NEW YORK, February 3, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — Following are UN Deputy Secretary-General Jan Eliasson’s remarks, as prepared for delivery, at the third meeting of the Regional Oversight Mechanism of the Peace, Security and Cooperation Framework for the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the region, in Addis Ababa today:Thank you all for attending this important meeting of the Regional Oversight Mechanism. I am especially grateful to my co-chair, Dr. Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma. She and the AU (African Union) Commission have worked tirelessly to ensure the success of the Peace, Security and Cooperation Framework for the Democratic Republic of the…
Author: apofeed
RABAT, Morocco, February 2, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — On January 31, 2014, the Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) completed the third review of Morocco’s economic performance under a program supported by a 24-month Precautionary and Liquidity Line (PLL) arrangement and concluded the 2013 Article IV consultation with Morocco.1The PLL arrangement was approved on August 3, 2012 in an amount equivalent to SDR 4.12 billion (about US$6.2 billion or 700 percent of Morocco’s quota), (See Press Release No. 12/287). The Executive Board concluded the second review on July 31, 2013. The authorities are treating the arrangement as…
ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia, January 31, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — Addis Ababa, 31 January 2014 We, the signatories of the Peace, Security and Cooperation Framework for the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the region, held the third meeting of the Regional Oversight Mechanism (ROM) on 31 January 2014 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on the margins of the 22nd Summit of the African Union. The meeting was convened jointly by the Chairperson of the African Union Commission, H.E. Dr. Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, and the United Nations Secretary–General, H.E. Mr. BAN Ki-moon, who was represented by the United Nations Deputy Secretary-General, H.E.…
BRUSSELS, Kingdom of Belgium, January 31, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — EU Commissioner for Development, Andris Piebalgs, has announced that the European Commission stands ready to give new support in the range of €25 million to the African Union-led operation in the Central African Republic, (Mission Internationale de Soutien à la Centrafrique sous Conduite Africaine, MISCA), based on a request to be done by the African Union. The announcement was done ahead of a donors’ conference in Addis Ababa (Ethiopia) to mobilise resources for MISCA.Subject to an on-going evaluation of the current needs, the EU also stands ready to support…
MOGADISHU, Somalia, January 31, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — The Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Somalia, Nicholas Kay, today expressed his concern over escalation of tensions in Baidoa surrounding a federal state-building conference. “It is important that all parties remain calm, committed to dialogue and support reconciliation efforts. I call on the traditional leaders, politicians and all stakeholders to play a constructive and reconciliatory role,” said SRSG Kay. “Nobody should risk taking steps that spoil peace- and state-building processes. I recognise the need for all stakeholders to meet without delay in Baidoa to address the legitimate concerns and…
GENEVA, Switzerland, January 31, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — The United Nations Special Rapporteur on the human rights of internally displaced persons, Chaloka Beyani, today urged the UN system and the international community to give total priority to the safety and security of South Sudan’s displaced populations. “The armed conflict in South Sudan has resulted in a widespread displacement and protection crisis, and violence continues unabated despite the agreement to cease hostilities reached on 23 January,” Mr. Beyani noted. “In attending to this crisis, we as a whole system must ensure that protection is up front, and not fail in…
OTTAWA, Canada, January 31, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — On February 2 and 3, Minister Paradis will meet with representatives from the Canadian mining industry, and host a Canada-Africa business networking event.The Minister will also deliver opening remarks at a Canadian-hosted breakfast discussion forum entitled “Investing in Mining in Africa: Transformation, Challenges and Opportunities.” In his remarks, Minister Paradis will announce Canada’s support toward a number of new initiatives. This event will be open to media. Minister Paradis will also deliver opening remarks at an African Union Commission event on the Africa Mining Vision and African Minerals Development Centre, where…
GENEVA, Switzerland, January 31, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) and the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria have just signed a grant agreement to fund universal treatment for tuberculosis (TB) in Niger, a country with one of the worst rates of TB in West Africa.A new two-year Global Fund grant of 10 million euros will allow the population of Niger, estimated at around 17 million, to access quality TB diagnosis and treatment services. The grant will expand and enhance TB services for more than 26,000 people in…
GENEVA, Switzerland, January 31, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — Sierra Leonean healthcare professionals in the UK are keen to volunteer for short term assignments to fill acute healthcare staffing shortages in their country of origin.The finding emerged from a report: Mapping of Sierra Leonean Health Professionals in the United Kingdom, commissioned by IOM and produced by the African Foundation for Development (AFFORD).Report co-authors Moses Okech and Denise Awoonor-Renner interviewed over 100 Sierra Leonean healthcare professionals, including doctors, nurses, midwives, researchers, psychiatrists and health policy advisers.The report provides an overview of their location, educational, professional and employment profiles, and explores the…
GENEVA, Switzerland, January 31, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — Ongoing insecurity in Unity State has forced thousands of people to flee into the bush, including 240 South Sudanese Medecins Sans Frontieres/Doctors Without Borders (MSF) staff based in Leer, South Sudan. A team of 30 local MSF staff have taken several dozen of the most severely ill patients from Leer Hospital with them into the bush, fearing for their safety. Other patients who were well enough to leave of their own accord also fled, and there are no longer any patients or staff left at Leer Hospital.“Despite incredibly challenging circumstances, MSF…
GENEVA, Switzerland, January 31, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — Hundreds of thousands of displaced people in South Sudan still lack water, food and medical care. The ICRC and the South Sudan Red Cross are doing their utmost to help meet the most pressing needs. “Hundreds of thousands of people are not getting enough clean drinking water,” said Marc Suchet, who is in charge of the ICRC’s water and habitat activities in South Sudan. “Security constraints and other limitations on access, not to mention the already weak water systems, make it difficult for people to obtain clean water. This is a…
GENEVA, Switzerland, January 31, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — IOM has launched an air operation to move vital humanitarian supplies to locations in South sudan where people have been displaced by conflict.The flights from IOM’s logistics hub in Juba are carrying water, hygiene and sanitation (WASH) equipment, medicine, shelter materials and relief supplies, including blankets, kitchen sets, soap, buckets and mosquito nets.Since the outbreak of fighting in South sudan last month, humanitarian actors have faced numerous challenges in delivering aid to displaced and vulnerable people. Many overland supply routes are insecure, and South Sudan’s road infrastructure is among the least…
NEW YORK, January 31, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon announced today the appointment of Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed of Mauritania as his new Deputy Special Representative and Deputy Head of the United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL), where he will also serve as Resident Coordinator and Resident Representative of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).Mr. Ould Cheikh Ahmed succeeds Georg Charpentier of Finland, who was Deputy Special Representative since October 2011, and to whom the Secretary-General is grateful for his dedicated service and contribution to the coordination of the United Nations system in that…
TUNIS, Tunisia, January 31, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — On January 29, 2014, the Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) completed the first and second reviews of Tunisia’s economic performance under a two-year program supported by a Stand-By Arrangement (SBA). The completion of the review enables an immediate disbursement of SDR 329.1 million (about US$ 506.7 million), bringing total disbursements to SDR 427.9 million (about US$ 658.8 million).The 24-month SBA in the amount of SDR 1.146 billion (about US$ 1.76 billion, or 400 percent of Tunisia’s quota at the IMF) was approved by the Executive Board on June…
LONDON, United-Kingdom, January 30, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — A RAF C-17 containing emergency blast wall protection for the UN Mission in South Sudan has today been deployed to Juba.Her Majesty’s Government today announced that the UK is providing airlift support to the UN Mission in South Sudan in order to transport much needed equipment. An RAF C17 departed from RAF Brize Norton carrying blast wall protection. The C17 flight follows the departure of three charter aircraft carrying similar equipment. The security equipment has been requested by the UN to improve the physical protection of their compounds, which are currently…
ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia, January 30, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — The Chairperson of the Commission of the African Union (AU), Dr. Nkozasana Dlamini-Zuma, welcomes the inauguration of the new Tunisian Government headed by Mr. Mehdi Jomaâ, on 29 January 2014, following negotiations among the various Tunisian stakeholders, to facilitate the conclusion of the transition that began after the Revolution of January 2011.Recalling the dispatch to Tunis, in early July 2013, of a mission of the AU Panel of the Wise, as well as the visit of former President Pedro Pires of Cape Verde to Tunisia in September 2013, to encourage…
DUBLIN, Ireland, January 30, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — Minister for Trade and Development Joe Costello TD will address the Seanad on the humanitarian situation in Syria, South sudan and the Central African Republic today at 11.45 AM. Minister Costello said: “I am pleased to open this very timely debate on the grave situation in Syria, South sudan and the Central African Republic. 2013 was a very challenging year for the international community with three ‘Level three emergencies’, the most serious humanitarian crisis designation of the United Nations, being declared. Syria is one of the worst humanitarian disasters seen in…
GENEVA, Switzerland, January 30, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — Heavy fighting in Malakal, the capital of Upper Nile State, caused widespread destruction and displaced thousands of people from their homes over the past month. An estimated 27,000 people have taken shelter on a UN Mission in South sudan (UNMISS) base in Malakal.IOM is at the forefront of assisting people displaced by conflict, both in Malakal and across South sudan. The Organization is delivering shelter materials and non-food items, providing lifesaving health care and water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) services, coordinating the management of displacement sites and registering people so that…
JOHANNESBURG, South-Africa, January 30, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — On the 8th February, Edinburgh Business School (http://www.ebsglobal.net/africa) will mark the achievements of its long-standing presence in Africa with a celebration event for graduates. The event will see 200 graduates from across the continent gather in Johannesburg. Edinburgh Business School has been offering executive education in Africa since 1990 and currently has 3760 students with a further 2000 alumni from its MBA programme. Logo: http://www.photos.apo-opa.com/plog-content/images/apo/logos/ebs.jpgThe event will also celebrate the first 23 graduates from the African Scholarship programme launched and funded by Edinburgh Business School in 2010. The scholarship scheme is…
NEW YORK, January 30, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — South African authorities should drop charges against a journalist who was roughed up and detained after photographing police officers allegedly involved in bribery, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. Ricky Dire, a journalist with the Daily Sun, also received death threats.In a telephone interview with CPJ, Dire said that on the evening of Friday, January 18, he responded to a call from store owners at a shopping center in Rustenburg North, a platinum mining town. The store owners had told him on previous occasions that they routinely had to pay…