Tanzania an East African Safari Destination

Tanzania an East African Safari Destination

Just like its neighbour Kenya Tanzania has a lot to offer the East Africa safari traveller.

Lake Manyara National Park

Lake Manyara National park gets its name from the lake, Manyara which is a shallow freshwater lake in Tanzania once Said by Ernest Hemingway to be the loveliest lake in Africa. The lake is named after the maasai word emanyara, which refers to the plants that are grown into a hedge around a family homestead. Therefore the name describes the region around the lake shore.

The park while known mostly for its baboons and tree climbing lions is a beautiful and incredibly diverse park for its size (only 325 square kilometres/125 square miles) has a wide variety of anmals among them hippos, elephants, buffalo, warthogs wildebeest and giraffes.

The Park is home to an amazing variety of birds especially for waterfowl and migrants. Its lush green forests are one of the best places to see the elusive leopard. The lake it self consumes the majority of the parks area.

Ngorongoro Crater Conservation Area

Located between the Serengeti and Lake Manyara and is named after the famous Ngorongoro Crater which is the largest unbroken caldera in the world. The Crater is a haven for tens of thousands of big East African wild animals and a spectacular setting in which to experience an East African safari.

This area is unique in that unlike the Serengeti and Masai Mara, the migration in the Ngorongoro Crater is scant. The reason being that the area has an abundant year-round food and water supply – and the precipitous walls of this collapsed extinct volcano discourage but not completely eliminates migrating. The crater in its self makes its much easier to view wildlife.

Selous Game Reserve

African National parks and game reserves invariably tout themselves as being areas of pristine wilderness, but there's no question that you will experience raw and untouched Africa at its wildest when you visit the Selous Game Reserve.

Bigger than countries such as switzerland and almost six times the size of Kenya's masai mara, this game reserve is simply huge by any standard.

Considered by some to be the worlds largest game reserve, and containing about one third of all Africa's wild dog population, the reserve gets its name from Frederick Courtenay Selous whom during the late nineteenth century, when the term "great white hunter" still had a romantic ring, this man tracked big game throughout southern Africa and bagging lion, elephant, greater kudu, sable antelope and other species. In 1922 when the British established the Game Department they named the Selous Game Reserve in his honour.

Zanzibar

Zanzibar a semi-autonomous part of the Republic of Tanzania and 25-50 kilometres (16-31 mi) off the coast. Today the island and its surrounding have become popular with tourists.

Even as it grows in popularity with African beach safari seekers, Zanzibar remains a rustic paradise. Large parts of the Zanzibar islands with exotic names like Mafia Island, Pemba Island and Mnemba are still thankfully untainted, offering you the traveller a chance to experience an exotic and authentic Indian Ocean island holiday.

Source: Tanzania an East African Safari Destination

Africa: The wonder of God’s nature in the wild

Tyrone, Dennis and Tessa Valdes, Tinkay Crespo, Bryan Prieto, Annika and Athena Valdes

One life. Live it well. Find what truly matters to you, and work hard at fulfilling those aspirations while you're here on earth.

More than 10 years ago, my hubby Dennis and I discovered the beauty and pure rawness of Africa when we did our first safari in Botswana. Since then, we have become safari addicts and worked hard to one day bring all our kids to Africa to see the wonder of God's nature in the wild.

After a year of planning with A2A Safaris, we zeroed in on two splendid safari camps that were perfect for our family vacation. A2A Safaris is a leading travel company that creates bespoke, tailor-made tours to unique destinations. Founded by former investment bankers José "Lit" Cortes and Victor "Binky" Dizon, who are intrepid safari enthusiasts themselves, A2A has, since 2002, been crafting journeys of a lifetime for its discerning clients.

A2A trips have taken their clients to some of the planet's remotest and wildest locations in Africa, Latin America and Antarctica. The company has offices in Hong Kong, Singapore, New York and Manila, and now also supports conservation efforts to help preserve the pristine wildernesses they serve.

In 2004, we traveled with soon-to-wed restaurateur Malu Gamboa and the original Tropafrica gang. Malu and Binky curated a trip that had everything, from tented glamour to nouvelle cuisine in Franschhoek.

Dennis Valdes , Chantelle Venter, Sea Princess, Lauren Crewe-Brown, Brian Rode

The Big 5

Fast-forward to this year: Dennis and Lit were the ones intensively debating camp choices, weather and terrain to ensure that the kids' first safari would be their most memorable, with the highest possibility of seeing the Big 5—elephant, rhino, Cape buffalo, lion and the elusive leopard.

Perfectly timed for our visit, the two camps chosen were Tswalu in the Kalahari desert and Singita Sweni in a private game reserve adjacent to Kruger National Park. The two camps were a perfect combination for first-time visitors.

Tswalu is a 250,000-hectare private game reserve owned by the Oppenheimer family, one of the ritziest names in South Africa. Their main home, Tarkuni, was our first camp. Complete with a library, spa, outdoor pool and deck, Tarkuni is a setting right out of Architectural Digest.

A typical safari day consists of a couple of game drives. Each open-top Land Rover has a team, a guide and tracker to ensure that guests spot the animals. The two vehicles are in close radio contact to further increase the chances of good spots.

On a typical drive, one never knows what will turn up. On different drives, we saw a dazzle of over 20 zebras drinking placidly at a watering hole, a herd of wild dogs hunting a herd of oryx antelope, and a raft of hippos yawning in a river.

The big cats are always the highlights of a game drive, whether it be a pride of lionesses and cubs languidly resting in the shade, or a coalition of cheetah brothers off on a patrol.

The king cats of the Kalahari are its black-maned lions, big, powerful animals with amazingly huge paws.

Wonderful staff at Tswalu Tarkuni with camp manager Martin (far right)

Sundowner

It took Dennis and I 12 years before we saw a rhino, but our lucky children were able to spot a black rhino mother and calf on their first game drive. We also saw white rhinos, but truly it's so difficult to tell the two species apart.

The afternoon game drive always stops for a sundowner, a beautiful word for a happy-hour drink. After that, the drive home may start to bring out more nocturnal animals, and we were fortunate to see aardvark, pangolin, porcupines and various other night creatures.

Arranged by the Tswalu guides, our daughters Annika and Athena had the chance to go horseback riding from Tarkuni to sister camp Motse, where their brother Bryan and his girlfriend Tinkay Crespo stayed. They also enjoyed walking around and seeing cute meerkats up close.

On top: Steffi, Marivic and Willy Chiongbian, Sofia Khu, Anton Punzalan and Trissy Punzalan; Minnie and Ianna Chiongbian, Amanda and Ramon Khu

Luxe camps

I'd rate Tswalu a perfect 10, but then I'd have to change the scale to accommodate an 11, Singita Sweni. When it comes to luxe camps, the Singita brand sets the bar, and the chain has camps in South Africa, Zimbabwe, Tanzania and, soon, Rwanda.

Sweni has the benefit of being adjacent to 2.2 million-ha Kruger, which is 350-kilometer long from north to south. Within Sweni, the camp has built its own private roads and manages the entire private reserve.

The newly renovated camp has six individual, spacious bedroom suites and a pool terrace, as well as a two-bedroom suite. I met designer Mark du Toit, from the brilliant design team Cecile & Boyd (designers Boyd Ferguson and Geordi de Sousa Costa), as he was there to do a final inspection of the camp, located next to a river filled with various flora and fauna.

The camp also has a boma, an outdoor enclosure where guests can enjoy an African-theme dinner with music and dancing. Of course, I happily joined the dancing staff. Nearby is the Singita Spa and a curated lifestyle shop that ships worldwide.

Our guides were longtime partners Brian Rode and Chantelle Venter, who enchanted us with our very first sighting of a murmuration of quelas—thousands of birds coming home to roost in the trees at sunset. Their noise is unforgettable.

To keep the kids entertained, Brian let the kids try air-rifle shooting, organized a very daring, kudu-poop spitting contest.

On our last afternoon drive, our tracker Glass spotted a leopard, thus completing our Big 5.

Between all the searching, I was busy making sure all my safari outfits were photographed perfectly. I had pieces from Kaayo.ph, a Roza bag from Baby Suarez (rozacrafts@gmail.com) and personalized tags from Michelle Sacramento (mimssac@gmail.com).

In Sweni, I also chatted with Jonathan Bailes, son of Singita owner Luke Bailes. Jonathan is currently working in Shangri-La at the Fort, for those interested to talk safari with an expert.

Jonathan is also helping me plan the forthcoming Red Charity Gala, to be held at Shangri-La at the Fort on Oct. 14, featuring the collection of fashion designer Joey Samson. (Check out www.redcharitygala.com.)

Next week, it's all about Cape Town.

Follow @seaprincess888 on Instagram.

Luca Romualdez, Tyrone, Annika, Dennis, Tessa and Athena Valdes

Mark du Toit, Sea Princess

Sea Princess, Grant Oliver

Singita Sweni camp bedroom suite

Luca and Ben Romualdez, Annika and Athena Valdes

Dazzle of zebras

Leopard

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Source: Africa: The wonder of God's nature in the wild

Prince Harry, Meghan Markle Head To Africa As Actress Celebrates 36th Birthday

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are enjoying another romantic vacation.

On Friday, Aug. 4, the "Suits" star turned 36, and to celebrate her birthday, she and her royal boyfriend flew to Africa, according to The Sun. Prince Harry and Markle were spotted wearing matching baseball caps while at the airport tarmac, their arms around each other. The two were all smiles as they carried their bags. The "Horrible Bosses" star was also carrying a framed photo wrapped in bubble wrap.

READ: Is Meghan Markle and Prince Harry's engagement happening soon?

"Harry has been planning this holiday for a long time," a source told the publication. "He's made the trip incredibly romantic. They'll go on boats across the lake, walk in the bush at dawn and camp under the stars."

Prince Harry and Markle's getaway destination fueled the engagement rumors that have been plaguing them for months as this was the location where his older brother Prince William proposed to Kate Middleton. In fact, Africa is "the couple's holiday destination – hugely popular for engagements and honeymoons." Rumors of Harry and Markle's engagement have been circulating since early this year, with many believing that it will happen by the end of the year.

"Who knows what will happen when they're watching a sensational African sunset together?" the insider added. "Maybe he'll get down on one knee. Harry regards Africa as his spiritual home and has often talked of how he can get away from it all there. Obviously, he wants to show Meghan what an amazing place it is and create new memories together."

The insider added that the royal prince has done a lot of volunteer work in Africa and raised awareness for the plight of endangered elephants and black rhinos, and he is excited to introduce this part of his life to the woman he is about to marry. "It's fitting that the spectacular safari started on her birthday — what a way to impress a girl! He'll make this a holiday she'll never forget and perhaps she'll come back with a ring on her finger," the source added.

Initially, reports indicated that Markle would be spending her birthday alone. The actress reportedly headed back to Toronto to film the latest season of the USA Network series just days before her birthday, right after exploring London with her mom, Doria Radlan. However, it seemed that the pair found a way to reconnect just in time to celebrate her special day together.

Do you think Prince Harry will propose to Meghan Markle in Africa? Drop a comment below.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle flew to Africa for her birthday. Pictured: Actress attends Glamour and L'Oreal Paris Celebrate 2016 College Women Of The Year at NoMad Hotel Rooftop on April 27, 2016. Photo: Getty Images/Nicholas Hunt

Source: Prince Harry, Meghan Markle Head To Africa As Actress Celebrates 36th Birthday

The Costs of Patenting in Africa: A Tale of Three Intellectual Property Systems

The African economy, which is home to more than a billion people, has tripled since the year 2000 (Michael Lalor; 2014) and currently houses 9 of the 15 fastest growing economies in the world (Spoor & Fisher; 2016), presenting immense business opportunities. In this article, we shall take a look at the patenting systems in Africa, which are a complicated mix of National and Regional systems, and the costs involved.

There are two Regional Patent Offices in Africa, which account for approximately 65% of the countries that make up the continent, with most of the other countries having their own national patent legislations.

African Regional Intellectual Property Organization ("ARIPO")

ARIPO, established in 1976 under the framework of the Lusaka Agreement, is comprised of 19 member states: Botswana, The Gambia, Ghana, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Rwanda, São Tomé & Príncipe, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Sudan, Swaziland, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe (ARIPO Annual Report; 2016). Membership to ARIPO, which was originally restricted to only English-speaking African countries, has subsequently opened up to other countries as well, with the organization currently having three such members: Mozambique (Portuguese), São Tomé & Príncipe (Portuguese), and Somalia (Somali and Arabic). Over the last 40 years, ARIPO has played a significant role in shaping the Intellectual Property landscape in Africa.

A confusing, yet interesting aspect of ARIPO is the fact that it is empowered by separate protocols to grant each type of Intellectual Property, with not all the protocols being in force in all the member states. Thus, while the Harare Protocol on Patents and Designs is in force in all the member states, except Somalia, the Banjul Protocol on Marks is in force in only 10 member states. The Arusha Protocol for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants, adopted in July 2015, will "enter into force 12 months after four States have deposited their instruments of ratification or accession" (ARIPO Annual Report; 2016).

Organisation Africaine de la Propriété Intellectuelle ("OAPI")

OAPI, which also goes by the English name of 'African Intellectual Property Organization', is ARIPO's sister organization that was established a year later (in 1977) under the framework of the Bangui Agreement. Its missions include: protection of industrial property rights; dissemination of technical information; protection of literary and artistic property rights; promoting the economic development of member states; and providing Intellectual Property training (Hamidou Kone; 2012).

OAPI is comprised of 17 member states: Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Senegal, Togo, and Union of the Comoros (International Trademark Association; 2013). Of these, Guinea-Bissau (Portuguese) and Mauritania (Arabic) are the member states that do not have French as an official language.

Unlike ARIPO, OAPI is empowered by only the Bangui Agreement, which contains ten annexes that deal with: Patents, Utility Models, Trade Marks and Service Marks, Industrial Designs, Trade Names, Geographical Indications, Literary and Artistic Property, Unfair Competition, Topographies of Integrated Circuits, and Plant Varieties (OAPI; accessed July 5, 2017).

The Differences Between ARIPO and OAPI

Four major differences exist between ARIPO and OAPI. First, ARIPO member states have their own Intellectual Property legislations that coexist with the Harare Protocol on Patents and Industrial Designs. OAPI member states, on the other hand, do not have their own Intellectual Property legislations.

Second, ARIPO is a designation-based system; the designation of member states, which is required at the time of filing, has an influence on the total fee that is to be paid. With an OAPI application, no such designations are required.

Third, ARIPO provides flexibility to member states to refuse a patent granted by it in their individual territories (Oraro & Company Advocates; 2015). On the contrary, OAPI member states cannot refuse a patent granted by OAPI.

Last, but not least, while ARIPO conducts substantive examination (deferred system of examination), OAPI does not carry out such examination.

National Patent Systems and South Africa

Apart from the OAPI member states, most African countries have national patent systems in place. National registration is the only method possible in South Africa, the top patent office in Africa, which is neither a member of ARIPO nor a member of OAPI.

The Costs of Patenting in Africa

Let us now study the costs involved in obtaining and maintaining a PCT National Phase patent through to expiry with ARIPO (AP), OAPI (OA), and South Africa (ZA). We shall assume that three countries have been designated in the ARIPO patent application.

The total estimated costs (including attorney charges) that might be incurred by a company over the lifecycle of a 30-page patent (including five pages of drawings) with 10 claims, amount to $5,216 in South Africa, $30,132 in OAPI, and $37,842 in ARIPO (Figure 1). These estimates are based on the values found within the fee schedules supplied by at least five independent Intellectual Property law associates in each jurisdiction and are inclusive of Value Added Tax (added to the attorney charges) in OAPI.

In ARIPO, the estimated costs are spread across the five different stages of the patenting process: Filing ($1,797), Examination ($1,165), Prosecution ($1,060), Grant ($1,830), and Annuities/Renewal Fees/Maintenance Fees ($31,990). In OAPI and South Africa, on the other hand, there is no examination stage (Table 1).

The estimated filing cost in ARIPO is inclusive of a 20% discount on the filing fee for 'Going Green' (i.e. electronic filing). OAPI and South Africa do not offer similar Go Green incentives.

While the fees for excess pages (each set of 10 pages beyond 10 pages) and excess claims (beyond 10 claims) in OAPI are to be paid at the time of filing, the same in ARIPO (beyond 10 claims and 30 pages) are payable at the time of grant. These fees in OAPI (including attorney charges) can be quite high and account for approximately a third of the total estimated filing costs for the above-mentioned filing parameters.

The estimated prosecution costs, which are inclusive of the attorney charges for reporting each office action, preparing the response, and processing the response, are based on a single office action in both ARIPO and South Africa, and 1.5 office actions in OAPI.

The estimated annuities or maintenance fees in ARIPO, which are to be paid from the first anniversary of the filing date (in respect of the second year) to the 19th anniversary of the filing date (in respect of the 20th year), constitute approximately 85% of the total estimated costs. When compared to other regional patent organizations, this proportion is unusually high. In the Eurasian Patent Office, the Gulf Cooperation Council Patent Office, and OAPI, annuities constitute only around 60% – 70% of the total estimated costs.

As Africa develops by leaps and bounds and becomes an increasingly favored investment destination, its Intellectual Property systems are expected to come under the spotlight.  However, the lack of a single regional patent office makes the process of obtaining patents in Africa an extremely challenging one as applicants have to navigate their way through a bundle of regional and national legislations, each mandating its own set of procedures. Having a precise idea of the stage-wise costs that could be incurred will go a long way in facilitating the development of a patent filing strategy for Africa.

Source: The Costs of Patenting in Africa: A Tale of Three Intellectual Property Systems

Aviation Stakeholders Condemn FG Over Granting Ethiopian Airlines Fifth Nigerian Destination

The commencement of flight operations to Kaduna Airport by Ethiopian Airlines on Tuesday has attracted condemnation from stakeholders and analysts in the Nigerian aviation industry.

Stakeholders in the sector described the additional destination granted to the airline as another form of capital flight, which they said amounts to more than N200 billion annually and cripples the activities of Nigerian carriers.  

The additional destination by the East African carrier increased its penetration in Nigeria to five airports.

Other airports flown into by the airline from its base in Addis Ababa are Lagos, Abuja, Port Harcourt and Enugu.

At least 11 foreign carriers are currently operating an additional 30 flights into Nigeria weekly and are operating into different airports across the country.

Other airlines with extra flights into Nigeria are British Airways with seven, Virgin Atlantic with seven, Air France with seven, Ethiopian Airlines with 14, Kenya Airways with three, Lufthansa with seven, EgyptAir with seven, Air Cote D'Ivoire with seven, Africa World Airlines with three, Turkish Airlines with three and Asky Airlines with another three extra flights to Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja.

Ethiopian Airlines alone operates 21 flights weekly into Nigeria, making it the airline with highest number of flights into the West African country.

Grp. Capt. John Ojikutu (rtd), the former Commandant of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport Lagos, in an interview with our correspondent, decried the additional destination to the airline and other foreign carriers, especially when none of Nigeria's carriers are given the opportunity of reciprocity.

He decried that most of the foreign carriers have turned Nigeria into their domestic operations while domestic carriers are closing shop one after the other.

Mr. Ojikutu further lamented that virtually all the foreign airlines coming into Nigeria operate into at least two airports in Nigeria.

He said that while Nigeria was busy opening up its airports to various foreign airlines, their counterparts elsewhere are restricting Nigerian carriers from flying into airports of their choice.

"Now, you have five international airports which foreign carriers are flying into. They have more or less taken over your domestic markets. If you have an Ethiopian Airlines flight that is flying into five of your airports, what has it done?

"It has taken over your domestic markets. Those are the consequences and dangers in giving multiple landings to foreign airlines when you don't have reciprocity," he said.

Olumide Ohunayo, the Director of Research at Zenith Travels, attributed the sordid situation to inconsistencies in the Nigerian government's policies.

He bemoaned that in spite of the kick against the multiple entry policies by a majority of players in the sector, state governments are enticing foreign carriers into their states.

He expressed that with such a policy, the government was indirectly killing the domestic carriers and urged the Minister of State for Aviation, Hadi Sirika, to reverse what he described as an unfriendly policy.

"When you look at a country whereby you are not united in policy, industry and the growth of the sector, then you begin to enter some of these little crises at the peril of the domestic carriers.

"Here we are saying that we don't want multiple entries for foreign carriers, yet some governors want every foreign carrier to operate into their states. With this, there is no way the domestic airlines will grow. We are killing our own carriers with our attitude," he said.

Mr. Ohunayo also called on the umbrella body of indigenous carriers in the country, Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON), to lobby the government and ensure that the policy is reversed in their favor.

"Multiple entries are not something that is good for our industry. What are you giving our domestic airlines in return? You see, Med-View Airline cannot enter into Dubai. They are giving it another city, which is far from Dubai and the same emirates is re-applying to recommence Abuja route when our own carrier can't go to Dubai.

"This is unfair. We need to negotiate," he said.

Source: Aviation Stakeholders Condemn FG Over Granting Ethiopian Airlines Fifth Nigerian Destination

M-Pesa, MTN, Orange, others lead Africa’s mobile money revolution — Quartz

Edward Joseph Karemera, 39, a resident of Buikwe district in central Uganda, has been running a fish trading business between Rwanda and Uganda for eight years, he used to make the painstaking nine-hour journey by bus to Nyabugogo in Kigali, Rwanda which is the destination of his fish, from his stores on the shores of Lake Victoria in Kiyindi at least six times in a month. His commodities go by truck, but he also had to make the trips to receive payment for the supplies, which he would change into Uganda shillings and go back to buy more fish.

The business was becoming untenable because of the long trips, and despite working with the same customers for so long nothing could change, he had to personally pick his money.

But since the introduction of a cross-border money remittance service, his clients in Kigali now send him the money on his MTN Uganda mobile money account while he is in Uganda, he saves on the costs and his business has expanded.

Mobile money adoption in Africa outpaced growth in the rest of the world, with over half of all services globally and more than 40% of adults in active use Karemera says mobile money has been a boon for his business and can't imagine living without mobile phones even though they only came available to him less than two decades ago. "My trade has become much easier and cost effective, its even easier dealing with workers now, anything I want I just send them money and they purchase it."

The mobile money service has grown to include international inbound remittance transfers to other countries through partners like World Remit, Small World and Western Union.

Examples like Karemera's support the notion that with a mobile phone, Africa has a real chance of overcoming lost years of underdevelopment.

Mobile money accounts in sub-Saharan Africa have surpassed bank accounts, says a report from global trade body GSMA. It gives a fighting chance for millions of un-banked rural poor to be financially included and benefit from products like savings and loans for their small and mostly informal businesses, money transfers, among others.

Analysts believe there is still plenty more ground to break by mobile money's impact in Africa. Only 17% of the viable mobile money rural market has been tapped says GSMA, Tanzania for instance still has up to 92% of its people especially in rural areas still unbanked.

That said, mobile money adoption in the region outpaced growth in the rest of the world, contributing 140 mobile money services of the 277 global totals, and more than 40% of adults in the region use the service on an active basis, but it looks like this is just the beginning.

Telecom industry captains are not able to rest on their laurels, the current market dynamics are unforgiving they say. There is more pressure for telcos to generate revenue from additional services beyond voice and SMS even as the growing penetration of smartphones and internet means dwindling revenue growth caused by so called over-the top platforms disruption. More people are increasingly bypassing voice and SMS to use social medias like WhatsApp, Facebook and others, for both voice calls and instant messaging.

"Telecom operators have no choice but to capitalize on innovation and the scalable nature of mobile money" said Mats Granryd, the director general of GSMA, at the recent mobile 360 event in Dar Es Salaam.

The glossy numbers however only tell part of the story, the real equalizer effect of mobile money has been the impact of the innovation around financial services, where telecom players have churned out multiple use cases cutting across all economic divides in Africa, from simple ones like money transfer and air time top-up to more sophisticated ones like bill payments and bank-to mobile wallet transactions.

As more people overcome the digital cultural shock and become digitally literate they are shopping with tap & pay and other merchant payment solutions, while they also pay their utility bills, cable TV subscriptions and even taxes. Using mobile money significantly increases efficiencies, for instance Dar es Salaam water and sewerage cooperation registered a 38% increase in revenue collections when it started collecting it through mobile money.

Granryd also noted that telecoms have to develop more Non-communication services that ease life and solve problems, while consolidating the existing user-cases, that it is through these new revenue streams that the industry will stay afloat.

Mobile money has become a lifeline to unfortunate members of society, for instance up to 52% of refugees from Nyarugusu refugee camp in Tanzania use mobile money to receive humanitarian cash donations, remittances from home countries as well as wage payments.

Although the innovation was born in East Africa, West Africa has emerged as the new mobile money frontier, where adoption is currently almost 29% of active mobile money accounts in Sub-Saharan Africa are now based, compared to just 8% five years ago.

Markets such as Gabon, Ghana, Kenya, Namibia, Tanzania, Uganda and Zimbabwe have more than 40% of users as active mobile money users.

Sitoyo Lopokoiyit, the director of m-commerce at Vodacom Tanzania said operators will have to look beyond inter-operating with other MNO's and innovate new services to loop it other players like banks, while deepening the existing ones.

"When I was in China I never even saw their money, all transactions were cashless, it was so efficient, that's where we should be looking but we can't achieve this alone as MNO's, we have to interoperate with other industry players" said Sitoyo.

The growing stable of mobile money savings and credit products are quickly changing the way people access soft loans, M-Shwari, the M-Pesa credit product alone has disbursed soft loans amounting to $1.3 billion since 2012, most of this going to SMES's. With a non-performing loan ratio of 1.92%, and prohibitive interest rates in banks, adoption will only grow for these credit products.

Mobile money has also been seen as a lifeline to a number of social and economic clusters in Africa, from the increasing number of agents, growing from 100,000 agents in 2011 to 1.5 million in 2016, 47% of revenues from mobile money in the region went to agents.

The wider reach of a mobile phone has proved to be an asset especially in Africa, it's a multifaceted tool which has been improving people's lives across the board as the world tries to connect the next billion, to accelerate this, governments have to look far by providing the needed policy support and update the archaic regulations in place.

Source: M-Pesa, MTN, Orange, others lead Africa's mobile money revolution — Quartz

South Africa: SA to Participate in Brics Summit

South Africa will participate in the upcoming BRICS Summit, which will take place in China in September.

Reporting on work it has done in the first quarter of 2017, the International Cooperation, Trade and Security (ICTS) Cluster said the country will partake in the summit scheduled to take place in Xiamen from 3 -5 September.

"We look forward to assuming the chair next year (2018). During our tenure, we will focus on deepening BRICS [Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa] cooperation for common development, enhancement of global governance to jointly meet our shared challenges, carrying out people-to-people exchanges to support BRICS cooperation and institutional improvements, among others," said the cluster on Monday.

The cluster said South Africa's role in BRICS forum continues to grow.

"At the same time, we are alive to the changes in governments of some of our BRICS partners, such as Brazil, and continue to assess how this could affect the cohesion of the forum."

Turning to the BRICS New Development Bank, the ICTS Cluster said it supports the formation of the bank as an alternative and effective funding mechanism to finance infrastructure development and sustainable development projects in BRICS and other emerging economies and developing countries.

"We wholly support its formation. As it is well known by now, South Africa is the proud host of the BRICS Regional Bank. To date, the New Development Bank has extended loans worth US$1.5 billion towards funding suitable projects in BRICS countries, mostly in the renewable energy space. Included in this amount is a US$ 180 million loan to Eskom to assist with investments in renewable energy projects."

The operationalisation of the African Regional Centre is one of the key priorities of the New Development Bank. South Africa is working with the New Development Bank to complete the process of setting up the bank's regional office, which is expected to be in operation by year end.

Trade and tourism

The cluster said tourism continues to be a significant driver of economic growth for South Africa.

"Through entities like South African Tourism and Brand South Africa, we have prioritised marketing our country as a tourism destination of choice."

The cluster said South Africa recorded 2 622 215 international tourist arrivals during the quarter (January to March 2017), confirming that South Africa continues to be a tourist destination of choice.

From January to December 2016, a total of 10 044 163 international tourist arrivals, excluding transits, were recorded.

This exceeded the annual target by 10.6%. More than R75 billion in direct spend was recorded by foreign tourists during this period, exceeding the annual target by 6%.

Source: South Africa: SA to Participate in Brics Summit