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{{Prime Minister Dr. Pierre Damien Habumuremyi has said that Rwanda is not supporting the M23 rebel movement in the democratic republic of Congo.}}

Dr. Habumuremyi said the accusations are false and have no basis.

This was during the just concluded monthly comunity worksn on Saturday where the premeir was in Burera district, Gahunga sector in the Northern Province .

Dr. Habumuremyi urged all Rwandans to engage in work to limit the damage from disasters.

He advised Rwandans not to be confused as those who are not happy with the considerable development of Rwanda.

During community work, Gahunga residents rebuilt a school that was partly destroyed by overflowing from the Volcanoes in April.

Large amounts of water flows down stream from muhabura volcano threatening lives and property of inhabitants in the area.

{{Millions of Africans live in slums, and the rapid growth of African cities is compounding the problem.}}

Africa faces the huge challenge of “improving the lives of slum dwellers, but also preventing the formation of new slums,” says Joan Clos, executive director of the UN Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat).

Africa’s housing ministers, who last met in Rabat, Morocco, in September 2011, are well aware of this challenge.

Gathered under the auspices of the African Ministers Conference on Housing and Urban Development (AMCHUD), they outlined new policies for housing and urban development across the continent, in line with the “cities without slums” initiative they originally adopted in 2005.

Some slum dwellers fear this may be mostly talk. “I am only interested in being removed from here, to live in a more decent environment,” says Mr Rachid Lashab, who lives in the Essekouila slum in Casablanca.

“I am not interested in the many conferences that our leaders attend.”

But in Rabat, the ministers at least laid out broad goals.

These included improving urban planning, making service land (for public buildings) more available, developing industrial, agricultural and crafts towns, and slowing down rural-to-urban migration of people in search of job opportunities.

{{In Ethiopia, government troops have intervened in ethnic fighting in south of the country involving the Borana and Garri communities in the Moyale area.}}

The clashes are thought to have been sparked by disputes over land rights. At least 18 people died and 12 others injured.

Over 20,000 people are reported to have crossed into Kenya to escape the fighting.

Local reports speak of armed militias taking up positions in outlying villages on Wednesday, with the fighting spreading to Moyale town, on the Ethiopia-Kenya border, on Thursday.

{{Police in Kirehe district has destroyed a sizeable amount of illegal drugs and large quantities of illicit brew.

The illegal stuff including 150 litres of kanyanga and 733Kgs of cannabis were seized in a cordon operation conducted at Kigarama sector, Kirehe district.}}

The seized illicit beverage and narcotics were destroyed in presence of local population, Police, Army and Prosecution.

The operation aimed at eradicating drugs within the district given that illicit alcohol and narcotics are still an issue of concern.

Chief Inspector of Police (CIP) Innocent Kagorora, Kirehe Police Station commander warned “Police shall not tolerate those involved in these illegal businesses. We shall continue to fight these crimes.”

Kagorora further urged them to share information with security organs to ensure that those involved in crimes are arrested.

“I urge Kirehe residents to continue identifying people involved in criminal activities as the consequences of their actions affect us all,” Kagorora said.

Kigarama Executive secretary Theoneste Nizeyimana said the drugs have negative impact to citizens such as theft, rape, as well as others and called citizens to timely give information to security organs for those implicated in such crimes are brought to justice.

{{The congolese Army was today surprised when another Col. Eric Badege defected with more than a hundred FARDC soldiers, Local congolese media has reported.}}

Col. Badege was commander of 2nd Battalion, 410th Regiment Nabiondo FARDC base, about thirty miles northwest of Goma in North Kivu.

Masisi local adminstration authorities are quoted to have confirmed the defection that happened on Friday when Col. Badege and other several soldiers were seen headed towards Rubaya, 80 Kilometres North of Nabiondo.

The administrator of Masisi, Marie-Claire Bangwene, confirmed that the commander of the 2nd Battalion of the 410th regiment of FARDC was not at her station Nabiondo since Friday.

Before arriving at Rubaya, the source said, Col. Badege met the commander of the 810th regiment Birambwe to justify his departure from Nabiondo.

Col. Badege is said to have deserted with an unknown number of weapons, ammunition and other military equipment.

According to the local congolese media, the commander of the 810th regiment of FARDC in Nabiondo and the president of civil society in Sake confirmed this information.

{{In a 4-hour emergency visit to Angola, DRC’s President Joseph Kabila Thursday begged Angola government to help him deal with the Crisis in Kivu, Eastern DRC.}}

The Angolan Presidency said in a statement that the meeting was aimed at discussing the DR Congo situation.

Currently, DR Congo is trying to neutralise an armed insurrection by the M23 rebel group.

“The four-hour visit to Angola aimed at discussing DRC situation that has been plagued in recent times by an armed rebellion”, the statement reads in part.

Angola and DRC enjoy good relations in various fields such as defence, security, transports, energy, tourism, trade, fisheries, geology, mining and oil-exploration.

Antoine Ghonda President Kabila’s Special envoy to Angola had Two-weeks ago been sent to Angola to seek help due to prevailing political situation at home.

“I am in Angola to explain that DRC has difficulties and we need your help” Ghonda said while on a visit in Luanda, Angola.

{{Representatives of the Khartoum government at the ongoing negotiatons in Addis Ababa announced Friday that Sudan had lowered its demand on oil transportation fees to US$32 from previous demand of US$36.}}

Sudan initially demanded $36 per barrel for both GNPOC and Petrodar pipelines saying it owns all the facilities and provides all the services.

“We made a new offer to transport South Sudan’s oil at US$21 instead of US$25 and we ask $6 for transit fees, we also cancelled the marine terminal charges and reduced the processing fees. So we reduced our demand from $36 to US$32”, Awad Abdel-Fatah, undersecretary of Sudan’ oil ministry.

Khartoum negotiators stressed that no deal can be signed without the implementation of security agreement.

For oil produced by GNPOC, South Sudan offers US$7.40 for the transportation , including the marine terminal fees, US$1.07 for the processing facilities and US$0.63 for the transit fee.

Regarding the Petrodar oil Juba proposes US$5.50 for the transportation and the marine terminal, US$1.07 for the processing and US$0.69 for the transit.

Last Sunday chief negotiator, Pagan Amum, tabled South Sudan’s “last offer” saying Juba proposes US$9.10 and US$7.26 per barrel for its oil transported through the two Sudanese pipelines.

He pointed out that they offer “a 7% increased processing fees”.

{{The Foreign Affairs Minister of Rwanda Louise Mushikiwabo has demanded some respect from donor countries that wave their big chequebooks to intimidate Rwanda.}}

“This child-to-parent relationship has to end.There has to be a minimum respect,” Mushikiwabo said Saturday in an address to a Kenyan business club called Mindspeak.

She said, “As long as countries wave chequebooks over our heads, we can never be equal.”

Mushikiwabo added that Africans have to work hard to develop their economies in order to stop relying on western donors.

Minister Mushikiwabo said it was too early to tell what kind of damage the withholding of aid would do to the government’s economic development push.

“We have been in much worse situations than dollars being withheld from us,” she said.

German has also (Saturday) canceled its planned aid budget of US$26 Million in contributions to Rwanda’s budget planned from this year through 2015.

The UK also terminated US$25m financial support to Rwanda saying in a statement that it was delaying in budget support due July 2012 while considering whether aid conditions had been met.

Earlier, US government had blocked $200,000 in military aid to Rwanda and the Netherlands suspended 5 million euros of aid after a United Nations interim report said Rwanda was backing rebels in the Democratic Republic of Congo.