Zone 2- Africa Summary, week # 133

POLITICS OF SECURITY AND CONFLICT ISSUES

West Africa: The head of Benin's parliament has rejected a request by lawmakers to impeach President Boni Yayi, saying they failed to follow procedures.

Guinea-Bissau's President Malam Bacai Sanha has said his citizens are ashamed of being thought incapable of solving the coup-ridden nation's problems.

In Nigeria FBI Begins Training of EFCC Operatives Next Month,as officials of United States and Nigerian government met behind closed doors in Washington DC to explore ways to help the nation effectively tackle the problem of corruption, especially as its involves politically exposed persons (PEP).

Nigerian Federal Government has raised alarm over influx of illegal arms and expressed concern over the flooding ahead of next year's general elections.

After months of rumors and intense speculations, Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan will formally declare his interest in the 2011 presidential race early next month. Meanwhile in Abuja the raging controversy over whether or not President Goodluck Jonathan should sign the amended constitution before it becomes operational is set to be settled as the Federal Government has decided to ask the Supreme Court to make a pronouncement on the matter.

Elections: In Liberia 2011 Elections Calendar is set to be released; Liberians and the political leaders, some of whom are desirous of contesting various positions next year, will know how the process will proceed and what they need to be doing.

In Nigeria Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) Chairman Prof. Attahiru Jega has warned over the January elections, saying the commission is falling behind schedule in its preparations. Meanwhile President Goodluck Jonathan has said the Federal Government would put all machinery in motion to ensure that Nigerians in Diaspora can vote during elections that follow next year’s general election.

Central Africa: Congo-Kinshasa: UN Secretary-General has condemned killing of three peacekeepers, and has called on the Government to swiftly bring perpetrators to justice.

Soldiers have arrested two suspects in the killings of three United Nations peacekeepers in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), a military spokesperson said.

Rwanda: Community Policing Will Make a Difference with a Report Released by Police Recently, With Statistics Covering Five Years (2005-2010) indicates that crime across the country has significantly gone down. The report shows the breakdown of the cases as murder, armed robbery; theft, corruption, etc.

Elections: Rwandan President Paul Kagame won another seven-year term in elections on 9 August, after already being in power for 15 years. He captured 93 percent of the vote by banning opposition parties and eliminating critical domestic news coverage, reports Human Rights Watch. Obama too has criticized Rwanda’s Government saying he is "concerned" by disturbing acts by the Rwandan government in the run up to the country's elections that President Paul Kagame won.

Southern Africa : Troop request for Somalia is likely to fall on deaf ears as South Africa is unlikely to deploy soldiers in support of the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM), as it did "not believe" in the political direction being followed to resolve the conflict, and there was no exit strategy.

Southern African leaders have put off confronting Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe for his refusal to abide by a regional court's ruling that rejected controversial land reforms in favor of a group of white farmers.

Related news to The Hague court, a trustee of Nelson Mandela's charity has resigned after revealing that he accepted diamonds from British supermodel Naomi Campbell in 1997.

The strikes of South African public servants for higher wages have taken a violent shape preventing some senior health workers and volunteers, from going to work and surgical procedures. The Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi warned strikers that are interrupting medical operations are committing murder.

Over a million teachers, nurses and other government workers have downed tools across South Africa, suspending public education and healthcare while their demands for better pay go head-to-head with government's reluctance to accede.

Elections: South Africa’s largest Democratic Alliance (DA) party said on Sunday it would merge with the small Independent Democrats (ID) party to challenge the ANC in the elections of 2014.

HUMAN RIGHTS AND SOCIAL ISSUES IN DOMESTIC POLITICS

West Africa: In Ghana a founding member of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Mr. Kofi Mintah, has commended President John Atta Mills and his government for maintaining their focus despite attempts to detract them.
In Niger in April, the United Nations World Food Programme estimated it would need 190 million dollars to respond to a food crisis threatening more than 7 million people in Niger. By July, the WFP had revised the amount needed upwards to $371 million: a month later, the U.N. agency has been forced to scale back aid for lack of funds.

Also millions Nigerians, residents of Bagga village, in the central region of Tahoua, have been struggling to find enough food to eat. Granaries are empty and harvests are not due for another two months.

And the government revealed that this year again, Niger is short of food. Nearly half of the country’s 15.2 million inhabitants are facing hunger due to failed harvests in 2009.

Human Rights Watch (HRW), released a report in which it identified the Nigerian Police as the most corrupt government institution, the effects of which a community of civil society organizations said, would undermine the 2011 General Elections.

Central Africa: The Republic of Congo celebrated 50 years of independence Sunday with a parade and ceremony in the capital, Brazzaville.

Rwanda: FEDERAL officials in Germany have charged Onesphore Rwabukombe over his alleged involvement in the 1994 Genocide against Tutsi in Rwanda. The 53-year old Rwabukombe, a former Bourgmestre (Mayor) of Muvumba Commune, now in the eastern province, is accused of Genocide and murder, as well as inciting killings.

As many as 58 people, most of them Rebel and members of the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR) returned home voluntarily from the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Rwandan media reported.

A privately-owned broadcaster based in Kananga, capital of West Kasai Kasaï province in central DR Congo, was evacuated from Kanange by the United Nations Stabilization Mission in the DR Congo (MONUSCO) after receiving multiple anonymous death threats.

Southern Africa: Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) Heads of State meeting in Namibia have been challenged to sign and ratify a protocol facilitating movement of persons by all SADC member states.

There is widespread and deep concern in South Africa that the ruling party and the government are seeking to introduce measures that will severely curtail the media freedoms guaranteed in the country's constitution.

HEALTH, ENVIRONMENT AND DOMESTIC POLITICS

West Africa: The Energy Commission of Ghana, last week, played host to their Nigerian counterparts, the Energy Commission of Nigeria (ECN), who are in the country to collaborate with them in order to map out strategies for the efficient management of the energy sector in their respective countries and the sub-region.

In Ghana foreigners using cyanide in galamsey and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) have cautioned communities to report any foreigners engaged in illegal gold mining in their communities to the nearest EPA office and the police.

While a team of 14 medical experts from Cuba have arrived in the country to augment the efforts of an eight member Cuban team already in the country to eradicate malaria which is a collaboration between Ghana and Cuba that begun in 2007.

The Western Regional Office of the Ghana Health Service (GHS) last week assured the general public that, the HINI vaccines injected against contracting the HINI swine flu is very safe.

In Senegal many women refuse to take mentally disabled children on public transport; families hide children with mental or neurological disorders, and some parents disown them outright. Such is the stigma of having a child with these widely misunderstood illnesses.

Aid agencies in Niger and Chad have begun giving tens of thousands of malnourished children a product called Plumpy’doz to save them from sliding into often-fatal severe malnutrition.

In Nigeria, Out of a population of about 140 million Nigerians, only 17.2 per cent have access to pipe borne water, a United States government report has said.

The UN Office for Outer Space Affairs and the UN Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) have agreed to promote the use of scientific information obtained from space-based facilities to better manage disasters in Africa, during a three-day meeting in Addis Ababa last month (6-9 July).

Southern Africa: In southern Africa, multiple concurrent partnerships (MCPs) prevention campaigns highlighting the HIV risks of having more than one partner at the same time have largely targeted heterosexuals and ignored the fact that men who have sex with men also have multiple partners.

Aids activists in Swaziland have criticized a top adviser to King Mswati III for saying the country's HIVepidemic is being exaggerated for the benefit of pharmaceutical firms.

POLITICAL ECONOMY

West Africa: Ghana: Oil firm Kosmos Energy announced last week it had cancelled a deal to sell its stakes in Ghana's Jubilee oilfield to ExxonMobil, an accord that met fierce resistance within the West African state.

Ghana has 1.2 trillion cube feet of gas in the Jubilee field, which could meet the requirement of 15,000 barrels of crude oil needed to operate the Aboadze Thermal Plant.

Liberia: President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf has sent a new concession agreement that will provide at least 35,000 direct jobs for Liberians to the National Legislature for ratification. The investment which is put at US$1.6 billion covers an area of 500,000, and will run through five South-eastern Counties of Sinoe, Grand Kru and Maryland as well as Rivercess and River Gee.

Ivory Coast eyes position as top cocoa grinder Investments , cocoa processing facilities in the country, already the No. 1 grower of the main ingredient in chocolate, have pushed its share of the global grind up sharply since 2008 and could allow it to overtake the Netherlands for the top spot as early as next season.

That has interest Singapore commodities firm Olam International said that it will invest $43.5 million in Cote d'Ivoire to set up a greenfield cocoa processing facility in Abidjan as well as for a warehousing facility.

Nigeria’s crude oil export, which had stabilized at 2.5 million barrels per day in the last three weeks, has declined as Shell declared force majeure on the export of Bonny Light following production deferment that resulted from a recent attack on its pipelines in Rivers State.

While NATIONAL Economic Management Team, NEMT, and the World Bank, last week, endorsed a pact with stakeholders in the public and private sector to stem youth unemployment in the country.

China has supported Ghana's Energy Commission with $300 million grant to extend electricity to rural communities in Upper West, Upper East and Northern Regions.

The Ministry of Commerce in China has launched the China-Africa Research Center, a think-tank focused on the economies of the two regions, to further bolster trade relations with Africa.

SUB-Saharan Africa is weathering the global downturn better than most other parts of the world and is projected to grow by 3.8% and 4.5% this year and next year respectively, faster than Latin America, Europe and Central Asia.

Central Africa: Gabon: France can no longer rely on its cozy relationship with Gabon, announced the country’s President, Ali Bongo Ondimba. His statement comes just days after the West African nation signed huge contracts with India and Singapore.

Rwanda's coffee has earned $ 23.5 million from exporting 8707 tons of green coffee an official has said. This is higher than 7810 tons valued at $ 19 million that were exported in the corresponding period last year to earn a record of $ 68 million dollars from its coffee exports. §

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