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/ 1 December 2004
Budget reform as a means of improving public service delivery comes under the spotlight on Wednesday as officials from 18 African countries meet in Pretoria to discuss improving public finance management. Jointly hosted by South Africa, Uganda and Mozambique, the three-day Collaborative Africa Budget Reform Seminar is to canvass such issues as budget credibility and improving expenditure quality.
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/ 1 December 2004
Rich foreigners can gain immediate permanent residency in Singapore if they park five million Singapore dollars (-million) in local financial institutions, under a new
scheme unveiled by the city-state’s central bank. A Monetary Authority of Singapore spokesperson said on Wednesday these foreigners must also have personal assets worth at least -million to qualify but they will still go through routine immigration checks.
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/ 1 December 2004
Johnnic Holdings is unbundling its entire 62,5% shareholding in its media and entertainment subsidiary, Johnnic Communications (Johncom). In terms of the proposal, Johnnic shareholders will acquire a ratio of 39,10 Johncom shares to every 100 Johnnic shares held.
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/ 1 December 2004
A powerful typhoon is bearing down on the northeastern Philippines, where rescuers are battling to reach survivors from floods and landslides that have killed nearly 350 people. Typhoon Nanmadol is expected to slam into the main island of Luzon on Thursday, hitting the region where another 150 people remain missing since entire villages were washed away by Tropical Storm Winnie two days ago.
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/ 1 December 2004
Mozambican President Joaquim Chissano voted on Wednesday in a landmark election which will see him step down after 18 years in power, saying he was proud of his role in cementing peace after helping end a brutal civil war that killed about one million people.
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/ 1 December 2004
Kenya’s high court has blocked a decision by a Kenyan minister to cancel a licence given last month to Econet Wireless International of South Africa to provide the third mobile phone services in the country, a court official said on Wednesday. Justice Mohamed Ibrahim on Tuesday suspended the minister’s order and gave Econet 21 days to file an updated application.
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/ 1 December 2004
Judgment in the appeal application of pharmacists regarding the government’s new medicine pricing regulations was reserved by the Supreme Court of Appeal in Bloemfontein on Wednesday. Advocate Marumo Moerane, for the State, concluded his arguments by asking the court to dismiss the pharmacists’ appeal against a Cape High Court decision to uphold the government’s new medicine regulations.
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/ 1 December 2004
The JSE Securities Exchange South Africa (JSE) was firmer in noon trade on Wednesday, with a softer rand lifting heavyweight dual-listed stocks. Sentiment towards stocks with a local economy focus remained positive and many of these also put in strong performances.
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/ 1 December 2004
If Gautengers use water sparingly between now and May — when authorities will re-assess the drought situation — restrictions might not be necessary in 2006 and 2007, Rand Water said on Wednesday. This is in spite of the Vaal Dam being only 32% full and falling by a further one percent each day.
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/ 1 December 2004
Cuba’s most famous political prisoner, the dissident poet Raúl Rivero, was on Tuesday released by Fidel Castro’s regime after serving 18 months of a 20-year sentence. Rivero, whose family had complained that he was sick and was being mistreated in jail, arrived back at his Havana home on what his wife described as medical parole.