The South African National Civic Organisation (Sanco) on Monday called on the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) to investigate racist comments allegedly posted by a Sandton Facebook user on a picture of a packed Durban beachfront over the weekend.

Spokesperson Jabu Mahlangu also called for criminal charges to be laid against Ben Sasonof.

“We wish to condemn in the strongest terms possible the alleged provocative insults which seek to rekindle racial hatred and polarise racial relations in our society,” he said.

Mahlangu said unless the resurgence of racism is dealt with harshly and perpetrators faced the wrath of the law, it will sow seeds of conflict that has the potential to undermine reconciliation, unity, nation-building and social cohesion.

“Vitriolic and barbaric comments of this nature have no place in the united, non-racial, non-sexist, equal, prosperous and democratic society we are striving to build,” he said.

The South African Jewish Board of Deputies joined the chorus of condemnation.

‘All racism unacceptable’

“It is with a sense of déjà vu that the SA Jewish Board of Deputies (SAJBD) condemns yet another South African, Ben Sasonof, for similar offensive comments he made concerning the Durban beachfront this weekend,” comparing his comments to those of Penny Sparrow.

“All forms of racism are unacceptable in a South Africa where we strive daily to build a culture based on human rights and principles of dignity and freedom, for all of who live in it.

“The SAJBD calls on all South Africans to stand up and fight against discrimination wherever it is found. We have just celebrated Reconciliation Day, and now more than ever, we should be dedicated to building a non-racist country.”

At the weekend Sasonof posted: “Eh eh Wena…must have smelt like the inside of Zuma’s asshole,” with the apparent reference to President Jacob Zuma.

His comments raised the ire of other Facebook users who accused Sasonof of being a racist.

In response to those condemning his comments, he wrote: “So fuck you and your bf. Go suck on Zuma’s dirty, tyrant asshole if you love it so much.”

Sasonof also lashed out at one of his detractors directly, calling him a monkey.

“Mohammed Jameel Abdulla you’re a fuckin little idiot! Every person you tagged there is a friend of mine from school! I dated a black girl you fuckin idiot fuck! Stupid Monkey bastard you!”

Source: News24

By Peter Singer

Rwanda targets to extend power to at least 70 per cent of the households in the country by 2018. To achieve this ambitious goal, government projects to boost electricity generation to 563MW within the next two years.

Presently, about 25 per cent of the Rwandan households are connected to electricity, while the country’s total installed power capacity is around 190MW, an increase from 186MW in 2015. Despite this rise in generation, industrial energy users have continued to complain of insufficient power supply, a situation they say has affected production and raised operational costs.

Though more renewable energy sources are being tapped to further increase generation capacity, demand seems to be growing at higher rate compared to supply. What is encouraging, however, is the fact that renewable energy uptake has gone up, especially in the rural areas where vendors for off-grid power systems have put more emphasis.

And as the year ends, one of the most interesting developments recorded in the energy sector was government’s move to make power more affordable, at least for low-income earners, the dynamics of choosing the beneficiaries under this programme notwithstanding.

These efforts by government, Rwanda Energy Group (REG) and other stakeholder could have influenced the World Bank doing business report 2016, which lauded the country’s efforts to improve access to electricity by entrepreneurs.

So, with 11 days remaining to the year’s end, what has been done to support government’s ambitious objective of increasing electricity generation to bring the targeted 563MW online by the close of 2018? This would mean that about 48 per cent of the households would be connected on the national grid, while 22 per cent on off-grid power.

Generation and access to electricity

As government and energy sector investors move to increase power generation to 563MW, which is one of the medium-term goals under the second Economic Development and Poverty Reduction Strategy (EDPRS II), many players doubt whether these targets are achievable. However, government says it is using a multi-source approach, especially focusing on small and big hydro-power plants, deepening solar energy use, as well as other renewable power sources to achieve this goal.

According to REG officials, efforts have been directed toward having a diversified, but balanced power production, distribution and supply to meet the national targets. It is such initiatives that have enabled the country to increase electricity generation capacity from 98MW in 2010 to 186MW in 2015 and, finally, 190MW as of October, 2016.

This achievement, according Ministry of Infrastructure and REG officials, has improved access to electricity, with grid connections under the Electricity Access Rollout Programme (EARP) and related initiatives growing from 110,000 households in 2010 to over 590,000 households by August 2016.

On average, 75,000 new households are connected onto the grid annually since 2011, which means that about 25 per cent of Rwandan households are connected on the grid presently compared to 10.8 per cent in 2011. Over 2.6 per cent of the population is served by off-grid power source like solar energy.

Completed projects

Most of Rwanda’s electricity is produced by hydro-power plants, including the Nyabarongo hydro-power plant that produces 28MW of the country’s 190MW installed power capacity, Giciye II micro hydro-power plant contributes 4MW, the first phase of the KivuWatt project produces 25MW, while 8MW from the plant will be added by end of June. The 23MW Gishoma plant could also add 15MW onto the national grid this financial year, which together with 8MW from KivuWatt will increase electricity generation to 213MW by end of the financial year. Of the solar energy sources, the GigaWatt Global in Rwamagana District is the biggest contributor at 8.5MW, while thousands of households are connected by independent solar power equipment vendors, including NOTS Solar Lamps, MeshPower, Mobisol and BBOXX.

To reduce power losses, the power utility has constructed and upgraded a number of transmission lines and substations in and around Kigali and in the provinces. Other power lines are under construction to allow power evacuation and trade across the region.

According to Rwanda Energy Group, there are also regional interconnection lines being built, such as the 220kV transmission lines Mirama-Birembo (Uganda-Rwanda); Karongi-Rubavu-Goma transmission line, while feasibility studies for the 220kV Kigoma-Huye-Ngozi-Gitega (Rwanda-Burundi), and that for 220kV Rusumo-Shango (Tanzania-Rwanda) transmission line are also ongoing.

Projects in pipeline

There are major projects that will substantially increase generation capacity like the 50MW Symbion methane gas plant on Lake Kivu, an 80MW peat-to-power project by Hakan, while regional projects such as the 80MW Rusumo and 147MW Rusizi III are in advanced stages.

In addition, there are seven privately-owned hydropower plants with a total capacity of 16 MW that are under construction, with commercial operation dates planned in the very near future going into 2017.

Governmnet is also counting on projects like construction of the Gabiro substation, rehabilitation of the Kigali network, construction of the Rulindo-Gabiro-Musha transmission line that is expected to transmit 110kv, as well as construction of the 30MW thermal power plant to boost power supply.

Earlier in April, the Cabinet approved the Rural Electrification Strategy. Other efforts to increase power supply include importation of 30MW from Kenya and another 400MW from Ethiopia in the medium-term.

Improving transmission and distribution

To boost energy generation and distribution, the government and the European Union, signed a financing deal worth €177 million (about Rwf157 billion) that seeks to support the energy sector for the next five years. The financing agreement was the first of a series to be signed and part of a €460 million programme of EU grant financial assistance to Rwanda agreed in 2015.

In addition, government and the Federal Republic of Germany, signed a bilateral agreement worth €15 million (about Rwf13 billion) to support energy supply in the country. The project will also benefit other countries in the Great Lakes region. The grant will also support construction of Ruzizi III hydro-power project and improve energy supply in the country and the Great Lakes region to foster socio-economic development.

Off-grid energy

Government seeks to increase off-grid power solutions to at least 22 per cent or around 530,000 households in the medium-term through partnership with the private sector.

At the beginning of the year, it signed an agreement with Ignite Power, a Mauritian firm, to deploy off-grid standalone solar systems in rural areas. The $50 million (about Rwf37 billion) five-year deal has been one of the biggest in the sector this year. Under the agreement, Ignite Power will deploy solar power systems in rural Rwanda, while beneficiaries will get a two-year grace period to pay for the solar systems.

Last month, YUMN Limited, a renewable power developer, signed a funding agreement with lenders to develop an 80MW peat-fired power plant. The $350 million project in Mamba Sector, Gisagara District in Southern Province will be financed by Africa Finance Corporation, Finnfund, PTA Bank, Afrexim Bank, Development Bank of Rwanda and Exim Bank of India.

Rwanda joins sustainable energy for all programme

Meanwhile, the Sustainable Energy for All Action Agenda (SE4All) was officially launched during Rwanda Energy Infrastructure Forum (iPAD) in November. The programme highlights the country’s plans to achieve universal electricity access with a combination of both grid extension and off-grid solutions for the most isolated areas.

These and more efforts will play a crucial in helping Rwanda increase access to power to 70 per cent by 2018, and 100 per cent by 2020.

The country’s power generation capacity currently stands at about 190 per cent, with hydro-power accounting for 97.37MW of Rwanda’s total installed capacity, thermal is at 51.7MW, methane accounts for over 10MW, while 8.75MW is produced from solar energy, among others.

By Alazar Shiferaw

The eco-friendly hydro-plant is expected to raise regional power interconnection

The boundary and trans-boundry rivers of Ethiopia flowed downstream devoid of serving the nation to the extent they should. Estimates indicate that the nation has 45, 000 MW exploitable hydro-power energy source.

Gilgel Gibe III Hydro-power Plant, which was officially inaugurated yesterday, stands as a living monument proving that the huge potential would light the rural and urban areas of the nation and beyond.

The 1,870-MW hydro-plant between Wolaita and Dawero Zones in SNNP State, 450-kms south-west of Addis, consumed 1.5 billion Euro — of which 40 percent was financed by the government and the remaining in loan from Industrial and Commercial Bank of China.

Inaugurating the dam, the tallest in the world, Prime Minister Hailemariam Dessalegn indicated apart from feeding the growing energy need of the country, it would also boost hard currency earning exporting energy to neighboring countries.

The construction of the dam, undertaken by Salini Impregilo of Italy and Dong Fang of China, faced challenges along the process. In this regard, the Premier said Gibe III is now successfully completed after tackling various challenges, adding: “We will never stop producing renewable energy for a second.”

Noting that the nation’s fast tracking economy demands more energy, the premier said the government would aggressively work to raise the generation capacity to 15, 000 MW by the end of GTP II.

Prime Minister Hailemariam also said the dam project is eco-friendly and allows downstream regulated flow all the year round. In addition, inhabitants would benefit from fishery and the accompanying infrastructural facilities undertaken in the area, according to the premier.

Ethiopian Electric Power CEO and Gibe III Manager Eng. Azeb Asnake also highlighted the completion of the grandiose project increases power supply both for domestic and neighboring countries. “It will boost regional economic integration.”

It is also a manifestation of the country’s tangible commitment to attain green development endeavour, as she pointed out.

Eng. Azeb elaborated that two distribution centers and 400kv transmission lines each measuring 300-kms have been installed to supply the power to the national grid.

Chinese Ambassador to Ethiopia La Yifan expressed conviction that the Gibe III would open window of opportunity for citizens creating various jobs.

The Ambassador also praised the government’s political determination in bringing the mega project to completion.

La Yifan noted the current power generation capacity would attract more investors from China, Italy, UK, India and Turkey in the manufacturing sector.

Gibe III, whose construction was commenced in July 2006, raises the national generation capacity to 5,000 MW, it was learnt.

ANALYSISBy Joseph Hanlon

The Parliamentary Commission on the secret $2 billion debt said that the government guarantees were unconstitutional and that the loans should be seen purely as loans to three private companies. Nevertheless, it advised that the guarantee should not be rejected, in part because any judgement would be in an English court, and in part because such a public hearing would put Frelimo officials at risk of local court judgements.

However, discussions in London suggest that Mozambique would receive a more friendly response in English courts than it expects, and could refuse to recognise the guarantee of the secret debt.

The Ematum loan was a public bond issue and has already been rescheduled. But Credit Suisse and the Russian state bank VTB made secret loans to MAM (Mozambique Asset Management) and Proindicus, which were then syndicated to other lenders (who have formed a creditors committee). These loans had the controversial guarantee and say that any dispute will be settled in an English court.

The first step would be for the Mozambican government to say it does not recognise the guarantees and to take the guarantees off its own books (which would probably reduce the total foreign debt enough to allow negotiation with the IMF).

The next step would be for Credit Suisse and/or VTB and/or the creditors committee to bring an action in an English court to enforce the guarantee. They would argue that:
The guarantee was signed by Finance Minister Manuel Chang and that a Finance Minister must have the right to sign contracts as an agent of the state.
The government has renegotiated the Ematum bonds as a government bond, and thus has accepted liability for a similar loan.

Mozambique would reply that:
The Finance Minister acted ultra vires, beyond his capacity, and that this is specified in the constitution.
The Credit Suisse and VTB did, or should have done, due diligence studies which would have made clear that the Finance Minister could not agree such a guarantee. This was not an obscure law, but in the constitution, and thus any due diligence would have advised against making the loan.
The Credit Suisse, VTB, and the Finance Minister would have known from documents relating the projects to be funded by the loans that it would be impossible for the companies to repay the loans in the short specified time, and thus that the guarantee would be sure to be invoked. All parties knew that the guarantee was against the constitution and thus that any payment under the guarantee would be illegal in Mozambique.

This defence has two unusual aspects:
A government would be claiming that its own minister did not have the power to act. The minister admitted to the parliamentary commission that he kept the signatures secret and did not tell parliament or the council of ministers. It may be unprecedented in an English court for a foreign government to say that one of its own ministers did not have the right to act for it, but because it is in the Mozambican constitution and so obvious, an English court would give a hearing to such a claim.
The case would be brought by the creditors under English law and thus an English court would give preference to English law over that of a foreign country. And English courts have enforced a contract which required an action illegal under foreign law. But an English court would not enforce a contract which intended the performance of an illegal act. Thus Mozambique’s case would be that the Banks and the Finance Minister knew that the companies could not repay and the state would be forced to pay under the guarantee and thus it was intended, at the time of the signing, that an illegal act be carried out later. If proven, an English court would probably not enforce such a contract.

A final point is that both the banks and the government might prefer arbitration, which is probably permitted under the loan agreement, because a court action is public but arbitration is secret. The law is the same and the judgement would probably be the same. But in arbitration, the banks would not be required to make public their due diligence reports (or lack thereof), and the government would not be required to state publicly that it was claiming that its own minister acted unconstitutionally.

In such an unusual case, it is very hard to predict how an English court or arbitrator would rule. But Mozambique would find an English court more receptive to its case than it appears to think. Thus there is a strong argument for the government to say it does not accept the guarantee and wait for the creditors to take the case to court, and then to push for secret arbitration.

By Fidelity Mhlanga

The introduction of bond notes has not eased the deep-seated cash shortages bedevilling the country as meandering queues of depositors in need of cash continued outside banking halls a fortnight after the central bank launched the unpopular currency.

There is growing demand for cash as desperate depositors are sleeping in queues in Harare’s central business district with some banks failing to give clients some money.

The surrogate currency did nothing to change the cash situation as withdrawal limits in some banks have even gone down to US$50 from US$100.

Already, there has been confusion over export incentive payments to beneficiaries, with tobacco farmers still awaiting payment.

The bond notes have now become a pseudo legal tender.

Lack of transparency by the central bank was evidenced by ambushing the market with US$1 bond coins.

Zimbabwe National Chamber of Commerce chief executive Chris Mugaga said while the chamber was backing the bond notes initiative, it was not a means to end the cash shortages bedevilling the country.

“As a chamber we are behind the governor’s imitative to solve the cash crisis, but we know bond notes may not necessarily ease the cash crisis due to the macro-economic challenges affecting the economy. If we are not careful, we will end up funding liquidity instead of paying exporters,” Mugaga said.

This comes after Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) said it would drip-feed bond notes into circulation to circumvent high inflation, putting a year-end cap of US$75 million.

He said the volumes of transactions on point-of-sale (POS) may increase by 25% due to the festive season and yet POS is not spread across the country.

“It’s going to be a long walk to Christmas which might be littered with pressures to withdraw money. Our fear is that the central bank might be forced to increase to dispense more bond notes and hit US$100 million by December up from the intended US$75 million because of liquidity preference. The only advantage we have now is that few companies are paying bonus,” he said.

Confederation of Zimbabwe Industries president Busisa Moyo said there has been an improvement, but bond notes are not sufficient as the country heads toward the festive season.

“There is an improvement, but they are not sufficient. We need more liquidity especially during the festive season.

From the transacting perspective, the impact has been positive but the supply is not sufficient,” he said. “We have been notified that manufacturing companies’ accounts have been credited with the incentive, but they are still finalising.”

Consumer Council of Zimbabwe executive director Rosemary Siyachitema said although it was early days, bond notes were transacting very well.

“Bond notes are being used. People are transacting with them. We were in Gweru, Gwanda and Hwange the public is buying and selling in bond notes,” Siyachitema said

As we were moving with the RBZ people, the bond notes are exchanging quite well. We haven’t heard any problems. It’s early days, though, so we have to keep monitoring.”

By Paul Nyakazeya

Government’s completion of the acquisition of Global Telecom Holdings’ (GTH) entire shareholding in Telecel Zimbabwe for US$40 million has courted mixed reactions from critics.

Under State ownership, some analysts said Telecel was likely going to benefit from leveraged finance secured through relationships government has with countries in Asia and Europe as has been the case with NetOne and TelOne.

However, other observers said the fact that government was now the controlling shareholder in the company meant that Telecel’s subscriber base was now likely to remain stunted.

They based their opinions on government’s record with State-owned enterprises, some of which have been ruined beyond redemption due to State interference in their operations and lack of good corporate governance.

TechZim editor and technology expert, Nigel Gambanga, said Telecel had been deprived of a foreign shareholder who had the experience and financial wherewithal to support the Zimbabwe business.

He argued that the State’s investment in the telecoms industry was not a positive move.

“Views on the industry’s outlook are going to be through fewer lenses and frankly speaking, government has not had a lot of runaway successes in investment. In the case of telecoms, just look at past failures registered at ZARNet and challenges at NetOne as well as the problems faced by TelOne in the past,” he said.

ZARNet is wholly owned by government through the Ministry of Information and Communication Technology, Postal and Courier Services. It was established in 1997 as a government internet service provider.

Government, through ZARNnet, has now taken effective control of the country’s smallest mobile operator by subscribers through a 60 percent shareholding.

The remaining 40 percent is owned by Empowerment Corporation, a group of local investors.

“Under State ownership, Telecel will likely benefit from leveraged finance secured through relationships government has with countries like China. This has helped other telecoms players like TelOne and NetOne. Telecel stands to get something from the same positive Zim/Sino headwinds. This could mean better services through faster network improvements. Competitors like NetOne and TelOne will also become potential partners,” said Gambanga.

In the late 1980s and 90s, State-owned enterprises contributed 40 percent of the country’s gross domestic product.

At present, most enterprises are receiving various forms of financial support from government.

In a statement last month, Minister of Information Communication Technology, Postal and Courier Services, Supa Mandiwanzira, said: “Government’s intentions remain to secure 100 percent shareholding in Telecel Zimbabwe, in the process sanitising the numerous shareholder related disputes that have dogged business growth and scared away investors”.

Mandiwanzira said the deal allowed ZARNet to take management control of the telecommunication company immediately.

Government already controls another mobile operator NetOne, which is struggling financially and also battling to resolve corporate governance issues which led to the sacking of top executives early this year.

Another worrying trend has been political appointments that have destroyed most parastatals.

“If the Ministry of ICT is going to restructure Telecel, it will not be surprising to see it made up of the ministry’s golf buddies. If they are qualified and competent it is a discussion for another day. Today the biggest cancer is political interference across all parastatals,” an ICT expert who declined to be named said.

Taurai Chinyamakobvu, an ICT expert, said the takeover did not mean much beyond just being a change in who owns what shares.

“It is not very clear what government’s agenda is with this acquisition, so perhaps it is important for the Minister of ICT to clarify it. The current financial status of our government, where it spends much of the country’s budget on recurrent expenditure, is a good sign that Telecel will not have deep-pockets back-up in the event that it needs capital injection,” he said.

The telecommunication industry is a capital-intensive business because there are new innovations in both hardware and software every six or so months.

Government has taken loans to support both TelOne and NetOne in the past, but not much has changed in terms of fortunes for these companies as a result of the loans.

Zarnet has no record as an innovating tech company so it is not clear what impact it will have on Telecel, said critics.

“Another dynamic that causes confusion and muddies the prospects for a post-acquisition Telecel are the media reports that existing minority shareholders led by James Makamba are suing Vimpelcom for selling the shares to the Government of Zimbabwe in violation of pre-emptive rights. Litigation always has the effect of creating uncertainty in a business,” said Chinyamakobvu.

Tech Unzipped editor, Pardon Gatsi, said government’s purchase of Telecel was a big win for the country’s telecommunications sector.

“Our government has seen that the telecoms sector continues to be at the epicentre for growth, innovation, and disruption for virtually any industry. Government should let Telecel operate autonomously to enable it to effectively discharge its duties. Who knows we may see new products and services coming from Telecel,” he said.

Mobile devices and related broadband connectivity continue to be more and more embedded in the fabric of society today and they are key in driving the momentum around some important trends such as video streaming, Internet and mobile payments.

“Telecel should take a more focused approach in determining which digital products and services to offer if they are to capture real opportunities in adjacent businesses and broader digital ecosystems,” said Gatsi.

Technology expert, Shingie Muringi, said he doubted that government’s takeover of Telecel would improve the telecommunications landscape.

“The major question which needs to be asked is, ‘Why (does) government need two mobile telecommunication operators?’. Government already runs a loss-making NetOne and taking over Telecel into its stable raises a lot of questions,” Muringi said.

By George Okojie

Scores of people escaped death by the whiskers on Thursday in Lagos State when a two storey building under construction collapsed on 21 Makinde Street, in Alausa area of the state with some of the construction workers sustaining injuries.

Our correspondent learnt that the building located very close to Alausa Central Mosque collapsed 2.55pm on yesterday, causing confusion in the area as people scampered for safety.

‎Confirming the incident, the General Manager LASEMA Mr. Adesina Tiamiyu said the agency received a distressed call at the Lagos State Command and Control Centre concerning the partially collapsed building, prompting the activation of the agency’s Emergency Response Team to the incident scene.

Tiamiyu said, “Investigation at the incident scene revealed that the building is a 2- storey building under construction and the building was said to have partially collapsed while under construction. Physical assessment revealed that the building collapsed from the base tilting sideways as result of structural defect.

“The Agency’s Emergency Response team in concert with LASBCA,RRS, Nigeria Police, Alausa Divisional Office, and Area F,Lagos State Fire Service, Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps all mobilized to the incident scene.”

According to him, occupants of adjoining building around the partially collapsed building were safely evacuated, while the vicinity of the partially collapsed building was cordoned off to prevent any form of movement around the collapsed site for safety purpose.

“No life was lost, but a male adult who was working in the collapsed building sustained injury and was treated immediately.

“After a full assessment by combined emergency response team was carried with a view to safely recovering the collapsed building site.”

The LASEMA boss said proper investigation would be conducted on the incident, adding that the partially collapsed building will be totally brought down by controlled demolition to ensure utmost safety of lives and properties.

He urged developers of structures in the state to ensure they abide by the building codes and regulations of the state as well as employ the services of certified engineers for building construction to avoid such tragic incidents.

Brazil and Kenya yesterday hailed efforts by the government to revive the cash-strapped Air Tanzania Company Limited (ATCL), describing the move as a major step towards boosting the country’s economy.

The Ambassadors of Brazil and Kenya to Tanzania, Mr Carlos Alfonso Puente and Chirau Ali Makwere, respectively, lauded the purchase of new planes for the airline to improve the company’s service delivery to domestic and international air travellers.

The praises come as the government embarks on a number of plans to purchase more aircraft for the national flag carrier. President John Magufuli announced recently that he intends to purchase three more aircraft, bringing to five the total number of new planes from Canadian manufacturer, Bombardier.

The two bombardier Q400 arrived in the country last September, with the government maintaining that another two of such kind would be received next January and the Bombardier CS300 will be received in 2018.

On Wednesday, this week, the Boeing Company and Tanzania confirmed the sealing of the deal for the supply of one 787-8 Dreamliner aircraft at 224.6 million US dollars (about 500bn/-), the first ever wide-body order for the country’s national carrier.

The envoys, speaking at State House in Dar es Salaam yesterday after meeting the Vice-President, Ms Samia Suluhu Hassan, said strong ATCL will in return boost the tourism sector and the national economy.

Mr Puente told VP Samia that Brazil was among the countries leading in planes manufacturing, inviting Tanzania to buy some of the aircraft from South American nation. Ms Samia, responding to the plea, invited the Brazilian plane manufacturers to visit the country and market their products, especially planes as part of strengthening trade relations between the two countries.

She appreciated Brazil’s feat in sugar production, inviting Brazilian investors to explore investment opportunities in Tanzania’s sugar sector, saying the country has enough land for such investments. Speaking to the Kenyan ambassador, the Vice-President underscored the need to cement and sustain the good relations between Tanzania and Kenya in areas of trade and investment. She asked Tanzanians to grab the opportunities available in Kenya to reap the benefits from the existing relations of the two countries.

Meanwhile, the vice-president met with the Ambassador of Denmark to Tanzania, Mr Hebogand Jensen, who assured her of his country’s intent to collaborate with others to build a giant fertiliser factory in Kilwa District, Lindi Region. Mr Jensen was hopeful that the industry will produce massively and employ hundreds of Tanzanians.

By Pius Sawa

Kampala — “I used to stay away three hours looking for enough wood to cook beans, but now it is easy because I need just a small bundle”

At a factory in Uganda’s capital, Kampala, workers steam-cook beans in big metal containers, before cooling and packaging them for sale. The beans can be reheated in 15 minutes or less, requiring far less firewood than the two to three hours it would take to cook them from scratch.

This public-private initiative, being tested in Uganda and Kenya with funding from Canada’s International Development Research Centre, also aims to increase bean consumption, improve diets, and create a more profitable market for bean farmers.

According to Joab Ouma of Lasting Solutions, a Ugandan company that is involved in preparing the beans, rural people usually use firewood for cooking, while charcoal is the main fuel in urban areas.

Those fuels are a direct cause of deforestation, yet until now the poorest consumers “had no choice” but to use them, Ouma said.

Uganda has lost forest rapidly in the past two to three decades, but the government has set a target to increase forest cover to 21 percent of land in 2030, up from 14 percent in 2013.

In its national plan for the Paris climate change agreement, it noted the target was “highly ambitious” as nearly 90 percent of the country’s energy needs are met by charcoal and firewood.

Ouma said that, with the pre-cooked beans, the time needed to cook meals is greatly reduced, lowering the use of charcoal and firewood – and potentially easing the pressure on forests.

MORE BEANS, LESS WOOD

In western Kenya, Siprosa Ajwang, 62, from Homa Bay County, said the new beans saved her time she used to spend in the bush gathering firewood.

“I used to stay away three hours looking for enough wood to cook beans, but now it is easy because I need just a small bundle,” said the farmer who is taking part in the pilot project to grow and market-test the pre-cooked beans.

If using charcoal to cook, she would previously have used a full 10 kg (22 lb) basin.

“Now I only need one tin of 2 kg to cook the beans for my grandchildren,” she said.

George Oketch from Wiga village in Homa Bay County said his family of nine now eats more beans thanks to the shorter cooking time.

“Initially, we cooked beans only twice a month, but now we eat beans three times a week,” he said.

The C$2.65 million ($1.99 million) project – whose first phase began in October 2014 and ends next March – is being implemented by Uganda’s National Agricultural Research Organisation and Kenya’s Agricultural and Livestock Research Organization.

Ouma said a survey in Uganda showed an average family consumed about 12 kg of beans per month, requiring around 288 kg of charcoal per year to cook them.

The project, targeting a sample of 10,000 households in Kenya and 7,000 in Uganda, should prevent some 400,000 kg of charcoal being burned per year, he added. “This is a big impact on deforestation,” he said.

“It also saves costs, because the extra money saved on fuel can be used to purchase other household essentials,” he said. In addition, it frees up women to spend more time with their children.

HIGHER YIELDS

At the start of the project, researchers screened 47 bean varieties to determine which would be suitable for pre-cooking. Companies and community seed producers were then engaged to produce an adequate supply of the selected seeds, and promote them to farmers, who were trained in field and post-harvest management.

The project researched varieties popular with farmers and consumers in the region due to their taste and high levels of protein, as well as nutrients including calcium, zinc, iron and selenium.

“These micro-nutrients are key to fighting hidden hunger,” Ouma said, referring to the widespread problem of malnutrition caused by mineral deficiencies.

Twelve varieties were chosen for the pre-cooking project, and 10,000 farmers were selected to grow the beans, with a focus on providing benefits to women farmers.

George Otiep, who works on the project for international charity Caritas in Kenya’s Homa Bay County, said the high-yielding bean varieties had allowed many farmers to improve their yields from less than one bag per acre to five bags, boosting their incomes.

The aim is to expand the number of farmers growing the beans in the next planting season.

AFRICA EXPANSION

Two private-sector partners – Lasting Solutions in Uganda and Del Monte Kenya – have developed prototype products and packaging for market testing.

So far, two bean products are available: a salted ready-to-eat snack, and the pre-cooked, packaged beans for reheating. They are due to be launched by the end of this month, for sale in supermarkets and grocery stores.

Once consumer demand for the product has been created, equipment to scale up production will be introduced in Uganda and Kenya, Ouma said.

There also plans to expand the initiative across Africa by supporting the development of value chains for pre-cooked beans.

Work will begin in Tanzania and Ethiopia in March 2017, and will then be rolled out in Zambia, Nigeria, Ghana and the Sahel region.

($1 = 1.3331 Canadian dollars)

– Reporting by Pius Sawa; editing by Megan Rowling

By Safina Buhari

The president of the Federation of Agricultural Commodity Associations of Nigeria (FACAN), Dr. Victor Iyama, has attributed the continued decline in cocoa production in Nigeria to the long period it takes to mature as well as impatience among Nigerian youth, who are expected to embrace its production.

Iyama, who spoke in Abuja, yesterday, at the 2nd Daily Trust Agric Conference, said cocoa was a good crop to invest in but required a lot of patience from youth willing to go into its production.

“It’s not four to six months, it is up to five years minimum but the beauty is that it can last for 70 years,” he said.

Dr. Victor also stated that production of cocoa beans from harvest up to the time when it is properly fermented took between 27 and 30 days depending on the weather.

He said chocolate was the easiest cocoa product to make and it generates large sums of money from the cocoa industry.

“Out of the 120 billion USD cocoa economy, less than 15 billion USD goes to cocoa beans, cocoa cake and cocoa butter while the rest goes to chocolate,” he said.

Dr. Victor noted that cocoa was the second largest foreign exchange earner, next only to oil, adding that 29 states in the country can produce cocoa.

“There’s cocoa in Adamawa, Taraba, Niger, Kogi and so many states have joined, it is no longer a southern affair but a national affair,” Dr. Victor said.