Malawi will not make an official statement on the situ ation in Zimbabwe, President Bingu wa Mutharika said here Wednesday.
Dr. Mutharika made this known while disclosing Malawi's official stand on the deteriorating Zimbabwe political and economic crisis at a press conference on his r eturn from the Egyptian resort city of Sharma el-Sheik, where he attended the African Union (AU) summit.
According to him, Zambian President Levy Mwanawasa, in his capacity as Chairman of the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) and President Jose Eduardo dos Santos of Angola, as Chairman of the troika of SADC's Peace and Security, are mandated to speak on behalf of the region.
"We have an organisation, SADC, the organisation speaks for us," he said..
"So I want to make this very clear to anybody including some of the countries outside Africa who think that we should stand there like monkeys in the bush and everyone chattering! Everyone...we don't do that; we are reasonably civilised if you don't know."
Mutharika came under pressure to make a stand because of his personnal and political ties with Mugabe.
For instance, his late wife, Ethel Zauya Mutharika, had roots in Zimbabwe and th e Mutharikas still run a farm in Zimbabwe. There are also an estimated two million Malawians in Zimbabwe. (The figure is sometimes put at four million if you factor in off-springs of Malawians who married Zimbabweans.)
These Malawians, some of whom want to retrace their Malawian roots, reportedly complain to Mutharika "to do something" about the deteriorating situation.
Mutharika told newsmen: "Malawi will not issue a statement outside the SADC fram ework, regardless of whatever my feelings may be...I have feelings but we have also discipline," adding that mere condemnation and rhetoric rebuking of Mugabe might not work.
"That's not the right stand. In any case they have been condemning Zimbabwe for the last four years; they have been condemning Mugabe for the last four years... b ut has it solved anything? Ask yourself, all that condemnation, has it solved an y thing? It has not..."
Reports from Egypt say Liberia, Botswana, Kenya and Sierra Leone openly condemned Zimbabwe?s controversial elections while other African Union countries, including South Africa, called for a mediated settlement to solve the Zimbabwean crisis.
Wednesday, 2 July 2008
Madonna 'will wed adopted Malawi son's father'
Madonna 'humiliated' by husband's crap films like Swept Away and Revolter
London - (Reuterus & Ass Mess): Relentless self-publicising entertainer Madonna is set to dump her gormless husband Guy Twitchy and get hitched to Yohane Banda, father of her adopted son David.
The wedding will be shown on Malawi state TV on July 6, the country's National Day.
The move follows an offer by Malawi's President Bingu wa Mutharika to create a second Vice Presidency and offer it to the singer.
In return Madonna will reveal ancient Kabbala secrets of the exact location of Africa's biggest oil reserves, long rumored to be under Lake Malawi.
A century-long dispute with Tanzania and Mozambique has meant Lake Malawi remains a political hot potato.
But the Banda/Ciccone marriage may be the international solution according to latest UN reports.
News of the impending nuptuals was leaked this morning amid lawyers' frantic behind-the-scenes haggling over Madonna's prenup agreement with Twitchy, who is said to be demanding a straight 50-50 assets split.
"In his dreams, of course," a Mayfair divorce layer said today.
"Madonna's never forgiven him for putting her throught the humiliation of starring in his movies 'Swept Away' and 'Revolter'.
"He'll be lucky to get away with having all his UK assets stripped in return for a lifelong gagging clause about his mobster pals in the UK."
The story above is a satire or parody. It is entirely fictitious.
London - (Reuterus & Ass Mess): Relentless self-publicising entertainer Madonna is set to dump her gormless husband Guy Twitchy and get hitched to Yohane Banda, father of her adopted son David.
The wedding will be shown on Malawi state TV on July 6, the country's National Day.
The move follows an offer by Malawi's President Bingu wa Mutharika to create a second Vice Presidency and offer it to the singer.
In return Madonna will reveal ancient Kabbala secrets of the exact location of Africa's biggest oil reserves, long rumored to be under Lake Malawi.
A century-long dispute with Tanzania and Mozambique has meant Lake Malawi remains a political hot potato.
But the Banda/Ciccone marriage may be the international solution according to latest UN reports.
News of the impending nuptuals was leaked this morning amid lawyers' frantic behind-the-scenes haggling over Madonna's prenup agreement with Twitchy, who is said to be demanding a straight 50-50 assets split.
"In his dreams, of course," a Mayfair divorce layer said today.
"Madonna's never forgiven him for putting her throught the humiliation of starring in his movies 'Swept Away' and 'Revolter'.
"He'll be lucky to get away with having all his UK assets stripped in return for a lifelong gagging clause about his mobster pals in the UK."
The story above is a satire or parody. It is entirely fictitious.
Malawi / African Development Bank (AfDB) Approves US$ 47 Million for National Water Development Programme
TUNIS, Tunisia, July 2, 2008/African Press Organization (APO)/ — Efforts by Malawi to achieve sustainable development and poverty reduction received a boost on Wednesday in Tunis, where the Board of Directors of the African Development Bank (AfDB) Group approved a loan and two grants of a combined 29.15 million Units of Accounts (UA*), about US$ 47.24 million, to finance the country’s National Water Development Program (NWDP).
The AfDB support – an African Development Fund (ADF) loan of US$ 24.63 million, an ADF grant of US$ 17. 34 million and a Rural Water Supply and Sanitation Initiative (RWSSI) Trust Fund grant of €3.520 million – will be deployed to provide the country with urban and rural water supply as well as promote resource management and capacity building in the water sector.
The objective of the programme is to ensure the sustainable provision of adequate water and sanitation services to the people of Malawi.
The NWDP is being implemented on the basis of need and readiness, poverty level, socio-economic indicators, water supply coverage and geographical proximity, with the Bank Group’s intervention focusing on four districts: Lilongwe Rural, Zomba, Mulanje and Machinga. The Bank’s financing is targeting 1.21 million deprived rural inhabitants of the four districts. Expected outcomes include improved equity and proximity in the distribution of water points, enhanced economic status of women scheme officers, and a reduction in the death of children under five years.
The programme covers the entire country and aims at 80% coverage for improved water supply and sanitation by 2015. The RWSSI component will benefit 4.45 million rural and district people while the water resources component will benefit the entire population.
The Bank believes in the efficacy of combined water and sanitation projects because of their positive multiplier effects on development. In the case of the NWDP, for instance, the availability of potable water will save women and children the time wasted in fetching water over long distances and collecting wood to boil water for consumption. This will in turn result in a better use of such time in other productive services, which may lead to increased household income, and eventually to improved health and higher living standards, as well as provide more opportunities for girls to go to school. In particular, the rehabilitated piped-water systems will be expected to have a dramatic change in women’s and children’s use of time. Water system sustainability will be enhanced through the training of over 8,000 people in basic accounting, three-quarters of whom will be women.
The total cost of the NWDP, which is in line with the Malawi Country Strategy Paper, is estimated at UA 147 million. The Bank’s contribution represents 19.7% of the costs.
“Malawi could not have received a better gift for its 44th independence anniversary which falls on 6 July”, the Executive Director for the country, Ian Bonongwe, said while commending the Board, Management and staff of the Bank for supporting the NWDP. He said Malawi was not likely to achieve the critical Millennium Development Goals on target, emphasizing that the country required sustained support from the Bank Group and other donors.
The Bank Group’s operations in Mauritania started in 1969. To date, the cumulative commitments of the Group in the country amount to US$ 914 million in 87 operations.
* UA 1 = US$ 1.62069 = MWK 231.020 as at 02/07/2008
The AfDB support – an African Development Fund (ADF) loan of US$ 24.63 million, an ADF grant of US$ 17. 34 million and a Rural Water Supply and Sanitation Initiative (RWSSI) Trust Fund grant of €3.520 million – will be deployed to provide the country with urban and rural water supply as well as promote resource management and capacity building in the water sector.
The objective of the programme is to ensure the sustainable provision of adequate water and sanitation services to the people of Malawi.
The NWDP is being implemented on the basis of need and readiness, poverty level, socio-economic indicators, water supply coverage and geographical proximity, with the Bank Group’s intervention focusing on four districts: Lilongwe Rural, Zomba, Mulanje and Machinga. The Bank’s financing is targeting 1.21 million deprived rural inhabitants of the four districts. Expected outcomes include improved equity and proximity in the distribution of water points, enhanced economic status of women scheme officers, and a reduction in the death of children under five years.
The programme covers the entire country and aims at 80% coverage for improved water supply and sanitation by 2015. The RWSSI component will benefit 4.45 million rural and district people while the water resources component will benefit the entire population.
The Bank believes in the efficacy of combined water and sanitation projects because of their positive multiplier effects on development. In the case of the NWDP, for instance, the availability of potable water will save women and children the time wasted in fetching water over long distances and collecting wood to boil water for consumption. This will in turn result in a better use of such time in other productive services, which may lead to increased household income, and eventually to improved health and higher living standards, as well as provide more opportunities for girls to go to school. In particular, the rehabilitated piped-water systems will be expected to have a dramatic change in women’s and children’s use of time. Water system sustainability will be enhanced through the training of over 8,000 people in basic accounting, three-quarters of whom will be women.
The total cost of the NWDP, which is in line with the Malawi Country Strategy Paper, is estimated at UA 147 million. The Bank’s contribution represents 19.7% of the costs.
“Malawi could not have received a better gift for its 44th independence anniversary which falls on 6 July”, the Executive Director for the country, Ian Bonongwe, said while commending the Board, Management and staff of the Bank for supporting the NWDP. He said Malawi was not likely to achieve the critical Millennium Development Goals on target, emphasizing that the country required sustained support from the Bank Group and other donors.
The Bank Group’s operations in Mauritania started in 1969. To date, the cumulative commitments of the Group in the country amount to US$ 914 million in 87 operations.
* UA 1 = US$ 1.62069 = MWK 231.020 as at 02/07/2008
Is religion behind ’severed’ diplomatic ties between Malawi and Libya ?
This followed Malawi’s decision to close its mission in Tripoli after which Libya followed suit by closing its embassy in Lilongwe.
Dr. Mutharika told a press conference in Lilongwe Wednesday that he held talks with his Libyan counterpart, Muammar Kadhafi, on the side-lines of the just-ended African Union summit in the Egyptian resort city of Sharm el-Sheik.
Costs
"There was, I think, a misconception that we had broken off diplomatic ties with Libya; it’s not true," he said.
Mutharika said Malawi was stream-lining its diplomatic missions to cut costs, pointing out that his government took a position to have non-residential relationship with Libya.
"This was not targeted against Libya as a country because if you remember we closed our embassy in Canada; we closed our embassy in Paris (France); we closed our embassy in Nairobi (Kenya); we closed our embassy in Windhoek in Namibia; and then we closed our embassy in Tripoli (Libya)," he said.
Religion
Malawi established diplomatic ties with Libya during the regime of former president Bakili Muluzi.
Muluzi, a Muslim, and Kadhafi, cultivated a personal relationship with the Libyan leader, directly funding Muluzi’s former ruling United Democratic Front (UDF). He also funded a number of mosques.
When Mutharika succeeded Muluzi, the later still maintained ties with Kadhafi, sneaking into Libya once in a while.
After Mutharika fell out with Muluzi, after ditching the UDF (the party that ushered him to power), all projects funded by Libya stalled, fuelling insinuations that Malawi had broken ties with Libya.
AU co-operation
But Mutharika said all is now well between Malawi and Libya.
"That misunderstanding that was there is no longer there," he said. "They have heard our position and we have heard their position and I think that I could see that there is mutual understanding of our relations; we will be moving forward... you know [with our] cooperation within the context of the African Union."
Mutharika also disclosed that a delegation of Libyan officials will be in Malawi "very soon to explore areas of investment".
Among the stalled projects the Libyans were funding was the multi-million-dollar Kadhafi Hospital in the commercial capital, Blantyre.
Dr. Mutharika told a press conference in Lilongwe Wednesday that he held talks with his Libyan counterpart, Muammar Kadhafi, on the side-lines of the just-ended African Union summit in the Egyptian resort city of Sharm el-Sheik.
Costs
"There was, I think, a misconception that we had broken off diplomatic ties with Libya; it’s not true," he said.
Mutharika said Malawi was stream-lining its diplomatic missions to cut costs, pointing out that his government took a position to have non-residential relationship with Libya.
"This was not targeted against Libya as a country because if you remember we closed our embassy in Canada; we closed our embassy in Paris (France); we closed our embassy in Nairobi (Kenya); we closed our embassy in Windhoek in Namibia; and then we closed our embassy in Tripoli (Libya)," he said.
Religion
Malawi established diplomatic ties with Libya during the regime of former president Bakili Muluzi.
Muluzi, a Muslim, and Kadhafi, cultivated a personal relationship with the Libyan leader, directly funding Muluzi’s former ruling United Democratic Front (UDF). He also funded a number of mosques.
When Mutharika succeeded Muluzi, the later still maintained ties with Kadhafi, sneaking into Libya once in a while.
After Mutharika fell out with Muluzi, after ditching the UDF (the party that ushered him to power), all projects funded by Libya stalled, fuelling insinuations that Malawi had broken ties with Libya.
AU co-operation
But Mutharika said all is now well between Malawi and Libya.
"That misunderstanding that was there is no longer there," he said. "They have heard our position and we have heard their position and I think that I could see that there is mutual understanding of our relations; we will be moving forward... you know [with our] cooperation within the context of the African Union."
Mutharika also disclosed that a delegation of Libyan officials will be in Malawi "very soon to explore areas of investment".
Among the stalled projects the Libyans were funding was the multi-million-dollar Kadhafi Hospital in the commercial capital, Blantyre.
Malawi Finance Minister Uses Fund to Finance Budget Needs
July 2 (Bloomberg) -- Malawi's Finance Minister Goodall Gondwe will use the southern African country's ``Consolidated Fund'' for payments because parliament hasn't passed its 2008- 2009 national budget.
With the new financial year having begun yesterday, the government will have to use money from a fund left over from last year's budget, Gondwe said in an e-mailed statement from the capital, Lilongwe, today.
``The constitution allows us to spend for a period of up to four months without parliamentary approval,'' Gondwe said. ``I pray that the speaker of parliament, in consultation with the president, should ask parliament as soon as possible to legitimize this expenditure.'' A maximum of 60 billion Malawi kwacha ($427 million) may be spent, he said.
Opposition parties in Malawi have delayed the budget every year since 2004 in protest against a constitutional impasse with President Bingu wa Mutharika's Democratic Progressive Party.
With the new financial year having begun yesterday, the government will have to use money from a fund left over from last year's budget, Gondwe said in an e-mailed statement from the capital, Lilongwe, today.
``The constitution allows us to spend for a period of up to four months without parliamentary approval,'' Gondwe said. ``I pray that the speaker of parliament, in consultation with the president, should ask parliament as soon as possible to legitimize this expenditure.'' A maximum of 60 billion Malawi kwacha ($427 million) may be spent, he said.
Opposition parties in Malawi have delayed the budget every year since 2004 in protest against a constitutional impasse with President Bingu wa Mutharika's Democratic Progressive Party.
Home Office to deport Zimbabwean to Malawi
Opinion
Below is the copy of an email sent into ZimEye by a writer Mr Zulu on the moved deportation of Darlington Savuwa to Malawi.
I write this letter with a heavy heart as one other Zimbabwean, Darlington Peter Savuwa is being detained in Lindonholme awaiting deportation on the 2nd of July. He is being deported to Malawi, the only country at the moment which seems to legitimize the shambolic elections that took place recently. Darlington Peter Savuwa used to work in the SIRDC, a government parastatal which was responsible with churning out figures and statistics of the failed land reform program. He was hounded out of his job by the CIO amid accusations that he was part of the 'born frees' who were in complicity and sympathetic to the MDC. He fled to Malawi where he managed to make his trip to UK and now he is being deported to Malawi which is heavily backing the Mugabe regime in every way. Recent reports are suggesting that the much dreaded CIO will be making its way to Malawi soon to help the incumbent leadership there to fight the opposition. It beggars belief when the Home Office detains and deports people who fled from terror and have genuine security fears for their lives. I would like to take this opportunity to request and canvass support from all Zimbabweans who have friends, relatives, MDC supporters and all detained countrymen, to lobby the British PM as a matter of urgency in the next 48hours to call upon him to stop all deportations and detentions. Deporting people to Mugabe's hell is not the solution for these people who want to help their families survive in Zim where general living conditions have deteriorated dramatically. Malawi is hosting CIO operatives who track all deported Zimbabweans and it thus makes it a very unsafe place, instead it makes one very vulnerable to any form of destitution and desperation. My contact number is 07867657113
Below is the copy of an email sent into ZimEye by a writer Mr Zulu on the moved deportation of Darlington Savuwa to Malawi.
I write this letter with a heavy heart as one other Zimbabwean, Darlington Peter Savuwa is being detained in Lindonholme awaiting deportation on the 2nd of July. He is being deported to Malawi, the only country at the moment which seems to legitimize the shambolic elections that took place recently. Darlington Peter Savuwa used to work in the SIRDC, a government parastatal which was responsible with churning out figures and statistics of the failed land reform program. He was hounded out of his job by the CIO amid accusations that he was part of the 'born frees' who were in complicity and sympathetic to the MDC. He fled to Malawi where he managed to make his trip to UK and now he is being deported to Malawi which is heavily backing the Mugabe regime in every way. Recent reports are suggesting that the much dreaded CIO will be making its way to Malawi soon to help the incumbent leadership there to fight the opposition. It beggars belief when the Home Office detains and deports people who fled from terror and have genuine security fears for their lives. I would like to take this opportunity to request and canvass support from all Zimbabweans who have friends, relatives, MDC supporters and all detained countrymen, to lobby the British PM as a matter of urgency in the next 48hours to call upon him to stop all deportations and detentions. Deporting people to Mugabe's hell is not the solution for these people who want to help their families survive in Zim where general living conditions have deteriorated dramatically. Malawi is hosting CIO operatives who track all deported Zimbabweans and it thus makes it a very unsafe place, instead it makes one very vulnerable to any form of destitution and desperation. My contact number is 07867657113
Telecom firm in massive roll out
Richard Chirombo, AfricaNews reporter in Blantyre, Malawi, photo: Olivier Nyirubugara
Mobile phone provider, TNM, has announced plans to reduce Malawi's poor access to telecom. TNM Products Manager Dan Makata said the programme aimed at matching Malawi's ICT outreach to the standard of continental economic giants like South Africa.
He dispelled notions prevalent in some sectors of the economy that, being a wholly-Malawian company, the pioneering mobile service provider could not much some of her pan-African competitors.
The country has two mobile phone service providers, TNM and Celtel, and the two competitors often compete neck-on-neck in terms of promotions and competitions.
Said Makata: "You may wish to note that in Malawi, TNM leads and others merely follow. We are a fully local company and (we) have the welfare of Malawians at heart," said Makata.
Harambee Stars head to Malawi
Kenya's soccer team Harambee stars leaves for Malawi on Friday for an Independence Day friendly match against their host this Sunday.
Head coach Francis Kimanzi yesterday named a squad of 18 players, which included five new players led by Mahakama striker Francis Chinjili.
Others are Jockin Atudo and Augustine Etemesi of Western Stima, former captain of KCB Jospeh Njuguna and Antony Dafaa of Bandari.
Kenya's big guns, Dennis Oliech, Macdonald Mariga and Patrick Oboya are notable absentees.
The team started residential training on Wednesday at Kasarani before leaving for Malawi on Friday.
Harambee stars will use the friendly to prepare for their next world cup qualifier match against Namibia on the 6th of September here in Nairobi.
Head coach Francis Kimanzi yesterday named a squad of 18 players, which included five new players led by Mahakama striker Francis Chinjili.
Others are Jockin Atudo and Augustine Etemesi of Western Stima, former captain of KCB Jospeh Njuguna and Antony Dafaa of Bandari.
Kenya's big guns, Dennis Oliech, Macdonald Mariga and Patrick Oboya are notable absentees.
The team started residential training on Wednesday at Kasarani before leaving for Malawi on Friday.
Harambee stars will use the friendly to prepare for their next world cup qualifier match against Namibia on the 6th of September here in Nairobi.
Malawi ‘free to choose bishop’
Lilongwe: A Malawian High Court has lifted the injunction filed against the Central African House of Bishops, blocking the appointment of a bishop.
On June 13 a judge lifted the injunction after finding the complaint had not been properly notarized. On Feb 16 the diocese failed to elect a bishop after two candidates, the Rev Jeremy Sheehy, the former principal of St. Stephen’s House, Oxford and Canon Alinafe Kalemba, Dean of the Zomba Theological College failed to gain a two-thirds majority after six ballots.
Delegates from the diocese voted for Fr Sheehy, while the provincial electors voted for Canon Kalemba. The former provincial secretary of Central Africa, Fr Eston Pembamoyo explained the “house was divided between those who said no to mzungu [white man] and those who said no to the black man.” Under Central African canon law the diocese’s 12 electors and the Province’s nine episcopal electors must elect a candidate by a two-thirds majority.
Under canon law, in the event of a failed election, the House of Bishops is authorized to appoint a bishop. A clergy and lay group within the diocese filed suit against the Central African House of Bishops, which sought to appoint Canon Kalemba bishop, arguing the appointment would violate canon law.
Last week’s court decision permits the House of Bishops to appoint Canon Kalemba bishop in succession to the former Archbishop of Central Africa and Bishop of Upper Shire, Bernard Malango. However, the court also granted leave to appeal to the petitioners, allowing them to take their case to the country’s supreme court in Blantyre.
On June 13 a judge lifted the injunction after finding the complaint had not been properly notarized. On Feb 16 the diocese failed to elect a bishop after two candidates, the Rev Jeremy Sheehy, the former principal of St. Stephen’s House, Oxford and Canon Alinafe Kalemba, Dean of the Zomba Theological College failed to gain a two-thirds majority after six ballots.
Delegates from the diocese voted for Fr Sheehy, while the provincial electors voted for Canon Kalemba. The former provincial secretary of Central Africa, Fr Eston Pembamoyo explained the “house was divided between those who said no to mzungu [white man] and those who said no to the black man.” Under Central African canon law the diocese’s 12 electors and the Province’s nine episcopal electors must elect a candidate by a two-thirds majority.
Under canon law, in the event of a failed election, the House of Bishops is authorized to appoint a bishop. A clergy and lay group within the diocese filed suit against the Central African House of Bishops, which sought to appoint Canon Kalemba bishop, arguing the appointment would violate canon law.
Last week’s court decision permits the House of Bishops to appoint Canon Kalemba bishop in succession to the former Archbishop of Central Africa and Bishop of Upper Shire, Bernard Malango. However, the court also granted leave to appeal to the petitioners, allowing them to take their case to the country’s supreme court in Blantyre.
Malawi firms urged to gear up for 2010 World Cup
The Malawi Confederation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry (MCCCI) has urged the local private sector captains to roll-up their sleeves in preparation for the 2010 soccer World Cup to be held in South Africa, the first time such a tournament will be held in the African continent.
MCCCI economist Rehema Mvula said in Blantyre, Malawi Monday that football is no longer just a sport but a big business, arguing that the 2010 World Cup provides a rare opportunity for business-minded Malawians to make a killing, according to website of The Nation newspaper of Malawi.
"The time has come for us to strategies on how we will benefit from the World Cup," she said.
The biggest soccer event is expected to bring millions of tourists to Africa and Malawi and "We need to start strategizing on what goods and services we will sell during the event. There are things like tourists destinations and souvenirs as well as other services," she said.
MCCCI economist Rehema Mvula said in Blantyre, Malawi Monday that football is no longer just a sport but a big business, arguing that the 2010 World Cup provides a rare opportunity for business-minded Malawians to make a killing, according to website of The Nation newspaper of Malawi.
"The time has come for us to strategies on how we will benefit from the World Cup," she said.
The biggest soccer event is expected to bring millions of tourists to Africa and Malawi and "We need to start strategizing on what goods and services we will sell during the event. There are things like tourists destinations and souvenirs as well as other services," she said.
Malawi firms urged to gear up for 2010 World Cup
LUSAKA, July 1 (Xinhua) -- The Malawi Confederation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry (MCCCI) has urged the local private sector captains to roll-up their sleeves in preparation for the 2010 soccer World Cup to be held in South Africa, the first time such a tournament will be held in the African continent.
MCCCI economist Rehema Mvula said in Blantyre, Malawi Monday that football is no longer just a sport but a big business, arguing that the 2010 World Cup provides a rare opportunity for business-minded Malawians to make a killing, according to website of The Nation newspaper of Malawi.
"The time has come for us to strategies on how we will benefit from the World Cup," she said.
The biggest soccer event is expected to bring millions of tourists to Africa and Malawi and "We need to start strategizing on what goods and services we will sell during the event. There are things like tourists destinations and souvenirs as well as other services," she said.
MCCCI economist Rehema Mvula said in Blantyre, Malawi Monday that football is no longer just a sport but a big business, arguing that the 2010 World Cup provides a rare opportunity for business-minded Malawians to make a killing, according to website of The Nation newspaper of Malawi.
"The time has come for us to strategies on how we will benefit from the World Cup," she said.
The biggest soccer event is expected to bring millions of tourists to Africa and Malawi and "We need to start strategizing on what goods and services we will sell during the event. There are things like tourists destinations and souvenirs as well as other services," she said.
SOCCER: Chinjili called up for Stars’ Malawi match
Mahakama striker Francis Chinjili gets another chance to stake a claim in Harambee Stars after he was included in an 18-man squad to play Malawi away in an international friendly on Sunday.
The match is part of the July 6 Independence Day celebrations for Malawi. The much-travelled Chinjili, who has featured for Mumias Sugar, St Georges (Ethiopia), Coast Stars and Mtibwa Sugar (Tanzania), has received several call ups to the national team over the years but never cemented a position.
He is one of five fresh names coach Francis Kimanzi included from the team that competed in the opening four matches of the 2010 World Cup/Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers.
The others are Sony Sugar defender Jockin Atudo and forwards Augustine Etemesi of Western Stima, Joseph Njuguna, a former captain of KCB and Bandari’s Antony Dafaa.
Absent are Kenya’s big guns, Dennis Oliech, Macdonald Mariga and Patrick Oboya, prominent for Kenya in the recent qualifiers.
The entire defence line, with the exception of rugged George Owino, remains intact. It consists of Anthony Kimani, Edgar Ochieng, Joseph Shikokoti, Loyd Wahome and John Njoroge. Osborn Monday, Austin Makacha and Levi Muaka bring up a familiar midfield while Andrew Oyombe gets another chance to regain his former international stature.
The team is expected to begin residential training today at Kasarani before leaving for Malawi on Friday.
The match is part of the July 6 Independence Day celebrations for Malawi. The much-travelled Chinjili, who has featured for Mumias Sugar, St Georges (Ethiopia), Coast Stars and Mtibwa Sugar (Tanzania), has received several call ups to the national team over the years but never cemented a position.
He is one of five fresh names coach Francis Kimanzi included from the team that competed in the opening four matches of the 2010 World Cup/Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers.
The others are Sony Sugar defender Jockin Atudo and forwards Augustine Etemesi of Western Stima, Joseph Njuguna, a former captain of KCB and Bandari’s Antony Dafaa.
Absent are Kenya’s big guns, Dennis Oliech, Macdonald Mariga and Patrick Oboya, prominent for Kenya in the recent qualifiers.
The entire defence line, with the exception of rugged George Owino, remains intact. It consists of Anthony Kimani, Edgar Ochieng, Joseph Shikokoti, Loyd Wahome and John Njoroge. Osborn Monday, Austin Makacha and Levi Muaka bring up a familiar midfield while Andrew Oyombe gets another chance to regain his former international stature.
The team is expected to begin residential training today at Kasarani before leaving for Malawi on Friday.
Last night's TV
Duncan Bannatyne has so far succeeded in stopping his own children from smoking. They have been made aware - I suspect succinctly, and with little opportunity for negotiation - that if he ever finds them sucking on a Silk Cut, their trust fund stops. Immediately. Bannatyne, the only genuinely fearsome beast in the Dragons' Den, is not a man much given to vacillation.
Alas, this is not a threat he can hold over Africa's youth, so he sets off across the continent to investigate how, and how effectively, British and American Tobacco is targeting the market it clearly hopes will keep the BAT profits flowing in years to come. Quite well, it turns out. For although the kids of developed nations are semi-protected from the effects of tobacco advertising and sales by (hypocritical) government legislation and (even more hypocritical) company codes of conduct, Bannatyne Takes On Tobacco (BBC2) finds the youth of Mauritius, Nigeria and Malawi have few such shields, and those that do exist are routinely and easily side-stepped by the men with the money.
So, despite an advertising ban on cigarettes in Mauritius, BAT paints newsagent shops, dishes out funky leaflets in schools and publicly celebrates the 45th anniversary of its arrival in the country, all tricked out in those crucial brand colours. In Nigeria and Malawi they hold branded music festivals and run competitions offering prizes seemingly designed to attract the teenage demographic. And they allow and encourage the "single stick sales" - newsagents breaking open packets to sell individual cigarettes at pocket- or lunch-money prices - that were outlawed here years ago.
Bannatyne discovers that the tactics seem to be working. In Mauritius, half of the 11- to 14-year-olds at the school he visits are smokers, and the cardiac centre is overwhelmed by patients suffering from smoking-related diseases. Although, to be fair, BAT has offered to paint the place in some brand colours, and sponsor a ward.
The evidence that the company is moving to exploit these more vulnerable countries was in itself compelling. It was made less so by Bannatyne's lumpen - though heartfelt - commentary, and insistence on labouring every point rather than allowing the plentiful material to speak for itself. He did, however, come into his own when it was time to confront shareholders assembling in London for BAT's annual general meeting. "Are you proud of how you market your product?" he shouted as they passed by, heads bowed, though you suspect not in shame. One mustered the nerve to retort, "Well, if they're stupid enough to smoke ... " which naturally endeared him to Bannatyne no end.
In a decidedly anti-climactic end to the programme, Bannatyne presented BAT's head of science, Chris Proctor, with some of the evidence amassed, and let his non-answers ("I think your criticism helps all companies like ourselves because we listen to those criticisms and we will be looking at these issues") pass virtually uncontested. This was a shame. If ever there was an opportunity to put Bannatyne's bullishness to good use, this was surely it, but, in fact, he gave a harder time to Apprentice loser Syed Ahmed when he tried to sell him a hot-air body-drier on Sky One last year.
True Stories: Our Year Without Oil (Recipes for Disaster) (More4) was - uh - the true story of John Webster and his family, who spend a year in their Finnish suburb living without oil. No petrol, no plastic, no nothing. At the beginning, the reek of smugness was overpowering. "You could say we were innocently happy ... Who was I kidding? Is that what I would tell my children?" Then his wife made her first appearance, and applied some much needed astringency to the project, telling him it was nothing but self-importance and exhibitionism.
As Mr Webster pondered the whys and wherefores of his decision, Mrs Webster tracked down a shop that sold non-polythene-wrapped loo paper, sneaked out for crisps for their five-year-old to take to a party so he wouldn't have to explain his father's oil-free decree and periodically asked him "which tree-hugger website" he had got his latest notion from.
As he became increasingly caught up in the project, they became increasingly at odds. She accused him of being dictatorial, while he struggled wordlessly with the fact that, while his way was undoubtedly right for the planet, it was wrong for his family. At the end of the year, pragmatist and philosopher both compromised on the lifestyle they would live thereafter, and equilibrium was restored. Or as Mrs W put it, "It's nice you're seeing things in shades of grey. It's like we have a new ruler."
As an eco-documentary, it was flawed and unoriginal. As a portrait of a marriage, it was brilliant.
Alas, this is not a threat he can hold over Africa's youth, so he sets off across the continent to investigate how, and how effectively, British and American Tobacco is targeting the market it clearly hopes will keep the BAT profits flowing in years to come. Quite well, it turns out. For although the kids of developed nations are semi-protected from the effects of tobacco advertising and sales by (hypocritical) government legislation and (even more hypocritical) company codes of conduct, Bannatyne Takes On Tobacco (BBC2) finds the youth of Mauritius, Nigeria and Malawi have few such shields, and those that do exist are routinely and easily side-stepped by the men with the money.
So, despite an advertising ban on cigarettes in Mauritius, BAT paints newsagent shops, dishes out funky leaflets in schools and publicly celebrates the 45th anniversary of its arrival in the country, all tricked out in those crucial brand colours. In Nigeria and Malawi they hold branded music festivals and run competitions offering prizes seemingly designed to attract the teenage demographic. And they allow and encourage the "single stick sales" - newsagents breaking open packets to sell individual cigarettes at pocket- or lunch-money prices - that were outlawed here years ago.
Bannatyne discovers that the tactics seem to be working. In Mauritius, half of the 11- to 14-year-olds at the school he visits are smokers, and the cardiac centre is overwhelmed by patients suffering from smoking-related diseases. Although, to be fair, BAT has offered to paint the place in some brand colours, and sponsor a ward.
The evidence that the company is moving to exploit these more vulnerable countries was in itself compelling. It was made less so by Bannatyne's lumpen - though heartfelt - commentary, and insistence on labouring every point rather than allowing the plentiful material to speak for itself. He did, however, come into his own when it was time to confront shareholders assembling in London for BAT's annual general meeting. "Are you proud of how you market your product?" he shouted as they passed by, heads bowed, though you suspect not in shame. One mustered the nerve to retort, "Well, if they're stupid enough to smoke ... " which naturally endeared him to Bannatyne no end.
In a decidedly anti-climactic end to the programme, Bannatyne presented BAT's head of science, Chris Proctor, with some of the evidence amassed, and let his non-answers ("I think your criticism helps all companies like ourselves because we listen to those criticisms and we will be looking at these issues") pass virtually uncontested. This was a shame. If ever there was an opportunity to put Bannatyne's bullishness to good use, this was surely it, but, in fact, he gave a harder time to Apprentice loser Syed Ahmed when he tried to sell him a hot-air body-drier on Sky One last year.
True Stories: Our Year Without Oil (Recipes for Disaster) (More4) was - uh - the true story of John Webster and his family, who spend a year in their Finnish suburb living without oil. No petrol, no plastic, no nothing. At the beginning, the reek of smugness was overpowering. "You could say we were innocently happy ... Who was I kidding? Is that what I would tell my children?" Then his wife made her first appearance, and applied some much needed astringency to the project, telling him it was nothing but self-importance and exhibitionism.
As Mr Webster pondered the whys and wherefores of his decision, Mrs Webster tracked down a shop that sold non-polythene-wrapped loo paper, sneaked out for crisps for their five-year-old to take to a party so he wouldn't have to explain his father's oil-free decree and periodically asked him "which tree-hugger website" he had got his latest notion from.
As he became increasingly caught up in the project, they became increasingly at odds. She accused him of being dictatorial, while he struggled wordlessly with the fact that, while his way was undoubtedly right for the planet, it was wrong for his family. At the end of the year, pragmatist and philosopher both compromised on the lifestyle they would live thereafter, and equilibrium was restored. Or as Mrs W put it, "It's nice you're seeing things in shades of grey. It's like we have a new ruler."
As an eco-documentary, it was flawed and unoriginal. As a portrait of a marriage, it was brilliant.
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