Somali and world news

The United Nations says internet access is a basic human right that should be guaranteed and protected. But there are still major disparities between nations on who should get access to the world wide web. Al Jazeera's Nazanine Moshiri reports on how one African nation is benefiting from closing the digital divide.

HSBC Holdings Plc agreed to pay a record $1.92 billion in fines to U.S. authorities for allowing itself to be used to launder a river of drug money flowing out of Mexico and other banking lapses. Mexico's Sinaloa cartel and Colombia's Norte del Valle cartel between them laundered $881 million through HSBC and a Mexican unit, the U.S. Justice Department said on Tuesday. In a deferred prosecution agreement with the Justice Department, the bank acknowledged it failed to maintain an effective program against money laundering and failed to conduct basic due diligence on some of its account holders. Under the agreement, which was reported by Reuters last week, the bank agreed to take steps to fix the problems, forfeit $1.256 billion, and retain a compliance monitor. The bank also agreed to pay $665 million in civil penalties to regulators including to the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the Federal Reserve, and the Treasury Department. "We accept responsibility

Britain named Canadian central bank chief Mark Carney on Monday to head the Bank of England, springing the surprise choice of a foreigner to push reform of its troubled financial system. A former Goldman Sachs investment banker who at the Bank of Canada guided the Canadian economy through the global economic crisis, Carney will succeed Mervyn King who retires in July. Carney, who already plays a leading role in setting global banking rules, defended his departure from Canada and signaled that bigger problems awaited him in London. "I'm going to where the challenges are greatest," he told an Ottawa news conference, stressing the need to "rebalance" the economy which has relied heavily on a financial services sector hit by huge losses and scandals. "It's very important for the global economy that the UK does well, that it succeeds in this rebalancing of their economy, that the reform of the British financial system is completed," he said.

Fish stocks are in decline in Lake Victoria. It is the second largest lake in the world and more than two million people in Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania depend on its fisheries. Al Jazeera's Malcolm Webb reports from Lake Victoria, Uganda.

New internet laws have come into force in Russia, making it easier for the state to block access to certain online content it considers offensive. The Russian government says the laws are vital for getting tough on child pornography and cybercrime, but members of the opposition say it is just another ploy by the government to crack down on civil liberties and silence dissent. Al Jazeera's Rory Challands reports from Moscow.

Inflation rates in Kenya and Uganda fell in October, helped by easing food prices, creating room for further interest rate cuts to spur growth in east Africa's number one and three economies. Inflation has tumbled across east Africa's main economies this year after central banks slammed on the monetary brakes in the second half of 2011 to curb runaway prices that were driven by soaring food and fuel costs and ailing local currencies. With inflation now below target in both Kenya and Uganda, there is growing pressure on policymakers to turn their attention to growth, which has been dampened by the huge cost of credit after rate hikes. Both Nairobi and Kampala, however, will be mindful of their fragile currencies. Kenya's headline inflation rate fell more than expected to 4.14 percent in October from 5.32 percent the previous month. In Uganda, inflation slowed to 4.5 percent from a revised 5.5 percent in September. In both countries, the rates were driven lower by

 Kenya's year-on-year inflation is expected to fall for the 11th month running in October, helped by a better harvest easing food prices but offset to some extent by rising fuel costs. Despite the signs that inflation could be close to bottoming out, analysts think the central bank has scope to keep easing interest rates as attention shifts to supporting economic growth. Eight out of 11 analysts polled by Reuters predicted inflation would decline in October, with a median estimate of 4.88 percent, down from 5.32 percent in September. Forecasts ranged from 3.60 percent to 6.00 percent. The data is due on October 31. "Inflation is nearing the bottom in the current cycle. While fuel price increases may dampen the downward pressure on inflation, low food inflation is still likely to over-ride them," said Mbiyo Phumelele, head of macroeconomic research at CFC Stanbic Bank. Kenya's Energy Regulatory Commission raised pump prices for the second straight month during

Tanzania should stick to existing agreements in the fast-growing mining sector or investors will lose confidence, the company which owns the country's biggest gold mine said on Saturday. Major international miners are still in talks with the government two years after it passed mining legislation that included a rise in royalties on gold exports to 4 percent of gross value from 3 percent of netback value. The law also required mining companies to pay the government 0.3 percent of their annual turnover, up from the previous requirement of a maximum $200,000 a year. AngloGold Ashanti told Reuters it expected the Dodoma government to respect its mineral development agreement, which it said was a legal contract signed before the new mining legislation was put in place. "Our investors obviously expect that those contracts should be honoured because they've made an investment for the long term," Gary Davies, managing director of AngloGold's Geita gold mine s

Canada may have to downgrade its economic and fiscal forecasts to take into account the European debt crisis and the choppy U.S. recovery, Finance Minister Jim Flaherty said on Thursday. In the government's fall fiscal update due in the coming weeks, Flaherty will update the outlook for the federal budget deficit, based on the average growth forecast of private sector experts whom the government consults regularly. "We expected moderate growth, the economists in Canada told us to anticipate moderate growth and as you know, we follow the recommendations (of) the average of a group of private sector economists," Flaherty told reporters. "We're watching closely ... we may have to revise downward somewhat, but so far, we're in the same ball park as we anticipated in the federal budget," he said. The 2012 budget presented in March envisions growth of 2.1 percent for this year and 2.4 percent next year. The International Monetary Fund this month lowere

The property market in the Somali capital, Mogadishu, has boomed since the government pushed out al-Shabab fighters. The most peaceful period in the city in over two decades has brought thousands of ex-pat Somalis back to their homeland. But with speculators hoping to turn a profit behind most of the investments in new properties, prices are skyrocketing while hundreds of thousands of internally displaced, only kilometres away, live in poverty. Al Jazeera's Nazanine Moshiri reports from Mogadishu..

Four Nigerian farmers are taking on Royal-Dutch Shell saying pollution from oil extraction has damaged the crops and fish farms they depend upon. Civil court proceedings are now under way at the Hague. Al Jazeera's Gerald Tan explains how the outcome of the case could set a precedent for standards in global environmental responsibility.

Arqaam Capital, a Dubai-based emerging market investment bank, has agreed to buy a financial services firm in Libya to tap into economic growth as the country rebuilds after its civil war. The acquisition of Al Rashad Finance and Management Advisory will give Arqaam a presence in the country and the potential to buy and sell securities and manage portfolios there, Arqaam said in a statement on Sunday. Al Rashad Finance, founded in February, has received initial approval for a financial services licence in Libya, Arqaam said. No financial details of the transaction were provided. Libya's economy is expected to rebound sharply this year from a deep contraction in 2011 as the country rebuilds and oil production recovers to levels last seen during Muammar Gaddafi's rule, the International Monetary Fund said in July. Arqaam offers corporate finance, asset management and brokerage services through its main office in Dubai. It also has presences in Beirut, London and Cairo. The

Egypt denied on Monday that a $4.8 billion loan requested from the International Monetary Fund would be put to a yet-to-be-elected parliament for approval, a move that could have delayed the dispersal of funds. Any hold-up could shake the confidence of investors who have been cheered by Egypt's progress with seeking the loan, needed to plug holes in the country's budget and balance of payments. Alaa El Hadidi, the spokesman for Prime Minister Hisham Kandil, said that in the absence of a parliament - the chamber was dissolved in June - President Mohamed Mursi had legislative powers and could approve any agreement. "In accordance with the constitutional declaration, any international agreement needs to be approved by the legislative authority, and in the absence of parliament, President Mohamed Mursi is empowered to take such decisions," he told Reuters. Earlier, Egyptian state TV carried a report quoting Kandil as saying the IMF deal would be put to parliam

Kenyan teachers have called off a strike for higher pay that started on September 3 after signing a deal with the government, their union said on Monday. Under the terms of the deal, public school teachers will get a pay rise of 5,250 shillings for the lowest paid, taking their pay to 19,000 shillings a month. The highest paid will get 142,000 shillings a month, a rise of 22,000 shillings. Unions had demanded between 100 and 300 percent pay rises. The deal leaves the government with an extra 20 billion shillings to find in the 2012/13 (July-June) fiscal year. Finance Minister Robinson Githae said he was seeking areas where the funds could be found, including further cuts to ministries' budgets and scrapping development projects scheduled for this fiscal year but yet to start. "If everything else fails, the last resort is we increase tax," he told Reuters, adding he expected concrete proposals by the end of this week. The pay rises will be back-dated to Jul

China's Guangdong Bureau of Coal Geology plans to invest $3.5 billion to build a 1,200 megawatt thermal power plant in Zimbabwe, local media reported on Tuesday. The southern African country currently generates about 1,000 MW of electricity, half of its peak demand, and is battling frequent power cuts which have affected industry and mines. A delegation from the Chinese company is currently visiting Zimbabwe to explore opportunities in the power sector, the state-controlled Herald newspaper reported. "We came here to observe and study the possibility of building a thermal power plant," Mu Yong, a director at the Chinese firm, was quoted as saying. "Our proposed budget is about $3.5 billion for a 120 million watts plant." In July, Energy Minister Elton Mangoma told parliament that China Railway International, a subsidiary of China Railway Group and Zimbabwe's state power utility ZESA were planning to jointly run a coal mine that would supply a proposed 1,

Egypt's prime minister told international investors on Monday that he was working on rapid measures to make Egypt more attractive and get the economy back on track after more than a year and a half of political turmoil. Hisham Kandil also said his government was open to increasing the amount of financial support it was seeking from the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Speaking in a rare hour-long conference call with investors, he said Egypt aimed to quickly wrap up crucial loan talks with the IMF, take tangible measures to get fiscal problems under control and resolve investment disputes. Egypt's government has been on a charm offensive over the last few weeks to lure investors and aid from foreign governments to restart an economy that has grown by an anaemic 2 percent since last year's popular uprising. So far it has attracted billions of dollars in commitments. "We are aiming within three months to create quick wins on the ground," said Kandil, who was nam

The following company announcements, scheduled economic indicators, debt and currency market moves and political events may affect African markets on Monday. - - - - - GLOBAL MARKETS Asian stocks touched their highest in more than four months on Monday and gold, oil and copper hovered near multi-month highs, after rallying late last week on hopes that fresh stimulus from the world's top central banks will support flagging growth. WORLD OIL PRICES Brent crude rose for the eighth consecutive session on Monday to just below $117 a barrel, though prices remained below a four-month peak hit on Friday on worries that high oil prices could hamper efforts to boost a struggling world economy. EMERGING MARKETS For the top emerging markets news, double click on AFRICA MONEY South Africa's dependence on bond inflows is starting to look like a dangerous addiction. EAST AFRICA ENERGY As giant oil and gas discoveries have some of the world's biggest energy firms

  Botswana's consumer inflation slowed to 6.6 percent year-on-year in August, its lowest in more than two years, compared with 7.3 percent in July, the Central Statistics Office said on Friday. On a month-on-month basis inflation was steady at 0.3 percent. JOHANNESBURG (Reuters  

Angola is on track to reach its target of slowing consumer inflation to 10 percent this year from 11.38 percent in 2011 thanks to a monetary policy focused on price stability, the governor of its central bank said on Friday. "The results reached so far tell us that we are on the right track," Jose de Lima Massano told a business conference, adding that the central bank's new monetary framework introduced last year, including a benchmark interest rate, was helping it reach its targets. The central banker said year-on-year inflation came in at 10.02 percent in July, with cumulative inflation from the start of 2012 at 4.5 percent. Asked if Angola - Africa's No. 2 oil producer after Nigeria - now had room to lower the 10 percent inflation target for this year, Massano said it was too early to see the target as already achieved. "We have not reached, or are at least not yet assured of, the goal on inflation. The year-on-year rate is in line with the goal, but we h

Qatar said on Thursday it would invest $18 billion dollars in tourism and industry projects along Egypt's Mediterranean coast over the next five years, the latest pledge of support to an economy hammered by a year and a half of political turmoil. The projects include $8 billion for gas, power and iron and steel plants at the northern entrance to the Suez Canal and $10 billion for a giant tourist resort on the Mediterranean coast. Egypt's stock exchange closed at a 14-month high on Thursday on optimism that a new government with a clear popular mandate will secure investments and donor aid to stave off a balance of payments and budget crisis. Cairo last month formally asked the International Monetary Fund for $4.8 billion in emergency funding. "We spoke with his Excellency President Mursi and agreed to invest $8 billion on a power plant, natural gas and iron steel," Qatar's prime minister, said Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim al-Thani. "This will be in a integrate