By Nawa Mutumweno – The Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), Eastern African Community (EAC0 and Southern African Development Community (SADC) are working on harmonizing programmes in key areas. These encompass rules of origin; services; intellectual property rights, dispute settlement, climate change, trade remedies; and standards. This is according to COMESA secretary general Sindiso Ngwenya who was speaking when he opened the second COMESA-EA-SADC tripartite technical meeting on standards, metrology, accreditation and conformity assessment in Lusaka on Tuesday, October 25, 2011. During the second summit held in Johannesburg, South Africa recently on deepening the tripartite integration, Mr Ngwenya... Continue Reading
By Nawa Mutumweno- Over $10 million has been spent on infrastructure development at the Sub-Sahara Gemstone Exchange Industrial Park which has been established in Ndola on the Zambian Copperbelt. The industrial park is a multi-functional economic development zone tailored to accelerate economic growth through business activities and employment creation. It is expected to create about 30 000 jobs over the next five years. According to its president Phesto Musonda, contractors are currently on site working on the road network while ZESCO and Copperbelt Energy Corporation (CEC) are establishing a 33 kV and 21 MW of electricity respectively. The park will... Continue Reading
International Conference Centre, Abuja, Nigeria – October 2011; Offshore West Africa 2012, the premier conference and exhibition for the offshore oil and gas exploration & production industry within West Africa, has announced the preliminary conference program for the forthcoming event in Abuja, Nigeria. Supported by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), the 16th annual Offshore West Africa, taking place from 24‐26 January 2012, will once again address key technology and development issues for the West African offshore oil and gas market, through a comprehensive educational program and three‐day exhibition, under the theme – Deepwater Technologies for West Africa. Offshore West... Continue Reading
By Jaja King, Abuja, Nigeria – Following expose’ on Sarner PFM Africa fraudulent activities over construction of $250m leisure park in Delta State, Nigeria, the company has changed its African office address on its website from Abuja to Oleri, Udu Local Council Area, delta state. Sarner had earlier indicated on its website (www.sarner.com) that its African head office was domiciled at 12 Oturkpo Street, Off Onitsha Street, Gimbyia Street, Area 11 District, Abuja but when this reporter visited the office, it was discovered to be a living home. The expose’ is believed to have forced Sarner to change its address to its construction site located at 1 Delta Leisure Resort... Continue Reading
HARARE, 14 October 2011 (IRIN) – Stallholders at the Mupedzanhamo market on the outskirts of Zimbabwe’s capital, Harare, thought they were immune to the 2008 Indigenisation and Economic Empowerment Act, which requires large businesses such as banks and mining companies to relinquish at least 51 percent of their shares or interests to indigenous Zimbabweans. They were wrong. Bustling Mupedzanhamo, where shoppers can buy anything from hairpins to refrigerators, has for many years provided traders with a small income and an escape from the country’s economic woes, but recently groups of youths have descended on the market, brandishing letters they claim... Continue Reading
