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By Faridah Kulabako, Daily Monitor
A new partnership between Centenary Bank and Ivory Bank is likely to ease trade between Uganda and South Sudan as the two banks move to ease banking services for traders in the two countries.
The banks recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding to share banking services, promote commercial links as well as exchange banking information and experiences.
Under the arrangement, traders will be able to deposit money in Uganda’s Centenary Bank but access it through Ivory Bank in South Sudan and vise-versa.
“Centenary Bank has a big number of clients who do business in South Sudan and the same applies to Ivory Bank. We want to save traders the burden and risks of carrying cash,” Centenary Bank managing director, Mr Fabian Kasi told Daily Monitor yesterday.
Under the deal, Centenary Bank will also help its South Sudan counterpart in capacity building to enable it modernise its banking services in compliance with the best standard practices.
fkulabako@ug.nationmedia.com
By VICTOR JUMA, Business Daily
Dealers in new cars are set to export their rivalry to regional markets where they are expanding to grow sales and cut their reliance on Kenya.
DT Dobie, Foton East Africa, and Car & General plan to invest millions of shillings to set up branches and sign up dealership agreements in Tanzania and South Sudan.
General Motors East Africa (GMEA) dominates the new vehicle export market, with the expansion of other dealers set to increase competition in the segment seen as having significant growth potential due to the discovery of oil and gas in the region.
“We plan to sign an agreement with a dealer in Juba (this week) to kick off our expansion into South Sudan,” said Calvin Guo, the managing director of Foton East Africa.
Foton said it will be exporting its pick-ups and light commercial trucks to South Sudan where DT Dobie and Car & General plan to venture into in the next few months.
Though Kenya accounts for most of the sales among the new vehicle dealers, the regional economies are seen as providing major growth opportunities on the back of major mineral resources including Uganda’s oil find and Tanzania’s gas deposits.
Data from the Kenya Motor Industry Association (KMI) shows that export sales accounts for about four per cent of the new vehicle dealer’s sales, with GMEA controlling more than half of the regional sales with its Isuzu bus and commercial trucks.
Kenyan firms are attracted by South Sudan’s economic prospects, with oil expected to fuel the country’s development in the coming years.
Poor infrastructure
Donors such as the UK are also extending millions of dollars in grants and soft loans to the new government to develop education and health facilities and setup administrative structures.
“The main challenge in South Sudan is the poor infrastructure, including roads and we will therefore start exporting commercial vehicles like pick-ups to that market,” said Keld Olsen, the director of sales and marketing at DT Dobie.
Car & General says it is shopping for land in South Sudan where it intends to start operations from the scratch by August targeting motorcycle sales among other business lines.
Apart from South Sudan, Foton is expanding into the Tanzanian market where it is investing about Sh125 million to set up three branches.
The Chinese firm, which already has operations in Kenya and Uganda, says it will serve the region from its Sh1.2 billion Nairobi assembly plant.
Foton is betting on its relatively cheaper commercial truck brands to grab market share from Japanese and western brands such as Nissan, Scania, Isuzu, Mercedes, and Mitsubishi.
In Kenya, the dealers continue to record lower sales driven by the high interest rates and the government’s austerity measures that have cut new vehicle purchases.
In the first two months of the year, the dealers’ sales dropped 13.5 per cent to 1,535 units compared to 1,775 units in a similar period the previous year.
The bulk of new vehicle purchases are financed through bank loans, hence the sharp rise in interest rates has a direct effect on showroom prices.
vjuma@ke.nationmedia.com
AP
NAIROBI, Kenya—East African heads of state, including South Sudan president Salva Kiir, attended a ceremony to mark the beginning of construction for a controversial new port in Kenya's eastern coastal region of Lamu. Villagers fear the port may ruin idyllic beaches that draw Hollywood stars to the nearby island of Lamu year after year. But Kenya hopes the port will make the country a regional telecommunications and transportation hub.
Kiir said Friday that the port will be a terminal for an alternative oil pipeline through Kenya, freeing South Sudan from its dependence on the infrastructure of Sudan, its former ruler in the north. South Sudan seceded from Sudan in July. Landlocked South Sudan stopped pumping oil through Sudan in January, accusing the government in Sudan's capital Khartoum of stealing hundred millions of dollars of oil revenue. Sudan responded Wednesday by bombing two oil wells in the south, Kiir said.
Kiir thanked Kenya for signing a memorandum of understanding to allow the new country to construct an oil pipeline from South Sudan's capital of Juba to the port. He said the port is strategically and economically important for the region. Construction will be done in phases and will cost Kenya about $24.5 billion, according to Kenyan government estimates.
The port is part of a wider project to improve infrastructure in the region. It is designed to include a highway, a railway line and a petroleum pipeline crossing over three countries. Kiir said the improved transport links and pipeline could create a backbone for South Sudan's infrastructure and allow his country to end its reliance on oil.
“The port of Lamu project will create economic opportunities and employment. It will make goods and services more abundant and affordable in our markets,” Kiir said. South Sudan's current lack of infrastructure means the cost of goods, such as sugar and maize, is higher there than in any other countries in the region.
A lobby group called Save Lamu has objected to the construction, saying not enough has been done to study the impact of the port on the environment and the nearby island of Lamu, listed by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site. The group said in a statement Thursday that the communities in Lamu have not been consulted and land ownership was not being respected by the government.
“We are greatly concerned that the lack of transparency, secrecy and poor accountability in the way the project being implemented,” said Abubakar Al-Amudy, the chairman of Save Lamu. Al-Amudy warned that the project may collapse if the lack of accountability persists. Kenyan president Mwai Kibaki said the government is aware of the concerns raised by the people of Lamu, especially with regard to land, environment, cultural heritage and fishing grounds.
“The rights of the people of Lamu, like the rights of all other Kenyans, are enshrined in the Constitution and are, therefore, inalienable. I have instructed the relevant government ministries and agencies to move with speed and ensure that these concerns are addressed as soon as possible,” Kibaki said. Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi also attended the launch.
PRESIDENT Kibaki called on Kenyans and potential investors to take advantage of numerous investment opportunities OFFERED under the project
SPECIAL REPORT BY XINHUA CORRESPONDENT Chris Mgidu
LAMU (Xinhua) -- Three African leaders on Friday launched a regional infrastructure project at Kenya’s coastal town of Lamu.
The presidents Mwai Kibaki of Kenya, Salva Kiir of South Sudan and Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi presided over the port’s groundbreaking ceremony of the East Africa’s largest port, road and railway projects. The Lamu Port project, officially known as Lamu-Southern Sudan Ethiopia Transport (LAPSSET), has several components that include: construction of the Lamu Port at the Manda Bay, construction of railway line from Lamu to Isiolo, Isiolo to South Sudan, and Isiolo to Ethiopia, construction of airports at Isiolo, Lamu and Lake Turkana and construction of highway from Lamu to Isiolo, Isiolo to South Sudan, and Isiolo to Ethiopia.
The presidents Mwai Kibaki of Kenya, Salva Kiir of South Sudan and Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi presided over the port’s groundbreaking ceremony of the East Africa’s largest port, road and railway projects.
The Lamu Port project, officially known as Lamu-Southern Sudan Ethiopia Transport (LAPSSET), has several components that include:
construction of the Lamu Port at the Manda Bay,
construction of railway line from Lamu to Isiolo, Isiolo to South Sudan, and Isiolo to Ethiopia,
construction of airports at Isiolo, Lamu and Lake Turkana and
construction of highway from Lamu to Isiolo, Isiolo to South Sudan, and Isiolo to Ethiopia.
Speaking at the launch, Kenyan President Kibaki said the project marked yet another important milestone in the regional infrastructure development agenda.
He said LAPSSET is among the flagship projects that seek to bring major transformation of the three nations’ economies.
"Immense benefits will accrue from LAPSSET. "In addition to addressing the transport challenges facing the Northern, Eastern and Coastal parts of our country, this Corridor will generate employment and act as a catalyst for productive economic activities in various sectors of the economy," he said.
"Immense benefits will accrue from LAPSSET.
"In addition to addressing the transport challenges facing the Northern, Eastern and Coastal parts of our country, this Corridor will generate employment and act as a catalyst for productive economic activities in various sectors of the economy," he said.
Kibaki called on Kenyans and potential investors to take advantage of the numerous investment opportunities availed under the project that will become Kenya’s second national transport corridor.
Other components of the project include:
construction of resort cities at Lamu, Isiolo and Lake Turkana, construction of an oil refinery at Lamu, and construction of an oil pipeline from Lamu to Isiolo, Isiolo to South Sudan, and Isiolo to Ethiopia.
construction of resort cities at Lamu, Isiolo and Lake Turkana,
construction of an oil refinery at Lamu, and
construction of an oil pipeline from Lamu to Isiolo, Isiolo to South Sudan, and Isiolo to Ethiopia.
The new transport corridor, whose main works is expected to take up to 30 years to be fully completed, is to increase Kenya’s economic growth rate from about 6 percent to over 10 per cent.
Mugo Kibati, Kenya’s Director General of the Vision 2030 told journalists on Wednesday that the entire project is estimated to cost 24 billion U.S. dollars.
Kibati said the three countries were likely to gain from between 2-3 percent GDP growth from the economic activity generated by the rail-road-pipeline project alone.
He said each of the three countries involved in the project would implement their respective segments of their infrastructural component of the project. "We will focus on our part, and that is to get the construction of the Lamu Port started. "The piling of the Port will start on Friday, with a completion date of 2016. By 2020, the port should be fully functional," Kibati said.
He said each of the three countries involved in the project would implement their respective segments of their infrastructural component of the project.
"We will focus on our part, and that is to get the construction of the Lamu Port started.
"The piling of the Port will start on Friday, with a completion date of 2016. By 2020, the port should be fully functional," Kibati said.
The project is expected to promote regional socio-economic development along the transport corridor especially in the Northern, Eastern, North-Eastern and Coastal parts of Kenya, areas considered as economically marginalised.
It will also open up remote areas of South Sudan and Ethiopia. It is expected to accelerate the economic integration of the region and promote closer diplomatic relations driven by shared trade interests.
Kibaki said the project will provide the landlocked countries of the region with a direct and dependable route to the sea and link South Sudan, Ethiopia, as well as the entire East and Central African region to international markets. "In so doing, the corridor will stimulate the growth of regional economies through promotion of trade and other productive activities." "Moreover, through the use of labour intensive methods LAPSSET projects will generate massive employment opportunities for our people," Kibaki said.
Kibaki said the project will provide the landlocked countries of the region with a direct and dependable route to the sea and link South Sudan, Ethiopia, as well as the entire East and Central African region to international markets.
"In so doing, the corridor will stimulate the growth of regional economies through promotion of trade and other productive activities."
"Moreover, through the use of labour intensive methods LAPSSET projects will generate massive employment opportunities for our people," Kibaki said.
He noted that project is expected to play a critical role in enhancing the economic livelihood of over 167 million people in the region’s existing roads which will be upgraded to bitumen standards, widened and strengthened for heavier loads, allowing cargos from Mombasa and Nairobi to reach Ethiopia and its capital Addis Ababa with greater ease.
According to ministry of transport, Kenya, Ethiopia and South Sudan are expected to account for around 21 percent, 33 percent and 46 percent of the total freight transport volume that includes the crude oil transmission volume. Kenya in turn is keen to develop a new seaport in Lamu for which it would need to generate sufficient cargo throughput of both imports and exports, and plans exist to link this new port by road and rail to the African hinterland as far as South Sudan and into Ethiopia, to ensure viability.
According to ministry of transport, Kenya, Ethiopia and South Sudan are expected to account for around 21 percent, 33 percent and 46 percent of the total freight transport volume that includes the crude oil transmission volume.
Kenya in turn is keen to develop a new seaport in Lamu for which it would need to generate sufficient cargo throughput of both imports and exports, and plans exist to link this new port by road and rail to the African hinterland as far as South Sudan and into Ethiopia, to ensure viability.
The feasibility study on the Lamu Port was released last year by the Japan Port company and subsequently approved by the Cabinet, giving the project a go ahead. But details about fundraising of the project remain sketchy.
Sources say talks are underway between South Sudan and Ethiopia over new road links connecting the two countries and in particular a rail link between Addis and Juba which could run parallel to a new highway, to allow for greater trade and commerce between the two partners. The new partnership deal between Ethiopia and Kenya will benefit regional development, regional integration of the economies, travel and tourism.
Sources say talks are underway between South Sudan and Ethiopia over new road links connecting the two countries and in particular a rail link between Addis and Juba which could run parallel to a new highway, to allow for greater trade and commerce between the two partners.
The new partnership deal between Ethiopia and Kenya will benefit regional development, regional integration of the economies, travel and tourism.
The construction of the Lamu-Juba via Isiolo highway, railway line and pipeline is expected to be complete by 2015, Kibati said.
The highway to link Addis Ababa to Lamu is also under construction with some larger segments of the road already complete, Kibaki said.
By OSINDE OBARE, The Standard
Three Kenyans have been killed and three others seriously injured in a bandit attack in South Sudan.
The trio were shot dead when bandits ambushed them as they were being driven to a building site in Kapoeta County.
The bodies of the victims arrived in Kitale to an emotional reception from relatives who jammed Mt Elgon Hospital.
A group of 25 Kenyans from Trans-Nzoia County had been recruited by an Asian businessman in Kitale to work at a construction site at Kapoeta County in South Sudan.
Eleven of them were dropped off at a construction site at Narus town while the rest proceeded to Chukutum, some 300km away.
"We dropped 11 of our colleagues at a construction site at Narus and then proceeded. But we made a stop at Kapoeta after our vehicle developed a mechanical problem," narrated Mr Henry Simiyu, a survivor.
Assault rifles
He said the group was forced to sleep at Kambi Fifiti before proceeding with the journey the next morning. "We just about 30km away from Chukutum when seven men armed with assault rifles emerged from the bush and started shouting and shooting at us."
Simiyu, who spoke to The Standard at Mt Elgon Hospital in Kitale, had bullet wounds on both hands and his back. He narrated how their driver, Mr Titus Wekesa sped off as bandits pursued them on foot while shooting at the vehicle.
"Two of our colleagues who had been shot and seriously wounded died on the spot while the third victim died before we could reach a local health center," recalled another survivor, Mr Wilson Mabonga who was shot in the right hand.
He added: "We would have been died had the driver slowed down and stopped as ordered by the bandits. Their intention was to kill us and take away the vehicle."
Relatives of the dead victims wailed and broke down at the hospital moment after an open truck delivered the injured and the bodies of the deceased.
The dead were identified as Enock Wanjala, Morris Simiyu and Eric Barasa.
Ezega.com
February 5, 2012 - The 20th extra-ordinary summit of the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) of Heads of States and Governments discussed and passed resolution to tackle situations about the civil war in Somalia, the crisis in the two Sudans, IGAD Minimum Integration Plan and Piracy off the coast of Somalia. The summit also condemned Eritrea and asked to further strengthen sanctions.
Prime Minister Meles Zenawi, Chairman of IGAD said in a press briefing right after the summit, “The summit addressed three key points. Firstly, the integration of IGAD both through the acceleration of infrastructure projects linking us and the establishment of free trade area in the IGAD Region. The secretariat has done a spectacular job in terms of preparing the ground work and everyone agreed to implement this plan. And so there was complete agreement on the integration path. Secondly, we discussed Somalia. We have agreed on all matters related to Somalia. Thirdly, we discussed the crisis in the Republic of Sudan and the Republic of Southern Sudan. A lot of progress was made in the negotiations led by a high level panel of the African Union. So it was agreed that the two parties will continue their negotiations throughout the summit. Although we have made a lot of progress, we are not able to come to a final agreement. So, this is where we are as IGAD.”
On Somalia, the summit deliberated most on the crisis in Somalia and its associated problem of piracy. The summit hailed the progress on the strategic concept on future AMISOM operations in Somalia as well as the gains made by the Transitional Federal Government of Somalia (TFG), Kenyan Defense Forces (KDF) and the logistical and military support extended by Ethiopia and the TFG.
The meeting regarding Somalia also called for the implementation of an inclusive political process in the liberated areas to consolidate gains made by the TFG forces with the help of African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM), Kenyan and Ethiopian Defense Forces against the Somali militant group Al Shabab.
The other point raised was the dispute between South Sudan and Sudan. Following Sudan’s decision to prevent ships carrying South Sudan’s oil from leaving Port Sudan, tension is mounting. This is on top of the controversy over the oil rich region, Abyei.
“The Proposal by the panel is to have a very brief cover agreement focused on reversal of unilateral decisions and a frame work on long term solution to the problem of oil. Many of these issues in both the frame work and the cover agreement are agreed but there are some sticking points. I can not go in to the details because I am sure you would understand the sensitivities of the matter. So, in general terms I believe there is quite a lot of progress but not enough for us to make a deal now,” said Meles. “If there is no agreement, then it means there is no agreement. And so, the unilateral decision can only be stopped, if there is an agreement. As I have said while a lot of progress has been made, we don’t yet have a final agreement,” reiterated Meles.
Uganda Cranes will face South Sudan on February 16 after the world’s newest nation confirmed the international friendly.
Bobby Williamson’s side play Congo Brazzaville in the first round of the 2013 Nations Cup qualifiers on Fifa dates February 28-29.
The friendly against South Sudan will help Bobby have a closer look at local-based players to which point he has summoned 23 of them.
The summoned players start training on Monday in preparation for this game.
“More players could be added or some could be removed,” said Bobby.
Summoned players
Goalkeepers: Hamza Muwonge, Ali Kimera
Defenders: Saka Mpiima, Godfrey Walusimbi, Henry Kalungi, Ivan Bukenya, Israel Emuge, Denis Guma, Ismael Kazibwe,
Midfielders: Noah Ssemakula, Isaac Kirabira, Willy Kavuma, Moses Okello, Patrick Senfuka, Kizito Luwagga, Julius Ogwanga, Steven Bengo, Brian Majwega, Owen Kasule.
Strikers: George Abege, Jimmy Kakembo, Caesar Okuthi, Gerald Bagoole
By New Vision Correspondent
A fire has Saturday morning reportedly broken out at a parking yard in Nimule town at border of South Sudan and Uganda.
A police officer at the scene who did not want to be quoted says the fire broke about a few minutes ago, followed by a loud blast and clouds of dark smoke rising in the air.
The officer says traders were seen fleeing from the South Sudan to the Uganda side with their belongings.
By press time, the cause of the fire and the level of damage it had caused had not yet been established.
Details to follow . . .
How an alleged gun drama between Deputy Chief Justice of Kenya, Nancy Baraza, and a female security guard, Rebecca Kerubo, is a classic case study of the proverbial wisdom of “Pride comes before the fall”.
By PaanLuel Wël, Washington DC, USA. (Borglobe)
I was born in South Sudan, raised in Kenya, and currently schooling in the US. Naturally, anything of interest happening in these three countries does arouse my curiosity and pique my imagination. One such typical incident occurred about a week ago in Nairobi, Kenya, as Lady Nancy Baraza, the newly appointed Deputy Chief Justice (DCJ) of Kenya, was fetching some drug from the Village Market shopping mall — in the upmarket Gigiri area in Nairobi. But as fate would have it, that decision by DCJ Nancy Baraza to procure some drug from that particular store on that particular day at that particular time has become the first sensational landmark events of the year 2012 in Kenya. The “patient” seeking the succor of the medication at the mall ended up in an ugly drama in which she is alleged to have publicly drawn a gun, ready to “finish” the female security guard who had asked her to undergo security check—frisking, just like everybody else entering the mall. The security measures were duly instituted in the wake of terrorism challenge pose by Somali Al-shabaab militants who have recently carried out bombing activities in Kenya. The reported altercation between Nancy Baraza—the Deputy Chief Justice of Kenya, and Rebecca Kerubo—the female security guard at the mall, has Kenyans glued unto their TV sets every evening. Writing for the Standardmedia.co.ke, Alex Kiprotich and Kenfrey Kiberenge, in an article entitled “Kerubo: My Encpounterwith Baraza”, report that Nancy Baraza pinched the security guard’s nose telling her "you need to "know people." Rebecca Kerubo added: "After she pinched my nose at the security desk, she proceeded to the pharmacy and beckoned me;" [saying] “Learn to respect people” "I did not know she had a bodyguard and only realised when she told a man following her closely to shoot me.” "I knelt down begging her to spare my life. I could not hear what she was saying but as soon as she lowered the gun, I fled to the security office up stairs where I found one of the senior security officers.” Mr. Ogweche, the husband to the security guard observes that “everyone needs to be respected in his or her work and it is unfortunate that some people look down upon others. It is even worse when it comes from the custodian of our justice system.” Besides being an archetypal instance of a pride coming before the fall, this alleged gun drama happenstance also touches on the question of (1) the rule of law, especially when it comes to top government officials, (2) the empowerment of women in Africa, and (3) the relationship between the haves and the haves-not, in as far as the former should expect to be treated by the latter in situation in which their roles are reversed. First and foremost, Lady Nancy Baraza was appointed last year to be the deputy chief justice of Kenya as well as the vice president of the supreme court of Kenya. Her appointment stemmed from two main factors: her reformist credentials that had convinced majority of Kenyans that she would strictly adhere to the rule of law and uphold the constitution plus her being a female to fulfill the constitutional requirement that a third of public appointment must be filled by women. Her selection by the Judicial Services Commission, appointment by President Kibaki and PM Odinga and confirmation by the National Assembly made her the most top ranking woman in Kenya. But if Baraza’s appointment was to safeguard the constitution, instill the rule of law and to showcase the empowerment of women in a patriarchical society, then her alleged public bearing have fallen short of the mark. Her refusal to have her frisked, her pinching of the security guard’s nose and her drawing of the gun, threating the life of the security guard place there purposely to protect people like her from danger, all smack in the face of the rule of law. As the guardian of the justice system in Kenya, she has set bad example to the nation. Moreover, she has let down her womenfolk who have long maintain that a society manage by women would be a law-abiding and peaceful one. The sight of a female deputy chief justice of the nation, drawing a gun on unarmed and innocent security guard, is a godsend opportunity for male chauvinists who have been arguing that women are too arrogant to be bestowed with power and trusted with weighty matters touching the nation. In a society deep in ancient myth of women riding on the back of men when they were given leadership position in antiquity, Baraza’s conducts would only confirm the pre-conceived fear of the male chauvinists. This is principally too bad considering that the root cause of the drama is not necessarily the fact that the security guard ask her to undergo security check, rather, Baraza was incensed by the fact that the security guard failed to recognize her as the Deputy Chief Justice of Kenya to the extent that she subjected her to frisking like a commoner. The security guard sin is her apparent failure to “know people.” And of course, there is the other side of the haves and the haves-not. While the female security guard is reported to be earning Ksh 2,400 per week, DCJ Baraza earn upto Ksh one million per month. The female security guard live in a two-bed room house with other five members of the family, a rent of Ksh 4,000 per month, while DCJ Baraza live in a mansion, probably all by herself. The stark differences couldn’t be higher. For the Baraza, the idea of submitting to such “wretched” clouded her thinking to pull out a gun, forgetting the consequences of her action.
But as the call for her to resign, paving way to an investigation of her conduct, becoming louder and clearer, her chicken have come home to roost pending clearance by the investigation. Whatever the verdict would be, the milk has been spilt and nothing will ever remain the same. Though the incident has traumatize the security guard, given the fact that she lost her father to unknown assassin, there is a hope that the “unfortunate” incident would be a blessing in disguise for the rule of law and constitutionalism in Kenya if handle well.
You can reach PaanLuel Wël at paanluel2011@gmail.com, Facebook Page, Twitter account OR at his blog: http://paanluelwel2011.wordpress.com/
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