Tanzania: Dar Port Infrastructure Set for Further Improvement

Goods containers piled up at Dar es Salaam port ready for forwarding to various destinations. The port is set to receive funds from a combined soft loan and grants from the World Bank and the UK's Department of International Development (DFID) for activities aimed at improving efficiency at the port. (File Photo) FINALLY funding for deepening, dredging and construction of berths 1 to 7 at Dar es Salaam port valued at over 800bn/- will be provided by a combined soft loan and grant.... Read more »

Posted on : Wednesday , 17th September 2014

US$ 331m to be spent on road network expansion in Ethiopia

 The Addis Ababa City Roads Authority (AACRA) has set aside US$331m for roads in the Addis Ababa city, Ethiopia. The city of Addis Ababa presently has a road network covering 4671km, which is expected to be increased to 5275km. The project seeks to add 600km of road to the city’s road network. The Akaki Kaliti-Tulu Dimtu road will also be expanded, and reconstruction of the Akaki Bridge as part of this project, will also take place. Addis Ababa City Roads Authority (AACRA).... Read more »

Posted on : Wednesday , 17th September 2014

Kenya seizes Hong Kong-bound rosewood from Madagascar's threatened forests

Kenyan customs officials seized dozens of shipping containers holding hundreds of tonnes of illegally logged rosewood from Madagascar, they said on Wednesday, the largest bust of its kind and worth as much as $13 million. Illegal logging of hardwood in the Indian Ocean island's rain forests spiral led out of control after a coup in 2009 and remains rampant, conservationists say, threatening rare species, including lemurs, that are found nowhere else. Famed for its wildlife and eyed.... Read more »

Posted on : Tuesday , 16th September 2014

Tanzania eyes 2 million tourist arrivals by 2017

 The number of tourists visiting the country is expected to double to 2 million by 2017, according to the Tanzania Tourist Board (TTB). “We expect to reach 2 million tourist arrivals by 2017,” Reuters news agency quoted TTB acting managing director Devota Mdachi as saying at the weekend. “With more international airlines flying into Tanzania ... improved infrastructure, increased tourism investments and marketing, we can reach that target,” she.... Read more »

Posted on : Tuesday , 16th September 2014

Tanzania becomes Kenya s largest East Africa market

Tanzania has edged past Uganda as Kenya’s largest export market in East Africa as a result of the ongoing elimination of non-tariff barriers and increasing local production in Uganda of goods that were previously imported. Uganda has traditionally been Kenya’s top trading partner in the region, but latest data from the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) ranked the country third, with Tanzania coming second. Uganda was overtaken by the US in June as the leading.... Read more »

Posted on : Tuesday , 16th September 2014

Land and tree incentives entice Kenyan farmers to save forests

KAKAMEGA, Kenya (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - A Kenyan government plan to increase the country's forest cover by giving local people incentives to plant and preserve trees is paying off, resulting in more productive farmers and a landscape better able to cope with the changing climate. “We had targeted 4.7 percent forest cover by 2015, but we are already at 6.99 percent,” said John Wanyiri, deputy director of the Kenya Forest Service. The government plan calls for.... Read more »

Posted on : Tuesday , 16th September 2014

African countries agree to curb illegal timber trade in the Congo Basin

A breakthrough for sustainable and legal development of the wood industry. Governments from Africa's main timber producing  countries, together with timber industry representatives and civil society organizations agreed to jointly combat illegal timber trade in the Congo Basin, FAO said today following an international wood industry meeting in Brazzaville. Covering an area of 300 million hectares, the Congo Basin harbours the world's second largest tropical forest.  It.... Read more »

Posted on : Tuesday , 16th September 2014

Solar Industry in Africa: Moving Consumers Up The Energy Ladder

 After successfully catalyzing the market for clean, affordable solar lighting products in the unelectrified, largely rural areas of Africa, the Lighting Africa program is moving up the energy ladder to support products that provide a wider range of energy services, beyond lighting and cellphone charging. This expansion into larger systems is prompted by consumer and industry demands, as well as rapid development of new technology, and the emergence of new business models which.... Read more »

Posted on : Tuesday , 16th September 2014

Solar power taking center stage in the midst of SA energy crisis

 With corporate and industrial energy management on the rise in South Africa, PV is set to play a huge part in the movement towards energy efficiency. Trina Solar Limited, a global leader in photovoltaic modules, solutions, and services, has entered the South African market at an opportune time, with the sun-drenched country in the midst of an ongoing energy crisis. With unreliable energy supplies costing the economy billions, inconveniencing businesses and consumers alike, the.... Read more »

Posted on : Tuesday , 16th September 2014

Egypt to tender five US$ 2.8 b new technology parks project

 The government of Egypt has unveiled plans to tender five projects to construct modern technology parks across the country at an estimated US$ 2.8 b to boost its revenues. This follows planned issuance of a unified landline and mobile telecoms licenses. Egypt’s Minister of Communications and Information Technology (MCIT), Mr. Atef Helmy, confirmed the planed issuance of the bids for the five projects. Mr Helmy also said that the technology parks projects will be offered.... Read more »

Posted on : Tuesday , 16th September 2014

Chinese firms to construct the new US$ 700m Gebba River Dam, Ethiopia

The Ethiopian Government has awarded a contract for the construction of a new Gebba River Dam. The cost of the contract is US$700m. It will be built along Gebba River, near the border of Jimma and Illubabur zones of the Oromia Regional State. The contract for the new Gebba River Dam was awarded through the Ethiopian Electric Power Corporation (EEPCo), which is mandated to producing, transmitting, distributing and selling electrical energy in accordance with economic and social.... Read more »

Posted on : Tuesday , 16th September 2014

Tanzania: As Dar Port Gets Sh800 Billion for Expansion

 A MEMORANDUM of Understanding (MoU) between Tanzania Ports Authority (TPA), Ministry of Transport and World Bank, UK's Department for International Development (DFID) with Trade Mark East Africa has been signed for a 500 million US dollars (over 800bn/-) financing for Dar es Salaam port expansion and modernisation. The MoU signing ceremony was witnessed by Transport Minister, Dr Harrison Mwakyembe and visiting World Bank Managing Director and Chief Operating Officer, Sri.... Read more »

Posted on : Tuesday , 16th September 2014