Rare mineral discovered in Malawi

A rare mineral known as niobium and used in the steel industry to make high strength metal has been discovered in Malawi's central region district of Kasungu.

The country’s local daily of the Daily Times reported Friday that Global Uranium, an Australian company that is engaged in the exploration of minerals at its Kanyika project in Kasungu announced the discovery last week.

“Not only is the size more than double the initial exploration target, but it also remains open to the North,” said Mark Sumich managing Director of Globe Uranium.

Apart from Niobium, the company said other minerals had also been discovered citing Titanium, - used in electronics – Uranium and Zirconium which have been discovered at the cost of A$ 3 million.

“The multi commodity aspect of Kanyika is one of its outstanding feature and potential mine economics will be based almost entirely on the Niobium extraction,” said Sumich in a statement.

The company said Niobium market has shown an annual growth of 20 percent over the last five years.

Globe Uranium becomes the second Australian-based Uranium Company after Paladin which is mining Uranium at Kayelekera in the northern region district of Karonga to exploit in Malawi.

Economists have indicated that the Warm Heart of Africa, whose economy is agro based stands to benefit if it continues exploring minerals.

Meanwhile five Malawi’s local companies have made it on the list of top 50 companies in East Africa region surveyed by African Business magazine, but have failed to find a place in the top 200 firms in Africa.

Leading the southern African country’s pack is Illovo Sugar which is at position 12 with a market value of US$524 million and coming second is National Bank of Malawi(NBM) which is ranked at position 27 in the East Africa category.

Other companies are Press Corporation Limited(PCL), First Merchant Bank(FMB) and Stanbic Bank.

The top 50 list is dominated by Kenyan firms while those in the top 200 African companies are from South Africa and Nigeria.

Rare mineral discovered in Malawi

A rare mineral known as niobium and used in the steel industry to make high strength metal has been discovered in Malawi's central region district of Kasungu.

The country’s local daily of the Daily Times reported Friday that Global Uranium, an Australian company that is engaged in the exploration of minerals at its Kanyika project in Kasungu announced the discovery last week.

“Not only is the size more than double the initial exploration target, but it also remains open to the North,” said Mark Sumich managing Director of Globe Uranium.

Apart from Niobium, the company said other minerals had also been discovered citing Titanium, - used in electronics – Uranium and Zirconium which have been discovered at the cost of A$ 3 million.

“The multi commodity aspect of Kanyika is one of its outstanding feature and potential mine economics will be based almost entirely on the Niobium extraction,” said Sumich in a statement.

The company said Niobium market has shown an annual growth of 20 percent over the last five years.

Globe Uranium becomes the second Australian-based Uranium Company after Paladin which is mining Uranium at Kayelekera in the northern region district of Karonga to exploit in Malawi.

Economists have indicated that the Warm Heart of Africa, whose economy is agro based stands to benefit if it continues exploring minerals.

Meanwhile five Malawi’s local companies have made it on the list of top 50 companies in East Africa region surveyed by African Business magazine, but have failed to find a place in the top 200 firms in Africa.

Leading the southern African country’s pack is Illovo Sugar which is at position 12 with a market value of US$524 million and coming second is National Bank of Malawi(NBM) which is ranked at position 27 in the East Africa category.

Other companies are Press Corporation Limited(PCL), First Merchant Bank(FMB) and Stanbic Bank.

The top 50 list is dominated by Kenyan firms while those in the top 200 African companies are from South Africa and Nigeria.

Rare mineral discovered in Malawi

A rare mineral known as niobium and used in the steel industry to make high strength metal has been discovered in Malawi's central region district of Kasungu.

The country’s local daily of the Daily Times reported Friday that Global Uranium, an Australian company that is engaged in the exploration of minerals at its Kanyika project in Kasungu announced the discovery last week.

“Not only is the size more than double the initial exploration target, but it also remains open to the North,” said Mark Sumich managing Director of Globe Uranium.

Apart from Niobium, the company said other minerals had also been discovered citing Titanium, - used in electronics – Uranium and Zirconium which have been discovered at the cost of A$ 3 million.

“The multi commodity aspect of Kanyika is one of its outstanding feature and potential mine economics will be based almost entirely on the Niobium extraction,” said Sumich in a statement.

The company said Niobium market has shown an annual growth of 20 percent over the last five years.

Globe Uranium becomes the second Australian-based Uranium Company after Paladin which is mining Uranium at Kayelekera in the northern region district of Karonga to exploit in Malawi.

Economists have indicated that the Warm Heart of Africa, whose economy is agro based stands to benefit if it continues exploring minerals.

Meanwhile five Malawi’s local companies have made it on the list of top 50 companies in East Africa region surveyed by African Business magazine, but have failed to find a place in the top 200 firms in Africa.

Leading the southern African country’s pack is Illovo Sugar which is at position 12 with a market value of US$524 million and coming second is National Bank of Malawi(NBM) which is ranked at position 27 in the East Africa category.

Other companies are Press Corporation Limited(PCL), First Merchant Bank(FMB) and Stanbic Bank.

The top 50 list is dominated by Kenyan firms while those in the top 200 African companies are from South Africa and Nigeria.

Students create water pump, help Malawi farmers

Student group Watercycle designed a bicycle-powered pump that is 'lighter, easier and more efficient.'

The third poorest country in the world is getting a helping hand thanks to five WSU students.

The group, called Watercycle, placed second out of 20 in a business competition between undergraduate students in the region by creating a new kind of powered water pump.

One of the biggest daily chores for the agricultural population of Malawi is watering crops during the dry season. The group looked at the fact that bicycles are the main form of transport in Malawi, and designed a pump that can be transported and powered by a bicycle.

“Our pump model is lighter, easier and more efficient,” said Angela Hall, a senior bioengineering major and group member. “It is also self-priming.” Self-priming pumps do not require water to start, which makes them easier to use.

“In older pumps you would pour water in and hope it starts working,” Hall said.

Before the group introduced its newest pump model, heavy, inefficient pumps and water buckets were used, said group member Cory Cole, a senior bioengineering major. Many farmers still use the bucket method, because no better design has been durable enough.

The group has been developing pumps for three years. The first attempt was a pump made of lightweight plastic that was easy to transport. However, the pieces of the pump were not durable enough for the rigorous use, Cole said.

Next the group worked to improve the treadle pump which had been used for years, but was made of heavy metals.

“The treadle pump is like a StairMaster at the gym ... it is a machine that has two levers that you step up and down on, which drives a piston in and out of a cylinder, which pumps water to the crops,” said Brendan Dallas, a senior mechanical engineering major and group member.

In early March, group members Dallas, Hall, Cole and supervisor Howard Davis traveled to Malawi to test the newest bike design. They did several head-to-head tests against the older treadle pump and the new bicycle pump.

“Our model was able to pump slightly more water than the treadle pump,” Cole said. “However, the amount of effort needed was way less.” The group left their pump model in Malawi so local farmers can test its durability throughout the year.

The students involved in Watercycle plan to start a business after they graduate to provide pumps for developing countries all over the world.

They are also working on several designs for attachments that can be used to grind grains and extract oils from the crops grown in different regions.

It's time to hit the road again, Jack

PICK of the week

JACK McCONNELL

A FEW dozen votes the other way last May and Jack McConnell could have still been in power. Strange how we seem to have forgotten what a knife-edge affair the Holyrood election was, although, don't worry, you'll be reminded often enough when the anniversary comes around in a couple of weeks. As Alex Salmond turns the First Minister's job into a presidential-style gig and carries it all off pretty well, to be fair, Jack plans his new venture as high commissioner in Malawi.

He is due to take up the post next year, but I still can't help wondering if the job is causing ructions over the bedtime cocoa in the McConnell household. As head of culture and sport in Glasgow, Bridget – Kirsty Wark's favourite piano player – is unlikely to want to miss the run-up to the Commonwealth Games, the biggest event in the city's recent history. It seems to me that she wouldn't want to make polite chit-chat at a civic reception in Lilongwe when she could be right there in the heart of the planning for a massive event on her patch.

Jack replaces Richard Wildash as High Commissioner. He in turn took over from Tristan Furiouselm, who succeeded Sir John Untamed-Oake. In the meantime, Jack will undertake voluntary work on behalf of the Clinton Hunter Development Initiative in Malawi and Rwanda.

This week, Jack appears before the justice committee at Westminster. The committee is discussing Devolution, One Year On, and will also hear from Lord Steel of Aikwood, first Presiding Officer of the modern-day Scottish Parliament. It would be a cheap jibe to mention Spitting Image's recent return to TV and the damage the show did to David Steel, but what the heck – "Oh, David, you're so handsome".

As I have said before, I feel Jack McConnell came in for much unreasonable flak when he was first minister and that he can look back at the smoking ban, the fact that he put sectarianism on the agenda and his profile-raising in Malawi as just some of the many good things he did.

It would have been great to see how he would have ruled in a parallel universe without the spectre of London Labour always looming over his shoulder.