ZIMBABWE

Cry, the beloved company
[Dumisani Ndlela] Below is a glimpse into the weeping from the firms operating in Zimbabwe in 2007 and whose December reporting period has just ended.

AFRICA

APEX 2008 winners
South Africa's Association for Communication and Advertising's (ACA) APEX Awards once again displayed the wealth of talent in the advertising and communications industry of South Africa. But the good news is that from next year, entries will be invited from the rest of Africa.

SOUTH AFRICA

World adspend strength in developing countries
In its first advertising expenditure forecasts of 2008, ZenithOptimedia downgraded its combined growth forecasts for North America and Western Europe this year from 4.4% to 3.8%, as consumer and business confidence is negatively impacted by current economic conditions.

AMEP is coming soon...
The 3rd Maputo International Advertising Festival will take place from 26 - 29 May 2008. Pieces that were created and can be proved to have been displayed between 1 April 2007 and 30 April 2008 shall be accepted. Works may be submitted to the competition, on payment of the respective fee, between 1 April and 15 May 2008. For further details, go to AMEP.

Nampak plant in Angola can save SABMiller $6m
[Nicola Mawson, Consumer Industries Correspondent] SABMiller aims to save about $6m a year when a new can manufacturing plant being built by Nampak was up and running in Angola in the middle of next year.

AFRICA

Tunisia leads Africa in technology rankings
[Walter Wafula] Tunisia is Africa's most networked economy, a new IT report has revealed.

Adobe grabs a slice of video 2.0 pie
[Katherine Noyes] Adobe on Wednesday announced that its Media Player 1.0 is now available as a free download; giving the company a toehold in the online video space. Additionally, say analysts, Adobe gains a leg up in competing with Microsoft's Silverlight platform, which is a competitor to Flash. That the player supports high-definition video standards helps as well.

SOUTHERN AFRICA

African writers urge for protection of languages
[Nthambeleni Gabara] Aspiring African writers, authors and academics in the Western Cape have urged government to enforce policies that will protect indigenous languages.

Safaricom taps Equity Bank for staff share loans
[Walter Wafula] Safaricom, one of Kenya's leading mobile telephone service providers, has made a deal with Equity Bank to allow its staff to access loans for the acquisition of its IPO shares through the bank at a subsidised interest rate of 10%.

Uganda Telecom, 3G network takes off
[Walter Wafula] Uganda Telecom launched its multi-million euro wireless network based on 3G technology. The network was launched at the company's headquarters in Kampala in March, raising the bar in the delivery of telecommunication voice and data services.

i2 Mobile gears up for growth
i2, the diversified mobile phones and IT products provider based in the Middle East and Africa, has opened corporate regional headquarters in Johannesburg, South Africa.

SOUTHERN AFRICA

South Africa's top newspaper journalists, photographers, designers honoured
At an awards ceremony in Johannesburg this week, Mondi Shanduka Newsprint and the Newspaper Association honoured the South African newspaper journalism industry at the seventh annual Mondi Shanduka Newspaper Awards.

Hoodzpeaks now available in paper - Right Stuff
Hoodzpeaks are specially-designed patented visor attachments for peak caps, which provide extra protection from the sun by extending over the ears and sides of the face. Now Hoodzpeaks are available in plastic as well as laminated paper, giving you the option to choose what suits your needs and budget.

Malawi's Central Bank has to compensate girls for photographs
[Gregory Gondwe] The Reserve Bank of Malawi has been ordered by the Malawi's office of the Ombudsman to compensate three girls for using their photographs on a K10 banknote in 1997 without seeking their consent.

Jet Community Awards 2008 call for entry
The Jet Community Awards, southern Africa's popular grassroots community awards programme, is open for entries once again to those extraordinary organisations and individuals who dedicate their time and energy to the upliftment of their local communities. Now in its sixth year, there's R1 million in prize money on offer and entries are being accepted from South Africa, Botswana, Namibia, Lesotho and Swaziland.

Can bread subsidies continue in their present form?
Some 500 political activists and textile workers were arrested and dozens of others injured during clashes with police in the Nile Delta city of Mahalla Al-Kobra on 6 April in protests over high bread prices, said eyewitnesses.