₦airaland Forum

I really don´t know why we always want to travel abroad instead of creating little "Dubais", "Cape towns" and "Malaysias" in Nigeria? When will this mentality EVER change?? W-H-E-N

African History Theme Park Project Breaks Ground in Nigeria

Abuja, Nigeria (BlackNews.com) 26 November 2006- Tourism in Nigeria and the entire West African sub-region is getting a boost with the take-off of the African Kingdoms and Empires Theme Park Project in Abuja, Federal Capital City of Nigeria.

Nigeria is Africa's most populous nation with a population put at approximately 130 million people. The oil-rich nation has never developed much of its tourism potentials until recently. The best of Nigeria's tourism today still falls below that of other African countries such as Kenya, Ghana, and South Africa.

Thanks to the economic reforms put in place by the Obasanjo-led government, the Nigerian economy is now opening up to new initiatives and investment opportunities unlike before and the tourism sector is one which is getting the attention of domestic and international investors.

The African Kingdoms and Empires Theme Park Project, otherwise known as Heritage City represents the best initiative till date to present all of Africa's diverse culture and history to tourists and visitors in one spot. The theme park will showcase the ancient Kingdoms and Empires of Africa including the powerful Kings and Queens that presided over them and will feature the usual rides and attractions but with African themes. A total of 37,000 acres has been earmarked in Abuja for Heritage City.

The project is a purely private-sector initiative with limited government participation. Government involvement is only in the form of providing infrastructure, according to press statements from project promoters-Heritage City Parks Ltd-a Nigerian based Tourism and Real Estate Development Company. Heritage City Parks Ltd was founded to give leadership to the vision of [s]building a world-class holiday resort and amusement park in Abuja, Nigeria that compares with the Disney parks worldwide.[/s]

The project is being funded by a consortium of Nigerian Banks and international investors including Malaysian construction giant-MKP Corporation which is also providing construction expertise. An estimated $400 million will be spent on the first phase of the theme park which opens in 2008 with other supporting projects such as Africa´s first seven star hotel, 44,000-seat dome complex and 43 000 residential housing units and infrastructure project expected to gulp an additional $600 million.

Heritage City's planners estimate 55,000 jobs will be created by the theme park project with the local population benefiting more from product and service contracts as well.

Heritage City Residences and Resorts, Inc based in Washington, DC is assisting US-based investors participate in additional investment opportunities created by the project. Black Enterprise Magazine's syndicated TV show "Black Enterprise Report" was in Abuja recently and filmed a story on the Heritage City project scheduled to air December 2, 2006.

one view of parts of the theme park

https://www.blacknews.com/images/abuja2.jpg

More illegals set to flood SA

23/11/2006 21:13

Johannesburg - South Africa is home to as many as 10 million illegal immigrants and must brace for a flood of new arrivals as its booming economy leaves poorer neighbouring nations behind, according to an employment report published on Thursday.
The study, commissioned by the Uasa trade union, said projects linked to South Africa's hosting of the 2010 Soccer World Cup would provide incentives for new illegals.

"It's definitely a staggering number and more are bound to cross the borders, attracted by the prospects of 2010 and beyond," said economist Mike Schussler of financial services group T-Sec, who wrote the report.

"An average South African is six times better off than an average Zimbabwean and twenty times better off than an Malawian, so that draws people,"

But Schussler said the widespread view in South Africa that illegal immigrants took jobs away from locals was overstated, with research indicating that one in five immigrants created their own job in a boost for the national economy.

Increasing xenophobia

"Yes, some of them are involved in criminal activities.

"But South Africa has attracted skilled immigrants as well - some start their own informal businesses and are not as much of a burden to the social system as believed."

South Africa's unemployment rate, estimated by some economists as high as 40%, is a political issue for the ruling African National Congress and analysts say the country is growing increasingly xenophobic as more foreigners arrive.

South Africa deported nearly 210 000 illegal aliens last year, mostly to neighbouring Zimbabwe which is in the grip of an economic meltdown and political crisis, the research found.

Economists believe as many as 3.5 million Zimbabweans have sought to leave the country, with most headed for South Africa but others going to Britain or the United States.

'SA has become like the US'

Uasa officials said the government needed to address the Zimbabwean situation urgently to reverse the influx of immigrants - something President Thabo Mbeki's government has been reluctant to do so far.

"At present, fewer than 1.2 million Zimbabweans are (formally) employed in their country. There are more Zimbabweans employed in South Africa than in Zimbabwe," said Koos Bezuidenhout, chief executive of Uasa.

Zimbabwe's economy has been shrinking for six consecutive years with inflation reaching a world record of 1 070% and jobless rate of 80%.

But Schussler said the positives of having so many illegal immigrants far outweighed the negatives for South Africa.

"America was built by immigrants, and South Africa has become like the United States of Africa," said Schussler, adding that immigrants often had the very skills that South Africa was losing as its own skilled emigrants head for Australia, Europe or the United States

PS:BEWARE SOUTH AFRICANS DON´T LIKE OTHER AFRICANS AT ALL! I VISITED MANY FORUMS!!! THEY CONSIDER THE REST OF AFRICA AS "STUPID" AND "ADDICTED TO CRIME"

Foreign oil worker killed in Nigerian hostage rescue

10.05am Thursday November 23, 2006

LAGOS - One foreign oil worker was killed and another seriously wounded on Wednesday when the Nigerian military launched a mission to free seven oil workers taken hostage from an offshore oil field, military sources said.

The sources said the five other hostages kidnapped earlier on Wednesday were freed in the operation, in which at least two militants were also killed.

Italy's foreign ministry said the dead hostage was British.

A spokesman for ENI , the Italian company operating the oil field, had earlier said the hostages were two Finns, a Briton, an Italian, a Filipino, a Pole and a Romanian.

"There was a rescue mission. Five hostages were rescued, one was wounded and one was killed in the cross-fire," one military source said.

He added the wounded man was receiving treatment on an oil platform.

The authorities earlier said gunmen in speed boats kidnapped the seven oil workers in a raid on an Italian oil production vessel off the Nigerian coast.

Eni closed down its 50,000 barrels-a-day Okono/Okpoho oilfield as a result of the attack, an industry source said.

- REUTERS

PS: ALL THIS ADDS MORE TO OUR COUNTRY´S GROWING NEGATIVE IMAGE ABROAD!!!!

UK: Why Foreign Investors Are Hesitant on Nigeria


From Collins Edomaruse in Abuja, 11.22.2006

The United Kingdom yesterday said, President Olusegun Obasanjo's aggressive diplomatic shuttle to attract foreign direct investment into Nigeria, has not yielded the expected result, because the country has not put its acts together in the area of infrastructure.
British High Commissioner to Nigeria, Mr. Richard Gozney, who met with some select journalists yesterday in Abuja, said so long as the nation's energy sector remained comatose, prospective investors would continue to seek countries where they would spend less capital on the provision of energy. He argued that, following the global nature of world economy, competition has taken centre stage, insisting that "stable electricity" was key to industrialisation.
The High Commissioner explained that several investors have desired intelligence on the nation's state of electricity and often looked in the direction of the Asia and Pacific countries, for cheaper source of power supply for their industries.
On if his argument justified his country's arguably poor showing in Nigeria's industrial sector, Gozney said: "Britain is largely present in the oil and gas sector. Our traditional area of investment is going on smoothly, and that is oil and gas. BG (British Gas) has just come. It is putting in $1 billion in the country (Nigeria). We are also expanding our presence in the Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) at Bonny, River State. We are also in other areas of the oil and gas sector," he explained.
Gozney, whose interface with the journalists was to unveil the itinerary of the Prince of Wales, Prince Charles, who begins a three-day state visit to Nigeria from November 28, also disclosed that his home country has raised what he called a common pot of 7 million Pounds Sterling or N1.8 billion to provide ancilliary services to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), to ease the Commission's polling problems. He said the UK expects Nigeria to have a better election next year than what obtained in 2003, stressing, "We expect elections that are with less intimidation, less use of money and other related vices. We expect an election that will produce winners that will be sworn in on May 29 and the same winners that will inspire satisfaction in the minds of voters that those taking office are those that majority of the electorates voted for. It is important the transfer of power happens on May 29 and elections hold on April 14 and 21 next year as schedule."
He also stated: "It is important that Nigerians respect the referee (INEC) and the referee commands the respect of the voters. This has to happen because it is not possible to change the referee once a game has started," he added. Giving more insight into the visit of Prince Charles, Gozney said the monarch would have his activities centred around Kano and Kaduna States, where the British government has invested millions of Pound Sterling, to improve on girl-child education, increase immunisation against all child diseases and other health related programmes, that equally spread across the country.
On Niger Delta, Gozney said the region needs no foreign financial assistance but expertise, on how the large resources in the area could be utilised effectively. He lauded Governors Peter Odili, Jonathan Goodluck and Donald Duke of Rivers, Bayelsa and Cross River States respectively for their innovative developmental programmes.

Source: http://www.thisdayonline.com/nview.php?id=63902

November 21st, 2006
Nigeria scams ‘cost UK billions’

In spite of government’s effort to curb financial crime, a report claims that such crime in the United Kingdom stemming from Nigeria is not abating.
The Chatham House report concludes that not enough is being done to stop the financial crime, which involves "billions of pounds".
Internet scams, credit card fraud and money laundering are going unchecked by governments in both countries, the research group says.
The crimes are not given priority but have become a "large and pressing problem".
Nigeria has become especially linked with "advance fee" or "419 scams" that involves sending emails or faxes to potential victims around the world, and offering a highly attractive but false financial deal.
Commonly the criminal says they need help in getting money out of the country with promises to share the rewards with the victim.
The scale and scope of Nigeria-related financial crime highlights critical wider failures in the way the British authorities tackle fraud, corruption and money laundering
The criminal uses information they trick from the gullible victims and commonly strips their bank account. These style of incidents alone cost the UK economy £150-million a year - with the average victim losing £31,000, the report said.
Other examples of crimes included in the Chatham House report include more than £20-million forged cheques and postal orders couriered from Nigeria’s commercial capital Lagos being found in one day at Heathrow Airport.
In another incident, a handbag containing more than £1-million worth of false cheques was found at a parcel centre in Coventry.
"Criminal activity is carried out by a small minority of Nigerians, relative to the size of the country and the number of nationals resident in Britain or visiting it," the report said.
"But the numbers of people involved are still significant and their successes reflect wider political and logistical shortcomings with the way the British authorities deal with financial crime." Poverty in Nigeria had helped spark the growth of criminal networks, the report said.
But while the number of people involved was "vague", the sums of money were "significant" and "have almost certainly run into billions of pounds over the past 10 years", it added.
Nigerian passport holders deported for their role in scams often return to Britain and again get involved in the crimes, the research found.
Report author Michael Peel said action needed to be taken by both governments.
"The scale and scope of Nigeria-related financial crime highlights critical wider failures in the way the British authorities tackle fraud, corruption and money laundering," he said.
"Despite important, but limited reforms, criminal networks and corporate bribery still flourish.
"This raises questions about how sincere the governments in both countries are in their talk of change, particularly when significant political, commercial or energy interests are at stake."
The report urged Britain to set up a way of co-ordinating reports of Nigeria-related fraud. It also called on law enforcement agencies and the Financial Services Authority to build better links with counterparts in Nigeria to cooperate in fraud and corruption cases.

PS: How can Nigeria ever become an investor-friendly country if these things still happen? These fraudsters are elements of "EVIL"!!!! They harm every single Nigerian and shatter the image our country abroad as a whole! NIGERIA HAS TO GIVE UP THOSE TACTICS FOR THE SAKE OF EVERYONE FOR THE LOVE OF OUR COUNTRY!!!! PLEASE

MAN, please, do you think oil companies or any companies are there to give handouts!? Wherever the oil company comes from wheter it is local or foreign is there to make money and profit and one hing is for sure Asian or Latin American oil companies will behave worse than the Western counterparts! China is not a democracy and death penaly is the highest in the world! if the don´t pay attention to people´s right in their own country how will they do it then in a foreign country? so don´t jump at easy solutions! There are none!

Moreover, Shell or Chevron also exploit oil in the Middle East or asia (take Oman), and I have been informed that they are investing some money back (although it is not their task to do it, they do it just to create a "more social" image of themsleves), oil companies no matter if they are local or foreign will not pay for schools or roads or whatever, it is the task of us and our leaders to make it properly!!! but naija menatlity is only "i eat fufu and pepe soup so the rest can die"! this drives me wild, who is the governement? governement is also everyone of us!!!give a "small boy" a big job tomorrow and see how he will behave, he will make the same mistakes than the people whom he criticized when he was still a "small boy". this is Naija , these are many parts of africa, unfortunately!

t is good news,the earlier the pack there bags the better for us.no more reaping no more exploitation.since the don't contribute in anyway to the betterment of naija.which social services are the providing for the community,just like companies do abroad? nothing.oil is one product that doesnt need any advert.once the world economy keeps growing the demand for oil will continue to rise and oyibo will take any insult in exchange for crude.(like a child that smells honey)ask me why hugo chaves get basket mouth. the govt.should tell them to hit the road and never come back no more.

hbrednic, I am not a great fan of the oil companies neither but if the Niger Delta region is bleeped up it is not only due to Oyibo but to our own incapacity to deal with it! Nigeria earned more than 500 BILLION DOLLARS to have built a place down there that would have send down shivers South Africa´s spine. evrybody could have lived in nice houses, go to good schols etc. by now, Oyibo oil comapnies also exploit oil in other African countries in asia or Middle East and they don´t Bleep up things the way they have done in Naija! It was our leaders who allowed everything!

Moreover, do you think if big companies go medieum sized comapnies form abroad will come??

You need to brsuh up on the complexity of economics, too!

It is not the task of an entrepreneur to "furniture your entire house when you just buy a single item!"

It is a pity that this important piece of information falls on deaf ears! We just cast it aside and nobody even wants to discuss it even though we are all concerned more or less!

November 17th, 2006

American oil firm exits Nigeria early 2007

Following the decision of the United States oil services firm, Willbros Group Incorporated to pull out of Nigeria due to the Niger Delta crisis, the company has fixed its exit for first quarter of next year.
EJIOFOR ALIKE

The company had earlier this year made the strategic decision to sell its Nigeria assets and operations and relocate to North America where the market offers better opportunities and returns.

This decision, according to company sources, was because since the hostage incident of February 18, 2006 that involved its workers, attacks of oil workers and facilities by militants have affected its operations on a continuous basis.

But Edmund Daukoru, minister of state for petroleum resources and OPEC president recently debunked the company’s claims of planning to leave the country due to the Niger Delta crisis.

He said the company was being crippled by financial crisis and not the Niger Delta crisis.

Some staff of the company were recently charged to court for involvement in millions of dollars fraud.

The company has maintained that since the middle of June, its production operations in the Niger Delta area have been shut in.

Mike Curran, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, commented, "We continue to make progress on our plan to exit Latin America and Nigeria as we refocus our attention and resources to North America and a few other selected international markets. In addition, we recently completed a private equity transaction and this, combined with our new credit facility, should give us the liquidity and flexibility to perform the increasing volume of projects we are currently pursuing or have in backlog.

"Finally, we are encouraged by the number of qualified bidders who have submitted proposals for the purchase of our Nigeria operations and assets, and we expect to reach an agreement by the end of the first quarter of 2007."

According to him, the increasingly difficult operating environment in Nigeria resulted in further contract cost increases beyond those anticipated.

He disclosed that the company has taken appropriate measures to minimize the impact that these disruptions are having on its financial results and may incur additional costs in the future.

The company, he said, continues to employ all available remedies under its contracts including negotiations, mediation and arbitration as appropriate.

He maintained that any resolutions in the company’s favour would have a positive impact on its revenue, operating income and cash flow from discontinued operations.

The company boss also disclosed that the company has taken actions to reduce its costs in Nigeria and will continue these cost cutting measures in the last lap of 2006.

Willbros Group Incorporated is a United States independent contractor serving not only Nigeria’s oil, gas and power industries, but also providing engineering and construction, and facilities development and operations services to industry and government entities worldwide.

PS: I AM REALLY ANNOYED WHY ARE PEOPLE IN GOVERNMENT DOING NOTHING TO CALM THIS CRISIS, OOOO? IF ONE OIL FIRM GOES OTHERS WILL FOLLOW, IT SHOULD BE A WAKE-UP CALL!!!

Sometimes I think our country is a punching ball foR America, about two years ago, I thought American press has turned the tide by posting more positive news on Nigeria, now it is the reverse and they wish to see our country fall to pieces just like Somalia, Obasanjo has started to knit closer ties with China , maybe that is the reason for the change in their political reportng!!!! oh please America, why do you write articles on Africa AT ALL when you de hate Africa people, ehhh? EVEN ABOUT SOUTH AFRICA THEY ONLY GIVE NEGATIVE NEWS!!! WHAT IS BEHIND ALL THIS Bleep, ooo


Nigeria's savior, and menace

The leader of Africa's most populous nation is endangering not only his own legacy but his nation.
November 11, 2006

OLUSEGUN OBASANJO has done more for Nigeria than any leader in its modern history. Now that legacy is endangered — by none other than Obasanjo himself. Nigerians and the international community should keep the pressure on Obasanjo to step aside.

Nigeria, Africa's most populous nation and the United States' fifth-biggest source of imported oil, was a basket case until Obasanjo was elected in 1999. Since then, he has reformed the nation's chaotic banking sector, battled its endemic corruption and built a foundation for democracy in a nation that has never seen a peaceful transition from one elected leader to another.

But he also is nearing the end of his second and final term as president, and he has shown a worrying reluctance to step down as planned in April 2007. Five months ago, he tried to rewrite Nigeria's constitution to allow for a third term but was rebuffed by parliament. Other recent actions look suspiciously like the machinations of a budding dictator, and they may not only undo most of the good Obasanjo has accomplished but perhaps plunge his country into civil war.

At the core of the troubles is Nigeria's crusading Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, a 3-year-old agency that already has sent about 2,000 people to prison on corruption charges. (According to the commission's chief, Nuhu Ribadu, an estimated $380 billion has been stolen or wasted in Nigeria since independence in 1960.) Yet as the commission has started taking on the country's 36 state governors, many fear that Obasanjo is using it to target his political opponents and disrupt the April elections.

Even if the financial crimes commission isn't on a political witch hunt, there is no way to avoid the appearance of one so close to an election. Obasanjo should suspend the panel until after April. He also should beef up the elections agency. If he doesn't, and voids the elections to maintain power, a bloody civil war is almost certain to follow.

Which course the Nigerian president takes will affect more than his legacy and his nation. An armed insurgency in the country's south cut oil production by 25% this year, playing a key role in the run-up of crude prices that only recently began to ease. Obasanjo has a chance to become a respected elder statesman who could influence continental politics long after leaving office and bring much-needed international attention and aid to Africa. Or he could be another in a long line of Nigerian despots, cursed by his people and forgotten by history.

source: http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/la-ed-nigeria11nov11,0,776171.story?coll=la-opinion-leftrail

I am angry and happy at the same time, angry because it has taken so long for a rich country like Naija to come up with such a project and happy that it is finally the case!


Bill Gates, Eminent Nigerians Plan $400m Hospital Project

By Philip Ogunmade, 11.10.2006


A Nigerian medical doctor, Godwin Onyema, in conjunction with Bill Gates Foundation, is proposing a world-class hospital that will provide answers to many of Nigeria's medical questions in Anambra State.
To be named Augustine Memorial Hospital, the project will gulp $400 million.
Already, the project has secured the support of Bill Gates Foundation and several other foreign institutions such as the Harvard, Princeton and Stanford universities, Ernst and Young and Mayer, Brown, Rowe & Rowe & Maw LLP.
Govenment of Anambra State has donated 200 acres of land for the take-off of the project, while notable Nigerians such as chairman of Diamond Bank, Mr Pascal Dozie, founder of Emzor Pharmaceuticals, Mrs Stella Okoli, former presidential aspirant, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur, Director-General of National Agency for Food Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), Professor Dora Akunyili, Chairman, Eko Hospital, Dr Sonny Kuku and the Cannadian-based Dr Emmanuel Egbogah have thrown their weights behind the project.
Addressing newsmen in Lagos recently, chairman of steering committee for fund raising for the project, Egbogah said some of the facilities of the hospital will include cardiology unit, with catherisation laboratory, burns unit, major unit, orthopaedics department, Positron Emission Tomography (PET) unit and Computerised Axial Tomogragraphy (CAT) unit.
According to him, the hospital will treat both the poor and the rich, irrespective of their financial strengths and reduce drastically the rates of Nigerians taken abroad for treatment.
Egbogah said “the Augustine Memorial Hospital will for the first time bring hi-tech, world class health-care to Nigerians regardless of the ability to pay.
“Nigerians will be able to access at home and in good time, facilities and requisite medical talent needed to perform complex medical operations.”
The AMH will offer those facilities to Nigerians who cannot afford to pay."
To enable stakeholders raise funds for the project, a fundraising event has been slated for November 24, this year on the theme, "The Health Challenge."
Explaining the rationale behind the project, Dozie asked: "How do you feel when you hear that a Nigerian is sick and has to be flown to South Africa? That is why initiative like this has to be supported," he said.

Thanks to all your advice given so far! It is helpful to me. Moreover, I think that I have raised a topic that is of general interest to many Naija people in the UK or back home in our country.

However, what slightly annoys me are some people who wickedly insult me in a pretty rude manner, I don´t want to give names ´cos the people will know it when he and she reads this here.

So PEACE AND LOVE TO EVERYBODY

I would like you to make a comparison between Abuja and Brasilia (Brasil´s capital city) which just like Abuja was built from scratch.
What do you like more in Abuja than in Brasilia what less and vicevers?

https://www.geocities.com/augusto_areal/aerea2.jpg


https://www.geocities.com/augusto_areal/ponte1.jpg


https://www.geocities.com/augusto_areal/asa_sul2.jpg


a church building

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[img]http://www.brasemb.or.jp/cultural/images/niemeyerg_08.jpg[/img]


[img]http://www.brasemb.or.jp/cultural/images/niemeyerg_06.jpg[/img]

THANKS TO ALL OF YOU WHO GAVE ME SOME VALUABLE ADVICE AND THANKS FOR YOUR HONESTY IN THAT MATTER !!!

Although I do love me country and my people, I sort of arrived at the conclusion that I will continue to stay in London after the completition of my studies and first gain some practical experience in my job for a couple of years before returning back home. That is what so many people advised me to do (and people on this forum principally follow that same line),
I have always wanted to enter the field of advertising/marketing (even back in school in Naija) and I have greatly enjoyed my studies in "economic psychology" at LSE so far! LSE is a name that will pay off one day and one of my professors with whom I am on friendly terms (if one can go as far as to say this) knows the right people in the ad industry. (he also gave me the internship I made at Saatchi and Saatchi).

As far as the salary is concerned, yes , the state literally fleeces you in the UK, toooooo much taxes, but I think with a good salary (should be the pre-condition) , you can still enjoy a decent life in London/UK. Moreover, I love London because it is very multicultural, you have a big Naija community (some of my relatives have settled here permanently many years ago, ), you have good - but at times shockingly expensive - shopping possibilities, nice bars and trendy clubs and a variety of other entertainment spots here, Moreover, I like the British people and their sometimes peculiar sense of humour, too, (maybe that´s is one of the reason I have fallen so desperately in love with a British /Irish girl)
Maybe that is also due to my education in Nigeria (went to a private British school there). My Dad and Mum have unswervingly adored England even more than myself. My Dad studied there in the early 70´s and my parents took me and my sister frequently to the UK when I was in Nigeria, so I began to be confronted with British life/culture/behaviour from my early boyhood years.
So, working in England won´t repell or expose me to many new facets of "Britishness" any more.

As far as my girlfriend is concerned: some of you said that I couldn´t take her back home. Yes, I think you are right. Although she is very nice and often a simple girl, one cannot brush aside the fact that she comes from an upper-middle class UK backround. (Her father is a well-established cosmetic surgeon and her mother is a talented interior designer) . Given their professional backround both are still very loving, simple and tolerant people. But at times my girlfriend´s attitudes and reactions can sometimes be slightly “classy” and sort of fussy in a way, if you know what I am alluding to! She can be aloof without knowing it. She simply wants to adhere to a certain standard of living and attaches great importance to art, design and aesthetics. So Nigeria will be a hard pill for her to swallow, I think!
My Dad´s invited her to come over with me to Nigeria during the Christmas period to show her Nigerian culture and way of life. I had told you that she never set foot on an African country so far and honestly said, she cultivated pretty weird and romantic notions about Africa (when I met her the first time). However, she seems to be fairly interested to accompany me back home but we will celebrate Christmas with her family first because she insists on staying with them. So I will hopefully fly with her to Nigeria for the first time after Christmas celebrations with her family. On the one hand, I can´t wait to show her my country and my parents and even my relatives in the village but I am also afraid on her reactions, the other hand, IT WOULD BREAK MY HEART IF I LOOSE HER after the trip! Well, let´s wait and see,


OK. I don´t want to get to personal but I felt like disburdening my mind a bit and thanks again for all your reactions and suggestions.

Check out just a fraction of the Asia´s shopping paradise. Do you think we are already open and trendy enough to cope with that?

Bangkok Shopping malls

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These are various malls and shops in the capital of Indonesia (Jakarta)

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Help: Will It Be "Pay Off" To Return After Your Studies Abroad To Nigeria?

I am currently studying in the UK and I major in "Economic Psychology" at LSE (London School of Economics) and I greatly enjoy it. After completing my studies I am very willing to work at an ad agency. With the kind help of my professor I managed to accomplish one internship at a well renowned ad agency called "Saatchi & Saatchi" here in London. ( maybe some of you heard about the name) Although it was a hell lot of work I liked the job profusely , but I cannot make up my mind whether I should stay in London (not only because of my potentially better job opportunities but also on account of personal/love reasons) or move back to Nigeria with my loved one (anotehr problem: she is a Non-Nigerian girl, she is of British/Irish origin and never visited an African country in her life).

My question is do you know any well-renowned ad agencies in Nigeria? What about the salaries one can earn? I have already done some internet research but it is not very informative to be honest with you. If I continue to stay in London after my studies and I get a decent job as a consultant at any of the bigger INTERNATIONAL ad agencies, I will earn around 30 000 British Pounds a year + flashy company car + extra bonus after a while (as far as I have been informed). THIS IS VERY TEMPTING!!!! I don´t think that you will get so much money back in Naija? So I am pretty confused. Should I return or stay in the UK? PLEASE HELP ME WITH MY DECISION!!!

GUINEA: Road to ruin





CONAKRY, 20 Oct 2006 (IRIN) - The collapse of a bridge that provides the only link between a remote Guinean border town and the capital, Conakry, has triggered higher prices for basic foods and transportation, further complicating the lives of impoverished Guineans.

The bridge, which collapsed in late August, was an essential crossing point on the only paved road linking Conakry on Guinea’s western coast with Nzerekore, a major trading town 1,000 km southeast at the heart of the country’s fertile Forest Region on the border with Liberia and Sierra Leone.

The situation further complicates life in Guinea, where more than 70% the population scrapes by on less than $1 a day, according to the United Nations. In addition, there is no guarantee of stability. Ailing President Lansana Conte has no known succession plan, leading many analysts to warn of the potential for a military coup and chaos after his death.

The cutting of the road to Nzerekore is symbolic of Guinea’s economic isolation and general deterioration, according to Nicola Prins in the Africa department of the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) in London

“Their position is not very good. The economy is clearly deteriorating, economic policy has gone off track, and it has been that way for a long time,” she said. “The state of the infrastructure reflects their inability to get more funds to either improve or upgrade what they have. It’s a rather bleak picture.”

Life getting harder

Aid agencies and NGOs working in Guinea have already set up their own private charter flights to get around the country, rather than risk the crumbling roads, which outside Conakry are frequently blocked. Earlier this month, UNHCR started scaling down its operations for Liberian refugees in Guinea, for reasons not related to the collapsed bridge.

Rampant inflation has already pushed the prices of most imported products on markets in Conakry out of reach for many people during the last year. The cost of a bag of rice rose to roughly $33 - equivalent to twice a civil servant’s monthly salary.

Now prices for bananas and palm oil from the Forest Region are rocketing as the products become scarce, impacting on traders and families who rely on the cheaper, domestically produced food.

“When I see these prices going up and up, I ask myself how will I keep providing for my family,” said Moussa Kante, 42, the head of a family of seven in Conakry.

Since the collapse of the bridge, the cost of a ticket on one of the dilapidated yellow minibuses that plies the route between Conakry and Nzerekore has jumped from US $27 to US $36, while the journey time has quadrupled from 24 hours to four days.

“All the routes through the forest region have become difficult for us now because of the degradation,” said Abdoulaye Dioubate, a bus driver on the Conakry-Nzerekore route.

The rise in transport costs has had a knock-on impact on the getting kids into schools. The cost of school desks which are made near Nzerekore and distributed throughout Guinea has more than doubled since the bridge collapse from US $12.50 to $27, a roughly equivalent to the monthly salary of a school headmaster in Guinea.

State of deterioration

Ibrahima Kalil Kourouma, the government minister in charge of investment in roads, told IRIN that the government is US $50,000 short of the US $200,000 it estimates is needed to rebuild Conakry-Nzerekory road, and appealed to the European Union to dip into its development fund to help out.

But as Kourouma observed, “this disbursement depends on the improvement of good governance in Guinea.”

Prins at the EIU said it is unlikely the EU or any of the other bilateral or multilateral donors that have helped prop up Guinea’s struggling economy since the 1980s are going to help.

“The donors tend to tie economic and political reform together. Every once in a while the government gets back on track for a year or so in a fit of pro-reform efforts, and in between the donors release funds depending how government policy going, but it never lasts,” she said.

Meanwhile, the management of public funds is poor, Prins said.

“Every once in while they rein in spending long enough to get donor support, then completely let things go a year after,” he said. “The economy in general is in state of deterioration.”

“They have got to the point where, especially, multilateral agencies are sceptical of lending much more to Guinea. France is still willing to provide some funding, mostly because they don’t want it to completely deteriorate,” Prins said.

Development aid to Guinea has been irregular since the International Monetary Fund cut ties with the country in 2002.

Guinea has extensive mineral reserves. High commodity prices have sparked an influx of mostly Russian and US companies keen to exploit Guinea’s extensive bauxite reserves in the last 12 months, but analysts say it will be several years before the mines are filling government coffers in Conakry.

mc/nr/cs

[ENDS]

Conakry, are you kidding? A stupid dictator has ruined the country, no running water , no food and no electricity for weeks on end! Please not Conakry

Abidjan ws by far the best city in Africa to live in the the 70´s and 80´s but it already faded in the 90´s and crashed after the military coup in 1999 (first in its history) ! Côte d´ivoire is a sad example of a once beautiful and proud african country.

Don´t go to Abidjan it is a ruined city!!!

Don´t start with Lagos if you are a fist-time traveller to Nigeria

Go to Dakar, Cape Town, Accra, Abuja, Maputo, Windhoek (Namibia), Libreville (Gabon) etc.

IT IS THE MONEY THAT WOULD HAVE BUILT MORE SCHOOLS COMBAT POVERTY BUILDS SWEEPING HIGHWAYS AND SO ON . This makes me cry out loudly like a child

Nigerian leaders 'stole' $380billion


More than $380billion has either been stolen or wasted by Nigerian governments since independence in 1960, the chief corruption fighter has said.

Nuhu Ribadu told the BBC that Nigeria has "nothing much" to show for the missing money.

He said the worst period for corruption was the 1980s and '90s, but currently two-thirds of governors are being investigated by Mr Ribadu's agency.

Nigeria is Africa's biggest oil exporter but most people are poor.

The country is regularly ranked as one of the most corrupt by graft watchdog Transparency International.

President Olusegun Obasanjo declared a state of emergency in Ekiti State on Thursday after the governor was found guilty of siphoning state funds into personal bank accounts and receiving kickbacks.

General and presidential elections are scheduled for April next year, when Mr Obasanjo steps down after two terms in office.

Mr Obasanjo's critics say the fight against corruption is being used to victimise his opponents.

HIV/AIDS: ‘Nigeria 3rd Highest Infested Country’

From Funmi Peter-Omale and Juliana Taiwo in Abuja, 10.19.2006



Nigeria has been named the third country in the world, after South Africa and India, with the highest number of people living with the dreaded diseases, Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) and the Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS).
This disclosure was made yesterday in Abuja by the Country Director of the United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), Mr. Pierre M’Pele, at a media briefing to commemorate the United Nations Week.
He cautioned that Nigeria and other African countries would be left behind in regards to achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), except stakeholders and government work together seriously to meet the goals.
In the words of M’Pele, “Nigeria is the third most infested state in the world after South Africa and India. There are over four million Nigerians living with HIV/AIDS and in 2005, over 300,000 Nigerians died of HIV/AIDS related illnesses. In Nigeria, there are over one million orphans whose parents died due to HIV/AIDS scourge.”
According to him, the biggest challenge before this generation is the HIV/AIDS scourge, adding that the UN System was working together to provide care and support as well as reduce the vulnerability of individuals and communities to HIV/AIDS, and alleviating the impact of the epidemic.
“The overarching goal of UNAIDS in Nigeria is to support the country to achieve the Millennium Development Goal number six on HIV/AIDS”, he said.
The Resident Coordinator of the United Nations in Nigeria, Mr. Alberic Kacou, also stated that the theme for the UN week which is “Make Poverty History: Achieve the Millennium Deve-lopment Goals in Nigeria” was informed by both global and national issues.
In his words, “In truth, some progress has been made, but not significant enough to arrest poverty’s relentless advance. The worst hit continent is sub-Sahara Africa, where most countries are unlikely to meet the 2015 target if present trend continues.”
Kacou asserted that Nigeria was critical to Africa’s capacity to meet the MDGs.
“Infact, Africa cannot meet the goals without Nigeria. The reason for this is simple. One, Nigeria is Africa ’s most populous country, with at least one in five Africans being Nigerian. Two, 54.4 percent of Nigerians living in poverty represents a staggering figure not only for the country, but also for the continent”, he said.
He said the UN appreciated the efforts being made by the Nigerian government to reduce poverty and achieve the MDGs, but also cautioned that the reforms have to be sustained.
“These reforms have to be sustained and a lot more still need to be done, especially in placing the MDGs at the heart of NEEDS II, continuing to emphasise and strengthen fiscal responsibility, building the capacity of governments across board to invest wisely for development, and strengthening institutions for the delivery of essential health, education and other social services”, he noted.
He averred that “We have just eight years left (to meet the MDGs) and it is a challenge for all to ensure we meet the goals before 2015. I think we need to be serious and work together in order to achieve these goals to reduce poverty.”

If you go to Cape Town you can also come to the UK! Cape Town is like Europe or OZ!

I also wonder why Namibia stands in the shadow of Botswana all the time, it looks really better, more developed and nicer! Full of historic well-preserved old buildings peppered with modern architecture, Have a look


This is Windhoek (capital city)

https://www.involveyourself.com/wimages/Windhoek.jpg


[img]http://www.strandzand.nl/namibia/windhoek.jpg[/img]

https://namibia.safari.co.za/images/namibia-windhoek.jpg


https://www.arquivodoalexandre.kit.net/Namibia/wind02.jpg

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https://www.arquivodoalexandre.kit.net/Namibia/wind06.jpg

https://www.arquivodoalexandre.kit.net/Namibia/wind09.jpg





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supermarkets

https://static.flickr.com/96/246534201_7a46a2523d_o.jpg

I WILL ADD MORE

Davidylan, What do you dislike about Gaborone then, to be a bit more precise? What disenchants you?

More Gaborone pictures of Botswna´s Capital

https://img218.imageshack.us/img218/2968/alib12ps.jpg

https://img218.imageshack.us/img218/677/gaborone22ov.jpg


https://img218.imageshack.us/img218/5323/p1070895towncenter1qo.jpg


https://img218.imageshack.us/img218/1176/p1070893dsc09222telecombuildin.jpg


under construction

https://img97.imageshack.us/img97/2235/gaborone02jpg8fx.jpg

https://img218.imageshack.us/img218/3020/p1070893dsc09217officebuilding.jpg

https://img218.imageshack.us/img218/3086/gaboronecitykgaleviewbotswana3.jpg


https://img90.imageshack.us/img90/1606/56666bv.jpg


https://img97.imageshack.us/img97/4782/p1070583officebuilding6zu.jpg

university of botswana

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Black Mamaba, don´t you like it because you pose such a question?

Well, I didn´t know. Thanx for the backround info on Grenada

but where are the Grenadense, never heard of that place.

but thanxs for the source, Naija_diva