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/ 16 January 2008
Press-freedom groups agree that an increase in arrests, intimidation and harassment of journalists in Niger is impeding development in one of the poorest countries in the world. At least 14 journalists were arrested in Niger in 2007. Four of them are still in prison awaiting sentencing.
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/ 16 January 2008
Zimbabwe’s civil-protection unit issued new warnings of floods expected to further harm the stricken economy as fears grew in neighbouring Mozambique that floods there would be worse than in 2001, when 800 people died. Zimbabwe state radio said on Wednesday that flooding risks were on the increase.
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/ 16 January 2008
Fresh violence in the Sudanese state of West Darfur has restricted humanitarian work around El Geneina, with aid workers describing the region as a "no-go area". According to aid workers, who did not want to be named, two villages in Geneina were bombed on January 12 and 13 by Sudanese government Antonov planes.
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/ 16 January 2008
Homeowners were spending less on major property improvements and renovations in the fourth quarter of 2007 compared with the same period in 2006, the First National Bank Residential Property Barometer showed on Wednesday. The hardest-hit owners were at the lower end of the market.
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/ 16 January 2008
A court on Wednesday postponed the case of abuse against a former dormitory matron of United States talk-show host Oprah Winfrey’s girls academy. Virginia Mokgobo (27) appeared in the Sebokeng Magistrate’s Court to face charges of indecent and common assault, soliciting a minor to perform indecent acts and verbal abuse.
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/ 16 January 2008
Democratic Alliance leader Helen Zille has requested an urgent meeting with President Thabo Mbeki to discuss what she calls ”the growing perception of a constitutional and moral crisis” in South Africa. ”The implication of the police national commissioner and the ruling party’s presidential candidate in corruption cases is but one reason for this perception.”
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/ 16 January 2008
The Finance Ministry has invited all South Africans to send tips on how the country’s finances should be run to the annual "Tips for Trevor" campaign. Finance Minister Trevor Manuel plainly takes some notice of what the public tells him since he often refers to these tips during his budget speech in Parliament.
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/ 16 January 2008
Despite a significant dip in real retail sales in South Africa, analysts feel that risks remain for another rate hike on January 31. However, the central bank may also have to ponder that real retail sales could head into negative territory in the months ahead and lead consumers into a recession.
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/ 16 January 2008
The African National Congress’s (ANC) outgoing head of the Presidency and communications, Smuts Ngonyama, said on Wednesday he would continue doing work for the party, but in a lower profile. ”It’s more or less 10 years that I have been in this role and I accept that I have to move on with life and look at other challenges,” he said.
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/ 16 January 2008
The Public Protector is considering investigating Eskom’s power failures, which have recently left many parts of South Africa without electricity for hours at a time due to load-shedding. Lawrence Mushwana asks several difficult questions in a letter sent to Eskom chief executive Jacob Maroga on Wednesday.