Zimbabwe has the lowest data tariffs in the region but needs to ensure the industry is sustainable going forward as 5G is here.

Analysts believe that modern digital technologies offer the opportunity to streamline business functions, please customers, reduce costs and raise sales.

As the nation is developing and becoming more digitally inclined, the year 2019 is packed with exciting and enormous changes. Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) need to continue preparing for the advent of 5G as there are a number of 5G compatible devices set to arrive in 2019.

5G is now a reality. MNOs in Zimbabwe need to embrace this change and we are moving forward. The world is fast moving and only the fittest will survive. We are on track and revolutionising with the world.

Nothing comes without any costs. We need to embrace the digital world which is fast moving towards Artificial Intelligence (AI). We need to sacrifice a little when it comes to data spending.

Smart cities, artificial intelligence and the Internet of Things (IoT) – these technologies will revolutionise the way we live. Heavily dependent on 5G networks to work effectively the nation needs to embrace changes or stay inefficient, which is not an option.

To function successfully, smart cities and IoT devices will rely on a proliferation of high-bandwidth, low latency connections. Meaning, whatever method this ends up being delivered

through, the telecoms industry will be called upon to provide this. So, 2019 should see a great deal of investment and innovation in this area and the move has already begun.

MNOs in Zimbabwe are now embracing the capabilities of blockchain technology. Blockchain, the public online ledger, is a technology with exciting prospects in the next couple of years.

Blockchain’s uses have developed beyond the world of cryptocurrencies, and it’s now being hailed as a technology that can help data-holding companies improve efficiency and security.

So, with this you don’t worry of losing your data or feel insecure. The future of security has arrived in Zimbabwe.

The way our world works is set to become ever more digitally driven, and with all of these developments comes a growing demand for high-bandwidth, low latency and secure data connectivity.

The telecoms industry will play a huge part in enabling this – so everybody needs to be prepared to innovate and invest in order to make this happen.

BY AFRICANEWS

Five soldiers were killed after Boko Haram militants attacked a military base in northeastern Nigeria, military sources reported on Monday.

Members of the Islamic State Group in the West African Province (ISWAP), took the base of Mararrabar Kimba, in Borno State, 135 km from the regional capital, Maiduguri, on Friday. The insurgents seized the weapons before withdrawing, an officer said Saturday.

Three days later, a first assessment shows that at least five people have died and about 30 missing.

“We found five bodies of soldiers who paid the ultimate price in fighting terrorists,” an officer told AFP. “Rescue teams are still looking for about 30 other soldiers who have gone missing since the attack,” he added.

A second officer, who confirmed the death toll of five, added that the army was still hoping that the soldiers who were at large would be found.

“There are high hopes that the missing soldiers will be found – or that they will find their way back,” he hoped: “We don’t think of the worst case scenario.

The Nigerian army has not officially reported on the incident.

According to information gathered from military sources on Saturday, the attackers arrived in a dozen pick-ups equipped with heavy machine guns. They also had three armoured personnel carriers stolen from the security forces. They were accompanied by a group of motorcycle fighters.

After an intense exchange of fire, the soldiers were overwhelmed and a number of them dispersed to escape the better armed Islamists.

More than 27,000 people have died since the beginning of the Boko Haram uprising in northeastern Nigeria in 2009, and 1.8 million others are still unable to return home.

The group also operates in the other countries of the Lake Chad area (Chad, Cameroon, Niger), where it carries out attacks against law enforcement agencies and abductions of civilians.

A coalition of Chadian, Nigerian and Cameroonian forces has been launching an offensive against jihadist concentrations in the region for several weeks.

Nigerian army chief General Tukur Buratai warned last week against regrouping the two factions in Boko Haram to create a jihadist enclave that would extend from northeastern Nigeria to the Lake Chad region.

BY AFRICANEWS

At least five people including a Senior Pastor have died following an attack on a protestant church in Burkina Faso, Sunday.

Security and local reports say the attack took place in Silgadji, 60 km from Djibo, the capital of Soum province in the north of the country.

“Unidentified armed individuals attacked the Silgadji Protestant Church, killing four worshippers and the senior pastor. At least two other people are missing,” a security source told AFP on Monday.

This is the first attack on a church since 2015, the date of the first jihadist attacks on Christian and Muslim prelates.

“The attack took place around 13:00, just as the faithful were leaving the church at the end of the religious service,” an anonymous church member told AFP. “The attackers were on motorcycles. They fired shots in the air before targeting the faithful,” said the witness.

Over the past four years, Burkina Faso has faced increasingly frequent and deadly attacks, attributed to jihadist groups, including Ansarul Islam, the Group to Support Islam and Muslims (GSIM) and the Islamic State of the Great Sahara (EIGS).

Initially concentrated in the north of the country, these attacks then targeted the capital and other regions, particularly the east, and have killed some 350 people since 2015, according to an AFP survey.

On Friday, six people, including five teachers, were killed in Maïtaougou, a locality in the eastern region of Koulpélogo province.

Attacks regularly target religious leaders, mainly in the north of the country. In mid-March, Father Joël Yougbaré, priest of Djibo in the north of the country, was kidnapped by armed individuals. His body was found near Djibo, according to residents of the city, though the Catholic church that reported his disappearance has not confirmed the information.

On February 15, Father César Fernandez, a Salesian missionary of Spanish origin, was killed in an armed attack attributed to jihadists in Nohao, in central-eastern Burkina Faso.

In May 2018, catechist Mathieu Sawadogo and his wife were kidnapped in Arbinda and released on September 14. Before them, Pierre Boena, pastor of the Protestant church in Beléhouro, had also been kidnapped and released in June 2018.

Several imams have also been murdered by jihadists in the North. According to security sources, they were “considered not radical enough” by jihadists or “accused of collaborating with the authorities”.

BY CNN

At least nine people have died since Tropical Cyclone Kenneth, the strongest storm to hit the region since records began, made landfall in Mozambique on Thursday.

Five deaths were reported in Mozambique and another four in the island nation of Comoros, according to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.

The cyclone is the second powerful tropical storm to hit southeast Africa in five weeks. Despite its power, Cyclone Kenneth is slow-moving, leading experts to fear it could continue to dump torrential rains on an area still reeling from the devastation wrought by Cyclone Idai.

That storm killed 750 people across southern Africa, forced thousands into camps in March and wreaked an estimated $1 billion worth of damage — about 10% of Mozambique’s GDP.

In the commercial hub and provincial capital of Pemba, residents Monday said they hoped the worst was over after a weekend of heavy rains and flooding since Cyclone Kenneth made landfall Thursday.

“The rain has stopped, at least for now. There is still water on the ground but the main roads in the city are now passable,” said resident Innocent Mushunje.

Kevin Record, a hotel owner on the hard-hit island of Ibo, said the region was still without power and “waiting for the cavalry to arrive.”

Forecasters said northern Mozambique could see up to 500 millimeters of rain (about 20 inches) over the next five days, which could exacerbate the flooding.

“The soil is saturated with rain and the rivers are already swollen, so the emergency is likely to get worse,” said Michel Le Pechoux, UNICEF’s deputy representative in Mozambique. “We’re doing everything we can to get teams and supplies on the ground to keep people safe.”

Save the Children said in a separate statement that the storm “has caused extensive damage, ripping homes apart and wiping out entire communities,” and is warning that current conditions have made it extremely difficult to deliver aid to those in need.

“We have grave fears for the thousands of families currently taking shelter under the wreckage of their homes. They urgently need food, water and shelter to survive the coming days,” said Nicholas Finney, Save the Children’s response team leader in Mozambique.

Finney said that the NGO tried to reach some of the hard-hit areas Sunday but were forced to turn back “because rivers had burst their banks and the roads were under water.”

“Flights and helicopters have also been grounded and this means humanitarian access is virtually impossible. We are desperately trying to look for ways to deliver emergency supplies,” said Finney.

The United Nations’ disaster response agency pledged to release $13 million to pay for food, shelter, health, water and sanitation assistance in both Comoros and Mozambique.

“The funds will help in reducing the suffering of the affected people including mitigating the impact on food security caused by the destruction and loss of farmland, livestock and fisheries, in addition to the damage and destruction of homes,” said Mark Lowcock, the UN’s emergency relief coordinator.

Mozambique’s natural disaster management said last week that nearly 3,400 homes were destroyed and more than 18,000 were displaced by Kenneth.

BY BBC

Sri Lanka has banned face coverings in public, following a spate of suicide attacks on Easter Sunday that killed at least 250 people and injured hundreds.

President Maithripala Sirisena said he was using an emergency law to impose the restriction from Monday.

Any face garment which “hinders identification” will be banned to ensure security, his office said. Muslim leaders criticised the move.

The niqab and burka – worn by Muslim women – were not specifically named.

The move is perceived as targeting those garments, however.

Sri Lanka remains on high alert eight days after Islamist attacks that hit churches and hotels.

Dozens of suspects have been arrested, but local officials have warned that more militants remain at large.

How many people are affected?

Sri Lanka has a sizeable and centuries-old Muslim population – of the country’s 21-million population, just under 10% are Muslim.

Only a small number of women are thought to wear the face-covering niqab, or the burka – a one-piece garment that covers the face and body.

Last week a Sri Lankan MP had proposed a ban on women wearing the burka, saying it should be outlawed on security grounds.

The All Ceylon Jamiyyathul Ulama, an organisation of Muslim clerics in Sri Lanka, was highly critical of the president’s decision.

“It is the stupidest thing to do. Three days ago we took a voluntary decision regarding this. The All Ceylon Jamiyyathul Ulema told all Muslim women not to wear face veils for security reasons. If they wanted to wear a veil, then they were told not to come out,” Hilmy Ahmed, the group’s vice-president, told the BBC.

“We see this as a reflection of the conflict between the president and the prime minister. We strongly criticise the decision. We will not accept the authorities interfering with the religion without consulting the religious leadership.”

Several countries have permanently banned full-face veils in public places, including France, Belgium and Denmark.

Chad, Gabon and the Republic of Congo in Africa also have restrictions in place.

What’s the situation on the ground?

Over the weekend thousands of Sri Lankan troops stood guard on the streets, protecting churches and mosques.

Sunday church services were cancelled across the country as a precaution, but worshippers in the capital gathered to pray outside St Anthony’s Shrine, which was badly damaged in the attacks.

The number of people arrested in connection with the bloodshed rose to 150. Authorities are also hunting for around 140 followers of the jihadist group Islamic State, which has said it was behind the bombings, but has not provided firm evidence of direct involvement.

On Friday, security forces raided a safe house used by the Islamist group NTJ, which authorities have said was behind the attacks. The group was founded by Zahran Hashim, the alleged organiser of the bombings who blew himself up at a hotel in Colombo.

As troops moved in on Friday, three men set off explosives, killing themselves, six children and three women. Three other people died in gunfire.

Hashim’s father and two brothers were among those who died in the operation.

BY BBC

Spain’s governing Socialists won the country’s third election in four years, but have fallen short of a majority.

PM Pedro Sánchez’s party polled 29% and will need the help of either left-wing Podemos and regional parties, or the centre right, to form a government.

For the first time since military rule ended in the 1970s, a far-right party, Vox, is set to enter parliament.

Vox opposes multiculturalism, unrestricted migration, and what it calls “radical feminism”.

Analysts say support for Vox has been boosted by widespread anger at the Catalan independence drive. The party fervently opposes any concessions to the secessionists.

The other big story of the election was the collapse in support for the conservative Popular Party (PP), which governed Spain until it was dumped from power in May 2018 in a no-confidence vote.

In its worst election ever, the PP won just 66 seats, down from 137 in the previous parliament.

Turnout was 75.8%, the biggest for several years and 9% higher than the previous election in 2016.

A graphic shows the number of seats won in parliament in a colour-coded hemicycle format: Socialists 123, Popular Party 66, Ciudadanos 57, Podemos 35, Vox 24, Others 45
Presentational white space
In his victory speech, Mr Sánchez said the party’s big challenges were to fight inequality, advance co-existence and halt corruption.

“The future has won and the past has lost,” he told cheering supporters. During his time in office he has raised the minimum wage, appointed a female-dominated cabinet and promised to bring in laws defining rape as sex without clear consent.

In his victory speech, Mr Sánchez said the party’s big challenges were to fight inequality, advance co-existence and halt corruption.

“The future has won and the past has lost,” he told cheering supporters. During his time in office he has raised the minimum wage, appointed a female-dominated cabinet and promised to bring in laws defining rape as sex without clear consent.

What just happened?

After weeks of Spain’s resurgent far right hogging all the headlines, didn’t the centre-left just win a resounding victory?

Did Spaniards have a last-minute change of heart? What does this all mean?

Spain’s Socialist party members will certainly have the biggest smiles on their faces this morning. But landslide victory this was not.

The party improved massively on its last performance in national elections. It managed to take control of Spain’s upper house of parliament too, but still lacks a majority to govern.

What happens next?

The result is a personal success for the prime minister, who increased his party’s share from 23% of the vote in 2016.

But it still leaves the Socialists and Podemos 11 seats short of the necessary 176 for a majority in the 350-seat parliament.

Mr Sánchez must now look for support from the smaller parties or from the centre right, but there is no easy solution.

An alliance with Ciudadanos (57 seats) would give him the numbers, but its leader, Albert Rivera, was bitterly critical of Mr Sánchez’s collaboration with Catalan separatists, referring to his earlier “Frankenstein government” – and vowed he would not enter a coalition with the Socialists.

And as Mr Sánchez gave his victory speech late on Sunday, supporters chanted “Not with Rivera!”, making it clear they also did not want a coalition with Ciudadanos.

The head of previous coalition partner Podemos, Pablo Iglesias, made clear on Sunday night that another left-wing administration was possible.

But the results appear to make any left-coalition dependent on Catalan pro-independence parties, which opponents on the right see as toxic.

An alliance involving all the other regional parties, including the Basque separatist PNV, would leave him one seat short of a majority.

All parties are now looking towards the regional and European elections in less than a month.

Who are Vox?

The PP’s historic defeat means that, even with the support of centre-right Ciudadanos (Citizens) and Vox, it has no chance of forming a right-wing coalition, and leader Pablo Casado said it would become the main opposition force.

But Vox saw its support surge, winning more than 10% of the vote, which gives it 24 seats.

Italy’s deputy PM Matteo Salvini, from the right-wing League party, tweeted: “Congratulations to @Santi_ABASCAL and our friends in @vox_es for joining the Parliament in Spain”.

France’s far-right leader Marine Le Pen of the National Rally also offered her “warmest congratulations” to the “young and vigorous party”.

“Nations need enthusiastic defenders!” she tweeted.

Mr Salvini has been courting right-wing parties across Europe for an alliance in the European Parliament.

Nationalists vow to ‘make Spain great again’
Vox’s success is seen as a turning point for the far-right, who have never won seats in parliament since the death of Spanish dictator Francisco Franco in 1975 and the restoration of democracy.

Led by Santiago Abascal, a former PP member, the party has emerged in a matter of months with a vow to “make Spain great again”.

It won seats for the first time in local elections in the southern Andalusia region, and agreed to support a centre-right coalition of the PP and Ciudadanos.

In his speech after the results, Mr Abascal said: “We told you that we were starting a reconquest of Spain and that is exactly what we have done… and we can clearly say to all of Spain that Vox is here to stay.”

Vox rejects the far-right label but its views on immigration and Islam place it in line with far-right and populist parties elsewhere in Europe.

It wants to repeal laws against gender violence, and opposes abortion and same-sex marriage. Critics see it as a nationalist throwback to the Franco era.

Vox aims to deport migrants legally entitled to be in Spain if they have committed an offence, and wants to prevent any migrant who comes in illegally from staying.

The BBC’s James Reynolds says that fear of big gains for the far-right helped the Socialists to victory.

Why is Catalonia so important?

The future of Spain’s semi-autonomous north-eastern region was one of the big issues of the election.

Catalonia held an independence referendum in October 2017 and then declared independence from Spain.

A dozen of its leaders have since gone on trial in Madrid, facing charges including rebellion and sedition. Among them is ERC leader Mr Junqueras, who was Catalan vice-president when he was arrested.

During last Monday’s election debate, the leaders of the PP and Ciudadanos accused the prime minister of siding with “enemies of Spain” and wanting to “liquidate Spain”.

The centre-left Catalan ERC was the big winner in Catalonia, with a projected 15 seats. Its leader, Oriol Junqueras, is in jail facing trial for his role in declaring independence in October 2017 and tweeted thanks for the million votes his party received.

INTERVIEW Desmond Chingarande

The late MDC leader Morgan Tsvangirai’a memorial service will be held on Saturday, more than a year after the former Prime Minister succumbed to cancer of the colon in February last year.

Tsvangirai’s younger brother and family spokesperson, Manasa said the family has invited both President Emmerson Mnangagwa and the ruling Zanu PF party to the memorial service. NewsDay (ND) reporter, Desmond Chingarande hooked up with one of Tsvangirai’s daughters, Vimbai Tsvangirai-Java (VTJ), who is now Member of Parliament for Glen View South (MDC Alliance), to hear her views about the event and other issues regarding her political career.

ND: On Saturday, there is a memorial service for your father. Your uncle, Manasa has said everyone, including President Emmerson Mnangagwa and his Zanu PF party members will be welcome to the memorial; do you share the same view?

VTJ: This is a memorial service, not an MDC rally. Everyone who feels they want to attend, can do so, the church, civil society, political parties, individuals, and all. Although it is a memorial service for the MDC founding leader, we should also remember that he was once a Prime Minister, who served all the people of Zimbabwe, regardless of their political affiliation. When my uncle made the decision, he was possibly basing it on that idea that it is a memorial service and like a funeral, all people are welcome.

ND: As the country remembers him at the weekend, can you kindly share your last days with your father?

Mugabe proved age is all but a number when he entered the race against all odds and triumphed over his bitter rival MDC-T’s Morgan Tsvangirai for the Presidency.

VTJ: I was always in and out of his hospital room. We spent most of the time together, talking to him. We laughed, prayed and sang praise and worship songs. He was brave; I would want to believe that he knew that he no longer had time to live, but would always put a brave face like the Morgan full of life. The memorial service would give me time to reflect on his dream and vision.

ND: And how was your relationship with your father?

VJT: My father always wanted the best out of me. He was a father who would encourage me to take up challenges, like he did to any of his children and everyone. It is more than a year after he is gone and I feel empty without his encouragement. I intend to continue to work hard and commit all my achievements as a tribute to him.

ND: You are now MP and a year after your father’s death, what lessons do you think you will borrow from his life to guide your political career?

VJT: First, he had the people at heart. Second, he was forgiving. In politics, people are abused a lot, but he remained focused and interacted with everyone, including those perceived to be his enemies to teach them that having different political views doesn’t necessarily mean being enemies. Thirdly, he had the courage to stand for what he believed in regardless of the tribulations. I also admired his political values which were anchored on democracy, peace and oneness.

President Mugabe chats with PM Tsvangirai.

Mugabe and Tsvangirai showed tolerance of each other, despite past differences

ND: What motivated you to join politics? Did your father play a part in the decision?

VTJ: Entering politics was not something I started when I became an MP. Politics has always been my passion. I was driven by the need to fight for the
voiceless. Yes, my father played a part, always debating political issues with him motivated me. In 2002, we (together with other Tsvangirai children), I left
the country into political exile when my father formed the party to challenge Zanu PF. It was a tough time. I would have meetings wherever we were to support my father. I was in Australia and would appear on national television there telling them the plight of Zimbabweans. I came back in 2009 after the death of my mother (Susan). I worked with him since then until his death. We would always share ideas and that is where I got the inspiration of taking a public office and serve the people.

ND: Can you explain what you are doing to the people of Glen View South as MP.

VTJ: When I took up office, cholera soon broke out and I had to run around looking for assistance to manage the epidemic. Currently, I am working to try to have a refuse truck to consistently service my constituency. I am also engaging council for my people to get decent market stalls with proper facilities to ensure they have a livelihood at the same time being safe from diseases. Due to unemployment, I am in the process of introducing self-help projects and currently consulting youths in the constituency on what they would want support on.

DC: What challenges are you facing as an MP?

VTJ: People come to me as an MP with problems such as unemployment, and you don’t have an immediate solution. Companies are closing, those operating are struggling; it’s a challenge to the people. It is a tough job to face people with an array of problems which should best be addressed by central government. Widows and elderly are struggling to survive. Parents are unable to send children to school. Things are bad and as MPs, we are made to interact with hungry people everyday. It pains me as an MP. The problems have nothing to do with gender, an MP is an MP and they all meet similar challenges.

BY DESMOND CHINGARANDE

MDC leader Nelson Chamisa will be unchallenged at the party’s congress to be held in Gweru next month after he emerged the only presidential candidate nominated by all the opposition movement’s 13 provinces.

Chamisa was nominated uncontested by 10 provinces in the country as well as the North American and United Kingdom branches before South Africa sealed his victory on Saturday.

This automatically means that he goes to the May 24-26 congress only for confirmation as the substantive leader after leading the party for a year on an interim basis since the death of founding president Morgan Tsvangirai last year in February.

During the initial provincial congresses, party secretary-general Douglas Mwonzora had expressed his desire to challenge Chamisa, but no province nominated him for the top job and will have to face off with Charlton Hwende for his current post.

Accepting his victory in a post on his Twitter account, Chamisa thanked the MDC provinces for endorsing him and seeking prayers for grace and wisdom to lead the party.

“Change arrives and begins now. Thank you, Machinja (MDC supporters) for an emphatic 13/13 nomination, vote and endorsement as the second president of MDC, the people’s party after our icon the late Dr MT (Morgan Tsvangirai). Help me pray for the grace and wisdom to lead Zimbabwe to happiness, prosperity and freedom,” Chamisa tweeted.

Chamisa becomes the only leader in the coming congress set for Gweru to go unopposed since nominations cannot be done from the floor.

After his early victory, focus now shifts on who will be his three deputies from the pool of Welshman Ncube, Tendai Biti, Morgen Komichi, Elias Mudzuri, Tracy Mutinhiri, Paulina Mpariwa, Lynnet Karenyi-Kore and Lilian Timveus.

On Saturday, the MDC national council resolved to have a woman as one of its vice-presidents and this will see the four female politicians battle it out although they can still grab all the three available posts.

The eight VP aspirants, just like other contestants vying for other senior posts, will have to prove why the 6 000 delegates set to attend the congress should vote for them through a public debate.

Currently, the party has three VPs –Ncube and Komichi – who were appointed by Chamisa and Mudzuri, who was appointed by Tsvangirai.

BY JAMES MUONWA

The Zimbabwe National Liberation War Veterans’ Association (ZNLWVA) has fired salvos at government officials and family members, who grab farms and dispossess widows and children of fallen heroes.

ZNLWVA said it would vigorously protect heroes’ widows and can “kill to defend what is rightfully ours”.

This, the association noted, follows a worrisome trend whereby officials from the Lands ministry connive with unscrupulous individuals to push fallen heroes’ widows and their children off farms following the deaths of heroes.

ZNLWVA Mashonaland West chapter secretary-general Mudzingaidzwa Nyikadzino Mudarikwa said ex-combatants will fight tooth-and-nail to defend surviving spouses’ entitlement to land and anyone who harbours sinister motives would bear the brunt of the former guerrilla fighters.

“We get mad when we are denied what is rightfully ours. We claim what is ours. Our solemn liberation struggle pledge was to claim our land from colonialists and, therefore, to attempt to dispossess widows and children of departed liberation war heroes would be an affront to our cause.

“Anyone who tries this automatically becomes our enemy. We were trained to confront and kill the enemy,” Mudarikwa said while addressing mourners at the burial of State spy agent Martin Nyashanu in Chinhoyi on Wednesday.

Nyashanu, who was a senior Central Intelligence Organisation (CIO) operative, collapsed and died on Easter Monday and was conferred provincial hero.

Mudarikwa reiterated that the Lands ministry should expedite ownership transfer of farms to widows to avoid condemning them and their off-spring to destitution.

He cited a case in which Woodlands Farm, Tengwe in Hurungwe district, measuring 100 hectares, was snatched from a war veteran’s widow and sold off to an Indian businessman.

The widow is challenging the illegal take-over of the land at the courts.

Mudarikwa challenged bereaved families to productively utilise allocated farms and guard the gains of the liberation struggle that brought the country’s independence.

Mashonaland East ZNLWVA chairman Daniel Sigauke echoed the same sentiments, urging war veterans, ex-detainees and war collaborators to remain united in defence of the country’s sovereignty.

Recently, the widow of national hero Vitalis Zvinavashe lost a huge chunk of her fertile Knockmallock Farm in Norton to a Chinese company, Sunny Yi Feng Tiles (Zimbabwe) (Pvt) Ltd, after it was given the land to set up a ceramic tiles factory under controversial circumstances.