The World Retail Congress has revealed the list of retailers shortlisted as finalists for this year’s prestigious World Retail Awards and, for the first time, sees a Nigerian retailer, Jumia named a finalist in two categories.
This year a record number of entries were submitted from the most extensive ranges of countries and retail sectors to date for the annual awards. The team of expert judges selected the retailers they believe are the most outstanding and worthy of a place in the final. Nigerian retailer Jumia has reached the final stages of the competition for its outstanding e-commerce offering, and will compete with other leading retailers for the highly acclaimed ‘Pure Play eTailer of the Year’ award. Jumia has also been shortlisted in the important “New Retail Launch” category.
The finalists were shortlisted from an extremely high standard of entry and will all be reviewed on October 6th by the Grand Jury, made up of 16 senior retail leaders, who will select the winners. All of the winners will be announced at the Gala Dinner taking place at Salle Wagram, Paris on Tuesday 8th October. The shortlist includes for the first time, retailers from Nigeria, Pakistan, South Korea and Malaysia.
This year’s judges include: Ian Cheshire, Group Chief Executive, Kingfisher plc; Bernie Brookes, CEO, Myer Ltd; Gordon Campbell, CEO, Spar International; Paul Charron, Chairman, Campbell Soup Company; Rick Darling, President, DSG and Vice Chairman Li & Fung US; Mindy Grossman, CEO, HSN Inc; Renuka Jagtiani, Vice-Chairperson, Landmark Group; plus numerous other high profile figures from the retail industry.*
“This year we had an exceptionally high standard of entries from retailers across the globe,” says World Retail Congress Chairman, Ian McGarrigle. “I am particularly delighted to see the awards attracting entries from many more emerging markets and that we have retailers from countries such as Nigeria shortlisted for the very first time. The finalists are all fantastic representatives for the international retail industry and how retailers continue to adapt and innovate in an increasingly challenging environment. We thank everyone for their entries and look forward to hearing the Grand Jury’s final decisions in October.”
THE 2013 WORLD RETAIL AWARD FINALISTS
CSR INITIATIVE OF THE YEAR
Azizia Panda – ‘Sustainable Future’ Woolworths South Africa – ‘MySchool MyVillage MyPlanet’ Migros – ‘Generation M’ Lotte Shopping – ‘'Shared growth with stakeholders’ Continente Sonae – ‘Missão Sorriso (Mission: Smile)’ Sefam – ‘Made of Pakistan (Vote for Pakistan)’
STORE DESIGN OF THE YEAR
John Lewis – Exeter, UK (Dalziel and Pow) Joe Fresh NYC Flagship- 5th Avenue, New York, USA (Burdifilek) Livraria Cultura, Cine Vitória store – Rio de Janeiro, Brazil Shinsegae Department Store – Uijeongbu, South Korea (JHP Design) Begendik Cayyolu, Ankara, Turkey
STORE DESIGN OF THE YEAR
14oz.- Haus Cumberland, Berlin, Germany Chilli Beans Flagship Store – São Paulo, Brazil Hotel Chocolat – Roast and Conch Covent Garden, London, UK (Terry Moore Design) Karl Lagerfeld Concept Store – Paris, France Puma – Osaka, Japan (Player & Franz Studio) Shoes of Prey – Sydney, Australia
PURE PLAY ETAILER OF THE YEAR
eSpares Isabella Oliver Jumia Ocado vente-privee.com Zalora
OMNICHANNEL RETAILER OF THE YEAR Sponsored by Intel
Crocs Inc Chow Tai Fook Debenhams Florence & Fred The Home Shopping Network (HSN Pakistan) Screwfix The Entertainer
EMERGING MARKET RETAILER OF THE YEAR Sponsored by Mastercard
Cacau Show, Brazil Marisa, Brazil The MAP Group, Indonesia Max Retail, UAE Mr Price Group, South Africa Sefam, Pakistan
CUSTOMER LOYALTY INITIATIVE OF THE YEAR Sponsored by TCC Global
Billa AG– ‘Vitamin Stars’ Continente – Sonae – Cada jogo, uma final (Each Match, a final Match) Debenhams – Beauty Club Facebook VIP Dunkin’ Donuts – “Morning start-up” app O’Key – Angry Birds rewards programme HSN – ‘Captivating audiences through Partnerships and Gamification’
RETAIL TECHNOLOGY INITIATIVE OF THE YEAR Sponsored by Samsung
American Apparel – ‘RetailNext In-Store Analytics’ ASOS- "Fit Visualiser" powered by Virtusize Bunnpris – ‘Biometric age verification in Self Checkout PoS’ Carrefour – “The Digital Wall” Delhaize – ‘Pricer Electronic Shelf Labelling Solution’ John Lewis – ‘Vision BeanStore PoS’
SUPPLY CHAIN INITIATIVE OF THE YEAR Sponsored by JDA
BWG Foods – ‘BWG Tradelink’ Debenhams – ‘Endless Aisle’ Pep Stores – ‘JDA Demand & Fulfillment’ Tesco – ‘Supply Chain Blueprint’ Tesco – ‘Tesco Connect’ The Mobile Store –‘Inventory Management – BPR and Automation’
BEST NEW RETAIL LAUNCH
Hedonism Wines Jumia Presso Quem disse, Berenice t.riciclo Zalora
Notes to Editors:
About World Retail Congress
The World Retail Congress, part of i2i Events Group portfolio, was launched in 2007, to be a platform for senior retail executives to meet and discuss the most important topics affecting retailers across the world. It has been held in Barcelona (2007-9), Berlin (2010-11) and London (2012) and is attended by up to 1,000 industry leaders from more than 60 countries. The programme is developed in conjunction with the Congress Advisory Board which represents retailers such as Gap, Kingfisher, Macys, Reliance Lifestyle, Myer, Alshaya, Netto, Inditex and Tesco.
The co-sponsors of the 2013 World Retail Congress are Deloitte, Mastercard and Hepsiburada.com.
World Retail Awards
Also in its 7th year, the awards are designed to recognise global excellence across the key areas of retailing such as advertising, corporate responsibility, online, international, leadership and innovation with the top award being the Retailer of the Year. The winners are selected by a Grand Jury made up of leading retailer CEOs from around the world.
*All entries are judged firstly by sector experts and then by the Grand Jury which this year includes the following members:
Bernie Brookes, CEO, Myer Ltd Gordon Campbell, CEO, Spar International Paul Charron, Chairman, Campbell Soup Company Ian Cheshire, Group Chief Executive, Kingfisher plc. Rick Darling, President, Li & Fung Mindy Grossman, CEO, HSN Inc. Renuka Jagtiani, Vice-Chairperson, Landmark Group Muwaffaq Jamal, CEO, Azizia Panda Andrew Jennings, CEO, Karstadt Bijou Kurien, President & CEO, Reliance Lifestyle Matt Rubel, Senior Advisor, TPG Capital Rebecca Shelley, Group Corporate Affairs Director, Tesco Marie Schott, Managing Director, Etam Richard Simonin, Executive Chairman, Limoni Group Yilmaz Yilmaz, Chairman, Koton Wang Yu, Vice President, Beijing WFJ Department Store (Group) Co. Ltd. Dame Lucy Neville Rolfe, Non-Executive President, EuroCommerce About i2i Events Group
i2i Events Group delivers world-class exhibitions and large scale events in key sectors including home and gift, fashion, retail, healthcare, energy, environment, education, technology and media. Its portfolio of world-wide events includes World Retail Congress, Bett, Spring Fair, RWM, CWIEME, BVE and Pure London. It prides itself on opening up possibilities for its customers and each year brings more than 250,000 decision makers together to network, source, test, buy and sell brilliant products, services, ideas and solutions. The company is headed up by Mark Shashoua who joined EMAP as Group MD of EMAP Connect in November 2011 and became CEO of i2i Events Group in March 2012. i2i Events Group is powered by Top Right Group, formerly known as Emap International Ltd.
For further information contact: Ian McGarrigle, Chairman, World Retail Congress, +44 (0) 20 7861 1602
Julia Hanrahan, Pelham Bell Pottinger +44 (0) 20 7861 3982 jhanrahan@pelhambellpottinger.co.uk
Anthony-Claret is a software Engineer, entrepreneur and the founder of Codewit INC. Mr. Claret publishes and manages the content on Codewit Word News website and associated websites. He's a writer, IT Expert, great administrator, technology enthusiast, social media lover and all around digital guy.
Late on the night of August 23, 2001, at about 3 a.m. security cameras in the parking garage of the World Trade Center captured the arrival of two or three truck vans.
Visual examination determined the vans were separate and unique from trucks used by janitorial services, including different colors and devoid of markings. More curious, all the janitorial trucks had pulled out of the Towers by about 2:30 a.m—about half an hour before the second set of vans arrived.
According to my high-level State Department source with a top security clearance, who disclosed the unusual nightly activity, no vans matching that description had entered the World Trade Center at such an hour in any of the weeks or months prior to that date. It was a unique event.
Security cameras caught the vans leaving the Towers at approximately 5 a.m—before the first wave of AAA personality types on Wall Street, driving Mercedes and BMWs, arrived to track the markets.
For the next 10 to 12 nights, the same mysterious truck vans arrived at the World Trade Center at the same mysterious hour— after the janitorial crews had left the building and before the most fanatic robber barons on Wall Street showed up for work. The vans appeared at the World Trade Center from approximately August 23, 2001 until September 3 or 4, 2001. After that last night, they never appeared at the Towers again.
The vans were never heard of again, either. The 9/11 Commission was never informed of their surprising presence in the Towers three weeks before the 9/11 attack. Most of the 9/11 Truth Community has no knowledge of this extraordinary nightly activity, either.
For all the public’s ignorance, video from the security cameras could be the most significant missing part of the 9/11 puzzle. This State Department source was convinced the mysterious trucks were used to transport explosives into the building, and that an unidentified orphan team wired the World Trade Center for a controlled demolition in those late night hours. He has stayed quiet to protect his job, his retirement pension and his reputation—knowing that others who spoke up have gotten fired or thrown in prison (myself included).
Controlled Demolition
Other evidence supports a controlled demolition of the Towers, as a supplement to the hijackings. Firefighters and maintenance crews reported hearing explosions popping through the Towers on 9/11. And previous reports indicate that dust from the World Trade Center tested positive for “thermate explosives–” a derivative of a thermite bomb.
A thermite reaction involves a mixture of iron oxide and aluminum, while thermate adds an element of sulfur. When the iron oxide-aluminum mixture is ignited, a super vigorous reaction occurs, creating molten metal—and dust, in the case of thermate. The reaction is extremely exothermic, meaning that a great deal of heat is given off, making for an incredibly powerful reducing agent.
Even so, as the 10 year anniversary of the 9/11 attack approaches, the majority of Americans continue to be confused as to how a controlled demolition scenario fits with the airplane hijackings and aerial strike on the World Trade Center—which the whole world witnessed on playback over and over in the media, until the image was seared like a brand on our collective consciousness.
Until now, there has been a false dichotomy that only one or the other style of attack could have occurred, but never both together. Some parts of the 9/11 Community itself vigorously dispute that both could have occurred as synchronized events. And most of the corporate media refuses to acknowledge the controlled demolition theory whatsoever.
When the public understands 9/11 as a series of Real Time events throughout the month of August, 2001, the unfolding sequence of this tragedy makes a lot more sense.
The difficulty is throwing out everything the public has been taught about 9/11—created for the convenience of politicians and corporate media, who simplified the story for public consumption. First and foremost, contrary to all media reports and official claims, U.S. and foreign intelligence absolutely expected the 9/11 attack to occur — citing airplane hijackings and a strike on the World Trade Center. Even the timeframe was identified precisely — known to be late August through mid-September.
I relate here my own experience as evidence. It has been corroborated in courtroom testimony by Parke Godfrey, a computer science professor at York University in Toronto. He delivered his statement under oath in the Federal Courthouse of the Southern District of New York—1000 yards from where the World Trade Center once graced the skyline.
On August 2, the date of Robert Mueller’s Senate confirmation hearings to become Director of the FBI, my CIA handler, Dr. Richard Fuisz, warned me not to travel to New York because the attack on the World Trade Center involving airplane hijackings was “considered imminent,” with the potential for “mass human casualties” and a “possible miniature thermo-nuclear device” (thermite).
Our team aggressively tried to block the conspiracy. But not everyone was on board.
Threats to Iraq
As far back as April and May of 2001, a decision had been made at the top levels of the government that War with Iraq would be in play in the aftermath of a 9/11 scenario.
As the primary Asset covering the Iraqi Embassy in New York, I myself was ordered to threaten Iraqi diplomats with war, if it was determined that Iraq possessed actionable intelligence about the airplane hijacking conspiracy and failed to hand it over through my back channel.
After initially balking at the message, I was informed the threat originated at the highest level of government, above the CIA Director and Secretary of State. That could only be President George Bush, Vice President Dick Cheney and Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld.
Iraqi diplomats threw up their hands: They had nothing to give us, they said. But go ahead, they told me. “Send your FBI. They are welcome in Baghdad. We want peace with America. And maybe they will find something.” For all the brouhaha after 9/11, the fact remains that George Bush took no action on Iraq’s invite.
There was chatter about the 9/11 conspiracy throughout the Intelligence Community all summer long. The greatest part of the Intelligence Community abhorred the scenario. My own Intelligence team, triangulating the CIA and Defense Intelligence Agency pushed and pushed for actionable intelligence from Baghdad. However, though we could not understand what the hell was going on, our efforts kept running into a wall of interference from the Justice Department, with only superficial outward support.
For the integrity of history, Americans and the world community have a fundamental right to understand what actions the Intelligence Community did undertake prior to the attack—because it exposes the high-level opposition running interference.
August Timeline
On Thursday, August 2, 2001— my CIA handler, Dr. Richard Fuisz, and I discussed over the telephone our belief that the attack would be imminent.
On Saturday, August 4– I visited the Iraqi Embassy in New York for the final time before 9/11, pushing for any fragment of actionable intelligence from Baghdad that could pinpoint the conspiracy.
On the weekend of August 4-5—spooky NSA types “visited” the office where I had a part-time consulting job. Of course the office was closed for the weekend, and I won’t speculate how they got inside. However, while snooping, they took a “proof of life,” for want of a better expression. It is a physical copy of the Wall Street Journal dated July 30, 2001—the same week as my conversation with Dr. Fuisz— addressed to the company, with the street address and name of the man I had been working for.
The copy of the July 30, 2001 Wall Street Journal surfaced on my desk at home—nine years after the attack— while I was traveling in Japan on a speaking tour for the advance release of my book, Extreme Prejudice: The Terrifying Story of the Patriot Act and the Cover Ups of 9/11 and Iraq, which features a detailed analysis of our team’s 9/11 warnings, the 9/11 investigation and a comprehensive peace framework developed with Iraqi diplomats. Given the upheaval in my life throughout the intervening decade — including a year’s stint in prison on a Texas military base, while the government covered up my team’s 9/11 warnings and the true facts of Iraqi Pre-War Intelligence — there’s no way a copy of the Wall Street Journal could have survived as desk clutter.
Other Intelligence officers will recognize the significance at once. That hard copy of the Wall Street Journal proves beyond any question that other spooks were tracking our team’s conversations about the conspiracy in “real time” fully 6 weeks before 9/11 occurred. A newspaper would have been thrown out of an office weeks before the attack. Somebody had to grab it up almost immediately after my conversation with Dr. Fuisz.
See? Other teams tried to put together the attack scenario, too.
All of it points to the frenetic activity in advance of 9/11. There was a lot of action behind the scenes. And Intelligence folk are anything but passive individuals. Quite the opposite, there’s a lot of creative risk-taking and proactive problem solving. None of these people sit on their hands.
Americans still don’t know that:
On Monday, August 6, I met with Dr. Fuisz and we hammered out a plan of action for alerting the White House that this hijacking conspiracy should move to “emergency status.”
That same Monday, August 6, the CIA handed President Bush a memo warning about an expected terrorist conspiracy involving Al Qaeda. Though I could be mistaken, I have always believed Dr. Fuisz contributed to that report. If not, it proves again that a broad spectrum of U.S. intelligence was moving to high alert status, far enough in advance to block the attack.
Following instructions from Dr. Fuisz, on Tuesday, August 7 or Wednesday, August 8, I placed an emergency call to the private staff of Attorney General John Ashcroft. Identifying myself as the Chief U.S. Intelligence Asset covering Iraq and Libya at the United Nations, I delivered our warning about a conspiracy involving airplane hijackings and a targeted strike on the World Trade Center.
I requested an emergency broadcast alert through all Federal Agencies seeking any fragment of intelligence involving airplane hijackings and a strike on the World Trade Center. I warned the attack was “imminent” with expectations of “mass casualties,” and that it should be regarded as Emergency Status.
Attorney General John Ashcroft’s private staff immediately gave me a telephone number at the Office of Counter-Terrorism, and told me to repeat what I had just told them to the person at that number. Immediately I complied.
Later that week on August 9 or 10, I drove over to the Arlington, Virginia home of my second cousin, Andrew Card — Chief of Staff to President George Bush — ready to deliver the same message. I waited two hours in my car outside of his home. Occasionally neighbors peeked outside their curtains, while I chain smoked cigarettes in the hot car. (Yes, I have quit smoking.) Driving away, I remember thinking that I might be making the greatest mistake of my life.
My Own Private Hell during the Cover Up
I am extremely proud of our team’s efforts before 9/11 and throughout the 9/11 investigation. For all that, Americans are learning about this very late because I got into great big, bad trouble with the Feds when I tried to talk. I suffered five (5) years of indictment on the Patriot Act and one year of prison on a military base without a trial, when Republicans decided to reinvent the facts about 9/11 and Iraqi Pre-War Intelligence, denying Iraq’s contributions to the 9/11 investigation and the existence of a comprehensive peace framework.
Our relationship soured as I became convinced Republicans at the top echelons allowed 9/11 to happen, killing thousands of innocent Americans and international citizens, so they could build a phony case for war against Iraq and Afghanistan.
I was outraged that the American government has done this to itself — as a pretext for military aggression and massive deficit spending in support of the military industrial complex, which is bankrupting the Middle Class. And I was quite vocal in expressing my belief that Americans have a right to full disclosure about our activities before 9/11 and the Iraqi War. And the devil take politicians!
Without question I posed a grave threat to political grandstanding on 9/11 and the myth of Washington’s “outstanding leadership performance on terrorism.” Many times I have thought of myself as Dorothy in the Land of Oz pulling back the curtain on the Wizard, and exposing his deceit before the hapless, trusting Munchkins.
In truth, the spooks did a great job before 9/11. Everything moved with lightning speed ahead of the threat. We could have stopped 9/11 easily if the Justice Department had fulfilled requests for inter-agency cooperation. There was plenty of time to alert NORAD or post an anti-air craft battery on top of the World Trade Center buildings.
That’s why the GOP leadership had to take me out—because I refused to back off that point. If I had been free, the American people and the world community would have learned the truth much sooner.
Controlled Demolition
Unhappily for all of us, because of private conversations with sources like my State Department colleague, I have reached additional conclusions that our team was not the only one at work before 9/11.
Though none of us expected this to happen, I have come to believe that our efforts collided with a force of equal resistance, in the form of an orphan team also watching the events unfolding like us.
As a long-time participant in multiple terrorism investigations, I have personal knowledge that most terrorist attacks are noisy, smoky and chaotic— without achieving maximum destruction of the target. The 1993 World Trade Center attack by Ramzi Youseff and Sheikh Abdul Rahmon of Egypt killed 5 people. The bombing of the U.S.S. Cole in the Port of Aden, Yemen killed 12 people. Without extra push, this 9/11 attack would never have killed so many people either—100 people at the very most.
Add to that a recipe of incompetent pilots — who functioned as Intelligence Assets themselves in a few cases. Again, from personal experience, I know that Assets are heavily scrutinized at all times by handlers from multiple agencies. I am convinced that an inner circle anticipated the event, and saw that their boys flying those planes could not achieve maximum damage sufficient to achieve their war agenda in Iraq.
I cannot blame Americans for feeling overwhelmed, even heartbroken by these revelations. But bottom line: jet fuel fires could not have collapsed both of those Towers, or Building 7, pretty much evaporating the entire steel frame of the buildings into dust and molten steel. Add to that the CIA’s urgent reports that a miniature thermo-nuclear device would be used in the attack — and that’s why I had to stay out of New York City.
The strange nightly activity at the World Trade Center three weeks before the attack clinched it for me. I am 100 percent convinced those Towers were wired for explosives.
Yes, hijacked airplanes struck the towers. But bringing down the Towers to secure War with Iraq required some extra umph.
I cannot speculate who wired the towers with explosives. I could make a guess, but my training as an Asset requires me to stay focused on what I have observed first-hand, and to recognize my own limitations.
So why should the world care? At this point, it is most critical for Americans to stop politicians in Washington from using 9/11 for grandstanding and personal ambitions. The War on Terrorism has perpetrated a fraud on all of us. Those who support the War on Terror are destroying our fiscal economy and our Middle Class.
That’s why Americans must learn the truth about 9/11. It’s reached a crisis point where we must get off this merry-go-round of defense spending. We must end the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Otherwise this fraud of 9/11 is going to ruin our great country for all time.
Anthony-Claret is a software Engineer, entrepreneur and the founder of Codewit INC. Mr. Claret publishes and manages the content on Codewit Word News website and associated websites. He's a writer, IT Expert, great administrator, technology enthusiast, social media lover and all around digital guy.
Dr. Seidu Onailo Mohammed is the DG of National Space Research and DevelopmentAgency (NASRDA). He was recently reappointed as Director General of the Agency by President Goodluck Jonathan. that is however not the news.
The news is that recently, Dr. S.O. Mohammed was “appointed” as a PROFESSOR of Remote Sensing and Geo-Spatial Science by KADUNA STATE UNIVERSITY at its 45th Governing Council Meeting held on 3rd July 2013. The governing council cited Dr. Mohammed’s “exceptional and scholarly merit and distinguished service to Nigeria” as his qualification for the appointment as a professor. Now, One expects that to be appointed professor, a scholar must have a series of international and local publications to his credit. But that is in normal climes.
I know Dr. Mohammed, so when he was appointed professor, I was alarmed because I know he has no requisite verifiable publications to his credit to qualify him as a professor. So I searched Google Scholar to see if I had lost tab on him. Lo and behold, I could not find a mention of him nor any of his publications in any local or international journals.
It seems to me that the Nigerian academia which has graduated from indiscriminate dishing out of honorary doctorate degrees to quota professorship is now extending the impunity to “honorary professorship” as indicated by the action of Kaduna State University. It is instructive to note that Kaduna State University has no fully developed Department of Geography, so it beats me how they can appoint a “Professor in Remote Sensing and Geo-Spatial Science”.
Yet ASUU is on strike demanding for improvement in academic standards while some of their members are bastardizing the academia.
I do not have issues with Dr Mohammed being appointed DG NASDRA, but why must we reduce the next level of academia to such ridicule as “official honorary professors”?
See the PUNCH report of June 26 2013 below:
Jonathan reappoints Mohammed as NARSDA DG
President Goodluck Jonathan has re-appointed the Director General of the National Space Research and Development Agency, Dr. Seidu Onailo Mohammed as the DG of the space agency for the next five years.
A statement signed by the Head, Media and Corporate Affairs, NASRDA, Mr. Felix Ale, said a letter signed by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Anyim Pius Anyim, showed that the appointment was for a second tenure of five years and took effect from July 2, 2013 in accordance with section 14(4) of the NASRDA act of 2010.
Mohammed, according to the statement, is a scientist. He was also said to be in charge of the agency when it launched three satellites in 2011, namely Nigeria-Sat X, an indigenous satellite, Nigeria-Sat 2 and NigComSat IR.
Anthony-Claret is a software Engineer, entrepreneur and the founder of Codewit INC. Mr. Claret publishes and manages the content on Codewit Word News website and associated websites. He's a writer, IT Expert, great administrator, technology enthusiast, social media lover and all around digital guy.
EAPIC to focus on geothermal energy opportunities in East Africa "Geothermal energy potential of 10,000MW in Kenya alone”
The upcoming East African Power Industry Convention (EAPIC) in Nairobi in September will feature a Geothermal Power Summit, providing a dedicated focus on the potential of geothermal energy in the region, the available financing options, specialised technologies and exploration challenges. More than 500 power professionals will gather in the Kenyan capital from 10-11 September for the 15th edition of EAPIC.
“In Kenya alone, there is a potential of approximately 10 000 MW of electric power”, says Dr Nicholas Mariita, Chief Geothermal Training Officer at Kenya Electricity Generating Company (KenGen), the country’s state utility, and an expert speaker at EAPIC in September.
Huge capacity development required According to KenGen, state-owned and IPP geothermal plants currently contribute some 202 MW of Kenya’s annual 1597 MW power generation. According to Dr Mariita, “to attain Vision 2030, Kenya needs to increase electrical production from 1597 MW to around 17 760 MW in order to satisfy the projected power peak demand of 15 000 MW in year 2030. This demands a 1200% expansion of power generation, of which, approximately 7000 MW will come from geothermal resources. Thus, huge capacity development is required to increase geothermal power generation.”
Lack of regulatory frameworks The Great Rift Valley, running from Middle East to Mozambique (through Ethiopia, North & South Sudan, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Kenya, Tanzania, Malawi) has a great potential for geothermal energy, particularly in East Africa, where geothermal manifestations such as hot springs, fumaroles and geysers are prevalent.
Says Dr Mariita, “the countries of the East African Rift System (EARS) have a considerable geothermal energy potential. Only Kenya has made significant efforts to harness this potential so far. To develop this resource, it has developed a geothermal development Act of Parliament. Most countries of the EARS have no strategy and inadequate legislative and regulatory frameworks for the development of the geothermal subsector. Existing regional initiatives are mostly focusing on exploration and site/project-specific activities such as (pre-) feasibility studies, project implementation planning, negotiation of power purchase agreements.”
Speaker and topic highlights from the EAPIC Geothermal Power Summit:
Geothermal capacity building: collaboration between higher learning institutes and the sector – Dr Nicholas Mariita, Superintendent, KenGen, Kenya Financing options for geothermal projects – Kirsten Offermanns, Principal Project Manager, KfW Development Commission, Germany Geothermal exploration – Ludvik Georgsson, Deputy Director, United Nations University Geothermal Training Programme, Iceland Geothermal, Iceland Challenges in developing Katwe – Bunyampaka geothermal area – Ralph Nyakabwa-Atwoki, Project Consultant, Kenya Sustainable development of geothermal – Philipe Niyangabo, Head of Energy Division, Dept. of Infrastructure and Energy, African Union Commission, Ethiopia
Also confirmed to address EAPIC are Uganda’s Energy Minister, the Honourable Engineer Irene Muloni and CEOs from utilities in Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Kenya, Rwanda and Ethiopia.
Event dates and location: Conference days: 10-11 September 2013 Pre-conference workshop: 9 September 2013 Site visit: 12 September 2013
Location: Safari Park Hotel, Kasarani Off Thika Road, Nairobi, Kenya
Anthony-Claret is a software Engineer, entrepreneur and the founder of Codewit INC. Mr. Claret publishes and manages the content on Codewit Word News website and associated websites. He's a writer, IT Expert, great administrator, technology enthusiast, social media lover and all around digital guy.
After a protracted separation from her ex; Tony Eberiri, Nollywood screen goddess Chika Ike filled a motion at an Abuja high court. On Friday July 26th, she got what she wanted; a divorce!
Chika broke the news herself on her facebook wall.
Chika and Tony got married in 2006, but the marriage hit the rocks a few years later.
Anthony-Claret is a software Engineer, entrepreneur and the founder of Codewit INC. Mr. Claret publishes and manages the content on Codewit Word News website and associated websites. He's a writer, IT Expert, great administrator, technology enthusiast, social media lover and all around digital guy.
Monrovia – Liberia’s Minister of Agriculture, Dr Florence Chenoweth, on Sunday said that Obasanjo Farms in Liberia would create about 30,000 job opportunities for the citizens.
Chenoweth made the observation during the dedication ceremony of Obasanjo Farms Liberia Incorporated at Gbah Foboi, Grand Cape Mount County, in Liberia.
She noted that the Liberian government had focused its attention on the agriculture sector in its efforts to create jobs for the people.
She, however, urged legislators, chiefs and superintendents from Cape Mount County to advise youths in the area to seize the opportunities presented by the new farm to become productive, while ensuring the area’s development.
Chenoweth stressed that the establishment of Obasanjo Farms would help in addressing one the salient aspects of the government’s efforts to ensure food security.
She noted that more than 40 per cent of Liberian children had stunted growth, stressing the need to solve the problem by fast-tracking the production of eggs and poultry in Liberia.
“We need to produce proteins either in beans or meat, which the cattle, goat and piggery produce, in Liberia, so as to ensure balance diets for our people’s nutrition,” she said.
Earlier, President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf described President Olusegun Obasanjo as a visionary leader who was responsive to the needs of the people in critical areas.
She commended Obasanjo for his constant support for Liberia and for having faith in the future of the country.
Also speaking, Mr Daniel Atsu, the Group Managing Director of Obasanjo Holdings Limited, said that the farm was set up in anticipation of the adverse effects of global warming and climate change on poultry production in tropical Africa.
He stressed that such anticipation informed the decision of Obasanjo to develop African poultry breeds which could thrive in hot and humid environment.
Atsu said that the farm had six standard poultry houses, adding that two of them were for breeding young chicks, while the remaining four were equipped with three-tier automated layer cages.
He said that the first and second batches of about 10,000 layers had started laying eggs.
He said that the layer houses would soon be increased to 16, a capacity which would produce about 15,000 farm fresh eggs daily.
Atsu said that the farm would offer unlimited opportunities to farmers to grow corn, soybeans or supply dried or smoked fish in large quantities, saying that the farm was situated on 125 acres of land.
Anthony-Claret is a software Engineer, entrepreneur and the founder of Codewit INC. Mr. Claret publishes and manages the content on Codewit Word News website and associated websites. He's a writer, IT Expert, great administrator, technology enthusiast, social media lover and all around digital guy.
Anthony-Claret is a software Engineer, entrepreneur and the founder of Codewit INC. Mr. Claret publishes and manages the content on Codewit Word News website and associated websites. He's a writer, IT Expert, great administrator, technology enthusiast, social media lover and all around digital guy.
President Goodluck Jonathan Monday in Abuja called on African leaders to take more concrete steps towards fulfilling their often declared commitment to improving trade and economic relations amongst African countries and that with the right will and commitment African leaders can overcome obstacles.
Speaking with the outgoing Namibian High Commissioner to Nigeria, Mrs. Selma Ashipala-Musavyi, President Jonathan said that there was an urgent need for African leaders to move beyond declarations of support for greater intra-African trade and act in unison to overcome obstacles which currently hinder economic relations between the nations and people of the continent.
President Jonathan said that with the right political will and commitment, African leaders could speedily overcome all obstacles to intra-African trade such as poor transportation links and achieve a significant boost in continental economic interaction for the benefit of their countries and peoples.
The President pledged that Nigeria will continue to spearhead and support efforts aimed at promoting regional and continental economic integration, saying that existing cordial political relations between most African countries will be further enhanced by greater trade and economic relations amongst them.
He commended Mrs. Ashipala-Musavyi for working diligently to boost bilateral relations between Nigeria and Namibia during her tenure as High Commissioner in Abuja and wished her success at her new post in the Namibian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
President Jonathan similarly commended Ghana’s outgoing High Commissioner to Nigeria, Alhaji Baba Kamara whom he also received at the Presidential Villa on Monday.
Noting that bilateral relations between Nigeria and Ghana have been further strengthened in several areas during Alhaji Kamara’s four-year tenure, President expressed the hope that the outgoing High Commissioner’s successor will continue his good work.
“We must continue to build and strengthen the cordial relations between us. We are the same people and colonial boundaries must not be allowed to keep us apart,” President Jonathan told Alhaji Kamara.
According to the Ghana Investment Promotion Centre, of the over 200 projects registered by it last year, Nigeria had 42 projects with a value of almost $200 million U.S. Dollars. Only China accounted for more registered projects in Ghana during the period with 56 projects.
Anthony-Claret is a software Engineer, entrepreneur and the founder of Codewit INC. Mr. Claret publishes and manages the content on Codewit Word News website and associated websites. He's a writer, IT Expert, great administrator, technology enthusiast, social media lover and all around digital guy.
VATICAN CITY (AFP) – Pope Francis declared on Monday that it was not his place to judge homosexuals and said they should not be marginalised but condemned the gay lobby as a “serious problem”.
The remarks — made to journalists as he flew back to Rome from a trip to Brazil — appeared to be more conciliatory towards homosexuals than his predecessor Benedict XVI.
“If someone is gay and seeks the Lord with good will, who am I to judge?” he said
“The problem is not having this orientation, it is lobbying. That’s the most serious problem I think.”
Francis had to field questions about Battista Ricca, who was appointed by the pontiff to a key position at the troubled Vatican bank, but is embroiled in allegations that he had gay relationships with male prostitutes.
The pope said he had ordered a “brief investigation but we found nothing on him”.
“I have not seen anyone at the Vatican who is registered as gay on his identity card. We acknowledge that there are (gays),” he said.
Nevertheless, “the catechism of the Catholic Church says clearly that we must not marginalise these people who should be integrated in the society.”
The Italian weekly L’Espresso this month reported that Ricca had gay relationships during his time at the Vatican embassy of Montevideo in Uruguay as well as an affair with a Swiss guard which ultimately saw him sent back to Rome in disgrace in 2010.
He was once left badly beaten after trawling notorious gay hangouts and also had to be rescued from an elevator in which he was stuck while he was with a young gigolo he had invited to the embassy for the night.
An internal bid to cover up Ricca’s activities meant Francis apparently had no idea about Ricca’s past before he appointed him as his personal representative at the scandal-hit bank this year.
The pope admitted in June that there is a “gay lobby” in the Vatican’s secretive administration, the Roman Curia, according to a Latin American Catholic website.
Gay rights groups had voiced hope on Francis’ appointment that the Argentinian pope would be friendlier to homosexuals than his predecessor.
Benedict had angered the gay community with his suggestion in 2008 that homosexuality was as much of a threat to the survival of the human race as climate change.
He has also called on Catholics to “fight” to maintain the traditional family consisting of a father, mother and children, and criticised gay marriage and abortion as “insidious and dangerous threats to the common good”.
Without expanding on the two issues, Pope Francis gave a firm answer to a question on gay marriage and abortion — both of which the Church opposes — saying “you know perfectly the position of the Church”.
He also said women should be given a bigger role in the Church, but refused to consider their ordination, saying the “door is closed” on the issue.
Anthony-Claret is a software Engineer, entrepreneur and the founder of Codewit INC. Mr. Claret publishes and manages the content on Codewit Word News website and associated websites. He's a writer, IT Expert, great administrator, technology enthusiast, social media lover and all around digital guy.
ABUJA- NATIONAL leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP Monday named Second Republic Minister of Transport, Alhaji Umaru Dikko as Chairman, National Disciplinary Committee of the party.
Dikko, the former head of the Presidential Task Force on Rice during ex- President Shehu Shagari, is heading a seven- member committee that has a third power broker in President Goodluck Jonathan’s Kitchen Cabinet, the Obanema of Opume Kingdom, Bayelsa State, King A.J Turner as Deputy Chairman.
Other members of the Committee are the Publisher of Champion Newspaper and member, Board of Trustees, BoT, Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu; former Deputy National Chairman and BoT member, Alhaji. Shuaibu Oyedokun Hajiya Nana Aishat Kadiri; Barr. Hussaini Diraki and Sen. Emmanuel Agboti to serve as member and Secretary
Anthony-Claret is a software Engineer, entrepreneur and the founder of Codewit INC. Mr. Claret publishes and manages the content on Codewit Word News website and associated websites. He's a writer, IT Expert, great administrator, technology enthusiast, social media lover and all around digital guy.
To provide the best experiences, we use technologies like cookies to store and/or access device information. Consenting to these technologies will allow us to process data such as browsing behaviour or unique IDs on this site. Not consenting or withdrawing consent, may adversely affect certain features and functions.
Functional
Always active
The technical storage or access is strictly necessary for the legitimate purpose of enabling the use of a specific service explicitly requested by the subscriber or user, or for the sole purpose of carrying out the transmission of a communication over an electronic communications network.
Preferences
The technical storage or access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing preferences that are not requested by the subscriber or user.
Statistics
The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for statistical purposes.The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. Without a subpoena, voluntary compliance on the part of your Internet Service Provider, or additional records from a third party, information stored or retrieved for this purpose alone cannot usually be used to identify you.
Marketing
The technical storage or access is required to create user profiles to send advertising, or to track the user on a website or across several websites for similar marketing purposes.
To provide the best experiences, we use technologies like cookies to store and/or access device information. Consenting to these technologies will allow us to process data such as browsing behaviour or unique IDs on this site. Not consenting or withdrawing consent, may adversely affect certain features and functions.
