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Thursday 25th of March 2021
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Afternoon
Africa
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Register and its all Free.
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Mar 20 Powell has the “shorts” where he wants them. Wave 3 COVID on the way All he has to do is say no more 10 year Bonds for sale and we get a mega short squeeze. Counterintuitively this is a better Bet. @FT
World Of Finance
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08-MAR-2021 :: The lights must never go out, The music must always play
World Of Finance
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Giacometti "Walking Man''
Misc.
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08-MAR-2021 :: The World is pirouetting on the pinhead of the Yield of the US 10 YR
World Of Finance
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8 1⁄2 ~ Federico Fellini (1963) @Futura_Noir
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Meanwhile, tankers in the Strait of Hormuz.. @PriapusIQ
Law & Politics
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08-FEB-2021 :: The Markets Are Wilding [What happens when the Wilding stops?]
World Of Finance
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$BTC @AreteTrading
World Of Finance
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She told him she dreamed about escaping. That was all she dreamed about. Paris, Texas (1984) dir. Wim Wenders @doctorow
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The Way We Live Now
World Of Finance
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A dead kokerboom (quiver tree) is lit up by sunlight while in the background a storm approaches, bringing much-needed rain after a long drought in the Richtersveld. Springblokvlakte, South Africa ©Hesté de Beer @africageo
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Four giraffe dwarfed by an impressive baobab tree. Tarangire National Park, Tanzania © Fabian Fridholm @africageo
Africa
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Jonathan Lethem on Robert Heinlein and Other Influences @NewYorker
Misc.
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The story’s protagonist, Mull, has found himself living in a once spectacular tesseract house—an architect’s grandiose solution to L.A.’s housing crisis—which has collapsed yet is still habitable.
The structure keeps shifting and Mull struggles to find his way around. A corridor he used one day may have vanished the next.
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People dance as coloured powder is thrown during Lathmar Holi celebrations, amidst the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in the town of Barsana India, March 23, 2021. REUTERS/Adnan Abidi @GuyReuters
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People dance as coloured powder is thrown during Lathmar Holi celebrations, amidst the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in the town of Barsana, northern state of Uttar Pradesh, India, March 23, 2021. REUTERS/Adnan Abidi
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“Tomorrow belongs to those who can hear it coming.” ― David Bowie @patrickrooney
Misc.
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Whale sightings aid quest to protect wildlife in Indian Ocean oasis @Greenpeace @Reuters
Africa
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MASCARENE PLATEAU, Indian Ocean (Reuters) - Over two weeks at sea, the scientists spotted pilot whales and spinner dolphins, orcas and more. But not a single sperm whale had crested the choppy waters of the western Indian Ocean.
Then, an underwater microphone picked up a series of unmistakable clicks and squeaks. A large pod of the endangered whales was nearby. And from the sound of it, they were feeding.
The scientists are on a monthlong quest to document whales and other marine mammals living around the Mascarene Plateau, hoping to bolster arguments for protecting the remote 2,000-km underwater ridge to both fight climate change and protect ocean wildlife.
“We’re actually generating some of the first baseline data for this area on marine megafauna, and that feels quite exciting,” said Exeter University biologist Kirsten Thompson, one of the scientists on the Greenpeace research expedition.
For sperm whales, the largest of the toothed whale species, “the only data from this area comes from the whaling days,” she said.
The group of researchers hopes also to draw attention to the U.N. campaign aimed at persuading countries to protect at least 30% of the planet’s land and ocean by 2030.
The plateau is a conservation target partly for the world’s largest seagrass meadow carpeting its Saya de Malha Bank, which absorbs climate-warming carbon dioxide and provides a vast wildlife habitat.
Whales, meanwhile, are also key to combating global warming. They release tonnes of iron a year in their faeces, which feeds CO2-absorbing phytoplankton.
The Mascarene research is timely. A March 17 paper in the journal Nature maps out marine areas teeming with life as conservation targets, and suggests that guarding these zones from fishing, shipping, deep sea mining and other human interference would protect more than 80% of endangered marine species’ habitats.
It would also increase global fish catches by more than 8 million tonnes, according to the study.
Most of the target areas are within territorial waters of over 100 countries around the world. But a few like the Mascarene are in international waters.
Protecting the Mascarene, which is larger than the Great Barrier Reef off the coast of Australia, would help safeguard fisheries more than 2,000 km (1,242 miles) away in East Africa, another group of researchers argued in a 2019 study in the journal Marine Policy.
“These protected areas do become a bit like savings accounts. It’s not just about protecting turtles and sequestering carbon,” said Douglas McCauley, a former fisherman who is now a marine biologist at the University of California Santa Barbara.
Rising from the ocean depths, the Saya de Malha shelf provides a unique shallow habitat in the middle of the high seas, hosting an estimated 3,900 marine species from the square-nosed sperm whales to molluscs, analysis by McCauley and colleagues for a 2020 study in Marine Policy shows.
“Very little is known about the animals that live and feed here,” said marine biologist Tim Lewis, who is running the acoustic surveys on the Greenpeace voyage.
Finding the sperm whales is equivalent to finding much more, he said. “If there are sperm whales around, it means that they’re feeding on squid, and squid are feeding on plankton.”
Creating a global network of marine sanctuaries is not likely to be easy. For coastal waters, governments need to commit and prioritise areas with abundant marine life -- those very same areas favoured by fishing interests.
Further out in the no-man’s land of the open ocean, creating a successful conservation area requires countries to give some authority to a central body for its management, said Kristina Gjerde, an advisor for the International Union for Conservation of Nature.
“The big challenge is some of the fishing states - will they end up trying to water down the treaty so much that it won’t have the same scope or ambition?” said Gjerde, who did not name specific countries which may attempt to stymie those efforts.
The United Nations has been working to broker deals on protecting both international and territorial waters. But the coronavirus pandemic has frustrated both sets of negotiations, and has twice delayed the U.N. Biodiversity conference, now set for October in Kunming, China.
The United Nations has held interim discussions on the high seas treaty to help delegations better understand others’ negotiating positions as they wait for formal talks to resume in August.
Nevertheless advocates worry about the loss of momentum.
“There’s more time for certain industry interests to also mobilise” against the effort, said Liz Karan, director of the Pew Charitable Trusts’s high seas conservation project.
But experts warn that ringfencing specific ocean areas for protection may not be enough.
Underwater species are also being challenged by climate change warming the water and making it more acidic, with some fish species already shifting to new ranges to cope.
“I have a concern that we identify areas today that we think are important, and just draw a line around them, and then say: ‘okay, now everything’s fine’,” said Peter Tyack, a marine biologist at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland. Chances are, some species will move out of that range.
Back on the Greenpeace ship Arctic Sunrise, the crew is still scanning the vast ocean horizon through binoculars for evidence of life, while also sampling water for future DNA testing to determine which species frequent the plateau.
Three days after the team eavesdropped on the sperm whales hunting squid, the ocean became glassy flat.
Watchers on the bridge spotted a burst of spray - a sperm whale was ploughing through the sunlit waters. It raised its distinctive V-notched tail toward the sky before disappearing back into the depths.
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The Mascarene Plateau @Allatsea4
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Professor Felipe FernAndez-Armesto 'The precocity of the Indian Ocean as a zone of long-range navigation and cultural exchange is one of the glaring facts of history', made possible by the 'reversible escalator' of the monsoon.'
Africa
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@alykhansatchu Dec 29 Ali the Navigator [took us to Wasini Island Kenya]
Africa
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We met Dolphins on the Way to Wasini Island #Kenya #Africa Video
Africa
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Take me to the river @London_W4
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A drone pilot has captured incredible footage of a volcano erupting in Iceland. @5_News
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Bjorn Steinbekk risked losing his FPV drone as he flew the camera directly over the lava as it continued to shoot and spill from the Fagradalsfjall volcano near Iceland's capital, Reykjavik.
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A decade of "semiotic arousal" when everything, it seemed, was a sign, a harbinger of some future radical disjuncture or cataclysmic upheaval.
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Political Reflections
Law & Politics
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Sidney Powell “no reasonable person would conclude that the statements” Powell made about election fraud “were truly statements of fact.”
Law & Politics
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The underlying aim, Surkov says, is not to win the war, but to use the conflict to create a constant state of destabilised perception, in order to manage and control
Law & Politics
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09-NOV-2020 :: Counterintuitively, The Trump Vladislav Surkov Talking Points which of course always feature George Soros are strangely ineffective and a little like a receding tide.
Law & Politics
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“My take on Trump is that he is an inevitable creation of this unreal normal world,” Adam Curtis says.
“Politics has become a pantomime or vaudeville in that it creates waves of anger rather than argument. Maybe people like Trump are successful simply because they fuel that anger, in the echo chambers of the internet.”
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Regrettably, that #ThirdWave of #Covid19 is evident in the cumulative daily cases. @countryriskmgmt
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Data from #Covid19 worldwide as of March 24: + 571,200 cases in 24 hours @CovidTracker_fr
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Data from #Covid19 worldwide as of March 24: + 571,200 cases in 24 hours, i.e. 124,775,821 in total + 9,395 deaths in 24 hours, i.e. 2,744,329 in total
''viruses exhibit non-linear and exponential characteristics'
And sure the numbers slid for around 6 consecutive weeks but they have bottomed out of late.
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Globally, COVID-19 confirmed cases continued to rise for a fourth consecutive week, with just under 3.3 million new cases reported in the last week @WHO
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Concurrently, the number of new deaths reported plateaued after a six week decrease, with just over 60 000 new deaths reported.
The highest numbers of new cases were reported from
Brazil (508 010 new cases; 3% increase)
United States of America (374 369 new cases; 19% decrease)
India (240 082 new cases; 62% increase)
France (204 840 new cases; 27% increase),
Italy (154 493 new cases).
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They fancied themselves free, wrote Camus, ―and no one will ever be free so long as there are pestilences.
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India added 53,476 COVID-19 infections overnight, the highest daily rise since Oct. 23, the health ministry data showed on Thursday. @Reuters.
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India reports 47,239 new coronavirus cases, the biggest one-day increase since November @BNODesk
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India's health ministry says new coronavirus variant found in Maharashtra, where cases are surging. It says the variant could result in "immune escape and increased infectivity" @BNODesk
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We've added two reports to the European Covid-19 Forecast Hub displaying current and recent forecasts, with some initial evaluation of their predictive performance. @sbfnk
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Brazil posts record single-day toll of 3,251 virus deaths @AP
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08-MAR-2021 :: My concern is that Brazil which was the epicenter of the Virus in May 2020 is once again a Precursor and a Harbinger
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And sure the numbers slid for around 6 consecutive weeks but they have bottomed out of late.
“I see a huge storm forming in Brazil.” Denise Garrett, vice president of the Sabin Vaccine Institute in Washington
The bottom line: P.1 is 2.5 times more transmissible than the wild-type B lineage. And way more transmissible than B.1.1.7. @bollemdb @obscovid19br
"The greatest shortcoming of the human race is our inability to understand the exponential function." - Professor Allen Bartlett
Exponential growth unlike any other that we have seen. Brazil is a global threat @bollemdb
Model-based evaluation of transmissibility and reinfection for the P.1 variant of the SARS-CoV-2
The variant of concern (VOC) P.1 emerged in the Amazonas state (Brazil) and was sequenced for the first time on 6-Jan- 2021 by the Japanese National Institute of Infectious Diseases.
It contains a constellation of mutations, ten of them in the spike protein.The P.1 variant shares mutations such as E484K, K417T, and N501Y and a deletion in the orf1b protein (del11288-11296 (3675-3677 SGF)) with other VOCs previously detected in the United Kingdom and South Africa (B.1.1.7 and the B.1.351, respectively).
Prevalence of P.1 increased sharply from 0% in November 2020 to 73% in January 2021 and in less than 2 months replaced previous lineages (4).
The estimated relative transmissibility of P.1 is 2.5 (95% CI: 2.3-2.8) times higher than the infection rate of the wild variant, while the reinfection probability due to the new variant is 6.4% (95% CI: 5.7 - 7.1%).
If you have a "normal" pandemic that is fading, but "variants" that [are] surging, the combined total can look like a flat, manageable situation. @spignal
COVID19 Historic Peaks Deaths a day @brodjustice
? s=20
I expect th P.1 Lineage to be dominant worldwide in 8-12 weeks notwithstanding the Focus on SARS-CoV-2 lineage B.1.1.7
My Thesis is based on the ultra hyperconnectedness of the c21st World.
Therefore, I would be tempering my COVID19 optimism and holding my horses which introduces interesting dynamics into the markets.
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Rows of graves stand freshly dug at the Campo da Esperanca cemetery, in Brasilia, Brazil, Tuesday, March 23, 2021. @AP
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WOW—25 new cases of #P1 variant suddenly appeared in British Columbia Canada @DrEricDing
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It is clear that what happened at the beginning of the pandemic is not normal.Two main scientific journals dismissed it, The Lancet as conspiracy and Nature pushing its natural origin @Rossana38510044
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Now that we see that many reputable experts also thought that a lab leak for SARS2 was plausible it is clear that what happened at the beginning of the pandemic is not normal.Two main scientific journals dismissed it, The Lancet as conspiracy and Nature pushing its natural origin
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Xi has taken calculated risks. The muscular and multi-faceted nature of Chinese Power is seen in its handling of COVID19
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Controlling the COVID19 Narrative, suppressing the Enquiry, parlaying the situation into one of singular advantage marks a singular moment and Xi Jinping has exhibited Chinese dominance over multiple theatres from the Home Front, the International Media Domain, the ‘’Scientific’’ domain over which he has achieved complete ownership and where any dissenting view is characterized as a ‘’conspiracy theory’’
It remains a remarkable achievement.
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Nature: "Our analyses clearly show that SARS-CoV-2 is not a laboratory construct or a purposefully manipulated virus." The proximal origin of SARS-CoV-2
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There is no natural Pathway for the Evolution of COVID19.
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’Zoonotic’’ origin was one that was accelerated in the Laboratory.
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There is also a non negligible possibility that #COVID19 was deliberately released
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The Lancet: "We stand together to strongly condemn conspiracy theories suggesting that COVID-19 does not have a natural origin."
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It is remarkable that the Propaganda is still being propagated more than a year later.
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.@Naval said Scientists who support silencing opposing voices are actually priests.
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"Let’s say, for instance that a Florida panther rampaged through the South Bronx, injuring many people. It would be immediately reasonable to wonder: How could that possibly happen?." @R_H_Ebright
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"Let’s say, for instance that a Florida panther rampaged through the South Bronx, injuring many people. It would be immediately reasonable to wonder: How could that possibly happen? Florida panthers don’t live anywhere near the Bronx and aren’t normally so ferocious."
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01-MAR-2020 :: The Origin of the #CoronaVirus #COVID19
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“If they can get you asking the wrong questions, they don't have to worry about answers.”― Thomas Pynchon, Gravity's Rainbow
“There's always more to it. This is what history consists of. It is the sum total of the things they aren't telling us.”
“A paranoid is someone who knows a little of what's going on.”
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Dire statistic: In 2020, only one service sector industry in Russia experienced growth. Funeral services, by 3.8%. @samuelmcurtis
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There is something Karmic in this #COVID19
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International Markets
World Of Finance
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Currency Markets At A Glance
World Currencies
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Euro 1.1815
Dollar Index 92.611
Japan Yen 108.99
Swiss Franc 0.9362
Pound 1.3675
Aussie 0.7593
India Rupee 72.6625
South Korea Won 1134.09
Brazil Real 5.6214
Egypt Pound 15.764
South Africa Rand 14.9579
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$DXY Chart Today's Chart of the Day was shared by @NautilusCap @TheChartReport 92.611
World Currencies
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04-JAN-2021 :: Whilst the Trend is Your Friend I would be buying 1 Year Call Options because the risk with the Dollar remains asymmetric and to the Upside
World Of Finance
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Euro versus the Dollar Chart 1.1812
World Currencies
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Commodity Markets AT A Glance
Commodities
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Gold @ToPdAd_InCrypto 1733.50
Commodities
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Crude Oil Chart INO 60.26 [VOW]
Commodities
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"Marathon Magufuli's state funerals are super-spreader events of Biblical proportions..." @Chahali
Africa
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COVID19 exploits weaknesses like a deadly Karmic assassin
Africa
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314,057 Active COVID-19 Cases in Africa @BeautifyData
Africa
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-39.604% below record high reached in January 2021
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Active #Covid19 cases record 520,000 was in January 2021 @NKCAfrica
Africa
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The African Region reported nearly 51 000 new cases and over 1400 new deaths, a 3% decrease and a 10% increase respectively compared to the previous week. @WHO
Africa
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This is the first time in eight weeks, that an increase in new deaths has been reported.
The highest numbers of new cases were reported from
Ethiopia (11 587 new cases; 10.1 new cases per 100 000 population; a 28% increase)
South Africa (8387 new cases; 14.1 new cases per 100 000; a 2% increase),
Kenya (7358 new cases; 13.7 new cases per 100 000; a 66% increase)
The highest numbers of new deaths were reported in the same countries, from
South Africa (821 new deaths; 1.4 new deaths per 100 000 population; a 34% increase)
Ethiopia (107 new deaths; 0.1 new deaths per 100 000; a 11% decrease)
Kenya (79 new deaths; 0.1 new deaths per 100 000; a 132% increase).
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The effective reproduction number (R) of SARS-CoV-2 in South Africa is hovering just above 1 [1.00 - 1.04] as estimated from reported cases. @lrossouw
Africa
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We all know by now ''viruses exhibit non-linear and exponential characteristics'
Africa
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Africa is currently reporting a million new infections about every 69 days @ReutersGraphics
Africa
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Ethiopia, Kenya, Togo Ivory Coast at peak Seychelles 86%
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Drinking The Kool Aid
Africa
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COVID-19 infections in Ethiopia are at their peak — the highest daily average reported — now at 1,823 new infections reported each day @ReutersGraphics
Africa
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Ethiopia 24% National positivity rate @yakob_son
Africa
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The Sudanese Military’s Interests in Civilian Rule Tawazun Joseph Siegle
Africa
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Military governments have led Sudan for all but ten years since independence in 1956.
Widespread popular protests in 2019 brought an abrupt end to former president Omar al-Bashir’s thirty years of repressive rule and raised hopes for a new trajectory, but a fragile, civilian-military transitional government formed in August 2019 does not constitute a clean break with the past.
The military leads the Sovereign Council while a civilian prime minister runs the day-to-day operations of government, with a mandate to transition to a fully civilian-led, democratic government by January 2024.
As an interim step, a civilian is to lead the Sovereign Council in February 2022.
Questions remain over how committed military leaders are to the transition.
The military has become accustomed to playing a dominant role in the government and economy. The security services are estimated to control over 250 companies in a range of sectors, including gold mining, livestock, arms, telecommunications, banking, and construction.
In Egypt, Mali, Myanmar, and Thailand, the military has shown a reflexive impulse to maintain control, but there are six reasons why a transition to full civilian rule is in the interest of the Sudanese military.
The economy has contracted sharply since 2015, with national debt projected to balloon six-fold, to $1.2 trillion, by 2025.
With an inflation rate of 167 percent in December 2020, Sudan faces a pressure cooker of socioeconomic tensions.
By holding onto power, military leaders would own this economic time bomb, making it wise to hand this basket of troubles over to civilians.
A final incentive for a transition to civilian rule is that military governments tend to be fragile.
Bashir’s alliances with Islamists and booming oil revenues allowed him an extended hold on power, but military regimes typically experience shorter tenures than other authoritarian governments or democracies.
The prospect of a coup is never far away, making democratic civilian rule a form of life insurance for military leaders.
Stepping away from power is never easy. However, militaries have done so in Argentina, Benin, Brazil, Chile, Ghana, Indonesia, Nigeria, and Peru, among others.
By proactively managing the transition to civilian rule, Sudan’s military leaders have an opportunity to emerge as a rebranded, professional, and respected force.
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10-JUN-2019 :: The ‘’zeitgeist’’ of the Revolution in Khartoum was intoxicating.
Africa
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As I watched events unfold it felt like Sudan was a portal into a whole new normal.
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We don't want war' with Sudan: Ethiopian PM Abiy @AFPphoto
Africa
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Right now if there was a war Khartoum would be in Addis in a very short time
Africa
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Or alternatively @TheEconomist whether @PMEthiopia can sustain an occupation given that one suspects there are equally restive regions
Africa
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and why I called it ''an unwinnable War''
Conclusions
Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold
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.@PMEthiopia has launched an unwinnable War on Tigray Province.
Africa
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Ethiopia Violence: Eritrean army destroys refugee camps @SkyNews @sparkomat
Africa
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Report: “Eritrean troops despatched to Oromia”
Africa
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In particular, Eritrea’s 22nd division has been dispatched to Oromia.
Haregot Furzun is the commander of the 22nd division and two of his brigades are in Oromia region now.”
Conclusions
Increasingly looks like a Reverse Takeover of Ethiopia by Eritrea
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The problem is Abiy does not have the levers with which to compel the withdrawal of outside forces?
Africa
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Political scientists talk about African ‘Big Men’ inconsistently @LSEnews
Africa
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Over the last two decades, the use of the ‘Big Man’ concept to explain the complexity of African politics has grown steadily.
The imprecise language around Big Men is also found in social science.
A manifestation of personal rule in a patrimonial regime, the Big Man has become a conceptual workhorse for social scientists trying to explain the diversity and complexity of African politics to students, policymakers and interest groups – a sort of a sub-continental signifier for a readily accessible and explainable Africa.
As a result, the invocation of Big Men both in popular representations and social scientific research has increased significantly in recent years though in less than precise ways.
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A Big Man is an apex figure in a patrimonial governance regime. We argue that there are five key features of Big Man:
1) his role is (informally) rule-bound and accountable;
2) he maintains authority through reciprocity not violence;
3) he is predictable not arbitrary;
4) he uses public resources for club goods rather than for public goods or private gains and
5) he connects small men to power and, therefore, is decidedly not elite based.
When we broke down the way Big Men are described according to the article’s topic/theme, we found political scientists are especially likely to talk about Big Men as thieves or dictators if violence or land are the author’s subject.
The two descriptors most commonly associated with Big Men are ‘redistributive’ and ‘neopatrimonial’ (Figure 2).
At first glance the popularity of these two descriptors is encouraging, given that true Big Men are apex figures in neopatrimonial regimes that revolve around redistribution and reciprocity to a network of loyal constituents.
Less encouraging, however, was the discovery that one-third of the entire dataset describes Big Men as dictators or thieves.
These findings suggest a jockeying for position between the Big Man Governance and Big Man Dictator models, where the latter is unaccountable, despotic and often violent.
Our research also bore out another notable finding: political scientists particularly understate the accountability of Big Men.
The share of political scientists describing Big Men in terms of accountability (27%) is significantly lower than in the broader dataset (36%).
Towards the end of our article we present some illustrative examples from fieldwork conducted in Ghana’s local governments, which shows how Big Men are actually embattled figures who constantly struggle to keep their ‘small men’ happy.
Importantly, this finding was only true if the author is a political scientist.
Our research throws into relief the inconsistent treatment of Big Men in African Studies.
The results lead us to call for putting the Big Man back in his place, as a dominant figure who is empowered by, and thus indebted to, those beneath him.
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Turning to Africa the Spinning Top
Africa
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Democracy from Tanzania to Zimbabwe to Cameroon has been shredded.
We are getting closer and closer to the Virilian Tipping Point
“The revolutionary contingent attains its ideal form not in the place of production, but in the street''
Political leadership in most cases completely gerontocratic will use violence to cling onto Power but any Early Warning System would be warning a Tsunami is coming
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One of Africa's longest ruling leaders, Congo Republic's Denis Sassou Nguesso, has won the country's election with 88% of the vote according to official results. @ReutersAfrica
Africa
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Hugh Masekela said "I want to be there when the people start to turn it around."
Africa
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World’s First Wildlife Bond to Track Rhino Populations in Africa @business @AntonySguazzin
Africa
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A bond designed to raise funds to grow the population of endangered black rhinoceros in South Africa will be sold by the World Bank this year.
The five-year, 670 million rand ($45 million) security will be the world’s first wildlife conservation bond and the aim is to sell it in the middle of the year.
Returns for investors will be determined by the rate of growth of the populations of the animals in two South African reserves, according to the Rhino Impact Investment Project, an initiative started by the Zoological Society of London.
If successful, the program could be expanded to protect black rhino populations in Kenya as well as other wildlife species such as lions, tigers, gorillas and orangutans, Rhino Impact said in a document detailing the proposal.
It provides an opportunity for people interested in conservation to get a return on their support and possibly re-invest money in new projects rather than the more traditional route where projects are funded by philanthropists or governments.
“The innovative wildlife conservation bond financing mechanism plans to use a World Bank, International Bank for Reconstruction and Development IBRD AAA-rated bond,” it said. Credit Suisse Group AG is advising on the project.
The World Bank will also sell a $100 million conservation bond at the same time, without specifying what it will be used for.
Under the terms of the rhino bond, investors will forgo an annual coupon and will instead receive their original capital and an additional payout depending on how much the rhino population has grown over five years.
The principal of the bond and the possible payout at maturity will be paid by the Global Environment Facility, which has received donations from more than 40 countries and was formed ahead of the Rio Earth Summit in 1992.
Of the 29,000 rhinos made up of five species globally, about 80% are in South Africa and almost all them are white rhino.
Black rhino numbers have dropped to about 5,500 from 65,000 in 1970.
The animals are found in four African countries, including South Africa, and can weigh as much as 1.4 tons -- much smaller than the white rhino.
Rhinos are under threat from poaching, mostly because of demand in Vietnam and China for the powder from their horns that’s believed to cure cancer and improve virility.
“When working on innovative structures like this one, we start small and hope to learn from the first one and then get successfully larger in an ambition to ultimately scale what works,” Marisa Drew, chief sustainability officer at Credit Suisse, said.
First Sovereign Nature Bonds Get Lift from World Bank-Backed Hub
The two sites selected in South Africa are the Addo Elephant National Park and the Great Fish River Nature Reserve.
Addo is a 1,640 square kilometer (633 square-mile) reserve in the Eastern Cape province while Great Fish is a 450 square-kilometer park in the same province. Both are state run.
“It couldn’t have come at a better time, we have to look after the rhino, its critically endangered,” Nick de Goede, park manager at Addo, said in an interview.
“The whole idea is to look at the rhino as a pilot and then it can be rolled out for any species.”
The aim is increase the population by 4% per annum, he said, declining to say how many rhinos are in Addo because that information could be used by poachers.
Three sites in Kenya -- Lewa Borana Conservancy, Ol Pejeta Conservancy and the Tsavo West National Park -- may be chosen next for a bond sale, Rhino Impact said.
While the rhino security is a first, so-called sustainable bonds have been used to finance a variety of outcomes from marine and fisheries projects in the Seychelles to girls education in rural India.
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Black rhino numbers have dropped to about 5,500 Photographer: Tony Karumba/AFP/Getty Images
Africa
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Rhino Country Meru National Park @kwskenya @ElsasKopje
Africa
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South Africa All Share Bloomberg
Africa
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Dollar versus Rand Chart INO 14.9355
Africa
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Egypt Pound versus The Dollar Chart INO 15.7684
Africa
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In 1995-2000, the UN expected the fertility rate in Nigeria to have fallen from 5.15 children per woman to 3.12 by now. It has in fact *risen* to an estimated 5.3 since then @RencapMan
Africa
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In 1995-2000, the UN expected the fertility rate in Nigeria to have fallen from 5.15 children per woman to 3.12 by now.
It has in fact *risen* to an estimated 5.3 since then, leaving the country short of savings while 5m join the labour force annually and struggle to find jobs
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NOV 14 : African youth demographic {many characterise this as a 'demographic dividend"} - which for Beautiful Blaise turned into a demographic terminator
Africa
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Ghana Stock Exchange Composite Index Bloomberg
Africa
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Health CAS Dr Mwangangi: Nairobi's positivity rate is at 57.7%. This is high. #CoronaVirusUpdates @KBCChannel1
Africa
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Clearly its not the Test Positivity Rate but the % of all Infections over a one week period
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The daily number of actively infected #COVID19KE cases now at the highest since the start of the pandemic with the 3rd wave exceeding the 2nd & 1st @DrAhmedKalebi
Africa
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The daily number of actively infected #COVID19KE cases Flag of Kenya now at the highest since the start of the pandemic with the 3rd wave exceeding the 2nd & 1st, while the daily figures of new cases & positivity rate continue at escalated levels
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Malcolm Gladwell ‟Tipping Point‟ moment in an epidemic when a virus reaches critical mass. It‟s the boiling point. It‟s the moment on the graph when the line starts to shoot straight upwards.
Africa
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"The greatest shortcoming of the human race is our inability to understand the exponential function." - Professor Allen Bartlett
Africa
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Kenya At peak and rising 15 infections per 100K people reported last 7 days The average number of new infections reported in Kenya has been increasing for 10 days straight @ReutersGraphics
Africa
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She told him she dreamed about escaping. That was all she dreamed about. Paris, Texas (1984) dir. Wim Wenders @doctorow
Africa
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.@StanChartKE reports FY 2020 EPS -34.66% Earnings here
N.S.E Equities - Finance & Investment
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Par Value: 5/-
Closing Price: 134.75
Total Shares Issued: 343510571.00
Market Capitalization: 46,288,049,442
EPS: 13.95
PE: 9.659
Standard Chartered reports FY 2020 Earnings here
FY Total Assets 325.605070b versus 302.139056b
FY Kenya Government Securities 94.852653b versus 97.671849b
FY Loans and Advances to Customers [Net] 121.524227b versus 128.690341b
FY Customer Deposits 256.497530b versus 228.433515b
FY Total Interest Income 23.735413b versus 25.272452b
FY Total Interest Expenses 4.617260b versus 5.799959b
FY Net Interest Income 19.117153b versus 19.472493b
FY Total Non-Interest Income 8.289781b versus 9.227420b
FY Total Operating Income 27.406934b versus 28.699913b
FY Loan Loss Provision 3.882158b versus 0.572592b
FY Staff Costs 7.677256b versus 7.136019b
FY Total Other Operating Expenses 20.010876b versus 16.526056b
FY Profit before Tax and Exceptional Items 7.396058b versus 12.173857b
Profit after Tax 5.440417b versus 8.236773b
FY Total Comprehensive Income 5.860550b versus 7.816660b
FY EPS 13.95 versus 21.35 -34.66%
FY Dividend 10.50 versus 12.50
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"We delivered a resilient performance in 2020 in extremely challenging conditions brought about by the pandemic" - CFO @ChemutaiM @StanChartKE
N.S.E Equities - Finance & Investment
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"We also registered a strong capital position which will allow us to support sustainable growth opportunities" - CFO @ChemutaiM @StanChartKE
N.S.E Equities - Finance & Investment
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Conclusions
Its a resilient Franchise plugged into a global network.
Dividend Yield is 7.79%
Its attractive at these levels over a 24 month horizon
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CIC Insurance reports FY 2020 EPS Loss 11cents a share
N.S.E Equities - Finance & Investment
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Par Value:
Closing Price: 2.27
Total Shares Issued: 2615538528.00
Market Capitalization: 5,937,272,459
EPS: -0.11
PE:
CIC is the leading provider of micro insurance and other financial services
CIC reports FY Earnings through 31st December 2020 versus 12 months through 31st December 2019
FY Gross written premiums 16.988281b versus 17.695928b
FY Gross Earned premiums 17.244119b versus 17.296700b
FY Net earned premiums 13.938978b versus 14.396887b
FY Fees and Commission 1.459392b versus 1.281654b
FY Investment Income 1.461661b versus 1.486740b
FY Total Income 16.870916b versus 17.639515b
FY Claims and policyholders benefit expense [9.954608b] versus [10.040469b]
FY Commissions Expense [2.159265b] versus [2.241097b]
FY Operating and Other Expenses [4.829275b] versus [4.952635b]
FY Total benefits and other expenses [16.943148b] versus [17.234201b]
FY [loss] Profit before tax [79.544m] versus 385.589m
FY [loss] Profit for the year [296.832m] versus 321.591m
FY EPS [0.11] versus 0.12
No Dividend
Cash and Cash Equivalents 2.069302b
Conclusions
challenging 2020
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CIC Insurance Group Plc- Audited Results for the Year Ended 31st December 2020. @tradingroomke
N.S.E Equities - Finance & Investment
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Passenger numbers at JKIA declined by 72% last year: KAA— Business Daily @moneyacademyKE
N.S.E Equities - Commercial & Services
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10-MAY-2020 :: For example Tourism – I believe it is stopped out through Q4 2021 [even with a Vaccine]
Tourism, Travel & Transport
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Kenya Shilling versus The Dollar Live ForexPros 109.75
Kenyan Economy
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Nairobi ^NSE20 Bloomberg
N.S.E General
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Every Listed Share Can be Interrogated Here
N.S.E General
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