IGIHE

Tag: GreatLakesNews

  • DRC Govt Sacks Senior Army Officers

    {{The Democratic Republic of Congo has suspended a dozen senior military officers and is interrogating suspects in connection with a mass rape incident in the country’s turbulent east, a spokesman for the U.N. peacekeeping department said on Thursday. }}

    The United Nations said 126 women were raped in Minova in November after Congolese army troops fled to the town as M23 rebels briefly captured the nearby provincial capital, Goma, in eastern Congo.

    The U.N. special envoy to Congo, Roger Meece, told Congolese authorities in a March 25 letter they had seven days to take action on the rapes.

    That came after earlier U.N. demands that Congolese authorities prosecute the suspected rapists went unheeded.

    “The investigations have been launched, including interviews of victims and interrogations of suspects,” said U.N. peacekeeping spokesman Kieran Dwyer.

    “The commanding officers and deputy commanding officers of two units, as well as the commanding officers of eight other units, have been suspended and put at the disposal of the military prosecutor,” he said.

    “Interrogations are ongoing.” It was not immediately clear how many suspected rapists the Congolese authorities were interrogating.

    {{agencies}}

  • African Candidates Unlikely to get WTO top Job

    {{Two African candidates have stumbled in the race to lead the World Trade Organisation, along with their counterparts from Costa Rica and Jordan, sparking anger.}}

    According to Kenya’s trade ambassador Anthony Andanje candidates from Ghana, Costa Rica, Kenya and Jordan were the candidates least expected to get broad support.

    The WTO is a 159 member nations body that sets the rules of global commerce.

    An unprecedented nine candidates are in the running to replace Frenchman Pascal Lamy — a former European Union trade chief who has served two four-year terms at the helm of the WTO — and emerging nations aim to stake their claim on the job which is vacant on September 1.

    With four names now set to be axed from the race — Kenya’s former trade ambassador Amina Mohamed, plus Costa Rica’s commerce minister Anabel Gonzalez, Jordan’s Ahmad Hindawi and Alan Kyerematen of Ghana — Brazil’s WTO ambassador Roberto Azevedo is seen as a favourite in diplomatic circles.

    But another key name is Indonesia’s former trade minister Mari Pangestu, whose country is due to host the WTO’s next summit at the end of this year — one of three women in the race, a first for the organisation.

    The remaining challengers are Mexico’s Herminio Blanco Mendoza, South Korean Taeho Bark and Tim Groser of New Zealand.

    The main task for the WTO’s new director general will be to revive long-stalled talks on boosting international trade, which Lamy has warned could fail amid nations’ bickering.

    Unlike similar organisations such as the various arms of the United Nations, whose chiefs are nominated, the WTO elects its leader based on a consensus system, meaning any member can block the process.

    Amid reports of horse-trading between different country blocs — a common feature of leadership contests in international organisations — Andanje said that Kenya was deeply unhappy with how the race was being run.

    “The selection process was flawed and the procedures were violated,” he said, while declining to elaborate on whether his country would therefore block the process.

    “We want to make our reservations known,” he emphasised.

    The field is expected to be narrowed to two names, with the process expected to be wrapped up by the end of May.

    Created in 1995, the WTO aims to advance global trade negotiations in a drive to spur growth by opening markets and removing trade barriers, including subsidies, excessive taxes and regulations.

    Its so-called Doha Round of talks was launched in 2001, with the stated goal of harnessing global commerce to develop poorer economies, but has faltered in the face of obstacles set in particular by China, the EU, India and the United States.

    NMG

  • 9 Kenyans Perish in Car Crash

    {{Nine people died Thursday morning after a canter collided head on with a matatu at Makuyu along the Nyeri-Nairobi highway.}}

    The accident occurred shortly after 7.30am causing heavy traffic snurl up along the road.

    Police and other motorists had a hectic time retrieving the bodies trapped in the wreckage of the matatu that was destined for Nyeri from Thika town.

    Among the dead at the accident that occurred near the Kakuzi farm’s main gate were the two drivers.

    According to witnesses, the accident occurred as the matatu was overtaking another vehicle and could not avoid the oncoming canter.

    Makuyu Traffic Base Commander Ms Loise Gatimu attributed the cause of the accident to careless driving saying the matatu driver was impatient as he over took another vehicle underestimating the speed of the oncoming truck.

    The traffic officer warned motorists to exercise a lot of caution when driving along the section between Kenol to Sagana describing the area as black spot.

    {Wreckage of the matatu that collided with a lorry killing nine people in Makuyu on the Nyeri-Nairobi}

    {standard}

  • Gen. Bashir in Juba Pledges to Boost Relations

    {{Sudan and South Sudan will normalise ties and start cross-border co-operation, Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir has said.}}

    Bashir made the comments on Friday during his first visit to South Sudan since July 2011 when the south seceded and became an independent state.

    “This visit shows the start of cooperation based on a normalisation of relations between the two countries,” Bashir said in a speech in the capital Juba.

    South Sudan’s Salva Kiir said he had agreed with Bashir to continue a dialogue to solve all outstanding conflicts between the African neighbours.

    Bashir was received at Juba airport by Kiir, his former civil war foe and an ex-rebel commander.

    A military band played the national anthems of the two countries as the two heads of state greeted South Sudanese ministers assembled to welcome Bashir.

    Bashir’s visit “will be good for the future of the two countries,” Barnaba Marial Benjamin, South Sudan’s information minister, said before Bashir’s plane touched down.

    “There should be peace between the two countries,” he said.

    The two nations agreed in March to resume cross-border oil flows and take steps to defuse tension that has plagued them since South Sudan seceded from Sudan in July 2011 following a treaty which ended decades of civil war.

    They still have not agreed who owns Abyei province and other regions along their disputed 2,000km border.

    Bashir had planned to visit South Sudan’s capital, Juba, a year ago but cancelled the trip when fighting erupted along their border and almost flared into full-scale war.

    Bashir is expected to arrive with a large delegation and will discuss oil, border trade and security with Kiir, said Benjamin, the information minister.

    “They need to talk about the Abyei administration and things related to the Abyei area,” he said.

    Al Jazeera’s Harriet Martin, reporting from Sudan’s capital, Khartoum, said the visit was symbolic and that “there will be a day’s serious work of discussions”.

    {{Oil production}}

    South Sudan’s secession left unresolved a long list of disputes over territory and how much the landlocked south should pay to export its oil through Sudan.

    The new African country shut down its entire oil output of 350,000 barrels a day in January last year at the height of the dispute over pipeline fees – a closure that had a devastating effect on both struggling economies.

    The two sides subsequently agreed to restart oil shipments, grant each others’ citizens residency, increase border trade and encourage close cooperation between their central banks.

    Last week, South Sudan re-launched oil production with the first oil cargo expected to reach Sudan’s Red Sea export
    terminal at Port Sudan by the end of May.

    Both nations also withdrew their troops from border areas as agreed in a deal brokered by the African Union in September.

    Bashir last visited Juba on July 9, 2011 to attend the ceremony marking South Sudan’s formal separation.

    About two million people died in the war that was fuelled by divisions over religion, oil, ethnicity and ideology and ended in 2005 with a deal that paved the way for Juba’s secession.

    {Aljazeera}

  • UNICEF in bid to Plug Diarrhoea, Pneumonia

    {{A programme with the potential to save up to two million children every year from deaths caused by pneumonia and diarrhoea – some of the leading killers of children under five globally – was launched on Friday by UNICEF and the World Health Organization (WHO).}}

    The Integrated Global Action Plan for the Prevention and Control of Pneumonia and Diarrhoea calls for closer integration of efforts to prevent and treat these two diseases and sets ambitious targets to reduce mortality rates and raise levels of children’s access to life-saving interventions.

    “Too often, strategies to tackle pneumonia and diarrhoea run in parallel,” says Dr Elizabeth Mason, Director of Maternal, Newborn, Child and Adolescent Health at WHO.

    “But as countries like Bangladesh, Cambodia, Ethiopia, Malawi, Pakistan and Tanzania are already showing, it makes good health sense and good economic sense to integrate those strategies more closely,” Mason expressed.

    “Many factors contribute to these two conditions, so no single intervention can effectively prevent, treat or control either pneumonia or diarrhoea. However, as richer countries have demonstrated, a number of elements are key to reducing infections and deaths from both diseases,” a statement sent to newsrooms reads.

    Good nutrition and a clean environment help protect children from both pneumonia and diarrhoea.

    The statement also says; “new vaccines are being introduced to protect children from these diseases. Good access to health services and the right medicines can ensure they get the treatment they need.”

    “This is a question of equity. Poor children in low-income countries are most at risk of death from pneumonia or diarrhoea but much less likely to get the interventions they need,” said Dr Mickey Chopra, global head of UNICEF’s health programmes.

    “We know what to do. If, in the 75 countries with the highest death rates, we apply to the entire population the same coverage of essential interventions enjoyed by the richest 20% of households, we can prevent the deaths of two million children even as soon as 2015, the deadline for the Millennium Development Goals,” Dr Chopra added.

    The Action Plan’s targets are significantly higher than current levels. For example, it calls for 90 percent of all children to have access to antibiotics for pneumonia and oral rehydration salts for diarrhoea, up from current levels of 31 and 35 percent respectively.

    The Action Plan comes at a time when the global community has strengthened its commitment towards the health MDGs, including towards reducing child mortality.

    These include the United Nations Secretary-General’s Every Woman Every Child initiative and within it, Committing to Child Survival: A Promise Renewed, a global movement spearheaded by UNICEF through which more than 170 countries have committed to ending all preventable child deaths by 2035.

    The new WHO/UNICEF Action Plan sets clear goals for the world to achieve by 2025: a 75 % reduction in incidence of severe pneumonia and diarrhoea from 2010 levels among children under five, and the virtual elimination of deaths from both diseases in the same age-group.

    It also aims for a 40% reduction in the global number of children under five who are stunted.

  • 5Billion People Risk Eating Contaminated Food

    {{An expert has warned that over 5 billion people in developing countries are at risk of consuming contaminated food, posing a major threat to international trade, health and food security in the world.}}

    According to the expert, Dr Yemi Akinbamijo, Head of the Agriculture and Food Security Division of the African Union Commission (AUC), most food, especially in Africa, is exposed to aflatoxins – a toxic substance contaminating food, including those sourced from grains and animals.

    He was speaking yesterday in the city at the Partnership for Aflatoxins Control in Africa (Paca) Strategy Development Stakeholders Consultation workshop convened as part of efforts geared to address the problem.

    The minister for Health and Social Welfare, Dr Hussein Mwinyi, who officiated the event, said the challenge was real in Tanzania because most people, especially those living in rural areas, eat food directly from farms.

    “Controlling aflatoxins and any other mycotoxins requires a comprehensive and participatory approach involving multiple partners and joint strategies by the government, private sector, farmers and consumers,” he said.

    Dr Akinbamijo also said efforts should be made to control aflatoxin in order to achieve greater agricultural development, food security and better health.

    According to the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), 25 per cent of world food crops are affected, and tropical countries are most affected.

    The director general of the Tanzania Food and Drugs Authority (TFDA), Dr Hiiti Sillo, said that the Paca workshop drew the participation of stakeholders from more than 20 countries and institutions.

    “In response to the threat of aflatoxin to consumers and economies in Africa, stakeholders identified in 2010 the need for an Africawide approach for the prevention and control of aflatoxin. Paca will provide consistent coordination and coherent leadership to the continental efforts on aflatoxin control,” said Dr Sillo.

    NMG

  • Juba Confirms Bashir’s visit, Urges Warm Reception

    {{South Sudan has officially confirmed Friday’s visit of Sudanese president, Omar Al-Bashir to the capital, Juba, and called on its citizens to exercise warm reception.}}

    Bashir, South Sudan government spokesperson said, will be accompanied by a 65-member delegation of his advisors, ministers of Defense, Interior and Foreign Affairs, as well as other officials.

    “We would ask for a warm reception from our citizens in honour of the visit [of the Sudanese president],” Barnaba Marial told a press conference in Juba, Thursday.

    He said Bashir and his South Sudan counterpart; Salva Kiir will hold a one-to-one meeting, which will later be preceded by a ministerial meeting between the two countries, co-chaired by the two presidents.

    “The two leaders will mainly discuss all the main areas of last year’s Cooperation Agreement signed between two countries and the key issues within it,” he said, adding that focus will be on the nine agreements reached.

    Early this week, Emad Sid-Ahmed, press secretary at the Sudanese presidency said Bashir’s visit comes in response to an invitation extended by his South Sudan counterpart, Salva Kiir who visited last Khartoum on 8 October, 2011.

    Bashir had planned to travel to Juba in April 2012, but it was cancelled after the seizure of Heglig by the South Sudanese army (SPLA).

    The visit also take place three days before a meeting at the level of political and security committee to establish a mechanism to settle the issue of rebel groups in both countries.

    Khartoum, for long refused to normalize relations with Juba, demanding the later to stop its support to rebel groups.

    The two countries will open soon ten crossing points on the border before to allow free circulation of persons and goods between the two countries.

    Juba last week resumed the exportation of its oil through the Sudanese port on the Red Sea and a demilitarized zone has been established on the disputed areas.

    (ST).

  • President Kenyatta Sacks old Cabinet

    {{Kenya’s new President Uhuru Kenyatta on Wednesday disbanded the old cabinet and declared all cabinet positions vacant saying the life of the grand coalition government had officially come to an end.}}

    A statement from state house Wednesday evening said the swearing-in ceremony and the subsequent assumption of Office of the President on Tuesday had brought down the curtain on the life of the coalition government that was created under the national accord of 2008.

    “Similarly, the tenure of the Cabinet serving either as part of the Grand Coalition Government or as part of the Caretaker Government under President Kibaki, which has been in place since the holding of the first elections under the Constitution of Kenya 2010, on 4th March 2013, came to an end at midnight on April 9, 2013,” said the statement.

    Mr Kenyatta said cabinet ministers will therefore be deemed to have vacated their positions for “all purposes whatsoever”.

    Permanent Secretaries will continue to look after the affairs of ministries until the appointments of new Cabinet Secretaries and Principal Secretaries are effected,” he added.

    Prof Sam Ongeri (Foreign Affairs), Charity Ngilu (Water), Njeru Githae (Finance), Amos Kimunya (Transport) and Samuel Pogishio (Information) are among some of the cabinet ministers who were still serving in their respective portfolios.

    Mr Kenyatta thanked the former ministers for their “distinguished service” rendered to the people of Kenya.

    {NMG}

  • World’s Largest Micro-Lender Opens Office in EAC

    {{The world’s largest micro-lending organisation KIVA, has announced that it will set up its Africa base in East Africa in Kenya’s capital Nairobi to strengthen its partnerships and advance economic opportunity.}}

    The Kenyan office will be Kiva’s first outside the USA, a huge development for a non-profit organisation that was founded in 2005 to lend capital to the small and medium enterprise across the world aimed at alleviating poverty.

    Matt Flannery and Premal Shah who are the founders of the organisation said the regional office will be based at the Business Centre at Strathmore University on April 17 this year.

    ‘’As we open the doors to our new office Nairobi, we are opening the door for new opportunities and exciting partnerships across Africa,’’ said Matt Flannery, CEO and co-founder of Kiva

    He added that Nairobi is an emerging hub for numerous potential social enterprise buoyed by the entrepreneurial spirit that is hugely nurtured in the country.

    Kiva’s borrowers use internet connection and can access loans from as little as Sh2, 117 ($25) with a repayment rate of 98.9 per cent, lenders are privileged to relend their money or withdraw it from the system.

    Kiva has 900,000 lenders and has so far distributed more than $410 million loans to one million people worldwide. In Kenya, the organisation has previously offered a total of $20.5 million to 63,000 individuals.

    The organisation mostly relies on grant from its 250,000 partners from 125 countries globally.

    “Fundamentally, Kiva is about recognising and supporting the potential of small enterprise and ideas to people across the globe with financial constraints,’’ said Premal Shal, Kiva Co-founder and president.

    Kiva micro-loans target borrowers investing in business, education, energy products and in sustainable agricultural practices in the country. In Kenya, the organisation has 14 partners.

    Strathmore University is one of the key beneficiaries of this initiative, under their flexible, risk tolerant capital, Strathmore University students who comes from the poor background has accessed 11-year tuition loan that comes with a five year grace period.

    Lydia Balil is one of the recipients of the education scheme under Kiva who is studying for a Bachelor of Commerce at the University. Being raised up in Turkana County in the remote area of Northern Kenya, her hopes for higher education were almost dashed off were it not for the financial support she received from the latter.

    ‘’My past experience almost compromised my education, given this chance by Kiva, my quest for higher education can now be achieved,’’ she said.

    Kiva key partner, Juhundi Kilimo has so far provided financial services to over 7,000 small scale farmers in the rural areas of Kenya where majority of the recipients are women.

    Juhundi mission is to provide wealth creating financial services including conducive loans to acquire productive assets such as dairy cows and irrigation schemes.

    {NMG}

  • Pokot Tribal Community Demand Apology from Museveni

    {{The Kenyan Pokot tribal community has demanded an apology from Uganda’s President Yoweri Museveni following claims he made recently that the Pokot have been stealing his livestock.}}

    The comments have sparked outrage among leaders.

    In off the cuff remarks during the inauguration of Mr Uhuru Kenyatta as Kenya fourth president, Mr Museveni said the Pokot have been stealing his livestock.

    “I thank the government of Kenya. They gave me a new MP from West Pokot to bring me here. Pokots have been stealing my cows. I have agreed with that MP. I want to ask President Uhuru to ensure that the people of West Pokot stop stealing my cows,” said President Museveni in Kiswahili, causing laughter.

    The area along the Kenya-Uganda border is prone to cattle rustling.

    Deputy President William Ruto promptly responded in Kiswahili saying: “I assure you that the people of West Pokot will stop stealing your cows,” adding that President Museveni’s words were made in jest.

    Three MPs from West Pokot County did not take it lightly though and now want President Museveni to apologise for “demonising the whole community as thieves”.

    NMG