Zimbabwe’s steel industry facing collapse

Zimbabwe's steel industry has been dealt a serious blow after the closure of 17 companies in the last year, with the worsening investment climate said to be further straining the situation. According to Engineering Iron and Steel Association President, Callisto Jokonya, companies are forced to import steel from neighbouring countries. He was quoted by the Sunday Mail as saying that "conditions are very difficult as 17 companies have closed shop, which is a cause for concern, but government has failed to give attention."

Original article: http://allafrica.com/stories/201305010145.html

Thabo Mbeki: Africa losing billions annually in illicit money laundering

Former South African President Thabo Mbeki says Africa is losing billions each year to illicit capital outflows in development. Addressing members of the 53rd Liberian Legislature in a joint session Tuesday in Monrovia, he said that the rate at which Africa loses development money through illegal means is alarming. "We are losing a lot of this capital that we need as a result of everything we throw out of the continent through illegal means and there is an estimate that the continent loses annually at least fifty billion dollars through illicit capital outflow," Mbeki notes. "Now you can compare that to something like US$25 billion that comes into the continent as a result of development assistance." He said Africa loses double on what comes in as development assistance as a result of weak systems put in place by African governments and this has prompted finance ministers to start to take actions to curb the situation.

Original article: http://allafrica.com/stories/201305010274.html

Swaziland laments “worst month for human rights”

April 2013 has been hailed as one of the worst months in history for the plight of human rights in Swaziland. The conviction of Bheki Makhubu and the Nation magazine for publishing articles critical of the Swazi judiciary sent waves of anger across the world. Makhubu faces two years in jail and his magazine closure if he loses an appeal to the Supreme Court. On 12 April, democrats wanted to mark the 40th anniversary of King Sobhuza's Royal Decree, however armed police and riot troops banned all political parties from attending. A week later, on 19 April, the 45th birthday of King Mswati III, organisers of a youth meeting to discuss the elections were arrested and charged with sedition, while many democracy activists have been arrested in their homes and brought under trivial charges. The Open Society Initiative for Southern Africa (OSISA) reported to the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights (ACHPR) that Swaziland was becoming a “military state”.

Original article: http://allafrica.com/stories/201305010108.html