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Network Africa: Nigeria Now Africa’s Largest Economy As Rwandans Remember Genocide

On this edition of Network Africa, the growth of Nigeria’s economy hits the limelight as it overtakes South Africa as Africa’s largest economy. Nigeria has … Continue reading Network Africa: Nigeria Now Africa’s Largest Economy As Rwandans Remember Genocide


Network AfricaOn this edition of Network Africa, the growth of Nigeria’s economy hits the limelight as it overtakes South Africa as Africa’s largest economy.

Nigeria has overtaken South Africa as the continent’s largest economy after a rebasing calculation almost doubled its Gross Domestic Product to more than 500 billion US dollars.

The Nigeria Bureau of Statistics confirmed that GDP for 2013 in Africa’s top oil producer was over 80 trillion Naira, up from the 42.3 trillion estimated before the rebasing.

Oscar Pistorius’ harsh grilling from the prosecution in his murder trial on Wednesday also features on this edition, with state prosecutor, Gerrie Nel, vowing to “get to the truth” as he questioned Pistorius about the killing of his girlfriend on Valentine’s Day 2013.

The prosecutor immediately boxed the double-amputee athlete into a corner in what could best be described by the defense as an “ambush.” Our correspondent, Betty Dibia in South Africa gives us details on the trial.

The UN World Health Organization has warned that this is “one of the most challenging Ebola outbreaks they have ever dealt with” and it could take another four months to contain.

Therefore, to shed more light on the Ebola outbreak, Amarachi Ubani spoke to the Voice of America’s Carole Pearson, and it is quite revealing.

Stories From Rwanda

The past week has been highly significant for the people of Rwanda, as they remembered the victims of the genocide which ended the lives of at least 800,000 people in the space of 100 days.

The President of Rwanda, Paul Kagame, along with the UN Secretary, Ban Ki Moon, lit a torch which is to burn for 100 days, representing the number of days during which the genocide took place.

Also, France has acknowledged mistakes in its dealings with Rwanda, but has repeatedly shut down accusations that it trained militias to take part in the massacres.

Still in Rwanda, brother and sister, Chance Tubane and Patience Nduwawe, have chosen not to be victims of their circumstance.  They run one of Rwanda’s most popular websites.

They combine their skills in I.T. and Communication and in 2011, they launched tohoza.com – an online directory and advertisement platform, where Rwandans can post or search for jobs and houses, sell or rent anything, and even look for partners.

Their site has literally become Rwanda’s second most visited website, turning its young founders into widely known entrepreneurs.