African press review 9 April 2014

Good news in SA. Kenyan villagers moourn Barack Obama's aunt. Nigeria's airlines could face an international ban. Sisi may debate with his presidential rivals. And AU delegates ask to meet Muslim Brothers.

There are two good news stories on the front page of South African financial paper, BusinessDay.

One headline reads "Global economic recovery boosts local business confidence", the other says "Rand firms to best level since January". OK, January was, strictly speaking, just two months ago but let's not be too picky here.

According to the story that goes with the first headline, recovering global markets have boosted the business confidence index compiled by the South African Chamber of Commerce and Industry. That index rose to its highest level in a year in March.

This is the first time since June 2011 that the index is at a better level than the corresponding month of the previous year.

As for the rand, BusinessDay says that the South African currency late yesterday traded at its best level to the dollar since early January, boosted mainly by broad-based dollar weakness.

The US currency also declined against the euro and the British pound.

Analysts are warning that the rand remains heavily dependent on US monetary policy, with today’s publication of the Federal Reserve’s minutes of its March committee meeting expected to provide further direction for South Africa's legal tender.

On its international pages, BusinessDay reports that a new opinion poll shows less than half of Brazilians favour the nation’s hosting of the World Cup in June, with a majority in the soccer-crazed nation believing that the tournament will do more harm than good.

Just 48 per cent of Brazilians support hosting the event, down from 52 per cent in February and dropping below half the population for the first time.

The approval rate has dropped from a high of 79 per cent in November 2008, a year after Brazil was selected. People cite cost overruns, construction accidents and delays in building stadiums and airports in 12 host cities as likely to embarrass the country on the international stage.

Most Brazilians believe the billions of dollars spent on the event should have been directed towards healthcare and education.

The main story in the Kenyan Standard reports that grief has gripped residents of Siaya County’s Kogelo village following the death of US President Barrack Obama’s aunt.

Zeituni Onyango died yesterday at a Boston hospital at the age of 62. She had been ill with complication from an autoimmune disorder called Guillain-Barre syndrome.

In Nigeria the Abuja-based Daily Trust warns that the proposed merger of the Airspace Management Agency and the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority could lead to the country being banned by the International Civil Aviation Organisation.

On Monday the federal government accepted a recommendation that the various aviation agencies be merged into a new body.

That decision came barely a week after officials from the US Federal Aviation Administration concluded a mandatory re-assessment of Nigeria’s aviation sector for the retention of the Category One safety status awarded to the country in 2010.

Industry experts say the proposed merger infringes International Civil Aviation Organisation standards.

The main story in this morning's Egypt Inderpendent says presidential candidate Abdel Fattah al-Sisi might agree to debate with other candidates and will appear on television to present his platform.

The story denies reports that Sisi intended to present his policies in a voice message to be broadcast on television. This is what the former defence minister and army chief-of-staff did when he announced his intention to run for the top job.

Also in the Independent, a report that an African Union committee, currently visiting Egypt, has requested a meeting with the Muslim Brotherhood-led National Alliance to Support Legitimacy.

The African Union suspended Egypt’s membership after President Mohamed Morsi was ousted by armed forces in July 2013.

And who did the ousting? Troops under the command of Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, now the bookmakers' favourite to win the race to replace Morsi.