April 17, 2023

Denu celebrates ‘Ngoryi Za’ – commits to town’s development

The Chiefs and people of Denu have celebrated their maiden ‘Ngoryi Za’ (Development Festival) with a commitment to pull together for the development of the town, which is the capital of the Ketu South Municipality.

Mr. Israel Selikem Bossman, Assembly member for the Denu electoral area, spearheaded the festival which was patronized mainly by the youth of the area.

In an interview with the Ghana News Agency on the sidelines of a colourful durbar to climax activities which marked the festival.

Mr. Bossman said it was time the people of the area buried their differences and work together for the development of Denu to give it a facelift and a better outlook befitting a Municipal capital.

‘We cannot always rely on government to do everything for us- that’s why we have to bury our differences and pull our resources, both human and material together to ensure that Denu transforms into an enviable place befitting the status of a Municipal capital,’ he said.

The Assembly member observed that there were some chieftaincy disputes in the area which needed to be resolved immediately in the interest of peace and unity for the forward march of the town.

He called on the youth of the area to eschew social vices and unruly lifestyles and to hold fast to what was good and beneficial to the community.

He called on all citizens of Denu, home and abroad to join hands in the development agenda of the town which for several decades had not seen any meaningful one, a situation he described as worrying.

The festival was celebrated on the theme: ‘Mobilizing Denu citizens for development.’

Source: Ghana News Agency

April 17, 2023

Embassies of China, Sweden & British Extend Easter Best Wishes to Ethiopians

Embassies of China, Sweden and British in Addis Ababa have extended Easter holiday best wishes to all Ethiopian Christians.

The Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in Addis Ababa has extended best Easter wishes to all Ethiopian Christians.

The Embassy said in its best wish message “The Embassy of the People’s Republic of China wishes our brothers and sisters of this beautiful country a happy and blessed Ethiopian Easter.”

The Embassy of Sweden stated in its message that “Melkam Fasika from the Embassy of Sweden to all Ethiopian Christians. We wish you a joyous Easter holiday.”

The British Embassy in Addis Ababa has also extended a happy Ethiopian Easter holiday to all Ethiopians.

A number of other embassies of various countries based in Addis Ababa have wished a delightful Easter festivity to all Ethiopians.

The Embassies of Netherlands, Denmark, Israel, Russia, Iran, Mexico, the United States, German, Italy, Pakistan, and Austria among others have extended best Easter festival wishes to Ethiopian Christians.

Source: Ethiopian News Agency

April 17, 2023

Africa’s Private Sector Converge in Cape Town to Accelerate AfCFTA

The 2023 African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Business Forum is currently taking place at the Cape Town International Convention Centre, South Africa under the theme, ‘Acceleration of Implementation of the AfCFTA’.

Convened by the AfCFTA Secretariat under the patronage of President Cyril Ramaphosa, the conference is scheduled to take place from 16 – 18 April 2023.

A statement released by the AfCFTA secretariat notes the key objectives of the event are to create awareness of the current trade and investment opportunities in the area among Africa’s business community and connect businesses to funding opportunities for AfCFTA value chains.

The forums also aims at establishing a private sector engagement platform for continued consultations on private sector needs in the implementation of the AfCFTA; and to promote a private sector-friendly environment, especially for Small, Micro and Medium Enterprises (SMMEs) led by Women and Youth, to unlock more accessible and affordable trade finance opportunities.

Attracting broad participation of Africa’s private sector, strategic investors, financial institutions, investment promotion agencies, business councils, chambers of commerce, multinational corporations, African women and youth business organisations, as well as Heads of States and Government, and AfCFTA Partners are also the objectives of the forum.

The AfCFTA Secretary-General, Wamkele Mene has called on Africa’s business community to partner with the Secretariat in order to ensure a successful implementation of the Agreement.

He said “creating an integrated One African Market hinges upon effective private sector participation in the implementation of the AfCFTA. It is therefore critical that Africa’s private sector, as one of the key drivers, takes a keen and active interest, supports and fully participates in AfCFTA’s programmes”.

“The idea is that we come together to find solutions aimed at boosting intra-Africa trade, creating opportunities, innovation and of course taking advantage of this expanded market under the AfCFTA.”

It is only with the business community’s full involvement that Africa will achieve its goal of enhancing intra-African trade, raise Africa’s trading position on the global market, and accelerate economicgrowth, industrialization, production, and job creation, added Mene.

The AfCFTA Business Forum is aimed at giving momentum and accelerating the implementation of the AfCFTA.

While the conference will cover various pertinent trade issues, it will put a spotlight on agro-processing; automotive; pharmaceuticals; transportation and logistics; and digital trade and payments.

The forum takes place after the guided trade initiative, where countries have already started trading under the AfCFTA which makes this the ideal time to take advantage of the opportunity to promote business and investment in Africa.

Source: Ethiopian News Agency

April 17, 2023

NIPDB tackles financing challenges for MSMEs

The Namibia Investment Promotion and Development Board (NIPDB) and World Bank Group have concluded the Chelete Cage pitch event aimed at addressing the challenge of access to finance faced by startups and micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in Namibia.

In a statement issued by NIPDB on Monday, Senior Marketing, Branding and Communications Manager Catherine Shipushu said the Chelete Cage pitching event took place in Windhoek and focused on providing a crucial platform for innovative startups and MSMEs to raise funds and meet their capital needs.

The Chelete Cage offered eight Namibian MSMEs with investment readiness the chance to pitch their business plans for a capital amount of N.dollars 30 000, N.dollars 20 000, and N.dollars 10 000. These businesses fall in the food processing, cosmetics and manufacturing, tech and logistics sectors.

Additionally, the selected MSMEs had access to non-financial assistance, such as advice on how to contact potential investors and pointers on perfecting their pitch.

Shipushu said the pitching MSMEs were selected from the Know2Grow High Potential Pool (K2G HPP), a specialised programme designed by the NIPDB to assist MSMEs with high potential to export their products.

The winners of the Chelete Cage pitch are Ndaka Mushrooms & Processing by Abner Tomas with the first prize of N.dollars 30 000, Ilotu Investment CC by Mareka Masule with the second prize of N.dollars 20 000, and K12 Edtech Inc by Loide Dawid with N.dollars 10 000 for third prize.

Shipushu said the Chelete Cage is part of the NIPDB’s initiatives to bridge the access to finance gap and help MSMEs grow and that the next instalment of Chelete Cage will take place later this year.

Source: The Namibian Press Agency

April 17, 2023

Embassies of China, Sweden & British Extend Easter Best Wishes to Ethiopians

Embassies of China, Sweden and British in Addis Ababa have extended Easter holiday best wishes to all Ethiopian Christians.

The Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in Addis Ababa has extended best Easter wishes to all Ethiopian Christians.

The Embassy said in its best wish message “The Embassy of the People’s Republic of China wishes our brothers and sisters of this beautiful country a happy and blessed Ethiopian Easter.”

The Embassy of Sweden stated in its message that “Melkam Fasika from the Embassy of Sweden to all Ethiopian Christians. We wish you a joyous Easter holiday.”

The British Embassy in Addis Ababa has also extended a happy Ethiopian Easter holiday to all Ethiopians.

A number of other embassies of various countries based in Addis Ababa have wished a delightful Easter festivity to all Ethiopians.

Source: Ethiopian News Agency

April 17, 2023

Coetzee eager to work harder to put Namibia on the map

Chenoult Lionel Coetzee, the new national record holder in long jump, says he will continue working hard to realise his dream of representing Namibia at a higher level.

The 25-year-old Erongo-based athlete made history at the just-ended Athletics Namibia National Championships when he broke the national long jump record with an impressive jump of 8.27m to be crowned the new national champion.

The previous record was 8.24m and was set by Stephan Louw on 12 January 2008 at the Germiston Stadium in Johannesburg, South Africa.

Coetzee in an interview with Nampa on Monday, said: “Credit should be given to the Lord for the courage and strength which He gave me to achieve my goals. There are no words to describe this feeling I’m currently feeling. I am happy to have broken the Namibian long jump record which stood for 15 long years. People can now expect hard work, dedication, as well as me doing my best every time I compete.”

Coetzee’s impressive jump got him into the national team that will represent the country at the 2023 Gaborone International Meet in Botswana later this month.

Belinda Oberholzer, who coaches Coetzee, said it had been a tough journey but seeing him win the long jump event and break the national record is overwhelming.

“Coach Neil Cornelius is a long and triple jump coach in South Africa and we are working together on this athlete. It’s a proud moment as well as a happy one to see that all the hours put into training are paying off,” she said.

Oberholzer added that as a coach their dream is to see their athletes one day achieve their goals.

“These athletes are like our kids. All they have when they start is potential and hard work, but when those goals are met it is a humbling reward,” Oberholzer said.

Source: The Namibian Press Agency