Tag: GreatLakesNews

Two teenage girls from Lira Catholic Diocese have walked to Namungongo Martyrs Shrine to pray to God, through the martyrs, to guide them through their education.
The two, Gloria Ayao and Flavia Ejang, are the youngest of the 449 pilgrims who walked the the 342-kilometre-journey to take part in this year’s event.

Ayao is a primary seven pupil at Lira police primary school while Ejang is in primary six at Awir primary school in Apac District. Both aged 13, are optimistic God will listen to their prayers.

This reporter caught up with them at St Jude Catholic Parish in Naguru, Kampala, where the pilgrims spent the night on Wednesday before moving to Namugongo the following day.

Ayao says she is praying for her mother Rose Akidi who has no money to pay her school fees when she joins secondary school next year. She says her mother works in a restaurant in Lira town where she can’t earn sufficient money to pay tuition.

Ayao says her father died and her dream is to become a reverend sister.

“I started feeling it (becoming a nun) when I was in primary three. I want to be a sister because I am interested in knowing more about God,” she says.

Ayao says she wants to join Bishop Tarantino Secondary School, a girls’ school located in Lira District.

Like many children in rural schools, the two girls struggle to master writing and speaking English. For instance, Ayao failed to spell the word “police,” while Ejang couldn’t decode question “why did you decide to walk from Lira to Namugongo?”
After introducing herself, Ejang spoke through a translator. Her father and mother died in 2004 and 2005 respectively when she was a toddler.

“I have to pray so that I get something from God. I want to get education. My parents died and I stay with my grandmother and aunt,” she says. “I want to be a teacher after finishing school.”

Thousands of Christians gather in Namugongo tomorrow, (June 3) for commemorative prayers for at least 45 converts who were killed for their faith over 130 years ago.

Twenty three of the converts were Anglican while 22 were Catholics. The Catholic martyrs were canonized on October 18, 1964 by Pope Paul VI. It is these 22 that Ayao and Ejang believe will intercede for them before God to answer their prayers.

Source:Daily Monitor

Suspected Al-Shabaab militants have burned down a school and abducted two teachers in an overnight attack in Fafi, Garissa.

The militants, armed with small arms and explosions, also vandalised a mobile communication mast in the area.

Hours

The attackers destroyed telecom masts during their attacks to disrupt police communication.

Northern and coastal Kenya have experienced a sharp rise in attacks linked to the Somalia-based terror group, in which security officers have been killed and security equipment destroyed.

The attacks came hours after nine security officers and a civilian died on Wednesday when their vehicles ran over explosive devices in separate terror incidents in Lamu County.

The first explosion happened at 8.30am, between Baure and Milimani, killing all seven police officers on board an armoured vehicle and the civilian passenger.

Patrol

The officers from the Rural Border Patrol Unit of the Administration Police were travelling on the Kiunga-Hindi road.

Military reinforcements were immediately dispatched and were heading to the scene when another explosive went off along their way, killing two Kenya Defence Forces soldiers and injuring another.

Yet another explosive device went off between Kiunga and Ishakani later at 3pm.

Initial investigations show the third explosion was aimed at a military lorry but it went off just before the vehicle arrived at the spot.

Source:Daily Nation

Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni has ordered an investigation into possible collusion between.

Poaching has risen sharply in recent years across Africa, fuelled by rising demand in Asia for ivory and rhino horn, coveted as a traditional medicine and a status symbol. Uganda is a major transit country for the illegal trade.

The Chinese embassy officials are suspected of colluding in the movement of ivory from the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Central African Republic and South Sudan, using Uganda as a transit point, a government official said.

Ali Munira, spokeswoman for the Inspectorate General of Government (IGG) ombudsman, did not name the Chinese diplomats but said the Ugandan Wildlife Authority (UWA) was under suspicion.

The Chinese embassy could not be reached for comment.

Theft of Ivory

Museveni has also ordered a new probe into the theft of ivory worth more than $1-million in November 2014.

“The president’s directive to the IGG is to have all these accusations investigated and if there is a prima facie case, the executive director (of the UWA) should be suspended alongside other officials,” said Munira.

Five top officials were suspended from the UWA after the disappearance of the 1,335 kilogrammes (2,943 pounds) of ivory from supposedly secure stockpiles.

The outcome of the initial investigation, which involved Interpol, was never made public, although the international police network did carry out sting operations on trafficking networks throughout East Africa in 2015.

A police source involved in earlier investigations said it appeared Museveni was not pleased with the prior probe and that new intelligence showed the likely involvement of Chinese officials.

More than 35,000 elephants are killed across Africa every year for their tusks.

Source:AFP

President Kenyatta and opposition leader Raila Odinga are sharing a podium for the first time since they were cleared by the elections agency to vie for the top job during Madaraka Day celebrations in Nyeri.

More than 20,000 people are expected to attend the ceremony – the first to be held in Mt Kenya region since independence – at Kabiru-ini stadium.

Happy day

Both leaders were earlier this week cleared by the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission to run for the presidency in the August elections and have not shared a platform ever since.

Mr Odinga on Wednesday told journalists that he would attend the national celebrations marking the 54th year since Kenya attained self-rule.

“Madaraka Day is a very important day in our political calendar and we celebrate it whenever and wherever we are…We wish everybody else a very happy Madaraka Day,” he said in Nairobi.

In his message ahead of the celebrations, President Kenyatta asked politicians to shun violence before and after elections.

“There are forces who wish to return us to the more unsavoury chapters of our nation’s past. Our independence is incomplete if our disagreements are settled not in court or in the voting booths but on our streets with the threats of violence and intimidation,” wrote the President in a message sent to newsrooms.

Tribalism

He also asked Kenyans to shun tribalism and embrace the spirit of democracy.

“Elections should be a great celebration of hard won democracy and liberty a time when the nation speaks and elects a leader who will serve the people and their interests,” added the President.

The meeting with opposition leaders today also comes two days after an opinion poll showed that President Kenyatta is still the favourite among voters with 47 per cent indicating they would vote for him compared to Mr Odinga’s 42 per cent.

Today’s event is also the first time the President will be visiting the central region since the chaotic Jubilee nominations last month where some of his key allies were kicked out by voters.

The theme for this year’s celebrations is “Our unity is our shield.”

This is the third time the celebrations are being held outside Nairobi after Nakuru and Machakos counties hosted the 53rd Madaraka and Mashujaa Day last year respectively.

But the choice of Nyeri is significant since most Mau Mau fighters who fought for independence came from there and used the nearby Aberdare forests as their hideout.

From Dedan Kimathi University named after the liberation hero to Mau Mau squatters and veterans, the region is a repository of the country’s history.

As part of the celebrations, a Sh418m stadium in Nyeri will be commissioned today and will be ready in eight months.

Source:Daily Nation

Stakeholders from Tanzania have expressed concern and wary of losing employment and business opportunities under a more integrated East Africa Community (EAC) Customs Union and Common Market protocols.

That’s the the most vivid reading here, at least as unveiled in a report presented to the East African Legislative Assembly (EALA), citing several factors such as lack of enough knowledge on the laws and regulations guiding operations of the EAC integration, but also harmonisation of taxation systems within, and among, partner states.

Presenting the report to the House, Ms Patricia Hajabakiga said EALA Tanzania Chapter members who toured Dodoma, Morogoro and Zanzibar for sensitisation activities between April and May this year, received critical issues and concerns that need working upon – with immediate effect.

The Chapter, under chairmanship of Mr Charles Makongoro Nyerere, Mr Twaha Taslima, Dr Nderakindo Kessy, Mr Abdulah Mwinyi, Mr Adam Kimbisa, Ms Shy-Rose Bhanji, Ms Maryam Ussi Yahya, Mr Bernard Murunya and Ms Angela Kizigha, visited, interacted and held discussions with different stakeholders.

Among others, they met with key officials at the Tanzania Chambers of Commerce, Industries and Agriculture (TCCIA), students and staff of the Institute of Planning in Dodoma as well as other stakeholders in Dodoma.

At TCCIA, the stakeholders pointed out that, without harmonisation of some taxes among partner states, the EAC Customs Union could not operate smoothly.

“It was pointed out that EAC partner states still operated different domestic tax rates and structures … especially excise duty and Value Added Tax (VAT). These differences have resulted in market distortions leading to such problems as smuggling and other industry malpractices that have witnessed a rise in some ‘artificial’ exports.

The most affected commodities are edible oils, maize flour, cigarettes and liquor,” said Ms Hajabakiga.

She said there was also generalized, if unfounded, fear that businesses were “likely to collapse” due to the inability of the Government and its High Commission in Nairobi to facilitate and empower them to compete particularly with their relatively stronger, and more aggressive Kenyan counterparts. Examples were cited of how traders had been losing out –to their Kenyan counterparts — on business deals on maize, grapes and timber.

The Chapter cited apparent lack of sufficient knowledge among the stakeholders on issues such as Certificate of Origin, which is one of the most important documents to facilitate cross-border trade within East Africa; also lacking is information on the Programme for Elimination of Internal Tariffs (EIT) including the categorization of taxable and non-taxable goods.

The applicable rates for dutiable goods are generally known by traders who felt that they are at the mercy of customs and municipal councils’ officials.

The August House heard concerns over customs-related challenges, such as the unavailability of a list of common goods and Certificate of Origin on the Tanzania side.. Concerns were also expressed on barriers to ‘transiting’ goods from Tanzania — through Kenya and Rwanda – where the Tanzanian traders were allegedly being subjected to multiple fees.

At the Institute of Planning, Ms Hajabakiga said, there were fears of losing out in employment opportunities due to differences in the competitiveness of the labour markets, with some participants expressing concerns that movement of labour would lead to an “influx” of qualified people’ from other partner states into Tanzania, thus squeezing out the Tanzanians.

“Though land is neither a Treaty matter nor among 17 areas of cooperation, concerns were raised about differences in the land tenure systems of partner states and loss of land due to free movement of and right of establishment within the EAC partner states.

“The fear of loss of land was raised based on the varied population densities of the EAC partner states,” she said, adding that sensitization and awareness on the EAC integration process should be a continuous activity.

Source:Daily News

A kidnapping incident at one of Banro’s gold mines in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has been resolved.

The Toronto Star and other media reported on Sunday that a French man and three Congolese men were released after being kidnapped in March from near the Namoya gold mine, operated by Canadian miner Banro Corp. (TSX:BAA). The captors were reportedly asking for $1 million in ransom.

“The four hostages, three Congolese and one French, were freed yesterday at 1800 (6 p.m. local time) in the Tengetenge locality,” read a statement from the provincial Interior Minister. “Their release came after several days of negotiations with the abductors.”

The men living near the mine had been taken by a rebel group that criticized the mining company for not giving jobs to young workers, and were seeking a guarantee that Banro will build infrastructure including schools, roads and a clinic, the Star reported.

Earlier this month Banro reported a series of attacks on police and military personnel in village areas surrounding the Namoya mine, which produced 93,253 ounces of gold in 2016, its first year of operation.

In February an armed attack on the Twanziga gold mine, another Banro property, left four dead, including three policemen.

Source:The Mining

The United Nations Refugee Agency, UNHCR, moved to remind the international community about the political crisis taking place in Burundi, after raising just two percent of the international aid it is calling for.

The agency released a statement last week summarising the words of UNHCR spokesperson Babar Baloch at a press conference held at the Palais des Nations in Geneva. Baloch is calling on the international community to continue supporting countries that are hosting refugees from Burundi as the number of people fleeing the country continues to rise.

East Africa’s forgotten crisis

In the UNHCR statement, the agency says 410,000 Burundian refugees have fled the country since 2015 while the number is still rising. Those who arrive at neighbouring countries speak of grave human rights abuses still taking place in the country – including sexual violence, kidnappings and torture.

However, international aid directed towards Burundi has come to a standstill as the country’s crisis slips out of memory. Events taking place in South Sudan and Somalia dominate the conversations of crises in East Africa while Ethiopia’s state of emergency garners more attention than Burundi’s political nightmare.

More funds needed

UNHCR has updated its funding needs for Burundi, now calling for US$250 million to provide emergency assistance to Burundian refugees arriving at host nations. The previous figure was US$214 but the agency has generated just two percent of the revised request.

Tanzania hosts the majority of Burundian refugees with almost 250,000 squeezed into three overcrowded camps. Meanwhile, Rwanda hosts around 85,000; Uganda 45,000 and Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) some 41,000 refugees from Burundi.

Source:The East Africa Monitor