University of Mauritius Develops Breast Cancer Awareness App with Support from Oracle

2022-04-21 MaraviPost

Over 1,000 users benefit from cancer prevention service running on Oracle Cloud Infrastructure

PORT LOUIS, Mauritius, 21 April 2022 -/African Media Agency(AMA)/- Oracle and the University of Mauritius(UoM) today announced the successful completion of a three-year skills development program that has trained over 1,000 UoM students in the latest cloud computing technologies. As part of the program the student entrepreneurs ofOracle Student Ambassador Club used Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI) and Oracle NoSQL Database technologies to successfully develop a mobile application for breast cancer awareness. This application and further innovation efforts of the student entrepreneurs will be supported via Oracle for Startups program. The application (ioS, Android) helps individuals perform a self examination by providing them information and demonstration videos thus also supporting a nationwide early cancer screening and detection program.

*Students of the University of Mauritius along with Oracle executives at the launch of the breast cancer awareness mobile application.*

“Information technology has been identified as a key economic pillar by the Government of Mauritius, and the availability of a highly skilled IT talent pool is vital for us to achieve this objective. Our collaboration with Oracle has helped prepare students for a rewarding career in the country’s fast growing IT industry,” said Professor Sanjeev Kumar Sobhee PRO-VICE-CHANCELLOR (ACADEMIA) / AG. VICE-CHANCELLOR , University of Mauritius. “The development of the breast cancer awareness application using Oracle Cloud Infrastructure technology is a great testament to the success of the program.

” The application developed by the students already has over 1,000 active users. A ceremony attended by Hon Mrs Kalpana Devi KOONJOO-SHAH, Minister of Gender Equality and Family Welfare, Mauritius and Hon. Deepak Balgobin Ministry of Information Technology, Communication and Innovation, Mauritius was recently organised to formally launch the application and mark the completion of the training program.

“At Oracle, we are fully committed to preparing the next-generation Mauritian workforce for the digital economy, which is powered by cloud-led digital technologies like AI, machine learning and the Internet of Things (IoT). Our collaboration with the University of Mauritius aims to build a technological and innovation mindset among the new entrepreneurs and future business leaders of Mauritius,” said Dr. Avinash Ramtohul, Managing Director, Oracle Mauritius.

Distributed by African Media Agency (AMA) on behalf of Oracle.

About Oracle

Oracle offers suites of integrated applications plus secure, autonomous infrastructure in the Oracle Cloud. For more information about Oracle (NYSE: ORCL), please visit us at www.oracle.com.

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Contact

Gaurav Bhatnagar Senior Director, Corporate Communications – Middle East & Africa Oracle

+971 55 100 1407

gaurav.b.bhatnagar@oracle.com

Source : African Media Agency (AMA)

Lifestyle

Italy signs gas deal with Angola in a bid to boycott Russia

2022-04-21 Maravi Post Reporter

Italy on Wednesday penned a deal with Angola to ramp up gas supplies from the southern African country as it urgently scrambles to break away from Russian gas over the Ukraine war.

A declaration of intent was signed to develop “new” natural gas ventures and to increase exports to Italy, a statement from the Italian foreign minister announced.

“Today we have reached another important agreement with Angola to increase gas supplies,” Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio said in the statement.

“Italy’s commitment to differentiate energy supply sources is confirmed,” said Di Maio at the end of a two-and-half-hour long visit to Luanda.

Prime Minister Mario Draghi wants to add Angola and Congo-Brazzaville to a portfolio of suppliers to substitute Russia, which provides about 45 percent of Italian gas.

“We do not want to depend on Russian gas any longer, because economic dependence must not become political subjection,” he said in an interview with the Corriere della Sera daily published on Sunday.

“Diversification is possible and can be implemented in a relatively short amount of time — quicker than we imagined just a month ago,” he said.

Draghi was due to go himself but after testing positive for Covid-19 sent Di Maio and Ecological Transition Minister Roberto Cingolani in his place.

Cingolani described the deal as “an important agreement that gives impetus to the partnership between Italy and Angola in the fields of renewables, biofuels, LNG (liquefied natural gas) and training in technology and environment”.

The two ministers, accompanied by Claudio Descalzi, chief executive of Italian energy giant ENI, also met President Joao Lourenco. They were later headed to neighbouring Congo-Brazzaville where they are expected to meet President Denis Sassou Nguesso on Thursday.

“This is a race against time to make sure we stock gas and oil for the next winter season,” said Francesco Galietti, head of Rome-based consultancy Policy Sonar.

The deals in Angola and Congo could bring Italy an additional 1.5 billion cubic meters and 5 billion cubic meters a year, respectively.

***AFP***

Source: Africanews

Other Sports, Sports

TNM Super League to resume man of the match award

2022-04-21 Malawi News Agency (MANA)

By Titani Chiwalo

Blantyre, April 29, Mana: Chief Executive Officer for Super League of Malawi (SULOM), Williams Banda has disclosed that the TNM Super League man of the match award will resume once they changes have been finalised.

In an interview with Malawi News Agency (Mana), Banda said the award will be resume to recognise outstanding player through man of the match selection in the league’s fixture.

“We suspended man of the match award since they were some things that were supposed to be changed and management has finalized looking into the areas and very soon players will start getting the awards,” Banda said.

Speaking with one of the TNM Super League player, Vice-Captain for Dedza Dynamos, Henry Missanjo said the resumption of the award will bring happiness to the players since it encourages players to perform well during game time.

“As a player you get motivated through the award given after the match and when the players are being awarded it shows some respect and appreciation to the players for the good work they have displayed during the game,” Missanjo said.

The first round of the elite TNM Super League started this year in March without Man of the Match award due to some changes.

Lifestyle

South Africa deploys soldiers in two provinces following deadly floods

2022-04-21 Maravi Post Reporter

Troops have been deployed to support rescue operations since massive floods hit South Africa more than a week ago.

Following up a declaration of a national state of disaster, President Cyril Ramaphosa dispatched top ministers to the city of Durban and KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) province, where at least 448 people have now died and 40,000 are homeless.

The country has declared a national state of disaster after record rains flooded swathes of KwaZulu-Natal and Eastern Cape provinces.

The defense force announced Monday that it was deploying 10,000 troops to help clear debris, rebuild fallen bridges, provide clean water and reconnect severed power lines.

But in KwaNdengezi on Wednesday, no help came as more than a half dozen men struggled to clear a mud-covered road.

Many local people said they remained deeply nervous, still scarred by the sight of roads that became rivers and bore away lives, homes and possessions.

Wielding shovels, mallets and machetes, they worked for four hours to try to shift the muddy debris, hoping that vehicles could, at last, get through.

In vain: A pick-up truck stuck on the wrong side of the gigantic mound, was still unable to pass.

Inhabitants of KwaNdengezi, a township west of Durban, have been almost literally marooned since a record storm pounded South Africa’s east coast, killing nearly 450 people.

Like people stranded on a desert island watching ships sail tantalizingly by, they have stood as water tankers drive by in the distance.

None of the tankers comes to their aid.

To the bitter residents, it is a sign of an isolation that has now lasted more than a week — even of abandonment.

“You just feel like you’re thrown away like they don’t care about us,” said Bryson Khumalo, 24.

He was compiling a list of residents with the greatest needs — those whose homes had been washed away or rendered uninhabitable — to provide to government authorities.

No one had yet come to check on the community, he said.

“We’re doing it on our own. That makes us angrier,” he said.

– Fear –

The floods are the worst in living memory, and experts say climate change has played a part in their intensity.

“I’m shaking, as you can see. I’m not angry, I’m worried,” said Ntombi Mkhize, 42, a mother of three whose youngest child is just two months old.

“Even if there is a small rain, because of that memory, we feel it is big,” she said, adding the fear had caused her many sleepless nights.

On top of that, she is afraid of break-ins and other crimes by people taking advantage of the unlit nights.

Lacking water or electricity, Mkhize said she had been sending her eldest son to collect water leaking from broken pipes far from their home.

She had had to collect wood — still damp from the rain — to build a fire and boil the water, hoping to kill any contaminants.

Many local people said they were consumed by the need to recover the bodies of loved ones, give them proper funerals and provide closure.

Ntokozo Magcaba, 40, had her eyes fixed on a river where police divers and a canine unit were searching the waters for her missing 23-year-old son.

“They say we must keep looking,” she said police had told her when she called for help a week ago. Since then, her husband and neighbors had been searching daily.

Rescuers followed the river for over an hour to where it intersected with a larger waterway.

There was no sign of Magcaba’s son.

“I’m broken,” she said.

Source: Africanews

Development, Regional

Interview: Despite security and political crises, UN expert remains optimistic about Mali

2022-04-21 Maravi Post Reporter

According to reports, Malian Armed Forces accompanied by foreign military personnel allegedly carried out killings and other grave violations during a military operation.

UN News’s Alexandre Carrette and spoke to Alioune Tine, UN Independent Expert on Mali, after an official visit to the country last month.

Cancerous impunity

Alexandre Carette: Ten months after a military coup that overthrew President Boubacar Keit, the situation in Mali remains precarious. The country is facing political and security crises that have been compounded by drought, COVID-19 and violent extremism, which has triggered multiple abuses throughout almost all regions.

High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet has denounced extrajudicial executions, enforced disappearances and sexual violence and Mali is under international sanctions – notably from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).

You recently told the Human Rights Council that violence there has spread so rapidly that it is jeopardizing the very survival of Malian civilians. What does this mean, concretely?

Alioune Tine: The security situation is extremely concerning. It is starting to become difficult for Mali to control. Although we felt like the situation was improving from July to December 2021, every day I now hear about jihadists attacks, especially from the Islamic State in the Greater Sahara (ISGS), in the centre of Mali, in Gao. And it is, above all, the civilians who are caught by armed groups, extremists, jihadists and the Malian army.

There are many serious violations, French citizens tortured and disappearing. And impunity is a big problem, including of certain Malian soldiers accused of serious allegations of aggression. Even if we were to open investigations, structural problems within the military justice system would only hamper the procedure. If the criminal prosecutor can take up the issue, it can’t go far, because the offices of investigating judges – who must continue the legal proceedings – are not yet ready. So, we call on Mali for instructions so that legal proceedings can have a concrete result because impunity is a real cancer for institutions and society. It risks discrediting and undermining the credibility of the army, can potentially create a situation of continuous violence and is bad for national cohesion. So, on this issue, we really insist that practical and concrete measures must be taken by the Malian authorities.

Prioritize civilians

Alexandre Carette: Could you who these rampant extremist armed groups are in Mali and whether they exist in the wider Sahel region?

Alioune Tine: They are groups that loot, rape and force children into military service. It is cancer that not only threatens Mali today but also coastal countries, like Benin, northern Togo, Ghana and Senegal. Today’s big problems are a result of the fact that we haven’t been able to defeat these groups since 2012. Despite international efforts that have called on enormous military means, and financial support, civil society and especially civilian populations continue to pay the price. We need to reconsider our global strategy, which also involves African institutions like ECOWAS, African Union (AU).

The top priority is to protect the civilians who are invariably the main victims.

The top priority is to protect the civilians who are invariably the main victims

Preventing an apocalypse

Alexandre Carette: You mentioned that the international community has invested significantly in security. At the request of the Malian authorities, France has announced the withdrawal of Operation Barkhane. What impact might that have on human rights and civilian abuses?

Alioune Tine: With nearly 6,000 men with equipment and intelligence and so on, Barkhane was a major operation whose absence can only accentuate Mali’s vulnerability. We consistently advise dialogue between France and Mali, who are old friends, and recommend that security cooperation with Malian partners be done on a broad basis, with the respect of human rights. This is extremely important for all international human rights obligations. When my team and I had discussions with the European diplomats in Mali, I saw a glimmer of hope. We asked the international community not to abandon the country, whose needs have never been as great. The collapse of Mali means the fall of East Africa – a kind of apocalypse. So once again, we appeal to the international community and call on the Malian authorities to favour dialogue so that everyone can find their place to work for the stability, security and peace in Mali.

Securing security

Alexandre Carette: It seems that Mali has asked mercenaries of the paramilitary Wagner group for help. Many delegations have criticized their activities and abuses. Were you able to investigate these allegations?

Alioune Tine: No one can confirm that Wagner is there. But the right question is why Wagner would be there. I think that Africans must build their own geopolitics to ensure their own security, also to ensure their own interest and to do so in dialogue with the whole planet and especially with the West. However, we must be extremely careful that there are no negative impacts on Mali from geopolitical shifts that we are witnessing today.

Elections

Alexandre Carette: Today, there is a problem of governance in the Sahel region. There have been a coups d’etat in Burkina Faso and Mali. Could elections be a first step towards normalizing the situation?

Alioune Tine: Elections must be seriously considered before any actions are taken. Mali is a country experiencing a huge security emergency and an enormous political crisis with geopolitical shifts. From my perspective, with ECOWAS’ help, solutions may be found through discussion, if taken with care not to make the situation worse. We have to continue the dialogue, without saying to ourselves, ‘Well, elections are the solution.’ They must be prepared well so that their results do not trigger another crisis, because in reality, the coup came from the contested legislative elections in Mali.

Looking ahead

Alexandre Carette: What can the UN and international community do to help Mali recover? What are the priorities?

Alioune Tine: Since all security responses have failed, the situation must first be reflected upon. We need to think about the African security response, with ECOWAS and AU. While considering the situation, we must ensure that civil society is integrated into the discussions before deciding what we’re going to do to overcome the security crisis. We need to find the most appropriate solutions to correct what went wrong.

Alexandre Carette: Despite everything, are you optimistic for the future?

Alioune Tine: Yes, I am. I am optimistic because there is a debate. We are talking and that is very positive. And there are solutions that people are coming up with. I think we’re going to get through this, I’m definitely optimistic for the future.

Sourced from United Nations Africa Pages

Opinion

Bishop Kukah And The ‘Hailers’ At Aso Rock By Achike Chude

2022-04-21 Maravi Post Reporter

So Laurel and Hardy, (Femi Adesina and Garba Shehu), presidential spokesmen have not gone into hiding as the government they serve grows in ever-increasing notoriety and infamy. One would think that the fact of their impending disengagement from the government after the 2023 elections would be enough to impose a reality check on them and elicit a change of approach and engagement. But in the twilight of their administration, they seem to have learnt nothing and forgotten nothing. Instead, they have grown more quarrelsome and pugnacious to comments they consider unfriendly.

Someone has said that given the level to which this government has fallen, they might very well flee the country or whatever is left of her by the time their government concludes its demolition job on our beloved Nigeria.

It is the nature of leaders and governments, especially in quasi democratic countries like Nigeria that as they increasingly fail to deliver on promises made to the people, they seek recourse to phantom enemies to explain away their ineptitude, parochialism, corruption, visionlessness, and provincialism.

We thought that we had seen the worst of terrible governments in this country. Surely, we said to ourselves, ‘the worst is over.’ But of course, the worst was surely not over. We needed to see and experience President Muhammadu Buhari. We needed to see what sometimes happens when a man marries a second wife. We have now seen it and experienced it, and it is not a pleasant experience.

It is no longer a rumour or conjecture that there is a conspiracy between Karma and Nemesis to exact retribution on the APC government of Muhammadu Buhari for making claims of virtues that they never had.

Think of it! In a whirlwind space of about three weeks, a deluge and avalanche of condemnations and criticisms have come the way of the ruling government from different power centres and opinion moulders across the country.

After the Chief Imam of the Apo Legislative Quarters Mosque, Sheikh Muhammad Nuru Khalid, was booted out of office for criticising the government’s apparent failures in keeping Nigeria safe, the Sultan of Sokoto and leader of Jama’atu Nasril Islam, Mohammed Sa’ad Abubakar III had questioned the continued existence of a government that could not protect its citizens. At the same time, the Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria was also accusing the president and his government of playing the Ostrich. Remember their famous statement to the president in 2018 when they accused him of “presiding over the killing fields and mass graveyard that our country has become.”

The Northern Elders Forum on their part about a week ago called for the President to resign for his many failures, especially over insecurity.

And just about two days ago, the Catholic Archbishop of Lagos Adewale Martins was wondering how in a sovereign country supposedly governed by law, armed gangs have set up a taxation system where citizens pay taxes to them.

Now Bishop Mathew Hassan Kukah has for the umpteenth time, kept another date with history. Crying and wailing for the pains and tragedies his country and people are going through has become his burden. Just like some of us who can still feel the pains of the deaths, kidnappings, and destructions wrought on our fellow citizens in their thousands by the fiends from hell, he just cannot pretend that the carnage and anarchy he sees happening all around him are a mirage.

But that is exactly what Laurel and Hardy want him to do – pretend that all is well – pretend that their principal, Buhari is getting it right when all around us, the Federal Republic of Nigeria is collapsing spectacularly under a president who is a general that bandits, terrorists, kidnappers are making ‘yeye’ of.

Now Laurel and Hardy have come after Hassan Kukah, tactfully avoiding critiquing the Sultan who has also rightfully spoken the truth about our state of affairs. In a paradox that only they and their ilk are capable of, they accuse the speaker of the truth of being a purveyor of falsehood just because he dared to say what all Nigerians have been saying – that this president has divided Nigeria and Nigerians in a way never before seen in our annals as a country.

Can we deny that while under Goodluck Jonathan Nigerians were dying in the dozens, under the general, Nigerians are dying in their hundreds?

We know what people like Kukah, Abdusalami, and others did to ensure peace in Nigeria between 2014 and 2015 when they got Jonathan and Buhari to sign a peace accord before the election, and how they worked tirelessly post-election to maintain that peace. We are not even talking about his service to the nation as Secretary to the Abdusalami set-up Human Rights Truth Commission headed by late philosopher-judge Chuwudifu Oputa, among other pan-Nigerian activities by him.

For Laurel and Hardy to now accuse the same Kukah of sowing division in the country because he spoke an unpleasant truth about their government and our government, is not really befuddling if we understand the dynamics of the human mind. Like the Bishop said, “Some people’s bank accounts have now swollen.”

After all, they were the ones that divided Nigerians by calling us ‘hailers and wailers’.

Power dey finish oo.

In a few months’ time, they will come and join us Nigerians on the streets – Unless dey run comot from Naija.

What a legacy they will leave for themselves.

As for Nigeria, it is a minute to midnight. The last spark of light is almost gone. But just as it takes a spark to ignite the forest, perhaps that last spark might be all we need to renew our nation.

Don’t give up yet!

Keep working to save our country.

Source saharareporters

Lifestyle

New Ivorian vice president Tiemoko Meyliet Kone sworn in

2022-04-20 Maravi Post Reporter

Côte d’Ivoire’s new vice president, Tiemoko Meyliet Koné, took the oath of office on Wednesday before the Constitutional Council in Abidjan, a day after his appointment to the post which had been vacant for nearly two years.

“I solemnly swear on my honor to respect the Constitution, to conscientiously fulfill the duties of my office, in strict compliance with its obligations and with loyalty to the President of the Republic,” Koné said.

“May the President of the Republic withdraw his confidence in me if I betray this oath,” he added, at a ceremony attended by the Head of State, Alassane Ouattara.

On Tuesday, in front of deputies and senators gathered in Congress in the Ivorian political capital Yamoussoukro, President Ouattara announced the appointment as vice president of Mr. Koné, governor of the Central Bank of West African States (BCEAO) since 2011.

Little known to the general public, Tiemoko has had a long career at BCEAO. He was also cabinet director of Prime Minister Guillaume Soro between 2007 and 2010, Minister of Construction, and then special adviser to President Alassane Ouattara, in charge of economic and monetary issues.

“I measure the honor that has been done to me, I also measure the responsibility of the task that is now mine and that I intend to address at your side with humility and determination,” said the new vice president in a brief speech after his swearing-in.

The post of vice president, enshrined in the last constitutional reform of 2016, had been vacant since July 2020 and the resignation of Daniel Kablan Duncan for “personal reasons”.

According to Article 62 of the Constitution, the Vice President becomes President “by right” in case of vacancy “by death, resignation or absolute impediment” of the latter.

“Article 62 makes the vice president in case of a power vacancy, not an interim, but by right a president of the republic in charge of continuing and completing the current mandate,” the president of the Constitutional Council, Mamadou Koné, said on Wednesday.

A new government is to be appointed this week by Prime Minister Patrick Achi, who was reappointed on Tuesday, six days after his resignation.

It will be composed of about thirty members against more than forty currently, in order to “take into account the global economic situation” and thus reduce “state expenditure”, according to President Ouattara.

Source: Africanews

Business, Development

En Tunisie, le tout numérique ouvre un nouveau champ des possibles pour le renouveau du service public

2022-04-20 Maravi Post Reporter

Dans la grande salle d’attente de la Caisse nationale de la sécurité sociale (CNSS), au centre de Tunis, le silence règne. Les sièges en plastique vert, sont à moitié occupés, tout comme les guichetiers qui attendent patiemment la venue du prochain assuré.

La CNSS, c’est l’institution publique en charge des prestations sociales pour les employés et les travailleurs non-salariés. Des pensions de retraite aux prestations de soins, en passant par les allocations familiales, ce service public est au cœur des préoccupations des travailleurs et des employeurs.

Habituellement grouillante, l’ambiance ici a changé. Quelque chose d’inhabituel semble s’être produit. Ce calme inédit n’est pas un hasard et n’est pas non plus une conséquence de la crise sanitaire. Nabil Henchir, ingénieur en charge de la planification, des méthodes et de la veille technologique à la CNSS décrypte : « en 2019, la caisse a fait un grand pas dans la digitalisation. Avant, un artisan devait passer au bureau pour payer sa cotisation en espèces ou par chèque, ce qui nécessitait plusieurs semaines avant la prise en charge de sa demande. Mais maintenant, en seulement deux minutes, il règle sa cotisation par carte bancaire sur notre site web ».

La raison pour laquelle ce lieu s’est, petit à petit, mis à sonner creux, c’est le numérique. Désormais, les assurés et les entreprises peuvent à la fois payer mais également consulter en ligne leurs prestations sociales. Ils peuvent également télécharger leur attestation via un QR code incorporant le sceau électronique de la CNSS. « Avant, il fallait plusieurs semaines pour saisir, contrôler et valider. Le numérique n’est plus un confort, c’est une nécessité », poursuit Nabil.

Ces mots font écho aux ambitions de l’administration publique, qui, depuis 2016, a pris le virage du numérique en lançant le plan « Tunisie Digitale 2020 ». En déployant à grande échelle l’administration électronique, ce projet place la Tunisie comme une référence mondiale dans ce domaine faisant des nouvelles technologies de l’information et de la communication un important levier de développement socio-économique. Pour Sanâa Haouari, directrice générale au ministère tunisien des Technologies et de la communication et experte en transformation digitale, cela passe par « la mise en place de services administratifs en ligne, de systèmes d’information sectoriels, d’un système d’identifiant numérique unique et d’une plateforme d’échange de données, ainsi que l’amélioration de la connectivité dans les établissements publics ».

Avec un financement de 71 millions d’euros déployé par la Banque africaine de développement en 2018, le projet « Tunisie Digitale », poursuit son chemin. Cela représente plus de la moitié du budget total. Conscient que cette transformation améliorerait à la fois l’économie et les conditions de vie des tunisiens, la Banque avait pour ambition de libérer le potentiel du numérique pour améliorer davantage le service public rendu à la population sur l’ensemble du territoire.

Paradoxalement, le numérique rapproche l’État des citoyens. Il leur facilite l’accès à leurs droits. C’est le cas de Othmane Essafi, gérant d’un magasin de pièces de rechange : « maintenant que tout se fait en ligne, nous avons gagné en sûreté et en efficacité. Le temps que nous perdions dans l’administratif, nous le consacrons maintenant à notre activité ».

Numériser les services publics est un projet complexe, un chantier d’envergure. Durant la pandémie, il fut ainsi mis à l’épreuve du feu : alors que le confinement se prolongeait, le gouvernement soutenait les citoyens et les entreprises par le versement d’aides sociales. Mais comment parer à une telle urgence quand il faut se déplacer pour toucher ses aides ? Impossible sans une administration numérique. « Notre transformation digitale a généré une vaste base de données que nous avons partagée, en début de pandémie, avec les autorités en charge des aides aux entreprises. Sans cette rapidité d’exécution, beaucoup de firmes auraient mis la clé sous la porte », explique le responsable de la CNSS.

Le pays du jasmin a ainsi choisi la voie de la modernité et de l ’innovation. À court terme, les services publics vont continuer d’ouvrir le chemin : « Bientôt, nous allons mettre en ligne de plus en plus de services tels que l’immatriculation et l’affiliation des entreprises, le suivi des pensions, etc. Le numérique, c’est l’avenir. Tout le monde y adhère. Il n’y pas d’autre option. Nous devons passer par là », nous confie Nabil, enthousiaste. Et il n’a pas tort. En montrant l’exemple, les services publics simplifient les tracas du quotidien et améliorent le vivre-ensemble. Cela favorise un nouvel état d’esprit : celui de l’innovation pour faire la différence.
Source African Development Bank Group

Business, Development

Tangible mid-term results for the African Development Bank’s Country Strategy Paper for Ghana 2019-2023

2022-04-20 Maravi Post Reporter

The African Development Bank’s 2019-2023 strategy for Ghana is producing tangible results, particularly in the agriculture and transport sectors, according to a mid-term review of the strategy.

The strategy, which was approved by the Board of Executive Directors of the African Development Bank Group in June 2019, is based on two pillars: support for Ghana’s industrialization and private-sector development activities, and support for infrastructure development that enables domestic, regional and global trade.

According to the mid-term review of the Country Strategy Paper, which was approved on 11 January 2022, the Bank’s various operations in the agriculture sector have helped to improve productivity, expand output, leverage private investment and de-risk agricultural lending.

The Bank’s Technologies for Accelerated Agricultural Transformation (TAAT) interventions are improving the productivity of selected commodities and expanding production areas, especially in the Northern Savannah agro-ecological zone. These interventions increased maize yields by 132% and soybean yields by 25% in 2020. Moreover, under the Ghana Incentive-based Risk Sharing System for Agricultural Lending, 15 financial institutions have granted $31 million in loans and $14.5 million in credit risk guarantees, thus contributing to improvements in agricultural productivity and farmers’ incomes.

The Rural Enterprises Project, implemented as part of the Ghana CSP 2019-2023, is improving the livelihoods of rural micro and small-scale entrepreneurs by improving access to business development services. “By mid-term of the strategy, the project has created 74,677 waged jobs (75% of target), and 37 business resource centres and 30 technology solution centres across the country are supporting youth entrepreneurs and improving livelihoods for rural communities,” the review states.

In terms of transport, the Accra Urban Transport Project has been completed. Among other things, a four-tier interchange has been built to promote the efficient movement of goods and people, boost trade, enhance income generation and improve the livelihoods of users. In particular, the project has helped to reduce vehicle operating costs by 37%, cut travel time from two hours to 30 minutes and lower road accident rates by 40%.

The project also provided protection for the Gua Sacred Forest, which reduces CO2 emissions, and provided 14 primary schools with fully equipped, modern ICT labs. These provide access to bespoke ICT training for over 12,000 primary school children, more than 50% of whom are girls.

The project has also enabled two women’s groups to renovate their facilities and get ICT support to improve the quality of their businesses, increasing the annual average income of over 500 women by 10%.
Source African Development Bank Group

Development, Regional

UN condemns recent attacks on humanitarians in Central African Republic

2022-04-20 Maravi Post Reporter

Denise Brown, UN Humanitarian Coordinator in the CAR, was deeply shocked and dismayed by the attacks, which occurred on 7 and 9 April.

Six aid workers and a health district worker were injured, one seriously.

Vulnerable people at risk

The attacks forced one humanitarian organization to suspend its mobile clinics and activities to improve access to clean water for some 11,000 people in remote areas in Basse-Kotto prefecture.

“Every time humanitarians come under attack, the lives of thousands of vulnerable people are at risk. Aid workers who assist people under extremely difficult conditions must not be attacked,” said Ms. Brown.

The CAR has a population of around five million people, more than half of whom depend on humanitarian assistance.

A challenging environment

The country is among the most challenging for aid workers, according to the UN humanitarian affairs office, OCHA, and security incidents hamper delivery of desperately needed aid.

Between 1 January and 15 April of this year, some 43 incidents affecting humanitarian organizations there were recorded, with 11 aid workers injured.

Last year, at least one incident per day was recorded, half of which were burglaries, robberies and intrusions.

“Civilians are the primary victims of the conflict in the Central African Republic and humanitarian assistance is a matter of life and death for millions of people. Humanitarians who come to their rescue in a neutral and impartial manner must be granted free and safe access,” said Ms. Brown.

More than three million people in the CAR, 63 per cent of the population, will need humanitarian this year.

The figure includes 2.2 million people with severe needs who humanitarians said may not survive without the required assistance and protection.

Last year, agencies assisted some 1.8 million people in emergency situations.
Sourced from United Nations Africa Pages

Cancerous impunity

Prioritize civilians

Preventing an apocalypse

Securing security

Elections

Looking ahead

Vulnerable people at risk

A challenging environment

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