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Energy Capital &#038; Power (www.EnergyCapitalPower.com) – Africa’s leading energy event organizer – has reaffirmed its commitment to hosting events in Africa, as some organizers relocate overseas; Africa Energy &#038; Mining 2022 Conference &#038; Exhibition will be held in Cape Town on March 29-31, with an in-person and online Africa Energy &#038; Mining seminar to be held in Cape Town in November 2021 to set the agenda; The Africa Energy &#038; Mining series will explore emerging synergies between mining and energy in a post-COVID-19 environment, with a view to facilitating a continent-wide energy transition.

nergy Capital &#038; Power (ECP) is doubling down on its commitment to an Africa-focused 2021/2022 events calendar – citing the role of local capacity-building and investor engagement in enabling an African energy transition – ahead of its Africa Energy &#038; Mining (AEM) Conference &#038; Exhibition in Cape Town next March and an AEM online and in-person seminar and networking event in Cape Town in November.
As the energy sector faces systemic change, the success of the African continent in navigating a clean energy transition rests on its ability to mobilize domestic resources, establish local and regional value chains and chart its own path. This has led the event organizer to renew its pledge to building networking and deal-making opportunities on the ground, as well as restructure its flagship pan-African energy conference earlier this year into a more integrated and inclusive program. 
Under the theme, “Investing in the World’s Future Energy Value Chain,” AEM 2022 will unite the entire mining and energy value chain, exploring the role that renewables play in advancing Africa’s mining sector, as well as the value of mining in facilitating a continent-wide energy transition. While the events in November and March represent a continuation of ECP’s Cape Town conference series, AEM has expanded the scope to include investment opportunities across oil and gas, mining, power and renewables, along with emerging industry segments such as energy storage and hydrogen.
“Our unwavering commitment to the continent means that a pan-African energy event must take place in Africa,” says Kelly-Ann Mealia, Chairperson of ECP. “We support South Africa’s economic recovery and believe in positioning African innovation and resources at the heart of the energy transition. There is no better place to do this than Cape Town. We are continuing to invest in Africa’s future through our events, which unite leading industry players and decision-makers from across the continent. Unlike other event organizers, we are committed to working with the African public and private sectors to drive progress from within our key markets.”
“In recent weeks, we have seen promising signs from our government signaling expedited vaccine rollouts, streamlined safety protocols and a forthcoming return to professional events,” says Liam Beattie, Managing Director of HOTT3D, ECP’s exhibition partner. “With the support of the private sector and event industry associations such as the South African Events Council (SACIA), South Africa can declare itself reopen for business and compete with global venues in organizing professional, international events safely. In driving a post-COVID-19 recovery, now is the time to double down on – not withdraw from – the continent and enable the growth and survival of its events industry.”
The AEM event in November will gather southern African and pan-African delegates to set key agenda points, including but not limited to, energy storage, battery metals, and the future of African mining; the role of natural gas in Africa’s economies and new petroleum exploration; Africa as a global LNG leader; the future of African power grids and utilities; funding for gas-to-power projects; independent power producers, privatized power and Africa-wide electrification; the hydrogen revolution; and electric vehicles.
 Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Energy Capital &#038; Power.
To learn more about the Africa Energy &#038; Mining series and the post-COVID-19 energy and mining landscape in Africa, please visit www.EnergyCapitalPower.com. For sponsorship or exhibition opportunities, please contact sales@energycapitalpower.com.
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Energy Capital & Power stands by African Energy Events ahead of Africa Energy & Mining Conference

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Zamalek point guard Walter Hodge set the tone on Monday when he scored nine of his 12 points in the opening quarter, sparking his team to a 97-64 win over Algeria’s GSP at Kigali Arena.

The 34-year-old was 4-for-4 from the floor including a three-pointer, giving the Egyptian outfit a 37-16 lead at the end of the first 10 minutes.

Hodge wasn’t the only Zamalek player who played with a sense of urgency. Moustafa Elmekawi led his team with 19 points and a game-high 11 rebounds, while Anas Mahmoud contributed 13 points and eight rebounds and Ahmed Abdellatef scored 11 points off the bench.

The former African champions’ quick start reflected Zamalek’s authority as it stretched its lead to as many as 35 points.

GSP played without its two leading scorers, Mohamed Harat and Abdellah Hamdini. They fought hard, even going on a 6-0 mini-run in the third quarter, but Zamalek didn’t panic. They remained in total control, leading from start to finish.

GSP was led by Algerian international player Seddik Touati, who finished with a game-high 20 points. Hichem Benayad-Cherif scored 10 points and Merouane Bourkaid added 11 points for the five-time defending Algerian champions.
Zamalek’s dominance was so evident that all 12 of their players played at least six minutes.
“I am happy for the win. We had only 18 turnovers today [after averaging 25.5 turnovers in the first two games]. That’s an improvement compared to our first two matches,” Elmekawi said in the post-game presser.

With the win, 3-0 Zamalek advanced to the BAL quarterfinals as winners of Group C.

Zamalek head coach Agust Julbe refused to highlight one single player’s performance, noting that, “We are a team. There will be one game that one player will take center stage, the next one could be another player, like Moustafa [Elmekawi]. Every player on this team will have his own opportunities. Of course, we have players with leading roles, but this is a team effort.”

“[Walter Hodge] is a key for us, he knows that. He had a good start, but it wasn’t just him. The whole team got the job done.”

Julbe acknowledged his team’s progress offensively but noted they have room for improvement on the defensive front.

“[Tonight] we had the worst defensive game in this tournament, considering that GSP missed two key players. We could have done better. But, in the end, it’s a success that we won three games, we moved on to the next stage, and, hopefully, we’ll keep winning games.”

What the numbers say:
Zamalek score its first two points in the opening six seconds of the game and it never looked back.
Outscoring its opponent 60-32 in the paint and in the fast-break (38-5) exemplified Zamalek’s sense of urgency in the game that eliminated GSP (0-3) from the BAL.
Boxscore (https://bit.ly/2QUhxyg) / www.theBal.com/schedule
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of National Basketball Association (NBA).

Hodge sets tone, Zamalek moves on to Quarterfinals at 3-0

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Mondia Pay (www.Mondia.com) and M-Pesa have partnered to allow Tanzanians to conveniently access Mondia’s leading suite of online content on the Vodacom Tanzania PLC digital services network.

Africa is experiencing a fintech explosion, with digitalisation coming of age in many countries as connectivity and access to devices expand and the pressures of COVID-19 shift more consumers online. According to the GSMA, two-thirds of global mobile-money transactions are driven by sub-Saharan Africa.

Mondia Pay has connected Africa&#39;s most successful mobile money service and the region’s largest fintech platform, M-Pesa, with Africa’s leading provider of online digital entertainment, Mondia.

Currently, over 7 Million  Vodacom Tanzania customers are using Valued Added Services (VAS) and digital services, can make use of their airtime balances via SMS and USSD to subscribe to Mondia digital services including PlayInc., MyMuze, Vodacom Premier league, as well as many other news and entertainment services.

With the addition of the Mondia Pay and M-Pesa payment option, users now have a safe, secure and convenient payment method connecting them to the world’s best content, from sports and movies to music and games. The partnership shows the growth potential for innovative fintech and content collaboration, and opportunities for Mondia’s premium partners and merchants to access new markets and revenue opportunities.

“The future of fintech is going to be driven by innovative partnerships that offer compelling and convenient consumer solutions. We are extremely proud of our efforts to enable customers across Tanzania to benefit from Mondia Pay’s integration of M-Pesa as an additional payment option. We also support the continuous efforts taken towards the transition into cashless societies, which has gained significant traction in the past 12 months,” said Simon Rahmann, CEO of Mondia Pay. 

Vodacom Tanzania’s Director for Digital Services Nguvu Kamando said, “This new M-Pesa payment option, enabled by Mondia is a critical component of our digitisation agenda and increases accessibility for our customers to the Mondia digital services offering. The use of M-Pesa, a leading mobile financial service accessible to over 13 million customers in Tanzania with a robust agent network across the country, will offer increased flexibility and ease-of-payments for our customers.”
 Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Mondia Pay.
Media Contact: Alex Bitekeye PR Manager – Vodacom Tanzania Tel: +255 754 712 453 bitekeyea@vodacom.co.tz
Michael Rubenstein Principle – Own Alchemy  Tel:  + 27 82 903 7797 michael@ownalchemy.com
Nicolas le Roux CMO Mondia Tel: +971 50 557 5041 nicolas.leroux@mondia.com
About Vodacom Tanzania: Vodacom Tanzania Plc is the country’s leading mobile operator and mobile financial services provider. We provide a wide range of communication services for consumers and enterprise – including voice, data and messaging, video, cloud and hosting, mobile solutions and financial services – to over 14.1 million customers. Vodacom Tanzania Plc and its subsidiary companies are part of the Vodacom Group registered in South Africa, which is in turn owned by Vodacom Group Plc of the United Kingdom. It has been registered on the Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange (DSE) with registration number ISIN: TZ1886102715 Stock name: VODA.
For further information, please visit our website: www.vodacom.co.tz
About Vodacom M-Pesa: Vodacom M-Pesa is Tanzania’s largest mobile financial service introduced by Vodacom Tanzania PLC in 2008. Now GSMA certified and with over 13 million customers, M-Pesa has significantly contributed towards financial inclusion and economic activity in the country. Customers deposit and withdraw money from their M-Pesa wallets through over 106,000 agents across the country. The M-Pesa ecosystem connects businesses, banks and government agencies making digital payments possible. 
To date, M-Pesa continues to be the market leader in mobile financial services, rolling out innovative services such as savings &#038; Loans, Virtual Debit cards, Overdraft services, Group savings, E-payments and many more, which address the real needs of Tanzanian thereby enhancing financial inclusion and deepening.
About Mondia: Mondia is a leading mobile commerce company, dedicated to connecting, digitalising and monetising mobile consumers. Mondia provides access to over 1.5bn consumers through more than 84 mobile operators across 60 countries. As a global leader, Mondia has deep insight into where the markets are headed and has the expertise to leverage best-in-breed technologies to solve business challenges while enabling the ultimate end user experience.
In addition to creating personalised digital experiences through its content-agnostic platform, Mondia’s advertising agency is geared to drive and manage user acquisition throughout the full customer lifecycle journey. Continuously driven by innovation, Mondia Labs, Mondia’s innovation hub, is driving entry into new sectors like health and creating disruptive products such as Monsooq. 
With offices in 19 locations across Europe, the Middle East and Africa, Mondia is committed to digitalise the globe through its distinctive technology, strategic partnerships and extensive network and global coverage.
Mondia services are also available in Ethiopia, Nigeria and Pakistan through mondia.cell. 
About Mondia Pay: Mondia provides access to over 1.5bn consumers through more than 84 mobile operators in over 60 countries around the globe via the Mondia Pay’s carrier billing platform. 
Mondia Pay is Mondia’s digital payment entity and processes well over 2.1 billion transactions monthly. Mondia Pay offers unparalleled reach for the world’s most recognised brands and merchants, while ensuring that global direct carrier billing and digital payment solutions are made simpler and easier. Mondia Pay connects premium merchants such as Deezer, PubG, OSN, Huawei, LaLiga and hundreds of smaller merchants to new audiences across the many markets they operate in. Mondia Pay provides a state-of-the-art, own-built next-generation platform which allows for a single API integration at speed. Mondia Pay also facilitates the seamless acquisition and end-to-end lifecycle management of subscribers.
For more information please visit: http://www.Mondia.com/
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Mondia Pay expands new fintech opportunities to increase access to digital entertainment for Vodacom Tanzania customers

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A cross-border data collaboration project involving 23 African countries above the Equator is proving to be a game-changer for the tracking and management of COVID-19 and other epidemic-prone diseases in the region &#8211; and is launching the first ever daily public COVID dashboard for countries in the Horn of Africa next month.

The USAID-funded Regional Action Through Data (RAD) programme is tackling COVID-19 in West and East Africa through two initiatives, respectively involving the sharing of real-time regional disease data online and tech-enabled cross-border immunisations. These initiatives are enabling governments to better collaborate to protect their roving pastoral populations from epidemics and to overcome the data issues of the Ebola era.
Game-changing COVID-19 dashboards enable daily regional epidemic tracking 
Ebola became a deadly disaster six years ago due to inadequate and irregular, at best weekly, information sharing among affected countries. But this scenario will soon be a thing of the past, with the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) (https://bit.ly/3bT4wvX) trade bloc in Central and East Africa getting its own daily online disease outbreak dashboard (https://bit.ly/3fCWZ5C) before the end of June 2021. Currently the tracker shows monthly graphs, but soon new daily regional information will be available as well. The dashboard allows its eight member countries in the Horn of Africa, Nile Valley and African Great Lakes regions to share epidemic data on a daily basis for the first time.
The IGAD dashboard follows on RAD’s recently unveiled “disease outbreak dashboard” for the West African Health Organization (WAHO) (https://bit.ly/3bTNFcr). The WAHO COVID-19 Dashboard (https://bit.ly/3um5maW) is freely available on the WAHO website and offers information, maps and tables to reflect how COVID is manifesting daily in the region. It will soon also track other epidemic-prone diseases. WAHO is the health arm of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and serves 15 countries including Ghana, Nigeria and Mali.
The RAD programme was launched in 2016 in response to the Ebola pandemic to identify and co-create actionable solutions for pressing African health needs and pivoted to deal with COVID last year. It is a USAID collaboration with both WAHO and IGAD, with implementation led by BroadReach Health Development.
Implementation partner BroadReach’s health-tech experts are providing prime oversight and support, in collaboration with Duke University and Jembi Health Systems NPC, who provide policy and technical support.
“These publicly accessible online dashboards are an absolute game-changer for all partnering countries, especially in jointly managing the health of migratory populations in real-time,” says Geoffrey Arunga, Regional Analyst for the RAD project in BroadReach, who manages the data functionality of the dashboards. 
Dr. Andrew Kitua, BroadReach’s Regional Programme Director of RAD, who manages the implementation of the programme, says: “The emergence of COVID-19 has again highlighted how diseases can emerge from anywhere and spread rapidly across continents in this globalised era, but now through our RAD work we are able to use real-time data sharing to empower health authorities to respond immediately to outbreaks &#8211; outbreaks that have no respect for borders.”
“This kind of data-sharing could future-proof Africa against the next pandemic, by driving the supply of data, sharing and policy, and managing actual demand for health products and production,” said Kitua. It also motivates health workers who can now see the fruits of their labour and “helps defeat COVID denialism” in political leaders who are now confronted with robust regional data.
Ground-breaking cross-border childhood immunisation programme
IGAD which comprises Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan and Uganda, has also launched a ground-breaking cross-border childhood immunisation programme, called the “Journey Solution”, which uses credit card technology to ensure that nomadic populations stay on track with essential childhood vaccinations across borders.
The Journey Solution gives parents custodianship of their children’s electronic health data through electronic immunisation cards that health workers can swipe to see the child’s immunisation history, which is also stored in the Cloud.
“This card technology helps us run ahead of diseases. It can follow in the footsteps of the yellow cards issued for citizens of countries with a high prevalence of Yellow Fever, and can be the forerunner to a type of COVID passport for the region that will become necessary once immunisations become the norm and require tracking,” says Arunga.
The RAD project wraps up in September 2021, but was designed to enable governments, regions and their health partners to sustainably continue tracking and managing epidemic-prone diseases into the future.
 Distributed by APO Group on behalf of BroadReach.
About Broadreach Group: BroadReach Group is a group of social impact businesses focused on harnessing innovation and technology to empower human action. Through its business Vantage Health Technologies, they provided training and support to thousands of healthcare workers who have performed more than six million community screenings on the Vantage cloud platform, in partnership with local health authorities during the COVID-19 pandemic. For more information, visit www.Broadreachcorporation.com.
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Public-private data project a COVID game-changer in West and East Africa

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By NJ Ayuk, Executive Chairman, African Energy Chamber (www.EnergyChamber.org)

On May 18, 2021, the International Energy Agency (IEA) released “Net Zero by 2050: A Roadmap for the Global Energy Sector,” which outlines plans for the global energy sector to reach “net zero” greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.
Achieving net zero emissions means the amount of greenhouse gases being emitted into the atmosphere would equal the amount being removed. Achieving this balance, the IEA maintains, would require more than aggressive carbon-capture measures: It would call for a swift and immediate shift from petroleum energy sources to energy provided through naturally replenished sources like wind, water, and solar power.
From an environmental standpoint, this is a great concept.
But we live in reality. And today, in real-world Africa, this goal is not feasible. Nor is it advisable. While I agree with their data on many topics, the IEA’s conclusion is flat-out wrong on this issue. Africa needs oil and gas.
Unreasonable Objectives
Some of the critical steps in IEA’s roadmap include:
 	No new investment in new fossil fuel supply (including oil and gas) after 2021 	No new sales of fossil fuel boilers after 2025 	No new internal combustion engine (ICE) car sales after 2035 globally 	60% of car sales are electric by 2030, and 50% of heavy truck sales are electric from 2035 
These steps assume a lot about the state of the world — assumptions that are faulty, especially for Africa. For one, it will require universal energy access by 2030, meaning that everyone has access to electricity and clean cooking. And with approximately 592 million Africans currently without this access, we’re going to be hard-pressed to flip that switch in less than 10 years.
The IEA’s roadmap to net zero also relies on unprecedented investments in renewables — a substantial boost in clean energy investments from the $1 trillion made over the last five years all the way up to $5 trillion annually by 2030 — and cooperation from policymakers who are unified in their efforts. In this idyllic partnership, our Western counterparts talk a good game. But the fact is, to date, these same Western countries have invested little to no funding into Africa&#39;s renewables space. To our dismay even the International Oil Companies that have tried to accept the IEA’s publicity stunt have little or no renewable projects in Africa.
“For many developing countries, the pathway to net zero without international assistance is not clear,” OPEC wrote in response to IEA’s roadmap release, issuing a “critical assessment” on the very same day. “Technical and financial support is needed to ensure deployment of key technologies and infrastructure. Without greater international co‐operation, global CO2 emissions will not fall to net zero by 2050.”
As I have stated in the past, demonizing energy companies is not a constructive way forward, and ignoring the role that carbon-based fuels have played in driving human progress distorts the public debate. We cannot expect African nations, which together emitted seven times less CO2 than China last year and four times less than the US, according to the Global Carbon Atlas, to undermine their best opportunities for economic development by simply aligning with the Western view of how to tackle carbon emissions.
Creating New Problems
China, meanwhile, appears willing to continue investing in fossil fuel projects in Africa. This means that to keep their nations energized, African governments will have little choice but to partner with China — whose performance is notoriously poor when it comes to environmental protection, despite having signed the Paris climate accord. In this scenario, China will become the most influential entity in the African oil and gas industry. And giving China (or any foreign entity) such a monopoly is a dangerous play.
For the IEA plan to work, no new oil and natural gas fields would be developed. The potential energy security risk here is twofold: Concentrated production means that demand will exceed the supply of traditional fuels, while new energy security issues emerge related to the new technologies such as cybersecurity and a dwindling supply of rare earth and critical minerals. And energy insecurity brings economic insecurity and geopolitical instability.
At the same time, a ban on fossil fuel production would bring about the collapse of many carbon-dependent governments. The oil industry is the primary source of income for many African nations. Without the continuation of petroleum production — or time and opportunities to cultivate new revenue sources — their economies will suffer — along with their citizens.
Interestingly, the very announcement of this roadmap features an admission by IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol that net zero will unhinge socioeconomic structures.
“This gap between rhetoric and action needs to close if we are to have a fighting chance of reaching net zero by 2050 and limiting the rise in global temperatures to 1.5 °C. Doing so requires nothing short of a total transformation of the energy systems that underpin our economies,” Birol wrote.
And many of the world’s economies cannot bear this.
Excellent Points from Australia
Energy officials from Australia, for example — incidentally, one of the IEA member countries —  had plenty to say in response.
“There are many, ways to get to net zero, and the IEA just looked at one narrow formula,” said Australian Petroleum Production and Exploration Association chief Andrew McConville. “The IEA report doesn&#39;t take into account future negative emission technologies and offsets from outside the energy sector — two things that are likely to happen and will allow vital and necessary future development of oil and gas fields.”
In urging policymakers to maintain a degree of skepticism about the wisdom of the IEA roadmap, McConville isn’t alone.
“We are bringing emissions down,” stated Angus Taylor, Australia’s Minister for Energy and Emissions Reduction, “but we’re going to do it in a way that ensures we’ve got that affordable power that Australians need.”
Rather than being dictated to by entities abroad, Taylor argued that Australia must proceed at a pace that makes sense locally. And part of these local considerations includes ensuring that people have energy and jobs. The IEA’s call to cease investment in fossil fuels will impede both of these metrics.
“Global gas demand is forecast to grow by 1.5% on average per year out to 2025, providing incentive to ensure our large gas fields … are developed as soon as possible,” said Keith Pitt, Minister for Resources. “Large upcoming offshore developments … will create thousands of new high-wage jobs.”
Africa’s Realities
The same holds true for African countries.
While environmental causes are a major focus in the West, lawmakers in Africa’s developing countries are more concerned with living wages and supplying basic necessities to the continent’s growing population.
The IEA plan amounts to austerity measures that would see Africans leaving petroleum resources in the ground. It would essentially brand poor Africans criminals — or at the very least enemies of the environment — for using fossil fuels.
This is folly. Let’s keep in mind the critical role that natural gas is playing in the global transition to clean energy: It’s an affordable and reliable bridge to renewables. And natural gas is particularly important to Africa. As I’ve written in the past, the African Energy Chamber’s 2021 Africa Energy Outlook report projects that African gas production and consumption are going to rise in the 2020s. As a result, Africa’s natural gas sector will soon be responsible for large-scale job creation, increased opportunities for monetization and economic diversification, and critical gas-to-power initiatives that will bring more Africans reliable electricity. These significant benefits should not be dismissed in the name of achieving net zero emissions on deadline. To tell African countries with gas potential like Mozambique, Tanzania, Equatorial Guinea, Nigeria, Senegal, Libya, Algeria, South Africa, Angola and many others that they cant monetize their gas and rather wait for foreign aid and handouts from their western counterparts makes no sense.
What’s more, we can’t overlook the fact that renewable energy solutions are still young technologies —they are less reliable and more expensive per unit of power than tried-and-true petroleum products. Not only that, but achieving net zero by 2050 would require widespread adoption of technologies that are not even available yet.
Don’t get me wrong: I understand the importance of working toward renewables. I believe they are the future of the energy industry. But the global energy transition must be inclusive, equitable, and just. Unfortunately, the roadmap laid out by the IEA is none of these.
The IEA is a respected institution whose opinions help shape the rhetoric of the global energy market. So instead of mandating these strict guidelines from abroad, the IEA should try working with African countries to find solutions that we can actually abide. At the very least, I encourage the IEA to consider partnerships with African Private sector and financial institutions, whose collaboration with indigenous and international energy stakeholders provides invaluable insight from all sides across the energy industry. The IEA should use its voice to push for what I have always believe Africa needs the most at this time,  free markets, personal responsibility, less regulation, low taxes, limited government, individual liberties, and economic empowerment will boost African energy markets and economies.
Africa deserves the chance to capitalize on its own oil and gas to strengthen itself, rather than being bullied onto a path determined by Western institutions that don’t face the same obstacles. We must be able to improve our energy sector by exploring our continent’s full potential in a way that benefits our people.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of African Energy Chamber.
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Net Zero? Not For Africa. Not Yet. Africa Must Fight Energy Poverty with Oil and Gas Development (By NJ Ayuk)

Content provided by APO Group. CNBC Africa provides content from APO Group as a service to its readers and does not edit the articles it publishes. CNBC Africa is not responsible for the content provided by APO Group.

Marriott International’s (www.Marriott.com) portfolio of luxury brands, including The Ritz-Carlton, St. Regis Hotels &#038; Resorts, The Luxury Collection, EDITION, W Hotels and Bvlgari Hotels &#038; Resorts, is delighted to unveil a collection of one-of-a-kind adventures in the Middle East and Africa curated in partnership with Quintessentially, the world’s leading luxury concierge company. Available to book now, each distinct itinerary features extraordinary experiences unique to the destination, paired with luxurious accommodations, flawless service and exceptional culinary offerings.

“Our guests are seeking new ways to explore a destination with a renewed sense of discovery and desire for personalised experiences,” said Candice D’Cruz, Vice President – Luxury Brands, Europe, Middle East &#038; Africa, Marriott International. “Following our successful partnership with Quintessentially last year, which saw the launch of several distinct itineraries across Europe and the United States, we are thrilled to enhance our collaboration by debuting this series of bespoke adventures across the Middle East and Africa. These unique itineraries will offer guests access to immersive and luxurious journeys created with the expertise of this leading concierge company.”
Luxury guests are increasingly seeking bespoke holidays which offer a more private approach. These curated experiences reflect this trend and address the growing demand for personalised experiences in trending and emerging markets.  Whether travelling to Jeddah or the Seychelles, the bespoke itineraries promise an unforgettable escape to some of the region’s most vibrant cities and island retreats. Guests can cruise the Gulf Sea by private yacht, enjoy a majestic evening in Dubai’s sand dunes, explore the unique marine eco-system in Abu Dhabi’s mangroves, snorkel in Saudi Arabia’s pristine coral reefs or spend an afternoon island hopping in the Seychelles, and more.
&#8220;As the resurgence of safe travel gains momentum, we are delighted to expand upon our partnership with Marriott for this exclusive Middle East and Africa adventure series,&#8221; said Darren Ellis, Group CEO, Quintessentially. &#8220;As one of the world’s most connected groups, we pride ourselves on being able to draw out the very best every destination has to offer with an unparalleled level of personalisation and authenticity. These incredible journeys speak to Quintessentially’s dedication to enhancing people&#39;s lives and we look forward to creating unforgettable memories for Marriott guests.&#8221;
These journeys will be available from June 1st until August 31st, 2021, and the highly coveted itineraries include:
A FAMILY REUNION IN ABU DHABI: The St. Regis Saadiyat Island Resort and Al Wathba, a Luxury Collection Desert Resort &#038; Spa.
Guest will enjoy a unique family get-together in Abu Dhabi; a city of luxury and innovation, a destination graced with glass-paneled skyscrapers, breathtaking desert landscapes, an array of cultural and outdoor attractions, and activities for the whole family.
 	Explore a unique marine eco-system during a guided kayaking adventure through the scenic mangroves 	Visit the Abu Dhabi Louvre, an architectural gem housing unique historical and cultural exhibits 	Discover Manarat Al Saadiyat, a historical, cultural and artistic enclave 	Explore the desert dunes, dive into desert activities and learn about Bedouin life 	Watch a falconry show and attend a race at Al Wathba Camel Racetrack 	Enjoy a range of activities for the whole family including watersports, golfing, tennis and horse riding 
DOHA, THE ‘ART CAPITAL OF THE MIDDLE EAST’: Al Messila, a Luxury Collection Resort &#038; Spa.
Located on the beautiful coastline of the azure Arabian Gulf, Qatar is a dynamic country of contrasts. Steeped in history, traditional Arabic hospitality meets modern ambition. From UNESCO recognised heritage sites and untouched scenic desert landscapes to emerging cities, Qatar is a captivating destination off the beaten path.
 	Discover the beauty of Doha from the sky including Westbay Lagoon, The Pearl Qatar and Zig Zag Towers during a private helicopter tour 	Visit the National Museum of Qatar and discover its historical and natural exhibits 	Stroll Doha’s century-old trading market, Souq Waqif 	Cruise by private yacht in the Gulf Sea of Qatar to Safliya Island 	Explore the vast collection of art at the Museum of Islamic Art, Mathaf the Arab Museum of Modern Art and Katara Cultural Village 	Unwind, relax and enjoy a wellness experience at Al Messila, a Luxury Collection Resort &#038; Spa 
SAND, SUN AND SKYSCRAPERS IN DUBAI AND SEYCHELLES: Bvlgari Resort Dubai and North Island, a Luxury Collection Resort.
Bursting with excitement, innovation and glamour, Dubai is an experience like no other. From Dubai guests will fly to the Seychelles, the beautiful archipelago islands in the Indian Ocean lying off the coast of East Africa.
 	Enjoy an intimate desert safari trip with private chefs and Astronomers in Dubai’s majestic sand dunes 	Indulge in extraordinary culinary experiences in Bvlgari’s exclusive atmosphere 	Relax with romantic sundowners over a bonfire from The Cross at the base of Spa Hill 	Cruise to La Digue and see the iconic granite boulders that frame Anse Source d’Argent beach 	Discover the surrounding archipelago islands by private boat 
FAMILY FUN IN JEDDAH: The Ritz-Carlton, Jeddah
Guests will visit the Kingdom’s second largest city, along the country’s west coast overlooking the Red Sea and discover Jeddah’s enchanting history and culture through its narrow streets, museums and art galleries. Surrounded by deserts at this sea front city, the whole family will enjoy safari trips and thrilling watersports.
 	Explore Jeddah’s diverse culinary scene, from street-stall shawarma to fine-dining fusion 	Take a family day trip to the reefs for snorkeling and diving at Sharm Obhur 	Explore Balad, the magical historical quarter and Nasseef House 	Discover the labyrinthine lanes of Souq Al Alawi 	Visit the magnificent floating Mosque 	Swim with dolphins and learn about marine life at Al Fakieh Aquarium 	Enjoy the thrilling rides and family activities at Al Shallal Theme Park 
For more information please visit https://Quintessentially.com/marriott-experiences
 Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Marriott International, Inc..
For more images: https://bit.ly/2RJh7uT
About Marriott International, Inc.: Marriott International, Inc. (NASDAQ: MAR) is based in Bethesda, Maryland, USA, and encompasses a portfolio of more than 7,600 properties under 30 leading brands spanning 133 countries and territories. Marriott operates and franchises hotels and licenses vacation ownership resorts all around the world. The company offers Marriott Bonvoy™, its highly-awarded travel program. For more information, please visit our website, and for the latest company news, visit www.Marriottnewscenter.com. In addition, connect with us on Facebook (https://bit.ly/3vnayg0) and @MarriottIntl on Twitter (https://bit.ly/3bRNIFI) and Instagram (https://bit.ly/3oRlCj5).
About Quintessentially: Quintessentially, the world’s leading luxury lifestyle group is dedicated to connecting individuals and communities, through life-affirming experiences. Quintessentially achieves this by providing unique access and specialist lifestyle services, and by fostering global brand relationships. With a global network, our specialists are experts in every aspect of contemporary luxury living.
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Marriott International’s Portfolio of Luxury Brands and Quintessentially Unveil a Collection of Exclusive Luxury Experiences in the Middle East & Africa

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This month, Botswana became the first country in Southern Africa, and the third in Africa, to pilot drone technology for health-care delivery. The Drones for Health pilot project aims to reduce preventable maternal deaths by delivering maternal health supplies and commodities – including essential obstetric care drugs, blood, blood products and laboratory specimens – particularly in hard-to-reach communities and health facilities.

UNFPA is partnering on the initiative, along with Botswana’s Ministry of Health and Wellness, the Ministry of Tertiary Education, Research, Science and Technology, and Botswana International University of Science and Technology (BIUST).
“Women experience massive blood loss due to haemorrhage during childbirth, with many of them requiring a blood transfusion,” said Beatrice Mutali, the UNFPA country director in Botswana, at the launch of the initiative. “Blood and blood-based products are therefore critical.”
Life-saving medicines
Botswana has a maternal mortality ratio that is almost double the average for upper-middle income countries – 144 per 100,000 live births according to 2017 UN data, or at 166 deaths per 100,000 live births according to 2019 government data. The main causes of maternal deaths in Botswana are postpartum haemorrhage, complications after abortion and hypertensive disorders during pregnancy.
To provide life-saving emergency obstetric care, health facilities must be equipped with the supplies and skills needed to handle such emergencies. Medication can effectively treat post-partum haemorrhageand hypertensive issues like eclampsia, for instance, but in this large and sparsely populated country, delivery of such medical supplies is often a challenge.
“The need to invest in innovative options to bridge the long distances, reduce current transportation costs, overcome road infrastructure challenges, and improve timely availability of essential emergency obstetric care drugs, commodities and supplies is therefore urgent,” said Dr. Edwin Gorataone Dikoloti, Botswana’s Minister of Health and Wellness.
“The sustainable reduction of maternal, newborn and child deaths and overall improvement of health care in general, including sexual, reproductive and adolescent health, remains a high priority for the Government of Botswana,” said Dr. Dikoloti.
Slashing delivery times
The use of drones to deliver essential medical supplies is expected to reduce the delivery time from hours to minutes, meaning that obstetric emergency supplies could arrive in time to save lives, according to BIUST Vice Chancellor, Professor Otlogetswe Totolo.
Each battery-powered drone has a delivery distance of 100 km and can carry cargo with a weight of up to 2kg at a time.
Four villages were involved in the pilot project: Lecheng, 32 km from Palapye by road and 11 km via drone; Mokgware, with a distance of 55 km by road and 32 km by drone; Mogapi, 108 km away by road and 75 km via drone; and Moremi, 75 km away by road and 36 km via drone.
Community members in the pilot areas have supported the project by building landing pads at designated health posts. UNFPA provided seed funding for the project. Successful test runs have been carried out in all four targeted villages, with the drones delivering dummy specimens.
Transforming health care
The Drones for Health initiative, which was conceived in 2018, is being implemented in three phases. Phases I and II are dedicated to proof-of-concept and viability testing.
Following a successful rollout, Phase III will involve the development of the business model, identify sustainable partnerships, and the scale up and transfer of innovation solutions to the Ministry of Wellness and Health.
“Technology and digitally driven solutions have the potential to transform health care, particularly for women and girls in underserved communities, often left behind due to geographical proximity…as they live in hard-to-reach areas,” said Ms. Mutali.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA).
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Piloting drones to deliver life-saving products for women in rural Botswana

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The World Bank’s Board of Executive Directors approved on Friday a $125 million financing to support Senegal to improve the competitiveness of selected value chains, Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprise (MSME) capabilities, and private sector investment in the country. This amount will finance the Government Program “Accelerate Competitiveness and Job Creation Program.”

According to Amadou Hott, Minister of the Economy, Planning, and Cooperation for Senegal, “the Senegal Jobs, Economic Transformation &#038; Recovery Project is in line with our Plan Senegal Emergent Priority Action Plan- Adjusted and Accelerated, an ambitious and realistic development program aiming to strengthen the competitiveness of the private sector, increase investment in strategic sectors, achieve economic reforms and improve infrastructure. It strengthens the Emergency Program for Socio-Economic Integration and Youth Employment.&#8221;
This project aims at supporting Senegal’s resilient economic recovery from COVID-19 by operationalizing the Jobs and Economic Transformation (JET) agenda. “Senegal has recently faced several challenges brought by the COVID crise. In this context, this project supports the creation of more and better jobs by improving private sector’s competitiveness and productivity, access to long term finance and investment, and more sustainable infrastructure”, said Nathan Belete, World Bank Country Director for Senegal.
The Senegalese economy has been impacted by COVID-19 through several channels.  According to Meriem Ait Ali Slimane, Laurent Gonnet, World Bank Project Task Team Leaders, “to stimulate economic recovery and build back better, it will be important to strengthen the competitiveness of key sectors, with a focus on exports, improve MSMEs productivity and technology adoption, and introduce performant financing mechanisms such as partial credit guarantees and public-private equity funds.”
The program will support both small informal firms and more formal SMEs through dedicated channels such as partial credit guarantee scheme (through FONGIP) access to long term finance (through FONSIS), and matching grants for technology adoption and productivity upgrading (through ADEPME) as well as value chain-level competitiveness reinforcements (led by the Ministry of Economy, Planning and Cooperation), inclusive of all types and sizes of firms participating in the value chains.
The Senegal JET project will support increased exports, and MSMEs’ productivity and technology Adoption. The project will have a particular focus on access to finance, in the form of loan guarantees and equity, with targets for women-led businesses.
 Distributed by APO Group on behalf of The World Bank Group.

Support for Economic Post-Covid Recovery Through the Competitiveness of Senegalese Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises

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The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) and the Tanzania Social Action Fund (TASAF), a Government Department responsible for safety net programmes, have signed a memorandum of understanding to strengthen food security for 300,000 vulnerable families.

“Social protection programmes are critical as they provide a safety net ensuring that vulnerable communities have access to basic needs such as food and essential services”, said WFP Country Director and Representative in Tanzania, Sarah Gordon-Gibson. “We need to strengthen existing Government safety-net systems to ensure adequate support reaches those who need it and no one is left behind.”
Under this agreement, WFP will provide USD 725,000 to TASAF to strengthen food security related activities and encourage community participation in the design of these programmes. Vulnerable families who are part of the social protection programme will come together to construct important community assets like schools, health centres and water sources. They will also support the design of income generating opportunities that will see them through the lean season when food stocks run low. Part of WFP’s support includes the use of digital technology, including a mobile app that will manage beneficiary payments and enhance data collection and monitoring to further optimize TASAF’s public works activities.
 “We greatly appreciate this support from WFP which is timely as we expand the coverage of our public works programme. This indeed has come at an opportune time where community participation in project planning is enhanced.  Through your support, we also look forward to rolling out the digital platform which has been efficiently developed to capture data in the payment process”, said Mr Ladislaus Mwamanga, Executive Director, TASAF.
WFP’s ability to provide support to TASAF has been made possible due to generous contributions of its multilateral donors who provide funding so that WFP can allocate resources to activities with the greatest needs.
 Distributed by APO Group on behalf of World Food Programme (WFP).
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TASAF and WFP join forces to strengthen social protection programmes in Tanzania

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A total of 29 355 tests were conducted in the last 24 hrs, with 2 894 new cases, which represents a 9.9% positivity rate. A further 30 COVID-19 related deaths have been reported, bringing total fatalities to 55 802 to date. Read more here http://ow.ly/OWeP50ETlw9.
 Distributed by APO Group on behalf of National Institute for Communicable Diseases, South Africa (NICD).
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Coronavirus – South Africa: COVID-19 Statistics in RSA (23 May 2021)

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As of 23rd May, we report 95 new cases out of 3,655 tests (2.6% positivity); 54 recoveries and sadly 1 new death (MHSRIP).
 Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Zambia National Public Health Institute (ZNPHI).
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Coronavirus – Zambia: COVID-19 Statistics Daily Status Update (23 May 2021)

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New Cases: 10 Cumulative Confirmed Cases: 34,284 Active Cases: 437 Total Recovered: 32,462 (144 New) Currently Admitted in Treatment Units: 9 (2 New) New Discharges from Treatment Units: 0 Total Tests Conducted: 243,176 (379 New) Total Deaths: 1,153 (0 New) CFR 3.36% Total Vaccinated To Date: 344,647 (253 New)
 Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Ministry of Health and Population, Republic of Malawi.
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Coronavirus – Malawi: COVID-19 Daily Info Update (23 May 2021)

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Helios Fairfax Partners, Yinka Folawiyo Group Chairman and CEO Babatunde “Tunde” Folawiyo Headline Group of African Business Leaders and NBA Legends Investing in NBA Africa (www.NBA.com); NBA Legends Junior Bridgeman, Luol Deng, Grant Hill, Dikembe Mutombo and Joakim Noah Also Invest in NBA Africa.

The National Basketball Association (NBA) today announced the formation of NBA Africa, a new entity that will conduct the league’s business in Africa, including the Basketball Africa League (BAL) – a partnership between the NBA and the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) and the NBA’s first collaboration to operate a league outside of North America. The inaugural BAL season, featuring 12 of the top club teams from 12 African countries, is underway in Kigali, Rwanda, and the first BAL Finals will be held Sunday, May 30 at 4:00 p.m. CAT / 10 a.m. ET.

The strategic investors include a consortium led by Babatunde “Tunde” Folawiyo, Chairman and CEO of Yinka Folawiyo Group; and Helios Fairfax Partners Corporation (HFP), led by Tope Lawani, Co-CEO of HFP and Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Helios Investment Partners (“Helios”), HFP’s investment advisor. The investors’ expertise in a wide range of industries and established relationships with African businesses, governments and NGOs will help accelerate the NBA’s growth across the continent. Lawani and Folawiyo will also join the NBA Africa Board of Directors, which is led by NBA Africa CEO Victor Williams and includes NBA Commissioner Adam Silver and NBA Deputy Commissioner and Chief Operating Officer Mark Tatum.

The announcement was made today by Silver, Tatum, Williams, Lawani and Folawiyo, who were joined by NBA Global Ambassador and NBA Africa investor Dikembe Mutombo (Democratic Republic of the Congo) in advance of Africa Day, an annual worldwide commemoration of the founding of the Organization of African Unity (OAU) held on May 25.

In addition to Mutombo, additional investors in NBA Africa include NBA Legends Junior Bridgeman, Luol Deng (South Sudan), Grant Hill and Joakim Noah.

The NBA has a decades-long history in Africa and opened its African headquarters in Johannesburg in 2010. Since then, the league’s efforts in Africa have focused on increasing access to basketball and the NBA through grassroots and elite development, media distribution, corporate partnerships, NBA Africa Games, the launch of the BAL, and more.

The funding will contribute to the growth of the BAL, help expand the NBA’s presence in priority African markets and Africa’s basketball ecosystem, and deepen the league’s engagement with players and fans through initiatives such as the launch of additional NBA Academies and social responsibility initiatives that improve the livelihoods of African youth and families, including gender equality and economic inclusion efforts that the NBA and BAL announced in March.

Folawiyo, who is Nigerian, is Chairman and CEO of the Yinka Folawiyo Group, a diversified Nigerian industrial group focused on oil exploration and production, energy trading, shipping and real estate.  He is also a former director and minority shareholder of MTN Nigeria, a telecommunications company, and the chairman of Coronation Merchant Bank. A Duke of Edinburgh World Fellow, Folawiyo is active with organizations focused on the education and promotion of young African leaders and entrepreneurs.

HFP is a Canadian-based investment holding company focused on public and private investments in businesses that primarily operate in Africa. HFP was established in 2020 via a business combination between Fairfax Africa Holdings and the management company of Helios Investment Partners, Helios Holdings Limited. HFP’s Co-CEO, Lawani, is a Nigerian businessman with more than 25 years of principal investment experience. He serves on the boards of various listed and privately held businesses, including several leading pan-African companies. A member of the MIT board of trustees and the Harvard Law School Dean’s Advisory Board, Lawani received a B.S. in Chemical Engineering from MIT, a JD from Harvard Law School and an MBA from Harvard Business School.

Executive Quotes:
Yinka Folawiyo Group Chairman and CEO Babatunde “Tunde” Folawiyo: “Sport has always been a unifier in Africa, and our people have always excelled in most fields, often far from home and against all odds. This is a unique opportunity for Africa to leverage the new economy and develop the business and innovation infrastructure of sports. I am genuinely excited to be in a group that understands this imperative alongside the powerhouse that is the NBA. Bringing world-class know-how together with local nous has been a strong formula for successful global businesses.  We foresee this for our partnership. This time, success will be defined not just by return on investment but by sustainable and long-term impact on the lives of our people. That is our aim.”

Helios Fairfax Partners Co-CEO Tope Lawani: “Throughout Helios’ history, we have bridged international capital and expertise to African talent and enterprise, and this is a unique opportunity for us to do so in the world of sport by partnering with the NBA, a truly best-in-class operator. As a committed and experienced partner for businesses operating across Africa, we look forward to contributing our expertise, connectivity and market knowledge to support NBA Africa’s growth throughout the continent.”

NBA Commissioner Adam Silver: “Today’s announcement is the result of many years of investment and on-the-ground work to grow the game of basketball in Africa and a recognition of the enormous opportunities ahead for the NBA on the continent. We believe that basketball can become a top sport across Africa over the next decade, and I look forward to working closely with our investors to make that goal a reality.”

NBA Africa CEO Victor Williams: “The successful formation and funding of NBA Africa as a standalone entity is indicative of the rich history of the NBA in Africa, the power of the NBA’s vision for the growth of the game on the continent, and the strong commitment by our outstanding new partners to support that vision. I’d like to thank the entire NBA Africa team, led for the last decade by Amadou Gallo Fall and John Manyo-Plange, for the work they have done to lay the foundation for the game on the continent which has made this milestone possible.”

NBA Global Ambassador and NBA Africa investor Dikembe Mutombo: “This is a historic day for basketball in Africa, and I’m honored to join this special group of leaders who are committed to the continent and to using the game to improve people’s lives. I’m fortunate to have been among the first players from Africa to make an impact in the NBA, and because of the commitment of these individuals, countless more players will have the opportunity to follow in my footsteps in the years ahead.”
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of National Basketball Association (NBA).
Media Contact: Elliot Steinbaum NBA Communications esteinbaum@nba.com +1 (212) 406-8657
Pawel Weszka NBA Africa Communications pweszka@nba.com +27 10 0072666
About the NBA: The NBA is a global sports and media business built around four professional sports leagues: the National Basketball Association, the Women’s National Basketball Association, the NBA G League and the NBA 2K League. The NBA and the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) also jointly operate the Basketball Africa League (BAL). The NBA has established a major international presence with games and programming available in 215 countries and territories in more than 50 languages, and merchandise for sale in more than 100,000 stores in 100 countries on six continents. NBA rosters at the start of the 2020-21 season featured 107 international players from 41 countries. NBA Digital’s assets include NBA TV, www.NBA.com, the NBA App and NBA League Pass. The NBA has created one of the largest social media communities in the world, with 1.9 billion likes and followers globally across all league, team, and player platforms. Through NBA Cares, the league addresses important social issues by working with internationally recognized youth-serving organizations that support education, youth and family development, and health-related causes.

NBA Forms New Africa Entity and Partners with Strategic Investors

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Vantage Capital (www.VantageCapital.co.za), Africa’s largest mezzanine fund manager, announced today that it has provided $23 million of mezzanine debt funding to PickAlbatros Hotels. The proceeds will be used to fund working capital and renovation work on several recently-acquired hotels.

PickAlbatros is a leading hotel owner and operator in Egypt, with a portfolio of 15 operating hotels and close to 10,000 rooms across the Red Sea resort towns of Hurghada, Sharm El Sheikh, Sahl Hasheesh and Marsa Alam. It also operates two hotels in Morocco. The Red Sea has become an increasingly popular tourist destination, especially amongst Europeans looking for an affordable beach holiday offering year-round sunshine, warm water and world-class diving and snorkelling. In fact, more than half of all tourists arriving into Egypt head directly to the Red Sea, and total tourist arrivals into the country have grown by over 140% from 2016 to 2019. PickAlbatros has played an important role in contributing to tourism growth in the region, through its ever-expanding portfolio of high-quality 4-star and 5-star hotels that include beachfront access, extensive networks of swimming pools and the largest water parks in the area. The hotel group has recently acquired five further hotels and part of Vantage’s funding will be used for renovations as the hotels are prepared for re-launch under the PickAlbatros brand.

Since the first PickAlbatros hotel opened its doors in Hurghada in 1992, Mr Kamel Abu Ali, the owner and CEO of PickAlbatros, has relentlessly pursued his vision of building a high-quality hospitality portfolio across the Red Sea. Thanks to his significant efforts, resort towns such as Hurghada are now firmly on the map as a popular destination for European sunseekers. “We have always taken a long-term view on the growth potential for the hospitality market in the Red Sea and we have successfully delivered on this growth strategy, consistently expanding our hotel portfolio over the past three decades”, he noted. “Vantage shares our vision and has been willing to support our hotel group with funding that gives us the flexibility to invest in expansion and working capital as the business sees fit. They also successfully delivered on their commitment to meet very tight timelines for disbursement, and in the process showed themselves to be a highly professional firm and a trusted partner.”

David Kornik, Partner at Vantage Capital, noted, “While Covid-19 has created significant disruption to the global hospitality sector over the past year, we recognise that the longer-term growth potential for PickAlbatros Hotels remains firmly intact. The resilient performance delivered by the hotel group in recent months, despite widespread travel restrictions across its core European market, highlights the appeal of its high-quality, value-for-money offering across a broad range of markets. As vaccines become widely distributed, we expect international beach tourism to recover strongly and Egypt’s Red Sea is well-positioned to be an outsized benefactor over the years to come.”

The transaction represents Vantage Capital’s 31st investment across three generations of mezzanine funds, with its portfolio now spread across eleven countries in Africa. Warren van der Merwe, Managing Partner at Vantage Capital, added, “The transaction with PickAlbatros marks our inaugural investment into Egypt. With a population in excess of 100 million and an economy delivering robust growth, it is a country with significant potential and a valuable addition to our investment map. Tourism is a key sector within the economy and we are proud to back one of the leading local hospitality players.”

PickAlbatros represents Vantage’s third investment in the tourism sector after supporting the construction of new hotels in Uganda (141 beds) and Namibia (181 beds) by partnering with local hoteliers in those markets. The Vantage team believe in the long-term growth potential of tourism in Africa, which constitutes only 5% of the global tourism market today. According to the UN World Trade Organisation, some 67 million tourists visited Africa in 2018, constituting a 7% increase from a year earlier and making Africa the second-fastest growing region, after Asia Pacific. Brookings Institution, an American research group, projects tourist arrivals into Africa to reach 134 million by 2030, with consumer spending on tourism, hospitality and recreation reaching $262 billion, a $138 billion increase over 2015. This will have a significantly positive impact on the continent, generating millions of jobs and billions of dollars of foreign exchange earnings.

Zilla Capital acted as the financial advisor to PickAlbatros. Matouk Bassiouny &#038; Hennawy (in Egypt) and Werksmans (in South Africa) acted as legal counsel.
 Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Vantage Capital Group.
For more information contact: David Kornik  Partner  david@vantagemezzanine.com
Omar Gharbawi Senior Associate omar@vantagemezzanine.com
About Vantage Capital: Vantage Capital is an Africa-focused fund manager with offices in Johannesburg and Cape Town. The business was founded in 2001 and has raised funds of over $1.1 billion. Since 2006, Vantage Capital’s Mezzanine division has made 31 investments across three funds into 11 African countries, making it the largest and most experienced independent mezzanine funder on the continent. In addition, Vantage Capital’s GreenX division has made 14 senior debt investments into South African solar and wind energy projects across two funds.
Vantage Capital targets mezzanine debt opportunities of US$ 10-40m across 14 key African markets. Mezzanine debt is an intermediate form of risk capital, which is situated between senior debt, the least risky tranche of the capital structure, and equity, the most risky. It combines elements of both debt and equity thereby providing companies with long-term funding on terms which are less dilutive to shareholders than pure equity.
Website: www.vantagecapital.co.za
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Vantage Capital invests $23 million in PickAlbatros Hotels

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Mohab Yasser Abdallatif &#8211; the youngest player in the inaugural Basketball Africa League (BAL) – made his presence felt at Kigali Arena on Sunday, helping his Zamalek team outclass AS Douanes 86-62.

“I don’t care too much about stats, I am a team player,” said the 18-year-old who finished with 14 points on a 6-of-8 performance from the field in just 16:38 minutes on the court.
He looked like a totally different player from the player who finished scoreless in Zamalek’s Group C opener against Ferroviario de Maputo on Monday, May 17.
“I am very happy about his performance. Players like him I call them soldiers,” said Zamalek head coach Agusti Julbe.
Abdllatif, who will graduate soon from the NBA Academy in Dakar, insisted that he’s just focused on helping Zamalek go far in the BAL.
”He works really hard. I am sure he was a little disappointed about his performance in the first game. He didn’t lose his temper, remained focused for most of the game, and today, he was great,” explained Julbe, who didn’t even need to use the 6’3” guard in the final quarter.
Zamalek outplayed the Senegalese from start to finish, prompting AS Douanes head coach Mamadou Gueye to describe Zamakek as “a much stronger at every level, but our players will certainly learn from this experience.”
AS Douanes led Zamalek by five early in the game, but it was a short-lived event as the winners of the 1992 FIBA Africa Champions Cup closed the opening quarter with a 20-14 lead and never looked back.
Mamadou Diop led AS Douanes with 14 points, Mamadou Faye and Egyptian Hassan Attia contributed 11 points each, but Zamalek wrapped the game up before it finished such was the Egyptians dominance.
“My players put on a great display. Many people wouldn’t have thought that we would get this far and play as hard as we did,” Gueye insisted.
Zamalek point guard Walter Hodge finished with a game-high 15 points and Cote Ivoire international player Souleyman Diabate added 11 points off the bench for the Cairo-based club.
With the win, Zamalek improved its Group C mark to 2-0 and advanced to the playoff while AS Douanes will need to wait for other groups results to find out if it’s one of the two best third-placed teams.
Numbers don’t lie:
Once again, Zamalek was careless with the ball, turning it over 23 times; they made just 13 of its 25 free-throw attempts, still, the Egyptian outfit was more efficient offensively finishing with a 55.9% field goal percentage in the game.
Boxscore (https://bit.ly/3fKluxR) / www.theBAL.com/schedule 
OTHER GAMES
AS Police vs. FAP Basketball
 	Ibrahima Thomas – 22 points, 17 rebounds (AS Police) 	Mohaman Nkene Tsants – 12 points, 12 rebounds (FAP Basketball) 
Boxscore (https://bit.ly/3vgzJB0) / www.theBAL.com/schedule
Petro de Luanda vs. AS Sale
 	Olimpio Cipriano – 17 points (Petro) 	Terrell De Von Stoglin – 25 points (FAP) 	Rashad Deane James – 22 points, 12 rebounds (FAP) 
Boxscore (https://bit.ly/3woK7Xm) / www.theBAL.com/schedule
 Distributed by APO Group on behalf of National Basketball Association (NBA).

Yasser Abdallatif Lifts Zamalek Past A.S. Douanes, Improve to 2-0

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Investing in African Mining Indaba (Mining Indaba) (www.MiningIndaba.com), organised by Hyve Group Plc is pleased to announce the launch of the Extractives General Counsel Forum Virtual. Held in partnership with Africa Legal and Africa Oil Week, it will take place throughout 29-30 June 2021.

The Extractive General Counsel Forum will bring together leading in-house legal and compliance professionals from mining, oil and gas as well as the energy and renewables sector. It will navigate the complex and multi-layered regimes, drilling down into the complex world of the extractives legal sector.
“The conversation will be an opportunity to hear from experts in the extractives sector and start a conversation, better yet move to potential to collaborate on cutting legal and societal issues.” Says Co-Chair of the event and Founder and Director of Kalene Hill Resources, Jacqueline Musiitwa. “Prepare yourself to be challenged to use your various platforms to find solutions to some of the sector’s most pressuring issues.”
The expert speakers will discuss everything from growing expectations placed on General Counsels to industry trends. Key topics include:
Same but different? &#8211; What are the ‘ties that bind’ the oil, gas and mining sectors in Africa? Why have the in-house legal communities across these industries not traditionally networked and shared best practice?
March towards Accountability &#8211; ESG, Climate-Related, Financial, Diversity, Community Impact… Our panel dissects various approaches and options in handling the disclosure burden.
The Human Touch &#8211; Discover how sensible capital deployment and meaningful outreach can ensure that community and societal issues are headed off well in advance of the courtroom.
Renewable Energy in the Extractives Sector &#8211; Are in-house lawyers keeping pace with the opportunities on offer from recent advancements in energy and sustainability?
Dinner Party Defence (Sponsored by Fulcrum) &#8211; Our panel looks at how in-house counsel and their businesses should be looking at proactive solutions to the sector’s image problem.
Leading in addressing these hot topics are a cohort of industry leading professionals:
 	Jacqueline Musiitwa, Founder and Director, Kalene Hill Resources 	Daniel Driscoll, Vice-President Legal &#038; Compliance, Endeavour Mining 	Jasmine Abrahams, Group Head of Sustainability, Ivanhoe Mines 	Aviona Mabaso, Senior Specialist: Legal, Africa Region at AngloGold Ashanti 	Hermien Uys, General Counsel, Vedanta Zinc International 	Andrew Irvine,  Legal and Corporate Engagement Manager, Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative 	Hannah Clayton, Manager – Social Performance &#038; Human Rights, ICMM 
Please note that this event is reserved solely for in-house legal professionals in the extractives industries. This includes general counsels and in-house lawyers, compliance and risk professionals, company secretaries and legal operations managers.
To find out more and register for the event, please click here (https://bit.ly/2SpWLGQ).
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Investing in African Mining Indaba.
For more information, please contact: On behalf of Investing in African Mining Indaba Amy Neville Email: amy.neville@hyve.group
About Investing in African Mining Indaba: Investing in African Mining Indaba is solely dedicated to the successful capitalisation, development and widening perspective of the African mining industry. Bringing together the world’s industry giants to tomorrow’s barrier-breaking disruptors from across the spectrum. It’s the place where multi-million deals are done, and life-long partnerships are discovered.

Mining Indaba launches the Extractives General Counsel Forum in partnership with Africa Oil Week and Africa Legal

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Africa Oil Week (AOW) (www. Africa-OilWeek.com), organised by Hyve Group Plc is pleased to announce the launch of the Extractives General Counsel Forum Virtual. Held in partnership with Africa Legal and Investing in African Mining Indaba, it will take place throughout 29-30 June 2021.

The Extractive General Counsel Forum will bring together leading in-house legal and compliance professionals from oil and gas, energy, and renewables as well as the mining sector. It will navigate the complex and multi-layered regimes, drilling down into the complex world of the extractives legal sector.
“The conversation will be an opportunity to hear from experts in the extractives sector and start a conversation, better yet move to potential to collaborate on cutting legal and societal issues.” Says Co-Chair of the event and Founder and Director of Kalene Hill Resources, Jacqueline Musiitwa. “Prepare yourself to be challenged to use your various platforms to find solutions to some of the sector’s most pressuring issues.”
The expert speakers will discuss everything from growing expectations placed on General Counsels to industry trends. Key topics include:
Same but different? &#8211; What are the ‘ties that bind’ the oil, gas and mining sectors in Africa? Why have the in-house legal communities across these industries not traditionally networked and shared best practice?
March towards Accountability &#8211; ESG, Climate-Related, Financial, Diversity, Community Impact… Our panel dissects various approaches and options in handling the disclosure burden.
The Human Touch &#8211; Discover how sensible capital deployment and meaningful outreach can ensure that community and societal issues are headed off well in advance of the courtroom.
Renewable Energy in the Extractives Sector &#8211; Are in-house lawyers keeping pace with the opportunities on offer from recent advancements in energy and sustainability?
Dinner Party Defence (Sponsored by Fulcrum) &#8211; Our panel looks at how in-house counsel and their businesses should be looking at proactive solutions to the sector’s image problem.
Leading in addressing these hot topics are a cohort of industry leading professionals:
 	Jacqueline Musiitwa, Founder and Director, Kalene Hill Resources 	Daniel Driscoll, Vice-President Legal &#038; Compliance, Endeavour Mining 	Jasmine Abrahams, Group Head of Sustainability, Ivanhoe Mines 	Aviona Mabaso, Senior Specialist: Legal, Africa Region at AngloGold Ashanti 	Hermien Uys, General Counsel, Vedanta Zinc International 	Andrew Irvine,  Legal and Corporate Engagement Manager, Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative 	Hannah Clayton, Manager – Social Performance &#038; Human Rights, ICMM 
Please note that this event is reserved solely for in-house legal professionals in the extractives industries. This includes general counsels and in-house lawyers, compliance and risk professionals, company secretaries and legal operations managers.
To find out more and register for the event, please click here (https://bit.ly/3vaQvBv).
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Africa Oil Week.
For more information, please contact: On behalf of Africa Oil Week Shelby O&#39;Brien Email: Shelby.OBrien@hyve.group
About Africa Oil Week: Africa Oil Week is the meeting place of choice for the continent’s upstream oil and gas sector. Now entering its 27th year, the event brings together governments, national and international oil companies, independents, investors, the G&#038;G community and service providers.

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