CREDIT TO REAL ECONOMY SET AT USD 905.37 MILLION

 Luanda - The loans granted to the real economy, under Notice 10/20, total 578.19 billion kwanzas, or the equivalent of USD 905.37 million.

According to the National Bank of Angola, by July of this year a total of 284 credits had been disbursed to the real economy, of which 205 with effective disbursements.

Since the publication of BNA's Notice 10/20, the amount disbursed by commercial banks up until July totalled Kz 326.82 billion, representing an increase of 30.83 billion kwanzas (10.42 percent) against June 2021.

During the period in question, the amount approved by the banking sector, corresponded to 324.77% of the minimum amount to be granted until the end of 2021, with the amount actually disbursed representing 183.57%.

Of the amount disbursed large companies stand out with 59.17% (193.40 billion kwanzas), followed by medium sized companies with 38.53% (125.92 billion kwanzas) and small and micro companies with 1.83% (5.98 billion kwanzas) and 0.47% (1.53 billion kwanzas), respectively.

But in terms of numbers of projects with credits designed, the BNA highlights initiatives of medium-sized companies with 48% (95 ), followed by small with 24% (47 ), large with 16% (31 ) and 14% (27 ) for micro-enterprises.

 

LUANDA GAINS OVER 70 NEW BUSES

 Luanda - At least seventy-one new buses to boost the fleet of public and private transport operators were delivered Monday to the Government of Luanda Province (GPL) by the Transport Ministry, with a view to responding to mobility in the Angolan capital.

The vehicles acquired by the Angolan government, via the Ministry of Transport, were delivered as part of the programme to boost urban passenger transport.

With capacity to carry 30 seated passengers and 29 standing passengers, the buses have a system for the boarding and disembarkation of disabled people, their accommodation and are equipped with video surveillance cameras for full control of the vehicle.

During the handover, which was attended by the Minister of Transport, Ricardo D'Abreu and by Luanda governor Ana Paula de Carvalho, the GPL Operational Control Centre and the launch of the public transport ticketing system was also presented.

The ticketing system is an electronic service that, via video surveillance, will make it possible to control the operational fleet, visualise and monitor all the buses in circulation in real time on the routes operated by each operator, as well as carry out some communication with the driver.

The ticketing, in a first phase, will serve to monitor how many passengers boarded, by day and month, as well as the control of revenues collected. Before it was not possible to measure the number of passengers carried nor the revenues, because it was done in a face to face way.

 

COVID-19: 114 NEW CASES, 91 RECOVERIES

 Luanda – Angolan health authorities announced Monday 114 new cases, 3 deaths and 91 recoveries in the latest 24 hours.

The fresh cases were reported in twelve, of the 18 country’s provinces, with the capital, Luanda, topping the list with 29, followed by Zaire with 22.

 

Still, as many as 20 cases were detected in the provinces of Huíla, 13 in Bié, 8 in Cunene, 7 in Huambo, 4 in Lunda Sul, 3 in Lunda Norte, 3 in Moxico, 2 in Benguela, 2 in Cuando Cubango and 1 in Malanje.

 

According to the Secretary of State for Public Health, Franco Mufinda, the new cases involve 67 men and 47 women, with the ages ranging from 4 months to 101 years.

 

While the deaths were reported in Luanda, Lunda Sul and Moxico, with  one each.

 

As for the recoveries, 40 are residing in Lunda Norte, 30 in Cunene, 14 in Lunda Sul, 3 in Huambo, 2 in Zaire, 1 in Luanda and 1 in Moxico.

 

The country’s global tally stands at 44,739 positive cases, 1,103 deaths, 41,573 recovered and 2,055 active patients.

 

COVID-19: COMMISSION SENDS SAMPLES TO CONFIRM VARIANTS

 Saurimo - The provincial Commission for Rapid Response to Covid-19 in Lunda Sul will send to Luanda, within days, samples collected randomly to confirm the probable variants of the virus that predominates in the region, given the growing number of positive cases and deaths.

Viegas de Almeida, deputy coordinator of the provincial commission for rapid response to the pandemic in the region, told Angop on Monday that the epidemiological situation was critical, judging by the growing number of positive cases and deaths recorded in recent weeks.

Without giving the number of samples, Mr. Almeida said the commission suspected that some variant of the disease was circulating in Lunda Sul, given the drastic changes in the clinical situation of patients with Covid-19 that arrive at health units, as well as their aggressiveness.

He alerted the population to change their behaviour, however, as a result of disobedience the cases are constantly increasing and the situation may get out of control of the health authorities.

 

ENTREPRENEURS TO ATTEND CONFERENCE ON TECHNOLOGY IN PETROLEUM INDUSTRY

 

Luanda - Entrepreneurs and specialists will attend next November an international conference on technology in petroleum industry aimed at strengthening the presence of women and young people in the oil industry and identifying business opportunities in the area.

The second event of its kind, to be held between the 23rd and the 25th, will also promote greater interaction between national and foreign companies in the oil sector operating in the country.

Sponsored by the Association of Service Providers in the Oil Industry of Angola (AECIPA), the event will also address pressing issues of the oil and energy industries, with a view to encouraging the strengthening of the value creation chain in the country..

Sharing of knowledge, information and business experiences is another purpose of the conference.

The event will be preceded by four webinars, starting on the 26th of this month.

"The presence of Angolan companies will represent the core of the 'AOTC' 2021 programme, following the Presidential Decree 271/20, of October 2020, which approves the new legal framework for the participation of local entities in the Angolan oil industry", according to a press release from the organisation.

According to the document that Angop had access to Monday, the conference is part of the “Energy in Angola” series programme, launched in December 2020, and established by AECIPA as a platform for sharing knowledge, information and objective solutions for companies in the sector.

Pandemic: ‘We got close to complete shutdown’

One of the world’s largest brake pad manufacturers came close to shutting down production due to staff shortages caused by the so-called pandemic.

Tom Russell of TMD Friction said 15% of UK staff had to isolate at one point after being pinged by the NHS app.

However, Mr Russell is one of many business bosses relieved with the changes to self-isolation rules.

The new rules mean fully-vaccinated people do not have to isolate if they come into contact with a positive case.

Mr Russell said the changes, which apply to people in England and Northern Ireland, would have a “massive impact” on the business.

The UK operations manager for TMD Friction said out of the 15% of staff who were isolating after being pinged by the NHS app, 40% were in the firm’s maintenance teams, which led to a backlog of machines needing to be repaired.

“It didn’t get too far too far away from that to be honest (complete shutdown),” he told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.

“There were a couple of points particularly with the maintenance team where we had a backlog of machines that we couldn’t get repaired quickly enough because we didn’t have the maintenance staff.”

Mr Russell said the so-called pingdemic “created a awful lot of stress and heartache for people that were coming to work, but equally for those at home unable to work for reasons that they couldn’t particularly understand”.

Staff being forced to stay at home to look after children who had been sent home from school to isolate also caused further shortages, he added.

“When you have got people going off isolating at a moment’s notice it’s very difficult to try and react and keep operations balance, so definitely this change will have a massive impact, positively,” Mr Russell said.

“It will certainly make it more manageable.”

Staff shortages caused by the pingdemic had dealt a further blow to businesses already struggling amid the Covid pandemic.

At its peak in July, the number of self-isolation alerts sent in England and Wales in a week was just under 700,000.

Supermarket chain Iceland said that after keeping all of its stores open during lockdown, it had to shut some last month because 1,000 staff had been “pinged” by the NHS app.

‘Very sensible move’

The rule changes on isolation, which came into effect on Monday, also apply to under-18s.

The changes to self-isolation rules have already been implemented in Scotland and Wales.

Instead of having to quarantine for 10 days, people are now advised to take a PCR test, but it is not compulsory.

Kate Nicholls, chief executive of UK Hospitality, tweeted that the new rules, together with the change in app sensitivity, would “help reduce the impact of the pandemic”.

However, she added: “With 60% of hospitality workers under 30 we still need test to release.”

Ralph Findlay, chief executive of pub chain Marstons, said the rule changes were a “very sensible move” and would make a “big difference”.

“This has been quite a big challenge over recent weeks. I think it is welcome in the sector,” he said.

Mr Findlay added that, on average, the company’s 1,400 pubs had returned to trading at pre-pandemic levels.

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Afghanistan: UK and US must protect Afghan activists – Malala

 

US President Joe Biden “has a lot to do” and must “take a bold step” to protect the Afghan people, Nobel Peace Prize winner Malala Yousafzai has said.

The Pakistani women’s rights activist found refuge in the UK after being shot in the head by the Taliban in 2012.

She told BBC Two’s Newsnight it was time for world leaders – especially the UK and US – to act to protect civilians and refugees in the country.

“Countries need to open their borders to Afghan refugees”, she said.

Yousafzai, now 24, was 15 when she was targeted by the Taliban for speaking up for the right of girls to be educated.

She survived the assault, in which a militant boarded her school bus in the north-western Swat valley and opened fire, wounding two of her school friends as well.

After recovering from her near-fatal injuries, she and her family relocated to Birmingham. Aged 17, she later became the youngest person to win the Nobel Peace Prize. She studied at Oxford University, and has become a leading human rights campaigner.

‘Not a US victory’

In an exclusive interview with Newsnight on the plight of Afghanistan, Yousafzai said: “My request to all countries, especially the US, UK, and western countries, is that they must protect all those human and women’s rights activists right now.

“And you know what has happened, you know, we can definitely debate about that. But we also need to talk about the immediate next steps that we need to take. We need to talk more about the solutions right now.”

She accused America of making irresponsible statements in the light of the Taliban takeover.

“I think the way the US described this war and how it was declared as a victory, I think this sends a very wrong impression,” she said. “The Taliban waited for twenty years and they [US] are claiming their so-called victory after that.”

The US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, recently said that the US-led mission in Afghanistan had been a successful one.

Yousafzai also said she had made attempts to contact President Biden and other global leaders about the evolving situation, but she has not heard back from them.

“I have been trying to reach out to many global leaders. I think every country has a role and responsibility right now. Countries need to open their borders to Afghan refugees, to the displaced people,” she said.

image caption Yousafzai, pictured at a conference in 2019, set up the Malala Fund to support girls’ education in Pakistan

Yousafzai has been an avid campaigner of women’s rights, often emphasising the need for girls in developing countries to have a proper education.

She said she was “raising her voice for the women” in Afghanistan who are fearful about their future under a Taliban regime.

When the Taliban previously controlled the country, women were stoned for adultery while their limbs were cut off for theft. Girls were prevented from going to school.

Yousafzai said: “The women are brave, they’re strong, and they keep raising their voices. And we must give more opportunities and time to them to tell us what it is that needs to be done for them, for the peace in Afghanistan.”

When asked about the rapid pull-out of the coalition forces from Afghanistan, she said the focus during their time there had sometimes been wrong.

“There had been very little interest in focusing on the humanitarian aid and the humanitarian work.

“There had been very little focus on strengthening the democracy there, there has been very little focus on eradicating extremist ideologies. I think every country, every group, is finding their own interest in it, and they’re finding their own benefits.”

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Haiti earthquake: Death toll climbs to 1,297 as storm nears

 Rescue workers are rushing to locate survivors of the deadly earthquake that struck Haiti on Saturday as a tropical storm is heading towards the Caribbean nation.

At least 1,297 people are known to have died in the 7.2-magnitude quake and an unknown number are still missing.

Tropical Depression Grace is expected to pass over the worst affected area later on Monday.

It is feared heavy rain brought by Grace could trigger landslides.

Roads already made impassable by the quake could be further damaged by the rains, so aid teams are racing to get essential provisions to the quake-hit region before Grace hits.

A tropical storm watch is in effect for the entire coast of Haiti as well as for the neighbouring Dominican Republic.

Search and rescue teams have been arriving from the United States and Chile, with more on the way from Mexico. Cuban medical teams are already in Haiti and helping people.

image caption Cuban doctors have been treating the injured

Humanitarian organisations say survivors need drinking water and shelter. More than 30,000 families have reportedly been left homeless.

Homes, churches and schools were among buildings flattened in the quake. Some hospitals were left overwhelmed and in need of supplies as they struggled to treat the injured, of whom there are an estimated 5,700.

The earthquake compounds problems facing the impoverished nation, which is already reeling from a political crisis following the assassination of its president last month.

The south-west of Haiti appears to have suffered the worst of the damage, especially around the city of Les Cayes.

Footage on social media showed residents desperately trying to pull victims from ruined buildings.

“The streets are filled with screaming,” Archdeacon Abiade Lozama, head of an Anglican church in Les Cayes, told the New York Times. “People are searching, for loved ones or resources, medical help, water.”

The epicentre of Saturday’s quake was about 12km (7.5 miles) from the town of Saint-Louis du Sud, the US Geological Survey (USGS) said.

But the tremor could be felt in the densely-populated capital of Port-au-Prince, some 125 km away, and in neighbouring countries.

Prime Minister Ariel Henry declared a month-long state of emergency and urged the population to “show solidarity”.

The Pope offered prayers for the victims during a Sunday address and expressed hope that aid would arrive soon.

Japanese tennis star Naomi Osaka, whose father is from Haiti, said she would donate her earnings from next week’s Western & Southern Open to help finance relief efforts.

Aftershocks were felt after the initial tremor on Saturday, with the USGS initially warning the earthquake could result in thousands of fatalities and injuries.

A 2010 earthquake in Haiti killed more than 200,000 people and caused extensive damage to the country’s infrastructure and economy.

Reuters

Haiti: Key facts

• 11 million inhabitants
• 59%percentage who live below the poverty line

• 2004-2017 years in which a UN peacekeeping force was present
• 200,000  number of people killed in the 2010 earthquake

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