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The East African coastline could be declared a war risk zone due to an increase in piracy, the Kenya Shippers Council (KSC) has warned.

KSC chief executive officer, Mr Gilbert Langat, said increasing piracy has led to a rise in the cost of sea freight through the Gulf of Aden, leading to the coastline attracting huge insurance premiums.

“Shipping lines are avoiding the region for fear of attacks, choosing to take a longer more costly route via Cape of Good Hope in the South,” the council says in a circular issued to members of the Kenya Association of Manufacturers (KAM).

Assessing

He added that the council, in collaboration with Fresh Produce Exporters Association of Kenya (FPEAK), is assessing the impact of piracy on the economy.

The cost increase is registered in sea freight rates, insurance, time (longer voyage), operational (in surcharges), piracy, deviation (war risk), opportunity costs and loss of markets among others.

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Tags: Risk

It is common for small business owners to be unaware of current legal issues that may hit them… until they get into legal trouble. The problem is that legal trouble can cost you. It can even cost you your business. As many know and Business Week recently pointed out, court actions can actually demolish small businesses; especially the ones that did not prepare in advance.

Here are some legal issues that just about any small business needs to watch out for:

Employee Lawsuits

As more and more employees are hurting from layoffs because of the economy, you can bet that there will be some who will claim employee discrimination and wrongful termination. Lawrence Z.

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Tags: Business Owners, Owners, Small Business, Small Business Owners

KAMPALA

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• Oil firms tussle for Uganda oil fields

Uganda will review proposals for Heritage Oil’s assets and make a decision in two weeks, a senior official said, a move that seemed to contradict earlier statements supporting a bid by Italy’s Eni.

Some analysts say the government is still thrashing out internal disputes over whether to support Eni’s attempt to buy Heritage’s Ugandan assets or Tullow Oil’s pre-emptive right to acquire the blocks.

A senior government official, who attended talks between Tullow’s chief executive and President Yoweri Museveni late on Friday but was not authorised to speak to the media, said that the government had not made a “concrete decision” yet.

“The government will discuss all the proposals from all the companies in Uganda’s oil and gas sector and take two weeks to make a decision,” the official said on Saturday.

A government statement about the meeting said: “Museveni said government officials are due to meet to discuss the matter, and added that they would be choosing only capable and competent companies to participate in the oil and gas sector.”

Energy Minister Hillary Onek said on Thursday that Uganda would favour Eni’s bid to buy Heritage’s half-shares in Block 1 and Block 3A in the Albertine Graben region of western Uganda.

Kampala says it does not want a monopoly of its oil sector.

Tullow owns half of Block 1 and Block 3A and all of Block 2 and has started a process to sell the Heritage assets plus 50 percent of Block 2 to one or two partners.

The three blocks cover the Ugandan side of Lake Albert and contain recent discoveries that executives said could reach billions of barrels of oil.

Tags: Oil, Oil Block

The very terms “software leasing” and “software financing” are confusing to many people. This is due to the fact that software is typically not seen as something that is purchased over time.

This view is shared by both end-users, and the developers of software. Companies who think nothing of financing a vehicle or a new computer system will stress over how they will pay for expensive new software. And the producers of software see no need for offering a software leasing or a software financing option.

But times are changing.

Third party equipment finance companies – companies who offer small and medium size es equipment financing and working capital – have responded to a need for software financing and software leasing. Thus, they Full Post…

Tags: Leasing, Software Financing, Software Leasing

Topeka ? The city of Topeka says now is the time to apply for a Summer job with the parks and rec department.

Right now they’re accepting both full-time and part-time applications for lifeguard, camp counselor and other Summer positions.

Most positions will run from May through early August.

The city says the minimum age for most of these jobs is 18, although a few may be filled by 16- and 17-year-olds. Most hiring will be completed by early March. The final deadline for application is April 2, 2010.

You can find more info at www.topeka.org/employment.

Tags: Department, Rec Department