Kioo17 Journal

Ghanaian I.C.T teacher became an internet sensation after pictures of him teaching by drawing a Microsoft Word page on the blackboard went viral. Images: Facebook. It appears the zeal and passion to work with limited resources has turned out to be a blessing in disguise for a Ghanaian ICT Teacher based in Kumasi in the Ashanti Region. The Teacher, Mr. Richard Appiah Akoto, caused a stir on Social Media following news reports of him drawing a computer on a Chalkboard to demonstrate ICT Lessons to his students. Mr. Appiah used his blackboard to meticulously draw a diagram of the popular Microsoft Word program. Well, the good news is that, the teacher who educates his students on computer technology without any computers will from hence be supported by Microsoft with computers and ICT Materials. According to a BBC report, Software giant, Microsoft has announced support for Richard Appiah. The company pledged to send Mr Richard Appiah Akoto a computer ...

Rwandan president, Paul Kagame. Rwandan Local government authorities have suspended activities for a total of 714 churches in different parts of Kigali over the last one week for failure to meet minimum standards. The places of worship were found to lack basic infrastructure, fell short of hygiene, safety standards and had issues related to their legal status, according to local leaders. The crackdown is being carried out by respective urban district authorities in partnership with the Rwanda Governance Board. According to Justus Kangwagye, the Head of Political Parties and Civil Society Department at the Rwanda Governance Board, places of worship are required to meet basic requirements in terms of safety, hygiene, infrastructure and legality which those affected were found to be lacking. In an interview on Monday, Kangwagye said most of the affected places of worship were asked to halt operations until they meet the expected standards. “Worshiping should be done...

A picture of Zimbabwe's Vice President Kembo Mohadi inside his office with a school girl has torched storm. It was a hot subject of discussion early Wednesday morning. When was this picture taken? A portrait (of President Emmerson Mnangagwa) at the back wall denotes that it was taken in the last 3 months after Robert Mugabe’s removal. Evidence at hand shows that it was taken from one of the parties’ WhatsApp profile accounts. The girl is seen wearing uniform from Heritage school, Harare. Who really is this school girl? Is this picture authentic, and if it is, what was happening on that day inside the government office? On another hand however, could hugging a school girl who has visited your office be termed abuse? Kembo Dugish Campbell Mohadi (born 15 November 1949) is one of two Vice-Presidents of Zimbabwe since 28 December 2017. He briefly served as the Minister of Defence, Security and War Veterans in 2017.  Previously he was Minister ...

South African lawmakers agreed to the principle of land expropriation without compensation, and will review the Constitution to cater for this. Parliament’s Constitutional Review Committee will report back to lawmakers on changes to section 25 of the Constitution by Aug. 30, the office of the chief whip of the ruling African National Congress said in an emailed statement Tuesday. The opposition Economic Freedom Fighters party proposed a motion to allow land seizures to the legislature, while the ANC proposed amendments. Cyril Ramaphosa, who was elected party leader in December and the nation’s president Feb. 15, affirmed the ANC’s decision to seize land without compensation to speed up land reform, but said it would only be done in a responsible manner that didn’t harm the economy, agricultural production or food security. More than two decades after white-minority rule ended in South Africa, most of its profitable farms and estates are still owned by white peopl...

Nduduzo Tshuma,Kinshasa, DRC: President Mnangagwa has arrived in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) to meet his counterpart President Joseph Kabila as he resumes his courtesy calls on fellow Heads of State and Government in the region to apprise them of political developments in Zimbabwe since he came to power in November last year. President Mnangagwa at Robert Gabriel Mugabe International Airport today before leaving for the Democratic Republic of Congo as part of his regional courtesy calls following his inauguration as the Zimbabwean President. Image: Believe Nyakudjara President Mnangagwa touched down to a warm welcome by the president of the National Assembly of the Democratic Republic of Congo Mr Obey Minaku, advisor to the DRC President Mr Kikaya bin Karubi, Zimbabwe’s ambassador to the DRC Mr Faranisi and embassy staff as well as diplomats accredited to that country. He is accompanied by his Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Trade Sibus...

President Akufo-Addo with some German officials. Image:3news. President Nana Addo Danlwa Akufo-Addo has asked German authorities to treat African migrants humanely even if they breach the immigration laws of Germany in their quest to seek greener pastures in Europe. He argued the migration challenges being faced by the European continent are no justification for the West to mishandle such young and daring Africans. Nana Akufo-Addo observed the rather terrible economies of Africa have been the reason young Africans are embarking on such dangerous travels to better their lot in Europe. The President said this when he delivered the keynote address at the 5th German-African Economic Forum in Dortmund, Germany. The forum, themed “African Markets, Potentials and opportunities for German Businesses”, is being held under the auspices of the Minister-President of North Rhine-Westphalia, Herr Armin Laschet, Economic Ambitions of African In his 15-minute address, Nana Ak...

President Muhammadu Buhari has declined his assent to the Peace Corp Establishment bill passed by the National Assembly in 2017. In a letter read by the speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, on Tuesday, Mr. Buhari cited security concerns and financial implications amongst reasons for his decision. In the letter, Buhari cited security concerns and financial burden of funding the organisation by the government as his reasons for rejecting the bill. The country's National Assembly had in 2015 passed the bill after a prolonged battle involving the organisation and the nation’s security agencies. The bill has been widely anticipated by many Nigerians who believe the creation of the corps will help address the nation’s unemployment crisis. When signed into law, the Nigerian Peace Corps (Establishment) Bill 2017, would give legal backing to the establishment of Peace Corps of Nigeria. The bill would also allow all serving members of the Peace...

Dr rtd Col Kizza Besigye. Image: New Vision. Kampala, UGANDA: The High Court has ordered the Uganda Broadcasting Corporation (UBC) to compensate former presidential candidate Dr rtd Col Kizza Besigye with sh80m($21,000) for failure to run his campaign programmes in 2011. Justice Margaret Oguli- Oumo Monday ruled that Besigye was not accorded the air time he had paid for on UBC platfoms during the 2011 presidential race and he was, therefore, entitled to damages. “I find that the plaintiff’s equal rights to media were violated during the February 2011 elections which he was entitled to as any other presidential candidate,”  the judge ruled. In her brief ruling, the judge ordered UBC to pay Besigye sh80m as general damages at an interest rate of 30% per annum until payment in full. She also ordered the state broadcaster to pay the costs of Besigye’s suit. The judge also directed UBC in future strictly observe the rights of all presidential candidates when i...

Pretoria, SOUTH AFRICA: Ten ministers and three deputies who served under former president Jacob Zuma have been axed. In announcing his inaugural Cabinet on Monday night‚ President Cyril Ramaphosa not only named his deputy in the African National Congress (ANC)‚ David Mabuza‚ as deputy president but also wielded the axe to remove many of those who had served under his predecessor. Among those fired by Ramaphosa were Bongani Bongo (who had only been in his position as minister of state security for four months)‚ Nathi Nhleko‚ Fikile Mbalula‚ David Mahlobo‚ Faith Muthambi‚ Des van Rooyen‚ Mosebenzi Zwane‚ Joe Maswanganyi‚ Hlengiwe Mkhize‚ and Lynne Brown. Ramaphosa announced the changes to the media shortly after 10pm on Monday evening at the Union Buildings. He said the changes he had made to the executive were to ensure the government was better equipped to implement its mandate. “These changes are intended to ensure that the national government is better equipped...

Francistown, BOTSWANA: The Government of the Republic of Botswana wishes to express her concern regarding the disturbing trend, whereby some political leaders refuse to relinquish power when their term of Office expires.  These leaders have now resorted to measures such as delaying holding of elections, or amending their national constitutions to effectively extend their term of Office. It is clear that such leaders are driven by self-interest, instead of those of the people they govern. The Democratic Republic of Congo is a case in point. We continue to witness a worsening humanitarian situation in that country mainly because its leader has persistently delayed the holding of elections, and has lost control over the security of his country. Botswana therefore, urges the International community to put more pressure on the leadership in the Democratic Republic of Congo to relinquish power and pave way for the ushering in of a new political dispensation. Bot...

NEW ERA | Windhoek, NAMIBIA: The De Beers Group has confirmed that a Scandanavian shipbuilder has commenced what will eventually be the world’s largest diamond mining vessel for Debmarine Namibia, a joint venture held in equal shares between the government of Namibia and De Beers. De Beers Group Chief Executive Officer, Bruce Cleaver, who disclosed this to New Era in an exclusive interview on Thursday, said the vessel would be used exclusively for operations off Namibia’s coast once it is completed in about three years. Speaking from his London-based office, Cleaver said the new vessel is in line with Debmarine Namibia’s strategy to expand marine diamond mining operations in Namibia, as land-based operations in the country gradually slow down. “We have to appreciate what Namdeb (the other 50/50 joint venture between government and De Beers) has accomplished but we have to recognise that Namdeb has entered a very challenging phase in its life cycle,”  said Cle...

A picture taken on December 14, 2017 shows a portrait of former Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe after the 107th annual conference of the Zanu-PF Central Committee at the party's headquarters in Harare on December 14, 2017. Image:AFP / GETTY. Harare, ZIMBABWE: A bitter Robert Mugabe says new President Emmerson Mnangagwa and his allies should apologise for last year's military operation that ousted him from power – and he doesn't think Zanu-PF will win this year's polls. Mugabe made the comments at a private party held for him on Saturday at his Harare mansion to celebrate his 94th birthday. "They must accept and apologise that what they did was wrong,"  the private Standard newspaper quoted Mugabe as telling guests, who included ex-members of Mugabe's former cabinet. He revealed that the ruling party still wanted to work with him ahead of elections due in July, but asked:  "Can they be trusted again? Can our people vote for su...

Former first lady Grace Mugabe allegedly told her farm workers that she was untouchable and no one will force her to pay their outstanding wages, including President Emmerson Mnangagwa. According to workers at Gwina Farm in Banket, Grace visited the property last week accompanied by her husband former president Robert Mugabe and told the 106 employees that she was not going to pay them terminal benefits. She allegedly dared the workers to take the matter to Mnangagwa, saying she would not be coerced into paying them. The Gwina Farm workers’ representative Golden Pinjisi said the Mugabes visited the farm after employees demanded that they be given their terminal benefits since the operations of the farm were handed over to a Wilson Marufu last September. “She came breathing fire in Banket accompanied by former president Mugabe and lied that she had given us our dues, but when asked by Mugabe if she had evidence that she paid us she went mad, telling the former president to ...

LGBT activists attend Uganda's first gay pride parade at the Entebbe Botanical Gardens in Kampala, Uganda,(2017) Image:EPA/ RACHEL ADAMS CNN | Nairobi, KENYA: Kenya's High Court began hearing a case that may decriminalize homosexuality. It's a significant step in East Africa, where homosexuality is illegal in almost every country in the region and in 38 countries in total across the continent, according to Amnesty International. "The fact that we are being heard is an indicator that our democracy has come of age,"  said Eric Gitari, a Harvard-educated lawyer and founder of the National Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission, one of the organizations which brought forward the case in 2016. The case opened Friday in a crowded Nairobi courtroom. The judges had to change to a different room to accommodate the large crowd. "The judges know the entire world is watching,"  Gitari said. Kenyan law currently prohibits "carnal kno...

Image: Carlo Hermann/Getty/AFP. The largely abandoned former seaside resort town of Castel Volturno north of Naples has been taken over by Nigerian gangs who run drug and prostitution rings. The town has a total population of around 30,000 people, of which an estimated 20,000 are migrants, French news magazine L’Obsreports. Castel Volturno Many of the Nigerian migrant women who walk the streets as prostitutes are underage, offering sexual favours for as little as 5 to 15 euros along the Via Domitiana by the sea. Nigerian streetwalker on the main street in Castel Volturno plying her trade. Italian authorities say one out of every two sex worker on the roads of Italy are Nigerian. Image: VOA. The rampant petty crime and violence in the city has led to journalists wanting to write about the town requiring police escorts for their own safety. In Castel Volturno, there are no street names. The panels were cleared. In this ghost resort, about 50 miles north...

Paris, FRANCE: Three men have been arrested in the heavily migrant Paris suburb of Clichy-sous-Bois for attacking a man by biting at his face and then eating the pieces of flesh they had bitten off. The men, who originally came from the African island of Cape Verde, were arrested on Sunday after they attacked a man who was walking in the Hector-Berlioz alley at around 6 pm and bit off his ear and lower lip, Parisienreports . The victim was able to fight off the attackers, wounding one of them in the ankle, before police arrived a short time later and arrested the three Africans. Both the victim and the injured man were then taken to Montfermeil hospital. Clichy-sous-Bois has become infamous as one of the most troubled no-go zones surrounding the French capital. The massive riots that occurred in 2005 began in the area when a pair of teenagers running from the police killed themselves by hiding in an electric power station. Since then, Clichy-sous-Bois has been ass...

Anti-drug authorities in Zambia said Tuesday they had arrested a Bolivian national for trafficking 2.1 kg of cocaine wrapped in 55 condoms. Drug Enforcement Commission (DEC) Spokesperson Theresa Katongo said the 27-year-old Bolivian was arrested at Kenneth Kaunda International Airport in Lusaka, the country’s capital. Katongo said the drugs were found wrapped up in condoms and concealed in 55 bottles of roll-on. She said the Bolivian national was intercepted at the airport upon arrival from Rio de Janeiro via Angola aboard an Angolan Airlines flight. The suspect is expected to appear in court soon. Bolivia is a country in central South America, with a varied terrain spanning Andes Mountains, the Atacama Desert and Amazon Basin rainforest Bolivia is one of the major coca leaf producers in the world, the control over coca leaf production lies with Quechua and Aymara indigenous peasant producers, who represent part of an Andean agrarian civilization dating back ...

Harare, ZIMBABWE:  The head of the University of Zimbabwe, Levi Nyagura, reportedly took lecturers from the institution of higher learning to former first lady Grace Mugabe's Mazowe orphanage in order for her to take oral examinations for her disputed Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) degree. Investigators at the Zimbabwe anti-Corruption Commission said they had arrested Nyagura over the suspected fraudulent awarding of a doctorate to the former first lady. Grace, whose husband resigned in November under pressure from the military, received the doctorate in 2014 amid allegations she did not study for it. She was awarded the degree after just months of study . Former president Robert Mugabe was university chancellor at the time. Doctorates typically required several years of full-time research and writing. According to the privately-owned Standard newspaper, during Nyagura's appearance in court over the weekend, it emerged that he "single-handedly accepted...

Mathews Knowles and her daughter, Beyonce. Mathew Knowles, the father of American Pop and R&B singers Beyoncé and Solange has recently dropped his new book 'Racism From the Eyes of a Child ' , which dives headfirst into an intimate discussion about racism from the perspective of a young black man growing up in the South.  As part of his promotional press tour, he sat down with Ebony magazine and as The Root points out ended up having a very interesting conversation about how colorism affected his life, his relationship with his ex-wife Tina Knowles Lawson , and his two daughters. By the end of the interview, Mathew asserts that Beyoncé, dripping with talent and success, made it this far partly because she is light-skinned. Mathews Knowles's new book on racism: "Racism from the eyes of a child" book cover. Ebony writer Jessica Bennett asked Knowles to talk about the fact that so many black women pop stars are fair-skinned...

Ghana could start using the single ECOWAS common currency, the ECO, from 2020, the Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta has said. Ghana's Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta. Image: File. Speaking at the 2nd Meeting of the Ministerial Committee of the Presidential Task Force on the ECOWAS Single Currency Programme, Mr Ofori-Atta said,  “But the single currency for 2020 vision is that let’s find 2, 3 or 4 countries that are ready and then once they meet up, we follow through with the others cascading in." He said,  "And it is clear, I mean the 350 million market is important to us for our industrialization drive and the population is something that is worthy. I think if Ghana positions itself well, we’ll be a great beneficiary of that so there’s every reason to do that. We have to be, we’ve always been leaders and I don’t know why you doubt it and we have to work on it to make it happen because it’s good for us." On the convergence criter...