WINDHOEK, 7 September 2011 — Chinese construction firms in Namibia are permitted to operate in in near-complete violation of Labour Laws and Safety Codes, a U.S. Embassy WikiLeaks Cable suggests. Although Namibia has generally worker-friendly laws, enforcement doesn’t seem to be consistent across the board. Many people and organizations have complained that GRN does not […]

DAR ES SALAAM — Surprising how some global events end up beating a path to your own front door. Just this morning I was reading a WikiLeaks U.S. cable written by the U.S. Embassy in Tanzania, which accuses Tanzania’s President, Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete, of accepting bribes to the tune of $1 million from the UAE-based […]

A few days ago I lost my smartphone on a flight from Nairobi to Accra, not something I do very often. Actually it was the first time I’ve lost a phone, usually any loss is due to me dropping them or worse still, drowning them in salt water. To cut a long story short, I […]

It’s about time these old diesel-spewing decrepit traffic hazards went off the roads. Far too many times I’ve seen accidents caused by their overly-wide bodies squeezed into tiny streets. Sure they look great as an icon, but in today’s world completely impractical; and given the number of cars on the roads it’s one less thing […]

A few days back I was staying at a hotel directly opposite the University of Nairobi [Kenya], where the UNHCR (United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees) was delivering a lecture on the refugee situation in Kenya. I decided to sit in and find out for myself whether the pencil-pusher stories would prove themselves correct. A […]

On top of the limited access to basic healthcare, electricity, running water and high infant mortality rates, rural areas in Tanzania also suffer from very poor education — leaving some vulnerable to suggestion that a cup of specially blessed water will cure everything from diabetes and blindness to tuberculosis and AIDS. Which leads me to […]