Botswana: Dam Construction Set for February

31 January, 2008 in Botswana

source: Mmegi 29 January 2008 Posted to the web 29 January 2008 Tumelo Setshogo The Chinese construction company, Sinohydro Corporation Ltd, is scheduled to start building of the Dikgatlhong Dam, the largest in Botswana, in February in Robelela village between the Central and North East Districts along the Ramokgwebana border. This will be the fourth [...]

Fifa opens World Cup store

31 January, 2008 in South Africa

source: SouthAfrica.info 29 January 2008 The first official Fifa store has opened at Singapore’s Changi International Airport, making football World Cup merchandise available all year around, and not just in World Cup host countries, for the first time. “As Fifa’s first permanent retail location, the Fifa official store represents an important milestone toward further connecting [...]

Botswana achieves one of the MDGs

31 January, 2008 in Botswana

source: BOPA 28 January, 2008 SEROWE – Botswana takes pride in being one of the few countries in Africa that have attained the Millennium Development Goal (MDG) 6, whose target is to halt and reverse the spread of HIV/AIDS. There are eight goals that the United Nations member states, including Botswana, have agreed to try [...]

Privatise Eskom

29 January, 2008 in South Africa

source: News24 27/01/2008 14:34 – (SA) Johannesburg – In the current electricity crisis the privatisation of all Eskom’s components should be considered very seriously, Jan Bosman, Managing Director of the Afrikanerbond said on Sunday. “In 1993 the government of the Philippines was confronted with a similar electricity crisis. The power shortage was ended when government [...]

BPC Underestimated Power Demand

29 January, 2008 in Botswana, Morupule

source: Mmegi BY WANETSHA MOSINYI STAFF WRITER Botswana Power Corporations (BPC) officials have admitted that the current power shortages were foreseen as far back as 2001, but their study underestimated the magnitude of the demand. Addressing the media on Friday, acting CEO, Joseph Raleru said BPC conducted a feasibility study in 2004 after which the [...]

Botswana: Yardstick of African democracy

28 January, 2008 in Botswana

source: Mmegi Flt. Lt. Jerry Rawlings, having ruled Ghana as a champion of the aspirations of junior soldiers, and also as a civilian president, has grown to ponder the notion of a democracy that draws on the traditions of African governance. Below, KOFI AKOSAH-SARPONG, explores Rawlings’ recent presentation in Nigeria and his search for a [...]

Lifespan of Gaborone roads has expired – Mayor

28 January, 2008 in Botswana

source: Mmegi OLIVER MODISE STAFF WRITER Gaborone City Council (GCC) engineer, Komal Chandra Jain has set all alarms ringing with the announcement that ‘Gaborone roads have outlived their lifespan’ by professional engineering standards. Some of the roads were built 15 to 30 years ago without adequate provision of storm water drainage, Jain pointed out, adding [...]

SA mines remain closed

27 January, 2008 in South Africa

source: News24 26/01/2008 20:25 – (SA) Johannesburg – Diamond, gold and platinum mines were shut for the weekend owing to an electricity shortage that has crippled the sector and left thousands of miners without work, officials said. The country’s major mining companies, such as the world’s biggest diamond producer De Beers, were in a crisis [...]

Zimbabwe: Polls Set for March 29

26 January, 2008 in Zimbabwe

source: allAfricaThe Herald (Harare) 26 January 2008 Posted to the web 26 January 2008 Harare PRESIDENT Mugabe has set March 29 as the election date, a day after the dissolution of Parliament to pave way for the polls. In an Extraordinary Government Gazette released yesterday, the President proclaimed March 29, 2008, as the day on [...]

Zimbabwe: Banks Face Collapse

26 January, 2008 in Zimbabwe

source: allAfrica Zimbabwe Independent (Harare) 25 January 2008 Posted to the web 25 January 2008 Dumisani Muleya MAJOR commercial banks and other financial houses are facing a critical liquidity crisis largely caused by unlawful speculative investments which are now threatening to ruin the stricken institutions. Information gleaned from an array of documents shows the situation [...]

SA: Eskom tells mines to shut down

26 January, 2008 in South Africa

source: News24 25/01/2008 10:42 – (SA) Johannesburg – South Africa’s gold mines, and mining companies in other sectors, were instructed on Thursday night by electricity utility Eskom to shut their mines, possibly for up to between two to six weeks. A letter signed by Eskom CEO Jacob Maroga said that key industrial consumers (KPI) had [...]

Power cut reports surprise Botswana

23 January, 2008 in Botswana

source: Mmegi STAFF WRITER Unconfirmed reports that Eskom’s chief executive officer, Jacob Maroga has included Botswana among the countries the South African power utility is to terminate supplies to, appear to have surprised the Botswana authorities. The Eskom chief is reported in yesterday’s Citizen newspaper to have said: “Botswana, Namibia and Zimbabwe will now no [...]

Btv awaits funds for AFCON

23 January, 2008 in Botswana

source: BOPA 22 January, 2008 GABORONE – It is only a matter of time before soccer enthusiasts get to watch live the ongoing AFCON games in the national television. The games started yesterday, and football lovers had no kind words for the national broadcaster for failing to show the games. But Btv officials have since [...]

Mogae`s first bye-bye

23 January, 2008 in Botswana

source: Mmegi ONALENNA MODIKWA STAFF WRITER MMADINARE: With no more than two months and one week left to the end of his term, President Festus Mogae yesterday used Mmadinare to launch his countrywide tour to bid the nation farewell. People – mainly of the BaBirwa and BaTswapong ethnic stock – came from neighbouring Selebi-Phikwe, Sefhophe [...]

South Africa: Miners Sure of Power Until 2010

23 January, 2008 in Mining, South Africa

source: allAfrica Business Day (Johannesburg) 22 January 2008 Posted to the web 22 January 2008 Charlotte Mathews Johannesburg SA’s main gold and platinum mines had secured enough power to keep their expansion projects moving for the next two or three years, they said this week, but beyond 2010 they could not be certain of their [...]