AfricaVerge News

At least 4.1 million people in north-east Nigeria are on the verge of starvation this lean season, UN warns in a report. According to the UN, people in this part of Nigeria are already extremely vulnerable after struggling through 12 years of conflict. In 2022, 8.4 million people need humanitarian assistance across Borno, Adamawa and Yobe (BAY) states. Today Mr. Matthias Schmale, United Nations (UN) Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator a.i. for Nigeria, briefed Member States in Geneva, Switzerland on the needs, challenges and windows of opportunity in the north-east. He described the deteriorating food security and nutrition situation as an issue that requires immediate support. “This food insecurity is felt painfully across the region, especially as operations are so desperately in need of funding. In Yobe State, families have not received food assistance for up to eight months. Some people are left without food for days not knowing where their next meal will come from,” said Mr. Sch...

The national airline of the State of Qatar will resume flights to Windhoek on Saturday, the airline said Tuesday in a statement. Qatar Airways suspended its flights to Namibia and a number of African countries at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic two years ago. According to the statement, the resumption of the Windhoek route is part of the airline's expanding African schedule to offer seamless connection. With more than 200 weekly flights to 31 gateways across Africa following the launch, the Windhoek route will offer seamless connectivity for passengers to almost 159 destinations in the airline's extensive global network including Europe. The national carrier of Qatar will operate three non-stop flights a week to and from Windhoek via Hamad International airport, the statement said. XINHUA/CO

Commonwealth leaders will be meeting in Kigali, Rwanda after four years to reaffirm their common values and agree actions and policies to improve the lives of all their citizens. The 2022 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) takes place from June 20, 2022, to June 25, 2022.  This year’s theme will be: ‘Delivering a Common Future: Connecting, Innovating, Transforming.' The biennial Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) brings together delegations from 54 nations from Africa, the Caribbean and Americas, Europe, Asia, and the Pacific. The meeting was scheduled in June 2020 but was postponed twice due to the to the COVID-19 pandemic. The official opening of CHOGM takes place on Friday 24 June and is followed by the main high-level meetings of Heads on Friday 24 to Saturday 25 June. They are proceeded by four Forums, ministerial meetings, side events and other activities. Rwandan president Paul Kagame, and Commonwealth Secretary-General, Patricia Scotland, announc...

A legal expert charged with writing a new constitution presented a draft to Tunisian President Kais Saied Monday, less than a month before a referendum on the document. The head of Tunisia's constitution committee charged with writing a new constitution has delivered a draft of new constitution to President Kais Saied on Monday, with expectations that the document will grant more powers to the president. The president intends to put the new constitution to a referendum on July 25, the one year anniversary of a power grab by Saied that saw him sack the government and suspend an elected parliament, though the opposition has said it would boycott the plebiscite. The coordinator of the National Consultative Commission for a New Republic Mr. Sadok Belaïd who handed the draft to the president at his palace in the coastal Tunis district of Carthage, said “The conditions for drafting the Constitution, were difficult because of the short time we had at our disposal. But we managed, thanks t...

The UN’s top official advocating for children caught up in armed conflict issued  new guidance  on Monday designed to help expert staff on the ground protect children who are abducted, or who suffer other grave violations. Special Representative Virginia Gamba , said the guidelines would aid monitoring and reporting on the abduction of children in armed conflict, and help “address this complex grave violation of children’s rights in times of war.” There are six grave violations identified by the UN which serve as the basis for gathering data and reporting, namely the killing and maiming of children; recruitment or use of child soldiers; sexual violence against children; abduction; attacks against schools or hospitals, and finally, denial of humanitarian access. Violations linked “With the six grave violations against children in armed conflict being intrinsically interlinked, children often endure other grave violations during the time of their abduction and are recruited and ...

In a bid to drive economic integration in Africa, Equity Group Holding have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) the Africa Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfTCTA). This agreement is expected to expedite the KSh678 billion ($6 billion) Regional Private Sector Economic Recovery and Resilience Stimulus Plan. Equity Group will as part of the partnership concentrate on key strategic pillars like manufacturing, trade, investment, MSMEs, social and environmental transformation, and fostering technology-enabled economies. These pillars include agriculture and the extractive industries, manufacturing and logistics, and trade and investment. Speaking at the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) ceremony held in Lusaka, Zambia, James Mwangi, MD and CEO of Equity Group Holdings, stated the value of regional integration. In his words: “The coming together of AfCFTA and Equity Group gives us an opportunity to serve our motherland through integrating trade in the region through ou...

Application Deadline: July 30, 2022 How would you transform education? Share your ideas!  Calling all youth from around the world! You are invited to share your innovative and inspirational ideas on what you have done or would do to transform education. What do we mean by transform? We mean change, innovate, reconstruct, reimagine… Youth have important ideas to contribute on transforming education, and the Transforming Education Summit wants to hear them! Send in your  30-second video testimonies  focusing on one of these 5 themes: Inclusive, equitable, safe and healthy schools Teachers, teaching and the teaching profession Learning and skills for life, work and sustainable development Digital learning and transformation Financing of education There are two submission deadlines: To have your video considered for display at the Pre-Summit, please submit by: 22 June 2022 Otherwise – send in your innovative and creative ideas by 30 July 2022 For guidelines and more informati...

The President of the African Export and Import Bank (Afreximbank), Prof. Okey Oramah has identified African youths as the catalytic force that would propel the realisation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) initiative. Oramah said this yesterday in his opening address to the Afreximbank 2022 Annual Meetings in Cairo, Egypt, where he declared that Afreximbank Central Bank Deposit Programme (ACBDP) had mobilised $35 billion and attracted 50 participants since its inception in 2019. The theme of the annual meetings is “Realising the AfCFTA Potential in the Post COVID-19 Era: Leveraging the Power of the Youths.” He also used the address to counter the conclusions of The Economist Magazine in an article titled “Africa’s Ambitious Trade Plan: Need to Speed Up,” which stated that continued political wrangling among Africa’s leaders might squander the promise of freer trade. Oramah said: “A youth powered AfCFTA will trigger a continental economic expansion; and whether the nex...

Ghana has finally launched its new development bank after the country first conceived the move in 2017. The Development Bank Ghana (DBG) aims to provide long-term, competitively priced loans to SMEs who have long been deprived of adequate financial support. In other words, DBG aims to help catalyse growth in the country’s small and medium enterprise sector. The DBG has an initial $700m to loan to private financial institutions – including CalBank, CBG, GCB and Fidelity Bank – who in turn will on-lend to SMEs. DBG is owned by Ghana's government, which is putting in $253 million equity. The AfDB is granting $40 million, while the World Bank is lending $250 million and the EIB and KfW 170 million euros ($177.7 million) and 46.5 million euros, respectively. “Today’s launch marks an important milestone in our journey and is the result of many months and years of hard work from the DBG taskforce and working group, our staff, and our partners. However, tomorrow is no time to be complacent...

A young trailblazing parliamentarian from Namibia, Ms. Emma Theofelus has been named winner of the 2022 UN Population Award. The UN’s sexual and reproductive health agency, UNFPA, announced the winners on Monday with the individual laureate going to Theofelus while the institutional award went to Indonesia’s National Population and Family Planning Board. Ms. Theofelus, who is currently the Deputy Minister of Information in Namibia and the youngest-ever winner of the Award was recognized for her work advocating for women’s empowerment and adolescent sexual and reproductive health in Namibia. Born in 1996, she is one of Africa's youngest cabinet ministers, and has used her youth-friendly perspective, and her experience as an advocate for sexual and reproductive health, to directly address the country’s young people. As a deputy minister, she has led the country’s public communication campaign on COVID-19 preventions in Namibia, and as a MP, she pioneered legislation for feminine hygi...

A Nigerian man Ejiro Otarigho who made history that turned him a "hero" in South-South region of Nigeria when he risked his life by driving a burning fuel tanker away from a densely populated suburban area in Warri, the capital city of Delta State has told AfricaVerge about the scary experience he had . "'There was just one thought on my mind and that was to plunge the burning tanker into a river nearby'," Ejiro Otarigho said. ''My [assistant] was the one who alerted me to the fact that our tanker was on fire. It was a scary ball of fire," he continued. Mr Ejiro stated that he had just offloaded some of the contents of the tanker and was heading to another location when tragedy struck. Credit: Africaverge On noticing the fire, he quickly told his assistant to get off and he sped off in the burning tanker amidst shrieks of fear and dismay from onlookers. In what no doubt is a dangerous incident, any slight error of judgement from Mr Otarigho or, ...

Nigeria government has announced plans to regulate online companies like Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram (Meta owned platforms), Twitter, Google and TikTok in a draft published by the country’s internet regulator, NITDA. In a published statement on their website and Twitter page on Monday June 13, the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) says the new code of practice for "interactive computer service platforms/internet intermediaries" is meant to curb online abuse, including disinformation and misinformation. This comes just six months after Nigeria lifted the ban on Twitter usage in the county. NITDA said it wrote the draft with a presidential directive. It also claimed to collaborate with Nigeria’s communications and broadcasting regulatory bodies–and welcomed input from the internet companies its draft affects. PRESS RELEASE 13th June 2022 National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) Issues a Code of Practice for Interactive Computer Servi...

Belgium's King philippe who is currently on a landmark visit to DRC has urged congolese students at the Lubumbashi university (one of the major universities of the former belgian colony) in the south east to look to the future and take advantage of their country's hidden wealth. Lubumbashi is the main city in the DRC's copper and cowbalt-rich southeast. "We are very honoured to receive the King of Belgium in our country, the DRC. He did not hesitate to visit Lubumbashi and today we receive him a the best university", said Heritier Ngwej, student at the University of Lubumbashi. C'était un honneur d'accueillir leurs Majestés.  https://t.co/E4CXWj8j3Z — Université de Lubumbashi (@uniluofficiel)  June 11, 2022 King Philippe in his speech also urged students to exploit DRC's enormous mineral abundance for it's own benefit. The Monarch while addressing the students at the podium said: "Dear students, this future is yours. Congo possesses plenty of ...

Application deadline: 4 July 2022 The DAAD has launched a special programme for Sub-Saharan African students whose studies are interrupted due to the war against Ukraine to continue/complete their studies in their home country or region. Background The Scholarship programme for Master students from Sub-Saharan Africa fleeing the war against Ukraine is a subprogramme of the In-Country/In-Region Scholarship programme. It is funded by the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development and managed by the German Academic Exchange Service. Programme Objectives The goal of the programme is to provide Master scholarships to students who are nationals of a Sub-Saharan African country and whose Master studies are interrupted because of the war in Ukraine. Scholarship holders are given the opportunity to continue their academic career at a higher education institution in their home country or within their home region (in Sub-Saharan-Africa). Application Requirements Scholarships are av...

Pope Francis , 85 has been forced to postpone his upcoming trip to Africa — Democratic Republic of Congo and South Sudan, due to a continuing knee problem, the Vatican announced Friday (June 10). Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni, in a statement to newsmen read: “At the request of his doctors, and in order not to jeopardise the results of the therapy that he is undergoing for his knee, the Holy Father has been forced to postpone, with regret, his Apostolic Journey to the Democratic Republic of Congo and to South Sudan.” The trip, which was originally planned for July 2 to 7, will now be rescheduled though no new date has been set. Francis, 85, has been suffering from pain in his right knee in recent weeks and has sometimes been seen struggling to walk. Last month, he relied on a wheelchair for the first time at a public event. He has cancelled numerous engagements and postponed a scheduled trip to Lebanon in June. But according to the Catholic News Agency, he is still scheduled to visit C...

Mozambique has been elected to join the United Nations Security Council as a non-permanent member in January 2023. The Portuguese-speaking country was unanimously elected following a UN General Assembly election held on Thursday. To secure a place on the Council, countries must receive a two-thirds majority, or 128 votes, even if they run uncontested. Candidates this year vied for five seats under three regional groups: two for African and Asia-Pacific countries, one for Latin America and the Caribbean, and two for Western Europe and other States. The election has now placed Mozambique as one of the African countries to hold one of two seats allowed to African and Asia-Pacific countries. Kenya will be leaving its seat at the end of the year, along with India, Ireland, Mexico and Norway. Today, the General Assembly elected: 🇪🇨Ecuador - 190  🇯🇵Japan - 184 🇲🇹Malta - 185 🇲🇿Mozambique - 192 🇨🇭Switzerland - 187 as non-permanent members of the  @UN  Security ...

Application Deadline:  26 June 2022 11:59 pm (CEST) The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) Innovation Accelerator sources, supports and scales bold new solutions to disrupt global hunger and achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. For this year’s challenges WFP are looking for disruptive innovations for fighting hunger in areas such as resilience to shocks and stress, climate change, access to safe and nutritious food, and advancing equitable livelihoods for all. Climate change is a risk multiplier for hunger. In a world that is 2°C warmer than pre-industrial times, at least 189 million more people are at risk of becoming food insecure. As a result of global warming, weather-related shocks such as drought, storms, and floods are increasing in number and frequency, causing growing losses and damages to food systems. In developing countries, the number of extreme weather events has more than doubled since the early 1990s. Eradicating hunger requires bold efforts to improve ...

The Africa Fertilizer Financing Mechanism (AFFM) will extend a $2 million partial trade credit guarantee to ETG Inputs Ghana Limited to support delivery of fertilizer to 200,000 smallholder farmers in Ghana’s Upper East, Savannah, Northeast, and Northern Regions. The move will ease the current shortages in supply and boost yields, food security, and incomes of farmers in the designated regions. Under the agreement ETG Inputs Ghana Limited, a subsidiary of agricultural conglomerate ETG, will enable delivery of 10,000 metric tons of fertilizer to wholesalers who will distribute it, via retailers, to farmers in the regions. The credit enhancement mechanism is expected to reduce risks associated with suppliers selling fertilizer to wholesalers on credit, which can result in farmers having limited access to good quality fertilizer. "This project with ETG comes at a time when Africa’s farmers—recovering from the economic impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic— now face rising market prices fo...

Application Deadline:  19th June 2022 About the Award The SCA mentoring program (SCAMP) is specifically designed to pair experienced individuals excelling in their specific tech fields with girls/women who identify as beginners or intermediates in tech and in need of a guide and learning path while helping them grow in required ways in their career fields. Type of Scholarship Training (mentorship) Eligible Fields BEGINNER: Software Engineering : Web development (Front end / Back end), Software testing/Quality assurance, Cybersecurity Product: Product Design Data : Data science INTERMEDIATE: Software Engineering : Web development (Front end / Back end), Mobile development, Cross platform development, Product: Product Design , Product Management Data : Data science Who can apply? Eligible participants must: Be an active member of the She Code Africa Community (sign up here: shecodeafrica.org) Have made some learning progress in their specified field Show proof of already made conscio...

Washington, DC  — Today, President Joe Biden announced his intent to nominate some leaders to serve as key leaders in his administration. One of the leaders announced was Jessica Davis Ba, who according to a White House statement is a Nominee for Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to the Republic of Côte d’Ivoire. Formerly known as Ivory Coast, the country has a population of 27 million and is the largest economy in Francophone Africa and the third largest in West Africa, after Nigeria and. Ghana. Davis Ba has had diplomatic assignments in Chad, Ethiopia, Nigeria and Kenya – where she focused on Somalia - as well as Iraq and Saudi Arabia. She served as senior Africa advisor for Vice President Kamala Harris before she completed that assignment in March and returned to the State Department where she is a Senior Advisor in the Bureau of African Affairs. The White House announcement reads: Jessica Davis Ba is a career member of the Senior Foreign Service, class of Counselor. ...

Nigeri'a proposed national carrier, Nigeria Air has been awarded Air Transport License (ATL) by the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA). The presentation of the ATL which was announced on Monday via the country's Ministry of Aviation's official twitter was received by the interim management of Nigeria Air. It wrote: “Presentation of Airline Transport Licence (ATL) to Interim Board of Nigeria Air. Nigeria Air is here and is going to provide quality service to Nigerians.” Nigeria Air is the nation’s proposed national carrier and it is to be a public-private partnership with the federal government maintaining 5% stake, while 49% would be held by strategic equity partners and 46% by Nigerian entrepreneurs. A former managing director of the defunct Virgin Nigeria Airways, Capt. Dapo Olumide, has been appointed as the interim MD of the airline. What you need to know AfricaPicks (AP) gathered that the ATL certification precedes the Air Operator’s Certificate (AOC), which empo...

Former President of Niger Mahamadou Issoufou has been appointed as the new mediator for Burkina Faso. His appointment was announced in a press release on Saturday at the end of the 6th extraordinary summit of ECOWAS held in Accra, capital of Ghana. According to a press release issued after the meeting of Heads of State, the former president's mission is to "facilitate dialogue between all stakeholders". At the heart of the matter is the duration of the transition period in Burkina Faso, currently set at 36 months by the Burkinabe military leadership. In the meantime, the sub-regional organisation maintains the suspension of Burkina Faso from all its bodies until constitutional order is restored. The situation will be re-assessed at the next meeting of ECOWAS set for July, 3rd.

World’s biggest beverage company, Coca Cola, has inaugurated a new mega factory in the Sebta City of Ethiopia, which is reported to be the largest of such factories in Africa. The $100 million factory located 25 km from the capital, Addis Ababa, was inaugurated on Wednesday and is equipped with state of the art machinery which also is expected to create 30,000 job opportunities for the youths of the country. Speaking at the inaugural ceremony of the factory which is reported to be the largest of such factories in Africa, the country’s Minister of Industry, Melaku Alebel, said “Coca-Cola is 60-years-old in this country and plays an irreplaceable role as a factory in Ethiopia. Today, the establishment of this factory in this city is a testament to the development activities in Ethiopia.” In his own speech, President of Africa for the Coca-Cola company, Bruno Pietracci, said, "We have a project to better water usage across 41 countries in Africa we benefit more than 6000 families tod...

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan wants to apply the change to all products coming from the country. The United Nations has changed the Republic of Turkey’s country name at the organisation from “Turkey” to “Türkiye”, following a request from Ankara for the change. UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said that a letter had been received on Wednesday from the Turkish foreign minister Mevlut Cavusoglu addressed to Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, requesting the use of “Türkiye” instead of “Turkey” for all affairs. The spokesman said the country name change became effective from the moment the letter was received. Cavusoglu announced the letter’s official submission to the UN and other international organisations on Tuesday. “Together with our Directorate of Communications, we have been successful in preparing a good ground for this,” said the letter. “We have made it possible for the UN and other international organisations, countries to see this change to using ‘Türkiye’,” Cavusoglu told Ana...