WEST AFRICA

Freeing the skies
West and Central African aviation ministers have agreed to speed up liberalisation of their air transport markets.

Mobile marketing, broadcasting ahead of 2010 World Cup
The importance of mobile marketing and broadcasting ahead of the 2010 FIFA World Cup will feature prominently in the upcoming Soccerex 2008 that South Africa will host later this month.

NIGERIA

A healthy brand is a healthy business
[Bayo Adekanmbi] Brands are not inanimate products we pick off the shelf. Like man, they are living entities with extendable organic identities that exist in the hearts and minds of everyone they touch. They evolve like embryonic creatures and grow to take on human personalities that make them powerful forces that control our desires.

AFRICA

Why you need a third generation website
[Titus Kaloki] A website is a mandatory feature serving as a global marketing tool, revenue earner and also a press office for your company or organisation. But having a first generation website that has just five pages; about us, services and products, and contact us is not enough to connect with the modern web browser.

NBF hosts inaugural Ithuba Business Forum
The NEPAD Business Foundation is hosting its inaugural Ithuba Business Forum on 20 November 2008 at the Southern Sun Grayston Hotel in Johannesburg, South Africa. "Ithuba" is a Zulu word for opportunity. Therefore, the Ithuba Business Forum is conceived as a vehicle to expose the private sector to a range of opportunities in the form of programmes and projects within the NEPAD framework.

AfricaCom 2008: Qualcomm demonstrates mobile broadband solutions
CAPE TOWN: Qualcomm Incorporated, a developer and innovator of advanced wireless technologies and data solutions, will be hosting its technology showcase at AfricaCom 2008. The company will also present outcomes of its Wireless Reach initiative, Qualcomm's multi-national corporate social responsibility programme.

Mobile-XL, Cellulant launch XLBrowser in Kenya
LOS ANGELES: Mobile-XL announced on Thursday, 13 November 2008, that its XLBrowser will be released to Cellulant's Kenyan-based customers. Starting November 14, download links for the XLBrowser will be sent to 200,000 Cellulant customers via SMS.

MAURITIUS

Mauritius launches new PR and communication association
The Public Relations and Communication Professionals Association (PRCPA) was officially launched by the president of Mauritius, Sir Anerood Jugnauth G.C.S.K during an event held on Friday, 7 November 2008 at the Gold Crest Hotel Quatre Bornes.

Vision Africa introduces MediaMetrics results - Vision Africa
On 21 October 2008 Vision Africa, a full-service marketing and stakeholder research company held a breakfast for media, agencies and selected corporate companies to present the results of MediaMetrics, a product of Vision Africa.

UGANDA

Tenth company listed as USE celebrates a decade
[Walter Wafula] Kenyan Commercial Bank became the 10th firm listed on the Uganda Securities Exchange as the Kampala-based stock market celebrated its 10th anniversary on November 11, 2008.

Africa endorses measures to mitigate impact of financial crisis
TUNIS: African finance ministers and central bank governors rose from a day-long meeting on Wednesday, 12 November 2008 in Tunis after the adoption of a communiqué on what their countries would do individually and collectively and the type of support they expect from the international community to caution the likely impact of the global financial crisis on their economies.

Zimbabwe: Less food for more mouths
JOHANNESBURG: The UN World Food Programme (WFP) is moving into top gear this month to feed four million Zimbabweans, but severe funding shortages mean the organisation's coffers are beginning to run on empty, which has caused a cut in rations to below the minimum dietary recommendations.

UCT GSB initiates network to improve Africa's electricity supply
Professor Anton Eberhard, head of the Management Programme in Infrastructure Reform and Regulation (MIR) at the UCT Graduate School of Business (UCT GSB), has initiated a peer review and learning network to improve leadership and management capability within Africa's electricity regulatory agencies.