News: Africa

Workers in Medeber here in the capital who are engaged in the manufacturing and modification of various housing utensils and construction materials say that they are striving to upgrade their innovative and creative skills.

The matter of MPs choosing to drive rather than fly, at a lesser cost, between Parliament and their constituencies will be examined at a meeting of the multi-party Parliamentary Oversight Authority (POA) next week, Secretary to Parliament Zingile Dingani said on Friday.

A Western Cape construction worker was seriously injured on Friday when the trench he was working in collapsed, ER24 said.

The death toll from the rioting in Maputo and the neighbouring city of Matola on Wednesday and Thursday has now risen to ten, according to Health Minister Ivo Garrido.

After two days of rioting over price rises, Maputo was mostly calm on Friday, but a few minor disturbances occurred in some outlying neighbourhoods.

This week's riots in Maputo will not prevent Portuguese businesses from investing in Mozambique, according to Telmo Fernandes, managing partner of Market Access, a consultancy firm based in the northern Portuguese city of Oporto.

Despite threats of a third day of rioting, Maputo was calm on Friday, and by mid-morning there was no sign of further disturbances.

Groups of looters attacked stalls in the main markets of the central Mozambican city of Beira on Wednesday afternoon and Thursday morning, according to a report in Friday's issue of the Maputo daily "Noticias".

Angolan singer Edizila organises Saturday her first show to promote her debut album entitled "Eu e Tu", at Atlântico cinema, in Luanda.

The Special Traffic Brigade (BET) will not allow passengers being transported in load carrying vehicles to the Muxima Sanctuary, without having minimum accommodation and safety conditions.

The minister of Agriculture, Rural Development and Fisheries, Afonso Pedro Canga, is expected Friday in northern Kwanza Norte province for a few-hour visit, to check the implementation of various projects underway in the region.

Administrators and finances professionals of the districts of the provinces of Bengo, Kwanza Norte and Malange attend since Thursday in this city, a regional seminar on the new State Budget (OGE) Law.

The music group of Brazilian Rodrigo Lessa is performing Wednesday in Luanda, as part of the celebrations of his country's independence, on September 7.

As Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood gears up to contest November parliamentary elections, some analysts note the relatively few gains made by the Brotherhood- led opposition over the last five years in an assembly dominated by the ruling National Democratic Party (NDP).

Food security in many parts of Southern Sudan is set to improve after good rains, according to recent crop and precipitation assessments.

Participants from seven countries meet in Nairobi on Monday and Tuesday to find ways of addressing food security in the region.

Suspected rebels have raped at least 242 women within a few days in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo's Nord-Kivu province, according to an American medical charity. Rapes and beatings took place at the end of July and the beginning of August.

A renowned entrepreneur and a patron of the Northern Ghana Association of Entrepreneurs (NORGAE), Mr. Benjamin Anyanah, has expressed anger at the situation where Ghanaians are made to pay for goods and services in foreign currencies instead of the Cedi.

Government has been challenged to institute urgent measures to save the private sector from imminent collapse.

"During my recent visit to Berlin, I attended an arts and culture programme, where my English poem about art was translated into German and it sounded plain awesome.