Burundi blog, ‘’ introduces a new blog called ‘Breaking the Cycle Youth Council’

“In 1988, I was only 10 years old, there were massacres in Ntega and Marangara, in Burundi. At that time, my Brother then told me about what had happened and I was puzzled, as I recall, because I could not understand how People could kill one another for tribal differences…It was in that year that I discovered I was of the tribe of Tutsi. At that time, I still could not tell the difference from Hutu and Tutsi tribe, by looking at a person…There are different things that occurred, that caused me to be determined to lead another generation, not to follow what other generations had followed.”

The blog’s main focus is on the youth of Burundi. The blogger uses videocasts to emphasise the plight of the youth and their hopes for the future.

There are two posts this week on the subject of telecoms provision in Africa. The first comes from Ghana. ‘Ramblings of an African Geek’ explains why the state owned “Ghana Telecom sucks”:

“In order to use GT broadband, I must give up my right as a consumer to purchase bandwidth from any other ISP. They are in effect telling their consumers, who are overpaying them for service, how they can spend their money.

“I’m curious about the identity of the person who came up with this clause. I’m also curious about its legality and the competence of the lawyer who advised them on its inclusion. I mean, if this is legal then what stops my local pineapple vendor from banning me from occasionally buying fruit from her cheaper competitor? Or Sony from telling me I have to get rid of all Samsung TV’s before I can buy one of theirs.”

The second story comes from ‘Timbuktu Chronicles’ who points to a more positive piece in the Economist on the rise of African cellphone companies:

“Following a flurry of deals over the past 18 months, five African and Middle Eastern operators are now vying for supremacy. These regional powerhouses have worked out how to earn princely sums in the world's poorest places. So far they have mostly been too busy signing up new subscribers to compete vigorously with each other. But that is now starting to change, and the industry is preparing for a round of consolidation as the operators start to attack each other's markets…The arrival of Middle Eastern and African operators, with their innovative, low-cost business models, could put pressure on European operators. Celtel's One Network, for example, eliminates roaming charges for customers travelling between the adjacent countries of Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda.”

My recent experience in South Africa of cell phones is that despite the exorbitant costs, cell phone usage is expanding at a rapid rate. Clearly there is room for more companies to enter the market and through competition bring down the price.

Staying with cell phones, ‘ This initiative follows recent reports that Mugabe’s security agents are now confiscating radios in an effort to clamp down even further on access to information and objective news reporting."

An excellent example of activism at work, and an excellent example of the use of SMS to circumvent repressive actions by governments such as in Zimbabwe.

Kenyan blogger, ‘’ remembers Robert Mangaliso Sobukwe who was born on 5 December 1924. Sobukwe, the founder of the Pan Africanist Congress, was jailed in Number 4 prison by the apartheid government for 9 years.

‘Scribbles from the Den’ comments on the return of Cameroonian musician, the ‘Tribal Monk’, who has returned and released his first album in 6 years:

“After a six-year break, US-based Cameroonian artist, Wanaku a.k.a The Tribal Monk has released his third album, Afrikan Guitarstrophy, in collaboration with his band, Sunplug’d. In this album, Wanaku shuns the ‘World Music’ genre with its over-reliance on technology and heavy (in)fusion of Western pop sounds. Instead, he unapologetically uses the acoustic guitar as the main conduit for what he calls ‘Sweet Afrikan Kontry Muziki’. This is not ‘afro-pop’ by any stretch of the imagination; it is afro beat in its pure and unadulterated state.” Sounds worth waiting for.

‘Black Looks’ comments on the impact of impact of global warming on, and the consequences of recycling of waste products across the continent.

“The continent is having to pay the price of US consumption i.e. 5% of the worlds population are in the US yet they contribute to 25% of the worlds greenhouse gas pollution. Africa’s 14% population contributes a mere 3%.One of the consequences of global warming is desertification and one of the worst hit countries in Africa is Somalia (also recently a dumping ground for nuclear waste). But many other countries, particular those bordering the Sahara savannah regions in West Africa and the Horn of Africa will suffer from severe drought, failed crops and floods. Access to water is a major issue through out Africa where privatisation of water supplies is adding to the lack of water availability on very basic levels in countries such as Nigeria, Kenya, Niger and South Africa to name just a few.”

• Sokari Ekine produces the blog Black Looks, http://www.blacklooks.org/

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