AKDN Spring Newsletter: Pakistan edition
•The world's largest mural being documented and studied.
•Research for the real world: an insight into the eye health of the poor.
•Building the resilience of rural communities against climate change in Sindh.
•Queen Máxima briefed about AKDN programmes during her visit to Pakistan.
•A step forward for Education: Learning condition of over 300,000 children improved in Sindh, Balochistan, Gilgit-Baltistan and Chitral.
•A story of hope, motivation and access to finance from Gujranwala, Punjab.
•UN and AKDN partnership responding to flood and earthquake affected areas in Chitral.
•Preparedness and Response: FOCUS restoring resilience within the communities in Pakistan.
•Communities provided with shelters and medical treatment during natural disasters in the mountainous north.
•Aga Khan Education Service strengthens its Early Childhood Programmes
http://www.akdn.org/publication/akdn-sp ... an-edition
AKDN / AKF INITIATIVES WORLDWIDE
Uganda: We Couldn't Continue With Air Uganda, Says Mahmood
http://allafrica.com/stories/201606140174.html
http://article.wn.com/view/2016/06/14/U ... s_Mahmood/
Mahmood Ahmed is the outgoing Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN’s) ambassador to Uganda. He took up the post in March 2006. His Highness the Aga Khan has already appointed an ambassador designate to replace Ahmed. However, Ahmed will, in the meantime, continue serving as AKDN’s ambassador to the East African Community. Prosper magazine’s reporter, Nelson Wesonga, spoke to ambassador Ahmed. The excerpts:
What does Aga Khan Development Network do?
The Aga Khan Development Network is involved in uplifting living conditions and improving quality of life. How do we uplift living conditions? In Uganda we operate in two thematic areas. These are economic development and social development. It was the government's wish that we help the country to develop the economy. That means building capacity, cultivating an entrepreneurial spirit, catalysing economic activity so that it creates jobs. The jobs create wealth; the people who earn the money are able to spend on education, health, on aspects that give them a quality of life.
Social development is about education, health, civil society strengthening and rural development. These aspects are, historically, our core activities.
Civil society is that whole area of activity that is essentially voluntary. There are a whole series of groupings in society that are fundamental to maintaining quality of life.
So the Aga Khan Development Network, in part of its social development activities, supports these types of organisations. In order to strengthen civil society, it is important to have independent media. So we are involved in the whole area of media.
What are some of AKDN's successes in Uganda?
Securing land for building the Aga Khan Hospital, I would say, is the biggest success.
Since 2012, we had been trying to find the right parcel of land. Eventually, we were successful in securing the land in Nakawa.
http://allafrica.com/stories/201606140174.html
http://article.wn.com/view/2016/06/14/U ... s_Mahmood/
Mahmood Ahmed is the outgoing Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN’s) ambassador to Uganda. He took up the post in March 2006. His Highness the Aga Khan has already appointed an ambassador designate to replace Ahmed. However, Ahmed will, in the meantime, continue serving as AKDN’s ambassador to the East African Community. Prosper magazine’s reporter, Nelson Wesonga, spoke to ambassador Ahmed. The excerpts:
What does Aga Khan Development Network do?
The Aga Khan Development Network is involved in uplifting living conditions and improving quality of life. How do we uplift living conditions? In Uganda we operate in two thematic areas. These are economic development and social development. It was the government's wish that we help the country to develop the economy. That means building capacity, cultivating an entrepreneurial spirit, catalysing economic activity so that it creates jobs. The jobs create wealth; the people who earn the money are able to spend on education, health, on aspects that give them a quality of life.
Social development is about education, health, civil society strengthening and rural development. These aspects are, historically, our core activities.
Civil society is that whole area of activity that is essentially voluntary. There are a whole series of groupings in society that are fundamental to maintaining quality of life.
So the Aga Khan Development Network, in part of its social development activities, supports these types of organisations. In order to strengthen civil society, it is important to have independent media. So we are involved in the whole area of media.
What are some of AKDN's successes in Uganda?
Securing land for building the Aga Khan Hospital, I would say, is the biggest success.
Since 2012, we had been trying to find the right parcel of land. Eventually, we were successful in securing the land in Nakawa.
https://translate.google.ca/translate?h ... rev=searchAdmin wrote:skift.com/2016/02/06/qatar-airways-wants-a-piece-of-italian-air-carrier-meridiana/
Qatar Airways Wants a Piece of Italian Air Carrier Meridiana
Deena Kamel Yousef and Christopher Jasper , Bloomberg - Feb 06, 2016 3:00 pm
The memorandum of understanding between the Gulf carrier and Alisarda lays out conditions for a transaction to be completed in the first half, Meridiana said Thursday. Under European law, Qatar Air could buy as much as 49 percent of the Olbia, Sardinia-based carrier..
Meridiana, yes cartel Qatar new member
Signed the agreement after a year of negotiations and tensions among workers born a holding company: the Aga Khan has 51% of the shares, the Arabs must be 49 by Guido Piga
Tags
air transport
sundial
qatar airways
July 15, 2016
OLBIA. The Aga Khan & The Al Thani. The one who kept alive, the ones who will have to restart it. Close to bankruptcy, Meridiana, from yesterday at 14, has a new life as a shareholder he enters Qatar Airways, one of the strongest airlines in the world and growing.
After more than a year of negotiations - and with the decisive intervention of the Renzi government and national trade unions (CGIL, CISL, UIL, UGL) - the agreement was signed in London by Marco Rigotti, President of Karim aeronautics group, and Akbar Al Baker, chief of the vector properties of the royal family of Qatar. Will consist of a holding company: the Aga Khan (with a share of 51%) will put the goods (trademark, planes and routes) and will bear the debts (150 million); Qatar Airways (with 49%) will pay out the money, 50 million to 100 million, to renew the fleet and conquer new markets in Italy and Europe.
Other technical steps will be completed by October because the sooner Al Baker, who always has a plan B, wants social peace of unions and company and then appoint the new high.
What earns Qatar Airways? The Doha company, more than 30 million passengers, 170 aircraft (including 300 ordered), 150 destinations, winning de facto control of Meridiana and, through its certification as a European flight, will be able to travel freely in the skies of the Old Continent, putting in connection with no restrictions also with the Americas. In addition, the government will get the opportunity to open free route, in itself, between Doha and Rome and Milan. Meridiana, then, Qatar Airways enters into a rich market that until now was full of obstacles.
What earns Meridiana? The company avoids the closing of Olbia, after 700 million lost in the last 8 years and with the Aga Khan decided not to finance it anymore. Enters into an alliance - long sought over the last 20 years - that can make it harder to fight with the low cost and able to provide the economic and marketing tools to grow.
"The agreement lays the foundation to advance a strong solution that offers benefits to both employees and passengers of Meridiana" Al Baker wrote in a press release. "I'm sure - wrote Rigotti, who thanked Qatar, Government, Aga Khan, the signatories of the agreement saves Meridiana unions and employees who have made sacrifices - that all staff Meridiana, with their professionalism, will seize this important opportunity to build a new phase. "
What are the advantages for Olbia and the Sardinian passengers? The city maintains one of its most important companies: when you resume, Meridiana will turn money in Olbia, including taxes and salaries. The Sardinians passengers may have, also because of a light work contract, a viable alternative to low cost. Meridiana, Qatar Airways and tickets competitively priced, can seriously apply to the flag of Sardinia companionship role for flights to Europe, even in low season.
What are the hopes for the employees? For those subject - almost a thousand - there is the certainty of the future. For redundant employees - 299, plus 350 out voluntarily by the company - the possibility of returning,
if they so choose, in Meridiana. They in fact it, as desired by the Government and the CGIL, CISL, UIL and UGL, the right to be called first when Meridiana will increase flights. An option that would not be there, for anyone, whether Meridiana had failed.
© ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
50 million given by AKDN to earth quake victims 30 sept 2016
50 million Shs given by Ismaili community to earth quake victims in Tanzania - Amin Kurji Ismaili community ambassador giving the amount to PM of Tanzania..
30 Sept 2016
Prime Minister Kassim Fate receiving a check for 50 million shillings from Amin Kurrji (right), the Resident Representative of the Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN) in the country, for victims of the earthquake in the region. Handover took place At the office of Prime Minister in Dar es Salaam on September 30, 2016. At left is Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation of the South East, Augustine Mahiga and second right is Minister of Education and Vocational Training, Prof Joyce Ndalichako. (Photo by the Office of the Prime Minister)
(Photo by the Office of the Prime Minister)
Handover took place At the office of Prime Minister in Dar es Salaam on September 30, 2016. At left is Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation of the South East, Augustine Mahiga and second right is Minister of Education and Vocational Training, Prof Joyce Ndalichako. (Photo by the Office of the Prime Minister)
Sources:
10 SEPTEMBER 2016
AT least 11 people were confirmed dead and more than 192 injured today following an earthquake that hit Kagera and Mwanza regions.
Kagera Regional Police Commander (RPC), Mr Augustine Ollomi, confirmed the reports.
The earthquake measured at a magnitude of 5.7 on the Richter scale.
Meanwhile, President John Magufuli has sent condolences to Kagera Regional Commissioner (RC), Retired Major General Salum Mustafa Kijuu, following the death of the residents who died from the impact of the earthquake today in the re- gion.
In a statement issued by the Presidential Directorate of Communication, the president expressed deep sorrow over the tragedy, which claimed peo- ple's lives and left behind a number of others who were injured.
30 Sept 2016
Prime Minister Kassim Fate receiving a check for 50 million shillings from Amin Kurrji (right), the Resident Representative of the Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN) in the country, for victims of the earthquake in the region. Handover took place At the office of Prime Minister in Dar es Salaam on September 30, 2016. At left is Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation of the South East, Augustine Mahiga and second right is Minister of Education and Vocational Training, Prof Joyce Ndalichako. (Photo by the Office of the Prime Minister)
(Photo by the Office of the Prime Minister)
Handover took place At the office of Prime Minister in Dar es Salaam on September 30, 2016. At left is Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation of the South East, Augustine Mahiga and second right is Minister of Education and Vocational Training, Prof Joyce Ndalichako. (Photo by the Office of the Prime Minister)
Sources:
10 SEPTEMBER 2016
AT least 11 people were confirmed dead and more than 192 injured today following an earthquake that hit Kagera and Mwanza regions.
Kagera Regional Police Commander (RPC), Mr Augustine Ollomi, confirmed the reports.
The earthquake measured at a magnitude of 5.7 on the Richter scale.
Meanwhile, President John Magufuli has sent condolences to Kagera Regional Commissioner (RC), Retired Major General Salum Mustafa Kijuu, following the death of the residents who died from the impact of the earthquake today in the re- gion.
In a statement issued by the Presidential Directorate of Communication, the president expressed deep sorrow over the tragedy, which claimed peo- ple's lives and left behind a number of others who were injured.
KUTLE KHAN & BENJA GASY (Rajasthan – Madagascar) – Concert
A l’initiative de la Fondation Aga Khan à Madagascar et en partenariat avec l’IFM, un échange culturel réunissant les groupes Kutle Khan (Rajasthan) et Benja Gasy (Madagascar) donnera lieu à un concert.
Kutle Khan est un collectif unique de musiciens folkloriques Rajasthanis mené par Kutle Khan, un musicien folk multi-talentueux qui s’est forgé une expérience autour de la musique world. Le groupe Benja Gasy, créé en 1990 par Benjamina RANDRIAMALALA, est composé de jeunes chanteurs, danseurs, instrumentistes, chorégraphes et luthiers… conscients de la conservation des richesses folkloriques de la grande île qui est voie de disparition. L’objectif du groupe est de conserver, transmettre, partager et faire connaitre au monde entier le patrimoine culturelle Malagasy à travers les musiques et les danses traditionnelles.
Google translate:
At the initiative of the Aga Khan Foundation in Madagascar and in partnership with the IFM, a cultural exchange bringing together groups Kutle Khan (Rajasthan) and Benja Gasy (Madagascar) will result in a concert.
Kutle Khan is a unique collective of folk musicians led by Rajasthanis Kutle Khan, a multi-talented folk musician who gained experience music world. Benja Gasy The group, created in 1990 by Benjamina Randriamalala, is composed of young singers, dancers, musicians, choreographers and luthiers ... aware of the conservation of folklore wealth of the large island that is endangered. The group's objective is to preserve, transmit, share and make known to the world the cultural heritage through the Malagasy traditional music and dances.
A l’initiative de la Fondation Aga Khan à Madagascar et en partenariat avec l’IFM, un échange culturel réunissant les groupes Kutle Khan (Rajasthan) et Benja Gasy (Madagascar) donnera lieu à un concert.
Kutle Khan est un collectif unique de musiciens folkloriques Rajasthanis mené par Kutle Khan, un musicien folk multi-talentueux qui s’est forgé une expérience autour de la musique world. Le groupe Benja Gasy, créé en 1990 par Benjamina RANDRIAMALALA, est composé de jeunes chanteurs, danseurs, instrumentistes, chorégraphes et luthiers… conscients de la conservation des richesses folkloriques de la grande île qui est voie de disparition. L’objectif du groupe est de conserver, transmettre, partager et faire connaitre au monde entier le patrimoine culturelle Malagasy à travers les musiques et les danses traditionnelles.
Google translate:
At the initiative of the Aga Khan Foundation in Madagascar and in partnership with the IFM, a cultural exchange bringing together groups Kutle Khan (Rajasthan) and Benja Gasy (Madagascar) will result in a concert.
Kutle Khan is a unique collective of folk musicians led by Rajasthanis Kutle Khan, a multi-talented folk musician who gained experience music world. Benja Gasy The group, created in 1990 by Benjamina Randriamalala, is composed of young singers, dancers, musicians, choreographers and luthiers ... aware of the conservation of folklore wealth of the large island that is endangered. The group's objective is to preserve, transmit, share and make known to the world the cultural heritage through the Malagasy traditional music and dances.
The Aga Khan Foundation's long-term view
In the last decade, the upheavals of the Arab Spring, the U.S.-led invasions of Iraq and Afghanistan, and the rise of religious extremist groups in many parts of the world have redrawn the development map.
In response, international donors have poured money into countries upended by these forces, where they hope it can contribute to stability and international security.
The Aga Khan Foundation — one of the Aga Khan Development Network’s 10 “sister agencies” — was present in many of these places well before foreign aid agencies began to consider “countering violent extremism” central to their strategies. Many of AKF’s programs, which range across 16 countries, are in tough neighborhoods. The foundation, founded in 1967, began its work in northern Pakistan. It’s largest program today is in Afghanistan.
Violent extremist groups such as Boko Haram in West Africa, al-Shabab in East Africa, al-Qaida and the so-called Islamic State groups in parts of the Middle East threaten state security and development progress in the countries where they continue to operate.
Devex caught up with Michael Kocher, AKF’s general manager, in Naryn, Kyrgyzstan, at the inauguration of the University of Central Asia, another Aga Khan initiative. UCA is an international, secular university, chartered by the governments of Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Kazakhstan, and by the Aga Khan. It aims to build a world class educational institution dedicated to mountain development with campuses in each of the three cities.
We asked Kocher what it takes to manage a development organization with a long-term stake in a complex region — where security, politics, and international attention can change quickly.
Here’s an excerpt from our conversation with Kocher, lightly edited for clarity.
More....
https://www.devex.com/news/the-aga-khan ... view-88990
In the last decade, the upheavals of the Arab Spring, the U.S.-led invasions of Iraq and Afghanistan, and the rise of religious extremist groups in many parts of the world have redrawn the development map.
In response, international donors have poured money into countries upended by these forces, where they hope it can contribute to stability and international security.
The Aga Khan Foundation — one of the Aga Khan Development Network’s 10 “sister agencies” — was present in many of these places well before foreign aid agencies began to consider “countering violent extremism” central to their strategies. Many of AKF’s programs, which range across 16 countries, are in tough neighborhoods. The foundation, founded in 1967, began its work in northern Pakistan. It’s largest program today is in Afghanistan.
Violent extremist groups such as Boko Haram in West Africa, al-Shabab in East Africa, al-Qaida and the so-called Islamic State groups in parts of the Middle East threaten state security and development progress in the countries where they continue to operate.
Devex caught up with Michael Kocher, AKF’s general manager, in Naryn, Kyrgyzstan, at the inauguration of the University of Central Asia, another Aga Khan initiative. UCA is an international, secular university, chartered by the governments of Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Kazakhstan, and by the Aga Khan. It aims to build a world class educational institution dedicated to mountain development with campuses in each of the three cities.
We asked Kocher what it takes to manage a development organization with a long-term stake in a complex region — where security, politics, and international attention can change quickly.
Here’s an excerpt from our conversation with Kocher, lightly edited for clarity.
More....
https://www.devex.com/news/the-aga-khan ... view-88990
Kilifi residents to benefit from Aga Khan healthcare project
In Summary
•The goal of the programme is to improve health systems and to strengthen health outcomes of expectant mothers and children in the county.
•Canadian High Commissioner to Kenya Sarah Hradecky said the project will involve equipping and upgrading of the county hospitals.
•She added that it will also involve facilitating e-health to the communities.
•Kilifi Governor Amason Kingi said his government has taken strides in addressing child morbidity and improving health in the county.
By REBECCA OKWANY
More by this Author
The Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN) has partnered with Kilifi County government and the Canadian government to address infant mortality and maternal deaths in the county.
In the four-year partnership, AKDN through the Aga Khan Foundation (AKF), the Aga Khan University (AKU) and the Aga Khan Health Services (AKHS) will offer quality healthcare services to expectant women and other residents.
“This project is about the people of Kilifi and we hope to see improvement in the health systems and strengthen health outcomes in the county,” said AKF Region CEO Kevin Moorhead during the launch of the programme at Gotani Health Centre in Kilifi.
He added that the goal of the programme dubbed ‘Access to Quality Care through Extending and Strengthening Health Systems (AQCESS)’ is to improve health systems and to strengthen health outcomes of expectant mothers and children in the county.
UPGRADE HOSPITALS
Canadian High Commissioner to Kenya Sarah Hradecky said the project will involve equipping and upgrading of the county hospitals as well as providing quality healthcare services to new-borns through treating infections and dealing with malnutrition.
She added that it will also involve facilitating e-health to the communities.
“Reproductive health is a human rights issue which needs comprehensive approach in addressing it.
“Counties are facing serious maternal health challenges and Canada is keen on helping to close existing gaps in reproductive rights and healthcare for women,” said Ms Hradecky
Kilifi Governor Amason Kingi said his government has taken strides in addressing child morbidity and improving health in the county.
He said his administration has prioritised on improving health and the project will go a long way in addressing the burden of maternal and infant deaths and illness.
“When we took over leadership, child mortality and maternal deaths were too high. That is why we made a deliberate decision to improve health infrastructure so that our mothers can deliver without any complications,” said Governor Kingi.
Despite the countrywide decrease in maternal deaths, Kilifi still features among the 15 counties with high maternal deaths.
http://www.nation.co.ke/counties/Kilifi ... index.html
In Summary
•The goal of the programme is to improve health systems and to strengthen health outcomes of expectant mothers and children in the county.
•Canadian High Commissioner to Kenya Sarah Hradecky said the project will involve equipping and upgrading of the county hospitals.
•She added that it will also involve facilitating e-health to the communities.
•Kilifi Governor Amason Kingi said his government has taken strides in addressing child morbidity and improving health in the county.
By REBECCA OKWANY
More by this Author
The Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN) has partnered with Kilifi County government and the Canadian government to address infant mortality and maternal deaths in the county.
In the four-year partnership, AKDN through the Aga Khan Foundation (AKF), the Aga Khan University (AKU) and the Aga Khan Health Services (AKHS) will offer quality healthcare services to expectant women and other residents.
“This project is about the people of Kilifi and we hope to see improvement in the health systems and strengthen health outcomes in the county,” said AKF Region CEO Kevin Moorhead during the launch of the programme at Gotani Health Centre in Kilifi.
He added that the goal of the programme dubbed ‘Access to Quality Care through Extending and Strengthening Health Systems (AQCESS)’ is to improve health systems and to strengthen health outcomes of expectant mothers and children in the county.
UPGRADE HOSPITALS
Canadian High Commissioner to Kenya Sarah Hradecky said the project will involve equipping and upgrading of the county hospitals as well as providing quality healthcare services to new-borns through treating infections and dealing with malnutrition.
She added that it will also involve facilitating e-health to the communities.
“Reproductive health is a human rights issue which needs comprehensive approach in addressing it.
“Counties are facing serious maternal health challenges and Canada is keen on helping to close existing gaps in reproductive rights and healthcare for women,” said Ms Hradecky
Kilifi Governor Amason Kingi said his government has taken strides in addressing child morbidity and improving health in the county.
He said his administration has prioritised on improving health and the project will go a long way in addressing the burden of maternal and infant deaths and illness.
“When we took over leadership, child mortality and maternal deaths were too high. That is why we made a deliberate decision to improve health infrastructure so that our mothers can deliver without any complications,” said Governor Kingi.
Despite the countrywide decrease in maternal deaths, Kilifi still features among the 15 counties with high maternal deaths.
http://www.nation.co.ke/counties/Kilifi ... index.html
AKDN Announces Prosperity Cup for Gilgit-Baltistan and Chitral (GBC)
Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN) has announced Prosperity Cup 2016 to encourage young men and women from Gilgit-Baltistan and Chitral (GBC) to start their own business. The Prosperity Cup applicants will be inducted through an incubation process called Accelerate Prosperity. The project is being implemented through Aga Khan Rural Support Program (AKRSP) in association with The Indus Entrepreneurs (TiE) Islamabad chapter. The competition will kickstart startup activities in Gilgit-Baltistan and Chitral, which is very much the need of the hour.
The incubation process will start on November 15, 2016, which is also the deadline to submit a business idea. An application form has been made available on the official website that can be filled before the deadline. This would be the first time such a contest is being held in the region.
The competition is open for anyone from Gilgit-Baltistan and Chitral no matter if the applicant is living within GBC or somewhere else. A set of rules and competition guidelines to enter the Prosperity Cup have been provided on the website as well.
More...
http://news.gbee.pk/2016/11/03/akdn-ann ... erity-cup/
Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN) has announced Prosperity Cup 2016 to encourage young men and women from Gilgit-Baltistan and Chitral (GBC) to start their own business. The Prosperity Cup applicants will be inducted through an incubation process called Accelerate Prosperity. The project is being implemented through Aga Khan Rural Support Program (AKRSP) in association with The Indus Entrepreneurs (TiE) Islamabad chapter. The competition will kickstart startup activities in Gilgit-Baltistan and Chitral, which is very much the need of the hour.
The incubation process will start on November 15, 2016, which is also the deadline to submit a business idea. An application form has been made available on the official website that can be filled before the deadline. This would be the first time such a contest is being held in the region.
The competition is open for anyone from Gilgit-Baltistan and Chitral no matter if the applicant is living within GBC or somewhere else. A set of rules and competition guidelines to enter the Prosperity Cup have been provided on the website as well.
More...
http://news.gbee.pk/2016/11/03/akdn-ann ... erity-cup/
Seacom targets acquisitions as it eyes fibre-to-the business
Seacom says it will pursue acquisitions as it looks to target fibre-to-the business in metro areas in South Africa.
Speaking to journalists at the group’s head office in Johannesburg on Wednesday, CEO Byron Clatterbuck said: “We are looking for partners through acquisitions.’
He said that acquisition targets would be in markets where Seacom already has a presence. “We are backed by some big players, the war chest is unlimited.”
Seacom’s shareholders include Remgro (30%), Sanlam (15%), Convergence Partners (15%), Kenya’s Aga Khan Foundation (30%) and founder Brian Herlihy (10%).
Seacom currently leases dark fibre from a number of providers, and will also look to trench its own fibre in certain areas as it targets growing commercial parks. “Last mile is the key value capture,”said Clatterbuck.
“In our industry, you need to capture as much revenue as you can…get as much traffic on your network as you can,” he said.
The submarine cable operator, which has a network of submarine and terrestrial high-speed fibre-optic cable serving the East and West coasts of Africa, launched its enterprise unit at the back end of last year.
The company said it has signed up 1,000 direct and indirect customers since its launch in October 2015, including Allan Gray, Outsurance, Dischem, Alexander Forbes, Prudential, and Coronation.
The head of Seacom’s enterprise segment, Grant Parker, said 90% of the clients are in South Africa.
The group, which has a staff compliment of 25 people in South Africa, has 120 partners locally and 10 in Kenya, and is activating 100 services per month.
https://businesstech.co.za/news/it-serv ... -business/
Seacom says it will pursue acquisitions as it looks to target fibre-to-the business in metro areas in South Africa.
Speaking to journalists at the group’s head office in Johannesburg on Wednesday, CEO Byron Clatterbuck said: “We are looking for partners through acquisitions.’
He said that acquisition targets would be in markets where Seacom already has a presence. “We are backed by some big players, the war chest is unlimited.”
Seacom’s shareholders include Remgro (30%), Sanlam (15%), Convergence Partners (15%), Kenya’s Aga Khan Foundation (30%) and founder Brian Herlihy (10%).
Seacom currently leases dark fibre from a number of providers, and will also look to trench its own fibre in certain areas as it targets growing commercial parks. “Last mile is the key value capture,”said Clatterbuck.
“In our industry, you need to capture as much revenue as you can…get as much traffic on your network as you can,” he said.
The submarine cable operator, which has a network of submarine and terrestrial high-speed fibre-optic cable serving the East and West coasts of Africa, launched its enterprise unit at the back end of last year.
The company said it has signed up 1,000 direct and indirect customers since its launch in October 2015, including Allan Gray, Outsurance, Dischem, Alexander Forbes, Prudential, and Coronation.
The head of Seacom’s enterprise segment, Grant Parker, said 90% of the clients are in South Africa.
The group, which has a staff compliment of 25 people in South Africa, has 120 partners locally and 10 in Kenya, and is activating 100 services per month.
https://businesstech.co.za/news/it-serv ... -business/
Full Text Of Amritsar Declaration At The 6th Ministerial Conference Of Heart Of Asia
Amritsar: The Heart Of Asia conference in Amritsar called for immediate elimination of terrorism to help the war-ravaged country in its political and economic transition.
Here is the full text of the Amritsar Declaration:
http://www.ndtv.com/india-news/full-tex ... ia-1633854
33. This Declaration was adopted in Amritsar, India on 4 December 2016, by the Foreign Ministers and high-level representatives of the participating countries of the Heart of Asia-Istanbul Process: Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, Republic of Azerbaijan, People's Republic of China, Republic of India, Islamic Republic of Iran, Republic of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Islamic Republic of Pakistan, Russian Federation, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Republic of Tajikistan, Republic of Turkey, Turkmenistan, the United Arab Emirates, and the United Nations. This Declaration was welcomed and supported by the Foreign Ministers and high-level representatives of the supporting countries of the Heart of Asia-Istanbul Process, and the high-ranking representatives of the supporting international and regional organizations: Commonwealth of Australia, Canada, Royal Kingdom of Denmark, Arab Republic of Egypt, European Union, Republic of Finland, Republic of France, Federal Republic of Germany, Republic of Iraq, Republic of Italy, Japan, Republic of Poland, Norway, Spain, Sweden, the United Kingdom, the United States, Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN), Asian Development Bank (ADB), Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA), Collective Security Treaty Organizations (CSTO), Economic Cooperation Organizations (ECO), North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), and South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC).
Amritsar: The Heart Of Asia conference in Amritsar called for immediate elimination of terrorism to help the war-ravaged country in its political and economic transition.
Here is the full text of the Amritsar Declaration:
http://www.ndtv.com/india-news/full-tex ... ia-1633854
33. This Declaration was adopted in Amritsar, India on 4 December 2016, by the Foreign Ministers and high-level representatives of the participating countries of the Heart of Asia-Istanbul Process: Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, Republic of Azerbaijan, People's Republic of China, Republic of India, Islamic Republic of Iran, Republic of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Islamic Republic of Pakistan, Russian Federation, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Republic of Tajikistan, Republic of Turkey, Turkmenistan, the United Arab Emirates, and the United Nations. This Declaration was welcomed and supported by the Foreign Ministers and high-level representatives of the supporting countries of the Heart of Asia-Istanbul Process, and the high-ranking representatives of the supporting international and regional organizations: Commonwealth of Australia, Canada, Royal Kingdom of Denmark, Arab Republic of Egypt, European Union, Republic of Finland, Republic of France, Federal Republic of Germany, Republic of Iraq, Republic of Italy, Japan, Republic of Poland, Norway, Spain, Sweden, the United Kingdom, the United States, Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN), Asian Development Bank (ADB), Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA), Collective Security Treaty Organizations (CSTO), Economic Cooperation Organizations (ECO), North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), and South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC).
Jubilee Life Ins wins Brands of Year Award 2015-2016
Jubilee Life Insurance, the leading private sector life insurance provider in the country, has been awarded Brands of the Year Award for 2015-2016 in the life insurance industry. The much-awaited awards ceremony was held recently at Grand Convention Marquee PAF Museum, Karachi. The Chief Guest at the Ceremony was honourable Chairman Senate Raza Rabbani.
The prestigious award was received on behalf of Jubilee Life Insurance Company Limited by their Head of Corporate Business Distribution, Faiz ul Hasan. Talking about this achievement Hasan said, "This is indeed a great moment of pride and a milestone for Jubilee Life to receive this astounding honour. This award is a testament of our success from being the leading insurance service provider of the country to becoming the brand of the year.
Jubilee Life, post our re-branding, aimed at creating awareness for the common man for sound understanding of financial solutions. We have done several campaigns with the same objective and have achieved remarkable results over the years. This award reaffirms our faith in the direction we have taken for branding and we will continue to surprise our consumers with meticulously planned new products."
Brand of the Year Award is recognition for brands recognised as champions in their industry for a leading performance. Its evaluation process is comprised on a nation-wide quantitative qualified consumer survey, expert analysis and attributes based on qualitative brand research.
Jubilee Insurance is a global brand of the Aga Khan Fund for Economic Development (AKFED) that offers diverse insurance solutions (life, health and general) in the Asian and East African markets. Jubilee Life in Pakistan offers a uniquely designed range of life and health insurance plans, catering to various customer segments and needs. These include retirement, child education, marriage, saving & protection, wealth accumulation, life insurance plans for women, rural insurance plans and life and health insurance solutions for the less privileged of our country.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2017
http://www.brecorder.com/money-a-banking/198/120040/
Jubilee Life Insurance, the leading private sector life insurance provider in the country, has been awarded Brands of the Year Award for 2015-2016 in the life insurance industry. The much-awaited awards ceremony was held recently at Grand Convention Marquee PAF Museum, Karachi. The Chief Guest at the Ceremony was honourable Chairman Senate Raza Rabbani.
The prestigious award was received on behalf of Jubilee Life Insurance Company Limited by their Head of Corporate Business Distribution, Faiz ul Hasan. Talking about this achievement Hasan said, "This is indeed a great moment of pride and a milestone for Jubilee Life to receive this astounding honour. This award is a testament of our success from being the leading insurance service provider of the country to becoming the brand of the year.
Jubilee Life, post our re-branding, aimed at creating awareness for the common man for sound understanding of financial solutions. We have done several campaigns with the same objective and have achieved remarkable results over the years. This award reaffirms our faith in the direction we have taken for branding and we will continue to surprise our consumers with meticulously planned new products."
Brand of the Year Award is recognition for brands recognised as champions in their industry for a leading performance. Its evaluation process is comprised on a nation-wide quantitative qualified consumer survey, expert analysis and attributes based on qualitative brand research.
Jubilee Insurance is a global brand of the Aga Khan Fund for Economic Development (AKFED) that offers diverse insurance solutions (life, health and general) in the Asian and East African markets. Jubilee Life in Pakistan offers a uniquely designed range of life and health insurance plans, catering to various customer segments and needs. These include retirement, child education, marriage, saving & protection, wealth accumulation, life insurance plans for women, rural insurance plans and life and health insurance solutions for the less privileged of our country.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2017
http://www.brecorder.com/money-a-banking/198/120040/
Oxford Comparative Education Seminar Series
Re-Examining the Meaning of Learning in an Uncertain World
The rise of a new global politics, together with economic and cultural globalisation, has placed new demands on learning – where we learn, what we learn, when we learn, and how we learn.
This seminar series, convened in partnership with the Aga Khan Foundation, seeks to explore what we know about learning and where it occurs.
It examines what we know about learning as formal outcomes of schooling but also what it means to learn to be, and to learn to become. As societies become more diverse, how do we learn to live together? What is the role of pluralism in and through education? As economies change at speed, how do we learn to adapt? As technology develops at pace, how do we learn to interact with new screens and new media in socially, politically and economically productive ways? As the politics of colonialism and repression in the past begin to unravel, how do we learn to engage with the challenges of the present, and of the future?
The seminar series will bring together 24 distinguished speakers from around the world to discuss the meaning of learning in various contexts, including but not limited to North America, Europe, the Middle East, East Africa, Central Asia, and West Africa, South America, and South Asia.
The following seminars will be given at 5pm on Tuesdays in the Syndicate Room at St Antony’s College.
Conveners: David Johnson, Caroline Arnold, and Andrew Cunningham
*****
Our Partnership
The University of Oxford and the Aga Khan Foundation have launched a new programme of research that seeks to re-examine the meaning of learning in an uncertain world.
We believe that now more than ever there is a need to think again about the nature of learning and the variety of contexts in which it takes place; to think again about the shape of the institutional frameworks in which education is given; and to interrogate more robustly the discourse that seeks to define education – as being of good quality or not, inclusive or not, effective or not - when tensions between efforts that value the development of open-mindedness, of intercultural understanding and of comfort with diversity, and those that look towards education to retract in favour of singularity, of certainty and of definitive standards, are at their most heightened.
The research programme in its inaugural year intends to inspire new conversations, papers, and studies about the nature and meaning of learning in a world in flux.
We aim to raise critical questions about where learning occurs and what this means for development; about the mediational means with which learning takes place and what this means for technological advancement; how we learn and what this might mean for the formal curriculum and for teaching; and what we learn about what we know of the past and present so that it might prepare us for what we do not know about the future.
http://www.oxfordcie.org/
Our activities this year include:
•Carry out an empirical study into how children learn through technology and activity.
•Organise a seminar series to re-examine questions about the nature and meaning of learning in an uncertain world (Jan. 17 – March 7 at Oxford University)
•Organise a high-level conference to tease out the policy implications of our emerging research and thinking (set for June 8-9, 2017). More information about the conference will be posted soon on this site.
How do we provide an education that helps students better develop open-mindedness, intercultural understanding and comfort with plurality and complexity in a global context?
Oxford Comparative Education Seminar Series
Re-Examining the Meaning of Learning in an Uncertain World
St. Antony's College
Tuesdays 5 PM
Hilary Term
Syndicate Room
Jan. 17 - Mar. 7 2017
Supported by the Aga Khan Foundation
Seminar Series Schedule
All seminars are free and open to the public.
January 17, 2017
WEEK 1 | Re-examining the meaning of learning in an uncertain world
•Caroline Arnold, Global Director of Education, Aga Khan Foundation
•Dr. David Johnson, Oxford University
RSVP
WEEK 2 | Systems: Systems learning or learning systems?
January 24, 2017
•Andrew Cunningham, Global Head of Education Improvement, Aga Khan Foundation
•Michelle Holmes, Manager of PSIPSE
•Dr. Bronwen Magrath, University of Nottingham and Secretariat for the International Education Funders Group
RSVP
RSVP
WEEK 4 | Pluralism: Learning to change or learning for change?
February 7, 2017
•Dr. Farid Panjwani, Director of Centre for Research and Evaluation of Muslim Education (CREME), Institute of Education, UCL
•Jayne Barlow, Director of Programmes for the Global Centre for Pluralism
RSVP
WEEK 3 | Tools: The television as a stimulus for distributed meaning-making
January 31, 2017
•Aric Noboa, President of the Discovery Learning Alliance
•Dr. David Johnson, Oxford University
•Dr. Matt Reed, CEO of Aga Khan Foundation, United Kingdom
•Dr. Rachel Hinton, DFID Education
WEEK 5 | Social Emotional Learning: Essential dispositions in a challenging world?
February 14, 2017
•Dr. Kristen Bub, University of Illinois
•Dr. Paul Frisoli, Senior Technical Advisor, Education, International Rescue Committee
•Alison Joyner, Global Head of Monitoring Evaluation Reseach and Learning, Aga Khan Foundation
RSVP
WEEK 6 | Contexts for early learning: Mathematical thinking before and outside school
February 21, 2017
•Professor Terezinha Nunes, Oxford University
•Sheila Manji, Global Head of Early Childhood Development, Aga Khan Foundation
•Eva Oberg, DFID Education
[/b]
Re-Examining the Meaning of Learning in an Uncertain World
The rise of a new global politics, together with economic and cultural globalisation, has placed new demands on learning – where we learn, what we learn, when we learn, and how we learn.
This seminar series, convened in partnership with the Aga Khan Foundation, seeks to explore what we know about learning and where it occurs.
It examines what we know about learning as formal outcomes of schooling but also what it means to learn to be, and to learn to become. As societies become more diverse, how do we learn to live together? What is the role of pluralism in and through education? As economies change at speed, how do we learn to adapt? As technology develops at pace, how do we learn to interact with new screens and new media in socially, politically and economically productive ways? As the politics of colonialism and repression in the past begin to unravel, how do we learn to engage with the challenges of the present, and of the future?
The seminar series will bring together 24 distinguished speakers from around the world to discuss the meaning of learning in various contexts, including but not limited to North America, Europe, the Middle East, East Africa, Central Asia, and West Africa, South America, and South Asia.
The following seminars will be given at 5pm on Tuesdays in the Syndicate Room at St Antony’s College.
Conveners: David Johnson, Caroline Arnold, and Andrew Cunningham
*****
Our Partnership
The University of Oxford and the Aga Khan Foundation have launched a new programme of research that seeks to re-examine the meaning of learning in an uncertain world.
We believe that now more than ever there is a need to think again about the nature of learning and the variety of contexts in which it takes place; to think again about the shape of the institutional frameworks in which education is given; and to interrogate more robustly the discourse that seeks to define education – as being of good quality or not, inclusive or not, effective or not - when tensions between efforts that value the development of open-mindedness, of intercultural understanding and of comfort with diversity, and those that look towards education to retract in favour of singularity, of certainty and of definitive standards, are at their most heightened.
The research programme in its inaugural year intends to inspire new conversations, papers, and studies about the nature and meaning of learning in a world in flux.
We aim to raise critical questions about where learning occurs and what this means for development; about the mediational means with which learning takes place and what this means for technological advancement; how we learn and what this might mean for the formal curriculum and for teaching; and what we learn about what we know of the past and present so that it might prepare us for what we do not know about the future.
http://www.oxfordcie.org/
Our activities this year include:
•Carry out an empirical study into how children learn through technology and activity.
•Organise a seminar series to re-examine questions about the nature and meaning of learning in an uncertain world (Jan. 17 – March 7 at Oxford University)
•Organise a high-level conference to tease out the policy implications of our emerging research and thinking (set for June 8-9, 2017). More information about the conference will be posted soon on this site.
How do we provide an education that helps students better develop open-mindedness, intercultural understanding and comfort with plurality and complexity in a global context?
Oxford Comparative Education Seminar Series
Re-Examining the Meaning of Learning in an Uncertain World
St. Antony's College
Tuesdays 5 PM
Hilary Term
Syndicate Room
Jan. 17 - Mar. 7 2017
Supported by the Aga Khan Foundation
Seminar Series Schedule
All seminars are free and open to the public.
January 17, 2017
WEEK 1 | Re-examining the meaning of learning in an uncertain world
•Caroline Arnold, Global Director of Education, Aga Khan Foundation
•Dr. David Johnson, Oxford University
RSVP
WEEK 2 | Systems: Systems learning or learning systems?
January 24, 2017
•Andrew Cunningham, Global Head of Education Improvement, Aga Khan Foundation
•Michelle Holmes, Manager of PSIPSE
•Dr. Bronwen Magrath, University of Nottingham and Secretariat for the International Education Funders Group
RSVP
RSVP
WEEK 4 | Pluralism: Learning to change or learning for change?
February 7, 2017
•Dr. Farid Panjwani, Director of Centre for Research and Evaluation of Muslim Education (CREME), Institute of Education, UCL
•Jayne Barlow, Director of Programmes for the Global Centre for Pluralism
RSVP
WEEK 3 | Tools: The television as a stimulus for distributed meaning-making
January 31, 2017
•Aric Noboa, President of the Discovery Learning Alliance
•Dr. David Johnson, Oxford University
•Dr. Matt Reed, CEO of Aga Khan Foundation, United Kingdom
•Dr. Rachel Hinton, DFID Education
WEEK 5 | Social Emotional Learning: Essential dispositions in a challenging world?
February 14, 2017
•Dr. Kristen Bub, University of Illinois
•Dr. Paul Frisoli, Senior Technical Advisor, Education, International Rescue Committee
•Alison Joyner, Global Head of Monitoring Evaluation Reseach and Learning, Aga Khan Foundation
RSVP
WEEK 6 | Contexts for early learning: Mathematical thinking before and outside school
February 21, 2017
•Professor Terezinha Nunes, Oxford University
•Sheila Manji, Global Head of Early Childhood Development, Aga Khan Foundation
•Eva Oberg, DFID Education
[/b]
Promoting pluralism, celebrating dialogue: The Jaipur Literature Festival’s first decade
Matt Reed, CEO of Aga Khan Foundation UK, at the Jaipur Literature Festival.
Flying back to India after several months away, I am excited to return to a country I called home for three years. One of the annual highlights of my time here was the Jaipur Literature Festival, which combined all the things I loved most about India: its intellectual energy, its zest for life, and its intense opinions. It is fitting then that I return this week to speak at JLF, where, among others, the Aga Khan Foundation is sponsoring a session on the role of the liberal arts and the sciences in building strong societies.
Marking its 10th anniversary, the Jaipur Literature Festival has been celebrating reading and learning – and all that is best about India’s vibrant, noisy, loquacious democracy – for a decade. JLF is a symbol of how India’s multi-decade investment in its universities, combined with its centuries-old love of learned inquiry and philosophical reflection, have underpinned its modern development and its social, economic, and technological achievements.
Acknowledging India’s rise is not to ignore its myriad challenges. Too many people live in poverty, with too few job opportunities. Too many children go to bed hungry, malnourished and stunted. Too few have the opportunity to attain a basic education, let alone earn university degrees. Nevertheless, the progress made over the past twenty-five years has been substantial. India’s highly-educated college graduates and good universities are a vital resource for the country’s future, underpinning the social and economic gains already made and those that will narrow the numbers of the poor and excluded in the decades ahead.
In the 1960s, when many development economists scoffed, India made significant and fundamental investments in higher education, especially its well-regarded IIT system. Thirty years later, it was India’s example that led to a re-evaluation of higher education’s value by the World Bank and others, and a new appreciation for the gains that strong universities can bring to countries with undereducated populations and extreme poverty.
India’s example, along with decades of experience in Asia and Africa, is among the sources of inspiration for one of world’s boldest academic debuts. In September, the University of Central Asia admitted its first undergraduate class and inaugurated its first campus in Naryn, a secondary town in the Kyrgyz Republic near the Chinese border. It is the first of three such campuses planned in the region under a unique partnership between the governments of Kazakhstan, the Kyrygz Republic, Tajikistan and the Aga Khan Development Network.
The objective is to establish a world-class regional university in the heart of Central Asia. By offering a top education in the liberal arts, as well as traditional science and technology disciplines, UCA will help train the next generation of Central Asian leaders – leaders with the skills and creative thinking needed to respond to regional challenges and opportunities. Just as the Silk Route brought learning and prosperity to Central Asia and Europe, UCA seeks nothing less than to catalyse an intellectual and economic transformation on the Central Asian steppe, especially among its remote and marginalised mountain communities.
Against this backdrop, the Aga Khan Foundation and Wesleyan University will convene a discussion in Jaipur this week on “Building Countries: Science or the Liberal Arts?” Anchoring the panel is Michael S. Roth, President of Wesleyan and author of the well-regarded Beyond the University: Why Liberal Education Matters (2015), which makes a strong case for the value universities bring to societies, especially the constructive role they can play when combined with the critical and creative faculties nurtured by the liberal arts. Harvard’s Tarun Khanna will speak about his research over two decades into the fundamentals that drive growth and entrepreneurship in emerging markets, of which higher education is certainly one. Aditya Mukherjee, Director of JNU’s Center for Advanced Study, Devesh Kapur, Director of the University of Pennsylvania’s Center for the Advanced Study of India, and the renowned poet and author Sukrita Paul Kumar, will each draw on the Indian experience, which has benefited greatly from its well-educated diaspora as well as those taught in its own institutions. I will speak about AKDN’s experience at UCA and the Aga Khan University, which in South Asia operates in Pakistan and Afghanistan, and in East Africa has a presence in Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda.
Amidst headlines around the world about fake news, populist sensation, and illiberal tendencies, gatherings like the Jaipur Literature Festival are important. They remind us that ideas matter, but that they matter most when subject to critical scrutiny, rigorous debate, and open dialogue. Whether through traditions like JLF or institutions like universities, our countries need these pillars of civil society to help us understand our changing world, imagine alternatives, and debate our futures. As we join in Jaipur this week to celebrate JLF’s first decade and launch its second we do well to remember that it is on such foundations that stable, successful, pluralistic societies are built and maintained.
https://www.akf.org.uk/news/promoting-p ... st-decade/
Matt Reed, CEO of Aga Khan Foundation UK, at the Jaipur Literature Festival.
Flying back to India after several months away, I am excited to return to a country I called home for three years. One of the annual highlights of my time here was the Jaipur Literature Festival, which combined all the things I loved most about India: its intellectual energy, its zest for life, and its intense opinions. It is fitting then that I return this week to speak at JLF, where, among others, the Aga Khan Foundation is sponsoring a session on the role of the liberal arts and the sciences in building strong societies.
Marking its 10th anniversary, the Jaipur Literature Festival has been celebrating reading and learning – and all that is best about India’s vibrant, noisy, loquacious democracy – for a decade. JLF is a symbol of how India’s multi-decade investment in its universities, combined with its centuries-old love of learned inquiry and philosophical reflection, have underpinned its modern development and its social, economic, and technological achievements.
Acknowledging India’s rise is not to ignore its myriad challenges. Too many people live in poverty, with too few job opportunities. Too many children go to bed hungry, malnourished and stunted. Too few have the opportunity to attain a basic education, let alone earn university degrees. Nevertheless, the progress made over the past twenty-five years has been substantial. India’s highly-educated college graduates and good universities are a vital resource for the country’s future, underpinning the social and economic gains already made and those that will narrow the numbers of the poor and excluded in the decades ahead.
In the 1960s, when many development economists scoffed, India made significant and fundamental investments in higher education, especially its well-regarded IIT system. Thirty years later, it was India’s example that led to a re-evaluation of higher education’s value by the World Bank and others, and a new appreciation for the gains that strong universities can bring to countries with undereducated populations and extreme poverty.
India’s example, along with decades of experience in Asia and Africa, is among the sources of inspiration for one of world’s boldest academic debuts. In September, the University of Central Asia admitted its first undergraduate class and inaugurated its first campus in Naryn, a secondary town in the Kyrgyz Republic near the Chinese border. It is the first of three such campuses planned in the region under a unique partnership between the governments of Kazakhstan, the Kyrygz Republic, Tajikistan and the Aga Khan Development Network.
The objective is to establish a world-class regional university in the heart of Central Asia. By offering a top education in the liberal arts, as well as traditional science and technology disciplines, UCA will help train the next generation of Central Asian leaders – leaders with the skills and creative thinking needed to respond to regional challenges and opportunities. Just as the Silk Route brought learning and prosperity to Central Asia and Europe, UCA seeks nothing less than to catalyse an intellectual and economic transformation on the Central Asian steppe, especially among its remote and marginalised mountain communities.
Against this backdrop, the Aga Khan Foundation and Wesleyan University will convene a discussion in Jaipur this week on “Building Countries: Science or the Liberal Arts?” Anchoring the panel is Michael S. Roth, President of Wesleyan and author of the well-regarded Beyond the University: Why Liberal Education Matters (2015), which makes a strong case for the value universities bring to societies, especially the constructive role they can play when combined with the critical and creative faculties nurtured by the liberal arts. Harvard’s Tarun Khanna will speak about his research over two decades into the fundamentals that drive growth and entrepreneurship in emerging markets, of which higher education is certainly one. Aditya Mukherjee, Director of JNU’s Center for Advanced Study, Devesh Kapur, Director of the University of Pennsylvania’s Center for the Advanced Study of India, and the renowned poet and author Sukrita Paul Kumar, will each draw on the Indian experience, which has benefited greatly from its well-educated diaspora as well as those taught in its own institutions. I will speak about AKDN’s experience at UCA and the Aga Khan University, which in South Asia operates in Pakistan and Afghanistan, and in East Africa has a presence in Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda.
Amidst headlines around the world about fake news, populist sensation, and illiberal tendencies, gatherings like the Jaipur Literature Festival are important. They remind us that ideas matter, but that they matter most when subject to critical scrutiny, rigorous debate, and open dialogue. Whether through traditions like JLF or institutions like universities, our countries need these pillars of civil society to help us understand our changing world, imagine alternatives, and debate our futures. As we join in Jaipur this week to celebrate JLF’s first decade and launch its second we do well to remember that it is on such foundations that stable, successful, pluralistic societies are built and maintained.
https://www.akf.org.uk/news/promoting-p ... st-decade/
Aga Khan’s Sh7bn project to generate new 5,000 jobs
February 2, 2017, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania: The Aga Khan Foundation (AKF) is implementing an agro-business project that will create 200 enterprises and generate at least 5,000 jobs in Lindi and Mtwara regions.
The AKF senior programme officer for Enterprise and Economic Development, Ms Tahira Nizari, told The Citizen here yesterday that the three-year project was launched on Monday this week.
At least 3.1 million euros (Sh7.2 billion) will be injected into the project.
Of the 5,000 farmers, 2,000 will be women. At least 400 people will be brought into jobs, and at least 200 businesses will be established and supported.
“We will train smallholder farmers to engage in agribusiness projects for generating incomes for their households,” said Ms Nizari.
Financed by UKaid, the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation, the LNG Plant Project and the German government, the project’s long-term plan is to create value chain in agriculture, AKF country manager Abid Mallick said in a statement.
Known as ‘Kilimo ni Biashara’, the project will involve mobilising farmers to create value chains. It focuses on vegetables, chickens, eggs, pulses and rice.
http://www.thecitizen.co.tz/News/Busine ... index.html
February 2, 2017, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania: The Aga Khan Foundation (AKF) is implementing an agro-business project that will create 200 enterprises and generate at least 5,000 jobs in Lindi and Mtwara regions.
The AKF senior programme officer for Enterprise and Economic Development, Ms Tahira Nizari, told The Citizen here yesterday that the three-year project was launched on Monday this week.
At least 3.1 million euros (Sh7.2 billion) will be injected into the project.
Of the 5,000 farmers, 2,000 will be women. At least 400 people will be brought into jobs, and at least 200 businesses will be established and supported.
“We will train smallholder farmers to engage in agribusiness projects for generating incomes for their households,” said Ms Nizari.
Financed by UKaid, the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation, the LNG Plant Project and the German government, the project’s long-term plan is to create value chain in agriculture, AKF country manager Abid Mallick said in a statement.
Known as ‘Kilimo ni Biashara’, the project will involve mobilising farmers to create value chains. It focuses on vegetables, chickens, eggs, pulses and rice.
http://www.thecitizen.co.tz/News/Busine ... index.html
Engaging Citizens to Improve Sanitation
The Aga Khan Development Network is empowering communities
Two years ago, India’s prime minister, Narendra Modi, made a bold statement: India, he said, would eliminate open defecation by October 2019. To accomplish this enormous goal, the Indian government aspires to build 120 million toilets in rural India. The budget for the massive public project, which is referred to as Swachh Bharat Abhiyan (Clean India Mission), is INR 200,000 crores ($29 billion).
The solution, though, is not as simple as just handing out free toilets. The people of India need to be compelled to change long-entrenched habits as well. As the Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN) argues, it will take a three-pronged solution—a combination of funds, raw materials, and human capital—with India’s citizens fully engaged on each front, to yield a successful rollout of toilets across India.
To that end, several agencies of AKDN have been working with India’s government to develop more community-driven approaches to building toilets in villages. Specifically, between 2015 and 2019 the Aga Khan Foundation, the Aga Khan Rural Support Programme, Aga Khan Health Services, and the Aga Khan Agency for Habitat are facilitating access to sanitation for 100,000 families as well as improving water, sanitation, and hygiene in 538 schools. AKDN is working in the states of Bihar, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, and Uttar Pradesh, and plans to expand to Hyderabad and Maharashtra.
Asad Umar is the senior program officer for health at the Agha Khan Foundation and responsible for this extensive project. He has seen charitable organizations dole out toilets in the past. As he says, “Clearly, building toilets works only when people use them, and usage is only possible when communities are involved in the planning, construction, and maintenance of toilet facilities.”
More...
https://ssir.org/articles/entry/engagin ... sanitation
The Aga Khan Development Network is empowering communities
Two years ago, India’s prime minister, Narendra Modi, made a bold statement: India, he said, would eliminate open defecation by October 2019. To accomplish this enormous goal, the Indian government aspires to build 120 million toilets in rural India. The budget for the massive public project, which is referred to as Swachh Bharat Abhiyan (Clean India Mission), is INR 200,000 crores ($29 billion).
The solution, though, is not as simple as just handing out free toilets. The people of India need to be compelled to change long-entrenched habits as well. As the Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN) argues, it will take a three-pronged solution—a combination of funds, raw materials, and human capital—with India’s citizens fully engaged on each front, to yield a successful rollout of toilets across India.
To that end, several agencies of AKDN have been working with India’s government to develop more community-driven approaches to building toilets in villages. Specifically, between 2015 and 2019 the Aga Khan Foundation, the Aga Khan Rural Support Programme, Aga Khan Health Services, and the Aga Khan Agency for Habitat are facilitating access to sanitation for 100,000 families as well as improving water, sanitation, and hygiene in 538 schools. AKDN is working in the states of Bihar, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, and Uttar Pradesh, and plans to expand to Hyderabad and Maharashtra.
Asad Umar is the senior program officer for health at the Agha Khan Foundation and responsible for this extensive project. He has seen charitable organizations dole out toilets in the past. As he says, “Clearly, building toilets works only when people use them, and usage is only possible when communities are involved in the planning, construction, and maintenance of toilet facilities.”
More...
https://ssir.org/articles/entry/engagin ... sanitation
Aga Khan Firm Equips Teachers With New Skills
http://allafrica.com/stories/201702200053.html
Tanzania: Aga Khan Firm Equips Teachers With New Skills
20 February 2017
Tanzania Daily News (Dar es Salaam)
By Jimmy Lwangili
The Aga Khan foundation has trained over 1,000 headteachers of nursery and primary schools from Lindi and Mtwara regions through its project that seeks to improve education in the East Africa Regions (AKU-IED, EA).
The free training that involved headteachers from Kilwa, Lindi, Nachingwea and Newala districts had benefited from various training of teaching techniques including how to prepare the relevant subjects.
The AKU-IED,EA Project Manager, Mr Ronald Kimambo said the project is well known as 'the project of consolidation of professional and supporting education systems in improving learning outcomes'. This was revealed on Friday during the fourth graduation ceremony since the establishment of the project.
"This is a five year project that sponsored by the government of the Canada and the Aga Khan foundation ... and it's expected to complete at the end of this year," Kimambo briefed during the occasion held in Kilwa District.
According to him, since the establishment of the project has helped bring positive change among teachers and pupils, as well as strengthen government's efforts in improving the education sector. "We hope these teachers will serve as a springboard for their fellow teachers through knowledge sharing," he said.
The main project facilitator, Dr Abdallah Mohamed, said the teachers were taught two courses: Leadership and administration and training, monitoring and assessment of students. He said the courses were taught for six months and provided for three phases, theory, practical and the third is the teachers to meet with trainers to present feedback.
At the same occasion, Planning Officer in the Kilwa District, Mr Francis Kaunda has urged the graduates to use the training for building good understanding capacity to the pupils in their schools. "This is the great opportunity to you guys, use it well and we are so dependent on you to share the skills with the teachers who did not benefit from this project," said Kaunda.
The Acting Director of Training for the Ministry of Education, Science, Technology and Vocational Training, Basiliana Mrimi urged the graduates to actively use the training in improving education by solving teaching challenges in their areas.
One of the graduates, Alfa Milanzi, a headteacher at Madangwa Primary School said the training had helped him get positive change, and that he hopes to perform better in his career than before. "Through these training course I have well understood how to prepare different subject concepts better than before," he said.
Tanzania: Aga Khan Firm Equips Teachers With New Skills
20 February 2017
Tanzania Daily News (Dar es Salaam)
By Jimmy Lwangili
The Aga Khan foundation has trained over 1,000 headteachers of nursery and primary schools from Lindi and Mtwara regions through its project that seeks to improve education in the East Africa Regions (AKU-IED, EA).
The free training that involved headteachers from Kilwa, Lindi, Nachingwea and Newala districts had benefited from various training of teaching techniques including how to prepare the relevant subjects.
The AKU-IED,EA Project Manager, Mr Ronald Kimambo said the project is well known as 'the project of consolidation of professional and supporting education systems in improving learning outcomes'. This was revealed on Friday during the fourth graduation ceremony since the establishment of the project.
"This is a five year project that sponsored by the government of the Canada and the Aga Khan foundation ... and it's expected to complete at the end of this year," Kimambo briefed during the occasion held in Kilwa District.
According to him, since the establishment of the project has helped bring positive change among teachers and pupils, as well as strengthen government's efforts in improving the education sector. "We hope these teachers will serve as a springboard for their fellow teachers through knowledge sharing," he said.
The main project facilitator, Dr Abdallah Mohamed, said the teachers were taught two courses: Leadership and administration and training, monitoring and assessment of students. He said the courses were taught for six months and provided for three phases, theory, practical and the third is the teachers to meet with trainers to present feedback.
At the same occasion, Planning Officer in the Kilwa District, Mr Francis Kaunda has urged the graduates to use the training for building good understanding capacity to the pupils in their schools. "This is the great opportunity to you guys, use it well and we are so dependent on you to share the skills with the teachers who did not benefit from this project," said Kaunda.
The Acting Director of Training for the Ministry of Education, Science, Technology and Vocational Training, Basiliana Mrimi urged the graduates to actively use the training in improving education by solving teaching challenges in their areas.
One of the graduates, Alfa Milanzi, a headteacher at Madangwa Primary School said the training had helped him get positive change, and that he hopes to perform better in his career than before. "Through these training course I have well understood how to prepare different subject concepts better than before," he said.
http://www.businessinsider.com/r-eu-mer ... 017-2?IR=T
For complete text see link
EU mergers and takeovers (Feb 24)
Reuters
Reuters
Feb. 24, 2017, 11:25 AM
BRUSSELS, Feb 24 (Reuters) - The following are mergers under review by the European Commission and a brief guide to the EU merger process.
NEW LISTINGS
Qatar Airways to acquire a 49 percent stake in Italian carrier Meridiana (notified Feb. 21/deadline March 28)
For complete text see link
EU mergers and takeovers (Feb 24)
Reuters
Reuters
Feb. 24, 2017, 11:25 AM
BRUSSELS, Feb 24 (Reuters) - The following are mergers under review by the European Commission and a brief guide to the EU merger process.
NEW LISTINGS
Qatar Airways to acquire a 49 percent stake in Italian carrier Meridiana (notified Feb. 21/deadline March 28)
http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/a ... 308879.ece
National
Aga Khan Foundation bags ‘Swachh’ award
PTIUpdated: April 29, 2017 19:14 IST
The Aga Khan Foundation has bagged an award for implementing a development model that aims at improving access to water and sanitation for marginalised communities across urban and rural areas of the country.
The Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN) of the prestigious foundation received the FICCI-India Sanitation Coalition prize for the initiative that seeks to contribute towards building an open-defecation free India by 2019 under the ‘Swachh Bharat’ mission, the Foundation said on Saturday.
‘Help for 1 lakh families’
The Foundation’s CEO, Tinni Sawhney, and other dignitaries from the Aga Khan Rural Support Programme (AKRSP) received the award from Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu on Thursday.
“The initiative aims at improving access to water and sanitation for marginalised communities across urban and rural India, including helping 1,00,000 families and 538 schools, as well as building toilets in the States of Bihar, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Telangana and Uttar Pradesh,” the Foundation said.
Piloted in Bihar
“The model that we have implemented is a collaborative initiative, working in close partnership with the district and the [respective] State government, prioritising a strong behavioural change component to ensure sustained use and maintenance of sanitation facilities,” Ms. Sawhney said.
The integrated block-level sanitation model is being piloted in rural Bihar.
National
Aga Khan Foundation bags ‘Swachh’ award
PTIUpdated: April 29, 2017 19:14 IST
The Aga Khan Foundation has bagged an award for implementing a development model that aims at improving access to water and sanitation for marginalised communities across urban and rural areas of the country.
The Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN) of the prestigious foundation received the FICCI-India Sanitation Coalition prize for the initiative that seeks to contribute towards building an open-defecation free India by 2019 under the ‘Swachh Bharat’ mission, the Foundation said on Saturday.
‘Help for 1 lakh families’
The Foundation’s CEO, Tinni Sawhney, and other dignitaries from the Aga Khan Rural Support Programme (AKRSP) received the award from Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu on Thursday.
“The initiative aims at improving access to water and sanitation for marginalised communities across urban and rural India, including helping 1,00,000 families and 538 schools, as well as building toilets in the States of Bihar, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Telangana and Uttar Pradesh,” the Foundation said.
Piloted in Bihar
“The model that we have implemented is a collaborative initiative, working in close partnership with the district and the [respective] State government, prioritising a strong behavioural change component to ensure sustained use and maintenance of sanitation facilities,” Ms. Sawhney said.
The integrated block-level sanitation model is being piloted in rural Bihar.
AKDN Comprehensive Water & Sanitation Initiaitve
Aga Khan Foundation UK
VIDEO
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3IHyOFrMKE8
Aga Khan Foundation UK
VIDEO
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3IHyOFrMKE8
From Tree to Trade: Cashews in Mozambique
This blog reflects highlights from a conversation with Sarah Heddon, Program Associate at Aga Khan Foundation. She recently visited Mozambique to oversee MozaCajú, a three-year project implemented jointly by TechnoServe and the Aga Khan Foundation with funding from U.S. Department of Agriculture.
More...
http://www.akfusa.org/our-stories/from- ... ozambique/
This blog reflects highlights from a conversation with Sarah Heddon, Program Associate at Aga Khan Foundation. She recently visited Mozambique to oversee MozaCajú, a three-year project implemented jointly by TechnoServe and the Aga Khan Foundation with funding from U.S. Department of Agriculture.
More...
http://www.akfusa.org/our-stories/from- ... ozambique/
OUR PARTNERS
The Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN) and its agencies actively seek to co-operate with like-minded institutions in the design, implementation and funding of innovative development projects. They therefore need and welcome institutions and individuals throughout the world as partners to attain shared objectives. Individual AKDN agencies also work closely with local, state and national governments in each country in which they are active. The following institutional partners contributed financially or materially to the programmes of individual AKDN agencies. Many more contributed practically and intellectually to their work. All of these contributions are gratefully acknowledged.
http://www.akdn.org/about-us/our-partners
The Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN) and its agencies actively seek to co-operate with like-minded institutions in the design, implementation and funding of innovative development projects. They therefore need and welcome institutions and individuals throughout the world as partners to attain shared objectives. Individual AKDN agencies also work closely with local, state and national governments in each country in which they are active. The following institutional partners contributed financially or materially to the programmes of individual AKDN agencies. Many more contributed practically and intellectually to their work. All of these contributions are gratefully acknowledged.
http://www.akdn.org/about-us/our-partners
Raising cocoa farmer incomes
Improving the cocoa value chain in Madagascar
https://spark.adobe.com/page/5gXE1/
Extract:
In response to these challenges, in 2015, the Aga Khan Foundation began piloting a cocoa value chain initiative in Madagascar's northern Diana region. Its aim is to improve the quality of cocoa and demonstrate to private sector buyers that the Diana region has the potential to become a significant producer of quality cocoa. In doing so, over time this initiative aims to increase exports and, ultimately, raise the incomes for thousands of farmers. Initially, working alongside 125 farmers, the programme is focusing on three key initiatives.
Improving the cocoa value chain in Madagascar
https://spark.adobe.com/page/5gXE1/
Extract:
In response to these challenges, in 2015, the Aga Khan Foundation began piloting a cocoa value chain initiative in Madagascar's northern Diana region. Its aim is to improve the quality of cocoa and demonstrate to private sector buyers that the Diana region has the potential to become a significant producer of quality cocoa. In doing so, over time this initiative aims to increase exports and, ultimately, raise the incomes for thousands of farmers. Initially, working alongside 125 farmers, the programme is focusing on three key initiatives.
AKDN Achievements
AKDN Achievements to 2016
News AKDN
works in over 30 countries around the world.
employs approximately 80,000 people.
The majority of 80000 are based in developing countries.
annual budget for non-profit development activities is approximately US$ 925 million.
project companies of the Ismaili community generated revenues of US$ 4.1 billion
Helping 8 million poor people
Provides access to finance to 17 million people
1.3 million people were provided with clean safe drinking water.
All surpluses are reinvested into further development activities.
News AKDN
works in over 30 countries around the world.
employs approximately 80,000 people.
The majority of 80000 are based in developing countries.
annual budget for non-profit development activities is approximately US$ 925 million.
project companies of the Ismaili community generated revenues of US$ 4.1 billion
Helping 8 million poor people
Provides access to finance to 17 million people
1.3 million people were provided with clean safe drinking water.
All surpluses are reinvested into further development activities.
AKDN Values in Action
Published on Jul 12, 2017
Recalling 60 years of His Highness the Aga Khan's work in realising goals and values of the Ismaili Imamat through the work of the Aga Khan Development Network.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lqYy-N20fb0
Published on Jul 12, 2017
Recalling 60 years of His Highness the Aga Khan's work in realising goals and values of the Ismaili Imamat through the work of the Aga Khan Development Network.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lqYy-N20fb0
Aga Khan anniversary: Aga Khan Development Network vows to continue making people's lives better
Published on Jul 26, 2017
The Aga Khan Development Network has vowed to continue funding and supporting both Social and Economic Sectors in Uganda as well as advocating for a pluralistic Society World Over. This information was revealed at the Diamond Jubilee Celebrations of His Highness the Aga Khan to mark 60 years since he inherited the title of Imam in 1957.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uPNkaLRKb_U
Published on Jul 26, 2017
The Aga Khan Development Network has vowed to continue funding and supporting both Social and Economic Sectors in Uganda as well as advocating for a pluralistic Society World Over. This information was revealed at the Diamond Jubilee Celebrations of His Highness the Aga Khan to mark 60 years since he inherited the title of Imam in 1957.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uPNkaLRKb_U
President Mamnoon lauds development initiatives of Aga Khan
https://dnd.com.pk/president-mamnoon-la ... han/133003
President Mamnoon lauds development initiatives of Aga Khan
By
DND -
August 16, 2017
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan: President Mamnoon Hussain on Wednesday said the continued efforts of Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN) through its multiple projects in the country were making a visible difference in the lives of the people and infrastructure.
The President expressed these views while talking to President of Aga Khan Council for Pakistan Hafiz Sherali who called on him at the Aiwan-e-Sadr in Islamabad to handover a letter from Prince Karim Aga Khan in response to the President’s letter of felicitation on the diamond jubilee of the former’s Imamat.
The President appreciated the role of Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN), Aga Khan Foundation and Aga Khan Health Services role in promoting many important social services projects, especially in northern areas of Pakistan.
He said Prince Karim Aga Khan like his grandfather focused his efforts concerning the quality of life of Muslims all around the world.
In areas of health, education, cultural, revitalization, and economic empowerment, Prince Karim Aga Khan worked to inspire excellence and improve living condition and opportunities in some of the world’s most remote regions, he added.
The President also underlined the role of Aga Khan’s grandfather Sir Sultan Shah Aga Khan in the Pakistan Movement as the first President of All India Muslim League.
In his message, acknowledging his family’s strong ties dating back to the foundation of Pakistan, Prince Aga Khan highlighted the long-established collaboration of the AKDN with public and private institutions to improve the quality of life, create opportunity and build a strong and vibrant civil society in the country.
READ North Korea warns US forces of miserable destruction ahead of war drills
He expressed gratitude to the President and the Government of Pakistan for their continued support and partnership which led to a number of pioneering initiatives in the country.
Hafiz Sherali apprised the President about AKDN’s recent activities and its focus to alleviate poverty, provide increased access to finance for education, health and housing, early childhood development, and infrastructure (principally, water and energy) projects in developing countries.
The President also conveyed best wishes for Prince Karim Aga Khan from the Government and People of Pakistan.
President Mamnoon lauds development initiatives of Aga Khan
By
DND -
August 16, 2017
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan: President Mamnoon Hussain on Wednesday said the continued efforts of Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN) through its multiple projects in the country were making a visible difference in the lives of the people and infrastructure.
The President expressed these views while talking to President of Aga Khan Council for Pakistan Hafiz Sherali who called on him at the Aiwan-e-Sadr in Islamabad to handover a letter from Prince Karim Aga Khan in response to the President’s letter of felicitation on the diamond jubilee of the former’s Imamat.
The President appreciated the role of Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN), Aga Khan Foundation and Aga Khan Health Services role in promoting many important social services projects, especially in northern areas of Pakistan.
He said Prince Karim Aga Khan like his grandfather focused his efforts concerning the quality of life of Muslims all around the world.
In areas of health, education, cultural, revitalization, and economic empowerment, Prince Karim Aga Khan worked to inspire excellence and improve living condition and opportunities in some of the world’s most remote regions, he added.
The President also underlined the role of Aga Khan’s grandfather Sir Sultan Shah Aga Khan in the Pakistan Movement as the first President of All India Muslim League.
In his message, acknowledging his family’s strong ties dating back to the foundation of Pakistan, Prince Aga Khan highlighted the long-established collaboration of the AKDN with public and private institutions to improve the quality of life, create opportunity and build a strong and vibrant civil society in the country.
READ North Korea warns US forces of miserable destruction ahead of war drills
He expressed gratitude to the President and the Government of Pakistan for their continued support and partnership which led to a number of pioneering initiatives in the country.
Hafiz Sherali apprised the President about AKDN’s recent activities and its focus to alleviate poverty, provide increased access to finance for education, health and housing, early childhood development, and infrastructure (principally, water and energy) projects in developing countries.
The President also conveyed best wishes for Prince Karim Aga Khan from the Government and People of Pakistan.
AKDN Iringa
http://www.thecitizen.co.tz/News/Water- ... index.html
Tuesday, September 12, 2017
Water project to benefit more than 6,000 villagers in Iringa
In Summary
The project has been made p;ossible through contribution from Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN).
By By Gadiosa Lamtey @gadiosa2 glamtey@tz.nationmedi.com
At least 6,000 people living in Mapogolo - Idodi and Itunundu - Ikorongo villages in Iringa Region can now easily get water from wells through solar water pumping systems installed recently.
The project has been made p;ossible through contribution from Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN).
Minister for Lands, Housing and Human Settlements Development, Mr William Lukuvi, who is also MP or Ismani Constituency in Iringa, thanked AKDN and Ismaili community for making the projects a reality.
The projects were part of other humanitarian assistance by the Ismaili community this year to commemorate the 60th diamond jubilee celebrations of His Highness, the Aga Khan.
AKDN is a non – profit organisation founded and guided by his Aga Khan. For than a century it has been contributing to the social, economic and cultural development in Tanzania, which includes rural support of agricultural programmes, hospitals and health centers, schools and others.
The inauguration of the two wells was also attended by Regional and District Commissioners from Iringa and other village council leaders from Mapogolo and Ikorongo villages as well as the Vise President of the Ismaili community in Tanzania and other officials from Ismaili council of southern region.
Tuesday, September 12, 2017
Water project to benefit more than 6,000 villagers in Iringa
In Summary
The project has been made p;ossible through contribution from Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN).
By By Gadiosa Lamtey @gadiosa2 glamtey@tz.nationmedi.com
At least 6,000 people living in Mapogolo - Idodi and Itunundu - Ikorongo villages in Iringa Region can now easily get water from wells through solar water pumping systems installed recently.
The project has been made p;ossible through contribution from Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN).
Minister for Lands, Housing and Human Settlements Development, Mr William Lukuvi, who is also MP or Ismani Constituency in Iringa, thanked AKDN and Ismaili community for making the projects a reality.
The projects were part of other humanitarian assistance by the Ismaili community this year to commemorate the 60th diamond jubilee celebrations of His Highness, the Aga Khan.
AKDN is a non – profit organisation founded and guided by his Aga Khan. For than a century it has been contributing to the social, economic and cultural development in Tanzania, which includes rural support of agricultural programmes, hospitals and health centers, schools and others.
The inauguration of the two wells was also attended by Regional and District Commissioners from Iringa and other village council leaders from Mapogolo and Ikorongo villages as well as the Vise President of the Ismaili community in Tanzania and other officials from Ismaili council of southern region.
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-qatar ... SKCN1C32CC
September 28, 2017 / 10:45 AM / Updated 12 hours ago
Qatar Airways expands airline investments with Italy's Meridiana
Alexander Cornwell
REUTERS/Naseem Zeitoon
DOHA (Reuters) - Qatar Airways said on Thursday it had acquired a 49 percent stake in AQA Holding, the new parent company of Italy’s Meridiana, adding to its growing portfolio of investments in foreign airlines.
Previous sole owner Alisarda retains 51 percent, the major Middle East airline said in a statement.
Loss-making, Sardinia-based Meridiana is Italy’s second largest carrier behind Alitalia [CAITLA.UL], which is partly owned by Abu Dhabi’s Etihad Airways. Alitalia filed for administration earlier this year.
The value of the Meridiana acquisition was not given, and the deal was finalised after protracted negotiations that formally started more than a year ago.
“We are delighted to formalize this important partnership, which will help increase Meridiana’s competitiveness in the European market,” Qatar Airways Chief Executive Akbar al-Baker said.
Italian Foreign Minister Angelino Alfano said the deal represented a turnaround for Meridiana and would help Italy’s tourism industry, especially in the poorer south of the country.
Transport Minister Graziano Delrio said it would ensure job security for Meridiana workers, and created the potential for future job growth.
Alisarda Chairman Marco Rigotti has been appointed chairman of AQA Holding, and Francesco Violante has been appointed as chairman of Meridiana.
A new strategy and chief executive for Meridiana would be announced in “due course,” but al-Baker said Qatar Airways would work with Meridiana to improve its connectivity to Italy, other European destinations, and to the United States.
Al-Baker has said Meridiana would use Boeing 737 MAXs ordered by Qatar Airways, with 20 to be delivered to the Italian airline from the second quarter of 2018.
Meridiana, which offers flights to and from Sardinia and other destinations in Italy, was until now fully owned by the Aga Khan, a businessman and spiritual leader of the Ismaili Muslims.
Qatar Airways bought the Meridiana stake nearly four months into a Gulf political crisis that has seen some Arab states cut ties with Qatar, and the airline banned from flying to some Middle East cities.
Qatar Airways also owns minority stakes in British Airways parent International Airlines Group (IAG) and South America’s LATAM Airlines.
Earlier this year, Qatar Airways tried to add American Airlines (AAL.O) to its portfolio of minority stakes but later backed away after being rebuked by American’s management. It has also expressed interest in Royal Air Maroc [RAM.UL].
Qatar Airways has said it buys stakes in airlines that it believes are good investments, and lets them operate as businesses distinct from the Gulf carrier.
September 28, 2017 / 10:45 AM / Updated 12 hours ago
Qatar Airways expands airline investments with Italy's Meridiana
Alexander Cornwell
REUTERS/Naseem Zeitoon
DOHA (Reuters) - Qatar Airways said on Thursday it had acquired a 49 percent stake in AQA Holding, the new parent company of Italy’s Meridiana, adding to its growing portfolio of investments in foreign airlines.
Previous sole owner Alisarda retains 51 percent, the major Middle East airline said in a statement.
Loss-making, Sardinia-based Meridiana is Italy’s second largest carrier behind Alitalia [CAITLA.UL], which is partly owned by Abu Dhabi’s Etihad Airways. Alitalia filed for administration earlier this year.
The value of the Meridiana acquisition was not given, and the deal was finalised after protracted negotiations that formally started more than a year ago.
“We are delighted to formalize this important partnership, which will help increase Meridiana’s competitiveness in the European market,” Qatar Airways Chief Executive Akbar al-Baker said.
Italian Foreign Minister Angelino Alfano said the deal represented a turnaround for Meridiana and would help Italy’s tourism industry, especially in the poorer south of the country.
Transport Minister Graziano Delrio said it would ensure job security for Meridiana workers, and created the potential for future job growth.
Alisarda Chairman Marco Rigotti has been appointed chairman of AQA Holding, and Francesco Violante has been appointed as chairman of Meridiana.
A new strategy and chief executive for Meridiana would be announced in “due course,” but al-Baker said Qatar Airways would work with Meridiana to improve its connectivity to Italy, other European destinations, and to the United States.
Al-Baker has said Meridiana would use Boeing 737 MAXs ordered by Qatar Airways, with 20 to be delivered to the Italian airline from the second quarter of 2018.
Meridiana, which offers flights to and from Sardinia and other destinations in Italy, was until now fully owned by the Aga Khan, a businessman and spiritual leader of the Ismaili Muslims.
Qatar Airways bought the Meridiana stake nearly four months into a Gulf political crisis that has seen some Arab states cut ties with Qatar, and the airline banned from flying to some Middle East cities.
Qatar Airways also owns minority stakes in British Airways parent International Airlines Group (IAG) and South America’s LATAM Airlines.
Earlier this year, Qatar Airways tried to add American Airlines (AAL.O) to its portfolio of minority stakes but later backed away after being rebuked by American’s management. It has also expressed interest in Royal Air Maroc [RAM.UL].
Qatar Airways has said it buys stakes in airlines that it believes are good investments, and lets them operate as businesses distinct from the Gulf carrier.
Ngowi challenges young entrepreneurs to be more creative
Dar es Salaam. Tanzania’s budding entrepreneurs have been challenged to come up with apt business plans in a bid to secure sufficient grants from donors, which will help them run their businesses efficiently.
This was said by Prof Honest Ngowi of the Mzumbe University when addressing participants of the National Tanzania Scale Forum yesterday. The forum carried the theme “Young Entrepreneurship for Social Impact”.
Besides Prof Ngowi called on financial institutions to support the young entrepreneurs by providing them with soft loans or grants to enable them to grow their businesses.
The National Tanzania Scale Forum, which was organised by the Aga Khan Development Network Agencies (Aga Khan University and Aga Khan Foundation), brought together over 100 young entrepreneurs from across the country to discuss and share experience in entrepreneurship.
For his part, the Director of East Africa Institute of Aga Khan University, Mr Alex Awiti said the programme was crucial because it provided the young entrepreneurs with the skills and experience about entrepreneurship.
More..
http://www.thecitizen.co.tz/News/Ngowi- ... index.html
Dar es Salaam. Tanzania’s budding entrepreneurs have been challenged to come up with apt business plans in a bid to secure sufficient grants from donors, which will help them run their businesses efficiently.
This was said by Prof Honest Ngowi of the Mzumbe University when addressing participants of the National Tanzania Scale Forum yesterday. The forum carried the theme “Young Entrepreneurship for Social Impact”.
Besides Prof Ngowi called on financial institutions to support the young entrepreneurs by providing them with soft loans or grants to enable them to grow their businesses.
The National Tanzania Scale Forum, which was organised by the Aga Khan Development Network Agencies (Aga Khan University and Aga Khan Foundation), brought together over 100 young entrepreneurs from across the country to discuss and share experience in entrepreneurship.
For his part, the Director of East Africa Institute of Aga Khan University, Mr Alex Awiti said the programme was crucial because it provided the young entrepreneurs with the skills and experience about entrepreneurship.
More..
http://www.thecitizen.co.tz/News/Ngowi- ... index.html