LOOKING UP: Lives of East Africans are set to improve (XINHUA)

Leader's Call

Guinea-Bissau

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has expressed hope that the leadership of Guinea-Bissau will transfer in line with the West African country's Constitution following the death of President Malam Bacai Sanhá. "The Secretary General trusts that the succession arrangements provided for in the Constitution of Guinea-Bissau will be fully respected," an official statement stressed, adding that the United Nations stands ready to support the country's people and authorities.

Prudent Monetary Policy

China

China will maintain a prudent monetary policy this year with "timely and appropriate adjustments," said China's central bank. It will adjust credit supply and keep social financing at a reasonable growth using interest rates, exchange rates, open market operations and banks' reserve requirement ratio. It will also better serve the development of the real economy.

Economies Rebound

East Africa

The economic outlook for the East African region looks less grim in 2012 than in 2011 according to economists' projections. There was an economic slowdown in 2011 right across the region due to inflationary pressures and rising fuel prices. IMF projections for the region in 2011 have reduced regional growth by about 4 percent due to these pressures. Rwanda remained at the forefront of thriving economic stability despite the economic hardships that hit Burundi, Tanzania, Kenya and Uganda leading to double digit inflation and depreciation of the local currencies on the dollar.

Numbers

22.5%
Year-on-year increase of China's 2011 foreign trade

78.67 million

Passengers handled by BeijingCapitalInternationalAirportin 2011

450,000

People directly employed in Morocco's tourism industry

$24.9 million

Loan granted by International Fund for Agricultural Development to Liberia to revitalize cocoa and coffee production sectors