East African aviation breaking news – Volcanic ash cloud from Eritrea affects air traffic
ERITREAN VOLCANIC ERUPTION BRINGS ASH CLOUD SCENARIO HOME The recent eruption of a volcano in Eritrea and the subsequent ash cloud drifting across the continent is bringing home the Icelandic ash cloud scenario from last year to East Africa. According to airline sources flights are being delayed or even cancelled already as the ash cloud […]
Kenya aviation breaking news – Water heater explosion at JKIA causes fresh questions
MORE BAD NEWS FOR JKIA AS WATER HEATER EXPLODES Only days after a failure of electricity supply and of all backup systems brought East Africa’s busiest international airport to a complete and utter halt for several hours, leading to flight delays galore, has the explosion of a water heater in the government VIP section of […]
Uganda tourism news update – Airline chiefs tell government to scrap Visa fees
SCRAP VISA FEES AIRLINES TELL GOVERNMENT Airline representatives associated under the Board of Airline Representatives in Uganda have earlier in the week spoken out on how they think tourism to the country can be stimulated and promoted, highlighting amongst other measures the dropping of Visa charges for foreign nationals visiting the country. For several years […]
Rwanda tourism news – Former King’s palace at the centre of ‘Cultural Tourism’ drive
FORMER KING’S PALACE AT THE CENTRE OF NEW CULTURE TOURISM DRIVE As reported here before, today is the launch of Rwanda’s new ‘Cultural Tourism’ product, when the rehabilitated and refurbished former palace and residence of the late King Mutara III Rudahingwa is being formally launched as a centre pin of this new drive. The place […]
Tanzania tourism news – TATO chief to step down
AKUNAAY STEPS DOWN AS TATO CHIEF Following his election as a member of parliament last year, and for the opposition CHADEMA party no less, has the long serving Secretary General of the Tanzania Association of Tour Operators, Hon. Mustapha Akunaay, stepped down from his TATO position. He led the association from a small lobby group […]
Uganda conservation breaking news – NFA follows UWA into chaos
NFA FOLLOWS UWA INTO CHAOS The arrest yesterday of three top managers at the National Forest Authority and of several members of the NFA board has set the stage for the forest authority to follow their colleagues at the Uganda Wildlife Authority into similar chaos as was caused there by the appointment of an unqualified […]
Uganda news update – UCC stops 1 Shilling a second calls
PHONE USERS OUTRAGED OVER ‘THEFT’ The Uganda Communications Commission has caused a storm of outrage over their directive earlier in the week, prohibiting mobile phone companies to use tariffs of less than 2 Uganda Shillings a second. This throws the entire industry into turmoil, as in particular smaller operators have successfully made headway in carving […]
Weekly roundup of news from the Eastern African and Indian Ocean region, Second edition June 2011
TOURISM, AVIATION AND CONSERVATION NEWS from the Eastern African and Indian Ocean region A weekly roundup of reports, travel stories and opinions by Prof. Dr. Wolfgang H. Thome Get daily breaking news updates instantly via Twitter by following @whthome or read the daily postings on my blog via: www.wolfganghthome.wordpress.com Second edition June 2011 East […]
Seychelles breaking news – Interview with the Hon. Joel Morgan, Minister for Home Affairs, Environment, Energy and Transport
EXECUTIVE TALK – INTERVIEW WITH THE HON. JOEL MORGAN,MINISTER FOR HOME AFFAIRS, ENVIRONMENT, ENERGY AND TRANSPORT GOVERNMENT OF SEYCHELLES On occasions opportunity arises to interview high ranking officials during my many trips across Eastern Africa or to the Indian Ocean islands and recently, during a visit to the Seychelles, the Hon. Joel Morgan consented to […]
Tanzania conservation news – Rare toads return home to roost
RARE TOAD SPECIES COMES BACK HOME TO ROOST Information was received over the weekend that a rare species of toads, near extinct now after the construction of a dam at Kihansi some time ago first greatly reduced the habitat of the ‘Kihansi Spray Toads’, aka Nectophrynoides Asperginis, before the remaining population suffered of a fungal […]
Kenya tourism news update – KTDC to raise loan limit and widen scope
KTDC PROMISES HOTEL SECTOR BETTER LOAN FACILITATION A recent meeting of the Kenya Association of Hotelkeepers and Caterers got good news from the CEO of the Kenya Tourist Development Corporation, when she announced that the ceiling of loans, and related terms and conditions were being reviewed with the aim of raising finance packages to a […]
Kenya conservation breaking news – ‘Going Green’ just got a major boost
KENYA’S MARCH TOWARDS ‘GOING GREEN’ GETS MAJOR BOOST The French Development Bank has just signed a major loan agreement worth nearly 60 million Euros with the Kenyan Geothermal Development Company to finance the purchase of drilling rigs and other equipment used to tap into the extensive geothermal potential in Kenya’s Rift Valley. The project, when […]
East African aviation news update – SAA tries to upstage KQ’s cargo plans
SOUTH AFRICAN TRYING TO UPSTAGE KENYA AIRWAYS’ CARGO PLANS The recent announcement in Kampala that South African Airways was about to introduce a once weekly cargo flight from Johannesburg via Dar es Salaam to Entebbe, using a B737 converted freighter, will have provoked some attention within the Kenya Airways quarters, as KQ also finalises the […]
Kenya aviation news – JKIA operations halted over renewed power failure
KENYA AIRPORTS AUTHORITY HIT BY ANOTHER BLACKOUT News are gradually filtering in of yet another power outage at Kenya’s and the region’s premier airport, Jomo Kenyatta International in Nairobi, which was hit on Saturday evening by a blackout lasting several hours and forcing the diversion of arriving flights to Mombasa and as far as Entebbe. […]
Uganda conservation news – UWA shares nearly 300 million Shillings with QENP neighours
MORE FUNDS FOR PARK NEIGHBOURS The Uganda Wildlife Authority has over the weekend handed out nearly 300 million Uganda Shillings to representatives of six districts neighbouring the Queen Elizabeth National Park as part of the legally mandated 20 percent community share of gate receipts recorded. The funds can be used by communities to pay for […]
Rwanda conservation news – Kwita Izina week kicks off with cycling race
KWITA IZINA FESTIVAL WEEK KICKS OFF WITH CYCLING RACE Yesterday saw the official start of the Kwita Izina Festival week and countdown to the formal naming of new born gorilla babies next Saturday in Ruhengeri, at the entrance of the Volcanoes National Park. Over 60 cyclists had enrolled in the race through the hills and […]
Seychelles tourism news update – Creole Travel imports new inter island ferry
NEW INTER ISLAND FERRY ARRIVES Creole Travel Services, one of the archipelago’s leading destination management companies, has imported a sister ship to the ‘Cat Cocos’, the main catamaran ferry in use between Mahe’s port and the island of Praslin. The new ferry, ‘Isle La Digue’ will very likely run alternate scheduled services between the two […]
Kenya tourism news update – MCTA elects Mohamed Hersi as new Chairman
MOHAMED HERSI NEW MCTA CHAIRMAN The Mombasa and Coast Tourist Association recently elected Mohamed Hersi, previously Vice Chairman of MCTA, as their new figure head during their annual general meeting held at the famous Nyali Beach Hotel. Mohamed, an ‘institution’ in his own right by now, works as Regional General Manager Coast for Sarova Hotels, […]
Uganda conservation news update – New trail for Mgahinga National Park
MGAHINGA NATIONAL PARK GETS NEW TRAIL The Mgahinga Gorilla National Park has just opened its latest attraction, the ‘Batwa Trail’, which gives visitors the option to hike for several hours along the pathway with their guides, experiencing the inside of the mountainous rain forest ‘close up’ and coming face to face with trees and vegetation, […]
Seychelles breaking news – MAIA Luxury Resort and Spa commission helipad
MAIA LAUNCHES HELIPAD One of the Seychelles foremost resorts, and there is no hiding, this correspondent’s favourite, has yesterday launched their own helipad which allows guest to ‘chopper in’ from the international airport, after they arrive by scheduled or charter flight or on their own jet, as reportedly many of the MAIA’s guests do. The […]
Kenya aviation breaking news – KQ CEO elected to IATA board and nominating committee
KENYA AIRWAYS CEO ELECTED TO IATA BOARD OF GOVERNORS Information from Nairobi confirms this breaking news story that Dr. Titus Naikuni, Chief Executive Officer and Group Managing Director of Kenya Airways was elected during the 67th annual general meeting of the global aviation industry body in Singapore as a member of 31 strong Board of […]
Rwanda tourism news update – Museums to show ‘history and culture’ to tourists
MUSEUMS TO PROMOTE CULTURAL TOURISM The Rwanda national museums have just in time for the big Kwita Izina week announced that they will play their part in promoting cultural tourism aspects to visitors, showing them the rich history and variety the country has enjoyed for many generations going back hundreds of years. The launch of […]
South Sudan breaking news – Khartoum resorts to air raids on Southern territory
KHARTOUM ESCALATES BORDER DISPUTES WITH AIR RAIDS News reached overnight that the regime’s airforce has resumed bombing raids on the territory of the soon to be independent South Sudan, aiming to pave the way for yet more military incursions into the oil rich parts to the South, ostensibly set to grab the oil wells before […]
Regional budget news – Lack of sectoral incentives rattles tourism stakeholders
ABSENCE OF FINANCIAL INCENTIVES FOR TOURISM SECTOR RATTLES STAKEHOLDERS ‘We shall lobby the East African Legislative Assembly now because our own governments do not listen to us’ was the tenor of many stakeholders this correspondent was in touch with since the reading of the national budgets before the respective parliaments on Wednesday. No sector […]
Kenya safari breaking news – Migration into the Masai Mara has started
ANNUAL MIGRATION STARTS EARLY THIS YEAR Large numbers of zebras and wildebeest have started to pour across the common border from the Serengeti into the Masai Mara Game Reserve, bringing to life the annual spectacle of the great migration reaching its furthest point of the age old cycle of the herds following the rains and […]
Kenya conservation news update – Still more fences for yet more parks
NOW TSAVO WEST ON FENCE LIST TOO No sooner had plans been disclosed by KWS to fence off Mt. Kenya National Park and the Marsabit National Park did calls emerge from district administrators along the crucial Tsavo West park boundaries that they too want an electric fence to be put up, to prevent elephant from leaving the park […]
Zanzibar news update – Sauti Za Busara deadlines looming
SAUTI ZA BUSARA DEADLINES LOOM The most important and most widely recognized East African cultural and performing arts festival held annual in Zanzibar, Sauti Za Busara, has reminded artists wishing to participate in the 2012 event, due to be held between February 08th and 12th next year, that they must apply for selection by latest 31st of […]
South Sudan breaking news – A month to go and counting
A MONTH TO GO AND COUNTING Today the long awaited Independence Day for the new Republic of South Sudan is a month away as the countdown and preparations across the South Sudan continue with increased determination, considering events of recent days and weeks. The alleged war criminals and perpetrators of genocide in Khartoum, showing their […]
Uganda budget shock for hotels – ‘Workshop and Seminar tourism’ budget cut by a third
WORKSHOP TOURISM GETS HAMMERED The annual budget reading yesterday provided a level of shock to the local hospitality industry, when the new Minister for Finance announced a cross the board cut in government budgets and funding for ‘workshop tourism’. Hon. Maria Kiwanuka, in her first action as minister – she took over from her predecessor […]
Kenya conservation breaking news – Highway Authority targets Nairobi National Park
NEW HIGHWAY PLANS SHOCK KENYAN CONSERVATIONISTS No sooner had plans been revealed that the Kenya Highways Authority had designs to build a road across the Nakuru National Park, one of the most visited parks in all of Kenya, did fresh news break that the same governmental body had targeted the Nairobi National Park too for […]
