Nile Breweries, one of the main beer manufacturers in Uganda will in June unveil a new beer plant located in Ruharo village Mbarara district.

The $90 million plant is Nile Breweries’ second plant after the main brewery located in Jinja district. 

The new plant will be able to produce 5.5 million crates of beer per year.

Additionally a water line manufacturing Rwenzori Mineral Water will be set up at the Mbarara plant.

Details to follow…

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Following a year-long independent investigation, in which Lord Hoffmann led a review of the allegations made by Turkcell in the legal case brought against MTN in the United States, Lord Hoffmann presented the Committee’s findings, absolving the MTN Board.

In a press statement Issued by MTN Group Corporate Affairs, The MTN Group welcomed the rejection of Tukcell’s allegations of impropriety against MTN stating that “Lord Hoffmann’s Committee has determined that the Turkcell allegations are without foundation.  Lord Hoffmann concluded that he found nothing in the conduct of MTN over this period that puts at question MTN’s integrity or propriety. This is a reassuring validation of MTN’s culture and ethical business practices. The Board is particularly pleased to note Lord Hoffmann’s categorical findings that the allegations against MTN’s former Group President and CEO PhuthumaNhleko and MTN‘s former Commercial Director Irene Charnley were baseless.  Allegations of complicity against the Chairman and the Group President and CEO Sifiso Dabengwa were similarly found to be without substance.”

Please find the complete statement from MTN Group Corporate Affairs below

Friday, 01 February 2013

For immediate release

MEDIA STATEMENT FROM MTN GROUP CHAIRMAN Mr CYRIL RAMAPHOSA

Johannesburg –In February 2012, the MTN Board commissioned Lord Hoffmann to lead a review of the allegations made by Turkcell in the legal case brought against MTN in the United States.  

Lord Hoffmann was born in South Africa and has enjoyed an illustrious career as a senior British judge, being appointed to the UK House of Lords in 1995. We felt that the seriousness of these allegations merited an authoritative and independent investigation. As an international jurist of unquestionable legal authority and independence, Lord Hoffmann was selected to chair the Special Committee established by the MTN Board to investigate the allegations.   

Following a year-long investigation, Lord Hoffmann has presented the Committee’s findings today to the MTN Board.

Lord Hoffmann’s Committee has determined that the Turkcell allegations are without foundation.  Lord Hoffmann concluded that he found nothing in the conduct of MTN over this period that puts at question MTN’s integrity or propriety. This is a reassuring validation of MTN’s culture and ethical business practices. The Board is particularly pleased to note Lord Hoffmann’s categorical findings that the allegations against MTN’s former Group President and CEO PhuthumaNhleko and MTN‘s former Commercial Director Irene Charnley were baseless.  Allegations of complicity against the Chairman and the Group President and CEO Sifiso Dabengwa were similarly found to be without substance.   

We have accepted Lord Hoffmann’s recommendation that his report be published in full.  The report and a video of Lord Hoffmann delivering the Executive Summary of the Committee’s report are available on the MTN website.  The Board is grateful to Lord Hoffmann, and Independent Non-Executive Directors Peter Mageza and Jeff van Rooyen for their work, and the scope and detail of their conclusions. 

MTN is one of Africa’s success stories – a great company founded on innovation, courage, and values of honesty and ethical business dealings.  I am proud of what we bring to the communities and markets we work in, and what MTN does to improve lives.  We can now put these events behind us, and move forward as one of Africa’s great companies.

Issued by MTN Group Corporate Affairs

About MTN Group:  Launched in 1994, the MTN Group is a multinational telecommunications group, operating in 21 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 September 2012, MTN recorded 182.7 million subscribers across its operations in Afghanistan, Benin, Botswana, Cameroon, Cote d’Ivoire, Cyprus, Ghana, Guinea Bissau, Guinea Republic, Iran, Liberia, Nigeria, Republic of Congo (Congo Brazzaville), Rwanda, South Africa, Sudan, Swaziland, Syria, Uganda, Yemen and Zambia. Visit us at www.mtn.com and www.mtnfootball.com

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Kampala 

As many went to theatres and playgrounds to celebrate the 2013 women’s day, Google; the world’s leading internet communication solutions and search engine brand kept their celebration online through their fast growing interactive chatting platform ‘Google Hangout’

Google Africa on Friday 8th March 2013, commemorated International Women’s Day with a Hangout that was joined by inspirational women transversely from the African countries of Uganda, Kenya, Nigeria, Ghana, South Africa and the UK.

Inspirational women from these countries met at a Hangout to discuss different issues about the women of this world. These included finance, health and education among others.

The platform enabled these women share their experiences and challenges with other women all around the world.

Uganda was represented by Sana ANZO – Founder and Managing Director, Arapapa and Susan Nsibirwa, Marketing Manager, Vision Group.

Are you a Ugandan below the age of 35 years and have a business or a social venture idea that can create value and provide an impetus to the industry or social sector in India and Africa, then participate in the INDIAFRICA Business Plan Contest and stand a chance to win an attractive prize and get recognized on an international platform.

The INDIAFRICA Business Plan Contest is open to students, young proffesionals from Uganda, Africa and India between the age of 18-35 years (as on Dec 31, 2013).

Theme
Entrepreneurial Solutions to Address Developmental Challenges

Prize

·         Eighteen prizes of INR 50,000 ( 1000 US Dollars) each

·         Trip to Davos in January 2014 during the World Economic Forum for the team leaders of the top ranking Indian and African teams

·         Certificates for all winners

·         INDIAFRICA merchandise for all winners

Timeline
Start date: 21 December 2012 Contest open till: 28 March 2013

To register for the completion visit:  http://indiafrica.in/RegisterBusiness.php

WATCH AS FEMI KUTI AND THE STARS OF AFRICA COME OUT TO CELEBRATE

·  Our own actor Matthew Nabwiso has been nominated for the awards.

Legendary Nigerian Afro-beat King Femi Kuti, joined by his full band, will take to the stage on Saturday March 9 when the first-ever AfricaMagic Viewers’ Choice Awards is screened LIVE to over 50 countries on the African continent, on DStv and GOtv!

Representing Uganda in the awards, our own Mathew Nabwiso of the hostel series is among the lucky ones nominated in the AfricaMagic Viewer’s choice awards. He was nominated for best supporting actor in a drama serie for his role in Good Catholic Girl where he is up against three Nigerians and one SouthAfrican all in the same category.

Destined to be a glam night when the stars of Africa come out to shine, the festivities begin at 19:00 CAT with an exciting, live, one-hour red carpet pre-show to be hosted by massively entertaining television personality DenreleEdun, alongside AfricaMagic hosts Helen Paul and UtiNwachukwu (Jara), Dolapo Oni and EkuEdewor (53 Extra), Lawrence Maleka (StarGist) plus NicWang’ondu and Sarah Hassan (Mashariki Mix). Join them as they chat to the glitterati making their way into the venue and get a sneak peek at all the hot fashion and fun interviews.

Then get set…the AfricaMagic Viewers’ Choice Awards, hosted by Big Brother’s IK Osakioduwa and StarGist leading lady VimbaiMuntinhiri kicks off at exactly 20:00 CAT, live from Lagos! 

The glittering two-hour and 30-minute gala is being held in association with MultiChoice and is headline sponsored by Amstel Malta. And if the entertainment for the night is anything to go by, it’s destined to be a must-watch extravaganza because joining Femi Kuti on the music line-up is gorgeous vocalist Tiwa Savage along with award-winning Kenyan Afro-pop outfit Sauti Sol. 

For more information on the awards, simply log on to www.africamagic.tv

A new book, based on British Airways’ course for nervous flyers has been launched today. The book will help thousands of customers conquer their fears and also address a number of areas of concern including how an aircraft operates, turbulence and give advice from clinical psychologists including relaxation techniques.

The book, co-written by British Airways’ pilot Captain Steve Allright, takes information from the airline’s one-day Flying with Confidence course which has helped more than 45,000 people over the past 25 years.

In this book,Captain Allright shares his top 10 tips from the forthcoming book asking travellers to, “Remember that turbulence is uncomfortable but not dangerous. It is a perfectly normal part of flying caused by nature. Learn to control your breathing. When you feel anxious, hold your breath, then take a long deep breath in, followed by a long deep breath out. Continue long deep breathing. Combine the deep breath in with a muscle contraction.

He further advises that “Clenching your buttocks is most effective, as it overrides other nervous signals going up and down your spinal cord. Aircrafts like to be in the air and are designed to be in the air. Pilots and cabin crew like to be in the air also which means it is a very normal and safe environment for them to be in.”

In reaction to the book, Faith Chaitezvi Country Commercial Manager said, “The existence of this book will relieve very many people who experience flight frights on board. This mostly happens because people can’t imagine being so high in the air so far away from the ground with nothing to fall back to. This book simplifies the process of flying and will surely boost passengers’ confidence in the air.”

She cited that, “Pilots undergo a rigorous selection procedure and are one of the most highly trained and tested professions on earth. They are subjected to simulator tests every six months. Commercial aircrafts are incredibly well maintained, and checked before every flight by pilots and engineers. Routine maintenance is conducted at regular, specified intervals by licensed engineers. Air traffic controllers are trained and licensed professionals operatingunder a very strict set of rules which they must abide by while in the air.”

British Airways’ Captain Allright concluded; “As pilots, we want every customer to have a safe and enjoyable flight. We understand that flying can be a daunting prospect for some and hope that British Airways’ Flying with confidence course and book can help to alleviate those concerns.”
 

Reuters reports that Facebook Inc introduced the biggest change in years to its popular newsfeed on Thursday, with a new look and focus on photos that is expected to make the social network more ad-friendly and may entice users to spend more time on the website whereas BBC reports that Facebook has revamped its news feed with three key changes being made to the social network.

·         The website switches from a three-column format to two-columns letting the main news feed take up more space. This allows all posts – whether they are friends’ updates or adverts – to take up a bigger proportion of the web browser with more prominence given to images and video rather than text describing a link.

·         A pop-out black bar is added to the left-hand side of the page. This contains app bookmarks, links to specific friends, the chat and calendar tools, and the live updates ticker.

·         In addition to the standard news feed, users can select other alternative feeds. These include one which shows all the updates posted by friends rather than just the ones selected by Facebook’s algorithms; one dedicated to organisations and people the user “follows”; a page featuring only posted photos; and a music-themed feed containing updates from artists the user likes, concert announcements and details of songs their friends are listening to through services including Spotify and Rdio.

As we anticipate seeing the roll out of these changes to most uses in the next several days, we shall look forward to see the users’ reaction. Many times users have threatened to leave Facebook due to changes (especially privacy related) but they have hardly left.

MTN Group announced results for the year ended 31 December 2012, that reflect a solid progress in growing subscribers, revenue and EBITDA.

With the results, MTN has reported that, during 2012, data revenue across the Group increased by 58.5%.

Highlights

•       Group subscribers increased 15,1% to 189,3 million

•       Revenue increased 10,9% to R135 112 million

•       Data revenues increased *58,5% to R14 574 million

•       EBITDA increased 7,0% to R58 564 million

•       EBITDA margin stable at  ***42,9%

•       Capex of R30 101 million positions the Group for continued growth

•       HEPS increased to 1 089,1 cents (+1,9%)

•       Foreign exchange losses (Iran, Syria and Sudan) negatively impacted HEPS by 178,5cps

•       Final dividend per share of 503cps

•       Revised dividend policy to absolute growth

EBITDA= earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization.

HEPS = Headline earnings per share

Capex = Capital Expenditure

About MTN Uganda the report states that “Uganda delivered strong results in a competitive market with local currency EBITDA up 22,0% excluding the profit on the sale of towers. Data revenue increased *86,4% (855,0%)(LC) supported by a strong performance in MTN Mobile Money. With 78% of our subscriber base registered and more than 2 million transactions each month, MTN Mobile Money now contributes meaningfully to Uganda’s revenue. We concluded the tower transaction with ATC during 2012, which saw the business sell 962 towers to ATC. This transaction will have a negative impact on reported margins in 2013 given the higher associated lease costs.”

British Airways has announced special fares for its corporate customers travelling to Canadian cities of Calgary, Toronto and Vancouver making it a lot more affordable for Ugandan travellers. The United Kingdom flag carrier announced a series of ‘Discover Canada’ fares, with return flights starting from as low as $570.

The discount fare runs from March 9, 2013 and includes fares to Calgary at $910 with outbound travel between 15^th April – 31 May 2013 whereas Toronto and Vancouverat a cost of $570 and $910 respectively with outbound travel between 15 and 30 April considering a return anytime within the next 12 months. All fares are exclusive of taxes and surcharges, with one free stopover permitted. The new offer comes at a time when Europe is headed towards summer making Canada look more attractive than ever.

According to the airline, the new offer, which is valid for flights from Entebbe to the select Canadian cities, affords its Ugandan customers the opportunity to make fantastic savings while travelling on its award-winning World Traveller (economy) cabin.

Commenting on the current offer, Faith Chaitezvi, British Airways Country Commercial Manager said “the special fares are just another way of British Airways appreciating its clients. Canada is currently in the fall season and it is important to note that summer will be here soon; and since Canada is a lovely tourist site, what other better time than now to book your tickets.”

“This year will see a lot of great ‘value for money’ fares for all our BA customers to various destinations for you to enjoy our products and services globally.” Faith concluded

All potential customers for more details should visit www.ba.com or contact their travel preferred agents.