So long 2009!![](https://biz-file.com/b/0912/35662.jpg?1) You're reading my last editorial column for the year, and what a year it's been. Due to the global economic downturn many have had to work twice as hard this year and turning this final corner in December means that we've made it intact. There are too many unemployed people at this point in time all over the continent, but here's hoping 2010 will bear plenty of fruit to go around. Crisis or no crisis Africans kept their eyes glued to their TV sets with Bizcommunity Africa's top three Most Read Articles featuring Big Brother Africa 4, followed in fourth place by the Face of Africa 2009 search. Reality TV has definitely still got Africa hooked. In 2010 Africa will host the 19th FIFA World Cup. This alone means plenty of opportunities for the continent to shine in the year ahead. Even Zimbabwe seems to be making a recovery, albeit slowly. A major troubling issue Africa still needs to address is press freedom as journalists are continually harassed across the continent, sometimes to violent extremes, year-on-year. Let us all strive in the new year for a more accommodating society that respects freedom of speech and the right to information for all. We will be sending out the first of our 2010 newsletters on 11 January 2010. Until then, to all our subscribers, clients, contributors, business partners and visitors to our sites, may you all have a restful, peaceful, safe and enjoyable year-end break. Add your own message to our Festive Tribute 2009 page! Sindy Peters, content manager
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Marketing
![](https://biz-file.com/c/0912/41928.jpg) The official opening of this year's edition of the Africa Finance and Investment Forum (AFIF), organised by the Brussels-based EMRC, in cooperation with the Netherlands Development Finance Company FMO, will take place today, 14 December 2009. Read more >>Advertisement:![](https://biz-file.com/b/0912/35579.gif) Today, Thursday, 10 December 2009, sees the launch of the first session of the Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) Council Advisory Board Caucus. Read more >>2010 FIFA World Cup
![](https://biz-file.com/c/0912/41947.jpg) NEWSWATCH: Wavin' Flag by Somali-Canadian K'naan Warsame has been chosen as the official song for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. A remixed version of the song will be released in 150 countries next year in support of the event. Warsame has been touring Africa on the FIFA World Cup Trophy tour by Coca-Cola for the past two months. Read more >> [Dr Nikolaus Eberl] As 2009 is drawing to a close and the tourism industry is heaving a sigh of relief that one of the worst years in travel history is almost over, when - as one analyst put it - “consumer greed turned to consumer fear”, the forthcoming world cup year holds promising prospects for those who are at the forefront of sports tourism. Read more >>![](https://biz-file.com/c/0912/41656.jpg) Ministry of illusion (MOI) was responsible for the animation, graphics, special effects and creative content for the event that amazed 200 million people across 200 countries at the final draw on Friday 4 December 2009. Read more >>![](https://biz-file.com/c/0912/41831.jpg) CAPE TOWN: Minister of Tourism Marthinus van Schalkwyk is "confident" that the country has enough accommodation for the 2010 World Cup. Read more >>![](https://biz-file.com/c/0912/41779.jpg) CAPE TOWN: Establishments to be used during the 2010 FIFA World Cup will need to register the details of their accommodation booking and listings at Rooms4u.travel. Read more >>Advertising
![](https://biz-file.com/c/0912/41881.jpg) ROLLINSVILLE, COLORADO: ICOM, a global network of independent advertising and marketing communications agencies, has appointed Gullan&Gullan Advertising, Johannesburg, South Africa, and Noah's Ark Communications, Lagos, Nigeria, to represent the network in their respective countries. Read more >>Digital
![](https://biz-file.com/c/0912/41934.jpg) PARIS: Facebook makes you despair? Social networking makes you want to end it all? You may be ready for online ritual suicide with the aid of a new website that helps you kill your virtual identity. Read more >>![](https://biz-file.com/c/0912/41886.jpg) Robert Sussman, founder and joint CEO of the Integr8 Group, has been awarded overall individual winner of the African ICT Achiever Awards 2009. The program featured established and recognised service providers within the ICT market, including Accenture, Dimension Data, FNB, IBM and MTN. Read more >>![](https://biz-file.com/c/0912/41932.jpg) SAN FRANCISCO: Google on Thursday, 10 December 2009, unveiled a tool that lets scientists and defenders of the environment use the Internet to keep an eye on what is left of the Earth's forests. Read more >>Nokia Siemens Networks has been awarded the African Vendor of the Year award at the 2009 CommsMEA Awards. The award was presented in a ceremony on 7 December 2009 in Dubai. Nokia Siemens Networks was given the award based on its achievements with Vodacom Tanzania, Zain Nigeria and Leo Namibia. Read more >>Eventing
Dr Latsoucabé Fall, regional manager for Africa of the World Economic Council (WEC) is one of the keynote speakers at the Energy Indaba 2010 that will be held at the Sandton Convention Centre, Johannesburg on 24 - 26 February 2010. He will speak on Access to Energy: Empowering Africa's Development. Read more >>Media
![](https://biz-file.com/c/0912/41775.jpg) The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and the Eastern Africa Journalists Association (EAJA) yesterday, 9 December 2009, welcomed the re-launch of Tanzanian Union of Journalists (TUJ). Read more >>RAP 21, the African Press Network, interviewed award-winning Nigerian photographer Akinbode Akinbiyi to gain insight into the perspective of an African photojournalist when covering or depicting African and world events and into the value of participating in international competitions like those organised by World Press Photo. Read more >>The deadline for entries into the 2010 Daniel Pearl Awards competition is 15 January 2010. The awards honour the world's best cross-border investigative journalism and are given by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ), a project of the Centre for Public Integrity in Washington, DC. Read more >>![](https://biz-file.com/c/0912/41777.jpg) Journalists from across the West Africa region recently attended a media workshop in Accra, Ghana, hosted by Inter Press Service (IPS) Africa on behalf of the International Fund for Agricultural Development. Read more >>![](https://biz-file.com/c/0912/41648.jpg) Inter Press Service (IPS) Africa has launched a new handbook for reporters to support sustained media coverage of gender-based violence beyond 16 Days of No Violence Against Women and Children. Read more >>Mobile
![](https://biz-file.com/c/0912/41936.jpg) Telkom Kenya announced yesterday, 13 December 2009, the activation of its instant roaming service available to its Orange GSM subscribers. The service, branded Orange Roaming, enables Orange subscribers to communicate in more than 200 destinations worldwide. Read more >>[Moses Mudzwiti] Youths loyal to President Robert Mugabe threatened Zimbabwe's leading cellphone network, Econet Wireless, after intercepting "anti-Mugabe" SMSs. Read more >> CAIRO: Egypt's financial regulator has approved the sale of the Egyptian telecom giant Mobinil to France Telecom's Orange, the official MENA agency has said. Read more >>![](https://biz-file.com/c/0912/41701.jpg) Nokia earlier this week announced the overall winner of its Calling All Innovators competition. 20FourLabs, developers of winning application Afridoctor, won over R600 000 following the announcement that took place in Melrose, Johannesburg. Read more >>[Gareth Vorster] Industry analyst Frost & Sullivan said on Friday, 4 December that 2010 would separate the best from the rest in the telecommunications sector. Read more >> Newspapers
One of Ethiopia's leading newspapers has closed down following threats of prosecution from the country's authorities. Reporters Sans Frontières (RSF) has condemned the suspension of Addis Neger, a weekly newspaper based in Addis Ababa. Read more >> [Duncan McLeod] Newspaper proprietor Trevor Ncube will launch his new Zimbabwean daily newspaper, NewsDay, on the web six months before the print edition hits the streets. Read more >>Online Media
![](https://biz-file.com/c/0912/41930.jpg) SAN FRANCISCO: Privacy advocates slammed revamped Facebook privacy controls on Thursday, 10 December 2009, saying the change masks a move to get members to expose more information online. Read more >>Production
Commercial filming and photography will be prohibited in some areas of the West Coast National Park due to a change in the permit process, the SA National Parks (SANParks) said on Thursday, 10 December 2009. Read more >>Promotions
![](https://biz-file.com/c/0912/41650.jpg) Z-Card Africa, India, Middle East and Turkey (ZAMI) launched itself at the beginning of December in Botswana, increasing its African footprint. Read more >>Recruitment
LAGOS: A state-run Nigerian university has dismissed more than 1,000 workers, including senior teachers, over huge monthly salary bills and to save it from bankruptcy, the university announced on Wednesday, 9 December 2009. Read more >>Retail
![](https://biz-file.com/c/0912/41952.jpg) LONDON, UK: Standard Bank has been awarded Best Trade Finance Bank in sub-Saharan Africa for the second successive year by GTR Magazine in its annual readers' poll on the world's leading financial institutions. Read more >>KIGALI: Africa has identified the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP) as the avenue for addressing the challenges of food security, but both the donors and African governments are yet to fulfill their commitments to CAADP, said Rwandan President Paul Kagame at the start of the two day high-level meeting on CAADP late last week. Read more >>WASHINGTON: The World Bank has approved a US$1.3-billion crisis response window for the poorest countries. Read more >>Stanbic IBTC Bank, a member of the Standard Bank Group, has partnered South African Airways (SAA) to launch an e-ticketing solution in Nigeria aimed at reducing travel costs. The launch took place in Lagos, Nigeria. Read more >>Africa may have been forgotten by international investors since the equity recovery began, but not for long says Imara, the Botswana-registered Imara financial services group. The group believes the continent can expect a big uptick in investor interest, with especially strong interest in Zimbabwe and Nigeria. Read more >>TV
BBC Worldwide Channels, earlier this week announced the promotion of John Taite to the role of VP programming, EMEA, as well as the creation of three new heads of scheduling roles in the region. Read more >>SOUTH AFRICA Sunshine Saturdays - Z&G and The Dirty Skirts More   SOUTH AFRICA Regus Southern Africa appoints Thérèse Meyer as commercial director - more info
"Ability is what you're capable of doing. Motivation determines what you do. Attitude determines how well you do it." - Lou Holtz "We must be the epitome-the embodiment-of success. We must radiate success before it will come to us. We must first become mentally, from an attitude standpoint, the people we wish to become." - Earl Nightingale "Put your heart, mind, intellect and soul even to your smallest acts. This is the secret of success." - Swami Sivananda
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