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Coffee sector privatization spells misery to over 4 million Burundians
INNOCENT HABONIMANA | 01-05-2017
The gradual decline of coffee production and the low returns make the situation of millions of Burundians worrying
The World Bank has forced Burundi government to privatize the coffee industry. With private managers advancing their own interests, millions of farmers continuously lose their once main source of income.
Privatization of the coffee sector in Burundi continues to bring woes to farmers. The latter fear coffee production will be worse this year. They complain that INTERCAFE (a private authority in charge of consultation between coffee producers, middlemen and exporters) has been late in providing them with pesticides and fertilizers.
“All Burundian coffee farmers did not get fertilizers. Neither have we got pesticides for the second phase of coffee spraying. All this happens while we, farmers, are made to pay 60% of the products’ price”, says Joseph Ntirabampa, the chairman of CNAC MURIMA W’INSANGI, a collective of associations of coffee farmers of Burundi.
Speaking on behalf of INTERCAFE, Oscar Baranyizigiye denies responsibility and says the delay was ultimately due to the lack of foreign currencies by importers of the products.
The representative of Burundian coffee farmers demands that INTERCAFE stops deducting the cost of the products from the farmers’ share. He wants farmers themselves to be allowed to directly buy fertilizers and phytosanitary products.
The importance of coffee in the Burundian national economy cannot be overestimated. Being particularly appreciated on the international market, Burundian coffee provides more than 50% of export revenues. It is also a source of living for roughly 600.000 households of over 4 million people, mainly peasants.
Despite its importance, the coffee sector suffers from an increasing decline. A study conducted in 2012 showed that coffee production decreases by 40% every year.
The causes of the decline include among others, the lack of interest of farmers partly due to poor returns from their crops and the lack of backing and supervision. The lack of fertilizers and pesticides also has a lot to do with the drop in production.
World Bank is to blame
The current problem of lack of fertilizers and phytosanitary products and the decline in returns are due to the privatization of the coffee sector imposed on the government of Burundi by the World Bank.
The privatization made the situation of coffee farmers even worse as it excluded them from the sector and put almost all coffee washing stations and the trading in the hands of foreign firms like Webcor and Armanjaro.
Now the chairman of CNAC asks the government to sell the remaining washing stations to Burundians.
In 2013, two Special Rapporteurs of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Cephas Lumina and Olivier De Schutter deplored the fact that the privatization of the coffee industry had a potential negative impact on farmers.
“There are worrying signs that the interests of coffee farmers have not been taken into account in the reform process despite the opening of coffee farmers’ organizations to a reform of the sector which would allow them to move up the value chain”, said the experts.
The President of Burundi, Pierre Nkurunziza, has recently regretted that “the population suffers from the reforms of the coffee sector” because the private managers of the sector have sought their interests over the farmers’.
The two UN rapporteurs regretted “that the Bank continues to consider that it is not required to take human rights into account in its decision-making processes, whereas the policies it recommends have very concrete impacts on the rights and Livelihoods of coffee farmers ”
The chairman of CNAC asks that the government and other actors of the coffee industry jointly evaluate the outcomes of the privatization of the industry.
Burundi President, Pierre Nkurunziza, said efforts to reshape and reinvigorate the sector are being made.
Coffee sector privatization spells misery to over 4 million Burundians
INNOCENT HABONIMANA | 01-05-2017
The gradual decline of coffee production and the low returns make the situation of millions of Burundians worrying
The World Bank has forced Burundi government to privatize the coffee industry. With private managers advancing their own interests, millions of farmers continuously lose their once main source of income.
Privatization of the coffee sector in Burundi continues to bring woes to farmers. The latter fear coffee production will be worse this year. They complain that INTERCAFE (a private authority in charge of consultation between coffee producers, middlemen and exporters) has been late in providing them with pesticides and fertilizers.
“All Burundian coffee farmers did not get fertilizers. Neither have we got pesticides for the second phase of coffee spraying. All this happens while we, farmers, are made to pay 60% of the products’ price”, says Joseph Ntirabampa, the chairman of CNAC MURIMA W’INSANGI, a collective of associations of coffee farmers of Burundi.
Speaking on behalf of INTERCAFE, Oscar Baranyizigiye denies responsibility and says the delay was ultimately due to the lack of foreign currencies by importers of the products.
The representative of Burundian coffee farmers demands that INTERCAFE stops deducting the cost of the products from the farmers’ share. He wants farmers themselves to be allowed to directly buy fertilizers and phytosanitary products.
The importance of coffee in the Burundian national economy cannot be overestimated. Being particularly appreciated on the international market, Burundian coffee provides more than 50% of export revenues. It is also a source of living for roughly 600.000 households of over 4 million people, mainly peasants.
Despite its importance, the coffee sector suffers from an increasing decline. A study conducted in 2012 showed that coffee production decreases by 40% every year.
The causes of the decline include among others, the lack of interest of farmers partly due to poor returns from their crops and the lack of backing and supervision. The lack of fertilizers and pesticides also has a lot to do with the drop in production.
World Bank is to blame
The current problem of lack of fertilizers and phytosanitary products and the decline in returns are due to the privatization of the coffee sector imposed on the government of Burundi by the World Bank.
The privatization made the situation of coffee farmers even worse as it excluded them from the sector and put almost all coffee washing stations and the trading in the hands of foreign firms like Webcor and Armanjaro.
Now the chairman of CNAC asks the government to sell the remaining washing stations to Burundians.
In 2013, two Special Rapporteurs of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Cephas Lumina and Olivier De Schutter deplored the fact that the privatization of the coffee industry had a potential negative impact on farmers.
“There are worrying signs that the interests of coffee farmers have not been taken into account in the reform process despite the opening of coffee farmers’ organizations to a reform of the sector which would allow them to move up the value chain”, said the experts.
The President of Burundi, Pierre Nkurunziza, has recently regretted that “the population suffers from the reforms of the coffee sector” because the private managers of the sector have sought their interests over the farmers’.
The two UN rapporteurs regretted “that the Bank continues to consider that it is not required to take human rights into account in its decision-making processes, whereas the policies it recommends have very concrete impacts on the rights and Livelihoods of coffee farmers ”
The chairman of CNAC asks that the government and other actors of the coffee industry jointly evaluate the outcomes of the privatization of the industry.
Burundi President, Pierre Nkurunziza, said efforts to reshape and reinvigorate the sector are being made.
Coffee sector privatization spells misery to over 4 million Burundians
Fortune hunters flock to Madagascar's sapphire mines
By Pierre Donadieu | 8 JAN 2017
The dusty figure is lowered slowly into the ground like a bucket into a well, armed with just a crowbar, a shovel and an old, unreliable headlamp.
In the surrounding countryside, bodies rise and sink from hundreds of holes just wide enough for a man.
Children run between the rubble and the smell of cooking wafts from the makeshift shelters where women crouch over pots.
Guards armed with hunting rifles stand by, turning the settlement of Betsinefe into a threatening scene.
In the world of Madagascan sapphire mining, there are few rules.
Sapphires were first discovered in Madagascar in the late 1990s, and already the Indian Ocean island is one of the world's largest producers of the precious stones.
Its 250-kilometre-long (155-mile) deposit is among the biggest in the world and has sparked a sapphire rush.
Activity at this informal, though not entirely illegal, mine in the southwest of the country was suspended recently by authorities after scuffles broke out between villagers and would-be miners flocking in from the rest of the island.
Andry Razafindrakoto, a 19-year-old student from the nearest big town of Tulear, was one of the many hoping to make their fortune.
"I came here to mine sapphires because it's difficult to find work in other areas," he told AFP.
When he sold his haul of stones for some four million ariary ($1,200), he bought his own equipment and today manages a small team of nine miners.
- 'Sometimes we find nothing' -
But success stories are rare.
Like most of his fellow miners, Albert Soja does not earn wages for his countless, gruelling trips underground. To make money, he must find and sell stones.
"Of course it's scary, but when you want to succeed, you have to take risks," he said, a woollen beanie pulled tightly on his head despite the suffocating heat.
"Just digging the hole itself takes time, almost two weeks."
"Sometimes we find nothing... it can take months to find something interesting."
Without sapphires to sell, he depends on the mine "bosses" -- gem shop owners, usually of Sri Lankan origin, in the neighbouring town of Sakaraha -- for a few handfuls of rice or manioc to survive.
"The bosses pay for our food and materials, which helps us hold out. Without their help, we would starve," said Soja.
"After that, we're obliged to sell them the stones we find."
- Lucrative trade -
Sitting behind his desk in his gem shop in Sakaraha, Sunil W.J. -- as he calls himself -- examined his latest buy of blue and pink and light yellow sapphires under a lamp.
His two "bodyguards" toured the surrounding mines to collect the stones and pay for miners' food.
The best finds are sent to Sri Lanka, to be polished, cut and sold, Sunil explained.
Theoretically, the extraction of sapphires is regulated by Madagascar's mining code, which insists on permits and the redistribution of a share of the taxes to benefit local municipalities.
In practice, the industry is largely unregulated, but it is a lucrative trade, said Sunil.
A stone that fetches $300 in Sri Lanka costs him less than a tenth of the price to buy from a miner in Madagascar.
On the question of taxes, Sunil was less certain of his figures, but said he paid a 10 percent export tax to authorities in the capital Antananarivo.
"These small sapphire mines are beyond the control of the state, so there are no official statistics," Mines Minister Ying Vah Zafilahy told AFP, vowing industry reform to bring them under formal regulation.
"Some days are better than others, but this business has a future," said Sunil, laughing.
On the question of taxes, Sunil was less certain of his figures, but said he paid a 10 percent export tax to authorities in the capital Antananarivo.
"These small sapphire mines are beyond the control of the state, so there are no official statistics," Mines Minister Ying Vah Zafilahy told AFP, vowing industry reform to bring them under formal regulation.
A local elected official in Sakaraha, who asked to remain anonymous, said the municipality was not receiving any taxes or income from the many mining operations underway.
"Some days are better than others, but this business has a future," said Sunil, laughing.
Fortune hunters flock to Madagascar's sapphire mines
By Pierre Donadieu | 8 JAN 2017
The dusty figure is lowered slowly into the ground like a bucket into a well, armed with just a crowbar, a shovel and an old, unreliable headlamp.
In the surrounding countryside, bodies rise and sink from hundreds of holes just wide enough for a man.
Children run between the rubble and the smell of cooking wafts from the makeshift shelters where women crouch over pots.
Guards armed with hunting rifles stand by, turning the settlement of Betsinefe into a threatening scene.
In the world of Madagascan sapphire mining, there are few rules.
Sapphires were first discovered in Madagascar in the late 1990s, and already the Indian Ocean island is one of the world's largest producers of the precious stones.
Its 250-kilometre-long (155-mile) deposit is among the biggest in the world and has sparked a sapphire rush.
Activity at this informal, though not entirely illegal, mine in the southwest of the country was suspended recently by authorities after scuffles broke out between villagers and would-be miners flocking in from the rest of the island.
Andry Razafindrakoto, a 19-year-old student from the nearest big town of Tulear, was one of the many hoping to make their fortune.
"I came here to mine sapphires because it's difficult to find work in other areas," he told AFP.
When he sold his haul of stones for some four million ariary ($1,200), he bought his own equipment and today manages a small team of nine miners.
- 'Sometimes we find nothing' -
But success stories are rare.
Like most of his fellow miners, Albert Soja does not earn wages for his countless, gruelling trips underground. To make money, he must find and sell stones.
"Of course it's scary, but when you want to succeed, you have to take risks," he said, a woollen beanie pulled tightly on his head despite the suffocating heat.
"Just digging the hole itself takes time, almost two weeks."
"Sometimes we find nothing... it can take months to find something interesting."
Without sapphires to sell, he depends on the mine "bosses" -- gem shop owners, usually of Sri Lankan origin, in the neighbouring town of Sakaraha -- for a few handfuls of rice or manioc to survive.
"The bosses pay for our food and materials, which helps us hold out. Without their help, we would starve," said Soja.
"After that, we're obliged to sell them the stones we find."
- Lucrative trade -
Sitting behind his desk in his gem shop in Sakaraha, Sunil W.J. -- as he calls himself -- examined his latest buy of blue and pink and light yellow sapphires under a lamp.
His two "bodyguards" toured the surrounding mines to collect the stones and pay for miners' food.
The best finds are sent to Sri Lanka, to be polished, cut and sold, Sunil explained.
Theoretically, the extraction of sapphires is regulated by Madagascar's mining code, which insists on permits and the redistribution of a share of the taxes to benefit local municipalities.
In practice, the industry is largely unregulated, but it is a lucrative trade, said Sunil.
A stone that fetches $300 in Sri Lanka costs him less than a tenth of the price to buy from a miner in Madagascar.
On the question of taxes, Sunil was less certain of his figures, but said he paid a 10 percent export tax to authorities in the capital Antananarivo.
"These small sapphire mines are beyond the control of the state, so there are no official statistics," Mines Minister Ying Vah Zafilahy told AFP, vowing industry reform to bring them under formal regulation.
"Some days are better than others, but this business has a future," said Sunil, laughing.
On the question of taxes, Sunil was less certain of his figures, but said he paid a 10 percent export tax to authorities in the capital Antananarivo.
"These small sapphire mines are beyond the control of the state, so there are no official statistics," Mines Minister Ying Vah Zafilahy told AFP, vowing industry reform to bring them under formal regulation.
A local elected official in Sakaraha, who asked to remain anonymous, said the municipality was not receiving any taxes or income from the many mining operations underway.
"Some days are better than others, but this business has a future," said Sunil, laughing.
Fortune hunters flock to Madagascar's sapphire mines
The Odum of Ala Igbo
Hail Biafra!
Any thoughts on the Ivory Coast army mutiny?
Red Shield
Global Domination
"demanding higher salaries and improved living conditions"
shyt is stupid.If the civilians/nation as a whole are doing good.. then yea make demands.
But if not... then stfu.. your soldiers
Ghana’s Akufo-Addo Sworn in, Pledges to Boost Private Sector
by Ekow Dontoh
7 de janeiro de 2017 14:10 UTC/GMT
A policeman stands guard at the main gate to the residence of Nana Akufo-Addo. Photographer: Pius Utomi Ekpei/AFP via Getty Images
Nana Akufo-Addo was sworn in as Ghana’s president on Saturday, pledging to cut taxes and boost the private sector to accelerate growth in an economy that’s recording its slowest expansion in two decades.
“We believe that the business of government is to govern; ours is to set fair rules, and we will provide vision and direction and shine the light down the path of our entrepreneurs and farmers,” Akufo-Addo, 72, said during the ceremony in the capital, Accra. “We are counting on a vibrant private sector to drive growth and create jobs.”
Nana Akufo-Addo Photographer: Pius Utomi Ekpei/AFP via Getty Images
An economist and former central bank governor, Mahamudu Bawumia, was sworn in as vice president. The ceremony was attended by West African heads of state including Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari and Alassane Ouattara of Ivory Coast, Ghana’s neighbor.
The leader of the New Patriotic Party won last month’s election against incumbent John Mahama on campaign pledges to create jobs, encourage mining of bauxite and solve chronic energy shortages that have crippled small businesses for the past three years. The previous administration was forced to seek a $933 million emergency loan from the International Monetary Fund last year, blaming the downturn on low prices for Ghana’s main exports cocoa, gold and oil.
‘High Expectations’
“Expectations are really high, especially because the NPP’s policies are usually more business-friendly,” Godfred Bokpin, head of the finance department at the University of Ghana’s Business School, said in an interview Friday. “There’s very little fiscal space to finance development, but there should be a re-ignition of economic activity in the country.”
Akufo-Addo, who lost two previous elections with a small margin of votes, will face the task of reigniting growth while reining in inflation and consolidating public debt. After expanding at the fastest annual pace in Africa at 14 percent with the start of oil exports in 2011, Ghana’s economy was projected to slow to 3.3 percent growth last year.
“We will reduce taxes to recover the momentum of our economy,” he said. “It’s time to dream again, time to try that business idea again. Ghana is open for business again.”
Ghana’s Akufo-Addo Sworn in, Pledges to Boost Private Sector
by Ekow Dontoh
7 de janeiro de 2017 14:10 UTC/GMT
A policeman stands guard at the main gate to the residence of Nana Akufo-Addo. Photographer: Pius Utomi Ekpei/AFP via Getty Images
Nana Akufo-Addo was sworn in as Ghana’s president on Saturday, pledging to cut taxes and boost the private sector to accelerate growth in an economy that’s recording its slowest expansion in two decades.
“We believe that the business of government is to govern; ours is to set fair rules, and we will provide vision and direction and shine the light down the path of our entrepreneurs and farmers,” Akufo-Addo, 72, said during the ceremony in the capital, Accra. “We are counting on a vibrant private sector to drive growth and create jobs.”
Nana Akufo-Addo Photographer: Pius Utomi Ekpei/AFP via Getty Images
An economist and former central bank governor, Mahamudu Bawumia, was sworn in as vice president. The ceremony was attended by West African heads of state including Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari and Alassane Ouattara of Ivory Coast, Ghana’s neighbor.
The leader of the New Patriotic Party won last month’s election against incumbent John Mahama on campaign pledges to create jobs, encourage mining of bauxite and solve chronic energy shortages that have crippled small businesses for the past three years. The previous administration was forced to seek a $933 million emergency loan from the International Monetary Fund last year, blaming the downturn on low prices for Ghana’s main exports cocoa, gold and oil.
‘High Expectations’
“Expectations are really high, especially because the NPP’s policies are usually more business-friendly,” Godfred Bokpin, head of the finance department at the University of Ghana’s Business School, said in an interview Friday. “There’s very little fiscal space to finance development, but there should be a re-ignition of economic activity in the country.”
Akufo-Addo, who lost two previous elections with a small margin of votes, will face the task of reigniting growth while reining in inflation and consolidating public debt. After expanding at the fastest annual pace in Africa at 14 percent with the start of oil exports in 2011, Ghana’s economy was projected to slow to 3.3 percent growth last year.
“We will reduce taxes to recover the momentum of our economy,” he said. “It’s time to dream again, time to try that business idea again. Ghana is open for business again.”
Ghana’s Akufo-Addo Sworn in, Pledges to Boost Private Sector
The Odum of Ala Igbo
Hail Biafra!
Ghana’s Akufo-Addo Sworn in, Pledges to Boost Private Sector
by Ekow Dontoh
7 de janeiro de 2017 14:10 UTC/GMT
A policeman stands guard at the main gate to the residence of Nana Akufo-Addo. Photographer: Pius Utomi Ekpei/AFP via Getty Images
Nana Akufo-Addo was sworn in as Ghana’s president on Saturday, pledging to cut taxes and boost the private sector to accelerate growth in an economy that’s recording its slowest expansion in two decades.
“We believe that the business of government is to govern; ours is to set fair rules, and we will provide vision and direction and shine the light down the path of our entrepreneurs and farmers,” Akufo-Addo, 72, said during the ceremony in the capital, Accra. “We are counting on a vibrant private sector to drive growth and create jobs.”
Nana Akufo-Addo Photographer: Pius Utomi Ekpei/AFP via Getty Images
An economist and former central bank governor, Mahamudu Bawumia, was sworn in as vice president. The ceremony was attended by West African heads of state including Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari and Alassane Ouattara of Ivory Coast, Ghana’s neighbor.
The leader of the New Patriotic Party won last month’s election against incumbent John Mahama on campaign pledges to create jobs, encourage mining of bauxite and solve chronic energy shortages that have crippled small businesses for the past three years. The previous administration was forced to seek a $933 million emergency loan from the International Monetary Fund last year, blaming the downturn on low prices for Ghana’s main exports cocoa, gold and oil.
‘High Expectations’
“Expectations are really high, especially because the NPP’s policies are usually more business-friendly,” Godfred Bokpin, head of the finance department at the University of Ghana’s Business School, said in an interview Friday. “There’s very little fiscal space to finance development, but there should be a re-ignition of economic activity in the country.”
Akufo-Addo, who lost two previous elections with a small margin of votes, will face the task of reigniting growth while reining in inflation and consolidating public debt. After expanding at the fastest annual pace in Africa at 14 percent with the start of oil exports in 2011, Ghana’s economy was projected to slow to 3.3 percent growth last year.
“We will reduce taxes to recover the momentum of our economy,” he said. “It’s time to dream again, time to try that business idea again. Ghana is open for business again.”
Ghana’s Akufo-Addo Sworn in, Pledges to Boost Private Sector
Is the political divide in Ghana becoming based on interpretations of economics (ex. issues regarding commodification/privatization) or is still a regional affair?
I guess it's the former.
The Odum of Ala Igbo
Hail Biafra!
Uganda's Museveni promotes son to special adviser role - BBC News
Uganda's Museveni promotes son to special adviser role
Image copyrightAFP
Image captionMuhoozi Kainerugaba, 42, was promoted from brigadier to major general last year
Uganda's leader Yoweri Museveni has promoted his eldest son to become a special presidential adviser in a reshuffle of army commanders.
Maj Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba has risen rapidly within the military, fuelling speculation that he is being groomed to become president one day.
Analysts say his new role, working more closely with state house, will broaden his remit and experience.
Mr Museveni, 72, is one of Africa's longest-serving leaders.
He came to power in 1986 after winning a five-year guerrilla war - and last year won his fifth term in office with more than 60% of the vote.
Gen Kainerugaba, 42, had been in charge of the Special Forces in charge of his father's security since 2008.
He graduated from the UK's Royal Military Academy Sandhurst in 2000 and last year was promoted from brigadier to major general.
Image copyrightAFP
Image captionA constitutional change in 2005, lifting term limits, allowed Mr Museveni to stand again
"Muhoozi... is going to play a significant role in a post-Museveni Uganda, there's no doubt about it," political commentator and rights activist Nicholas Opiyo told the Reuters news agency.
"He is just giving the boy a hand in experiencing how government works on the side of politics."
In the reshuffle Brigadier Peter Elwelu, who oversaw a deadly raid in November on the palace of a regional king accused of launching a secessionist movement, was promoted to army chief.
The BBC's Patience Atuhaire in Kampala says the promotion is being seen as a reward for the operation, in which more than 60 people were killed.
Meanwhile the previous army chief General Katumba Wamala has been made a junior Minister for Works in the government after serving as the top army official since 2013, a departure seen as a demotion, our correspondent says.
Military spokesman Paddy Ankunda said the moves were part of normal changes within the institution.
Premeditated
MANDE KANG
phase 1 of the SRG project in Kenya is nearly complete
This is a game changer
This is a game changer
AfDB signs loan agreements to finance Busega-Mpigi express highway project linking Uganda and Rwanda
10/01/2017
Uganda’s Minister of Finance Planning and Economic Development, Matia Kasaija, and Gabriel Negatu, East Africa Regional Development and Business Delivery Office Director General, signed African Development Bank and African Development Fund loan agreements of US $151 million for the Multinational Uganda-Rwanda Busega-Mpigi express highway project on December 29, 2016.
The loans will help finance the construction of a 23.7-kilometre four-lane express highway on a new alignment with four grade-separated interchanges. The ceremony was held at the Ministry of Finance and attended by Monica Azuba Ntege, Minister of Works and Transport, officials from the Ministries of Finance and Works and the Uganda National Roads Authority.
Matia Kasaija thanked Negatu for expediting the loans signature. He expressed appreciation for the Bank’s support and pointed out the strategic importance of the road in improving the transport services in central Uganda and its contribution to regional integration. He urged the executing agency to ensure timely implementation and pledged Government’s commitment to meet the counterpart obligations as well as ensuring compliance with safeguard requirements.
Negatu thanked the Minister and commended the Government of Uganda’s commitment to the development of infrastructure in the country. He pointed out that the Busega-Mpigi express highway project will cost US $192 million, with Bank financing of US $151 million. In addition to the civil works, the project has components for capacity building for Ministry of Works and Transport, training and capacity building for cross-border women traders at Mirama Hills and vendors (mainly women and youth in Busega Market). He further stated that, given the high traffic volume on the project road, the project will have an Operations and Maintenance Concession in order to address the project future maintenance requirements.
On the ongoing project, the AfDB Director General called up on for more efforts in order to ensure that the observed delays are avoided in future. With respect to this project, the Director General emphasized the importance of fulfilling the loan conditions for disbursement effectiveness as soon as possible, as this affects the processing of Kapchorwa-Suam.
The Minister of Works also thanked the Bank for its support in improving transport in the country.
AfDB signs loan agreements to finance Busega-Mpigi express highway project linking Uganda and Rwanda
10/01/2017
Uganda’s Minister of Finance Planning and Economic Development, Matia Kasaija, and Gabriel Negatu, East Africa Regional Development and Business Delivery Office Director General, signed African Development Bank and African Development Fund loan agreements of US $151 million for the Multinational Uganda-Rwanda Busega-Mpigi express highway project on December 29, 2016.
The loans will help finance the construction of a 23.7-kilometre four-lane express highway on a new alignment with four grade-separated interchanges. The ceremony was held at the Ministry of Finance and attended by Monica Azuba Ntege, Minister of Works and Transport, officials from the Ministries of Finance and Works and the Uganda National Roads Authority.
Matia Kasaija thanked Negatu for expediting the loans signature. He expressed appreciation for the Bank’s support and pointed out the strategic importance of the road in improving the transport services in central Uganda and its contribution to regional integration. He urged the executing agency to ensure timely implementation and pledged Government’s commitment to meet the counterpart obligations as well as ensuring compliance with safeguard requirements.
Negatu thanked the Minister and commended the Government of Uganda’s commitment to the development of infrastructure in the country. He pointed out that the Busega-Mpigi express highway project will cost US $192 million, with Bank financing of US $151 million. In addition to the civil works, the project has components for capacity building for Ministry of Works and Transport, training and capacity building for cross-border women traders at Mirama Hills and vendors (mainly women and youth in Busega Market). He further stated that, given the high traffic volume on the project road, the project will have an Operations and Maintenance Concession in order to address the project future maintenance requirements.
On the ongoing project, the AfDB Director General called up on for more efforts in order to ensure that the observed delays are avoided in future. With respect to this project, the Director General emphasized the importance of fulfilling the loan conditions for disbursement effectiveness as soon as possible, as this affects the processing of Kapchorwa-Suam.
The Minister of Works also thanked the Bank for its support in improving transport in the country.
AfDB signs loan agreements to finance Busega-Mpigi express highway project linking Uganda and Rwanda
The Odum of Ala Igbo
Hail Biafra!
Nigeria kowtows to China
Red Shield
Global Domination
Nigeria should have stayed out of it...
but maybe folks are sensing which way the wind is blowing, and deciding which side of the line they wanna stand on
The Odum of Ala Igbo
Hail Biafra!
Nigeria should have stayed out of it...
but maybe folks are sensing which way the wind is blowing, and deciding which side of the line they wanna stand on
From a pragmatic perspective, what is Taiwan in comparison to the People's Republic of China? However, I dislike the notion that African countries are being coerced to do things. Where is the autonomy? Did Nigeria even consider using this circumstance to gain a concession such as something regarding agro-tech/microchip manufacturing out of Taiwan?
Good thing I'm not a Nigerian nationalist. I couldn't take the L's.
Red Shield
Global Domination
From a pragmatic perspective, what is Taiwan in comparison to the People's Republic of China? However, I dislike the notion that African countries are being coerced to do things. Where is the autonomy? Did Nigeria even consider using this circumstance to gain a concession such as something regarding agro-tech/microchip manufacturing out of Taiwan?
Good thing I'm not a Nigerian nationalist. I couldn't take the L's.
I don't think Nigeria was coerced... unless there has been some agreement recently between Nigeria and China with boo-coo money involved.