Tag: GreatLakesNews

The United States of America has reissued a warning to its citizens on travelling to South Sudan, imposed a curfew on its staff working in Juba and has ordered them to travel in armored vehicles at night to ensure their safety.

The United States Department of State on Tuesday said that the US Embassy in Juba has imposed a curfew on its staff between 1 a.m. to 6 a.m. and has banned its government personnel, their spouses and family members from living in South Sudan.

“In addition to the curfew, the embassy has implemented other measures to protect US government personnel living and working in South Sudan. These include requiring personnel to travel in armored government vehicles at all times at night and to obtain advance permission for any travel outside of Juba,” said the US Department of State in a statement.

The US Department of State said that its citizens should avoid South Sudanese states including the Upper Nile, Unity and Western Bahr el Ghazal states and Sudanense states Southern Kordofan and Blue Nile states and the Abyei Special Administrative District.

It said that although fighting between Sudan Armed Forces (SAF) and the Sudan People’s Liberation Army (SPLA) has declined since spring 2012, the potential for troop build-ups along the border and renewed fighting remains.

The US Department of State said that in addition to sporadic clashes in the border region, there are armed militia forces that engage in violent clashes with SPLA forces in various areas of South Sudan, particularly in Jonglei State.

“The Government of South Sudan has limited capacity to deter crime or provide security to travelers throughout the country, including in the capital city of Juba,” said the US Department of State in the statement.

The travel warning against South Sudan comes barely a week after another one was issued warning its citizens to avoid travelling to Sudan.

At the end of the second week of October, the Department of State warned its citizens against travelling to Sudan, the Darfur region and the Blue Nile and Southern Kordofan states.

It said that while the Government of Sudan has taken some steps to limit the activities of terrorist groups, elements of these groups remain in Sudan and have threatened to attack Western interests and that the terrorist threat level throughout Sudan and particularly in the Darfur region, remains critical.

In Sudan, all US government personnel are required to travel in armored government vehicles at all times and to obtain advance permission for travel outside of Khartoum.

The East African

{President Joseph Kabila of the Democratic Republic of Congo on Wednesday said he would create a government of national unity including members of the opposition and civil society to push for peace in the central African giant.}

In a surprise move, Kabila also announced the repatriation of the remains of former President Mobutu Sese Seko – who Kabila’s father toppled from power in 1997.

Moreover, according to the head of state, “the provisions will be taken to the repatriation of mortal remains of the former President of the Republic, Mobutu Sese Seko, and former Prime Minister, Moses TSHOMBE in accordance with their respective families.”

Kabila, presenting the findings of a national dialogue to resolve years of crisis in Democratic Republic of Congo, also ruled out a blanket amnesty for rebels operating in the mineral-rich east and called for the insurgents to lay down their arms.

In a wide-ranging speech, Kabila pledged to act on the more than 600 recommendations drafted by representatives of the government, opposition and civil society during three weeks of talks which concluded this month.

“A government of national unity will be soon put in place,” Kabila said in a rare public speech. “Its priority mission will be the restoration of peace and the authority of the state, reconstruction, decentralisation, organisation of elections and the improvement of living conditions of the population.”

Congo ranks bottom of the United Nations Human Development Index. Millions of people have died in eastern Congo from violence, disease and hunger since the 1990s as foreign-backed insurgent groups have waged a series of rebellions, often for control of the region’s rich deposits of gold, diamonds and tin.

Among the recommendations of the national dialogue were specific reforms to the national electoral commission ahead of presidential elections due in 2016.

Some members of the opposition – who dispute the validity of Kabila’s 2011 election victory – accuse the president of wanting to change the constitution to seek a third term.

According to Reuters, Kabila announced the appointment of a special representative to combat against sexual violence and the recruitment of child soldiers in lawless eastern Congo.

He voiced frustration that peace talks between the government and the M23 rebel group hosted by neighbouring Uganda were stalled and he warned that his government was not prepared to wait indefinitely for a solution.

{Burundian journalist Hassan Ruvakuki, previously jailed on terrorism charges, has been granted formal “conditional release” allowing him to return to work, Reporters Without Borders said on Tuesday.}

Ruvakuki, who works for French radio station RFI’s Swahili service and local broadcaster Bonesha FM, was arrested in November 2011 and handed a life sentence in June 2012, a ruling condemned by press rights groups.

He was initially convicted of planning an attack by an armed group that left dozens dead, and spreading news of it afterwards.

However, his sentence was cut to three years in January, and he was released in March on health grounds.

The justice ministry has allowed him to return to work.

“We are relieved that Ruvakuki is now officially free and allowed to resume working as a journalist,” Reporters Without Borders [RSF] said in a statement, adding it would monitor his situation “to ensure that it does not represent too great a threat hanging over his journalistic work”.

Ruvakuki, who has always maintained his innocence, told RSF he was “very happy” with the decision.

Burundi has been criticised for its tough stance towards the media, with the government passing a press law in June that weakened the protection of sources, and which was widely condemned by rights groups and the United Nations.

– AFP

The ongoing negotiations on integrating trade and infrastructure among Kenya, Uganda and Rwanda do not violate the East African Community treaty, the ministry of EAC, Commerce and Tourism said yesterday.

Integration secretary Barrack Ndegwa said the EAC treaty allows members to sign bilateral or tri-lateral deals provided they leave room for others to later join.

He was responding to Monday’s resistance by Tanzania that the so-called “coalition of the willing” was violating article 7(1) (e) of the EAC common market protocol signed in July 2010.

Tanzania’s ministry of East African Co-operation protested the coalition’s pact on a joint regional railway, pipeline and oil refinery in June, and ongoing discussions on common travel documents ahead of their third infrastructure summit next month in Kigali.

“Even though this article allows member countries to enter bi-lateral or tri-lateral agreements, it is a must that issues under consideration for implementation under this arrangement are fully discussed and agreed upon by all member countries,” the ministry said in a statement.

Ndegwa however said the treaty does not bind all the EAC members to agree before a deal among some of them is signed. He cited the provision for a common EAC identity card in the protocol that Tanzania did not support.

“The common market protocol is a negotiated arrangement and we should not hammer Tanzania because they are free to engage or not to engage depending on their interest,” he said in a telephone interview.

“Implementation of the treaty is however normally good when all the five members are in agreement.” Ndegwa had on October 8 called for speedy amendments to national laws to align them to the EAC treaty so citizens could fully enjoy benefits of the protocol signed in July 2010. Tanzania’s EAC ministry spokesperson Vedastina Justinian had also registered his government’s displeasure with the “coalition of the three countries…. being run under their respective foreign affairs dockets and not through the EAC secretariat.”

The Star

{Talks suspended over disagreement about extent of an amnesty for the rebels who are waging rebellion in country’s east}.

M23 rebels and the government of the Democratic Republic of Congo have suspended peace talks only days after the rebels spoke of “major breakthroughs”.

The two sides have been meeting in Kampala, the capital of neighbouring Uganda, which is brokering the peace talks.

The suspension of talks on Monday came just hours after UN envoys warned of the dangers if a deal was not agreed soon to end the year-and-a-half-old rebellion ravaging the Democratic Republic of Congo’s volatile east.

Lambert Mende, the Congolese government spokesman, said the talks had been suspended because of disagreement over the extent of an amnesty for the M23 army mutineers and their reintegration into the national army.

Last Saturday M23 released a statement saying there had been “major breakthroughs” as a result of “the heavy involvement of the international community in the dialogue”.

The rebels take their name from a peace agreement they signed with the DRC government on March 22 2009, paving the way for their integration into the national army, but they mutinied in April 2012 over poor salaries and living conditions, renewing an armed rebellion in the country’s mineral-rich east.

Mende said Congolese Foreign Minister Raymond Tshibanda had returned home to Kinshasa, the capital, but added that his departure was “not definitive”.

Roger Lumbala, an M23 delegate, said there was a “blockage” but insisted the rebels were ready to go back to the negotiating table any time.

“We have agreed on the content of 13 articles of a peace accord and two remain to be settled, concerning security measures,” M23 delegation chief Rene Abandi told the AFP news agency, indicating that measures to take back rebels into the Congolese army were undecided.

Backed by the international community, DR Congo’s government is refusing to give amnesty to about 80 leaders of the M23 and to enlist these men into military ranks.

A government official had earlier warned that the negotiations, which resumed in September under pressure from regional leaders, were “heading slowly but surely towards failure”.

The UN special envoys issued a statement on Monday voicing concern over the lack of a comprehensive deal for the demobilisation of M23 rebels fighting in the mineral-rich but chronically unstable east.

“The envoys are concerned at the volatility in the region and hope that additional progress on the significant remaining issues can be made in the coming days,” they said in a statement.

The UN and other special envoys, including from the European Union, the United States and the African Union, jointly urged both sides “to exert maximum restraint on the ground in order for the conclusion of their dialogue”.

On November 20 last year, the rebels seized the key provincial capital of Goma, a city of one million people, but withdrew in early in December under international pressure.

ALJAZEERA

{United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon welcomed the meeting today between the Presidents of South Sudan and Sudan, at which the two leaders discussed the contested border region of Abyei.}

“The Secretary-General welcomes the holding of a Summit between the Presidents of Sudan [Omar al-Bashir] and South Sudan [Salva Kiir] in Juba today,” said a statement issued by Mr. Ban’s Spokesperson in New York.

The statement said the UN chief took note of the two Presidents’ intent to expedite the establishment of the Abyei Administration, Abyei Council and Abyei Police Service.

“He also welcomes their decision to accelerate the full establishment of the Safe Demilitarized Border Zone (SDBZ) by mid-November,” the statement added.

Mr. Ban, in the statement, called on both countries to urgently resume their consultations on the implementation of the 2012 African Union High-Level Implementation Panel (AUHIP) proposal to determine the final status of Abyei, and called on Abyei community leaders to refrain from any unilateral initiatives which could increase tensions in the Abyei area.

The AUHIP brokered a package of propels between the two sides that included topics on security, the common border and economic relations aimed at enabling the two nations to fulfil their obligations under a so-called roadmap for easing tensions, facilitating the resumption of negotiations on post-secession relations and normalizing the relations between the two countries.

However, armed clashes along the common border have continued and outstanding post-independence issues remain, such as control of the oil-rich Abyei area.

UN

Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania fisheries experts are meeting in Entebbe to discuss a revised draft for the Nile Perch Fisheries Management Plan (NPFMP) for Lake Victoria.

The plan seeks to reduce the fishing of Nile Perch in Lake Victoria to rebuild the stocks.

It also contains a number of management proposals for the three countries that share the lake.

The two-day meeting in Entebbe is attended by officials from Lake Victoria Fisheries Organisation (LVFO), scientists, fisheries staff and operators, beach management unit officials, the civil society and fisheries NGOs in the region.

The outcome of the workshop will be critical to the long-term compliance with the provisions of the plan.

This comes after the ACP II fish project funded by the European Commission held a similar meeting with regional government officials in Kampala recently to devise ways of strengthening fisheries management.

{agencies}

{{Talks to end a two-year insurgency in eastern Congo stalled on Monday after the government rejected a call for amnesty for M23 rebel leaders as the United Nations expressed concern at a military buildup by the group around the provincial capital Goma.}}

Congolese President Joseph Kabila’s government and the M23 rebels had agreed on two-thirds of a draft deal during recent talks in neighboring Uganda, U.N. special envoy to the Great Lakes region, Mary Robinson, told the U.N. Security Council.

“However, the parties found it difficult to agree on certain contentious and difficult issues that had remained problematic throughout the talks, namely the amnesty, disarmament and integration of M23,” Robinson told the 15-member council.

“They have agreed to reconvene soon in order to overcome their differences,” she said via video link from Addis Ababa.

During closed-door Security Council consultations after her public briefing, several diplomats said Robinson told them that Rwandan President Paul Kagame had conveyed a personal message to the M23 delegation to encourage them to reach a compromise.

U.N. experts have repeatedly accused Rwanda, the Democratic Republic of Congo’s neighbour to the east, of supporting the M23 rebellion, a charge Kigali has robustly denied.

Robinson visited Kagame in Kigali on Friday with envoys from the United States, the European Union and the African Union.

“The president believed that while the M23 was not Rwanda’s issue, a peace agreement between the rebel group and the government of the DRC would benefit the entire region,” she told the Security Council during her public briefing.

The Congolese government said it strongly opposed a blanket pardon for the commanders of the Tutsi-led rebellion and against reintegrating their fighters into the national army.

M23 accused the government delegation of refusing to cooperate with its chief negotiator and of seeking a return to hostilities.

Martin Kobler, head of the U.N. peacekeeping mission in Congo known as MONUSCO, told the Security Council that in recent days “we have observed considerable military build-up on both sides of the front line.”

“At the same time M23 has fired twice at unarmed U.N. helicopters and has strengthened offensive positions threatening U.N. peacekeepers,” he said. “Information gathered indicates the M23 has also strengthened its frontline in the south near Goma.”

M23 briefly captured Goma in November, then withdrew to pave the way for peace talks in the Ugandan capital Kampala.

NV

{{For the second time in five years, Tanzania tourism sector earned $1.56 Billion surpassing Kenya’s $1.3 billion, a difference of $260 million local Tanzania media reported.}}

This unveils the fact that Dar es Salaam has more of the world’s class tourist attractions compared to Nairobi.

Not only have WB data pointed out that but also said that Tanzania received $1.3 billion in 2008 compared to Kenya’s $752 million during the same period, all accrued from tourism.

{{It is understood that in 2008, the first time Dar surpassed Nairobi, Kenya was passing through a difficult period due to the post-election violence that left about 1,100 dead and over 600,000 others internally displaced, thus profoundly affecting tourism sector.}}

But, in the year 2012, Dar es Salaam surpassed Nairobi at the time when the latter was enjoying very stable conditions politically and economically.

However, this means that if Tanzania is to fully address the myriad challenges facing how it operates tourism sector, it would remain the dominant giant in the region.

Tanzania has 31,365 hotel rooms as compared to Kenya’s 24, 354 and South Africa’s 61,417.

There are about 390,000 hotel rooms in sub-Sahara Africa. Unbranded guest houses and lodges dominate accommodation facilities while only 10% or about 35,200 rooms meet international standards, according to data released by WB.

South Africa has about half the region’s stock of international standard accommodation.

Kenya, however, has 2,284 international standard rooms compared to Tanzania’s 1,588, while occupancy rate is 92 per cent for Kenya and 43 per cent for Tanzania.

“We forecast that employment in travel and tourism in 2021 will be 463,800 for Tanzania and 273,500 for Kenya,” the WB report says.

Currently, Tanzania is the second top tourist destination by accommodation, after South Africa, according to the report by WB.

{{Challenging the myth}}

These fresh data by WB challenge pre-conceived myth about Tanzania’s tourism indicating the great potential of the sector and how it can transform the country’s economy.

The details that are included in a recent World Bank report shows that not only has Tanzania tourism earnings and arrivals surpassed Kenya’s but also that the proceeds from tourism brought back to the country several times higher than those from exported cash crops like coffee and cotton.