Africa In Focus

Africa In Focus: "The mainstream thinking now is that Africa is different and we could get it right if we want. The choice is fully ours, and it is now time for us to define what we want."

African Development Bank (AFDB) President, Dr. Donald Kaberuka.

Tuesday 31 July 2012

Africa Financial Stakeholder Will Meet With UNIDO Director On Africa’s Future Economic Growth

AFRICA-INVEST

By
Busayo Sotunde

VENTURES AFRICA – This week,  Central Bank Governors and Finance Ministers across Africa are expected to meet in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo, to discuss the future economic growth of the continent.
The meeting, which will take place on 1st  - 2nd of August, 2012 will focus on the continent’s economic problems while making an attempt to find lasting solutions that will ensure food security, energy access, job creation particularly for the youth.
The meeting will also tackle the issue of poverty in Africa.
Apart from the Central Bank Governors and the Finance Ministers that will be present at the assembly, representatives from other international development agencies and financial institutions will also be in attendance to contribute their own quota to the problem-solving meeting.
The keynote address will be delivered by UNIDO Director General, Kandeh K. Yumkella. He will be speaking on how to boost agricultural productivity in the continent. Yumkella is a strong advocate for pro-poor sustainable industrial and agribusiness development as a means of wealth and job creation and the economic empowerment of the poor.
As the co-editor of UNIDO’s publication: “Agribusiness for Africa’s Prosperity,” DG Yumkella posits that a new agricultural development policy is needed to meet the economic and social development needs of the continent.
He said this new approach calls specifically for moving away from subsistence farming to the use of modern technologies and agro-industrials that promote mechanisation.
The Africa Caucus Meeting was formed following the Monterrey Convention of 2002 in Mexico. It comprises of African member countries of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) seeking to engage other policy makers around the continent in addressing issues relating to Africa’s economic transformation.

Cambria Africa’s Chairman, Director Increase Stake In Company

Africa
By Sotunde Busayo


VENTURES AFRICA – Cambria Africa Plc chairman, Ian Perkins bought 65,000 shares from his company yesterday at 12.4 pence each; making his total shares in the company 265,000 shares, which gives him approximately 0.46 percent of the company’s share capital.
Non-Executive Director of the Zimbabwe-focused investment company, Paul Herber also raised his investment to 350,000 shares – about 0.60 percent of the group’s share yesterday.
According to Proactive investors, analyst Derren Nathan said the focus of the Zimbabwe investment group has moved from expanding into new areas to generating profitability amongst a select number of core subsidiaries, which are not only highly geared to GDP growth or embryonic within Zimbabwe, but vital to further development of the economy.
With primary investment in Zimbabwe, the  long term, active investment company has been listed on the AIM market of the London Stock Exchange since 2007. The company was formerly known as LonZim plc, until February 2012 when it changed its name to Cambria Africa Plc.

Thursday 26 July 2012

CNN: Land grab- the scramble for africa





It is being dubbed by some as the “Second Scramble for Africa” - millions of acres of land being snapped up by companies from Asia and the Middle East.

The land rush was in part spurred by the food and financial crisis of 2008, when corporations, investment funds and governments began to re-focus their attention on agriculture as a profitable commodity.
Massingir Agro-Industrial is a South African and Mozambican company that has been given the use of 30,000 hectares of land in Massingir, western Mozambique, by the country’s government.  Backed by European investors, once feasibility studies are complete, the company will begin planting sugar cane to produce sugar - 80% of which will be exported to Europe.
Under the deal, local villagers will not be relocated. Some land will be left for the villagers but the vast majority of it will be off limits.
Gloria has lived in Massingir since she was born. Although the deal means local farmers like her will lose land they can farm, she thinks they will benefit in the long run.
"For me it is great to see a foreign company coming here to use our land because with their help we can produce more,” she told CNN’s Robyn Curnow.
But projects like this one are under close local and international scrutiny. Some watchdog groups warn that Africa's governments are giving away land cheaply to investors, with little or no regard for the people currently living off the land.
“What is happening is now they are giving away their land,” said Camilo Nhancale, president of the Youth Development and Environmental Advocacy Organisation. “It's a sort of land grabbing from the communities, they are giving away the land instead of negotiating and leasing the land to the company so if things do not go well they can say ‘no, this is our land.’”
Across the continent, Africa's governments are entering into land deals with foreign investors.
According to data released by "Land Matrix," an organization that keeps track of international land deals, Africa is the most targeted continent for land deals.
Its figures show that of the known and reported deals since 2000, 83.2 million hectares of land involved are in developing countries worldwide - and 56.2 million hectares of that are in Africa. That's almost 5% of the continent's total agricultural area.
But for water-scarce countries like Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, the threat of a food crisis is a very real fear. This has propelled them onto the top-10 list of countries investing in land deals - along with the Unites States, Malaysia and China.
Analysts say individual deals can involve hundreds of thousands of acres of land.
“For the Saudi government it is an elevation of food security for long-term structural demand that we are seeing in that economy,” said Simon Freemantle, senior analyst at the Standard Bank African Political Economy Unit.
But he believes Afican nations can benefit too. Freemantle said: “For the African (governments), if those deals can be struck pragmatically and if those funds can be channelled into the agri-sectors, they can develop the skills, they can increase the uptake of fertilizer usage, benefit through better use of irrigation mechanisms, for example.
“It should elevate domestic food security, and of course, that influx of capital is a necessary means to elevate agricultural potential and yields on the continent."
Alda Salomao is the director of Centro Terra Viva. She specialises in environmental law and has taken the Mozambican government to court over one of the land deals it negotiated.
“Or main issues and concern is to ensure that whatever initiative comes to the country, be it from Brazil, from China or from anywhere else, needs to be conducted according to the national laws and policies. Because we have enough provisions in these instruments to ensure that there is going to be fairness and tangible benefits for the country, for its people and for the companies.
“The government is failing to give itself enough time to take the time it needs to prepare itself to receive these kinds of investments.”
The local administrator for the district, Artur Macamo, denies that the government has handled this deal in Massingir badly. The government cancelled a contract with another company to use the same land and the administrator says this a sign that Mozambique will court investors on its own terms. This is a view shared by Massingir Agro Industrial.
“I think it is a win-win situation,” said Octavio Mutemba of Massingir Agro Industrial. “They (foreign companies) would be grabbing land if they came and they did not pay anything, if they implemented their projects, they took money out without any benefit for the population, for the communities.
“In that case I could say they are profiting from the land but in this particular case, in our project, and in other projects in this country that I am aware of, that situation does not happen.”
African villagers like Gloria are caught between their government's need to promote agricultural development through foreign investment and to protect the rights of the citizens who depend on that land.
But with volatile food prices, hungry populations and investors wanting to feed those cravings, it may be that it is the villagers who get left behind.


Nigeria FG Plans To Reduce Minimum Age of 15 Years

 
Following the Dana plane crash at Iju, Ishaga, a suburb in Lagos state, Nigeria; the Federal Government is planning to reduce the minimum age of aircraft operating in Nigeria from 18 to 15 years.
Chief Executive Officer, Aero-contractors Airlines, Captain Akin George said this will force airline to pay 83 per cent more on leased planes.
He said this while addressing a news conference at the airline’s office in Ikeja.
The new age policy proposed by the Minister of Aviation, Stella Oduah, would compel airlines to pay a minimum of $220,000 monthly as lease rentals on 15-year-old planes, compared to $120,000 currently being paid on 18-year-old planes.
George explained that the reason for the huge difference in monthly rentals. He said this is because younger planes of 15 years were currently scarce globally.
“Lease rentals are definitely strong at this time and not just because of being in Nigeria. When you want to go into younger aircraft of 150-seats capacity, they are quite difficult to find at this point in time. So if we are even looking at what they call medium age of Boeing 737 planes that is 15 years old, we are still looking at the lease rentals of definitely not less than $220,000 or $230, 000 in a month. But for the new generation (aircraft that are far younger than 15 years), they are in higher demand. And that is what the minister says she wants to push us into.”
 George also noted that passengers at the domestic terminal of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport had dropped following the June 3 Dana plane crash in Lagos, with a resultant loss in revenue by airlines.

“The total number of people flying in Nigeria has dropped. We are not making money now, even though some airlines have been grounded. The amount of money we earn has also dropped. We are calling on Nigerians to continue flying and have faith in the industry.”

Wednesday 25 July 2012

Ghana’s "asomdweehene", John Fiifi Evans Atta Mills Is Dead

 Ghana-President-John-Atta-Mills-300x224
By Busayo Sotunde

Ghana’s President, John Fiifi Evans Atta Mills is dead. He died yesterday three days after celebrating his 68th birthday while receiving treatment at the 37 military hospital in Accra .

 Upon his death, Mills becomes the first Ghanaian President to have died while in power.

Although the cause of his death is yet to be ascertained, Mills have been battling with throat cancer for some time. Not too long ago, he recently came back from the United States where he received medical attention.

Rumours of his death have been on for awhile. Former Minister Elizabeth Ohene affirmed that ,”For the past three or four years there’s been news he’s been unwell and rumours of his death – twice – and he appeared with grim humour to say they were exaggerated, insisting he was well.”

Evans Atta Mills was the third President of the fourth Republic of Ghana, West Africa oil, gold and cocoa producing country from the 7th of January 2009 to the 24th of July 2012.

Born on July 21st, 1944, at Tarkwa in the western region of Ghana, John Attah Mills hailed from Ekumfi Otuam in the Mfantsiman east constituency of the Ghana central region.

An avid learner and educator, Attah Mills began his formal educational journey at Achimota Secondary school, where he obtained his General Certificate of Education (GCE) Advanced Level in 1963. He proceeded to the University of Ghana, Legon, where he bagged a bachelor’s degree and professional certificate in law in 1967.

In 1968, Mills studied at the London school of economics and political science.
Not satisfied with his current educational position, he went to the prestigious School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) in London where he obtained a PhD in law.

John Evans Atta Mills was also selected as a Fulbright scholar at the equally prestigious Stanford law school in the US where he was awarded his PhD after successfully defending his doctoral thesis in the area of taxation and economic development (at age 27).

At a time when many would have stayed back abroad in search of greener pastures, Mills returned to Ghana to start his formal teaching assignment at the faculty of law at the University of Ghana, Legon. He taught at the university for more than twenty-five years.

Mills spent these years to research and serve as a visiting lecturer and professor at a number of educational institutions worldwide.

Professor Mills also served as an examiner in various finance related institutions throughout Ghana. These institutions include the Institute of Chartered Accountants, Institute of Bankers and the Ghana tax review commission.

Politics – At First You Don’t Succeed Try Again

Described as a man of high integrity, Professor John Evans Fiifi Atta Mills, ventured into politics as he grew older. In 1997 to 2001, he served as Ghana’s vice president under president Jerry Rawlings.

He was the only person, in the history of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) party, to have run for president three consecutive times.

His first attempt for the presidential position was in the year 2000. He made another attempt in the 2004 presidential elections as the candidate of NDC. He however failed on both attempt but later succeeded in his third attempt in 2008.

His campaign theme for the third attempt was on “change”.

Before his death, he had just been nominated by the National Democratic Congress to stand for a second term.

Mills has lots of publications to his credit on Ghana’s transformation, some of which include:

• Taxation of periodical or deferred payments arising from the sale of fixed capital (1974) university of Ghana law journal pp 170-178
• Exemption of dividends from income taxation: a critical appraisal (1977) review of Ghana law volume ix no. 1 pp 38-47
• Report of the tax review commission, Ghana, parts 1,2&3, Accra, October 1977;
• Casebook on Ghana income tax
• Ghana’s income tax laws and the investor. An inter-faculty lecture published by the University of Ghana.
• Criminal law treatment of sexual activity generally
• The role of the state in the evolution of the family in Anglophone countries of Africa: an overview.
• A survey of taxes on the individual in Ghana.
• Ghana’s wealth tax: some issues and problems
• Ghana’s new investment code, an appraisal (an inter-faculty lecture delivered in 1986.


All work no play makes Jack a ….

As the saying goes, all work and no play makes jack a dull boy. Despite his political and bookworm lifestyle, Professor Attah finds room for recreational activities to unwind.

As an avid sportsman and sports fan, Professor Mills has supported the academic community and the nation at large through his contribution to the Ghana hockey association, National sports council of Ghana, and Accra hearts of Oak Sporting Club.

He is a keen hockey player and once played for the national team. Until his death, Professor Mills was a member of the veterans’ hockey team.

Apart from playing the game of hockey, Mills equally keeps his body in shape by swimming. He reportedly spends close to two hours every day when he has time.

Other accolades:

In his lifetime, Professor Attah Mills was:

• A member of the Ghana Stock Exchange council
• Board of trustees, mines trust
• Management committee member of, commonwealth administration of tax experts, united nations ad hoc group of experts in international cooperation in tax matters, and united nations law and population project
• 1986-1993 – acting commissioner, internal revenue service of Ghana
• 1993-1996 – commissioner, internal revenue service of Ghana.
• In 1988, Mills became the acting commissioner of the internal revenue service of Ghana and named commissioner in September 1996.
• On January 7, 1997, Mills was sworn-in as the vice president of the Republic of Ghana.
• In 2002, he was a visiting scholar at the liu centre for the study of global affairs, university of British Columbia, Canada.

 Ghana’s “asomdweehene”

Having described himself as a social democrat that leaned broadly on independence leader Kwame Nkrumah’s idea of social welfare, Mills is widely known as a man of integrity.

A writer describes him as a man of high integrity, humble, a liberal minded person who consults and peace is his watch-word.

In his country, he is seen as Ghana’s “asomdweehene” which literally means the “king of peace.”
Mills won accolades both at home and abroad for his sound economic policies and commitment to democracy and good governance. Globally, he is praised as leader of a stable model democracy in Africa.

He was also praised for Ghana’s healthy democracy.

Barack Obama at the oval office once professed Attah Mills as “a good-news story” in Africa.

Mills is also known for stressing the need for political stability in turbulent region. According to Reuters, Mills had told President Obama in March that “We are going to ensure that there is peace before, during, after the (December) election, because when there is no peace, it’s not the elitists who will suffer, it’s the ordinary people who have elected us into office.”

It was under Mills regime as the President of Ghana, that his country, an African gold producer, started pumping oil in 2010. Ghana also posted a double-digit growth in 2011, burnishing its image as an increasingly attractive investment destination on the continent.

Raves for Ghana’s Hero

The Nigeria House of Representatives, in a statement in Abuja by its Chairman, Media and Publicity, Alhaji Zakari Mohammed, said: “The death of Ghanaian President, Mr. Atta Mills has been described as a great loss not only to Ghana but to Africa in general. The late president was an embodiment of humility and a honest and transparent leader whose wit and wise counsel on the development of the region would be greatly missed. Similarly, the late Atta-Mills will be missed for his politics without bitterness.”

Osun State Governor, Raufu Aregbesola, also described Mills death as an immeasurable loss. He said: “Africa has lost a rare gem. Atta-Mills was quintessential leader who left no one in doubt over his readiness to advance the course of democracy. Had African countries been blessed with the likes of Atta-Mills over the decades, our continent would have successfully demonstrated to the world that Blacks too are capable of organizing themselves to live better lives than what we currently have throughout our continent.”

Liberia’s President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf told BBC that, “On a personal level his moderation and integrity stood out.”

A statement released by the U.S. state department spokeswoman, Victoria Nuland, said, “our thoughts go to his family and to the people of Ghana, who have lost a beloved leader.”

A West Africa expert with South Africa’s institute for security studies, David zounmenou, said Ghana’s president would be much missed. “He was a God-fearing man with a good heart, who sought to balance regional interests with Ghanaian interests and remain neutral while co-operating with regional peace and stability efforts. He was a good example for the continent and will be greatly missed.”

However, since the announcement of his death, Mills’ vice president John Dramani Mahama has been sworn in as the new president of Ghana as provided by the constitution.

Mills is survived by his wife, Ernestina Naadu Mills, a marriage educationist and a son, Sam Kofi Atta Mills.


Posted from Ventures-Africa

Thursday 19 July 2012

Nigeria’s AdHoc Committee Wants Ibru and Akingbola’s National Honour Withdrawn


Following the conclusion into the investigation on the “near collapse of the Nigerian capital market”; Nigeria’s House of Representatives’ Ad Hoc Committee, have moved the motion that Cecelia Ibru and  Erastus Akingbola -both  former Managing Directors of the defunct Oceanic Bank International Plc and Intercontinental Bank Plc- be relieved of their national honours.

The suggestion to strip both the former directors of their honours was part of the recommendations made in the Adhoc committee report on the investigation.The report was submitted by the Adhoc committee chairman, Tukur El-Sudi.
Ibru had been awarded national honours as Member of the Federal Republic (MFR) and Officer of the Federal Republic (OFR), while Akingbola was conferred with an OFR for services to banking and the country.
Both former bank directors where sacked by Nigeria apex financial institution, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in 2009 for fund misappropriation in their banks after a joint audit with the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC). The audit conducted discovered that both managers along with six other Bank Directors had impaired their banks’ capital.
Of the accused bank managers, only Ibru and Akingbola were given national honors.
While Ibru has been convicted for her crime after pleading guilty to the financial crime, Akingbola’s case is still in court.
According to This Day, the committee advised that all former bank executives, who are recipients of national honours and are currently being prosecuted for crimes and unethical practices, which led to the collapse of their banks, be stripped of the honours.
Meanwhile, as part of the report submitted, the committee asserted that N8 billion was misplaced during the recapitalisation of Union Bank Plc through a public offer. It concluded that investors’ funds were fraudulently diverted after the offer. The group recommended that past board and management of the bank, the CEO of the issuing house to the offer, the present members of the board and management including the managing director of the bank, "be investigated by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission with a view to establishing the facts and recovering the missing funds."
The group also posits in its report that the nationalisation of three banks and their subsequent change of names to Mainstreet Bank Limited, Keystone Bank Limited and Enterprise Bank Limited, was in violation of the AMCON Act, NDIC Act and Section 44 of the 1999 Constitution.
“The process of transfer (of ownership) was fraught with potential forgery, unethical practices, abuse of office and various unacceptable bad corporate governance precedents.”
The committee recommended that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) should investigate the Managing Director of NDIC, Mr. Umaru Ibrahim; Managing Director of AMCON, Mr. Mustafa Chike-Obi; as well as the Governor of the CBN, Mallam Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, to establish their complicity in the deal while the transaction is reviewed.

Tuesday 17 July 2012

AWES Canvass Capital Deployment For African Women Entrepreneurs

AWES
By Sotunde Busayo


 To put an end to the financial exclusion amongst woman entrepreneur in Africa, participants at the recent African Women Economic Summit (AWES) held in Lagos, have recommended that more assistance should be given to women entrepreneurs in accessing capital.

The delegates are seeking to respond to the challenges on why women are not able to access credit despite the huge pool of capital allocated to women by financial institutions. They discussed this during the seminar on ‘Finding solutions to the Challenge of Capital Deployment” at the Second African Women Economic summit, the first AWES took place in Nairobi, Kenya, in 2010.

Delegates at the 2nd summit blamed the poor access of credit for women entrepreneurs on the absence of relevant information on credit opportunities. Lack of technical capacity on the part of both financial institutions and women entrepreneurs were also identified as challenges.

The seminar which was co-organised by the African Development Bank (AfDB) and the New Faces New Voices – featured hundreds of women entrepreneurs including company CEOs, bankers, industrialists, gender activists, top government officials representing the continent’s five regions.

As a solution to the identified business predicament, Kiendal Buritt of South Africa’s Summit Development Group, Africa, posits that investing in banks and providing strategic support will greatly enhance banks’ ability to service Small and Medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

“We support SME-centric banks and we provide the necessary technical support in assessing risks. We want to create a business model for the banks that help them adequately assess risk of SMEs,’’ she said. The support also includes helping women entrepreneurs build confidence and resilience.

Donald Kaberuka, AfDB President, also sent a message confirming the Bank’s commitment to continue to partner AWES in efforts to scale up women’s participation in the economic development of the continent.
Kaberuka explained that Women have always played a pivotal role in the socio-economic development of Africa.

As farmers, entrepreneurs, traders and innovators, they are key economic actors in the continent, adding, “I believe, strongly believe investing in women differently is essential to revitalize our economies.

Meanwhile, International Finance Corporation’s (IFC) global financial department’s Patience Marime Ball, revealed that the IFC plans to invest in a million SMEs with about 25 percent of the funds going to women entrepreneurs. She said what is important is how to get private equity funds to deploy funds quickly, adding that the IFC has about $2.8 billion committed to private equity funds with about $1.5 billion going into SMEs.

She enjoined New Faces New Voices, AfDB, together with the IFC and private equity funds to create a network platform towards increasing funds for women entrepreneurs.

The AfDB’s principal investment officer, Aude Apetey, said her bank is at the forefront of promoting SMEs through its investment with SME-focused private equity funds. As a results-oriented institution, the AfDB regularly reviews the performance of private equity funds and financial institutions to which it makes loans.

However, Yetunde Allen, managing partner at Lateral Links, Nigeria, pointed out that financial institutions are not out to help women but for their self-interest. She said only five percent of SMEs funding comes from the formal financial institutions in Nigeria.

She emphasised that financial inclusion goes beyond allocating credit to women entrepreneurs but also entails insurance, leasing and other support services that enhance the activities of entrepreneurs.

“There is a missing business support system. We need to build a business support ecosystem”.
The seminar is part of the quest to campaign vigorously for the economic empowerment of their genre as the surest means to banish poverty and achieve sustainable economic growth.

Giving the key-note address at the seminar is Nigeria’s Finance Minister, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo Iweala, who emphasised that women’s economic empowerment was no longer an option because investing in women who constitute half of the continent’s population was the only way to sustain the growth recorded across the continent at this times.

“Women are the third largest emerging markets in the globe. Women are the third largest sources of growth. One of the fastest ways to sustain current growth is to invest in women,” said the Nigeria Finance Minister.
She suggested that a specialised bank be established to cater to the financial interest of women, who do not have access to investment finance a host of reasons.


Posted from: VENTURES AFRICA

Ecobank Transnational Wins Euromoney “Best Bank In Africa” Award

Ecobank

 


By Busayo Sotunde
 
 

For the second time in two successive years, Pan-African oriented bank, Ecobank Transnational Incorporated, have been awarded as the “Best bank in Africa” by leading international finance magazine, Euromoney.

The bank was awarded the 2012 “Best Bank in Africa” at the Euromoney Awards for Excellence held in London last week.

Organisers of the award also crowned Ecobank Ghana as the best bank in Ghana.
While expressing gratitude on the prestigious international award, Ecobank Group CEO, Arnold Ekpe, noted that the year 2011 was a transformational one for Ecobank. “Thanks to major acquisitions in Ghana and Nigeria and strong organic growth across our Middle African footprint.”

“We are actively managing this growth, continuously enhancing our technology platform and risk management framework and Ecobank is now positioned to become the undisputed number one bank in Middle Africa,” he said.

According to Euromoney Editor, Clive Horwood, the bank bagged the award for its success story which had remained outstanding in the industry.

“The African continent’s original pan-African group is now the largest financial institution in Africa by geographical outreach, operating in 33 countries.”

“The quality of the management, strategic outlook and growing profitability stand Ecobank in good stead. Moreover, it is close to holding assets of USD20 billion, thus reaching a level where economies of scale will kick in and boost efficiency and cross-selling of products and services,” Horwood said.

Speaking on the award for the bank’s Ghana group, a statement released by the magazine stated that “The bank’s growth and success story has continued in 2011. It is now the largest bank in the country following the merger with The Trust Bank Ghana (‘TTB’) with a network of 76 branches and a presence in eight of the country’s 10 regions.

“It is also the largest in terms of profitability, deposits and net worth, making it the worthy winner of best bank in Ghana this year.”

Samuel Adjei, the Managing Director of Ecobank’s Group in Ghana, assured that the bank would continue to work to ensure effective growth of the economy.

Ecobank’s spokesman, Nabi Ouedraogo, said the bank bagged both awards for its efficiency and service delivery to its numerous customers.


Posted from   VENTURES AFRICA

Philips Reaffirms Investment Commitment To Africa

philips
By Busayo Sotunde

VENTURES AFRICA- Dutch multi-national electronics Company, Philips Electronics, have re-affirmed its investment commitment to Africa by growing its business alongside Africa’s population.
With an active presence in Africa for over a century, Philips Electronics executive vice-president, Ronald Jong said, the company is committed to an aggressive multi-year investment plan to significantly increase its business footprint in the coming years based on local, relevant products and innovations that address the needs of the growing African population.
“We are committed to building a long-term sustainable business footprint in Africa. Growth in sub-Saharan Africa is projected to be around six per cent in 2012 and our ambition is to gain a strong presence in this continent by building on local talent and organisations.
“We will set up distribution and routes to market and above all, by developing solutions and innovations which are relevant for the local needs,” Jong said.
Philips Electronics is currently undertaking its third annual pan-African Cairo-to-Cape Town road show to raise awareness on how health-care and lighting solutions could enhance life in Africa.
At the road show, the Philips team will showcase its new innovations and continue to engage with customers, governments and the media on topics relating to key challenges facing Africa today.

Monday 16 July 2012

Africa Union Gets First Woman Leader

Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma



South Africa’s Home Affairs Minister, Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, has been appointed as the head of the African Union (AU). By the virtue of the new position, she becomes the first female head of the African Union.
The 63 year-old veteran apartheid fighter became the first AU leader after  a hotly contested election which ended in a tie in January; leaving  69-year-old incumbent Jean Ping of Gabon in power after the Francophone Africa community firmly supported Ping while the Southern African Development Community firmly stood behind Zuma. Neither side could secure the necessary two-thirds majority to win the election.
Yesterday’s election took place in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. She was elected by the 54-member pan-African bloc.
Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma is the ex-wife of South African President Jacob Zuma. She has served on every South African president cabinet since Nelson Mandela became the country’s first black leader.
Under the Mandela administration, she served as the Health Minister and helped to transform the country's segregated health system. She is remembered for introducing legislation that overhauled the highly unequal system and gave the poor access to free basic care.
She went on to become Foreign Minister for a decade, earning praise for her shuttle diplomacy to end the war in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
As an interior minister under her ex-husband administration, she was praised for turning around a ministry mired in gross mismanagement to achieve the first clean audit in 16 years.
On assuming the position as the leader of the union, Dlamini-Zuma will have to deal with the aftermath of recent coups in Guinea Bissau and Mali. Ping has been criticized as being slow and ineffective in his response to last year's coup in Cote d'Ivoire and the revolution in Libya.
In her campaign to win the pan-African bloc's top job, she vowed to work at making it "a more efficient and effective organisation."
Known for her competent management and stern personality, Dlamini-Zuma was born on January 27, 1949, in the eastern province of KwaZulu-Natal.
Although she later trained as a Doctor, Dlamini-Zuma took up politics in high school.
In the 1970s she went into exile, and studied in Britain at the universities of Bristol and Liverpool, while helping to organise anti-apartheid movement overseas. When the ban on the African National Congress was lifted in 1990, she returned home.
Keith Gottschalk of the University of the Western Cape describes her as "an astute politician, a veteran, the experience she acquired as foreign minister puts her in good stead to take over this role."
Mehari Maru of  Institute of Security Studies in Addis Ababa said, although  Zuma is a more "professional, more accountable and more proficient" person than Ping , she warned it would likely take months for a change in leadership strategy to take place.
Meanwhile, having ousted incumbent French-speaker, Jean Ping of Gabon, Zuma has refused to be labeled an English-speaking candidate.
"I am not Anglophone, I'm Zulu," she said.
She stated that while performing her role as the AU head, she would be "implementing programmes... agreed upon by everybody" rather than "consulting the Anglophone and the Francophone."