Uhuru meets her siblings and peers at Ziwa
UHURU GETS TO MEET HER FAMILY AND PALS (Posted 18th November 2013) After 5 months of self styled isolation has one of Ziwa’s adult females, Nandi, formally ‘introduced’ her latest calf, a little girl named Uhuru, to the rest of the Ziwa rhinos. 11 of the overall now 13 Southern White rhinos came together and […]
New proposals could raise cost of Kenya’s domestic departure taxes by 150 percent
KENYA’S DOMESTIC DEPARTURE TAX COULD MORE THAN DOUBLE UNDER NEW PROPOSALS (Posted 18th November 2013) The national assembly appears to have revived a proposal shot down during the last parliament which will, if passed, open the door to raise the domestic departure tax from presently 200 Kenya Shillings to as much as 500 Kenya Shillings, […]
Qatar Airways adds another 55 aircraft at Dubai Airshow buying frenzy
QATAR AIRWAYS SIGNS LOI FOR 50 BOEING B777X (Posted 18th November 2013) Overshadowed but not quite outdone will aviation observers think of Qatar Airways’ signing of a Letter of Intent with Boeing, which confirms their interest to purchase 50 of Boeings’ latest birds, the B777X, which until a few days ago appeared to have been […]
Emirates places record breaking aircraft order worth 99 billion US Dollars
EMIRATES PLACES LARGEST AIRCRAFT ORDER IN AVIATION HISTORY (Posted 18th November 2013) Emirates, the award winning national airline of Dubai, has on opening day of the Dubai Air Show placed the largest order ever made by a single airline, on a single occasion throughout aviation history. At list prices, it is assumed though that they […]
More powercuts for Tanzanians
TANESCO USHERS IN 10 DAYS OF ROLLING DARKNESS FOR TANZANIANS (Posted 17th November 2013) ‘We light up your life’, the slogan by Tanzania’s national power company TANESCO, sounds like some outright mockery towards their clients, as they just announced yet another 10 day period of regular power disruptions across the entire country. All the main […]
Weekly roundup of ACT News from Eastern Africa and the Indian Ocean Region, Third edition November 2013
AVIATION TOURISM & CONSERVATION NEWS EAST AFRICA A weekly roundup from Eastern Africa and the Indian Ocean islands of breaking news, reports, travel stories and opinions by Prof. Dr. Wolfgang H. Thome You can get your daily news updates instantly via Twitter by following @whthome or join me on www.facebook.com/WolfgangHThome where the articles also ‘cross […]
Minor landing mishap for WB 301 this morning – no injuries or damage
RWANDAIR FLIGHT WB 301 FROM DUBAI DEVIATES FROM RUNWAY ON LANDING (Posted 16th November 2013) Rwanda’s national airline RwandAir this morning suffered a slight landing problem with flight WB 301 when coming into Kigali International Airport from Dubai. Sudden gusts of cross winds after touching down combined with heavy rain pushed the plane, a Boeing […]
Prince Charles endorses Seychelles’ environmental policies
SEYCHELLES ENVIRONMENTAL POLICIES AND COMMITMENT GET ROYAL APPROVAL (Posted 16th November 2013) The extraordinary environmental protection work of the Seychelles, and the fact that this tiny Indian Ocean island nation has devoted over 50 percent of its territory to territorial and marine protected areas has found favour at the highest level of the Commonwealth, of […]
Pemba gets Africa’s first underwater bedroom
PEMBA MAKES HISTORY WITH FIRST UNDER WATER BEDROOM IN AFRICA (Posted 16th November 2013) If you are not scared to have tropical fish and perhaps even sharks peep through your bedroom window, 4 metres under the surface of the Indian Ocean, then this unique underwater room of The Manta Resort on the Zanzibari island of […]
Volcanoes Safaris reopen Mount Gahinga Lodge after renovations
MOUNT GAHINGA LODGE REOPENS WITH A NEW SHINE (Posted 16th November 2013) Almost unnoticed and certainly without much fanfare has the Mount Gahinga Lodge, located just outside the main park gate of the Mgahinga National Park, opened again earlier this month, reason enough to boost their re-entry into the Ugandan hospitality market. The lodge is […]
Happy Birthday Air Uganda
AIR UGANDA TURNS 6 (Posted 16th November 2013) Uganda’s quasi national airline Air Uganda, in airline circles known as U7, has today reached a landmark 6 years in the skies over East Africa. The carrier now flies from Entebbe to Nairobi, Mombasa, Kigali, Bujumbura, Juba, Kilimanjaro, Dar es Salaam and Mogadishu and operates a fleet […]
Two poachers shot dead in Laikipia
POACHERS PAY THE ULTIMATE PRICE (Posted 15th November 2013) Two poachers ended up being shot dead by police reservists working on the Ol Pejeta Conservancy, when they were pursued off the sprawling estate after what has been described as a ‘botched poaching incident’. The pair was apparently interrupted in their mission by the ever alert […]
High altitude rescue by Tropic Air saves another life
TROPIC AIR PEFORMS HIGHEST HELI RESCUE IN KENYA’S HISTORY (Posted 15th November 2013) The Nanyuki based Tropic Air, incidentally also the operators of the Nanyuki airstrip into which much of the traffic destined for Mt. Kenya and Ol Pejeta comes, has once again performed a miracle rescue when airlifting a British soldier from an elevation […]
A week and counting to the 2013 Lamu Cultural Festival
LAMU CULTURAL FESTIVAL EXPECTED TO DRAW LARGE CROWDS TO THE ARCHIPELAGO (Posted 15th November 2013) The countdown is now on as one of Kenya’s great heritage festivals, the Lamu Cultural Festival is exactly a week away. The focus during the 4 day long festival, from 21st to the 24th November inclusive, will be on the […]
Kenya Airways signs new expanded joint venture deal with KLM
KENYA AIRWAYS SIGNS NEW JOINT VENTURE DEAL WITH KLM / AIR FRANCE (Posted 15th November 2013) Kenya Airways has strengthened their cooperation with KLM / Air France within East Africa, following the signing of a new and far more extensive joint venture agreement compared to the one presently in place. The expanded joint venture will […]
Tanzania’s tourism performance makes them top dog in East Africa
TANZANIA TOURISM REVEALS RECORD RESULTS BUT STORM CLOUDS GATHER (Posted 15th November 2013) Tourism has climbed to the top of the economic performance scale in Tanzania, outstripping all other sectors including gold mining which had claimed top spot a year ago amid record high gold prices at the time. The Bank of Tanzania earlier in […]
It is D-Day for Ethiopian’s nonstop flights to Toronto
ETHIOPIAN AIRLINES COMMENCES NONSTOP SERVICES TO TORONTO TODAY (Posted 15th November 2013) Later today will the first nonstop service between Addis Ababa and Toronto in Canada take off, using one of the airline’s B787 Dreamliners, an aircraft capable of carrying a full load without a fuel stop enroute between the two cities. Until now had […]
AFRAA annual general assembly scheduled for 24 – 26 November
AFRAA SET FOR ANNUAL GENERAL ASSEMBLY AT DIANI BEACH’S LEISURE LODGE RESORT (Posted 14th November 2013) The African Airline Association, in short AFRAA, based in Nairobi / Kenya, will hold their annual general assembly between the 24th to the 26th of November at the Diani Beach based Leisure Lodge Resort, in a departure from past […]
Emirates adds second A380 on Munich route
EMIRATES INCREASES USE OF GIANT A 380 WITH SECOND FREQUENCY TO MUNICH (Posted 14th November 2013) Travel agents and travelers alike appear to be hugely impressed by the Emirates’ increased use of Airbus A380 aircraft to ever more destinations and for a growing number of frequencies, like from December onwards deploying the giant aircraft to […]
South Sudan devalues their currency by 35 percent a day after Khartoum Sudan
35 PERCENT DEVALUATION OF CURRENCY HITS MARKETS HARD (Posted 14th November 2013) Following the devaluation of the currency in Khartoum Sudan the day before yesterday has the Central Bank of South Sudan equally dropped the value of the South Sudan Pound by 35 percent, delivering an inflation boost and economic shock to the economy of […]
Coast tourism suffers greatest threat to survival since 2008
GOVERNMENT MUST ACT NOW SAY TOURISM LEADERS (Posted 14th November 2013) Open calls for the Kenyan government’s need to change direction and act to save the country’s struggling coast tourism industry are still few though a strong sentiment is building up over the lack of positive response to suggestions and demands made by the sector […]
Tanzanian railway plans for Tanga Musoma and Isaka Rwanda under doubt
ECONOMIC PUNDIT CASTS DOUBT OVER TANGA – MUSOMA RAILWAY PLANS (Posted 14th November 2013) Plans announced earlier this week by Tanzania’s Transport Minister Dr. Harrison Mwakyembe, that the government was to construct two railway lines anew, the Tanga Musoma line and the Southern line, along a full refurbishment and upgrade to standard gauge measures of […]
Kenya Airways confirms that Dr. Naikuni is to stay on for another year
NAIKUNI TO STAY ON TILL END 2014 (Posted 14th November 2013) Now that the Board of Directors has officially confirmed the news, the story can also be told here after the ‘embargo’ period has effectively lapsed. Dr. Titus Naikuni, CEO of Kenya Airways and Managing Director of the Kenya Airways Group, is not going anywhere, […]
Tons of blood ivory seized in port of Zanzibar
ZANZIBAR AUTHORITIES SEIZE A CONTAINER LOAD OF BLOOD IVORY (Posted 14th November 2013) The Minister for Natural Resources and Tourism, Ambassador Khamis Kagesheki, was swift to drop whatever he was doing yesterday to travel to Zanzibar’s main island of Unguja when news broke that a container load of blood ivory had been seized by authorities […]
Six Serena properties get renamed
SERENA HOTELS RE-BRANDS SEVERAL PROPERTIES (Posted 14th November 2013) Serena Hotels late yesterday confirmed that several name changes for their properties have been put into effect to better describe the location and put the names in line with recent developments. The award winning Serena Beach Hotel & Spa now is the Serena Beach Resort & […]
Condition of main road from Uganda to South Sudan described as appalling
STATE OF ATIAK TO NIMULE ROAD CAUSES BIG PROBLEMS FOR TRAFFIC TO SOUTH SUDAN (Posted 13th November 2013) Appalling road conditions following extended torrential rains have damaged and in part flooded sections of the Uganda to South Sudan highway in particular along the stretch between Atiak in Uganda and Nimule in South Sudan. Trucks are […]
Kenya Airways to brief investors and media on half year results
KENYA AIRWAYS SET TO ANNOUNCE HALF YEAR RESULTS LATER TODAY (Posted 13th November 2013) Kenya Airways’ shares, trading at 10.50 level only recently, have made a strong showing by closing up at 13.45 Kenya Shillings on Tuesday, the highest the shares were traded in a year. This happened the day prior to the airline’s management […]
KHTF 2013 Post Show report out
Just received and happily shared with my readers many of whom actually participated in the trade show and hotel summit in Nairobi in July. Good Afternoon, As a worthy stakeholder and player of the hospitality industry, Slujan Events, organizer of the Kenya Hospitality Trade Fair 2013 and the Hotel Summit East Africa 2013 conference, is […]
FastJet progressively moving to daily flights on Mbeya route
FASTJET INCREASES MBEYA FREQUENCIES JUST WEEKS AFTER INAUGURAL FLIGHT (Posted 13th November 2013) FastJet’s new domestic route from Dar es Salaam to Mbeya has quickly established itself it seems as demand for seats has already outstripped the available capacity after the route was launched just two weeks ago. From 24th of November will a Sunday […]
Rwanda’s ServiceMag once again seeks the best through online survey
RWANDA’S SERVICE PROVIDERS BRACE FOR THEIR SECOND JUDGMENT DAY (Posted 12th November 2013) Rwanda’s leading magazine, the ServiceMag has just invited for votes from the general public to establish the best and the worst service providers for 2013, something which predictably is causing unease if not outright tension in the office suites of Rwanda’s corporations […]
