Say no to e-waste![](https://biz-file.com/b/0906/29355.jpg?1) TEAMS (The East African Marine System) was officially launched in Kenya this month without much publicity. It is however an important event for Africa, but more so for East Africa, who can now finally connect with the rest of the world after being the longest coastline in the world without fibre-optic cable linkage. This is great news for countries like Kenya that wants to expand and explore business opportunities with other African countries as well as with other continents. If used to its full potential and embraced by all involved, TEAMS should lead to a boost in development; bridging the digital divide will be much easier and will happen at a faster rate provided the effort is made by governments in the region. Africa, however, must be wary as this development could very well be a double-edged sword. E-waste is a by-product of technological advancement and emerging nations are fast becoming dumping grounds for these used resources. While importing second-hand hardware from developed countries might seem to be the best solution for economically challenged communities, this system should not be allowed get out of hand and African countries should be guarded against becoming the last stop for recycled resources. Regulations and standards must be drawn up and maintained so that Africa ensures it is environmentally and socially responsible in the digital age. Cheers! Sindy Peters, Content manager Send all your Africa marketing news to africanews@bizcommunity.com. Top stories
Marketing
[Tshepiso Seopa] The textile and clothing industry has grown significantly over the past few years, and has helped with investments and job creation, in Lesotho. There are still however many investment opportunities in the knit fabric mills, laundry facilities, electronic and electrical appliances, call centre and diamond mining industries. Read more >> 2010 FIFA World Cup
[Proffesor Ndawonde] JOHANNESBURG: A colourful closing ceremony of drummers, dancers and musicians drew the curtains on Sunday evening, 27 June 2009 on a successful FIFA Confederations Cup, a trial run for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. Read more >> [Proffesor Ndawonde] JOHANNESBURG: Local Organising Committee chief executive officer, Danny Jordaan, has urged the international media to stop sensationalising the issue of theft and security during the FIFA Confederations Cup. Read more >>Digital
![](https://biz-file.com/c/0906/32578.jpg) The first undersea internet cable linking East Africa to the rest of the world was launched this month, June 2009, in Kenya. The 5,000km cable stretches from Fujairah in United Arab Emirates, passing through the Indian Ocean to Kenya. Read more >>![](https://biz-file.com/c/0906/32591.jpg) STAMFORD: Demand for secondary PCs will outstrip supply for years to come, but reuse does not necessarily mean "greener" IT because growing exports for reuse or recycling are leading to increasing e-waste in emerging markets, according to Gartner. Read more >>![](https://biz-file.com/c/0906/32504.jpg) According to Seacom, an increase in pirate activity during April and May 2009, in terms of intensity and geographical coverage, has resulted in a delay in the undersea cable installation plans. The ready-for-service date has been postponed from 27 June to 23 July . Read more >>Nigeria's Mass Telecom Innovation (MTI) Plc has released a positive set of results for the first quarter of the year ending 31 March 2009. Read more >>Education and Training
[Moses Mudzwiti] The University of Zimbabwe, which has been closed for five months, could reopen its doors next month. University authorities have informed the government that the university will reopen on 6 July 2009. Read more >> Eventing
![](https://biz-file.com/c/0906/32372.jpg) The 2009 Australia Africa Business Council International Trade and Investment Conference will be held over three days from 6 - 8 September 2009 at Sea World on Queensland's Gold Coast, Australia. The major sponsor for this year's conference is the Queensland government. Read more >>Media
![](https://biz-file.com/c/0906/32365.jpg) The IFJ is carrying out a review of changing conditions in journalism. It has a daily monitoring service and is planning a conference on the challenges facing journalism unions later this year. Read more >>![](https://biz-file.com/c/0906/32580.jpg) The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) has urged the international community to help stop violence against media in Somalia after the murder of Muktar Mohamed Hirabe, director of Radio Shabelle in Mogadishu, who was shot dead by gunmen in the war ravaged Somali capital on Sunday, 7 June 2009. Read more >>![](https://biz-file.com/c/0906/32369.jpg) JOHANNESBURG: The number one priority of Telkom is to improve business in Nigeria, the telecommunications giant said on Tuesday, 23 June 2009. Read more >>Mobile
![](https://biz-file.com/c/0906/32513.jpg) Belgacom International Carrier Service (BICS) and the MTN Group have announced the combining of their international carrier services, resulting in MTN holding an equity stake in BICS. The current shareholders of Belgacom ICS now include MTN, Belgacom and Swisscom. Read more >>![](https://biz-file.com/c/0906/32502.jpg) Safaricom has launched Kenya's first mobile internet portal, a service that will enable Safaricom subscribers get fast access to both local and international content on their mobile phones. Read more >>According to Newsclip, in the digital age, additional communication tools need to be taken into account, and one of the major communication areas identified for growth in 2009 is mobile. Read more >>The banking sector in Africa, particularly in Nigeria and Kenya, are implementing call centres for the first time. It is interesting to consider why they are doing this now, when banks in South Africa and other parts of the world embraced the call centre revolution 10-15 years ago. Read more >>Newspapers
![](https://biz-file.com/c/0906/32500.jpg) Effective 1 July 2009, the World Association of Newspapers (WAN) and INCA-FIEJ Research Association (IFRA), both international associations for print and digital news publishing, will merge into a new organisation; the World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers (WAN-IFRA). Read more >>Online Media
[Khanyi Magubane] Recordings of rarely heard traditional African music collected over a period of 50 years by music historian Hugh Tracey are now available to anyone on earth via the internet. The International Library of African Music (Ilam), based at Rhodes University in the Eastern Cape, is in the process of digitising the music, which Tracey recorded in the southern, eastern and central regions of Africa. Read more >>Production
A new 2009 programme entitled Rethinking the Production Business has been launched in order to help producers to find funding, new revenue streams and partners, MIPCOM announced yesterday, Thursday, 25 June 2009. Read more >>Research
A team of students has set up a free editing service to assist researchers in developing countries trying to get published in international journals. The university students who come from Canada, Europe and the United States aim to provide detailed editorial feedback in keeping with the standards of international journals. Read more >>Retail
HARARE: Zimbabweans continue to face serious food shortages despite a significant improvement in the maize harvest this year and the filling up of shop shelves since the formation of a unity government, the United Nations (UN) said. Read more >>TUNIS: A new international organisation established to level the field in litigation of debt claims by "vulture funds" against African countries and in the negotiation of complex commercial transactions, especially on extractive resources, has been created. Read more >>As African banks layer more security into their banking procedures, software manufacturer Oracle has unveiled solutions which it says makes transactions easier and more secure. Read more >>ADDIS ABABA: The late start of Ethiopia's wet season and the unreliability of the rains could affect crop production this year and increase the number of those in need of aid, officials said. Read more >>![](https://biz-file.com/c/0906/32508.jpg) JOHANNESBURG: A more than two fold increase in Zimbabwe's production of its staple, maize, in 2009 will not be enough to rid the country of food insecurity. Read more >>[Gregory Gondwe] Malawi President Bingu wa Mutharika likened the run-away Malawi economy to that of the ‘Asian Tigers' of Taiwan, Hong Kong, China, Korea, Singapore and Malaysia in his state of the nation address when he opened the 41st parliament session on Tuesday, 23 June 2009. Read more >> [Kelvin Kachingwe] LUANSHYA: Nowhere in Zambia is the impact of the global financial crisis being felt harder than in the copper and cobalt-rich province of the Copperbelt. Read more >> [Miriam Mannak] CAPE TOWN: Attempts to alleviate poverty and hunger and boost African economies are futile if the needs and potential of small-scale farmers in the region are ignored and the issue of trade barriers remains unaddressed. Read more >> NAIROBI: Africa's regional trading blocs have developed a new strategic partnership to boost the continent's exports. Read more >>[Alison Walkley] With the help of Envirotrade, a company helping rural African communities generate carbon credits, Africa will be able to earn billions of dollars that developed countries have been collecting for years. As the continent contributing the least to climate change yet suffering the majority of its effects, Envirotrade aims to gain the finances the continent is due. Read more >> TV
![](https://biz-file.com/c/0906/32436.jpg) JOHANNESBURG: MTV Networks Africa (MTVNA) plans to introduce a range of on- and off-air initiatives designed to broaden the appeal of its African music TV channel, MTV base, to the African teen market. Read more >>Mobile
Starfish Mobile International, an African Wireless Application Service Provider (WASP), has partnered with Telekom Network Malawi (TNM), an African mobile network provider, in launching and strategically driving TNM's Mobile Content business and services in Malawi. Read more >> "The future, according to some scientists, will be exactly like the past, only far more expensive." - John Sladek"Learn all you can from the mistakes of others. You won't have time to make them all yourself." - Alfred Sheinwold"Beginning is not only a kind of action. It is also a frame of mind, a kind of work, an attitude, a consciousness." - Edward Said
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