We've been reading...

Mozambique eliminates maternal and neonatal tetanus
UN -- Mozambique has eliminated maternal and neonatal tetanus, according to a United Nations-backed health survey. The nationwide survey, which was conducted last month with support from the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) and the World Health Organization (WHO), found no deaths from maternal and neonatal tetanus in the country, confirming that the disease no longer exists as a public health problem. "Commitment, hard work and partnerships are paying off," said UNICEF Representative Jesper Morch. "This milestone demonstrates that delivering life-saving vaccines to the poorest and most isolated communities brings results, and we will make every effort to sustain this progress"...

Chad says no to plastic bags
IRIN -- N'djamena is a rarity in the region - the trees lining the Chad capital are not scarred by plastic bags. In supermarkets cashiers simply leave goods on the counter for the customer to take away, which many do in reusable bags on offer everywhere in the markets. When Marie Thérèse Mbailemdana became mayor of N'djamena in January 2010, she was determined to apply a 1992 law prohibiting the importation of plastic bags (known by the Arabic word ‘léda'); until then the law had not been strictly enforced. "This plastic polluted the city - you saw plastic hanging on walls, on trees. And it destroys our environment. Plastic remains in the ground for centuries. No trees or plants will grow where plastic is in the ground," she told IRIN...

Landmarks around the world turn (RED) for World Aids Day
ONE Blog -- This Wednesday is World AIDS Day, and while ONE members across the country are already championing the issue, we want to send out some exciting news from our sister organization, (RED). Tomorrow, (RED) is illuminating the world’s most iconic landmarks to raise awareness for World AIDS Day. Last year, nearly half a million babies were born with HIV — but with access to medication, a pregnant mother can stop the transmission of HIV to her child. With continued funding to organizations like the Global Fund, the number of babies born with HIV could be zero by 2015, creating the first AIDS-free generation in 30 years...

Sudan targets food self-sufficiency in 5 years
Reuters -- Sudan will prioritise agriculture to target self sufficiency within five years after the devastation of decades of civil wars, its agriculture minister said on Monday. Africa's largest country must diversify its economy away from oil -- from which it derives more than 90 percent of its foreign exchange revenues -- as the oil-producing south is expected to secede following a January 9 independence referendum. "We are targeting to achieve food self sufficiency within five years -- agriculture is the way forward for Sudan," Agriculture Minister Abdel Haleem al-Mutafi told Reuters in an interview...

More on technology & development

You might remember an article I posted a while back about Zack Matere, a Kenyan farmer who found that being able to access the internet on his mobile phone was able to help in all sorts of ways. Now, with help from the International Finance Corporation and the Soros Economic Development Fund, Esoko will be giving this same opportunity to several other farmers in Ghana and other African nations. More from AfricaNews:

Ghanaian technology firm Esoko has received a $1.25 million equity investment from the World Bank's International Finance Corporation and the Soros Economic Development Fund.

Esoko gives farmers access to timely crop information that can be shared via text messaging, enabling them to increase their incomes. The investment in Esoko will help to give smallholder farmers and businesses in Ghana and other African countries timely crop information that can be shared via text messaging, enabling farmers to increase their incomes.

The Esoko technology takes advantage of the mobile phone and the internet to provide current agriculture and market information to interest groups within the agriculture and trade sectors.

Through its network of enumerators in 31 markets in Ghana, Esoko is able to provide market prices on various agricultural commodities directly unto the mobile phones of farmers.

Managing Director of Esoko Ghana, Bernard Otabil told Luv Fm the additional investment from the IFC and SEDF is a manifestation of growing confidence in the business.

According to him, the funding offers Esoko the opportunity to sustain support for farmers over the long term.

"Funding provides you the opportunity to actually implement your plan on paper and before anyone commits to taking up any investment in any organization, they have to be really sure that over the long term, the return on investment will be achieved.

"We know what our critical market really is; we have a plan in terms of making sure every farmer everywhere have access to the information that we provide. We are committed to improving livelihoods to help them to achieve their goals of poverty alleviation and also overall contributing to the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals", Otabil stated.

The Esoko software is currently being used in nine African countries.

Mini Seminar: The Pursuit of Happyness

On Friday we had our first ever Mini Seminar film show (pictures after the jump). We watched The Pursuit of Happyness, a film starring Will Smith and his son Jayden. It is inspired by the true story of Chris Gardner, a man who successfully established himself as a stockbroker despite being a single father battling homelessness. He later went on to set up his own stockbrokerage firm, Gardner Rick & Co. Despite numerous preparations, we were still unable to shake of the technical issues bug - this time relating to very quiet speakers. We will get there! After obtaining a different set of speakers from the head office, we were finally able to continue. Because of time issues however, we were unable to spend much time on the discussion at the end. The film spoke volumes on its own though - the value of having a tenacious, determined spirit; of holding onto your dreams; of never giving up. As Chris said, "Don't ever let somebody tell you you can't do something. Not even me. Alright? ... You got a dream... you gotta protect it. People can't do something themselves, they wanna tell you you can't do it. You want something, go get it. Period."

Great news for all mentees!

During our Leadership Conference last month, Albert Ocran asked us about three things we think would come to people's mind when they thought about us. When he asked us if there was anyone who would share these things with us all, Albert Adjei obliged. Mr Ocran was so moved by the frankness and honesty by which Albert answered that he decided to present him with a free copy of his latest book. Unfortunately (or fortunately as the case may be), he did not have a copy with him at the time.

Elinam has been speaking to Mr Ocran and he has very kindly informed us that he has decided to give a free autographed copy of his Career Starter Pack to all mentees! Yes, all of you! Albert Adjei will also be receiving a copy of The More You Know The Better It Gets. We'll be giving them out on Friday during our Mini Seminar. Thanks and God bless you so much for your generosity Mr Ocran!

I'm also pleased to let you know that Sub-Saharan Publishers now have copies of The Cross Drums in stock. We will also be handing these out to you on Friday. Make sure you come along!

Mini Seminar this Friday: Film show!

As you (hopefully!) already know, our Mini Seminar has been rescheduled and will be held this Friday. Most likely, we will be watching The Pursuit of Happyness. The title may change; I'll keep you updated. Either way, the movie will be followed with a brief discussion on the leadership lessons we can learn, so come prepared to do a little talking. We'll need to start at 3pm on the dot, so if you'd like to come, make sure you do so early so you don't miss the start of the movie.

We're still speaking with Sub-Saharan Publishers about our order of The Cross Drums. We hope they will have them in stock by Friday so we can get them to you then. Again, I'll keep you posted.

Video: Fighting illiteracy with innovation*

An innovative $25 projector by Design the Matters in collaboration with three universities makes it easier for several adults and children to learn to read, especially those limited to learning by night. To date, the Kinkajou^® Microfilm Projector has supported the learning of over 3000 adults. More details in the video:

Literacy can be the difference between life and death. Using an example from the video, being able to read means mothers are able to read prescriptions and administer medicine correctly to their children. It's that simple and that profound. In the fight against poverty, it is essential that we are able to combat illiteracy. It was recently announced that the Ghanaian government is planning on spending about a third of its budget on education. This is a huge step (provided it's managed properly), and hopefully we'll soon be able to stamp out illiteracy completely.

*Flash player required.

We've been reading...

Better sanitation could save 2 million lives a year
Reuters -- Nearly 20 percent of the world's population still defecates in the open, and action to improve hygiene, sanitation and water supply could prevent more than 2 million child deaths a year, health experts said Monday. In a series of studies on sanitation published as a cholera epidemic claims hundreds of live in Haiti, public health researchers from the United States and Europe found that this year 2.6 billion people across the world do not have access to even a basic toilet. Unsafe sanitation and drinking water, together with poor hygiene, account for at least 7 percent of disease across the world, they said, as well as nearly 20 percent of all child deaths in the world... (Kate Kelland)

UN expert praises Congo’s draft law on indigenous rights
UN News -- An independent United Nations human rights expert today welcomed a draft law in the Republic of Congo intended to recognize and protect the rights of marginalized indigenous communities in the central African country. “I welcome the development of a bill for a law on indigenous peoples, and am pleased to have heard from Government and parliamentary officials that the bill will very likely be adopted into law during the current session of Parliament, before the end of the year,” said James Anaya, the UN Special Rapporteur on the rights of indigenous peoples...

Cuban launches next phase of malaria project
SciDev.net -- Cuba has announced plans to build biolarvicide factories in Brazil and several African countries in a bid to tackle malaria and dengue fever. Biolarvicides are biological products that are added to water to kill mosquitoes at the larval stage. The Cuban government will oversee the programme, and funding is expected to come from national governments of the countries involved. Final figures have not yet been confirmed. Ghanaian health minister Benjamin Kumbour welcomed the project and said it would teach Ghana the best practices that Cuba has used to manage the disease and would deepen bilateral relations between the two countries...

United States urged to take action on climate change
ONE Blog -- In a bold call to action, a bloc of 259 investors representing a quarter of global capitalization and assets signed a statement urging the newly minted United States Congress and climate negotiators in Cancun to address climate change reform — or risk further economic woes. Never before has there been such a coordinated effort emerging from the investors’ worldwide circle. The group strategically issued their message before the November 29th international climate change treaty negotiations set to take place in Cancun, Mexico, to tackle the next step in climate change once the Kyoto Protocol expires in 2012... (Veronica Weis)

Mini Seminar: Discovering and fulfilling your life mission

Last Friday (the 12^th of November), we had our first Mini Seminar of the year. It was, as you know, hosted by Harry McNinson who spoke on 'Discovering and Fulfilling your Life Mission'. Here's a sort clip (Note - the video will not show unless you have the latest version of Flash installed. Download it here):

Harry emphasised that although there are books that aim to help you discover your role/purpose/mission in life, these serve as only pointers. The only one who can really give you an insight as to why you are here on earth is the One who crated you. There is no real way around it. Like Harry said; the only way you'll know what a new invention is supposed to be used for is to hear from its inventor.

As he rightly pointed out, there are things you can do that will help you identify your life mission. Most important (after seeking spiritual answers) is to be open to opportunities. Never pass us the opportunity to try or learn something new because you never know where it will take you.

Finally, after having discovered your life mission, the next step is to fulfill it. Live it out. This, Harry explained, should not be difficult. Of course in life there are challenges and nothing is ever going to be simple from start to finish. But in fulfilling your life mission, you should find that things generally come easy. You are able to overcome challenges and you are filled with joy. If this is not the case, you might want to go back and ensure you're still on the right path. For more information, see the Discovering and Fulfilling Your Life Mission Cheat Sheet (your mentors should have a copy). Hit continue to see pictures. And don't forget to check out our Twitter page!

Lewis Hamilton: The drive to succeed

If you know me, you'll know that I love Formula 1. The last race of the season will be taking place this weekend in Abu Dhabi. The first practice session's already over in fact (sniff sniff). You might be wondering what this has to do with anything, and rightly so. Well, I'd like to share something with you about my favourite driver, Lewis Hamilton. I stumbled on an article that, I think, speaks volumes on the kind of message we try to get across here at Databank Foundation. Here's an edited excerpt:

When Lewis Hamilton first met Ron Dennis, then the team principal of the McLaren Formula One team, he told him, "I want to race for you one day. I want to race for McLaren." Dennis was so impressed with the young man he gave him his telephone number and said, "Call me."

This wasn't in 2007, just before Hamilton joined the hugely successful F1 team. It was in December 1995, when Hamilton was just 10 years old.

"I guess I knew what I wanted early on," he says during a telephone interview from Sao Paulo, where he was racing in the Brazilian Grand Prix before flying to Abu Dhabi this week for the capital's Formula One event, which closes out the season. Hamilton finished fourth in Brazil, and has an outside chance of winning the F1 title this year.

His career as a racing driver began with remote-control cars.

"My dad thought that I had such good hand-to-eye coordination that he thought I might be able to race properly. So he bought me a kart for Christmas when I was eight years old."

Hamilton's desire to drive for McLaren was, he admits, more down to the look of the team than anything else. "Young kids are generally attracted to colours first," he says. "They don't know the people's names or the teams' names... Then I got to know more about them and started following Ayrton Senna."

He names Senna - a Brazilian Formula One driver who died in a crash in 1994 and is considered to be one of the greatest drivers of all time - as one of his role models; Nelson Mandela, whom he refers to as a "kind of friend," is another.


"He [Mandela] has been a huge inspiration to me, I read about him so much, and to finally meet him was probably one of the most fantastic moments of my life outside of racing," he says.

Obviously, the most fantastic moment in his racing career came in 2008, when, at the age of 23, he became the youngest ever (and the first black) driver to be crowned F1 World Champion. He won the title ahead of the Brazilian driver Felipe Massa by a single point. [He also missed out on becoming the first person to be crowned World Champion in their first year by one point in 2007.]

"It's very surreal, I have to say," he says. "... I don't walk around thinking I'm some kind of superstar, I walk around generally the same person as I was growing up and I know that if I don't do a good enough job at what I'm doing I'm going to lose my job. It's exactly like anyone else, that's the way I approach my work, and I work my backside off."

Hamilton loves music, and often travels with a guitar. He is also trying to read more.

"I go and look in a bookstore and don't know what on earth to pick up," he says. "But I like to learn something when I read rather than just reading a story. The last book I read was A Thousand Splendid Suns, I thought it was a beautiful story."

_________

Not all of us are fortunate enough to know exactly what we want to do from a young age. But if you do (and even of you don't), I'd like to encourage you to go for it with everything you have. Never let anyone tell you what you can or can't do. With determination and hard work, half the battle has already been won - so go ahead and believe in yourself!

You can read the article in full here - part one, part two.