Igihe

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  • M23 to Resume Fighting

    Uganda has requested M23 rebels in DRC not to resume fighting.

    The rebels had last week threatened to resume fighting against the DRC army.

    Okello Oryem, Uganda’s State minister for Foreign Affairs said, “I would urge the M23 to remain calm and collected because the peace process is still going. Let them cease fire as President Yoweri Museveni had told them.”

    The rebels stopped fighting in August after President Museveni met them in Kampala and told them to talk with the Kinshasa government.

    However, the leader of M23, Bishop Runiga Lugerero, told a press conference at the weeekend in Bunagana that Congolese President Joseph Kabila was not willing to talk peace.

    The rebel commander said his group was also opposed to the deployment of an international neutral force proposed after a series of meetings between leaders of countries which form the International Conference for Great Lakes Region (ICGLR) chaired by President Museveni.

  • Rwanda, Tanzania Sign Deal to Boost Cross-Border Trade

    Rwanda and Tanzania have signed an agreement to boost cross border trade by eliminating trade barriers.

    The deal was signed on October 17 in Kigali by Rwanda’s trade and Industry minister François Kanimba and the deputy minister for Industry and Trade in Tanzania, Gregory Teu.

    The agreement marked the climax of a bilateral meeting on elimination of non-tariff barriers (NTB’s) and the promotion of cross-border trade between the two countries.

    Mr Kanimba observed that Rwanda and Tanzania were important trading partners with a firm commitment to increasing trade and cooperation.

    “I hope with these relations, Rwanda and Tanzania will cooperate to further increase small trader cross-border business,” he said.

    Kanimba added that the agreement will further help the two countries remove barriers to trade and create a favourable business environment to facilitate trade.

    “It is important to eliminate all reported trade barriers and refrain from introducing new ones in order to cut the high cost of doing business and take advantage of all the benefits of regional integration,” he said.

    According to statistics, Tanzania was Rwanda’s seventh largest trading partner in 2011, accounting for four per cent of Rwanda’s international trade and 17 per cent of regional trade.

    Teu said “We expect from this bilateral relations, our citizens from the two countries to trade among themselves easily,” he said, adding that the elimination of non-tariff barriers will reduce the costs of doing business between the two countries.

    The Executive Secretary of Rwanda Long Distance Truckers Association, Theodore Murenzi, said: “I am happy that the two countries have agreed to eliminate NTBs which have been affecting us, especially because we lose money and time along the corridor which impacts on our businesses.”

  • Rwanda, Tanzania Sign Deal to Boost Cross-Border Trade

    Rwanda and Tanzania have signed an agreement to boost cross border trade by eliminating trade barriers.

    The deal was signed on October 17 in Kigali by Rwanda’s trade and Industry minister François Kanimba and the deputy minister for Industry and Trade in Tanzania, Gregory Teu.

    The agreement marked the climax of a bilateral meeting on elimination of non-tariff barriers (NTB’s) and the promotion of cross-border trade between the two countries.

    Mr Kanimba observed that Rwanda and Tanzania were important trading partners with a firm commitment to increasing trade and cooperation.

    “I hope with these relations, Rwanda and Tanzania will cooperate to further increase small trader cross-border business,” he said.

    Kanimba added that the agreement will further help the two countries remove barriers to trade and create a favourable business environment to facilitate trade.

    “It is important to eliminate all reported trade barriers and refrain from introducing new ones in order to cut the high cost of doing business and take advantage of all the benefits of regional integration,” he said.

    According to statistics, Tanzania was Rwanda’s seventh largest trading partner in 2011, accounting for four per cent of Rwanda’s international trade and 17 per cent of regional trade.

    Teu said “We expect from this bilateral relations, our citizens from the two countries to trade among themselves easily,” he said, adding that the elimination of non-tariff barriers will reduce the costs of doing business between the two countries.

    The Executive Secretary of Rwanda Long Distance Truckers Association, Theodore Murenzi, said: “I am happy that the two countries have agreed to eliminate NTBs which have been affecting us, especially because we lose money and time along the corridor which impacts on our businesses.”

  • Hong Kong Seizes $3.4m ivory From East Africa

    Hong Kong authorities have confiscated two shipping containers from Tanzania and Kenya loaded with jumbo tusks worth $3.4 million (about Sh5.4billion).

    This incident involving ivory weighing more than 3,628kg, could affect the country’s attempt to release into the international market its huge stock.

    Hong Kong customs officials as saying the containers arrived from Tanzania and Kenya. The agency seized a total of 1,209 pieces of ivory tusks and three pounds of ornaments from the two containers.

    The Hong Kong Customs department was kept on alert after a tip-off from Guangdong officials in China. On October 16, Hong Kong officers inspected a container from Tanzania purporting to contain plastic scrap and found $1.7 million worth of ivory.

    A day later, a second container from Kenya was seized with ivory valued at $1.7 million, according to Hong Kong Customs.

    Seven people, including one Hong Kong resident, have been arrested by Chinese authorities in connection with the cases, said a customs spokeswoman.

    Hong Kong is viewed as a transit point for the illegal ivory trade, feeding into increasing demands in China, according to an article published this week.

    Elephants are being killed in Africa at an alarming rate as international demand for ivory soars. Much of the demand comes from increasingly affluent Asian countries, particularly China and Thailand.

  • Hong Kong Seizes $3.4m ivory From East Africa

    Hong Kong authorities have confiscated two shipping containers from Tanzania and Kenya loaded with jumbo tusks worth $3.4 million (about Sh5.4billion).

    This incident involving ivory weighing more than 3,628kg, could affect the country’s attempt to release into the international market its huge stock.

    Hong Kong customs officials as saying the containers arrived from Tanzania and Kenya. The agency seized a total of 1,209 pieces of ivory tusks and three pounds of ornaments from the two containers.

    The Hong Kong Customs department was kept on alert after a tip-off from Guangdong officials in China. On October 16, Hong Kong officers inspected a container from Tanzania purporting to contain plastic scrap and found $1.7 million worth of ivory.

    A day later, a second container from Kenya was seized with ivory valued at $1.7 million, according to Hong Kong Customs.

    Seven people, including one Hong Kong resident, have been arrested by Chinese authorities in connection with the cases, said a customs spokeswoman.

    Hong Kong is viewed as a transit point for the illegal ivory trade, feeding into increasing demands in China, according to an article published this week.

    Elephants are being killed in Africa at an alarming rate as international demand for ivory soars. Much of the demand comes from increasingly affluent Asian countries, particularly China and Thailand.

  • Tsvangirai, Locardia Out of Court Deal Fails

    Zimbabwe Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai and his wife Ms Locardia Karimatsenga have failed to thrash out an out-of-court settlement in their maintenance dispute.

    They are due back in court next week after their lawyers yesterday asked for more time to negotiate.

    Although both sets of lawyers refused to divulge the figures involved, sources said they had initially agreed on a US$200 000 once-off payment for Ms Karimatsenga.

    The sources said the parties reached a stalemate when Ms Karimatsenga raised her demands to US$500 000.

    She reportedly also demanded three oxen.
    Her lawyer, Mr Everson Samukange, confirmed the deadlock, but dismissed the figures as false.

    “I heard there are figures being talked about to be the money claimed by my client. Those figures are false and my client is not after money.”

    Mr Samukange said the parties were set to argue the matter before a magistrate next week.

    The parties had agreed to indefinitely postpone the matter October 18 afternoon, hoping the negotiations would yield positive results. But a few hours after the deferment, they failed to hammer out a settlement.

    “We have deliberated on several issues, but the discussion failed to yield positive results,” said Mr Samukange.

    “This means we are going back to court to argue the matter. Next week we will be back in court. Our client does not want money. She is simply asserting her rights as a wife.”

  • Tsvangirai, Locardia Out of Court Deal Fails

    Zimbabwe Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai and his wife Ms Locardia Karimatsenga have failed to thrash out an out-of-court settlement in their maintenance dispute.

    They are due back in court next week after their lawyers yesterday asked for more time to negotiate.

    Although both sets of lawyers refused to divulge the figures involved, sources said they had initially agreed on a US$200 000 once-off payment for Ms Karimatsenga.

    The sources said the parties reached a stalemate when Ms Karimatsenga raised her demands to US$500 000.

    She reportedly also demanded three oxen.
    Her lawyer, Mr Everson Samukange, confirmed the deadlock, but dismissed the figures as false.

    “I heard there are figures being talked about to be the money claimed by my client. Those figures are false and my client is not after money.”

    Mr Samukange said the parties were set to argue the matter before a magistrate next week.

    The parties had agreed to indefinitely postpone the matter October 18 afternoon, hoping the negotiations would yield positive results. But a few hours after the deferment, they failed to hammer out a settlement.

    “We have deliberated on several issues, but the discussion failed to yield positive results,” said Mr Samukange.

    “This means we are going back to court to argue the matter. Next week we will be back in court. Our client does not want money. She is simply asserting her rights as a wife.”

  • You can Die of Broken Heart For Real

    The death of a spouse is one of the most tragic events in a person’s life, often causing an enormous amount of stress andaffecting even the health of the surviving partner.

    Other extremely traumatic events, new research finds out, can literally break the heart of an individual.

    The research, done at the University Clinic of Rostock in Germany, studied how heart-breaking experiences affect the heart conditions of subjects.

    Distressed patients’ hearts force the body to pour out adrenaline and other stress hormones. This narrows the coronary arteries and disrupts normal blood circulation.

    As a result, the rest of the body gets less oxygen and people tend to suffer breathlessness, pain and even the loss of consciousness.

    The research team said it came across similar heart-related cases, adding that women, especially those who are post-menopausal, are most sensitive to stress hormones, although the specific cause remains unknown.

  • You can Die of Broken Heart For Real

    The death of a spouse is one of the most tragic events in a person’s life, often causing an enormous amount of stress andaffecting even the health of the surviving partner.

    Other extremely traumatic events, new research finds out, can literally break the heart of an individual.

    The research, done at the University Clinic of Rostock in Germany, studied how heart-breaking experiences affect the heart conditions of subjects.

    Distressed patients’ hearts force the body to pour out adrenaline and other stress hormones. This narrows the coronary arteries and disrupts normal blood circulation.

    As a result, the rest of the body gets less oxygen and people tend to suffer breathlessness, pain and even the loss of consciousness.

    The research team said it came across similar heart-related cases, adding that women, especially those who are post-menopausal, are most sensitive to stress hormones, although the specific cause remains unknown.

  • Korea Expands Development AID to Africa

    Korea and African nations sent relations to new highs as they wrapped up the 3rd Korea-Africa Forum in Seoul on Thursday, highlighting the East Asian nation’s pledge to contribute fresh military personnel to peacekeeping efforts in the restive Darfur region and South Sudan.

    The 3rd Korea-Africa Forum is the largest yet ― the marquee event of a week of “Korea-Africa Cooperation,” which brought together 150 delegates from 19 African nations and the African Union, including heads of state and foreign ministers.

    Nigerian Ambassador to Korea Desmond Akawor said that Korea’s pledge to peacekeeping in South Sudan is good, but “actions speak louder than words,” adding that it is important for Korea to engage in projects that have a regional impact, signaling out areas of agriculture and infrastructure, as well as peacekeeping operations.

    Korea had been mulling involvement in the Darfur peacekeeping effort, the United Nations Mission in Darfur, since as far back as 2008.

    Korea agreed on Thursday to dispatch 300 military personnel to Bor, a small town north of the South Sudan capital of Juba.

    “Progress has been made but more can be done,” Akawor said.

    He said that Korean Foreign Minister Kim Sung-hwan promised he would look into complaints of unfair treatment faced by Nigerians working and living in Korea during a one-on-one meeting with Nigerian Foreign Minister Olugbenga Ayodeji Ashiru, who delivered a keynote speech at the forum.

    Nigeria is the second-largest oil exporter in the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, last year surpassing Iran, and is the most populous country in Africa with 170 million. It opened diplomatic relations with South Korea in 1980, and it is the only African nation to have a full embassy in North Korea.

    “(Kim) promised to look into normalizing the visa situation faced by about 1,000 Nigerians,” Akawor said. There are 2,000 Nigerians in South Korea.

    “Korea’s approach to Africa is the right one,” said Angolan Ambassador to Korea Albino Malungo. “Korea is a genuine partner on developing Africa as a continent.” Angola opened its embassy in Korea in 2008.

    Korean development assistance in the region doubled twice in six years, with about $42 million in 2006, $100 million in 2009 and more than $200 million so far this year.

    “It was a good conference,” said Rwandan Ambassador to Korea Eugene S. Kayihura. “Of course, we want to attract more investment from Korea, but the relationship between Korea and Africa is a complex one. It involves agriculture, ICT, health and much more.” Like Angola, Rwanda opened its embassy here in 2008.

    This coincides with a jump in Korean involvement in global affairs broadly, including notable involvement in United Nations peacekeeping operations around the world.

    “Some 1,500 Korean personnel are deployed to 15 nations and 17 regions to actively participate in global problem solving, such as armistice observation and reconstruction support,” said Lee Young-geol, vice minister of Defense, in a speech during the forum’s peace and security session Wednesday.

    In addition to its new pledge of troops for the U.N. Mission in Darfur, Korea has troops deployed with peacekeeping missions off the coast of Somalia.

    The government’s troop deployment announcement comes just days after yet another soldier was killed there, this time a South African, in an ambush in which peace keepers returned fire.

    It’s the second fatal attack this month, after the killing of four Nigerian troopers on Oct. 2. A total of 43 U.N. personnel have been killed since the peacekeeping force was deployed at the end of 2007.

    Some 300,000 people have been killed in Darfur, Sudan’s westernmost province, since 2003, according to U.N. figures. Sudan’s government puts the death toll at 10,000.

    The Roh Mu-hyun administration in 2006 initiated Korea’s robust engagement with Africa, whose economic growth is fastest in the world.

    Korea’s piqued interest in Africa has generated enthusiasm in Africa for Korea, too. The number of embassies of African nations in Korea has jumped in recent years, most recently by Ethiopia. Seventeen of the 55 African nations now have full embassies here.

    Seven of the 10 fastest-growing economies in the world are in Africa and, despite the global financial crisis, Africa is expected to grow 4.5 percent this year, well above the world average.

    Korea struck a deal during the forum to dramatically increase development assistance in Africa and to establish a technology training center in Ethiopia.

    “We have an excellent relationship with Korea,” Ethiopian Ambassador to Korea Dibaba Abdeta said.

    “Korea’s engagement in Africa has seen a tremendous improvement since 2006,” said Kenyan Ambassador to Korea Ngovi Kitau. “Just look at the figures: trade growing by 60 percent in six years, investment by 80 percent and ODA by more than 260 percent.”

    “We’re moving in the right direction,” Kitau said.

    Korea’s African engagment is still playing catch up with China, which has long been a major investment player there, and Western nations like the United States, France and the United Kingdom.

    “With its limitless potential and growth, Africa has emerged as the last growth engine of the global economy,” said Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Kim Sung-hwan in a welcome speech delivered at the beginning of the forum.

    KH