The Southern Times

The THE NEWSPAPER FOR SOUTHERN AFRICA 

southernafrican.news 

Southern Times 

07 - 13 DECEMBER 2018 | US$0.50, R7, P3, ZMW3, N$3-00 | TEL: +264 61 415 800 | FAX: +264 61 301095 | Schonlein & Jenner Streets | WINDHOEK - NAMIBIA 

INSIDE 

PAGE 6 PAGE 15 

NEWS: 

BUSINESS: 

South Africa 

drops fuel 

prices 

Afreximbank 

drums up 

Africa's plan 

PAGE 23 PAGE 32 

ARTS: 

NAGN creating 

space for visual 

artists 

SPORTS: 

AFCON remains 

in the hands of 

a few 

NAM‘CRIME 

SYNDICATE’ 

FREED IN SA 

■ Timo Shihepo 

Windhoek - Four Namibians who were 

arrested alongside a South African 

in October on charges of kidnapping, 

extortion, armed robbery, assault with 

intent to cause grievous bodily harm and 

masquerading as police officers have 

been freed due to lack of evidence, The 

Southern Times can reveal. 

The five-man gang, which was 

accused of operating a syndicate in 

South Africa for about five years, 

was arrested in a sting operation in which 

fake diamonds, fake drugs and a stash of 

fake South African currency were also seized. 

They initially appeared in South Africa’s 

Vanderbiljpark Magistrate’s Court in October 

but The Southern Times now understands 

that the charges have been dropped despite 

the severity of the case. 

Namibian Police Force (NamPol) Lieutenant-General 

Sebastian Ndeitunga confirmed 

this week that the charges have been 

dropped. 

“The issue back in October was to verify 

whether the suspects were indeed Namibians. 

The information we got is that not all of 

them are Namibians. 

NAM CRIME: turn to P. 2 

Tiger Brands 

feels the heat 

■ Colleta Dewa 

Johannesburg 

- Food giant 

Tiger Brands could 

lose millions of rand 

towards the compensation 

of victims of the 

listeriosis outbreak that 

killed nearly 200 people 

in South Africa between 

2016 and 2018. 

On Monday, December 

3, the Johannesburg 

High Court ruled in 

favour of a class action 

lawsuit against Tiger 

Brands. 

TIGER BRANDS: turn to P. 2 

…as court rules in favour of listeriosis victims 

› Insperctor 

General of 

the Namibian 

Police Force 

Sebastian 

Ndeitunga 

THE UNIVERSITY OF NAMIBIA CLOSES 

Friday, 14 December 2018 and re-opens for business on 

Thursday, 10 January 2019 for the new academic year. 

www.unam.edu.na 

Happy Holidays!

2 Friday 07 - 13 December 2018 The Southern Times 

■ NEWS 

Several firms represented by 

Richard Spoor Attorneys launched 

the application against Tiger 

Brands whose factory in Polokwane 

was identified as the source 

of the listeria outbreak. 

The class action suit currently 

covers more than 1,000 people 

affected by the outbreak who 

intend to sue for damages. 

According to the law firm, Tiger 

Brands did not oppose the certification 

application. 

“We need to file our pleading, 

essentially arguing for why Tiger 

Brands lied about the outbreak. 

We’re aiming to file those early in 

January and Tiger Brands we’ll 

NAM CRIME 

> From P. 1 

TIGER BRANDS 

> From P. 1 

› Mary Jane MorifI 

Five people were arrested, four 

are Namibians and one is a South 

African. Further information tells 

us that this case was withdrawn 

on November 2 because of lack of 

evidence. 

As it stands now, these individuals 

are free,” Ndeitunga, who is also 

the Vice President of the International 

Criminal Police Organization 

for Africa, said. 

During the operation back in 

October, the gang was described 

as dangerous by Carte Blanche, 

an investigative TV programme, 

which assisted a specialised South 

African police unit that arrested 

the syndicate. 

The gang has allegedly been 

targeting online customers, who 

advertised products on the OLX 

classified website. 

Police seized fake diamonds, 

fake drugs and a large amount of 

counterfeit money. The suspects 

were arrested following several 

complaints of kidnapping, assault 

and armed robbery by several victims 

whom they targeted, pretending 

they wanted to buy the 

goods the victims 

advertised 

online. 

Sev- 

eral websites 

have reported on 

how t he gang allegedly 

operates. 

Sedibengster.com 

stated that in 

the past months, Ster received a 

number of reports of unsuspecting 

motorists selling their cars online 

and were lured to the Vaal Triangle, 

60 kilometres outside Johannesburg, 

where they faced armed 

kidnapping, extortion and severe 

beatings. 

Furthermore, Mybroadband. 

co.za explained how the scam 

works. It is alleged that a syndicate 

member contacts the vehicle seller 

and lures the person to a meeting in 

Vanderbijlpark to buy the vehicle. 

At the meeting, the seller is 

introduced to a second member of 

the group who shows the seller a 

bag full of cash and diamonds. The 

seller is then told the ‘diamonds’ 

must be sold to a third party to 

make up the rest of the cash to pay 

for the vehicle. 

The website reports that the 

victim is taken to a nearby house 

and told to wait for the rest of the 

money to arrive. Out of the blue, 

fake police officers then storm the 

house and accuse the victims of 

obviously have to plead, which 

means they will have to submit 

arguments whether or not they 

agree with what we’re saying,” said 

Thamsanqa Malusi of the law firm. 

In a statement, chief corporate 

affairs officer for Tiger Brands, 

Mary Jane Morifi, said the company 

would support the class 

action notice process to ensure 

that anyone with a legitimate 

claim could be informed of the 

class action. 

The organisation added that it 

was still to be determined whether 

it was at fault in the eyes of the 

court for those affected by listeriosis. 

“Tiger Brands reiterates that 

no liability has been established 

against the company for the listeriosis 

outbreak. However, should 

liability be determined, the company 

will respond appropriately to 

any legitimate claims,” said Tiger 

Brands. 

Tiger Brands committed R1 

million to assist in supporting the 

class action process, and a hotline 

to facilitate it, saying it was a sign 

that the company was dedicated 

to finding a resolution for everyone 

affected. 

“We are committed to ensuring 

that the legal process runs 

smoothly and as quickly as possible. 

In managing the application 

for the certification of the class 

action in this manner, we have been 

able to substantially shorten the 

time taken for this part of the legal 

process,” said Tiger Brand’s Morifi. 

Morifi said Tiger Brands 

remained committed to following 

the legal process to bring closure 

to all parties as soon as possible. 

Tiger Brands stock shed more 

than a third of its market value, 

some R28.4 billion since it was 

implicated in the listeria outbreak 

on March 4. 

Some legal experts predict that 

Tiger Brands could be expected to 

pay anything between R100,000 

and R2 million to the families of 

the more than 200 victims of listeriosis. 

being involved in illicit diamond 

dealing. 

The victims are then taken to 

separate rooms if there are more 

than one, where they are threatened 

that they will be taken to jail 

“where they will be raped”. The 

victims are then forced to transfer 

money to the criminals’ accounts 

and hand their bank cards to the 

criminals with their PINs. 

Some of the victims were forced 

to withdraw money from a bank, 

while others were held captive. 

After the victims handed over their 

money to the criminals, they were 

told that they would be killed if 

they went to the police after being 

released. 

Ndeitunga said it is vital for the 

Southern African Development 

Community region and the whole 

of Africa to work together to apprehend 

criminals. 

“We have a good relationship 

with the police forces within the 

region. We do joint operations on 

activities such as drug trafficking, 

stolen vehicles, illegal immigration 

and cattle theft, among others. 

“The cooperation is good. 

The only challenge 

we are facing is a 

lack of resources to 

participate in some 

of these joint operations. 

I remember that 

we had to decline 

an invitation from 

our South African 

counterparts 

to do an operation 

because of the lack 

of resources.” 

SADC standby 

military force 

ready for combat 

■ Mpho Tebele 

Gaborone - The Southern 

African Community 

Development (SADC) 

standby military force is ready 

for combat, The Southern Times 

has learned. 

This was revealed by Botswana 

Defence Force (BDF)’s Major 

General Mpho Mophuting when 

briefing the press following an 

event after a contingent of close 

to 500 soldiers from SADC countries 

had converged on the tourist 

town of Maun to embark on a 

military health services exercise. 

Mophuting, who described the 

exercise as successful, said it was 

more focused on aspects of medical 

evaluation by both air and 

road, looking at the fact that some 

roads in the North West District 

in Botswana are not accessible by 

road only. 

Speaking at the closing ceremony 

of the event, BDF Deputy 

Commander Major General 

Gotsileene Morake, described the 

exercise successful adding that 

the array of activities geared 

towards mobilising and jointly 

planning, strategising and training 

the health personnel of the 

magnitude displayed, demonstrated 

the high regard SADC 

member states accord to military 

health services interoperability in 

the region. 

He said the exercise was praiseworthy 

and represents the timely 

capability for SADC militaries in 

combat medical support, in particular 

during SADC Standby 

Force peace support operations 

and humanitarian assistance missions. 

Morake also noted that the 

contemporary and future security 

environments are significantly 

characterised by epidemics 

and challenges to health care 

services in conflict zones, which 

calls for the SADC Standby Force 

to exercise in such capabilities. 

For his part, the Exercise Director, 

Colonel Mothusi Chelenyane 

said as part of its mandate, the 

Military Health Services Exercise 

was able to integrate civil-military 

cooperation at the Level III 

medical support, where they were 

able to conduct of specialist surgical 

operations at Letsholathebe II 

Memorial Hospital in Maun town 

by health professionals from all 

participating SADC countries. 

He revealed that a total of 160 

different types of medical procedures 

were thus performed on the 

local civilian population to alleviate 

surgical backlogs, particularly 

in the areas of cataracts, Caesarean 

section, hysterectomy, open 

reduction and internal fixation. 

The SADC Secretariat also 

hailed the exercise in a statement 

saying the Military Health 

Services of SADC Exercise christened 

Pabalelo (which loosely 

› Commander Major General 

Gotsileene Morake 

translated means safety) and 

conducted from 14 to 29 November 

was a success. The exercise 

was also aimed at testing SADC 

Standby Force’s Medical Battalion 

capability to provide combat 

medical support during peace 

support operations and humanitarian 

assistance missions. 

This was the first ever Exercise 

of its nature for the SADC Military 

Health Services conducted 

under the theme “Fortified and 

comprehensive health: A precursor 

to military success and victory”. 

Exercise Pabalelo also aimed at 

validating the draft SADC MHS 

Doctrine and to practice Command, 

Control, Communications 

and Coordinating structures during 

the provision of medical support. 

It was also intended to ensure 

interoperability amongst the 

SADC Member States’ Military 

Health Services while strengthening 

the operational readiness 

of the SADC Standby Force 

Other outreach programmes 

included Indoor Residual Spraying 

for Malaria and canine vaccinations 

for rabies. 

According to the SADC secretariat, 

the conduct of Exercise 

Pabalelo is also timely especially 

as the SADC goes into the African 

Standby Force Roster duties from 

January 2019, whereby SADC will 

be expected to provide rapid 

deployment capability towards 

peace support efforts in the entire 

African Continent, as part of the 

African Union’s conflict resolution 

mechanisms. 

In addition, as part of Force 

Preparation, together with the 

recently concluded SADC Command 

Post Exercise code-named 

Umodzi, held in the Republic 

of Malawi in October 2018, the 

SADC Special Forces Exercise, 

codenamed Matumbawe, which 

was held in Tanzania in August 

2017, and the SADC Military Aviation 

Exercise, code-named Blue 

Kunene held in Namibia in September 

2017, Exercise Pabalelo 

served to enhance the overall 

operational readiness of the 

SADC Standby Force.

The Southern Times Friday 07 - 13 December 2018 

3 

■ NEWS 

SADC not loud enough 

on GBV ‐ Gender Links 

■ Lahja Nashuuta 

Windhoek - The gender 

and human rights 

activists in the Southern 

African Development Community 

(SADC) feel the region 

is not loud enough in its efforts 

to combat gender-based violence 

(GBV), as the issue persists. 

As part of the 16 Days Activism 

against Gender-Based Violence 

Against women across the globe, 

gender and human rights activists 

met in Windhoek for a two-day 

workshop to deliberate on gender 

and sexual reproduction health 

rights. 

The 16 Days of Activism is an 

annual global campaign that runs 

from November 25 (the International 

Day to End Violence against 

Women) to December 10 (the 

International Human Rights Day). 

The campaign raises awareness 

about the far-reaching consequences 

of gender-based violence, 

galvanises government, 

community, corporate, and philanthropic 

sectors to dialogue and 

develop strategies to eliminate gender-based 

violence. 

SADC member states have 

signed many regional and global 

instruments to promote gender 

equality such as the Maputo Protocol 

on Gender and Development, 

Sustainable Development Goals 

and Convention on the Elimination 

of All Forms of Discrimination 

against Women. 

While at a regional level the issue 

of GBV has been recognised as a 

critical area of concern through 

the Revised Regional Indicative 

Strategic Development Plan (2015- 

2020.), and the Strategic Indicative 

Plan for the Organ on Politics, 

Defence and Security. 

These strategic documents 

affirm principles of women 

empowerment and gender equality 

and recognise the prevention 

and reduction of GBV as a catalyst 

for attaining an environment conducive 

to peace and security. 

Besides numerous campaigns 

that have been held with support 

from international donors 

and governments directing lots 

of resources almost every day to 

raise awareness, cases of domestic 

violence continue to escalate. 

According to the United Nations 

Office on Drugs and Crime recent 

statistics, in Africa, one in every 

five young girls is sexually abused 

as a child while 33% of women have 

been beaten, coerced into sex or 

› Elma Dienda 

abused - most often by someone 

they know. 

In Namibia, about 50,000 crimes 

related to gender-based violence 

were reported over the past three 

years, according to statistics by 

the Namibian Police Force’s GBV 

division. 

Gender and human activists 

such as Elma Dienda, who is a 

member of the Namibian Parliament, 

attributes the increase in 

GBV to the slow implementation 

of laws and legal framework. 

She said the government is not 

doing enough to combat the prob- 

lem. Although legislation was in 

place to act against gender violence, 

effective implementation 

was a problem. 

Dienda also believes that people 

are not educated about crimes 

against women and children. 

“The challenge in Namibia is 

implementing the provisions in 

all those instruments to improve 

the lives of women and men in 

the country. All instruments that 

we signed are currently toothless, 

especially when it comes to dealing 

with the perpetrators,” Dienda 

said. 

She said even though Namibia 

has a legal framework in place, 

there is still need to ensure that 

these frameworks are effective and 

can protect women and girls from 

gender-based violence. 

Sharing the same segment was 

Kubi Rama, Gender Links Advisor. 

“Our government is not doing 

enough to help solve the gender-based 

violence our country is 

facing, they launch campaigns and 

then they die down. They do not 

offer support to civil rights movements. 

Every time we ask them 

for help they say that they do not 

have the budget to help us or the 

resources,” Rama said. 

She, therefore, advice governments 

to Put ending GBV as a 

top political priority as well as to 

address societal issues of patriarchy, 

economic relations and changing 

the way of thinking about gender 

relations. 

Beside that Rama demand for to 

16 days to be extended to 365 days 

of radical action on GBV. “The 

16 Days campaign does have an 

impact but only to a certain extent, 

but we need to be aware that gender-based 

violence happens every 

day,” she said. 

Meanwhile, SADC has re-affirmed 

its commitment to curb 

gender-based violence in the 

region. 

In her contribution to the 16 

days of Activism, SADC Executive 

Secretary Dr Stergomena Lawrence 

Tax said to intensify the fight 

against GBV, the region has put in 

place other legal frameworks such 

as the Regional GBV Strategy 2018- 

2030 and its Framework of Action 

and the SADC Regional Strategy 

on Women, Peace and Security 

2018-2022. 

“We cannot be silent and inactive 

on GBV as a region,” Tax said, 

adding “silence and stigma have 

allowed violence against women to 

escalate to pandemic proportions.”


■ NEWS 

China demands Canada 

release Huawei executive 

Beijing - China on Thursday 

demanded Canada release 

a Huawei Technologies 

executive who was arrested in a 

case that adds to technology tensions 

with Washington and threatens 

to complicate trade talks. 

Huawei’s chief financial officer, 

Meng Wanzhou, faces possible 

extradition to the United States, 

according to Canadian authorities. 

The Globe and Mail newspaper, citing 

law enforcement sources, said 

she is accused of trying to evade US 

curbs on trade with Iran. 

The timing is awkward following 

the announcement of a US-Chinese 

cease-fire in a tariff war over Beijing’s 

technology policy. Meng was 

detained in Vancouver on Saturday, 

the day Presidents Donald Trump 

and Xi Jinping met in Argentina 

and announced their deal. 

Asian stock markets tumbled on 

the news, fearing renewed US-Chinese 

tensions that threaten global 

economic growth. Market indexes 

in Tokyo and Hong Kong by 1.9% 

and 2.8% and Shanghai was off 1.7% 

at midday. 

The Chinese Embassy in Ottawa 

said Meng broke no US or Canadian 

laws and demanded Canada 

“immediately correct the mistake” 

and release her. 

“The Chinese side expresses firm 

opposition and strongly protests 

this serious violation of human 

rights,” said an embassy statement. 

Huawei Technologies Ltd., the 

biggest global supplier of network 

gear used by phone and internet 

companies, has been the target of 

deepening US security concerns. 

Washington has pressured European 

countries and other allies to 

limit the use of its technology. 

The US sees Huawei and smaller 

Chinese tech suppliers as possible 

fronts for Chinese spying and as 

commercial competitors that the 

Trump administration says benefit 

from improper subsidies and 

market barriers. 

Trump’s tariff hikes this year on 

Chinese imports stemmed from 

complaints Beijing steals or pressures 

foreign companies to hand 

over technology. But American 

officials also worry more broadly 

about Chinese plans for state-led 

industry development they worry 

might erode US industrial leadership. 

US leaders also worry that Beijing 

is using the growth of Chinese 

business abroad to gain strategic 

leverage. 

“The United States is stepping 

up containment of China in all 

respects,” said Zhu Feng, an international 

relations expert at Nanjing 

University. He said targeting 

Huawei, one of the most successful 

Chinese companies, “will trigger 

anti-US sentiment in China.” 

“The incident could turn out to 

be a breaking point,” Zhu said. 

Last month, New Zealand 

blocked a mobile phone company 

from using Huawei equipment, saying 

it posed a “significant network 

security risk.” In August, Australia 

banned the company from working 

on the country’s fifth-generation 

network due to security concerns. 

The Wall Street Journal reported 

this year that US authorities are 

investigating whether Huawei 

violated sanctions on Iran. The 

Chinese government appealed to 

Washington to avoid any steps that 

might damage business confidence. 

Huawei’s Chinese rival, ZTE 

Corp., was nearly driven out of 

business this year when Washington 

barred it from buying US 

technology over exports to North 

Korea and Iran. Trump restored 

access after ZTE agreed to pay a 

US$1 billion fine, replace its executive 

team and embed a US-chosen 

compliance team in the company. 

Huawei is regarded as far 

stronger commercially than ZTE. 

The company based in Shenzhen, 

near Hong Kong, has the biggest 

research and development budget 

of any Chinese company and a vast 

portfolio of tech patents, making it 

less dependent on American suppliers. 

It also has a growing smartphone 

brand that is one of the top three 

global suppliers behind Samsung 

Electronics and Apple Inc. by the 

number of handsets sold. 

INVITATION FOR BIDS 

Integration Management Consultants hereby invites Namibian registered 

companies to an Open National Bidding for the following Tender. 

Meng was changing flights in 

Canada when she was detained 

“on behalf of the United States 

of America” to face “unspecified 

charges” in New York, according 

to a Huawei statement. 

“The company has been provided 

very little information regarding 

the charges and is not aware of any 

wrongdoing by Meng,” the statement 

said. 

A US Justice Department spokesman 

declined to comment. 

Huawei said it complies with 

all laws and rules where it operates, 

including export controls and 

sanctions of the United Nations, 

the United States and European 

Union. 

Meng is a prominent member of 

China’s business world as deputy 

chairman of Huawei’s board and 

the daughter of its founder Ren 

Zhengfei, a former Chinese military 

engineer. 

Despite that, her arrest is 

unlikely to derail US-Chinese 

trade talks, said Willy Lam, a politics 

specialist at the Chinese University 

of Hong Kong. 

“I think too much is at stake for 

Xi Jinping. He desperately wants a 

settlement,” said Lam. “So I don’t 

think this will have a really detrimental 

impact on the possibility 

of both countries reaching a deal.” 

Longer term, however, the case 

will reinforce official Chinese 

urgency about developing domestic 

technology suppliers to reduce 

reliance on the United States, said 

Lam. 

Trump has “pulled out all the 

stops” to hamper Chinese ambitions 

to challenge the United States 

as a technology leader, Lam said. 

That includes imposing limits on 

visas for Chinese students to study 

science and technology. 

“If the Chinese need further convincing, 

this case would show them 

beyond doubt Trump’s commitment,” 

said Lam. 

David Mulroney, a former Canadian 

ambassador to China, said US 

and Canadian business executives 

could face reprisals in China. 

“That’s something we should be 

watching out for. It’s a possibility. 

China plays rough,” Mulroney 

said. “It’s a prominent member of 

their society and it’s a company 

that really embodies China’s quest 

for global recognition as a technology 

power.” 

Mulroney said Canada should be 

prepared for “sustained fury” from 

the Chinese and said the arrest will 

be portrayed in China as Canada 

kowtowing to Trump. He also said 

the Iran allegations are very damaging 

to Huawei and China will 

push back hard. 

The Chinese will view Meng’s 

arrest on the same day as Trump’s 

meeting with the Chinese leader as 

a planned conspiracy to do damage, 

said Wenran Jiang, a senior 

fellow at the Institute of Asian 

Research at the University of British 

Columbia. 

“She was in transit through Vancouver. 

That means the intelligence 

agencies in Canada and the US 

were tracking her and planning to 

arrest her for some time,” he said. 

Jiang foresees a crisis in relations 

between the three countries 

if Meng is extradited. 

Any talk of a free trade agreement 

between Canada and China 

would be over, he said. 

US Sen. Ben Sasser, a Republican 

member of the Senate Armed 

Services and Banking committees, 

said Huawei is an agent of China’s 

ruling Communist Party and 

applauded Canada for the arrest. 

“Americans are grateful that our 

Canadian partners have arrested 

the chief financial officer of a 

giant Chinese telecom company 

for breaking US sanctions against 

Iran,” he said. - Nampa/AP 

The Suitable Candidate companies should submit at least the following mandatory documents along with their 

bids to be considered eligible: 

Valid Company Registration Certificate 

Valid Good Standing Tax Certificate 

Profile of Company ownership indicating the nationality of majority shareholders 

Reference Sources for services rendered/ goods provided by the company 

Clearly demonstrable experience in years in field of operation. 

Financial position of the Company 

Clearly demonstrate after sale service capacity by way of physical facilities 

Statement of validity of agency relationship with manufacturers represented. 

Bidders must submit their bids and profiles including supporting documentation by hand to the following address: 

Komborerai Shoko 

ProVET, NTA Village, 10 Rand Street, Khomasdal, Windhoek, 

email: kshoko@integration.org 

by no later than the end of the business day (17:00) of the closing date mentioned above. Electronic and late 

bidding will be rejected. Bidding Documents will be available as from Monday 3 December 2018. Bids will be 

opened in the presence of the bidders at the Integration office listed above. 

ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT (EIA) 

PROJECT DESCRIPTION: 

PROJECT LOCATION: 

LOCATION GPS: 

PROJECT PROPONENT: 

EAP: 

Agricultural Portions 

Arbeidskroon Plot 

-21.868355°S; 16.891980°E 

Mr. F. Tromp 

Trinity Environmental Solutions 

This notice serves to inform all Interested and Affected Parties that an application for an 

Environmental Clearance Certificate will be made to the Environmental Commissioner 

as per the Environmental Management Act (No. 7 of 2007) and Government Notice No. 

30 of 2012 (EIA Regulations). Comments to the proposed development are invited. All 

comments should reach us by 21 December 2018. 

To register or to submit your contributions, please contact: 

Mr. N. D. Muroua 

Trinity Environmental Solutions Cell: 0811707737 

Fax to email: 088 650 9520 Email: trinityenvir@iway.na 

PO Box 3559, Windhoek 

Public Meeting Details: 

Venue: Okahandja, Brew Coffee Shop 

Date: 11 December 2108, Tuesday 09:00 AM 

Time: 09:00 AM 

Format: Presentation followed by questions and answers


5 

■ NEWS 

Zimbabwe 

of Congolese, 

battles influx 

Mozambican refugees 

Harare - Zimbabwe, 

besieged by cholera and 

economic challenges, is 

battling a surge of asylum seekers 

from neighbouring Mozambique 

and crisis-torn Democratic Republic 

of Congo (DRC). 

Some 1,382 asylum seekers, 

largely Congolese, have arrived in 

the current year. 

A significant number of these 

vulnerable members of the community 

are fleeing the ceaseless 

conflict in DRC ahead of elections 

later this month. 

Those from Mozambique are 

escaping intermittent clashes perpetrated 

by opposition militants. 

The latest arrivals bring to 13,864 

registered refugees, asylum seekers 

and so-called persons of concern 

in economically-struggling Zimbabwe. 

The United Nations High Commissioner 

for Refugees (UNHCR) 

has raised concern at the lack of 

access to shelter, which remains 

“ 

The latest arrivals 

bring to 13,864 

registered refugees" 

a challenge due to funding constraints 

and increasing refugee 

population in the Tongogara Refugee 

Camp near Chipinge, some 

400 kilometres southeast of the 

capital Harare. 

Meanwhile, an ongoing cholera 

outbreak has led to the postponement 

of an exercise to verify the 

population of refugees, asylum 

seekers and persons of concern. 

The postponement follows the 

restriction on public gatherings 

by authorities in the eastern province 

of Manicaland, which borders 

Mozambique. 

“UNHCR will engage the 

authorities to put in measures to 

allow for the exercise to proceed,” 

a spokesperson said. 

The UN agency also lamented 

the lack of classrooms and teachers 

at schools around Tongogara, 

which impacts on refugees and asylum-seekers’ 

access to high school 

education. 

Ironically, thousands of Zimbabweans 

are asylum seekers and refugees 

mostly in South Africa after 

fleeing years of political crisis and 

economic decline. – CAJ News 

 

 

 

 

 

Public notice 

The Ministry of Industrialisation, Trade and SME Development, has received 

an application for Infant Industry Protection (IIP) as provided for in Article 26 

of the SACU Agreement from Howard House Manufacturing (Pty) LTD, a 

Namibian owned company situated at 21 Rendsburger Street, Lafrenz 

Industrial Area, whose core business is to manufacture snacks/chips 

classifiable under tariff subheading 19041090 and 19049000. 

The above mentioned tariff subheadings fall under Chapter 1904 which 

covers Prepared Foods Obtained By The Swelling Or Roasting Of Cereals Or 

Cereal Products (For Example, Corn Flakes); Cereals, snacks. 

All interested parties/ importers are hereby requested to submit written 

comments in support or objections to this application. The non-confidential 

application can be obtained from the Ministry of Industrialisation, Trade and 

SME Development: Import, Export and Trade Measure office situated at the 

under mentioned address. 

Written comments should be submitted on or not later than 11 January 2019 , 

at 12 pm to the following address: Ministry of Industrialisation, Trade and 

SME Development, Namibia Board of Trade House, 15 Eugene Marais 

Street, Windhoek. 

For more information please contact the Ministry of Industrialisation, Trade 

and SME Development.: 

Mr. Lynnox Mwiya at 061 - 429205, e-mail address: mwiya@mti.gov.na 

Ms. Selma N. Ugulu at 061 - 429201, e-mail address: ugulu@mti.gov.na


■ NEWS 

Masisi calls on developed 

nations to finance measures 

to combat climate change 

■ Mpho Tebele 

Gaborone - Botswana President 

Mokgweetsi Masisi 

this week urged developed 

countries to finance measures 

aimed at reducing the effects 

of climate change. 

Masisi, who was speaking at 

the 24th Conference of Parties to 

the United Nations Framework 

Convention on climate change in 

Poland, revealed that in preparation 

for the Paris Conference of 

Parties in 2015, Botswana submitted 

Intended Nationally Determined 

Contributions in which it 

pledged to reduce the carbon footprint. 

“Our ability to meet these 

pledges is incumbent on the pro- 

REPUBLIC OF NAMIBIA 

REPUBLIC OF NAMIBIA 

MINISTRY OF AGRICULTURE, WATER AND FORESTRY 

MINISTRY OF AGRICULTURE, WATER AND FORESTRY 

PROCUREMENT MANAGEMENT UNIT 

PROCUREMENT MANAGEMENT UNIT 

The Ministry of Agriculture, Water and Forestry hereby invites 

consultants to submit bids for the following: 

The Ministry of Agriculture, Water and Forestry hereby invites consultants to submit bids 

for the following: 

Bid No. Description Closing Date Closing Time 

SC/RP/ 

DGS20-99/2018/20 

19 

SC/RP/ 

DGS20-100/2018/2 

019 

CONSULTANCY TO 

INVESTIGATE THE 

IMPACT OF THE 

CATTLE 

MARKETING 

SCHEME IN 

NAMIBIA 

CONSULTANCY TO 

INVESTIGATE THE 

IMPACT OF THE 

SHEEP AND 

GOATS 

MARKETING 

SCHEME IN 

NAMIBIA 

› Botswana President 

Mokgweetsi Masisi 

EXTENDED TO: 

12 December 2018 

10H00 AM 

vision of financial support from the 

developed Country Parties. In this 

respect, we would like to renew our 

commitment to the international 

community that we remain resolute 

on our pledges,” he said. 

Masisi said pursuant to the 

Paris Agreement was the adoption 

of Sustainable Development 

Goals (SDG). He said without a 

set of rules to ensure predictable 

and measurable actions, counties 

cannot achieve the goals set by the 

Paris Agreement. 

“Therefore, of particular importance 

are the rules relating to financial 

mobilisation for support to 

developing countries by developed 

countries through various funding 

mechanisms such as the Green Climate 

Fund,” said Masisi. 

Opening and 

Reading Time 

11H00 AM 

EXTENDED TO: 

12 December 2018 10H00 AM 11H00 AM 

Bid documents to to be be collected collected from: from: 

Ministry of Agriculture, Water and Forestry, Procurement Management Unit, Northern 

Ministry Industrial of Area, Agriculture, corner of Water Etienne and Rousseau Forestry, Procurement and Tienie Louw Management Street, Windhoek, Unit, Northern Namibia. 

Industrial The bid document Area, corner will of be Etienne available Rousseau as from and 12 November Tienie Louw 2018. Street, Windhoek, 

Namibia. A non-refundable The bid document levy of N$300 will be (including available as VAT) from per 12 Bid November is payable 2018. in advance at the 

Ministry of Agriculture, Water and Forestry, Government Office Park, 1st Floor, Room No. 

A 123. non-refundable Attention: Ms. levy Renchia of N$300 Feris (including at 061 264 VAT) 008/9. per Bid Method is payable of payment in advance will at be the cash. 

Ministry BID DOCUMENTS of Agriculture, TO Water BE HAND and Forestry, DELIVERED Government IN THE Office CORRECT Park, BID 1 st Floor, BOX AT Room THE 

No. 123. Attention: Ms. Renchia ABOVE Feris COLLECTION at 061 264 008/9. ADDRESS. Method of payment will be 

cash. 

Late bids will not be considered. Electronic bids will not be accepted. Bids will be 

BID opened DOCUMENTS in the presence TO BE of the HAND bidders’ DELIVERED representatives IN THE on CORRECT the bids closing BID BOX date AT and THE time. 

ABOVE The Procurement COLLECTION Committee’s ADDRESS. decision is final and irrevocable. 

Late Enquiries: bids will Ms. not Katrina be considered. Davids Electronic Cell: 081 bids 272 will 0887 not be accepted. Bids will be 

opened in the presence of the bidders’ representatives on the bids closing date and 

time. 

He said climate change is affecting 

both the developing and developed 

countries alike and “our gathering 

here today is an indication of 

the seriousness with which we take 

issues pertaining to climate change 

and its negative impact on the environment 

and the global ecosystem. 

Botswana like many countries are 

experiencing unusual and extreme 

temperature patterns due to this 

unusual phenomenon”. 

Masisi said the world is currently 

grappling with the reality 

of the Inter-governmental Panel 

on Climate Change findings on 

1.5 degrees temperature stabilisation 

which if not achieved, could 

result in negative consequences to 

humans and the environment. 

“The findings include increased 

incidence of extreme weather 

events; a substantial reduction in 

surface water resources, accelerated 

desertification in sensitive arid 

zones, and greater threats to health, 

biodiversity and agricultural production,” 

said Masisi. 

He said the demand for water 

for rangeland, forests, biodiversity, 

human and wildlife consumption 

exerts pressure on that already limited 

resource, hence the need to 

adapt cannot be overemphasised. 

Masisi said in preparation for 

the Paris Conference of Parties 

in 2015, Botswana submitted her 

Intended Nationally Determined 

Contributions in which she pledged 

to reduce her carbon footprint. 

Our ability to meet these pledges 

is incumbent on the provision of 

financial support from the developed 

Country Parties. 

“In this respect, we would like 

to renew our commitment to the 

international community that we 

remain resolute on our pledges. 

Pursuant to the Paris Agreement 

was the adoption of Sustainable 

Development Goals. 

In this regard, Botswana has 

concluded a process of SDG mapping 

and I am proud to inform 

you that most of them have been 

mainstreamed into the national 

planning agenda and processes,” 

said Masisi. 

Masisi said as world leaders 

gather in Katowice to take stock 

of their progress towards finalising 

the Paris Agreement rulebook, 

there is need to learn from their 

experiences in implementing the 

Climate Change Convention and 

the Kyoto Protocol and ensure that 

they have realistic and agreed rulebased 

system to make the Paris 

Agreement a success. 

“Without a set of rules to 

ensure predictable and measurable 

actions, we cannot achieve the 

goals set by the Paris Agreement. 

Therefore of particular importance 

are the rules relating to 

financial mobilisation for support 

to developing countries by developed 

countries through various 

funding mechanisms such as the 

Green Climate Fund,” he reiterated. 

SA drops 

fuel 

prices 


Johannesburg - Relief for 

South Africans as the prices 

of fuel decreased with a significant 

amount Tuesday evening 

influenced mainly by international 

petroleum price decreases 

and a favourable US dollar-rand 

exchange rate. 

Petrol cost reached an unprecedented 

R17.08 high in October, 

but with the latest adjustment, a 

litre of petrol will now cost R15.69. 

Diesel decreased by R1.45 and 

illuminating paraffin by R1.33 

“The rand appreciated, on average, 

against the US dollar (from 

R14.79 to R13.67 per US dollar) 

during the period under review 

when compared to the previous 

one. This led to lower contributions 

to the basic fuel prices of petrol, 

diesel and illuminating paraffin 

by 18.50 c/l, 21.53 c/l and 21.66 

c/l, respectively. 

The average Brent Crude oil 

price decreased from US$81.15 to 

US$65.79 per barrel during the 

period under review. 

The main contributing factors 

were (a) the start-up of Nghi 

Son refinery in Vietnam, and a 

new RFCC at Onsan refinery in 

South Korea which contributed to 

increased supply of crude oil and 

(b) the USA stock levels remain 

high and weak export economics 

into the Atlantic Basin persist. 

The demand is expected to fall 

throughout the remainder of the 

year,” said the Department of 

Energy Tuesday. 

The move was appreciated by 

many South Africans as the festive 

season approaches. 

It also came hours after the 

government announced that the 

country had exited recession after 

economic surges in agriculture, 

mining and investment. 

Economist Siyanda Gumede 

told The Southern Times that 

though the development is a huge 

relief to consumers it could be 

short-lived. 

“The rand value to the dollar 

moved from a R14.77 high to as 

low as R13.33. It was obvious we 

were getting our crude oil cheaply. 

Crude oil prices moving down to 

as low as US$58 a barrel and these 

were the major contributing factors 

to the decrease in the fuel 

prices. 

I have noted that the crude 

oil price rose this month and 

this could mean the current status 

might change in the nearest 

future. The rand might weaken 

soon meaning fuel prices would 

increase next month. 

South Africa’s fuel prices are 

adjusted on a monthly basis, 

informed by international and 

local factors. 

International factors include 

the fact that South Africa imports 

both crude oil and finished products 

at a price set at the international 

level, including importation 

costs, such as shipping.


7 

How VBS scheme broke 

Namibian bank 

■ NEWS 

■ Dewald van Rensburg 

While VBS Mutual Bank 

was looted, a similar 

small-scale bank in 

Namibia was suffering the same fate 

– allegedly with the help of VBS staff 

and a business associate of its chief 

executive, Andile Ramavhunga. 

At least five different cases involving 

Namibia’s SME Bank are now 

before the Johannesburg High Court. 

These cases are being heard while 

a commission of inquiry sits in Sandton, 

as the ruined bank’s liquidators 

try to track down as much as R380 

million of its money that went missing 

in South Africa. 

Their investigation so far has 

uncovered a bizarre scheme involving 

South African, Namibian and 

Zimbabwean businesspeople; a 

cash delivery company in Benoni 

that allegedly handles R500 million 

a month; a supermarket chain; and 

an oil company in the Democratic 

Republic of Congo. 

The SME Bank case may be the 

first controversy related to fraud 

allegedly perpetrated by officials at 

VBS involving Ramavhunga’s childhood 

friend and business associate, 

Mauwane Kotane. 

SME Bank’s liquidators allege 

Kotane played a major role in the 

matter and is now fighting to avoid 

testifying. 

SME Bank’s investigations in 

South Africa have led to the freezing 

of R53 million in two companies’ 

bank accounts. 

Of that, R11.5 million belongs to 

Kotane, who City Press reported earlier 

this year provided Ramavhunga 

with a second income of millions of 

rands while he ran VBS. 

Ramavhunga earned “consulting” 

fees from Kotane’s company Mamepe 

Capital and simultaneously sent VBS 

business Kotane’s way, according to 

the transcript of Ramavhunga’s interrogation 

by South African investigators 

earlier this year. 

Importantly, he signed off on a 

deal for VBS to be the South African 

banker in Kotane’s dealings with 

SME Bank. 

The other R41.5 million that SME 

Bank’s liquidators have frozen 

in South Africa belongs to Benoni-based 

Asset Management Financial 

Services (AMFS), which the 

liquidators claim in court papers 

helped launder money for the ultimate 

mastermind allegedly behind 

SME Bank’s collapse – Zimbabwean 

banker Enoch Kamushinda, a minority 

shareholder in SME Bank. 

Kamushinda and Kotane are now 

waging legal campaigns to stop SME 

Bank’s liquidators from pursuing 

their investigation with a barrage of 

litigation in Windhoek and Johannesburg. 

But it all began with a deposit at 

VBS. 

Cash Hole 

SME Bank went into provisional 

liquidation in June last year after its 

auditor BDO flagged a massive hole 

in its books that appeared as early as 

August 2016 – long before the local 

VBS bank fraud came to light. 

It was an amount of R185 million 

allegedly invested in VBS for which 

the evidence was “not persuasive”. 

This was an investment Kotane 

allegedly managed for SME Bank. 

It is unclear whether this investment 

existed as there are wildly conflicting 

account statements received 

from VBS, SME bosses and Kotane 

himself. 

A VBS account statement provided 

to SME’s auditors in late 2016 

reflected a balance of R185.3 million, 

which was supposedly invested with 

Kotane’s company Mamepe, with 

VBS providing an “escrow account”, 

court papers say. 

In January last year, VBS provided 

another account statement, this time 

directly to SME, reflecting a balance 

of R154 million after R37 million was 

paid back to SME. 

In the same month, SME Bank’s 

CEO and finance manager deposed 

affidavits saying there was R154 million 

at VBS and another R27 million 

at Mamepe. 

But another VBS account statement 

given to the Bank of Namibia, 

the country’s central bank, in March 

last year reflected a balance of zero 

– showing that there had not once 

been more than R10 million in the 

account. 

One set of VBS bank records shows 

that R60 million of SME Bank’s 

money was transferred into VBS’s 

own corporate account. 

The statements were “unreliable, 

highly questionable and suspicious”, 

said Bank of Namibia Governor 

Ipumbu Shiimi in an affidavit 

at the time. 

The conflicting versions kept piling 

up. 

In an affidavit in June last year, 

Ramavhunga said Mamepe opened 

an “escrow account” at VBS for SME 

Bank, which was meant to receive 

R185 million, but he added that SME 

Bank’s VBS accounts only received 

R60 million. 

Of this, an undisputed R37 million 

went back to SME Bank, while 

R20 million went to Mamepe and 

R10 million to Peregrine Equities, 

which turned out to be a payment 

to Kotane as well. 

The next day, Kotane deposed an 

affidavit telling a completely different 

story, saying he was being subjected 

to a baseless “fishing expedition”. 

“The funds are held and invested 

safely by my organisation, as per 

our mandate. The funds are safely 

invested with us and with maturity 

dates that are not far into the future,” 

he said. 

Kotane provided a term sheet, 

showing that R188 million in investments 

he made for SME Bank would 

mature and be repaid during last 

year. 

The money had been paid to a 

number of SME Bank’s nominee 

accounts, he said. 

Most of the money was, he said, 

invested in fertiliser for speculative 

trading. A consignment note he produced 

was, however, denounced as 

fake by the Bank of Namibia. 

The money was not repaid by the 

supposed maturity dates and SME 

Bank was liquidated. Its liquidators 

have been fighting an array of court 

battles ever since. 

All Roads Lead to SA 

In July, SME Bank’s liquidators 

established a commission of inquiry 

in Johannesburg after their Namibian 

investigations indicated most of 

the missing SME Bank money made 

its way to South Africa. 

Liquidators say that evidence from 

FNB and Standard Bank showed that 

R380 million from SME Bank “was 

transferred to a number of entities 

in South Africa”. 

The liquidators also froze R53 million 

in the accounts of Kotane and 

AMFS, a cash delivery company 

in Benoni that the liquidators now 

allege helped launder stolen SME 

Bank money. 

Kotane is now in court fighting to 

unfreeze his accounts and to challenge 

the validity of the commission 

of inquiry, at which he refused 

to testify. 

When first subpoenaed in August, 

Kotane’s lawyer arrived with a sick 

note stating he had a “medical condition”. 

It was arranged that he would 

instead testify in October, but the 

day before he was due to appear, he 

filed a court application claiming 

that SME Bank’s liquidators had no 

legal standing to hold a commission 

in the first place, and that the liquidators 

were not legitimately appointed. 

Kotane showed up at the inquiry in 

October, but refused to answer questions 

and walked out, SME Bank’s 

liquidators say. 

In an affidavit attached to his 

application, Kotane apparently contradicts 

the statement he made last 

year. 

Despite previously swearing that 

the R188 million “investments” were 

safe and due, Kotane now denies any 

knowledge of any investment, saying: 

“I strongly dispute that the amount 

of 196 million Namibian dollars was 

invested in Mamepe Capital.” 

He said he did not understand on 

what basis the liquidators expected 

that “any amount of money invested 

by SME Bank in Mamepe Capital 

should have been repatriated”. 

Kotane also speculates that SME 

Bank may well have lost money, but 

says this “is normal in the world of 

investments”. 

He is also fighting SME’s liquidators 

to unfreeze his R11.5 million, 

which he says were legitimate fees 

earned from the bank. 

‘Collusion’ 

The bank’s liquidators fingered 

Kamushinda, the Zimbabwean representative 

of two minority shareholders 

in SME Bank, as the alleged 

“mastermind” behind the theft. 

They also accuse him of abusing 

the courts to wage a protracted 

legal campaign to 

“avoid the grand fraud from 

being exposed”. 

There are now at least seven 

court cases in Namibia and 

South Africa, mostly related 

to Kamushinda raising technical 

points to stop the liquidators’ 

investigations. 

The liquidators now allege 

collusion between Kotane and 

Kamushinda, saying there are identical 

paragraphs copied and pasted 

in affidavits filed separately 

by them. 

In court papers, 

Kamushinda says the allegations 

against him are “clearly scandalous, 

vexatious and irrelevant”. 

He says evidence linking him to 

companies that received SME Bank 

money is irrelevant, adding that this 

doesn’t prove he did anything wrong. 

The investigation of the missing 

money, and of Kamushinda, leads 

to Benoni. 

Cash Delivery 

Apart from Kotane’s money, 

SME Bank’s liquidators have frozen 

another R42 million in the accounts 

of Benoni company AMFS, which 

they accuse of laundering money for 

Kamushinda. 

The liquidators had access to 

AMFS’s bank statements, which 

allegedly reveal that the money delivery 

firm handles as much as R500 

million in cash each month. 

About R79 million of SME Bank’s 

money found its way to AMFS, and 

R64 million of that was allegedly 

delivered by hand – in cash – to an 

address in Springs. 

AMFS allegedly paid more cash to 

companies owned by Kamushinda. 

It is unclear where this money 

ended up, said liquidator John Bruni 

in an affidavit last month. 

In his affidavit, AMFS owner and 

director Carlo Stickling said he had 

nothing to do with these payments 

because he bought the company after 

they had taken place. 

His lawyer did not respond to a 

request for comment emailed on 

Wednesday. 

Luke Mouyis, the lawyer of 

AMFS’s previous owner, Kalandra 

Viljoen, said she attended the commission 

hearings. 

“It is now clear to our client that 

certain misrepresentations were 

made to the [company] so as to conceal 

the source of the funds, but ... 

our client can in no way be seen to 

be complicit in any crime,” he said. 

‘Fake Invoices’ 

Another alleged recipient of about 

R24 million of SME Bank money is 

Johannesburg company Moody Blue 

Trade & Invest 14, which was hit with 

an account freeze application after 

the inquiry. 

This case was supposed to have 

› Andile Ramavhunga 

been heard this week, but was postponed 

to February. 

Moody Blue is the South African 

buying house for Democratic Republic 

of Congo retail chain Hyper-Psaro 

and its affiliate United Petroleum, 

says an affidavit by its general manager 

Lizelle Iverson. 

In an affidavit last year claiming 

that all the SME Bank money was 

safely invested, Kotane initially 

named Moody Blue as a nominee for 

some of the SME Bank investments 

he managed. 

In her affidavit, Iverson said 

Kotane provided “mere hearsay 

and incorrect evidence”, and that 

her company had not heard of him. 

Instead, she claims the money 

Moody Blue received from SME 

Bank belongs to an SME Bank client 

– a mining company in the Democratic 

Republic of Congo called MCK 

Katanga. 

She claims MCK used its SME 

Bank account to pay for goods in 

South Africa for shipment to the 

Democratic Republic of Congo. 

She attached a series of invoices 

showing MCK orders, but the liquidators 

claim these are fakes, and 

that the money did not come from a 

MCK account, but from the bank’s 

own corporate account. 

In a later plea before court, Iverson 

said her company was “under 

the impression” the money came 

from MCK. Her lawyers declined to 

comment. 

What they Say 

In response to requests for comment, 

Ramavhunga said: “Can I be 

left in peace. I’ve got nothing to say to 

you. Please refrain from sending me 

any more messages because I don’t 

even know where you got my number 

from. 

“If this continues, I will have to 

get a restraining order against you.” 

Kotane’s lawyer said: Our client is 

not in a position to comment, as the 

matters are currently before court, 

and are as a result sub-judice.” 

Kamushinda’s lawyer did not 

respond to emailed questions sent 

on Wednesday. – City Press


■ LEADER 

EDITOR’S COMMENT 

What is it with African 

politicians and the politics 

of hate and violence? 

They say a society 

is judged by the 

way its leaders 

behave. The same measure 

can also apply with 

the way a society treats 

its most vulnerable. 

French 18th century 

philosopher, Joseph de 

Maistre, said "Every 

country has the government 

it deserves" and "In 

a democracy people get 

the leaders they deserve." 

Today, these words still 

ring true, especially for 

African politicians and 

leaders who love preaching 

hatred, violence and 

falsehoods. 

My dilemma, in this 

case, is, however, where 

to pin the blame for such 

appalling and dangerous 

behaviour or pointing 

out its source. Could 

it be that Africans have 

been successfully colonised 

that even decades 

after we are free, we still 

harbour the deep-seated 

self-hate to the point that 

we are now responsible 

for our own destruction? 

A bit of context perhaps. 

This week political 

analyst and South African 

Corruption Watch 

Chairperson Mavuso 

Msimang, likened the 

country’s third largest 

political party, the Economic 

Freedom Fighters’ 

leadership to abusers of 

democracy. 

Msimang was talking 

at an event celebrating 

journalism excellence, 

media freedom and 

democracy. 

Because the event was 

sponsored by one of the 

country’s telecommunications 

giant Vodacom, 

EFF supporters went on 

a rampage and looted 

a number of Vodacom 

stores in the country. 

Their bone of contention 

was why Vodacom 

had sponsored an event 

providing a platform 

where Msimang spoke 

ill of the EFF. 

Just last month the 

same political party 

again attacked that 

country’s public enterprises 

minister and EFF 

president Julius Malema 

called the minister a 

“dog”. 

In Namibia, a deputy 

leader of a new political 

party that is not yet 

in the country’s Parliament, 

the Landless People’s 

Movement (LPM) 

held a placard with 

“Voetsek Hage Geingob 

Voetsek” inscribed 

on it. Hage Geingob is 

the country’s president 

and has differed with the 

LPM on the method or 

type of land redistribution 

direction the country 

should take. 

Voetsek is an Afrikaans 

word used when 

expressing disgust 

towards a dog. As noble 

as the LPM’s cause might 

be, I see no justification 

for the language of hate 

and violence they preach. 

African politicians 

often defend themselves 

by insisting that it was 

merely political utterance 

and that it was 

meant metaphorically, 

but this week the EFF’s 

troops literally looted 

stores and declared war 

on Vodacom. 

For those who have 

short memories, can I 

remind you that it was 

just two years ago when 

Rwandan academic Leon 

Mugesera was sentenced 

to life in prison? That 

was 24 years after his 

incendiary 1992 speech 

where he called the Tutsi 

minorities ‘cockroaches’. 

The result was the 

death of 800,000 people 

in the 1994 genocide. 

Yet African leaders 

continue to stand on 

podiums and preach the 

gospel of hate and violence 

towards their own 

brothers and sisters. 

Often what they shout 

about when attacking 

their own is born from 

falsehoods. 

Again I take from 

De Maistre who said: 

“False opinions are like 

false money, struck first 

of all by guilty men and 

thereafter circulated by 

honest people who perpetuate 

the crime without 

knowing what they 

are doing.” 

My question remains, 

have we been so successfully 

colonised that even 

when we have achieved 

self-determination, the 

only enemy we see is ourselves, 

just like how the 

colonisers conditioned 

us? 

We hate each other so 

much that it is our own 

who starve and have no 

access to medical care, 

education and dignified 

housing, while those 

who lead us are too busy 

inciting us to burn what 

little is left of our countries 

and societies to the 

ground. 

Dark skin is not a 

badge of shame 

■ Lunga Izata 

Moving to another country is an opportunity to 

escape and run away from all your problems and 

all the hurt from the place you call home. Sometimes we 

need a brand new start, where we are allowed to make 

new mistakes and be hurt in another language. I wanted 

South Africa to give me a new chance and I opened my 

heart to this country. I had high expectations and I tried 

so much not to judge individuals in Africa’s most diverse 

economy based on my experiences and opinions of my 

homeland Angola. 

Sometimes I am reluctantly African. Please do not 

assume this is related to the standard arguments of our 

colour, hair, facial features and traditional values and so 

on. I am very truthful to what I am and what my race has 

given me. I am a black woman with Afro hair, chocolate 

skin tone, and I am proud of how these features allow me 

to smell, taste and feel the treasures of this life. What makes 

me reluctant when it comes to my African roots is how 

sometimes through issues such as racism and colourism, 

we are programmed to take minimal pride in our skin. 

When I was younger, I did not know I was black because 

I did not realise there was something else other than black. 

When I started to see the world and understand life, I knew 

we were all different and I was fine with that. Growing up 

in Angola, I was just a girl. Travelling around this world, I 

became a black girl. When I came to South Africa I became 

a dark-skinned black girl. 

Travelling and meeting new cultures has allowed me 

to study other peoples, habits, behaviour and language. 

Among these languages, I have always found English 

resourceful to me wherever I have gone. Besides being 

valuable, this international language is a confirmation 

of a promising future for me. I am passionate about it, as 

I feel it brings people together and allows me to express 

myself in a profound way. 

It is a joy to play with words, meanings, and they provide 

my suffering a wider audience. For instance, English 

has taught me that brightness has a positive connotation 

such as the quality of being intelligent, cheerful, lively, 

successful and happy. It can also be the quality or state of 

giving out or reflecting light, and light continues to bring 

positive definitions such as illumination, radiance and 

brilliance. In English and any other language, we learn 

the universal true meaning that light is good and dark is 

bad. I guess this applies to societies such as South Africans 

where social and economic hierarchy is dependent 

on one’s skin colour. 

Being educated and having travelled around the world, 

I have faced discrimination. However, I never imagined I 

would feel prejudice in an African country. I could have 

never imagined that someone would be made to feel inferior 

due to their skin tone. 

Racism is hate towards other races; discrimination 

within your own race based on skin colour is ignorance. 

Today, we have the opportunity to make better choices 

but we still fail ourselves. Our race is seen as powerful 

because we have endured pain and injustice for so long 

but this power is failing to unite us. Instead, it is creating 

egos and distancing us from our sense of worth. 

I understand that this pursuit of brightness was caused 

by xenophobia and deprivation and so on, but I also believe 

that the “yellow bonisation” (from yellow bones — a popular 

culture term used to describe lighter skinned Africans) 

will take us back to negative times. Let us embrace our 

natural beauty, which brings light to our hearts. If “beauty 

is in the eye of the beholder”, it’s our duty to educate the 

beholder to be free from prejudice. 

As American songwriter and rapper Lauryn Hill aptly 

puts it: “I consider myself a crayon. I might not be your 

favourite colour but one day you’ll need me to complete 

your picture.” – The Best of Africa 

The 


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■ DIRECTORS: 

Ms. Franna Kavari (Chairperson), Mr. Delma Lupepe (Vice 

Chairman), Ms. Tinana Matjila, Dr. Audrin Mathe, 

Ms Rejoice Nharaunda and Mr Pikirayi Deketeke 

Copyright © 2018 , Namzim Newspapers (Proprietary) Limited

Insight 


■ Features 

■ Opinions 

■ Analysis 

■ Comment 

■ Interviews 

9 

> ■ NEWS 

Kingmakers behind 'littleknown' 

candidates in DRC polls 

■ Daniel Mumbere 

Ca mp a i g n s a re 

u n d e r w a y i n 

the Democratic 

Republic of Congo (DRC), 

where up to 21 candidates 

are registered to contest 

in the election to replace 

Presi- dent Joseph 

Kabila, who has been in 

power since 2001. 

The number of candidates 

who are actually contesting 

the presidency has since 

reduced following the formation 

of two coalitions by 

the opposition, as they seek 

ways to beat the state muscle 

that could be lent to the 

party of the ruling party’s 

candidate. 

The coalitions also give 

good indicators of the frontrunners 

in the race, ahead 

of the December 23 election. 

Kabila’s preferred successor 

and candidate of the 

ruling coalition, Emmanuel 

Ramazani Shadary leads the 

Common Front for Congo 

(FCC) coalition, while the 

opposition’s Martin Fayulu 

and Felix Tshisekedi are also 

joint candidates of 

different coalitions. 

According to an opinion 

poll published late October, 

Tshisekedi and Vital 

Kamerhe were leading the 

pack with 36% and 17% 

respectively, followed by 

Shadary (16%). Fayulu is 

forecast to win 8%. 

Considering the vastness 

and diversity of the DRC, the 

candidates will rely on several 

factors to propel them to 

victory including the credibility 

of the vote and the critical 

issue of whose support 

they have. 

Up to 40 million Congolese 

(half of the population) 

are registered to vote in the 

December election. 

In this article, we look at 

the different ‘kingmakers’ 

who are backing the leading 

candidates. 

› Emmanuel Ramazani Shadary 

Kabila for Shadary 

Forty-seven-year-old 

Kabila pleasantly surprised 

many when he confirmed 

that he would not seek a 

third term that would have 

violated the constitution and 

worsened an ongoing political 

crisis. 

His choice of successor 

was an even bigger shock, 

considering that Shadary is 

described as “one with no 

independent political base, 

international clout or financial 

muscle”. 

The former interior minister, 

who was placed under 

European Union sanctions 

for his role in the repression 

of deadly anti-Kabila 

protests in 2016, seems to 

be heavily reliant on Kabila’s 

ability to influence the outcome 

of the December vote. 

Kabila, who has been 

president of the country 

for 17 years, is still the most 

powerful person in DRC. 

He won the previous elections 

(2006 with 45%, 2011 

with 49%), even though both 

were marred by accusations 

of fraud and massive irregularities. 

He is responsible for 

the creation of the FCC coalition 

that has fielded Shadary 

as a candidate. 

Kabila also has several 

key people loyal to him in 

the judiciary and military, 

institutions that could play 

a key role in shaping the 

post-election affairs of the 

country. 

Political observers believe 

that Kabila is backing Shadary 

as the candidate least 

likely to turn against him 

when he finally steps down 

as president after the election. 

At 47, Kabila is relatively 

young and is also eligible 

to run for president at 

the next elections in 2023. 

Many will be watching 

to see whether state institutions 

which are controlled by 

Kabila’s government, including 

the electoral commission 

act independently or favour 

the choice of the incumbent. 

Bemba, Katumbi for 

Fayulu 

Fayulu, was the hope of 

the opposition that was 

quickly quenched, when 

two of the seven candidates 

that had endorsed him to be 

their joint candidate, withdrew 

from the Lamuka coalition 

hardly 24 hours after 

signing. 

The 62-year-old lawmaker 

has embarked on a campaign 

of popularising his 

candidacy and credentials, 

insisting that he has “fought 

for democracy” in DRC for 

the past 30 years. 

While Fayulu has considerable 

support in Kinshasa, 

where he has on several 

occasions led anti-government 

protests, his team will 

be hoping that the support 

of “political heavyweights”, 

Jean Pierre Bemba and 

Moise Katumbi, makes all 

the difference. 

Bemba, a former warlord 

who was Kabila’s vice president 

from 2003 to 2006, and 

popular business tycoon 

Katumbi, who was once considered 

a consensus opposition 

candidate, have both 

maintained their support for 

Fayulu. 

Bemba contested against 

Kabila in 2006, garnering 

20% of the votes cast 

in the first round, and losing 

the subsequent run-off 

to Kabila. He contested the 

results in court, which dismissed 

his allegations of 

fraud. 

Indeed, when Fayulu 

unveiled his campaign team 

on Monday, he named relatives 

and allies of Bemba and 

Katumbi in key positions. 

Katumbi’s allies Pierre 

Lumbi and Olivier Kamitatu 

were named as campaign 

director and communications 

director respectively, 

while Eve Bazaiba, a close 

relative of Bemba is deputy 

campaign director and 

spokesperson. 

Fayulu will be hoping to 

win in Katumbi’s stronghold 

of Lubumbashi, where the 

latter was former governor 

of Katanga. 

Shadary, who was governor 

of the neighbouring 

Maniema province, went 

to Lubumbashi for his first 

campaign rally this week. 

Referencing Kabila’s roots in 

Katanga, Shadary said he is 

assured of the support of ‘the 

electorate of Nagorno-Katanga’. 

› President Joseph Kabila › Vital Kamerhe (left) and Felix Tshisekedi 

KINGMAKERS" 

turn to P.10


■ FEATURE 

> From Page 9 

KINGMAKERS 

Kamerhe for Tshisekedi 

Going by October opinion poll 

that said Kemerhe would win 17% 

of the vote, the 59-year-old leader of 

the Union for the Congolese Nation 

party, is the ultimate kingmaker. 

“This is the winning ticket,” 

Kamerhe told reporters alongside 

Tshisekedi in Kenya’s capital, Nairobi, 

when it was announced that the 

two would join forces. 

A former president of the National 

Assembly, Karmehe contested and 

lost against Kabila in the 2011 presidential 

election. He came third 

behind Kabila and Etienne Tshisekedi, 

garnering 7% of the votes cast. 

Under their agreement, if Tshisekedi 

wins the presidency, he will 

make Kamerhe, who hails from 

Bukavu, his prime minister. 

Tshisekedi, has been accused of 

not having political experience, and 

‘borrowing’ support from the popularity 

of his father, Etienne Tshisekedi, 

who was the opposition leader 

in DRC for several decades. 

Kamerhe, who will be Tshisekedi’s 

campaign director, also expects 

to be endorsed by the latter for the 

2023 presidential polls. 

Nigeria’s 2019 election: 

a two-horse race with 

uninspiring candidates 

Unattached kingmakers: Catholic 

Church, Lucha movement 

The candidates, notably Fayulu’s 

Lamuka coalition are hoping to win 

the support of the Congo’s influential 

Catholic Church. 

The church, which has consistently 

called out Kabila’s government for 

human rights violations and mediated 

political agreements to maintain 

stability, wields considerable power 

in a country where over 90% of the 

people identify as Christians. 

It is, however, likely to remain 

neutral and not endorse any of the 

candidates. In a statement issued last 

week, the National Episcopal Conference 

of Congo (CENCO), called for 

a credible election. 

“We must do everything to avoid 

a parody of an election whose results 

would not be accepted and which 

would, moreover, plunge our country 

into violence,” (CENCO) said in 

a statement. 

CENCO, which also questioned 

the use of a new electronic voting system, 

recommended that the electoral 

commission must make sure ballots 

are counted manually after they are 

printed by the machines. 

The opposition has protested the 

use of the machines, arguing that 

they are more vulnerable to vote-rigging 

than paper and ink and could 

be compromised by the unreliability 

of Congo’s power supply. 

Lucha’s position 

Fayulu is also hoping to win the 

support of civil society groups, 

including the pro-democracy 

anti-Kabila movement, Lucha. 

However, following the breakdown 

of the Lamuka coalition, when 

Tshisekedi and Kamerhe withdrew, 

Lucha expressed its dismay. 

“Our only choice is to forge change 

by ourselves,” it said. “We’ve had 

enough! Our Congo deserves better 

than this.” 

They are yet to voice support for 

any of the candidates or coalitions 

in the race. – Africa News 

■ Olayinka Ajala* 

Almost all of Nigeria’s 68 

political parties have 

wrapped up their primaries 

and chosen candidates to 

stand in the country’s February 

2019 general election. The poll is 

likely to be yet another two-horse 

race: a contest between the All 

Progressives Congress (APC) and 

People’s Democratic Party (PDP). 

These are the only two parties to 

win the presidency since the end of 

military rule in 1999. The Conversation 

Africa’s Julius Maina spoke 

to Olayinka Ajala about the emerging 

campaign issues and the surprises 

so far. 

Who are the main candidates for 

the February election? 

Thirty-one aspirants have 

emerged to contest the presidential 

election. That number will probably 

be reduced before the elections, 

as several smaller parties are in 

talks to form coalitions. 

But there are only two leading 

contenders – the incumbent, 

President Muhammadu Buhari, 

and Atiku Abubakar, who was 

vice-president under President 

Olusegun Obasanjo from 1999 to 

2007. 

Both are contesting on the platforms 

of the two largest parties in 

Nigeria. 

Apart from the two main contenders, 

other popular names on 

the list are former governors Donald 

Duke and Olusegun Mimiko, 

alongside Obi Ezekwesili. She’s the 

former minister of education and 

co-founder of Transparency International. 

What are the emerging 

campaign issues? 

The campaign issues are similar 

to those that featured in the 

2015 presidential elections. These 

included political violence, particularly 

an end to the Boko Haram 

insurgency and the recent conflict 

between herdsmen and farmers 

which has claimed thousands of 

lives. 

Corruption will also loom large. 

Buhari claims to have curtailed 

corruption, particularly since the 

introduction of the single treasury 

account that has reduced “leakages” 

in the country’s finances. But 

the state of the economy and the 

increase in youth unemployment 

has negatively affected the current 

government’s image. The Atiku 

campaign has capitalised on this. 

Other issues that have emerged 

include a lack of infrastructure, 

lopsided political appointments - 

as the president is often accused of 

neglecting federal character when 

making political appointments 

as well as the president’s health. 

These are likely to dominate the 

campaign when it officially kicks 

off in December. 

Buhari’s health is likely to feature 

extensively given that he 

spent about 15% of his first term in 

office receiving medical treatment 

abroad. 

Have there been any surprises 

ahead of the 2019 ballot? 

The first major surprise was the 

emergence of Atiku as the People’s 

Democratic Party candidate. 

Atiku, one of the founding members 

of the PDP, emerged as the flag 

bearer for the party despite being 

relatively quiet politically in the last 

few years following his movement 

from PDP to APC and then back 

to PDP. 

The second surprise was former 

president Olusegun Obasanjo’s 

endorsement of Atiku. Earlier 

in the year, Obasanjo wrote 

an open letter to Buhari advising 

the president not to seek a second 

term. He argued that Buhari had 

under-performed and was incapable 

of understanding the problems 

the country faces. Subsequently, 

Obasanjo formed a movement to 

unseat the incumbent president. 

› Atiku Abubakar 

Obasanjo’s endorsement of Atiku 

came as a shock to most Nigerians 

because of his frosty relationship 

with the former vice-president. 

Obasanjo famously stated in 

August 2018: “If I support Atiku 

for anything, God will not forgive 

me. If I do not know, yes. But once 

I know, Atiku can never enjoy my 

support”. 

The sudden turn around by the 

former president just two months 

later to “forgive and endorse” Atiku 

came as a surprise to most Nigerians. 

What do the primaries tell us 

about women’s participation? 

Despite the large number of 

aspirants for the 2019 elections, 

women and young people remain 

underrepresented. Although six 

women emerged before the presidential 

primaries, the number 

dropped to three immediately after 

the primaries. Also, several young 

people were unable to contest in 

the primaries because of the cost 

of nomination forms. 

Elections are costly affairs in 

Nigeria. The ruling party charges 

candidates US$125,000 (£97,000) to 

be able to stand for nominations. 

The People’s Democratic Party also 

charged US$33,000 (£26,000) for 

its nomination forms. This is in a 

country where the minimum wage 

is less than US$100 a month. 

The government’s insincerity 

in supporting women and young 

people was laid bare in June 2018 

when the president passed a bill 

titled “Not too young to Rule”. The 

bill was designed to support the 

political aspiration of young people 

interested in pursuing a political 

career. Minutes after signing 

the legislation, the president commended 

the national assembly for 

passing the bill – but warned that 

young people would still have to 

wait till 2023 before they would 

actually be given the opportunity. 

With just a few months to the 

polls, most Nigerians remain frustrated 

and concerned because neither 

of the two leading presidential 

aspirants offer any real hope. 

The president has been accused 

of being too slow and too ill to handle 

the rigours of the position. 

The multiple allegations of corruption 

and fraud levelled against 

Atiku, meanwhile, continue to 

taint his image and hopes of gaining 

power from the Buhari administration. 

Unless a credible consensus candidate 

emerges, the 2019 presidential 

elections remains a two-horse 

race with none of the contenders 

really appealing to the populace. 

– The Conversation 

*Olayinka Ajala is Associate 

Lecturer and Conflict Analyst, 

University of York


11 

■ FEATURE 

Taking Africa’s 

democratic 

temperature as a 

dozen countries 

prepare for polls 

■ John J Stremlau* 

More than a dozen 

national elections will 

be held across Africa 

next year. All 55 members of the 

African Union (AU) are obligated 

to hold regular and ostensibly democratic 

elections. They must also 

invite teams of AU election observers 

to publicly monitor, assess and 

report the results. 

Is all this electoral activity 

helping to entrench democracy as 

the foundation for national and 

regional security, development 

and integration? Or have elections 

become the means for demagogues 

to grab power – or, more typically, 

for powerful elites and authoritarian 

rulers to entrench themselves? 

Democratic theory prescribes 

credible elections as a necessary, 

but insufficient means, to consolidate 

real democracy. Real democracy 

typically abets peace and security. 

National circumstances vary. 

But three additional conditions 

are also vital. They are freedom of 

expression, the right of assembly, 

and an independent nonpartisan 

judiciary to resolve disputes and 

ensure the rule of law predominates. 

Most deadly conflicts in Africa 

occur within – not between – sovereign 

states. Recognising this, 

the AU has made observing and 

assessing democratic elections an 

integral part of its operations. This 

often happens alongside observers 

from regional economic communities. 

As observations improve, so do 

opportunities to gauge whether 

electoral violence and other severe 

human rights abuses threaten 

regional peace and security. 

In mid-November, there were 

three important developments 

at the AU headquarters in Addis 

Ababa. These promise to improve 

Africa’s long-term prospects for 

collective self-reliance and democratic 

peace. And this will happen 

regionally, nationally and locally. 

The first was a streamlining 

of the continental body’s operations. 

The second was a move to 

strengthen the monitoring and 

evaluation of member countries. 

The third was a renewed commitment 

to improve the depth, duration, 

and diligence of African election 

observation missions. 

Three Changes 

President Paul Kagame of 

Rwanda has been the chair of the 

AU this year. He has driven a set 

of administrative and financial 

reforms to improve its efficiency 

and effectiveness. 

Headline reforms include: 

◆◆ 

Reducing the number of AU 

Commission portfolios, 

◆◆ 

Introducing merit-based 

hiring and promotion procedures, 

and 

◆◆ 

Reducing dependence on foreign 

donors. This has been 

achieved by revising the 

scale of member state contributions 

and penalties for 

nonpayment. 

◆◆ 

The key structural reform 

will be combining the portfolios 

of Political Affairs 

and Peace and Security. 

This makes sense strategically. 

It will ensure that the 

lion’s share of AU resources 

supports both urgent peacemaking 

needs and creates 

conditions conducive to 

developing politically capable 

states. Failures on either front 

could jeopardise the AU’s strategic 

plan for the socio-economic 

transformation of the 

continent. 

Two other developments 

complement these shifts. 

One is the Assembly’s decision 

to strengthen the monitoring and 

evaluation of key governance areas 

on the continent. This promises 

substantial improvements in the 

role and functioning of the African 

Peer Review Mechanism. The 

mechanism was established in 

2003. It aims to encourage member 

states to critically and regularly 

assess their progress in governance 

and socio-economic development. 

After much initial excitement, 

the mechanism devolved into 

a largely technical and widely 

ignored exercise. 

Its governing Forum of Heads 

of State sought to infuse it with 

greater political clout and relevance 

in 2016. It mandated its new director, 

Professor Eddy Maloka, to produce 

an Africa-wide comparative 

assessment of governance challenges 

facing AU member states. 

This will be presented to the next 

regular AU Assembly of Heads of 

State and Government in February 

2019. 

The final change involves beefing 

up election monitoring. Ten years 

ago the AU entered into a formal 

partnership with the Electoral 

Institute for Sustainable Democracy 

in Africa. 

The parties agreed on 16 November 

to seek ways to extend and 

improve the partnership. 

The institute is based in Johannesburg. 

It boasts an all-African staff 

from more than a dozen nations. 

It has helped AU missions on several 

fronts. 

This has included the training 

and application of a common set of 

observation principles and democratic 

election standards, and more 

comprehensive, rapid and technologically 

advanced tools and training 

of AU observers. 

The partnership has also helped 

the AU to acquire a leadership role 

among domestic and international 

election observer groups pursuing 

greater electoral transparency and 

accountability. 

This is true even within Africa’s 

most troubled states. 

› Rwanda's President Paul Kagame 

Is democracy dying? 

These efforts would seem to run 

counter to the question “Is Democracy 

Dying?”, which has become 

a preoccupation in the era of US 

President Donald Trump. African 

politics, too, are vulnerable 

to demagoguery, debauchery and 

divisiveness. More notable is the 

proliferation of progressive forces 

at all levels of African politics. They 

are exposing and combating corruption 

and other egregious abuses 

of power. 

Progress is slow, erratic, and 

dangerous for democracy advocates 

and activists to pursue. Yet in 

a year when Freedom House’s latest 

global survey concludes democracy 

is in decline, Africa may well be 

bucking the trend. 

The Mo Ibrahim Foundation’s 

2018 Index of African Governance 

found that 

…governance on our continent, 

on average, is slowly improving … 

approximately three out of four 

African citizens live in a country 

where governance has improved 

over the last ten years. 

Despite Africa’s many problems, 

it continues to sustain a wide variety 

of democratic experiments. 

Extensive surveys by Afrobarometer, 

the non-partisan research network, 

show the majority of Africa’s 

citizens still prefer democracy to 

the alternative. This is a reality the 

African Union increasingly recognises 

and is attempting to support. 

– The Conversation 

*John J Stremlau is visiting Professor 

of International Relations, 

University of the Witwatersrand


■ FEATURE 

The struggles of SADC women in politics 

■ Sharon Kavhu 

The Southern African 

Development 

Community (SADC) 

in unlikely to meet 

the targets set out in the United 

Nation’s Sustainable Development 

Goals (SDGs), mostly Goal Five as 

women remain underrepresented 

in politics and leadership. 

One of the targets of the SDGs 

Goal Five is to ensure women’s full 

and effective participation and 

equal opportunities for leadership 

at all levels of decision-making in 

political, economic and public life. 

Women are struggling to attain 

gender balance in politics and various 

leadership platforms. These are 

the views of senior female members 

of former liberation movements 

in southern Africa. 

Despite their significant roles 

in the liberation struggle in their 

respective countries, they believe 

that women are still not having 

equal representation in politics 

and leadership compared to men. 

Mariazinha Niquice, the secretary 

general of the Mozambican 

Women’s Organisation (OMM) 

told The Southern Times that during 

the liberation struggle in her 

country, women played a significant 

role which should be equally 

recognised as the role played by 

men. “During the liberation struggle, 

men worked side by side with 

women and during this period 

women demonstrated their various 

talents which are critical in the 

development of a country. 

“I guess this is where the statement, 

‘when you educate a woman 

you have educated a nation’ has 

been derived from. When a nation 

is educated, it means we have educated 

the whole region and when 

a region is educated we have educated 

the whole world and thus 

women carry a momentous value,” 

said Niquice. 

OMM was founded by the 

Mozambican ruling party FRE- 

LIMO in 1973 to advance women 

emancipation and empowerment. 

It seeks to help attain 50% representative 

of women in Mozambican 

politics by 2030 and ensure 

that women are included in critical 

positions. 

Niquice, also a member of the 

ruling party’s central committee, 

noted that after independence, the 

struggle shifted to the development 

of the country and now the struggle 

is on women’s rights and empowerment 

to have gender equity in 

politics. 

However, she commended efforts 

by FRELIMO to empower women, 

for example that the chairperson of 

the Mozambique National Assembly 

is a woman, the two vice-presidents 

of the country are also 

females, and 40% of lawmakers 

are women. 

The heads of women’s wings of 

the former liberation movements 

converged in Windhoek for their 

annual meeting ahead of the parties’ 

annual summit last month. 

Leaders of SWAPO (Namibia), 

Zanu-PF (Zimbabwe), Africa 

National Congress (South 

Africa), MPLA (Angola), FRE- 

LIMO (Mozambique) and Chama 

Cha Mapinduzi (Tanzania) converged 

in the Namibian capital to 

device new strategies in order to 

strengthen ties between them. 

During the meeting, the women’ 

wings shared experiences and strategies 

to use to ensure that there is 

gender equity in politics. 

“Our annual meeting gives us 

a platform to share the challenges 

Women are struggling 

to attain gender balance 

in politics and various 

leadership platforms" 

that we are facing in empowering 

women in politics and leadership. 

Women and children are the most 

vulnerable to the social deviances 

such as gender-based violence and 

human trafficking among several 

others,” said Meokgo Matuba, the 

secretary of the Africa National 

Congress (ANC) Women’s League. 

“Whenever we meet, we evaluate 

ourselves to see what we have 

achieved towards the attainment of 

50-50 of women and men in deci- 

“ 

sion making, in political affairs and 

in various structures also paying 

attention to the challenges faced 

and possible solutions.” 

She said the challenges that 

women are facing in politics are 

similar across the region, even 

though they are handled differently. 

In Tanzania, however, 

women in political leadership 

constitute 23.66% leaving the rest 

to men. The Secretary-General for 

Umoja wa Wanawake Tanzania 

(WTU) (Union of Women of Tanzania), 

Queen Mlozi said women 

representatives in politics is less 

than a quarter mainly because of 

lack of unity among women. 

“Our greatest challenge as 

women is that we do not believe in 

each other, we do not support each 

other. In fact, we fight against each 

other and create divisions. 

“As a result, during election 

time we end up losing to men due 

to lack of unity. If we start by supporting 

each other and believing in 

ourselves, then all our campaigns 

during election periods will hold 

waters,” Mlozi narrated. 

Mlozi said that the female population 

believes in males more compared 

to females because of the 

divisions amongst women. 

She noted that the political 

environment in the region is not 

as easy for women to survive in as 

it is for men. Women in politics 

are labelled as ‘people with loose 

morals’, ‘prostitutes’ and many of 

them end up failing to maintain 

their marital lives. 

Zanu-PF’s secretary for women 

affairs Mabel Chinomona said 

many women fail in their political 

careers due to the demands of 

their roles as wives and mothers, 

which when unequally balanced 

with the career may result in broken 

marriages. 

“Politics is a career that is very 

demanding. It can take your family 

time and even worse when you 

are a woman. 

As women in politics, we are 

sometimes insulted and are called 

names, and such labelling has made 

the majority of women drop their 

political careers due to low self-esteem,” 

said Chinomona, who is also 

the deputy speaker of the Zimbabwe 

National Assembly. 

Chinomona observed that the 

challenge with women in the 

SADC region is that they are not 

economically empowered compared 

to men and as results there 

will always remain behind. 

Zimbabwe also has a small number 

of women representatives in 

legislation. Out of the 210 seats in 

its parliament, only 25 are women. 

Although the number is still low, 

the Zanu-PF Women’s League is 

grateful that the country’s new 

constitution allowed each region 

to produce six women to seat in 

parliament, this means out of the 

10 provinces, there are 60 women 

who are seating in parliament. 

“We are grateful for the new constitution. 

However, more needs to 

be done to increase the number of 

female representatives in the political 

sector. 

I was impressed by the Namibian 

‘zebra concept’ which the Prime 

Minister describes as a structure 

that ensures one male leader is 

followed by a woman leader or vis 

versa just to not concentrate only 

male in leadership,” said Chinomona. 

On her part, the Namibian 

Prime Minister Saara Kuugongelwa-Amadhila 

said the Namibian 

government has introduced deliberate 

initiatives that promote and 

advance gender equality. 

She said the ruling Swapo 

Party has also adopted the same 

approach in electing its representatives 

to parliament. 

“Through this deliberate policy, 

the Swapo Party has significantly 

catapulted women into national 

leadership positions especially in 

the legislation,” the Premier said. 

Out of 146 members of the 

Namibian legislature – both 

National Assembly and National 

Council – 58 are women, representing 

a ratio of 39.7%. 

The number of female lawmakers 

in the National Assembly stands 

at 48 out of the total 104, while 

there are 10 women in the National 

Council out of the total 42. 

The Namibian Cabinet is comprised 

of 25 senior ministers four 

of which are women and 25 deputy 

ministers that include 15 women.


13 

■ FEATURE 

SADC committed 

to curbing GBV 

■ Nyarai Kampilipili 

Violence against women and 

girls is a pandemic in southern 

Africa and an obstacle to equality, 

development, peace and human 

rights. 

This is the message from the 

Executive Secretary of the Southern 

African Development Community 

(SADC), Dr Stergomena 

Lawrence Tax, in her contribution 

to the 16 days of Activism against 

Gender Based Violence (GBV). 

The 16 Days of Activism against 

GBV is an annual global campaign 

dedicated to raising awareness and 

advocacy to end violence against 

women and girls. 

The campaign runs every year 

from 25 November, which marks 

the International Day for the Elimination 

of Violence against Women 

to 10 December, which is dedicated 

as Human Rights Day. 

“We cannot be silent and inactive 

on GBV as a region,” Dr Tax 

said, adding “silence and stigma 

have allowed violence against 

women to escalate to pandemic 

proportions.” 

She said “in realizing that violence 

against women and girls continues 

to be an obstacle to achieving 

equality, development, peace as 

well as to the fulfilment of women 

and girls’ human rights,” the region 

has come up with various measures 

to address the challenge. 

For example, a number of 

regional strategic documents and 

frameworks including the Revised 

Regional Indicative Strategic 

Development Plan, and the Strategic 

Indicative Plan for the Organ 

on Politics, Defence and Security 

considers GBV as a critical area of 

concern. 

In fact, these regional documents 

clearly affirm the principles 

of women empowerment and 

gender equality and recognize the 

prevention and reduction of GBV 

as a catalyst for attaining an environment 

conducive for peace and 

security. 

The Revised SADC Protocol on 

Gender and Development identifies 

GBV as an area of concern 

and proposes several approaches 

to addressing this pandemic. 

The Revised SADC Protocol on 

Gender and Development provides 

for the empowerment of women, 

elimination of discrimination and 

attainment of gender equality and 

equity through the enactment of 

gender-responsive legislation and 

implementation of policies, programmes 

and projects. 

The protocol was revised in 

2016 to align with the provisions 

of other instruments such as the 

Sustainable Development Goals, 

Agenda 2063 and the SADC Industrialisation 

Strategy and Roadmap 

2015-2063. 

Dr Tax said to intensify the fight 

against GBV, the region has put in 

place other legal frameworks such 

as the Regional GBV Strategy 2018- 

2030 and its Framework of Action 

and the SADC Regional Strategy 

on Women, Peace and Security 

› Dr Stergomena Lawrence Tax 

2018 – 2022. 

The SADC Regional Strategy on 

Women, Peace and Security gives 

due attention to the need to include 

women in national security sector 

institutions and processes and the 

need to combat any human rights 

violations of women and children 

with emphasis on combatting sexual 

GBV. 

The SADC Regional Gender-Based 

Violence Strategy was 

developed to ensure the effective 

and efficient implementation of the 

Revised SADC Protocol on Gender 

and Development with a specific 

focus on Articles addressing GBV. 

SADC also developed the 10 Year 

Strategic Plan of Action on Combating 

Trafficking in Persons, especially 

Women and Children (2009 

– 2019). GBV is used to manipulate 

and control women, men, boys and 

girls who fall victim of trafficking 

in persons and forced labour. 

According to Secretariat, these 

measures coupled with other 

efforts continue to yield positive 

results in addressing GVB. 

“In the last decade, we have seen 

the issue of GBV moving from the 

shadows to the foreground of commitments 

and actions to attain sustainable 

development,” Dr Tax said. 

“Global actions like the 16 Days 

Campaign are some of the initiatives 

that continue to provide an 

opportunity to mobilize global, 

regional and national actions 

against GBV.” 

She urged Member States to 

intensify action aimed at prevention 

of GBV and to strengthen 

related services, as well as “create 

platforms for giving voice to the 

voiceless, including to allow for 

safe reporting, provision of shelters 

and places of safety for victims 

and survivors of GBV.” 

The United Nations (UN) 

Under-Secretary-General and 

Executive Director of UN Women, 

Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka added 

her voice, saying that it is still 

unclear as to the extent of violence 

against women, as most victims 

fear reprisal. 

Mlambo-Ngcuka said there is a 

stigma associated with GBV and 

this has silenced victims from 

reporting such cases, hence it is 

critical for the global community 

to unmask the true extent of these 

continued horrific experiences. 

This year’s 16 Days of Activism 

against GBV aims to encourage 

people to speak out and act against 

GBV. - Sardc.net 

The G20's Credibility Crisis 

■ Kevin Carmichael 

Remember the Group of 

Twenty (G20) summit four 

years ago in Brisbane, Australia? 

Don’t worry if you don’t. The G20 

isn’t exactly working to keep the 

annual forum on the world’s radar. 

The “2 in 5” promise — an initiative 

sparked in Brisbane to increase 

the group’s collective GDP by 2% in 

five years — is a good example. The 

deadline for that increase is this year, 

and guess what? The G20 has come 

up short. 

“As of mid-2018, the implemented 

structural reform and infrastructure 

spending commitments made at the 

Brisbane, Antalya, Hangzhou, and 

Hamburg summits have fallen short 

of the original ambition to raise the 

level of G-20 GDP by an additional 

2% between 2013 and the end of this 

year,” the International Monetary 

Fund (IMF) observes in its latest 

report card on the group’s efforts to 

strengthen the global economy. 

The Brisbane flop highlights the 

G20’s biggest problem: credibility. 

To be sure, geopolitics has entered 

a strange, unpredictable and possibly 

dangerous phase. Any group that 

puts the leaders of the United States, 

China, Russia and Saudi Arabia in 

the same room in 2018 would struggle 

to achieve anything meaningful. 

Though the G20 was already struggling 

to achieve anything significant 

before 2016, the cracks in the G20’s 

credibility have widened as a result 

of US President Donald Trump’s 

election. And it’s unfortunate 

timing; the world desperately 

needs an effective international 

institution. 

The IMF didn’t say by 

how much the G20 missed 

its GDP goal. According 

to John Edwards, a senior 

fellow at the Lowy Institute, 

pledges made in 

2014 have increased economic 

output by 1.2%; the 

update came from David 

Gruen, Australia’s current 

G20 Sherpa, at a conference 

in Sydney on November 1. Given 

IMF Managing Director Christine 

Lagarde’s assessment of the 

state of the world ahead of the 

Buenos Aires summit, it’s safe 

to assume she’s underwhelmed 

by her the G20’s more recent performance. 

“During the ten years since the 

first G20 Leaders’ Summit, the G20’s 

efforts have been crucial in helping 

the global economy recover,” 

Lagarde wrote in a blog post that 

IMF published on November 28. “Yet 

darker clouds are now returning to 

the horizon.” 

G20 leaders were probably feeling 

pretty good about themselves back 

in 2013 when Australia took over the 

rotating presidency; they had fought 

off a depression, after all. 

Still, the economic recovery lacked 

momentum. So, the self-appointed 

steering committee of the global 

economy took it upon itself to organize 

another round of co-ordinated 

stimulus. The Brisbane summiteers 

boasted of putting together a list 

of some 800 measures that would 

increase GDP in the years to come. 

It sounded like a gimmick, and the 

passage of time would show that 

to be true. By 2016, the IMF had 

concluded that the Brisbane goals 

“seem[ed] out of reach.” There has 

been little said about them since. 

There are lessons to be learned 

from Brisbane’s commitments. 

“One is the relevance of the wise 

old rule among forecasters — give 

a number or a date, but not both,” 

Edwards said in an email. “The other 

relates to the political temptation 

of winning headlines with a grand 

undertaking which cannot be judged 

until sometime after the key players 

have moved on to other things. The 

outcome might be to encourage scepticism 

about promises which depend 

on the achievement of 800 different 

reforms by 20 different countries. 

That might be a good result — to 

make these idle promises less appealing 

for future G20 meetings, at least 

for a while.” 

The tenth year of the G20 as a 

leaders’ forum should come with a 

frank discussion about its limits. The 

Argentines have said repeatedly this 

year that the public should be happy 

that leaders continue to meet given 

all the strained relationships. 

“There is a very clear vision that 

we have 

group 

to keep this 

alive and 

functioning 

› US President Donald Trump 

in harmony because it is in bad times 

when we see how important, how 

key, this group is,” Nicolás Dujovne, 

the finance minister, told reporters 

in July. 

But surely the G20 can do better 

than that. The central banks have 

done a decent job at overhauling 

international financial regulation. 

There are gaps, but the system is far 

safer than it was a decade ago. And 

countries also have been remarkably 

effective at executing their technocratic 

commitments, according to 

the annual assessments of the University 

of Toronto’s G20 Research 

Group. 

It’s the big promises that cause 

the G20 trouble. After the crisis, the 

group resolved to avoid tariffs and 

other trade restrictions. The commitment 

couldn’t hold. The World 

Trade Organization (WTO) reported 

on November 22 that trade worth 

US$481 billion was impeded by 

restrictive measures from mid-May 

to mid-October, the largest amount 

since the WTO started keeping track 

in 2012. When it became clear that 

a glut of steel was becoming a political 

issue, the G20 said it would do 

something about it. Nothing happened. 

That created the conditions 

that allowed Trump to act on his 

own, issuing steel and aluminium 

tariffs under the guise of national 

security that triggered the trade war. 

The G20 had no answer. 

“We are working to strengthen the 

contribution of trade to our economies,” 

G20 finance ministers stated 

meekly after a meeting in July. 

It’s not just the G20; expectations 

for international summitry rarely 

have been lower. 

The leaders of the Asia-Pacific 

Economic Cooperation 

group couldn’t even agree on 

a communiqué when they met 

in Papua New Guinea earlier 

this month. The buzz ahead 

of the Buenos Aires Summit 

has been about side events, 

including a dinner between 

Trump and his Chinese counterpart, 

Xi Jinping (which may 

be the main event of the summit) 

and a possible signing ceremony for 

the new United States-Mexico-Canada 

Agreement. 

The G20 needs to earn some clout 

— fast — or risk becoming as irrelevant 

in global affairs as the Group 

of Seven. IMF research suggests that 

the right mix of policies could raise 

GDP by four%. 

Instead of promising hundreds of 

measures, each country could choose 

one from the IMF’s list and promise 

to implement it. For example, the 

United States could ease up on fiscal 

stimulus, which is forcing the Federal 

Reserve to raise interest rates to 

stay ahead of inflation; Italy could 

pledge to reduce debt, and Canada 

could promise to spend more on 

research. 

Politicians tend to prefer grand 

gestures, but those haven’t worked 

very well for the G20 lately. 

The group needs to show it is capable 

of making a difference. 

If it doesn’t, it could find that it 

lacks the credibility it will need to 

fight the next crisis. – Center for 

International Governance Innovation


■ HEALTH 

Namibia’s success in the fight against HIV 

■ Vauldi Carelse 

Harvey Davis comes to 

open the gate to his dusty, 

wind-swept compound in 

the remote part of northern Namibia. 

“Welcome, welcome, it’s been so 

long since we’ve had visitors,” he 

exclaims at the two health workers. 

The 79-year-old summons his wife, 

Ruth Nasidengo, who is 40, from 

their home. She emerges with two 

babies, clinging to each arm. 

This is the front line in Namibia’s 

war against HIV, where a data-driven 

on-the-ground approach has helped 

it become one of the most successful 

countries in tackling its spread. 

The red-uniformed health workers 

are field officers, who report to 

a troop commander, who in turn is 

under a division commander. Rather 

than guns, their weapons are a small 

plastic table and a cooler bag filled 

with ice packs and HIV tests. 

Leontine Iipinge and Maria 

Johannes have walked more than 

3km from their base in the Oshana 

region to visit the couple. 

The initials TCE, meaning Total 

Control of Epidemic, stand out in 

bold letters on their shirts. It is a programme 

run by a national non-governmental 

organisation, Development 

Aid from People to People 

(Dapp Namibia). 

The field workers are two of more 

than 200 TCE health workers serving 

a population of nearly 182,000. 

Nasidengo, a mother of twins, has 

been living with HIV for over a decade 

and has been a client of TCE for 

two years. But this visit is about her 

husband as he is about to get his first 

home HIV test. The ice packs in the 

cooler maintain the correct temperature 

for the rapid tests. 

With his 11-month-old daughter, 

Dora, sitting on his lap Davis watches 

as Iipinge unpacks and disinfects her 

instruments and pricks his finger. 

“I’m not worried,” he quips, “but 

it sure looks like Dora is.” 

Detective work 

As the 15 minutes tick by before 

the result is known, Iipinge explains 

how testing the partners of people 

with HIV helps contain the spread 

of the virus. 

Back at their base in Oshakati 

town, they compile data of all people 

known to be HIV-positive and then 

set about tracing their sexual partners 

to establish their HIV status. 

The rapid test looks for HIV antibodies 

in the blood and the results 

are indicated by stripes appearing in 

the window of the device. 

As Davis and his daughter watch, 

a single stripe appears showing that 

he is HIV-negative (two stripes indicates 

a positive result). But he is still 

referred to a hospital as he needs to 

be given drugs that reduce the risk of 

contracting the virus from someone 

who is HIV-positive by 90%. 

TCE field officers have worked in 

this area for 14 years. 

They have built community trust 

and respect but not everyone can be 

easily persuaded to take an HIV test. 

The next stop for Iipinge and 

Johannes is about 12km away and 

they are heading to the home of Lucas 

Angula in the Evululuko township. 

He found out that he was HIV-positive 

just last month, but it had taken 

his wife, Matilda Ipandula, 10 years 

to convince him to take the test: “We 

would always fight and argue whenever 

I brought up the issue of HIV 

testing with my husband,” she says. 

“He refused to listen and that’s 

why I asked our neighbour to get 

involved. It was difficult but it had 

to be done.” 

The neighbour, Emirita Kuutondokwa, 

now forms part of Angula’s 

trio, a support group made up of 

someone who is HIV-positive and 

two others. 

He says their encouragement has 

helped him deal with his diagnosis 

and take the drugs that help contain 

the spread of the virus. 

Support is a key ingredient to the 

success in containing the spread of 

HIV here. 

Close to Angula’s house, a small 

knot of people have gathered under 

a marula fruit tree. 

They are singing a song, in the 

Oshiwambo language, about how 

they are the lucky ones. 

This is what is known as a Community 

Adherence Club - a group of 

12 people who are all HIV-positive. 

They take turns to collect medication 

from the clinic 20km away. This 

frees the remaining 11 to get on with 

other things and avoids clogging up 

the clinic. 

‘Not about the money’ 

After seeing to her clients, the division 

commander, Johannes, joins the 

group to shake off the tension of the 

day as they dance around the tree. 

“When you get into this, it’s first 

about the job and the salary but as 

you stay it becomes about the people 

and the passion,” she says. 

“I’ve had field officers here who 

have only stayed for five months 

because they feel what they get as a 

salary does not compensate the time 

they spend at work but the ones that 

stay, they have passion to be with the 

people, to work with the people, to 

improve the lives of the people.” 

Newly released data by the US 

President’s Emergency Plan for Aids 

Relief (Pepfar) shows it is this community-centred 

approach that has 

helped Namibia exceed some of the 

90-90-90 targets set by UNAids in 

2014. 

The figures measure: 

Republic of Namibia 

NAMIBIA WOMEN’S DAY 

10 December 2018 

The Government of the Republic of Namibia and the entire nation wish to salute 

and honour all Namibian women as we commemorate Namibia Women’s Day 

On this day, we commend all Namibian women for their hard work, dedication, and 

commitment towards nurturing and shaping the future of this nation. 

Their daily sacrifice and perseverance is immeasurable. 

We salute women for speaking up against gender based violence, inequality and all 

forms of discrimination and injustices, and for the socio-economic wellbeing of all 

They are the wells from which we continue to draw courage in the face of adversity 

and strength in building a non-violent nation 

Let us continue to unite in the fight against Gender Based Violence 

and protect the rights of all 

to make Namibia a safer place. 

The Government is committed to eliminate atrocities committed against 

the vulnerable members of our society 

and protect and defend the rights and dignity of all our people. 

Viva Namibian Women Viva! 

The percentage of people who 

are thought to be HIV-positive who 

know their status The percentage of 

people who know their status who 

are taking antiretroviral drugs 

The percentage of people who are 

taking the drugs who have an undetectable 

level of HIV 

For Namibia, the figures are 86%, 

96% and 91% respectively. 

‘No time to relax’ 

Its neighbour, South Africa, the 

country with the highest number of 

HIV infections in the world, scores 

90-68-78. 

But Health Minister Dr Bernard 

Haufiku says now is not the time for 

complacency. 

“There is a real possibility that 

we will be able to reach our target 

by the date set by UNAids [2020], 

we just have to give it a little bit of 

a push because we are almost there, 

just a few percentages left. We need 

to focus, especially on the prevention 

campaigns in the field, targeting 

young people that have not been 

tested.” 

Namibia used to have one of the 

highest HIV-prevalence rates in the 

world, but in the past 15 years, the 

number of new HIV infections has 

halved. 

But the high infection rate among 

young women aged 15-24 continues 

to worry health officials here. 

The health minister adds that on 

the 30th anniversary of World Aids 

Day, on Saturday, he will be encouraging 

young men to get tested and 

treated. 

In Namibia, it seems to be the 

older generation, men like Davis and 

Angula, who are setting the example. 

Ms Johannes hopes that at some 

point she will no longer have to 

deliver bad news to her clients. 

“I remember there was a day in 

2015,” she says. “My first six clients 

of the day all tested positive. Telling 

six people they’re HIV-positive, 

without a break… it’s a day I’ll never 

forget.” – BBC News

Business 

The Southern Times 

■ 

Economy 

■ Finance 

■ Commodities 

■ Agribusiness 

■ Tourism 

15 

Afreximbank 

drums up 

Africa’s US$300bn plan 

■ Timo Shihepo 

Windhoek - The 

African Export 

Import Bank 

(Afreximbank) 

believes that the continent can 

achieve the target of US$300 billion 

needed for its Annual Cost 

of Development Plan. 

The US$300 billion is required 

for the attainment of the 10-year 

plan under the African Union’s 

Agenda 2063. 

Agenda 2063 is a strategic 

framework for the socio-economic 

transformation of the 

continent over the next 50 

years, it builds on and seeks 

to accelerate the implementation 

of past and existing 

continental initiatives for 

growth and sustainable 

development. 

President of the Afreximbank, Benedict 

Oramah, says Africa has money 

to meet the estimated US$300 billion 

needed to accomplish the 10-year 

plan contained in the African 

Union’s Agenda 2063. 

Speaking at the World Youth 

Forum 2018 in Egypt last week, 

Oramah said the money is there 

because Africa’s foreign 

exchange 

reserves 

cur- 

› President of the 

Afreximbank, 

Benedict Oramah 

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■ BUSINESS 

AFREXIMBANK 

> From Page 15 

rently stood at almost 

US$500 billion and had 

consistently been above that 

figure until the commodity 

price shock in 2015/2016. 

“The continent also 

had about US$800 billion 

under management by pension 

funds in the 12 African 

countries where the market 

was most developed, 

with that figure forecast 

to rise to US$1.1 trillion by 

2020. In addition, Africa 

received US$63 billion in 

migrant remittances annually, 

showing that the continent 

had more than US$1 

trillion that it could use to 

finance the US$300 billion 

of investment that is 

required,” he said. 

Oramah, however, said 

the challenge was that the 

reserves were sitting outside 

Africa, earning little 

or nothing and that when 

African countries tried to 

borrow the same money, 

they ended up paying very 

high rates. 

“The continent needs to 

look inward, to ask why 

can’t we do something 

about it? Why can’t we 

recycle some of our money? 

Why can’t we do what some 

of the Asian countries have 

done?” 

He said Afreximbank 

had attempted to answer 

those questions by giving 

itself an objective to raise 

US$10 billion from Africa 

in five years to support its 

business. 

The bank says it was 

surprised when it raised 

US$5.7 billion in the first 

year. Oramah, further said 

Africa had to find a way to 

more effectively use the 

migrant revenue that was 

coming into the continent 

and highlighted the need 

to democratise investment 

opportunities in Africa. 

He added that people 

should not look to governments 

alone to make 

investments but should 

bring in private money, he 

added. 

Afreximbank was established 

in Abuja, Nigeria, 

in October 1993 by African 

governments, African 

private and institutional 

investors as well as non-African 

financial institutions 

and private investors for 

the purpose of financing, 

promoting and expanding 

intra-African and 

extra-African trade. 

The bank was established 

under the twin constitutive 

instruments of an agreement 

signed by member 

states and multilateral 

organisations, as well as 

a Charter. This confers on 

the Bank the status of an 

international multilateral 

organisation. The charter 

governs its corporate structure 

and operations. The 

authorised share capital of 

the bank is US$5 billion. 

Unitel International 

enters Zambian market 

› Former Angolan president Eduardo dos 

Santos’ daughter, Isabel 

■ Jeff Kapembwa 

Lusaka -UZI Zambia 

Mobile Ltd, a 

subsidiary of the 

Dutch-headquartered 

and global Unitel International 

Holdings BV, is set to 

begin operations in Zambia 

early next year as the country’s 

fourth mobile service provider. 

The commencement of business 

by the company, initially 

operated in Angola, has been 

delayed from November this 

year to allow the company to 

secure frequencies, facilitate the 

recrutment of over 40 staff and 

formalise operating licences, 

Misheck Lungu, Zambia’s permanent 

secretary for communications 

told The Southern Times 

on Tuesday. 

“UZI has indicated to us that 

they will start full operations 

in Zambia by the first quarter 

next year. They initially wanted 

to open up business in November 

but they instead shelved to 

January or February to finalise 

a number of formalities, including 

frequencies,” Lungu said. 

The fourth mobile service 

“ 

provider in Zambia comes as 

a response to outcries by local 

service end-users over the inept 

services received from the existing 

companies, Airtel, MTN 

and state-owned Zamtel. 

Last year, UZI Zambia won 

the licence to enter the local 

market after the telecommunications 

regulator, the Zambia 

Information and Communication 

Technologies Authority 

(ZICTA) floated a public tender. 

According to economic 

experts, the UZI Zambia investment 

would contribute to the 

growth and development of the 

telecommunications sector in 

the country through the implementation 

of the latest LTE 

technology to provide reliable 

and high-quality products and 

services through a national 4G 

network, and investment in 5G 

network in the near future. 

“UZI Zambia Mobile will create 

new jobs and opportunities 

in Zambia and will focus on the 

training and development of all 

its employees as well as building 

its relationships with the local 

communities through its social 

Isabel is believed 

to own a stake in 

UZI Zambia 

responsibility programmes,” 

John Kasanga, an independent 

trade and economic consultant 

said. 

Earlier, a statement by UZI 

Zambia stated that with the 

addition of this operation to 

those existing in Cape Verde 

and São Tomé and participation 

in NOS in Portugal, UIH 

takes another decisive step in 

its expansion strategy in Africa, 

bringing highly innovative and 

award-winning products and 

services to the continent. 

Two companies including, 

Unitel, expressed an interest in 

the licences, the Zambia Information 

& Communications 

Technology Authority said in 

a statement. 

During the first half of 2017, 

active mobile-phone subscriptions 

in Zambia increased by 

3.4% to 12.4 million, according 

to the finance ministry, compared 

to a population of about 

16.5 million. 

Former Angolan president 

Eduardo dos Santos’ daughter, 

Isabel ‐ Africa’s richest woman 

– is believed to own a stake in 

UZI Zambia. According to commentators, 

Unitel International 

Holdings BV, in which Dos Santos 

owns a 25% stake, had initially 

pledged to invest more 

than US$500 million through a 

local unit to be called UZI Zambia 

Mobile Limited instead of 

the proposed US$400 million. 

The investment would, however, 

be increased based on the 

expansion of the business in 

the country, given the increasing 

interest in mobile communication 

services including 

money transfer services being 

maximised by the three service 

providers.


17 

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■ BUSINESS 

Cisco commits to training 

millions in Africa 

■ Fundisiwe Maseko 

At the Global Citizen 

Festival South 

Africa 2018, Cisco 

announced its commitment 

to training 10 million 

people worldwide for jobs in the 

digital economy, including one 

million in Africa over the next 

five years. 

The Chairman and CEO of 

Cisco, Chuck Robbins gathered 

with government officials as well 

as businesses in Johannesburg to 

share commitment pledges for 

Global Citizen as well as share initiatives 

and programmes that aim 

to address the skills and job deficit 

in South Africa. 

Speaking about Cisco’s commitment 

Robbins said, “This is 

an incredibly important initiative 

for us. We are also looking to build 

job portals on the backend of our 

academy programme so that not 

only do we educate participants 

and wish them well, but we actually 

give them the opportunity to 

work for our partners. We have 

650 partners in South Africa who 

operate with us to input jobs so that 

we can match the skills of students 

with the opportunities that exist 

out there.” 

Robins revealed that the aim of 

businesses is to take a more active 

role in caring deeply about the 

issues that exist in the world other 

than just running businesses. He 

said, “Historically we have been 

focused on ensuring that we provide 

connectivity and education 

to all parts of the world. We have 

seen that when you connect people 

and educate them, you give them 

an opportunity.” 

“As an industry, we have to deal 

with issues of basic needs because 

if you don’t deal with those issues 

then connectivity doesn’t matter. 

Over the last couple of years, we 

have shifted our strategy to not 

only be one of connectivity, education 

and opportunity but we are 

moving a step back and ensuring 

that we are working on issues of 

basic needs,” added Robbins. 

› Cisco commits $1.5 billion to digital workforce training worldwide - (Silicon Valley Business Journal) 

Cisco also announced the winner 

of the Global Citizen Youth 

Leadership prize, which went to 

Wawira Njiru of Kenya. This award 

recognizes youth leaders between 

the age of 18 and 30 who have made 

a measurable impact on one of 

the UN’s Global Goals, and who 

inspires others to do the same. This 

award seeks to recognise ordinary 

young people doing extraordinary 

things and includes a US$250,000 

prize. Wawira is the Founder and 

Executive Director of Food for 

Education, an organisation that 

works with vulnerable children in 

Kenyan public schools to improve 

their lives by providing subsidised, 

nutritious school lunches. In the 

next 3 years, she aims to increase 

the number of school lunches from 

the current 2,000 to 20,000 a day in 

Year 1; 50,000 a day in Year 2 and 

100,000 a day in Year 3. 

Initiatives in South Africa 

In the 21 years of the Network 

Academy programme, Cisco has 

educated over 60,000 students in 

South Africa of which 31% have 

been female. 

Robbins added that: “In the technology 

industry, we have to ensure 

that we stepping up, and make sure 

that we are bringing education not 

only in very advanced areas but 

giving people opportunity. People 

who have been displaced due 

to technology. We need to provide 

platforms for them to be educated 

and placed in other areas of the 

workforce.” 

The Minister of Communications, 

Telecommunications and 

Postal Services, Stella Ndabeni-Abrahams 

who was also in 

attendance revealed that the 

department launched the e-skills 

summit in 2012 in a bid to build a 

digital society. 

Ndabeni-Abrahams noted that: 

“As everybody talks about the 

greatness that technology can offer, 

we want to make sure that we locate 

the person at the centre. So, if we 

were to put the people in the centre 

we have to make sure that we 

realise the value of these technologies. 

This will not only make people 

the consumers of technology, but 

it will teach them how to change 

their lives.” 

E-skills Institute 

After the launch of the 

Ikamva e-skills Institute, there 

were some hiccups, revealed the 

minister, but the government 

returned in 2017 and they kept 

in contact with the industry. 

“Through the budget vote last 

year we declared that we will 

be building a capable Fourth 

Industrial Revolution arm. For 

us to do that we had to make 

sure that people are at the centre 

in terms of the skills. We 

made a major commitment to 

training about 1 million people 

in South Africa,” said Stella 

Ndabeni-Abrahams. 

The department also established 

the 4IR skills forum, 

which brings together all 

stakeholders that are involved 

in skills training. These industries, 

large and small, can come 

together and find information, 

assistance or services related to 

Industry 4.0 and Digital Transformation. 

Digitising government 

In a bid to ensure that the 

government is also digitised, 

the department launched the 

government e-strategy which 

resulted in the launch of the 

first government cloud with 

SITA. 

SITA’s vision was to establish 

a government private cloud, 

defined as “an ecosystem of 

different clouds”, for exclusive 

access by government departments 

– owned by the government 

and operated and managed 

by SITA. 

The SITA’s cloud computing 

programme created a multi-year 

modernisation roadmap 

and gave rise to the government 

private cloud ecosystem, a connected 

and fully orchestrated 

cloud computing platform. Also 

known as the cloud foundation 

infrastructure, it allows the 

management of cloud resources 

and workload, irrespective of 

their location in the ecosystem. 

“The government appreciates 

that we cannot do it alone 

as government, we believe that 

working together we can do 

more. We want South Africa 

to be a major participant in 

the global world when comes to 

innovations, said the minister.” 

“The opportunity is now 

and the only way we can realize 

this opportunity that exists 

all around the world and South 

Africa is for us to drive deep 

partnerships together and that 

means partnerships between 

other major tech companies 

with government and other 

businesses. That is the only way 

we are going to achieve what’s 

possible,” concluded Robbins. 

– IT News Africa 

The poor bear brunt of rising commodity prices 

Harare - Record 

high food and 

other commodity 

prices are 

impacting on access to food 

among poor households as the 

2018-19 lean season intensifies 

in Zimbabwe. 

Since early October, commodity 

prices have been 

increasing following the new 

tax and currency measures 

effected by the government. 

Many wholesalers, supermarkets, 

and other retail 

outlets face acute shortages 

of cooking oil, sugar, wheat 

flour, and bread among other 

basic commodities, which is 

affecting poor household food 

access in rural and remote 

areas. 

Consequently, the annual 

inflation rate for October 

went up from 5.39% in September 

to a nine-year high 

of 20.85%, according to the 

Zimbabwe National Statistics 

Agency. 

The Famine Early Warning 

Systems Network (FEWS 

NET), a leading provider of 

information and analysis on 

food insecurity, noted since 

October, the average price of 

maize increased by 18% in its 

sentinel sites. 

In the main market in 

Mbare, outside the capital 

Harare, the staple grain 

costs some US$0.40 per kilogramme. 

Mbare is the largest 

market in the country and 

supplies other markets. 

The average November price 

is about 76% higher than the 

same time last year and 34% 

above the five-year average. 

Similarly, maize meal prices 

increased over the past month. 

The average price increased 

in November by 6% average 

in FEWS NET sentinel sites. 

The price is about 36% above 

same time last year and 9% 

above the five-year average. 

“Increases in maize meal 

prices are attributed partly 

to increased prices in packaging 

materials, among other 

production cost hikes,” FEWS 

NET stated. Meanwhile, 

international climate forecasts 

indicate that seasonal 

rainfall during the months 

of November 2018 to March 

2019 period across Zimbabwe, 

southern Malawi, southern 

Zambia, Madagascar, Lesotho 

and southern Mozambique is 

most likely to be below average. 

FEWS NET noted the 

official 2018-19 rainfall season 

was supposed to begin in 

October but rainfall has only


19 

■ BUSINESS 

Finance takes insurers to Supreme Court 

Windhoek – Namibia’s 

Ministry of 

Finance (MoF) 

has lodged an 

urgent appeal with the Supreme 

Court against an order made by 

the High Court that relates to the 

setting up of a new reinsurance system 

in Namibia. 

High Court Judge, Thomas 

Masuku, on 20 September 2018 

dismissed an urgent application 

in which the Ministry of Finance 

and the state-owned reinsurance 

company, NamibRe, took eight 

insurance companies to court 

over their refusal to comply with 

the new system. 

The new reinsurance system 

limits the outflow of reinsurance 

premiums from Namibia to 

R1 billion per annum with effect 

from 30 June 2018, and that reinsurance 

by insurance companies 

be effected with Namibia Reinsurance 

Cooperation Limited 

(NamibRe). 

Six of the eight companies 

agreed to honour the new reinsurance 

system while the court battle 

continues. The battle includes a 

revival of the constitutional challenge 

by a number of insurers to 

the Reinsurance Act, which was 

dismissed by a full bench of the 

High Court in 2000. 

Hollard Insurance Company 

of Namibia and Old Mutual Life 

Assurance Company Namibia 

refused to comply with the new 

system on 30 June, which was the 

last day of the notice period before 

it came into operation. 

This resulted in the application 

by the ministry to require the two 

companies to comply. 

Masuku, however, granted an 

order to suspend the operation of 

the Act of Parliament for at least 

two years. 

Minister of Finance, Calle 

Shlettwein was quoted in the 

statement as saying it is very 

important issues. 

“These include whether, or if so, 

when a court has the power simply 

to suspend an Act of Parliament,” 

said Shlettwein. 

He noted that the final effect 

of the order will see an outflow 

of over R2 billion from Namibia 

which the new system seeks to 

limit. - Nampa 

in Zim 

recently begun in most 

parts of Zimbabwe as of 

late November. 

As a result of the late 

rains, farmers in some 

parts of the country started 

planting on the third week 

of November. 

“Still, the levels of land 

preparation, planting, and 

on-farm casual labour 

opportunities are below 

normal for this time of the 

year,” FEWS NET stated. – 

CAJ News


■ BUSINESS 

SA economy out of recession 


Pretoria- Statistics South 

Africa has announced 

that the country’s economy 

has officially exited 

the recession after reporting 2.2% 

gross domestic product (GDP) 

growth for the third quarter of 

the year. 

Addressing journalists in Pretoria 

on Tuesday morning, Statistician-General 

of South Africa 

Risenga Maluleke said the economic 

growth was mainly driven 

by the manufacturing, transport 

and finance industries. 

The 2.2% growth is up from a 

revised contraction of 0.4% in the 

second quarter. 

According to Statistics SA, economic 

output also rose 0.5% on an 

unadjusted year-on-year basis in 

the third quarter. 

Statistics SA indicated that 

the main growth driver was the 

manufacturing industry, which 

expanded by 7.5% in the third quarter 

from an increase in basic iron 

and steel, metal products, machinery 

and motor vehicles. 

According to the organization, 

iron and steel, metal products 

and machinery, wood, paper and 

publishing; petroleum, chemical 

products, rubber and plastic products; 

and motor vehicles, parts and 

accessories and other transport 

equipment did well in the manufacturing 

industry. 

They said agriculture was next 

with an increased output of 6.5%. 

The transport, storage and communication 

sector was up by 5.7% 

while finance, real estate and business 

services increased by 2.3%, 

also in the third quarter. 

The primary industry sector 

however still lags with the mining 

industry decreasing by 8.8%, construction 

by 2.7% and electricity, 

gas and water by 0.9%. 

The positive growth recorded in 

the third quarter follows two quarters 

of negative growth in the first 

(-2.6) and second (-0.7%) quarters 

this year. 

It was also recorded that household 

final consumption expenditure 

increased by 1.6% in the third 

quarter, which contributed 1.0% 

to total growth, Statistics SA said. 

The growth has been a welcome 

relief to a country that has suffered 

two successive quarters of negative 

growth. 

Economists, however, say despite 

the rebound, the overall gross 

domestic product growth for 2018 

remains weak, even perhaps less 

than one percent. 

The SA Reserve Bank has projected 

just 0.6% real economic 

growth for 2018, while ratings 

agency S&P Global expects an 

increase of 0.8% for the full year. 

Nam businesses borrow 

more during October: BoN 

Wi n d h o e k - 

Growth in total 

credit extended 

to businesses 

continued an upward trend 

during October 2018, the Bank 

of Namibia (BoN) reported on 

Tuesday. 

In its latest Money and Banking 

Statistics publication availed 

to Nampa, the BoN stated that 

the annual growth in credit 

extended to businesses stood at 

7.1% at the end of October 2018, 

compared to 6% at the end of the 

preceding month. 

BoN said the growth was 

driven by an uptake of shortterm 

credit facilities by businesses 

in the services, fishing, 

manufacturing and mining sectors 

during the period under 

review. 

On the other hand, credit 

extended to the household sector 

also rose slightly, from 6.9% 

to 7%, at the end of October 

2018 compared to the preceding 

month. 

“The meagre increase in credit 

extended to the household sector 

was underpinned by a higher 

uptake of mortgage credit coupled 

with the continued increase 

in other loans and advances during 

the month under review,” the 

publication states. 

It further reported that annual 

growth in broad money supply 

(M2) rose to 14.2% from 12.5% in 

the preceding month. 

M2 refers to the calculation of 

the money supply that includes 

all elements of M1 as well as 'near 

money.' 

M1 includes cash and checking 

deposits, while near money 

refers to savings deposits, money 

market securities, mutual funds 

and other time deposits. 

The money supply is the totality 

of assets that households and 

businesses can use to make payments 

or to hold as short-term 

investments such as currency, 

funds in bank accounts and 

anything of value resembling 

money. 

According to the BoN, the 

growth in M2 was mainly driven 

by the rising growth observed 

in the net foreign assets of the 

depository corporations, specifically 

from the other depository 

corporations. 

The rise in M2 during October 

was further reflected in the 

increased levels of transferable 

deposits as well as currency in 

circulation which rose. 

The overall liquidity position 

declined during October 2018, 

slowing to R3.4 billion from 

R4.7 billion from the preceding 

month. - Nampa


21 

■ BUSINESS 

BUSINESS 

BRIEFS 

Tax benefits for 

investments in Angola 

increase with new law 

Angola’s Private Investment 

Law regulation, 

which entered into force 

on 30 October, increases 

tax benefits for investors, at a time 

when the country intends to stimulate 

its non-oil economy and the 

export sector. 

The new regulation approves the 

legal procedures for capital injections 

carried out under the new Private 

Investment Law of May 2018, 

applicable to projects started after 30 

October, and provision is made for a 

transitional regime for other projects 

already underway, according to the 

regional coordination of the Legis- 

PALOP+TL legal database. 

For investment projects started 

before 30 October, which are still governed 

by the regulations of the previous 

Law, interested parties should 

request the application of Presidential 

Decree No. 250/18, “an essential step 

if they also wish to benefit from the 

new more favourable regime.” 

This regime, he added, includes, 

among other things, “the new automatic 

tax benefits for the holders 

of Private Registration Certificate 

(CRIP), assigned by the new competent 

entity, the Private Investment 

and Export Promotion Agency 

(Aipex).” 

For investment projects approved 

before 26 June, the private investors 

concerned may also expressly request 

to fall under the scheme established 

in the new LIP and its regulations. 

The most favourable benefits 

include reductions in Sisa Tax, 

Urban Property Tax, Industrial Tax 

and Capital Expenditure Tax set out 

in the special regime for the new A, 

B, C and D Zones in Law No. 10/18. 

Other advantages, according to the 

same source, are the exemption of 

payment to Apiex for a year, namely 

the costs of filing the request, of issuing 

the CRIP, for a 2nd copy of or 

changes to the CRIP, for issuing statements 

and for reinvestment, ranging 

from about US$100 to US$3,000 

(40,000 to 1 million kwanzas). 

The economic activities covered by 

the priority sectors of activity that 

benefit from the new special regime 

are listed in detail in Presidential 

Decree No. 250/18, “corresponding 

to the market segments identifying 

the potential of import substitution 

or of promotion and diversification 

of the economy, including exports.” 

› Licínio Contreiras, CEO of AIPEX 

The same source said “the benefits 

and other facilities already granted 

under previous investment laws and 

regulations shall remain in force for 

the time periods originally set, and 

no extension thereof shall be permitted.” 

The president of Aipex, Licínio Vaz 

Contreiras, recently announced that 

since the approval of the new law in 

May 2018, the agency has received 

57 investment proposals totaling 

US$502 million. 

Of these proposals, 30% are 

related to foreign investment and the 

remaining 70% to national investment. 

- Macauhub 

Zim's top miller 

shuts down 

Harare - One of Zimbabwe's largest food manufacturers, 

National Foods, announced Tuesday 

that it will shut down its two mills due to 

foreign currency shortages. 

The indefinite shutdown is expected to affect the supply 

of bread whose price recently went up from US$1.10 for a 

standard loaf to about US$1.50 as bakers cite high cost of 

raw materials. 

In a letter to its customers dated December 3, the company 

said it has been facing difficulties in settling its foreign 

wheat suppliers due to the foreign currency shortages. 

"Due to delays in repatriating payments to our foreign 

wheat suppliers, our wheat suppliers have today (Monday) 

instructed National Foods to cease draw down of wheat 

stocks. National Foods will mill out the wheat in process 

and we anticipate both our mills in Harare and Bulawayo 

to close on Wednesday, 5 December," the company's chief 

executive Michael Lashbrook said. 

The company warned that unless the payment situation 

is rectified, it expects to be out of stock of baking flour 

later this week. 

"National Foods continues to work with the authorities to 

resolve this foreign payment issue. We would like to reassure 

you that we have a full pipeline of both imported and 

local wheat booked and that once payment is made we will 

immediately restart milling operations," Lashbrook said. 

Zimbabwe's crippling foreign currency shortages have 

resulted in shortages of critical imports such as fuel and 

medicines. 

Motorists are spending hours on end queuing up at pump 

stations to get the scarce commodity while junior doctors 

at the country's referral hospitals have gone on strike 

demanding payment of their salaries in US dollars, among 

other things. 

This is the second strike by the doctors this year alone. 

- Nampa/Xinhua 

Diamond prospects 

a concern in 2019 

Windhoek – De Beers Group Chief Executive 

Officer, Bruce Cleaver, has voiced concern 

over Namibia’s diamond trading prospects 

for 2019. 

Speaking during a visit to State House on Monday, Cleaver 

informed President Hage Geingob that although 2018 was a 

good year for the diamond industry owing to the continuous 

demand for the precious gem, the prospects for the forthcoming 

year are bleak. 

Cleaver explained that things are getting quite tense largely 

because of the knock-on impact of the trade wars between 

China and the United States. 

He added that it is making consumers in China “a little 

bit nervous”. 

“The thing about diamond jewellery is that it’s a discretionary 

purchase. You need to feel a bit positive about life before 

you make a big purchase, because it’s a big emotional purchase, 

and so I’m a bit worried about that,” he said. 

Cleaver stressed that although he does not think the trade 

tariffs are really aimed at the diamond industry, the unintended 

consequences of it could be quite serious for the industry. 

Diamond trade for 2018 was better in the US, not so good 

in India and sort of average in China, Cleaver said, but raised 

worries about 2019. 

“If the Chinese don’t buy that’s not good for all of us. It 

doesn’t mean that people like diamonds less; this just means 

that they are nervous about their wealth and they are nervous 

about what is happening in 2019,” he stated. 

Geingob, on his part, said Cleaver’s analysis is “frightening, 

but it’s good to be in the fold of the industry’s goings-on so 

that plans can be made”. 

De Beers owns Namdeb in equal shares with the Namibian 

government. It mines diamonds at Oranjemund and along 

the southwest coast of Namibia. - Nampa


■ TOURISM 

Tanzania tour 

operators 

lose hope 

■ Adam Ihucha 

Tour operators in Tanzania are 

losing hope over the government’s 

delay to enforce the 

import duty exemptions on tourist 

vehicles as the clock ticks towards the 

onset of the high tourism season. 

During the 2018/19-budget session, Parliament 

amended the fifth schedule of the East 

African Community Customs Management 

Act 2004 in order to provide import duty 

exemption on various types of motor vehicles 

for transportation of tourists. 

Expectations were high that licensed tour 

operators, as from July 1, 2018, would have 

started importing motorcars, sightseeing 

buses, and overland trucks duty free, as a 

critical measure to spur development of the 

tourism industry. 

Tourism is a key sector of economy as it is 

the country’s largest foreign exchange earner 

raking in over US$2 billion annually, equivalent 

to 17 percent of the national GPD, official 

data indicates. 

But nearly 6 months later, the exemption 

has turned out to be an empty promise, 

as the government is still dragging its 

feet, prompting the Tanzania Association of 

Tour Operators (TATO) to seek clarification. 

TATO Chief Executive Officer, Sirili Akko, 

recently wrote a letter to the Minister of 

Finance, arguing that some tour operators 

were complaining about being subjected to 

the import duties and that some of their 

vehicles were stuck at ports over controversial 

import duty. 

“It is from this backdrop that TATO 

decided to write to you, seeking clarification 

on this particular issue. Does it mean 

that the exemption hasn’t been effected?” the 

letter signed by Akko reads in part. 

The Chairman of the association with over 

300 members across the country, Wilbard 

Chambulo, said his members are caught in 

a catch-22 after having discarded a number 

of old vehicles, expecting to import the dutyfree 

ones ready for transporting tourists in 

the forthcoming high season due to start in 

mid-December 2018. 

“Most of us are stranded as the government 

is silent on the import duty exemption. 

We just want a word from the government 

whether the commitment was either false or 

real,” Chambulo explained. 

TATO believes that the well-thought 

objective to waive import duty on various 

tourist vehicles was born out of interest of the 

fifth phase government to stimulate development 

of the tourism industry. 

Proposing the import duty exemption 

on various tourist vehicles in the 2018/19 

National Budget in Parliament, the Finance 

Minister, Dr Phillip Mpango, said a measure 

was critical for stimulating development of 

the multi-billion dollar tourism industry. 

“I propose to amend the fifth schedule of 

the East African Community Customs Management 

Act 2004, to provide import duty 

exemption on various types of motor vehicles 

for transportation of tourists,” Mpango 

tabled before the National Assembly in the 

country’s capital, Dodoma. 

He said the objective of the measure was 

to promote investments in the tourism sector, 

improve services, create employment, 

and increase government revenues. 

The TATO chief said members of the association 

were moved by the State’s decision 

to scrap the import duty, justifying that the 

tax exemption was a sigh of relief as it would 

save them US$9,727 for each imported tourist 

vehicle. 

“Imagine before this relief, some tour 

operators used 

to import up to 

100 new vehicles 

at a go and paid 

US$972,700 in 

import duty alone. 

Now this money will 

be invested expanding 

a company in a 

bid to create more jobs and revenues,” 

Chambulo explained. 

It is understood that TATO had fought 

consistently for the promise to be met. 

When the assembly approved the exemption, 

TATO members were grateful that the 

government was considerate enough to their 

outcry, terming the move as a win-win deal. 

Available records indicate that tour operators 

in Tanzania are subjected to 37 different 

taxes, including business registration, 

entry fees, fees for regulatory licenses, 

income taxes, and annual duties for each 

tourist vehicle. 

The TATO boss argued that the contentious 

issue is not only how to pay myriad 

taxes and make profits, but also the modality 

and time spent in complying with intricate 

taxes. 

“Tour operators need streamlined taxes to 

ease compliance, because the cost of compliance 

is so high and as such it inhibits voluntary 

compliance,” Chambulo explained. 

Indeed, a study on the Tanzanian tourism 

sector indicates administrative burdens of 

completing license taxes and levy paperwork 

place a heavy cost on businesses in 

terms of time and money. 

A tour operator, for instance, spends over 

4 months on completing regulatory paperwork. 

Tax and license paperwork consumes 

a total of his or her 745 hours per year. 

The joint report by the Tanzania Confederation 

of 

Tourism (TCT) 

and BEST-Dialogue 

shows that an average annual 

cost for personnel to accomplish the regulatory 

paperwork per each local tour operator 

stands at Tsh 2.9 million ( US$1,300) 

per year. 

Tanzania is estimated to be home to over 

1,000 tour companies, but official data shows 

that there are as few as 330 formal firms 

complying with the tax regime, which is 

likely to be due to complexities of compliance. 

This means that there could be 670 briefcase 

tour firms operating in Tanzania. 

Going by the annual license fee of US$2,000, 

it means the Treasury loses US$1.34 million 

annually. 

However, the Finance Minister also 

promised through the budget speech that 

the government was to introduce a single 

payment system that would enable businessmen 

to pay all taxes under one roof in a bid 

to offer them a hassle-free tax compliance. 

Dr. Mpango also scrapped various fees 

under Occupational, Safety and Health 

Authority (OSHA) such as those imposed 

on application forms for registration of work 

places, levies, fines related to fire and rescue 

equipment, compliance license, and consultancy 

fees of Tsh 500,000 ( US$222) and 

450,000 respectively ( US$200). 

“The government will continue reviewing 

various levies and fees imposed by parastatal 

institutions and agencies with a view 

to improving the business and investment 

environment,” the Minister told Parliament. 

- eTurboNews 

Wilderness Safaris launches Bush Buddy service in Zambezi 

Wilderness Safaris 

has introduced 

its family-friendly 

Bush Buddy service to camps 

in Botswana, Zambia and Zimbabwe. 

The complimentary service 

pairs children with a dedicated 

and trained mentor, for 

the duration of their stay, who 

tailor-makes an educational and 

entertainment programme specific 

to each child’s needs and 

interests. 

Daytime activities may 

include nature walks, where 

children are given tracking 

lessons, taught how to identify 

bird and animal calls, taken 

on treasure hunts, and experience 

creating natural sculptures 

from collected materials, 

painting with natural dyes, and 

making jewellery. 

In the evenings, they are 

introduced to frogging, 

star-gazing and local story-telling. 

“With the global trend of 

multi-generational travel on 

the rise, we believe that we, as 

a leading authentic and sustainable 

ecotourism company, have 

an important opportunity (and 

obligation) to not only expose 

our younger guests to the natural 

world, but to share it with 

them in a way that inspires them 

to love and respect it, and to 

ultimately become future custodians 

of our natural heritage”, 

says Dean Morton, Wilderness 

Safaris Zambezi Operations 

Manager. – Tourism Update

Arts 


■ Entertainment 

■ Music 

■ Theatre 

■ Movies 

■ Books 

23 

Bonang’s 

P150,000 

tag irks Bots 

presenters 

P24 

The National Art 

Gallery of Namibia 

creating space for visual artists 

Q&A 

The National Art Gallery of Namibia 

(NAGN), situated in the centre of the 

Namibian capital, Windhoek, is a 

state-owned institution that provides 

a platform to local and international artists to 

exhibit their artworks in its galleries. The national 

gallery also showcases the cream of Namibian 

visual artwork from the permanent collection. As 

2018 heads into the sunset, The Southern Times 

reporter, ANNIES ANGULA (AN) spoke to 

NAGN Chief Executive Officer, SNOBIA 

KAPUTU (SK) to share her experience 

as head of the country’s premier gallery 

and the expectations for the New Year. 

AN: Please share with us your experience as head of 

the National Art Gallery of Namibia 

SK: It has been an exciting 12 months’ experience as the Chief 

Executive Officer of the National Art Gallery of Namibia. 

Exciting in the sense that I am leading the only national institution 

responsible for the promotion and development of the 

visual arts in the country and abroad, a passion that I carried 

over the years. 

Witnessing innovative works of art filling the gallery walls and 

floors, the vast growing number of visitors from all walks of 

life during the official openings and duration of exhibitions; 

the interacting side events that accompany the respective exhibitions 

on display; and seeing a buyer purchasing an artwork 

from our local artists, which puts a smile on the face of an 

artist as they receive their money for their labour in creating 

unique and valuable work of art make me feel the positive 

impact that the NAGN makes towards the wellbeing of our 

Namibian Artists. It thus motivates me on a daily basis to 

create platforms that empower our artists. 

However, it sometimes becomes a painful experience when 

the exhibition is over without any artwork being purchased, 

which become a demotivating factor for artists to continue 

creating works of art, while experiencing challenges selling 

their artworks. Except for collections exhibitions, the key 

purpose of a selling exhibition is to create platforms for the 

artist to sell their artworks, and make a living. 

The challenge is that although the industry has been growing 

fast, the artists benefit on a minimal scale from their art 

because of few art buyers in the market. The sector can grow 

when the works of art are purchased, which will motivate 

artists to create more artworks. However, the current situation 

is that there is no equilibrium between the supply of 

artworks and the demand. 

AN: The year 2018 is coming to an end, and it has been 

a busy year for NAGN. Please share with us the highlights 

and activities that took place during the year? 

SK: NAGN exhibited several group and solo exhibitions. 

Some highlights worth mentioning are the film documentary 

exhibition from prominent international acclaimed British 

artist, Julie Brook and TERRA: Mining and Earth Matters 

Exhibition by Jeannette Unite from South Africa. Cats and 

Dogs Group exhibition featuring a collaborative body of work 

by Namibian and German artists using multiple media. In 

partnership with the Goethe-Institut Namibia and IFA, we 

hosted a travelling exhibition titled “Future Perfect”. Giving 

our local artists free exhibition space and curatorial services 

during the layout of their exhibitions continue to be our support 

for their creativity. 

› NAGN Chief Executive Officer, 

Snobia Kaputu 

Namibian artists participated 

in the booth 

group exhibition, which 

was an open call exhibition 

where each exhibiting 

artist received 2x2 

square metres of freedom 

to display their work. In 

collaboration with our 

local tertiary institutions 

that offer visual arts disciplines, 

we hosted the New Beginnings Exhibition showcasing 

artworks by graduates of the College of the Arts. 

The University of Namibia is currently exhibiting the artworks 

from the graduates who are majoring in various fields such 

as Art for Advertising, Ceramic Studies, Creative Expression, 

Fashion Studies, Textiles Studies and Visual Culture. 

The exhibition reflects the outcome, dedication and creative 

products by the students throughout the academic year. In 

celebrating Namibia 28th Independence, an exhibition titled 

Na/m(e)/bia Independence exhibition, an exhibition celebrating 

Namibia Independence through the eyes of the artists was 

one of the highlights showcasing artworks from NAGN Permanent 

Collection and artworks from contemporary artist. 

Isabel Katjavivi, an overall winner of Bank Windhoek Triennial 

2017, was given an opportunity to showcase a solo 

exhibition titled “They Tried to Bury Us”. Pre-Tulipamwe, a 

retrospective exhibition displaying some of Tulipamwe collection 

artworks and some contemporary works from artists 

whose artworks are part of the collection were showcased, 

subsequent to that Tulipamwe Exhibition featuring an outcome 

of artworks produced at 2018 Tulipamwe International 

Artists’ Workshop were exhibited. 

During the Arts Summit of Southern Africa that took place 

in Windhoek, NAGN took on the opportunity to display 

57 artworks from 57 artists. It was a great opportunity for 

Namibian artists to showcase their artworks. John Ndevasia 

Muafangejo (1943-1987): ‘Marking The Legacy That Still 

Inspire’ is a historical exhibition of John Ndevasia Muafangejo’s 

artworks from the Permanent Collection of the National 

Art Gallery of Namibia, together featuring artworks from 

artists that have been inspired by our own legend late John 

Muafangejo. The exhibition traces the tremendous contribution 

that Muafangejo has made to the development of visual 

arts in Namibia. Closing off the year, the NAGN will host an 

exhibition ‘RMB Art Come Together Workshops’, an exhibi- 

NATIONAL ART GALLERY: turn to P.24


■ ARTS 

NATIONAL ART GALLERY 

> From Page 23 

tion of the results from art Cometogether workshops in 

the Khomas, Kavango East, Oshana and Hardap regions. 

The exhibition officially opens on 6 December 2018. 

AN: What programmes and projects did the 

NAGN successfully carry out during the year, 

regarding the promotion of visual and cultural 

arts in Namibia? 

SK: We showcased 20 exhibitions thus far, including four 

solo exhibitions, four exhibitions by international artists 

and 16 exhibitions featuring local artists and participated 

in the Oshakati Totem Expo. Thus far, the NAGN received 

7,586 local, regional and international visitors. And 275 

artists exhibited at NAGN with 758 artworks displayed in 

the gallery and extended venues from January to November 

2018. As part of our educational and research programme, 

we hosted 21 walkabouts for scholars, students, 

group visits. We accommodated five research projects 

using the NAGN collection. 

We also hosted six artists’ workshops including Tulipamwe 

International Artist Workshop, which accommodated 

25 regional, international and local artists, 125 

artworks were created during the workshop, of which 97 

artworks were exhibited at the NAGN. 

Another series of workshop worth mentioning is the 

four RMB Art Cometogether Workshops which took 

place in Khomas, Kavango East, Hardap and Oshana 

Regions. This initiative is part of the National Art Gallery 

of Namibia strategic objectives, which is to facilitate 

the production of innovative works of art and craft 

in Namibia and to develop educational programmes in 

respect of visual art and craft activities in collaboration 

with appropriate institutions and service providers. Over 

200 participants (scholars, art students, and community 

people) participated in the respective workshops, sponsored 

by First National Bank (FNB) through Namibia 

Rand Merchant Bank (RMB). These types of workshops 

are facilitated by professional artists and will be rolled 

out in the 14 regions of Namibia until 2020. 

The art and craft produced at the workshops in 2018 will 

be exhibited at the NAGN as from 6 December 2018. 

Six Happy Art Hours took place during the year. Happy 

art hour is a casual evening at the gallery, which takes 

place every Friday of the first week of each month to allow 

art lovers to interact and get an opportunity to partake 

in side events like talk from artists exhibiting at the gallery, 

enjoying music. It is also a tool used by NAGN to 

attract new clientele. To decentralise NAGN activities, I 

Initiated consultative meetings with regional governors, 

constituency councillors and the visual artists to find out 

the status of the visual arts in their respective regions/ 

constituencies and how we could collaborate to implement 

art-related activities in the regions. Thus, taking 

the services to the regions instead of expecting artists to 

come to Windhoek to benefit from NAGN programmes. 

All consultations held so far were very fruitful. We managed 

to unpack a lot of talent and already agreed on the 

way forward for 2019. 

The regions visited thus far are Hardap, //Kharas, Kavango 

East and Oshana Region. More than 300 participants 

attended the consultation meetings. The consultations 

will continue during 2019 in other regions. More than 60 

visual artists participated in the consultation meetings. 

The purpose of the meetings was to inform the artists on 

NAGN mandate and how they, as artists, can partake in 

NAGN programmes. 

During the consultations, we also visited individual artist 

studios and art entrepreneurs, which was an astonishing 

experience as the team witnessed the volume of talent 

we have in our regions, which is hidden due to non-existing 

platforms through which our regional artists can 

be promoted and developed. Our communications and 

marketing officer had interviews with specific artists on 

their journey in becoming a practising artist, and the 

articles have been featured in our monthly newsletters. 

AN: What are the main challenges that are preventing 

the NAGN from successfully carrying 

out its mandate, which is to promote visual and 

cultural arts in Namibia? 

SK: Limited infrastructure to decentralise our activities. 

However, I am confident with the collaborations and networking 

I embarked upon with the regional governors 

and constituency councillors to identify venues in their 

respective constituencies where we can have art activities, 

the challenge will become something of the past 

moving forward. Staff capacity, vis-à-vis, our mandate 

to serve all Namibian visual artists is a challenge, thus 

difficult to expand our staff structure to meet the service 

delivery demand. 

AN: What do we expect in the New Year – 2019? 

SK: Quite exciting programmes are lined up for 2019, 

starting with a well-thought out exhibition calendar, 

which is already fully booked. First of its kind will be 

the creative exhibition, which will showcase Namibian 

artists and artisans art and craftwork in celebration of 

29 years of independence. This exhibition is an opportunity 

for creatives of all kinds across the [length and] 

breadth of the Namibian nation to submit [their] work. 

Creatives are encouraged to create work that is inspired 

by or that uses material from their surrounding environment. 

The exhibition encourages creatives to submit 

work that is truly Namibian. The project aims to bring 

creatives from various backgrounds, from the more “traditional” 

forms of making to the more “contemporary”. 

The exhibition’s aim is to provide a platform to a wider 

variety of Namibian artists, from all disciplines, to come 

into contact with each other through their art. It also 

aims to create a space in which non-artists (through the 

collaborative process) can gain exposure to the process of 

art making as well as feel some ownership over the products. 

Art workshops in the regions through networking 

between experienced artists and upcoming artists will 

be encouraged during 2019. 

In collaboration with the respective constituencies in the 

regions, the NAGN will introduce visual art week, where 

the artists in those specific constituencies will showcase 

their art for enjoyment, appreciation and selling. 

NAGN will explore opportunities for our artists to participate 

on regional and international platforms to showcase 

their artworks. 

Bonang’s P150,000 tag irks Bots presenters 

■ Bakang Mhaladi 

Gaborone - Youthful Botswana 

radio station, Yarona FM has 

chosen South African socialite, 

Bonang Matheba to host 

the growing Yarona FM Music Awards 

(YAMAs) in early February, amid reports 

she will pocket a cool P150,000. 

This reportedly irked local presenters, 

who included the station’s two morning 

show hosts, Brando and Robin Chivaze, 

who wanted the management to include 

some of its own, and spread the P150,000 

earning. 

The two were immediately suspended, 

before they resigned this week. 

However, the station is pressing ahead 

with Matheba as the awards presenter, 

with reports that the station was looking 

for a high-profile personality to sell the 

red carpet event. 

Despite the controversy surrounding 

the choice of Matheba, organisers said 

the focus of the event is on artists’ brands, 

with a view to grow them beyond the local 

market. 

“Queen B (Bonang), South African 

global brands magnate and socialite, 

will host the night of glamour. The event 

is expected to draw local and regional 

artists,” the station said in a statement. 

Matheba will host the show alongside 

the station’s Leungo Pitse. The YAMAs 

are expected to be a glamorous music and 

fashion event, and the organisers hope 

that by roping in Matheba, the event’s 

status will be elevated. 

“Over and beyond well-choreographed 

scenes and polished performances, there 

will be a twist. Internationally acclaimed 

artists will work behind the scenes in 

empowerment workshops for skills 

transfer with Botswana artists,” the station 

said. 

The event will be 

dubbed 

‘Retro 5’ and Yarona 

FM said it is all 

about rebirth and 

reflection. 

“We realise that 

there is life beyond 

the stage. Before the 

last spotlight goes off, 

artists have to identify and categorise 

opportunities at their disposal 

for growth. It is about expanding current 

networks,” the station manager, 

Kelly Ramputswa told the media. 

Emerging artist, Han-C is 

expected to dominate the night 

with his hit song ‘Rejection’ 

which has dominated airwaves 

of late. He teamed 

up with Botswana DJ 

Kuchi, to release a fast 

paced tune that is expected 

to dominate the festive season 

functions. 

Defined as one of the purest 

talent to emerge from 

Botswana, Han-C will 

replace ATI, who was the 

undoubted man of the 

stage at the last YAMAs, 

where he walked away 

with three awards, after 

the release of ‘Kiring 

khorong’.a


25 

■ ARTS 

Maiden Talibaaza Festival launch in Oshakati 

■ Sharon Kavhu 

Windhoek - Art 

festivals bring 

different talents 

and creative 

ideas together to improve 

the sense, taste and skills of 

artwork in a given community. 

Art needs to be nurtured and 

there is always something to 

learn from one another and this 

makes art festival relevant in 

the growth of the arts industry. 

In a bid to promote artistic 

works in Oshakati and other 

towns, Trending World, a 

Namibian events promotion 

company, is set to launch an 

annual event dubbed Talibaaza 

Festival on 14-15 December at 

the Oshakati Independence 

Stadium. 

The festival, which derives 

its name from an Oshakati 

informal phrase ‘it is well’, is a 

platform for promoting visual 

arts in Namibia as the artists 

are given a platform to sell as 

well as showcase their products 

and services. 

Trending World Creative 

Director, Frans Ugwanga 

says the exhibition platform 

is meant to promote business 

development and entrepreneurial 

skills within the creative 

and showbiz industry and 

connect creatives in Oshakati. 

“We decided to launch the 

festival in Oshakati because 

the youth living outside Windhoek 

always feel that there is 

not enough productive social 

empowerment gatherings 

happening in their respective 

towns. It is also a platform to 

create opportunities for our 

own people and a platform 

for artists living in Oshakati 

to showcase their art works,” 

said Ugwanga. 

He said the festival would 

also have workshops to educate 

on creative marketing, management, 

media relations, advertising 

and seeking sponsorships. 

The festival start at 10h00 

until 13h00 on both days and 

from 13h00 to 16h00 there will 

be sporting tournaments ranging 

from soccer, basketball and 

netball. In the evening, from 

21h00 there will be musical 

bashes and exhibitions will be 

ongoing. 

The festival is also meant 

to bring artists together to 

exchange ideas as well as raise 

funds for the construction 

of the Oshakati Town Council’s 

arts centre and hosting a 

Christmas dinner party for the 

elderly. 

From the proceedings of the 

festival, 30% will go towards 

the establishment and construction 

of the arts centre in 

Oshakati, 10% will go towards 

the Oshakati Town Council’s 

mayoral fund and another 

10% will go towards hosting a 

Christmas dinner party for the 

elderly. 

According to Ugwanga, the 

planned arts centre will house 

a recording studio, video production 

and technology lab, art 

gallery and a conference room. 

Retiring Trompies return 

to Bots for farewell tour 


Gaborone - As celebrated 

South African 

kwaito group, 

Trompies prepare to 

drop the mic at the end of a glittering 

career, Botswana has been 

included on a farewell tour, with 

four shows planned for this month. 

Trompies were in the country 

in September for a sold-out show, 

but immediately announced plans 

to leave the game after more than 

two decades of churning smashing 

kwaito hits. 

However, they have not released 

a new album since their 2015 production 

‘Respect Toasted Gona 

Ganati’, but remain a popular 

group in most Southern African 

countries. 

The group redefined kwaito 

music, and added a new street 

fashion sense and produced hits 

such as ‘Magsman’, ‘Sigiya Ngengoma’, 

‘Madibuseng’, ‘Bengimngak’a, 

and ‘Sweety Lavo’, among 

countless top productions. 

However, after 25 years behind 

the mic, the group has decided to 

call it a day. 

The show promoter’s, 7-eleven 

spokesperson, Letlhogile Mpuang 

said initially, the group was scheduled 

to hold two shows in Botswana, 

but that has since grown 

to six. 

“Trompies will be in Botswana 

from December 15 as part of their 

farewell tour in Botswana. Initially, 

there were supposed to do 

two shows in Molepolole and Palapye 

but we have since agreed to 

add new dates,” Mpuang told The 

Southern Times last week. 

Mpuang said there were issues 

with their scheduled Palapye show, 

and the organisers are still looking 

for an alternative venue in the 

Central District town. 

Apart from Molepolole, the 

Trompies will perform in the diamond 

mining town of Orapa on 

December 15, move to Ramotswa, a 

village 40 kilometres south of Gaborone, 

before another show in the 

northwest resort town of Maun on 

Christmas Eve. 

Trompies wrap up their tour 

with a show in Molepolole, 50km 

west of Gaborone, on December 

29. 

Mpuang said there is a possibility 

of adding new dates, to enable 

fans to bid the group farewell. 

“Trompies felt that Botswana 

has been one of the countries 

where they have been mostly 

appreciated, and there is no better 

way to say goodbye to their fans,” 

Mpuang said. 

He added that the group will 

identify an underprivileged family 

or charity organisation and 

donated part of the tour’s proceeds 

as a way of giving back to 

the community. 

Another well-known kwaito 

group, Alaska, will accompany 

the Trompies on their Botswana 

leg of the farewell tour. 

The Trompies were last in Botswana 

in September where they 

performed before a capacity crowd 

at the Botswana Craft in Gaborone.

26 

REVIEW 

Friday 07 - 13 December 2018 The Southern Times 

■ BOOKS 

BOOK 

Seven Books 

By African Authors 

That You Should Read 

■ Heather Clancy 

In a speech titled “The 

African Renaissance, 

South Africa and The 

World” at the United 

Nations University, in 1998, 

Thabo Mbeki said: “Unless we are 

able to answer the question ‘Who 

were we?’ we will not be able to 

answer the question ‘What shall 

we be?’” 

Speaking about the birth of 

Africa’s Renaissance, Mbeki could 

have very well been referring to 

the magical allure of reading. 

Books allow us a passage in time 

to understand who we were, who 

we are, and magically, who we can 

be. This magic is precisely why it 

is important to not only read but 

as Africans, to read books written 

by African authors about Africa. 

A peephole into the kaleidoscopic 

existence of the people of 

this great continent, books written 

by African authors about 

Africa offers a literary crystal 

ball fostering understanding and 

often optimism. While the stories 

told are not always comforting, or 

easy to swallow, the act of reading 

and seeing your world reflected in 

an empowering act in defiance of 

the single story that prominent 

Nigerian writer Chimamanda 

Ngozi Adichie warned against in 

her now famous 2009 Ted Talk. 

Speaking about the importance 

of all stories for their power to 

illuminate and present a multi-layered 

universe that does not 

fit neatly into archaic moulds, 

the award-winning author made 

a powerful case for the importance 

of reading African stories 

by African authors. 

This year, delete those pesky 

social media apps on your phone 

and instead take the time to tick 

off our list of great African books, 

new and old, by African authors. 

Piggy Boy’s Blues By 

Nakhane Touré 

“He loosened his tie. Something 

in his mind had begun to take 

shape. An idea was being knit. 

He had made the same mistake 

twice.” 

Set in Alice in the Eastern Cape, 

singer Touré’s debut novel, has 

been described as a “tour de force” 

by Professor of African Literature 

at Wits University, Pumla Dineo 

Gqola. Boldly confronting issues 

such as sexuality, rape, Christianity 

and mental illness, Touré’s 

story will creep up on you long 

after you’ve finished the final 

chapter. Revealing his talent 

as an all-around artist, Touré’s 

intriguing introduction to the 

world of literature will have fans 

of his music struggling to decide 

whether they prefer him as a 

musician or an author. 

Why should I read it? Touré is 

a musical pioneer on his way to 

legendary status, read his brave 

debut novel before he becomes an 

international star. For wannabe 

writers, this book presents an 

alternative to conventional storytelling, 

absent of a narrative arc, 

yet thrilling in its evocative prose. 

Sweet Medicine By 

Panashe Chigumadzi 

“The most difficult kind of 

honesty is honesty with yourself, 

Tsitsi – you know that.” 

With the story taking place at 

the height of Zimbabwe’s economic 

challenges, Chigumadzi’s 

debut novel is about feminine 

agency and the many spheres that 

women have to navigate. While 

the writing is indicative of Chigumadzi’s 

first foray into literature, 

the familiarity of the dialogue and 

the pertinence of the story will 

ring true for many young women. 

Why should I read it? A 2015 

Ruth First Fellow at Wits University, 

Chigumadzi’s debut novel 

follows her inaugural lecture’s 

viral path. 

The Reactive By Masande 

Ntshanga 

“They called him the screamer, 

they told us later, when we gathered 

to put him inside the earth. 

Maybe it was meant with tenderness, 

I thought, the kind of tenderness 

men could keep between 

themselves up in the hills.” 

Ntshanga, who was shortlisted 

for the 2015 Caine Prize, and is the 

winner of the 2013 PEN International 

New Voices Award brings 

a moving story that is difficult to 

put down and even harder to forget. 

Often compared to Songeziwe 

Mahlangu’s Penumbra, The Reactive 

couples fascinating characters 

with impressive writing to create 

an unsettling story that is sure to 

be a future classic. 

Why should I read it? With 

the film rights purchased by an 

American publisher, read the 

book before it becomes a movie. 

Americanah By 

Chimamanda Ngozi 

Adichie 

“She rested her head against his 

and felt, for the first time, what 

she would often feel with him: a 

self-affection. He made her like 

herself.” 

A powerful and absorbing 

story about race, love and identity, 

Americanah is the kind of 

book that inspires obsessive reading 

patterns and fervent devotion. 

Tracing the relationship 

of Ifemelu and Obinze, Americanah 

is as much about the love 

shared between two people, as it is 

about the loneliness of an individual 

searching for meaning from 

Lagos to Princeton. Beautifully 

written with nuanced observations, 

Americanah is Adichie’s 

finest work to date. 

Why should I read it? Described 

by fellow African author Binyavanga 

Wainaina as a “towering 

achievement” Americanah is an 

ambitious love story that is not 

only a compelling read but an 

important one too. 

The Beautyful Ones Are 

Not Yet Born By Ayi Kwei 

Armah 

“True, I used to see a lot of 

hope. I saw men tear down the 

veils behind which the truth had 

been hidden. But then the same 

men, when they have power in 

their hands at last, began to find 

the veils useful.” 

The kind of book that is dangerous 

to idly discover for the time 

that it will inevitably take up, the 

unforgettably titled “The Beautyful 

Ones Are Not Yet Born” is 

a classic, an essay on corruption 

in Ghanaian society that must 

be ticked off and never forgotten. 

Despite being a satirical critique 

on Ghanaian society during 

Kwame Nkrumah’s rule and the 

period following independence 

in the 1960s, this electric novel is 

a timeless read for all citizens of 

the world. 

Why should I read it? Written 

in 1968, the vivid writing and the 

unrelenting prose is as alive today 

as it was at the time of its release. 

Everything Good Will 

Come By Sefi Atta 

“She says the lesson to learn is 

that the world is round, which 

means that if I run too fast I might 

end up chasing the very homeland 

I am running from.” 

Firmly set in Nigeria, this coming-of-age 

novel awarded the 

inaugural Wole Soyinka Prize for 

Literature in Africa, is universal 

in its evocative story of friendship, 

politics, and love. A powerful feminist 

voice, Atta’s writing is witty, 

taut and unapologetic. Earning 

high praise from fellow Nigerian 

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, 

we’re glad that Atta, formerly a 

chartered accountant, decided to 

pursue her passion for writing. 

Why should I read it? Described 

by Observer Magazine as “Tom 

Sawyer meets Jane Eyre, with 

Nigerian girls” – what’s not to 

love? 

The House Of Hunger By 

Dambudzo Marechera 

“When all else fails, don't take 

it in silence: scream like hell, 

scream like Jericho was tumbling 

down, serenaded by a brace of 

trombones, scream.” 

A tense novella with nine 

accompanying stories about life in 

a Zimbabwean township, Marechera 

described his stream of consciousness 

writing as a form of 

“literary shock treatment”. Best 

appreciated as a disturbing book 

that you can neither love nor hate 

for its unsettling nature and rage, 

Marechera’s thought-provoking 

novella is a haunting work of 

genius. 

Why should I read it? Often 

noted as one of the finest books 

ever written, The House of Hunger 

is a disturbing, vivid, and 

important book. – First appeared 

in The Afropolitan in 2016


Southern Sport 

By Andrew Bonani K amanga 

UNLOCKING Southern Africa’s Potential 

27 

2019 Africa Cup of Nations 

& Major Events in Africa 

It is official! The 2019 Africa 

Cup of Nations (AFCON) 

tournament is no longer 

going to take place in Cameroon. 

The country has failed to meet 

the standards of preparedness as 

required by the Confederation of 

African Football (CAF) in terms 

of the guidelines of hosting the 

AFCON. 

This is disturbing considering 

that the AFCON is the premier 

football event on the African continent. 

Its organisation, as a flagship 

event, cannot be left to chance 

and whims of host countries. 

Proper guidance and follow-ups 

should be provided from the day 

any particular country is granted 

the right to host the tournament. 

This will ensure that there are no 

nasty surprises along the way such 

as this one. 

Hosting of continental events 

on the African continent is always 

at the mercy of politicians and 

governments in power who always 

do not honour agreements made 

by sport people. 

Recently, Equatorial Guinea 

declined to host the 2019 African 

Games years after being confirmed 

as hosts. 

Although Morocco has stepped 

in to become the host of the 2019 

African Games, this unfortunate 

development has caused unimaginable 

damage to the brand of the 

African Games. It is most likely 

that sponsors and other partners 

will want very little to do with the 

African Games. 

It is not a reliable product. In 

terms of the marketing, it is a 

tainted product which is very 

difficult to sell in the global sport 

sponsorship market. 

Given the confirmed shambles 

that characterised the 2015 African 

Games, it is vital that Morocco 

2019 is an upgrade, otherwise, this 

event will be shunned in the market 

for years to come. 

Regarding the 2019 AFCON, 

which was supposed to be held in 

Cameroon, one would ask a number 

of questions. 

Why is the CAF Executive Committee 

waking up just now? Why 

were the timelines not adhered to, 

in terms of monitoring and evaluation 

that country’s preparedness 

to host? 

What were remedial options for 

Cameroon to speed up preparations? 

Does the CAF Executive 

Committee think that taking away 

the event from Cameroon, with 

six months to go, is a good decision? 

Obviously, the CAF Executive 

Committee was not happy with 

the progress made in the preparations 

for this major continental 

sporting event and took a decision, 

for better or worse. 

That is now water under the 

bridge. What is now critically 

important is to safeguard 

the AFCON brand 

going into the 

future. If the 

CAF General 

Assembly, 

Council 

and 

Executive 

Committee 

do 

not take the 

AFCON seriously, 

no one 

else will. 

The optimal commercialisation 

and 

exploitation of the 

AFCON brand is 

good for CAF and 

African football in 

general. 

There is great 

room for improvement 

in terms of the 

fostering enhanced 

impact and results 

in all aspects of the 

organisation and 

marketing of the 

AFCON. 

The CAF Executive 

Committee does not 

necessarily have the 

expertise even to 

deal with consultants 

or service providers 

that might 

be engaged to assist 

with the organisation 

and marketing of the 

AFCON tournament. 

CAF needs to float open 

tenders for such services 

and engage the best expertise 

to assist in driving the AFCON 

brand and its associated revenue 

streams. 

It is reported that interested 

countries have until 31 December 

2018 to submit Expression of Interest 

to host the 2019 AFCON. Hopefully, 

other countries will submit 

EOIs as well as concrete plans to 

host this important event. 

CAF and the African Football 

Family are in dire need of a 

vibrant, well organised and top 

class event. Standards must be 

set high such that various member 

countries can strive to meet 

them. It is crucial for CAF to set 

high standards for bidding and 

organisation of the AFCON. 

Wallowing in self-pity is not 

going to help the continent. The 

AFCON is no longer just fun and 

game. It is an event which can be 

used to transform, not just African 

football, but all other sporting 

codes and the lives of 

young people on the 

continent. 

It is, therefore, 

important that 

as soon as 

practicable, 

CAF 

convenes 

a seminar 

for local 

stakeholders 

on the 

continent 

and international 

partners 

to chart a longterm 

future for the 

AFCON. The 

recent embarrassment 

must be buried in the dustbin of 

history. 

As much as one can sympathize 

with Cameroon, it is important to 

note that the event is bigger than 

any one country. It is for the entire 

continent. One thing is for certain, 

Cameroon has learned an important 

lesson. 

When they bid for events in the 

future, they will have to first build 

capacity, establish LOCs that look 

into all aspects of adherence 

to set deadlines and 

milestones. 

South Africa 

has indicated 

through the minister 

responsible for 

sport that they will 

not bid to host the 

2019 AFCON. 

They 

will 

leave it to other countries and CAF 

to decide. This is a welcome development 

as CAF will expect South 

Africa to bail them out whenever 

there is a challenge. 

It is important that the expertise 

for hosting and major event 

management experience is spread 

across the African continent and 

not concentrated in one country.


■ SPORT 

Super Rugby 

to unleash 

Marvel 

Super Hero 

magic in 

2019 season 

Cape Town - South African 

rugby is entering 

a whole new universe 

in 2019 as SA Rugby, 

SuperSport, Vodacom and Marvel 

team up to bring Super Heroes 

to life and create an all-conquering, 

planet-shifting, villain-busting 

“Superpowered” Vodacom Super 

Rugby competition. 

Some of Marvel’s most iconic 

Super Heroes will join forces with 

South Africa’s most powerful 

rugby stars to turn every one of 

the South African derbies in the 

2019 Vodacom Super Rugby season 

into an action-packed adventure in 

and outside the stadiums. 

In a ground-breaking collaboration 

between SA Rugby, Super- 

Sport, Vodacom and Marvel, each 

of the South African Vodacom 

Super Rugby teams will be assigned 

a Marvel Super Hero as their look 

for the home derbies next season. 

The Vodacom Bulls kit will be 

emblazoned with the colours of 

Captain America, the Emirates 

Lions will channel their inner-Spider-Man, 

the Cell C Sharks’ kit will 

be inspired by Black Panther and 

the DHL Stormers will be wearing 

Thor’s colours. The kit designs will 

be revealed at a later stage. 

“Marvel Super Heroes are among 

the most loved and recognisable 

characters in the world, very much 

like local Vodacom Super Rugby 

players and clubs,” said Luke Roberts, 

Retail Director for The Walt 

Disney Company Africa. 

“Whether it’s Spider-Man’s 

genius and agility, Thor’s strength 

and endurance, Captain America’s 

honour and strategy or Black Panther’s 

speed and stamina, we are 

thrilled to collaborate with clubs 

in this year’s South African Conference 

in Vodacom Super Rugby, 

aligning these character attributes 

with our own iconic teams.” 

Jurie Roux, CEO of SA Rugby, 

said this is one of the most exciting 

developments to the local Vodacom 

Super Rugby scene in many 

years. 

“Vodacom Super Rugby has 

always been about entertainment 

and providing supporters with 

something new, and in 2019 we 

will definitely achieve that with 

this exciting endeavour with Marvel,” 

said Roux. 

“The global rugby landscape 

is changing and teams across all 

continents are trying new things 

to further raise the interest of fans. 

We envisage reaching new audiences 

and gaining new supporters 

for our franchises and the game as 

a whole in South Africa.” 

Gideon Khobane, SuperSport 

CEO, said: “These are great times 

in sport with innovation pivotal to 

success, which is why SuperSport 

is thrilled to support the Super 

Heroes initiative.” 

The true impact of next season 

will be felt when the real-life superheroes 

take over the story off the 

pitch. 

With great power comes great 

responsibility, and the heroes of 

South African rugby are ready 

to unleash this as they use their 

power for good and tackle cancer 

in a partnership with the CHOC 

Childhood Cancer Foundation. 

Michelle van Eyden, Vodacom’s 

Executive Head of Sponsorship, 

echoed the excitement for the 

forthcoming Vodacom Super 

Rugby season and highlighted the 

importance of giving back. 

“Besides the innovation and 

excitement we will be seeing during 

Vodacom Super Rugby in 

2019, Vodacom is also extremely 

proud to be associating itself with 

CHOC,” said Van Eyden. 

“Every Super Rugby season, 

Vodacom partners with an organisation 

that is in need of support, 

and with the Marvel partnership, 

we feel there is a perfect fit between 

the rugby superheroes we’ll see 

doing battle every weekend on the 

field and the little superheroes of 

CHOC who fight a far larger battle 

every day.” 

For every tackle made by a South 

African player during the 2019 

Vodacom Super Rugby competition, 

Vodacom and SuperSport 

will each donate R50 to CHOC 

through the #TacklingCancer 

campaign, with the goal of raising 

R1 million by the end of the 

season. 

And if heroes give us hope, this 

will be a season in which every 

fan can also be a hero as they join 

forces to keep the hope alive for 

those who need it most. 

Vodacom Super Rugby fans can 

also expect the best in-stadium 

entertainment and activations that 

are going to inject rugby into a new 

“Superpowered” era in a fresh and 

exciting way. - Nampa/ANA 

Shonena retains title in thriller 

› Mikka Shonena 

Wi n d h o e k – 

Mikka Shonena 

retained his 

World Boxing 

Organisation (WBO) Africa 

Welterweight title on a unanimous 

decision over Tanzanian 

challenger, Mfaume Mfaume 

after a thrilling bout in Windhoek 

early Sunday morning. 

The two boxers delighted the 

fans as they displayed great fighting 

skills and spirit during the 

Mobile Telecommunications 

Limited Nestor Tobias Sunshine 

Boxing and Fitness Boxing 

Bonanza. 

The fighters exchanged heavy 

punches from the first till the last 

round with Shonena landing the 

more clear punches in the third 

round. 

Mfaume clearly had a good 

game plan as he consistently 

countered most punches by the 

Namibian boxer. 

In the third round, Mfaume 

had Shonena in trouble with a 

series of heavy punches to the 

head and body, but failed to finish 

him off. 

As the rounds progressed, 

Mfaume grew in confidence and 

started showboating much to the 

annoyance of match official Jaap 

van Nieuwenhuizen. 

In the eighth round, Shonena 

shocked Mfaume with a straight 

punch to the face but failed to 

follow up leaving his opponent 

to recover and continue fighting. 

As there was no knock-out, it 

was left to the judges to decide 

on the winner. 

The judges scored the fight 119- 

109, 117-111 and 120-108 in favour 

of the Namibian. 

In other fights during the 

night, the main undercard bout 

between Paulinus Paulinus and 

Bright Mdoka was called off after 

one of the boxers failed a medical 

exam. 

In the flyweight division, Fillemon 

Nghutenyi beat Jacob Jacob 

in a unanimous decision over six 

rounds while Onesmus Nekundi 

and Nikoti Johannes fought a 

draw in the featherweight bout. 

Max Ipinge beat Andreas Nghinaunye 

on points after four 

rounds in the junior middleweight 

bout. 

Charles Shinima beat Steve 

Shimbonde via a third-round 

technical knockout in the super 

welterweight division. 

Crowd favourite Usko 

Rehabeam beat Sheehama Sakaria 

in a unanimous decision to 

register his first professional win 

in the lightweight division. 

In the super bantamweight 

division, Phillipus Nghitumbwa 

knocked out Festus Matias in the 

second round and Sam Mathews 

beat Gustav Petrus. 

Mathias Haita knocked out 

Elifas Kambungu in the fourth 

round with Andreas Mwenyo 

losing to Gabriel Jamba. - Nampa


29 

■ SPORT 

VISA signs as payments 

technology sponsor 

for Total AFCON 

Accra – Visa, the global 

leader in payments, 

will bring its global 

brand and technology 

to African football this summer 

as it officially announced its partnership 

with the Confédération 

Africaine de Football (CAF) as a 

sponsor of the Total Africa Cup of 

Nations (AFCON) tournament in 

2019 and 2021. 

The sponsorship deal will make 

the payments giant the exclusive 

payment services provider 

at all venues during the Total 

AFCON tournaments in 2019 

and 2021 and will be the preferred 

payment option for tickets 

bought both in-person and 

online. In addition, Visa will be 

the official partner of the player 

escort program, giving over 1,100 

children the opportunity to lead 

their football heroes out at the 

Total AFCON matches. 

Visa has a long and proud history 

of supporting football, having 

been a sponsor of the FIFA 

World Cup since 2007. Coming off 

the back of a successful 2018 FIFA 

World Cup campaign in Russia 

and with preparations underway 

for the upcoming FIFA Women’s 

World Cup France 2019, this association 

builds on Visa’s strategy to 

bring the best of their sponsorship 

experience on the global stage to 

regional tournaments. 

Ahmad Ahmad, CAF President 

said: “The benefits of investing 

in African football are clear 

to see, and with football being 

Keep on reading 

the number one passion of consumers 

across the continent 

we’re delighted to welcome Visa 

as a sponsor of the Total AFCON 

tournament. Through this partnership 

with CAF, Visa will be 

able to connect further with its 

customers and leverage CAF as an 

innovative marketing platform. 

Africa is now more connected 

than ever before, and Visa’s payment 

network will play a vital role 

in reaching and rewarding fans 

across the region. I’m certain that 

together we will take African football 

to the next level.” 

“Football is the most popular 

sport in the world with an estimated 

4 billion fans and the sport 

intrinsically aligns with Visa’s values 

of acceptance and inclusion. 

The Total Africa Cup of Nations 

tournament is arguably the most 

important football event in our 

region where the best of African 

football comes together. We are 

very proud to begin our association 

with CAF, Lagardère Sports 

and the Total AFCON tournament 

to support the growth of football 

in our key markets,” said Andrew 

Torre, Regional President, Central 

& Eastern Europe, Middle East 

and Africa, Visa. 

“Being the exclusive payment 

services partner at some of the biggest 

global sporting properties in 

the world has enabled us to showcase 

the latest in payment innovation 

on a global stage and has 

had a demonstrable impact on the 

fan experience and local merchant 

environment. We are looking forward 

to a very big summer in 2019 

where through our sponsorship of 

two of the largest football tournaments 

in the world, we can connect 

football’s most passionate and 

engaged audiences through our 

powerful, reliable and secure payment 

network and create unique 

and unforgettable experiences for 

global football fans, cardholders 

and clients alike,” said Torre. 

With every global sponsorship, 

Visa has focused on supporting 

host markets by connecting 

more local merchants to 

Visa’s payment network so that 

the influx of global fans traveling 

to the sporting venues can make 

safe and convenient payments. 

Visa has also historically enabled 

cardholders to win the chance to 

attend matches, and while there, 

having the chance to experience 

new payment experiences that 

improve their onsite experience. 

Most recently at the 2018 FIFA 

World Cup, fans and merchants 

were able to enjoy and experience 

secure contactless payment technology 

that was rolled out at the 12 

FIFA World Cup Russia stadiums. 

Visa aims to leverage the Total 

AFCON platform to continue to 

deliver exceptional benefits to 

its local communities, clients, 

partners and fans as they come 

together to support the best of 

African football. 

This landmark partnership 

was brokered by Lagardère Sports. 

- CAF 

Russia remains 

banned by 

IAAF from 

international 

competitions 

Monaco - The International 

Association of 

Athletics Federations 

(IAAF) Council has 

accepted Taskforce’s recommendation 

not to reinstate Russia’s Athletics Federation 

(RusAF) until two conditions 

have been met in full. 

During the two-day 215th meeting 

that concluded here on Tuesday, the 

IAAF Council continued its ban on 

Russia for contending in international 

competitions, while some can compete 

as neutral athletes. 

Taskforce head Rune Andersen 

explained the two conditions that RusAF 

needs to meet for its possible reinstatement 

at a press conference. 

Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) must 

confirm that it has been given all of the 

data and access to the samples that it 

needs to determine which of the Russian 

athletes in the database have a case to 

answer for breach of the IAAF anti-doping 

rules. 

“The IAAF Council was clear that 

Russian athletes cannot return to international 

competitions unconditionally 

until that issue is resolved one way or 

the other,” said Andersen. 

Andersen told media, “We have 

received no assurances that it will be 

delivered to us directly. The assurances 

have been given to the World Anti-Doping 

Agency (Wada), and Wada has set 

the deadline of December 31 to receive 

the data from Russia.” 

“We will have to rely on receiving 

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data from Wada, and then give it to the 

AIU to examine the data before we are 

satisfied that data is correct,” he added. 

The second condition is that RusAF 

must pay all of the costs incurred in the 

work of the Taskforce and in bringing 

or defending Russian cases at Court of 

Arbitration for Sport. 

“The IAAF Council was clear that this 

debt must be settled for reinstatement to 

occur. It is not fair to ask the IAAF and 

its other members to continue to carry 

these costs,” Andersen pointed out. 

“The Taskforce hopes that RusAF and 

the Russian authorities will now take 

all steps necessary to meet these conditions 

as soon as possible. The Taskforce 

stands ready to meet as soon as these 

conditions have been met in order to 

make a recommendation to Council for 

the reinstatement of RusAF,” he added. 

The IAAF Council also announced 

that the Hungarian capital Budapest will 

host the 2023 World Championships. 

“We are particularly delighted to 

return to a country that has rich history 

and culture in track and field. I was 

very excited by the legacy opportunities 

the sport in that city will provide us and 

some creative marketing thinking that 

they already put into how to grow the 

sport,” said IAAF President Sebastian 

Coe. 

During the IAAF Council meeting, 

former athlete Jon Ridgeon was 

appointed as a new chief executive 

officer for the athletics’ governing body. 

- Nampa/Xinhua 

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■ SPORT 

Republic of Namibia 

LAUNCH OF 2019 SADC MEDIA AWARDS COMPETITION 

The Southern African Development Community 

(SADC) was founded as the Southern African 

Development Coordination Conference (SADCC) 

in 1980. 

It was transformed into the Southern African 

Development Community (SADC) on 17th 

August, 1992 and consists of 16 Member 

States, namely; Angola, Botswana, Democratic 

Republic of Congo, Comoros, Eswatini, Lesotho, 

Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, 

Namibia, Seychelles, South Africa, Tanzania, 

Zambia and Zimbabwe. 

The SADC vision is one of a common future, 

within a regional community that will ensure 

economic well-being, improvement of the 

standard of living and quality of life, freedom and 

social justice, peace and security for the peoples 

of Southern Africa. This shared vision is anchored 

on common values and principles and the 

historical and cultural affinities that exist amongst 

the peoples of Southern Africa. 

In 1995 the SADC Council of Ministers approved 

the establishment of the SADC Media Awards to 

recognise best media work in the region. Since 

1996 the SADC Secretariat has been coordinating 

the Media Awards to encourage the media in the 

Region to play a leading role in disseminating 

information on SADC in order to support the 

process of regional co-operation and integration. 

The SADC Secretariat now is pleased to announce 

the 2019 SADC Media Awards Competition. 

The Awards are in the fields of Print Journalism, 

Radio Journalism, Television Journalism and 

Photo journalism. Prospective entrants are invited 

to submit their entries accompanied by proof of 

their nationality to the National Adjudication 

Committee (NAC) in their respective Member 

States. 

Rules of the competition 

A) The entries should have been published/ 

broadcast between January and December the 

year preceding the awards (2018) by a registered 

and/or authorized media house or agency or 

carried on a website of a registered and/or 

authorized media house or agency in any of the 

SADC Member States; 

B) The themes of the entries to be submitted for 

the competition must be on issues and activities 

promoting Regional Integration in the SADC region, 

i.e. infrastructure, economy, water, culture, sports, 

agriculture, etc. 

C) All media practitioners who are SADC nationals 

may enter the competition, except those in institutions 

contracted by SADC and the SADC Secretariat staff; 

D) All works entering the competition should be in 

one of the SADC working languages, i.e. English, 

Portuguese, French and any national indigenous 

language of the SADC Region and should be 

submitted together with the transcript in one of the 

three SADC working languages, i.e. English, French 

and Portuguese. These should be published/broadcast 

(newspaper cutting, websites, magazines, audio CDs, 

USB and newsletters; 

E) Entries are invited from the following categories: 

i) Print Journalism: comprising features/articles 

published in newspapers, newsletters, websites, 

magazines; 

• Print Journalism submissions should have 

a minimum of 100 (one hundred words and a 

maximum of 2000 (two thousand) words. 

ii) Radio Journalism: comprising broadcast material; 

• Radio Journalism broadcast material should 

have a minimum duration of 1 (one) minute and 

a maximum of 30 (thirty) minutes. All broadcast 

material should be submitted on a CD or USB. 

The entries should be accompanied by electronic 

transcript in word format for translation purposes. 

iii)Television Journalism: comprising televised 

material; 

Broadcast material should have a minimum duration 

of 1 (one) minute and a maximum of forty-five (45) 

minutes. All broadcast material should be submitted 

on a CD or USB. The entries should be accompanied 

by electronic transcript in word format for translation 

purposes. 

iv) Photojournalism: comprising published pictures 

with a caption; 

• Photographic entries should have one (1) photo, or 

a pictorial spread of not more than twenty (20) 

photos published in one issue/edition. Each entry 

must be accompanied by an original newspaper in 

which photo (s) were published. 

F) All entries must be submitted to the National 

Adjudication Committee not later than February 

28, 2019. 

G) All submissions must be made strictly 

on the SADC Media Award Entry Form and 

should contain full contact details of the entrant, 

including, passport-sized photograph, physical 

address, telephone and, where applicable, fax 

number and e- mail address; 

H) Entries will be initially screened and judged 

by the National Adjudication Committee in each 

Member State, which will select the best entry in 

each of the four categories to be forwarded to the 

Regional Adjudication Committee (RAC), through 

the SADC Secretariat. 

I) Selection of the best regional entries will be 

decided upon by the RAC; j) The decision of the 

RAC shall be final; 

J) The decision of the RAC shall be final; 

K) The first prize winners will be announced and 

receive their prizes during the 39th SADC Summit 

of Heads of State and Government; 

L) The Awards will include Print, Radio, Television 

and Photo journalism. Each category carries a first 

prize of US$2,500; 

M) The runner-ups in each category will receive a 

second prize of US$1000 and will receive the prize 

money and certificates in their respective countries 

through their National Contact Point; 

N) The monetary prizes will be accompanied by a 

certificate signed by the SADC Chairperson; 

O) The prizes will be paid directly to the winner. 

In the case of a winner being unable to attend the 

ceremony, SADC will make arrangements to give 

the prize in his/her home country; 

P) The RAC reserves the right not to award a 

prize in any of the categories if the entries do not 

satisfactorily meet the competition requirements. 

Further information and entry forms are obtainable from the National Adjudication Committees, SADC Media Coordinators (NMCs) in each Member 

State and SADC Website (www.sadc.int) . 

The list of NMCs can be found on https://www.sadc.int/member-states/ 

Entries should be submitted to the following SADC National Media Coordinators at the Ministry of Information and Communication Technology 

(MICT), Media Liaison Services, BPI House, M-Floor, Independence Avenue: 

Elizabeth Amagola, Telephone number: 061 283 2665, 

Email: Elizabeth.Amagola@mict.gov.na 

Herman Kangootui, Telephone number:061 2832348, 

Email: Herman.Kangootui@mict.gov.na 

All correspondence should be addressed to the Executive Secretary 

Angola 

Botswana 

Democratic Republic of Congo 

Lesotho 

Madagascar 

Malawi 

Member States: 

Mauritius 

Mozambique 

Namibia 

Seychelles South Africa 

Swaziland 

United Republic of Tanzania 

Zambia 

Zimbabwe


31 

■ SPORT 

Cameroon reacts to losing 

hosting rights for the 2019 Afcon 

■ Leocadia Bongben 

A 

Cameroonian government 

minister 

says the decision 

by the Confederation 

of African Football (CAF) 

to withdraw the country from 

hosting the 2019 Africa Cup of 

Nations is “unfair” and a “blatant 

injustice”. 

CAF announced on Friday 

that its executive committee 

had withdrawn Cameroon 

as hosts because of delays in 

preparation for the tournament, 

due to start in June. 

Cameroon’s Minister of 

Communication, Issa Tchiroma 

Bakary said the government 

was “dismayed”. 

“In the face of this blatant 

injustice, the government of 

the Republic urges the people 

of Cameroon to remain calm 

and not to indulge to futile 

arguments,” said Bakary. 

There had been much scrutiny 

on Cameroon ahead of 

the CAF executive committee 

meeting on Friday, with focus 

also on the security situation in 

the northern and Anglophone 

regions of the country. 

Delays in construction were 

an issue, but Bakary says the 

country is determined to 

ensure the projects will be 

completed despite fears that 

some of the work may now be 

abandoned. 

“Cameroon has put in a 

creditable performance. It shall 

prove it to the entire world by 

completing with this same 

determination and on time the 

construction of this modern 

infrastructure belonging to the 

Cameroonian people. 

“This surprising decision 

for more than one reason is 

certainly unfair with regard 

to the huge investment made 

by our country which has led 

to outstanding, modern infrastructure 

as witnessed by all,” 

Bakary added. 

On the streets of Cameroon, 

the news that the country had 

been stripped of hosting rights 

for the 2019 Nations Cup was 

welcomed by many people, 

especially from the Anglophone 

regions. 

“I am very happy with the 

decision because this is the 

time to solve our problems. 

Cameroon is not in the position 

to host the 2019 Afcon 

because of insecurity. I am 

from the Anglophone region 

and I am not happy,” said Pa 

Henry, a resident in Yaounde. 

Another, Rene, said the 

country is not in a position to 

host a football tournament. 

“Cameroon should look into 

its problems. My brothers have 

been dying for the past two 

years. It is not time for football 

or partying.” 

CAF said that countries 

interested to host the 2019 

Nations Cup have until the end 

of December to submit their 

bids before a decision is taken 

and that “Cameroon remains a 

serious candidate to organise a 

future edition”. – BBC Sport 

New Chair of the Global 

Athlete Congress Elected 

Sixty athletes’ leaders 

from around the world 

voted for a new chair at 

the 2018 Global Athlete 

Congress held in Santo Domingo, 

Dominican Republic, on Wednesday, 

14 November. 

Fourteen athletes ran for the 

position in a tight race. After the 

votes were counted, Nyasha Derere 

from Zimbabwe emerged the 

winner. 

When his name was announced, 

he was so overcome with emotion 

that he fell out of his chair. He was 

helped up and walked to the stage 

by all of the friends he has made 

here, demonstrating again that Special 

Olympics is a family that transcends 

all differences. 

“It’s not that we’re coming from 

just the region of Africa or Latin 

America. A leader is supposed to 

serve everyone. I’m going to make 

a difference for the bettering of 

the movement. For the bettering 

of athletes. You first. Everyone in 

this room changed my life. I’m 

really humbled by everyone — your 

smiles, your love, your compassion,” 

Derere said. 

The Chair of the Global Athlete 

Congress has numerous responsibilities, 

but the most important one 

› Nyasha Derere from Zimbabwe Nyasha Derere from Zimbabwe speaks 

as a panelist during the Global Athlete Congress in Santo Domingo, 

Dominican Republic 

is to serve as a member of the Board 

of Directors for Special Olympics 

International. The previous chair, 

Matthew Williams from Canada, 

held the position for eight years and 

has been an instrumental board 

member and advocate for people 

with disabilities. Although he is 

happy to pass the torch to another 

leader, he said he is more than willing 

to be a mentor to the new Chair. 

– Special Olympics

32 Friday 07 - 13 December 2018 

The Southern Times 

The 

Sport 


INSIDE STORIES 

PAGE 

27 2019 Africa Cup of Nations & 

Major Events in Africa 

PAGE 

31 

New Chair of the Global 

Athlete Congress Elected 

AFCON remains in 

the hands of a few 


Gaborone - The latest decision to strip 

Cameroon of its right to host the 2019 

Africa Cup of Nations, due to security 

concerns and infrastructure delays, will 

see the continental soccer showpiece rotate in the 

hands of a few. 

With South Africa expected to step in as next year's 

host, it means only three countries will have organised 

the tournament's last five editions. 

In 2012, Equatorial Guinea and Gabon, were the 

joint hosts, with the competition going to South Africa 

a year later, as CAF resorted to holding the tournament 

on odd years, to avoid a clash with the World Cup. 

In 2015, the tournament was back in Equatorial 

Guinea, before it moved next door to Gabon in 2017. 

Now, the tournament will return to South Africa, 

five years since the country last hosted the biennial 

competition. 

Most countries have been reluctant to host due to 

financial constraints, while some like Zimbabwe and 

Cameroon have lost hosting rights due to what CAF 

saw as unpreparedness. 

Including next year's competition, it means only 

17 countries would have hosted the 32 editions, since 

inception in Sudan in 1957. Southern Africa has hosted 

the competition only three times, once through 

Angola and twice in South Africa. 

The hosting of the competition has largely rotated 

between North and West Africa. 

Football analyst, Calistus Kolantsho said despite 

the resource challenge, the game needs to be spread 

across the continent. 

"It is not fair, when you are given the opportunity 

to host, there are opportunities that go with it, 

like upgrading infrastructure. Other countries 

should be given a chance as well," 

Kolantsho said. 

Sports journalist, Bongani 

Malunga, who this year authored 

a book titled 'Why an African 

nation may never win the World 

Cup' said hosting the AFCON 

is an expensive undertaking. 

"The fact that a federation 

of Cameroon's magnitude 

was deemed not ready to host 

the competition and stripped of 

hosting rights just seven months 

before the tournament, shows that 

some financial commitments were 

not met. We always use the term logistics, 

but that’s a disguise for money. 

Gaining support from the private sector 

or commercial giants is always a challenge 

for most African countries," he said. 

He said countries that are well off like 

Morocco and South Africa, will always be 

ready to step-in and host as many times as 

possible. 

"Those with the right facilities will always 

benefit in terms of hosting, while those who 

trail behind will only look in envy as the hosting 

rotates. It is a situation that needs to be given 

more attention." 

South Africa said it was looking into CAF's 

request to step-in and replace Cameroon as the host. 

Previous AFCON hosts 

Sudan 1957 

United Arab Emirates 

1959 

Ethiopia 1961 

Tunisia 1965 

1968 Ethiopia 

1970 Sudan 

1972 Cameroon 

1974 Egypt 

1976 Ethiopia 

1978 Ghana 

1980 Nigeria 

1982 Libya 

1984 Ivory Coast 

1986 Egypt 

1988 Morocco 

1990 Algeria 

1992 Senegal 

1994 Tunisia 

1996 South Africa 

1998 Burkina Faso 

2000 Ghana & Nigeria 

2002 Mali 

2004 Tunisia 

2006 Egypt 

2008 Ghana 

2010 Angola 

2012 Gabon & Equatorial 

Guinea 

2013 South Africa 

2015 Equatorial Guinea 

2017 Gabon 

2019 (TBA) CAF has 

approached South Africa

The Southern Times

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