Tanzanian tycoon Mohammed Dewji, who was kidnapped earlier this month, said Saturday he had been released and had returned home safely.
"I thank Allah that I have returned home safe and sound," Dewji told a press conference in Dar es Salaam where he was abducted on October 11 as he entered a gym at a hotel.
Clearly strained and appearing exhausted, he thanked the "Tanzanian authorities, including the police, who worked for my return."
"I thank all my fellow Tanzanians and everyone around the world for their prayers," he added.
Tanzanian police said Friday they had identified the driver of a vehicle used in the kidnapping and were making progress in their investigation.
The family had offered a reward of half a million dollars (Dh1.84 million) for information that would help police find him.
Mohammed Dewji earlier tweeted that he had been released and his father Gullam Dewji confirmed his son's release in comments to the Tanzanian daily Mwanachi.
His uncle, Azim Dewji told Mwanachi in a video that "his abductors abandoned him and he was able to phone his father," adding that his nephew was in good health.
The footage also showed a tired-looking Mohammed Dewji, in a tee-shirt and jogging trousers, thanking the police.
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Tanzania national police chief Simon Sirro told the press conference that Mr Dewji had already provided some information about the kidnapping.
"Mohammed Dewji told us that the kidnappers wanted money but were very afraid, even though they were armed. He asked them several times how much they wanted but they gave no figure," Mr Sirro said.
He also gave his captors contacts for his parents but they feared that they would be caught if they approached them, Mr Sirro said, adding that they had finally decided to give up.
"We now know their network, we know which country the plans were made," he said, without giving details.
Dar es Salaam police chief Lazaro Mambosasa meanwhile told journalists that Mohammed Dewji had indicated to him that his abductors spoke a southern Africa language, confirming suspicions that the kidnappers were foreigners.
Africa's youngest billionaire, Mr Dewji, 43, heads the MeTL Group which operates in about 10 countries with interests in agriculture to insurance, transport, logistics and the food industry.
He was born in Tanzania and studied at Georgetown University in the United States. He also served as a member of parliament from 2005 to 2015.
In 2013, he became the first Tanzanian to grace the cover of Forbes magazine and was named Forbes Africa Person of the Year in 2015.
Mr Dewji is also the main shareholder in Tanzania's Simba FC football club.
According to Forbes he is 17th on the list of Africa's billionaires, and worth $1.5 billion (Dh5.5 billion).
He is married with three children. In 2016 he signed a pledge to donate at least half of his fortune to philanthropic causes, according to Forbes.
Tightening the screw on rogue recruiters
The UAE overhauled the procedure to recruit housemaids and domestic workers with a law in 2017 to protect low-income labour from being exploited.
Only recruitment companies authorised by the government are permitted as part of Tadbeer, a network of labour ministry-regulated centres.
A contract must be drawn up for domestic workers, the wages and job offer clearly stating the nature of work.
The contract stating the wages, work entailed and accommodation must be sent to the employee in their home country before they depart for the UAE.
The contract will be signed by the employer and employee when the domestic worker arrives in the UAE.
Only recruitment agencies registered with the ministry can undertake recruitment and employment applications for domestic workers.
Penalties for illegal recruitment in the UAE include fines of up to Dh100,000 and imprisonment
But agents not authorised by the government sidestep the law by illegally getting women into the country on visit visas.
Skewed figures
In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458.
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
How much sugar is in chocolate Easter eggs?
- The 169g Crunchie egg has 15.9g of sugar per 25g serving, working out at around 107g of sugar per egg
- The 190g Maltesers Teasers egg contains 58g of sugar per 100g for the egg and 19.6g of sugar in each of the two Teasers bars that come with it
- The 188g Smarties egg has 113g of sugar per egg and 22.8g in the tube of Smarties it contains
- The Milky Bar white chocolate Egg Hunt Pack contains eight eggs at 7.7g of sugar per egg
- The Cadbury Creme Egg contains 26g of sugar per 40g egg
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
