NBK Partners with Visa and Zain to Launch the First EMV-Chip Compliant NFC Mobile Payment Trial in the Middle East

20 Oct 2009 23:08 Africa/Lagos


NBK Partners with Visa and Zain to Launch the First EMV-Chip Compliant NFC Mobile Payment Trial in the Middle East

SANTA CLARA, Calif., Oct. 20 /PRNewswire/ -- National Bank of Kuwait (NBK), the largest bank in Kuwait and Visa Inc, the world's leading payment solution provider have partnered with Zain the leading telecommunications operator across the Middle East and Africa to launch the first Near Field Communication (NFC) mobile payment trial in the GCC, using NFC enabled Nokia 6212 devices.


The six month pilot will take place from October 2009 to April 2010 using NFC software technology provided by ViVOtech. Registration will be open from October 2009 for interested NBK customers to participate in the trial. To register for the trial, customers will visit NBK website and follow the registration instructions.


The trial will allow 500 selected NBK cardholders to download their Zain Visa credit card account details directly to their Nokia 6212 classic handset over the Zain network. Once the account has been personalized on the phone, customers can then begin to make purchases at any one of the 100 merchant partner outlets at Kuwait's largest mall, The Avenues by simply passing a Nokia mobile phone over the Visa payWave reader at the point of sale. The trial uses the same EMV technology which protects all NBK credit and debit cards.


There are three milestone innovations occurring within this trial. The concept of 'smart posters' will be introduced to consumers, allowing them to collect retail offers that can be immediately redeemed for purchases at partner outlets simply by tapping their mobile phone against the poster. Secondly, customers and trial participants will be able to download a free Visa prepaid card by tapping the phone on a smart poster. Thirdly, participants with a credit card and a pre paid card, will also have the option to choose to pay from either cards from their phone at the point of sale, allowing greater on the go flexibility and convenience.


Purchases will be charged directly to the customer's NBK Zain Visa credit card or Visa prepaid card account just as they would be with a traditional card payment. Payments initiated with a mobile phone benefit from the same security as all NBK Visa card transactions, making mobile payWave a fast, reliable and secure method of purchasing goods. ViVOtech, the market leader in contactless/NFC payment software, is providing the underlying technology, including the NFC wallet, over-the-air (OTA) card provisioning software, smart posters and the mobile coupon application.


Shaikha Khalid Al Bahar, NBK Deputy Chief Executive Officer said, "NBK is proud to launch the first EMV Chip compliant NFC Visa payWave mobile payment trial in the Middle East. We strive to offer the best and most comprehensive financial services to all our customers, as well as being at the forefront adopting cutting edge technology to enhance services and develop innovative products. Partnering with Visa and Zain has given us a strong platform from which to launch this innovative mobile payWave payment trial for our customers. We are pleased that our customers can benefit from the ease and convenience of paying for their everyday items with their everyday device and also enjoy dynamic retail offers through smart posters while still enjoying the same level of security that a NBK Visa card transaction provides".


Kamran Siddiqi General Manager for GCC, Levant, Iraq and Pakistan from Visa said, "As the shift from cash to electronic payment methods continues, Visa is extending its products and services through the mobile channel to deliver fast, efficient and safe mobile payments and related services. We are very excited to have partnered with NBK and Zain to introduce this first trial in the GCC market and are looking forward to deploying it to NBK customers in Kuwait. Recent Visa market research reveals that nearly 80% of Kuwaitis polled were very interested in the idea of having mobile payWave on their phones. We therefore believe that the NBK Visa mobile payWave will appeal to Kuwaiti consumers who are eager to adopt new innovations and technology which brings greater convenience and choice to their lives.


Khalid AlHajery, CEO of Zain Kuwait, said: "This exclusive agreement is in line with Zain's ongoing effort to offer the best and the latest technology to its growing customer base. Mobile phones are no longer merely devices for making and receiving calls, instead continuous investment in innovation has meant that mobile phones are increasingly becoming a platform for new technology such as proximity payments".


Through this pilot, NBK, Visa and Zain will gather user insight across a wide range of parameters that include customer acceptance of making contactless transactions through mobile NFC, customer card preference between credit and Visa prepaid while making a payment and tracking of response to NFC-enabled smart posters and coupon redemptions.


About National Bank of Kuwait (NBK):


NBK was founded in 1952 as the first indigenous bank and the first joint stock company in Kuwait and the Gulf Region. NBK reported profits of USD 925 million (KD 255 million) for 2008, among the highest in the Arab world. NBK's total assets were USD 43.4 billion (KD 12 billion) at the end of 2008, while shareholder equity stood at USD 5.2 billion (KD 1.4 billion).


NBK is by far the largest financial institution in Kuwait with effective market dominance in the commercial banking market and has been consistently awarded the highest credit rating of all banks in the region from Moody's, Standard & Poor's, and Fitch Ratings. NBK also stands out in terms of its local and international network, which includes branches, subsidiaries and representative offices in China, Geneva, London, Paris, New York, Singapore, and Vietnam alongside its regional presence in Lebanon, Jordan, Egypt, Bahrain, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and the UAE.


About Visa:


Visa operates the world's largest retail electronic payments network providing processing services and payment product platforms. This includes consumer credit, debit, prepaid and commercial payments, which are offered under the Visa, Visa Electron, Interlink and PLUS brands. Visa enjoys unsurpassed acceptance around the world and Visa/PLUS is one of the world's largest global ATM networks, offering cash access in local currency in more than 170 countries. For more information, visit www.corporate.visa.com.


About Zain


Zain is a leading telecommunications operator across the Middle East and Africa providing mobile voice and data services to 69.5 million active customers as at 30 June 2009. In terms of country footprint, Zain is the 3rd largest mobile operator in the world with a commercial presence in 24 countries.


Zain operates in the following countries: Bahrain, Burkina Faso, Chad, the Republic of the Congo, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Gabon, Ghana, Iraq, Jordan, Kenya, Kuwait, Malawi, Madagascar, Niger, Nigeria, Palestine (currently known as Paltel Group), Saudi Arabia, Sierra Leone, Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia. In Lebanon, the company manages 'mtc-touch' on behalf of the government. In Morocco, Zain owns 31% of Wana Telecom through a joint venture.


Zain offers innovative services in its markets such as 'One Network', the world's first borderless mobile telecommunications network enabling customers when abroad to receive calls and sms without charge and to make voice and data calls at local rates throughout 20 countries in Africa and the Middle East. This service allows a customer to top up airtime in one's home country or from more than 1,000,000 outlets within Zain's One Network footprint.


The Zain brand is wholly owned by Mobile Telecommunications Company KSC, which is listed on the Kuwait Stock Exchange (Stock ticker: ZAIN). Zain is listed in the Financial Times' Global 500 Index which ranks the world's largest companies based on market capitalization (http://www.ft.com/reports/ft5002008). Zain aims to become one of the top ten mobile operators in the world by end of the year 2011. For more, please visit www.zain.com or email info@zain.com


Source: ViVOtech

CONTACT: Kristin Miller of SSPR, +1-719-634-8292, kmiller@sspr.com, for
ViVOtech


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Lake Chad Facing Humanitarian Disaster

15 Oct 2009 18:13 Africa/Lagos

Lake Chad facing humanitarian disaster / Shrinking water resources are threatening people and livelihoods / FAO calls for urgent interventions


ROME, October 15, 2009/African Press Organization (APO)/ -- The humanitarian disaster looming at the shrinking Lake Chad in central Africa should be urgently addressed, FAO said today.


The lake, which is surrounded by Cameroon, Chad, Niger and Nigeria, was once one of the world's largest water bodies. Due to climatic variability, climate change and population pressure over recent decades, the lake has shrunk by 90 percent, from 25 000 square kilometers in 1963 to less than 1500 square kilometers in 2001.


If water continues to recede at the current rate, Lake Chad could disappear in about twenty years from now, according to NASA climate forecasts.


Together with the Lake Chad Basin Commission (LCBC), FAO will organize a special event ("Saving Lake Chad: A System under Threat") in Rome during World Food Day on October 16, 2009. The event is aimed at raising awareness about the disastrous situation of Lake Chad and mobilizing funds to replenish the lake and improve overall food security in the region.


The 30 million people living in the Lake Chad region are being forced into ever-keener competition for water. The drying-up of the lake and deterioration of the production capacity of its basin have affected all the socio-economic activities and overuse of water and land resources leading to migration and conflicts.


In addition to the approximately 60 percent decline in fish production, there has been degradation of pasturelands, leading to a shortage of animal feed estimated at 46.5 percent in certain places in 2006, reduction in livestock and biodiversity.


"The humanitarian disaster that could follow the ecological catastrophe needs urgent interventions," said Parviz Koohafkan, Director of Land and Water Division of FAO. "The tragic disappearance of Lake Chad has to be stopped and the livelihoods of millions of people living in this vast area should be safeguarded."


FAO closely collaborates with the Lake Chad Basin Commission (LCBC), founded in 1964. Lake Chad Basin countries are meeting regularly to regulate and control the utilization of water and other natural resources in the Basin. They are actively seeking new models of Adaptive Water Management that take account of traditional agricultural techniques as well as the need to ensure food security for the people of the region.





According to the Lake Chad Basin Commission, the diminished flow of water into the lake requires a radical change in water management techniques and a scheme to replenish Lake Chad.


The flow of the two main sources of replenishment for the lake, the Chari and Logone rivers have decreased significantly in the last 40 years. The feasibility study for an ambitious programme to divert water flow from the Oubangui, the major tributary of the Congo River, into the Chari river system will be presented at the meeting in Rome.


Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)


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South Africa and 64 other Countries in Competition for 2009 Foreign Language Film Oscar®

South Africa leads Africa to the 82nd Oscars with Jann Turner's romantic comedy White Wedding that made over R1.1-million at the world premiere in South Africa. The film stars Rapulana Seiphemo and Kenneth Nkosi of Academy Award winning Tsotsi and Jerusalema fame.
South Africa and Morocco are the only African countries on the list of 65 countries in competition for the Foreign Language Film category at the 82nd Academy Awards®.

The following is the complete news release.

MEDIA CONTACT
Leslie Unger
lunger@oscars.org

October 15, 2009
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE


65 Countries in Competition for 2009 Foreign Language Film Oscar®


Beverly Hills, CA — Sixty-five countries have submitted films for consideration in the Foreign Language Film category for the 82nd Academy Awards®, Academy President Tom Sherak announced today. The 2009 submissions are:

Albania, “Alive!,” Artan Minarolli, director;
Argentina, “El Secreto de Sus Ojos,” Juan Jose Campanella, director;
Armenia, “Autumn of the Magician,” Rouben Kevorkov and Vaheh Kevorkov, directors;
Australia, “Samson & Delilah,” Warwick Thornton, director;
Austria, “For a Moment Freedom,” Arash T. Riahi, director;
Bangladesh, “Beyond the Circle,” Golam Rabbany Biplob, director;
Belgium, “The Misfortunates,” Felix van Groeningen, director;
Bolivia, “Zona Sur,” Juan Carlos Valdivia, director;
Bosnia and Herzegovina, “Nightguards,” Namik Kabil, director;
Brazil, “Time of Fear,” Sergio Rezende, director;
Bulgaria, “The World Is Big and Salvation Lurks around the Corner,” Stephan Komandarev, director;
Canada, “I Killed My Mother,” Xavier Dolan, director;
Chile, “Dawson, Isla 10,” Miguel Littin, director;
China, “Forever Enthralled,” Chen Kaige, director;
Colombia, “The Wind Journeys,” Ciro Guerra, director;
Croatia, “Donkey,” Antonio Nuic, director;
Cuba, “Fallen Gods,” Ernesto Daranas, director;
Czech Republic, “Protektor,” Marek Najbrt, director;
Denmark, “Terribly Happy,” Henrik Ruben Genz, director;
Estonia, “December Heat,” Asko Kase, director;
Finland, “Letters to Father Jacob,” Klaus Haro, director;
France, “Un Prophete,” Jacques Audiard, director;
Georgia, “The Other Bank,” George Ovashvili, director;
Germany, “The White Ribbon,” Michael Haneke, director;
Greece, “Slaves in Their Bonds,” Tony Lykouressis, director;
Hong Kong, “Prince of Tears,” Yonfan, director;
Hungary, “Chameleon,” Krisztina Goda, director;
Iceland, “Reykjavik-Rotterdam,” Oskar Jonasson, director;
India, “Harishchandrachi Factory,” Paresh Mokashi, director;
Indonesia, “Jamila and the President,” Ratna Sarumpaet;
Iran, “About Elly,” Asghar Farhadi, director;
Israel, “Ajami,” Scandar Copti and Yaron Shani, director;
Italy, “Baaria,” Giuseppe Tornatore, director;
Japan, “Nobody to Watch over Me,” Ryoichi Kimizuka, director;
Kazakhstan, “Kelin,” Ermek Tursunov, director;
Korea, “Mother,” Joon-ho Bong, director;
Lithuania, “Vortex,” Gytis Luksas, director;
Luxembourg, “Refractaire,” Nicolas Steil, director;
Macedonia, “Wingless,” Ivo Trajkov, director;
Mexico, “Backyard,” Carlos Carrera, director;
Morocco, “Casanegra,” Nour-Eddine Lakhmari, director;
The Netherlands, “Winter in Wartime,” Martin Koolhoven, director;
Norway, “Max Manus,” Espen Sandberg and Joachim Roenning, directors;
Peru, “The Milk of Sorrow,” Claudia Llosa, director;
Philippines, “Grandpa Is Dead,” Soxie H. Topacio, director;
Poland, “Reverse,” Borys Lankosz, director;
Portugal, “Doomed Love,” Mario Barroso, director;
Puerto Rico, “Kabo and Platon,” Edmundo H. Rodriguez, director;
Romania, “Police, Adjective,” Corneliu Porumboiu, director;
Russia, “Ward No. 6,” Karen Shakhnazarov, director;
Serbia, “St. George Shoots the Dragon,” Srdjan Dragojevic, director;
Slovakia, “Broken Promise,” Jiri Chlumsky, director;
Slovenia, “Landscape No. 2,” Vinko Moderndorfer, director;
South Africa, “White Wedding,” Jann Turner, director;
Spain, “The Dancer and the Thief,” Fernando Trueba, director;
Sri Lanka, “The Road from Elephant Pass,” Chandran Rutnam;
Sweden, “Involuntary,” Ruben Ostlund, director;
Switzerland, “Home,” Ursula Meier, director;
Taiwan, “No Puedo Vivir sin Ti,” Leon Dai, director;
Thailand, “Best of Times,” Yongyoot Thongkongtoon, director;
Turkey, “I Saw the Sun,” Mahsun Kirmizigul, director;
United Kingdom, “Afghan Star,” Havana Marking, director;
Uruguay, “Bad Day for Fishing,” Alvaro Brechner, director;
Venezuela, “Libertador Morales, El Justiciero,” Efterpi Charalambidis, director;
Vietnam, “Don’t Burn It,” Dang Nhat Minh.

The 82nd Academy Awards nominations will be announced on Tuesday, February 2, 2010, at 5:30 a.m. PT in the Academy’s Samuel Goldwyn Theater.

Academy Awards for outstanding film achievements of 2009 will be presented on Sunday, March 7, 2010, at the Kodak Theatre at Hollywood & Highland Center®, and televised live by the ABC Television Network. The Oscar presentation also will be televised live in more than 200 countries worldwide.

# # #

ABOUT THE ACADEMY
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is the world’s preeminent movie-related organization, with a membership of more than 6,000 of the most accomplished men and women working in cinema. In addition to the annual Academy Awards – in which the members vote to select the nominees and winners – the Academy presents a diverse year-round slate of public programs, exhibitions and events; provides financial support to a wide range of other movie-related organizations and endeavors; acts as a neutral advocate in the advancement of motion picture technology; and, through its Margaret Herrick Library and Academy Film Archive, collects, preserves, restores and provides access to movies and items related to their history. Through these and other activities the Academy serves students, historians, the entertainment industry and people everywhere who love movies.

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(310) 247-3090 TEL | (310) 271-3395 FAX | PUBLICITY@OSCARS.ORG | WWW.OSCARS.ORG/PRESS




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Children International Stands Up & Takes Action with the United Nations to Help Fight Poverty

Children International Stands Up & Takes Action with the United Nations to Help Fight Poverty

WASHINGTON, D.C. (October 15, 2009) /PRNewswire/ — Children International joins the United Nations’ campaign to fight poverty one child at a time!

The U.S.-based humanitarian organization, which helps poor children around the world, invites you to observe the fourth annual “Stand Up & Take Action” event October 16-18 by supporting the United Nations’ Millennium Development Goals to end hunger and poverty.

Nearly 300,000 Children International contributors have stood up and taken action every month by pledging their constant financial and emotional support of one child living in desperate poverty. In 2008, 116 million people took part in United Nations’ Stand Up & Take Action events around the world.

In response to the global food crisis and skyrocketing food prices, Children International has established a new Emergency Lifeline Food Program in 2008 which provides badly-needed food to poor children and their families whose constant fight against poverty leaves them hungry and malnourished. The Emergency Lifeline Food Program provides vitamins, enriched food and nutrition education to children and their parents in local community centers in 11 countries around the world. In the first half of this year, Children International provided food and nutrients to more than 17,000 children through their nutritional rehabilitation program.

This year, millions of participants plan to commemorate the event by organizing tree-plantings, music vigils and blood drives.

Children International’s President and CEO Jim Cook said, “Children International works every day to support the United Nations’ goals to end global poverty by lifting poor children out of crushing poverty. By partnering with Stand Up & Take Action, we will make a difference in the lives of poor children around the world.”

To learn more about how to help relieve poverty one child at a time, visit Children International.

To learn more about other events taking place around the world, visit Stand Against Poverty.

About Children International:
Established in 1936, Children International is a nonprofit organization with its headquarters in Kansas City, Missouri. Children International’s programs benefit more than 325,000 sponsored children and their families in 11 countries around the world including Chile, Colombia, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Guatemala, Mexico, Zambia, Honduras, India, the Philippines and the United States. For more information about Children International, visit http://www.children.org.



Press Contact:
Dolores Quinn Kitchin
Public Relations
Children International
Direct: (816) 943-3730
Cell: (816) 718-0711
http://twitter.com/ChildrenInt




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Bill Gates to Call for United Action to Support World's Poorest Farmers

Bill Gates at the World Economic Forum in 2007

15 Oct 2009 05:00 Africa/Lagos


Bill Gates to Call for United Action to Support World's Poorest Farmers

Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to Announce $120 Million in New Agriculture Grants

DES MOINES, Iowa, Oct. 15 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Bill Gates, co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, on Thursday will urge governments, donors, researchers, farmer groups, environmentalists, and others to set aside old divisions and join forces to help millions of the world's poorest farming families boost their yields and incomes so they can lift themselves out of hunger and poverty. Gates will say the effort must be guided by the farmers themselves, adapted to local circumstances, and sustainable for the economy and the environment.


Speaking at the World Food Prize in Des Moines, Iowa, in his first major address on agricultural development, Gates will lay out the foundation's vision, which includes investments in better seeds, training, market access, and policies that support small farmers. Gates also will announce nine foundation grants totaling $120 million that illustrate the range of efforts necessary to empower millions of small farmers to grow enough to build better, healthier lives.


"Melinda and I believe that helping the poorest small-holder farmers grow more crops and get them to market is the world's single most powerful lever for reducing hunger and poverty," Gates will say, according to a draft of his speech.


After his speech, Gates will be joined on the stage by the 2009 World Food Prize laureate, Dr. Gebisa Ejeta, a renowned Ethiopian sorghum researcher who was honored for his work to develop hybrids resistant to drought and the Striga weed -- advances credited with increasing food security for hundreds of millions of Africans.


The foundation's new grants include funding for legumes that fix nitrogen in the soil, higher yielding varieties of sorghum and millet, and new varieties of sweet potatoes that resist pests and have a higher vitamin content. Other projects will help the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa support African governments in developing policies that serve small farmers; help get information to farmers by radio and cell phone; support school feeding programs; provide training and resources that African governments can draw on as they regulate biotechnologies; and help women farmers in India manage their land and water resources sustainably. To date, the foundation has committed $1.4 billion to agricultural development efforts.


Gates will say the world should draw inspiration from the agricultural transformation in Latin America and Asia during the 1960s to 1980s, known as the Green Revolution, which averted famine, saved hundreds of millions of lives, and fueled widespread economic development.


But Gates will warn that as scientists, governments, and others strive to repeat the successes of the original Green Revolution, they should be careful not to repeat its mistakes, such as the overuse of fertilizer and irrigation.


"The next Green Revolution has to be greener than the first," Gates will say. "It must be guided by small-holder farmers, adapted to local circumstances, and sustainable for the economy and the environment."


According to the World Bank, three-quarters of the 1 billion people who live in extreme poverty depend on agriculture for a living. More than 1 billion people suffer from chronic hunger in the developing world. In the world's poorest areas, small farmers frequently face harsh conditions, including depleted soils, pests, drought, diseases, and lack of water. Even if they manage to grow a surplus, they often lack a reliable market where they can sell it.


Despite these challenges, there are reasons for optimism in the fight against hunger. After two decades of neglect, the world's attention is once again focused on agricultural development. The G20 group of leading donor and developing nations recently made a three-year, $22 billion pledge to help solve global hunger by supporting small farmers in the developing world.


"It's a great thing that donor nations are focusing on this issue," Gates will say. "But we need them to spell out clearly what the $22 billion means -- how much is old money, how much is new, how soon can they spend it, and when will they do more?"


While Gates will say that major breakthroughs in the fight against hunger and poverty are now within reach, he will caution that progress toward alleviating global hunger is "endangered by an ideological wedge that threatens to split the movement in two." On one side, he will say, there are groups that support technological solutions to increase agricultural productivity without proper regard to environmental and sustainability concerns. On the other, there are those who react negatively to any emphasis on productivity.


"It's a false choice, and it's dangerous for the field," Gates will say. "It blocks important advances. It breeds hostility among people who need to work together. And it makes it hard to launch a comprehensive program to help poor farmers. The fact is, we need both productivity and sustainability -- and there is no reason we can't have both."


Gates will say the foundation is supporting research on crops that can withstand drought and flooding so poor farmers can adapt to climate change. It is also supporting a ground-breaking effort with the World Food Programme (WFP) to buy food from small farmers in the developing world for food aid. WFP has already purchased 17,000 metric tons of food from small farmers through the program, linking many to markets for the first time.


Gates will say the foundation isn't an advocate of any particular scientific method. "Of course, these technologies must be subject to rigorous scientific review to ensure they are safe and effective. It's the responsibility of governments, farmers, and citizens -- informed by excellent science -- to choose the best and safest way to help feed their countries," Gates will say.


Gates will also pay tribute to Dr. Norman Borlaug, winner of the Nobel Peace Prize in 1970 for his pioneering work in expanding agricultural production in the developing world, who died on September 12 of this year.


"His passing is cause for sadness, but his life should make us optimistic," Gates will say. "He not only showed humanity how to get more food from the earth -- he proved that farming has the power to lift up the lives of the poor. It's a lesson the world is thankfully relearning today."


Note to Editors: Video clips and other media materials will be available following the speech at:



ftp://gatesfoundationiiWorldFoodPrizeII@omaedcftp001.interpublic.com
Username: GatesFoundationII
Password: WorldFoodPrizeII

This announcement includes the following grants:

Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA)
The AGRA Policy Program: $15 million

To develop a strong policy support system in Africa that will raise incomes, and assure household and national food security. The program focuses on policies to speed adoption of approaches to improve farmer productivity, market and trade policies to stimulate expanded markets for staple crops, and land and property rights policies to stimulate equitable agricultural growth for the poor.


Press Contacts
Preeti Singh, +1.301.652.1558, ext. 5722, psingh@burnesscommunications.com
Stella Kihara, +254 735380199, skihara@agra-alliance.org

American Institutes for Research (AIR)
Farmer Voice Radio: $10 million

To create a network of radio broadcasters, farmer groups, universities, research institutes, non-governmental organizations, ministries of agriculture, and African media organizations to generate quality content and facilitate impact-driven and sustainable broadcasting to small-holder farmers to enhance their livelihoods. The project aims to reach 1.6 million small-holder farmers in Kenya, Malawi, Zambia, Mali, Ghana, and Tanzania in its first four years.


Press Contact
Larry McQuillan, +1.202.403.5119 or +1.202.641.7747, lmcquillan@air.org

Grameen Foundation
Building a Network of Community Knowledge Workers: $4.7 million

To develop a network of 4,000 community knowledge workers in Uganda who use mobile devices to increase the reach and relevance of agricultural information, leading to improved productivity and livelihoods for small-holder farmers. The project aims to reach up to 280,000 small-holder farmers, reduce the cost of adoption of new and improved practices by 25 percent to 50 percent, and ultimately provide a model that can be scaled to reach millions of small-holder farmers throughout Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia.


Press Contact


Liselle York, +1.202.628.3560, ext. 128 or +1.202.549.3400, lyorke@grameenfoundation.org


International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT)


Harnessing Opportunities for Productivity Enhancement (HOPE) of Sorghum and Millets: $18 million


To help small-holder farmers in moisture-deficient areas of Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia increase their yields of sorghum, pearl millet, and finger millet to improve food security and increase the income of farmers. The project aims to benefit 200,000 households by increasing yields of sorghum and millet by 35 to 40 percent over four years.


Press Contact
Rex L. Navarro, +91 40 3071.3223, rex.navarro@cgiar.org

International Potato Center (CIP)

Sweet Potato Action for Security and Health in Africa (SASHA): $21.25 million


To produce high-yielding, stress-tolerant varieties of sweet potato to help farming families in Sub-Saharan Africa improve their productivity, incomes, and nutrition. The project aims to benefit 150,000 families directly from the initial seed systems work, and up to 1 million families indirectly from the first set of improved varieties in five years.


Press Contact
Valerie Gwinner, 202.468.7486, v.gwinner@cgiar.org



New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD) and Michigan State University (MSU)


African Biosafety Network of Expertise (ABNE): $10.4 million


To create a center in Africa that provides training, education, and technical support to African regulators to develop regulatory systems for biotechnology, ensuring countries can make informed decisions on how to use these advances while protecting farmers, consumers, and the environment.


Press Contacts
Aggrey Ambali, +27 12 841 3688, aggrey@nepadst.org
Karim Maredia, +1.517.353.5262 or +1.517.775.6627, kmaredia@msu.edu
Stephanie Motschenbacher, +1.517.884.2135, motsche3@msu.edu

Partnership for Child Development (PCD)
Home-grown School Feeding: $12 million

To support the delivery of cost-effective school feeding programs that promote local agriculture and benefit small-holder farmers. The project aims to increase the income and improve the nutritional status of approximately 200,000 small farmers; improve the education, health, and nutrition of school-age children; and provide opportunities to those involved in the transportation, processing, and preparation of food along the school-feeding value chain.


Press Contact
Lucy Goodchild, +44 (0)20 7594 6702, lucy.goodchild@imperial.ac.uk

Professional Assistance for Development Action (PRADAN)

Developing Farm-based Livelihoods in Endemically Poor Regions of India: $9.7 million


To create sustainable farm-based livelihoods for rural families in endemically poor regions of India by training women farmers in land and water management and modern farming practices, establishing village extension services, and building effective market linkages. The project aims to mobilize 120,000 women into self-help groups to assist them in improving their farm productivity and food security, enhancing their household income.


Press Contact
Souparno Chatterjee, +91 11 2651 8619 or +91 4164 0611, ext. 21

Wageningen University, The Netherlands

Putting Nitrogen Fixation to Work for Small-holder Farmers in Africa (NforAfrica): $19 million


To increase legume productivity, family nutrition, soil health, cropping systems, and farm income for small farmers in Burkina Faso, Mali, Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya, Rwanda, and Malawi by expanding the use of selected legumes, proven tools of biological nitrogen fixation, and sound agronomic principles. The project aims to benefit 225,000 farmers.


Press Contact


Erik Toussaint, +31 (0) 317 48 08 67 or +31 (0) 6 51 56 59 49, erik.toussaint@wur.nl


Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation


Guided by the belief that every life has equal value, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation works to help all people lead healthy, productive lives. In developing countries, it focuses on improving people's health and giving them the chance to lift themselves out of hunger and extreme poverty. In the United States, it seeks to ensure that all people -- especially those with the fewest resources -- have access to the opportunities they need to succeed in school and life. Based in Seattle, Washington, the foundation is led by CEO Jeff Raikes and Co-chair William H. Gates Sr., under the direction of Bill and Melinda Gates and Warren Buffett. Learn more about the foundation at www.gatesfoundation.org.


Source: Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

CONTACT: Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, +1-206-709-3400,
media@gatesfoundation.org


Web Site: http://www.gatesfoundation.org/



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ECOWAS to hold extra-ordinary summit in Abuja on Saturday, 17th October 2009

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ECOWAS to hold extra-ordinary summit in Abuja on Saturday, 17th October 2009


ABUJA, October 14, 2009/African Press Organization (APO)/ -- An extra-ordinary summit of ECOWAS Heads of State and Government will take place on Saturday, 17th October 2009 in Abuja to discuss the political and security situations in Guinea and Niger.


The summit will specifically consider the recommendations of the International Contact Group on Guinea (ICG-G) which ended its day-long meeting in Abuja on Monday, 12th October 2009.

Among others, the Group called for the creation of a new transitional authority, through dialogue if possible, as well as the withdrawal of the National Council for Democracy and Development (CNDD) in other to ensure a short and peaceful transition marked by the conduct of credible, free and fair elections in which those holding key executive positions demonstrate total neutrality throughout the electoral process.


The Heads of State will also consider the report of the ECOWAS Mediation and Security Council which met in Abuja on 24th August 2009 as well as the report of the findings of a four-member ad-hoc ministerial committee led by Nigeria and composed of Benin, Burkina Faso and Sierra Leone, which visited Niger shortly after the Council's deliberations in Abuja.


The committee was mandated to work with all political stakeholders in Niger, including the National Council for Dialogue, towards the restoration of dialogue and consensus which characterized the political environment before the current constitutional crisis.


Source: Economic Community Of West African States (ECOWAS)


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Ana Tzarev Gallery Presents Grace of Africa

Girl from Akra, 1994 Oil on linen 24 x 19-5/8 inches (61 x 50 cm). (PRNewsFoto/The Ana Tzarev Gallery) NEW YORK, NY UNITED STATES 20091014T00:00:00-04:00 0-04:00

14 Oct 2009 17:22 Africa/Lagos

Ana Tzarev Gallery Presents Grace of Africa

Exhibition Dates: October 15 - December 19 Exhibition Opening Reception Thursday, October 15th 6:00 - 8:00PM

NEW YORK, Oct. 14 /PRNewswire/ -- The Ana Tzarev Gallery (http://www.anatzarev.com/) is featuring an exhibition of paintings based on the artist Ana Tzarev's extensive travels throughout Africa. Ana Tzarev has spent time in numerous regions across the continent. Her interest in African history and culture is reflected in a series of regal portraits, vibrant market scenes, energetic dance ceremonies and colorful scenes of daily life. In her travels Ana Tzarev also witnessed the challenges of war, disease and famine and these encounters are reflected in her powerful images of suffering women and children. This exhibition celebrates the grace, beauty and resilience of the African people in a remarkable body of work that expresses the artist's heartfelt connection and respect.


(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20091014/NY92380 )


As seen in Fish Seller, 1999, Ana Tzarev presents daily life in African villages with warmth and familiarity capturing the bounty of fruits, vegetables, fish and other fare offered at Africa's local markets in her colorful, graphic style. These works combine Tzarev's passion for the land with the gentleness of everyday life.


Ana Tzarev has journeyed to some of the most remote parts of Africa and studied local customs in depth. She has been invited to witness important ceremonies that are rarely seen by travellers, some of these are documented in her series of dance paintings. The exhibition also includes a group of paintings of African masks which Ana Tzarev interprets in a two-dimensional abstract style, capturing the individual spirit of each mask. Starvation, genocide and AIDS plague the continent of Africa, and many people struggle with the consequences of these trials. Ana Tzarev addresses the issues of starvation, genocide and AIDS by depicting determination and strength in the faces of those fighting for survival without denying the realities of the situation. The painting Devastation, 1996, is a powerful example of this series of works.


The Ana Tzarev Gallery:


The Ana Tzarev Gallery features the work of the artist Ana Tzarev as well as presenting special exhibitions of works by other artists consistent with Ana Tzarev's commitment to cultural awareness and social consciousness. For more information please visit http://www.anatzarev.com/.


Ana Tzarev Gallery 24 West 57th Street, NYC (212) 586-9800


Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20091014/NY92380
PRN Photo Desk, photodesk@prnewswire.com
Source: The Ana Tzarev Gallery

CONTACT: Diane Buckley, Director, Ana Tzarev Gallery, +1-212-646-2909,
db@anatzarev.com


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


NOTE TO EDITORS: Images available upon request.

@ONA09: Startups Publish2, ProPublica, Muckety, Daily Beast And MyBallard Win OJA Awards

Hi Michael Chima --
At the Online Journalism Awards banquet on Saturday, Publish2 had the honor of receiving the first Gannett Foundation Award for Technical Innovation in the Service of Digital Journalism.

Above all, this award belongs to the journalists and news organizations who have used the Publish2 platform to boldly expand the practice of journalism on the Web. You are the real innovators. We at Publish2 salute you, and we thank the Gannett Foundation for creating this award to highlight technical innovation, which is so essential for journalism to survive and thrive in the digital age.
Be sure to read more about other startups that were recognized for their achievements.

We're following up Saturday's big win with three updates to Publish2:

* Visit the expanded Publish2 Journalist Directory to search for your peers and colleagues by name, news organization, or their beat. Kickstart collaboration, find friends, and identify mentors.

* Highlight text on any Web page and open your Publish2 bookmarklet to see another improvement: That text automatically populates the brand new "Quote" field in the bookmarklet, so you can save an excerpt from the page you're linking to along with your comment about it. Saved quotes are available in all javascript widgets from Publish2.com.

* Upgrade your Publish2 WordPress plugin to the latest version to take advantage of the latest advances to Link Assist.

Take a look at how journalists have used Publish2 to bring the best of the Web to their readers and follow us on Twitter to find out about new features and announcements first.

Thanks for making Publish2 the Web's largest newsroom,

Ryan Sholin
Director of News Innovation
Publish2

The Online Journalism Awards have been fairly good at recognizing the work of some smaller or new sites over the years but the results announced at the crowded awards dinner at the San Francisco Hilton this weekend had a different aura. Yes, the New York Times won a couple, including general excellence for a large site, and so did BBC News (breaking news, large site); LATimes.com for its Hero Complex blog, (commentary/blogging, large site); Washington Post Digital (multimedia feature, large site); NPR.org’s Planet Money (topical reporting, large site) and Slate V (video, large site). But the rest were spread among a fascinating mix that showed good work is being done by startups and established sites with various levels of resources and goals. It wasn’t an accident: this year’s awards included new categories and new ways to recognize sites to expand the reach and the impact. The full list is here. Some examples below:
—Publish2, the collaborative tools startup founded by Scott Karp, won the inaugural Gannett (NYSE: GCI) Foundation Award for technical innovation in the service of digital journalism—and a $5,000 check to go with the acrylic trophy.
—Another new award for community collaboration went to Next Door Media for MyBallard, the first of its five hyperlocal sites. Next Door Media is run by journalists Kate and Cory Bergman. and recently announced a partnership with the Seattle Times. (Kate is working with Next Door Media full time while Cory, one of our friends from Lost Remote, is still at msnbc.com.)
—Hyperlocal Gotham Gazette won for general excellence, micro site, a new size for that category.
—Muckety,a site that looks at news through the prism of relationships and connections, was recognized for outstanding use of digital technologies, small site. NYTimes.com won the same category, large site, for its “super groundbreaking” interactive graphics.
—High-profile startups Pro Publica and The Daily Beast each won. The nonprofit investigative startup won for general excellence, medium site, recognized both for its own work and for helping other journalists. Just ending its first year, Tina Brown’s Daily Beast won for Christopher Buckley’s commentary and was a finalist for general excellence.
—Spanish site SOITU.ES won last year—its first in operation—for general excellence, non-English small site, and this year in the same category as a large site. The site blends original content and aggregated news/features with community engagement and tech tools. This year’s small site winner was Radio Azattyq, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty’s Kazakh Service, which stood up to the Kazakh government over censorship attempts.
—The Chauncey Bailey Project, a two-year-old task force investigating the murder of the Bay Area journalist, led to the indictment of two men and the resignation of the Oakland chief of police. It won the Knight Award for Public Service and investigative journalism, small site.

Lily Allen & her Panthers Win as Q is Named Cover of the Year

13 Oct 2009 08:41 Africa/Lagos


Lily Allen & her Panthers Win as Q is Named Cover of the Year

LONDON, October 13/PRNewswire/ --

- With Photo

Battling it out against the UK's publishing elite, Q has snatched the honour of overall winner in coveted awards The Maggies. Q has beaten some of the year's very best covers, including a naked Beth Ditto fronting Love and US president Barack Obama looking out from Time magazine, to clinch the top spot.

Category winners:


Overall Winner - Q (April 2009)
Business & General Interest Winner - Geographical (January 2009)
Celebrity & Entertainment Winner - Q (April 2009)
Fashion Winner - Love (February 2009)
Lifestyle Winner - Clash (April 2009)
Specialist & Hobbies Winner - BBC History (November 2008)
Sports & Men's Winner - Huck (June 2009)


"Lily Allen is hardly under-exposed, so it was essential for us to come up with something that was both striking and unique. Fortunately for us, Lily whole-heartedly bought into the concept and in doing so helped turn a good idea in theory into a great idea in practise."

"Patently no one would let us put a pop star within three feet of a man-eating big cat, so an 18-foot high cage separated Lily - and the Q team - from them, and the magic of digital photography put them together. That said, when Lily is in full flow, she could probably do more damage than a pair of panthers."

Over 30,000 people voted for their favourite covers during the four-week period, after a panel of industry and celebrity judges including twice-voted 'Magazine Editor of the Year' Peter Jackson, Media Week Editor Steve Barrett, model and actress Linda Lusardi and Heart Radio's Toby Anstis, narrowed down the entries into the short list.

Judging panel chairman, Jim Bilton, said, "A stunning image, strong cover lines with clear typography and an excellent "greatest" list prominently highlighted all adds up to a winning cover creatively and commercially, producing one of the highest copy sales of the year. Lily wasn't a core artist for the Q readership and had heavy media coverage at the time. The solution - add panthers and a creative photo shot - produced a truly memorable result which is our favourite cover this year!"

Visit the winner's gallery at http://www.themaggies.co.uk

The Maggies campaign raised over GBP6,000 for children's charity, Rays of Sunshine.

Note to Editors:

A picture accompanying this release is available through the PA Photowire. It can be downloaded from http://www.pa-mediapoint.press.net or viewed at http://www.mediapoint.press.net or http://www.prnewswire.co.uk.

Source: iSUBSCRiBE

Further information: Arabella Gibson T: +44(0)20-7199-0165 or M:+44(0)7597-561684 or E: arabella.gibson@isubscribe.co.uk

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President Obama's Nobel Peace Prize Viewed Positively in 62 Percent of Twitter Messages

What do people think about President Barack Obama's Nobel Peace Prize Win? Attensity analyzes sentiment expressed in 25,000 tweets. President's win viewed positively in 62 percent of Twitter messages. (PRNewsFoto/Attensity Group) PALO ALTO, CA UNITED STATES 20091009T00:00:00-04:00 0-04:00

10 Oct 2009 02:16 Africa/Lagos

President Obama's Nobel Peace Prize Viewed Positively in 62 Percent of Twitter Messages

Attensity Analyzes Sentiment Expressed in 25,000 Tweets

PALO ALTO, Calif., Oct. 9 /PRNewswire/ -- Attensity(TM) Group, the leader in business user applications that generate value from unstructured data, has released its analysis of public reaction to today's award of the Nobel Peace Prize to President Barack Obama. The surprise announcement created a huge flutter on the Twitter micro-blogging site, resulting in thousands of postings.


(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20091009/SF90593)


Using Attensity Cloud, the newest product addition to Attensity's semantic analysis application suite, 25,000 discussion-oriented messages, or "tweets," were pulled from Twitter. All 25,000 tweets were then analyzed by Attensity's Voice of the Customer (VoC) solution, using Attensity's social media domain. Results were created using Attensity's out-of-the-box Sentimetrics analysis. Findings include:


Sentiment in Twitter towards President Obama's win of the Nobel Peace Prize:


-- 8 percent extremely positive
-- 54 percent positive
-- 2 percent neutral
-- 34 percent negative

-- 2 percent extremely negative



In addition to overall sentiment, Attensity also analyzed tweets to determine whether people felt President Obama deserved the Nobel Prize, with these results:


-- 54 percent felt he did deserve the Prize
-- 30 percent questioned whether he deserved the Prize

-- 16 percent felt he did not deserve the Prize at all



Attensity's VOC solution assigned a Sentimetrics Score(TM) of 64 to the sentiment associated with President Obama winning the Nobel Prize. The Sentimentric Score is an Attensity proprietary calculation that enables organizations to track sentiment movement over time. It takes into account and weighs sentiment by degrees of sentiment, and is then normalized based on the number of sentiment-based facts found by Attensity's VOC solution.


To view the pie chart analysis, go to Attensity's web site: http://www.attensity.com/en/ObamaPeacePrize.html


"We expected there to be a great deal of buzz generated by the announcement of the Nobel Peace Prize laureate, but today's surprise designation of President Obama caused a tremendous flapping of wings in the 'Twittersphere,'" said Michelle de Haaff, chief marketing officer of Attensity Group. "It's rather interesting that there were so few Extreme Negatives, but perhaps that provides insight into the age and politics of Twitter's user base."


Attensity's Solutions


Attensity Cloud is designed to allow organizations to monitor, analyze and respond to social media together with internal customer conversations in email, surveys, and CRM systems. Powered by Radian6, the social media monitoring platform for marketing, communications and customer support professionals, Attensity Cloud (http://www.attensity.com/en/Applications-and-Services/Applications/Voice-of-t he-Customer/Market-Voice.html) enables real-time active monitoring of social media to identify trends, influencers and sentiment. Attensity Cloud enables people to determine which conversations are relevant and active, engage in dialogue with the community, and understand which sites and people are the most influential for their organization. The results can provide a foundation for crafting strategic decisions, and to measure and analyze the impact of various social media initiatives.


By combining Attensity Cloud with Attensity's flagship Voice of the Customer (VoC) application (http://www.attensity.com/en/Applications-and-Services/Applications/Voice-of-t he-Customer/Voice-of-the-Customer-Index.html), organizations can extend keyword analysis to actionable insights on issues found in social media. They can take advantage of Attensity's deep text analysis capabilities to analyze not only social media information, but also structured and unstructured information from internal sources, including email, Customer Relationship Management (CRM) databases and surveys for a 360-degree view of customer issues, opinions, ideas and requirements. Organizations can compare "Top Issues" in social media with "Top Issues" in direct communications, to address customers' greatest needs. Users can drill down into details around sentiment and root cause and identify the reasons why customers will or will not buy again.


Entry level pricing for Attensity Cloud starts between $500 and $1,200 USD per month.


Additional Resources

-- Read Attensity's whitepaper, "Monitor, Analyze, Respond and Repurpose:
Toward a more effective utilization of social media."
http://www.attensity.com/en/Collaterals/Attensity_SocialMedia_WP080609
.pdf
-- Watch a video via Attensity's blog demonstrating analysis of "tweets"
on a new KFC sandwich:
http://www.attensity.com/en/Company/Blog/2009/08/Michelle_August5_2009
.php

-- Register for a free webinar demonstration of Attensity Cloud on
Thursday, Oct. 22, at 11:00 a.m. PT:
https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/257697147


About Attensity Group

Attensity Group provides business user applications that generate value from unstructured data. Its comprehensive family of solutions leverages semantic analytics to enable knowledge management professionals, business leaders, customer support personnel and customers to interpret and manage an organization's unstructured data to get relevant and actionable answers -- fast. Attensity Group's award-winning software is in use by more than 250 of the Global 1000 and by large government agencies to deliver powerful insights, enhance operational efficiency, reduce risk exposure, and ensure increased customer satisfaction. The Service & Support Professionals Association (SSPA) has honored Attensity Group with its 2009 Recognized Innovator Award. Attensity Group, with more than 500 installations worldwide, services customers from multiple offices in the U.S. and Europe. The company's go-to-market entities are Attensity Americas and Empolis in the EMEA region. Attensity Group's corporate headquarters are in Palo Alto, Calif. More information is at http://www.attensity.com/. Follow Attensity on Twitter at http://twitter.com/attensity and read the corporate blog at http://www.attensity.com/en/Company/Blog/index.php.


©2009 Attensity Group. Attensity and Sentimetrics Score are trademarks of Attensity Group in the United States and/or other countries. Other brand and product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders. Information is subject to change without notice. All rights reserved.


Contacts:
Michelle de Haaff
Attensity Group
(650) 433-1700
mdehaaff@attensitygroup.com


Lisa Hawes
Sterling Communications
(408) 884-5155
attensity@sterlingpr.com


Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20091009/SF90593
PRN Photo Desk, photodesk@prnewswire.com
Source: Attensity Group

CONTACT: Michelle de Haaff of Attensity Group, +1-650-433-1700,
mdehaaff@attensitygroup.com; or Lisa Hawes of Sterling Communications,
+1-408-884-5155, attensity@sterlingpr.com, for Attensity Group


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

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