Jacob Zuma gives way to taxis over World Cup

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Jacob Zuma gives way to taxis over World Cup in final South African election push

• Man expected to be next president charms unions
• Lack of public transport could cripple World Cup

• David Smith in Johannesburg
• The Guardian, Tuesday 21 April 2009
• Article history

Jacob Zuma sings his trademark song Umshini wami during a taxi summit held in Johannesburg Photograph: STR/EPA

Jacob Zuma, expected to be elected president in tomorrow's South African elections, has yielded to the demands of a powerful union in a dispute that threatens to cripple next year's football World Cup.

The leader of the African National Congress (ANC) told taxi owners yesterday that he would agree to suspend a controversial plan to replace their vehicles with buses.

Mali Becomes Touchstone for World Music

If you have listened to non-commercial radio at all lately: the BBC, National Public Radio, APR, and more, you will no doubt agree that music from Mali seems to garner more attention than its modest size would indicate.

Oumou Sangare (born February 25, 1968, in Bamako, Mali) is a Malian Wassoulou musician, sometimes referred to as "The Songbird of Wassoulou." Wassoulou is a historic region south of the Niger River, and the music there is descended from traditional hunting songs, and is accompanied by a calabash. Her mother was the singer Aminata Diakité.

Mali has produced some of the great superstars of modern African music: kora player Toumani Diabaté, golden voiced singers Salif Keita and Oumou Sangare, dancebands like the Super Rail Band, and the great river-bluesman Ali Farka Touré. Lucy Duran, presenter of Radio 3's World Routes, has spent years in Mali researching the music of its flamboyant divas, and has worked as a producer with some of Mali's leading musicians.
Oumou Sangare

Radio 3 Guide to World Music - Mali
Wikipedia - Oumou Sangare

3407 Flight Crash Stills Vital Voices

The crash of Flight 3407 on the evening of February 12, 2009 has stilled 50 voices, all of them important, all of them loved. Four of those voices are among the many who have used their lives in areas that have affected me personally.

For those who, like myself, find themselves inexorably drawn to the joy and tragedy of the African experience, the death of Dr. Alison Des Forges is a terrible blow. Des Forges was a leading authority on the Rwanda genocide and has been a Senior Advisor to, and board member of, the world's foremost human right organization, Human Rights Watch, for nearly twenty years. Dr. Des Forges' example and wisdom have served to help us to better understand the triumphs and failing of the human condition and to see broadly the complexities of relationships between countries and ethnic groups. More


"A Sea of Boys"


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D-Link Uwaje Appointment Smart Choice

The appointment by D-Link of Chris Uwaje represents a smart step forward for the company and a positive development for the region. Few, if any, better understand the underlying IT challenges and opportunities faced by the countries of West Africa. Chris Uwaje's optimistic, "can-do" temperment and vision bode well for the future of IT development in the Region.

D-Link appoints Uwaje Regional Director for West Africa
Vanguard Online Edition - Thursday, 15 January 2009

© Vanguard Online Edition

"Cultural Drumming, Ghana"

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Ghana Proves Its Readiness to Claim the Mantle - Economic Gateway to Africa

Washday in Accra        Cards & Poster         Fine Art Prints     

The torch has been passed to a new generation of leadership in the West African nation of Ghana and all signs point to a very bright future for this nation. At a time when so much attention has been, understandably, focused on the historic transition taking place in the United States, we would do well to take a moment to herald the small country that has a very big story to tell - and the potential to lead an African renaissance in the coming years.

Just 50 years from its independence in 1958, Ghana has proven to be the "wise elder" of Africa in its fierce commitment to democracy, liberty and economic opportunity.

"Landing the Fishing Boat, Cape Coast, Ghana"
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While the day and Ghana's near-term future are in the hands of Professor John Evans Atta Mills, it should be said that defeated candidate Nana Akufo Addo deserves the praise and thanks of Ghana and the world for his leadership and example in defeat. History will remember that while other nations in Africa took the dark road in this historic year, Nana Akufo Addo, in yielding peacefully to the will of the people, has played a role no less important to the future of the country than that of the winner, Prof Mills. Future generations of Ghanaians will praise his name for this act alone.

And now Ghana has proven itself ready to lead Africa on all of the major fronts in the never ending struggle for the welfare of humanity: as a bulwark against terrorism on the continent; as an economic powerhouse with the legal infrastructure to truly open Africa to world trade and to secure the economic future of its own citizens; as a shining example of the power of ballots over bullets.

And the Winner is . . . Ghana!

While none of the eight candidates for President of Ghana won a majority of the votes in Sunday's election, the results have already yielded one big winner - Ghana itself.

Unlike other recent elections on the African continent, marred by violence, the Ghanain election has been lauded by international observers as free, fair and transparent.

This is Ghana's fifth election since becoming a multi-party democracy in 1992 and a clear sign to investors and observers that Ghana is indeed positioned to become the economic gateway to West Africa and perhaps the continent as a whole by virtue of its political stability and growing legal and business infrastructure.

A runoff between the top two contenders for the Presidency has been scheduled for December 28. The contenders, Nana Akufo-Addo of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) and John Atta Mills of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), each finished with over 45% of the vote ( Akufo-Addo had 49.13 percent and Mills 47.92) and Ghanain law requires a majority.

American businesses would do well to recognize the necessity to look to Ghana as a base for operations that will provide entree into the largest english speaking market outside of North America.

Ivory Coast to Invest 230 Million into Abidjan Port

The West African nation of Ivory Coast plans to invest more than $230 million into West Africa’s biggest port in an effort to boost capacity and allow docking of bigger ships. The country in undergoing a major economic restructuring as a result of a post-war economic revival. The world’s top cocoa producer plans to service the needs of its landlocked neighbours through its ports in the coming years.

“By 2010, the infrastructure at the port could be inadequate. It’s a question of forward planning,” says Faustin Toha, a port official. “We hope that with the return of peace in Ivory Coast business will return to Abidjan port,” he said.

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US Missing the Economic Boat in West Africa

It goes without saying that no one knows how the international monetary meltdown will ultimately affect Africa - after all we are still in the early stages of assessing the effects in the US and other affected developed nations. Surely there will be severe ripple effects in Africa.

None of this changes the fact that Africa is potentially a huge economic market and as African nations move toward developing more sophisticated economic and legal infrastructures, more and more businesses and nations will turn their attention toward developing markets in Africa. So it should also go without saying that US businesses must be laying the groundwork for a competitive future in Africa, especially in those nations where a common language provides markets that are relatively easy to break into right? 

Wrong.

Take Ghana for example. During the past 6 years, demand for consumer goods in Ghana, the oldest and  most stable democracy in West Africa, has grown by an average of 20% per annum. Yet few American businesses have been willing to put their figurative toe in the water. While businesses from  China and even small nations like Dubai are aggressively developing markets in this country, US businesses and the entities representing them - the Department of Commerce and USAID most notably, have been pulling in their figurative horns. To put it bluntly, other nations are eating our lunch in what should logically be our point of entry into the largest English speaking market outside of the continental US. By the time we start paying attention, it may very well be too late.

In the next few days, we'll begin to explore both the economic and security considerations for playing a much more proactive role in the economic development of West Africa.

Repairing Nets, Cape Coast, Ghana                          Posters, Cards, Fine Art Prints

Three African Trading Blocs Join to Form Free Trade Zone

The BBC is reporting today an important business development. The leaders of three African trading blocs on Wednesday agreed to create a free trade zone of 26 countries with a GDP of an estimated $624bn (£382.9bn). http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/7684903.stm

Cape Coast Where History and Possibility Come Together

Cape Coast, Ghana, is among the most historic cities of Africa. The region has been variously known as the Gold Coast and the Slave Coast because it was one of the principle departure points for the "Middle Passage" of the slave trade.

Today it boasts some of the finest secondary schools in Ghana as well as the renowned Cape Coast University. One of Ghana's most distinguished citizens, Kofi Annan, the seventh Secretary General of the United Nations, attended the Mfantsipim school here before receiving Ford Foundation grants allowing him to attend University abroad.

Cape Coast has built a strong "African Roots" tourist trade around the notorious historical sites of the slave trade, most notably Cape Castle (above right). The tenor of the tourism business is a respectful mix of commerce and education and the tours of Cape Castle - especially if you are fortunate enough to get one of the better guides - are an emotional roller coaster that you will never forget.

Another major commercial enterprise of Cape Coast is its fishing fleet, whose colorful boats not only serve to sustain many in Cape Coast but make for some of the most interesting photograpy in all of Ghana. The largest component of Cape Coast's fishing fleet can be found in the area adjacent to the Cape Castle but many smaller enclaves of boats are found scattered along the coast in both directions.

The Cape Coast fishing fleet after returning

to land during a storm that swept the coast

in 2007. Photo by Wayne D. King

See and purchase more images from Cape Coast at African Photo Journey