Hawai for Tourism and Investment, a foremost tourism development company, announced the launch of “Cairo Eye” project, the first observation wheel in Cairo and the largest wheel in Africa. 

Egypt’s Ministry of Tourism & Antiquities Khaled El-Enany and Cairo governor Major-General Khaled Abdel Aaal laid the first foundation stone yesterday at the construction site of the much-awaited Cairo Eye.

In line with Egypt’s strategic development plan across sectors, the company with an initial investment of EGP500million is set to establish Egypt’s first observational wheel.

The project, set to launch next year, will be one of modern Cairo’s iconic landmarks and the next tourist destination.

The Cairo Eye standing at 120m is the same height as China’s Tjanjin Eye. It will be built at Zamalek’s Obelisk Park, ‘Hadiqat Al-Masala’ on the Eastern bank of the Nile in Zamalek, opposite the Cairo Tower.

The company’s Chairperson Ahmed El Sayed Metwally announced on Thursday that it will partly fund it by 50% while banks working in the Egyptian market will fund the remaining half.

The project will offer a unique panoramic view of the city from a distance of 50 km and welcome between 2million to 2.5 million guests annually. It will be Africa’s largest wheel and the fifth largest wheel around the world after London, Dubai, Las Vegas and Singapore.

Metwally added that negotiations with national banks are expected to be finalised in February 2021.

The first of its kind in Egypt, Cairo Eye project seeks replication in the regions of Galala Resort on the Red Sea coast at A’in Sokhna, and the city of New Alamein on the Mediterranean coast, Metwally noted. He said, according to feasibility studies, tickets for guests to the project will range between EGP 250 and EGP 350.

The project is the outcome of cooperation between various parties, including the Egyptian Tourism Promotion Authority, which falls under the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, and the Cairo Governorate.   

The Nigerian government through its Ministry of Environment and the National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI) have started Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) for the first ever Made-in-Nigeria helicopter.

NASENI through reverse engineering is leading Nigeria’s first manufacturing of non-commercial helicopter.  

Minister of Environment, Muhammad Abubakar said the EIA projects will be conducted to identify possible mitigation in the insulation of equipment on the project be it noise, solid and liquid pollutions.

Abubakar said this yesterday in Abuja when he received the management team from NASENI, led by the Executive Vice Chairman/Chief Executive, Mohammed Haruna.

He said, “Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) is part of every endeavour on the planet but especially when you talk of aviation, there is a lot of impact on the environment from accidents in aviation, birds strike, noise, vibration, wastes that will be created etc.

“The EIA projects entail a number of things like project registration, site verification for project categorisation and screening environmental data collection and a lot more. It will identify possible mitigation in the insulation of abetment equipment whether noise, pollution both solid and liquid pollutants are all the EIA project will look at. Let me implore you to ensure that EIA is conducted on all your projects to enhance their sustainability.”

The EVC NASENI, Haruna explained that NASENI is trying the launch the first made-in-Nigeria aircraft and there are environmental regulations that the agency must adhere to.

He said, “… we must be accessed and permitted to test any engine in the environment. We have designed, developed and fabricated jet engines that EIA is being conducted by the Ministry of Environment and we want it to be fast tracked, we also want the Ministry to collaborate with us but supporting larger and mass production of our solar products which contributes to the reduction of emission. He further expressed optimism that Nigeria should have its first made-in-Nigeria aircraft by the end of 2021.

Ghanaian rap icon Sarkodie has bagged a nomination for the 2021 MTV Africa Music Awards (MAMA).

The super talented rapper was nominated in the Listeners’ Choice Award category.
Sarkodie will at the virtual show on February 20 in Kampala, Uganda. face competition from nineteen (19) other talents from eighteen (18) countries across the continent.

Other nominees include Anna Joyce (Angola), AsaphAfrika (Zimbabwe), Dagi D (Ethiopia), DBNGOGO & DJ Dinho (South Africa), Didi B (Cote D’Ivoire), Drizilik (Sierra Leone), Focalistic (South Africa), Khaligraph Jones (Kenya), Locko (Cameroon).

The rest are Malome Vector (Lesotho), Meddy (Rwanda), Mohamed Ramadan (Egypt), Ngaaka Blindé (Senegal), Pallaso, (Uganda), Rayvanny (Tanzania), Shirazee (Benin), DJ Slick Stuart, DjRoja_ (Uganda), Souhila Ben Lachhab (Algeria) and Tiwa Savage (Nigeria).

The MAMA Awards is an award that celebrates local African and international talent and achievement. MAMA 2021, in partnership with Uganda, The Pearl of Africa, recognizes and rewards musicians, trailblazers and those who are shining a light on the continent’s diverse talent and creativity by instilling positive impact on African music and youth culture over the previous year. The awards ceremony will feature vibrant performances from leading African and international artists and will also showcase some of the biggest cross-genre and cross-border collaborations.

This year’s award will celebrate African talent across 20 award categories, including Best Male, Best Female, Best Song, and Best Collaboration. The contribution of artists from Portuguese and French-speaking Africa will also be recognized in the Best Lusophone and Best Francophone categories. Additional new categories included are the MAMA Generation Change Award, Best Fan Base, Alone Together Best Lock-down Performance and Personality of the Year. These new categories seek to demonstrate MTV Base’s commitment to supporting the youth of Africa.

The MAMA Generation Change Award will recognize the inspiring, young change makers of the continent who are tackling some of the world’s most challenging social problems. The Alone Together Best Lock-down Performance recognizes outstanding performances that took place virtually by celebrating artists who took to streaming services to share their music and unite society during the unprecedented 2020 Lockdown.