Category: East Africa

Democratic Republic of Congo’s central bank injected $50 million into the interbank exchange market on Tuesday to prop up the Congolese franc, which has lost nearly 40 percent of its value in the last year, the bank’s spokesman said. The bank injected $50 million into the market five times in 2016 and hiked interest rates…

Tanzania is considering putting a tax on charcoal with the aim of discouraging the use of the fuel, which is a big source of energy for cooking but also a major contributor to deforestation. Officials say they believe making charcoal more expensive would significantly reduce demand for it and cut runaway tree felling in the…

The U.S. State Department has approved a possible $418 million sale to Kenya of aircraft with weapons and related support, a Pentagon agency said on Monday. The Defense Security Cooperation Agency said in a statement the approval was for the possible sale of up to 12 Air Tractor AT-802L planes and two AT-504 trainer aircraft,…

The Japanese Ambassador to Uganda, Mr Kazuaki Kameda, has pledged his government’s support towards promoting irrigation in the country in order to enable Uganda produce adequate food. While commissioning piped water system at Mushumba Primary School in Ryeru Sub-county last week, Mr Kameda said the Japanese government will encourage people to adopt irrigation as way…

Separation of powers. These three words have dominated political chatter this week. How should the three branches of government share power? Where is the red line that must not be crossed? What amounts to interference by one government power centre into the work of another? These are the questions that kept keen observers second guessing…

Ethiopian Airlines, Africa’s largest airline group, announces that it will launch seven new destinations in five months time. This is one of the greatest expansions in Ethiopian’s long and illustrious history. In a press release, Ethiopian said it would launch new service to Victoria Falls (Zimbabwe), Antananarivo (Madagascar), Conakry (Guinea), Oslo (Norway), Chengdu (China), Jakarta…

Long standing conflicts in Loliondo District have forced more than eight investor firms to pack their bags and flee from the former Game Controlled Area, which is mapped within the Ngorongoro District, it has been learnt. A statement from the Loliondo Division’s Tourism Of-ficer, Mr Elibariki Bajuta, revealed that in the last five years, eight…

Parliament on Wednesday agreed to set up a select committee to look into what has been referred to as the “Golden Presidential handshake” that cost tax payers sh6 billion. The bonus was paid out to a team of 42 selected government officials in “recognition of their efforts” to recover capital gains tax in an international…