Friday, May 30, 2008

Is Thabo Mbeki the source of South Africa Xenophobia?

Finally deep rooted suspicions and condescending attitudes towards “the rest of Africa” have erupted into a wave of violence against black immigrants living in South Africa.

It has to do with two things. First of all there is resentment against the same person being at the helm, which is good for democracy. And also Mr. Mbeki had a distance between himself and the general population. Looking at history, Mbeki is solely to blame for this.......CLICK TO READ MORE

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Japan has come late to this second scramble for Africa—and knows it

Whereas in previous meetings aid topped the agenda, this time it has been all about the hunt for natural resources—with Africa's best interests at heart, of course. Like the others, Japan is offering sweeteners to make itself a saucier commercial partner but many analysts are saying "Japan it has come too late to this second scramble for Africa"...... CLICK TO READ MORE

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Wednesday, May 28, 2008

Is Africa Milked Dry In the Name of Aid?

As Africa heads converge in Japan for the Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD), it is urgent that we reflect on African interests. We already have had Sino-Africa, Euro-Africa, Indo-Africa and now TICAD. The most common denominator in all these is aid. CLICK HERE TO READ MORE

NOTE:
Are the Xenophobic attacks in South Africa Justified?
(Give you view on the violence in South Africa in the poll at the top of Business in Focus homepage)

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Monday, May 26, 2008

Libya's Gaddafi plotted to bomb Kenya

Like with politics, espionage knows no permanent friends or enemies, only the convergence of interests.

Mr Gaddafi, probably through Ugandan and Soviet intelligence sources in Nairobi, came to learn about the presence of Libyans dissidents in Kenya.

He was furious, and immediately set about planning how to retaliate.

A Libyan commando force assembled near the Entebbe Airport in Uganda, ready to strike once the exact location of the secret camp holding Libyan dissidents in Kenya was established......READ MORE CLICK HERE

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Friday, May 23, 2008

Democracy, reforms can end fear of instability

By Raila Odinga
It is now three months since the National Accord and Reconciliation Agreement mediated by former United Nations Secretary-General Dr Kofi Annan was signed.

But Kenyans are still savoring and expressing their relief over the restoration of peace.......READ MORE CLICK HERE

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Wednesday, May 21, 2008

South Africa Violence: Why is Brother Fighting Brother?

By Amengeo Amengeo
The recent outburst of criminal violence against Africans seeking employment has less to do with ‘xenophobia’ as touted by the reactionary press but more to do with chronic unresolved anger of the black South African masses.....READ MORE CLICK HERE

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Wednesday, May 14, 2008

Africa Day is not Socialism Day!

Every year, Africans mark May 25th as an official Africa Liberation day. The date is celebrated to push for an onward progress on the liberation movement and symbolize the determination of the people of Africa to free themselves from foreign domination and exploitation. A casual observation of many groups that celebrate this great day reveals that we are still entrenched in the mindset of entitlement - the belief that some other entity owes us, due to past misdeeds. Our problems and challenges are of our own making: talk of press freedom, bungled elections, food crisis... Read MORE

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Sunday, May 11, 2008

Tanzania Paper Cup Manufacturing Business

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Wednesday, May 07, 2008

Zimbabwe Crisis: Real or Feigned?


By Timothy Kalyegira

As I focus these days on the dark deception at the international level, we turn today to the most extreme example: Zimbabwe. I have followed world media reports extensively but there is something I have not once heard asked or discussed: Why is Zimbabwe, once one of Africa’s most promising countries, where it is today? Or more pointedly, why is Zimbabwe reported and portrayed to be where it is today? Read More

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Clinton beaten into a pulp, fails to gain on Obama...again!


INDIANAPOLIS – Illinois Senator Barack Obama has the Democratic presidential nomination firmly within his sights today after scoring a huge victory in North Carolina and battling challenger Hillary Clinton....Read More

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Monday, May 05, 2008

A Fund Investing Solely in African Markets?

I’ve been preoccupied with risk these days. Or risk mitigation to be exact. I’m tired of watching my TD Ameritrade account get whipsawed. It’s got me thinking. Would a portfolio invested solely in African markets be a tragedy waiting to happen?

The chart below shows the correlations (or lack thereof) between the dollar-adjusted monthly returns of 10 African local stock indexes over the past 16 months. This is a relatively short time frame, but I think it’s sufficient to get an idea of some of the relationships between the countries that we cover in this newsletter.

Unsurprisingly, the strongest positive correlation we see is between the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (SA) and the Emerging Market Index (EEM). South Africa is a full-fledged emerging market. It is large and liquid, making it a favorite of funds desirous of exposure to the continent. But this also means it is likely to be hit first and worst in the event of a global economic downturn.

The next strongest correlation is that between South Africa and Namibia. The neighboring countries share a customs union, a currency linkage, and a lot of history. Thus their stock indexes move in a concerted fashion. Similarly, the markets of Kenya and Uganda exhibit a strong relationship. Investors from both countries can easily invest in one another’s markets. And landlocked Uganda is almost entirely dependent on trade routes through Kenya. Thus, Kenya’s political crisis early this year hurt the Ugandan index more than the Nairobi Stock Exchange itself!

Continue Reading at Cheetah Index

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