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By Paul Ndiho
02/19/10
The U.S. Senate is investigating how four African countries are using American institutions to funnel millions of dollars into the United States. Some African politicians and their family members are buying expensive houses, luxury goods and banking millions of dollars in America.
A Senate subcommittee is looking at how politically powerful individuals from Equatorial Guinea, Angola, Gabon and, Nigeria are illegally moving millions of dollars through U.S. banks. U.S. Senator Carl Levin says the financial corruption must end.
“If we want to credibly lead efforts to stop illegal money abroad, we’ve got to stop it here at home as well. The fact is that those engaged in large-scale corruption want to put their money in a modern financial system that can store, protect, invest, and transfer their funds efficiently. They want access to U.S. banks. And it is our job to stop them and keep foreign corruption out of the United States.”
A report co-authored by the U.S. Senate alleges that American lawyers, real estate agents and others are helping African officials to launder money in America. U.S. financial institutions have built stronger barriers to keep out suspicious funds. William J. Fox, Senior Vice-President at Bank of America takes responsibility for errors that allowed money to be moved through his institution.
“Our investigators missed looking back at the histories and wire activities that involves some accounts. I think this in our judgment was clearly a bad judgment call.”
Transparency International names Equatorial Guinea, Angola, Gabon and, Nigeria, as some of the countries where corruption remains one of the biggest challenges.
In Equatorial Guinea, Teodoro Obiang Nguema, the 40-year old son of the President, allegedly moved more than $100 million in suspicious funds through U.S. bank accounts. Mr. Nguema reportedly paid $38 million dollars for a Gulfstream jet, and bought a $35 million dollar Manson in the United States, while earning only $5-thousand dollars a month as the country’s Minister of Agriculture. Equatorial Guinea is one of the poorest countries in the world despite earning billions of dollars a year in oil revenenues.

Omar Bongo was President of Gabon for decades until his death last year, and his eldest son, Ali Bongo, takes his father’s place as President. Both men are notorious for accumulating massive wealth in an impoverished country. Multi-million-dollar suspicious wire transfers were allegedly directed by President Omar Bongo through U.S. banks, and from 2000 and 2007, Bongo is said to have transferred large amounts of cash to his daughter, Yamilee Bongo-Astier, who was then living in New York.
Jennifer Douglas is a U.S. citizen and a wife of Atiku Abubakar, former Vice President of Nigeria. From 2000 to 2008, she allegedly helped her husband bring more than $40 million in suspicious money into the United States through wire transfers from offshore corporations.

By Paul Ndiho
Date:02/16/10

Chinese and Asian investors in Zambia are coming under fire from Zambia’s main opposition for allegedly mistreating local workers in Africa’s top copper producing nation.
Chinese and other Asian mining firms employing local people in their Zambian operations pay scant regard to workers, safety or local culture, according to Zambia’s opposition. The opposition says that granting foreign mining investors special treatment by the government is a political and racial powder-keg. Patriotic Front leader Michael Sata, who has a fair chance of unseating President Rupiah Banda in 2011 elections, says the special tax status and “economic zones” given to foriegn mining companies is a ridiculous idea.
“Why should there be special conditions for the Chinese and Malaysians? Why should the Chinese and Malaysians come and participate in a mixed economy with all other nationalities? Why should they have special treatment? Why should they have discriminatory treatment? And after all, the Chinese and Malaysians are newcomers to Zambia.”
Sata lost a closely contested election in 2008 to Rupiah Banda’s Movement for Multi-party Democracy.
If his two-party opposition coalition holds together, he has a good chance of ousting Banda next year, according to some analysts.
It’s unclear how his anti-Chinese rhetoric sits with Asian mining firms that now dominate Zambia’s Copper Belt, although he has said nationalization of the mines is not an option. Zambian Mines minister Maxwell Mwale dismisses Sata’s claims that Chinese mine bosses are duplicating China’s poor mine safety conditions in Africa, but he did admit to a difference in approaches.
“They have their own home country cultures and we, as a host country, we have our own host country culture so it’s basically as a host country to see that at some point the two cultures have to converge so that we have a win-win situation and personally I believe it’s us, as a government, to enforce since we are the ones who carry out the oversight role to see to it that they conform to our work culture.”
Economic analyst Chibamba Kanyama says there concerns about giving incentives to select investors.
“The critical thing at the moment is that the development agreements that govern these investments are not fully disclosed to the general populace and as a result people are not very sure as to whether this extends to one economy having an investment in another economy but without following the regulations of a given country and whether this is an extension of one country into another without following the physical incentives and really paying back to the government.”
Kanyama says that there is a possibility that voices will be raised questioning the agreements between the government and Chinese investors.
“I definitely may foresee that in future somebody will raise to question these incentives and these initiatives by government so the bottom line right now is to ensure that these investors don’t only negotiate with one party but they put their money and lock into these investments and sink in their capital only after a thorough agreement and consensus by the host country in which they are investing.”
Foreign mining companies in Zambia include China’s Luwmana Copper Mines and Chambishi Copper Smelter.

By Paul Ndiho
The U.S-based group, the Fellowship, otherwise knowns as “The Family,” is getting a lot of attention from international media, especially after a report suggesting the group is behind proposed anti-homosexuality legislation in Uganda. However, members of the group say the Family has nothing to do with the bill and that it should not be adopted. The Family has a nongovernmental sister organization in Uganda called Cornerstone Development. Cornerstone denies claims that the Family is driving anti-gay legislation in Uganda. The Ugandan bill criminalizes homosexuality and calls for the death penalty for serial offenders. The Family says the group is not promoting the legislation and is only interested in helping to develop nations. In recent years, Cornerstone has begun work in Rwanda, Tanzania, Burundi, Southern Sudan and Kenya, focusing on developing Africa’s next generation of leaders. Aloysius Bigirwa, graduated from Cornerstone academy in Uganda.
“All I can say about the family, is what I know very well, is that they give good education to less fortunate people in Uganda and other parts of the world.”
Young people from Cornerstone say they are part of a movement seeking to improve society and promote reconciliation.
“What’s very unique is that at Cornerstone they bring people from all backgrounds, talk about religious backgrounds, social, cultural, because we recruit from all over Uganda and the students that come into the schools, they are 25 per year, so that means in Uganda there are 50 students who benefit every year, and they come from all over the country.”
Apart from doing development programs in Africa, The family is also the sponsor of The National Prayer Breakfast an annual gathering in Washington, D.C. The event on February 4th is organized by The Family, and it is attended by the President of the United States and representatives from more than 120 nations. The event has taken place since 1953 and every U.S. president since Dwight D. Eisenhower has participated in the breakfast.

By Paul Ndiho
February 1, 2009
Gemologists say that tanzanite is ten times more rare than diamonds, and the precious stone is found in Tanzania. But it will probably be mined to depletion by the year 2016. VOA’S Paul Ndiho has more:

Discovered 40 years ago in Tanzania, tanzanite is found in the Merelani near Mount Kilimanjaro, the world’s biggest mine for the stone.
Most of the gems are exported to Europe and the U.S. for processing, an export that is worth about 20 million dollars every year. But tanzanite prices have fallen dramatically, according to Zane Swanepoel, managing director of Tanzanite One. “The world financial crisis seems to have taken a turn and tanzanite being a luxury item has followed suit, we are working extensively at trying to bring the price of tanzanite up we know that we are the biggest single player within the tanzanite organization so people look at us as being the driving engine to start bringing the price up.”
Tanzanite One’s recovery plan targets African, Asian, American and European markets. Before foreign investors were granted mining concessions in 2005, the industry was unregulated. Small scale miners had the monopoly and worked in dangerous conditions, with many selling the gems on the black market. Modestus Maembe is concerned about the foreign mining companies and the rate at which the gem is being depleted.
“Block C is the richest area in Tanzanite, it is the epicenter of tanzanite, it holds about 70% of all reserves. They are mining at very high speed and they want to finish all our Tanzanite within 19 years.”

A lot of Tanzanians in the gemstone trade say they cannot compete with the foreign companies. Government regulations require that local dealers and miners get their stones certified by Tanzanite One before they can be sold in order to stop fakes from entering the market. Innocent Maranu has been selling tanzanite for about 5 years now.

“For Tanzanite One to demand that other dealers should send their stones to them to get certified I think it is not right because we have to establish independent institutions to satisfy the stones but not a dealer like them, Tanzanite One, to ask to send their stones to them. Otherwise the ministry of energy and minerals has to establish an independent department to certify stones.”
Since most of Tanzania’s stones are cut and polished abroad, the country is losing out on profits from processing the gem. For example, the American market alone makes about 500 million dollars a year from selling processed tanzanite.

“If mineral gemstones were to be cut here in the country the government could make a big revenue out of it. Secondly, creation of employment to the local people if they have the skills and that was our main aim of initiating this small institution which imparts skills in gem cutting and knowledge in identifying, knowledge in grading mineral gemstones and training them how to cut and becoming experts.”
Tanzanite One does process some stones locally and runs a museum in Mererani that targets mostly tourists. Kut Salor a tourist says she a great deal buying her gem. “More than reasonable yes, to the extent I’m aware of and I’m going to go to Tiffany’s and see how much they charge and then know what a great deal I got here.”
Local Tanzanians say that unless they can benefit directly from their own natural resources, the full value of tanzanite will continue to be reaped by countries other than Tanzania.

HEADLINE: Ghanaian weavers promote use of Kente cloth
BYLINE: Paul Ndiho
DATE: 01/12/10

One of Ghana’s best known products is Kente, a woven cloth most often associated with wealth and cultural sophistication. The colorful fabric dates back centuries and is revered for both its beauty and symbolic significance.

Kente cloth is among Arica’s best known fabrics. The ceremonial cloth is identified by its dazzling, multicolored patterns of bright colors, geometric shapes and bold designs. Strips of the fabric are hand-woven on a loom and then sewn together forming large pieces of cloth.

At a workshop in southern Ghana, Owusu Fordjour is getting his materials and tools ready for weaving.

“I am just wrapping the yarns that I bought from the store and this is the first stage of kente weaving. And the reason why I am doing this is that I would like to combine all the yarns and to know the type of design that I will make.”
Kente is traditionally woven primarily by men. Fordjour has been weaving for nearly three decades and learned the technique from his father. In 2003, he and some of his friends including shopkeeper Atta Pokua formed the Bonwire Best Kente Weavers and Sellers Association to help promote their work,.

“I have been selling Kente for a long time, my grandmother started this business and left it to my mother and then I took over from my mother.”

Traditionally, Kente was worn by royalty and other dignitaries to mark special occasions. Today people across the country wear the fabric and Kente has been adopted as Ghana’s national dress.
Kente is very expensive. So textile manufacturers are selling cheaper, printed versions of the cloth that are less durable. It is often used to make clothes, souvenirs and accessories that are popular with tourists.
Charles Frimpong, a textiles expert at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, says factory-made Kente threatens the rich history of the fabric.

“Items like footwear, earrings, bags, these were not original uses for Kente and so the printed kente has in a large measure come to reduce the importance and reverence in which Kente was.”
For decades, Kente has preserved an integral part of Ghanaian culture and provided weavers and others a source of income and pride.

HEADLINE: FROM COVER GIRL TO SAVING MOUNTAIN GORILLAS
By Paul Ndiho
DATE: 01/12/10

Veronica Varekova has graced the covers of Vogue, Marie Claire and the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue plus posed in ads for Victoria’s Secret, Chanel and Guess. Now she’s adding her voice to a social cause and using her passport to travel to Africa as a Goodwill Ambassador for the African Wildlife Foundation.
The African Wildlife Foundation announced recently that that supermodel Veronica Varekova, who has been featured on the covers of some of the most prestigious fashion magazines in the world, is their new AWF Goodwill Ambassador. Veronica will aid in efforts to raise awareness and funds to support initiatives focused on conserving large landscapes, protecting endangered species, and empowering local communities.
“I’ve always had this sort of humanitarian desires and seeing that they (AWF) really work with the government, with the local communities, building schools for children in Maasai Ranch, at Menyara Ranch, that to me the complexity was just something that I was just like, ‘Wow. This is unbelievable. This is not just about animals’.”

Africa’s Heartland commonly known as the Virunga region is home to almost half of the world’s remaining Mountain Gorillas. Virunga’s fertile volcanic soils and high rainfall make it one of the most densely populated areas on earth, where people rely heavily on the forest for wood and charcoal. The gorillas are found in Congo, Uganda and Rwanda. Varekova tracked the mountain gorillas in Rwanda, a country that is still trying to recover from the 1994 Genocide that left an estimated 800,000 people dead.

“Rwanda today is one of the most stable countries in central Africa and I cannot say once that I was scared. Maybe in front of the large silverback (gorilla) yes. But, other than that, never. It’s really well, beautifully manicured agricultural country and the people of Rwanda are so sweet. Super kind and really anxious to get forward and move on away from that horrific past that they have.”
The African Wildlife Fund says that these vast areas of land are essential to conservation due to an unmatched concentration of wildlife and potential to sustain viable populations for the future. In this region, there is concern that man’s closest relative is facing pressures that could drive it into extinction. Varekova says her message is to tell the locals that there are benefits in protecting mountain gorillas because they generate a lot of income and boost their countries tourism industry.
“Every time I get this question I have to go back in my memories and go to Ngorongoro Crater in Tanzania which is a natural crater. It’s a gigantic zoo really. It’s beautiful, beautiful place. And you have all different kinds of animals there.”

Conservationists say that poaching in the wildlife parks has intensified recently to the point where the wildlife has been driven from their natural habitats.

By Paul Ndiho
January 12, 2010
A anti-homosexuality bill in Uganda’s parliament is receiving strong reactions on both sides of the debate. The bill criminalizes anyone who promotes homosexuality, is accomplice to, or procures another to engage in homosexuality. It also issues the death penalty to serial offenders.
Uganda’s Anti-Homosexuality Bill of 2009 would sentence HIV-positive homosexuals to death for having sex, and severely punish any homosexual with up to life imprisonment. David Bahati introduced the bill to parliament, and says the legislation promotes strong family values.
“The constitution of Uganda outlaws same-sex marriage. The penal code of this country talks about unnatural behavior and there are gaps. It falls short of explaining what homosexuality is and what penalty there should be. So, on that case of the legal angle, there is a need to bridge the gaps within our legal frame works to make it very clear.”
Uganda’s gay community says this legislation will only formalize the persecution of gay and lesbian community. Some Ugandans demonstrated in Kampala recently in support of the bill.
There is already a law on the books in Uganda that criminalizes homosexuality. It refers to crimes committed against the order of nature. But Rick Rosendall, with the Gay and Lesbian Activists Alliance of Washington, D.C., says the law is archaic.
“That’s right out of the old British penal code, which is no longer the case in Britain. It’s no longer part of the law in Britain. But it remains the law in many former colonies including Nigeria and Uganda. And as a result there is victimization of Africans ongoing because of the legacy of colonialism.”

Uganda’s President Yoweri Museveni has come under pressure from donor countries, including the United States, to drop the proposed law, saying it violates human rights. Museveni says he opposes the death penalty provision in the proposed legislation. Rosendall says he stands with the gay people in Africa, and that they face far greater risks and threats every day.

“My own partner is an African whose parents are from Burundi and the Democratic Republic of the Congo and he and other African gay activists that I have seen and gotten to know are among the most courageous people I have ever known.” Rick said.
In a related development, a Malawian judge rejected a bail application by two gay men charged with public indecency after getting engaged to be married. They are believed to be the first gay couple in Malawi to start the marriage process, and pleaded not guilty to the charges last week. Homosexual acts carry a maximum prison sentence of 14 years in Malawi.
Several African countries have a law that makes homosexuality a crime. South Africa is the only African country that has legalized same-sex marriage. Again Rick Rosendall, Gay and Lesbian Activists Alliance of Washington, D.C.

“Now there are a lot of people in Africa, including rulers of various countries that say that homosexuality is not indigenous to Africa, that it was imported by colonists from Europe and elsewhere and that it is un-African. Mr. Mugabe, for example, has said that many times. But in fact studies, ethnographic studies, throughout the continent of Africa have shown, have found indigenous forms of homosexuality everywhere on the continent.”

The issue has spilled over to the church. African archbishops, especially Nigeria’s Peter Akinola, led a schism in the Anglican Communion following the election of Gene Robinson, a gay bishop in New Hampshire. Churches in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda followed suit, principally by refusing grants from the American Episcopal Church.

Here in the U.S., many states have outlawed gay marriage, but others allow it. Around the world, there are many places where gays and lesbians can obtain civil unions, but only seven countries allow gay marriage.

ALBINOS’S TEASED AND KILLED FOR BODY PARTS
BY Paul Ndiho
December 21, 2009
People around the world have many beliefs regarding albinism, the hereditary absence of skin pigment. These beliefs range from harmless myth to dangerous superstitions. In East African countries such as Tanzania, there has been an unprecedented rise in witchcraft-related killings of albino people in recent months. This is because albino body parts are used in potions sold by witchdoctors.
Most forms of albinism are the result of the biological inheritance of recessive genes from both parents. People with albinism commonly have vision problems and need constant sun protection. But they also face social challenges, as the condition often leads to ridicule, discrimination, and even threats and murder.
People with albinism have little or no pigment in their eyes, skin, or hair. Albinism affects people from all races. To help us understand more (about) albinism I came to this Marriott hotel and talked to some families.
Mike McGowan is a person with albinism and has served as the President of the National Organization for Albinism and Hypo pigmentation since 2001.
“The main characteristic from a physiological viewpoint is an uncorrectable low vision associated with albinism. Virtually every person with albinism has some degree of vision loss or vision impairment that at this time cannot be corrected.” Says Mike McGowan, President of the National Organization for Albinism and Hypo Pigmentation (NOAH)

Albinism is a source of social rejection in nearly every culture. NOAH board member Margaret Mary Campbell recalls how she was picked on by some students in her elementary school in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania.
“There was one boy in particular that used to chase me around and throw snowballs with rocks at me. There were some kids that would pick on me but then everybody has their own circle of friends. I think is true for most people with albinism, they form their own circle of friends and they find acceptance within that circle.”
The Dubois family lives in the Washington, D.C. area. Susan Dubois says she and her husband were taken by surprise when their children Katy and Nick were born with albinism. The youngsters say they are coping well socially, but their visual challenges are not well understood.

“Well, not many people tease me but a lot of times people don’t really know, a lot of times I have trouble seeing things because people forget that I can’t see things very well sometimes. Sometimes it’s hard to explain to them that I just don’t see the way that everyone else does.” Katy’s brother Nick agrees.
“So the same with Katy, people don’t tease, I also use equipment to help me see the worksheets better, like for example a CCTV or I used to use a Dell Magnifier.”
Globally, about one person in 20-thousand has albinism. People with albinism face dire threats in parts of Africa. The Federation for the Red Cross and Crescent societies says since 2008, more than 44 albinos have been killed in Tanzania and some 14 others have been slain in Burundi, forcing hundreds of people with albinism to go into camps. Mike McGowan says his U.S. group has mobilized to send aid to East Africa.

“We have begun to organize relief efforts to bring some of the very simple supplies that people with albinism in Africa would benefit from. Protection from the sun is as simple as proper clothing and a cap with a bill and sunscreen, and we are working as best we can to collect those sorts of materials and get them to East Africa.”
Albinos in Africa have a short life expectancy. They lack simple resources such as clothing to protect them from the intense sunlight that is very harmful for people with albinism.
The mistaken belief that albino body parts have magical powers has driven thousands of Africa’s albinos into hiding, fearful of losing their lives and limbs. African albinos endure insults, discrimination and segregation throughout their lives. They also have a high risk of contracting skin cancer.

Somalia’s telecom business is booming, despite the ongoing violence there and the absence of a true national government since 1991. VOA’S Paul Ndiho has more.

Africare is a U.S.-based non-governmental group that works to improve the quality of life in Africa. It promotes health, education, and general welfare, and has pioneered self-help development programs. VOA’s Paul Ndiho visited Africare’s Washington, D.C. headquarters and has more on the organiztion: