A Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft has been delivered to Ethiopia becoming the second country after Japan to take delivery of the Dreamliner.
Sources say the Ethiopian Dreamliner is built from lightweight material, rather than aluminium aimed at saving fuel. Ethiopian Airlines has bought 10 of Boeing’s flagship aircraft.
Sudan is experiencing financial constraints as the price of the U.S. dollar on black market for hard currency jumped on Thursday to 5.95 as the country’s central bank further devalued the local pound in renewed efforts to plug the gap with the unofficial trade.
The Central Bank of Sudan CBS announced on Thursday that it was fixing a new exchange rate of 5.65 for commercial banks and Forex bureaus alike in order to narrow the gap with the black market rate.
CBS said the new rate will be followed by decreasing it to 4.4 following the Eid holiday.
Commercial banks have already started using the new rate but there is no information on whether Forex offices did too.
CBS allowed in May government-licensed Forex bureaus to determine their own rates in buying and selling currencies.
However, the situation changed little as Forex offices kept hiking their rates to match value in the unofficial trade while failing to meet the demand due to the small supply they receive from CBS.
Sudan has been struggling to narrow the gap between the official and black market rates of foreign currency exchange which has been widening since the country lost its main source of hard currency revenues due to the secession of the oil-rich South Sudan last year.
ST
Back pain is an increasing concern as we spend the majority of our day in a seated position.
From eight to 10 hours of work to long commutes to finishing the day off with hours of television, poor posture places significant strain on bones, joints, soft tissues and muscles.
Many people do not practise proper posture and ergonomics in the office or at home, which can lead to back pain and repetitive stress injuries.
If you suffer from back pain, there are several things you can do to make yourself comfortable while preventing and treating common causes of back pain.
Back Pain at Work?
Poor posture is one of the most common causes of back pain. Repetitive tasks and movements such as typing, filing and holding the phone with your shoulder can place your body in awkward positions that can contribute to muscle strain and pain.
Mental stresses such as an overwhelming workload, unhappy customers and an over-controlling boss can lead to tight muscles and physical pain as well.
Forward head position
Forward head position is when you roll your head and shoulders forward. This is a very common problem when you do a lot of typing, paperwork and reading which requires your head to be in a flexed position looking down.
This is one of the most serious posture problems as it blocks a lot of the blood flow to your head and is very bad for the joints, nerves, discs and muscles.
Action: Place your keyboard and mouse within easy reach so that you do not have to hunch forward to work on the computer. Make sure your wrists have proper support so that they rest in a neutral position when typing or using the mouse.
Crossed legged positions
One of the most common postural problems is not keeping both feet flat on the floor. Often workers cross their legs over or tuck one leg under while they are sitting.
This position places significant strain on the hips and lower back joints and muscles. Your lower back is the foundation of the rest of your spine. If your low back is out of its normal position, it is likely that other areas are also strained, which tends to worsen back pain.
Action: It is extremely important to use a comfortable, ergonomic chair when sitting at a desk for long periods of time. Make sure your chair has proper lower back, or lumbar support. If not, you can place a small pillow between your lower back and the chair.
Adjust the height of your chair so that your feet are flat on the floor and your knees are in line with your hips. If you sit on a high chair where your feet cannot touch the ground it is likely that you will hunch your back in order to stay balanced.
Equipment in line
The workplace’s furniture and equipment are common causes of injuries and pain. Try keeping the mouse, keyboard and monitor all in line.
Abnormal position, tension and pain will result from constantly looking off to one side if your equipment is not in alignment.
Action: If you are looking down at your monitor you can place a small box or even books under your computer monitor. This will raise the monitor and reduce the muscular strain in your neck and shoulders. The monitor should be level with your eyes.
Eliminating pain at work
Several recommendations have already been made but you can take additional steps to reduce the common causes of pain. The following stretches and exercises are recommended to do at work and at home to help reduce your risk.
Get up and move
It is recommended to take frequent breaks when you must sit at a desk for extended periods of time. Maintaining the same position for more than an hour or two at a time strains your back muscles and spine.
Stand up and walk around for a few minutes every hour, if possible.
Stretch it out
Stretching is an excellent way to keep your spine flexible and relieve back pain. The following are a few examples of stretches that will reduce your risk. Each position should be held for a minimum of 10-15 seconds and repeated as needed.
l Stand up straight and place your hands on your hips while gently leaning back and side-to-side so that you get movement in your lower back.
l Stretch your upper chest and shoulders by extending your arms behind your back and grasping both hands together. Keep your elbows straight and raise arms.
This will help stretch out the muscles that get tight from forward head position.
Tilt your head side to side, rotate left and right and bringing your ear towards your shoulder can help stretch the muscles in your neck.
Better-posture exercises
Single Leg Extension. This exercise trains your core muscles to work together to stabilize your pelvis and lower back.
How to: Lie on your back with your knees bent and feet flat on the floor. Slowly pull one knee toward your chest while keeping your low back flat on the floor and extend your other leg straight at about a 45-degree angle. Start with 5-10 extensions on each side.
The New Crunch
Traditional crunches have been found to place significant stress on your lower back. The new crunch reduces this stress and strengthens the core muscles most commonly associated with poor posture.
How to: Lie on your back with your knees bent and feet flat on the floor. Keep your lower back flat on the floor. Place your hands behind your head but do not pull on your neck. Curl your shoulders up off the floor and hold, slowly lower back down. Repeat until you’re fatigued.
Back Extension
It is common for people to try to strengthen their abdominal muscles while forgetting about their back muscles.
How to: Lie on your stomach with palms flat on the floor with your elbows bent. Have your legs straight behind you in a straight line.
Slowly raise your head and chest off the floor by only using your back muscles. Do not push down into your arms to press up. Keep your hip bones flat on the floor. Repeat until fatigued.
Plank Pose
This exercise is one of the most important stabilising exercises. It works your entire spine and incorporates the musculature for good posture.
How to: Start on your hands and knees with your palms directly under your shoulders. Extend both legs straight and go up onto your toes.
The position is similar to the top of a push-up. Tighten your abdominal muscles, keep your back straight and gaze down at the floor. Hold the plank until you’re fatigued.
By applying these stretches and exercises one can improve their posture and reduce the damaging effects of workplace positions. Take a proactive approach to workplace safety to prevent conditions that so many people suffer from.
This column is directed by your questions, comments and inquiries. The health advice provided is in collaboration with the World Health Organisation’s and the International Diabetes Federation’s goals of prevention, maintenance and natural treatment of disease.
The advice is for educational purposes and does not necessarily reflect endorsement.
Source. www.who.int
Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) is auctioning uncollected Cargo at Mombasa port a major facility for products imported by Uganda, Rwanda and other inland countries in the region.
The move aims at deconjesting the port but has in effect caused business losses to Uganda although Rwanda has not officially stated its position on the matter.
Kenya Revenue Authority has in recent months embarked on an aggressive drive to clear congestion at the port after traders complained of inefficiency caused by excess cargo lying at the facility.
KPA has started auctioning uncollected cargo after attempts to entice cargo owners using lower storage charges failed to yield much fruit.
In February KPA had reduced the period of free storage of import containers at the port of Mombasa as part of a 100-day moratorium to clear their cargo.
Free storage period for domestic import containers was reduced from five to four days while that for transit import containers was lowered to nine days from the current 11 days.
The auctions, coupled with improved work flow at the container terminals, has helped ease congestion at Mombasa port substantially.
Statistics by KPA showed that in July the container yard population at the port of Mombasa has dropped to a record 13,600 20-foot equivalent container units (TEUs) from 20,700 TEUs experienced during the infamous congestion period early this year.
The terminal’s capacity is 18,500 TUEs terminal capacity.
KPA managing director Gichiri Ndua, however, said Kenya was committed to serving the interests of all port users from the region.
“In our strategic plan, we aim to drop the Kenyan share of total traffic from 70% to about 65% and increase the share of the transit traffic to more than 30%,” he said.
The port is presently witnessing increased activity following improved economic conditions in the region.
UGANDA REACTS
Uganda is Kenya’s biggest export market. Rwanda is also reliant on Port Mombasa for major imports and exports. The auctions have simillary hurt businesses in Rwanda altho no official comment has been made.
The government of Uganda wants the auctioning of overstayed cargo at the port in Mombasa reviewed, saying it was hurting its businesses.
Uganda High Commissioner to Kenya Emmanuel Hatega claimed that some traders had lost fortunes after their goods were auctioned without their knowledge.
“Auctions should be both legally and ethically sound,” he said during a stakeholders meeting in Mombasa.
Hatega said some of the auctions were not carried out in “a proper manner”, leading to losses on the part of some businesses.
AFRICA last week reacted angrily to statements by the United States that seek to undermine global climate negotiations.
Addressing students at Dartmoth College recently, US special envoy on climate change Mr Todd Stern questioned the two degrees Celsius temperature limit as a functional global target.
Mr Stern said agreeing to a framework to achieve the two degrees Celsius goal would “only lead to deadlock” and that a new agreement should give countries “flexibility”.
The African Group, a coalition of 54 African countries speaking with one voice at international climate talks, described the US statement as reckless and disappointing, one certain to set back global targets in a huge way.
Seyfi Nafo, spokesperson of the African Group, said: “That (temperature increases) means the destruction of crops on a huge scale, as has occurred in the heatwave that the US is experiencing today. But in Africa these crops belong to subsistence farmers and the result is devastation and famine.
“This is not a game with numbers; it is a question of people’s lives, and so I am not sure there is much space for the ‘flexibility’ Mr Stern has spoken of.”
Africa is at the forefront of climate impacts. Science shows that temperature increases here is approximately 150 percent the global average, so even a 1,5 degrees Celsius global target could mean over 2 degrees Celsius for Africa.
Scientists believe a warming of 2 degrees Celsius would be manageable. And this is where global climate negotiations have mostly centred around, pursuing actions that limit unsustainable increases in world temperatures.
However, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change warns that at the current rate of greenhouse gases production — estimated at 30 billion tonnes annually — the world risked a warming of up to 6 degrees Celsius by 2100.
Mr Nafo said Africa was concerned with the US always shifting goalposts, and that even after pushing for a global goal, which it has agreed to on numerous occasions internationally, it now questions the same targets.
“It is disappointing that the Obama administration has said it ‘supports’ the goal but does not support an approach that guarantees achieving it. It is like they agree they want to have their cake, but they cannot agree not to eat it.
It is increasingly hard for us facing the impacts of climate change today to take a progressively weakening US position seriously.
This is why Africa continues to push for a comprehensive global agreement based on what the science is telling us is required.
“For every day of delay in changing the global emissions profile the costs of adaptation to climate change mount.
Those costs are currently being paid by some of the world’s poorest and most vulnerable people: farmers, fisherfolk and the rural poor in Africa.
The less that Mr Obama does today, the more he will owe these people tomorrow.”
The US has refused to be bound by the Kyoto Protocol, the only legally binding global agreement committing nations to reduce emissions in an effective manner. Yet, together with China, the US produces more than 50 percent of all world emissions.
Instead, the US wants developing countries to enter the fray, even those whose emission levels are certain not to cause any noticeable changes in the world climate system.
Since Copenhagen in 2009, politics appear to have overtaken the climate agenda with embedded north-south rivalries threatening to derail the entire negotiating process.
At Durban last December, after many hours of talks that appeared headed for a deadlock, negotiators managed to establish, among other things, the Durban Platform, a plan of action, which would result in the crafting of a new “Kyoto” effective only in 2020.
The Durban outcome has been largely viewed as weak and lacking ambition.
Climate change is arguably the biggest story of the 21st century, bearing strong ramifications on livelihoods, biodiversity and the natural environment.
God is faithful.
first published in the Zimbabwe Herald
Market reports indicate that Kenya’s top quality Tea has dropped in price for the first time on the global trading market in seven weeks to US$4.06/Kg at auction this week from US$4.07/Kg last week, market participants have said.
Kenya is the world’s biggest exporter of black tea and the crop is one of its largest foreign exchange earners. It fetched US$1.27 Billion in 2011.
The Mombasa-based Africa Tea Brokers (ATB) said in a market report that Best Broken Pekoe Ones TEABP1-BEST-KE sold at US$3.92-US$4.20/Kg from US$3.88-US$4.25 last week.
Best Pekoe Fanning Ones TEAPF1-BEST-KE fetched US$3.74-US$4.00/Kg from US$3.67-US$3.96/Kg at the previous sale.
It said 102,796 packages were offered for sale, with 17.1% going unsold. Last week, 98,514 packages were offered with 13% left unsold.
The report said Pakistan, Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, Russia and Sudan showed strong demand, as did Egyptian Packers.
Yemeni Packers, Middle Eastern countries and UK Were also said to have been active at the auction.
About 37 Investment licenses have been issued to Foreign Investors that applied to invest in China.
China has been too restrictive to foreigners interested in doing business in china keeping the communist vast state a no go zone to foreigners.
By easing restrictions on foreign investors seeking to put their money into the Chinese markets, Beijing’s latest financial sector reforms seek to boost a slowing economy.
The securities regulator late Friday published new rules allowing qualified institutional investors to hold up to 30% of shares in any domestically listed company, up from 20%.
The new rules will make it easier for foreign groups to obtain the status of qualified institutional investor, and thus enter the Chinese market, said the China Securities Regulatory Commission.
Foreign investors will now also be able to put their money into China’s interbank bond market and high-yield bond market, said the regulator.
The steps should lead to “more long-term foreign investment on China’s capital markets,” according to a statement from the regulator.
China has introduced a series of reforms to open up its financial markets in recent months in the hope of boosting its economy, which grew 7.6% in the second quarter, its slowest pace for more than three years.
Authorities hope to modernise the economy in which a dominant role is still played by state-run banks and huge public companies.
Fresh foreign capital could inject much-needed vigour into the country’s markets.
The benchmark Shanghai index ended Thursday at 2,126.00 points, its lowest close since March 9, 2009, according to Dow Jones Newswires.
New applications for foreign investors have been sped up recently, with the securities regulator approving 37 new qualified investor licences for the first six months of this year compared with 29 for the whole of last year.
Flower Investors are increasingly focusing on relocating to Uganda where they say the cost of doing business is much lower and favourable as opposed to Kenya where they have been operating.
Kenya Media reports that the Kenya Flower Council (KFC) is worried of the costs of doing business in Kenya, even when the sector’s export returns continue to plunge due to the financial crisis in the Eurozone.
KFC is also alarmed by rigid tax legislation, declining revenues, climate change and political instability in Kenya.
“Investors are adopting a wait and see attitude,” says KFC Chief Executive Officer, Jane Ngige. Some have shown an interest in Uganda because it is presently looking more attractive than Kenya.”
Details from KFC indicate that the sector registered a steady growth of about 10 per cent between 1995 and 2008 in tonnage, but presently there is a 1.7% slowdown.
“The reasons for this are several but a reduction in investment due to the Kenyan currency (shilling) remaining stronger than the pound and euro increases input costs, fuel, airfreight, fertilisers, chemicals and labour wages,” says Richard Fox, Director of Finlays Horticulture.
The RSE market today (Friday) recorded a lower turnover of Rwf 9,253,100 compared to yesterday’s trading session.
Bank of Kigali (BK) counter recorded 3 transactions of 70,000 shares which traded between Rwf 126 and Rwf 135 whereas Bralirwa counter registered 2 transactions of 700 shares traded between Rwf 359 and Rwf 365.
on Thursday the market had registered a total turnover of Rwf 44,160,200 from 210,500 BK shares and 43,700 BRALIRWA shares traded in 12 deals.
BK share price closed down Rwf 1 at Rwf 135 and Bralirwa share price remained unchanged from yesterday’s closing price of Rwf 365. KCB shares last transacted at Rwf 140 while NMG shares last transacted at Rwf 1,200.
At the end of formal trading hours, there were outstanding bids of 3,505,300 BK shares between Rwf 125 and 130 and outstanding offers of 514,800 shares between Rwf 135 and Rwf 136.
On BRALIRWA counter, there were outstanding bids of 1,600 shares between Rwf 357 and Rwf 360 and an outstanding offer of 134,000 shares at Rwf 375.
This week the RSE market recorded a higher turnover compared to last week’s trading session.
The total turnover for this week was Rwf 2,385,914,800 from 13,883,100 BK shares and 1,400,800 BRALIRWA shares traded in 38 deals compared to last week’s trading session which recorded a turnover of Rwf 236,157,800 from 942,700 BK shares and 334,600 BRALIRWA shares traded in 33 deals.
Here is the deal; if you Google Mali these days, here are some of the responses you’ll get from the most famous search engine on the web: “Mali militia to deal with Islamist militants ‘with or without the Mali army’;
Six Mali groups unite with vow to oust Islamists from north, Mali Islamist rebels say US$18.4 Million ransom paid, prisoners, Northern Mali’s “city of saints” suffers rebel fury, West African Defense Chiefs Meet Over Mali Crisis, Crisis Continues In Mali;
Why we should be worried about Mali, Mali crisis one of biggest challenges facing Africa, Mali Creates ‘Elite Force’ To Protect Interim Leaders, Mali crisis ‘one of biggest challenges’ for Africa”…
There is so much to say about the level of chaos in Mali since the coup that ousted President Amadou Toumani Toure out of office. Why do I care, you may ask?
First of all, because we all should as responsible citizens of the world, but mainly because Mali is the destination chosen by the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) for most of the key genocide perpetrators.
It boggles my mind to this date why the UN would confirm Mali, of all places, to send Genocide masterminds such as Theoneste Bagosora, Yusuf Munyakazi, Tharcisse Renzaho, Dominique Ntawukulilyayo, Aloys Ntabakuze, Ildephonse Hategekimana, Gaspard Kanyarukiga, Callixte Kalimanzira and many more to come…
The UN has, indeed, confined the people who organized the slaughter and the torture of more than a million humans in the, arguably, ‘most chaotic place’ on the planet… a place where a mob can enter the Presidential Palace and brutalize the President with impunity… a place where you can organize a mutiny with four vehicles and seize the country… a place where institutions are only hollow words left without essence or consistency.
Is it just me and my overworking mind, or does anybody else see this as the prelude to the African version of ‘Prison Break’, only this time for real?
Is it really overstretching one’s imagination to foresee a villain like Kabuga Felicien, the official sponsor of the 1994 Genocide on the run for the past 18 years with the financial means and the necessary criminal connections, organizing the escape of his long lost friends from the golden cells of Mali?
If such a thing should occur, will the ICTR and the UN be held responsible?
Truth be told, this would have never happened with the Nuremberg convicts. There is clearly a double standard on the part of our western counterparts when it comes to pursuing justice for Africans. Despite the presence of African actors in its fold, the ICTR’s approach to justice has some clear racist undertones.
As far as the West is concerned, the Genocide perpetrated against the Tutsi happened in some remote part of Black Africa, and is undeserving of any more attention than what is already provided for; yet this is the last Genocide of the 20th Century we are talking about! A genocide the nature of which one could hardly compare with any other in the history of mankind.
A Genocide that could have been prevented had the West been prepared to view it as more complex than the usual cliché of ancestral tribal rivalries and seen it for what it truly was: a human tragedy.
Sadly, the only reactions to be expected in the almost unavoidable escape of the Genocidairs from Mali jails will be sorrowful speeches of international civil servants of the regrettable inaction of local public servants who couldn’t care less if they tried, accountable to no one but themselves… so much for international justice.