AFRICA NEWS
BULLETIN @ 20h00
25 January,
2016
Radio
XYZ93.1FM
Assistant
Producer: E.K.BensahJr
STORIES
1.
FOCUS:Italy Embarks on a West African Tour
from 1-3 February, 2016
2.
EAST AFRICA:
a.
Nairobi City Ranked among top
20 Successful Cities
b.
Uganda Bans Maids to Saudi
Arabia
3.
CENTRAL AFRICA:
a.
Chad Leader Tells Burkina Faso
Terrorism Worse than Ebola
WEST AFRICA:
a. Burkina Faso MPs Reduce Salaries by 19%
b. More than a Million Nigeriens Cannot Vote in February Presidential
5. SOUTHERN AFRICA: Zambia bids to host AU Agency
1.
FOCUS:
Italian Premier MatteoRenzi will
embark on a West African tour from 1-3 February, 2016. The tour will take him
to Ghana; Nigeria; and Senegal. Speaking exclusively to “Africa in Focus”
E.K.Bensah for XYZ Africa News Bulletin, Italian MP LiaQuartepelle explained
that there are “crucial and strategic” reasons why Italy has chosen these three
countries.
According to Quartepelle, Prime
Minister Renzi started a new outreach with Africa, which he started with a trip
to South Africa eighteen months ago, followed by one to the Horn of Africa last
year. This will be the third African trip he has embarked on.
The Italian MP believes that “the
future of Italy and Europe are very much linked with the future of the African
continent, and that” the Italian government “has the duty to strengthen
relationship and political dialogue with African countries.”
Pressed to explain the rationale for
the trip, and why those three countries at this time, this is what she had to
say. [AUDIO].
On migration, and Italy’s positioning
towards ECOWAS, Quartepelle explained that “Italy tends to work with regional
economic communities and would like to keep working on the Rabat process on
migration…and help tackle root causes of migration.” She says this is one of
the ways in which Italy would like to intervene in Africa.
As regards Italy’s role in the
defunct Operation Mare Nostrum that
included search and rescue operations for migrants, the Italian MP says the
reason why Italy started the Operation was because the government “wanted to
take responsibility for people crossing the Mediterranean.” It ended when Italy
obtained “European commitment, which now exists as Operation Triton.”
Despite initial criticism of Triton
for not doing search-and-rescue, Quartepelle believes after the 18 April 2015
tragedy that saw seven hundred migrants feared dead in Mediterranean shipwreck,
“Europe woke up.” She assures that, “now we have economic means and military
vessels that does what Mare Nostrum
was doing.”
ENDs
2.
EAST AFRICA:
A new report by the City Momentum
Index(CMI), which is compiled by a professional services and investment
management company, has ranked Kenya’s capital, Nairobi, 11th among the top 20
most successful cities in innovation, liveability and capacity to reinvent
itself.
What this means is that this is a
city on the fast track to maturity often driven by innovation, and buttressed
by the fact that they are homes to some of the world’s fastest-growing tech
companies. According to the report, “Nairobi…is pushing to become Africa’s
technology center with development projects like Konza Technology City, an
innovation district that will include space for educational institutions and
technology firms.”
The report noted that many of the top
20 cities are home to vibrant mixed-use districts which create and maximize
opportunities to conceive and commercialize new ideas.”
Still in East Africa,
The government of Uganda says it will stop
sending housemaids to Saudi Arabia, and the ban will remain until working
conditions in that country are “deemed fitting”. This decision effectively
closes the deal between the two nations to ship workers to the wealthy Gulf
nation, amid complaints of poor conditions and mistreatment.
In July 2015, the two countries had
inked a deal allowing for a deployment of university graduates to work in the
country. Initially considered a way of addressing high unemployment rates among
the youth in Uganda, it has fallen short of addressing the problem as
complaints of worker-maltreatment and inhuman treatment have come in droves.
Calls for a ban have reached fever-pitch after an audio circulating on social
media last week of Ugandans in Saudi Arabia being tortured and imprisoned, went
viral.
3.
CENTRAL AFRICA:
As Chad prepares to hold presidential
elections on April 10, President IdrissDebyItno declared last week Thursday
that terrorism is worse than the Ebola virus. He made this statement during a
solidarity visit to Burkina Faso after terrorist attacks there earlier this
month.
“Terrorism is like an epidemic”,
Chad’s leader said, adding “it is worse than Ebola.” He assured citizens that
the deadly attacks in Ouagadougou “like those we have seen in the Sahel nations
do nothing to dent our firm resolve to fight terrorism with all means at our
disposal.”
Deby announced he would be calling
for a summit of leaders of the G5 Sahel grouping – comprising Burkina Faso;
Chad; Mali; Mauritania; and Niger – on the margins of the larger AU Summit that
will be held in Addis Ababa on 31 January.
4.
WEST AFRICA:
Burkina Faso MPs have resolved to
help their ailing economy by cutting their salaries by 19 percent. This was
revealed by the new Speaker of Parliament SalifDiallo on 19 January at a press
conference.
He called the decision “an effort
towards national solidarity.”
From now on, Burkinabe legislators
will take home 960,397 CFA francs(Euros 1464). In their view, it is an attempt
to help encourage an atmosphere of national solidarity.
Still in West Africa,
Reports indicate that 1.5 million
people cannot vote in next month’s election in Niger as they are unable to
prove their identity.
Spokesperson of the Presidential
majority, AlkassoumIndatou, says the political class has failed to arrive at a
consensus, triggering voters to start withdrawing their voter’s cards. The
leading opposition party linked the situation to the inability of voters to
vote by witness.
The Chairman of the Electoral
Commission has urged voters to withdraw their cards as soon as possible as this
will not be impossible on voting day.
The Feb 21 election in Niger comes in
the wake of terrorism attacks that has affected two Sahel countries of Mali and
Burkina Faso within the space of three months. Niger is part of a regional
force to combat Boko Haram that includes Benin; Cameroon and Nigeria.
5.
SOUTHERN AFRICA:
After putting in a bid to host the
AU’s African Minerals Development Centre last year, Zambia
has put in a successful bid to the African Union Permanent Representative
Committee(PRC) to host the Secretariat of the Economic, Social and Cultural
Council(ECOSOCC) of the AU in Lusaka this year.
The country believes this move will
allow greater credibility among ECOSOCC members and the larger African Civil
Society.
Other AU States believe Zambia
deserves to host the secretariat as she has been generous and an active member
of the AU for the past 51 years.
Members of the PRC have expressed
confidence that the Zambian government can successfully host the institution.
ENDs
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