Seychelles Tourism Academy sends 14 students to Shannon University
SEYCHELLES TOURISM ACADEMY SENDS 14 STUDENTS TO SHANNON (Mrs. Margaret Pillay, CEO of the Seychelles National Human Resource Development Council hands over an airticket to Dublin to one of the 14 students selected to study for a hospitality graduate degree) The Seychelles Tourism Academy, in conjunction with NHRDC, has yesterday held a ceremony in Victoria, […]
Mombasa calm after assassination of radical Islamic preacher
DRIVE BY ASSASSINATION ROCKS MOMBASA The assassination of what is largely considered a radical Islamic preacher with suspected links to Al Shabab and other terrorist groups, has left Mombasa reeling from an immediate outbreak of violence, which left one more person dead in its wake as marauding youths stoned an innocent bystander to death. The […]
USAID hands over new visitor centre for Rwenzori Mountains National Park
RWENZORI VISITOR CENTRE OPENS ITS DOORS The USAID funded STAR programme, short for Sustainable Tourism in the Albertine Rift has now handed over their arguably last project component to the Uganda Wildlife Authority, when the new Rwenzori Mountains National Park visitor centre was formally launched earlier today. Built adjoining to the latest lodge addition to […]
Embraer prepares to deliver another E190 to Kenya Airways
KENYA AIRWAYS LATEST E190 TAKES TO THE SKIES IN BRAZIL The delivery of Kenya Airways 36th bird is now imminent as the aircraft was over the past two days put through a vigorous inflight testing regime, ahead of the formal handover later this week at the Embraer assembly plant in San Jose Dos Campos. The […]
Kilifi’s annual triathlon celebrates 10th edition with special weekend long festival
KILIFI MUSIC AND ARTS FESTIVAL ALL SET FOR NEXT WEEKEND The Kilifi Plantation Airstrip is the venue for next weekends music and arts festival, which will be running alongside the Kilifi Gold Triathlon, one of the original events, many of which are now springing up all over Kenyas hotspots. The Kilifi Triathlon is already celebrating […]
Pan African Ornithological Congress shifted to Arusha
ARUSHA STEPS UP AS PAN AFRICAN ORNITHOLOGICAL MEETING SHIFTED FROM NIGERIA Organisers of the 13th Pan African Ornithological Congress have reportedly decided to shift the October event from its previous location in Nigeria to Arusha, where cost and other considerations appear to have been met by the host city, stepping up with an attractive events […]
Weekly roundup of news from Eastern Africa and the Indian Ocean islands, Fourth edition August 2012
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 breaking news updates instantly via Twitter by following @whthome, join me on www.facebook.com/WolfgangHThome where the articles also cross load or […]
Raffles Seychelles gets into Forbes Top Ten Beach Resorts list
RAFFLES MAKES FORBES TOP TEN LIST The Raffles Seychelles on the archipelagos second island of Praslin, has just been included in the Forbes Travel Guide top 10 beach resorts worldwide. Forbes, one of Americas foremost business magazines, selected the resort for its exceptional location, beaches and outstanding service levels. The General Manager of Raffles Praslin […]
Keeping La Digue green by promoting battery powered vehicles
SEYCHELLES REMOVES DUTY ON ELECTRIC CARS TO PROMOTE A GREENER LA DIGUE The island of La Digue, long known to have no cars on the island and instead using the traditional oxcart or bicycles, has in recent years nevertheless seen a steady increase in motorcars and pickup trucks, to cater for the growing number of […]
Nairobi airport saga gets murkier and threatens to spin out of control
AIRPORT CONTROVERSY THREATENS TO SPIN OUT OF CONTROL The latest twist in this murky saga is hitting the headlines now in Nairobi, with allegations of a million dollar bribe having been given to an unnamed official, who subsequently tried to turn all hell lose when his friends did not get the contract to build JKIAs […]
Tanzania set to host Africa’s Environment Ministers in Arusha
TANZANIA TO HOST CONTINENTAL ENVIRONMENT MEETING The 14th Session of the African Ministerial Conference on the Environment will take place in Arusha between the 10th and 14th of September and will according to information at hand be officially opened by President Kikwete. It is expected that a range of topics discussed at the Rio+20 Conference […]
KAA board sends CEO on compulsory leave as squabbles over contracts widen
KAA DESCENDS INTO INFIGHTING AS CEO SUSPENDED BY BOARD When elephants fight it is the grass which suffers goes the saying in Africa but here the grass is Kenyas crucially important aviation industry, as the countrys airport authority, responsible for the main hub in Nairobi and other airports across the country, descends further into infighting […]
Nyungwe forest buffer zone deal set to go operational
NYUNGWE BUFFER ZONES SET FOR COMMERCIAL TREE FARMING The contracts signed last year, between the Rwandan government and the New Forest Company, to manage and sustainably utilize the Nyungwe Forest buffer zones, are now becoming fully operational, after NFT has entered into a tripartite partnership with the Rwanda Development Bank and the Rwanda Social Security […]
1Time appears set to pull the plug on Mombasa flights
1TIME SETTO PULL FLIGHTS FROM MOMBASA A regular source from Kenyas tourism fraternity has just confirmed that 1Time, a South African LCC flying for a while now between Johannesburg and Mombasa, appears set to halt their operation to Kenyas Indian Ocean city. High regulatory and aviation services cost have been cited as the main reason, […]
COMESA’s First Sustainable Tourism Forum ends in Nairobi
REGIONAL COOPERATION SEEN AS KEY TO FUTURE SUCCESS This week saw two important regional African meetings take place, focusing on the tourism industry and how to better use one of the worlds foremost economic sectors to alleviate poverty through increased cooperation and the subsequent investments, job creation and foreign exchange earnings. COMESA, The Common Market […]
Rwanda Hotel and Restaurant Association seeks to establish dialogue platform with local authorities
HOTELIERS SEEK DIALOGUE WITH LOCAL AUTHORITIES Rwandas Hotel and Restaurant Association has expressed their readiness to involve local authorities in dialogue, aimed to mitigate if not prevent sudden swoops and even closures on their members over alleged or real infringement of regulations. A major meeting with mayors and other leading administration officials will seek to […]
Not a good day for Kenya tourism as a threesome of bad news break in one day
NOT A GOOD DAY FOR KENYA The first bit of bad news reached in the morning, that Mrs. Michuki, who only buried her husband some three months ago after the principal owner of the Windsor Golf Hotel and Country Club had passed away, also died in the early hours of the day. This robbed the […]
Masai Mara air crash update
MOMBASA AIR SAFARI CRASH KILLS TWO PILOTS In a breaking news development in Kenya it was reported that Mombasa Air Safaris suffered a fatal crash in the Masai Mara at Ngerende airstrip near the Mara Safari Club, with both pilots of the aircraft killed as well as at least one passenger. The aircraft had arrived […]
Mara crash of LET 410 causes loss of life
MOMBASA AIR SAFARI CRASH KILLS TWO PILOTS In a breaking news development in Kenya it was reported that Mombasa Air Safaris suffered a fatal crash in the Masai Mara at Ngerende airstrip near the Mara Safari Club, with both pilots of the aircraft killed as well as at least one passenger. At this moment of […]
Windsor Golf Hotel and Country Club now mourns two principals in three months
WINDSOR GOLF HOTEL AND COUNTRY CLUB MOURNS DOUBLE BLOW Only weeks after the untimely death of the principal owner of Kenyas premier golf resort, the late Hon. John Michuki, Minister in President Kibakis government, his wife has also passed away this morning at the Nairobi Hospital, throwing the entire staff and management of the golf […]
Precision Air adds domestic capacity to meet growing demand for air travel
PRECISION AIR ADDS MORE DOMESTIC CAPACITY The sudden departure of Air Tanzania from the skies recently, when an emerging dispute over the continued lease of a B737-500 from a UAE based company prompted the plane to be grounded, has not had any significant impact on options for travelers in Tanzania. In fact, Precision Air, which […]
Loss of handling monopoly translates into greater profits for Swissport Tanzania
SWISSPORT PROFITS UP INSPITE OF INCREASED COMPETITION The loss of the Swissport monopoly for aircraft and cargo handling at Tanzanias main airports has apparently not dented the profitability of the company, with the latest figures available now showing an increase before taxes of 8 percent in a year by year comparison. The company, traded at […]
New ferry, new problems or just a shaky start …
NEW FERRY, NEW PROBLEMS, ALREADY? Rowdy scenes by travelers were reported in the local Ugandan media, surrounding the new MV Pearl ferry, officially launched only days earlier by the Minister for Works and Transport, when an apparent damage to an engine, caused by striking submerge rocks on attempting to land the ferry, required repairs to […]
With Zenawi’s passing a new era is dawning on Ethiopia
ZENAWIS DEATH PLUNGES ETHIOPIA INTO UNCERTAINTY The smoke screens on Prime Minister Meles Zenawis health have finally been lifted, after many misleading statements, when the announcement just broke that he has died abroad while undergoing treatment for an unspecified illness. Zenawi, long serving strongman of Ethiopias post communist period since overthrowing Dictator Haile Mariam now […]
Coast tourism stakeholders finger government for lack of support
COAST RESORT OPERATORS BLAME GOVERNMENT FOR LACK OF VISITORS Let me be very specific here so that there is no mistake on what I say. It is the government which has denied KTB the funding needed to do the job, and although KTB should do more with the resources they have, there are limitations. Their […]
Another Zanzibar bound boat sinks, three tourists amongst the 11 passengers rescued.
TOURISTS ESCAPE DEATH AFTER DRAMATIC OCEAN RESCUE The series of marine accidents in Tanzania just does not seem to end, as according to a regular source from the Tanzanian coast three wagenis aka tourists from overseas had to be pulled from the sea, as their boat, sailing from Pangani to Zanzibar, sank after running into […]
Tanzania’s tourism stakeholders demand greater visibility of 7 New Natural Wonders campaign
TOURISM STAKEHOLDERS DEMAND GREATER VISIBILITY FOR 7 WONDERS VOTE Sections of Tanzanias tourism stakeholders have voiced their concern over the lack of visibility for the upcoming 2012 vote for the 7 natural wonders of the world, for which the country has reportedly entered three key attractions, Mt. Kilimanjaro, Ngorongoro Crater and the Serengeti with the […]
Royal Ascot Goat Races confirmed for 01st September
ANNUAL ROYAL ASCOT GOAT RACES CONFIRMED FOR SEPTEMBER 01 What started at the Kampala Rugby Club way back in 1993 as a small fundraising event, providing some family fun watching the goats to be egged on to race around a small circle, with onlookers nevertheless dressed as if indeed they had come to see Royal […]
Nature Uganda announces dates for national ‘Big Birding Day’ 2012
BIG BIRDING DAY DATES ANNOUNCED Those who love the birds of the feathered kind will be marking October 19 October 20 in their calendar, when from midnight to midnight ornithologists and hobby birders will once again swarm Ugandas best, and also the lesser known sites to collect sightings and audible identifications of as many of […]
Talodi / South Kordofan crash report update
UPDATE ON TALODI / SOUTH KORDOFAN ANTONOV CRASH (Wikipedia file photo of the Antonov 24) More information has now been received on the deadly crash yesterday in South Kordofan, where 31 passengers and crew died as the aircraft hit the side of a mountain near the main town of Talodi while attempting to land for […]
