria

China will pay $40 million to build an opera house for major trading partner Algeria, a gift likely to serve as a powerful symbol of Beijing's growing economic influence in Africa. The 1,400-seat opera house will be built in the Ouled Fayet suburbs in the west of the Algerian capital, officials said. The building will be "an important symbol of Chinese-Algerian friendship," Lu Yifeng, economic and trade advisor at China's embassy in Algiers, told Reuters. It will be the first time the Algerian capital has had a theatre dedicated to opera. "This huge cultural project is a friendly gesture by the Chinese," Algerian Minister of Culture Khalida Toumi said at a ceremony to announce the gift. Chinese firms want to secure a share of the $150-billion that Algeria, sitting on huge cash reserves from oil and gas exports, has earmarked for infrastructure improvements and modernizing the economy between now and 2014. The spending is part of an effort by Algeria to catch up after over a decade of conflict between Islamist radicals and government forces that killed more than 200,000 people. From a figure of $272 million in 2001, bilateral trade between China and Algeria topped $4 billion in 2008.

Harvard Business School Offers Executive Education Program on Corporate Social Responsibility

Harvard Business School (HBS) Executive Education has announced its upcoming session of Corporate Social Responsibility: Strategies to Create Business and Social Value, a program designed to help executives align corporate social responsibility (CSR) with business strategy, and successfully manage through the current environment. Now in its sixth year, this annual offering will be held November 7 to 10, 2010, on the HBS campus in Boston.Targeted to senior executives from a broad range of industries, the curriculum focuses on developing and implementing CSR strategies that reinforce core business practices and yield cost-effective, measurable results in any economic environment. Through this intensive learning experience, participants will acquire actionable frameworks for positioning their organization and brand to succeed and endure over time. This social enterprise program helps business leaders develop new strategies that satisfy the demands of customers, employees, investors, and governments -- and address the economic, social, and environmental impact of their business practices. New case studies on organizations successfully aligning CSR initiatives with business strategy provide insight for CSR executives, who must contend with conflicting demands on limited company resources.

Microsoft invests in South African Talent

In one of the biggest equity-equivalent deals seen in South Africa to date, Microsoft is to invest almost half-a-billion rand in the local software industry over the next seven years as part of the company's broad-based black economic empowerment (BEE) programme. The deal will see the multinational software giant spending R472-million to help small, black-owned software development companies to grow into global businesses by 2017. Participants will be chosen from responses to a nationwide request for proposals, slated for issue in early May, and it is expected that between five and 10 companies will be part of the initial programme. The investment will directly address some of the key challenges facing the government and South Africa as a whole - namely creating jobs, developing enterprises, building the local software economy and developing scarce technology skills. It is anticipated that the deal will take Microsoft from a Level 4 to a Level 2 BEE contributor, subject to the relevant audits.

Call for ADLER Awards 2010 Nominations

The Awards Committee of the prestigious ADLER Entrepreneurship Awards announces the next Awards event in 2010. The 2010 ADLER Entrepreneurship Award for the Diaspora region will be held in Germany on 4. December 2010, in Bonn. Deadline for nominations is 30th June, 2010.

http://www.ayf.de/activities/awards.html

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