TOTAL drops exploration plans for the Virunga National Park
REPRIEVE FOR THE VIRUNGA PARK AS FRENCH OIL GIANT TOTAL DROPS OIL EXPLORATION In a breaking news story has information come to light that the French oil company TOTAL has today, through its CEO and Chairman Christophe de Margerie, made a firm commitment to respect the integrity of the national park and drop all plans […]
Mtwara tense as shops remain closed and security forces deploy in town and at airport
MTWARA ‘VERY TENSE’ THOUGH FLIGHTS CONTINUE, FOR NOW Information has come to light from sources in Tanzania that the town of Mtwara, recently in the news over increasingly acrimonious exchanges between the local population and their leaders and the central government over plans to build a gas pipeline for gas to Dar es Salaam instead […]
Kenya Airways’ Pride Centre gets IATA approvals
KENYA AIRWAYS’ PRIDE CENTRE GETS IATA NOD OF APPROVAL Kenya Airways’ inhouse training facility, the Pride Centre, located at the airline’s Embakasi headquarters, has recently been given recognition and approval by IATA, which certified the training college after an audit of facilities, teacher’s qualifications and the curriculum taught. Two years ago the Pride Centre was […]
Lamu’s mangrove forests under siege
LAMU’S MANGROVE FORESTS UNDER INCREASED THREAT Conservationists in Kenya have raised the alarm over the rapid cutting down of mangrove forests around the Lamu archipelago. A senior official at the Kenya Forest Service, one Donald Avude, has come out with all guns blazing as he painted a grim picture on the destruction of mangrove forests […]
Ethiopian Airlines named Official Carrier for African Union Golden Jubilee year
ETHIOPIAN NAMED OFFICIAL CARRIER FOR AFRICAN UNION GOLDEN JUBILEE YEAR Africa this year celebrates the 50th anniversary of the formation of the Organization for African Unity, in short OAU, which was later renamed to the African Union. The headquarters of the continental organization have since the inception 50 years ago been located in Addis Ababa, […]
Qatar Airways resumes London flights with the B787 Dreamliner
QATAR AIRWAYS RESUMES B787 FLIGHTS TO LONDON HEATHROW Qatar Airways’ sales teams have been blitzing the East African markets of Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania and Rwanda with news, that the airline has resumed their Doha to London flights with the B787 Dreamliner, the first B787 destination outside the Gulf since the FAA and global regulators lifted […]
Kwita Izina 2013 set for 22nd June as Rwanda government introduces new draft tourism bill
RWANDA GOVERNMENT INTRODUCES NEW DRAFT TOURISM BILL TO PARLIAMENT Rwanda’s government yesterday presented a new draft tourism bill to parliament, aimed to strengthen the sector through better regulations and legal provisions. The tourism sector, presently overseen by the Rwanda Development Board’s Tourism and Conservation Department, has developed in leaps and bounds in recent years, recording […]
Fastjet owes answers to Tweeps over aborted take offs
FASTJET REPORTEDLY ABORTS TAKEOFF TWICE ON MWANZA FLIGHT Questions asked but not answered on Twitter about an allegedly twice aborted takeoff only served to turn over the rumour mill faster about the reasons for the failure of flight FN 0163 on the 13th of May to successfully take off from Dar es Salaam’s Julius Nyerere […]
Kenya’s new minister in charge of tourism sworn in
KENYA’S NEW TOURISM MINISTER SWORN IN Mrs. Phyllis Kandie was yesterday sworn in as Kenya’s new Minister for East African Affairs, Commerce and Tourism, combining the previously stand alone ministry with, what tourism stakeholders described as ‘very alien bedfellows’, namely Commerce and East African Affairs. There was wide speculation after the election results were announced, […]
Africa airline competition heats up some more as SAA set to get 20 more brand new A320’s
AIRLINE COMPETITION SET TO HEAT UP AS SOUTH AFRICAN GETS 20 MORE AIRBUS A320’S The news coming from Johannesburg, that South African Airways is due to take progressive delivery of 20 Airbus A320 aircraft, will serve as a reminder for other African airlines that sitting still, or pronouncing the delivery of 10 or 15 year […]
Briatore eyes third resort project in Malindi
BRIATORE’S LOVE AFFAIR WITH MALINDI CONTINUES AS THIRD RESORT IN THE OFFING While in Malindi last weekend to see the progress on his ‘Billionaire’s Resort’, which is due to fully open in August this year, did Flavio Briatore let the cat out of the bag, that he was planning to build another resort next year, […]
Dirk Ten Brink retires as Rhino Fund Chairman
DIRK TEN BRINK RETIRES AS CHAIRMAN OF RHINO FUND Dirk Ten Brink, best known in Uganda for his long service first as General Manager and then Director of Group Operations (Golden Leaves Hotels) at the Sheraton Kampala Hotel, has an almost equally long association with the Rhino Fund Uganda. It was Dirk who joined hands […]
KCAA re-certifies JKIA in accordance with ICAO requirements
JOMO KENYATTA RECEIVES RE-CERTIFICATION FROM KCAA The Kenya Civil Aviation Authority has recently re-certified Jomo Kenyatta International Airport in accordance with guidelines issued by the International Civil Aviation Organization, in short ICAO. The initial certification for JKIA was granted in 2008 and KAA has since been regularly inspected and issued with renewals, now a mandatory […]
Tourism stakeholders voice disagreement over TTB’s Swahili Tourism Fair concept
TOURISM STAKEHOLDERS TAKE ISSUE WITH TOURIST BOARD DECISIONS Information is coming to light from Arusha, that tourism stakeholders have sharply criticized the Tanzania Tourist Board over their decision to engage a South African company as partners to set up a rival tourism trade fair in Dar es Salaam. TTB was accused to have engaged the […]
Briatore’s Billionaire’s Resort in Malindi set for August opening
BRIATORE’S BILLIONAIRE RESORT SET FOR AUGUST LAUNCH Flavio Briatore’s 500 million Kenya Shilling investment in the Billionaire Resort will pay off when the new luxury resort in Kenya’s seaside town of Malindi will open its doors to the owners of the apartments in August this year. Briatore, the former Renault F1 team boss before having […]
Precision Air introduces new logo to the market
PRECISION AIR LAUNCHES NEW LOGO Tanzania’s premier private airline, Precision, has just unveiled their revised logo, which while based on their previous showcase now looks fresher and simpler, yet retaining the company’s corporate colours and their trademark gazelle. The airline operates a mixed fleet of B737-300, ATR 42 and ATR 72 aircraft, including the latest […]
Kenya conservation group deputy director charged with ivory possession
‘CONSERVATIONIST’ ARRESTED FOR IVORY POSSESSION – CLAIMES CONSPIRACY BY KWS Information was received from Nairobi that a Deputy Director of the Amboseli Trust for Elephants, Mrs. Susan Soila and her son Robert were arrested on Sunday in Emali, after being found with ivory in their car weighing around 19 kilograms. The two were reportedly produced […]
Port Victoria victorious at Word Tourism Awards as Leading Indian Ocean Cruise Port
PORT VICTORIA NAMED AS THE INDIAN OCEAN’S LEADING CRUISE PORT The hotly contested top rank as the Indian Ocean’s leading cruise port went once again to Port Victoria on the Seychelles’ main island of Mahe, during the World Travel Award Indian Ocean Ceremony held last night in the Maldives. Two resorts from the Seychelles were […]
Air Mauritius bags WTA honours as Leading Indian Ocean Airline
AIR MAURITIUS BAGS ‘INDIAN OCEAN’S LEADING AIRLINE’ AT WORLD TRAVEL AWARDS The World Travel Award Ceremony for Indian Ocean island destinations, held yesterday evening in the Maldives, saw the host country take the lion’s share of awards, but Air Mauritius, as several times before, once again took the airline honours as the ‘Indian Ocean’s Leading […]
Weekly roundup of news from Eastern Africa and the Indian Ocean islands, Second edition May 2013
AVIATION, TOURISM AND CONSERVATION NEWS from Eastern Africa and the Indian Ocean islands. A weekly roundup 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 load’. Read […]
Torrential rains cut road link to Lunga Lunga border
ROAD TO TANZANIAN BORDER AT LUNGA LUNGA CUT BUT FLOOD WATER DAMAGE Reports have emerged from the Kenyan coast that a key road link between Mombasa and the Tanzanian border at Lunga Lunga has been disrupted, following biblical rainfalls which caused several culverts to be washed away. The road on both sides of the affected […]
Seychelles on course to have Mission Lodge recognized as a UNESCO WHS
MISSION LODGE – WHERE SOME OF THE HISTORY OF THE SEYCHELLES COMES ALIVE The history of the Seychelles archipelago is well described elsewhere, with the islands changing hands between colonial occupiers ranging from the Portuguese way back in the 15th and 16th century over the French to the British, before becoming independent from Britain on […]
UWA gets new marine anti poaching unit at Murchisons Falls NP
UGANDA WILDLIFE AUTHORITY LAUNCHES ANTI POACHING UNIT ON THE NILE The Uganda Wildlife Authority has recently launched the Semanya Marine Ranger Station on the banks of the River Nile, from where regular anti poaching patrols are now operating to monitor in particular the open access across Lake Albert into the Murchisons Falls National Park. The […]
Kenya Airways and Kenya Tourism Board sign partnership deal
KENYA TOURISM BOARD AND KENYA AIRWAYS SIGN PARTNERSHIP DEAL Two leading stakeholders in Kenya’s tourism industry, the Kenya Tourism Board and national airline Kenya Airways, have yesterday put pen to paper to sign a one year partnership agreement, aimed to jointly promote the country’s tourism attractions. While The Pride of Africa will inject 20 million […]
RwandAir plane ‘touches wings’ with Kenya Airways aircraft at JKIA
KENYA AIRWAYS AND RWANDAIR PLANES ‘TOUCH’ AT JKIA Information is starting to emerge from an aviation blog www.Rwandan-Flyer.com that RwandAir’s new B737-700, while taxiing at Nairobi’s Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, appears to have ‘touched’ wings with a Kenya Airways aircraft, the make of which was not immediately known. While apparently no passengers did come to […]
Hemingways brings a new luxury dimension to Nairobi’s hospitality scene
HEMINGWAYS NAIROBI BRINGS A NEW LUXURY DIMENSION TO NAIROBI ‘The increasingly growing profile of Nairobi as a premier business destination in the region has occasioned an increased demand for quality beds, fine dining and conference facilities. Hemingways Nairobi is keen on tapping into Kenya’s sustained growth in business traveler and tourism arrivals. As optimism in […]
Seychelles and China sign mutual Visa waiver agreement
SEYCHELLES AND CHINA SIGN MUTUAL VISA WAIVER Confirmation was received today by a regular source from Mahe, that the Seychelles – already the only country not to require a Visa from visitors no matter where they come from around the world – and China have signed a mutual Visa waiver agreement, now also allowing Seychellois […]
Miss Rwanda Tourism inaugural event set for countdown to Grand Finale
RWANDA LAUNCHES PREPARATIONS FOR INAUGURAL MISS TOURISM EVENT Rwanda’s first ever Miss Tourism contest will go underway on May 10th, when the 15 finalists, selected from Rwanda’s university and tourism colleges, will be revealed and introduced to the public at the Hotel Mille des Collines in Kigali by the event organizers. The Eureka Group, formed […]
Malindi and Watamu lose electricity as power switch station floods
FLOODED POWER STATION CAUSES MALINDI / WATAMU POWER OUTAGE The entire stretch of coast from Malindi to Watamu and beyond towards Kilifi was plunged into darkness yesterday, when torrential rains caused a power substation in Kilifi to flood, before it had to be taken off the grid to prevent damaging the equipment in the switch […]
Jetlink’s day in court this Friday as airline defends against winding up petition
JETLINK’S CREDITORS TO MEET IN COURT AS DECISION LOOMS Information from Nairobi has confirmed that this Friday, 10th of May, will be a crucial day for Jetlink, once Kenya’s leading private jet airline, as creditors will have their say on a winding up petition filed by the company’s aviation fuel supplier Finnjet. While Jetlink has […]
