China Escalates Its Political Party Training in Africa
The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has escalated its training of African party and government officials as part of CCP General Secretary Xi Jinping’s “new model of party-to-party relations,” particularly in the Global South. An indication of this renewed emphasis is the Mwalimu Julius Nyerere Leadership School. Launched in 2022, the Nyerere School trains ruling party members from the Former Liberation Movements of Southern Africa (FLMSA) coalition—Angola, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Tanzania, and Zimbabwe…Despite its economic growth, China’s political model has not been something to which many African citizens aspire. Nearly 80 percent reject one-party rule. Yet, as many African scholars argue, China’s party and governance training has the potential to entrench single, dominant party models in Africa…This escalation in CCP party training is happening against the backdrop of major democratic setbacks in Africa in recent years. Africa Center for Strategic Studies
Human Rights in Niger ‘in Free Fall’ a Year after Coup, Rights Groups Say
“The military authorities in Niger have cracked down on the opposition, media, and peaceful dissent since taking power in a coup one year ago,” Human Rights Watch (HRW), Amnesty International and the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) said in their joint report…According to the rights groups, the military regime had “arbitrarily arrested at least 30 officials from the ousted government, including former ministers, members of the presidential cabinet and people close to the deposed president, failing to grant them due process and fair trial rights”. Among those arrested, some “were detained in secret by the intelligence services, before being transferred to high-security prisons on trumped-up charges”, lawyers cited in the NGOs’ statement said. Meanwhile, “media freedom has been severely restricted in the country”, with journalists being threatened and “arbitrarily” arrested, leading to self-censorship for fear of reprisals, the NGOs said. RFI with AFP
Ukraine Military Intelligence Claims Role in Deadly Wagner Ambush in Mali
Ukraine’s military intelligence agency has claimed it was involved in an ambush that killed fighters from Russia’s Wagner group in the west African nation of Mali, thousands of miles away from the frontline in Ukraine…Andrii Yusov, spokesman for Ukraine’s GUR military intelligence agency, said on Monday that “the rebels received necessary information, and not just information, which enabled a successful military operation against Russian war criminals”. Yusov did not say whether Ukrainian military personnel were involved in the fighting or were present in the country. He said the agency “won’t discuss the details at the moment, but there will be more to come”. The Guardian
Healthcare in Sudan ‘Hanging by a Thread,’ Warns UN Agency
The UN World Health Organization (WHO) on Monday strongly denounced the increasing attacks on healthcare facilities in Sudan, reporting over 20 such incidents in the last two months…WHO has documented 88 attacks on healthcare since the outbreak of the war last April between rival militaries – the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF). The UN agency underscored the obligations of parties to the conflict, under international humanitarian law, to ensure that healthcare, as well as health and medical supplies and personnel are protected from any harm…The agency further reported that said less than 25 per cent of health facilities in provinces affected by the fighting are functional, while and only 45 per cent are functional in other regions. UN News
ANC National Disciplinary Committee Expels Jacob Zuma from Party
A leaked ANC National Disciplinary Committee (NDC) report has revealed that the party has expelled former president Jacob Zuma for breaching its constitution. “The charged member is expelled from the ANC. The charged member has the right to appeal to the National Disciplinary Committee of appeal within 21 days,” read the report. Zuma was facing two charges in the NDC which pertain to failing to follow rule 25.17.17(4) and for violating rule 25.17.13. He was found guilty of the first charge, ostensibly because he campaigned for and led the uMkhonto Wesizwe (MK) party against the ANC. Rule 25.17.17(4) involves prejudicing the integrity and repute of the ANC, its personnel or its operational facility by acting on behalf or in collaboration with a counterrevolutionary organisation or party outside the ANC and its alliance partners in a manner contrary to the ANC’s objectives. Daily Maverick
Morocco Releases Imprisoned Journalists after Pardons from King Mohamed VI
Three journalists who were sentenced to years in prison after writing about corruption and abuse of power in Morocco were released Monday after receiving pardons from King Mohammed VI. Omar Radi, Taoufik Bouachrine and Soulaimane Raissouni were among 2,278 people pardoned this week, according to Morocco’s Ministry of Justice. The pardons were announced as Morocco prepared to celebrate its national holiday marking the 25th anniversary of when Mohammed VI ascended to the throne. The journalists were freed from prison in Tifelt, a town east of Rabat, to a group of ecstatic supporters. Human rights activists applauded the pardons, but said the move didn’t exonerate what they have called the politically motivated manner in which Moroccan authorities pursued and prosecuted the journalists…Each of the three journalists was found guilty of sex-related crimes that they vehemently denied as politically motivated and connected to their work…They were thrust into an international spotlight when Amnesty International and the Paris-based journalism consortium Forbidden Stories published leaked documents suggesting the three journalists were among people spied on by Moroccan officials using malware installed on their smartphones. AP
Prosecution Calls for 25 Death Sentences in DR Congo Rebellion Trial
A Congolese prosecutor Monday requested death sentences against 25 defendants accused of belonging to the M23 rebel group in a high-profile trial in Kinshasa. The prosecution called for a 20-year jail term against a 26th defendant…Only five of the accused are present for the trial in a military court, with the rest being tried in absentia. They face charges of war crimes, participation in an insurrection and treason…The trial opened last week with 25 defendants, of whom 20 were on the run, but a former M23 spokesperson has also been charged. The defense is expected to make their case on Tuesday. AFP
Uganda Court Charges 36 Opposition Supporters with Terrorism-related Offences
A Ugandan court charged 36 opposition supporters on Monday with terrorism-related offences after they were deported from neighbouring Kenya where they had travelled to attend a training course, court papers seen by Reuters showed.
The 36 people, who are members of the Forum for Democratic Change (FDC), one of Uganda’s biggest opposition parties, deny the charges. Their lawyer, Erias Lukwago, told reporters outside the magistrates’ court in Kampala the charges were “ridiculous”. The case comes amid protests by young people in both Uganda and Kenya against corruption, high taxes and other grievances. Kenyan authorities detained and then deported the 36 people after they had travelled to the western Kenyan city of Kisumu on July 23 to take part in a leadership and governance training course, their lawyer and party officials said…Opposition critics and human rights campaigners have long accused Museveni’s government of using fabricated charges to clamp down on his opponents. Reuters
Somalia: New Atmis Force Commander Takes Office after 3-month Delay
Ugandan military officer Lt-Gen Sam Kavuma finally took office as the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (Atmis) Force Commander on July 28, more than three months after he was named to the post in April to replace his compatriot Lt-Gen Sam Okiding, who was appointed Deputy Chief of Defence Forces of Uganda Peoples Defence Forces (UPDF). UPDF Spokesperson Brig-Gen Felix Kulayigye blamed the long wait for Lt-Gen Kavuma to go to Somalia on a long approval process by the African Union Peace and Security Council for high level appointments to the peacekeeping force…The long approval process means the tenure of Gen Kavuma at the top of Atmis command is cut to five months, as the force’s mandate in the Horn of Africa nation expires at the end of this year, as per UN Security Council resolutions…No stranger to peacekeeping in the Horn of Africa, Lt-Gen Kavuma is on his second stint in Somalia, where he was contingent commander of Ugandan troops from October 2014 to November 2016 serving in the African Union Mission in Somalia (Amisom), the predecessor of Atmis. The EastAfrican
Turkey Approves Two-year Military Deployment to Somalia
Turkey’s parliament on Saturday approved a motion to deploy its armed forces to Somalia, including to the country’s territorial waters. The two-year operation aims to support Mogadishu’s counterterrorism operations and comes months after the two countries signed a defence and economic cooperation deal…Al Shabaab has been waging an insurgency against the Somali government since 2006 in a bid to establish to establish a fundamentalist Islamic state. Turkey has been providing training, assistance, and advisory support to Somalia for more than 10 years, working to restructure its defence and security forces. But Turkish officials say economic challenges have prevented Somali armed forces from being fully effective. Earlier this month, Ankara said it will send an exploration vessel off the coast of Somalia later this year to search for oil and gas as part of a hydrocarbon cooperation deal between the two countries. Africanews
Despite Scrapped Deal, UK, Rwanda Agree to Work Together ‘to Tackle Illegal Migration’, Somehow
Rwandan President Paul Kagame and UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer met on the sidelines of the Paris Olympics…While it cancelled the Rwanda-UK Migration and Economic Development Partnership Initiative, which would effectively pay Rwanda to accept migrants flown in from the UK, the new UK government said it would still strengthen border security. It has also promised to smash criminal smuggling gangs making fortunes out of arranging small boat crossings. It was unclear how Rwanda can help the UK on this, other than serving as a home for undocumented migrants, but Starmer said he believed there was a role for Rwanda. News24
Deadly Atlantic Shipwreck Shows Victims’ Desperation, Says UN Refugee Agency
News of another deadly shipwreck tragedy off the coast of Mauritania is a clear indication of the desperation people on the move continue to face as they attempt to escape strife, the UN refugee agency, UNHCR, said on Friday…According to the UN migration agency, IOM, approximately 300 people including women and children boarded a wooden “pirogue” boat in The Gambia, spending seven days at sea before the tragedy happened. Ms. Mantoo noted that this was the second deadly shipwreck in the region reported this month, after one at the start of July. The so-called “West Atlantic route” off the coast of West Africa “is one of the deadliest routes in the world, with thousands of migrants and refugees drowning in recent years”, the UNHCR official told journalists in Geneva. Since June last year, more than 76 boats with approximately 6,130 survivors have disembarked in Mauritania, while around 190 perished at sea before the two latest tragedies…According to the UN migration agency, from 1 January to 15 July 2024 alone, more than 19,700 migrants arrived irregularly in the Canary Islands using this route compared to the same period in 2023, when 7,590 migrants were recorded – an increase of 160 per cent. IOM’s Missing Migrants Project has recorded more than 4,500 deaths and disappearances on this route since 2014, including over 950 deaths last year, the second deadliest on record. UN News
Africa’s Food Crisis Needs Innovative Funding — UN Official
The annual State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World (SOFI) report, published on Wednesday, found Africa had the largest share of people facing hunger in 2023 — 20.4%…[Alvaro Lario, president of the UN’s International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD)], whose agency invests in long-term global food supplies, said the trends in Africa are “extremely worrisome.” He told Semafor Africa more innovation, such as partnerships between financial institutions and the private sector to fund climate adaptation projects, was needed to drive greater investment in agriculture and farming…The SOFI report — produced jointly by UN agencies including IFAD, the World Food Program and the World Health Organization — highlights the continued impact of supply chain shocks caused by the war in Ukraine and COVID-19 pandemic. Lario said African countries should diversify their crops, to reduce the reliance on those that are imported, and produce more fertilizers locally. Semafor
Urgent Action Needed to Stop Spread of Drug-resistant Malaria, Scientists Warn
Millions of lives could be put at risk unless urgent action is taken to curb the spread of drug-resistant malaria in Africa, according to a new paper published in the journal Science. The paper says the parasite that causes malaria is showing signs of resistance to artemisinin, the main drug used to fight the disease, in several east African countries…Before artemisinin therapies were developed, chloroquine was the medicine most used to treat malaria. The report authors say that in the 1990s and early 2000s, signs that the malaria parasite was developing resistance to chloroquine were widely ignored…[The report’s authors’] recommendations include combining artemisinin drugs with other medicines…The authors also call for the rollout of new, more effective insecticides and mosquito nets; better training of community health workers; the rapid deployment of new malaria vaccines; and better monitoring of parasite mutations. VOA
Ethiopia Floats Its Currency in a Bid to Secure Loans
Ethiopia’s government has allowed its currency to be traded on the open market instead of at a fixed rate as part of reforms aimed at securing loans from international lenders to stabilize its economy. The birr’s value against the dollar fell by 30% after it was allowed to float on Monday, said the country’s biggest lender, Commercial Bank of Ethiopia. Removing the central bank’s fixed rate is part of sweeping reforms aimed at easing the chronic shortage of foreign currency that have plagued its economy. The Horn of Africa country hopes the switch will enable it to secure loans from lenders such as the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank. It has been in talks with the IMF to establish a new lending programme. Ethiopia became the third African economy in as many years to default on its government debt in late 2023. That contributed to its credit rating being downgraded last year to “junk territory” by the Fitch Ratings agency. Semafor
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Publish date : 2024-07-30 17:12:15
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