Africa

Historic Moment For Gambia As They Advance To Maiden AFCON Quarter Final

admin — Wed, 23 Feb 2022 08:10:01 +0000

Historic Moment For Gambia As They Advance To Maiden AFCON Quarter Final

/sites/default/files/imported_articles_images/node__1222.png

admin Wed, 02/23/2022 - 08:10

Tuesday, January 25, 2022

Original Publisher

Foroyaa Newspaper

Original Article

Historic Moment For Gambia As They Advance To Maiden AFCON Quarter Final

Bologna and Gambia star Musa Barrow’s 71-minute goal puts the Scorpions in the quarter finals of the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) as they beat one of the tournament’s favourites Guinea Conakry by 1-0.

An excellent finish from a smooth pass from Yusupha Bobb was enough for Barrow who has been one of the best players in the tournament yet—contributing a goal in all four matches the country played so far. His splendid performance has earned the Man Of The Match for the second time.

Gambia who are one of two debutants in the continent’s flagship tournament have made history by reaching this stage for the first time trying.

The lowest-ranked team at the Afcon grabbed their famous win and continued their unbeaten run in the Afcon.

Coach Saintfiet made changes to the team that started Thursday’s 1-0 defeat of Tunisia. Sulayman Marreh and Ablie Jallow returned, while Modou Barrow, Saidy Janko, and goalkeeper Baboucarr Gaye kept their positions. Ebrima Darboe made his first start of the competition.

Yusupha Njie was given a red card in his debut match and Guinea’s Kante sent off in the last seconds.

Before the game started, the Scorpions suffered a huge blow with players being pulled out of the match-squad.

“Ibou Touray just pulled out of the game. Together with Noah Sonko and Saidy Janko, all three have food poisoning and cannot play. In comes his place is Dawda Ngum for his first appearance for the tournament. Because it’s a late withdrawal, it means Gambia has just used one of its five substitutes,” the Gambia Football Federation (GFF) announced on its Facebook platform.

Also, ahead of the game, GFF President Lamin Kaba Bajo announced that each member will be given $10,000:00 if they win the match.

Africa

News

Afcon 2021: Senegal beat nine-man Cape Verde 2-0 to qualify to last-8

admin — Wed, 23 Feb 2022 08:10:01 +0000

Afcon 2021: Senegal beat nine-man Cape Verde 2-0 to qualify to last-8

/sites/default/files/imported_articles_images/node__1219.png

admin Wed, 02/23/2022 - 08:10

Thursday, January 27, 2022

Original Publisher

Foroyaa Newspaper

Original Article

Afcon 2021: Senegal beat nine-man Cape Verde 2-0 to qualify to last-8

By Momodou Jarju

Senegal has qualified to the next stage of the Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) after beating nine-man Cape Verde 2-0 on Tuesday at the Bafoussam Stadium, Cameroon.

The Teranga Lions had to wait until their opponents were down to nine men when two of their players were shown red cards—midfielder Patrick Andrade in the 21 minutes and goalkeeper Vozinha in the 57 minutes.

Liverpool and Senegal forward Sadio Mane opened the scoreline in 63 minutes as he curled the ball into the right corner of the net from a resulting corner. Senegal’s second goal was scored by Bamba Dieng in the 92nd minute of the game.

Africa

News

How African media can contribute to continent’s development

admin — Sat, 11 Dec 2021 08:20:01 +0000

How African media can contribute to continent’s development

/sites/default/files/imported_articles_images/node__833.jpeg

admin Sat, 12/11/2021 - 08:20

Sunday, November 28, 2021

Original Publisher

Africa – Capital News

Original Article

How African media can contribute to continent’s development

Around the world, mass media plays an important role in educating and informing the audiences about issues of common interest. Media largely shapes public opinion on a myriad of issues affecting society. It can rally people together in pursuit national development goals; inspire individuals to reimagine lived experiences for the greater societal good. At the same time, the media can be used to spread disinformation, apathy, stereotypes and hate messages. It has therefore become customary for different societies to constantly examine how to harness the power of the media for a country’s good.

A new synergy is unfolding among Chinese and African media to share knowledge, experience and content in order to drive transformative conversations and agendas for respective societies. The recently staged media forum that brought together the China Media Group and tens of media outlets in the continent is a good step in hoisting the role of the media in China-Africa cooperation.

The media forum came at the right time when China and African countries are revamping their relationship towards greater outcomes and inclusive benefits. Ahead of the 8th Ministerial Conference of the Forum on China Africa Cooperation to be held in Senegal on November 29-30, China has released a new white paper to guide its relations with the continent in which the role of the media has been amplified.

The media has played a key role in the economic transformation of China by creating harmony, educating the masses, and dispensing truth while safeguarding the moral character of the nation. In the process Chinese people were able to trust their media and unleash their full potential to build a society that is today admired universally.

Africa too can leverage the media in its quest for development. The continent is still facing many socio-economic challenges such as the struggle against poverty and ill health; weak industrial chains, inadequate infrastructure and conflict. These concerns have stayed with Africa for a long time and should be prioritized by the media in the continent.

China, Africa and other developing countries have for long suffered from global discourse hegemonies in which media agendas were set by the developed countries. In the process, African media lost focus on the underlying development needs of the continent and instead continue to project aspirations and views of other societies. Like their Chinese counterparts, local press should tell stories that touches on Africa’s development priorities as well as strides made.

African media should drop the spectacle that is now defining the western world such as those touching on conspicuous consumption. The truth is that African countries are still at a different level of development and the media enterprise should reflect the immediate as and long term concerns of the continent. Globally, the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals forms a good benchmark for media preoccupation. At the regional level, we have the Africa Agenda 2063 at country level, for example, in Kenya, we have Vision 2030. All these development blueprints have rich catalogue that can drive content generation and national narratives.

For a shift in media coverage of Africa to happen, there is need for substantial investments in the infrastructure that can facilitate news gathering and dissemination. In the digital era, African media must be competitive, especially the state owned media outlets. China has emerged as a strong partner for Africa in media infrastructure upgrades and such cooperation should continue.

Secondly, African countries should rethink how they train their journalists. Both the syllabus and contemporary discourse should be aimed at fashioning Africa’s development aspirations and domestic political, cultural and social conditions. That shift will enhance local media capacity to better serve their societies.

Finally, as captured in the forum’s declaration the African and the Chinese media platforms should jointly work together to bridge the divide, dispel long held stereotypes that risks smooth implementation of China-Africa cooperation. The media should see through the fabrications and distortions generated outside Africa and bring to an end, the longstanding discourse hegemony against Africa, China and other developing countries.

Africa and China have already formalized many avenues to implement long-term cooperation in the media space. These include the China-Africa Media Summit, the Forum on China-Africa Media Cooperation, and the Belt and Road News Alliance. A number of bilateral arrangements also exist across the continent to promote capacity building, technology upgrades and content sharing. Guided by the shared vision of economic transformation, societal stability and collective human progress, the media can be a strong pillar in the actualization of Africa’s transformation agenda.

The writer is a scholar of international relations.

Twitter: @Cavinceworld.

Email: ocadhere@gmail.com

Africa

News

Not an inch more or less, Kenyatta says of Kenya’s border

admin — Sat, 11 Dec 2021 08:20:01 +0000

Not an inch more or less, Kenyatta says of Kenya’s border

/sites/default/files/imported_articles_images/node__832.jpeg

admin Sat, 12/11/2021 - 08:20

Tuesday, November 30, 2021

Original Publisher

Africa – Capital News

Original Article

Not an inch more or less, Kenyatta says of Kenya’s border

Nairobi, Kenya, Nov 30- President Uhuru Kenyatta has vowed that his administration will do everything to ensure Kenya’s borders remain intact with no encroachment.

Speaking Tuesday when he delivered his 2021 State of the Nation Address in a joint session of the National Assembly and the Senate, Kenyatta maintained that Kenya won’t relent in its resolve to protect its borders.

“On territorial integrity, I want to go on record in this House that our forefathers bequeathed us our homeland and nation. The Government of Kenya will do everything possible to preserve the territory of this our great Republic and ensure that generations after generations of Kenya dwell in it, as it is – intact and encumbered. Mr. Speaker, Honourable Members, Not an Inch More: Not an Inch Less,” he said.

Kenyatta’s comments follow a ruling by the UN-backed International Court of Justice (ICJ) that there is no agreed maritime boundary between Kenya and Somalia, handing the war-torn country most of the sea zone claimed by Kenya.

ICJ judges ruled there was “no agreed maritime boundary” and drew a new border close to the one claimed by Somalia, although Kenya kept a part of the 100,000 square-kilometre (38,000-square-mile) area, chief judge Joan Donoghue said.

Kenya has remained adamant that it won’t recognize the October 12 ruling by the ICJ.

President Kenyatta stated that his administration has been at the forefront in steering the transformation of security since he took the helm of the country in 2013.

“To give one example, the police to population ratio is at its highest level ever and is even higher than the U.N. prescribed standard. Our police complement has an additional 47,000 new recruits who have joined the Service from the year 2013 to date,” Kenyatta said.

The Head of State further said that his government has undertaken the most consequential and expansive modernization of the military over the last eight years, the reforms he said are “unparalleled in our nation’s history,”

“We have invested substantially in military manufacturing capabilities that have not only resulted in the spurring of previously dormant sectors, but the creation of jobs for our young people both directly, and through ancillary services. For the first time in Kenya’s history, we are producing our own light weapons and military uniforms – equipment and supplies that were previously imported,” he added.

He added that over 600 young people have secured employment in these industries adding that it has saved the country’s foreign exchange reserves, and achieved knowledge and technology transfer for growth and anticipated future development.

“And this is because I am determined to tool and re-retool our security resources to the highest standards attainable. This is the only way we will guarantee ‘freedom from fear’ for our people and secure our territorial integrity,” he said.

Kenyatta stated that his government had invested in the social welfare of the security personnel including reviewing their remuneration, allowances, benefits, housing, and insurance.

He added that the government has also increased the capacity of the health facilities used by the security organs in the country.

“In particular, we have established a Level 4 Hospital in Kahawa Garisson, and soon plan to open another Level 4 facility in Isiolo. I recently commissioned a Trauma and Counselling Center at Manda in Lamu County. We shall also be breaking ground on three additional Level 4 Hospitals – Eldoret for the Defence Forces, Ruiru for Prisons and Mbagathi for the Police,” he said.

“The upgrade of the Forces Memorial Hospital to a Level 5 facility is set to begin early next year, in addition to the ongoing construction of the Level 6 Hospital for the Defence Forces, off Waiyaki Way in Nairobi,” Kenyatta added.

The Head of State added that in addition to ongoing initiatives to improve on police housing, the government will later this month break ground on a facility to build 3,500 houses for the military.

Africa

News

Libya on bumpy road to uncertain elections

admin — Sat, 11 Dec 2021 08:10:01 +0000

Libya on bumpy road to uncertain elections

/sites/default/files/imported_articles_images/node__10425.jpg

admin Sat, 12/11/2021 - 08:10

Wednesday, December 1, 2021

Original Publisher

Africa – Capital News

Original Article

Libya on bumpy road to uncertain elections

Tripoli, Libya, Dec 1 – Libya is less than a month from elections seen as crucial to ending its long-running civil war, but deep political divisions could provoke a delay or even fresh violence.

In theory, the North African country is preparing to move beyond a decade of conflict since the 2011 overthrow of longtime dictator Moamer Kadhafi in a NATO-backed uprising.

Western officials have talked up a UN-led peace process and insist on “inclusive” and “credible” elections starting on December 24, despite serious disputes over how they should be held.

Libya’s electoral commission has said it is ready to organise the process and has published an initial list of candidates and handed out voting cards.

The United Nations has said that nine international organisations have sought accreditations to observe the conduct of the vote.

But despite a year of relative calm since an October 2020 ceasefire, Libya’s deep political divisions remain.

Analysts warn that violence could easily flare again, with camps around eastern military chief Khalifa Haftar and the eastern-based parliament still mired in bitter disputes with a rival camp in the western capital Tripoli.

Map showing the areas of control by forces in Libya. © AFP

“The electoral process imposed by the parliament is so fragile, incomplete and dysfunctional and institutions in Tripoli are so eaten away by political factionalism that the dynamics of violence and polarisation are bound to come back before December 24,” said Libya expert Jalel Harchaoui.

“That’s almost certain, even assuming that the vote somehow takes place.”

– ‘Vague electoral law’ –

On Monday, gunmen backing eastern military chief Khalifa Haftar blocked roads leading to a court in the southern city of Sebha that had been set to examine an appeal by Seif al-Islam Kadhafi after he was barred from running for president.

Seif al-Islam is the second son of the ousted dictator, who was slain in the 2011 revolt.

The interim government in Tripoli said it was following the situation in Sebha with “great concern”.

But as forces led by Haftar — himself a presidential candidate — dominate eastern Libya and much of the sparsely populated south, the Tripoli-based administration admitted it could do little to intervene.

Electoral commission chief Imad al-Sayeh insists Libya is ready to go the polls on December 24, 2021 but few inside the country share his optimism © AFP / Mahmud Turkia

That was the latest in a string of ominous events that have overshadowed preparations for the polls and threaten to spark renewed violence.

With just weeks to go, the list of candidates has yet to be finalised.

A Tripoli appeals court on Wednesday rejected two petitions against interim Prime Minister Abdulhamid Dbeibah, allowing him to take part, his lawyer Abdulraouf Qanbij said.

On Tuesday, Interior Minister Khaled Mazen warned that the presidential election might have to be delayed if “violations” threatening the electoral process do not stop.

“We must not continue on a path that would lead to the deterioration of the security situation until it is out of control,” Mazen said.

Claudia Gazzini, a Libya expert at the International Crisis Group, said: “At the base of all these problems there is a vague electoral law and its contradictions.”

Parliamentary speaker Aguila Saleh sparked controversy in early September when he signed off on the bill without a vote in the assembly, putting into law a piece of legislation critics say was custom-made for his ally, Haftar.

In late September, the parliament based in the eastern city of Tobruk, itself well past its mandate, passed a vote of no confidence in the interim government.

– Security worries –

Seif al-Islam Kadhafi (at left), second son of slain dictator Moamer Kadhafi, is wanted by the International Criminal Court for alleged war crimes and was barred from seeking Libya’s presidency © libyan High National Electoral Commission FB Page/AFP/File / STRINGER

This month, notables in several cities called for a boycott and several voting offices were shut down by groups hostile to Kadhafi’s candidacy, preventing voters collecting their voting cards.

As Libya’s main political players wrangle, the security situation on the ground, controlled by an array of militias and foreign forces, has voters asking whether they will be able to cast their ballots in safety.

And even though 2.4 million voting cards have been collected in the country of seven million, some voters have arrived at electoral offices to find their cards have already been picked up by someone else.

“Nobody seriously has any illusion that security will be guaranteed at every voting station in Libya,” Harchaoui said.

“In any scenario, there will be fraud, boycotts, blockades, voter intimidation and clashes. The most optimistic scenario is that these irregularities aren’t too spectacular or big.”

For Gazzini, it is very unlikely that the elections will take place — “but a coalition of people on the international level continues to insist that they must happen on December 24”.

If they do, the results are “completely unpredictable”, she said.

Libya

Africa

News

Global warming not responsible for Madagascar famine: study

admin — Sat, 11 Dec 2021 08:10:01 +0000

Global warming not responsible for Madagascar famine: study

/sites/default/files/imported_articles_images/node__10424.jpg

admin Sat, 12/11/2021 - 08:10

Thursday, December 2, 2021

Original Publisher

Africa – Capital News

Original Article

Global warming not responsible for Madagascar famine: study

Paris, France, Dec 2 – Global warming played only a minimal role in the famine that has hit Madagascar, according to a new study published Thursday which contradicts a UN description of the crisis as a “climate change famine”.

The southern Indian Ocean island off Africa has been hit by its worst drought in four decades.

The UN’s World Food Programme said last month that more than 1.3 million people there were considered to be in a food security crisis or emergency as a result.

In June the WFP said Madagascar is the “first country in the world that is experiencing famine-like conditions as a result of the climate crisis”.

Last month Madagascar’s President Andry Rajoelina said: “My countrymen are paying the price for a climate crisis that they did not create.”

But the findings of the new study, published on Thursday by the World Weather Attribution (WWA) network of scientists, do not back up the theory that Madagascar’s famine was induced by climate change.

According to the study by the WWA, which has pioneered ways to speedily link extreme weather events to climate change, the rainy seasons of both 2019/20 and 2020/21 saw just 60 percent of normal rainfall across southern Madagascar.

“This lack of rain over the 24 months from July 2019 to June 2021 was estimated as a 1-in-135 year dry event, an event only surpassed in severity by the devastating drought of 1990-92,” the study said.

“Based on observations and climate modelling, the occurrence of poor rains as observed from July 2019 to June 2021 in Southern Madagascar has not significantly increased due to human-caused climate change.”

– ‘Not surprising’ –

Those findings correspond with the results of a report released in August by the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, which indicated that global warming is not expected to affect levels of drought in Madagascar until it reaches two degrees Celsius above the pre-industrial era. At present the increase is around 1.1 C.

“Our results are not surprising, they are very much in line with previous studies,” Friederike Otto of Oxford University’s Environmental Change Institute told AFP.

“I was more surprised by the UN branding this as clearly as climate change induced,” she added, saying “extreme events are always a combination of things”.

“It’s really important not to automatically assume that every bad thing that is happening is because of climate change, it’s not true.”

Climatologist Robert Vautard, head of France’s Pierre-Simon Laplace Institute and another of the study’s authors, agrees.

In the Madagascar case “if there is any influence by climate change it is minimal,” even too small to be detectable, he told AFP.

According to the WWA report, “poverty, poor infrastructure and dependence on rain-fed agriculture, combined with natural climate variability, are the main factors behind the Madagascar food crisis, with climate change playing no more than a small part.”

However no one is questioning the seriousness of the situation.

“They have been hit by a major drought two years in a row, with people forced to leave their land. It’s a dramatic situation,” said Vautard.

“And since we are relatively confident that droughts will increase in Madagascar at least from +2C onwards, we must still be concerned and try to limit climate change,” he continued.

Maarten van Aalst, director of the International Red Cross Red Crescent Climate Centre, said that the events in Madagascar show that “in many cases we are not even prepared for today’s climate”.

“Addressing the vulnerability in the region and improving the living conditions of the population remains critical.”

Africa

News

Kenya’s nuclear energy agency to host secretariat for East and Central Africa

admin — Sat, 11 Dec 2021 08:10:01 +0000

Kenya’s nuclear energy agency to host secretariat for East and Central Africa

/sites/default/files/imported_articles_images/node__10423.jpg

admin Sat, 12/11/2021 - 08:10

Thursday, December 2, 2021

Original Publisher

Africa – Capital News

Original Article

Kenya’s nuclear energy agency to host secretariat for East and Central Africa

NAIROBI, Kenya, Dec 2 – Kenya will now host the Regional Secretariat for Eastern and Central Africa which will be responsible for mitigating risks posed by the Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear (CBRN) materials in the region.

The secretariat which will be hosted by the Kenya Nuclear Regulatory Authority (KNRA) will also be tasked with strengthening capacities to prevent and respond to threats ranging from crimes such as terrorism, illicit trafficking, theft, sabotage, to industrial accidents and infectious disease outbreaks among others.

Speaking on Tuesday during the launch of a regional secretariat, Prof Erastus Gatebe, the KNRA Board Chairperson, said the initiative which was approved by the government in 2015 is meant to promote national security and public safety.

“You have seen that these materials or chemicals have the good use and bad use. if they are in proper hands and regulated, they can be of good use to us as humanity, but if they are in other hands, they can also be misused and that is where legislation is also important,” said Gatebe.

He stated that the center which comprises of 11 partner countries will play a critical role in the regional coordination pointing out that security is a shared responsibility.

Gatebe added that the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for the establishment of the CBRN COE, Regional Secretariat for ECA was executed on November 9, 2021 in Turin, Italy between the United Nations (UN) represented by the United Nations Interregional Crime and Justice Research Institute (UNICRI) and the Ministry of Health (MoH) represented by KNRA.

The EU Centres of Excellence on Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Risk Mitigation (CBRN CoE) is an initiative of the European Union which was launched in 2010. The Initiative addresses the mitigation of and preparedness for risks related to CBRN material and agents.

United Nations Resident Coordinator for Kenya, Stephen Jackson emphasized the need for cooperation saying no country or region can stay safe in isolation from the risk of CBRN threats.

“This is why, from 2010 onwards, UNICRI has worked with the European commission to create and implement the CBRN Centers of Excellence around the world… and that initiative is shaping new comprehensive international cooperation models and standards based on a universal understanding of risks and the global commitment to share and pool representatives,” he said.

Jackson stated that from the UN perspective the initiative is pushing towards the achievement of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

He noted that during the COVID-19 crises the decentralized network around CBRN in the region proved its resilience.

Henriette Geiger, Head of European Union Delegation Kenya called on countries to pay keen attention on matters of security and to be well prepared to handle issues of national importance.

“We don’t know what the future holds, we only know that the threats of CBRN are not going away…The COVID-19 pandemic has shown us what a biological risk can do globally,” she said.

She added that the initiative has 62 partners countries pointing out that all countries have national focal points and focal teams adding that she will support the project to ensure its success.

The national focal points are supported by a regional secretariat which is hosted by one partner country in the region.

Isaac Masinde from the interior ministry stated that the security organs are very concerned with the CBRN issues adding that they have started developing the strategic goods control bill which he said is currently at the cabinet level

“Issues concerning CBRN are very critical, given that we are living in an era whereby we have so many people who may be having bad intentions. We have terrorists who may want to maybe kill or use it to achieve their objectives a government we are moving forward to ensure that this people do not access these materials,” he added.

He added that the government will continue creating awareness to the public on how to handle CBRN materials

Dr Francis Kuria from the Ministry of Health stated that COVID-19 has taught the region the need for collaboration on various issues.

He called on the secretariat to streamline training curriculum on CBRN pointing out that the area is still lacking.

Kenya
Italy

Africa

News

Libya court reinstates Kadhafi’s son as presidential candidate: media

admin — Sat, 11 Dec 2021 08:10:01 +0000

Libya court reinstates Kadhafi’s son as presidential candidate: media

/sites/default/files/imported_articles_images/node__10422.jpg

admin Sat, 12/11/2021 - 08:10

Thursday, December 2, 2021

Original Publisher

Africa – Capital News

Original Article

Libya court reinstates Kadhafi’s son as presidential candidate: media

Tripoli, Libya, Dec 2 – A Libyan court on Thursday reinstated Seif al-Islam Kadhafi, son of slain dictator Moamer Kadhafi, as a candidate in next month’s presidential election, the latest twist in an increasingly shaky transition.

Seif al-Islam had emerged in July after years in the shadows, telling The New York Times that he was planning a political comeback to “restore the lost unity” of Libya, a decade after it was plunged into chaos by the 2011 NATO-backed revolt that overthrew and killed his father.

He had been the first heavyweight candidate to register for the election, part of a UN-brokered process aimed at bringing peace to the North African nation.

But the electoral commission last month rejected his application, pointing to articles of the electoral law stipulating that candidates “must not have been sentenced for a dishonourable crime” and must present a clean criminal record.

Seif al-Islam had lodged an appeal in the southern city of Sebha, but last week a “group of outlaws” launched an “odious” attack on the court, forcing it to shut hours before the hearing, the government in Tripoli said.

On Thursday the court ruled in his favour.

Western officials have talked up a United Nations-led peace process and insist on “inclusive” and “credible” elections starting on December 24 in the North African country, despite serious disputes over how they should be held, and questions over their credibility.

Thursday’s ruling adds to such questions, Libya analyst Emadeddin Badi wrote on Twitter.

“The electoral process is slowly achieving a hat trick, destroying the credibility of the UN, of #Libya’s judiciary, & of elections as a way (out) of the crisis,” he said.

Seif al-Islam’s lawyer Khaled al-Zaydi, however, hailed the candidate’s reinstatement as “a victory for justice and the people’s will.

In a reminder of the near-impossibility of holding a free and fair vote, on Thursday the electoral commission said more than 2,300 voter cards had been stolen from five polling stations by armed men in western Libya, including Tripoli.

– ‘Nostalgia’ for Kadhafi rule –

Seif al-Islam, who is wanted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for alleged war crimes, was among 25 candidates whose bids were rejected by the elections board last week.

Seif al-Islam Kadhafi (R) registers to run in Libya’s presidential election, in a photo released on November 14, 2021 © libyan High National Electoral Comission FB Page/AFP / STRINGER

He is far from being the only controversial figure to lodge a bid for the presidency.

Among them is military strongman Khalifa Haftar, who controls much of eastern and southern Libya and is despised by many in the country’s west after his ruinous year-long assault on Tripoli that ended in mid-2020.

Interim prime minister Abdulhamid Dbeibah, head of the UN-backed unity government in Tripoli, is also in the running despite two petitions against his candidacy. Those were rejected on Wednesday by a Tripoli appeals court.

Amanda Kadlec, a former member of a UN panel of experts on the country, told AFP that “political divisions that were supposed to be put to rest with the formation of the ‘unity’ government are replaying with this electoral process.”

She said Seif al-Islam “represents a constituency that is nostalgic for his father’s reign” but, “Those who ousted the regime clearly want to prevent him from running — not to mention that he’s wanted by the ICC.”

In the Times interview, Seif al-Islam said he wanted to “restore the lost unity” of Libya after a decade of chaos.

The ICC in the Hague has repeatedly asked for him to be handed over for trial for crimes against humanity, specifically “murder and persecution” allegedly committed using state forces across Libya in February 2011.

Seif al-Islam had been sentenced to death by a Tripoli court for crimes committed during the revolt that toppled his father, but a rival administration in eastern Libya later pardoned him.

Libya

Africa

China rolls out major programs to strengthen cooperation with Africa under FOCAC

admin — Sat, 11 Dec 2021 08:10:01 +0000

China rolls out major programs to strengthen cooperation with Africa under FOCAC

/sites/default/files/imported_articles_images/node__831.jpeg

admin Sat, 12/11/2021 - 08:10

Sunday, December 5, 2021

Original Publisher

Africa – Capital News

Original Article

China rolls out major programs to strengthen cooperation with Africa under FOCAC

NAIROBI, Kenya Dec 5 – China has rolled out major programs in Africa as part of its continuous efforts to strengthen its cooperation with Africa for mutual benefit.

As a culmination of the Eighth Ministerial Conference of the Forum on China–Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) held in Dakar, Senegal from November 29-30, China has committed to investing in various sectors including health, green development, digital innovation, trade, and industrialization among others.

The announcement was made in Nairobi Friday, during a FOCAC press briefing that als0 included a guided tour of the Global Trade Centre (GTC) towers, a flagship project of FOCAC in Kenya’s capital Nairobi with a mixed-use development. It consists of a cluster of 6 towers overlooking the Westlands-JKIA Express Way.

GTC Towers, Nairobi, Kenya. /MOSES MUOKI.

“The meeting demonstrated the high level of China Africa cooperation and the determination to seek common developments, as well as meet challenges together and share opportunities,” said Dr. Zhou Pingjian, Chinese Ambassador to Kenya.

China is Africa’s largest trading partner and it has pledged to provide 10 billion US dollars of trade finance to support African export.

According to Dr. Zhou, this would help finance green lines targeting African agricultural exports and hasten inspection and quarantine procedures.

The Chinese government has also pledged to undertake 10 green development, environmental protection, and climate action in Africa and this would be done by building centers on low-carbon development and climate change adaptation.

China would further finance the development of a joint vaccine development plan as part of its mission to supply one billion doses of vaccines to 54 African countries.

Of the total, 600 million doses would be as donations and 400 million through joint production, a major milestone that will help resolve challenges African countries are facing since the pandemic struck the world.

According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Director for Asia and Australia Directorate, Paul Ndung’u Kamweru, the Ministry of Health has embarked on working on a framework that will see Kenya allocated part of the production capacity.

“At this juncture, managing the COVID situation has been our biggest priority in this country. As we seek to rebuild our economy, the issue of making vaccines available in an equitable manner is necessary for global success. President Xi Jinping pledged in the next three years, 1 billion doses will be available in the continent, and as a country, we already have 2 million vaccines on the way from our friends,” he said.

Kenya has been the greatest beneficiary of investments from China, through projects such as the construction of the Mombasa–Nairobi Standard Gauge Railway (SGR), the Global Trade Centre (GTC) which is the tallest office tower in East Africa), the Nairobi-JKIA Expressway among others that have revolutionized the city into modernity.

Under the FOCAC program, has also pledged to encourage Chinese businesses to invest no less than 10 billion US dollars in Africa in the next three years, and establish a platform for China-Africa private investment promotion.

It will also undertake 10 industrialisation and employment promotion projects for Africa as well as provide credit facilities of 10 billion US dollars to African financial institutions, supporting the development of African SMEs on a priority basis.

Other plans lined up include establishing a China-Africa cross-border RMB centre, exempting African LDCs from debt incurred in the form of interest-free Chinese government loans due by the end of 2021.

On peace and security, FOCAC will undertake 10 peace and security projects for Africa, continue to deliver military assistance to the African Union, to support African countries’ efforts to independently maintain regional security and fight terrorism.

Joint exercises and on-site training between Chinese and African peacekeeping troops and cooperation on small and light weapons control.

Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi last week said Eighth Ministerial Conference of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) was a complete success,

On November 28, 2021 local time, State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi and Senegalese Foreign Minister Aissata Tall Sall jointly met the press after the talks in Dakar.

“Despite the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, China and Africa had overcome difficulties to hold the conference on schedule, carrying out pragmatic and efficient discussions on the theme of the conference and reaching broad consensus,” Wang said.

The conference reviewed the achievements made in the development of China-Africa relations and China-Africa solidarity in fighting the pandemic since the Beijing Summit of FOCAC in 2018, deliberated the implementation of the “eight major initiatives” announced at the Beijing Summit, and approved an array of outcome documents, he said.

The conference was jointly presided over by Wang and Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao, and the host nation’s Foreign Minister Aissata Tall Sall and its Minister of Economy, Planning and Cooperation Amadou Hott.

“The conference, with the number of outcome documents adopted surpassing all previous conferences, fully reflects the high quality and high level of China-Africa cooperation and demonstrates the two sides’ firm determination to seek common development, meet challenges and share the opportunities jointly in a new era,” Wang said.

Africa

News

Sudan police fire tear gas as thousands protest in capital

admin — Sat, 11 Dec 2021 08:10:01 +0000

Sudan police fire tear gas as thousands protest in capital

/sites/default/files/imported_articles_images/node__10421.jpg

admin Sat, 12/11/2021 - 08:10

Monday, December 6, 2021

Original Publisher

Africa – Capital News

Original Article

Sudan police fire tear gas as thousands protest in capital

Khartoum (AFP), Dec 6 – Sudanese police fired tear gas Monday as thousands of protesters rallied against the military-dominated government near the presidential palace in Khartoum, witnesses told AFP.

The demonstrators marched from various districts of the capital, many carrying national flags or chanting, “No to military rule” and, “The army might betray you, but the street will never betray you”.

Protesters, in the latest of many rallies in recent weeks, set up road barricades with rocks and burning car tyres, the black smoke billowing into the sky.

Sudan’s top general, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, seized power and detained Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok on October 25 but, after international condemnation and mass protests, reinstated him in a deal signed on November 21.

Critics lambasted the agreement and accused Hamdok of “betrayal” as pro-democracy activists vowed to maintain pressure on the military-civilian authority.

The top general has long insisted the military’s move was “not a coup” but a step “to rectify the transition” toward full democracy that started with the 2019 ouster of autocratic president Omar al-Bashir.

Hamdok, prime minister in the transitional government, has defended the deal, which he signed after his release from effective house arrest.

He has said he partnered with the military to “stop the bloodshed” that resulted from crackdowns on anti-coup street protests, and so as not to “squander the gains of the last two years”.

Sudan, one of the world’s poorest countries, has recently also suffered runaway inflation and embarked on tough economic reforms, including slashing subsidies on petrol and diesel and launching a managed currency float © AFP

Nearly 45 people were killed in street rallies between October 25 and November 22 in clashes with security forces, and hundreds more wounded.

Thirty percent of Sudan’s population will need humanitarian aid next year, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs warned in a report Monday, saying the rate is “the highest in a decade”.

It blamed Sudan’s economic crisis and the Covid pandemic, floods and disease and the fact Sudan also hosts millions of refugees and internally displaced people.

Sudan

Africa

News