Rwanda tourism news update – Congo Nile Trail to be formally launched on November 04
FORMAL LAUNCH OF CONGO NILE TRAIL ON 04TH NOVEMBER (Picture courtesy of RDB Tourism and Conservation) The latest kid on the block by Rwanda Tourism, the Congo Nile Trail, is set to be formally launched on the 04th of November in the resort town of Gisenyi on Lake Kivu where the Rwanda Development Board Tourism […]
Mauritius news update – CCTV installations launched by Prime Minister to improve safety and security
CCTV CAMERAS TO MAKE PORT LOUIS AND GRAND BAIE SAFER FOR TOURISTS None other than the Mauritius Prime Minister Dr. Navin Ramgoolan launched the islands latest innovation of CCTV surveillance yesterday, which will considerably improve safety and security for both locals but also for tourists visiting the island. The capital Port Louis will have 272 […]
Kenya news – Classic Safari Rally set for November 18th to 28th.
EAST AFRICAN SAFARI CLASSIC RALLY 2011 ALL SET TO ROAR The classic version of the Safari Rally will take off from underneath the world famous tusks along Moi Avenue in Mombasa on the 19th November at 3 p.m. in a ceremonial start aimed to attract local and global media attention while the start proper will […]
Kenya aviation breaking news – Plane crash kills two near Nairobi
NAIROBI PLANE CRASH LEAVES TWO DEAD AND ONE SERIOUSLY INJURED A mid afternoon plane crash outside the city of Nairobi, reportedly in the distant suburb of Karen at the foot of the Ngong Hills, has taken the lives of two of three occupants of the stricken craft. The plane of still unspecified make had reportedly […]
Kenya news update – Lamu Cultural Festival ‘very much on course’
ANNUAL LAMU CULTURAL FESTIVAL VERY MUCH ON Tourism minister Najib Balala has rushed to reaffirm in public that the annual and much acclaimed Lamu Cultural Festival will be held as scheduled in November this year, casting aside doubts that recent events and the countrys cross border pursuit of Al Shabab militants would have stopped this […]
Rwanda news – Top marks in latest World Bank report for ‘The Land of a Thousand Hills’
RWANDA GETS TOP MARKS FOR DOING BUSINESS WITH The World Banks report on Doing Business has confirmed what is an open secret across Eastern Africa, namely that Rwanda is the country to do business with, now ranked top across the Eastern African region and in third position in Africa, only trailing second placed South Africa […]
Mauritius news – Diwali festival activities and fireworks expected to delight tourists
DIWALI FIREWORKS TO LIGHT UP SKIES OVER MAURITIUS Tourists coming to Mauritius over the coming days are in for a treat as large Diwali fireworks are planned to celebrate this very important Indian holiday on the island. Shows and performances are also on the calendar of events, many of which are local but open to […]
South Sudan aviation news – UN chartered plane suffers landing mishap in Bor
UN CHARTERED RELIEF AIRCRAFT HAS LANDING INCIDENT IN BOR A South African registered Pacific Aerospace 750XL, owned by National Airways Corporation, and leased to the United Nations for relief and humanitarian flights within South Sudan, has yesterday suffered a landing incident in Bor, from where the flight was routed, originating in Juba. According to reports […]
Kenya news update – Hotel bookings remain strong as Kenyan troops hunt down Al Shabab militants
COAST TOURISM SEES NO IMPACT ON BOOKINGS AS KENYA HUNTS MILITANTS Reports from Mombasa tell a story different from what many global media organizations would want their readers to believe as occupancies remain high and forward bookings have remained steady, while Kenya has with the consent of the Transitional Federal Government in Mogadishu crossed into […]
Uganda aviation news – Gulf Air struggling for exposure as Qatar Airways romps up publicity
GULF AIR STRUGGLING TO MAKE IMPACT IN UGANDAN MARKET The imminent launch of daily flights by Qatar Airways and the flurry of media and agency focused activities have prompted lesser cousin Gulf Air to at least try and put on a brave face and finally do some drum beating themselves. Early bird news about Gulf […]
Mauritius hospitality news – Sun Resorts take over the Ambre Resort & Spa on long term lease
SUN RESORTS SIGNS LONG TERM LEASE FOR AMBRE RESORT & SPA It was learned overnight that the 4 star, 298 room and suite Ambre Resort & Spa, owned by Apavou Hotels, has been leased with immediate effect to Sun Resorts of Mauritius. The 20 year deal will see Sun Resorts embark on a major refurbishment […]
Kenya tourism news – KTN features ‘Travel Diaries’ while #TembeaKenya gains Twitter prominence
KTN TO LAUNCH TRAVEL DIARY SERIES TO PROMOTE DOMESTIC TOURISM Kenyas premier private television channel KTN has signed on to a Standard Group sponsored deal to air regular features promoting Kenyas tourism attractions across the country, including some of the lesser known gems which get little exposure so far. On the occasion did Najib Balala, […]
Quo Vadis Wilderness – as the World Population hits 7 Billion
QUO VADIS WILDERNESS AS POPULATION HITS 7 BILLION The annual World Habitat Day this year is celebrated at a time when the global population is expected to cross the threshold of 7 billion inhabitants, all in need of shelter, clothing, food and water, education and jobs, and of course ever more land to live and […]
Kenya aviation news – Kenya Airways moves domestic fares to US Dollars
KENYA AIRWAYS INTRODUCES DOLLAR CHARGES FOR DOMESTIC FLIGHTS Regular travelers on regional and international flights are used to paying for their tickets in US Dollars, or at least the equivalent in local currency according to the bank rates on the day of the transaction, but following the wild fluctuations of the Kenya Shilling in recent […]
Africa blogs and reports through Connect4Climate
AFRICAN VOICES BLOG AGAINST CLIMATE CHANGE A blogathon has been organized for the period between October 24th and 31st to draw attention to the impact of climate change on the African continent. The Connect4Climate team is drawing in important bloggers and journalist with influence and deep reach from Africa to the rest of the world, […]
Kenya news update – Security stepped up across the country following troop deployments into Somalia
KENYA STEPS UP INTERNAL SECURITY MEASURES Information from Nairobi and Mombasa seems to indicate that following the countrys decision to go after the Al Shabab militants inside Somalia, which followed a series of hit and run attacks and abductions by the terrorist organization, internal security was stepped up and companies have been alerted to take […]
African aviation news – Decommissioning of Soviet era aircraft in Russia prompts new fears of dumping
AFRICAN AVIATION OBSERVERS BRACE FOR MORE DUMPING News from Russia that two major privately owned airlines, Ural Airlines and Kuban Airlines announced earlier in the week that they would phase out their ancient Soviet built aircraft will send shivers down the spines of regular observers of the African aviation scene. In the past Africa has […]
Rwanda aviation news update – RwandAir’s second B737-800 to come ‘home’ on 28th October
RWANDAIRS SECOND B737-800 COMPLETES TEST FLIGHTS (RwandAirs second brand new B737-800 in the Boeing paint shop in Everett) Following the completion of the assembly of RwandAirs new aircraft were a series of test flights performed to establish that all was well up in the skies, before returning the bird to the ground to get its […]
Aviation – How superior airport infrastructure aids or breaks airline ambitions
AIRLINE EXPANSION AND GROWTH LIMITED BY POOR AIRPORT INFRASTRUCTURE Major airlines in Europe and North America have for many years now watched new global players emerge, eating deep into the cake of market dominance previously shared by only those few which have survived globalization and either grew smartly through acquisitions or as often the case […]
Kenya aviation news – Kenya Airways cargo operations commence in two weeks
TIME FRAME FOR KENYA AIRWAYS CARGO OPERATIONS CONFIRMED The Kenyan national airline has now given a clear indication that their recently leased B747-400F will arrive over the next two weeks in Nairobi and then be immediately available for cargo operations. The aircraft has been wetleased as presently no Kenya Airways pilots hold qualifications for this […]
Uganda news – Airtel offers their BlackBerry customers credit for lost day
IT IS MONEY BACK FOR AIRTELS BLACKBERRY SUBSCRIBERS Airtel Uganda has just announced that they will give all their subscribers for the BlackBerry service three days credit or an extension of service by three days for prepaid customers, as a result of the global outage caused recently by a major hardware and back up failure. […]
Rwanda aviation news – New schedule for ‘WB’ from 21st November due to be released
RWANDAIR ANNOUNCES SCHEDULE CHANGES AHEAD OF GETTING THEIR SECOND B737-800 Effective 21st of November will RwandAir launch a new flight schedule, which will reflect their newly acquired capabilities with having two long range B737-800 on their fleet by then. A second brand new -800 is due to be flown into Kigali on Tuesday 25th of […]
Weekly roundup of news from the Eastern African and Indian Ocean region – Third edition October 2011
TOURISM, AVIATION AND CONSERVATION NEWS from the Eastern African and Indian Ocean region A weekly roundup of reports, travel stories and opinions by Prof. Dr. Wolfgang H. Thome Get daily breaking news updates instantly via Twitter by following @whthome or read the daily postings on my blog via: www.wolfganghthome.wordpress.com Many of these articles then also […]
Tanzania news update – President blames ‘incompetent foreign management’ for corporate failures
KIKWETE BLAMES CORPORATE FAILURES ON INCOMPETENT FOREIGN MANAGEMENT In an astonishing outburst has Tanzanias president Kikwete laid into selected foreign companies, blaming them for huge corporate failures when opening the Lake Tanganyika Investment Forum earlier in the week. He cited in particular the Tanzania Railways Corporation and the City Water Company although the equally failed […]
Zanzibar tourism and culture news – Sauti Za Busara 2012 line up of artists now confirmed
SAUTI ZA BUSARA 2012 NEWS Zanzibars globally renowned music, film and culture festival, Sauti Za Busara, has just announced the final lineup for selected artists participating in next years event, in their latest information sent out to the media. A partial reproduction of their latest news letter, which also includes a final call for Movers […]
Rwanda aviation news – Second B737-800 for RwandAir now on production line
RWANDAIRS SECOND B737-800 GOES ON THE PRODUCTION LINE The second brand new B737-800, featuring once again Boeings Sky Interior, has recently been put on the production line in Everett and is now being assembled, ready for an expected delivery to Rwandas national airline on the 25th of October. RwandAirs fleet will then grow to a […]
Uganda aviation breaking news – Air Uganda welcomes Kayle Haywood as new CEO
AIR UGANDA SET FOR ANOTHER CHANGE AT THE TOP Hugh Fraser, Air Ugandas Chief Executive, is reportedly set to leave the airline at the end of October. His main achievement during his time at U7 was to return the carrier to level keel and bring it into calmer waters, following multiple management changes in key […]
Tanzania aviation news – ATCL gets their AOC at last, more bailout money from tax payers
PAYMENT OF ATCL DEBTS TILTS MARKET AVIATION OBSERVERS CLAIM Air Tanzania has finally received a new AOC Air Operators Certification from the Tanzanian Civil Aviation Authority, after the previous permit had lapsed following the suspension and halt of all operations early this year. This opens the way for the airline to resume operations with their […]
Uganda conservation news – Bickering follows GVTC meeting in Kampala
BICKERING FOLLOWS IGCP MEETING IN KAMPALA As reported here did the Greater Virunga Transboundary Committee meeting take place in Kampala last week, discussing closer cooperation and harmonized policies and responses to the conservation challenges faced by each of the participant members, UWA from Uganda, RDB Tourism and Conservation from Rwanda and the Congolese Institute for […]
Seychelles news update – Seychelles makes it on to UNWTO’s Sustainable Tourism Committee
SEYCHELLES MAKES IT ON TO UNWTOS SUSTAINABLE TOURISM COMMITTEE The extraordinary efforts by the Seychelles to promote sustainable tourism and put the environment first as shown results when during the recently concluded general assembly of member countries of the UNs World Tourism Organization the country was elected to the important sustainable tourism committee. The archipelagos […]
