Tag: GreatLakesNews

{{The second EAC University Students’ debate on regional integration is slated for 2 – 3 September 2013.}}

The debate whose theme is: “Understanding the opportunities and challenges arising from the EAC integration for youth in East Africa” aims at promoting continuous dialogue among the youth and to interest them in advocating for regional integration initiatives.

The debate will be based on a topical issue related to the EAC integration. It will be moderated by five judges with expertise on the specific area of discussion and on the overall area of EAC integration in general and political integration in particular.

Six participants will be selected from each of the EAC partner state, drawn from national universities, public, private and other institutions of higher learning.

The participants will be either on the opposition or proposition side but the Secretariat reserves the prerogative to ensure that both sides have equitable membership.

Participation in this debate is limited to students who are in their second year at the university pursuing a degree.

Students who participated in the 1st debate need not to apply to give an opportunity to others to take part. Interested applicants with good analytical and communication skills; and a good command of English are encouraged to apply.

The debate will be conducted in English.

Applicants who are interested to participate should apply by explaining why they are interested to participate, indicate which University they come from and the year of study.

In addition, applicants are expected to write an essay on “Understanding the opportunities and challenges arising from the EAC integration for youth in East Africa”.

The essay should not exceed 2 pages, bookman old style font with single line spacing. Lastly, applicants are required to attach their CVs, copies of their national ID and university identity card.

Applications should be sent to – EAC-Nyerere Centre for Peace Research, on Email: eac@eachq.org and copy Barbara Kaboha, Program Assistant, Nyerere Centre for Peace Research, on email – BKaboha@eachq.org and Pamela Kanora, Research Assistant, Political Affairs, on email PKanora@eachq.org.

The application should reach EAC not later than 2nd August, 2013.

The East African Community Secretariat will cover transport expenses, accommodation and meals for the participants during the two days event.

{{Hundreds of people protested in Democratic Republic of Congo’s eastern city of Goma on Thursday against President Joseph Kabila, accusing him of incompetence in efforts to neutralize rebels who have long plagued the region.}}

The United Nations voiced concerns about recent clashes and said it was prepared to intervene if necessary.

Heavy fighting erupted between the army and the M23 rebel group on Sunday 12 km (7.5 miles) northeast of Goma, ending several weeks of relative calm and reviving memories of an attack in November when the Tutsi-led insurgents briefly seized the city of 1 million people.

After four days of clashes, during which the army pushed the rebels several kilometers further from the city, the front line was quiet on Thursday.

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said United Nations’ MONUSCO peacekeeping force was not involved in the fighting, though he added it was ready to get involved.

“The mission remains on high alert and is prepared to intervene, including through the Force Intervention Brigade, should the fighting threaten civilians, particularly in Goma and in IDP (internally displaced persons) camps,” it said.

The so-called Intervention Brigade is a new kind of peacekeeping force the United Nations is now deploying with a tough mandate to aggressively take on rebel groups to try to end the decades-old conflict in Congo’s mineral-rich east in which millions have been killed since the 1990s.

The 3,000-strong Intervention Brigade has begun patrols but has not yet entered into combat.

Agencies

{{A woman state administrator has been killed in Somalia and two reporters shot and injured in the war-torn country.}}

The Deputy Commissioner of Somalia’s Yakshid District in north Mogadishu, Ms Rahma Dahir Siad, was killed near her home on Wednesday evening.

The journalists, Mr Mascud Abdulahi Adan, of Dalsan radio and Mr Mohamed Farah Sahal, for Goobjoog radio, were attacked on Wednesday evening in Kismayu, according the National Union of Somali Journalists (NUSOJ), in south Kismayu.

NUSOJ condemned the attack.

“We condemn the attack on the journalists in the strongest terms possible and call for an urgent investigation to bring the attacker to book,” said Mohamed Ibrahim, NUSOJ secretary-general.

Ms Siad’s killing was first made public by the Mogadishu Deputy Mayor on Security Affairs, Mr Warsame Mohamed Hassan Jodah.

“Ms Rahma was attacked and killed around Sheikh Hassan Adde Mosque, near Fagah Crossroad,” said Mr Jodah.
The killers managed to flee before security officials reached the scene of crime.

Yakshid District Commissioner Mohydin Hassan Jurus told the media on Thursday that his district security forces had apprehended four suspects.

{Deputy Commissioner of Yakshid District in north Mogadishu, Somalia Rahma Dahir Siad, addressing a youth conference in the capital on May 20 2012. She was killed by gunmen on July 17, 2013}

NMG

{{Two witnesses have withdrawn from testifying against Kenya’s President Uhuru Kenyatta at the International Criminal Court ( ICC) due to security concerns.}}

ICC Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda informed Trial Chamber V (B) that they had also dropped a third witness whose evidence was no longer necessary.

“The Prosecution hereby notifies the Chamber of the withdrawal of three witnesses from its list of witnesses to be relied on at trial. This notification is designated “confidential, ex parte” because it contains security-related information about former Prosecution witnesses that, if disclosed to the parties or the public, may place the witnesses and/or their family members at risk,” Bensouda stated.

She said Witness 5 has informed the Prosecution that he is no longer willing to testify at trial due to security risks.

She said the witness believed that recent events in his life indicated efforts to discover his location and that there have been public speculation about his cooperation with the ICC.

“In sum, it appears that Witness 5’s concerns for his security [REDACTED] have become too great for him to bear, and he has decided to withdraw as a consequence,” Bensouda stated.

The ICC Chief Prosecutor said Witness 426 has informed the Prosecution that he is no longer willing to testify against President Uhuru despite discussions to meet his concerns about the case.

“These talks were unsuccessful and Witness 426 maintained that he was not willing to testify,” said the ICC prosecutor.

Bensouda said upon review, the prosecution decided to withdraw the evidence of Witness 334 as it was no longer necessary.

President Uhuru, his Deputy William Ruto and former radio journalist Joshua Sang are facing crimes against humanity charges at The Hague based ICC.

Some witnesses who were to testify against Ruto have already withdrawn.

{{Chinese construction firm Jiangxi International has won a bid for constructing the tallest trade building in Kenya, the National Social Security Fund’s (NSSF) Trade Centre.}}

Kenyan Cementers had also bid for the project, but the Chinese firm won the project.

According to media reports, the Kenyan firm had earlier won the tender to build the 39-storey building following a US$68Million bid, which was later disqualified by the Public Procurement Administrative Review Board.

This led to the NSSF inviting new bids for the Hazina-owned trade centre in January this year.

Kenyan Labour Cabinet secretary Kazungu Kambi said, “This project has previously been dogged by a number of false starts due to legal hurdles, which have now been overcome.”

The skyscraper will be an extension of the building Nakumatt Lifestyle, which currently has eight floors, four basement levels, a ground floor, two mezzanines and one podium.

The high-rise, which will be completed in 18 months, will feature a vegetated roof terrace, a ventilated atrium, helipad and city’s viewing gallery.

It will also constitute a high-end hotel that will be expected to increase competition in the hospitality industry.

The project, amongst others, will attract US$1.15mn in lease collection income after completion, while it will also sell off some floor space, which will see it retain its real estate investment below the regulatory maximum of 30%.

{{agencies}}

{{South Sudan has reduced its oil output and plans to shut it off completely after northern neighbor Sudan insisted production be shut down by August 7, officials said, over allegations of support for rebels that operate across their border.}}

Sudan said a month ago it would close two cross-border oil pipelines within two months unless South Sudan, its former civil war foe, gave up support for the rebels. Juba denies this.

The move is a blow to the economies of both sides, which were hit hard by South Sudan’s 16-month oil shutdown in a row over pipeline fees and disputed territory. Flows of oil, the lifeline for both, had only resumed in April.

South Sudan has cut output to 160,000 barrels per day (bpd) from 200,000 bpd, officials of its foreign affairs and oil ministries said.

“The reduction started yesterday,” Foreign Affairs ministry spokesman Mawien Makol Arik said.

“It is going to go down gradually until it goes off,” he said. “This is a decision made by Khartoum … still accusing us of supporting rebels, which is a position we denied. We said we don’t do that.”

He said South Sudan had called on China, which dominates the oil industry in both countries, to mediate between the two countries, which fought one of Africa’s longest civil wars until 2005. South Sudan became an independent country in 2011.

Sudanese officials could not be immediately reached for comment.

Landlocked South Sudan needs to export its crude through the Sudanese port of Port Sudan. Both countries restarted oil flows in April after South Sudan shut its entire production of around 300,000 bpd in January 2012 as disputes over oil fees, border security and territory escalated.

Sudan allowed the sale of oil that had already reached its territory after it informed Juba in June it would halt flows unless support for rebels stopped.

Khartoum accuses Juba of supporting the “Sudanese Revolutionary Front”, an umbrella of groups operating in the borderlands, which complain of neglect at the hands of the wealthy Arab Khartoum elites.

South Sudan in turn accuses Sudan of backing rebels in its Jonglei state, where escalating fighting is making it impossible to realize government plans to search for oil with the help of France’s Total and U.S. Exxon Mobil.

The main foreign firms operating oilfields in South Sudan are China National Petroleum Corp, Malaysia’s Petronas and Indian firm ONCG Videsh.

{wirestory}

{{The prospect of striking Kenyan teachers going without pay for three months after the government closed down primary schools indefinitely may have prompted Wednesday’s about-turn by Knut.}}

After a 23-day standoff, authorities resorted to the drastic action exclusively reported by The Standard on Wednesday, which sent the Kenya National Union of Teachers ( Knut) in panic.

With teachers’ June salaries withheld, the early closure of schools meant the freeze would have extended to August. That and fears among the union leadership that the Industrial Court could find top leaders in contempt of court would appear to have forced Knut’s hand.

Indeed, during a meeting late yesterday with Deputy President William Ruto, union officials pleaded with government to withdraw the contempt case filed by the Teachers Service Commission (TSC).

The court proceedings are against Knut national chairman Wilson Sossion and the acting secretary general Mudzo Nzili. “We have a court case which can ruin us on Monday please we would like the government to intervene,” said Nzili told the meeting in the DP’s office.

The Industrial Court will on Monday rule on the fate of the officials whom TSC wants jailed for disobeying orders to call off the strike.

Sossion for his part told the meeting also attended by Education PS Belio Kipsang: “Whatever has a beginning must have an end… this is our country and we must work together and get things moving.”

Sossion and Nzili led officials to Ruto’s office where they camped for over two hours as he was away in Kitengela. Ruto was adamant the government would not yield to demands for higher pay and he ruled out payment of commuter allowances in one tranche.

“The deal you have been given by the Teachers Service Commission on commuter allowance cannot be added or reduced…we are operating within a very tight budget,” Ruto said. “We want to negotiate in a structured manner so that the agreement is honoured irrespective of who is in office,” he added.

standard