Dar es Salaam — Prime Minister’s office (PMO) workers have been asked to prepare themselves psychologically on the shift from Dar es Salaam to Dodoma.

Speaking to the workers today, Prime Minister, Mr Kassim Majaliwa, said everything is set for the shift and it is just a matter of days before actual movements from Dar es Salaam to Dodoma starts.

He made the remarks when he met in his office with workers from various departments under PMO.

He asked them to understand that the decision to shift the government headquarters to Dodoma was implementation of the ruling Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM) manifesto whose source was a directive given way back on October 1, 1973 during the 16th Tanu national congress.

Tanu was the ruling party before it was transformed into CCM in 1977 after merging with Zanzibar’s Afro Shiraz Party (ASP).

“Since then there has been various efforts made to prepare Dodoma to take over as the government seat. Even the fourth phase government did a lot to put up needed infrastructure to make Dodoma save the purpose,” he said.

He allayed fears among the workers in his office noting that preparations were going on smoothly and they were in the final stages. He noted that the shift will be in phases as it has been arranged.

The Deputy Director General of the National Housing Authority (NHA), Prince Wreh, has disclosed that the entity has allotted US$1 million to build permanent homes for former residents of the Township of West Point in the VOA Community.

According to Wreh, the goal of the NHA is to construct more affordable homes for low income earners, noting that the NHA is fully committed to its mandate and will continue to do so for the growth and development of the country.

It can be recalled that hundreds of residents of the slum community of West Point, a suburb of Monrovia, were rendered homeless by sea erosion that destroyed several homes early this year.

Making the disclosure in an interview with the Liberia News Agency at the temporary home of the West Pointers in the VOA community on the Bomi Highway Tuesday, the NHA official, however, disclosed that the money will be able to construct only 125 units, which are not sufficient to accommodate the 1,700 family heads who were rendered homeless by the sea erosion.

He lauded authorities of the Ministry of State for Presidential Affairs for partnering with the NHA to construct a 32 two-bedroom temporary zinc apartments for residents relocated from the Township of West Point.

Also speaking, the Chairman of the relocated West Point residents, Rev. Denore W. Moore, lauded authorities of the NHA for constructing their temporary homes, but appealed to them to assist with food and other necessities to sustain them in their new homes.

The British government must reaffirm that there will be “no money, no bailout” for Harare until President Robert Mugabe “disappears from power and influence forever”, the chairperson of the UK’s All-Party Parliamentary Group on Zimbabwe, has said.

Kate Hoey, who is also MP for Vauxhall, said Mugabe should not be helped to further entrench his 36-year reign which has “set new standards in vanity, mismanagement, corruption, outright theft, oppression, and organised violence against opponents”.

“Over three million Zimbabweans have fled,” the MP wrote in an article this week (read the full article in our opinion section here).

“The rich country’s economic ruin was symbolised by the issue of banknotes with a paper value of 100 trillion Zimbabwe dollars (14 zeroes). They are worthless but make entertaining birthday presents for children.”

Mugabe, now 92, blames the UK for corralling western countries into imposing sanctions against Harare which he says have devastated Zimbabwe’s economy over the past decade.

The veteran leader has struggled to right the tanking economy since his re-election in 2013 and now faces increasing pressure as fed-up Zimbabweans stage protests while sections of his own Zanu PF party also appear to be pressing for his ouster.

However, and apparently ignoring the brutality the Harare government has used to crush citizen protests, British authorities are thought to be helping Mugabe secure a much-needed $1.8bln rescue package.

Finance minister Patrick Chinamasa recently travelled to London for meetings with UK officials as well as a bank said to be arranging the facility.

A British newspaper has also revealed that, before Chinamasa’s visit, former UK business minister Peter Mendelson travelled to Harare for meetings with Mugabe’s treasury chief. Lord Mandelson chairs a UK bank helping arrange the rescue package.

However, Hoey said the British foreign secretary, who is famous for his elaborate and colourful manner of expression, must deploy his best aphorisms against the meddlesome Mandelson.

“This episode calls for an urgent response from our new Foreign Secretary, Boris Johnson,” said Hoey.

“On Zimbabwe he must reaffirm Britain’s position in the most robust and colourful language he can command: no money, no bailout until Mugabe disappears from power and influence for ever.”

Hoey also condemned the UK’s Harare embassy for helping arrange Mandelson’s meetings with government officials and demanded to know who paid for the trip.

“I wonder also why the FCO thought there was any value to Britain in Peter Mandelson’s mission,” she wrote.

“He has no previous relationship with Zimbabwe that I can discover. Certainly he has never attended one meeting of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Zimbabwe which I chair and which has many members from the House of Lords.

“Representatives of (Zimbabwe’s) surviving business community and civic leaders do not need to be persuaded of the case for reform – they are desperate for it. There is no point in preaching to Chinamasa, who is a creature of Mugabe and has no future in a post-Mugabe settlement.

“Why does the FCO see Peter Mandelson as a persuasive advocate in any country? He has not won an election for himself since 2001 nor taken part in a winning political campaign for any party or cause since 1997.”

Hoey has since demanded that Lord Mandelson appear before the UK parliament to explain his dealings with the Harare regime.

By Neville Otuki
Chase Bank has made a big step towards full recovery after the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) yesterday allowed the financier to resume lending to customers and take fixed deposits after four months of waiting.

The nod expands the lender’s basket of financial services after it was placed under receivership in April by the CBK – the banking sector regulator – prompting its closure and subsequent reopening later in the same month.

The bank had been limited to only a few services such as money transfers and automated teller machine (ATM), and was awaiting the approval to accept deposits and issue loans.

“The move marks a major milestone in the turnaround efforts of the bank, signalling that most of the major issues under resolution have been addressed, paving the way for full resumption of banking services to all customers,” the lender said in a statement yesterday.
The greenlight to take new deposits, the lender says, will provide more lending opportunities to customers and accelerate the pace of recovery.

It was placed under the receivership of the CBK arm – Kenya Deposit Insurance Corporation (KDIC) in April.

The regulator early this month said it will next month pick a new investor to buy a majority stake in Chase Bank as part of efforts to fully revive the lender.

This came after KCB Group, which was appointed to manage Chase Bank, said that its role in reopening the lender is almost complete, paving the way for the regulator to call for bids from multiple investors interested in the buyout.

KCB is expected to be among companies that will bid for Chase Bank, whose model is focused on small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

Chase Bank represents an attractive franchise with 27,000 customers, largely SME businesses.It is also a banker to 341 non-governmental organisations and 147 savings and credit cooperative societies (saccos).

The lender has 62 branches and boasts subsidiaries Rafiki Microfinance Bank and investment bank Genghis Capital.

By James Karuhanga
Local entrepreneurs in agriculture are paying particular attention to neighbouring DR Congo as they look to boost their business.

As such, the Private Sector Federation (PSF), particulary the Chamber of Farmers, is organising a three-day agri-business trade mission to Goma, the capital of the vast neighbouring country’s North Kivu Province, next week.

Organisers say the August 24-26 trade expedition aims to formalise and facilitate cross-border trade between the two countries.
Stephen Ruzibiza, the PSF CEO said, “We need to facilitate our local producers to formally get access to the cross-border markets and, in this case, we are targeting DR Congo and hope to expand these missions to other countries like Congo Brazzaville as well.”

“It will help connect Rwandan traders to their counterparts in DR Congo and this is an opportunity to create trade links with other potential markets as we embark on promoting local materials,” he said.

Nearly 50 traders, companies and cooperatives, including Rwanda Farmers Coffee Company (RFCC), Inyange Industries, Rwanda Mountain Tea, and Bourbon Coffee will head to Goma to explore opportunities.

Christine Rukera, owner of Premium Cayenne Pepper, told The New Times that her expectation from the trade mission is “to secure market for my products, as well as promoting exports from my country.”

“It is important to my business because I will establish a long-term relationship to business (B2B) or business to client (B2C),” she said.
The main objective of the mission is to promote export of Rwandan products to the DR Congo market through formalising and facilitating cross-border trade.

Local traders will, specifically, look to identify market opportunities for Rwandan products in DR Congo, among others.

The mission will include a conference, exhibition to showcase Rwandan products, signing of a related Memorandum of Understanding and business to business meetings of Rwandans and their Congolese counterparts to network and explore opportunities in both countries.

Last week, President Paul Kagame and his Congolese counterpart Joseph Kabila agreed to strengthen the two countries’ cooperation in energy generation, cross-border trade, and security.

The two leaders made the announcement after holding a bilateral meeting in rwanda’s border district of Rubavu.
The Rubavu border ranks as one of the most active borders across Africa.

The two countries are jointly putting up a one-stop border post in Rubavu to facilitate movement of goods and people.

Rwanda’s exports to the DR Congo represent the biggest share of its informal exports, representing 75 per cent of the total informal cross-border exports.

Apart from investing in building a one-stop border post with DR Congo, Rwanda is interested in building modern warehouses at the border.

In March, the Government of Rwanda signed a partnership deal with Alpha Logistics Limited to build a modern bonded warehouse at Petite Barrière border in Rubavu District for $8.6 million (about Rwf6.5 billion).

The Government has leased its Rubirizi National Hatchery to Flow Equity, an American firm, at Rwf750 million for 25 years.

The decision, announced after last week’s Cabinet meeting, is aimed at revamping the facilities to increase productivity that, in return, would reduce import bill on chicken and eggs.

The decision comes five years after the Government upgraded the facility to modern level at a total budget of Rwf2.3 billion and had sought to increase the eggs production to 100,000 per month.

Explaining the decision, yesterday, Tony Nsanganira, the state minister for agriculture, described the move as timely and profitable for government, which not only would enhance the spirit of remaining a facilitator but also create jobs.

“There were many attempts to have the Rubirizi hatchery privatised, but the recent one was very successful and it falls in line with the government policy of surrendering businesses to members of the private sector,” he told The New Times.

“Part of the agreement we managed to settle is that they will revamp the existing facilities to enhance production capacity and work more closely with small-holder farmers. We have also agreed that the factory will employ nationals to create more jobs on the market,” he said.

Facilitation

Nsanganira said that, under the deal, the Government would also allocate 15 hectares of land in Bugesera District to the company to facilitate their expansion and provide wider avenues for suppliers.

According to the minister, the company, which will operate under the name of Uzima Chicken Ltd, will be paying Rwf30 million per year for a period of 25 years.

The minister said after the period, the Government will decide whether to renew the lease or retake over the assets.

In a brief interview with The New Times, one of the company’s partners, Joshua Rugema, said their business – which has branches in Ethiopia and Northern America – aims to not only boost the production rate of hatchery but also make prices of chicken products affordable.

“In a drive to reduce imports of chicks, on top of increasing production, we shall also seek to improve quality of the products,” he said.

Rwanda produced more than 16,000 tonnes of poultry meat and 6,973 tonnes of eggs per annum in 2014, according to statistics from Rwanda Agriculture Board.

By 2011, the Government had been importing two million eggs per year, to produce between 6,000 and 1,000 chicks per month compared to national demand of 40,000 per month.

Africa’s data and Internet communications infrastructure has improved so much in the last decade that it’s easy to become complacent. The dual challenges of price and quality of service have not been overcome.

African regulators have never been good at imagining the future and with all the improvements they seem to have taken their eye off the ball. Russell Southwood looks at why things are stuck and what might get them moving again.

Africa’s transition to data is crucial for the next round of investment in the continent. The existence of relatively cheap Internet access and the services and content it brings with it are needed to power a second wave of economic growth.

The challenge of all challenges is that the operators in Africa’s Internet market need to be able to deliver cheaper data access than elsewhere because most Africans do not earn US or European salaries. Getting Internet access prices to US or European levels is not enough, they have to go lower.

Sub-Saharan Africa has countries that are amongst the most expensive places to operate in. So whoever Africa’s operators are or will be, they have to become pioneers in lowering the costs of both building and operating data infrastructure. Government and regulators need to understand the scale of this challenge and help operators become cost-cutting pioneers.

African regulators are not currently in a good place to make this happen. In the main, mobile operators have taken over as the market incumbents and are no longer forcing the pace of change but largely simply reacting to what’s happening elsewhere. The need for an effective, large capacity data network seems to have caught many of them off-balance.

African regulators who have pursued the opening of African telecoms markets have been slow to react to changed market circumstances. In many cases, even what were once quite competitive markets are now stuck. A brief summary of some of the difficulties may be helpful:

* Dominant Players:

A number of Africa’s telecoms markets are now dominated by a single player. Sometimes efforts have been made to declare them dominant players in regulatory terms but these have largely been ineffective. These dominant players have operated skillfully as price progressives (lowering tariffs) and in so doing have cemented their market position.

In Kenya, Safaricom has such an unassailable and central position that whatever anybody does, it usually ends up benefitting. If you need a telecoms or network partner, why bother with those who have less than 30% of the market? The recent Kenya Power partnership deal on Fibre-To-The-Home will reinforce its position in yet another market niche.

In Senegal, Sonatel is testing Free-Wi in Rufisque. Free Wi-Fi is undoubtedly a good thing but who’s paying? And this in a country where there are no independent Internet service providers, no alternative fibre providers and its two mobile competitors struggle to make it anything like a fair, competitive fight.

And then there’s MTN in Nigeria who for all their recent troubles, occupy the commanding heights of the country’s telecoms and data markets… ..Others could be added to list.

* Old school stuck:

Some of Africa’s regulators have simply not got off the blocks in terms of creating a competitive market. In these countries the dominant player is usually a decaying state-owned telco with about as much appetite for innovation as a sleeping dog. The Governments in these countries have chosen to foster an inefficient job creation scheme over being able to offer cheaper Internet and a more efficient economy.

The country that heads this category must surely be Ethiopia where the absence of any competition means that the market is probably about a third smaller than it might otherwise be. The State lacks the capital to make these financially leaky dinosaurs effective. But in this long list of countries, we must include places like Djibouti, Togo and Cameroon.

Take Cameroon where the Government has ensured that it has ownership of all the landing stations and its telco Camtel has a de facto monopoly over wholesale bandwidth. And all of these dilapidated incumbents who are without strategy, innovation or ideas want to be mobile operators.

* Last man standing “consolidation”:

More conventional industry analysts are keen on seeing “consolidation” as one answer to current problems. To be fair to their argument, Africa has more operators than many other places globally.

But what does consolidation mean? There will be less operators (two per country?) and their market power will be even greater. The last man standing theory is that if you are one of the lucky surviving operators you will then be able to hike your prices back to the level they were when the markets first opened.

With Airtel selling off some of its smaller opcos to Orange, the full scale of this is not immediately apparent. But what if this was really just the start of Bharti Airtel’s long goodbye to Africa? Consolidation will inevitably happen but then how do regulators ensure that markets maintain a competitive dynamic?