WASHINGTON, March 4, 2015/African Press Organization (APO)/ — Funding Opportunity AnnouncementBureau of Population, Refugees, and MigrationMarch 3, 2015Funding Opportunity Number: PRM-PRMOAPAF-15-007-051090Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) number: 19.517 – Overseas Refugee Assistance Programs for AfricaAnnouncement issuance date: Tuesday, March 3, 2015Proposal submission deadline: Thursday, April 2, 2015 at 12:00 p.m. noon EDT. Proposals submitted after this deadline will not be considered.**ADVISORY: All applicants must submit proposals through the website Grants.gov NOT through GrantsSolutions.gov. Please note that if you apply on the GrantSolutions.gov site, your application will be disqualified. PRM strongly recommends submitting your proposal early to allow time to address…
Author: apofeed
WASHINGTON, March 3, 2015/African Press Organization (APO)/ — Press StatementJohn KerrySecretary of StateWashington, DCMarch 2, 2015The United States congratulates the people of Lesotho for participating peacefully in Lesotho’s snap parliamentary election on February 28.The U.S. Embassy deployed 18 American and Basotho staff as observers to six of Lesotho’s ten districts, where they witnessed the opening, voting, closing, and counting in approximately 80 polling stations. Every vote counts and every vote was a victory for Lesotho.The United States shares the hopes of the Basotho that these elections will allow Lesotho to move beyond a period of political uncertainty and strengthen national…
DUBLIN, Ireland, March 4, 2015/African Press Organization (APO)/ — Today Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, Charlie Flanagan, TD, met the Egyptian Assistant Foreign Minister, Hisham Badr, in Geneva.Minister Flanagan raised the matter of Ibrahim Halawa’s detention. He said that he was most concerned about Ibrahim’s welfare and wished to see him at home in ireland resuming his studies. He referred to Ibrahim’s long period of detention and said that he was in close contact with Ibrahim’s family and, as a father himself, he understood their concerns and their desire to have Ibrahim back home and back at school. Assistant…
DUBAI, UAE, March 4, 2015/African Press Organization (APO)/ — The Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD) (http://www.icd-idb.com) is delighted to announce the achievement of two awards at the industry-leading Islamic Finance news Deal of the Year Awards for 2014. The multilateral agency contributed to both the ‘Africa Deal of the Year’ for its role in the CFA100 billion inaugural sovereign Sukuk from the Republic of Senegal in July; and ‘Cross-border Deal of the Year’ for its landmark US$100 million commodity Murabahah transaction with Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ in September.Logo: http://www.photos.apo-opa.com/plog-content/images/apo/logos/icd.jpgPhoto 1: http://www.photos.apo-opa.com/index.php?level=picture&id=1805 (Cross Boarder Award)Photo 2:…
BERLIN, Germany, March 3, 2015/African Press Organization (APO)/ — A Federal Foreign Office spokesperson issued the following statement in Berlin today (3 March 2015) in response to the Malian Government and some of the armed groups signing a peace agreement in Algiers on 1 March:The signing of this peace agreement represents a significant step towards lasting and sustainable peace in Mali, achieved in part thanks to months of effort by international mediators led by Algeria.All parties which have not yet done so are now expressly called upon also to sign this hard won agreement soon. This is the best chance…
MANAMA, Bahrain, March 2, 2015/African Press Organization (APO)/ — The Tunisian leasing firm El Wifack has signed an advisory services contract and a term sheet with the Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD) (http://www.icd-idb.com), the private sector arm of the Islamic Development Bank Group (“IDB”), in order to process and support its conversion to full Shariah compliant Banking operations.Logo: http://www.photos.apo-opa.com/plog-content/images/apo/logos/icd.jpgPhoto: http://www.photos.apo-opa.com/index.php?level=picture&id=1796The advisory agreement is designed to develop an advisory process in order to efficiently and effectively deliver full conversion: including to identify challenges and address impediments to this mutual collaboration. The ICD will dedicate seven key…
CAIRO, Egypt, March 2, 2015/African Press Organization (APO)/ — Achim Steiner, UN Under-Secretary-General and Executive Director of the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) will be available for a limited number of one-on-one interviews during his visit to Egypt from 3-5 March 2015 Mr. Steiner will deliver a keynote address at the 15th Session of the African Ministerial Conference on the Environment (AMCEN), attended by over 300 participants from 54 countries, including African Ministers of Environment, Finance and Development, UN and donor agencies, expert groups and civil society. UNEP hosts the Secretariat of the Ministerial meeting. On this occasion, UNEP is launching…
WASHINGTON, February 27, 2015/African Press Organization (APO)/ — Press AvailabilityJohn KerrySecretary of StateTreaty RoomWashington, DCFebruary 27, 2015SECRETARY KERRY: Good morning, everybody. I am extremely pleased to welcome Her Excellency, Dr. Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, the president of Liberia, here to America and to the Department of State. President Sirleaf is a very distinguished world leader, the deserving recipient of the 2011 Nobel Peace Prize, and the first woman elected head of state in Africa. And Madam President, we’re really delighted to have you here now at a moment of great importance to your country’s history. It obviously is a bittersweet combination…
KINSHASA, Dem. Rep. of Congo (DRC) February 27, 2015/African Press Organization (APO)/ — Since December 2014, an estimated 20,000 Central Africans have fled over the river Ubangi into the Bili and Bosobolo health zones in Equateur Province, northern DRC, adding to 10,000 refugees already present in the area. The refugees have arrived with very few possessions, if any, and are heavily dependent on the local community. Available supplies of food and drinking water must be divided among an increasingly large population and the threat of malnutrition and water-borne illness looms. “Food is scarce and the markets are empty. We’re seeing…
BERN, Switzerland, February 27, 2015/African Press Organization (APO)/ — As part of a four-day visit ending today, the State Secretary of the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA), Yves Rossier, has held political consultations in South Africa and Burundi. In South Africa, the two parties established a platform for cooperation in the area of human rights. In Burundi, the State Secretary met with President Pierre Nkurunziza as well as several key stakeholders in light of the elections to be held in June of this year.The FDFA State Secretary was received on 24 February by the South African Deputy Foreign Minister,…
MOGADISHU, Somalia, February 27, 2015/African Press Organization (APO)/ — The Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Somalia (SRSG), Nicholas Kay, welcomed the release on 25 February of four remaining crewmen of the FV Prantalay 12 vessel, taken hostage at sea by Somali pirates on 18 April 2010. This is the longest period of captivity by any hostages of Somali pirates. The crew, all Thai nationals, were released by their captors into the hands of the Somali Regional Administration in Galmudug.”I am grateful to see the longest held hostages released from Somalia, and thank all those involved who made it…
GENEVA, Switzerland, February 27, 2015/African Press Organization (APO)/ — IOM offices in Ethiopia, Tanzania and Yemen this week helped 125 Ethiopians – many of them unaccompanied minors – to return home from Tanzania and Yemen.The 54 returnees from Tanzania, who included six unaccompanied minors, were detained by the Tanzanian authorities while trying to reach South Africa and spent over four months in detention before IOM arranged their return home.The 71 returnees from Yemen, who were all unaccompanied minors, crossed the Red Sea and became stranded while trying to reach the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. They spent between 2-3 months in…
GENEVA, Switzerland, February 27, 2015/African Press Organization (APO)/ — In what is hoped will be the first of many evacuations of stranded third country nationals in the coming weeks, IOM today organized the successful departure of 133 Senegalese men from the Karareem reception center in Misrata, Libya, and their flight home from Tunisia.The evacuees are part of a group of 401 Senegalese IOM plans to return to their homeland over the next week, and perhaps the first of thousands who will be able to leave Libya safely after months of waiting.For this operation, IOM worked in close cooperation with the…
GENEVA, Switzerland, February 26, 2015/African Press Organization (APO)/ — A cholera outbreak is further jeopardizing the health of 230,000 people recently displaced by floods in Malawi. The majority of those affected are living in temporary camps where access to safe water and improved sanitation, both essential for the prevention of an epidemic, is an immediate challenge. The Red Cross, through its solid network of volunteers, is on the ground, constructing new latrines and repairing damaged boreholes, however, without an influx of resources, there is concern that the caseload will increase, increasing the vulnerability of already fragile families. “The Red Cross…
NAIROBI, Kenya, February 26, 2015/African Press Organization (APO)/ — The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) will hold a press conference on Friday 27 February at the end of its 41st Session in Nairobi, Kenya. When: 14.00 Nairobi time on Friday 27 February 2015 (0600 ET, 11.00 GMT, 12.00 Geneva, 16.30 New Delhi, 19.00 Beijing, 20.00 Tokyo) Where: United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Headquarters, United Nations Avenue, Gigiri, Nairobi, Kenya NB This press conference was previously scheduled 3 hours later at 17.00 Nairobi time. The Acting Chair of the IPCC, Ismail El Gizouli, and the Secretary of the IPCC, Renate…
STASBOURG, Belgium, February 26, 2015/African Press Organization (APO)/ — Elena Valenciano, Chair of the Subcommittee on Human Rights in the European Parliament, welcomed the release of Bob Rugurica from Brurundi following Parliament’s resolution in February calling for his immediate release. Bob Rugurika thanked the European Parliament for its strong support and gave a statement which you can watch here.Ms Valenciano made the following statement:”The European Parliament welcomes the release, even if conditional, of journalist Bob Rugurika from Burundi. It is gratifying to see that our February urgency resolution on his specific case has had an impact on the ground.We trust…
ROME, Italy, February 25, 2015/African Press Organization (APO)/ — A cooperative of women in Ethiopia is set to reach the international market thanks to a partnership between Italian gourmet food store Eataly and FAO. The two joined forces in 2013 to support family farmers around the globe in boosting their production and finding ways to reach new overseas customers. The work with the women’s cooperative is one example of this collaboration. For a few years Tsega Gebrekidan Aregawi ran a small kiosk in the northern Ethiopian town of Mekelle, where local university students would stop by to purchase fresh fruit…
WASHINGTON, February 25, 2015/African Press Organization (APO)/ — Press StatementJen PsakiDepartment SpokespersonWashington, DCFebruary 24, 2015President Obama, today, nominated Katherine S. Dhanani to serve as the first United States Ambassador to Somalia since 1991. This historic nomination signals the deepening relationship between the United States and Somalia. It also allows us to mark the progress of the Somali people toward emerging from decades of conflict. Somalia has considerable work ahead to complete its transition to a peaceful, democratic, and prosperous nation. The United States is committed to supporting Somalia on this journey as a steadfast partner. If confirmed, the Ambassador will…
NIAMEY, Niger, February 25, 2015/African Press Organization (APO)/ — The Senior Minister, Minister of Economic Planning, Land Management and Community Development, H.E Dr. Amadou Boubacar CISSE and the CEO and General Manager of the Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD) (http://www.icd-idb.com), the private sector arm of the Islamic Development Bank Group (IDB), Mr. Khaled Al Aboodi, signed an agreement to setup a Sukuk program in an aggregate principal amount of CFA 150.0 billion. This program will be implemented during 2015-2020 for financing developmental projects. The Sukuk Program will be implemented in two equal phases of CFA…
MOGADISHU, Somalia, February 24, 2015/African Press Organization (APO)/ — The United Nations, African Union, European Union, Inter-Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD), United Kingdom and the United States of America have welcomed efforts by local elders and business people in Somalia’s central regions to mediate a peaceful solution to the recent conflict in Guricel. They expressed concern about the humanitarian impact and loss of life stemming from the conflict and called upon all parties to refrain from violence. They said: “We look forward to the conclusion of the valuable Dhuusamareb reconciliation conference, and look forward to the swift launch of the…