IGIHE

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  • Rwanda Forest Cover at 23%

    {{The Minister for Natural resources, Stanislas Kamanzi has said that current status of Rwanda forest cover now stands at about 23% of national surface.}}

    Minister Kamanzi told IGIHE in an interview that through national afforestation and reforestation programs, Rwanda has committed to a systematic forest landscape restoration initiative which aims at increasing forest cover and protection of natural resources in general.

    He added afforestation and agro-forestry programs are planned in each District to achieve the National target of having 30% of national territory covered by forests.

    Though good progresses in terms of reforestation were made, there remains room for improvement in some Districts.

    “We have been noting cases where forests are mismanaged and even illegally harvested. Districts Districts Task Forces should contribute to have that put to an end” Kamanzi said.

    One of the ways to address this issue was the establishment of afforestation task forces in level of each district led by the vice Mayors in charge of economic affairs and this occurred starting last year for the season 2011-2012.

    After establishment of those task forces, the rate of tree survival after planting has gone much higher than before.

  • Ebola Vaccine Chances Out as Research Funds Cut Off

    {{Ebola vaccine may never be developed to prevent the onset of infection of the lethal viral disease–scientists have said.}}

    This follows the cutting of funding for research on Ebola.Two companies with leading vaccine candidates have had their funding from the Pentagon suspended in recent weeks.

    Research into development of a vaccine have been mainly funded by the US Department of Defense and the National Institutes of Health pouring millions of dollars into scientific research because of concerns that the virus could be turned into a biological weapon.

    Ebola is often described as the most frightening disease on Earth.The virus causes a severe haemorrhagic fever, where victims bleed both internally and externally.

    An expert said it was now “unlikely” a prophylactic vaccine would ever be used to prevent outbreaks of the disease.

    Since the Pentagon began funding this research, several vaccine candidates have been developed and have shown themselves effective in animal trials.

    Two companies, Sarepta and Tekmira have begun human safety trials of their vaccines.

    However, in recent days, both companies have been told by the Defense Department to temporarily stop work on their vaccines due to funding constraints.

    It is expected that a decision to either resume testing or completely terminate the contracts will be made by early September.

    Scientists say their understanding of the nature of the virus has markedly improved over the past decade.

    But the chances of turning that knowledge into a vaccine are very dependent on money.

    {{Ebola in Uganda}}

    Experts from the WHO and the U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention are in Uganda to advise health officials responding to the outbreak.

    Uganda has experienced three outbreaks of Ebola since 2000 when 224 people were killed.

    At least 42 people were killed in another outbreak in 2007, and there was a single confirmed case in 2011.

    Close to 17 people have died as a result of the latest outbreak that had Kibaale District, in the west of the country, as its epicentre.

  • Police Donates 33 Hybrid Goats to Widows

    {{Tuesday, 58 widows survivors of the 1994 Tutsi genocide in Rutunga sector, Gasabo District,were given hybrid goats to help improve their livelihoods.}}

    The donation included; 33 high breed goats, agricultural equipments; watering cans and pesticide containers.

    All donated items were valued at Frw 1,130,000 courtesy of contributions from Kacyiru Police Hospital staff members.

    ACP Daniel Nyamwasa the Commandant of Kacyiru Police Hospital, urged the widows to take good care of donated goats.

    “These goats are going to reproduce and play an impact in your lives once they are given good care.”

    James Nzirimu in charge of advocacy at the National Commission against Genocide (CNLG) thanked Police Hospital’s contribution towards the welfare of survivors of Genocide.

    Nzirimu urged reciepients on better care for the goats to have high production which he said would help to solve a number of basic needs.

    Sarafina Uwimana one of the recipients said, “Citizens in Rutunga, mostly survivors of 94 Genocide were extremely poor, but God has done us a miracle with us being the first beneficiaries.”

  • Explosion in Syria Injures Three

    Three people have been injured in a deadly explosion that struck a truck close to a military compound in Damascus,Syria near a hotel used by the UN’s observer mission.

    Syrian state TV reported that three people had been injured in the blast, but that none of them were UN monitors.

    The intended target of the explosion was not immediately clear.

    The UN humanitarian chief Valerie Amos, currently visiting Syria, has said it should be made easier for aid to be delivered to civilians who need it.

    Later on Wednesday, the Organisation of Islamic Co-operation (OIC) is expected to suspend Syria’s membership over the ongoing violence.

    The 57-member organisation, meeting in the Saudi city of Mecca, is expected to endorse a statement put forward by its members’ foreign ministers, despite objections from Iran, Syria’s last regional ally.

    Syria’s Deputy Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad visited the scene and told state media it was “a criminal act aimed at distorting Syria’s image”.

    He called on the international community to “work hand-in-hand against terrorism”.

    “Our primary goal is to secure the observer mission team and thank God no one from this mission has been hurt since it arrived in Syria,” he said.

  • Ethiopia Stops Forex Trade

    {{As the whereabouts of Ethiopia’s Prime minister Meles Zenawi remains unknown, Ethiopian government has suspended the provision of foreign currency in a decision that has been linked to the political uncertainties surrounding prime minister Zenawi’s deteriorating health.}}

    A notice to this effect has been issued by the regulator, the National Bank of Ethiopia, to the country’s commercial banks as Addis Ababa also appealed for food aid.

    The country’s foreign currency reserves are running alarmingly low and can only cover the importation of basic goods such as petroleum, medicine and food.

    The measure is likely to lead to a black market boom that would further weaken the country’s import-export trade, observers say, with shortages already being experienced.

    The country’s leading commercial bank has stopped issuing letters of credit–essentially a promise to pay–with fears of a rise in the cost of living.

    Banking in the Horn of Africa nation of about 85 million people is highly centrally regulated.

    Industry insiders argue that massive capital flight and illegal transactions are the main reasons for the rapid depletion of forex reserves.

    One of the fastest growing sub-Saharan Africa countries, Ethiopia’s growth has touched seven per cent annually for the last nine years, according to the IMF.

    Big businesses owned by Mr Meles’ ruling Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) play a key role in the daily operation of the economy.

  • Banjul Capital Sinking

    {{Sea level rise due to climate change could submerge Gambian capital city Banjul, the country’s minister for works Francis Leity Mboge has warned.}}

    The minister was addressing a UNDP workshop held in Banjul on enhancing adaptive capacities and defences of coastal settlements.

    Gambia is one of Africa’s most vulnerable countries to climate change.

    “Gambia’s climate change vulnerability is likely to increase. Droughts, floods and storms are likely to increase in frequency and intensity.

    In coastal areas, sea level rise and rising sea temperatures will lead to saltwater intrusion, floods and coastal erosion,’’ the minister said.

    The minister said a one-meter sea level rise might wipe out Gambia’s human settlements, 60 per cent of mangrove forest cover, 33 per cent swampy areas and 20 per cent of rice fields.

    According to him, unfavourable climatic conditions will lead to a decrease in rice production impeding the county’s objective of producing 70,000 metric tonnes of rice annually.

    He added that climate change presents a serious threat to the country’s economic life-line such as tourism and fishing.

    “Studies both in Gambia and abroad show that climate change will have significant consequences on coastal regions, especially low-lying coasts with their mangrove ecosystems,” said Izumi Morota-Alakija, a UNDP representative.

  • Zuma to Mediate Zimbabwe Political Crisis Talks

    {{South African President Jacob Zuma is expected in Zimbabwe on Wednesday to mediate between warring political factions in Zimbabwe responsible for widening divisions and rising tensions.}}

    Zuma will meet the leaders of the three leading political parties to press for political reforms and new elections under a recently completed draft constitution.

    South Africa’s mediation efforts helped pave the way for the Global Political Agreement, which was agreed upon by the Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front (Zanu-PF) led by President Robert Mugabe and the then opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) led by the current Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai.

    Analysts say the agreement, which led to the formation in February 2009 of the current power-sharing government, was intended to help diffuse the post-election impasse that threatened to bring the country to a standstill at the time.

    South Africa has played the role of chief mediator since the violent and disputed elections of 2008, with President Zuma taking over from his predecessor Thabo Mbeki after taking over the presidency in 2009.

    The agreement, which led to the formation in February 2009 of the current power-sharing government, aimed at helping diffuse post-election stalemate that threatened to bring the country to a standstill at the time.

    The current government’s term of office is set to come to an end soon and fresh elections due to take place on a yet-to-be-specified date in the near future, little progress has been made on some of the most contentious issues.

  • Mai Mai Militia Burn Seven Villages

    {{Insurgency reports from Eastern DRC indicate that notorious Mai-Mai militia August 10 attacked fifteen villages about 80 km west of Goma, Masisi in North Kivu.}}

    At least five people were killed, three others injured, and seven villages burnt. Congolese forces in the region are said to have deployed since Saturday to secure the area.

    The Raïa Mutomboki attacked Nkokwe market to Remeka and the surrounding villages in pursuit of the rebel Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR).

    During the attack on the market, a woman, two men, a girl and a boy were killed.

    The Mai-Mai are a vigilante group which performs popular recurring raids on the positions of the FDLR, considered in the area as a foreign occupation force.

    In the villages, these militiamen wounded elderly and children with machetes. Two seriously injured were transported Sunday to a hospital in Goma.

    The victims reported that Raïa Mutomboki burned at least seven villages and the people were left to die in burning houses.

    Hundreds of people fled Remeka by Friday to take refuge in Bukumbiri.
    Military sources in Ngungu, near Remeka have said a team of the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of Congo (FARDC) has been dispatched.

    Masisi Member of Parliament Jean-Bosco Sebishimbo, also confirmed the attacks. He asked the area authorities to investigate to determine responsibilities, but also to secure the local population.

  • Fidel Castro Turns 86

    {{Communist leader Fidel Castro, who led Cuba for a half century and became known worldwide for decades of Cold War-era clashing with the United States, has celebrated his 86th birthday.}}

    Officially, there have been no plans to publicly honour Cuba’s one-time “commander-in-chief,” who tightly orchestrated public life there from January 1959 until he suffered a health crisis in 2006 and delegated his duties to his brother Raul Castro.

    Youth organizations marked not the anniversary of Castro’s birth but rather that of Rene Gonzalez, one of five Cuban secret service agents imprisoned in the United States considered “heroes of the war on terror” in their homeland.

    Fidel Castro has kept a low profile for months. The father of the Cuban revolution last appeared in public in March, when he met Pope Benedict XVI on the pontiff’s visit to the Caribbean country.

    The longtime leader has also fallen behind in his once prolific publications.

    His long “reflections” — totaling 398 to date — were once regularly published in state media. Now, he pens just several lines every few months on topics that leave even his most loyal supporters perplexed.

  • Congolese Olympic Judo Team Missing

    {{A Congolese judo competitor and three other members of the Congolese Olympic delegation have gone missing in London since the weekend, local media reported on Monday.}}

    This adds to a list of seven other African athletes who vanished during the Games.

    Democratic Republic of Congo’s Cedric Mandembo, who lost his only judo match in 49 seconds to Russian Alexander Mikhaylin in the 100 kg category, disappeared shortly after Sunday’s closing ceremony and was not answering his mobile phone, U.N.-sponsored Radio Okapi reported, citing the Congolese Olympic Committee.

    Congo judo coach Ibula Masengo, boxing trainer Blaise Bekwa, and national technical director of athletics Guy Nkita had also gone missing, according to the report, which said all four had left the Olympic village with their luggage.

    No further details were immediately available in London and a government spokesman said the Home Office did not comment on individual cases.

    Olympic officials are also looking for seven Cameroonian athletes who went missing during the Games.

    Cameroon officials asked for help tracking down five boxers, a swimmer and a soccer player, and said they were probably seeking to stay in Europe for economic reasons.

    The London Olympic organising committee said it had notified British police about the missing Cameroonians, but added that the athletes would not be infringing immigration laws until their visas expired in November.