Tag: GreatLakesNews

{Tanzania Tourist Board (TTB) and Mauritius Tourism Promotion Authority (MTPA) have signed a one-year renewable Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on joint venture promotional initiatives of Tanzania and Mauritius tourism destinations particularly in USA, Australia, China, India and other tourists source market in Europe.}

The Managing Director of Tanzania Tourist Board (TTB), Ms Devota Mdachi and her counterpart of Mauritius Tourism Promotion Authority, Mr Kevin Ramkaloan, signed the deal today in the Mauritius pavilion at Messe Berlin in the ongoing ITB event. The main expected outcome of the MoU is to attract more visitors to both countries.

Speaking during the signing ceremony of the agreement, the TTB’s Executive Officer Ms Mdachi said that the two organisations have categorically agreed to join efforts in promoting their countries as the twin destination for the mutual benefits of their both respective countries by creating a conducive environment for tourists visiting Mauritius for beach holiday to also visit Tanzania for wildlife and adventure safaris.

“Our commitment is to promote Tanzania and Mauritius as a twin tourist destination so that tourists visiting Mauritius can as well visit Tanzania to experience other unique attractions available in the country such as varieties of wildlife in National Parks, Mt. Kilimanjaro, Ngorongoro Crater, to mention but few on top of the beaches they have enjoyed while in Mauritius,” noted Ms Mdachi.

Commenting on the same, the Director of Mauritius Tourism Promotion Authority Ramkaloan pointed out that the Authority was very much pleased to partner with TTB, since it has been their longtime outstanding intention to forge such a relationship due to the fact that the tourists visiting Mauritius wish to visit other exciting sites for their life history.

She said they as a result believed Tanzania was the right destination for tourists to definitely experience maximum enjoyment. “It is obvious that Tanzania is the only country in Africa endowed with exclusive and spectacular tourist attractions where one could really enjoy and become more excited.

Air Mauritius which is a Mauritius National Carrier is also part of the signed agreement as a partner airline of Mauritius Tourism Authority. The signing ceremony of MoU was graced by the TTB Chairman, Judge (rtd) Thomas Mihayo, head of sales department of Condor in Germany, Mr Andre Horn and Senior Commercial Manager of Air Mauritius, Ms Dons Kay.

Source:Daily News

{Six terror suspects were arrested in Malindi, Friday night.}

More than 30 anti-terrorism police officers raided a house and arrested the suspects in Old Court, Kilifi County.

The officers who were in full police combat gear ransacked the house before walking away with the six members of one family.

According to a neighbour who asked not to be named for security reasons the officers smashed doors and windows to gain entry into the house.

“They arrived at around 9pm and conducted a search in the whole house before taking away the relatives,” said the witness.

Malindi OCPD, Matawa Muchangi confirmed the arrests and adding that more details will be given once the suspects have been profiled.

Source:Daily Nation

{A senior army officer in the Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) is being detained at Old Kampala Police Station on allegations of extortion. }

Lt Juma Oketch was arrested this week after police’s intelligence officers received information linking him to the racket of criminals extorting and conning businessmen and unsuspecting individuals in Kampala.

Kampala Metropolitan Police spokesperson, Mr Emilian Kayima, confirmed Lt Oketch’s arrest saying he is a suspect of fraud and extortion.

“What is I know is that Lt Oketch was arrested on suspicion of extortion and he is at our Old Kampala cells,” Mr Kayima said.

However, a police source said the army officer was arrested over recruiting more than 30 youths into a militia group. The source said police was investigating the motive of recruiting youths as young as 18 years as reserve force.

“We have some of his youth in the cells. Most of them are aged 18 and 24 years. They possess army identity cards which we cannot tell how they got them but investigations are continuing,” a source said.

Mr Kayima dismissed reports that Lt Oketch was arrested over illegal recruitment insisting that the officer was arrested on extortion and was going to be released anytime since there was no evidence linking him to a racket of extortionists in Kampala.

“I am not aware about his involvement in illegal recruitment. Like I said he is a suspect of extortion. We may release him today because there is no evidence whatsoever connecting him to extortionists,” Mr Kayima said.

Cases of army officers involving in extortion, fraud and robbery cases have of recent become synonymous. For instance in August last year, a UPDF captain attached to National Leadership Institute (NALI) in Kyankwanzi District was arrested for his involvement in Highway robberies.

The same month police killed another UPDF soldier suspected of carrying out armed robberies in the city against mobile money agents. He died after sustaining injuries in a shoot-out with police officers in Nakaseke District.

Brig Richard Karemire, UPDF spokesperson, was not available for a comment as he did not respond nor return our calls and text messages sent to him.

Source:Daily Monitor

{The Democratic Republic of Congo’s power company says it may have to severely reduce hydroelectric production because of historically low levels in the Congo River.}

“We fear that if we don’t have enough water, we would have to stop the turbines because they cannot function when the water is below a certain level,” said Medard Kitakani, an official of the National Electricity Company (SNEL).

Congo is one of many African countries struggling with the effects of an extended regional drought.

SNEL said this week that water levels in the Congo River — one of the longest and deepest in Africa — are at their lowest point in the past 100 years.

A cut in power could have major effects on the economy, especially in the mining industries, which depend on the river for electricity.

Kitakani told VOA French to Africa that SNEL currently produces 900 megawatts, the bulk of it coming from a hydroelectric complex near the western city of Matadi.

Production could drop to 350 to 400 megawatts during the coming dry season if the river level falls too low, he said.

Source:Voice of America

{Nearly 20 human rights groups are urging the United Nations Security Council to impose targeted sanctions against officials accused of gross human rights violations in Burundi.}

The 19 organizations include Human Rights Watch and the International Federation of Human Rights.

In a letter sent to the U.N. Security Council on Wednesday, they say “some intelligence, army and police agents … had been killing, torturing, beating innocent people including those fleeing to the neighboring countries in all impunity.” The letter says they were aided by members of the youth wing of the ruling party.

Burundi has been in violent political turmoil since President Pierre Nkurunziza in 2015 successfully pursued a third term that many called unconstitutional. Hundreds have died and nearly 500,000 people have fled the country.

The U.N. secretary-general’s special adviser for the prevention of genocide, Adama Dieng, recently warned in a letter to the Security Council of “the risks of massive violence if nothing is done.”

Dieng also expressed concern that peace talks to address the crisis were at a “standstill.”

Burundi’s ambassador to the U.N., Albert Shingiro, said Wednesday on his Twitter account that “disproportionate media & diplomatic harassment 4 regime change in Burundi continues.”

Source:Star Tribune

{Opposition leader Raila Odinga has left the country for South Africa to visit his daughter Rosemary in hospital. }

Mr Odinga left Jomo Kenyatta airport in Nairobi shortly after 7am aboard aboard Kenya Airways flight destined for Johannesburg.

{{Tumour }}

He will be out of the country for slightly over a week, according to his spokesman Dennis Onyango.

Ms Rosemary has been in a South African hospital for over a week, suffering from a brain tumour, even though doctors said it is not life-threatening.

She is with her mother Ida and younger sister Winnie.

Over the weekend, Mr Odinga will travel to the US from South Africa for a number of engagements.

The trip comes after he was treated for food poisoning at Karen Hospital, Nairobi, raising concerns on his health.

{{Poison }}

However, he later clarified that he had not been poisoned but, was just a reaction to food that was not fit for his digestive system.

“This (food poisoning) is not the same thing as being poisoned,” Mr Odinga said.

“I know many Kenyans encounter this problem from time to time. It can cause quite a scare and, indeed, it did to me.”

On Wednesday, he was expected to address governors on the final day of the 4th Annual Devolution Conference in Naivasha but, instead Kisumu Senator Anyang’ Nyong’o represented him.

Source:Daily Nation

{Trade balance between Tanzania and Italy stood at 150 million Euros (about 352.5bn/-) last year with prospects for a doubling soon, thanks to vast opportunities within this country that remain untapped.}

“The trade balance is low compared to available opportunities … we’ve a lot of openings which are yet to be utilized, these could significantly improve trade between Tanzania and Italy,” the Italian Ambassador to Tanzania, Dr Roberto Mengoni, has observed.

The envoy cited investments in infrastructure development such as ports, railways and hospitality industries as among openings which could open up opportunities for increased trade between the two countries.

Dr Mengoni made the remarks during an interview on the sidelines of an event to launch civil society organizations’ community development projects and funding opportunities for non-governmental organizations (NGO’s) and private companies by the Italian Agency for Development Co-operation (AICS).

“We have planned for a business forum in May this year where Italian and Tanzanian business communities will discuss and share ideas on areas they can work on to tap new business ventures,” he revealed.

Italy commands the proverbial ‘lion’s share’ in its trade relations with Tanzania; it exports machinery and technology while the former exports to the European country agricultural and fish products.

Tanzania meanwhile receives an average of 35,000 tourists per annum, most of whom are interested in culture, nature and historic tourism in Zanzibar, the envoy stated.

The AICS’s Head of External Relations, Mr Emilio Ciarlo, said the agency was geared to support sustainable tourism to create more jobs for the locals, among others. He mentioned other areas of support by the Italian aid agency as health, food security, education in addition to rural and culture development.

During the current fiscal year the agency has allocated 500 million Euros to support such projects in developing countries. “The government of Italy allocates 0.24 per cent of its Gross Domestic Product (GDP) each year for international co-operation and we plan to increase the rate to 0.30 per cent of the economy by the year 2020,” he remarked.

At the occasion, the Director and Registrar of NGOs in the Ministry of Health, Community Development, Gender, Elderly and Children, Dr Marcel Katemba, hailed the new funding opportunities by Italian civil society organizations and private companies.

“The new arrangement requires implementing organizations to spend 97 per cent of funds on projects and only three per cent on administration … and this is a good move,” he declared.

In another development, the Registrar said his office had de-registered 110 NGOs which were operating against laws and regulations of

Source:Daily News