Viva Riva shines at 2011 AMAA in Nigeria

A scene from Viva Riva.

Viva Riva shines at 2011 AMAA in Nigeria


The thrilling Congolese gangster epic movie "Viva Riva" out shined competitors to win 6 awards from 12 nominations at the 7th Annual African Movie Academy Awards (AMAA) Sunday night at the Gloryland Cultural Centre, Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, Nigeria.



Riva is a small time operator who has just returned to his hometown of Kinshasa, Congo after a decade away with a major score: a fortune in hijacked gasoline. Wads of cash in hand and out for a good time, Riva is soon entranced by beautiful night club denizen Nora, the kept woman of a local gangster. Into the mix comes an Angolan crime lord relentlessly seeking the return of his stolen shipment of gasoline. Director Djo Tunda Wa Munga’s Kinshasa is a seductively vibrant, lawless, fuel-starved sprawl of shantytowns, gated villas, bordellos and nightclubs and Riva is its perfect embodiment.
~ From South by South West

The film by Congolese director Djo Tunda Wa Munga won the awards for Best Film and Best Director, Best Supporting Actor, Best Supporting Actress, Best Cinematography and Best Production Design.
The Ghanaian film “Sinking Sands” won 3 awards, for the Best Actress, Best Screenplay and Best Make-up.
“Aramotu” won awards for Best Nigerian Film and Best Costume Design.

The Best Actor Award went to Themba Ndaba of South Africa for his role in “Hopeville” and the Best Young Actor was Edward Kagutuzi for “Mirror Boy”.

It was another disappointing AMAA for Nollywood diva Genevieve Nnaji whose role in Tango With Me was not good enough to beat Amake Abebrese of Ghana who won the Best Actress award for her role in “Sinking Sands”




The following is the complete list of nominees and winners for the 2011 Africa Movie Academy Awards

Best Film
Viva Riva – Djo Tunda Wa Munga (Congo)

Best Director
Viva Riva – Djo Tunda Wa Munga

Best Actress In Leading Role
Amake Abebrese - Sinking Sands

Best Actor In Leading Role
Themba Ndaba – Hopeville

Best Actress In Supporting Role
Marlene Longage – Viva Riva

Best Actor In Supporting Role
Hoji Fortuna – Viva Riva

Best Young Actor
Edward Kagutuzi – Mirror Boy

Best Child Actor
Sobahle Mkhabase (Thembi), Tschepang Mohlomi (Chili-Bite) And Sibonelo Malinga (Khwezi) – Izulu Lami

Best Film In African Language
Izulu Lami – Madoda Ncayiyana (South Africa)

Best Nigerian Film
Aramotu – Niji Akanni

Best Screenplay
Sinking Sands

Best Editing
Soul Boy

Best Cinematography
Viva Riva

Best Achievement In Sound
Shirley Adams

Best Visual Effects
A Small Town Called Descent

Best Soundtrack
Inale

Best Make Up

Sinking Sands

Best Costume Design
Aramotu

Best Production Design
Viva Riva


Best Film For African Abroad
In America: The Story Of The Soul Sisters - Rahman Oladigbolu (Nigeria/USA)

Best Diaspora Short Film
Precipice – Julius Amedume (UK)

Best Diaspora Documentary
Stuborn As A Mule – Miller Bargeron Jr & Arcelous Deiels (USA)

Best Diaspora Feature
Suicide Dolls – Keith Shaw (USA)

Best Documentary
Kondi Et Le Jeudi Nationale – Ariana Astrid Atodji (Cameroun)

Best Short Documentary
After The Mine – Diendo Hamadi & Dinta Wa Lusula (DRC)

Best Short Film
Dina – Mickey Fonseca (Mozambique)
http://www.chinokino.com

Viasat Documentary Channels-Press Conference in Lagos, Nigeria

Mr. Martin Letzter

Martin Letzter from Viasat World in the UK was in Nigeria for the launch of Viasat’s Documentary Channels. He presented the unique series at a well attended press conference on Friday February 25, 2011, at the Sofitel Hotel in Ikoyi, Lagos.
The Viasat’s documentary channels are from the Modern Times Group (MTG), an international entertainment broadcasting group that is launching four pay-TV channels in Africa on 28 February. Viasat History, Viasat Nature, Viasat Explorer and Viasat Crime will initially be made available to satellite pay-TV subscribers in Nigeria and cable pay-TV subscribers in Kenya.


Mr. Tony Ikeokwu, MD/CEO of Infinity TV and Mr. Martin Letzter


Mr. Ingram Osigwe, the Media Consultant, Infinity TV and Mr. Martin Letzter

The channels are localised versions of Viasat Broadcasting's existing thematic documentary channels. Three of the channels are currently available in 29 countries across Northern, Central and Eastern Europe. Viasat Crime is available in the Nordic region. Each channel will be broadcast 12 hours per day, with Viasat History and Viasat Nature sharing one satellite feed, and Viasat Explorer and Viasat Crime sharing another. Distribution agreements have initially been signed with the HiTV and Infinity TV satellite networks in Nigeria, and with cable network operator Zuku in Kenya.


Mr. Julius Osuma, the Chief Marketing Officer of Infinity TV, Mr. Martin Letzter and Mr. Ingram Osigwe


Mr. Ingram Osigwe with an executive of HiTV


Executives of Infinity TV and HiTV seated with invited journalists and guests.

Infinity TV brings Modern Times Group to Nigeria

Infinity TV brings Modern Times Group to Nigeria


The new satellite pay-TV station Infinity TV has brought the Modern Times Group (MTG), to Nigeria with the launch of four pay-TV channels in Africa. The company released the details of the Viasat History, Viasat Nature, Viasat Explorer and Viasat Crime channels at the first press conference on Friday February 25, 2011, at the Sofitel Hotel in Ikoyi, Lagos. Viasat is the brand for the digital satellite TV platforms operated by MTG, a leading international entertainment broadcasting group with over 50 million subscribers and attracting over 125 million viewers in 31 countries worldwide.



The channels have award winning documentaries such as Nature’s Babies, Untamed Europe and Winter in Yelowstone on Viasat Nature Channel.



Visual History… Bringing History to Life, Gladiators: Back From the Dead, The Somme and The Black Death on Viasat History Channel.



Star Wars Tech, Toughest Career Jobs and Escape To The Legion on Viasat Explore Channel.



The Hunt for the Texas 7, Inside: LA Gang Wars, and Final Approach on the Viasat Crime channel.

The localized documentary channels will initially be offered to satellite pay-TV subscribers in Nigeria and cable pay-TV subscribers in Kenya.

MTG has signed distribution agreements with Infinity TV and HiTV in Nigeria and with the Zulu cable TV network in Kenya. The launch of the four pay-TV channels will expand the distribution in Africa, including a free TV operation in Ghana and more networks will be developed in the remaining parts of Africa.


~ By Ekenyerengozi Michael Chima

110,931,700 million online visitors expected at Ghana Trade Expo

Not less than 110,931,700 million online visitors worldwide are expected to hit Ghana Trade Expo from the 25th February 2011 to 25th March 2011. This is the first ever online trade expo in Ghana coinciding with the International Trade Fair being held in Accra,Ghana from February 2011.

The objective of the expo,in the words of Duncan Abel- Executive Director of The Ghana Association of Home Based Entrepreneurs (GAHBE)(organisers of the expo),is to expose the products,services and businesses of various companies to the growing internet users from Ghana-1,297,000 million, Nigeria-43,982,200 million( as sourced from internetworldstats.com),the millions in the United States,the United Kingdom,Asian continent,the South Americas,the Carribeans and the vast African population using the power of the internet.


Click here to read the details.

Prestigious US$350,000 Africa Entrepreneurship Prize Launched

6 Jul 2010 16:18 Africa/Lagos


Prestigious US$350,000 Africa Entrepreneurship Prize Launched

DUBAI, UAE, July 6, 2010/PRNewswire/ --


- 2010 Legatum Africa Awards to Recognise and Reward Africa's Entrepreneurial Business Leaders. Awards Ceremony to be Hosted in Accra, Ghana

Legatum, a privately owned international investment group, and Omidyar Network, a philanthropic investment firm, today announced the launch of the 2010 Legatum Africa Awards for Entrepreneurship, one of the continent's most prestigious business awards.

The Legatum Africa Awards programme recognises and rewards African business leaders who embody the entrepreneurial spirit and demonstrate the qualities required to succeed in business - determination, a commitment to excellence, innovation and profitability. Leaders of small and medium sized enterprises (annual revenues between US$2 - 25 million) have the opportunity to submit online entries at http://www.africaawards.com until 31st August 2010. Applicants will be evaluated across a unique set of criteria to determine the winner.

"This is the third year that Legatum has offered an award for Entrepreneurship in Africa," said Alan McCormick, Managing Director of Legatum. "And over that time we have found many dynamic entrepreneurs across the continent, whose businesses are building prosperity for their communities."

Mr. McCormick continued, "The Legatum Africa Awards celebrates the very best businesses from across Africa and showcases their leadership, which through hard work, determination and a creative approach, are the foundation for their nation's wealth and well-being. Our goal is to encourage the next generation of aspiring business people and pave the way for increased investment in Africa, a continent teeming with opportunity."

The 2010 Africa Awards programme builds upon similar competitions in 2007 and 2008, and is expected to attract 1,500 entries from fifteen countries. This year, submissions will be accepted from Botswana, Cameroon, Cote d'Ivoire, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zambia. A total of US$350,000 will be awarded to the winners, and the funds directed towards growth and strategic re-investment in their companies. Winners will be selected based on a rigorous and transparent selection process by an international panel of leading business experts.

"Omidyar Network and Legatum share the conviction that entrepreneurs are vital to creating new opportunities in Africa", said Matt Bannick, Managing Partner of Omidyar Network. "With the expanded reach of this year's awards, we will identify and support the dynamic business leaders who are driving innovation, economic growth and terrific new opportunities across the continent."

The 2010 Legatum Africa Awards will conclude with a Gala Awards Banquet in early December 2010 in Accra, Ghana. Finalists and winners will be honoured in the presence of an international audience of leading businesspeople, policymakers, and entrepreneurs.

APPENDIX

Winners will be selected on their ability to operate truly sustainable and innovative businesses and demonstrated excellence in:


- Profitability, return on investment and growth
- Investment in employees
- Making a contribution to the community
- Long-term business strategy
- Innovative and effective marketing
- Leadership, culture and values

This competition is open to all businesses meeting the following criteria:


- For-profit entity in existence for three years or more
- Located in Botswana, Cameroon, Cote d'Ivoire, Ethiopia, Ghana,
Kenya, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, South
Africa, Tanzania, Uganda or Zambia
- Annual revenues of between US $2 - $25 million


Applications may only be submitted online at http://www.africaawards.com; the deadline for submission of applications is 31st August 2010. For more information, please contact info@africaawards.com.

ABOUT LEGATUM

Legatum is a privately owned international investment group whose primary focus is commercial investment, and which also applies its investor's expertise to a long- standing involvement in the sustainable development of communities around the globe.


For more information, please visit Legatum's website at http://www.legatum.com


ABOUT OMIDYAR NETWORK


Omidyar Network is a philanthropic investment firm dedicated to harnessing the power of markets to create opportunity for people to improve their lives. Established in 2004 by eBay founder Pierre Omidyar and his wife Pam, the organization invests in and helps scale innovative organizations to catalyze economic and social change.


To date, Omidyar Network has committed more than $370 million to for-profit companies and non-profit organizations that foster economic advancement and encourage individual participation across multiple investment areas, including microfinance, property rights, government transparency, and social media. To learn more, visit http://www.omidyar.com.


MEDIA CONTACTS



Hamish Banks
Legatum
Dubai
Tel: +971-4-317-5800
hamish.banks@legatum.com

Kelly Mason
Omidyar Network
Redwood City, CA
Tel: +1-650-482-2566
kelly@omidyar.com

PROGRAMME MANAGEMENT
Alex Cudaback
Jamestown Exploration Company
Middleburg, VA
Tel. +1-540-687-8690
alex@jamestownexploration.com

Source: 2010 Legatum Africa Awards for Entrepreneurship

Hamish Banks, Legatum, Dubai, Tel: +971-4-317-5800, hamish.banks@legatum.com; Kelly Mason, Omidyar Network, Redwood City, CA, Tel: +1-650-482-2566, kelly@omidyar.com; PROGRAMME MANAGEMENT, Alex Cudaback, Jamestown Exploration Company, Middleburg, VA, Tel. +1-540-687-8690, alex@jamestownexploration.com


Releases displayed in Africa/Lagos time
6 Jul 2010
16:52
Lancement du prix prestigieux Legatum pour l'entreprenariat en Afrique d'un montant de 350,000 US$.
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Prestigious US$350,000 Africa Entrepreneurship Prize Launched
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Hajiya Maryam Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida Was A Great Woman

Mrs. Maryam Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida and three of her four children.

Hajiya Maryam Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida would be remembered for many reasons, but the most remarkable was how she used her role as the First Lady for the empowerment of millions of Nigerian women in the rural areas as the founder of the Better Life Programme for the Rural Woman (BLP). The BLP programme launched 7,635 co-operatives, 997 cottage industries, 1,751 new farms and gardens, 487 new shops and markets, 419 women's centers and 163 social welfare programs in all the states and Abuja (FCT) in Nigeria and transformed the lives of the women for life.

Mrs. Babangida used the BLP for the social and political mobilization of rural women and increased the voter turnout in the December 1989 local government council elections in Nigeria and she also built an international center for women in development in Abuja.

For her great feat in sustainable human development, Mrs. Maryam Ibrahim Babangida was honoured with the highly coveted Africa Prize for Leadership in 1991.
Among the laureates of the Africa Prize are the great Nelson Mandela, former President of the Republic of South Africa, who won the prize in 1994 and Jerry John Rawlings, the former President of the Republic of Ghana who won it in 1993 and the others include the following great men and women:
2006 - Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, the first female President of Liberia.
2003 - Meaza Ashenafi, Founder, Ethiopian Women Lawyers Association.
2003 - Sara Longwe, Gender consultant, Zambia.
2001 - Amelia Jacob, Co-founder, SHDEPHA+, Tanzania.
2001 - Bishop Dennis H. de Jong, (1931-2003)Integrated AIDS Programme, Zambia.
1998 - President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, President of Uganda.
1998 - Celina Cossa, Founder and Leader of the General Union of Agricultural Cooperatives.
1997 - Joaquim Chissano, President of Mozambique.
1997 - Joyce Banda, Founder, National Assn. of Business Women of Malawi.
1996 - Amadou Toumani Touré, Former President of Mali.
1996 - Chief Bisi Ogunleye, Founder, Country Women's Association of Nigeria.
1995 - H. E. Sam Nujoma, President of the Republic of Namibia.
1995 - Mrs. Joyce F. Mungherera, National Executive Director, YWCA - Uganda.
1993 - Father Nzamujo Godfrey, Director, Songhai Project, Benin.
1992 - Mrs. Graça Simbine Machel, President, Foundation for Community Development, Mozambique.
1992 - Dr. Ebrahim M. Samba, Africa Regional Director, World Health Organization.
1991 - Prof. Wangari Muta Maathai, Founder, Green Belt Movement, Kenya.

1990 - Olusegun Obasanjo, President of Nigeria; founder, Africa Leadership Forum.
1990 - Dr. Esther Afua Ocloo, (1919-2002) Founder and first chair, Women's World Banking.

1989 - H. E. Dr. Ketsumile Masire, Former President of the Republic of Botswana.
1989 - Dr. Bernard L. Ouédraogo, President and founder, the Naam movement, Burkina Faso. Co-founder, International Six-S Association.
1987 - H. E. Abdou Diouf, Former President of the Republic of Senegal.
1987 - Professor Thomas R. Odhiambo (1931-2003).

Maryam's Death: General Babangida’s Statement

Sun Dec, 27 2009

Maryam Babangida passes on at 61 in US

With total submission to the Will of Allah, we humbly announce the passing away of our beloved wife, mother, grandmother, sister, and amiable friend Hajiya Maryam Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida.

A statement from General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida’s family announced today that Maryam passed on early this morning at the age of 61, after a protracted illness.

The former chairperson of the Better Life for Rural Women during her husband's years in office had been hospitalised at University of California Los Angele's (UCLA) Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Centre in Los Angeles, United States.

She died beside her husband, General Babangida who has been at her bedside in the US hospital till her death. Mrs. Babangida's condition worsened months ago.

Born on November 1, 1948, she had fairly humble beginnings in her hometown of Asaba where she received part of her early education before moving up North to Queen Amina College, Kaduna for her Secondary education. She went on to graduate as a Secretary at the Federal Training Centre, Kaduna and later obtained a diploma in secretaryship from Laselle University, Chicago, USA as well as a Certificate in Computer Science from the NCR Institute, Lagos.

On September 6, 1969, two months before her 21st Birthday, she got married to Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida (then a Major). Their marriage has been blessed with four children: 2 boys, Mohammed and Aminu and two girls, Aisha and Halima.

Apart from a brief stop at a career in her line of training, before and shortly after marriage, Mrs. Babangida remained a full time housewife, establishing and nurturing the home front until her youngest child had fairly come of age.

Considered to be one of the greatest women in Africa today, Maryam made that significant sacrifice in her staunch belief that the family unit is the most crucial factor in the quality of society and of mankind and that the woman is the central anchor of the unit.

By 1983, she however was again ready for an active career, beyond the confines of the home front when her husband became the Chief of Army Staff on December 31st that year. She became the President of the Nigerian Army Officers Wives Association (NAOWA). It was during her twenty-month presidency that her leadership qualities were first unfolded to the public as she mobilised her colleagues to embark aggressively on public spirited ventures which included building schools, clinics, women's multipurpose training centres and child day care centres.

An incisive thinker and passionate lover of nature, gardening, birds and home decorations, she is "a poet's dream" and with disarming charm and an admirable deft blend of winning wit, quiet confidence and child-like grace, she has brought the institution of first-ladyship out of the closet to active participation in nation building.

Signed:

(For and on Behalf of the General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida Family)


Malam Ibrahim Ismaila

Special Assistant to General I.B. Babangida

December 27, 2009

Download press statement here: Maryam Babangida passes on at 61 in US

Nigerians May Welcome Military Coup

A popular American online news channel Huliq has reported Saturday that a military coup might be what most people need now in Nigeria since they have lost faith in the corrupt ruling party.

Nigerians have lost faith in their political leaders and may even welcome a military coup if that can salvage the nation from the evils of corrupt political contractors in power.

With over 20 million unemployed in the most populous country in Africa, Nigeria is on the brink of the worst fears of disintegrating before 2015 as predicted by the CIA. But majority of Nigerians blame their political leaders for misplacing priorities and scuttling the great prospects of the innovations developed by the Nigerian intelligentsia of gifted artists, scientists and scholars who have proposed practical solutions to the problems plaguing the nation. The greedy political contractors in power seem to be more confused than the electorate. They are still abusing their positions in government as revealed by the scandalous reports of misappropriations of public funds when last Thursday, Mr. Olabode George, a former chieftain of the corrupt and notorious ruling People’s Democratic Party (PDP) and former Chairman of Board of Directors of the Nigeria Ports Authourity (NPA) was convicted for corruption. And he was not alone. Most of the former governors are still facing charges for corrupt practices. But many of them are still dining and wining and living large in their private estates in Lagos and Abuja.

Many banks have crashed and the manufacturing industry cannot function without regular power supply as daily outages have made many industries to collapse or relocate to Ghana where electric power supply is constant and cost of production is affordable.

There are public rallies against the government’s decision to deregulate the downstream sector and remove subsidies, and kidnappings are still common in the eastern states and Niger Delta region.

Millions of Nigerians say that Nigeria was better under military rule and have recalled that even though the country was bad under military tyrants, the corrupt shareholders of the PDP have made things worse.

Consolidation in AME's Mobile Market Will Continue for Next Several Years, Finds Pyramid

29 Sep 2009 20:46 Africa/Lagos

Consolidation in AME's Mobile Market Will Continue for Next Several Years, Finds Pyramid

CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Sept. 29 /PRNewswire/ -- In-country consolidation in the mobile market has already begun in Africa and the Middle East and will become a more important trend over the next few years, pushing incumbents to find new ways to protect their customer base, according to a new report from Pyramid Research (www.pyr.com), the telecom research arm of the Light Reading Communications Network (www.lightreading.com).


Three Is Company, Four Is a Crowd: Mobile Players Proliferate in AME examines the factors that we expect will drive consolidation over the coming years. We start by recapping the dynamics behind the increasing numbers of licenses and operators. The 17-page report then examines the degree of success of third, fourth, and fifth entrants in terms of subscription market share. A look at some of the successful strategies which incumbent operators are adopting to protect their customer base follows. Finally we examine the first case of in-country consolidation - and its likely implications for African mobile operators. Download an excerpt of this report here: http://www.pyramidresearch.com/downloads.htm?id=5&sc=PR092909_INAME1.7


Competition in mobile markets across Africa and the Middle East will intensify as new licenses continue to be made available in Africa, even though many late entrants struggle to establish a sustainable business where three or more networks are already in operation, notes Dearbhla McHenry, analyst at Pyramid Research and author of the report. "Although third entrants in Africa and the Middle East have gained as much as 37 percent of their markets within three years, the picture for fourth and fifth operators is gloomier: our analysis suggests that market shares of 8.7 percent and 4.7 percent, respectively, are more realistic targets," she adds.


"Several factors determine whether a late entrant to a mobile market in Africa and the Middle East will overcome the odds and gain significant market share, as explained in this report," says McHenry. "It is often the case that operators entering a market where another operator has recently launched will tend to find it difficult to establish an additional brand," she explains. The region's leading operators, however, are getting better at reducing churn and increasing loyalty. "International and regional operators, in particular, have an advantage in being able to implement best practices learned overseas - MTN, for instance, has experienced growing competition in many of its markets, has maintained a strong position, for instance in Cote d'Ivoire, Ghana, and Nigeria," says McHenry.


At the end of July 2009, one of the first in-country mergers in the region took place in Sierra Leone. Market leader Africell agreed to buy Millicom-owned operator Tigo for an undisclosed sum. "We believe that this event may signal the start of a new trend, since several other operators look similarly vulnerable to acquisition," says McHenry. "As a result, we believe in-country consolidation, as well as operators exiting markets, will be an increasingly common event over the coming five years," she adds.


Three Is Company, Four Is a Crowd: Mobile Players Proliferate in AME is part of Pyramid Research's Africa and the Middle East Telecom Insider report series. This report is priced at $595 and can be purchased online here: http://www.pyramidresearch.com/store/ins_ame_090925.htm?sc=PR092909_INAME1.7 or by contacting Amalia Vega via email at avega@pyr.com.


For more information about Pyramid Research's products and services, please visit www.pyr.com or contact us at info@pyr.com.


About Pyramid Research


Pyramid Research (www.pyr.com) offers practical solutions to the complex demands our clients face in the telecommunications, media and technology industries. Our analysis is uniquely positioned at the intersection of emerging markets, emerging technologies and emerging business models, powered by the bottom-up methodology of our market forecasts for over 100 countries - a distinction that has remained unmatched for more than 25 years. As the telecom research arm of the Light Reading Communications Network, Pyramid Research works with Heavy Reading, providing the communications industry's most comprehensive market data, trusted research and insightful technology analysis.


About Light Reading


Founded in 2000, Light Reading (www.lightreading.com) is the leading online media, research, and focused event company serving the $3 trillion worldwide communications market. Lightreading.com is the ultimate source for technology and financial analysis of the communications industry, leading the media sector in terms of traffic, content, and reputation. Light Reading's research arms, Heavy Reading and Pyramid Research, provide the most comprehensive communications research, market data, and technology analysis in close to 100 markets around the world. Light Reading produces nearly 20 targeted communications events including TelcoTV, Ethernet Expo New York and Ethernet Expo London, The Tower Summit @ CTIA, and Optical Expo, as well as focused one-day events tailored for cable, mobile, and wireline executives. Light Reading was acquired by United Business Media in August 2005 and operates as a unit of TechWeb.


About TechWeb


TechWeb (http://techweb.com/aboutus), the global leader in business technology media, is an innovative business focused on serving the needs of technology decision-makers and marketers worldwide. TechWeb produces the most respected and consumed media brands in the business technology market. Today, more than 13.3 million* business technology professionals actively engage in our communities created around our global face-to-face events, Interop, Web 2.0, Black Hat, and VoiceCon; online resources such as the TechWeb Network, Light Reading, Intelligent Enterprise, InformationWeek.com, bMighty.com, and The Financial Technology Network; and the market leading, award-winning InformationWeek, TechNet Magazine, MSDN Magazine, and Wall Street & Technology magazines. TechWeb also provides end-to-end services including next-generation performance marketing, integrated media, research, and analyst services. TechWeb is a division of United Business Media, a global provider of news distribution and specialist information services with a market capitalization of more than $2.5 billion.


*13.3 million business decision-makers: based on number of monthly connections


About United Business Media Limited


UBM (UBM.L) focuses on two principal activities: worldwide information distribution, targeting and monitoring; and, the development and monetization of B2B communities and markets. UBM's businesses inform markets and serve professional commercial communities - from doctors to game developers, from journalists to jewelry traders, from farmers to pharmacists - with integrated events, online, print, and business information products. Our 6,500 staff in more than 30 countries are organized into specialist teams that serve these communities, bringing buyers and sellers together, helping them to do business and their markets to work effectively and efficiently. For more information, go to http://www.unitedbusinessmedia.com/.


Press contact:
Jennifer Baker
+1 617 871-1910
jbaker@pyr.com


Source: Pyramid Research

CONTACT: Jennifer Baker, Pyramid Research, +1-617-871-1910,
jbaker@pyr.com


Web Site: http://www.pyr.com/

Happy Birthday Our Dear Wole Soyinka

Prof. Wole Soyinka of Nigeria

Happy Birthday to Professor.Wole Soyinka, the first African Nobel Prize laureate in Literature who clocks 75 today. The great African dramatist, poet, novelist and essayist, we call our own WS, said he is not having any "Owambe" party and would rather address why President Barack Obama snubbed Nigeria, the so called Giant of Africa in favour of Ghana in his first official visit to sub-saharan Africa.

The video below is a must view for all those who appreciate the genius of Soyinka.



Nigerians Report is wishing Prof. Wole Soyinka many more happy years of long life and peace of mind.

West African 'Oil Rush' Is On, Reports Gold Star Resources Corp. CEO in AFROIL Online News Column

10 Jun 2009 14:30 Africa/Lagos


West African 'Oil Rush' Is On, Reports Gold Star Resources Corp. CEO in AFROIL Online News Column

VANCOUVER, June 10 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- West Africa now offers "unparalleled opportunities" for major and independent oil and gas companies, writes Patrick Morris, CEO of Vancouver-based Gold Star Resources Corp. (OTC Bulletin Board: GXXFF; TSX-V; GXX; www.goldstarresources.com) in the June 10th issue of AFROIL, Africa Oil & Gas Monitor, an online publication of Newsbase Ltd., Edinburgh, Scotland read by subscribers in 25 countries (www.newsbase.com; Week 23; page 5 Guest Column). Morris, author of a news column published in AFROIL entitled "West African Oil Rush, Challenges", reported that changing geopolitics, reduced security and political risks, the recent 1.8 billion barrel discovery in West Africa's largest oilfield, the Jubilee in Ghana, and a new African foreign policy by recently elected U.S. President Barack Obama have all helped in making West Africa a "desirable destination for oil and gas exploration and production."

According to Morris, "For a long time West Africa has been off the radar of the international community because of messy politics and brutal civil wars. Also, apart from Nigeria and Gabon, there had been the disappointing size of oil discoveries made at times of low oil prices. All this is now changing. Expectations by countries and oil & gas companies to discover new reserves in the region are high. Exploration and seismic research activities are underway in all countries of West Africa bar Burkina Faso and Cape Verde. Governments are also actively involved. For example, in Liberia, the National Oil Company of Liberia (NOCAL) is promoting oil and gas exploration and development of its hydrocarbon resources along its continental shelf and slope. The sub-region is also gaining global attention as calm has been restored to countries such as Liberia, Sierra Leone and Cote d' Ivoire, reducing security risks."

"The role of junior exploration companies is to set the trend," Morris writes in his news column. " For example, Gold Star Resources is the first and only junior company to go after onshore oil and gas opportunities in Cote d' Ivoire and Liberia since the 1970s. Larger players are competing for offshore blocks all along the coast - but with no plans for any onshore exploration."

Gold Star Resources recently signed a Letter-of-Intent with Bengal Bight Ghana to acquire 100% of the hydrocarbon rights to the Tiampoum mining concession, approximately 1,000 square km, in Cote d' Ivoire. In January, Gold Star entered West Africa when it acquired 90% of the issued and outstanding shares of Liberia's International Resources Strategies Liberia Energy (IRSLE).

Source: Gold Star Resources Corp.

CONTACT: Patrick Morris, CEO, Gold Star Resources Corp.,
+1-604-641-4450, pm@goldstarresources.com

Web Site: http://www.goldstarresources.com/

Releases displayed in Africa/Lagos time
11 Jun 2009
20:51	EODT Announces Appointment of Senior Vice President of Business Development
10 Jun 2009
14:30	West African 'Oil Rush' Is On, Reports Gold Star Resources Corp. CEO in AFROIL Online News Column
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