Well-paid executive quits job, buys Unilever juice brand, and starts own business

In 2014 Bernard Njoroge quit his US$10,000-a-month job to reintroduce into the Kenyan market a juice brand, called Tree Top, that had been off the shelves for nearly two decades. Njoroge had spent 17 years working for multinationals Coca-Cola and Del Monte; his last position was as sales and marketing director for sub-Saharan Africa at Del Monte.

Today he runs Sky Foods, the manufacturer of Tree Top, a brand that’s trademark he acquired from consumer goods company Unilever. Njoroge tellsHow we made it in Africa why he quit his well-paying job to become an entrepreneur and about the prospects in the beverages industry.

Tell us why you quit your job to become an entrepreneur?

I looked at the value that I was building for other people and I realised I didn’t have shareholding of even 1%. I helped start the Del Monte business in Kenyafrom scratch. I had seen the business grow from zero to several million-dollar turnover per year and I had no share in the business. So I figured why not start building value for myself? I was leaving a $10,000 monthly salary to go work for less – but I knew I would own what I was going to build.

Why did you opt to buy a brand from Unilever rather than start your own?

When I was at Del Monte every time I did focus group interviews, consumers would often mention Tree Top. I started thinking about buying the brand and reintroducing it, but my employer wasn’t interested. So I decided to negotiate with Unilever on my own to acquire the trademark. I approached more than 10 financing institutions and eventually, after nearly two years, I raised over $2m for this business.

People were very sceptical, thinking consumers wouldn’t remember Tree Top or that tastes would have changed – but my research proved otherwise. Tree Top was pulled out of the market due to price controls imposed by the government in the 1990s. Another factor was the entry of Quencher (a popular local dilute-to-taste beverage brand) that came in several flavours and sizes, and was packaged in plastic bottles. At one time Tree Top was packaged in a glass bottle of 700ml and came in a single flavour (orange).

I found that almost two decades later, the brand was still familiar to many consumers and retailers. I found that Tree Top has a very high nostalgic value. People who drank it as children, today have their own families and the brand resonates with them. Beverages is all about brands – if I had the same product with the name ‘Bernard’s juice’ nobody would touch it.

There are many juice brands on the shelves in Kenya. Is there really room for all these products?

We have a production line that fills 2,000 bottles an hour but I estimate the market demand for Tree Top is actually 10,000 bottles per hour. We are only selling in Kenya now but we are getting enquiries for big volumes from Ugandaand Tanzania. We have made some changes to adapt to today’s consumer demands. We have both ready-to-drink and dilute-to-taste options, five different flavours, and a variety of packaging sizes.

Truth is, if you just launch one flavour or packaging size you get lost in the clutter because there are many juice brands in the Kenyan market. Even retailers will not take you seriously. We have tapped into both the modern and informal trade.

What are you learning about consumers?

Children are very influential. This is amazing because today’s children did not exist when Tree Top was initially available in the market. This is a very new brand to them and I think it’s our packaging that first appeals to children – then later they appreciate the taste. We are targeting upper-income consumers with the ready-to-drink option and reaching the mass audience with the dilute-to-taste option.

Describe the trends in the beverages category in Kenya?

It is growing by double digits. I think this is being driven by the middle class, population growth and a growing interest among consumers to be healthier. Right now our dilute-to-taste drinks sell in higher volumes compared to the pricier ready-to-drink juices. However, we are seeing the fastest growth in ready-to-drink juices and that’s where we think our future business lies. As consumers get more income they shift to juices made from fruit pulp.

I think the juice market will double in size in the next five years because, currently, there is very little innovation. We don’t have smoothies, we don’t have fortified juices that appeal to older generations [and] we need more fancy packaging. I get excited by the opportunities in the industry.

Tell us about some of the challenges you face?

The biggest challenge we face is working capital. I have a big demand from the market but I don’t have enough resources to satisfy that demand. There are also tax policies and requirements that really slow us down. I wish there were more measures to support new manufacturers. I buy about 70 drums of mango puree from the coast of Kenya every month, directly touching about 3,000 farmers – yet we have been manufacturing for just a year. Imagine the volumes we could be doing in 10 years.

How would you describe your transition from employment to running your own business?

It has been very challenging. I worked with a multinational where I only focused on one line of business. When you are an entrepreneur you have to think about everything – tax, human resources, financing, regulations.

There is also the pressure of moving from a multinational, where there is always enough money, to your own business where you are constantly struggling with finances. In the first six months, I remember I used to panic if I received a call from an angry supplier who had not been paid on time. But now I have developed a thick skin. It is important to be patient, learn to roll with the punches, and get a good team to work with you.

However, there are some benefits I have enjoyed because of my history working with multinationals in the beverages industry. I had built good networks, both local and international. For instance, I knew where to get raw materials and I had connections with distributors so I did not have to go to supermarkets and distributors to pitch [the product].

Africa’s ticking time bomb: $35bn worth of Eurobond debt

The 2008 economic crisis is the single largest factor that has driven developing countries to seek alternative sources of financing for social and developmental infrastructure. This was a result of the drying up of bilateral loans and grants from European and American countries.

Some African countries put forward the argument that the funds from capital markets, or sovereign bonds, are a cheaper source of alternative financing. A sovereign bond is a debt security issued by a national government known as a Eurobond. It is denominated in a foreign currency, usually the dollar, rather than what its name (euro) implies.

Seychelles holds the distinction of being the first sub-Saharan African country to issue a sovereign bond – it issued a US$30m bond in 2006. This was followed by the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) issuing $454m, Gabon $1bn and Ghana $750m in 2007.

Between 2010 and 2015 at least a dozen other sub-Saharan African countries, including Côte d’Ivoire, Senegal, Angola, Nigeria, Tanzania, Namibia, Rwanda, Kenya, Ethiopia and Zambia issued sovereign bonds. They raised commercial debt in excess of $19.5bn.

Many of these Eurobonds will mature between 2021 and 2025. It will require these sub-Saharan African countries to repay an average of just under $4bn annually in that period. But they are already currently bleeding a rising total of just over $1.5bn in annual coupon payments on these Eurobonds. This represents a total of an additional $15bn across the term of the Eurobonds. The total accumulated bonds are in excess of $24bn. The principle amount of this is $35bn.

The $750m Ghana bond, with a ten-year maturity, was issued in October 2007 and was four times oversubscribed. The principle repayment, which kicks in in 2017, will signal the direction of the continent’s economic dynamics in the years to follow. The writing is already on the wall. Ghana has already buckled, requiring an International Monetary Fund (IMF) financial restructuring package.

Ghana’s story

At the end of 2015 Ghana agreed to an IMF bailout. It is underpinned by austerity measures that include reviewing and streamlining tax exemptions for free-zone companies and state-owned enterprises. A new tax policy is expected to be enacted for small businesses and a raise in value-added tax is planned.

Ghana’s financial problem was brought on by a sovereign debt crisis, rising interest costs, policy slippages and external shocks that have dampened the country’s medium-term prospects. The country carries a total Eurobond debt of $3.53bn on its external debt of more than $11bn. Its debt position of $23.38bn (both local and external) represents more than 55% of gross domestic product (GDP) and is teetering on the edge of being unmanageable. The convergence criteria under the monetary union protocol standard for Africa states that public debt should not exceed 50% of GDP in net present value.

Ghana, whose growth is driven by the exports of gold, oil and cocoa, now faces the daunting task of managing its fiscal deficit, rising inflation, an energy deficit and reduced government revenue due to the slump in global commodity prices. The challenge, as in most African countries, couldn’t come at a worse time. Ghana is scheduled to hold presidential elections in 2016. Fiscal discipline will be a factor of least priority on the political agenda.

The world before sovereign bonds

Prior to these countries issuing the bonds, they carried foreign debt in the form of bilateral and multilateral concessional loans. These loans carried an average interest rate of 1.6% and a maturity of 28.7 years. The financing from sovereign bonds comes at an average floating coupon rate price of 6.2% with an 11.2-year maturity period. In recent times the coupon rates on these bonds have hit record highs. This is a reflection of deteriorating economic indicators among sub-Saharan African countries.

The Achilles heel for these countries, outside the realm of poverty, governance and political will, is their dependence on one major export product to generate foreign exchange. In at least seven of these countries there is direct dependence on one key product to drive the country’s economy. This is evident with Angola (oil), Zambia (copper), Nigeria (oil), Gabon (oil) and the DRC (copper).

Warning signs

In 2014 IMF managing director Christine Lagarde cautioned African countries against endangering their debt ratios by issuing sovereign bonds.

And in the same year Maria Kiwanuka, former finance minister of Uganda and current economic advisor to the president, alluded to the fact that African governments are under pressure to take on debt at market rates despite the risk of public debt rising to unsustainable levels during currency depreciation and increasing bond yields.

Uganda is the only African country that has spoken of the acquisition of Eurobonds as too risky for countries on the continent. Governor of the Bank of Uganda Emmanuel Mutebile said:

“We should not be complacent about the dangers of big projects built on sovereign debt because it would be unwise for African countries, which will never again get debt relief. From what we are seeing in Ghana, we are not yet ready to issue sovereign bonds.”

The risks involved

The cost of finance for the Eurobonds is the first key risk factor. Internal analysis of the exchange rate risk must be considered, unless the country truly believes that it has the capacity to raise the resources for repayment of the debt from commodity export revenue.

But future indicators are all very ominous, showing a slowdown in demand for commodities from China, a possible increase in bond yield rates by the US, lowering oil prices and downgrading of global growth indicators. All these factors will put pressure on countries that have issued sovereign bonds.

The second key risk in the procurement of sovereign bonds lies in debt sustainability. This is the risk associated with poor management of the proceeds of the Eurobond. They end up being invested in non-income-generating social infrastructure to the extent that the government is unable to raise the necessary funds to repay the loan. Other than capital infrastructure developments at least three of the countries – Rwanda, Gabon and Ghana – have used part of their Eurobond proceeds to re-finance public debt.

Sub-Saharan African countries seem to carry a vicious circle of problems revolving around underdeveloped economies. They oscillate around single-commodity exports, recurring power deficit issues, lack of fiscal discipline with budget deficits well above the convergence criteria for Africa of 3% of GDP, and unending rising debt positions even in times of good economic growth.

The cyclical events of unsustainable debt of the 1980s, when the continent’s debt position stood at more than $270, was attributed to – depending on which side of the fence you’re on – poor governance, corrupt leadership and protracted civil wars in many African countries.

The continent was also undergoing rapid population growth while lacking any meaningful democratic checks and balances, and implementing ambitious social and public growth strategies. The crossroad again was with the economic downturn and the drop of global commodity prices. These countries have come a full circle.

Sub-Saharan African countries will require strong political will, prudent financial management, sustained fiscal discipline, long-term economic growth strategies, export diversification and sustained creation of employment to achieve economic emancipation. The current global economic slow down will prevail for at least three to four more years. This means that these countries will continue to bear rising inflation, debt repayment crisis, reduction of GDP growth and challenges with managing their fiscal deficits.

Déjà vu, Africa. We are set for troubled times.

This is an extract from a working paper titled “Africa Eurobond Financing A Ticking 35 Billion Debt Bust” written by the author.

Trevor Hambayi is a PhD research fellow at the University of Bolton. This article was originally published on The Conversation.

Source : http://www.howwemadeitinafrica.com/africas-ticking-time-bomb-35-billion-worth-eurobond-debt/54510/

We must move towards establishing an African passport, says AfDB president

At the Africa CEO Forum in March, Nigerian business magnate Aliko Dangote shared how a misplaced visa at O.R. Tambo International Airport almost resulted in him being refused entry to South Africa. 

Fortunately his visa was located on the plane he arrived on. But the story highlights how difficult it can be for African businesspeople and investors to travel between the continent’s markets. The recently released Africa Visa Openness Report 2016, commissioned by the African Development Bank (AfDB), reveals that only 13 of 55 countries offer visa-free or visa-on-arrival access to all Africans. In fact it is easier for US citizens to travel within Africa than it generally is for Africans.

Speaking at the World Economic Forum on Africa last week in Kigali, AfDB’s president Akinwumi Adesina noted intra-African investments have expanded significantly to US$50bn a year. However, he argued that visa restrictions – alongside poor transport infrastructure and unfavourable business environments – impede further investment. The AfDB is therefore aiming to drive a continental visa policy reform programme.

“We want to make things very simple,” said Adesina. “We want to remove many of the challenges and procedures that are facing many people when they travel. We want to make sure there is reciprocal visa issuance across countries and we want to promote talent mobility all across Africa.”

One of the proposals includes allowing visas on arrival for Africans, such as those offered in Mauritius and Rwanda. According to AfDB’s report, Rwanda’s open visa policy has seen African travellers to Rwanda increase by 22%. In addition, the country has abolished work permits for East African Community citizens.

Adesina also suggests establishing visa-free regional blocs, as well as regional-bloc visas such as Europe’s Schengen visa. For example, Rwanda, Kenya and Uganda allow their citizens to travel between countries with national identity cards and the report estimates that this has increased cross-border trade by 50%. The three countries also launched a single tourist visa.

Adesina further highlighted the benefits of simplifying visa procedures (such as through online applications) and allowing multi-year visas like in the US.

“Africa spends a lot of its time on issuing single-entry visas which is very expensive for travellers and also investors. We should have multiple-year visas, 10-year visas – there is no reason why a business person has to go back and get the same visa 10 times,” he continued.

“And finally we must eventually move to the Africa passport that allows Africans to move freely all across Africa. This has been proposed by the African Union Commission and we are strongly supportive of it as the African Development Bank… It would make African investments much easier.”

Source : http://www.howwemadeitinafrica.com/must-move-towards-establishing-african-passport-says-afdb-president/54431/

The DIY test for malaria that could be a game-changer for Africa

Nigerian biotechnologist Eddy Agbo is the founder and CEO of the Fyodor Biotechnologies Corporation, and the man behind the do-it-yourself Urine Malaria Test. The product was released last year and can test for the malaria parasite plasmodium in less than 25 minutes. But what makes it so special is it does not require a blood sample to do so.

According to the World Health Organisation, there were about 214 million cases of malaria globally in 2015 and an estimated 438,000 deaths. However, 91% of these deaths were in sub-Saharan Africa, with Nigeria having one of the highestburdens.

Having grown up in Nigeria, Agbo contracted malaria multiple times from a young age. Diagnosis back then required a trained professional who had to inspect blood under a microscope in a certified lab. This costly and time-consuming process meant many opted to simply treat any possible symptom of malaria, usually fever. Innovations over the last decade have seen the process simplified with rapid blood-testing products. But Africa’s shortage of healthcare facilities and personnel means these are still not readily available to many people.

However, Agbo’s urine test is a potential game-changer. It works similarly to a pregnancy test and for the first time allows the general population to diagnose themselves. It is already available in Nigeria at medical centres, pharmacies, as well as on two leading online retailers, Jumia and Konga.

The invention has earned Agbo a nomination for this year’s Innovation Prize for Africa.

Source: http://www.howwemadeitinafrica.com/diy-test-malaria-game-changer-africa/54518/

Understanding Africa Better

as found on : http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/COUNTRIES/AFRICAEXT/0,,contentMDK:20563739~menuPK:1613741~pagePK:146736~piPK:146830~theSitePK:258644,00.html 

50 unknown facts that make you understand Africa better. The Africa Development Indicators (ADI) provides the most detailed collection of data on Africa. It contains macroeconomic, sectoral, and social indicators, covering 53 African countries. 

Sep 2, 2014.  The ADI is designed to provide all those interested in Africa with a focused and convenient set of data to monitor development programs and aid flows in the region. It is also an invaluable reference tool for analysts and policymakers who want a better understanding of the economic and social developments occurring in Africa.

Here are 50 astonishing facts, you might not know:

• ECONOMY
• Nigeria has the largest population in Sub-Saharan Africa (154.7 million people) and accounts for 18% of the continent’s total population.
• South Africa’s and Nigeria’s GDP in nominal prices comprised over 50% of total SSA’s GDP
• SSA GDP growth was 2%. Ethiopia had the largest growth at 9%. Eleven of the 48 SSA countries had a growth of over 5% for the same period.
• South Africa has SSA’s largest real GDP ($182 billion); the smallest is Guinea Bissau ($230 million).
• The Gross National Income (GNI) per capita of the richest Sub-Saharan African country (Equatorial Guinea) is 83 times larger than the GNI per capita of the poorest (Burundi).
• The total GDP per capita of the richest 10 African countries was 23.8 times of the poorest 10. The ten richest by order are Equatorial Guinea, Seychelles, Mauritius, Botswana, Gabon, South Africa, Namibia, Cape Verde, Swaziland and Angola while the ten poorest by rank are Congo Democratic Republic, Burundi, Eritrea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Malawi, Niger, Ethiopia, Central Africa Republic and Togo.
• Between 1990 and 1999 PPP GNI per capita growth was 17% ($1,087.4 to $ 1,278.1) for Sub-Saharan Africa; and between 2000 and 2009 it was 58% ($1,299.7 to $ 2,059.6).
• SSA experienced a decline in both exports and imports. Exports declined from $397 billion in 2008 to $298.0 billion in 2009, a 25% decline; while imports declined from $384.5 billion in 2008 to $318 billion in 2009, a 17% decline.
• In 21% of Sub-Saharan African countries, one or two products accounts for at least 75% of total exports.
• The largest recipient of net official development assistance (ODA) in Sub-Saharan Africa received an amount 165 times larger than the smallest recipient. The largest recipient is Cape Verde, and the smallest is Seychelles.
• In Central Africa Republic, the agriculture value-added as percentage of GDP is 55%; in South Africa it is 3%.
• In 2008, South Africa utilizes the most electric power per person (4,759.5kW/h); Ethiopia utilizes the least (42.3 kW/h).

• Tanzania has the highest proportion of women aged 15-24 in its labor force (82%); Sudan has the lowest (25%): Uganda has the highest proportion of men aged 15-24 in its labor force (83%); South Africa has the lowest (34%).
• Between 1990 and 1999 PPP GNI per capita growth in Sub-Saharan Africa was 17% ($1,087 to $ 1,278). Between 2000 and 2009 it was 58% ($1,299.7 to $ 2,059.6).
• WELL BEING
• HIV/AIDS caused the death of 310,000 adults and children in South Africa, and less than 1,000 in Mauritania and Equatorial Guinea, respectively.
• Flows of international development assistance to Sub-Saharan African countries to fight HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases increased by 35% from 2007 to 2009; US$2,853.8 in 2007 to US$ 3,868.3 in 2009.
• In the decade (2000-2009) Rwanda and Uganda have made the greatest gains in life expectancy: 8 and 7 years respectively. Conversely, life expectancy has decreased 5 years in Lesotho, and 4 years in South Africa and Swaziland. Deleted repetition
• Zimbabwe had the highest adult literacy rate (92%); Chad had the lowest (33%).
• In Seychelles, 92% of women are literate; the figure is 13% for Chad and 15% for Niger.
• Seychelles has the highest gross enrolment rate in secondary education (105%); Niger has the lowest (12%).
• In Seychelles there are 22 children per primary school teacher; there are almost 95 in Central African Republic.
• The number of clinical cases of malaria reported in Sub-Saharan Africa increased by almost 14% between 2008 and 2009, while the number of reported deaths due to malaria increased by 9% during the same period.
• Côte d’Ivoire had the highest increase in reported deaths due to malaria from 2008 to 2009 (1,249 to 18,156); the highest decrease is in Tanzania (12,434 to 840).
• The primary school completion rate for eight Sub-Saharan countries (Benin, Burkina Faso, Chad, Guinea, Madagascar, Malawi, Mozambique and Niger) more than doubled between 1990 and 2009.

• The literacy rate among youth (15- 24) in Ghana went up by 9.9% in 7 years, from 71% in 2000 to 78% in 2009.
• Infant mortality increased by 21% in Congo Republic during 1990-2009, the largest increase in Sub-Saharan Africa. The largest decline was in Madagascar, by 60%.
• The average number of children per woman in Sub-Saharan Africa decreased from 7 in 1980 to 5 in 2009.
• INFRASTRUCTURE
• The highest connection charge for a business phone is $372.1 in Benin; the lowest is in Tanzania at $15.2. Benin had the highest connection charge ($372.1) for a residential phone while Zambia had the least at $9.9.
• For fixed broadband Internet, the highest connection charge is $613.3 in Mali; the lowest is in Madagascar.
• The countries with the highest and lowest number of mobile phones per 1,000 people in Sub-Saharan Africa were Seychelles with 961 mobile phones per 1000 people and Eritrea has 28 per 1000 people, respectively.
• For the period 2000-08, the ratio of paved roads to total roads was the highest in Mauritius (98%); and lowest in Chad (less than 1%).
• In 2010, to start a business required 216 days for each procedure in Guinea-Bissau; it took three days in Rwanda.
• In 2010, Sudan had the highest number of procedures to enforce contracts (53); Rwanda had the lowest at 24.
• It takes 18 days average time to clear customs on direct exports in Democratic Republic of Congo and 2.6 days in Niger; conversely for imports it takes 45.4 days in Democratic Republic of Congo and 3.7 days in Botswana.
• TRACKING MDGs AND IDA
• For the period 2000-09, the share of the poorest 20% in national income was lowest in Angola at 2%; in Seychelles it was 11%. (MDG 1).
• In Burundi, 39% of children under the age of five are underweight. In Swaziland the rate is 6%. (MDG 1)

• The primary school completion rate for eight Sub-Saharan countries (Benin, Burkina Faso, Chad, Guinea, Madagascar, Malawi, Mozambique and Niger) more than doubled between 1990 and 2009. (MDG 2).
• The lowest net primary enrolment ratio is found in Eritrea (36%); the highest is in Sao Tome and Principe (97%). (MDG 2).
• Youth literacy (ages 15-24) is highest in Zimbabwe at 99% and lowest in Benin at 51%. (MDG2).
• Rwanda has the highest number of women in national parliament with 56% of total seats. Comoros has the lowest with 3%.
• In Chad 209 out of 1,000 children die before the age of one; in Seychelles the rate is 12 per 1,000. (MDG 4)
• In Democratic Republic of Congo 126 children per 1,000 die before the age of five; in Seychelles, the rate is 11 per 1,000. (MDG 4, IDA 2)
• For the period 2000-09, skilled personnel attended 6% of births in Ethiopia; they attended 99% of births in Mauritius. (MDG 5, IDA 4)
• Contraceptive use (any method) is highest in Mauritius at 76%; lowest is Chad at 3% during the period 2000-09. (MDG 6)
• For the period 2000-09, in Zambia, 41% of children under age 5 slept under insecticide-treated nets to prevent malaria; they were 1% in Chad and Equatorial Guinea. (MDG6)
• Only 24% of the rural population of Sub-Saharan Africa has access to improved sanitation compared to 42% of the urban population.
• In 2010, Seychelles had the highest percentage of forest area with 89%, whilst Mauritania had the lowest at less than 1%. (MDG7)
• In 2007, South Africa had the highest carbon dioxide emissions of 4,133.173 metric tons, whilst Comoros had the lowest of 121 metric tons. (MDG 7)
• In Sierra Leone 3 persons per 1,000 are Internet users; there are 387 in every 1,000 people in Seychelles. (MDG 8).
• For the period 2005-09, Namibia had the highest number of computers, at 239 computers per 1,000 people; and Niger the lowest at 1 per 1,000. (MDG 8).

Ebola Scare : Zambia Truck Driver Sparks Bulawayo Panic

article & picture, as found on http://nehandaradio.com/

Panic spread through a major Bulawayo hospital after a cross-border truck driver with symptoms of the deadly Ebola fever was admitted on Tuesday.

The 52-year-old driver, thought to be Zambian, was in transit from South Africa to Zambia when he fell ill and was rushed to the United Bulawayo Hospitals, where he was reportedly put in isolation.

Hospital sources said the patient drives trucks across Central and Southern Africa, through countries that include the Democratic Republic of Congo, Botswana, South Africa and Zambia.

In the worst outbreak of the haemorrhagic Ebola fever on record, the disease has killed 1,426 of the 2,615 people who have contracted the virus in West Africa, mostly in Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia. It has also been detected in countries like the DRC, Nigeria and Senegal.

The truck driver was brought in “bleeding from the nose, shivering and vomiting blood,” said a nurse at the institution who cannot be named because she was not cleared to talk to the media.

Symptoms, which manifest between two to 21 days after infection, include fever, muscle pain, headache and a sore throat followed by vomiting, diarrhoea, rash, impaired kidney and liver function and in some cases both internal and external bleeding.

The nurse added: “He was immediately put in isolation and medical tests were conducted.”

Staff at the Bulawayo City Council-run Thorngrove Isolation Hospital said they were put on standby on Tuesday evening after being warned that a patient would be transferred if results proved it was Ebola. Late yesterday, officials at the hospital said they had not received the patient.

UBH Chief Executive Officer Nonhlanhla Ndlovu said: “There is no such case at UBH. We haven’t heard of any Ebola case.”

Yesterday, the government announced it had set up a national Ebola viral disease taskforce in an effort to contain the spread of the deadly pandemic.

Health and Child Care Minister Dr David Parirenyatwa told journalists that the taskforce is expected to evaluate the risk of an Ebola outbreak and advise the government on appropriate measures to mitigate the impact in the event of an outbreak.

– See more at: http://nehandaradio.com/2014/08/28/ebola-scare-zambia-truck-driver-sparks-bulawayo-panic/#sthash.XQPU0pq8.dpuf

 

Ebola outbreak confirmed by DR Congo

as found on : http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-28922290

The Democratic Republic of Congo has confirmed that an outbreak of haemorrhagic fever in the north of the country has been identified as Ebola.

Health Minister Felix Numbi told the BBC that tests on two people had confirmed the disease in Equateur province, where 13 had already died.

But he said the deaths occurred in an isolated area and the disease seemed a different strain to West Africa’s.

Dr Numbi said a quarantine zone was being set up to contain the disease.

The cases are the first reported outside West Africa since the outbreak there began.

So far 1,427 people have died from the virus.

The speed and extent of the outbreak has been “unprecedented”, the World Health Organization (WHO) says.

An estimated 2,615 people in West Africa have been infected with Ebola since March.

There is no known cure but some affected people have recovered after being given an experimental drug, ZMapp. However, supplies are now exhausted.

Also on Sunday, a British health worker infected with Ebola in Sierra Leone was flown back to the UK on an RAF jet. It is the first confirmed case of a Briton contracting the virus during the current outbreak.

The US has sent medical supplies to help fight the outbreak in Liberia
Quarantine zone

Several people died in the past month after contracting an unidentified fever in the Equateur region of the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Dr Numbi said a quarantine zone would be set up in a 100-km (62-mile) radius in Boende where the cases had been registered.

He said this marked the seventh outbreak in DR Congo. The virus was first identified here in 1976 near the Ebola River.

Mr Numbi added that further tests were being carried out.

On Saturday, Sierra Leone parliament passed a new law making it a criminal offence to hide Ebola patients.

Already more people have died in this outbreak of Ebola than in any other

If approved by the president, those caught face up to two years in prison.

The move came after the Ivory Coast closed its land borders to prevent the spread of Ebola on to its territory.

The country has already imposed a ban on flights to and from Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea.

Gabon, Senegal, Cameroon and South Africa have taken similar measures.

The WHO says travel bans do not work, and that what is needed is more doctors and officials to help trace those infected with Ebola, as well as more mobile laboratories.

Last week, two US doctors were discharged from a hospital in Liberia after being given the ZMapp drug, while three Liberian medics are also recovering well.

Ebola is spread between humans through direct contact with infected body fluids. It is one of the world’s deadliest diseases, with up to 90% of cases resulting in death.

Ebola Virus Disease (EVD)

Fruit bats are believed to be a major carrier of the Ebola virus but do not show symptoms
Symptoms include high fever, bleeding and central nervous system damage
Fatality rate can reach 90% – but current outbreak has mortality rate of about 55%
Incubation period is two to 21 days
There is no vaccine or cure
Supportive care such as rehydrating patients who have diarrhoea and vomiting can help recovery
Fruit bats, a delicacy for some West Africans, are considered to be virus’s natural host.

 

as found on : http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-28922290

 

 

Managing Ebola Will Take Powerful Communication

Whether the world’s scariest outbreak of Ebola can be managed may come down to communications. Can governments, NGOs, and doctors communicate with very different audiences – with accuracy, agility, and ingenuity? Can they be convincing?

Aug 13, 2014 – Sub-Sahara. After years of civil war, many people in the affected countries don’t trust their governments or the foreigners in bio-hazard suits who seem to bring the virus with them. They don’t understand how the virus is being spread. Local custom is to bathe the bodies of the dead – but in doing so, the living catch the virus. Traditional sources of food – wild animals – also carry the virus.

Think of the tough barriers that messaging must get through to stop this outbreak: don’t eat the animals you have always eaten in the past; don’t touch your loved ones if they are ill; don’t follow age-old or religious customs in washing a dead relative’s body; don’t use the shaman’s cure you have always trusted in the past; and yes, many will survive if they get proper treatment (though there is no cure). Think of how you might try to get the message out to a rural population with little electricity (and therefore limited access to TV and radio, let alone the internet) and low literacy rates.

To find some ideas for the terrible situation unfolding in West Africa now, it may be useful to look to past efforts in fighting HIV, leprosy, and diarrhea (a major killer of children under the age of 5 in emerging markets). Those campaigns educated and informed through the ancient arts of personal and personalized local folk media.

Please continue to read this excellent op-ed written by Christopher Graves, Global CEO for Ogilvy Public Relations.

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Please read the original story at:  Harvard Business Review Blog

Turbo-charge Growth Of The Middle Class In 11 African Countries

The number of middle class households in 11 key sub-Saharan African countries – excluding South Africa – are set to triple to 22 million by 2030, creating a burgeoning consumer market for items such as vehicles, insurance policies, property and health products, according to a Standard Bank research report.

Aug 20, 2014. Simon Freemantle, senior political economist at Standard Bank and author of the report, said the prospective boom in middle class households – those earning between US$8,500 and US$42,000 a year – is also likely to be complemented by a swelling in the number of lower middle class households that earn between US$5,500 and US$8,500 annually. If Standard Bank’s estimates are realised, they would represent a sharp acceleration in wealth creation from the period between 2000 and 2014, when almost 6 million middle class households were added in the 11 countries of Angola, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Mozambique, Nigeria, South Sudan, Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia. “An even greater elevation in income growth is anticipated in the next 15 years,” Freemantle said.

Please continue to read the article including many interesting graphics on Financial Times Blog BeyondBrics. More about the author James Kynge here.

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Please read the original story at:  Financial Times Blog BeyondBrics