Dar, Nairobi pledge stronger ties

 

TANZANIA and Kenya have reaffirmed their commitment to strengthen bilateral relations, directing an urgent meeting of the joint commission for cooperation before end of this year.

President John Magufuli, who is in Kenya for a two-day state visit following an invitation by Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta, said Kenyans wishing to do business with Tanzania are welcome to do so, stressing that “citizens of the two countries are brothers’’.

At a news conference with his host at the State House in Nairobi, Dr Magufuli said statistics at the Tanzania Investment Centre (TIC) show that Kenya is the leading investor among African countries investing in Tanzania with investment amounting to 1.7 billion US dollars.

“There are 529 companies from Kenya in Tanzania that have created more than 56,000 employment opportunities to Tanzanians. These statistics make Kenya the leading African country investing in Tanzania. Tanzania considers Kenya as its number one trading partner,” he pointed out.

Trade volume between the two countries has increased from 652.9bn/- in 2010 to 2.044 trillion/- by early this year, President Magufuli pointed out, assuring Kenyans of Tanzania’s brotherly love.

He said his visit to Kenya was aimed at among other things “to cement the good relationship that has existed between Kenya and Tanzania,” initiated by Kenya and Tanzania’s founding fathers -- Mwalimu Julius Nyerere and Mzee Jomo Kenyatta.

Dr Magufuli assured Kenyans that he was always in touch with President Kenyatta on phone -- discussing pertinent issues facing the two countries and the region. “I am always in touch with President Kenyatta on phone.

However, because phone calls cannot get seen in public, some people don’t know this and so today, I want to say that we have always been in touch,” he stressed. President Magufuli said he was in Nairobi to explain his policies meant to make Tanzania a better place to invest and enable it to move forward.

“I have told President Kenyatta about the reality in Tanzania to enable it move forward. We want Tanzanians to pay tax, fight corruption and enable the country to move forward. I believe that if we go at that pace, we can reach the level where we believe we are taking our country to acceptable places,” he explained.

The president also expressed his appreciation for the support extended to Tanzania from Kenya during the earthquake in Kagera Region.

Early yesterday morning when he arrived in Nairobi, President Magufuli was received by his host, President Kenyatta and Deputy President William Ruto and was accorded full military honours, complete with a 21-gun salute.

The reception also included a colourful guard of honour -- as well as the playing by the military brass band of the two countries’ national anthems and that of the East African Community (EAC) Dr Magufuli began his itinerary by laying a wreath at the mausoleum of Kenya’s founder President, Mzee Jomo Kenyatta, before proceeding to the State House for the formal reception.

President Kenyatta, on the other hand, expressed his gratitude to Dr Magufuli for honouring his invitation to visit Kenya, affirming that Kenya will continue to strengthen relationship and cooperation with Tanzania.

“To us, Tanzanians are our brothers and sisters...we have a long relationship with our brothers and sisters and we will continue this good relationship and cooperation that was initiated by our forefathers,” President Kenyatta stressed.

He noted that Kenya and Tanzania had a lot of things in common, including peaceful and democratic change of governments and among other issues agreed between the two heads of state, including assisting other nations in the region, when faced with various challenges.

President Kenyatta said Kenya will continue working with Tanzania in implementing joint projects, including the Bagamoyo (Tanzania) and Malindi (Kenya) ports and other ventures that would be outlined by the joint cooperation commission.

President Magufuli was yesterday expected to attend a state banquet hosted in his honour by President Kenyata at the State House in Nairobi. Today Dr Magufuli will visit Eldoville Dairies in Karen area in Nairobi and open the Southern Bypass road in Nairobi before returning home.

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EU donates 200m/- funds to Kagera earthquake victims

IN response to the devastating earthquake that hit Kagera Region in North West Tanzania on 10 September 2016, the European Union is providing €100 000 in humanitarian funds to assist the most affected families.

According to a statement issued by the EU in Tanzania, the funds will support the Tanzanian Red Cross in delivering much needed relief assistance, including tarpaulins for shelter, mosquito nets to reduce the risks of mosquito bites to the affected population, first aid kits as well as psychosocial assistance.

The aid will also directly benefit about 5,000 people who had their homes destroyed by the earthquake. In its wake, the 5.9 magnitude earthquake affected 117,000 people, leaving 20 people dead and more than 400 injured. 2,500 houses were completely destroyed while 14,500 others suffered serious damage.

“The funding is part of the EU’s overall contribution to the Disaster Relief Emergency Fund (DREF) of the International Federation of the Red Cross and the Red Crescent Societies (IFRC),” reads the statement. Relief assistance is an expression of European solidarity towards people in need around the world.

It aims to save lives, prevent and alleviate human suffering and safeguard the integrity and human dignity of populations affected by natural disasters and man-made crises. The European Commission through its Humanitarian Aid and Civil Protection department (ECHO) helps over 120 million victims of conflicts and disasters every year.

The European Commission has signed a €3 million humanitarian contribution agreement with the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) to support the Federation’s Disaster Relief Emergency Fund (DREF).

Funds from the DREF are mainly allocated to “small-scale” disasters – those that do not give rise to a formal international appeal.

The Disaster Relief Emergency Fund was established in 1985 and is supported by contributions from donors. Each time a National Red Cross or Red Crescent Society needs immediate financial support to respond to a disaster, it can request funds from the DREF. For small-scale disasters, the IFRC allocates grants from the Fund, which can then be replenished by the donors

Tanzania to ratify Paris Agreement on greenhouse gases emission mitigation

 

 TANZANIA will ratify the Paris Agreement, which is aimed at dealing with greenhouse gases emission mitigation to strengthen the country’s capacity to deal with the impacts of climate change.

The Agreement will come into force on Friday while the first session of the Conference of the Parties serving as the Meeting of the Parties to the Paris Agreement is due to take place in Marrakech, Morocco.

Addressing the Mwalimu Julius Nyerere Professorial Chair in Environment and Climate Change in Dar es Salaam yesterday, the Vice-President, Ms Samia Suluhu Hassan, said the government had already embarked on the ratification process.

“This will facilitate our National Climate Change Strategy as each country will have to translate the agreement in its own context,” noted the vice-president while opening the annual festival organised by the University of Dar es Salaam (UDSM).

The weeklong festival brings together high level decision makers, development partners, diplomatic missions, policy developers and practitioners from the government, researchers as well as private sectors to discuss ideal ways to adapt and mitigate climate change.

Ms Samia, who was the chief guest, pointed out the Environmental Management Act with its 2016 amendments and the National Climate Change Strategy as measures introduced by the government to mitigate the impacts of Climate Change.

“My office as the government office responsible for environment and climate has now put in place the necessary policy and legal tools to act,” she reported. Ms Samia observed that the Climate Change posed one of the most serious threats to Tanzania and generally Africa’s long-term sustainable development, economic growth and quality of life of its people.

“The environment in which we live is changing very fast. Human activities are using up the Earth’s natural resources at an alarming rate and degrading the very ecosystems that support our existence and determine our collective future prosperity,” she said.

The vice-president pointed out further that about 90 per cent of wastewater generated in developing countries went untreated, hence suffocating rivers, lakes and coastal zones while threatening health, food security and access to safe drinking water.

“We must realise that wastewater can be used for irrigation, especially in arid lands. We have to learn to recycle wastewater and other wastes,” she advised.

UDSM Vice-Chancellor, Professor Rwekaza Mukandala, said the Mwalimu Nyerere Professorial Chair in Environment and Climate Change was meant to provide specialised platforms on which the founder president’s ideas and ideals could be discussed and shared. The chair was introduced to honour the founding president.

He noted that it was until the early 1990s when Climate Change issues started to gain renewed prominence and awareness in the country.

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“I lost Myself After Becoming a Mother” Adele reveals

 

 Motherhood is not an easy experience to go through, though it is a very wonderful experience. New moms have a lot of stuff that they go through physically and emotionally. Given this, they need love and support from their spouses and family members to get through this. Hello hit maker is a mother to an adorable four year old boy. She has just revealed that after giving birth to her son, she lost herself due to postpartum depression.

In an interview with Vanity Fair, the singer opened up about parenting, her struggle with alcohol use and postpartum stress. The 28 year old mother of one stated that she feels like she made the worst decision after having her son. Adele used to be a massive drinker and smoker after giving birth to her son Angelo who is now four years old. She had to spend time alone so as to overcome her depression. This is what she told Vanity fair for its December issue.

“I had really bad postpartum depression after I had my son, and it frightened me,” she told the magazine for its December issue. “My knowledge of postpartum—or post-natal, as we call it in England—is that you don’t want to be with your child; you’re worried you might hurt your child; you’re worried you weren’t doing a good job. But I was obsessed with my child. I felt very inadequate; I felt like I’d made the worst decision of my life.Eventually I just said, I’m going to give myself an afternoon a week, just to do whatever the fuck I want without my baby. A friend of mine said, ‘Really? Don’t you feel bad?’ I said, ‘I do, but not as bad as I’d feel if I didn’t do it.’”

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Power tariffs up by 20 per cent in Isles

 

THE Zanzibar Electricity Company (ZECO) has announced an increase of power tariff by 20 per cent effective from today (November 1) aimed at minimising running costs, Isles Energy Minister Ms Salama Aboud Talib said in a press statement yesterday.

She, however, said that ZECO had reduced service charges for small and large industries.

“The government has for long been providing electricity to its people with subsidised tariffs. We still consider economic challenges facing most of the people, but we raised so as the consumers help ZECO run smoothly, “said the minister.

She announced that for the lifeline (or home use) consuming up to 50 units, the new tariff is 79/- -- up from 66/- per unit; consumers using above 51 units, will have to pay 480/- instead of 400/- per unit; while consumers (using up to 1, 500 units) under the general services tariff, will pay 266/- -- up from 222/- per unit.

Tariff for small industries has been increased from 172/- to 206/-; large industries from 141/- to 169/-; while for street light it would now be 266/- from 222/- per unit.

Ms Talib said the service charges for home uses had not been affected, but for small industries, it has been reduced from 16,500/- to 10,500/- while large/big industries will from today pay 150,000/- instead of 240,000/ per month. For kilo-volt-ampere for special needs, the tariff has gone up from 15,000/- to 16,000/-.

“Despite the increase, our tariffs for domestic use remain low compared to those on Tanzania Mainland. We ask all our customers to appreciate the government’s efforts to maintain low tariffs,” Ms Talib said. Zanzibar imports its electricity from the Mainland.

Against all odds, Katavi school excels in national Standard Seven exams

DESPITE operating in a hostile environment, Kashifa Primary School in the newlyestablished Tanganyika District in Katavi Region has once again excelled in the 2016 National Standard VII Examinations.

Located in Ikola Ward along the shores of Lake Tanganyika, the school has clinched the first position out of 50 schools in the district. It has also clinched the 18th position out of 162 schools in the region. Pupils at the school, who number 600, have for five consecutive years been compelled to study under mango trees due to dire shortage of classrooms.

There are only seven teachers. According to the examination results announced recently by the National Examination Council of Tanzania (NECTA), the school has clinched the first position out of 31 schools in the district.

It has also clinched the first place out of 92 schools in the region. At national level, the school settled for the 176th position out of 8,241 schools. All pupils who wrote the exams scored Grade B in the English subject while three scored Grade A as 11 pupils scored Grade B in mathematics while eight pupils scored Grade A and the rest managed Grade B.

A cross section of parents and education stakeholders interviewed by the “Daily News” commended the school for excelling in the national examinations despite operating in an unfriendly environment.

On his part, the Ikola Ward Councillor, Mr Philimon Maro, said that presently, the school has only two classrooms, a situation that is forcing teachers to conduct their lessons under mango trees.

“Despite operating in a hostile environment to the extent that even the new desks contributed by the parents are kept outside the two classroom buildings, the school has managed to perform well.” Mr Maro further said that he has started sensitising the public in his area to build classrooms under the selfhelp spirit.

Hamisa Mobetto speaks about her relationship with Diamond Platinumz

 

A Popular Tanzanian video vixen, Hamisa Mobetto, has just opened up about her relationship with Diamond Platinumz and her association with Zari Hassan. Just like the few other ladies who have had issues with Zari, Hamisa has her story to tell. The two were seriously beefing a few months ago after Zari accused Hamisa of sleeping with her man and leaving her “cheap” earrings on their matrimonial bed for Zari to see.

Well Zari ranted and called the video vixen names but she did not speak much about the accusations and did not reply to Zari’s confrontations. Months later, the video vixen has finally spoken about her relationship with Diamond. She says that Diamond is nothing more than her employer and that she only knows Zari to be the woman who gave birth for her boss. Speaking to Time’s FM Lil Ommy, the vixen revealed,

“Unajua huwezi kusema kuwa mimi na Zari tuko sawa au hatupo sawa kwa sababu hatujawahi kuwa marafiki, na mimi nimemjua kwa sababu ‘Kazaa’ na bosi wangu [Diamond Platnumz],”She said
 

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