Dell’s Alienware South Africa Launch #rAgeExpo #alienwaresa
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South Africa has the largest population of rhinos in the world
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Could legalising horn trade save rhinos?
Record for S Africa rhino killing
SA detains rhino poaching suspect
Police in South Africa have confiscated assets worth nearly $7m (£4m) from three suspected rhino poachers.
The men, two of whom are vets, are already facing 1,872 charges of racketeering.
Large syndicates are often involved in the multi-billion dollar illegal rhino horn trade, exporting the horns to parts of Asia and the Middle East.
Despite the recent deployment of extra troops to South Africa's borders, 210 rhinos have been killed this year.
The Kruger National Park – one of the world's largest game parks – has been worst affected losing a total of 127 rhinos since January, government figures released on Tuesday showed.
‘Crime does not pay’
Police spokesman Col Vishnu Naidoo said the seized assets are believed “to have been acquired through criminal activities”.
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By seizing assets, criminals have no worldly possessions to enjoy”
End Quote Col Vishnu Naidoo Police spokesman
The security forces had decided to seize the assets to “preserve” them until the case – one of the biggest wildlife cases in South Africa – is finalised, he said in a statement.
If the three suspects are convicted the proceeds will be used “to continue with the combating of crime”, Col Naidoo said.
“We call for assets of every person arrested to be scrutinised and where possible, seized,” he said.
“Generally, those that commit such crimes will serve their sentences but still come back to a life of luxury. By seizing assets, criminals have no worldly possessions to enjoy and this certainly helps send out a clear message that crime does not pay.”
Since January, 99 people have been arrested for rhino-related matters country wide, the police spokesman said.
Last year, a record 450 rhinos were killed in South Africa.
The numbers have soared in recent years to meet the demand for their horns in Asian traditional medicine, especially in China and Vietnam, where they are thought to have powerful healing properties.
But scientists say rhino horns are made from the same material as fingernails and have no proven medicinal properties.
The black market price of rhino horn is now in the region of $55,000 per kilo.
South Africa has become the focal point of the rhino trade because it has between 70% and 80% of the global population – about 20,000 animals.
The country's government has commissioned a study into whether legalising the trade in rhino horn could help reduce poaching.
Gabon is one of West Africa's more stable countries. Since independence from France in 1960 Gabon has had just two presidents. Its late leader, President Omar Bongo, was in power for over four decades.
Despite being made up of more than 40 ethnic groups, Gabon has escaped the strife afflicting other West African states.
This is partly down to its relative prosperity due to oil and to the presence of French troops, which in 1964 reinstated President Leon Mba after he had been overthrown in a coup.
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At a glance
Politics: Gabon was ruled by just two presidents between 1960 and 2009. The current president succeeded his father
Economy: The country is trying to diversify away from oil, whose earnings have been decreasing. Most of the population remains poor
International: Tension persists over three small islands in oil-rich off-shore waters claimed by Gabon and Equatorial Guinea. France has a military base in Gabon
Country profiles compiled by BBC Monitoring
Gabon's dependence on oil has made its economy – and political stability – hostage to fluctuations in oil prices. When oil prices fell in the late 1980s, opposition to President Bongo increased, culminating in demonstrations in 1990.
These ushered in political liberalisation. A multi-party system was introduced in 1991.
Government critics have pointed to the wealth gap between the urban elite and the rural poor.
Thanks to its oil exports and a small population it enjoys more wealth per head of population than many of its neighbours. However, most of its people live in poverty.
As oil reserves diminish, eco-tourism could grow in economic importance. Gabon's rainforests teem with wildlife, including lowland gorillas and forest elephants. National parks make up around one tenth of the land area.
The Socialist Forces Front (FFS) party is taking part for the first time in 15 years
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Algeria profile
Middle East protests: Country by country
Algerians go to the polls on 10 May to vote in parliamentary elections which the authorities have billed as more free and transparent than ever before and which they say are part of a gradual, managed transition towards democracy.
Under pressure to reform after last year's “Arab Spring” revolts in neighbouring countries, President Abdelaziz Bouteflika approved the establishment of 23 new political parties and an increase in the number of seats in parliament.
The official slogan of the election, repeated in commercials running on state television, is: “Algeria is our spring.”
Who can vote?
Oil and gas-rich Algeria has some 21 million eligible voters out of a population of 37 million. Anyone over the age of 18 is eligible to vote.
What will they be voting for?
Voters will choose deputies to fill 642 seats in the new parliament. The previous National People's Assembly had 389 seats. The interior ministry says that 25,800 candidates will be competing, more than double the 12,200 candidates who competed in the previous polls, held in 2007. On average there are more than 62 candidates for each available seat.
What about women?
Some 7,647 women are in the race and are expected to win 119 seats in the next parliament, compared with the 28 women in the current parliament. New rules compel parties to give women 30% of places on their lists of candidates.
Many Algerians are said to be apathetic about the poll
What is the significance of the vote?
The vote is seen by some as a test of the reforms promised by the government to avert the spread of Arab Spring uprisings that brought down entrenched regimes in neighbouring Tunisia and Libya.
What is the turnout likely to be?
According to a poll carried out by El Watan newspaper on 6 April, turnout is unlikely to exceed 44%.
Some analysts predict that turnout could be around 35%, the record low in the last parliamentary election in 2007.
Some observers believe voters are despondent as they feel the same familiar faces are running for office, that parliament does not have the power to implement reforms, and that the authorities are not prepared to loosen their tight grip on power.
Who is calling for a boycott?
The secular Rally for Culture and Democracy (RCD), which has 19 seats in the outgoing parliament, has called for an election boycott, saying that “all participants in the 10 May vote have negotiated their quotas” in the future assembly.
The Islamist militant group al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM), which originated in Algeria, has also called for a boycott, describing recent reforms as no more than window-dressing by a degenerate political clique desperate to stay in power.
The Socialist Forces Front (FFS), based in Algeria's Berber provinces, has decided to take part in the polls after boycotting elections for more than a decade.
Which parties are likely to do well?
The two parties in the ruling coalition – the National Liberation Front (FLN) and the National Democratic Rally (RND) – and a new coalition of three Islamist parties, are expected to take the lion's share of the vote.
The Islamist grouping, the new Green Algeria Coalition – which consists of the Movement of Society for Peace (MSP), which recently quit the tripartite ruling alliance, the Islamic Renaissance Movement (Ennahda) and the National Reform Movement – is also expected to gain a reasonable number of votes.
President Abdelaziz Bouteflika won a landslide election victory in 2009
Who is supervising the vote?
The elections will be supervised by the National Commission for the Monitoring of the Legislative Elections (CNSEL). It includes judges and representatives of political parties and independent candidates. It is headed by Mohamed Seddiki a fierce critic of the government and a member of a minor political party, Ahdd54.
What about foreign observers?
After widespread allegations of fraud in previous elections, the government has pledged transparency for these elections, and is allowing the participation of 500 foreign observers including 120 from the European Union, 200 from the African Union (AU), 100 from the Arab League, 20 from the Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC) and 10 from the UN.
Several non-governmental organisations, including the Jimmy Carter Center, are expected to send observers.
What happened in previous elections?
Algeria gave up its one-party system in 1989, but in 1991 the government cancelled general elections after the Islamic Salvation Front, an Islamist party, won the first round of voting. Cancellation of that election led to a decade of violence which left some 200,000 people dead, according to official figures.
Voter turnout in the May 2007 parliamentary elections was 35%. The FLN won 136 of the 389 seats, the RND 61 and the MSP 52, thus keeping control of the assembly. The left-wing Workers' Party won 26 seats, while the RCD took 19. The rest of the seats were won by other minor political parties and independent candidates.
Party profiles
National Liberation Front (FLN)
Prime Minister Ouyahia leads the National Democratic Rally party
The FLN was the movement which fought French colonial rule. After independence in 1962, it ruled in a one-party system, coming to be known as “the state within the state”. It is part of the ruling presidential alliance together with the National Democratic Rally (RND). President Bouteflika is honorary chairman of the FLN and most government ministers are members.
National Democratic Rally (RND)
The RND is led by Prime Minister Ahmed Ouyahia and is part of the ruling presidential alliance. It is well represented among the administration and the business world. In its manifesto, the party urges voters “to work together for the preservation of a united Algeria''.
Green Algeria Coalition
The bloc was formed in early 2012 and says it is confident of winning a majority of seats in parliament, after which its priorities will include the drafting of a new constitution for ''a democratic and social sovereign Algerian state, respecting Islamic values”. The Algerian paper Liberte said that ''even if they pretend to present a system of governance based on equal opportunity and social justice to allow social and economic development, the leaders of the alliance want only to build an Islamic state and to apply Sharia [Islamic law].''
FFS founder Hocine Ait Ahmed has been in exile in Switzerland for decades
Socialist Forces Front (FFS)
The Socialist Forces Front (FFS), one of the biggest opposition parties, is taking part after boycotting all national elections for the past 15 years. It was founded in 1963 by Hocine Ait Ahmed to protest at the one-party system. Since multi-party politics were introduced in 1989, the opposition has systematically charged elections were rigged by the ruling party. The party said that by taking part in the poll it was “continuing the political, peaceful and people's fight for political, economic, social and cultural rights”.
Q&A compiled by BBC Monitoring, which selects and translates news from radio, television, press, news agencies and the internet from 150 countries in more than 70 languages. It is based in Caversham, UK, and has several bureaux abroad.
The kingdom of Swaziland is one of the world's last remaining absolute monarchies.
Its king rules by decree over his million subjects, most of whom live in the countryside and follow traditional ways of life.
The power of the throne, however, has not gone unchallenged.
King Mswati III, on the throne since 1986, is upholding the tradition of his father, King Sobhuza II, who reigned for almost 61 years and had scores of wives.
King Sobhuza scrapped the constitution in 1973 and banned political parties.
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At a glance
Politics: King Mswati III – on the throne since 1986 – rules by decree and says the country is not yet ready for multi-party politics
Economy: Thousands have lost their jobs as garment and sugar export industries have lost trading concessions
International: Swaziland has diplomatic ties with Taiwan rather than China
King Mswati has shown no enthusiasm for sharing power, but banned opposition parties and trade unions have been vocal in their demands for greater democracy and limits on the king's power.
With peaceful change in neighbouring South Africa and Mozambique, Swaziland has been described as an island of dictatorship in a sea of democracy. Royalists have argued that democracy creates division, and that a monarch is a strong unifying force.
A long-awaited constitution, signed by the king in 2005 and introduced in 2006, cemented his rule.
Swaziland is virtually homogenous, most of the population being of the same tribe. Economically, it relies on South Africa, which receives almost half of Swazi exports and supplies most of its imports.
Many Swazis live in chronic poverty and food shortages are widespread.
Aids is taking a heavy toll. With an adult HIV prevalence of 26 percent in 2007, Swaziland has the most severe level of infection in the world. The virus has killed many workers and farmers and has created thousands of orphans. Life expectancy has plummeted.
Dell’s Alienware South Africa Launch #rAgeExpo #alienwaresa
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Age: 31
University of Manchester graduate in chemistry, 2005
Moved to Lagos, Nigeria, and started Iroko Partners in 2010
The firm has become the largest online distributor of Nigerian films and music
Iroko Partners has 81 employees in Lagos, London and New York
The company recently raised $8m, led by US-based hedge fund Tiger Global
The low-budget films, often involving love-triangles and/ or witchcraft, are hugely popular across the continent.
According to data from Iroko Partners, approximately 50 movies are produced each week and they cost $25,000-$70,000 to make.
So how does Mr Njoku find the right films in such a huge industry?
“When I first started, there was a lot of literally… just wandering into the market, trying to find these production houses,” the entrepreneur told the BBC's Alice Lander.
“I say production houses but they are literally just one guy, a mobile phone and just a lot of enthusiasm and his own personal capital to go out, develop and create these amazing movies.”
Mr Njoku pointed out that things have changed and at the moment whenever a movie is released, the producers take it to his company.
“We can't buy every single movie out there but we can try and see the best ones if we believe our viewers will enjoy them,” he said.
‘Spectacular failure’
Mr Njoku said his first venture after graduating from the University of Manchester in 2005 was launching a student magazine which “ended in spectacular failure”.
“People loved the magazine. We just never were able to figure out how to make money from it.
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“I think it taught me many things. One was that my youthful enthusiasm just wasn't enough to actually run a successful business but also it taught me obviously about hard work and focusing on the right things.”
Then in early 2010 he started thinking about making a living out of Nollywood but did not have any money of his own to start the business.
At the time he “struggled to get a bank account”, and thus could not get a loan from a financial institution.
“I'm from a solidly working class family in south-east London. I was the first person in my family ever to go to university,” he said.
“My best friend from university, he just had this blind belief that I was on [to] something interesting. I'd always work hard. I always worked the most longest hours, with the most intensity, and always got paid the least [compared] to every single person I knew.”
According to him, his friend started injecting small amounts of money into the business.
“After about nine months, it still hadn't worked and by that time we had spent around £30,000, so in the end he said: 'Look, for this thing to work we need to be in Lagos. You need basically to move there', so in the end it ended up costing around £100,000 of his money to be able to do that.”
No red carpets
But now the risk that his friend ran has paid off and other people who believe in his vision have backed his efforts to bring Nigerian entertainment online.
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I’m an internet geek. I sit by my computer, that’s all I do”
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“I wake up every single day super-excited about just being in control of my own time, and about having a real impact and change the world, in my little own way,” he said.
And what advice does he have for aspiring entrepreneurs?
“You just have to do it. I'm of the really simple opinion that you can listen to all the advice in the world but you have to be able to [make] own your mistakes… the biggest barrier is ourselves.”
To many people in Nigeria and elsewhere his own goals probably seem as though they come from a Nollywood film.
In his blog he says he has set himself the target of having $100m in asset wealth by the time he is 40. He is now 31.
And in his private life he has also probably out-dreamed many film fans: His girlfriend is a well-known Nollywood actress.
But he pointed out that they are not very interested in glamour.
“We are both very simple people. You won't see us on red carpets and stuff like that. I'm an internet geek. I sit by my computer, that's all I do, and she supports me as I sit by computer.”
African Dream is broadcast on the BBC Network Africa programme every Monday morning.
Every week, one successful business man or woman will explain how they started off and what others could learn from them.
Field Marshal Tantawi attended the funeral in Cairo of the soldier killed in Friday's unrest
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Egypt's Revolution
Pop songs praise Egypt candidates
Egyptian views on presidency
Egypt vote: The 13 candidates
Brotherhood candidate steals show
About 300 people are still being detained after deadly clashes between protesters and security forces in the Egyptian capital, Cairo, military sources said.
Violence outside the defence ministry on Friday left one soldier dead and hundreds wounded.
A curfew will be in force in the area around the ministry on Saturday night for the second night in a row.
The violence comes less than three weeks before presidential polls.
Military prosecutors say that the 300 people detained, including a number of journalists, will be held for 15 days while they're investigated for their part in the clashes.
But the authorities have moved to defuse the situation a little by saying they are releasing all the women who were arrested; activists say less than 20 women had been detained.
The head of the ruling military council, Field Marshal Mohamed Tantawi, on Saturday attended the public funeral in Cairo of the soldier killed in the unrest.
Friday's arrests came after protesters tried to break through an army roadblock to reach the ministry, in Cairo's Abbassiya district, resulting in clashes with the army which lasted several hours.
The area is now reported to be calm after a curfew was imposed on Friday night. Saturday's curfew comes into force at 23:00 local time (21:00 GMT) and ending at 06:00 local time (04:00 GMT) on Sunday.
The protesters had been angry at the generals' failure to protect a demonstration on Wednesday which came under attack from armed men, resulting in the deaths of at least 20 people.
The BBC's Jon Leyne in Cairo say the mass arrests are a stark contrast to Wednesday's attack – for which it appears no-one has been arrested or charged.
Nevertheless, he says, many Egyptians will applaud the tough way these clashes have been handled – they are longing, above all, simply for a return to law and order, and to normality.
One lawyer, Ragia Omran, told the Associated Press news agency that the roundup was one of the largest mass arrests to take place under the ruling military council, which took over after Hosni Mubarak was toppled as president last year.
Since then, Egypt has seen regular protests against the council, who many say has failed to bring about democratic reform.
Hazem Abu Ismail's expulsion from the election has caused major unrest
“Nobody really believes the presidential election will take place on time and if it does, that it will be transparent.”
And Mr Nafaa said there was deep suspicion about the possible role of the ruling generals in stirring up trouble on the streets.
“It is a deep and overwhelming crisis,” he added. “We have to hope that if the election takes place properly and we have an elected president, there will be the beginning of the solution of the crisis.”
Politically, the big beneficiary could well be Amr Moussa, the former foreign minister and head of the Arab League. His links with the old regime are no longer seen as such a disadvantage. Egyptians talk about the need for “experience” or a “firm hand”.
By contrast the more moderate Islamist candidate, Abdul Moneim Aboul Fotouh, has been a big potential loser.
A few days ago he was celebrating the endorsement of the Salafist Nour party after the disqualification of Hazem Abu Ismail.
Now, that endorsement is seen as a big disadvantage, after the involvement of Nour party members in the demonstration outside the defence ministry.
To compound it, Mr Aboul Fotouh himself visited the demonstration on Wednesday after the first attack.
As for the Salafists, they are even more badly damaged, just months after their surprisingly strong showing in the parliamentary elections.
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Egypt's Revolution
Pop songs praise Egypt candidates
Egyptian views on presidency
Egypt vote: The 13 candidates
Brotherhood candidate steals show
Long known for its pyramids and ancient civilisation, Egypt is the largest Arab country and has played a central role in Middle Eastern politics in modern times.
In the 1950s President Gamal Abdul Nasser pioneered Arab nationalism and the non-aligned movement, while his successor Anwar Sadat made peace with Israel and turned back to the West. The protests that ousted President Hosni Mubarak in 2011 put Egypt at the crossroads once again.
Egypt's ancient past and the fact that it was one of the first Middle Eastern countries to open up to the West following Napoleon's invasion have given it a claim to be the intellectual and cultural leader in the region. The head of Cairo's Al-Azhar Mosque is one of the highest authorities in Sunni Islam.
A popular uprising in January-February 2011 forced President Mubarak from power
But the historic step by President Anwar Sadat to make peace with Israel in the 1979 Camp David agreement led to Egypt being expelled from the Arab League until 1989, and in 1981 Mr Sadat was assassinated by Islamic extremists angry at his moves to clamp down on their activities.
President Hosni Mubarak then took a more moderate line, but Islamic groups continued their campaigns sporadically. They have been responsible for deadly attacks that have often targeted tourists and resort areas, and more recently have begun to target Egypt's Coptic Christian community.
While providing stability and a measure of economic progress, Mr Mubarak's rule was inwardly repressive. An emergency law in force since 1967 – apart from an 18-month interruption in 1981 – muzzled political dissent, and the security forces became renowned for their brutality. Corruption was widespread.
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At a glance
Politics: President Hosni Mubarak stepped down in February 2011 amid an uprising, handing power to the military. A transition to civilian rule is in progress
Economy: The Egyptian economy is the second largest in the Arab world after Saudi Arabia
International: Egypt has been a key ally of the West; it has played a key role in efforts to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict
Country profiles compiled by BBC Monitoring
Encouraged by the protests that overthrew the long-term leader of Tunisia, mounting popular anger burst to the surface in huge anti-government demonstrations in January 2011, which eventually led President Mubarak to step aside. He was arrested and put on trial in August 2011 over deaths during the demonstrations.
An interim military administration took charge, promising to effect a quick transition to democracy. Under continuing pressure from pro-democracy protesters, a new interim government was formed. In March 2011, a series of constitutional changes paving the way for early elections were approved.
But a key demand of the revolutionaries – the lifting of Egypt's emergency law – has not been fulfilled. There are also fears that the first post-Mubarak elections could lead to the political dominance of various shades of political Islam, with possible repercussions for religious minorities, such as Coptic Christians, women's rights and the tourism industry.
Egypt's teeming cities – and almost all agricultural activity – are concentrated along the banks of the Nile, and on the river's delta. Deserts occupy most of the country.
The economy depends heavily on agriculture, tourism and cash remittances from Egyptians working abroad, mainly in Saudi Arabia and the Gulf countries.
However, rapid population growth and the limited amount of arable land is straining the country's resources and economy.