WEST AFRICA

Drop 'bogus charges' against Gambian journalists' leader, says IFJ

BRUSSELS: The International Federation of Journalists (FJ) on Friday, 22 July 2011, joined the Federation of African Journalists (FAJ) and the West African Journalists Association (WAJA), in condemning the decision by the Gambian government to charge Ndey Tapha Sosseh, FAJ treasurer and former president of the Gambian Press Union (GPU), an IFJ affiliate, with treason and sedition, and called for these charges to be dropped. Read more >>

MALAWI

Malawi: Police ordered closure of radio stations - MACRA

[Gregory Gondwe] The Malawi Communication Regulatory Authority (MACRA) has disclosed to the media that the police ordered them to switch off three private radio stations, Capital Radio, Joy FM and MIJ FM which is ironically owned by government-run journalist school, the Malawi Institute of Journalism (MIJ). Read more >>

COTE D'IVOIRE

Ivory Coast charges TV presenter for Gbagbo-leaning show

NEW YORK: Authorities in Ivory Coast detained a journalist on Thursday, 21 July 2011, for moderating a TV talk show favourable to ousted former president Laurent Gbagbo, according to local journalists. Read more >>

AFRICA

SEACOM invests in SA infrastructure

SEACOM has invested R100 million in additional South African infrastructure to meet the growth in demand for broadband services and applications. The investment includes the purchase of physical optical fibre links from Dark Fibre Africa (DFA) as well as installing the equipment required for SEACOM to manage the network linking Kwa-zulu Natal's coast where the SEACOM marine cable lands to two redundant Points of Presence (PoPs) in Gauteng. Read more >>

EGYPT

Egyptian bloggers say revolution was built on more than just tweets

Six months after they launched a revolution that ousted the regime, Egyptian bloggers have acknowledged that it takes more than a Facebook page to overthrow a dictator. Read more >>

AFRICA

Bharti Airtel signs five-year agreement with Ericsson

Bharti Airtel recently announced a five-year managed services agreement with Ericsson for its Africa operations. As per the agreement, Ericsson will manage and optimise Airtel's mobile networks in Africa. Read more >>

MALAWI

Malawi: MACRA puts hold on CIRMS project

[Gregory Gondwe] MACRA has halted the implementation process of the Consolidated Information Management System (CIRMS) after a deafening protest from the public and telecommunication operators. This was revealed by a high-powered MACRA team that attended a workshop for journalists aimed at shedding more light on the matter. Read more >>

SOUTH AFRICA

San Reddy to lead PR firm marcusbrewster

[Herman Manson: @marklives] San Reddy, best known to South Africans as a former primetime news anchor on free-to-air channel e.tv, has been appointed MD of the public relations firm marcusbrewster effective 1 August 2011. He replaces Hein Kaiser, who left to launch his own agency, RedStar Communication. Read more >>

ZIMBABWE

Zim campaign to counter influx of foreign products

Irked by an influx of foreign products and commodities on the local market, Zimbabwe's business sector and concerned stakeholders have launched a Buy Zimbabwe Campaign to promote local products. Read more >>

UGANDA

Uganda: MultiChoice pleads for signal distribution deal

[Walter Wafula] MultiChoice Uganda, the DSTV service provider in the country has asked the government to allow it to play a major role in Uganda's analogue to digital broadcasting exodus. According to Steven Musoke, the chairman of MultiChoice Uganda, the company has the technical capacity that can facilitate the transition in a period of eight months. Read more >>

UNITED KINGDOM

Vodafone's 2Q results highlight the potential for smartphones and data to sustain industry growth

LONDON, UK: Vodafone's 2Q results provide concrete proof that increased data usage and the increasing popularity of smartphones provide operators with the opportunity to create a robust and sustainable new period of growth amid declining voice revenues, says Paul Lambert, Senior Analyst at Informa Telecoms & Media. Read more >>

SOUTH AFRICA

North Wharf - your home from home

[Brian Berkman: contributing editor, travel] The Protea Hotel North Wharf is really geared to longer stays, when having a fully fitted kitchen with dishwasher, washing machine and dryer comes as a godsend. What you can save on room service and laundry really makes this property very competitive. Read more >>

SOUTH AFRICA

Get on a high at De Hoek

De Hoek Country House in Magaliesberg is adding extra élan to its country offerings on the weekend of 5, 6 and 7 August 2011 as guests take to the early morning skies in hot air balloons with Air Ventures Hot Air Ballooning. Read more >>