HiPipo Money

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……as Bell Lager delivers the most memorable experience for fans

The rhythm of cultural dance beats mixed with today’s hits and classics on Sunday 6^th October blasted through the entire stretch of Kampala road from Watoto Church to Kitgum House as the parade made its way drawing thousands to the 2^nd annual Kampala City Festival.

KCCA was leading the parade with a beautiful and well thought out and symbolic float made in the form of a crane and Bell Lager, the platinum sponsors, followed suit with an exquisite display of mascots, bikers, dancers in sumptuous costumes and music filled float.

Now in its second year, the Kampala City Music Festival has grown as approximately 100,000 people pumped their fists, ululated, clapped, jumped, danced and followed the parade on Sunday to then main activity area, the Railway Grounds.

Here, the activities kicked off at 4pm with thousands turning up to take part in the various activities Festival sponsor had lined up in their hospitality tents including Bell lager, Airtel, Ruparelia group, Coca Cola and the main organizer KCCA that hosted government officials such as Uganda National Political Commissar, Col.Felix Kulaigye, Kampala Woman MP Hon. Nabilah Sempala, Minister for Kampala Hon.Frank Tumwebaze and other dignitaries.

Bell Lager once again showcased glamour and colour in the different activities like the floats and branding with giant inflatable cans at the entrance in bright yellow and red that attracted more than three hundred people to the hospitality tent.

The Bell hospitality tent was graced by VIPs like Dr. Martin Aliker and his wife who wined and dined with Uganda Breweries Marketing Director Grace Nshemeire Gwaku. Kampala socialites were also in plenty with the likes of like Judith Heard, Hellen Lukoma and Sylvia Owori. There were electrifying performances from Peter Miles, Cindy and Coco Finger who got revelers so excited with different jams that kept the crowd screaming for more. The Kampala City Festival was a massive attraction this year seeing thousands of people standing alongside the Kampala-Jinja road to catch a glimpse of the festival showcasing a diversity of culture.

Speaking on Bell’s participation in this year’s Festival, Bell Lager Brand Manager, Robert Nsibirwa said, “We are very excited to be part of such a great event that has been well attended by thousands of people, in the Bell nation we continue to deliver great events and it is moments like these that truly represent the ideals of Bell Lager. As the pioneer sponsors of the festival, we continue to give the best experience to our consumers through the unique and exciting activities like these.”

The partners and stakeholders involved in organizing the Kampala City Festival did a splendid job as security, coordination of activities, the parade, the zoo and kids zone were all exquisitely done.

“As the platinum sponsors, Bell lager has genuinely delivered the feel and look of a festival from new music to original performances and games like foosball and the penalty shoot outs that have been part of our Bell Fiesta country wide tour.” added Nsibirwa.

The night ended on a high with a wonderful fireworks display and Kampala City dwellers can only wait for 2014 ads the 3^rd Festival is held.

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MTN Uganda in conjunction with the Kingdom of Buganda has launched a Mobile Money fundraising platform where the kingdom’s subjects and well-wishers will contribute funds to support Kabaka’s various development initiatives.  

The launch ceremony graced by the Kabaka of Buganda HRH Ronald Muwenda Mutebi II, took place in Kyagwe- Mukono on 8^th October 2013. The event which coincided with the Kingdom’s community development drives (also known as Bulungi Bwansi) attracted hundreds of the Kabaka’s subjects and was attended by officials from MTN and the Kingdom.

The platform that was officially commissioned by the Kabaka, will be operated through the MTN Mobile Money service. And through this initiative, Money donated by well-wishers will be collected for the purpose of facilitating the kingdom’s various development initiatives. To be part of and contribute to the initiative, MTN customers need to have registered for the MTN Mobile Money service. When registered, customers will follow these simple steps;

Step 1 – Select Mobile Money

1. Step 2 – Select Pay Bill
2. Step 3 – Select Pay Goods and Services
3. Step 4 – Enter the Code (the code is BUGANDA)

BUGANDA should be typed in capital letters

4.   Step 5 – Enter Amount

6.   Step 6 – Enter Reference (the reference is TWEZIMBE)

TWEZIMBE should be typed in capital letters

7.   Step 7 – Confirm payment

8.   Step 8 – Step 9 – Enter your Mobile Money PIN and press OK

Speaking to his subjects, Kabaka Mutebi pointed out three major projects that are in need of development including; re-building of the Masiro, renovation of the Bulange buildings and funds for the Bulungi Bwansi projects among several others. He urged the people of Buganda and well-wishers to embrace this innovation from MTN and donate generously towards the development of the Kingdom.

Delivering his remarks, MTN Uganda’s Head of Mobile Money, Phrase Lubega reiterated MTN’s mission of making the lives of MTN’s customers a whole lot brighter through similar initiatives that deliver simpler, convenient and affordable solutions to our customers and the community. He added that, “Mobile money has transformed the way we live our lives and has proven to be better money for transactions – whether for domestic or business purposes”.  

“MTN Uganda’s market leadership continues to be driven by our investment in extensive coverage coupled by superior quality on Voice and Data, while offering innovative Value Added Services and putting customers first. We are appreciative that MTN’s investment and ICT development efforts are also complemented by the Kabaka’s own development agenda for his people,” Lubega said.

Also in attendance was MTN Uganda’s General Manager Sales and Distribution, Shaibu Haruna and MTN Uganda’s Board Chairman, Charles Mbire.

Mbire announced a contribution of UShs. 50 million from the MTN Uganda Foundation towards the refurbishment of the Masiro- Kasubi Tombs that were destroyed by fire in March 2010. The MTN Uganda Foundation has over the years contributed to a number of development initiatives and particularly supported Tourism under the scope of National priority Areas. Being a recognised UNESCO World Heritage Site, the Kasubi Tombs are a key facet of Uganda’s rich culture and history, and are one of its cherished tourism assets.

The MTN Uganda Foundation was launched late 2007. It is the Corporate Social Responsibility arm of MTN Uganda that carries out various charitable projects within the communities it operates. From 2013 going forward, the MTN Uganda Foundation will focus on three programme areas to guide its interventions. These include Education, Health and National Priority Areas

About the MTN Uganda

Launched in 1998, MTN Uganda is the leading communications operator in Uganda, offering Mobile and Fixed telecommunications, Mobile Money Services and Internet Service Provisioning. As of 30 June 2013, MTN Uganda recorded 8 million subscribers across Uganda. Visit us at www.mtn.co.ug and for our football fans www.mtnfootball.com. Customers can also follow us on www.youtube.com/mtnug and www.twitter.com/mtnugandacare for assistance.

About the MTN Group

Launched in 1994, the MTN Group is a leading emerging market operator, connecting subscribers in 22 countries in Africa, Asia and the Middle East. The MTN Group is listed on the JSE Securities Exchange in South Africa under the share code: “MTN.” As of 30 June 2013, MTN recorded 201.5 million subscribers across 22 countries. Visit us at www.mtn.com , www.mtnbusiness.com , www.mtnmmo.com  and for our football fans www.mtnfootball.com

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Dear Customer,

Welcome to our September 2013 Enterprise newsletter. Last month we unveiled our suite of Cloud services; we do hope you have signed up for the free trial. Please log onto www.mtn.co.ug/webstore to enjoy the 30 day free trial and enter our new world.

It’s our intention to professionalize all businesses and open up a world of possibilities using the latest applications.

This month we unveil Managed Firewall service.  This is a managed security service which provides firewall configuration, administration, monitoring, report generation, support, and the use of a firewall system consisting of firewall equipment and related software (collectively called the “Firewall System”) owned, maintained and supported by MTN for your business.

MTN’s Managed Firewall services provide customized, around-the-clock firewall protection at a fraction of the cost of traditional solutions, allowing the customer to stay ahead of the threat of data loss or hacking while also freeing up valuable resources.

It is our business goal to continuously seek solutions that will meet your day to day operational efficiencies.

In July, we introduced Co-location which is part of our Managed Hosted services. This takes care of your digital storage hence saving your business millions of shillings in IT infrastructure investments.

Business benefits of Managed Hosted services include;

• Solutions tailored to your speci­c needs – flexibility for you to choose solutions that best fit your business requirements and budget.
• Reduction of operation costs – in-house server and database management tends to be more expensive than outsourcing the service to a hosting partner who already has  the experience and skills.
•  Saving time & money – ensures that you focus on growing your business with minimum time spent on server & applications management.

Please check out full Newsletter below 

LINK to PDF : http://www.mtn.co.ug/Downloads/MTN-Business-Newsletter-Vol-07-September-2013.pdf

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Financial backers and debt providers of Core Citadel Capital platform company Egyptian Refining Company have received a renewal of its comfort letter from the Government of Egypt, signaling unwavering state backing for the strategic US$ 3.7 billion greenfield refining project

Egyptian Refining Company (ERC), a core platform company of Citadel Capital (CCAP.CA on the Egyptian Exchange), the leading investment company in Africa and the Middle East with US$ 9.5 billion in investments under control, has received official renewal of the Government of Egypt’s comfort letter for the strategic national project.

“ERC is a strategic national project that has enjoyed the unwavering support of successive Egyptian administrations since it was merely an idea on the drawing board in 2007.” said Ahmed Heikal, Founder and Chairman of Citadel Capital. “I am very pleased to report receipt of the renewal of our comfort letter from the Government of Egypt. We remain on track for our planned 2016 commissioning of the refinery, which will reduce Egypt’s present-day diesel imports by approximately 60% while simultaneously reducing sulfur dioxide emissions by nearly one-third.”

ERC is building a US$ 3.7 billion greenfield petroleum refinery in the Greater Cairo Area and is widely recognized as a cornerstone of Egypt’s energy security.

The state-of-the-art facility will call on the most advanced advanced and environmentally stringent technologies from Conoco Philips / Bechtel, Axens and KTI to produce over 4.1 million tons of refined products and high-quality oil derivatives per year, including more than 2.3 million tons of Euro V diesel (the cleanest-burning diesel fuel in the world).

Citadel Capital presently holds an 11.7% stake in Egyptian Refining Company, alongside the Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation and leading international, Gulf and Egyptian investors.

ERC is scheduled to begin operations before the end of 2016.

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Watch out! The Superheroes are rocking up on a television channel near you.  So best you stay tuned to M-Net Movies – and especially M-Net Movies Showcase – on Dstv!

In October, M-Net Movies is hosting a gargantuan Superheroes Film Festival on M-Net Movies Showcase featuring the likes of Batman, Superman, Spiderman, The Fantastic Four, The X Men, Captain American, the Ghostbusters, Thor, The Avengers – and all their slick, yet tough-as-nails, nemeses, of course. 

 “This is the biggest Superheroes Movie Festival ever, “says M-Net’s Head of Publicity, Lani Lombard. “M-Net Movies has not only lined up hours of exhilarating entertainment created by these comic book legends; the heroes will also rock up every day of the week for an entire month. It’s a non-stop display of extraordinary powers, knocking down diabolic villains and saving mankind – all culminating into an epic television moment:  the premiere of Batman: The Dark Knight Rises.”

Batman: The Dark Knight Rises is M-Net’s must-see Sunday night blockbuster movie on 27 October at 20:00 and at 20:30 on M-Net Movies Premiere (Channel 103 on DStv). The movie generated $448 million at the box office and raises tough existential questions about the nature of vigilantes, while keeping viewers glued with plenty of action-packed scenes.

The Superheroes Festival will feature a superhero movie at 19:00 CAT until the 31st of October.  On Thursday  George Clooney swirls the cape around his broad shoulders and thereafter hands over one of the most sought-after roles in Hollywood to Christian Bale for Saturday’s Batman Begins and Sunday’s Batman: The Dark Knight.  In the second week of October the spotlight falls on Superman with five Superman movies!  The following week, all the Marvel comic figures move in in the guise of Captain America, Thor, The Hulk, Iron Man and many more. But M-Net Showcase didn’t forget the unsung heroes.  They will get the M-Net Showcase salute with movies such as The Amazing Spiderman, Paperman, Blankman, Death of a Superhero, Unbreakable and Sky High.

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Mario Flo Grounds in Masaka were on Saturday transformed into a thrilling extravaganza as RnB sensation Aziz Azion and fast rising Rema gave a rousing performance to the massive crowd that had turned up for the Bell Fiesta.

The night began with the ultimate Bell Fiesta thrill, Human Table Football with eight teams, Mario Flo, Hummers, Bell FC, Nakayimba Boys, Flying Birds, Fabulous, Man-U Football Team and Kijabwemu FC lining up to test their skills and battle out for the grand prize of UGX 400,000.

Hummers FC had a creative game plan going into the group stages as they looped the ball above all the players to score, a tactic they used numerous times and surprisingly, it always worked.The final game pitted Hummers FC and Flying Birds who had all sailed through the group stages without a loss.

Hummers were at it again with their witty tactic but Flying Birds had already mastered it and for the first five minutes it seemed the game would end in a stalemate. However, Hummers scored just before the half time whistle and held on to the lead in the second half to clinch the prize money with a 1-0 thrashing of XFC in an entertaining match.

When the balls session was over, the beats and beers took over first with performances from the curtain raisers. Local artist Victor Kamenyo was a darling of the crowd emulating American rappers in a thrilling free style session on social issues and current affairs displaying his undeniable prowess as he did a rendition of Museveni’s “Want another rap”.

Aziz Azion did not disappoint as he brought the house down with his famous tunes like Beera Nange, Pesa Sina, Wrong Number, Nafunye Wampisa and Nakupenda much to the excitement of his female fans. Rema was also spectacular as she sang her greatest hits like Fire Tonight flanked by two dancers to cap Masaka Bell Fiesta in style.

The Bell Fiesta continues with its nationwide tour, and it is expected that music and soccer lovers will come out in crowds to get a first-hand experience of this exciting and challenging game that has so far rocked the country, Human Table Foosball, a first in Uganda.

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Today, the Parliamentary Committee on EAC affairs supported by TradeMark East Africa commenced a two day awareness workshop to focus on regional integration issues that call for key decision making and commitment on behalf of both Uganda and the EAC region.

 The workshop at the Serena Lake Victoria Hotel, Entebbe was officially opened by the Minister of EAC affairs, Honorable Shem Bageine, who gave a brief overview of the Ministry’s commitment.  “The EAC embraced the Common Market principles and its objectives in 2010 and it is planned that by 2015 the four freedoms involving the free movement of persons, goods, capital and services including the right to establishment and residence will be implemented in accordance with the commitments contained in the common Market Protocol. In consultations with other stakeholders, the Ministry has developed the Common Market Implementation of the protocol”

The workshop is part of ongoing work by the Committee on EAC Affairs to provide oversight and raise awareness of EAC matters. The EAC committee is cognizant of the challenges at hand which include low public awareness, delayed implementation of EAC decisions and directives, inadequate monitoring of compliance by EAC Partner States, slow domestication and harmonisation of laws.

Following discussions between TradeMark East Africa (TMEA) and the Parliamentary Committee EAC, areas for support were identified including:

• Raising awareness and understanding of EAC issues and processes among parliamentarians and border communities
• Enhancing monitoring of compliance at national level and by other partner states
• Ensuring EAC is mainstreamed in national policies, plans and budgets.

“A while ago we supported the parliamentary Committee EAC to carry out a number of studies, and realized the protocols are good but unless Uganda comes up with complimentary measures, we may not benefit much from these protocols, and we know  many of the complimentary measures come from parliament. A case in point, is the big informal private sector which can’t be established in the region because they don’t meet the basic requirements, they are not registered. Despite the millions of dollars in possession of the traders downtown Kikuubo , they can’t trade beyond Uganda. There is need for parliament to support them with laws & policies that support SME s in Uganda.” said Allen Asiimwe, TMEA Country Director.                                                                                                                                                                                      

Honourable Sarah Mwebaze, Chairperson Parliamentary Committee EAC thanked members for turning up in big number and emphasized the need for increased awareness of EAC affairs. “There issues regarding the EAC in almost all departments of government, and for this reason, through the support of our partners TMEA, we decided to engage Chairpersons and vice chairpersons of Sectoral committees, Committee on Tourism, Trade and Industry and the Committee on Legal and Parliamentary Affairs in order to ensure that pertinent issues are brought on board and given due consideration by other committees. At the end of this session, we shall all be informed and be able to explain salient issues at the grass root. We realize the need to increase the level of awareness and sensitization of EAC affairs in the public domain”                                                           

Areas for discussions include: status of EAC (CMP and MU); EAC Regional Integration indicators for key sectors (based on Uganda’s commitments and budget call circular 2013/2014); Update on the Customs Union and key issues; Update on the Single Customs Territory & Trade Facilitation Initiatives; EALA laws for domestication; harmonization of laws;  elimination of NTBs and status (Regional and National initiatives); Citizens Awareness on Regional Integration; and opportunities for youth in the EAC. 

The expected result from the 2 day workshop will be that the chairpersons will be able to engage their members on EAC issues and also prioritize EAC issues in their committee deliberations.

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Rotary- a global humanitarian organization, has planned five forums of young professionals, youth, scholars, community activists and Rotary members. The aim is to find ways of working in unity towards the common goal of making the world a better place. The forums, referred to as Rotary International Presidential Conferences, will be hosted by the Rotary International (RI) President Ron D Burton.

In Africa, Uganda has been selected as the host of the Rotary International Presidential Africa Youth Conference (RIPAy) 2013 from 4th – 5th November, 2013. It will be held at Hotel Africana, under the theme “Engage Rotary Change lives: Taking Charge of the Future” The conference will bring together over 2,000 young professionals, Rotaractors, Rotarians, Interactors and well-wishers.

Rotary is divided into Districts and Uganda belongs to District 9211, which covers Uganda and Tanzania. The head of this district is District Governor (DG) Emmanuel Katongole. He said the conference is, “An immense honor for Uganda to host an event of this magnitude. It is also a global recognition of the work and selflessness of thousands of Rotarians in Uganda.”

The RI President will arrive in Uganda on 3rd November 2013. He will hold meetings with senior government and business leaders, visit Rotary projects and chair the youth conference at hotel Africana. Mr. Burton will also participate as a “Good will Ambassador for Rotary” in the promotion of proper Hand Washing with soap.(Wash his hands following the 5 WHO recommended steps guided by the Project committee) at Kiwuliriza Primary School. He will also distribute mosquito nets and reproductive health kits to expectant mothers and young children.

Outside Uganda, the Rotary International Presidential Africa Youth Conferences will be held in India for the Asia Continent, United Kingdom for Europe and Brazil for the Americas. The Uganda conference Host is District Governor Emmanuel, the convenors are Trustee of Rotary International Sam Owori of the Rotary Club of Kampala and Past District Governor Geeta of the Rotary Club of Muthaiga Kenya.

About Rotary

Rotary is a global humanitarian organization with more than 1.2 million members in 34,000 Rotary clubs in over 200 countries and geographical areas. Rotary members are men and women who are business, professional and community leaders with a shared commitment to make the world a better place through humanitarian service.

Rotary’s top priority is the global eradication of polio. Building on its successful collaborations for polio eradication, Rotary is forging partnerships with other established organizations to achieve common humanitarian goals in the following six areas: peace and conflict prevention/resolution; disease prevention and treatment; water and sanitation; maternal and child health; basic education and literacy; and economic and community development. The grants support major international projects with sustainable, high impact outcomes. Rotary in Uganda is made up of more than 70 clubs spread all around the country with more than 2,000 members.

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