News from Africa

Kisumu county has collected Sh200 million in the last three months after it hired a debt collector to help recover Sh20 billion owed by several businesses. Governor Anyang Nyong’o’s administration in May sought the services of Collection Africa, a debt collection firm, to help recover the debt. The debt as accumulated since 2018, an 11 year period. Unpaid land rates form its bulk. Yesterday, County Chief Finance Officer Erick Angwenyi confirmed that the money had been remitted to the county’s coffers. ‘’We have managed to recover Sh200 million. This initiative is bearing fruit and we look forward to improving our revenue proceeds,’’ Mr Angwenyi said. This is the first time the county has hired a debt collector. The hiring comes after a recent Auditor General’s report  raised queries on the county’s declining revenue. According to the report, property owners have been defaulting on land rates and house rents. For more of this story follow this link: https://www.standar...

Zimbabwe’s Finance Minister Mthuli Ncube has warned that traders who continue to demand payment in US dollars will face prosecution. In June, the country abandoned the use of the US dollar for its official currency the Zimbabwe dollars; reintroducing a local currency that was scrapped 10 years ago. But a shortage of local currency and its rapid decline in value has resulted in businesses - including grocers and fuel stations - demanding payments in US dollars. Zimbabwe imports most of its goods including fuel and food. Businesses have also been struggling to get allocations of the local currency from the central bank to restock. "It is taking long for Zimbabweans to adjust," Mr Ncube told state-owned Zimpapers TV. "We will be introducing penalties for those who deviate, we recognise we are in transition, we will get there." Mr Ncube acknowledged the shortage of local currency in circulation and said authorities will gradually inject more cash "i...

Locust swarms have been spotted in northern Tanzania after months of wreaking havoc on crops across other East African countries. Kilimanjaro Regional Commissioner Anna Mgwira has confirmed to the BBC that swarms of locusts were spotted in villages in Moshi area. They are thought to have spread from neighbouring Kenya. Ms Mgwira said the government's response will focus on areas close to Taveta area, near the border. "When we got this news in the morning, we started checking our neighbours close to Taveta, but there were no signs of locusts, but this evening, there were reports showing that around Moshi, locusts were seen," Ms Mgwira said on Sunday. She said the government will soon announce how it plans to combat the swarms. The sighting of locusts in Moshi has sparked concern among local farmers who fear that they may lose their crops. The swarms have been wrecking havoc in Kenya, Somalia and Ethiopia in what has been termed as the worst locust invasion in ...

Ugandan government officials held a Sunday night "emergency meeting" after locusts were spotted in three areas neighbouring Kenya in the north-east. Ugandan Prime Minister Ruhakana Rugunda summoned the meeting at 19:00 local time (16:00GMT) to activate a plan the government had put in place to fight the locusts. The locusts were first seen in Uganda's Amudat district, Karamoja region. The swarms had been expected to reach Uganda and the government said it had put in place an extensive plan to combat the invasion. The plan includes deploying two hired air spray planes, as well as pickups and tractors that are mounted with motorised sprayers. Hundreds of manual hand spray pumps will also be used. Soldiers will be deployed in the exercise. The government said efforts are in place to set up cross-border spraying agreements between Uganda and Kenya. The swarms have devastated farmers in Kenya, Somalia and Ethiopia threatening food security in the regi...