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	<title>* HELEN NYAMBURA-MWAURA, Author at The Namibian</title>
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	<link>https://www.namibian.com.na/africa-chokes-telecoms-growth-by-hoarding-spectrum/</link>
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	<title>* HELEN NYAMBURA-MWAURA, Author at The Namibian</title>
	<link>https://www.namibian.com.na/africa-chokes-telecoms-growth-by-hoarding-spectrum/</link>
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		<title>Africa chokes telecoms growth by hoarding spectrum</title>
		<link>https://www.namibian.com.na/africa-chokes-telecoms-growth-by-hoarding-spectrum/</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[* HELEN NYAMBURA-MWAURA]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Mon, 26 Nov 2012 00:00:01 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[Front Page]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">https:/africa-chokes-telecoms-growth-by-hoarding-spectrum/</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[<p>CAPE TOWN - African governments are stifling telecoms development by failing to sell more bandwidth to mobile phone operators, a mistake that could undermine growth in the world's poorest continent. </p>
<p>The post <a href="https://www.namibian.com.na/africa-chokes-telecoms-growth-by-hoarding-spectrum/">Africa chokes telecoms growth by hoarding spectrum</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.namibian.com.na">The Namibian</a>.</p>
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										<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>CAPE TOWN &#8211; African governments are stifling telecoms development by failing to sell more bandwidth to mobile phone operators, a mistake that could undermine growth in the world&#8217;s poorest continent. </p>
<p>After an explosion in the use of mobiles for phone calls, consumers in countries such as South Africa, Nigeria and Kenya are increasingly using them to access the Internet.That requires more spectrum, the range of radio waves set aside for cellular networks. But many governments in Sub-Saharan Africa lack the motivation, know-how and money needed to auction more bandwidth to meet the demand, industry participants and analysts say, which bodes ill for economies.The World Bank estimates that with every 10% growth in broadband penetration, African economies grow by a corresponding 1,4%.&#8217;The governments do not know how to release it and do not see the importance of prioritising the release of spectrum,&#8217; said Peter Lyons, a director of spectrum policy at GSMA, a UK-based mobile industry body. There is little fixed-line broadband infrastructure to carry the rising data traffic on the continent, so the growing demand for Internet connection can only be delivered through mobile networks. More than half of Internet activity is on handsets.Mobile data is expected to grow by 46% annually over the next four years, according to GSMA. It also expects Africa&#8217;s 35 million 3G connections to grow nearly five-fold to 160 million by 2016. &#8216;Governments and regulators are not prepared for the coming growth because they have been dragging their feet in allocating spectrum to support the mobile data networks,&#8217; said Lyons.Many African authorities lack the expertise to run auctions for spectrum licences. The few engineers and lawyers that have telecoms experience are already working for the mobile phone firms and many governments can&#8217;t afford to hire advisors from abroad.Even when they are in a position to seek outside help, red tape can get in the way. In South Africa, the continent&#8217;s most advanced economy, telecoms regulator Icasa has to get the communications minister&#8217;s permission to recruit foreign experts. One such request sat on the desk of successive ministers for years. Icasa says the process of licensing additional spectrum started last year, but was delayed because it had to consider a policy paper from the minister.&#8217;Icasa will continue with its process as soon as the policy direction has been concluded and published,&#8217; a spokesman for the regulator said.Dobek Pater, a telecoms analyst at South Africa-based consultancy Africa Analysis, said another problem is that some governments need to find out who holds what spectrum and whether it can be reallocated from other users, such as the military or analog television.&#8217;There are spectrum constraints that we have been running into in most countries across Africa,&#8217; Pater said. Some analysts say many African governments do not fully appreciate the correlation between mobile growth and economic expansion.GSMA calculates that if the top six markets released new spectrum, it would create US$34 billion in economic growth between 2015-2020, which could translate into 15 million jobs.In 2011, the industry accounted for 4,5% of Sub-Saharan GDP and contributed US$32 billion to economies there, including US$12 billion in tax revenue, GSMA said.&#8217;The mobile networks are not necessarily cows to be milked but a horse to pull the nation forward. And if that horse cannot breathe, it cannot move forward as fast as it could,&#8217; GSMA&#8217;s Lyons said. &#8211; Nampa-Reuters</p>
<p>The post <a href="https://www.namibian.com.na/africa-chokes-telecoms-growth-by-hoarding-spectrum/">Africa chokes telecoms growth by hoarding spectrum</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.namibian.com.na">The Namibian</a>.</p>
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		<title>SA black shareholders sell Absa stake</title>
		<link>https://www.namibian.com.na/sa-black-shareholders-sell-absa-stake/</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[* HELEN NYAMBURA-MWAURA]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Fri, 12 Oct 2012 00:00:01 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[Front Page]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">https:/sa-black-shareholders-sell-absa-stake/</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[<p>JOHANNESBURG - A group of black South African shareholders has sold a stake in Absa Group, the country's biggest retail bank, worth about US$370 million, exiting one of the post-apartheid era's high profile 'black empowerment' deals.</p>
<p>The post <a href="https://www.namibian.com.na/sa-black-shareholders-sell-absa-stake/">SA black shareholders sell Absa stake</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.namibian.com.na">The Namibian</a>.</p>
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										<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>JOHANNESBURG &#8211; A group of black South African shareholders has sold a stake in Absa Group, the country&#8217;s biggest retail bank, worth about US$370 million, exiting one of the post-apartheid era&#8217;s high profile &#8216;black empowerment&#8217; deals.</p>
<p>Batho Bonke Capital, a consortium of black investors that includes Absa employees, took a 10 percent stake in the bank in 2004 to help it meet government targets on black ownership.On Wednesday it sold most of its remaining holding in Absa, said Yolanda Cuba, a director for the group.&#8217;Batho Bonke is in the process of disposing its shares,&#8217; she said, confirming an earlier report.Absa is majority owned by Britain&#8217;s Barclays Plc.Batho Bonke, led by prominent politician and businessman Tokyo Sexwale, sold 24,6 million shares &#8211; a roughly 3,4 percent stake in Absa &#8211; at N$132,50, according to one Batho Bonke adviser.That represents a 4,3 percent discount to Absa&#8217;s closing price on Tuesday, and values the transaction at around N$3,26 billion.It is the fourth-largest equity deal in sub-Saharan Africa this year, according to Thomson Reuters data.Merrill Lynch and RMB Morgan Stanley acted as joint bookrunners on the deal.Batho Bonke, whose name means &#8216;All the People&#8217; in two South African languages, held just under four percent in Absa before Wednesday&#8217;s sale, according to Thomson Reuters data.A remaining 0,4 percent of unsold shares are held by Batho Bonke members who are Absa employees, said the adviser, who declined to be identified.EMPOWERMENT DEALSSouth African companies have used &#8216;black empowerment&#8217; deals &#8211; loaning shares to black investors or selling stakes at a discount &#8211; to increase their black ownership and meet government targets to help those disadvantaged by the apartheid regime.Some senior members of the ruling ANC have become multi-millionaires through such deals. Batho Bonke&#8217;s Sexwale &#8211; who has been seen as a potential South African president &#8211; founded Mvelaphanda Group, an early black investment group.The sale was done through a book build with 55 institutional investors, said the adviser. One billion rand of the proceeds will go to settle debt, with the remainder going to shareholders, the adviser said.It was not immediately clear if Absa would need to do another black economic empowerment (BEE) deal following the exit of the Batho Bonke shareholders, although one analyst said it was probably unlikely.&#8217;The way I understand it, it&#8217;s a once-empowered-forever-empowered kind of scenario so I don&#8217;t think they need to do another BEE deal because they have already done it,&#8217; said the analyst, who declined to be identified.Shares of Absa fell 2,8 percent to N$134,60, although the analyst said the reaction was overblown, given that shares were being sold directly to institutional investors, not on the open market. &#8211; Nampa-Reuters</p>
<p>The post <a href="https://www.namibian.com.na/sa-black-shareholders-sell-absa-stake/">SA black shareholders sell Absa stake</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.namibian.com.na">The Namibian</a>.</p>
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		<title>MTN in talks with US to move money out of Iran</title>
		<link>https://www.namibian.com.na/mtn-in-talks-with-us-to-move-money-out-of-iran/</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[* HELEN NYAMBURA-MWAURA]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Wed, 15 Aug 2012 00:00:01 +0000</pubDate>
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					<description><![CDATA[<p>JOHANNESBURG - MTN Group, Africa's top telecom, is in talks with South African and US officials about moving money out of its Iran business, as tightening sanctions have prevented it repatriating funds, its chief executive said.</p>
<p>The post <a href="https://www.namibian.com.na/mtn-in-talks-with-us-to-move-money-out-of-iran/">MTN in talks with US to move money out of Iran</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.namibian.com.na">The Namibian</a>.</p>
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										<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>JOHANNESBURG &#8211; MTN Group, Africa&#8217;s top telecom, is in talks with South African and US officials about moving money out of its Iran business, as tightening sanctions have prevented it repatriating funds, its chief executive said.</p>
<p>Johannesburg-based MTN, which reported a 14 per cent rise in first-half profit, also said a likely devaluation of the Iranian rial &#8211; another result of US-led pressure on Tehran &#8211; could have a &#8216;severe impact&#8217; on second-half results.The mobile operator owns 49 per cent of MTN Irancell, which contributes nearly ten per cent of its total revenue, but has become an increasing headache, with the potential to tarnish MTN&#8217;s image as a post-apartheid success story.MTN is being sued by rival Turkcell for US$4,2 billion in a US court, saying it used bribery and lobbied South Africa to support Tehran&#8217;s military in return for a 2005 cellular licence in Iran that was originally awarded to the Turkish firm.MTN has denied the charges and called Turkcell&#8217;s demands &#8216;extortionate&#8217;.Chief executive Sifiso Dabengwa told reporters after MTN&#8217;s first-half results last week that it had been unable to take cash out of the business for at least six months.&#8217;There is general acceptance that we should not be punished. US sanctions should not have unintended consequences for non-US companies,&#8217; Dabengwa said.Washington is putting increased pressure on Iran over its nuclear programme and appears to be cracking down on non-US companies with ties to the country.New York regulators last week accused British bank Standard Chartered of scheming with the Iranian government and hiding US$250 billion worth of transactions.Speaking in Cape Town last week, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton called on South Africa to use its long-standing links with Tehran to persuade Iran to reconsider its suspected pursuit of nuclear weapons.&#8217;South Africa can play an even greater role on issues like curbing Iran&#8217;s pursuit of nuclear weapons, or preventing nuclear materials from falling into the hands of terrorists,&#8217; Clinton said in a speech billed as the centrepiece of her 11-day Africa tour.RIAL WORRIES&#8217;The Iran issue is going to have a detrimental impact on MTN&#8217;s future in terms of revenues,&#8217; said Mervin Miemoukanda, a research analyst at consulting firm Frost &#038; Sullivan.&#8217;With all the uncertainty around Iran, the future is not bright in terms of revenues and subscribers.&#8217;MTN, which operates in 21 countries across Africa and the Middle East, will likely see its earnings squeezed if Iran devalues the rial, said Chief Financial Officer Nazir Patel.The currency has tumbled against the US dollar in free market dealings as traders bet on a devaluation in the official exchange rate. The central bank governor said recently a change to the government&#8217;s &#8216;reference rate&#8217; would be announced soon.&#8217;It is likely to have a severe impact on second-half earnings,&#8217; Patel said at the earnings presentation.Despite the complications of sanctions, Iran continues to be a major money-spinner for MTN. The mobile operator reported a 14 per cent rise in adjusted headline earnings per share, as growth in Iran, together with South Africa and Ghana, helped overcome tough competition in the key Nigeria market.Revenue from the Iran business jumped by 30 per cent in the six months to end-June, the company reported. Local subscribers increased more than ten per cent, to more than 38 million. Iran now accounts for 22 per cent of MTN&#8217;s 176 million subscribers.&#8217;I don&#8217;t think they are prepared to lose 20 per cent of their customer base. They will find ways of continuing to operate in Iran &#8211; even if it&#8217;s tough,&#8217; said Frost &#038; Sullivan&#8217;s Miemoukanda. &#8211; Nampa-Reuters</p>
<p>The post <a href="https://www.namibian.com.na/mtn-in-talks-with-us-to-move-money-out-of-iran/">MTN in talks with US to move money out of Iran</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.namibian.com.na">The Namibian</a>.</p>
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		<title>Absa looks to Africa as mortgages sour</title>
		<link>https://www.namibian.com.na/absa-looks-to-africa-as-mortgages-sour/</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[* HELEN NYAMBURA-MWAURA]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Mon, 30 Jul 2012 00:00:01 +0000</pubDate>
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					<description><![CDATA[<p>JOHANNESBURG - Absa Group, the South African unit of Barclays, is looking for Sub-Saharan acquisitions to boost future profit after reporting a drop in first-half earnings on Friday, hit by souring mortgages at home.</p>
<p>The post <a href="https://www.namibian.com.na/absa-looks-to-africa-as-mortgages-sour/">Absa looks to Africa as mortgages sour</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.namibian.com.na">The Namibian</a>.</p>
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										<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>JOHANNESBURG &#8211; Absa Group, the South African unit of Barclays, is looking for Sub-Saharan acquisitions to boost future profit after reporting a drop in first-half earnings on Friday, hit by souring mortgages at home.</p>
<p>Absa, South Africa&#8217;s third-largest bank and its biggest retail lender, has been slow to capitalise on Barclays&#8217; wide presence on the continent, trailing behind fast-moving rival Standard Bank.It is now scouring east Africa for a possible acquisition early next year and is scheduled to start insurance operations in Zambia in August, after launching similar operations in Mozambique and Botswana.&#8217;East Africa is our next focus area and we are evaluating acquisition opportunities in this region with a target date of first quarter 2013,&#8217; chief executive Maria Ramos said at the bank&#8217;s first-half results presentation in suburban Johannesburg.In its home market, Absa faces a more sombre outlook. First-half profit fell by six percent, hit by ballooning bad debts from mortgages, and earnings are likely to remain under pressure given slow economic growth.Absa expects that a central bank rate cut earlier this month will trim about R190 million from its top line.Absa, the first of South Africa&#8217;s top four banks to report earnings this season, saw a sharp increase in write-offs in April and May, mainly around souring mortgages.It has since taken a more conservative lending strategy, said chief financial officer David Hodnett, adding that would affect its earnings from fees in its mainstay retail segment.&#8217;The bad debt legacy issues have caught up with them,&#8217; said Royce Long of asset manager Obsidian Capital.&#8217;They are not as aggressive on lending as other banks and it&#8217;s coming through in their numbers.&#8217;South Africa&#8217;s large banks have about 60 000 distressed properties between them, Hodnett said.But unlike Absa, analysts say rivals Standard Bank, FirstRand and Nedbank are unlikely to post profit declines as they have set aside adequate provisions. &#8211; Nampa-Reuters</p>
<p>The post <a href="https://www.namibian.com.na/absa-looks-to-africa-as-mortgages-sour/">Absa looks to Africa as mortgages sour</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.namibian.com.na">The Namibian</a>.</p>
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		<title>Politics cloud fate of South Africa&#8217;s Telkom</title>
		<link>https://www.namibian.com.na/politics-cloud-fate-of-south-africas-telkom/</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[* HELEN NYAMBURA-MWAURA]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Mon, 25 Jun 2012 00:00:01 +0000</pubDate>
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		<guid isPermaLink="false">https:/politics-cloud-fate-of-south-africas-telkom/</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[<p>JOHANNESBURG - The future of South African telecommunications firm Telkom may depend on whether the left-leaning ruling African National Congress (ANC) trusts government more to build out internet infrastructure than the private sector.</p>
<p>The post <a href="https://www.namibian.com.na/politics-cloud-fate-of-south-africas-telkom/">Politics cloud fate of South Africa&#8217;s Telkom</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.namibian.com.na">The Namibian</a>.</p>
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										<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>JOHANNESBURG &#8211; The future of South African telecommunications firm Telkom may depend on whether the left-leaning ruling African National Congress (ANC) trusts government more to build out internet infrastructure than the private sector.</p>
<p>In a country with one of the world&#8217;s highest ratios of income disparity, the ANC has argued that companies trying to maximise profits could overlook the millions of poor lacking services &#8211; including broadband internet connections.The party and its labour allies in the recent months have tried to thwart some high-profile foreign acquisitions of stakes in local firms, saying the moves could lead to job cuts in a country battling chronic unemployment.But on paper, Telkom had a nearly perfect partner to increase connectivity in Africa&#8217;s biggest economy in South Korea&#8217;s KT Corp, a fixed-line operator embracing mobile technology and looking to acquire a 20 per cent stake.KT helped turn South Korea into the world&#8217;s most wired country with more than 90 per cent of households having broadband internet connection.&#8217;The government is schizophrenic because on one hand, it is a shareholder in Telkom, so it wants Telkom to maximise its profit because it gains as a shareholder but also from the tax base,&#8217; said Dobek Pater, a telecoms analyst at consultancy Africa Analysis.&#8217;On the other hand, it still views Telkom as a vehicle to achieve part of its information technology policy, one of the critical vehicles to drive that policy forward.&#8217;The ANC holds a major policy meeting next week and has said in planning documents it wants greater government control of the economy and to spend tens of billions of dollars on infrastructure to spur growth, increase employment and alleviate poverty.Telkom shares tumbled to an eight-year low this month after the government blocked KT&#8217;s plans to acquire the 20 per cent stake.&#8217;Cabinet didn&#8217;t support the transaction,&#8217; Minister in the Presidency Collins Chabane told reporters. He did not offer an explanation but others officials said the deal could compromise Telkom&#8217;s position as &#8216;a strategic asset&#8217;.The government owns more than a majority stake jointly with the state-run pension fund. The deal with the South Korean firm would have diluted the holding to less than 50 per cent.But shares jumped last week on a report the ANC would consider nationalising Telkom at its policy meeting and placing the internet build-up in its infrastructure plans.&#8217;Government&#8217;s got a lot of influence on this economy already. They obviously think they are better placed to roll out the Telkom infrastructure across the country better than anyone else,&#8217; said Sasha Naryshkine, an analyst at Vestact.JOB CUTSBut state-run companies such as logistics groups Transnet and airline South African Airways have been struggling for years with massive debt and management troubles, requiring tariff hikes or cash injections to remain afloat.&#8217;The ANC isn&#8217;t suspicious of private business per se, but it thinks the state is better placed to drive development and empowerment,&#8217; said Peter Attard Montalto, an emerging market economist at Nomura.&#8217;Government already has very hefty influence over Telkom and wouldn&#8217;t need to nationalise it to obtain policy objectives.&#8217;South Africa has placed hurdles in the way of past mergers.Talks between MTN and India&#8217;s Bharti Airtel for a US$24 billion merger that would have formed the world&#8217;s third-largest operator fell through when Pretoria intervened to block the deal, preferring the flagship corporate kept its national character.Japan&#8217;s Kansai Paint and the US retailer Wal-Mart have both faced conditions in their bids for local companies.Analysts say the government&#8217;s repeated meddling in the cross-border deals could tarnish its reputation among global investors as being open to foreign investment.ANC-controlled governments have reassured investors that taking ownership of private companies is not part of its policy. It has also reassured its supporters it would not back moves leading to job cuts.Telkom employs about 23 000 people but only needs about half of that, Pater of Africa Analysis said, adding KT would probably want to cut a bloated workforce.Internet penetration is 17 per cent in South Africa, lower than rivals on the continent including Nigeria at 29 per cent and Kenya at 25 per cent, according to a survey released last month by World Wide Worx.The biggest constraint has been cost, with Telkom fixed-line connections too expensive for the country&#8217;s poor and wireless services more costly than in other Sub-Saharan states, it said.The question remains on what is the best way to bring low-cost Internet connections to the majority of the people.&#8217;The main issue is whether the government looks at Telkom from the point of view of what&#8217;s best for Telkom as a company versus what&#8217;s best for South Africa as a country,&#8217; Pater said. &#8211; Nampa-Reuters</p>
<p>The post <a href="https://www.namibian.com.na/politics-cloud-fate-of-south-africas-telkom/">Politics cloud fate of South Africa&#8217;s Telkom</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.namibian.com.na">The Namibian</a>.</p>
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		<title>IMF cuts sub-Saharan Africa 2012 growth forecasts</title>
		<link>https://www.namibian.com.na/imf-cuts-sub-saharan-africa-2012-growth-forecasts/</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[* HELEN NYAMBURA-MWAURA]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Tue, 15 May 2012 00:00:01 +0000</pubDate>
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					<description><![CDATA[<p>JOHANNESBURG - Sub-Saharan Africa's economies will expand at a slower rate in 2012 than earlier projected, undermined by global financial distress and a sluggish recovery in South Africa, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said yesterday.</p>
<p>The post <a href="https://www.namibian.com.na/imf-cuts-sub-saharan-africa-2012-growth-forecasts/">IMF cuts sub-Saharan Africa 2012 growth forecasts</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.namibian.com.na">The Namibian</a>.</p>
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										<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>JOHANNESBURG &#8211; Sub-Saharan Africa&#8217;s economies will expand at a slower rate in 2012 than earlier projected, undermined by global financial distress and a sluggish recovery in South Africa, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said yesterday.</p>
<p>Africa&#8217;s growth has remained above five per cent in the last eight years, underpinned by strong prices for its natural resources, better governance and growing disposable incomes.In its latest Regional Economic Outlook, the IMF forecast 5,4 per cent growth this year from 5,1 per cent in 2011. Its previous projections were 5,9 and 5,5 per cent respectively.&#8217;The growth outlook for 2012 is somewhat less favourable than outlined in the October 2011 Regional Economic Outlook, with the growth projection for 2012 now cut by almost one-half a percentage point, driven in large part by the weaker economic outlook for South Africa,&#8217; the IMF said.Growth in Africa&#8217;s economic powerhouse was likely to be a relatively modest 2,7 per cent this year and 3,4 per cent in the next, held back by its reliance on trade with Europe and close links with western financial markets, the Fund said.However, an upturn in drought-hit east Africa, fresh output in new natural resource producers such as Niger and Sierra Leone and recovery in post-conflict nations such as Ivory Coast should help boost the continent&#8217;s economic activity in 2012.Sierra Leone and Niger could post outstanding growth of 35,9 and 14 per cent respectively. Big oil-producers Nigeria and Angola will also be major drivers of the expansion.Economies reliant on non-renewable resources are experiencing faster growth but are also suffering the worst volatility in exports, revenues and GDP expansion, the IMF said.FEAR OF CONTAGIONThe fund also said the rapid expansion of pan-African banks may be cause for concern in countries with poor regulation.Banks such as South Africa&#8217;s Standard Bank, Togo-based Ecobank and Kenya&#8217;s KCB have been widening their reach, increasing competition in their new markets while improving technology and expertise.&#8217;But rapid expansion of these groups may, in some cases, have outpaced supervisory capacity. Under adverse economic conditions across the region, these banking grounds could become a channel for cross-border contagion,&#8217; the IMF said.Countries with fast-expanding loan books should prioritise strengthening the resilience of their financial sectors, the IMF said, pushing for cross-border supervision in the region.&#8217;Effective mechanisms for limiting cross-border contagion, such as ring-fencing arrangements aimed at preserving subsidiaries&#8217; resources could be added to a review of existing banking-resolution frameworks,&#8217; the IMF said.Other than Nigeria, most African banking systems have remained resilient in the face of global financial stress due to their limited exposure to the global financial system, although they have suffered because of a drop in trade levels.However, the IMF also cited Zambia as an example of an open frontier economy that can suffer a commercial credit crunch when foreign interest in sovereign bonds dries up and local banks switch to being solely financiers for the government.-Nampa-Reuters</p>
<p>The post <a href="https://www.namibian.com.na/imf-cuts-sub-saharan-africa-2012-growth-forecasts/">IMF cuts sub-Saharan Africa 2012 growth forecasts</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.namibian.com.na">The Namibian</a>.</p>
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		<title>Swamped by debt, South Africans battle to stay afloat</title>
		<link>https://www.namibian.com.na/swamped-by-debt-south-africans-battle-to-stay-afloat/</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[* HELEN NYAMBURA-MWAURA]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Mon, 26 Mar 2012 00:00:01 +0000</pubDate>
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					<description><![CDATA[<p>JOHANNESBURG - For years South Africa's banks never realised they could make money out of millions of low-paid workers, but now they can't stop - just ask Salma.</p>
<p>The post <a href="https://www.namibian.com.na/swamped-by-debt-south-africans-battle-to-stay-afloat/">Swamped by debt, South Africans battle to stay afloat</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.namibian.com.na">The Namibian</a>.</p>
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										<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>JOHANNESBURG &#8211; For years South Africa&#8217;s banks never realised they could make money out of millions of low-paid workers, but now they can&#8217;t stop &#8211; just ask Salma.</p>
<p>After losing her husband and then her business, the 39-year-old mother of one is overwhelmed by a mortgage, car finance, six unsecured loans and debt on her four credit cards.That totals N$120 000, equal to ten-and-a-half months of the salary she earned before her business as a dance instructor all but collapsed.&#8217;If I knew what was coming, I wouldn&#8217;t have spent so much on my cards, no chance,&#8217; said Salma, who asked that she be identified only by her first name.&#8217;It is emotionally disabling. I stress so much that I actually get physically ill.&#8217;After settling her ex-husband&#8217;s unpaid rent and finding a lawyer for her jailed drug-abusing brother, she punished her credit cards buying presents for friends.Salma is one of 6 000 South Africans who apply every month for counselling to help handle their debts, according to the country&#8217;s credit regulator.As incomes rise across Africa, consumers in the continent&#8217;s richest country are choking on debt, thanks to high unemployment, slow economic growth and a culture that prizes high-end brands in everything from cars to shoes. As elsewhere, Mercedes, Audi and BMW are high among the aspirational choices.South African household debt stands at 75 per cent of disposable income, according to the central bank, and experts worry it could get worse as banks push into unsecured loans.Until recently, unsecured lending &#8211; where loans are not backed by collateral and therefore riskier for the bank and more expensive for the borrower &#8211; was dominated by smaller South African lenders such as Capitec Bank and African Bank Investments.After the end of apartheid nearly two decades ago, Capitec and African Bank carved out a profitable niche by focusing on black communities that had been ignored by bigger banks.Now competitors Standard Bank, Absa, FirstRand and Nedbank are also looking for a slice of the high-margin business.PROFITABLE, POPULAR&#8217;Unsecured lending is quite popular because it is very profitable for the banks,&#8217; said Nondas Nicolaides, a senior analyst at ratings agency Moody&#8217;s.While banks charge margins pegged to the nine per cent prime rate for loans with collateral, unsecured credit can return up to 32 per cent. Banks can also charge loan initiation fees, monthly service charges and credit insurance.Consumer credit has remained weak since a recession in 2009, but unsecured personal loans have grown rapidly. Such loans grew by 53 per cent in third quarter of last year from the same period a year earlier. Mortgages, in comparison, were up four per cent.The sharp growth in unsecured lending could be worrisome for banks, because they may be lending to some clients who are less than creditworthy, Pieter du Toit, the chief executive of FNB Loans, told Reuters in an interview.&#8217;We are worried that unsecured debt has grown a bit too much, but it is because people are struggling to find other ways of financing.&#8217;His bank, the retail arm of South Africa&#8217;s second-biggest lender FirstRand, nonetheless plans to advance at least 20 per cent more unsecured loans this year.While South Africa&#8217;s Reserve Bank has been cautious about high debt levels, Governor Gill Marcus has said unsecured lending is still a small component of overall credit.GRINDING POVERTYDespite its relative wealth, South Africa is saddled with the legacy of its apartheid past: millions of blacks stuck in poverty and an official unemployment rate around 24 per cent.Those with jobs often support their extended families by paying for school fees, medical bills, and even funerals, which tend to be expensive multi-day events for South Africans.One 43-year-old mother of three said she can no longer afford to service loans totalling N$25 000 after losing her N$2 300 a month job stacking shelves for a food company.&#8217;All I want is help to pay this because I am not working anymore now,&#8217; she said in Diepkloof, a low-income neighbourhood in Soweto, where the National Credit Regulator had pitched camp to educate residents on debtor rights.Experts say that some of South Africa&#8217;s poor, traditionally excluded from the financial system, may not understand the dangers of high interest or the details of their loans before taking on debt.The Soweto mother, for example, was not made aware whether or not her loans were insured against a job loss.Some debtors hold as many as 13 credit accounts. Even with 10 credit bureaux in South Africa, the highly indebted still manage to get new loans due to lax background checks.&#8217;DEBT IS COLOUR-BLIND&#8217;The debt crisis has inspired a reality show on South African television. On the national broadcaster&#8217;s &#8216;In Debt&#8217; programme, &#8216;debt doctor&#8217; Thoko Nchabaleng, a registered debt counsellor, doles out advice on avoiding excessive borrowing.In one episode she tells guest William Ramotsela &#8211; his extended family&#8217;s sole breadwinner &#8211; to cut back remittances to relatives in his rural homeland of Limpopo.With two children of his own, Ramotsela also had to support his parents, five sisters and their six children. He had six personal loans, two credit cards and a home loan to service, which left him N$15 000 rand short each month.The problem is also spreading to wealthier South Africans, due to a growing culture of consumption, Nchabaleng said.&#8217;It&#8217;s about keeping up with the Kunenes,&#8217; she said, a reference to a well-known ex-convict turned entrepreneur famous for champagne parties and eating sushi off bikini-clad women.&#8217;Debt is colour blind. Whether you are black or Indian, you look at your peers and how they live and you want to live like them,&#8217; said Nchabaleng in an interview with Reuters at Johannesburg&#8217;s upscale Sandton City mall, as bag-laden shoppers walked in and out of high-end boutiques.Higher-income debtors are the hardest to reform, said Nomsa Motshegare, the acting head of the National Credit Regulator, as they don&#8217;t want to give up their expensive lifestyles.&#8217;We find that a lot of the people who are over-indebted are people with two houses, two cars. They drive the BMWs, the Mercedes. Those are the guys who don&#8217;t sleep at night, trust me.&#8217;&#8217;BURIES YOU UNDER&#8217;Those who have tapped out formal credit lines turn to &#8216;mashonisas&#8217; the illegal loan sharks who first sprung up during the apartheid era, when blacks did not have access to credit.Their services are still popular, despite their often violent means of collection.Some mashonisas &#8211; which in Zulu translates to &#8216;one who buries you under&#8217; &#8211; confiscate debtors&#8217; ATM cards and only give them back after withdrawing their cut at the end of the month.Lucky borrowers have lost their furniture to mashonisas, while the less fortunate end up as victims of violence.Not all mashonisas cut the typical image of a loan shark. Nobuhle, a petite 43-year-old woman in a short flowery sundress, is chatty and friendly but admits she can be tough on her customers.The mother of one lends up to N$1 000 and expects settlement with 50 per cent interest seven days after the next pay day.Those late in repaying, usually a month after the money was due, are forced to pay double.&#8217;They don&#8217;t give up borrowing. They like cash,&#8217; she said, rubbing her thumb and index fingers together. &#8216;So far, business has been very good. I would be lying if I said business is bad.&#8217;Nobuhle already has 15 repeat clients and is making double what she earned working in retail.Would she use violent means against defaulting debtors? She won&#8217;t say, although she will do &#8216;everything&#8217; to get her money back.Nchabaleng, the debt doctor, said mashonisas are not the only ones making a killing.&#8217;We are fighting an ill practice where retail is cashing in, banks and unscrupulous lenders are cashing in,&#8217; she said.&#8217;Anyone that can take a chance is cashing in on the fact that people are now used to living with plastic money. It&#8217;s life. But I can tell you that they are dying inside.&#8217;-Nampa-Reuters</p>
<p>The post <a href="https://www.namibian.com.na/swamped-by-debt-south-africans-battle-to-stay-afloat/">Swamped by debt, South Africans battle to stay afloat</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.namibian.com.na">The Namibian</a>.</p>
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		<title>African telecoms bet big on next-generation 4G</title>
		<link>https://www.namibian.com.na/african-telecoms-bet-big-on-next-generation-4g/</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[* HELEN NYAMBURA-MWAURA]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Thu, 08 Dec 2011 00:00:01 +0000</pubDate>
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		<guid isPermaLink="false">https:/african-telecoms-bet-big-on-next-generation-4g/</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[<p>JOHANNESBURG - Africa-focused telecom companies are betting that next generation long-term evolution (LTE) technology will drive broadband penetration in the world's least developed and fastest growing internet market.</p>
<p>The post <a href="https://www.namibian.com.na/african-telecoms-bet-big-on-next-generation-4g/">African telecoms bet big on next-generation 4G</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.namibian.com.na">The Namibian</a>.</p>
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										<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>JOHANNESBURG &#8211; Africa-focused telecom companies are betting that next generation long-term evolution (LTE) technology will drive broadband penetration in the world&#8217;s least developed and fastest growing internet market.</p>
<p>LTE, also known as 4G, allows download speeds more than double those of current 3G technology, better reception in urban areas and coverage of previously hard-to-reach remote areas.While Africa&#8217;s mobile infrastructure lags well behind more developed markets &#8211; some African operators have yet to upgrade to even 3G yet &#8211; the continent&#8217;s biggest players are already testing 4G.The technological advances will be critical in Africa, where personal computers are still rare and most Internet access is via mobile phones.Telecoms research firm Informa sees at least six African markets migrating to LTE for the first time in 2012, along with 39 other countries globally. There are 28 LTE live networks across 17 markets worldwide.&#8217;As far as telecoms technologies are concerned, Africa has been moving very fast over the past five years, catching up very rapidly with the latest mobile technologies,&#8217; said Thecla Mbongue, an analyst at Informa.Pan-African operators MTN and Vodacom are piloting the technology in South Africa, and Kenya&#8217;s biggest player, Safaricom, is also testing in its market.Both Vodacom and Safaricom are units of Britain&#8217;s Vodafone Plc.According to a survey by industry body GSMA, Africa is the fastest-growing mobile phone market and will be home to 738 million handsets by the end of 2012.The rise of 3G has given millions of Africans internet access for the first time. The World Bank estimates that in Africa a ten per cent rise in broadband penetration is linked to a 1,3 per cent increase in economic growth.With some basic smartphones now selling for as little as US$50, operators see fast connections as the main edge in the race to tap increasingly tech-savvy users.Even small operators will have to adopt LTE or risk being left behind, said Dobek Pater, a telecoms analyst at consultancy Africa Analysis.&#8217;You don&#8217;t really have a choice. You have to think about deploying the strategy as well and hope that in time it will generate revenues to realise a return on investment.&#8217;MASSIVE INVESTMENTEricsson&#8217;s head for Sub-Saharan Africa says the company is in talks with MTN, Vodacom, and Bharti Airtel on commercial networks that could go live in 2012.&#8217;It&#8217;s a very hot topic on the agenda. The question is who will be the first one out and in what market?&#8217; Lars Linden told Reuters last month at a trade show.&#8217;Sooner or later everyone will jump on the train and it will become part of the telecommunications landscape,&#8217; Linden said.Internet user penetration was just 10,8 percent in Africa at the end of 2010, according to the International Telecommunication Union. That was a huge leap from 0,5 per cent a decade earlier.Initially, operators will deploy LTE in areas where it can generate the quickest profit. That will be small and medium-sized enterprises, according to Pater.But some industry players think it will take several more years before Africa sees widespread 4G, saying there is not yet a pressing reason for operators to make the huge investment, and as some governments have yet to allocate spectrum for LTE. &#8211; Nampa-Reuters</p>
<p>The post <a href="https://www.namibian.com.na/african-telecoms-bet-big-on-next-generation-4g/">African telecoms bet big on next-generation 4G</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.namibian.com.na">The Namibian</a>.</p>
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		<title>Standard readies Africa &#8216;war chest&#8217;</title>
		<link>https://www.namibian.com.na/standard-readies-africa-war-chest/</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[* HELEN NYAMBURA-MWAURA]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Mon, 15 Aug 2011 00:00:01 +0000</pubDate>
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		<guid isPermaLink="false">https:/standard-readies-africa-war-chest/</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[<p>JOHANNESBURG - Standard Bank posted an 11 per cent rise in half-year profit on Thursday on the back of cost controls and refocusing on its home market and said it was building up cash for possible Africa acquisitions.</p>
<p>The post <a href="https://www.namibian.com.na/standard-readies-africa-war-chest/">Standard readies Africa &#8216;war chest&#8217;</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.namibian.com.na">The Namibian</a>.</p>
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										<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>JOHANNESBURG &#8211; Standard Bank posted an 11 per cent rise in half-year profit on Thursday on the back of cost controls and refocusing on its home market and said it was building up cash for possible Africa acquisitions.</p>
<p>Africa&#8217;s biggest bank by assets benefits has been looking to rein in expenses after an expansion drive in emerging markets beyond Africa.This year it retooled its strategy to concentrate on the continent and sold down its stake in its Argentine unit last week.The proceeds from that deal and a similar sale in Russia in March will provide a &#8216;war chest&#8217; for possible Africa acquisitions, the bank&#8217;s chief executive told Reuters Insider in an interview.While lenders in Africa&#8217;s top economy have been hit by weak demand, Standard Bank, which is 20 per cent owned by Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC), is once again building its loan book.&#8217;The banking operations did phenomenally well, especially personal and business banking,&#8217; said Faizal Moolla, an analyst at Avior Research in Cape Town.&#8217;Unlike their peers, they are actually lending. They are doing the right things, they are using their capital to lend to consumers and corporates.&#8217;Banking assets increased for the first time in two years, with the loan portfolio increasing four per cent in the six months to end-June.That volume growth should translate into higher earnings from lending once interest rates eventually increase, and bigger revenue from fees as the bank wins more market share, Moolla said.Standard Bank recently agreed to sell most of its stake in its Argentine unit to ICBC for US$380 million. In March it sold its 36 per cent stake in Russia&#8217;s Troika Dialog to Sberbankfor US$372 million.Analysts had been waiting to see whether the bank would use the surplus capital to boost its dividend, but it kept its first-half payout flat at 141 cents.Chief executive Jacko Maree defended the decision not to raise dividends and said the proceeds from the sales afforded the bank capital for potential acquisitions on the continent.&#8217;That will give us a bit of a war chest,&#8217; Maree said.&#8217;We&#8217;ve said that we would very much like to look for acquisitions on the African continent.&#8217; &#8211; Nampa-Reuters</p>
<p>The post <a href="https://www.namibian.com.na/standard-readies-africa-war-chest/">Standard readies Africa &#8216;war chest&#8217;</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.namibian.com.na">The Namibian</a>.</p>
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		<title>PPC eyes Africa as core market weakens</title>
		<link>https://www.namibian.com.na/ppc-eyes-africa-as-core-market-weakens/</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[* HELEN NYAMBURA-MWAURA]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Wed, 18 May 2011 00:00:01 +0000</pubDate>
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					<description><![CDATA[<p>JOHANNESBURG - Pretoria Portland Cement, South Africa's biggest cement producer, is eyeing expansion elsewhere in Africa to counteract flagging sales at home, its chief executive said yesterday.</p>
<p>The post <a href="https://www.namibian.com.na/ppc-eyes-africa-as-core-market-weakens/">PPC eyes Africa as core market weakens</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.namibian.com.na">The Namibian</a>.</p>
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										<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>JOHANNESBURG &#8211; Pretoria Portland Cement, South Africa&#8217;s biggest cement producer, is eyeing expansion elsewhere in Africa to counteract flagging sales at home, its chief executive said yesterday.</p>
<p>PPC, which also reported a 38 per cent decline in first-half earnings, is under pressure in its home market of South Africa, where the construction industry is struggling to bounce back after a 2009 recession.South Africa was shielded from the worst of the global economic crisis because of big soccer World Cup projects, but the industry has yet to mount a full recovery.&#8217;We are looking at both organic and acquisitive opportunities and building greenfield plans,&#8217; Paul Stuiver, PPC Chief Executive told Reuters in an interview when asked about expansion outside of South Africa.&#8217;We have more than one project, aimed at more than one country, in terms of expanding our operations into other parts of Africa,&#8217; he said.PPC, which exports to Mozambique, Zambia, Democratic Republic of Congo and Angola, was considering options in southern and eastern parts of the continent, but western and northern Africa were not on the cards yet, he said. &#8211; Nampa-Reuters</p>
<p>The post <a href="https://www.namibian.com.na/ppc-eyes-africa-as-core-market-weakens/">PPC eyes Africa as core market weakens</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.namibian.com.na">The Namibian</a>.</p>
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		<title>Bumpy road in Africa for Europe&#8217;s telco vendors</title>
		<link>https://www.namibian.com.na/bumpy-road-in-africa-for-europes-telco-vendors/</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[* HELEN NYAMBURA-MWAURA]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Fri, 18 Feb 2011 00:00:01 +0000</pubDate>
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					<description><![CDATA[<p>NAIROBI - Chinese telecoms hardware and network makers are biting off bigger chunks of African business and are likely to overthrow hitherto dominant European vendors in a region with mouthwateringly low penetration rates.</p>
<p>The post <a href="https://www.namibian.com.na/bumpy-road-in-africa-for-europes-telco-vendors/">Bumpy road in Africa for Europe&#8217;s telco vendors</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.namibian.com.na">The Namibian</a>.</p>
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										<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>NAIROBI &#8211; Chinese telecoms hardware and network makers are biting off bigger chunks of African business and are likely to overthrow hitherto dominant European vendors in a region with mouthwateringly low penetration rates.</p>
<p>While in the past they might have brought unreliable technology and a handbook only in Chinese, the firms are leveraging on a pool of skilled labour and government loans to dislodge traditional vendors.&#8217;It is not good news for the traditional vendors,&#8217; says Dobek Pater, telecoms analyst and partner at research firm Africa Analysis.China&#8217;s main telecoms gear makers Huawei Technologies and ZTE are rapidly taking business from European vendors such as Ericsson, Nokia Siemens Network and Alcatel-Lucent.Chinese vendors&#8217; initial market entry strategy was hinged on low priced offerings, often to state-run operators, but the companies have reinvented themselves by throwing billions of dollars into research and development and are now often ahead of the curve with new technologies.Stringent testing by global operators such as Vodafone has seen the Chinese vendors become the approved suppliers of almost all core, access and transmission infrastructure in Africa.Analysts say Chinese vendors are also willing to bend the rules to provide more cost-effective solutions for emerging markets.&#8217;Chinese vendors have mastered doing business in Africa the African way, if we can put it that way,&#8217; said Tinyiko Mavoni, chief executive at South Africa&#8217;s Mavoni Technologies.&#8217;Chinese managers are largely shielded from facing the consequences that their western counterparts would have to face if they are found to have breached corporate ethics and governance principles to secure contracts in Africa.&#8217;SWEET DEALSChina&#8217;s export-oriented growth strategy has supported its companies. In March 2009, China Development Bank agreed to provide ZTE with a US$15 billion credit line, according to Simon Schaefer, an analyst at Johannesburg-based Frontier Advisory.To avoid rankling western competitors, China is now lending directly to African governments or operators, but the money comes with the proviso that it is spent on Chinese products.The European Union this month dropped an inquiry into the subsidy of Chinese firms after Belgium&#8217;s Option withdrew its complaint after reaching a cooperation agreement with Huawei.The Chinese companies deploy skilled personnel to build new networks in numbers that few western vendors can match, and often offer a financing deal.Pater from Africa Analysis said Huawei ranked itself in the top three on money generated from operators.&#8217;They estimate that by 2014 they would be in the number one position in equipment and building networks,&#8217; he said.FRINGE PLAYERSThe era of acquisitions and mergers of established European and US-based vendors in the mid 2000s resulted in a loss of strategic focus as the new companies tried to settle, says Simon Lee, head of Farwell Consultants.Up until that point the Chinese were fringe players, and the general perception was that they were cheap and unreliable.&#8217;The Chinese companies were not going to pack up their bags and go home. They saw &#8230; the general confusion of the established vendors and went full blast on a new strategy to gain respect and confidence globally,&#8217; Lee said.&#8217;From 2008 until last year they were picking up coveted contracts and even swapping out equipment from operators who had had long-standing relationships with their incumbent vendor.&#8217;Chinese firms are also pushing the boundaries with handsets and personal devices but have some way to go to match the aesthetics and ease of use of established makers.Nokia and Samsung remain the dominant players in Africa, and the Blackberry is increasingly popular among the upwardly mobile. However, mobile phones recycled in China or of Chinese origin are making an entry, according to Fola Odufuwa, an Africa-focused telecoms consultant.It is in the broadband USB modem market where Huawei and ZTE head the pack in many African countries and where analysts see some of the choicest opportunities.Africa had a mobile penetration rate of only 41 per cent, compared with 76 per cent globally, while the broadband penetration rate on the continent was negligible, statistics from the UN agency International Telecommunication Union.As long as the Chinese vendors continue to provide quality, competitively priced equipment that is set up in a relatively short period of time, they will be the suppliers of choice.&#8221;The rise of Chinese Vendors in Africa is [nothing] short of a miracle,&#8221; said Mavoni. &#8211; Nampa-Reuters</p>
<p>The post <a href="https://www.namibian.com.na/bumpy-road-in-africa-for-europes-telco-vendors/">Bumpy road in Africa for Europe&#8217;s telco vendors</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.namibian.com.na">The Namibian</a>.</p>
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		<title>Kenya to change monetary policy framework</title>
		<link>https://www.namibian.com.na/kenya-to-change-monetary-policy-framework/</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[* HELEN NYAMBURA-MWAURA]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Wed, 01 Dec 2010 00:00:01 +0000</pubDate>
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					<description><![CDATA[<p>NAIROBI - Kenya's central bank said yesterday it would be revising its monetary policy targets after signs that two years of monetary easing had lowered commercial lending rates and increased loan volumes.</p>
<p>The post <a href="https://www.namibian.com.na/kenya-to-change-monetary-policy-framework/">Kenya to change monetary policy framework</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.namibian.com.na">The Namibian</a>.</p>
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										<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>NAIROBI &#8211; Kenya&#8217;s central bank said yesterday it would be revising its monetary policy targets after signs that two years of monetary easing had lowered commercial lending rates and increased loan volumes.</p>
<p>Central Bank of Kenya Governor Njuguna Ndung&#8217;u said that although the financial sector was deepening, there was scope for banks to raise credit further.<br />
 The bank&#8217;s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) cut its benchmark lending rate by 300 basis points between late 2008 and July this year.<br />
 It has since left the rate unchanged at six per cent, saying growth is on track, inflationary risk is minimal and credit is growing.<br />
 &#8216;The market is deepening very fast. Everybody is bringing back money into the market, it is improving the transmission mechanism of monetary policy. We have to revise our framework in line with that,&#8217; Ndung&#8217;u told a press conference.<br />
 &#8216;The stance is that we want to consolidate and stabilise the gains we are seeing. That is why we are not changing the CBR.&#8217;<br />
 Loans increased by 34,8 billion shillings in October, four per cent higher than in August, and represented 70 per cent of gross deposits. Non-performing loans accounted for 1,82 per cent of total lending, from 2,93 per cent in January, the MPC said.<br />
 Commercial lending rates were responding to policy with average rates coming down, especially with medium-sized banks, it said. Middle-tier banks were loaning money at an average 13,17 per cent in October, down from 15,02 per cent in May.<br />
 These, however, still left room for a lot of improvement, Ndung&#8217;u told a news conference.<br />
 &#8216;What we would like to see is higher lending, more money going into the market but at lower prices. Lending rates must come down, we want to see lending rates that are commensurate with returns on investments and secondly, also following the decline in inflation,&#8217; he said.<br />
 Inflation declined to 3,09 per cent in October from 4,7 per cent in January. &#8211; Nampa-Reuters
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<p>The post <a href="https://www.namibian.com.na/kenya-to-change-monetary-policy-framework/">Kenya to change monetary policy framework</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.namibian.com.na">The Namibian</a>.</p>
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