Posts

Posted on

Eritreans celebrate Independence Day anniversary

Eritrean nationals in Ethiopia and Italy enthusiastically celebrated the 30th Independence Day anniversary under the theme “Resilient: As Ever”.

Speaking at the occasion held at the Eritrean Embassy in Addis Ababa organized by the Eritrean Embassy and Eritrean Permanent Representative at the African Union Economic Commission, Mr. Semere Russom, Eritrean Ambassador in Ethiopia, said that despite the threat posed by the COVID-19 pandemic and the restrictions that go with it, Eritrea has registered encouraging achievement in various sectors and is standing in firm ground.

The event was highlighted by cultural and artistic programs with few members of the Embassy staff participating while Eritreans in Ethiopia virtually attended the ceremony.

According to the report from the Community and Public Affairs at the Eritrean Embassy in Italy, Eritreans in 17 cities in Italy celebrated the 30th Independence Day anniversary on 23 May respecting the guidelines issued in that country to control the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Speaking at the event in Rome, Mr. Fesehatsion Petros, Eritrean Ambassador in Italy, congratulating the Eritrean people and its gallant Defense Forces said that the 30th Independence Day anniversary is being celebrated at the time in which Eritrea has emerged victorious foiling various hostilities and challenges.

Source: Ministry of Information Eritrea

Posted on

Independence Day celebration at UN

Ambassador Sophia Tesfamariam, Eritrea’s Permanent Representative at the United Nations hosted virtual reception in connection with the 30th Independence Day anniversary in which Ambassadors of various countries took part.

At the event, Mr. Osman Saleh, Minister of Foreign Affairs gave keynote address to the participants from Asmara on the current situation of the COVID-19 pandemic in Eritrea.

In his address, Foreign Minister Osman Saleh said that as a result of the strict guidelines and regulations issued by the Eritrean Government and the conscious participation and implementation of the Eritrean people it was able to control the spread COVID-19 pandemic with few instances of infections and death.

Minister Osman also expressed appreciation for the front-line health professionals in general and the health professionals of Eritrea for their relentless contribution and commitment in the global effort to control COVID-19 pandemic.

On the occasion, a short documentary film depicting the rich heritage of Eritrea and the struggle for independence and safeguarding national sovereignty was presented to the participants.

The Ambassadors of various countries that took part in the event expressed admiration for the perseverance, patriotism, and commitment demonstrated by the Eritrean people and wished good health to President Isaias Afwerki and peace and prosperity to the Eritrean people.

The event was attended by Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed, Ms. Cristina Duarte, Under-Secretary-General and Special Adviser on Africa, Ms. Fekitamoeloa Katoa, Under-Secretary-General and High Representative of UN-High Representative for the Least Developed Countries (OHRLLS), and Ambassador Fatima Kiyari, African Union Observer Mission, as well as Eritreans and friends of Eritrea working at the various UN systems.

Source: Ministry of Information Eritrea

Posted on

Kenya’s Kisumu Emerges as New COVID-19 Hotspot

Kenya’s western city of Kisumu has surpassed the capital, Nairobi, as having the country’s highest number of confirmed COVID-19 infections. The jump in cases comes a day after an opposition leader addressed large crowds in Kisumu, which also reported Kenya’s first case of the variant first spotted in India.

According to the Health Ministry, the county of Kisumu is recording a high number of COVID-19 positive cases.

The lakeside city Tuesday recorded almost a third of all 382 positive cases recorded in the country.

Kisumu County Health Minister Boaz Otieno says the outbreak has escalated over past 10 days or so.

“We are a major transmission zone to date,” said Otieno. “We have over 4,000 cases that have been confirmed as of the end of last week, and about 3,000 or so of them had been diagnosed in the last seven days.”

Otieno blames Kisumu’s increase on the easing of restrictions in the capital Nairobi and surrounding areas.

“There was an inevitable rebound influx. Generally, there is a lot of traffic between Kisumu, Nakuru and Nairobi,” said Otieno. “So if you confine people and then you release the tendency is people to kind of rebound and go back home.”

In late March, President Uhuru Kenyatta restricted people’s movements in Nairobi and in the counties of Kajiado, Nakuru, Kiambu and Machakos in an effort to contain a rise in COVID-19 cases.

The president eased restrictions a month later.

Health officials have warned the country may witness another wave of cases in July if people continue to disregard health protocols designed to limit the spread of the coronavirus.

The increase in infections comes as Kisumu County prepares to host an Independence Day ceremony on June 1 that Kenyatta is set to attend.

Leunora Odinga is a Kisumu resident who has mixed feelings about the upcoming event.

“I may be worried but at the same time anxious to see my president come and talk to us. Some of us have not seen him,” Odinga said. “We need development and without development, we cannot prosper. It’s the people who have to take precautions to take care of themselves.”

Two weeks ago, Kisumu was the first town in Kenya to record a case of the Indian COVID-19 variant.

Otieno said there is nothing to worry about and health protocols will be followed during the ceremony.

“For the main venue will have a very limited number, the stadium has a population capacity of over 30,000 but it will only allow 3,000 people in by invitation and the siting will be very controlled. Ensuring masks and washing of hands will be ensured,” Otieno said. “

Kenya’s Health Minister Mutahi Kagwe said Tuesday that at least 950,000 people countrywide were vaccinated against the coronavirus.

The East African nation has recorded 169,000 COVID-19 cases and more than 3,000 deaths from the disease.

Source: Voice of America

Posted on

Strong Earthquakes Near DRC Volcano Raise Fears of Second Eruption

Regional officials reported strong earthquakes Tuesday in the area surrounding the Democratic Republic of Congo’s (DRC) Mount Nyiragongo volcano, three days after it erupted, killing 32 people, destroying villages, and displacing at least 5,000 residents.

The Rwanda Seismic Monitor reported on its Twitter account several quakes Tuesday, including a 5.3-magnitude quake in the borderlands between Rwanda and the eastern DRC, near Mount Nyiragongo. The quakes have raised fears among locals that the volcano could erupt again.

Mount Nyiragongo — one of Africa’s most active — erupted Saturday for the first time since 2002, sending a river of lava downhill toward Goma, a city of some 2 million people 13 kilometers away. The molten rock stopped a few hundred meters short of city limits, but not before it destroyed about 1,000 homes, officials said.

At a briefing in Geneva, U.N. Refugee Agency (UNHCR) spokesman Boris Cheshirkov told reporters that 32 people died in incidents related to the eruption, including seven people killed by lava and five asphyxiated by gas.

He said two villages on Goma’s northern tip were destroyed, and two others were partially covered by lava. Several neighborhoods were left without electricity, and there are fears of water shortages.

Cheshirkov briefed reporters following a joint evaluation involving the DRC government, the United Nations and other humanitarian agencies. UNICEF reported that more than 150 children were separated from their families amid the chaos and more than 170 children are feared missing.

Along with the tremors, the UNHCR reports the lava lake in the volcano’s crater appears to have refilled, adding to fears of a second eruption.

Source: Voice of America

Posted on

Regional Envoys to Visit Mali After Military Detains Transition Leaders

A delegation from the regional bloc ECOWAS (Economic Community of West African States) is heading to Mali Tuesday, a day after the West African nation’s military detained the president and prime minister.

A joint statement issued Tuesday by ECOWAS, the United Nations, African Union and other international bodies called for the release of President Bah N’Daw and Prime Minister Moctar Ouane, who were detained in the capital, Bamako, and taken to the military’s headquarters in nearby Kati.

President N’daw and Prime Minister Ouane, along with Defense Minister Souleymane Doucoure, were seized hours after announcing a cabinet reshuffle that left out two members of the military.

The two men were chosen to head a civilian transitional government last year, just a month after the military seized power after ousting then-President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita. The transitional government was created to lay the groundwork for presidential and legislative elections by next February.

Mali has been in turmoil since then-President Amadou Toumani Touré was toppled in a military coup in 2012 that led ethnic Tuareg rebels to seize control of several northern towns, which were then taken over by Islamic insurgents. France deployed forces to repel the insurgents the following year, but the rebels have continued to operate in rural areas.

Source: Voice of America

Posted on

Ethiopian Region of Tigray at ‘Serious Risk’ of Famine, Warns Top UN Official

A senior UN official warned the Security Council on Tuesday that urgent measures are needed to avoid famine in the war-torn region of Tigray in Ethiopia, in a briefing seen by AFP.

“There is a serious risk of famine if assistance is not scaled up in the next two months,” wrote Mark Lowcock, the UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator.

More than six months after Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed launched what he termed a “rapid” military operation, the fighting and abuses continue in Tigray, where the specter of a famine has been hovering for several months.

“Concrete measures are urgently needed to break the vicious cycle between armed conflict, violence and food insecurity,” said Lowcock in his two-and-a-half page note.

“I urge members of the Security Council and other Member States to take any steps possible to prevent a famine from occurring,” he said.

“Today, at least 20% of the population in that area face emergency food insecurity,” the British official said, adding that “destruction and violence against civilians continue even now across Tigray.”

“In the six and a half months since the start of the conflict in Tigray in early November 2020 an estimated two million people have been displaced. Civilians are being killed and injured,” he added.

“Rape and other forms of abhorrent sexual violence are widespread and systematic. Public and private infrastructure and objects indispensable to the survival of civilians have been destroyed, including hospitals and agricultural land,” he warned.

The UN official estimated that “over 90% of the harvest was lost due to looting, burning, or other destruction, and that 80% of the livestock in the region were looted or slaughtered.”

“Despite improvements in March and the cooperation of authorities at the local level, humanitarian access on the whole has recently deteriorated,” Lowcock wrote.

“Humanitarian operations are being attacked, obstructed or delayed in delivering life-saving assistance. Eight aid workers have been killed in Tigray in the last six months.”

Source: Voice of America

Posted on

African NBA Scout Eyes Talent in BAL Tourney

The inaugural Africa Basketball League tournament is entering the playoff stage. For Sonny Side of Sports, VOA’s Prince Nesta spoke with Sarah Chan, Africa scouting manager for the 2019 NBA champion Toronto Raptors, about her basketball journey and the games plying in the BAL.

The interview was edited for brevity and clarity.

VOA: Briefly, can you speak a little bit about your background?

Chan: I am from South Sudan. I grew up in Khartoum until I was about 12. South Sudan was going through a civil war…a civil war that had affected everybody. And so, my family and I relocated to Kenya looking for greener pastures, looking for peace, putting education at the center of everything…My parents reiterated: “we go, we learn, we come back, and we impact.” That was the song in our daily lives. And so, (I have) a background of civil war into being privileged to have an amazing family that’s very supportive of a young girl that was trying something out.

VOA: You were in the arena when the opening match between the Patriots against US Monastir was taking place? What was the mood Like?

Chan: It is one of the most exciting games thus far. The environment was just so electric. The energy was so high. And for a second there, I look around and I’m like… this is the NBA. This is like me sitting in (Raptors) arena. And the level of the game that is going on that I’m watching, wow the intensity like I’m feeling it myself, but I’m right there with this…The intensity of the game was amazing. They were running the floor, great shot selections, the ball movement was just incredible. And the leadership on the floor. The future is so bright for this tournament. And this game was such an exemplary game.

VOA: What so far are some of the standout teams in this tournament for you?

Chan: The standout teams in this tournament would be the one we just watched, the Tunisian team. Patriots have also showed a great deal. We’ve also watched Zamalek from Egypt. They’ve done so well. And so, I’m predicting at least one or two of those will be in the final.

VOA: What does this tournament mean for the African continent?

Chan: It’s progressive leadership that, you know, makes the world move around and advances tournaments like this. Because without (Rwanda President Paul Kagame) the NBA, FIBA, we don’t have the arena. Let’s start there. So there’s not, you know, the actual structure, and then you come down to the leadership within the NBA, the people that work behind the scenes, to bring this tournament here, and to make it a success and execute with such diligence. And then the opportunities, this is going to have the ripple effects of just what the BAL stands for, impacting the next generation of athletes.

There were 15 NBA scouts and team like representatives watching this tournament. And this gives us an opportunity to look at young prospects early and build a file. And this is more opportunity for the players. This is job creation for the people. This is economic…It’s a socio-economic benefit to all of Africa. Right…And so, the world will continue to reap the fruits of this tournament because it’s also a pipeline to the NBA…And it’s our prayer that it keeps growing and you know…It already has the sustainability aspects of things. So, it will keep growing. And we hope that it gets to the point where interchangeably athletes can go from the NBA to the BAL, from the BAL to the NBA

It is such a moment that makes you proud to be African. You look down and you see women leadership on the floor…our young women doing things, phenomenal sisters doing amazing things, right?

VOA: What does basketball mean to you?

Chan: Basketball is life. It becomes a lifestyle. It becomes the reason I wake up. it is my purpose. And it reminds me of the saying, the quote by Mandela, (that) sport has the power to change the world. It has the power to inspire. It has the power to unite and it has the power to create hope. And I look at this and this is home. This is a platform, an elite platform for players to showcase what they have and for the world. you know, to basically enjoy the fruits of talent because Africa is spoiled for choices.

We have such an immense pool of talent and now there’s a platform where they can exhibit what they have. And so, it’s a gift to the world. And it’s also a gift to us. So, basketball is life. Basketball is peace. Basketball is opportunities. Basketball is unity. And the power of it to transcend boundaries.

VOA: Any surprises so far as far as the tournament is concerned?

Chan: The only surprise for me is the Nigeria team’s performance. I expected a bit much more from them…Also, in the best way possible, not really surprised, but I’m glad that the Patriots from Rwanda, the host, (are) playing at a high, an intense competitive way…There are also beautiful surprises of different teams, stepping up, and leadership and experiences showing out…

VOA: You also come from South Sudan. What does this tournament mean, for South Sudan in Africa? You know, what should we take from this moving forward to the future?

Chan: Elevation and progress come from leadership. And we must hold each other accountable. We must take sports more (seriously) and invest in the youth and continue to give accessibility and look at the opportunities within this. This is a nation that went through tragedy, look at how they healed. And you know, how they made a comeback, you know, and how they’re now bringing the world together.

I hope people’s eyes are open and their hearts are receptive to seeing what is being displayed (at the BAL.)…and to wanting to duplicate a Kigali Arena in , you know, in South Sudan.

Source: Voice of America