Seychelles elected to chair Vanilla Island cooperation
SEYCHELLES ELECTED TO CHAIR VANILLA ISLAND COOPERATION Seychelles tourism minister Alain St. Anges tireless efforts in past years, and more so over the past few months when at least one member of the Indian Ocean island cooperation, misguided by one individual it should be stressed, wanted to ditch the partnership and break away, were rewarded […]
US slaps Kenya with fresh travel prohibition orders
US PLAYS MORE POWER GAMES WITH FRESH ANTI TRAVEL DIRECTIVES AGAINST KENYA After sustained pressure to lift the travel ban for US Embassy and associated organizations staff to the Kenyan port city of Mombasa last week, which had caused outrage within Kenyan government circles over both content and the devious manner in which the prohibition […]
Rwanda passes migratory birds protection bill
RWANDAS PARLIAMENT PASSES BIRD PROTECTION BILL The often mentioned fact here that Rwanda indeed has conversation engrained in its political fabric was once again confirmed when it became known that late last week did parliament pass a special bill, authorizing governments ratifying the relevant global agreement to protect migratory bird species. In fact it was […]
South Sudan – One year old today but enthusiasm has given way to the stark realities of independent life
ONE YEAR AND COUNTING FROM EUPHORIA TO SURVIVAL MODE A year ago the friends and supporters of South Sudan from around the world gathered in Juba to celebrate the South Sudanese flag being hoisted for the first time, when the ambitions for statehood by the Southern people finally became reality and a new country was […]
Weekly roundup of news from Eastern Africa and the Indian Ocean islands, Second edition July 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 […]
Bahr el Jebel Safaris open up South Sudan’s amazing wildlife to the world
BAHR EL JEBEL SAFARIS PUTS SOUTH SUDAN MIGRATION UP TO THE 2 MILLION MARK Already featured in National Geographics series The Great Migrations as one of the greatest wildlife spectacles remaining on the globe, the migration of the White Eared Kobs, the Tiang Antelopes and the Mongalla Gazelles remains a mystery to most, as even […]
Likoni Ferry suffers another incident prompting regular users to demand road bypass to be sped up
NEW FERRY MISHAP AT LIKONI LEADS TO RENEWED DEMANDS FOR ROAD BYPASS The Thursday evening incident at the Likoni ferry crossing, when one of the new ferries imported from Germany a while ago ran aground after missing the ramp, caused renewed pressure on the Kenya government to commence construction of the road bypass to the […]
Rwanda’s forest policies cited as best example for Africa to copy
WORLD FUTURE COUNCIL HAILS RWANDAS VISIONARY FOREST POLICIES After handing Rwanda their global Gold Award 2011 last year for the countrys groundbreaking forest policies, the World Future Council has just concluded a three day high powered meeting in Kigali to discuss how Africa can learn from Rwanda and copy successful methods and applications to restore […]
US Embassy in Nairobi lifts Mombasa travel ban for their staff
US EMBASSY LIFTS STAFF TRAVEL BAN TO MOMBASA Information was confirmed yesterday that the US Embassy in Nairobi has lifted the travel ban imposed on all their staff though that clearly did not affect the allegedly dozens of operatives of shadowy security organizations working the field in the war against terror at the Kenyan coast […]
Precision finally gets clearances for Lubumbashi
PRECISION AIR FINALLY GETS LUBUMBASHI CLEARANCES Reportsfrom Dar es Salaam have confirmed that Precision Air has yesterday finally made their maiden landing in Lubumbashi, after allegedly corrupt aviation officials were literally forced by their political masters in Kinshasa to sign off on giving the Tanzanian airline block clearance for their scheduled flights three times a […]
Emirates’ destination roll out continues unabated
EMIRATES SETS EYES ON YET MORE GLOBAL DESTINATIONS Dubais national airline Emirates is continuing its aggressive rollout of new destinations and has according to a regular source from the airlines Kampala office just announced three more new destinations, over and above the dozen already on the drawing board for 2012. Australia, or Down Under in […]
Serena Hotels get crowned by Africa Business Awards as the continent’s hospitality champions
AFRICA BUSINESS AWARDS CROWN SERENA HOTELS AFRICAS HOSPITALITY CHAMPIONS Now in its fifth year, the African Business Awards is the key annual event for the African Business World and is the most sought after award by Africa’s leading companies and entrepreneurs. Organized by the African Business Magazine (ABM) and the Commonwealth Business Council (CBC), the […]
Seychelles breaks half year arrival record
100.000 AND COUNTING The tropical Creole island paradise of the Seychelles has yesterday welcomed the 100.000th visitor in 2012, the earliest ever to reach this landmark figure and now well on course to beat the 200.000 arrival mark estimated for the current year. Received by the archipelagos Minister for Tourism Alain St. Ange and the […]
Seychelles mourns Brendan Grimshaw, Conservationist Par Excellence’
SEYCHELLES MOURNS THE PASSING OF BRENDAN GRIMSHAW, CONSERVATIONIST PAR EXCELLENCE The news that Brendan Grimshaw passed away a few days ago at the age of 87, sent the Seychelles conservation fraternity into mourning, as Brendan had become a beacon of hope for them all with the work he had carried out over the decades on […]
#RITRF2 returns to the RainForest Lodge with #JungleBoogie
RAINFOREST LODGE CHOSEN AS VENUE FOR VIDEO SHOOTS The award winning RainForest Lodge in Mabira forest, only recently mentioned here in a major feature article about Mabira, the Endangered Forest was last week the venue for a second video shoot in the space of a month, after first providing the back drop for one of […]
Sheraton Kampala Hotel – an old favourite is back with a vengeance
SHERATON KAMPALAS EXECUTIVE LOUNGE LUXURIOUS EXCLUSIVITY WITH A VIEW The revamp of the Kampala Sheraton has over the past year, since Chris Pollard took over as General Manager in June 2011, shown some remarkable results with a face lift not only covering rooms and public areas but also extending to menus and service. The introduction […]
More woes for the Selous as MoU signed for Stiegler’s Gorge dam and power plant
MORE WOES FOR THE SELOUS IN THE MAKING AS STIEGLERS GORGE POWER MOU SIGNED Within days of news breaking that the UNESCO World Heritage Committee has approved the Tanzanian governments request to carve out a 200 square kilometres part of the worlds largest game reserve to establish a Uranium mining and processing facility, did news […]
Air Seychelles takes delivery of their first new A330-200 aircraft
AIR SEYCHELLES WELCOMES THEIR FIRST NEW A330-200 AIRCRAFT Yesterday saw the arrival of the national airlines first new A 330-200 aircraft, painted in the livery of Air Seychelles and welcomed by none other than President James Alix Michel, in the presence of the Minister of Home Affairs and Transport, who is also the Chairman of […]
Uganda Civil Aviation Authority holds 36th edition of their licensing hearings
UGANDA CIVIL AVIATION LICENSING HEARING VERSION 36 When the Uganda Civil Aviation Authority’s Licensing Committee sat at the Imperial Royale Hotel in the centre of Kampala yesterday, a public event for which media and observers, aviation buffs and the public at large are invited besides the applicants, yesterday a small total of 7, there is […]
UNESCO consents to excluding Uranium mining areas from the Selous Game Reseve
UNESCO CONSENTS TO REQUEST TO TAKE MINING AREAS OUT OF THE SELOUS GAME Information was confirmed overnight that UNESCOs World Heritage Committee 36th meeting in Russias St. Petersburg has granted permission to the Tanzanian government to reduce the size of the Selous Game Reserve to exclude an area earmarked for Uranium mining. Celebrated by official […]
Ethiopian’s first B787 Dreamliner delivery now pushed back to August
ETHIOPIANS B787 DREAMLINER DELIVERIES PUSHED BACK YET MORE A regular source with close links to Ethiopian Airlines has overnight confirmed rumours that the airline is now only expecting delivery of their first B787 Dreamliner, ET is Boeings African launch customer, by August this year, pushed back a month from the initially anticipated July delivery. The […]
Arusha Municipal Airport resumes full operations
ARUSHA MUNICIPAL AIRPORT NOW OPEN FOR BUSINESS AGAIN Precision Air, Tanzanias leading airline, has resumed scheduled operations to the Arusha Municipal Airport earlier this week, it was confirmed in an overnight communication from the Tanzanias safari capital of Arusha. Precision will for the time being operate 23 flights per week between Dar es Salaam and […]
Kenya Airport Authority re-tenders for additional airport catering services
KAAS SEARCH FOR NEW INVESTOR IN AIRPORT CATERING FAILS, TRIGGERS NEW EFFORT A fresh round of tendering will shortly go underway, seeking interest from investors to establish a second aviation catering business at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport and quite likely also at the Moi International Airport in Mombasa, after the first round of tenders […]
Marriott Kigali – less than a year to go to opening
MARRIOTT KIGALI INSIDE A YEARS COUNTDOWN NOW As recently reported here, the first batch of 14 trainees from Rwanda has already gone to Dubai for induction at the Marriott Dubai Harbour Hotel & Suites there, before being deployed into various properties along the Gulf states of Kuwait, Doha and Muscat. They will in nine months […]
Qatar Airways launches Perth ahead of Kilimanjaro
QATAR AIRWAYS LAUNCHES PERTH AHEAD OF KILIMANJARO AND MOMBASA INAUGURALS (Qatar Airways CEO Akbar Al Baker seen here addressing invited guests on arrival in Perth yesterday) The launch of Perth as Qatar Airways second Australian destination, after Melbourne, will see greatly improved connectivity to and from Australia, linking the Gulf, Europe but most notably Africa […]
Mauritius launches ‘Shopping Extravaganza Fiesta’
MAURITIUS SHOPPING FESTIVAL EXTRAVAGANZA FLAGGED OFF WITH CARNIVAL PARADE Last weekend saw the long awaited launch of what will now become an annual event on Mauritius, a Shopping Fiesta Extravaganza, witnessed by the Seychelles Minister for Tourism and Culture the Hon. Alain St. Ange. His presence also puts an end to the spat caused by […]
Tanzania’s ‘Corridor of Destruction’ set to extend into Uganda too
TANZANIAS CORRIDOR OF DESTRUCTION SET TO EXTEND TO UGANDA TOO The environmental assaults on many fronts in Tanzania, often written about here and described as The Corridor of Destruction in previous feature articles, now seems to come home to roost to Uganda too, according to regular green sources in Kampala. Disquieting reports are emerging from […]
Ethiopian adds Somaliland’s Berbera to its African destinations
ETHIOPIAN RESUMES BERBERA FLIGHTS Following the launch of scheduled flights a few weeks ago by Turkish Airlines to Mogadishu and a visit to Hargeisa by a Turkish trade delegation in May, indicating that Turkish might also want to fly to Somaliland, a breakaway part of Somalia working hard to gain international recognition as a new […]
Responsible Tourism Tanzania takes lead in promoting a greener and cleaner approach
RESPONSIBLE TOURISM TANZANIA PUBLISHES GREEN GUIDELINES Responsible Tourism Tanzania has been described to this correspondent as a new association of like minded individuals and groups who believe in a sustainable approach to tourism in Tanzaniamaking it a pleasure if not outright duty for this correspondent to promote and support this initiative by giving it exposure […]
Routes Africa participation exceeds all expectations
ROUTES AFRICA REGISTRATIONS A SUCCESS BEYOND MEASURE As the clock ticks down towards this Sundays start of the much awaited Routes Africa continental aviation meeting have details been shared from Victoria about the registration of delegates, reeling in a record number of airlines, airports, aviation businesses and even registered journalists all credited to both the […]
