the gold star herald march 2012

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AFRICA HONORSAFRICA HONORSDr. Kwame Nkrumah INSIDEINSIDE

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Mbeki urgesyoungAfricans torebel againstold leaders P5

Development Views

President John Evans Atta Mills has unveiled the statueof Dr Kwame Nkrumah, Ghana’s first President at theforecourt of the new African Union (AU) building in AddisAbaba, Ethiopia.

He was assisted by President Teodoro Obiang NguemaMbasogo, out-going Chairman of the AU, Dr Jean Ping,Chairman of the African Union Commission and his chil-dren, Professor Francis Nkrumah and Madam SamiaNkrumah moments after the building was inaugurated.

The building stands at the former site of Ethiopia’s max-imum security prisons.

President Mills was the Guest of Honour at the ceremony,which was performed in the presence of a number ofAfrican leaders attending the 18th Ordinary Session of theAssembly of Heads of State and Government of the AU.

Also in attendance were former President Jerry JohnRawlings, Mr Allan Kyerematen of the New PatrioticParty , Mrs Mary Chinery-Hesse, former Special Advisorto former President John Agyekum Kufuor, Dr Don

Arthur of the Office of the President, and Mr KwesiQuartey, Ghana’s Ambassador to Ethiopia.

The unveiling of the statuewas in recognition of theleaders of the 54-nation con-tinental body of the leadingrole of Dr Nkrumah in theAfrican liberation struggle.Dr Nkrumah was also found-ing member of the Organisa-tion of African Unity, nowthe AU, as well as the PanAfricanist Movement.

Cast in bronze, the 3.5 metrestatue of Dr Nkrumah wear-ing a short sleeve shirt in anAfrican design with a pair oftrousers and shoes to match.

The first president of Ghanahad raised his right handwith a short walking stick inthe left hand, with the head

raised and looking into the heavens.

Underneath the statue is the inscription: “Ethiopia shallstretch forth her hands unto God, Africa must unite,” astatement on the founding of the predecessor of the AU,the Organisation of African Unity in May 1963.

Shedding tears of joy, Prof Nkrumah said that the unveil-ing of the statue was a significant honour to the memoryof his father and his family.

He described the moment as historic, and said the familywas very proud of the recognition given to their father,and proud of being a Ghanaian.

Samia, who said the representation of the family at theceremony was fair, expressed happiness about the event,describing it as a restoration of the previous recognitiongiven to Dr Nkrumah.

She however called for Africa’s emancipation to go be-yond politics to the economic, stressing more intraAfrican trade from the current 10 per cent.

Mr Kyerematen, described the event as historical and verysymbolic and called for the review of the notes by peoplewho do not acknowledge Nkrumah as a great African.

He said Nkrumah inspires vision and hope for Ghana andcalled for more commitment to the national cause as apeople with one destiny.

Mrs Chinery -Hesse said the statue of Nkrumah was asymbolic continuation of the journey to free Africa.

She said the lesson that could be learned was for hardwork, which would be recognised at the right time.

Dr Don Arthur said the greatness of Nkrumah has led tothe celebration, not only for himself, but also to Ghana,Africa and the rest of the world.

African leaders, had in 2009, accepted the proposal ofPresident Mills to declare September 21, the birthday ofNkrumah as Founders Day.

March 30, 2012 The GOLD STAR HERALD

Prez Mills Unveils Kwame Nkrumah’sStatue At New AU Headquarters

It is befitting for the African Union tohonour Dr. Kwame Nkrumah and setthe tune for us to celebrate our he-roes. During the recent AfricanUnion summit in Addis Ababa, theportrait of the late Nkrumah was un-veiled at the AU head quarters inAddis Ababa in recognition and hon-our of the founding father of the Or-ganization of African Unity (OAU),the precursor of African union.

Dr. Nkrumah, fondly known as Os-agyefo or redeemer, in the early daysof Africa’s political independence, isthe undisputed hero of African Liber-ation, icon of African pride, andthought and promoter of Pan-Africanism.

Pan Africanism, a movement thatwas started by Africans in the Dias-pora in late 1990s with the objectiveof the unification of Africa under onegovernment, common citizenshipfrom Cairo to Cape Town, was con-cretized by adapting its vision to thereality of the African continent. Themovement was strongly influencedby the work of African-Americanthinkers George Padmore, MarcusGarvey and Du Bois who greatly in-spired young nationalists from themother continent.

The noble and onerous task of im-plementing the Pan-African objec-

tives was appropriated, nurtured andbrought home by African nationalistsnotably Nkrumah and Jomo Keny-atta, who were students in the USand Europe in the first half of the20th Century.

The Pan African aspirations ex-pressed in the demand for self –de-termination from the colonizer,renaissance of African culture and es-teem inspired anti-colonial /libera-tion movements across Africa, withNkrumah as the most eloquent pro-ponent.

Nkrumah’s contribution to the 5thPan African Congress held in Man-chester in 1945, demonstrated his or-ganizational ability and charisma.

An extract from the resolutiondrafted by Nkrumah and adopted bythe congress single him out as the fa-ther of Pan-Africanism on the conti-nent, “ We believe in the rights of allpeoples to govern themselves. We af-firm the rights of all colonial peoplesto control their dignity. All coloniesmust be free from foreign imperialistcontrol, whether political or econom-ical.

The peoples of all colonies must havethe right to elect their own govern-ment; a government without restric-tions from a foreign power. We say tothe peoples of the colonies that theymust strive for all for these goals byall means at their disposal. These arethe ideals Nkrumah promoted anddied for. Even when his countrygained independence on 6TH March1957, he declared that independenceof Ghana was meaningless withoutthe total liberation of the AfricanContinent, and used the position ofGhana as the first African country togain independence for the liberationof other countries and to agitate for acontinental government, and eventu-ally the organization of African Unitywas formed in 1996.

Nkrumah’s ideas influenced manyAfrican nationalists and continue toinspire Africans. His commitment to

African Union immortalizes

Kwame NkrumahKwame Nkrumah

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The GOLD STAR HERALD March 30, 2012

Egypt front-runner warnsof Islamist victory


WWOORRLLDD NEWS

CAIRO (UPI) -- The presumedfront-runner for Egypt's presi-dency says his election victorynext month would deprive Is-lamists of total control overEgypt's government.

Former Foreign Minister AmrMoussa told The Wall StreetJournal Egypt would be left with

a one-party system if the MuslimBrotherhood's candidate wins thepresidency and its party domi-nates parliament.

"It would be very destructive,"

Moussa said. "The (former rulingparty) should not be replacedwith a different color and a differ-

ent hat."

He said Egypt could end up withthe kind of autocratic rule thatcorrupted the regime of oustedPresident Hosni Mubarak.

Moussa noted initially the Broth-erhood promised not to run apresidential candidate.

Mohammed Morsi, head of theBrotherhood's political party,joined the race at the last momentwhen it became clear the group'spreferred candidate would likelybe disqualified.

Egypt's election commission dis-missed 10 candidates from therace this week.

During a campaign stop in an im-poverished Cairo neighborhood,Moussa announced a program forthe first 100 days in office if hewins, Ahram Online reported.

Among his priorities are updatingEgyptian labor laws, reducingpoverty and ensuring the rightsand freedom of Egyptian womenand young people.

Population: 'Africa, Asia to lead urbanpopulation growth in next 40 years'

In Senegal, presidentsconcede defeat: Analysis

DAKAR, Senegal (AP) - Themoment that crystallized thisnation's reputation as one ofAfrica's established democra-cies came the morning after thepresidential election 12 yearsago. In the neoclassical presi-dential palace, Senegal's leaderstayed awake all night, count-ing and re-counting the resultsthat showed in no uncertainterms that he had lost.

President Abdou Diouf couldhave rigged the election fromthe start, as his neighbor to thenorth in Mauritania had thehabit of doing. He could havestacked the court in charge ofvalidating the election withsupporters, the strategy hisneighbor to the south in IvoryCoast would one day put togood use.

Or he could have deployed thearmy to keep his grasp onpower like in nearby Guinea,Gambia and Guinea-Bissau allof which share a border withSenegal, a nation of 12.4 mil-lion on Africa's western edge.

Instead the 64-year-old presi-dent emerged from his office,told his aides to draft a state-ment conceding defeat andpicked up the phone to congrat-ulate the man who had beatenhim, Abdoulaye Wade.

At 9:27 p.m. this Sunday, Wadefollowed his predecessor's lead,picked up the phone and for thesecond time in the history ofthis coastal nation, he called tocongratulate his rival.

To the world, these events 12years apart are mirror imagesof each other, reinforcing Sene-gal's standing as one of the fewmature democracies in a trou-bled neighborhood of theworld.

The coup last week in neigh-boring Mali which overturnedover 20 years of democraticrule, underscores how fragile

Africa's democratic roots areand how easily they are up-ended.

Only the Senegalese, however,know how close the countrycame to veering off course.Wade had attempted to gerry-mander the constitution tomake it possible to put his sonin office. And weeks of protest-ers clashing with police hadresidents calling a downtownroundabout their Tahrir Squareand made the sea air that nor-mally wafts across this capitalperched on the Atlantic Oceanacrid with tear gas.

"In these last few years, theselast few months and these lastfew days, Wade inflicted greatharm on the people of Senegal.You can't erase that with onedemocratic gesture," said histo-rian Ibrahima Thioub, the chairof the history department atCheikh Ante Diop University inDakar. "His phone call can't beconsidered to be the same asthe phone call Diouf made. Hisback was to the wall. He had nomeans whatsoever to hang onto power."

The early results that came inafter runoff polls closed Sundayshowed that the 85-year-oldWade had been trounced. Evenin his home polling station inthe Point E neighborhood ofthe capital, preliminary resultsgave Wade only 454 votes torival Macky Sall's 1,589.

While Wade's quick concessionwas welcomed by the opposi-tion, and praised by the WhiteHouse, the European Union,the African Union and theUnited Nations, some say it asan effort by the veteran politi-cian to regain his standing aftera violent election season whichmarred his reputation as wellas that of his country.

"It shows that he still had aneensy teensy bit of lucidity. Butthis lucidity was only awakenedby the immensity of his defeat,"said Thioub, considered thecountry's leading historian.

Egyptian presidential front-runner Amr Moussa says his election

victory next month would deprive Islamists of total control over

Egypt's government. 2007 file photo. (UPI Photo/Eco Clement)

New York, US - A UN report on Thursday said Africaand Asia together would account for 86 per cent ofall growth in the world’s urban population over thenext four decades. 'This unprecedented increase willpose new challenges in terms of jobs, housing andinfrastructure,' said the report, entitled: '2011 Revi-sion of the World Urbanization Prospects,' producedby the UN Population Division of the Department ofEconomic and Social Affairs (DESA).

'Africa’s urban population will increase from 414million to over 1.2 billion by 2050, while that of Asiawill soar from 1.9 billion to 3.3 billion.

'The largest increases in urban population are ex-pected in the following countries: India, China,Nigeria, the US and Indonesia and over the next fourdecades, India will add another 497 million to itsurban population; China – 341 million, Nigeria –200 million, the US – 103 million, and Indonesia –92 million,' .

The report pointed out that the projected increase inurban populations in India and Nigeria in the next40 years will be higher than that of the past fourdecades.

'This unprecedented increase in urban populationwill provide new opportunities to improve educationand public services in Africa and Asia, as more con-centrated populations become easier to reach.

'This will also pose new challenges of providingurban jobs, housing, energy and infrastructure tomitigate urban poverty, expansion of slums and adeterioration of the urban environment,' it said.

The Assistant Secretary-General for Economic De-velopment in DESA, Mr. Jomo Kwame Sundaram,said of the report: 'What we are seeing is the veryrapid growth of mega cities.

'In 1970, only 39 million people lived in so-calledmega cities with 10 million or more inhabitants – inother words, less than three per cent of the world’spopulation at that time.

'By 2011, 359 million people lived in these megacities, the equivalent to 9.9 per cent of the urbanpopulation of the world. In 2025, some 630 millionwill live in these megacities some 13.6 per cent of theworld’s urban population by then.'

Speaking at the launch, the Chief of DESA’s Popula-tion Estimates and Projections Section, GerhardHeilig, said the revision contains the most recentdata available since it is based on figures from the2010 census rounds, including from India andChina.

By RUKMINI CALLIMACHIAssociated Press


BBRRIIEEFF NNEEWWSSTunisia's Islamist Ennahdaedges away from Sharia


Officials from the largest party in Tunisia'sgoverning coalition have said they will not sup-port moves to enshrine Islamic law in the newconstitution.

Senior members of the moderate Islamist En-nahda Party said the wording of the old consti-tution, which proclaims Islam as the statereligion, would remain.

A group of ultra-conservative Muslims knownas Salafis had demanded the introduction ofSharia.

Ennahda has been under growing pressure todeclare its position on the issue.

The BBC's Jon Leyne says that the news willdisappoint the increasingly vocal conservativeminority, but it will bring relief to liberals andsecularists who fear a tide of Islamism sweeping acrossthe region.

"Ennahda has decided to retain the first clause of theprevious constitution without change," senior Ennahdaofficial Ameur Larayed told local media.

"We want the unity of our people and we do not wantdivisions."

The article from the 1959 constitution states: "Tunisiais a free, sovereign and independent state, whose reli-gion is Islam, language is Arabic and has a republicanregime."

Another senior figure, Ziad Doulatli, said he hoped thedecision would help Tunisia to "serve as a model forother countries going through similar transforma-tions".

Some 10,000 Salafis took to the streets of the capital,Tunis, on Sunday to express their support for the pro-posal that the country's legislation should be based onIslamic law.

The Tunisian uprising last January, which unseatedlong-time President Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali, inspired awave of pro-democracy movements across NorthAfrican and the Middle East.

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3 GOP primaries Tuesday, but Romney and Obamaact as though the fall campaign is all but set

MILWAUKEE (AP) Republican front-runner Mitt Romneyand President Barack Obama are trading jabs even before Re-publicans vote in their latest presidential primaries, a signthat both sides believe the race to decide who will oppose theDemocrat this fall is coming to a close.

With GOP primaries Tuesday in Wisconsin, Maryland andthe District of Columbia, Romney is set to hold one campaignevent before an election night party in Milwaukee. He spentthe weekend campaigning across Wisconsin, working to winyet another big industrial state that rival Rick Santorum wascounting on to keep his flagging candidacy alive.

"Take the next step here in Wisconsin," Romney urged sup-porters at his last campaign stop Monday. "I need you to goout and vote. Get your friends."

Obama is treating the former Massachusetts governor asthough he's already won the GOP nomination. The presi-dent's re-election campaign is running a new TV ad in fiveswing states attacking Romney by name for the first time inthis case as a backer of "Big Oil" amid high gasoline prices.

While charging that Obama's version of a perfect world is onewith "a big-spending big government," Romney is acting asthough his opponents for the nomination no longer matter.

Students ran, hid behind doors after gunmanopened fire at small Christian college in Calif.

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) One wounded woman cowered in thebushes after the gunman opened fire on the campus of asmall Christian university. One student hid in a locked class-room as the shooter banged on the door. Another heard theshots and ran to safety.

All within an hour Monday, police said, a 43-year-old formerstudent named One L. Goh walked into Oikos University, andbegan a rampage that left seven people dead and three peoplewounded, trapped some in the building and forced others toflee for their lives.

It was an "extremely chaotic scene," police Chief Howard Jor-dan said.

Soon after the shooting, heavily armed officers swarmed thetiny college of fewer than 100 students in a large industrialpark near the Oakland airport. For a time, police believed thegunman could still be inside. But he wasn't.

Instead, officers said he apparently drove about three milesfrom campus before surrendering to officers inside a super-market.

Explosion in student loan debt reaching crisis pro-portions, but largely flying under radar

WASHINGTON (AP) The federal student loan programseemed like a great idea back in 1965: Borrow to go to collegenow, pay it back later when you have a job.

But many borrowers these days are close to flunking out,tripped up by painful real-life lessons in math and econom-ics.

Surging above $1 trillion, U.S. student loan debt has sur-passed credit card and auto-loan debt. This debt explosionjeopardizes the fragile recovery, increases the burden on tax-payers and possibly sets the stage for a new economic crisis.

With a still-wobbly jobs market, these loans are increasinglyhard to pay off. Unable to find work, many students have re-turned to school, further driving up their indebtedness.

Average student loan debt recently topped $25,000, up 25percent in 10 years. And the mushrooming debt has directimplications for taxpayers, since 8 in 10 of these loans aregovernment-issued or guaranteed.

Population: 'Africa, Asia to lead urban population growth in next 40 years'

Meanwhile, in a statement on the report, the Secretary-General of Rio 20, Sha Zukang, described the launchingas 'appropriate'.

'The launch of the World Urbanization Prospects istimely because world leaders, along with thousands ofparticipants from governments, the private sector, civil

society organizations and other groups, will come to-gether to shape how we can reduce poverty, advancesocial equity and ensure environmental protection onan ever more crowded planet.

'We expect world leaders to come up with concrete ac-tion plans to realize sustainable cities for the future wewant,” he added. --Pana

(continued from page 4)


AFRICAN AFRICAN CCoonnttiinneennttaall News

The youth of the African conti-nent should prepare themselvesfor a rebellion against their oldergeneration and claim their lead-ership role, former presidentThabo Mbeki said Sunday.

Mbeki, who was addressing theYouth 21 global leadership forumin Nairobi, Kenya, said twothirds of the continent’s popula-tion was young and that in 2045they would be the leaders re-sponsible for the two billion pro-jected continental population.

“To ensure that [the youth] actually ex-ercises the leadership everybodyrhetorically accepts and proclaims is itsdue, the youth must organise and readyitself to rebel, so to speak.”

“It would obviously be unnatural that I,a member of the older generation,would easily and willingly accept thatyounger people, my own children,should, at best, sit side-by-side with meas co-leaders, fully empowered to helpdetermine the future of our people,” hesaid.

He said the new generation should de-fine its unique and historic contribu-tion to their societies’ development,otherwise it ran the risk of betraying itsmission which would condemn the con-tinent to “the outdated views and prej-udices of the older generations”.

He said the continent’s future de-pended on achieving the objectives inthe African Youth Charter of “peace andsecurity, democracy and good gover-nance, economic growth and develop-ment and gender equality” to which allAfrican Union member states werebound to.

For the youth to take up their leader-ship role, it was imperative that Youth21 global forum establish how the older

generation should enable them to “dis-charge their obligation to exercise lead-ership” and “organise itself to play thisrole…in the struggle for the realisationof its goals”, said Mbeki.

The average age of African leaders is 77.

Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe (88years), Abdulai Wade of Senegal (85),Paul Biya of Cameroon (79), Bingu WaMtalika of Malawi (76), Ellen JohnsonSirleaf of Liberia (76), Hifikepunye Po-hamba of Namibia (75), Algeria’s Abde-laziz Bouteflika (76), Michael Sata ofZambia (75), Jose Eduardo Dos Santosof Angola (70), and Jacob Zuma ofSouth Africa (71).

But in Europe which is developed,leader are, on average 20 years than thedinosaurs who are clinging on to powerin Africa.

Angela Merkel ( Germany ) age 58,Nicolas Sarkozy ( France ) age 57, JoseSocrates ( Portugal ) age 55, JensStoltenberg (Norway), 52, StephenHarper ( Canada ) age 51, Julia Gillard( Australia ) age 50, Luis Zapatero (Spain ) age 51, Barrack Obama ( USA )age 50, David Cameron ( UK ) age 45.

--zambianwatchdog.com

Mbeki urges youngAfricans to rebel

against old leaders

Nigeria: Govt Negotiation WithBoko Haram Collapses

The Supreme Council for Shariah in Nigeria,SCSN, which is negotiating with the FederalGovernment on behalf of the Boko Haramsect on how to put an end to the spate ofbombing in Gbemiga Olamikan

Bomb Blast: The aftermath of a bomb explo-sion at the Nigerian Police Headquarters inAbuja on June 16, 2011.

THE on-going talks between the FederalGovernment and the Boko Haram sect suf-fered a major setback yesterday, as Presidentof the Supreme Council for Sharia, DattiAhmed, said to be brokering the peace dealopted out of negotiations, citing govern-ment's insincerity.

Ahmed, who said he had been in touch withsenior officials from the government andBoko Haram, which had been ready to dis-cuss reconciliation, decided to pull out of theprocess after details of the discussions fea-tured in the Nigerian media.

'This development has embarrassed us verymuch and has created strong doubts in ourminds about the sincerity of the govern-ment's side in our discussion, as the discus-sion is supposed to be very confidential toachieve any success.

'In view of this unfortunate and unhelpful de-velopment, we have no option but to with-draw from these early discussions', Ahmedsaid in a statement.

Ahmed said he and a colleague had met withNigerian government officials at the 'highestlevel' on March 5 and 'a high-ranking civilianofficer' was appointed to liaise with them to-wards a successful resolution of the crisis.

'We contacted the leadership of the sect andestablished from them that they were pre-pared to consider 'Sulhu' which means 'broadreconciliation' regarding the dispute betweenthem and the government', Ahmed said inthe statement yesterday.

It was gathered that people close to BokoHaram had been carrying messages back andforth between the sect's self-proclaimedleader Abubakar Shekau and government of-ficials.

The Moment had reported last week that theFederal Government might have started itsfirst secret and indirect talks with BokoHaram, towards securing a ceasefire fromthe dreaded sect.

The sect gave indications only recently thatit would embrace dialogue with the FederalGovernment towards a ceasefire by thegroup, which has killed hundreds of peoplein suicide bomb attacks and all-out gun duelwith police and military task force operatives.

'Boko Haram has mentioned a conditionalceasefire, but it wants all its members re-leased from prison. The government sees thisas unacceptable, but is willing to release footsoldiers', a traditional leader and civil rightsactivist involved in the talks told Reuters,asking not to be named.

'It is the first time a ceasefire has been men-tioned, so it is a massive positive, but giventhe lack of trust, a resolution is still a way off',he added.

Indications of mediated talks between thegovernment and Boko Haram were earliergiven by the National Security Adviser, Gen-eral Owoye Andrew Azazi, who was quotedby Reuters in January that government wasconsidering making contacts with moderatemembers of the shadowy Boko Haram via'back channels'.

The NSA's position is in tandem with Presi-dent Jonathan's stance early in the year thatthe government was open to dialogue, if thesect members could unmask themselves.

The president indicated government's help-lessness because direct talks were unlikely,as the sect members would not come out.

African Union immortalizes the unity of the continent are elo-quently argued in his books AfricaMust Unite,’ Neo –Colonialism, theLast stage Imperialism and Class Strug-gle in Africa’.

Nkrumah’s ideas, however, did notplease all the people, especially the im-perialists and their agents who saw inhim a threat to their stratagems andsurvival. Because of his commitment tocontinental progress, in his country he

was accused of acting as a president forAfrica instead of Ghana and thereforenot serving his people first.

Whether those critics are right orwrong depends on whether one agreeswith the argument that meaningful lib-eration of Africa can only be realized asa result of the unity of Africa. A pointelucidated in his book Africa MustUnite when he says:



The GOLD STAR HERALDMarch 30, 2012

AFRICAN AFRICAN CCoonnttiinneennttaall News

Central Africa: A Joint Taskforce toSmoke Out Kony Commissioned in JubaBy Matata Safi, AllAfrica

Juba — It may not business as usual forJoseph Kony and his group as a joint task-force comprising of Uganda, South Sudan,Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) andCentral Africa Republic (CAR) waslaunched on Saturday the 24th of March inJuba to militarily end LRA's atrocities inthe region.

Mr Kony who is wanted by the Interna-tional Criminal Court (ICC) along side histwo commanders Okot Odiambo and Do-minic Hongue rebelled against the Ugan-dan government in 1987 and since then hasbeen terrorising not only Uganda, but alsothe DRC, the Republic of South Sudan andthe Central Africa Republic.

The Regional Cooperation Initiative (RCI)has brought together the four countries af-fected by the LRA insurgency to end itsatrocities. It is an African Union initiativesupported by the government of the UnitedStates of America and the European Union.

Under the initiative, a contingent of 5,000

soldiers, led by senior commanders fromUganda, South Sudan, the Democratic Re-public of Congo (DRC) and the CentralAfrican Republic (CAR) will embark on amission to hunt down the elusive LRAleader whose exact location remains un-known.

"Kony was neverinterested inpeace, not inter-ested in endingthe conflict; heis not a man atall. Joseph Konyis a monster, aclever monsterthat used bor-ders to avoidcapture; Konyyou will face jus-tice", warnedChristopher J.Datta, theCharge d'Af-faires at theUnited States ofAmerica (USA)Embassy inSouth Sudan.

Mr Datta said with the world communitycoming together, Kony sooner or later willbe brought to justice. "Kony you will facejustice, this is going to happen soon for weare stronger than before", said Mr Datta.

The AU Special Envoy in-charge of the RTFAmbassador Francisco Madeira said duringthe launch that with the deployment of theRTF, the Commander and his Deputy aswell as the Chief and the Deputy at the jointoperation center, Yambio, the AU is nowready to begin operation and put pressureon the LRA. Ambassador Madeira ex-plained that the 5,000 troops that will op-erate in three main sub-headquarters;Bungu in DRC, Obo in CAR and Nzara inSouth Sudan with a general headquartersin Yambio, is a new regional force con-tributed by the four countries.

"The mission of the RTF is to eliminateLRA. These includes neutralizing, captur-ing, arresting or forcing Mr. Joseph Konyand his two indicted commanders OkotOdiambo and Dominic Ogwen to surren-der," Ambassador Madeira said.

Dr. Riek Machar South Sudan Vice Presi-dent who officially launched the militaryoperation of the RTF reiterated SouthSudan's efforts to cooperate with the AU'sRTF but decried the poor infrastructurethat may hinder the RTF's operation.

African Union suspends Mali over coup African Union officials said they had sus-pended Mali and would send a mission tothe West African nation to assess the situ-ation after a group of mutinous soldiersseized power.

Jean Ping, the AU's chairman, told a dele-gation that met in Ethiopia's capital on Fri-day for an emergency peace and securitymeeting that a mission would deploy to Ba-mako later the same day.

Ping did not immediately give any detailsabout the mission, but said Mali was goingthrough a "very serious crisis" and that thecoup was a big setback for the country andfor all democratic efforts across Africa.

Ping's spokesman Noureddine Mezni saidthat according to AU rules, Mali would betemporarily suspended as a member of thecontinent-wide body.

Rebels continue

The suspension came as Malian rebelsvowed to continue fighting amid globalcondemnation for the coup that toppledPresident Amadou Toumani Toure's dem-ocratically elected government.

The rebels, known as the National Move-ment for the Liberation of Azawad, said ontheir website they "will continue the offen-sive to dislodge the Malian army and its ad-ministration from all the towns ofAzawad".

Azawad is the name for the rebels' pro-fessed homeland in the northern triangleof the West African nation.

Mali's military, citing Toure's govern-ment's failure to arm and equip them tofight the Tuareg rebels in the north, seizedpower on Thursday, drawing condemna-tion from the UN Security Council, theAfrican Union and ECOWAS, the WestAfrican regional block.

The World Bank and the African Develop-ment Bank both announced on Thursdaythey were suspending development aid toMali before urging "the restoration of con-stitutional government".

'Self-determination'

The rebels said the coup had changednothing and that they would continuefighting for "self-determination and inde-pendence," according to a statementsigned by their spokesman, Bakaye AgHamed Ahamed.

The statement said the rebels had onThursday seized the town of Anefis on thenational highway linking Gao and Kidal -the main cities in the vast desert north.

Quoting residents, the Reuters newsagency said bread and fuel were runninglow in the capital Bamako as mutineeringsoldiers looted petrol stations and shops

and hijacked cars.

Ban Ki-Moon, the UN secretary-general,condemned the coup and called on its lead-ers "to refrain from any actions that couldincrease violence and further destabilisethe country".

The UN's political chief said there was alink between the uprising against Muam-mar Gaddafi last year and the Mali coup.

Ethnic Tuaregs who had fought withGaddafi returned to Mali and joined theTuareg rebellion against the government,said B Lynn Pascoe, the UN's assistant sec-

retary-general.

"Of course there is a relationship becausemany of the Tuaregs had gone to Libya be-cause there they could earn more moneyworking in the military," Pascoe told re-porters.

Libyan weapons

On returning to Mali, the ex-Gaddafi fight-ers and the arms they brought from Libya"clearly added more firepower and drive"to the longstanding Tuareg rebellion in thenorth of the country.

Mali junta leader Captain Amadou Sanogo. AFP

Continental bloc says West African nation in "crisis" and will send mission to assess aftermath of military putsch.


Osagyefo Dr. Kwame NkrumahOsagyefo Dr. Kwame Nkrumah

President JEA Mills, Jerry John Rawlings and Dr Francis Nkrumah

and Samia poses with Nkrumah Statue.

Mills-unveils-Nkrumah-statue

Former President Jerry John Rawlings interacting with some dignitaries

at the inaugural ceremony of the AU Conference Hall.The New Africa Union Headquarters in Addis Ababa.

HONORED HONORED byby AFRICA UNIONAFRICA UNION


Ethiopian Police Band performing at the unveiling ceremony of Nkrumah statue

Some government officials pose with statue

Dr. Kwame Nkrumah statue at AU


AFRICANAFRICANDDiiaassppoorraa News

In the past 10 years, federal workers who identify asHispanic or Latino, along with African-American andAsian employees, have made the most gains in secur-ing senior-level positions across the federal govern-ment, according to a new report from the EqualEmployment Opportunity Commission.

The commission’s Annual Report on the FederalWork Force Part II: Workforce Statistics providesprofiles and trends for 64 federal agencies, and iden-tifies participation rates by race, gender, national ori-gin, and individuals with targeted disabilities, acrossmajor occupational categories.

Of the 2.8 million people the federal government em-

ployed in fiscal 2010, 56 percent were men, 44 per-cent were women, 65.4 percent were white, 17.9 per-cent were black or African-American, 8.9 percentwere Hispanic or Latino, 5.9 percent were Asian, 1.6percent were American Indian or Alaska natives, .08percent identified as two or more races, and 0.04 per-cent were Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander.

According to the report, the composition of the fed-eral workforce has changed little over the years. Andthe report noted that between fiscal 2009 and fiscal2010, minority women, men of two or more races,and white women “remained below their overallavailability in the national civilian labor force.”

The number of employees with targeted disabilities -- deafness, blindness, missing extremities, partial orcomplete paralysis, convulsive disorders, mental re-tardation, mental illness, and distortion of the limbor spine -- remained static at 0.88 percent, accordingto the report.

“This report shows that while the federal governmentis a leader in employing a diverse workforce, specificareas for improvement remain,” EEOC Chair Jacque-line Berrien said in a statement on.

By Amanda PalleschiGovernment Executive

PBS's 'Finding YourRoots' looks at JohnLewis, Cory Booker,Condoleezza Rice

Henry Louis Gates Jr., host ofthe new PBS series “FindingYour Roots,” takes VIPs KevinBacon, John Legend andSamuel Jackson, among otherson a journey back in time, ex-amining their roots using ge-nealogy and family histories.The series premieres Sunday,March 25.

But Gates, given his close con-nections in Washington (re-member the beer summit at theWhite House in 2009?), man-aged to book some politicos aswell, including Rep. JohnLewis, Newark (N.J.) MayorCory Booker and CondoleezzaRice.

For Lewis and Booker, theprocess revealed previously un-known parts of their past. Infact, Lewis was brought to tearsby what he found out.

“I learned that my great-great-grandfather registered to votealmost 100 years, almost to thedate, before I registered tovote,” said Lewis (D-Ga.), an in-fluential leader of the civil rightsmovement. “That was just toomuch. I guess it’s in my blood. Iguess it’s part of my DNA tostand up and push for the in-volvement and the participationof all people in the politicalprocess.”

Booker learned about his fa-ther’s side of the family.

“My father was born to a singlemother and really got adoptedby the whole community be-cause she had a difficult timetaking care of him,” Booker toldGates. “So I’m very curiousabout my father’s background,and we’ve really had a hardstop, not knowing whence he

came.”

Booker told POLITICO that theknowledge of his past give hispublic service even more mean-ing.

“We just opened up somehomeless housing for familiesand knowing the kind ofpoverty and dislocation thatwas in my own history makesme realize that helping thosefamilies isn’t just a matter ofpublic policy or charity, it’s re-ally helping yourself and twogenerations down the line. If myfather’s mother, who was a sin-gle mother, if she didn’t get thehelp and support that sheneeded, I wouldn’t be heretoday.”

And yet, roots can also have away of becoming politicized, ashappened with the “birthers”questioning President BarackObama’s U.S. citizenship.

“People can try to pervert thetruth of other people’s past andtwist it for their own petty, po-litical benefit, and that’s alwaysgoing to be a concern and arisk,” Booker said. “But I think,ultimately, by revealing themajesty of each other’s histories… you see how connected we allare. From my personal experi-ence, having somebody thatfought in the Alabama CreekWars that basically fought to re-move Native Americans fromtheir land and having NativeAmerican blood in me, havingslaves and a Confederate sol-dier, having early British set-tlers and people taken fromAfrica really helps me feel thisoneness of our culture.

TTrraayyvvoonn MMaarr tt iinn :: African American Moms

Warn Teen SonsAcross the country Trayvon Martin’s death hastouched a raw nerve in the African American commu-nity. It was stunning when a young, black, unarmedteenager was gunned down, having committed nocrime other than walking through a gated communityto get Skittles and iced tea.

Concern has spread across the country from ordinarycitizens, to celebrities, even the president of theUnited States. President Obama said on Thursday, “IfI had a son, he’d look like Trayvon.”

Although this story has exploded onto the nationalscene, for women with African American sons, it is aconversation all too familiar.

“I don’t want to be like Trayvon Martin’s mom, bury-ing my child,” said Racine Tucker-Hamilton, a sub-urban mom with two teenage sons.

Tucker-Hamilton and fellow suburban mom, LeGretaDennis, told ABC News that they have given theirsons specific instructions for survival even thoughthey are honor roll students.

“Basically, once they started looking like men, whichis about 14 or 15, even though they’re children, I ba-sically told them, now you’re perceived as a blackman in society,” said Dennis. “You know how they

say, ‘buyers beware,’ it’s like young men beware.”

This conversation in many black households is a non-negotiable. Even a simple trip to the grocery store isnot routine.

“I tell them, always you have to keep your hands outof your pocket because people perceive that as threat-ening or they may think that you’ve stolen some-thing,” said Tucker-Hamilton. “And if you are inpublic, and the noise level starts getting a little highand a little loud, you need to tone it down.”

Number of Minorities in Senior-Level Federal Positions Increasing

Cory Booker, left, and John Lewis both learned new facts

about their past. | AP Photos

By PATRICK GAVIN,Polico

Africa’s Richest Man SealsUS$20M Deal with Liberia

Africa’s richest man has signed an agreementwith the government of Liberia that will givehim the green light to invest US$20 million inthe country’s cement industry. Nigerian bil-lionaire, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, signed a 20-year agreement with the Liberian governmentin Monrovia last Friday.

The agreement paves the way for his companyto build a cement fac-tory at the Freeport ofMonrovia.

Dangote is also presi-dent & chief executiveofficer (CEO) of Dan-gote Cement Group,Plc.

The deal was sealed atthe Freeport of Mon-rovia. National PortAuthority (NPA)head, Matilda Parker,congratulated theNigerian investor ford e m o n s t r a t i n gAfrican solidarity bychoosing to invest inLiberia.

“I gratefully expressed my gratitude to you,Mr. Dangote, and your company for extendingoperations to Liberia,” she said.

The NPA boss, who signed for the governmentof Liberia, pointed out that this investmentwill help to build up the Liberian economy. “Itwill speed up reconstruction, create more jobsand expand the economy,” Mrs. Parker noted.

In brief remarks, Mr. Dangote expressed hiscompany’s willingness to work with the gov-ernment and people of Liberia to ensure theproduction and supply of quality and afford-able cement on the local market.

According to him, the new investment, Dan-gote Cement-Liberia, is committed to job cre-ation for Liberians with an initial employmentopportunity for 250 Liberians.

The Dangote Group CEO also pledged hiscompany’s commitment to being law abiding,to include paying their taxes on time. TheUS$20 million investment is expected to kickoff within six weeks.Alhaji Aliko Dangote’s worth is estimated atUS$10.1 billion as of November 2011. Hiswealth is attributed to interests in sugar, flourmilling, salt processing, textiles, real estate,oil, gas, and cement. He is the richest personin Nigeria and the 51st richest man in theworld.Dangote’s fortune grew 557% over the lastyear. This allows his investment across Africato be integrated with Benue Cement, and thecompany now constitutes a quarter of theNigerian Stock Exchange’s total market cap.

He recently purchased a US$45 million Bom-bardier aircraft as a birthday present for him-self. Dangote, 54, is a resident of Lagos,

Nigeria. He is married with three children.he agreement between the government ofLiberia and Dangote Cement Group, plc, wassigned in the presence of Deputy NPA Manag-ing Director for Administration Mr. NyekehForkpa, Mrs. Mardina Wesseh, and a host ofgovernment officials.

Also present were members of a high-powered

delegation of Dangote Cement Group, plc,from Nigeria.

NPA Comptroller Christina Kpabar Pealaywitnessed the agreement on behalf of the gov-ernment.


BUSINESS BUSINESS & FFIINNAANNCCEE

Electronics firms eye AfricaFrom solar-powered lights to televisionsthat can withstand power blackouts, elec-tronics mega-firms are wooing Africanconsumers with products that targetlocal, often challenging, environments.

Samsung Electronics, the world's largestmaker of flat panels, memory chips andflat-screen televisions, aims to grow itsbusiness on the continent to $10 billion(7.5 billion euros) by 2015 in a five-foldincrease from last year.

“This year we aim to get around three bil-lion” dollars, said Park Kwang Kee, thecompany's Africa president and chief ex-ecutive.

“Our base is still not as big as other con-tinents so... our growth rate is higherthan the other continents. Other thanSouth Africa, we have shown more than100 percent for the last two years.”

The International Monetary Fund pre-dicts Sub-Saharan Africa's economy willgrow by 5.5 percent this year, outpacingall regions apart from developing Asianmarkets, with some countries like Angola

set for double-digit growth.

The continent's population mix Ä frommassive poverty to a booming, brand-savvy middle class Ä offers varied oppor-tunities despite constraints such as a lackof water and electricity, which also forcean eco-friendly shift.

“Africa is seen as increasingly importantwith higher economic growth rates thanEurope or the US and with a fast-growingmiddle class,” said Nick Kelso,spokesman for Philips Lighting Africa.“It is also important to realise that Africais not one entity. Peoples and culturesdiffer widely and this all needs to be

taken into account whendesigning new productsolutions.”

Samsung has a dedicated“Built for Africa” rangewith the world's firstsolar-powered netbook,televisions with powersurge protection, andthis year will launch anentry-level Galaxy smart-phone. The company

showed off the products at a show inCape Town this weekend.

After opening its Africa headquarters in2010, the company visited 43 countriesto see the local environments in whichdevices are used and found durability, ef-ficiency and reliability are key.

“We found that the products we wereselling to the advanced market don'twork as much as we'd expect here inAfrica and also the people in the differentcountries and different continents re-quire different attributes,” Park told AFP.

AAffrriiccaann Markets:Factors to watch

NAIROBI, March 19 (Reuters) - Thefollowing company announcements,scheduled economic indicators, debtand currency market moves and po-litical events may affect African mar-kets on.

- - - - -EVENTS:* Bank of Mauritius' rate setting com-mittee meets. A Reuters poll showedseven out of nine analysts forecastinga modest rate cut, following on froma 10 basis point trim to 5.40 percentin December.

* National Bank of Kenya to releasefull-year results.

GLOBAL MARKETSAsian shares edged higher and thedollar was firm against the yen withinvestors buoyed after the U.S. mar-ket hit an almost four-year high lastweek and with higher Europeanstocks reflecting signs of growing sta-bility in the euro zone.

WORLD OIL PRICESBrent crude held above $126 a barrelon Monday, extending last Friday'sgains, as prices were supported bycontinued concerns over a potentialsupply disruption from Iran and theprospect of a stronger U.S. economylifting oil demand.

EMERGING MARKETSAFRICA FIXED INCOME

Yields for Kenyan debt may be lockedin ahead of a loan that three banks areraising for the government while inNigeria a central bank decision nextweek on rates should set the markettone.

SOUTH AFRICA MARKETSSouth Africa's rand stood its groundagainst the dollar on Friday boostedby the waning strength of the U.S.currency and after central bank Gov-ernor Gill Marcus hinted that higherinterest rates may be in store.

NIGERIA MARKETSNigeria's interbank lending rates rosesharply this week to an average of15.08 percent, from 14.25 percent lastweek, as state-owned energy firmNNPC and deposit insurer NDICmade large withdrawals, putting com-mercial banks in

March 30, 2012The GOLD STAR HERALD

L i f e S t y l e CULTURE ENTERTAINMENTAfrican-American children more optimistic

on race than whites: AC 360° studyTune in to "Anderson Cooper 360°" allweek for the surprising results of agroundbreaking new study on childrenand race at 8 and 10 p.m. ET.

(CNN) -- A white child and a black childlook at the exact same picture of two stu-dents on the playground but what they seeis often very different and what they sayspeaks volumes about the racial divide inAmerica.

The pictures, designed to be ambiguous,are at the heart of a groundbreaking newstudy on children and race commissionedby CNN's Anderson Cooper 360°. Whiteand black kids were asked: "What's hap-pening in this picture?", "Are these twochildren friends?" and "Would their par-ents like it if they were friends?" The studyfound a chasm between the races as youngas age 6.

Overall, black first-graders had far morepositive interpretations of the images thanwhite first-graders. The majority of black6-year-olds were much more likely to saythings like, "Chris is helping Alex up offthe ground" versus "Chris pushed Alex offthe swing."

They were also far more likely to think thechildren pictured are friends and to believetheir parents would like them to befriends. In fact, only 38% of black childrenhad a negative interpretation of the pic-tures, whereas almost double -- a full 70%of white kids -- felt something negativewas happening.

But why? CNN hired renowned child psy-chologist and University of Maryland pro-fessor Dr. Melanie Killen as a consultantto design and implement this study. Shesays the divide often begins with the dif-ferent ways parents talk to their kids aboutrace.

"African American parents ... are veryearly on preparing their children for theworld of diversity and also for the world ofpotential discrimination," said Killen,adding, "they're certainly talking about is-sues of race and what it means to be a dif-ferent race and when it matters and whenit doesn't matter."

In contrast, the negativity for white chil-dren could be more of a result of what par-ents are not saying to their children than

what they are saying. Dr. Killen contendsthat white parents often believe their chil-dren are socially colorblind and race is notan issue necessary to address. "They sortof have this view that if you talk aboutrace, you are creating a problem and whatwe're finding is that children are aware ofrace very early," said Killen.

That racial void left by parents is filledwith all of the overt and subtle messageson race from the rest of society -- whatchildren see and hear from their teachersand friends, TV shows they watch, andwhat they're exposed to online all have a

profound and lasting effect. Killen alsopoints out that parents can send silentsubconscious messages about race to theirchildren that have a big impact.

"When ...we're in a situation in public,we're in a room, and we have the opportu-nity to ask two different people for help ...we might just you know be more likely toask the person of the same race than some-body's who's in opposite race for help."Killen uses it as an illustration of an every-day interaction that can send an unin-tended message to children.

A team of 35 first and second year MBAcandidates from the Stanford GraduateSchool of Business in California, UnitedStates have described their recent busi-ness tour of West Africa as a veritable op-portunity for first hand exposure to thetremendous business and investment op-

portunities which the Sub-Saharan mar-ket, particularly the Nigerian businesslandscape offers.This was made known at an evening cock-tail session held with MBA candidates andalumni of the Lagos Business School onMonday in Lagos. Commenting on theessence of their week-long visitation toNigeria, Michael Akinyele and RachelFleittel, both 2012 MBA candidates atStanford GSB expressed the team's joy atthe opportunity to engage and share per-spectives with notable business and public

sector leaders in Nigeria while networkingwith fellow MBA candidates at the LagosBusiness School of the Pan-African Uni-versity.

‘‘The tour was importantin line with the Nation’seconomic transforma-tion,’’ says TomijogunOgunlesi, MBA 9 candi-date at the Lagos BusinessSchool; highlighting thenumerous opportunitiesin the country’s consumermarket and recent trendsin information technol-ogy, including mobilespace.

This group of General Management MBAsfrom Stanford GBS is in Nigeria andGhana as part of an annualbusiness/study tour of West Africa. Theteam is scheduled to meet with ExecutiveGovernor of Lagos State, Babatunde RajiFashola, frontline Nigerian business mag-nate Aliko Dangote and a host of captainsof industry and entrepreneurs.

The MBA candidates will also pay visit tothe new Dangote cement Plant at Ibeshein Ogun State.

Nonso Ndumany

businessdayonline.com

Stanford MBA studentstour West Africa Church service honours

slave trade resistersIt was four years ago that the United Na-tions set March 25 as the Internatonal Dayof Remembrance of the Victims of Slaveryand the Transatlantic Slave Trade.

And for the first time since that declarationBermuda joined the rest of the world inmarking the date.

On Sunday, a special commemorativeservice took place at the Cobb’s HillMethodist Church in Warwick built in the1820s by slaves working in the moonlight.

It was sponsored by the African DiasporaHeritage Trail (ADHT) Bermuda Founda-tion, headed by its chairman, Mrs MaxineEsdaille. Highlights included a dramawritten by ADHT director Mrs FlorenceMaxwell and narrated by Miss RuthThomas, entitled ‘Honouring Bermuda’sHeroes, Resisters and Survivors’.

Four resisters specifically cited wereRachael Fubler, who was robbed of herown freedom in a legal battle to free herchildren; Sally Bassett, who was whippedand burned at a stake; Edward Fraser,whho spearheaded the building of themoonlight church; and Mary Prince, whoafter years of savage whippings from age12, had her life’s story written and pub-

lished in England, where she had beentaken by her Bermudian slave master.

Pastor Eugene Thompson, Sr, and hischoir led the congregation in singing ofsuch songs as ‘I Know the Lord has LaidHis Hands on Me’ and ‘Heaven’, and negrospirituals, as period-dressed youngsters litcandles beside the altar honouring the re-sisters.

Among those in the congregation werePremier Paula Cox, former Premier EwartBrown; Minister of Economy, Trade, In-dustry & Community Development PatriceMinors, former Oppositon Leader KimSwan and ADHT Foundation directors.

In her speech of welcome, Mrs Esdailesaid: “The reason behind this commemo-ration: Slavery and the slave trade areamong the worst violations of humanrights in the history of humanity.

“The transatlantic slave trade was uniquewithin the entire history of slavery due tohow long it lasted over 400 years; and themany people it affected; the estimatednumber of people taken from Africa duringthose 400 years range from a low of 17 mil-lion to a high of 28 million.”


Georgia Immigration Law Targets Water Services, Marriage

BERLIN - Georgia legislators are considering aproposal that would bar undocumented immi-grants from receiving marriage licenses or accessto water and sewage.

The bill sponsored bySen. Barry Loudermilk,R-Cassville, has gottena lot of attention be-cause it would also barundocumented immi-grants from the state'spublic colleges, univer-sities and technicalschools. But anotherprovision that's gener-ated very little discus-sion removes foreignpassports from a list ofidentification docu-ments that govern-ment agencies canaccept for certaintransactions. To be acceptable, foreign passportswould have to be accompanied by federal immi-gration documentation proving someone is in thecountry legally.Celebrities Who Were Once Undocumented

"It's very interesting that the reliability of foreignpassports is being questioned by the GeorgiaLegislature when the Transportation and Secu-rity Administration has considered the passportto be a very secure form of ID," said AzadehShahshahani, an attorney with the AmericanCivil Liberties Union. "I think my worry is thatperhaps some legislators might not be aware ofthe implications of this because it seems so in-nocuous. It doesn't say on its face that undocu-mented immigrants can't get water or can'tmarry."

Loudermilk said the possibility of preventing un-documented immigrants from obtaining mar-riage licenses and access to water and sewageservice was not intentional. He added that anamendment was likely that would remedy that.Versions of the bill have cleared the state Senateand a House committee. If the full House passesit, the Senate would have to approve changesmade by the House before the session endsThursday.

Under last year's law cracking down on illegalimmigration, the state attorney general's officewas charged with creating a list of "secure andverifiable" documents that government agenciescould accept if they require identification for anofficial purpose. The list was released last sum-mer and includes a U.S. passport, U.S. militaryidentification card and a U.S. driver's license,among other documents. It also includes foreign

passports, the only document on the list that un-documented immigrants would be able to obtain.

By removing foreign passports from the list, thenew bill would technically prevent undocu-

mented immi-grants fromgetting a marriagelicense in Georgiaor from accessingwater and sewageservice in themany municipali-ties that requireidentification toturn on service.That's because un-documented im-migrants wouldn'thave the extra pa-perwork neededto prove not onlythat they have a

passport, but that they are in the country legally.

However, it's possible undocumented immi-grants may not face much of a hurdle if local au-thorities don't bring their policies in line with thelist of accepted documents. In many instances,local authorities still accept documents thataren't on the list approved by the attorney gen-eral.

A survey by The Associated Press of the websitesor staff of probate courts in Georgia's 25 mostpopulous counties shows at least 21 currently ac-cept a birth certificate or a foreign driver's licenseas acceptable identification for those seeking amarriage license. Neither of those documents ison the attorney general's list.

Unlike other utilities, which are generally man-aged by private companies inGeorgia, water and sewageservices are provided by localgovernment agencies. Calls towater and sewage authoritiesin some parts of the statefound that some currently ac-cept foreign driver's licenses,which is not acceptable underthe current law.

Technically, an agency couldbe penalized under the law foraccepting documents not onthe attorney general's list. Butpenalties are unlikely, as longas any problems that sparkcomplaints are quickly recti-fied.

Proposed revisions toU.S. customs forms

would recognizeLGBT households

Washington DC - The FamilyEquality Council and ImmigrationEquality praised the Department ofHomeland Security and Depart-ment of Treasury March 26 forsupporting a proposal to allow allfamilies - including those headedby LGBT parents - to file a singlecustoms declaration form upon re-turning to the U.S. from travelabroad.

"Immigration Equality is proud tosee this change come to fruition,"said Rachel B. Tiven, the group'sexecutive director. "We asked theObama administration to stop dis-criminating against families on fed-eral customs forms, and today'sannouncement is welcome news.Separating families in the customs

line was a waste of government re-sources and a painful symbol of thedouble standard LGBT familiesface at the federal level. This pro-posal ends that insult. It sends anunmistakable message that the Ad-ministration, and the UnitedStates, recognize gay families as'real families,' too."

The changes in the U.S. Customsand Border Protection regulationswould broaden the definition of"members of a family residing inone household" to include the dif-ferent types of family relationshipsthat currently exist across thecountry, including the relation-ships that exist between LGBT cou-ples and their children.

Water flows from a bathroom tap January 12, 2007

in Berlin, Germany. (Photo Illustration by Sean

Gallup/Getty Images) (2007 Getty Images)

LAW IIMMMMIIGGRRAATTIIOONN

‘ WE NEED THE STRENGTH OFOUR COMBINED NUMBERS ANDRESOURCES TO PROTECT OURSELVES FROM THE POSITIVEDANGERS RETURNING TOCOLONIALISM IN DISGUISEDFORMS.

Those words were certainly useful inthe era of neocolonial days but they arestill valid to our modern condition andI wish to thank the men and women atAU for the honour to Osagyefo for bydoing so they acknowledge and uphold

those ideals which are critical to Africa‘s sustainable progress.

The political landscape might havechanged but the sprit of African Unitymust thrive. The regional integrationprocesses now evident across Africa, to-gether with continental institutions likethe Pan African Parliament, the Eco-nomic, Social and Cultural of theAfrican Union, the African Court ofHuman rights should be building blocsfor the Union government in future.

Contact: ftanganika[at]yahoo.com

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African Union immortalizes


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KFC Colonel Leads the Charge Into AfricaBy Greg NicolsonAllAfrica.com

analysis

With western economies on the slide,foreign investors are starting to seeAfrica's potential for growth. Somehave set up shop already. Others aresearching for partners and potential.Yum Brands is looking to the year 2100as it takes KFC across South Africa andthe continent.

"When people ask me, 'How big is itgoing to be?' I always say, 'By when?'"says Keith Warren. Sitting in hisBryanston office, the general managerof the African division of Yum! believesKFC's expansion across the continent isa certain winner. He guesses theremight be 2000 restaurants by 2020.

"It sounds ambitious. The numbersseem more suitable to China, KFC'sbiggest market and the economic pow-erhouse that belittles Africa's portion ofglobal GDP.

But Warren's serious. KFC finished2011 with more than 660 restaurants inSouth Africa, four times the size of itsnearest competitors, McDonalds andNando's, and it plans to emulate thesuccess across the continent, with1,200 stores expected by 2014.

"If we can unlock Africa the way we'veunlocked South Africa, the biggest divi-sion in Yum! by a country mile willhopefully be the African division inabout 100 years," he says.

KFC is already established in most ofSouthern Africa and has entered Nige-ria, Zambia, Kenya and Ghana in thelast two years. Franchises are almostready in Angola and Malawi and, thisyear, Warren plans to enter the Demo-cratic Republic of Congo, Tanzania,Uganda and Zimbabwe.

This week the United Nations Eco-nomic Commission for Africa and theAfrican Union Commission meet inAddis Ababa to discuss how to turn thecontinent into a "pole of global growth".

Nine out of the top 10 fastest growingeconomies are in Africa, wrote Ab-doulie Janneh, UN under secretary-general, in Ghana Business News. Andbetween 2000 and 2009, foreign directinvestment increased from $6-billionto $62-billion.

Warren recognised this potential whenhe returned to Yum's SA offices afteryears with the Australian team. Helaboured to convince his bosses in theUS that the continent's potential out-weighed its risks. "Every time they tryto move me, because they have tried tomove me a few times, I convince themthat the size of the African opportunityis such that it's worthwhile keeping itstable rather than having a constantchange."

"I had been preaching about Africa fora long time and I don't think peoplewere taking it seriously. But when weopened our first stores in Nigeria thatwere enormously successful they said,'Maybe Keith hasn't been talking rub-bish.' We then started to get tractionand all of a sudden it was big news." It'shard to argue with the numbers.

"In Nigeria there are currently 160-mil-lion people. They're projecting thatthey're going to have just shy of 800-million people in 2100. Now, 800-mil-lion people is a bucketload of chicken."

While Warren's straight-talking expres-sion has made KFC's Africa plansknown across the world, his sentimentis well shared. Said Janneh: "There is agrowing consensus that Africa is on theverge of an economic take-off and couldbecome a pole of global growth.

This is largely based on some factors:Africa's untapped natural resource en-dowment which provides significant in-vestment potential; the continent's

steady population growth, which, ifproperly managed, could yield positivereturns; the rise of the middle class and

the untapped regional market; higheconomic growth rates; improvements


Luxury Brands Target NigeriaAs Boom Economy Creates

New Class of Elite


LAGOS, Nigeria -- Glittering sapphirenecklaces, designer suits against perfumedskin, the taste of freshly popped Cham-pagne and the roar of a speeding Porsche:the five senses in Nigeria, brought to youby luxury brands now trying to tap directlyinto the country's market.

The wealthy elite in Nigeria – upstart busi-ness owners, oil industry executives andcorrupt politicians – have a healthy ap-petite for top-shelf brands, but have previ-ously had to shop for them in Dubai,London and Paris. Now though, sellers ofluxury goods are opening stores in Nigeriawhere seemingly gratuitous displays ofwealth are the norm.

"I feel that with some real infrastructuredevelopment and opportunity to createluxury environments for luxury brands tocome in, this market has enormous poten-tial to become a key luxury capital ofAfrica," said Ozwald Boateng, a top Britishfashion designer born to Ghanaian parentswho recently showed a collection at AriseMagazine Fashion Week in Lagos.

"I have some very good clients here but Iwant to have more," said Boateng, who hasa flagship store on London's prestigiousSavile Row, where bespoke suits start ataround $6,500.

Since independence in 1960, wealth flowedinto Nigeria as crude oil pumped out. TheOPEC nation's easily refined crude re-mains a top energy source for the U.S.However, politicians and military rulerssquandered billions of dollars through thecorruption choking the nation's potential.

Then democracy tookhold in 1999, andother industries havesince developed in thecountry of 160 million,including banking andtelecommunications.Billionaire Aliko Dan-gote, whose net worthis $11.2 billion accord-ing to Forbes maga-zine, built his empireon commodities likeflour, sugar and ce-ment. Another billion-aire, Mike Adenuga,runs an oil company

and Globacom Ltd., one of Nigeria's largestmobile phone service providers.

Nigeria's commercial capital Lagos, alongwith four other of Africa's largest cities,will each have consumer spending of $25billion or more by 2020, according to aMcKinsey & Co. report. That's comparableto spending in India's business hub ofMumbai.

That purchasing power is starting to drawnew brands into Nigeria. Those includeLVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton SA,one of the world's largest luxury brandgroups; Amrapali Jewels Pvt. Ltd., whichmakes jewels for Hollywood and Bolly-wood stars; and Porsche AG. Those busi-nesses often work with partners alreadyestablished in Nigeria's difficult businessesenvironment, where there are no dedicatedluxury shopping areas. Luxury companiescan run small operations, get little compe-tition and have markups that make theprofits high.

Africa Tourism: Partnering for the future

NEW YORK - The Africa Travel Associa-tion (ATA) announced today that registra-tion is now open for the 37th Annual WorldCongress, to be held from May 18-22, inVictoria Falls, Zimbabwe, one ofthe world’s top natural wondersand adventure capitals. ATA’s hall-mark event on the African conti-nent will be hosted by theZimbabwe Tourism Authority(ZTA) under the auspices of theHonorable Minister of Tourismand Hospitality Industry, WalterMzembi. The theme of this year’sevent is “Africa Tourism: Partner-ing for the Future.”

Delegates can register for the five-day travel industry event online atATA’s website: tp://africatrave-lassociation.org/congress_reg.html or call+1-212-447-1357. Special early bird ratesfor ATA members and students are avail-able until April 30 at $400. After this date,ATA members can register for $500. Non-member registration fee is $600.

Among the expected 300 participants, aretourism ministers and industry experts rep-resenting tourism boards, tour operators,and their product development executives,front-line agents, ground operator compa-nies, airlines, and hotels. Participants fromthe travel trade media and the corporate,nonprofit, and academic sectors are also ex-pected to attend, along with African Dias-pora representatives and ATA’s YoungProfessionals Program participants.

Zimbabwe is home to a diverse range oftourist attractions, including its own sevenwonders: (1) people and culture, (2) historyand heritage, (3) Great Zimbabwe (grandmedieval palace), (4) Victoria Falls (Mosi-oa-Tunya), (5) wildlife and nature, (6) East-ern Highlands, and (7) Lake Kariba.Delegates will sample some of these won-ders during the Host Country Day and byparticipating in pre- and post-congresstours.

The ATA International Board of Directorsmeeting will be held on Friday, May 18. Sat-urday, May 19, begins with sessions focus-ing on Destination Zimbabwe, followed byan opening ceremony with cultural enter-tainment. The next few days include amplenetworking, learning, and professional de-velopment panels and workshops, address-ing industry topics, such ascommunity-based travel, agro-tourism, ac-ademic travel, faith-based tourism, e-tourism, marketing, branding, privatesector investment, women and tourism,sustainable tourism, and African culinaryproducts. Delegates will also participate inroundtables for tourism ministers, a mediamarketplace, networking events, host coun-try day(s), and gala dinners. Zimbabwe will

also organize a marketplace, featuring art,sculpture, and daily excursions in VictoriaFalls. The event will close on Tuesday, May22. Pre- and post-congress excursions and

trips will be available to delegates.

The Congress will take place at the ElephantHills Resort, www.elephanthillshotel.com ,in Victoria Falls. The venue offers specialaccommodation rates for delegates. Specialrates are also available at other hotels inVictoria Falls for delegates at http://africa-travelassociation.org/events/ac.html .

PRESENTING SPONSOR AND OFFICIALAIRLINE

South African Airways, Presenting Sponsorand Official Airline of the 2012 ATA WorldCongress, has organized special discountsfor delegates attending the ATA World Con-gress in Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe. For trav-elers originating from one of SAA’s USgateways (New York City or WashingtonDC), there are discounts of 10 percent off ofmost published fares. For delegates travel-ing from one of SAA’s African or other in-ternational gateways, discounts of between5 to 15 percent off of most published faresare available. For more information on SAAand their international gateways, pleasevisit http://www.flysaa.com .

Arik Air, http://www.arikair.com/ , is theOfficial Media Carrier of the World Con-gress.

MEDIA

Advance media registration is also avail-able. Media wishing to attend the congressmust apply for media accreditation. To re-ceive a form, contact ATA at [email protected] .

SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES

Companies interested in sponsorshipand/or promotional opportunities shouldcontact ATA at +1.212.447.1357 [email protected] .Source: africatravelassociation.org

TRAVELTRAVEL &

TOURSTOURS

in the general macroeconomic environ-ment; strategic and timely institutionalreforms, as well as improved gover-nance in many African countries; im-proved business environment in manyAfrican countries and increased FDI inrecent years.

The middle class needs to grow forthose numbers to translate into aprofit, but there are already positivesigns. While the continent's collectiveGDP still only amounts roughly to thatof Brazil or Russia, it grew twice as fastin the last decade than it did in the1980s and 1990s."

That potential has some foreign com-panies clambering to find the rightstrategy to establish themselves early.Many of the lessons driving KFC's push

come from the brand's success inChina, KFC's biggest market.

It has about 4,000 restaurants thereand just in 2011 it opened 600.

"It's almost two a day. It's unreal. Andwe're going to make somewhere in theregion of a billion dollars profit there,"says Warren. "The message is thatyou've got to actually get out and shutout the competition as fast and effec-tively as possible."

But KFC already has a foothold inAfrica through its dominance in SA, anadvantage over green foreign investors.Here it has the biggest marketingbudget of any brand in the country,which Warren says helps it become "apart of the social fabric".

KFC Leads the Charge into Africa


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