Day: July 23, 2023

Kwale Governor Fatuma Achani has reiterated her administration’s commitment to end water scarcity in the coastal county.

Governor Achani says acute water scarcity in Kwale has been a recurring problem that her administration seeks to end for decades.

Achani says the county is involved in the rehabilitation, expansion, and upgrading of water projects aimed at addressing water and sanitation challenges in the region.

‘We are cognizant of the significance of sustainable water supply provisions to the livelihood and well-being of the people,’ she said.

She called on the residents to own the county projects by ensuring its protection against vandalism and any form of misuse so that the expected benefits would reach the people.

She says the devolved unit is committed to providing easy access to safe water and hygiene, underscoring that they were fundamental for human survival and the rights of the residents.

The county’s main sources of water are boreholes, underground, springs, dams, water pans and rock catchments.

‘Easy access to safe drinking water, sanitation, and hygiene are fundamental to improving the standards of living in the communities,’ she said.

Achani spoke during the groundbreaking ceremonies of water pipeline projects in Ndavaya and Samburu/Chengoni electoral wards in Kinango sub-county.

The Governor later opened the Mwamivi Dispensary borehole project in Tiwi ward, Matuga Sub-County.

She said the Tiwi borehole project will supply water to the health facility and also the neighbouring communities.

Achani urged the residents to take good care of the water and sanitation projects and safeguard them from vandalism as the county builds a resilient system to supply water.

She says vandalism of water and sanitation infrastructure hinders the county government from fulfilling its service delivery obligations towards communities.

‘As a devolved government we are trying to get safe drinking water to residents in rural and urban areas across the county,’ she said, adding that there is no reason why residents should not turn on taps and get clean water.

She went further ‘Kwale should not be one of the counties having water challenges in the country because we have plenty of water sources such as the Marere springs’.

Achani said her administration is committed to protecting its natural water resources in order to make potable clean water available and accessible for the residents and businesses.

She noted that the availability of water would end the construction of water storage towers in urban dwellings.

She also expressed confidence that providing water for residents as well as schools, hospitals, and marketplaces would go a long way in tackling open defecation in the county.

Achani says attaining open defecation free is essential explaining that open defecation pollutes the environment and contaminates water sources thereby resulting in water-borne diseases.

Source: Kenya News Agency

Wheat farmers in Narok County will smile all the way to the bank if the millers purchase their produce as per an agreement earlier signed by the millers, county government and farmers.

Narok Governor Patrick Ntutu and State Department of Crop Development Principal Secretary Kellow Harsama said the state had suspended any importation of wheat until the already mature wheat in the farms is sold out.

Ntutu said the county is expected to produce about 1.2 million bags of wheat, contributing to a big percentage of wheat in the country saying the farmers will not release their produce if the agreed prices are compromised.

In the agreement, a 90-kilogramme bag of grade one wheat would cost Sh. 5, 200 while that of grade two would cost Sh. 5, 100.

The governor said already over 50, 000 bags had been harvested but took issue with the millers who had threatened to breach the contract warning if they do not stick to the agreement, the county will be forced to move to court to seek justice for the farmers.

‘All farmers in Narok decided that they will not sell their produce without making an agreement on the prices. This is because the prices of all other products have gone high,’ he said.

PS Harsama congratulated the farmers for the big harvest saying his department will ensure that farmers get good returns from the harvest.

‘Our purpose is to ensure that all the wheat that is being harvested is sold before we import more. The arrangement that has been in place is for the millers to buy at the agreed price,’ he said.

One of the Narok Cereal Farmers Association officials David Kilesi thanked both levels of government for intervening to ensure farmers get value for their produce.

He recalled that in previous years, some farmers had been forced to drop the farming practice due to frustrations from middle men who bought their wheat at a throw away price.

‘Now we can smile because the government of the day is concerned with the farmers. We are sure that in the future, more farmers who had abandoned wheat farming will be encouraged to plant wheat in large scales,’ he said.

They spoke on Saturday at Zebu Hotel in Narok town during a meeting that brought together all wheat farmers in the county.

Narok is one of the leading counties in wheat production in the country. Other counties known for wheat production are Nakuru, Uasin Gishu, Trans Nzoia and Meru counties.

Source: Kenya News Agency

The Agricultural Society of Kenya (ASK) Kisumu regional show opens its doors on Wednesday after a three-year break occasioned by the Covid-19 pandemic.

A pre-show event is expected to be held at the Mamboleo show grounds on Monday ahead of the official opening of the show at the same venue on Wednesday.

According to the show’s Chief Steward Rose Omondi, over 150 exhibitors have confirmed participation in the event which was last held in 2019.

The exhibitors drawn from Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania, she added, are set to showcase various products, technologies and services during the five days event.

Speaking during the ASK regional show harvest Sunday, Omondi urged show goers to turn up in large numbers to learn from the exhibitions and share ideas from different sectors.

Kisumu Acting County Commissioner Hussein Alassow Hussein said adequate security measures have been put in place to ensure that the event runs smoothly.

Even though the opening coincides with the planned anti-government protests called by the Azimio coalition, Hussein said security officers have been deployed to ensure that the show is not interrupted.

The show, he said, was of immense benefit to the county and will bring in revenue asking the local political leadership to prevail upon their supporters to remain peaceful during and after the event.

‘We want to make an appeal to the political leadership of Kisumu County to prevail upon the youth and their supporters to maintain peace so that we can have a successful event,’ he said.

The County Commissioner asked the youth to refrain from violence and maintain peace to avoid scaring away investors.

‘I have received so many calls from people in Nairobi, Mombasa and other parts of the country who want to come to the show and I have assured them that it will be peaceful,’ he said.

Source: Kenya News Agency

Visitors to the islands of Seychelles now have a wider choice and access to local artworks at affordable prices with the opening of a new gallery at the Domaine Val de Pres, arts and craft village, Au Cap, on Mahe Island.

Located in the beautiful ‘Grann Kaz’ plantation house – a large wooden house dating back to 1870 from the British colonial period – the gallery showcases the best of local paintings and craftworks.

“The opening of the gallery shows the government’s commitment to not only protect and preserve our artistic and cultural assets but also to promote sustainable cultural tourism,” said the executive director of the Seychelles National Heritage Resource Council (SNHRC), Benjamine Rose.

The gallery is a joint initiative between the council and Creative Seychelles Agency(CSA). Rose added that the combined project will provide opportunities to valorise, appreciate and value our artistic and cultural assets through innovative, creative products and services”.

“The aim is to provide visitors with a gallery where they can buy affordable artwork because this is a low-end gallery. We are not selling artwork above SCR25,000 [$1,900],” explained the CSA chief executive, Emmanuel D’Offay.

According to D’Offay, Domaine de Val des Pres attracts a hundred or more visitors daily during peak season and the plan is to work alongside the council to develop the venue. The Domaine de Val des Pres gallery is a commercial gallery and all artworks are for sale.

The gallery is located in the beautiful ‘Grann Kaz’ plantation house. (Seychelles Nation) Photo License: CC-BY

The Domaine de Val des Pres is celebrating its 35th anniversary this year since its inauguration on October 24, 1988. Apart from the plantation house, the area is the country’s main arts and craft village. It also has a Creole food restaurant, a museum dedicated to coconuts, souvenir shops, and workshops for different art-related activities such as pottery and an art gallery.

More than 20 artists have their works on display at the gallery, which is open on a daily basis. Their work is displayed free of charge.

In addition to seasoned artists displaying their works at the plantation house gallery, students from the island nation’s Institute of Art and Design are also able to exhibit and sell their work, something which has been welcomed by the school’s director, Christine Chetty-Payet, who is also a renowned artist.

“Sometimes the students, although they are at school, do not know what will happen to them after, so this is a start that will provide them with an opening and opportunities especially if they want to go commercial,” she said.

Another new attraction at the Domaine Val de Pres, aside from the gallery, is a museum dedicated to coconuts, which was recently renovated and its activities expanded. The Mize Koko is being used to give visitors a live experience, tasting the coconut and various delicacies made from it, as well as participating in different coconut-related physical activities part of the island’s culture and tradition.

Whilst such attractions are welcome additions on the to-do list of tourists, there is concern that emphasis should also be put on other islands, especially Praslin and La Digue – the second and third most populated islands of Seychelles – 115 islands in the western Indian Ocean.

“I think more should be done to offer visitors to Praslin more attractions like they are doing on Mahe, as Praslin does receive many tourists, probably more than Mahe,” said Maria Brioche of Praslin.

Speaking to SNA, Brioche explained that on Praslin there is only one privately owned gallery selling mainly paintings and a privately owned museum, showcasing Seychelles’ heritage and history as well as art.

“I think the Creative Agency should seek ways and offer artists, not only from Praslin to get a place to promote, market, and sell their artworks, just like what has been done at the Domaine Val de Pres,” concluded Brioche.

Source: Seychelles News Agency

The banking rent is the main obstacle to monetary policies in Tunisia, which are characterised by their inability and failure to achieve the desired objectives, according to a study by the organisation Alert.

Alert explained this situation in its study, presented earlier this week, by several causes, including the structural nature of the inflation phenomenon and the restructuring of the financial and financing system, as well as the inconsistency of the central bank’s monetary policies.

It pointed out that the structural phenomenon of inflation is due to the deficit in the balance of the State budget, given that the economy is structurally dependent on imports, to imported inflation, i.e. the subsidisation of imports by policies designed to maintain the value of the dinar by relying on foreign debt, in addition to the blocking of productive sectors, for example, the agricultural sector which does not meet national requirements, the failure to revise the property system, and the exclusion of farmers from the economic cycle, as well as climatic crises, and the structure of markets governed by monopolies, in the absence of regulations, control and competition.

Regarding the structure of the financial system and financing, the study showed that the financial system has led to two types of demand for banking services: an economic player that relies on illegal channels due to several factors, including the excessive increase in the guarantees required when taking on debt, and an economic player that is heavily dependent on bank financing and has no banking alternatives.

The study concluded its explanation of the failure of the country’s monetary policies by highlighting the contradiction between the BCT’s monetary policies aimed at reducing the rate of monetary inflation, given that the increase in the key interest rate has coincided with a reduction in the rate of compulsory reserves, in addition to monetary injection operations into the economy through refinancing and intervention on the open market.

Among the other negative results of these policies, according to the study, is the high risk of default due to the sudden rise in financing costs, given that the average level of non-performing loans remains high (up to 13%) compared with other countries.

To absorb payment defaults, Alert pointed out that banks are imposing high-interest rates, stressing that the application of the highest interest rates is likely to encourage banks to make high profits.

Most loans granted by banks are subject to a variable interest rate, depending on the financial market interest rate, so any revision of the key interest rate allows banks to make higher profits.

Over the last five years (2017-2022), banks have been able to achieve high-profit margins as a result of the increase in the financial market interest rate.

Source: Agence Tunis Afrique Presse

The hotel units that have closed in the Tabarka-Ain Drahem tourist region represent 29.75% of the total accommodation capacity of all the hotel units in the Jendouba region, totalling 24 units.

According to a report by the Tabarka Regional Tourist Commissariat, the closure of more than 29% of hotels in the region is a real problem which has had a negative impact on the ability of hotels to meet the demand received from local and foreign visitors during the high tourist season, particularly in the Tabarka region, which records an occupancy rate of more than 100% during the period from mid-July to mid-August.

The Tabarka-Ain Drahem tourist zone has 6 closed hotels, including 4 2-star hotels, one 3-star hotel and one unclassified hotel, with a capacity of over 1,800 beds.

The closure of a number of hotels is due to economic and social reasons and dates back to years before 2011 for some, and to 2011 and 2012 for others.

The same report reveals that 3 tourist units already closed, with a total capacity of over 1445 beds, are being offered for sale, while the other three units are to be renovated.

Tourism indicators for the governorate of Jendouba show a 20% increase in the number of tourists during the second half of July compared with the previous year, and a 26% rise in the number of overnight stays compared with the same period last year.

The National Tourist Office and the other parties involved intend to regularise the situation of guest houses and launch, at the end of August, in the El Morjane tourist zone, construction work on a leisure park costing over 140 MD, according to Aïssa Marouani, Regional Tourism Commissioner in Tabarka.

From January 1 to the end of April 2023, the number of local and international tourists staying at hotels in the governorate of Jendouba exceeded 92,000 visitors, 8% of whom were Tunisians. The number of overnight stays exceeded 150,000 over the same period.

Source: Agence Tunis Afrique Presse