AFRICA NEWS BULLETIN @ 20h00 -- 27 January, 2016

AFRICA NEWS BULLETIN @ 20h00

27 January, 2016

Radio XYZ93.1FM

Assistant Producer: E.K.Bensah  Jr

FOCUS: Commission of the African Union Appoints Donald Kaberuka, as the AU High Representative for the Peace Fund

WEST AFRICA

Ø  Nigerian Government promises to tackle corruption head on

Ø  Sierra Leone: ACC Reacts to Civil Society Traffic Police Corruption Report

 NORTHERN AFRICA: Tourism ministers converge in Morocco

 SOUTHERN AFRICA:Angola Cabinet adopts strategy to handle oil price fall

FOCUS

      The Chairperson of the Commission of the African Union (AU), Dr.NkosazanaDlamini-Zuma, has appointed Dr. Donald Kaberuka, as the AU High Representative for the Peace Fund. It is to be recalled that, at its meeting held on 26 September 2015, in New York, the Peace and Security Council, meeting at the level of Heads of State and Government, expressed its support to the initiative of the Chairperson of the Commission to appoint a High Representative for the Peace Fund, whose mandate shall include mobilizing additional resources for AU peace and security-related activities, and requested her to expedite this appointment.

      The Chairperson of the Commission, through the appointment of Dr.Kaberuka, is sending a strong signal to the international community on the AU’s commitment to work towards finding sustained, predictable and flexible funding mechanisms to support AU-led peace operations, as expressed in the Common African Position on the Report of UN High-Level Independent Panel on Peace Operations (HIPPO) and subsequent Report of the United nations Secretary General entitled the future of UN Peace Operations: implementation of the recommendations of the High Level Independent Panel on Peace Operations.

    Donald Kaberuka, a Rwandan economist and former Minister of Finance, is also the outgoing President of the African Development Bank Group, and Chairman of the Board of Directors. Dr.Kaberuka is currently serving on the Board of Trustees of the World Economic Forum, the Mandela Institute (Minds) and the Mo Ibrahim Foundation. He has also joined the Center for Public Leadership Community as a Hauser Leader-in-Residence. Dr.Kaberuka will bring to the AU his globally appreciated knowledge on Development financing, as well as his well-known dedication to Africa.

WEST AFRICA

Ø  Nigerian Government promises to tackle corruption head on

Nigeria’s Federal Government says it will dissipate corruption like it has done to Boko-Haram insurgents. It noted that corruption had begun fighting back deriding its policies and tagging President MuhammaduBuhari a "budding dictator."

Minister of Information, Alhaji Lai Mohammed made the remarks yesterday during a meeting with Abuja

media Bureau Chiefs.

 He however lamented that sponsored articles had started appearing in both social and traditional media to condemn the administration of the fight against corruption.

 The minister reassured that no amount of attacks will stop the fight on corruption adding that the federal government would not be intimidated into abandoning the fight.

He also called on Nigerians not to be swayed by the antics of the sponsored denunciation of the anti-graft war adding that even the United States acknowledges the administration's fight against corruption when the US secretary of state mentioned the campaign in his speech at this year's World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland.

ACC Reacts to Civil Society Traffic Police Corruption Report

The Anti-Corruption Commission of Sierra Leone is concerned about the findings of the Report launched by the coalition of civil society titled "Corruption Stops with Us: Ending bribery for traffic offences in Sierra Leone"; as it showcases the involvement of Sierra Leone traffic police officers in bribery and petty corruption.

The Commission wishes to inform the general public that it had taken steps to address this situation; with the engagement of security agencies in October, 2015 which led to the setting up of a sub-committee which developed an Action Plan, aimed at reducing the incidences of bribery in the security sector.

Moreover, the ACC is implementing a three-year Pay No Bribe (PNB) program, funded by the Department for International Development (DfID), which seeks to eliminate bribery in public sector institutions, the police included, for effective and efficient public service delivery.

However, the Commission is also calling on citizens not to only report acts of bribery and petty corruption, but to also refrain from giving bribes to public officers.

The Commission wishes to reassure the general public of its relentless resolve to curbing bribery in Sierra Leone.

Tourism ministers converge in Morocco

 Ministers coming from Cote D'Ivoire, Seychelles, Kenya, Madagascar, and Senegal are in Rabat this week to share a podium with their counterparts from Morocco for a Ministerial Panel on “Sustainability at the Heart of Public Policies.” This Ministerial Panel discussion in front of some five hundred experts and interested organizations as well as a large contingent of press was part of the 1st Morocco Day to mark Sustainable and Responsible Tourism.

 Tourism Ministers Roger Kacou from Cote D’Ivoire, Alain St.Ange from the Seychelles, NajibBalala from Kenya, MaimounaNdoyeSeck from Senegal , and Ulrich Jacques Andriantiana from Madagascar joined Lahcen Haddad of Morocco at the podium for an hour-long panel discussion in an open hall that was full to capacity. The moderator for the session was ArapHoballah, the Chief at the United Nations Environment Program for Sustainable Cities, Lifestyles and Industry, who kept seeking more clarification or examples of the good practices cited by the Ministers of Tourism present.

Angola Cabinet adopts strategy to handle oil price fall

The Cabinet Council Wednesday in Luanda, Angola, adopted a strategy to soften the impact of the crisis that followed the fall in the oil price in the international market. 

This was during a session chaired by the head of State José Eduardo dos Santos.

According to a note released at the end of the session, the strategy comprises a number of measures that will be implemented by the Government in the tax, monetary, external trade and the real economy sectors, seeking to reduce the shortage of foreign exchanges in the local market.

The source stresses that  the Government will seek to ensure the controlled expansion of the debt deficit to relaunch the economy, increase attraction and improve efficiency and efficacy of private investments and adopt measures and incentives of various nature to promote exports within short term.

Mauritius Revenue Authority launches New Taxpayers’ Portal

The Mauritius Revenue Authority (MRA) launched a National Single Window (Mauritius Trade link) and a Taxpayers' Portal yesterday at the Custom House, Mer Rouge in the context of the celebrations of the International Customs Day 2016 under the theme: Digital Customs: Progressive Engagement.

The launching ceremony was performed by the Minister of Finance and Economic Development, MrSeetanahLutchmeenaraidoo, and the Minister of Industry, Commerce and Consumer Protection, MrAshitGungah.

The Mauritius Trade link will act as a single web-based online portal for the submission and processing of import/export permits and respective clearance from Government agencies. Various benefits will be derived from the National Single Window project by the business communities in general such as reduction in dwell time for import/export permits processing and clearance; reduced cost of doing business; 24/7 access to the portal via internet; and facilities for traders to track the progress of their applications/declarations in real time among others.

ARTICLE: Disaster in Paradise? Looking beyond Bunso: Towards securing our tourism attractions

The  greatest desire of any  tourist/holiday maker is to have fun and relaxation in a safe place away from home. To that end almost all tourism destinations present themselves as idyllic places where the patron can feel relaxed and safe. Thus  the tourism attraction would be the last place a person would expect to be exposed to harm . That is why  this week has been a rather bad one for tourism.  First it was the deadly terrorist attack in Sousse, Tunisia, then,  our own Bunso Canopy Walkway also gave way. The first of them was a security issue while the incident in Ghana centred on safety. Either way, they each have the potential to hurt the tourist trade in their respective countries.

Research has shown there is a very strong positive relationship between safety/security and the fortunes of tourism.  Tourism literally thrives on safety and security.

For example, the World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) indicates that  international tourist arrivals in  its  Middle East Region (including Egypt and Tunisia)    declined by 8.4 percent to 54.8 million in 2011 – a year after the  Arab Spring.  Yet, in 2010 the previous year,  arrivals to the region had  grown by  nearly 15.  The effect is even more graphic  when the figures for the two countries are isolated from the rest. Experts generally believe that the 2010  revolts caused  at least    a 30-40% decline in  demand for the two countries in subsequent years.   In fact, in Tunisia, tourism arrivals dropped by a third in 2011 and the associated financial losses can only be imagined. The same can be said of the effect of the 9/11 attacks on the New York tourism industry which was estimated to lose some 1-2 billion dollars in business in associated  economic activities.

An even more ominous    threat to global tourism is that posed by terrorism. The stark reality is that   a pattern is slowly taking shape in which tourism facilities are increasingly becoming targets for terrorist attacks.  Attacks from England, Bali, Indonesia, France, Jordan, Egypt, Kenya, Peru, The Philippines, and Mexico and, more recently, Tunisia have shown this trend.  This year alone Tunisia has witnessed two such horrific  incidents,  just three months apart from each other - one at a museum and the  more recent one at a popular tourist beach.

 It therefore goes without saying that countries that wish to gain from tourism must consciously make efforts to protect the trade.  For a country that is so heavily reliant on international visitors, Ghana cannot afford to be having such avoidable  safety oversights or security breaches  at its attractions.  It is against this backdrop that  we  should take what happened in Bunso as seriously as we can and also institute structures that can avoid a terrorist attack on our tourism facilities.  

It is good to read that the Ghana Tourism Authority is in the process of developing a Legislative Instrument that will empower them to  enforce safety and security at our attraction sites.

This is because  in truth,  Bunso is not the only unsafe and insecure attraction in the country.  In fact save for a few arrangements for police presence on crowded days, our attraction facilities hardly have any security cover.  Neither are there any strong safety measures that can protect patrons from unintended harm.

Moving forward the  Ministry of Tourism  as a policy formulator must initiate processes  towards the crafting of a tourism safety and security policy.    Such a policy would definitely have to address pertinent questions such as: How safe should our attractions/facilities ? What are the likely sources of harm/threat (unintended or intentional)

·         What warning systems can we put in place to  monitor and react to such threats?

·         Who manages these systems and how will they be funded?

·         What systems can we  institute to  ensure these facilities comply with  prescribed safety measures?

·         Who are the key stakeholders and what roles do they play?

·         How often must equipment at attraction sites  be maintained or changed?

·         What is the carrying capacity of our tourist facilities, how are they determined and  who enforces adherence to  them?

·      

    How best can  the tourism sector  and the security apparatus collaborate to provide  safety/security (especially from terrorism)

Bunso must  serve as the  wake-up call for us as a destination to  create security structures and systems  for all tourism attractions  in Ghana.

by

Prof. Kwaku Boakye

The writer is the  Managing  Researcher at the Tourism Research and Advocacy Centre- a tourism think tank based in  Cape Coast.

Email: tourism.advocate@yahoo.com

AFRICA IN FOCUS >> Coming up on 9 September, 2014: Afri-Tourism!

Since 29 July, AIF has navigated the waters of a topic that merits more discussion on the Ghanaian media landscape – that of Tourism. We wittingly coined a term called “Afri-Tourism”, which we define as “the witting attempt by Africans to purchase African products while visiting African countries.” So far, we have dedicated no less than four shows to tourism-related issues. These include the aviation sector on 19 August; the Hotel industry in Ghana on 26 August; and Afri-tourism on 9 September. Truth be told, we introduced the concept at the first-ever High-Level Public Forum on Regional Development in West Africa, which was organized by the Research & Communications Unit of AIF on 4-5 September. Our rapporteurs are working hard to produce a report, which we will make available as soon as we can.

We had renowned tourism expert, and author, Kofi Akpabli make a presentation on “Towards Afri-Tourism: Making Ghana a viable tourist destination”. And what a presentation it was! He spoke to the issue of sub-regional tourism, which is something East Africa does so well, and West Africa can do better. For example, he wondered, given the number of newly-wed Nigerian couples that come to Ghana, can this country possibly be considered a honey-moon destination in West Africa? And what about Lome and its beaches? Or Cote d’Ivoire and its wildlife?

Akpabli spoke of regional tourism blocs, and wondered whether in West Africa, we are competing or complementing each country’s efforts for tourism? If the Caribbean and East Africa can do it so well, why can’t we? Senegal, we learn, has targeted the African-American diaspora to such an extent that some of them come to West Africa not even knowing of Ghana’s rich cultural heritage? We should begin to ask questions about African countries and their Unique Selling Propositions (USPs).

To this end, we want to use the 17^th edition of the show to speak to experts in the field who have more than a fair idea of what it means to facilitate Afri-Tourism. We want to end the show with a way forward, which includes a greater awareness by the listening public and beyond that Afri-Tourism doesn’t start tomorrow; it starts almost yesterday, so let’s get Afri-touring!

Guiding Questions to be answered:

·        What do we need to know about the Tourism sector, and some of the challenges associated with it in Ghana & Africa? ()

·        Is Ghana ready for Afri-tourism at the scale of other African countries? (CityEscape Hotel/Kenyan Forestry Service)

·        Can the subregional response to the tourism sector translate to a continental one? (Kwizera/Kenyan Forestry Service)

·        What are some of the threats to any development of an Afri-tourism perspective? (Kenyan Forestry Service)

·        Does Ghana have a sufficiently-sustainable environmental sector that will stimulate Afri-tourism? (CityEscape Hotel)

·        What are Kenya and Rwanda doing in responding to the challenges of the tourism sector?(Kwizera; Kenyan Forestry Service)

Guests in the studio:

Ø  Ebo Aidoo-Annan Jr, CityEscape Hotel

Ø  Ignatius Ahimbisibwe, RwandAir

On the line

Ø  Patrick Kwizera, Tour Guide, Rwanda

Ø  Charity Muthonin, Kenya Forestry Service  @ 14h10

AFRICA IN FOCUS >> Coming up on 26 August, 2014:The Hotel Industry in Ghana & Africa: Challenges; Prospects; and the Future

The Hotel Industry in Ghana & Africa: Challenges; Prospects; and the Future

Even before the Ebola crisis took root in the fears of Ghanaians, AIF had already put together what would become a package of stories dealing with the tourism sector in Africa. One may recall that in one of our July editions, we touched on the role of the African Union and the UN World Tourism Organisation in promoting tourism as an important element in reducing poverty in Africa.

 To this end, the two institutions had, in July, signed a MoU to help realize this. The 27 July edition of Africa in Focus, which focused on the Forestry Sector and matters arising on Eco-Tourism, kick-started the first of a series of programmes that seek to shed light on different aspects of tourism.

On 19 August, we looked at the Aviation sector as another equally-important aspect of supporting and developing the tourism sector.

Unbeknownst to many, on 3 July, 1991, ECOWAS adopted a programme of activities for tourism. As far back as that time, ECOWAS recognized the need to encourage and facilitate the joint promotion of tourism products in West Africa. It sought to coordinate tourism development activities in Member States. Finally, aware of the necessity to “create and maintain a high standard for tourism in the sub-region and thereby boost the flow of tourists to the Member States”, ECOWAS adopted, in 1999, a standards for classification of hotels, motels and guest inns.

For the purposes of this discussion, we will use the ECOWAS definition, which defines a hotel or any similar establishment catering for the tourist trade, in the following way: “an establishment providing sleeping accommodation to the public by way of trade or business, such accommodation being payable on a daily basis, or in the case of a longer period of occupancy, payable weekly or monthly, provided…the occupant is not permanently resident therein. The establishment may provide restaurant facilities and may be open for business either all year round or seasonally.”

In this edition of AIF, which is our 15^th edition, we will be shedding light on the hospitality sector, with a special focus on hotels, in Ghana, and Africa.

We will be asking very important questions about why hotel prices are so high in countries like Ghana? How does it compare to countries like Rwanda, where there is greater sanity in the tourism sector? In addition, we will be asking what can be done by the hotel industry to improve customer satisfaction for its clients. Finally, in the light of the Ebola virus, what measures are hotels taking to assure customers they are ready to confront the scare head-on for their clients? We will conclude the show having examined the impact of the three-month ban of international conferences on the hotel industry in Ghana, with a discussion on how to bring sanity into the sector in the light of the current turbulence.

Guests in the studio:

Ø  Kwaku Ayeh Akuffo, Head, Sales & Marketing, MJ Grand Hotel

Ø  Siisi Baidoo, Sales Executive, Tulip Inn Hotel

On the line

Ø  Richard Baafi-Duah, Manager, Manna Heights Hotel, Central Region, Ghana @13h50

Ø  Emmanuel Werabe , Tourism Quality and Standards Manager, Department of Tourism and Conservation, Rwanda Development Board @14h05

Tune in at 13h10 GMT (1:00pm Ghana Time). We’re also streaming live  www.radioxyzonline.com.

Contact us Facebook on: http://www.facebook.com/africainfocusonradioxyz and radio XYZ 93.1FM. Tweet us @africainfocus14 and @ekbensah. Listen to us on #MultiTVChannel29. Thanks!

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PODCAST>> "AFRICA IN FOCUS: "Understanding the Forestry Sector; and Eco-Tourism" (29 July, 2014)

From Emmanuel K: "Kindly find a podcast of the 29 July edition of "Africa in Focus", which interrogated the question that: "With the AU having signed an MOU with the UN World Tourism Organisation a few weeks ago to help use tourism to eradicate poverty in Africa, we will use the 11th edition of AIF to interrogate the extent to which Africa can overcome its developmental challenges using best practices from selected countries on facilitating tourism that includes a recognition of improved sanitation and a sustainable environment. " **Questions to be answered:** • What do we need to know about the Forestry sector, and some of the challenges associated with it in Ghana? (Forestwatch) • Is Ghana ready for Ecotourism at the scale of other African countries? (Forestwatch) • Is there a continental response to forestry sector in Africa? (Forestwatch) • What are some of the threats to forestry sector in Africa? (Forestwatch) • Do we have a sufficiently-sustainable environmental sector that will stimulate Ecotourism? (ForestWatch/Civic Response) • What is Kenya doing in responding to the challenges of the forestry sector?( Kenyan Forestry Service)" Click here to view (Emmanuel K shared these files using Dropbox. Enjoy!) © 2014 Dropbox

AFRICA IN FOCUS >> Coming up on 29 July, 2014: "Understanding the Forestry Sector in Ghana & Africa; and EcoTourism"

The Forestry sector is not necessarily a topic that elicits much excitement in general discourse of a country’s development. Compared to other sectors like international trade; FDI; labour issues; and education, one could be forgiven for thinking the latter elements are all that a country needs for its development.

But even if we were to forget the very important impact of climate change on our environment in general, and our forests in particular, none of us can ever forget the essence of forests to any country’s development. For some African countries, forests are a luxury, but in countries like Ghana, Kenya; and Rwanda, they are considered very important sectors. It is not only about the way in which they offer the potential of green belts for the countries. It is also about how forests offer climate regulation; water; and natural hazard prevention.

Let’s put it this way: consider a country without forests. One study in Kenya, for example, showed that deforestation causes a severe blow to its economy: in 2010, the total net cumulative effect of deforestation was a loss of nearly US$19 million, which had a huge multiplier effect on the rest of the economy. It further affects Kenya’s water yield and water-dependent sectors, as well as a range of other economic sectors, such as agric; forestry; and fishing; electricity and water; hotels and accommodation; and the public administration and defence sectors. Altogether, these contributed between 33-39% to GDP between 2000 and 2010.

There is no gainsaying that the link between a sustainable environment (where trees and forests abound) and Eco-tourism is clear. Add to this the claim by Forestwatch, a civil society organization working within the forestry sector, that Ghana has some of the most antiquated laws (some dating as far back as the 19^th century!), and one begins to wonder how Ghana can counter this perfect storm of challenges to developing tourism to the potential that countries like Kenya and Rwanda have been able to.

With the AU having signed an MOU with the UN World Tourism Organisation a few weeks ago to help use tourism to eradicate poverty in Africa, we will use the 11^th edition of AIF to interrogate the extent to which Africa can overcome its developmental challenges using best practices from selected countries on facilitating tourism that includes a recognition of improved sanitation and a sustainable environment.

To this end, we will be speaking to a representative from CSO working in the sector; representatives from the Forestry Commissions of Ghana; Kenya; and Rwanda; and speaking to a representative from a Ghanaian-based travel and tour company on what Ghana ought to do to take Ghana’s tourism potential to the heights that East African countries in Kenya and Rwanda have been able to do.

Guests in the studio:

Ø  Kwame Mensah, ForestWatch

Ø  Francis Agyemang, Commercial Director, Eurotours

Ø  Reverend David Kpelle, Manager of Commercial Development Unit/ Coordinator in charge of EcoPark Development Unit. Forestry Commission, Ghana

On the line:

Ø  Samuel Mawutor, ForestWatch/Civic Response  @ 13h50

Ø  Charity Muthonin, Kenya Forestry Service  @ 14h10

Ø  Telesphore Ngoga, Rwanda Development Board @ 14h30

Tune in at 13h10 GMT (1:00pm Ghana Time). We’re also streaming live  www.radioxyzonline.com.

Contact us Facebook on:

http://www.facebook.com/africainfocusonradioxyz and radio XYZ 93.1FM. Tweet us @africainfocus14 and @ekbensah. Listen to us on #MultiTVChannel29. Thanks!

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