The Corporate Council on Africa (CCA), established in 1993, is at the forefront of strengthening and facilitating the commercial relationship between the United States and the African continent. CCA works closely with governments, multilateral groups and business to improve the African continent's trade and investment climate, and to raise the profile of Africa in the US business community.
CCA members believe that Africa's future success depends upon the ability of its entrepreneurs and business people to create and retain wealth through private enterprise. American corporations and private individuals can contribute most effectively by building partnership and reaching out to the African private sector in the areas that America knows best: private enterprise, investment capital, technology transfer and management.
CCA programs are designed to bring together potential business partners and raise Africa's investment profile in the US by developing critical contacts and business relationships and providing a forum for the exchange of information and ideas.
Dante Lee Blog: By Dante Lee Small business owners are invited to join The Corporate Council on Africa's (CCA) and more than 1500 of the private and public sector's top leaders to find out about business and investment opportunities in Africa. ... Dante Lee Blog http://www.dantelee.com/
Applied Technologies and African Healthcare: New and Expanding Markets
Sponsored by Jean-Raymond Boulle Corporations
Overview This workshop focuses on the role of applied information and communication technologies in African healthcare delivery. Panelists’ presentations will illustrate the potential for applied technology to improve healthcare delivery and expand health services while creating new and expanded markets for IT and communication technology. Programs including patient monitoring with hand held devices and patient smart-cards will be examined and discussed. Emphasis on appropriate technology and expanding markets to create an interface between virtual and physical infrastructure for expanding HIV/AIDS treatment as well as the delivery of general healthcare programs will be highlighted.
Speakers
Charles Scatchard, Vice President, Healthcare, Oracle Europe, Middle East and Africa
Judi Nwokedi, Director of Corporate & Government Affairs, Motorola Southern Africa
Fatimata Seye Sylla, Program Director Digital Freedom Initiative Senegal
Jeff Butler, CEO and Dr. Ernest Darkoh Chairman, BroadReach Healthcare
Mohamed Ramdane, Public Sector Manager, HP Africa
ModeratorDr. Gary Selnow, Director, WiRED
Summary/Key Findings Appropriate and scalable applied information and communications technology can improve healthcare delivery in developing countries by creating virtual infrastructure to bridge physical infrastructure gaps. The private and public sectors have successfully deployed technology to disseminate HIV/AIDS prevention messages; control supply and distribution of ARVs; and manage patient care and adherence. In addition to contributing to the improvement of social health, this approach also creates potential for company market development. However, there are still many challenges that technology alone cannot address, including human resource constraints, inconsistent supplies of ARV and the ever-present stigma surrounding the disease.
Next steps
The introduction of technology must be complemented with the building and harnessing of HR capacity.
Investors must take into account country and/or community needs before presenting a solution. The simple “dumping” of technology on populations is proven to be detrimental and unproductive.
Removing healthcare services from high cost facilities and bringing them to the patient, allowing the body to become the point of care, is necessary to reach those without direct financial or physical access to clinics or hospitals.
afrol News, 31 July - The Canada-based company Diamond Fields Ltd, which has its main operations in Namibia, today announced it had agreed to take over "extensive collection of diamond and nickel exploration properties" in Sierra Leone, Madagascar and Greenland from the company Gondwana SA. Further interests in Angolan and Congolese claims would also be acquired.
Diamond Fields is becoming one of the main operators of diamonds mines in Africa as the Canadian company is taking over further properties and interests around the continent. Its main source of revenue however will remain the extensive diamond production in and offshore Namibia.
The company today announced it had entered into an agreement with its controlling shareholder, Jean-Raymond Boulle, and his company Gondwana SA, whereby Diamond Fields was to acquire all of Gondwana's interest in diamond exploration projects located in Madagascar and Sierra Leone, as well as a nickel exploration project located in Greenland.
In addition to these projects, Diamond Fields and Gondwana had agreed that all interests and goodwill of the latter in Angola and Congo Kinshasa (DRC) would be transferred to Diamond Fields, regarding any minerals, gemstones or other resources extracted from those countries.
With respect to the Madagascar acquisition, Gondwana's interest consists of an approximate 70 percent interest in a private company controlling exploration licenses.
The Madagascar interests also included a fully functional diamond laboratory, as well as rights to two significant diamonds represented to have been found near the property which were acquired by the Vendors. The diamond industry in Madagascar is still considered to be juvenile but promising.
With respect to the Sierra Leone acquisition, Gondwana was transferring a 100 percent interest in approximately seven exploration licenses in that country, as well as full ownership rights to a fully operational diamond laboratory. The Sierra Leonean diamond industry is of old age, but only starting to recover after over ten years of civil war.
Regarding Angola and the Congo, Gondwana however currently didn't have any ongoing explorations there, and the transaction of "interests and goodwill" in these two countries was therefore only aimed at possible future operations.
President and CEO of Diamond Fields, Gregg J Sedun, commented: "We are extremely pleased with the assets being acquired and the terms of this transaction, as both the company and Mr Boulle desired to structure a transaction that would provide Diamond Fields with a tremendous opportunity to expand its exploration business while at the same time minimize both the dilution to other shareholders and cash requirements of the company."
Mr Sedun further held that this transaction demonstrated Mr Boulle's "long term commitment to the company, as he will ultimately only receive compensation in the event that the properties included in the agreement go into production."
The Canadian company is one of the leading diamond producers in Namibia, where it contributes significantly to the national economy. Offshore Namibia, innovative technologies have made it possible to collect diamonds from the ocean floor, as the land-based mines are about to become exhausted.
Also in Namibia, Diamond Fields remains expansive. The company today informed that it had been advised that "progress continues" with Namibian regulatory bodies to "receive the necessary approvals to complete the registration process and enable the MV Anya to return to mining operations in the Lüderitz concession," in the south of Namibia.
Botswana Mining News - Mining Industry Today Aug 29, 2009 ... open opportunities ... the growing contribution of women in the mining sector. ... Johnson & Johnson; JR Boulle Corporations; Merck . ...
This Boulle Vortal is dedicated to the Members of the Boulle Diaspora who are contributing to or have contributed to human rights, to the environment, to the preservation of wild life, to charitable causes, to mediation and to war and conflict resolution throughout the world.