1 Aug 2011

Africa | Marketing & Media

 

www.continentaloutdoor.com

Focusing on poverty

The Somali region is seeing its worst humanitarian crisis since the famine of 2000 in the Ethiopian area. There are currently two regions in southern Somalia where the UN has declared a major famine. The prolonged drought and the conflict in the area are fuelling the crisis. People are streaming into Kenyan refugee camps in search of aid; the Dadaab camp, meant to hold 90,000 people, now holds 400,000. The worst part is that the UN has warned that inaction could lead to the famine spreading to all eight regions in southern Somalia within two months. The African Union is planning a donors' conference for early August, hosting African heads of state, members of regional economic blocs and international organisations.

While the world focuses on combating the abject poverty in the Somali region by providing aid, the Chinese news agency Xinhua and the United Nations Development Programme have launched a photography contest that aims to focus the world's attention on poverty. They aim to do so through photographic media that "portrays some of the causes, solutions and achievements made in poverty alleviation to date". The competition is open to all.

Cheers, Sindy Peters (@sindylp): Africa editor

Responses to this column welcomed in our online editor's column archive. Send all your Africa marketing news africanews@bizcommunity.com and opinion pieces to contributors-africa@bizcommunity.com. Follow Bizcommunity on Twitter @Bizcommunity and join our Facebook page.


Today's top stories


Editorial news

Special focus on media freedom


EAST AFRICA
Puntland president pardons Hiiraan Online journalist
MOGADISHU: The National Union of Somali Journalists (NUSOJ) has welcomed the release of the Hiiraan Online journalist by the Puntland government on Sunday, 31 July 2011 from Bosaso prison. Faysal Mohamed Hassan, a reporter for the local Somali website, Hiiraan Online was released on Sunday morning after the president of Puntland, Abdirahman Mohamed Farole pardoned him, after spending a month in jail. Read more >>


WEST AFRICA
Senegalese state broadcaster's journalists 'rebel'
[Samboudian Kamara] The Senegalese state-controlled radio and TV corporation, Radio Télévision Sénégalaise (RTS), is experiencing an internal struggle for editorial freedom as Senegal moves toward a presidential election on 26 February 2012. Read more >>


EAST AFRICA
Burundi: Summoned journalists fuel hostile climate for media freedom
PARIS: Reporters Without Borders has condemned the harassment of two privately-owned radio stations, Radio Publique Africaine (RPA) and Radio Isanganiro, in the form of a series of summonses, one of the latest of which was a summons to RPA news editor Bob Rugurika to appear before the Bujumbura main court prosecutor's office on Friday, 29 July 2011, his third summons in the past 11 days. Read more >>


Events & Conferencing


AFRICA
Youth conference set for Durban
The 13th African Renaissance Festival is hosting the day-long Ignite Youth Conference, which takes place at Durban's Inkosi Albert Luthuli International Convention Centre (ICC) on Tuesday, 2 August 2011. The festival began 13 years ago in an endeavour to reignite Africa's own belief in itself and in its potential to develop its own resources. Read more >>


Exhibitions


NIGERIA
Lagos to host M-MEX Africa in September
The international media, marketing, communications and professional services exhibition M-MEX Africa will be held in Lagos from 28-30 September 2011 at the National Stadium Surulere in Nigeria. Read more >>


Mobile


AFRICA
MXit in talks to sell stake to local investors [Rumour]
[Michelle Atagana] Rumours are circulating around the industry that the popular instant messaging application and mobile social network, MXit, is about to be sold to new investors. Read more >>


KENYA
Kenya launches Africa's first mobile commerce platform
[Carole Kimutai] MobiKash Afrika Limited, a private company incorporated in Kenya, has unveiled an innovative independent mobile commerce ecosystem. The platform will work across all Kenya's four GSM networks (Safaricom, Airtel, Orange, and Yu) and across participating banks. Read more >>


Production


AFRICA
Photography contest to refocus the world's attention toward poverty
[Carole Kimutai] Chinese news agency Xinhua in partnership with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), have launched a photography contest with the objective of refocusing the world's attention towards poverty. According to Global Issues, almost half the world - over three billion people - live on less than US$2.50 a day. Read more >>


Retail


KENYA
Kourage Athletics launches Kenyan running clothes brand
NAIROBI: Kourage Athletics, an NGO that aims to create jobs and sustain livelihoods in Kenya, has launched what it claims, is the nation's first line of running kit. The clothes, which are designed and manufactured in Kenya, aim to harness Kenya's storied running tradition, which has not only produced some of the world's greatest distance runners, but earned the country an international reputation in the field. Read more >>


AFRICA
MSCC, platinum sponsor for 2011 African Banker Awards
Mediterranean Smart Cards Company (MSCC), suppliers of smart card payment processing services to banks in Africa's emerging markets, is the platinum sponsor for the African Banker Awards 2011. The Egyptian company currently serves more than 85 domestic and international banks within Egypt and has expanded throughout Africa to locations such as Algeria, Angola, Benin, Cape Verde, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Senegal, Libya, Madagascar, Mali, Nigeria, Rwanda, and Togo. Read more >>



International news
UNITED KINGDOM
M&M Awards: SA in shortlist
LONDON, UK: Following a first stage judging process, campaigns have been shortlisted in 13 categories and will now be presented to the final jury, who will select the winners. SA is represented in the M&M Global Award: Media Owner, and Nation and Destination Branding categories by the entry 'South African Tourism adventurers wanted', entered by Fox One Stop Media, with the company to be credited being Ogilvy Johannesburg. Read more >>


More International news...


Travel
SOUTH AFRICA
Take a shot at the Cape Country Meander
[Brian Berkman: contributing editor, travel] Think Meander and the KZN-Midlands come to mind. Following the traction of that powerful collective brand, Cape Town Tourism has introduced The Cape Country Meander that takes in Grabouw, the Elgin Valley and Villiersdorp. Read more >>


More Travel news...


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Quotes
"This media revolution can be an extremely sharp double-edged sword. (via Warc)" - Geoff Gray


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