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On Your Marks, Get Set, Africa!

In the face of declining world markets and the lack of prospects in the West, Africa is looking more and more like a place to do business.

Africa, with all its angst and chaotic history and struggle with social upheaval is showing a resilience and sense of survival at which we can marvel.

The International Monetary Fund anticipates emerging economies in general and Africa in particular will expand by 4.5% this year and 4.8% in 2013. An interesting indicator has been residential property values, which, on average, rose by 8% in 2011. (AFDB Statistics) Economic growth is expected to continue despite recessionary trends in some parts of the world.

Although income disparities exist across Africa an authentic middle class is evolving. It is estimated that sixty million African households have annual incomes greater than $3,000 at market exchange rates. By 2015, that number is expected to reach a hundred million.

Urbanisation is pushing up demand for all kinds of real estate: office space, retail complexes and of course, housing. The growth of, and potential for, infrastructure projects abounds. This has the positive spins off for labour too.

South African business, it could be said, is scrambling. Recently Resilient, known for its successful serial development of non-metropolitan shopping malls outside of the major urban nodes, expressed dissatisfaction with local red tape and revealed it would spend more than 1 billion rand building 10 shopping malls in Nigeria. The malls, 10,000 square meters and 15,000 square meters in size, will be built over the next three years in the capital, Abuja, and the city of Lagos respectively, the main commercial hubs. Shoprite, Africa’s largest food retailer, will be the major tenant.

Wal-Mart-owned Massmart last month said it would invest in African growth and hoped to grow its food retail business from about R7bn to about R20bn over the next five years. But it’s South African food retailers Shoprite and Pick n’ Pay’s whose sites are firmly set on Africa. Pick n Pay has increased its African growth, using R1,4bn from the sale of Franklins in Australia.

Shoprite, which has only about 123 stores in Africa compared to about 1730 locally, says another 174 stores will be added in Africa next year. Pick n’ Pay on the other hand is aiming to expand into Malawi and the DRC within the year. The food retailer has over 93 stores in Africa North of South Africa. Zambia and Zimbabwe are on the cards for expansion. Woolworth, not to be outdone has opened 14 stores through its Enterprise Development Programme in Nigeria, Uganda, Zambia, Kenya, Mauritius, Tanzania and Mozambique. Woolworths currently has a presence in 12 countries with nearly 60 stores across Africa, excluding South Africa.

Further investment in the African playing field could come in the form of buy-outs of South African food retailers by the likes of Tesco, Carrefour and Metro. Wal-Mart’s consumption of Massmart has already been well publicised.

On a slightly different tack, Don’t Waste Services (DWS), the largest on-site waste management company in South Africa, has publicized their intention to open affiliates in Botswana, Kenya, Zambia, Mauritius and Swaziland. The company – is active in the mining, retail, hospitality, healthcare and large industry markets and currently provides waste minimisation services to 300 corporate clients across their portfolios of sites. Having recently expanded into Mauritius, the company is keen to duplicate their successful model in other African countries.

On the real estate front JHI Properties Zimbabwe has added another 15 properties to its portfolio of over 50 since it is to manage unlisted property investment fund, Ascendant Property Fund (APF). JHI has already expanded from its South African home base into Zambia, Ghana, Namibia, Botswana, Lesotho and Nigeria. This further expansion comes as Zimbabwe is experiencing exceptional growth in the retail market at a rate of some nine per cent plus year on year. APF CEO Kura Chihota anticipates actively pursuing growth in Zimbabwe. “With Zimbabwe’s anticipated economic growth rate of nine per cent per annum, prospects look promising.” said Chihota recently.

JHI Properties was also appointed as the leasing agents for Joina City, a new upmarket ‘urban city’ in Harare incorporating four floors of retail with 18 floors of offices. Anchor tenants include big South Africa names Spar and Edgars.

Bringing us to Bigan. Bigan, that brought us Mombela Stadium in Nelspruit, Olievehotbosch Ministerial housing projects, the Oliver Tambo International Pier Project and ESKOM Coal Hauleage Road Repair, is negotiating partnering with Ghanaian real estate companies to build affordable houses for the poor and middle income earners.

Ghana’s housing deficit stands at about 1.5 million units. Bigan believes it has the capacity to deliver and help reduce Ghana’s housing deficit. Based on their experience in South Africa, Bigan’s Emmanuel Kere believes that the company can “support not only the (housing) sector in Ghana but infrastructure development in general.”

Bigan claims to build 30 000 houses in South Africa annually and has a lot to offer Ghanaian companies. Chairman of Bigen Africa, Dr Iraj Abedian said that the company was attracted to Ghana because of the country’s stable political environment and friendly business atmosphere. Bigan makes no apology that it intends to use Ghana as a springboard to launch operations into Senegal, Liberia, Nigeria and Sierra Leone.

The South African government is not exempt from taking an active role in the scramble for Africa either. The Public Investment Corporation (PIC), which manages over a trillion rand on behalf of civil servants, which accounts for 10% of SA’s JSE market capitalisation, is looking for potential private equity partners. 10% of the portfolio is to be invested outside South Africa, R50 billion is reserved for African investment. 60% of that, about R30 billion, will go to private equity according to PIC CEO Elias Masilela in an interview with Reuters. The PIC is likely to be a player in infrastructure investments as countries on the continent build and revamp their roads, dams, hospitals and power stations, he said.

Standard bank which has a presence in 18 African countries weighs in on infrastructure. In an interview with Goldman Sachs’s Hugo Scott-Gall, Sim Tshabalala deputy CEO of the Standard Bank Group said: “in most of sub-Saharan Africa infrastructure has all but collapsed, or is limited. It has to be rebuilt, so there are massive opportunities in project finance. A lot of infrastructure will be refurbished, mainly with support from the Brazilians and the Chinese. The link we have with ICBC (Industrial and Commercial Bank of China) also helps us identify opportunities and execute on them. In our case, ICBC is a 20% shareholder.”

Standard Bank, as a South African player in the African market has positioned itself well as a go between or conduit for other BRICs partners wanting to interface with the continent. Standard Bank has a cooperation agreement for example, to identify Chinese corporates and SOE (State owned enterprises) that are looking for opportunities on the continent.

Standard Bank has its work cut out for it as Intermediaries for foreign capital since it is estimated that Africa needs about US$90 billion a year to deal with its infrastructure backlog and currently is raising about US$70 billion. This is coming from a combination of sources: taxes, the banking system, and a large amounts coming from outside – risk capital. The banking system in individual African countries does not have the capacity to fund all of the necessary infrastructure activities, so there will be a lot of reliance on international capital markets and the international banking system.

Standard Bank is not alone in its growing presence in Africa, ABSA has received regulatory approval to start a greenfield insurance business in Zambia, bringing to four the number of sub-Saharan countries where the Barclays-owned bank will have insurance operations. First National Bank (FNB) has revealed plans to invest nearly R2bn over the next 12 months as SA’s third-largest bank by customer numbers, to expand its footprint in SA and Africa. It is believed to be considering an acquisition in Nigeria and has sent scouting missions to Ghana. The bank, which operates in eight countries in Africa including SA, has about 7 -million customers in SA and 1,1-million in Africa. FNB Tanzania was its most recent addition, while its Zambian unit has already announced plans to have a nationwide branch network by 2016.

There’s no doubt that some South African companies are viewing Africa with a greater sense of urgency. The European Union’s financial troubles have revealed South Africa’s vulnerability to European troubles. More than 25% of South Africa’s bilateral trade is from the EU. If GDP in Europe declines that indicates fewer goods being shipped from Africa. This does not bode well for South Africa. Expansion and investment into Africa can broaden South Africa’s horizons not to mention its vulnerability.

But in the words of Standard Bank’s Sim Tshabalala: “As a South African I would love to believe in the sustainability of the country’s national competitive advantage as an entry point to the African continent. Increasingly, people are able to go directly to Kenya and Nigeria, for example, without going through South Africa, because these countries are building the necessary hard infrastructure and the required financial and legal infrastructure.”

So it seems that South Africa’s competitive advantage is diminishing as the rest of the continent develops. In the meantime many companies are seeing the gap and heading into the fray. It seems that the future really is now.

I’m Matthew Campaigne-Scott. I spent 19 years working in Missions and Ministry. I’m currently enjoying the life of a freelance writer.

I have written for periodicals and websites, composed speeches and sermons and prepared copy for web advertisements and research papers. I can tailor my work according to your needs. I love a challenge and enjoy building work relationships.

Drop me a line to get connected and propose what I can do for you.
Email me at hearonearth@gmail.com.
Visit my blog to view other articles at http://hearonearth.wordpress.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/expert/Matthew_Campaigne-Scott/1248437

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April 27, 2022
Fireworks Entertainment

Fireworks Entertainment

Fireworks are a part of many public entertainments and have retained an enduring popularity since they became a "crowning feature of elaborate celebrations" in the 17th century. First used in China, classical antiquity and Europe for military purposes, fireworks were most popular in the 18th century and high prices were paid for pyrotechnists, especially the skilled Italian ones, who were summoned to other countries to organise displays. Fire and water were important aspects of court spectacles because the displays "inspired by means of fire, sudden noise, smoke and general magnificence the sentiments thought fitting for the subject to entertain of his sovereign: awe fear and a vicarious sense of glory in his might. Birthdays, name-days, weddings and anniversaries provided the occasion for celebration." One of the most famous courtly uses of fireworks was one used to celebrate the end of the War of the Austrian Succession and while the fireworks themselves caused a fire, the accompanying Music for the Royal Fireworks written by Handel has been popular ever since. Aside from their contribution to entertainments related to military successes, courtly displays and personal celebrations, fireworks are also used as part of religious ceremony. For example, during the Indian Dashavatara Kala of Gomantaka "the temple deity is taken around in a procession with a lot of singing, dancing and display of fireworks".

The "fire, sudden noise and smoke" of fireworks is still a significant part of public celebration and entertainment. For example, fireworks were one of the primary forms of display chosen to celebrate the turn of the millennium around the world. As the clock struck midnight and 1999 became 2000, firework displays and open-air parties greeted the New Year as the time zones changed over to the next century. Fireworks, carefully planned and choreographed, were let off against the backdrop of many of the world's most famous buildings, including the Sydney Harbour Bridge, the Pyramids of Giza in Egypt, the Acropolis in Athens, Red Square in Moscow, Vatican City in Rome, the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin, the Eiffel Tower in Paris, and Elizabeth Tower in London.

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April 18, 2022
Fashion Industry

The fashion industry is a product of the modern age. Prior to the mid-19th century, most clothing was custom-made. It was handmade for individuals, either as home production or on order from dressmakers and tailors. By the beginning of the 20th century—with the rise of new technologies such as the sewing machine, the rise of global capitalism and the development of the factory system of production, and the proliferation of retail outlets such as department stores—clothing had increasingly come to be mass-produced in standard sizes and sold at fixed prices.

Although the fashion industry developed first in Europe and America, as of 2014 it is an international and highly globalized industry, with clothing often designed in one country, manufactured in another, and sold world-wide. For example, an American fashion company might source fabric in China and have the clothes manufactured in Vietnam, finished in Italy, and shipped to a warehouse in the United States for distribution to retail outlets internationally. The fashion industry has long been one of the largest employers in the United States, and it remains so in the 21st century. However, U.S. employment declined considerably as production increasingly moved overseas, especially to China. Because data on the fashion industry typically are reported for national economies and expressed in terms of the industry's many separate sectors, aggregate figures for world production of textiles and clothing are difficult to obtain. However, by any measure, the clothing industry accounts for a significant share of world economic output.

The fashion industry consists of four levels:

    1, the production of raw materials, principally fibers and textiles but also leather and fur
    2, the production of fashion goods by designers, manufacturers, contractors, and others
    3, retail sales
    4, various forms of advertising and promotion

These levels consist of many separate but interdependent sectors, each devoted to the goal of satisfying consumer demand for apparel under conditions that enable participants in the industry to operate at a profit.

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April 14, 2022
Why global recovery may not look like China’s

China may be as much as a year ahead of most developed nations in economic normalization after the pandemic.

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May 9, 2020
Indonesia firmly committed to eliminating lymphatic filariasis as a public health problem

Indonesia recently completed the last of its annual large-scale treatment for lymphatic filariasis (also known as elephantiasis or Penyakit Kaki Gajah) in Malaka District located in its southernmost province, East Nusa Tenggara. Unprecedented
progress by the National Lymphatic Filariasis Elimination Programme has strongly placed the country on the path to achieving the elimination of lymphatic filariasis as a public health problem.

“We reached an estimated number of 40.7 million people living in the 118 high-risk districts during this month-long treatment campaign in October 2019” said Dr Anung Sugihantono, who recently retired as Director General of Diseases
Prevention and Control, Ministry of Health Indonesia. “Single doses of diethylcarbamazine citrate and albendazole facilitated by WHO were delivered to all eligible populations.”

In 2010, an estimated 125 million Indonesians were still at risk of the disease and required treatment.

But things changed considerably in 2015 when Indonesia mounted an annual national campaign to resolutely address transmission of the disease and to tackle the morbidity and disability associated with it. The results were apparent as early as 2017, with
remarkable progress.

In Indonesia, LF is considered a significant public health concern. In 2009, risk mapping identified a population of 124.5 million people needing treatment for LF. The country initiated a national level LF elimination campaign in 2015, addressing both
disease prevention and management.

“In 2017 and in just two years we managed to achieve 100% geographical coverage of all people requiring treatment” said Dr Sugihantono. “It meant achieving more than 78% epidemiological coverage – much higher than the generally recommended 65% to stop transmission.”

Transmission of lymphatic filariasis can be stopped through large-scale treatment (or mass drug administration – MDA) of entire at- risk communities with recommended medicines once a year. These medicines kill the microfilariae in an infected patient’s
blood preventing mosquitoes to transmit¹ the disease to others. Through mass treatment, the aim is to reduce the reservoir of microfilariae in the blood to a level insufficient to maintain transmission by the mosquito vector.

This strategy to interrupt transmission is the corner-stone of the World Health Organization’s (WHO) Global Program to Eliminate Lymphatic Filariasis (GPELF). Indonesia has been using the GPELF’s strategy since 2002 using a district or city
as its implementation unit.

In 2005, it listed the elimination of LF as a national priority for controlling infectious diseases and the medicines it has been using in large-scale treatment programmes are diethylcarbamazine citrate (DEC) and albendazole² which are
largely distributed by volunteer community health workers³.

“Community health volunteers are themselves members of the community and know how to reach people effectively to improve compliance” said Dr. Stefanus Bria Seran, the Regent of Malaka District, one of LF endemic district in Indonesia. “Besides ensuring every single person ingests the medicine given to them, these community workers help in disseminating information well before a large-scale treatment campaign and also assist in reporting activities related to each treatment campaign”.

Indonesia’s efforts to eliminate lymphatic filariasis began in the 1970s but faced numerous challenges including programme coordination in the many inhabited islands, conducting information, education and awareness programmes, lack of capacity and
insufficient medicines.

Furthermore, the situation in Indonesia is unusual than in many other countries endemic for lymphatic filariasis as the country is endemic for all three species of thread-like filarial worms – Brugia malayi, Brugia timori, and Wuchereria bancrofti –
that cause the disease. Most of the infections in Indonesia, however, are caused by B. malayi.

In the past, some of the factors that prevented access to the medicines (DEC and albendazole) were social stigmatization linked to the disease, the vast geography of the territory and challenges in reaching remote populations.

With an estimated population of 242 million, Indonesia is the world’s largest island nation and consists of approximately 17,000 islands, of which 5,000–6,000 are inhabited. It is the fourth most populated nation behind China, India, and the United
States.

Indonesia is endemic for many other neglected tropical diseases and an estimated 110 million Indonesians are believed to suffer from at least one neglected tropical disease (NTD), including lymphatic filariasis and soil-transmitted helminth infections.
Leptospirosis (not classified as NTD) is also widespread.

Indonesia is the only country of WHO’s South East Asia Region with endemic schistosomiasis. Like many other countries of the Region, it also faces recurrent threats of dengue outbreaks.

Global progress

The world has made significant progress towards the elimination of lymphatic filariasis as a public health problem.

Sixteen countries⁴ and one territory are now acknowledged by WHO to have achieved elimination of lymphatic filariasis as a public health problem.

Seven additional countries have successfully implemented recommended strategies, stopped large-scale treatment and are under surveillance to demonstrate that elimination has been achieved.

The disease

Lymphatic filariasis is caused by infection with parasitic worms living in the lymphatic system. The larval stages of the parasite (microfilaria) circulate in the blood and are transmitted from person to person by mosquitoes.

Infection involves asymptomatic, acute, and chronic conditions. Most infections are asymptomatic, showing no external signs while contributing to transmission of the parasite. Although asymptomatic, these infections still cause damage to the lymphatic
system and the kidneys and alter the body’s immune system.

When lymphatic filariasis develops into chronic conditions it leads to lymphoedema (tissue swelling) or elephantiasis (skin/tissue thickening) of limbs and hydrocele (scrotal swelling). Involvement of breasts and genital organs are common.

Manifestation of the disease after infection takes time and can result in an altered lymphatic system, causing abnormal enlargement of body parts, and leading to severe disability and social stigmatization of those affected.

¹Lymphatic filariasis is transmitted by different types of mosquitoes – e.g the Culex mosquito which widespread across urban and semi-urban areas; Anopheles, mainly found in rural areas; and, Aedes, mainly
in endemic islands in the Pacific.

²In 2017, WHO recommended an alternative three drug treatment to accelerate the global elimination of lymphatic filariasis. The treatment, known as IDA, involves a combination of ivermectin, diethylcarbamazine citrate and albendazole.
It is recommended annually in settings where its use is expected to have the greatest impact.

³Community health workers, also called ‘cadres’, are volunteers who form part of the communities they serve and work with local
communities to educate families. Their contribution in promoting health has been significant in the country.

⁴Cambodia, The Cook Islands, Egypt, Kiribati, Maldives, Marshall Islands, Niue, Palau, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Togo, Tonga, Vanuatu, Viet Nam, Wallis and Futuna, and Yemen

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May 9, 2020
INFOSAN Quarterly Summary, 2020 #1

Food safety incidents

During the first quarter of 2020, the INFOSAN Secretariat was involved in 38 food safety incidents involving 109 WHO Member States and 9 territories of WHO Member States. There were 25 incidents involving a biological hazard (Salmonella spp. [8], Listeria monocytogenes [5], Norovirus [3] Shiga-toxin producing Escherichia coli [2], Clostridium botulinum [2] Bacillus cereus [2], Cronobacter spp. [1], Shigella sonnei [1], unspecified biological hazard [1]), 6 involving an undeclared allergen (milk [3], peanut (1), egg [1], gluten [1]), 5 involving a physical hazard (undetermined foreign matter [2], glass [1], metal [1], plastic [1]), one involving a chemical/toxin hazard (histamine), and one linked to an unspecified hazard.

The food categories that were most commonly involved in the 38 incidents during the first quarter of 2020 involved fish and other seafood (8), herbs and spices (4), legumes and pulses (4), milk and dairy products (3), nuts and oilseeds (3), snacks, desserts and other foods (3), cereals and cereal-based products (2), composite food (2), fruit and fruit products (2), meat and meat products (2), vegetables and vegetable products (2), products of special nutritional use (1), and food for infants and small children (1). One incident involved an unknown food source.

During such international food safety incidents, the INFOSAN Secretariat relies on the swift action of national INFOSAN Emergency Contact Points to respond to requests for information. Rapid sharing of information through INFOSAN enables members to implement appropriate risk management measures to prevent illness in their respective countries.

Geographic scope

The outlined incidents involved Member States from all WHO regions: Europe (39), followed by the Americas (24), Africa (24), the Western Pacific (18), the Eastern Mediterranean (8) and South-East Asia (6).

Recall in several countries of frozen spring roll sheets from Singapore due to the presence of an undeclared allergen

In February 2020, the INFOSAN Secretariat was notified by the European Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed (RASFF) and INFOSAN colleagues in Australia of a recall in Australia and several European countries of frozen spring roll sheets due to the detection of an undeclared allergen (milk), imported from Singapore. In collaboration with RASFF, the INFOSAN Secretariat was informed that the implicated frozen spring roll sheets were distributed internationally to 46 Member States from four WHO regions and 4 territories in Europe and the Western Pacific. Moreover, through engagement with the INFOSAN Emergency Contact Point (ECP) in Singapore, the INFOSAN Secretariat also received details of further distribution of implicated products to additional WHO Member States from all WHO regions, taking the total number of Member States involved to 65. It was also reported that the products involved had been redistributed by some countries to Europe, the Americas and Africa. Consequently, several countries recalled the implicated products to relabel them and investigated the issue to identify illnesses related to the consumption of the implicated frozen spring roll sheets. No illnesses were reported to the INFOSAN Secretariat.

This incident has highlighted undeclared allergens as an important category of hazards that can result in a largescale international response to implement risk management measures and prevent illness. In addition, it exemplified efficient communication among INFOSAN members and the Secretariat.

Outbreak of Listeriosis in the United States of America linked to enoki mushrooms imported from the Republic of Korea

In March 2020, the INFOSAN Secretariat was made aware by the United States (US) Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) of an outbreak of Listeriosis in the US linked to the consumption of enoki mushrooms, imported from the Republic of Korea. In total, 36 cases including 4 deaths have been reported in the US. Following investigations in Canada, carried out in collaboration with the US, the INFOSAN Secretariat was informed of 6 cases of Listeriosis between 2017 and 2019 in Canada potentially related by whole genome sequencing (WGS) to the ongoing outbreak in the USA. In addition, food isolates (from enoki mushrooms from the Republic of Korea) genetically associated with the cluster of cases have been collected in 2019 by authorities in Canada. The WGS information pertaining to the cases and food isolates were shared on the INFOSAN Community Website to assist the identification of cases in other countries.

The INFOSAN Secretariat engaged the INFOSAN Emergency Contact Point (ECP) in the Republic of Korea to seek details on any further international distribution of the implicated enoki mushrooms. Investigations are ongoing.

News & activities

Food Sector and the COVID-19 outbreak

On 31 December 2019, WHO was alerted to several cases of pneumonia of unknown origin in the city of Wuhan, Hubei Province, China. The virus, a previously unknown coronavirus has been named SARS-CoV-2 and is the cause of the COVID-19 disease.

The WHO Epidemic Information Network (EPI-WIN) aims to share information tailored to specific sectors, including food and agriculture. The INFOSAN Secretariat has recently developed a guidance document for food businesses with regards to COVID-19 and food safety which is now available online. The guidance has also been disseminated through EPI-WIN and presented during two webinars.

Call for applicants: INFOSAN Train-the-Trainer Workshop

In February, the INFOSAN Secretariat issued a call for applications for the INFOSAN Train-the-Trainer workshop. With the constant growth of the network, and the increased need for training that this entails, the INFOSAN Secretariat, in collaboration with the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA), has announced this workshop which aims to increase the human resources available to train INFOSAN members on a range of INFOSAN-related topics, online or in-person. As a result, it is expected that the understanding of the roles and responsibilities of INFOSAN members will be improved, resulting in greater participation that will enhance speed and efficiency during the response to food safety emergencies at the global level. The INFOSAN Secretariat, together with CFIA, look forward to hosting this important workshop later this year.

Developing the new INFOSAN Community Website

The INFOSAN Community Website (ICW) continues to be an effective tool for the network to disseminate information during food safety emergencies. Over the past year, through the INFOSAN member survey, the Secretariat has gained a better understanding of how members use the ICW and how it can be improved to enhance information sharing. The information collected, together with the experience of members of the Secretariat, has provided numerous innovative ideas to guide the development of the new ICW. The Secretariat is pleased to announce that the competitive process to select the vendor that will develop the new INFOSAN Community Website has concluded and the work on the creation of the new ICW has begun.

Voice of an active network member

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May 9, 2020
Five Nigerians In China Test Positive For Coronavirus

Five Nigerians based in China have tested positive for Coronavirus, Daily Mail UK reports.

Out of the bunch, four had recently visited the same eatery, ‘Emma Food’, multiple times, the Guangzhou Health Commission announced on Tuesday.

The restaurant owner, alongside her daughter and another child, later tested positive for the pandemic.

Wuhan, the former epicentre, on Wednesday saw all travel restrictions lifted after 76 days.

Seven people, who tested positive for Coronavirus, have been linked to the same restaurant in China, sparking fears.

The Nigerian citizens with the infections were detected between March 28 and March 30, after screening 3,779 travellers from high-risk countries living in the city.

The Coronavirus epidemic erupted in China after dozens of people suffering ‘mysterious viral pneumonia’ were linked to the same seafood market in Wuhan.

Guangzhou is situated 1,028 kilometres (638 miles) South of the former epicentre.

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April 9, 2020
Fifteen Chinese Doctors Arrive Nigeria To Help Coronavirus Fight

At least 15 doctors from China have arrived Nigeria through the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja.

The team was received by the Chinese Ambassador to Nigeria, Dr Zhou Pingjian; Executive Director, China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation, Mr Jacques Liao, and senior Nigerian Government officials.

The medical team is expected to support local health workers to tackle the Coronavirus outbreak in Nigeria.

The country currently has 254 confirmed infections and six recorded deaths due to the p

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April 9, 2020
COVID-19 And Nigeria’s Pathetic Leadership Deficit By Ugochukwu Ejinkeonye

There is no better warning about the growing confusion that seems to be gradually beclouding the federal government’s response to the coronavirus challenge than the belief it betrayed last week that, perhaps, all it needs to calm the fears and apprehensions of Nigerians about its ability to halt the spread of the virus is to reel out a catalogue of activities President Buhari was said to have undertaken so far concerning the pestilence, whether the people felt their impact or not.

Now, if your family is starving badly, do you solve the rumbling signs of biting hunger in their stomach with some wild tales of the efforts deployed by you so far to feed them, or just keep quiet, give them food, and they will see and feel for themselves that you have played your role responsively and effectively? Or if you must talk, tell them something you have done whose benefits they can readily verify and identify with.

Indeed, some Nigerians are beginning to achieve the conviction that there must be something about being in government in this country that seems to diminish the reasoning ability of people once they get in there and deprives them of the capacity to realize when they have stopped making sense or even become downright annoying. This is very pathetic.

And so, last week, presidential spokesperson, Mr. Femi Adesina, issued a document entitled: “COVID-19: What President Buhari Has Done And Is Doing.” And, I suppose that with the release of that handout, the virus immediately received a deadly blow and vanished from the country! Aren’t we so blessed? Why then are Nigerians not on the streets celebrating the unprecedented feat?

A prominent item on Mr. Adesina’s list is the president’s March 29 broadcast. And what exactly did the broadcast achieve? The two things I can readily remember now is that Gen Buhari had announced the continuation of the school feeding programme for pupils who are all at home now due to the closure of schools as part of the efforts to contain the spread of the coronavirus. Probably, nobody remembered to inform him and his speech writers that school children were on compulsory holidays, or are they going to send the food to them in their homes? Or, perhaps, somebody is trying to find a justification for the billions of naira we will be informed later was spent on the exercise?

Also, the president proclaimed the lockdown of Lagos and Ogun states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). And when he was through, he returned to his hideout – where only a few privileged eyes and ears see and hear from him, and then come out to tell us what they think he has said or done.

Now, what exactly was the lockdown meant to achieve? Okay, as social interactions are reduced, the chances of spreading the virus decrease. Yes, but what else? Has anyone seen any evidence that there were any plans to use the stay-at-home period to access the people and step up medical tests to determine how many people have become infected with the virus and how they could be attended to?

The government that was boasting that it was “adequately prepared” to tackle the virus was later to prove when the virus eventually arrived that it was only making empty claims as usual. A country of 200 million people has yet to demonstrate any capacity to test even a reasonable fraction of one percent of her population. And somebody is publishing a document to tell us what the president was supposed to have done or is doing. As if such boring tales will remove the cloud of gloom hovering over Nigeria?

Again, in a country where electric power is just an unaffordable luxury for many, how can a leader just lock down some states and return to his hideout to continue his “vacation” that was rudely interrupted by the loud, persistent and widespread demands that he should address his country even though some other presidents were doing daily briefings and leading the war against the virus from the front? As the markets closed and movements became restricted, how are those who could afford to buy and stock food items at home preserve them without electric power?

What of the greater population which depend on daily earnings for their survival? What is the government’s plan for them? Okay, we are hearing of palliatives that have been extended to this category of people and the billions of naira that have already been transferred to their accounts? Now, who has encountered the happy recipients of the twenty thousand naira (N20, 000) said to have been given to each of them? Are there really existing data showing the social and economic status of every Nigerian which is in the possession of the authorities? So, all the “poor and vulnerable” Nigerians now have bank accounts whose details are known to the government? So, why then are too many Nigerians very suspicious of these claims as shown in their social media comments? And why is such a rare display of kindness by this government not being celebrated? Or have the funds (if indeed any were shared) ended up in the hands of the same people who have more than enough to need them while those who are genuinely deprived remain terribly famished?

Already, the biting hunger out there is forcing a growing number of people to defy the no-movement decree and soon, the whole effort might be defeated, and the country will return to square one. Information Minister, Mr. Lai Mohammed, is threatening that the lockdown may be extended if Nigerians fail to behave themselves. But what he should rather have done is to hasten to school himself to realize that there is always a price to pay when leaders leave the country they claim to be governing in great disarray only to suddenly wake up when there is an emergency to grope for fix-quick solutions.

A few days after the president’s broadcast (that is, Tuesday, March 31), Daily Independent carried a front page lead story about 26 Americans who came into the country through the Murtala Mohammed International Airport and headed to Calabar without being screened. Now, who cleared their trip to the country and why were there no health officials available to screen them and ensure they were quarantined for 14 days before being allowed to fly to Calabar? Is it because they are Americans or clients of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) or both? Does that automatically exempt any of them from being a carrier of the virus which is presently ravaging their own country? What kind of government claims to be fighting a virus with one hand and using the other hand to be undermining the efforts being deployed to contain it?

Okay, the Minister of Health, Dr. Osagie Ehanire, has just announced that an 18-man Chinese team of medical “experts” will soon arrive the country to “assist” Nigeria in the fight against the coronavirus. Now, is it the federal government that asked China for help or was it China that volunteered their assistance? Indeed many Nigerians are vehemently opposed to this gesture at this time. Our own local medical experts have not shown any signs of being overburdened by the work, so what difference are these 18 Chinese doctors and nurses going to make? Will they, like the 26 privileged Americans, also be given express entry into the country or will they be isolated for 14 days as should be the case, before they would be allowed to start rendering their “assistance”?

Do we really need this Chinese gift now or is it that the government lacks the liver to politely decline their offer of help, despite the widespread apprehension among the citizenry about their involvement (since many Nigerians, habour strong fears that the gesture might turn out a Greek gift)? Even the umbrella body of Nigerian doctors, the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA), has come out to strongly oppose the coming of the Chinese medical team. Is it that our government is too intimidated to say NO to China’s offer probably because it has yoked itself so much with crushing debts due to its excessive borrowings from them – debts, whose positive effects on Nigerian lives many are yet to see?

I raise these points because, although, Nigeria has recorded one of the lowest deaths from coronavirus, it was the stubborn refusal of the government to close our borders when it became very necessary and urgent (and despite calls from well-meaning Nigerians) that led to the explosion in the number of confirmed cases that the country has recorded today. In saner climes, the government should have profusely apologized for that terrible miscalculation that is costing the nation so much now.

But it now has another opportunity now to gratify the yearning of Nigerians and reject the Chinese offer even if it is well-meaning and the fears about it are misplaced.

Now, what lessons is the government taking away from the scourge of coronavirus? Will they see the need to equip our hospitals this time and upgrade at least few of them to world standard now that they have realized the folly of always waiting to use public funds to send themselves and their families abroad to treat even minor ailments? For the first time in Nigeria, the naïve and largely misguided Nigerian leaders have found out that it is not always safe to seek solutions for health challenges outside the country and that there is afterall no place like home. This is hoping that the lesson will endure and be redemptive.

*Ugochukwu Ejinkeonye, is a Nigerian journalist and writer. (scruples2006@yahoo.com)

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April 9, 2020
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April 9, 2020