Day: September 27, 2022

Highlights

As of August, in the core period of the rainy season, West Africa continues to be characterised by variable conditions. Rainfall patterns over the past month reflect a trend observed since the beginning of the season, with the persistence of drier than normal conditions in the western parts of the region (except for northern Senegal, western Mauritania, Burkina Faso and western Niger), while wetter than normal conditions prevailed over the eastern parts (LCB, northern Cameroon, and Chad). Despite an increase in rainfall during the month of August, which led to flooding in many areas, rainfall deficits persist over some areas in the western parts of the region (western, southern and central Senegal, south-eastern Mauritania, western Mali) as well as in eastern Guinea-Bissau extending into southern Guinea and Sierra Leone.

Overall, in west Africa, the rainy season has so far (between 1 May and 31 August) been characterised by mixed conditions. Over the western part of the region (central Senegal, south-western Mali, Guinea, Sierra Leone, south-eastern Mauritania), average to below average rainfall was received since the beginning of the season. The central parts of West Africa, including western Niger, central and southern Nigeria, and south-western Cameroon, have experienced a below normal rainy season. Conversely, the easternmost parts of West Africa (including the Lake Chad Basin, Chad and eastern CAR), as well as parts of the region’s centre (Burkina Faso, Cote d’Ivoire) and north-west (coastal areas of Senegal, western Mauritania) received above average cumulative rainfall since the beginning of May 2022. From late July, rainfall over the region has increased resulting in a significant decline of the overall rainfall deficits. However, the distribution over time and space has been erratic in some areas. Erratic seasonal rainfall since early May has resulted in average to below average rainfall totals in south-western Mali, western Niger and central Nigeria, as well as in parts of central Senegal and south-eastern Mauritania. These deficits may have negative impact on crop and pasture development over areas where dryness has persisted for a very long time, or which have experienced an erratic spatial and temporal distribution of seasonal rains (such as northern and central eastern Senegal, central southern Mali, western Niger and central Nigeria). Meanwhile, heavy rains have led to flooding and landslides over many areas (Mali, Ghana, Chad, Nigeria). Flooding was reported in Senegal, causing fatalities and The Gambia damaging properties. In Sierra Leone, heavy rainfall resulted in landslides, with causalitiesreported in Freetown.

As a result of the of rainfall improvement, since late July, a markedly above average vegetation cover extends over much of the Sahel across Mali, north-eastern Burkina Faso, Niger, Chad, northern Nigeria and southern Mauritania. Meanwhile low vegetation recovery can be observed in some areas over the Sahel region (over northern and central eastern Senegal, central southern Mali and western Niger), due to early rainfall deficits

The short-term forecasts indicate that by late September (30 September 2022), seasonal rainfall will likely be mostly above average for the West Africa region, except for southern coastal areas (southern cote d’Ivoire, Ghana, south-western Cameroon, south-eastern Nigeria and Liberia), as well as northwestern Mauritania. Drought will likely be most pronounced in southern coastal Cote d’Ivoire, Ghana, and south-eastern Liberia. This might partially offset the rainfall deficits in parts of the Sahel (central and northern Senegal, southern Mauritania, western Mali, western Niger) and lead to more favorable agriculture and pastoral conditionsin these areas. However, for the countries of the Gulf of Guinea this deserves close monitoring.

Source: World Food Programme

NEW YORK— The East African Community (EAC) has called for support from the African Union (AU) in combating terrorism.

Assistance is also needed by the regional body in conflict resolution as part of efforts to strengthen peace and security in the bloc.

The call was made by the EAC secretary general Dr Peter Mathuki at the AU Peace and Security Council meeting with Regional Economic Communities (Recs) in New York on the sidelines of the just-concluded 77th United Nations General Assembly.

“We call on the AU to support Recs such as the EAC in combating the financing of terrorism and anti-money laundering”, he pointed out.

He said money laundering, in particular, undermines governance through corruption, tax evasion, and promotion of parallel markets.

He further called for support to counter cross-border crimes in addition to enhancing coordination with other specialized regional organizations in combating terror financing and trafficking of persons and narcotics.

Mathuki urged the UN Security Council to invest in conflict prevention, management, and resolution to avoid giving room to negative forces that take advantage of strife.

He appealed to the AU to secure the continent’s maritime space to tame illegal entry and exit, according to a dispatch sent to the media.

“Through the joint implementation of the East and Southern Africa-Indian Ocean (ESA-IO) Regional Maritime Security Strategy, the incidents of insecurity in the Indian Ocean have substantially reduced,” he said.

In addition, Mathuki called on the Council to take up border management terming porous borders as the weakest links in the fight against terrorism.

He suggested information sharing by mandated agencies, application of technology, and engagement of transboundary communities in formal border management strategies are some of the measures EAC is implementing in the endeavour.

Analysts say terrorism continues to be a potent threat to security in the EAC region with a number of terror organizations having footprints within the region.

They include Al Shabaab based in the conflict-torn Somalia but which has wreaked havoc in countries around it; Kenya, Uganda, and Ethiopia.

Others are FDLR, ADF, LRA, and lately, Ansar al-Sunna reported to be active in eastern DR Congo, Uganda, South Sudan, and Mozambique.

The AU Peace and Security Council is the standing decision-making organ of the AU for the prevention, management, and resolution of conflicts.

It is collective security and early warning arrangement intended to facilitate timely and efficient responses to conflict and crisis situations in Africa.

Source: NAM NEWS NETWORK

THE HAGUE— The war crimes trial of former rebel leader, Mahamat Said Abdel Kani, opened at the International Criminal Court(ICC) in the Hague on Monday.

Said is accused of seven counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity, Chief Prosecutor Karim Khan said. Said, 52, insists he is innocent.

Said was a commander of the predominantly Muslim Seleka rebels, who overthrew President François Bozizé in 2013.

“They ruled by dictate, by fear, by terror,” Khan charged.

The rebels persecuted Christians, raped women and girls, and arbitrarily murdered, tortured or imprisoned men.

According to the indictment, Said ran a “torture-centre” in the CAR capital, Bangui.

People were held there in windowless cells, and also in an underground dungeon directly below Said’s office. According to the prosecution, prisoners were beaten with rifle butts and whipped.

Numerous people had suffered serious damage and were severely traumatized.

According to the prosecution, the accused did nothing to protect the prisoners. He allegedly also took an active part in the crimes. The prosecutors want to present numerous pieces of evidence and summon eyewitnesses, including former Seleka fighters.

Said was extradited to the ICC by Central African authorities in 2021.

The mineral-rich but extremely poor country with around 4.7 million inhabitants, has been the scene of conflicts for years.

After the fall of Bozizé in 2013, fighting ensued with Christian militias and splinter groups.

According to the United Nations, more than 60,000 people have fled to neighbouring countries to escape the violence.

Source: NAM NEWS NETWORK

NAIROBI— More than 150 public and civil society actors from 40 African countries convened in Nairobi, Kenya for the joint Africa Gender Statistics Conference taking place from Sept 26-30.

Held under the theme ‘Gender Statistics Imperatives for Africa’, the Conference will interrogate gender statistics through the lens of agenda 2063—the African Union’s blueprint for transforming Africa into a global powerhouse, the Sustainable Development Goals that support gender equality and women’s empowerment, and global guidance on violence against women data, among others.

Delegates comprising policy analysts and gender statistics experts from line ministries, national statistical offices, and civil society will exchange knowledge on the latest innovations and best practices in gender statistics to inform action plans in AU member states and the region as a whole.

Gender statistics are instrumental in measuring progress towards achieving regional and global gender development goals. However, the production of gender statistics is relatively new, and information is not fully consolidated and always readily available, even at the global level.

“Gender equality has increasingly been recognized as being essential to the process of sustainable development and the formulation of effective national development policies and programmes,” said Themba Munalula, Chief Statistician, Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA).

“Given the pivotal role of gender equality in socioeconomic and cultural development, ensuring that African countries produce high-quality, timely, and reliable gender data has far-reaching benefits,” said Roza Mamuye Bora, Principal Statistician at the African Development Bank Group (AfDB).

The production of gender statistics in the region has been slow due to a combination of factors including a reluctance to change how statistics have traditionally been compiled and presented, a lack of knowledge on how change can be effected, and a constrained policy and financial environment.

“Gender data and statistics are not just important for their own sake. The end goal is really to improve the lives of women and girls as envisioned by the SDGs and other regional and international plans,” said Dr. Maxime Houinato, UN Women East and Southern Africa Regional Director.

“While nearly all countries in the region have endorsed the SDGs and incorporated them into national strategies and plans, lack of funding is often cited as the most critical impediment in the region”, said Houinato.

“This has hindered the progress of national statistical offices in designing the systems and operations needed to generate gender data for evidence-based policymaking and advocacy,” said Fatouma Sissoko, Gender Statistician at the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA).

Despite these challenges, regional initiatives such as the Africa Programme on Gender Statistics (APGS), have contributed significantly to improvements in gender statistics at both the regional and national levels.

An umbrella regional programme implemented by regional organizations, regional economic communities, civil society organizations, and international agencies, the APGS is currently in its third phase (APGS III).

The Programme has made strides in improving the availability of accurate and standardized gender statistics by developing methodologies and approaches for the production of gender statistics in Africa.

However, much remains to be done in terms of improving coordination and reinforcing partnerships to strengthen knowledge, skills, and communication related to the production, dissemination, and use of gender statistics in the region.

This is one of the main focus areas of APGS III, which is also being launched during the Joint Africa Gender Statistics Conference.

Source: NAM NEWS NETWORK