Congo’s Virunga gorilla national park under threat by oil companies
VIRUNGA PARK OIL EXPLORATION DEAL TRAMPLES ON UNESCO WHS STATUS The government of the Congo DR has reaffirmed its dubious pedigree of being at best lukewarm towards conservation and at worst opposed to it for the motive of profit, when news broke that a preliminary oil exploration license was given to SOCO International for initial […]
RwandAir signs firm order for two CRJ 900 with two added options
RWANDAIR SIGNS FOR TWO NEW BOMBARDIER CRJ 900 Rwanda’s national airline has, following protracted negotiations with several manufacturers of regional jet 70 – 110 seat aircraft, this morning signed a purchase deal with Canadian manufacturer Bombardier for the delivery of two CRJ 900 planes, due to be delivered already in October this year. It is […]
Tanzania conservation news – New visitor centre inaugurated at WMA bordering the Serengeti
NEW VISITOR CENTRE OUTSIDE SERENGETI TO BOOST TOURISM ACTIVITIES Information was received over the weekend that the Ikona Wildlife Management Area, of which the Singita Grumeti Reserve is part, has now formally commissioned a new visitor centre, from which the entire area of some 26.000 hectars of land dedicated to wildlife conservation is to benefit. […]
EAC Summit leads to Tanzania’s commitment to remove unilateral non tariff barriers
TANZANIA SCRAPS VEHICLE ENTRY FEE AT BORDERS WITH KENYA Faced with massive pressure by the four other East African Community member states during a recent ministerial meeting in Mombasa and the prospect of a diplomatic fallout at the head of state summit last weekend has Tanzania rushed to reassure in particular Kenya that they would […]
La Reunion voted ‘Global Best’ for tourism’s I-Pad application by Travel D’Or
REUNION TOURISM VOTED TOP FOR BEST I-PAD APPLICATION The island of La Reunion, recently in the media spotlight following the hugely successful co-hosting of the Carnival International de Victoria in the Seychelles, has just been voted via Travel DOr as the worlds best application for viewing on the I-Pad. This accolade is bound to bring […]
Seychelles aviation breaking news – President Michel appoints new Air Seychelles Board of Directors
PRESIDENT JAMES MICHEL APPOINTS NEW AIR SEYCHELLES BOARD OF DIRECTORS President James Michel has last weekend formally appointed a new Board of Directors, ahead of the first meeting of the newly constituted board on Friday, made necessary by the acquisition of 40 percent of the company shares by Etihad, the national airline of Abu Dhabi. […]
Etihad / Air Seychelles partnership takes shape
AIR SEYCHELLES SHRUGS OF OPPOSITION CLAIMS, FOCUSES ON FUTURE A press conference last Friday in Victoria saw the Minister for Home Affairs and Transport, the Hon. Joel Morgan, make a joint appearance with Etihads CEO and President James Hogan and Air Seychelles CEO Cramer Bell, outlining the future of the airline. Earlier in the week […]
Rwanda aviation news – Emergency drills at Kanombe International Airport trigger major incident response
KANOMBE INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT CONDUCTS EMERGENCY DRILLS The Rwanda Civil Aviation Authority yesterday carried out a live fire exercise at the international airport in Kigali, for which all emergency services were put on full alert to test the state of readiness and response time should ever a real emergency arise. The simulation involved the imagined emergency […]
Kenya aviation news – Delhi set to become Kenya Airways’ second Indian destination
DELHI WILL BECOME KENYA AIRWAYS SECOND INDIAN DESTINATION The Pride of Africa is set to launch flights to Delhi, Indias capital city, from the 15th of May onwards, extending their operations to a second destination on the subcontinent after having flown for many years to Mumbai, formerly known as Bombay. The airline will fly from […]
Kenya conservation news – Now the Aberdare National Park too threatened by wildfires
NEW FIRES NOW THREATEN THE ABERDARE NATIONAL PARK TOO Prolonged drought conditions and insufficient rain have been blamed for the outbreak of fires now also reported form the Aberdare Mountains, where KWS is hand in hand with fire fighters and volunteers now also trying to extinguish raging fires, as recently reported about from Mt. Kenya […]
Kenya tourism news – Novel way to promote Kenya through theatre performances planned
KENYA TOURIST BOARD SEEKS NOVEL WAYS TO MARKET THE COUNTRY A source close to the Kenya Tourist Board has confirmed that arrangements are being finalized to produce a theatre play named Out of Africa The Magic of Kenya due to be launched in some of Kenyas key European markets later this year. Shows are due […]
After UTODA’s strangle hold on public transport was broken it is Karibu to the new city busses
COMMUTER BUSSES IN KAMPALA, A NOVEL WAY TO EXPLORE THE CITY The recent, yet politically highly charged introduction of a fleet of brand new commuter busses into the city has opened up new options for visitors to Kampala, finally being able to cut through the maze of routes and pick up points of the commonly […]
Tanzania aviation news – Swissport makes record profits on the back of a near monopoly
NEAR MONOPOLY EARNS SWISSPORT RECORD PROFITS While officially at least the monopoly of Swissport as the sole handling agent at key Tanzanian airports has been lifted, when a few more licenses were granted last year, the reality is that it remains a quasi monopoly, which is bringing huge profits and benefits to the shareholders, all […]
Seychelles Carnival, Number two is gone, number three is one the way
CARNIVAL INTERNATIONAL DE VICTORIA A REVIEW AND A PREVIEW True to the words of the Seychelles Tourism Board was the 2012 Second Edition of the Carnaval de Carnivals, the mother of all carnivals in Victoria / Seychelles, bigger, better, more colourful and under an unprecedented media spotlight, bringing the Seychelles once again to the global […]
Tanzania conservation breaking news – EACJ rules against Tanzania government, Serengeti Highway case to go ahead to full hearing
ANTI SERENGETI HIGHWAY COALITION CELEBRATES LEGAL VICTORY The appellate division of the East African Court of Justice has dismissed an attempt by the Government of Tanzania to question the jurisdiction of the East African Court of Justice, to which environmentalists and the conservation fraternity had taken their case, trying to block it from building a […]
Kenya conservation news – Upper sections of Mt. Kenya National Park on fire
SECTIONS OF MT. KENYA NATIONAL PARK ABLAZE Information was confirmed overnight from sources in Nanyuki that indeed sections of the Mt. Kenya National Park, high up on the mountain, are ablaze with forest and moorland fires. Kenya Wildlife Service and Kenya Forest Service have mounted joint fire fighting operations assisted by personnel drafted in from […]
Tanzania aviation news – Precision Air eyes Lilongwe and Harare from June 2012
PRECISION AIR EYES LILONGWE AND HARARE Information was confirmed that Tanzanias premier private airline, Precision Air, will be commencing flights to Harare, via Lilongwe, from 02nd of June onwards. This new combination will open up Zimbabwe as well as Malawi as new destinations from Tanzania, offering tourists and business travelers direct links instead of travelling […]
Rwanda aviation news – WB’s Bombardier Dash 8 now flies RwandAir colours
RWANDAIRS DASH 8 NOW FLIES WB COLOURS (Picture courtesy of RwandAir) Already on the RwandAir fleet since early 2010 on a long term wet lease from Kenyas leasing specialist firm ALS, the WB Bombardier Dash 8 100 was during the last maintenance also repainted and is now proudly flying the RwandAir colours across the East […]
East Africa hospitality news – Serena Hotels’ profit rises by nearly 20 percent
SERENA HOTELS PROFITS RISE BY NEARLY 20 PERCENT TPS East Africa, the holding company owning Serena Hotels, has just announce a jump in profits for their financial year 2011 by 19.3 percent after revenues rose by nearly a billion Kenya Shillings to 5.46 billion from 2010s 4.48 billion Kenya Shillings. Indications are that a sound […]
The Trials and Tribulations of Life in East Africa
OFF POWER OFF WATER OFF INTERNET WHAT NEXT The patience of users of utilities, including electricity, water and internet / international phone services has been sorely tested of late for parts of Eastern Africa and Uganda in particular. Electricity generation has been a problem in the entire region, but felt most harshly back here in […]
East African Community news – About border fees and other needle pricks
FEE ISSUE ON TANZANIA KENYA BORDER CONTINUES TO INFLAME EMOTIONS As reported here a while ago, the contentious issue of having to pay a US Dollar 200 fee per vehicle to cross into Tanzania has caused border post blockages not too long ago, bringing about some diplomatic intervention with ministers responsible for East African Community […]
InterContinental Hotel Nairobi to host e-Tourism Conference on March 29/30
E-TOURISM CONFERENCE SET FOR NAIROBIS INTERCONTINENTAL HOTEL The upcoming e-Tourism Conference in Kenyas capital Nairobi is taking place at the InterContinental Hotel in Nairobi where over 300 particpants from Africa and beyond are expected to gather to discuss how to push the tourism industry into the 21st century by using not only the social media […]
Rwanda conservation news – Ted Turner donates a million US Dollars to Diane Fossey Gorilla Fund
CNN FOUNDER TURNER SUPPORTS GORILLA CONSERVATION WITH A MILLION DOLLARS Ted Turner has according to information received from Kigali overnight donated a million US Dollars to the Diane Fossey Gorilla Fund. The donation is aimed to allow the Ruhengeri / Musanze based Karisoke Research Centre to widen its reach and set up an outstation in […]
Mauritius news update – Seychelles’ president Michel guest of honour at 44th Independence Day celebrations
44TH INDEPENDENCE DAY CELEBRATION GRACED BY PRESENCE OF SEYCHELLES PRESIDENT President James Michel of the Seychelles was Guest of Honour earlier in the week as Mauritius celebrated their 44th anniversary of Independence. The entire island thrilled its tourist visitors with displays of cultural performances and the evening fireworks were according to a regular source a […]
Kenya tourism news – Coast tour operators demand a ‘pay as you use’ fee for preferential ferry services
COAST TOUR OPERATORS DEMAND FERRY VIP SERVICES ON PAY AS YOU GO BASIS The recent introduction of VIP services for tourist vehicles, to obtain priority boarding for vehicles for instance on transfers from or to the airport or on a tight schedule leaving for safaris, has been widely hailed as progress and a step long […]
The Seychelles Tourism Academy – set to become a Centre of Excellence in Africa
SEYCHELLES TOURISM ACADEMY, SET TO BECOME AN AFRICAN CENTRE OF EXCELLENCE (Front left is Mr. Peter Moncherry who oversees the project of transforming STA into an African Centre of Excellenc) Big plans are afoot at the Seychelles Tourism Academy to turn the institution into not just a source of national pride but to catapult it […]
Rwanda aviation news – Qatar Airways counting down to commence Kigali flights
QATAR AIRWAYS COUNTS DOWN TO KIGALI FLIGHTS It is now a week to go until Qatar Airways, the worlds 5 star airline, will commence operations to Kigali. The airline is extending their daily flights between Doha and Entebbe to the Rwandan capital and the aircraft used will be an Airbus A 320 operates in a […]
Weekly roundup of news from Eastern Africa and the Indian Ocean island, Second edition March 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 Get daily breaking news updates instantly via Twitter by following @whthome, join me on Facebook where the articles also cross load or read the daily […]
Kenya aviation breaking news – KQ announces time table for share rights issue after CMA grants final approvals
KENYA AIRWAYS AND CAPITAL MARKET AUTHORITY ANNOUNCE SHARE ISSUE DATES An elaborate presentation by the Chief Executive and Group Managing Director of Kenya Airways, Dr. Titus Naikuni, rang in the countdown towards the 30th of March, when the new share issue will be formally launched in the market, following the final approvals last Friday by […]
Southern Sudan tourism – Boma National Park gets new headquarters but is country ready for tourism?
BOMA NATIONAL PARK GETS NEW HEADQUARTERS Last weekend saw the inauguration of the long in the making national park headquarters of Boma, catapulted to fame by the inclusion in the National Geographic series Great Migrations. Over 800.000 animals follow an annual migration pattern in and out of the park, with these figures for long dismissed […]
