Category Archives: General

The Obesity Problem and Africa

In the United States of America around 60 percent of the population are considered to be overweight, and a large number of them are obese. This trend has also spread to several other Western countries including the United Kingdom and Germany. Nutrition experts believe this is down to two main factors; the amount of processed foods eaten and also a lack of exercise. Daily movement in these countries has decreased considerably over the last decade as many jobs that previously required some manual work can now be achieved sitting at a computer. Housewive are more likely to earn money from the computer from home rather than going out to work, and children also spend many hours a day on the PC chatting to friends and playing games. It is no wonder obesoty is on the increase.

In Africa, fortunately our obesity problem is not nearly as huge, if you will pardon the pun. However, it definitely is on the increase, which is undoubtedly due to the increase of fast food outlets and other food products easily available based on American foods.

The bottom line is, if you are an African eating many burgers, pizza and soft drinks, just like our American friends, you can soon expect to become overweight and unhealthy. If this applies to you, check out this article. It explains a number of healthy habits to reduce weight and also get you moving more for many health benefits.

Africans Doing Business Online

Although some of our African nations are still somewhat behind as far as internet access is concerned, many African companies are now realizing the power of the Internet to sell their products to a global audience.
European and North Americans have for centuries been fascinated by our colorful home decorations and clothing, as well as unusual ornaments; and for as long as foreign visitors have been visiting our shores, tradesmen have made a living from selling typical African wares. To get an idea about European home décor and perhaps find ways of making your items more attractive to foreign buyers, click here. Alternatively, take a look at this site to discover how our foreign friends decorate what they consider to be small rooms – you will find this article interesting, because a small room in the US is the size of many African homes that are designed to house a complete family.

Setting up a website is not difficult of you have access to a computer and internet access. There are many free platforms that allow to you to start a free website – with many examples to be found at weebly.com or blogger.com.

Settting up your website is actually the easy part – you then need to optimize it to make sure it ranks highly in the search engines. You can find an interesting article on how to do this on this website.

I recently had the pleasure of talking to a local tradesman in Kenya who had set up a website advertising his beautiful handcrafted souvenirs. He explained that his website had generated plenty of interest, and he receives many email enquiries a week from interested purchasers. The main problem he has is that he does not have a merchant account to accept payments, and some prospective buyers are not very enthusiastic about sending money through Western Union. However, it is expected that very soon Africans will be able to accept payments through Paypal, and withdraw the money into their bank accounts – a service that is already available in many parts of the world.

 

 

New Website Comes On Board

We are pleased to announce that www.jlwebservices.com and The Property Buzz has now joined the Africa News group as our web services providers. Although they are based around business and financial news, they will provide hosting support along with internet marketing services. We would like to take this opportunity to welcome them on board and look forward to sa fruitful business relationship.

Africa: Underdogs Eye Angola 2010 Crown

All over Africa talks are on about who will eventually be crowned the African football kings. Defending champions Egypt, Ghana, Ivory Coast and the hosts Angola are tipped as favourites. Aside from the usual suspects vying for the title in Angola, there will be a select few who may have what it takes to upset a favourite on their day, and these teams create further excitement in a tournament that will already have the entire continent glued to their television sets and radios on match days.

Africa: Terrorism Alert

THE attempted bombing of a Northwest Airlines flight on Christmas Day has prompted the predictable knee-jerk tightening of airport security measures around the world. While this was inevitable given the need to placate anxious travellers, it makes little sense unless the measures themselves are not only effective but sustainable.

Africa: ‘Africa’s Growth to Continue in 2010′

BUSINESS in Africa will remain profitable and growing throughout 2010, a survey has shown. According to Africa Practice’s annual business survey, business leaders predicted a positive outlook for 2010, with 95% of the respondents expecting to expand their businesses over the coming year.