Maldives

Zanzibar named number one summer destination in Africa

admin — Sat, 10 Jun 2023 22:00:01 +0000

Zanzibar named number one summer destination in Africa

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admin Sat, 06/10/2023 - 22:00

Thursday, May 25, 2023

Original Publisher

The Citizen

Original Article

Zanzibar named number one summer destination in Africa

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Unguja. Zanzibar has been named a top destination for those seeking relaxation and pleasure during the 2023 summer by ‘The Travel’.

Tourists who are looking for the most memorable summer experience are spoiled for choice when they explore Africa's natural beauty.

The magazine also names other myriads of natural wonders and hidden gems in Africa, which are the most beautiful places to visit, each destination offering a unique blend of relaxation, adventure, and beauty.

These include Cape Town (South Africa), the Masai Mara National Reserve (Kenya), Victoria Falls on the Zambezi River, the Pyramids of Giza (Egypt), the Blue Nile Falls (Ethiopia), Kruger National Park (South Africa), Mount Kilimanjaro (Tanzania), Marrakesh (Morocco), and Lake Malawi.

Speaking on the ranking as summer kicks off, Zanzibar’s tourism and heritage minister Simai Mohammed Said, noted that it is a great boost for the tourism sector.

“Zanzibar has its own charm due to its historical background, but with the combination of history and white sandy beaches, the demand of people wanting to visit Zanzibar has continued to grow by the year,” he said.

Recent statistics have shown that the industry has since rebound from the shock waves of the pandemic with January and February hitting record numbers that had never been reached before.

Zanzibar had a total of 701,189 bed-spaces in January 2023 of which 578,719 beds were sold representing a bed occupancy rate of 82.5 percent.

According to the magazine, for centuries, Zanzibar has been one of the most beautiful summer destinations in Africa which consists of gorgeous islands, the most beautiful of which is named after the archipelago itself.

“With pristine white sand and clear beaches, Zanzibar is a refreshing spot worth exploring during the summer,” writes the magazine.

While in Zanzibar, tourists can explore breathtaking African tourist spots such as the winding streets of Stone Town, the historic capital of Zanzibar, and they can even catch a glimpse of the archipelago’s cultural heritage.

The magazine says, Zanzibar is one of the most rewarding tropical beach destinations in all of Africa to visit comparing it to the Maldives or Tahiti.

Three of the hotspots to stay on the island are the northern coastal paradise of Nungwi, the historical bustling town of Stonetown, and the kite-surfing and party-dominated coastal resort of Paje.

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News

SVG not on verge of economic collapse – Finance Minister

admin — Sat, 11 Dec 2021 04:10:01 +0000

SVG not on verge of economic collapse – Finance Minister

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admin Sat, 12/11/2021 - 04:10

Tuesday, December 7, 2021

Original Publisher

Searchlight

Original Article

SVG not on verge of economic collapse – Finance Minister

Minister of Finance, Camillo Gonsalves says a December 2 Bloomberg News Wire report falsely suggests that the International Monetary Fund (IMF) says this country is on the brink of ‘economic collapse’.

“Nowhere in the IMF blog post cited by Bloomberg does IMF managing director Kristalina Georgieva mention SVG. Not once; look it up,” Gonsalves commented to SEARCHLIGHT on Monday.

The comment was in reference to an article on BNN Bloomberg written by Ana Monteiro with the headline, “IMF Warns of Economic Collapse in Poor Nations Without Debt Fix.”

Part of the article says an IMF official commented that, “With the Group of 20’s debt-service suspension initiative expiring at the end of the year and interest rates poised to rise, low-income countries will find it increasingly difficult to service their debts.”

The article goes on to say, “We may see economic collapse in some countries unless G-20 creditors agree to accelerate debt restructurings and suspend debt service while the restructurings are being negotiated” and “Covid-19 has dealt a major blow to world’s poorest countries, causing a recession that could push more than 100 million people into extreme poverty”, according to the World Bank. The challenges are mounting with the discovery of the omicron variant, which is driving a new wave of infections.

SVG is then listed as being “At Risk”.

But Gonsalves said the article cited a separate World Bank listing of selected countries that may be at risk of “debt distress” and falsely linked that to ‘economic collapse.’

“If a country is in debt distress, which SVG is not, it may mean that some debts could have to be restructured. Restructuring a debt is in no way connected to an economic collapse. Further, there are neighbouring islands that the World Bank has determined to be firmly in debt distress already and they haven’t done any restructuring, much less collapsed,” Gonsalves argued.

He noted that the COVID-19 pandemic and the volcanic eruptions earlier this year have caused the economy of St. Vincent and Grenadines (SVG),to shrink which automatically increases the ratio of debt to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

“We have also taken on more debt to deal with the humanitarian challenges of the volcano, albeit low interest, long term debt. Our construction of a modern port facility in Kingstown will also raise our debt profile in the short term,” Gonsalves further explained.

He added that the worsening debt to GDP profiles as a result of COVID-19 is not unique to SVG, as Debt to GDP worsened in every OECS member state over the last two years.

“In that regard, I fully agree with the IMF and Kristalina Georgieva that the developed world could and should do more to offer debt relief to vulnerable countries. In CARICOM, prime Ministers Mia Mottley and Gaston Browne have been leading this advocacy. COVID and climate change have caused economic challenges unrelated to our own internal fiscal management, and we would welcome any initiatives to reduce that burden,” the finance minister told SEARCHLIGHT.

He added, “but we are far, far away from anything resembling an economic collapse. SVG has always paid its debts and will continue to do so. We have not even seen it necessary to enter an IMF structural adjustment programme, one of the few in CARICOM to avoid that fate.”

The finance minister said the overwhelming bulk of the country’s debt is low interest, long term, concessionary debt from the World Bank, the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB), the European Union (EU), “and friends like Taiwan or Venezuela.”

“This debt is manageable,” he stressed whole noting that SVG welcomes the IMF’s call for debt relief to vulnerable countries and the government has been advocating that for a while.

“But there is absolutely no truth in the Bloomberg article’s misleading connection between Ms. Georgieva’s blog post and the assumption that we are on the brink of economic collapse. Nothing could be further from the truth.”
On December 2, an article on the IMFBlog written by Kristalina Georgieva and Ceyla Pazarbasioglu said that despite significant relief measures brought on by the COVID-19 crisis, about 60 percent of low-income countries are at high risk or already in debt distress.

“In 2015 that number was below 30 percent,” the article said.

Reports show that SVG is listed for high risk of external debt distress and overall debt distress. The listing appears in the latest publicly available Debt Sustainability Analysis (DSA) issued under the Joint Bank-Fund Debt Sustainability Framework for low income countries (LIC-DSF).

Grenada is also on that list but noted to already be in distress.

Minister Gonsalves further stated that having a risk of debt distress does not mean economic collapse.

Island nations also listed as having high risk of overall debt distress are Haiti, Kiribati, the Maldives, the Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Tonga and Tuvalu.

Caribbean

News

Obi Cubana, Sunday Igboho, Tiwa Savage, others top Google 2021 searches in Nigeria

admin — Fri, 10 Dec 2021 08:50:02 +0000

Obi Cubana, Sunday Igboho, Tiwa Savage, others top Google 2021 searches in Nigeria

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admin Fri, 12/10/2021 - 08:50

Wednesday, December 8, 2021

Original Publisher

Arts & Entertainment – Premium Times Nigeria

Original Article

Obi Cubana, Sunday Igboho, Tiwa Savage, others top Google 2021 searches in Nige…

Google on Wednesday released the 2021 Year in Search lists showing the most searched terms, topics and questions by Nigerians in the year 2021.

Google’s 2021 Year in Search compiles the moments, people, topics, events, and places that capture the world’s attention each year.

As the pandemic entered its second year, Google says Nigerians used the internet to search for answers and information that revealed their interest in topics related to music, movies, TV shows, sports, food, celebrity personalities, pop culture and lifestyle.

Also, top search topics like ‘Paralympics’, ‘Euro 2020’ , ‘EPL’ , ‘Chelsea F.C.’ and ‘Champions league’ were reflective of the country’s uncompromising love for sports.

Highlights

Tiwa Savage, Destiny Etiko and Romelu Lukaku topped their respective categories, revealing Nigerians’ love for top entertainment personalities and athletes.

Squid Game, the Korean TV series that enthralled the world, topped the category of trending movies and series.

From questions like ‘How to check JAMB result 2021?’, to search terms like ‘Alcohol lyrics’, ‘TB Joshua’ and ‘Pornstar martini cocktail recipe’, Nigerians used Search to make sense of their world this year.

Here are the trending searches in 2021:

Top 10 trending searches

Paralympics

Euro 2020

Olympic Games Tokyo 2020

TB Joshua

La Liga

EPL

Champions league

Tiwa Savage

Obi Cubana

Sound Sultan

Top trending people

Tiwa Savage

Obi Cubana

Sunday Igboho

Romelu Lukaku

Nnamdi Kanu

Elon Musk

Baba Ijesha

Omah Lay

Raphael Varane

Fabrizio Romano

Top trending musicians

Tiwa Savage

Omah Lay

Lil Nas X

Ruger

Ayra Starr

Buju

Bobby Shmurda

Seyi Shay

Chidinma Ekile

Naira Marley

Top lyrics

Alcohol lyrics

Bloody Samaritan lyrics

My Baby Bad My Baby Good lyrics

Peru lyrics

Ruger Bounce lyrics

Infinity lyrics

Cash App lyrics

Jowo lyrics

Big Thug Boys lyrics

Feeling lyrics

Top trending athletes

Romelu Lukaku

Raphael Varane

Christian Eriksen

Ben White

Earling Haaland

Xavi

Saul Niguez

Thomas Tuchel

Naomi Osaka

Jules Koundé

Top Nollywood Actors

Destiny Etiko

Zubby Michael

Pere

Tonto Dikeh

Iyabo Ojo

Olu Jacobs

Nafisa Abdullahi

Jim Iyke

Nancy Isime

Alex Ekubo

Top EPL teams

Chelsea F.C.

Manchester City F.C.

Tottenham Hotspur F.C.

Leicester City F.C.

Everton F.C.

West Ham United F.C.

Aston Villa F.C.

Newcastle United F.C.

Southampton F.C.

Leeds United

Top recipes

Pornstar martini cocktail recipe

Pancake recipe

Chocolate cake recipe

Puff puff recipe

Fried rice recipe

Egusi soup recipe

Oha soup recipe

Vanilla cake recipe

Ogbono soup recipe

Chinchin recipe

Trending Top devices

iPhone 13

Infinix Note 10

Infinix Hot 10

iPhone 12 pro max

iPhone 13 pro max

Tecno Camon 17

Samsung A12

Infinix Note 8

Infinix smart 5

Tecno spark 7

Trending 2021 losses

TB Joshua

Sound Sultan

Ada Jesus

DMX

Femi Osibona

Dare Adeboye

Rachel Oniga

Prince Philip

Yinka Odumakin

Sani Dangote

Trending movies and series

Squid Game

Coming to America 2

Sex Life movie

Black Widow

Red Notice

Mortal Kombat

Army Of The Dead

Eternals

Shang Chi

The Harder They Fall

Trending 2021 Songs

Naira Marley – Coming

Ayra Starr – Bloody Samaritan

Omah Lay – Understand

Naira Marley – Koleyewon

Kizz Daniel – Lie

Ladipoe feat. Buju – Feeling

Ruger – Bounce

Davido – Jowo

Wizkid – Essence (Remix) ft. Justin Bieber

Joeboy – Alcohol

Trending “Who is” general

Who is going to win Champions League 2021?

Who is Obi Cubana?

Who is Ada Jesus?

Who is Sunday Igboho?

Who is the best player in the world?

Who is DMX?

Who is the President of America?

Who is the new chief of army staff?

Who is Abba Kyari?

Who is Cubana Chief Priest?

Trending “How to” general

How to check JAMB result 2021?

How to pack a parcel?

How to open pdf file?

How to open mp3 file?

How to open apk file?

How to check NECO result?

How to register NIN online?

How to vote on BBnaija 2021?

How to reprint JAMB slip?

How to track a package?

Trending “Where is” general

Where is Sunday Igboho now?

Where is White Money from?

Where is Burna Boy from?

Where is Nnamdi Kanu today?

Where is my location?

Where is Maldives located?

Where is Cuba located?

Where is Gaza?

Where is Michigan located?

Where can I download movies?

Africa

Entertainment

Fashion: The Final Straw

admin — Wed, 21 Jul 2021 05:20:01 +0000

Fashion: The Final Straw

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admin Wed, 07/21/2021 - 05:20

Tuesday, June 22, 2021

Original Publisher

Jamaica Observer

Original Article

Fashion: The Final Straw

Third time's the charm for Kristia Franklin, who has been reaping success since the relaunch of her e-commerce site last year. It was her third attempt after an initial launch in 2014 while she was a university student, and a follow-up attempt in 2018. She concedes the local market was then simply not ready for an online store.

A vacay with her mom Terryon Walsh in 2020 put the wave she's now riding in motion. "I was going on vacation with my mom, and I wanted a straw hat. I said to myself, 'If I take some photos wearing the hat and persons are interested, then I'd start to sell them'," Franklin told Tuesday Style Fashion (TSF) .

So said, so done. Local demand for the oversized toppers soared, and the international market quickly followed suit. This prompted the revamp of Franklin's website with striking images - shot on location at her home - fronting a roll-out of existing styles and fresh designs. The Franklin-designed Hat Bag, a sizeable tote fashioned from her brand's sought-after Extra Large Shade Hat, has been the talk of the town toting around fab beach essentials from Montego Bay to the Maldives.

If you are looking to stand out at your next outdoor soirée, then you might consider grabbing the Shade Me hat. If you have a flair for the dramatic, then you might consider adding the extra-large version to your wardrobe.

Though she's overjoyed with the feedback about her designs, Franklin is especially grateful that her success has re-energised what she describes as a dying art in Jamaica. "It's a very intricate process to make these bags. The straw comes from thatch palm trees. Someone plaits the straw, another person trims it then an artisan makes the hats and bags," she explained.

Straw accessories have been around for years, but they are set to make a huge impact on #Summer2021Style. Grab yours now.

View the entire collection by visiting the website: tiatheclothesgirl.com. And check Franklin out on Instagram @tiatheclothesgirl.

CREDITS

Photographer: Mali Photography Ja

Model: Emma Watson

Caribbean

Living Standard

WORLD: Over 200 million vaccine doses administered globally

admin — Sat, 20 Feb 2021 21:00:01 +0000

WORLD: Over 200 million vaccine doses administered globally

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admin Sat, 02/20/2021 - 21:00

Saturday, February 20, 2021

Original Publisher

Barbados Today

Original Article

WORLD: Over 200 million vaccine doses administered globally

SOURCE: AFP — More than 200 million coronavirus vaccine doses have been administered in at least 107 countries and territories, according to an AFP count based on official sources Saturday.

In total 201,042,149 doses had been given worldwide — a figure that does not include the latest data from China and Russia, who have stopped making their progress public in recent days.

Some 45 per cent of the injections took places in countries belonging to the wealthy G7 club, whose members account for just 10 per cent of the global population.

Its seven countries — the US, Canada, Britain, Germany, France, Italy and Japan — promised Friday to share doses more fairly with worse-off countries.

G7 leaders plan to more than double their total support to worldwide coronavirus vaccinations, to US$7.5 billion, including through the World Health Organization-led Covax scheme.

More broadly, 92 per cent of doses worldwide have been given in countries classified by the World Bank as “high-income” or “upper-middle income”, accounting for around half of global population.

Among the 29 countries the institution ranks as “low-income”, only Guinea and Rwanda have begun vaccinating.

Israel is far ahead of any other country worldwide with almost half its population having received at least one vaccine dose.

One in three Israelis has received both doses needed for full protection.

Other countries to have given more than 10 per cent of their people at least one dose include Britain (25 per cent), Bahrain (16), the US (13), Chile (12), the Seychelles (43) and the Maldives (12).

In absolute figures, the US has injected more people than any other nation, with 59.6 million doses.

China had reached 40.5 million by February 9, while Britain is at 17.5 million, India 10.7 million and Israel 7.1 million.

Caribbean

News

Kenya among list of human trafficking hot spots in the world

admin — Mon, 08 Feb 2021 22:40:01 +0000

Kenya among list of human trafficking hot spots in the world admin Mon, 02/08/2021 - 22:40

Monday, February 8, 2021

Original Publisher

Kenya – Capital News

Original Article

Kenya among list of human trafficking hot spots in the world

NAIROBI, Kenya, Feb 8 – Kenya is among the 148 countries where more people are at risk of becoming victims of human trafficking, according to the latest report by the United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime (UNODC).

The increase in human trafficking is attributed to the vulnerability of victims reeling in the economic meltdown caused by the coronavirus pandemic which has brought the world almost to a halt since last year.

The UNODC Global report on trafficking in persons released on February 7, notes that 50,000 people were trafficked to different destinations between 2017 and 2018 with projections of an upsurge of victims made vulnerable due to massive job losses, increasing levels of poverty and the harsh economy necessitated by the pandemic.

“The sharp increase in unemployment rates brought about by the COVID-19
pandemic is likely to increase trafficking in persons, particularly from countries experiencing the fastest and most persistent drops in employment. Job seekers from these countries are likely to be more willing to take high risks in the hope of improving their opportunities,” the report states.

Though, the increase doesn’t show if it is an increase in human trafficking or due to increased detection and reporting of trafficking, the number of perpetrators charged for such offences considerably shot up.

According to the report, trafficking syndicates vary from organized groups to individual criminals with the later taking a lead based on the number of suspects charged for human trafficking which shows that 142 and 148 people were arrested for trafficking in 2017 and 2018 respectively. Out of the 142 suspects, 68 were convicted in 2017 and 61 in 2018.

Majority of those convicted for human trafficking were Ethiopians who had trafficked 227 victims followed by Nepalese taking responsibility for 21 victims, Libyans (13), Indians (9) and then South Sudan (7).

Majority of victims of trafficking found in Kenya were Ethiopians which is also a destination country for victims from Uganda. The report further found that Kenyans are trafficked to the Maldives.

Saudi Arabia as a destination country has majority of victims from Yemen and high numbers from Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia with an indication that victims from East Africa form 41% of victims trafficked to the Middle East for forced labour and sexual exploitation.

In the report, UNODC cites increased vulnerability among children in low-income countries with estimates that they account for almost half (46%) of the victims of human trafficking. According to the report children are ‘trafficked mainly for sexual exploitation, forced criminality or begging’.

Majority of the victims are trafficked for sexual exploitation (50%), while those trafficked for forced labour follow closely at 38% and others for criminal activity, begging, forced marriages and organ removal.

Women constitute the highest number of victims trafficked for labor exploitation and are exposed to ‘multiple forms of exploitation and violence including sexual, physical, and psychological abuse.’

Last year, Kenyan Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) raised a red flag over new tactics employed by traffickers to lure victims during the coronavirus pandemic. Trace Kenya Executive Officer, Paul Adhoch, expressed concerns that the unfolding global economic recession that came with the pandemic would see an increase in the number of victims yearning for an escape from joblessness.

Judie Kaberia is a fellow of the Resilience Fund of the Global Initiative against Transnational Organized Crime

Africa

News

Maldives

Zanzibar named number one summer destination in Africa

Thank you for reading Nation.Africa

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It's the content that counts

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Obi Cubana, Sunday Igboho, Tiwa Savage, others top Google 2021 searches in Nigeria

Highlights

Fashion: The Final Straw

WORLD: Over 200 million vaccine doses administered globally

Kenya among list of human trafficking hot spots in the world