Uganda news update – November is the month for more hydro power
MORE HYDRO POWER ON THE WAY Reports from the Bujagali Falls hydro electric plant are encouraging as completion of the project appears to be on time and the installation of the first of 5 turbines is underway. By November this year an initial 50 MW of cheaper hydro generated electricity will become available, to be […]
Uganda conservation news – UWA commission of enquiry told ‘time is up’
UWA COMMISSION OF ENQUIRY TOLD TO WIND UP AND DELIVER REPORT In a stunning turnabout was the Commission of Enquiry, chaired by controversial former Supreme Court Justice George Kanyeihamba asked to wind up immediately and file their long overdue report. News broke overnight that the tourism Minister Prof. Ephraim Kamuntu has instructed the Secretary of […]
Mauritius aviation news – More flights by Emirates to Port Louis
EMIRATES ANNOUNCES ADDITIONAL FLIGHTS TO MAURITIUS Dubais award winning airline Emirates has just announced that they will increase their present number of flights between Dubai and Port Louis from 9 to 11 by December this year. Mauritiuss tourism industry has been knocking on their governments door for a while now, literally begging to have the […]
Uganda aviation news – Kajjansi at last gets AVGAS and JetA1 storage facilities
KAJJANSI FUEL TANKS FINALLY A REALITY Information was received from the Kajjansi airfield and the Kampala Aero Club that they have finally been able to install their own AVGAS bowser and JetA1 fuel tanks near their hangar facility, allowing them to store sufficient fuel to cushion against the regular Shell induced shortages experienced over the […]
Kenya Tourism news – Porini / Gamewatchers win Skal International’s ‘Best Tour Operator’ Award
SKAL INTERNATIONAL HONOURS PORINI / GAMEWATCHERS WITH ECO AWARD Following recognition for their superb conservation efforts in Kenya, East Africa and the Africa continent at large has Porini Camps / Gamewatcher Safaris now been globally rewarded for their boundless commitment to keep their camps pollution footprint small and to mitigate their environmental impact actively through […]
Kenya tourism updates – Keekorok bags World Luxury Hotel Award
KEEKOROK BAGS WORLD LUXURY HOTEL AWARD Kenyas oldest lodge in the Masai Mara, the grand old dame of the countrys safari lodges, was just awarded Luxury Lodge in the annual World Luxury Hotels Award ceremony in Croatia where winners of the 30 available categories were announced last week for 2010/11. Rahul Sood, Group Managing Director […]
Kenya conservation news – Land use change application causes instant objections
CONSERVATIONISTS DEMAND A HALT TO LAND USE CHANGE APPLICATION As the assaults against the environment multiply across the region continue, like the Mabira saga in Uganda, the corridor of destruction Serengeti-Lake Natron-Selous-Tanga Marine Park in Tanzania, in Kenya too the stage is set now for an epic battle between the conservation fraternity and developers, as […]
Seychelles aviation news – Etihad starts gearing up with launch promotions
ETIHAD STARTS SEYCHELLES PROMOTION With the formal launch of initially 4 flights a week between Abu Dhabi and Mahe just weeks away, the destination campaign by Etihad across its global network is rapidly getting into gear now. Ahead of Top Resa in Paris have news started to emerge of a major push by Etihad, supported […]
Kenya aviation news update – Shares right issue by Kenya Airways expected for November
KENYA AIRWAYS SHARE RIGHTS ISSUE SET FOR NOVEMBER With the airlines annual general meeting set for 14th of October, when shareholders are expected to vote in favour of plans by management already given the thumbs up by the board, the timeline is now mapped out for Kenya Airways planned share rights issue to go ahead […]
Tanzania aviation news – Precision Air’s IPO to commence 07th October
PRECISION AIRS IPO CLEARS FINAL HURDLE A regular source in Dar es Salaam confirmed overnight that the long awaited and often delayed and in fact obstructed IPO by Precision Air, Tanzanias leading airline company, will now finally go underway on October 07th and run for an overall period of three weeks. Tanzanias financial regulators gave […]
Weekly roundup of news from the Eastern African and Indian Ocean regions, Third edition September 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 Third edition September 2011 DUBAI A […]
Mauritius aviation news – Air Mauritius announces more flights to Durban in December and January
AIR MAURITIUS ANNOUNCES EXTRA FLIGHTS TO DURBAN Information was confirmed overnight that Air Mauritius will as a result of the upswing in demand for seats to and from South Africa add three extra flights between Pt. Louis and Durban in December this year and into January 2012. Regular and special promotions by the South African […]
Kenya aviation news – The cost to rise to the top
THE COST OF GETTING TO THE TOP Details emerged over the weekend from Nairobi of the potential cost of Kenya Airways drive to become the number one airline of choice in Africa, connecting the continent via their Nairobi hub. Only recently did The Pride of Africa sign a record breaking deal of 10 firm orders […]
Seychelles tourism news – Shark nets installed off Anse Lazio beach on Praslin
SHARK NETS INSTALLED ON ANSE LAZIO BEACH ON PRASLIN Information was received from Mahe over the weekend that the anti shark campaign continues to be high on the countrys agenda following two unprecedented shark attacks some weeks ago. While fishermen and coast guard are still searching for sharks in the pristine waters off the Seychelles […]
Tanzania conservation news – The Serengeti Highway, a web of lies and deceit
CONSERVATION AND HIGHWAY DONT MIX Comments made over the weekend by Tanzanias Prime Minister Mizengo Pinda did not go down well with the conservation fraternity in Tanzania at all it appears, as comments and broadsides came flooding in to this correspondents mailboxes once again. The politician reportedly made his contradictory comments when visiting Musoma, where […]
Tanzania aviation news – ATCL’s Bombardier Q 300 returns to Dar
KIGOMA AND TABORA TO BE ATCLS FIRST DESTINATIONS The arrival of Air Tanzanias Bombardier Q 300 turboprop aircraft from South Africa over the weekend, where it had been undergoing heavy maintenance since February but was only released after the Tanzanian government bailed out the financially ailing airline, has prompted an announcement that by the end […]
Uganda tourism news – Two more gorilla families habituated for tourism
MORE HABITUATED GORILLA GROUPS EASE PRESSURE FOR PERMITS The Uganda Wildlife Authority has confirmed the coming on line of two newly habituated gorilla groups for tourism activities this November in Bwindi National Park. Both new gorilla families, named Oruzogo and Kahungye will be located in the Southern part of the park, bringing the total number […]
Rwanda aviation news – Where next for RwandAir?
WHERE NEXT RWANDAIR? As the airlines second B737-800 is due to go on the production line very soon and will come to Rwanda during the second half of October, speculation is growing over the next routes RwandAir will introduce, now that their fleet is growing. While destination Kinshasa is dogged by a number of issues […]
Tanzania news update – Prosecution charges 4 over sinking of ferry
FOUR IN COURT AS MANHUNT FOR CAPTAIN OF STRICKEN FERRY CONTINUES Four people were charged in a Zanzibar court on Saturday for being responsible for the death of over 200 passengers when a ferry sunk enroute from Unguja to Pemba. Those charged include a reported shareholder, the first officer on duty at the time the […]
Seychelles aviation breaking news – Air Seychelles gets new board of directors
NEW BOARD OF DIRECTORS FOR AIR SECYHELLES (Picture courtesy of STB, showing the Minister for Transport, the Hon. Noel Morgan making the formal announcement, flanked by Bram Steller, CEO, Maurice Loustau-Lalanne, Chairman and the other members of the board of directors) Following the breaking news announcement here about the appointment of Bram Steller as the […]
Rwanda news – RDB opens liaison office in Istanbul to promote investment, trade and tourism
RWANDA OPENS CONSULATE AND RDB LIAISON OFFICE IN ISTANBUL Diplomatic and business ties between Turkey and Rwanda are bound to benefit from the opening of a Consulate in Istanbul earlier in the week. This was followed by the establishment of a liaison office by the Rwanda Development Board, aimed to promote investment and trade, but […]
East Africa news – Current economic outlook may speed up common currency
CURRENCY DEVALUATION AND FLUCTUATIONS MAY FAST TRACK COMMON CURRENCY The present slide in the currency values of Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania, though notably not in the more austere Rwanda, has given rise to hope that Central Bank chiefs and economists may be able to persuade their political masters that the time is ripe to make […]
East African Community news – Is it ‘English or Else’ for EAC members?
ITS ENGLISH OR ELSE Information was obtained from Arusha that the Council of Ministers had finally discussed the application by Burundi to have French made an official language of the East African Community, and reportedly rejected the suggestion. Official were however swift, when the news broke, to play down the snub as it is perceived […]
Fly Dubai’s deafening silence – My Blog as a Platform for an unanswered complaint
FLY DUBAI SILENCE IS DEAFENING A PLATFORM FOR A COMPLAINT While in Dubai recently on a flying visit I had contact with some friends but as the events played out we did not meet due to the packed programme. However, knowing what I do and what I mainly write about the friend used the opportunity […]
Seychelles tourism news – Annual Calendar of Events for 2012 now out
SEYCHELLES CALENDAR OF EVENTS JUST KEEPS GROWING The annual calendar of major events in the Seychelles just keeps growing as the archipelagos tourism industry is moving towards having one big thing every month in the future. 2012s calendar is now out and available and the year will kick off with the Eco Healing Marathon in […]
Kenya aviation breaking news – Jeddah announced as next KQ destination from 18th October
JAMBO JEDDAH SAYS KENYA AIRWAYS Effective 18th of October will Kenya Airways commence twice weekly flights between Nairobi and Jeddah, the commercial capital of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The aircraft on the route will be a B737-800 which the airline can now re-deploy after the most recent arrival of yet another Embraer E190. Saudi […]
Mauritius aviation news – Airports Mauritius attempts a second time to find a developer for new cargo and freeport development
NEW CARGO AND FREEPORT PLANNED FOR PT. LOUIS INTERNATIONAL The Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolan International Airport in Mauritius will see a second effort to create an expanded Cargo and Freeport zone after the first invitation for bids did not generate the expected interest from developers. While much of Mauritius trade comes and goes by ocean going […]
Kenya coast news – Likoni ferry gives commuters a major scare
LIKONI FERRY GIVES COMMUTERS A MAJOR SCARE Only a week after the sinking of the MV Spice Islander ferry enroute between Zanzibar and Pemba, when over 200 lives were lost and others are still said to be missing, did the Likoni Ferry in Mombasa give passengers a similar scare yesterday. Coming from the mainland and […]
Kenya aviation news – Kisumu’s new airport facilities now open
KISUMU OPENS NEW TERMINAL AND FACILITIES The long awaited day has dawned that the new buildings and facilities at Kisumu Airport were finally handed over and opened their doors to airlines, service providers and passengers. The new terminal, able to handle 500 passengers an hour with ease, has state of the art facilities, shops and […]
Africa news – AU as deluded as ever over Gadaffi role in the new Libya
AFRICAN UNION STILL DEMANDS GADAFFI ROLE The African Union has of late not exactly excelled in its role, not over Darfur, not over the continued aggression by the regime in Khartoum against their newest member the Republic of South Sudan, not over Somalia where dillydallying is the order of the day and for sure not […]
