ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia, March 19, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — The Government of Equatorial Guinea and the African Union Commission have signed an agreement to host the third session of the Conference of African Ministers of Transport in the Republic of Equatorial Guinea. The agreement was signed at the AU headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, between the Ambassador of the Republic of Equatorial Guinea, H.E. Mr. Simeon Oyono Esono and the Commissioner for Infrastructure and Energy of the African Union Commission, H.E. Dr. Elham Mahmud Ahmed Ibrahim The main objectives of the conference are to review the implementation of the…
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MOGADISHU, Somalia, March 19, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — The National Union of Somali Journalists (NUSOJ) has launched a petition to the Ethiopian government to free Somali journalist Mohamed Aweys Mudey was sentenced to 27-year jail.Somali journalist Mudey, 48, was accused by the Ethiopian prosecutors of having information about Al-Shabaab operations in Ethiopia and was charged for participating in terror activities. He was arrested in Addis Ababa in November, 2013 and in the month of February, 2014, he was found guilty of charges and imposed sentence as the 4-month period prescribed in the Ethiopia’s anti-terror law to interrogate suspect elapsed.During…
MOGADISHU, Somalia, March 19, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — The Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Somalia, Nicholas Kay, has welcomed the military progress made by the Somali National Army (SNA) and the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) in south-central Somalia. “I congratulate the SNA and AMISOM forces on regaining control of key towns and areas from Al Shabaab. I pay tribute to the commitment and sacrifices made by Somali soldiers and their African brothers and sisters,” SRSG Kay said. “The UN will continue to support the joint operations in line with Security Council Resolution 2124 and the…
JOHANNESBURG, South-Africa, March 19, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — Yesterday, the 10th Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP) Partnership Platform officially opened in Durban at the International Convention Centre. On the 10th anniversary of CAADP inception, this meeting is a pivotal moment, asking members to objectively reflect on previous goals and actions and call upon African Heads of State and government to enhance their ownership and commitment to CAADP.The meeting brought together Africa and global leaders from a number of international organisations, African Governments including ministers, private agribusiness firms, financial institutions, farmers, NGOs and civil society organizations to discuss and…
ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia, March 18, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — A five thousand US dollar ($5,000) donation has been pledged to the Addis Ababa Fistulae treatment hospital in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Chairperson of the African Union Commission, Dr. Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma made the pledge through the African Ambassadors Spouses Group (AASG) on 18 March 2014, during a fundraising lunch, as part of an extended celebration of the 103rd International Women’s Day. At the fundraising event that was held at the multipurpose hall of the AU headquarters, Dr. Dlamini Zuma made an instant donation of one thousand US dollars ($1,000).Announcing the…
PORT-LOUIS, Mauritius, March 18, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — Central bank officials from English-speaking African countries took part in an advanced course on key elements of the Forecasting and Policy Analysis System (FPAS) as it is used at leading central banks around the world. This course is part of the IMF’s efforts to assist sub-Saharan African (SSA) countries to modernize monetary policy. The event was jointly organized by the ATI and the IMF’s Institute for Capacity Development (ICD). The course was facilitated by a team of IMF and ATI experts.The course started with a review of modern monetary policy making,…
VICTORIA, Mahé, March 17, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — The African Union Ministerial Working Group on tourism sector development strategy have concluded a two-day brainstorming meeting on 14 March 2014 in Seychelles in view to strategise on how to make an African brand through tourism while attracting visitors to chose Africa as major destination. Key speakers at the opening ceremony of the Ministerial Working Group include, Dr. Elham Mamoud Ibrahim, Commissioner for Infrastructure and Energy of the African Union, Mr Jean-Paul Adam, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Seychelles, Mr Alain ST Ange, Minister of Tourism and Culture…
LAGOS, Nigeria, March 18, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — There is currently a significant opportunity for Nigerians as a result of the massive investments being made in the power sector, and that is human-capacity building within the sector itself. Engineers head many of the major public and private sector organisations across Africa, and in Nigeria it is no different. Logo: http://www.photos.apo-opa.com/plog-content/images/apo/logos/140318.png“It is an exceptional time in Nigeria for business leaders, but equally for the business leaders of tomorrow. It is with this in mind that EnergyNet has launched the ‘Student Engagement Initiative’ which will facilitate some of the brightest Nigerian…
NDJAMENA, Chad, March 18, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — MSF has been in Bitoye for the past three weeks, setting up a primary health facility in the small town of 10,000 which has seen its population double due to the influx of refugees. With approximately one hundred consultations per day – mostly women and children – MSF’s waiting room is never empty. Nursing a baby barely a month old, one woman reports that she was forced to flee, barefoot, into the bush with her seven children after the anti-balaka forces attacked Bocaranga, her native village. The same story is told…
BANGUI, Central African Republic, March 18, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — The African-led International Support Mission in the Central African Republic (MISCA) caught, in the morning of 16 March 2014, red handed a group of armed individuals, looting a private villa behind the Fidel OBROUX Camp, near the headquarters of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), in the 4th district of Bangui. The elements of the Burundian contingent of the MISCA Force, in charge of ensuring the security of four (4) of the eight (8) districts of the capital were alerted by neighbours at around 9h00…
BANGUI, Central African Republic, March 18, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — The African-led International Support Mission in the Central African Republic (MISCA) welcomes the signing, on 13 March 2014, by the Head of State of the Transition, Mrs. Catherine Samba- Panza, of a decree relating to the change in the curfew time across the entire Central African territory, which now stands from 11 p. m to 5 a.m. The curfew was introduced after the tragic events of 5 December 2014 and the attendant security problems.This change, the second of its kind, after the one on 13 February 2014 and which…
GENEVA, Switzerland, March 18, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — After days and nights on the road, a second IOM convoy of 661 distressed migrants (604 Chadians and 57 Sudanese) arrived in Moundou in southern Chad yesterday. An earlier IOM overland convoy from Cameroon to Chad brought 862 migrants last week.IOM continues to assist thousands of migrants fleeing the ongoing violence in the Central African Republic (CAR) stranded in Cameroon. This includes 10,000 Chadians and other Third Country Nationals (TCNs) that have fled Car for Cameroon and are seeking IOM assistance to continue their journey back home.The stranded migrants in Cameroon…
GENEVA, Switzerland, March 18, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — The refugees fleeing the Central African Republic (CAR) have had to endure a torturous journey before finally reaching Sido, on the Chadian side of the border. After witnessing the massacre of their neighbours or relatives in the CAR, they arrive exhausted both physically and mentally after travelling several hundred kilometers packed in trucks or vehicles escorted from Bangui by the Chadian army. Dr. Frédérique Drogoul, an MSF psychiatrist, talks about these lives torn apart by violence and exile. “Most of the refugees who told me their stories did so in a…
GENEVA, Switzerland, March 18, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — South Africa must take urgent steps to proactively investigate and prosecute foreign bribery. No foreign bribery cases have been prosecuted since South Africa joined the Convention in 2007. The 4 on-going investigations – out of only 10 allegations that have surfaced to date – are also far from reaching the prosecution stage, according to a new report by the OECD Working Group on Bribery. The need for enforcement is imperative, especially as South African companies are increasingly operating abroad, often in sectors with a high risk of foreign bribery. There are…
BRUSSELS, Kingdom of Belgium, March 18, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — Brigadier General Marc Rudkiewicz was today appointed new Mission Commander for the EU training mission in mali (EUTM Mali). General Rudkiewicz, from France, will take up his duties on 1 April. He will succeed Brigadier General Bruno Guibert, who had been in the position since 1 August 2013. The EU training mission supports the restructuration and the reorganisation of the Malian Armed Forces though training and advice. It is intended to help improve the military capacity of the Malian Armed Forces in order to allow, under civilian authority, the…
OUAGADOUGOU, Burkina-Faso, March 18, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — Medical licenses previously granted to the American medical staff of Clitoraid (http://www.clitoraid.org), a nonprofit organization that helps victims of female genital mutilation obtain clitoral repair surgery, have been revoked in Burkina Faso due to “blatant discrimination against the Raelian Movement,” according to a statement released today by Clitoraid.Logo: http://www.photos.apo-opa.com/plog-content/images/apo/logos/clitoraid-1.pngPhoto 1: http://www.photos.apo-opa.com/plog-content/images/apo/photos/or_3.jpgPhoto 2: http://www.photos.apo-opa.com/plog-content/images/apo/photos/kamkaso_2.jpgPhoto 3: http://www.photos.apo-opa.com/plog-content/images/apo/photos/kamkaso_1.jpg”Although granted earlier with no problem, our doctors’ licenses were revoked after they had completed just one week of operations,” said Dr. Brigitte Boisselier, president of Clitoraid and spokesperson for the Raelian Movement. “We couldn’t open our…
ROME, Italy, March 18, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — Theme: African youth in agriculture and rural development WHAT: 28th Session of FAO Regional Conference for Africa WHERE: Hotel “Le Palace” Gammarth, Tunis – Tunisia WHEN: March 24 to 28, 2014 FAO in collaboration with the Government of Tunisia will convene the 28th Session of the Regional Conference for Africa in Tunis from 24 to 28 March 2014. The Conference will bring together ministers of agriculture and senior government officials from FAO Member countries in the Region as well as members of the Civil Society and partners.Delegates will discuss issues relating…
BANGUI, Central African Republic, March 17, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — The Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Sexual Violence in Conflict, Mrs. Zainab Hawa Bangura, arrived in Bangui on 17 March for a 3 day visit. Among other goals, she will interact with the transition authorities on matters relating to the prevention of sexual violence in conflict. In the CAR, Mrs Bangura will also monitor the implementation of two communiqués jointly signed in December 2012 by the United Nations and the Car Authorities, through which the Government had made a number of commitments including “the adoption of legislation on…
BANGUI, Central African Republic, March 17, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — As the security situation in the Central African Republic (CAR) continues to improve, the African-led International Support Mission in the Central African Republic (MISCA) and the United Nations Fund for Population Activities (UNFPA) have launched an initiative to empower Car women to promote social cohesion, conflict resolution and a culture of peace. As part of the initiative, MISCA’s Human Rights Protection and Gender Unit, under the auspices of CAR’s Minister of Health, Social Affairs, Gender and Humanitarian Action, Dr. Marguerite Samba, co-organized with UNFPA a workshop for 50 leaders…
GENEVA, Switzerland, March 17, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Navi Pillay, will visit the war-torn Central African Republic from 18 to 20 March 2014, to discuss the dire human rights situation there with the interim Government and key international institutions and peace-keeping forces. During her visit, Pillay plans to meet the Head of State of the Transition, Catherine Samba-Panza, the Prime Minister and the Ministers of Justice and Reconciliation and Communication. She will also meet representatives of the African Union, Economic Community of Central African States and European Union, as well as the…