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18, April 2019

UN Economic Commission Chief urges Cameroon to ratify Africa free trade deal ⁰

The chief of the UN Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) on Wednesday urged Cameroon to ratify the African Continental Free trade Area (AfCFTA) agreement.

The agreement is the tool that is going to help Cameroon overcome “the storms” of the global economic environment, ECA Executive Secretary Vera Songwe said at the opening of the National AfCFTA Information and Sensitization Forum co-organized by ECA and the Government of Cameroon in partnership with the European Union in the capital, Yaounde.

“We are really hoping that Cameroon ratifies this AfCFTA because I think there is no doubt that our country and many others on the continent needs additional investment. With the AfCFTA you get investments that you need to be able to revamp your economy and more importantly create jobs,” said Songwe, who is also a Cameroonian.

Cameroon was among the first African countries to sign the agreement last year but it’s still laying the groundwork for the entry into force of the AfCFTA.

“If we are able to ratify this AfCFTA, Cameroon will start having value addition. We will be able to process our cotton and sell to Ethiopia. I think the big story of the continental free trade agreement is that value addition, which essentially means that value and quality of the goods and the resources that are put into making the goods, stay on the continent,” she added.

Twenty-two African nations have already ratified the agreement, the minimum threshold expected to approve the deal among the 55 members of the African Union.

Source: Xinhuanet

17, April 2019

Human Rights Watch calls for arrests in South Africa after attacks on foreigners ⁰

Human Rights Watch (HRW) has urged South African authorities to prosecute the perpetrators of deadly xenophobic violence that displaced some 300 Malawi migrants three weeks ago but has yielded no arrests.

From March 25 to 27, mobs armed with metal rods and machetes broke into the homes of foreigners in Durban on South Africa’s east coast, chasing them out and looting their belongings, HRW said.

The UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has said at least six foreign nationals were killed and several injured, raising fears of a resurgence of xenophobic bloodshed in a country where poor, jobless people accuse migrants of taking their work and benefits.

About 88 survivors of the Durban attacks asked to be sent back to Malawi as they felt unsafe, according to representatives of the Malawi High Commission.

Others had no choice but to return to the same informal settlement they had been violently chased out of.

“Re-integration of foreign nationals into communities without justice and accountability for past xenophobic attacks is a recipe for disaster,” said HRW’s southern Africa director Dewa Mavhinga.

“To deter those who attack foreign nationals, there is an urgent need for effective policing, arrests, and prosecutions.”

The lack of arrests showed “impunity for xenophobic crimes,” said the rights watchdog.

Widespread condemnation of the violence prompted emergency talks between South Africa’s foreign and police ministers, Lindiwe Sisulu and Bheki Cele, and diplomats of African countries.

This file photo shows Malawians marching through the capital Lilongwe to protest against xenophobic attacks in South Africa. (Photo by AFP)

HRW also urged politicians to refrain from statements that “scapegoat migrants and feed anti-foreigner violence,” ahead of May 8 general elections.

It cited remarks by President Cyril Ramaphosa at a party rally in March, when he “blamed undocumented migrants for problems and promised a crackdown.”

The country hosts millions of foreigners, most from African countries and many undocumented.

Immigrants bear much of the anger about chronic unemployment and limited economic gains made by poor black people since white-minority rule ended in 1994.

Violence erupts sporadically, targeting foreign-owned shops and migrants themselves.

Sixty-two people were killed in a wave of xenophobic violence in 2008, and at least seven in a fresh outburst in 2015.

(Source: AFP)

17, April 2019

Algerian protests force head of Constitutional Council to resign ⁰

Thousands of protesters have taken to the streets across the country to call for the removal of interim President Abdel-Kader Bensalah, after their success in forcing the head of the Constitutional Council to resign.

The controversial head of the country’s Constitutional Council quit on Tuesday bowing to weeks of anger from protesters. Pro-democracy protesters had called for the removal of Tayib Belaiz, saying he is part of a ruling elite they want to abolish.

The resignation was yet more upheaval for Algeria since the ousting of long-time leader Abdelaziz Bouteflika.

Bouteflika stepped down on April 2 after weeks of mass protests for his 20-year rule to end. But his departure has failed to placate many Algerians who want to topple the old guard and its associates.

In the capital Algiers, protesters poured into streets, held signs and chanted anti-government slogans. Similar protests were also held in other parts of the country.

Meanwhile, Algeria’s Army Chief Gaed Sala said the military was looking at all options to find a solution to end the country’s political crisis as soon as possible.

In a speech read out on state TV, he urged protesters to avoid violence and gave formal orders to protect the demonstrators.

Salah said time was running out and Algeria could not afford further delays, adding that more steps would be taken to meet the protesters’ demands.

Belaiz’s departure could herald that of other senior political figures who protesters want to see removed as mass protests entered the eighth week.

Protesters want the removal of an elite that has governed Algeria since independence from France in 1962 and the prosecution of people they see as corrupt.

Source: Presstv

17, April 2019

Nobel Peace Prize winner calls for end of hostilities in Southern Cameroons ⁰

Leymah Roberta Gbowee, 2011 Noble Peace Prize winner, Liberian female peace activist, on Tuesday called for ending of disputes in Cameroon’s two English-speaking regions that have been ravaged by war in the last two years.

“As someone who has survived war and has lived through it, I will tell Cameroonians, war has never been the answer to solving any kind of problem. My message to Cameroon is that it should never be Anglophone or Francophone, it should be one Cameroon, one people.” Gbowee told reporters in the capital Yaounde after meeting with government officials.

She said that she had spent three days in the restive regions urging for an end to the war and intensifying efforts to defend the rights of women and girls in the conflict zone.

“It is the women and girls who pay the brunt of it. There is always increase in sexually transmitted diseases, rape and abuse and teen pregnancies.” Gbowee said, citing the example of her country, Liberia which she said should serve as an example for Cameroon that nobody wins war.

“We (Liberia) went through a very devastating civil war where we killed almost 10 percent of our population and the impact is still been felt by the population. There are no winners in any kind of crisis. It takes generations for the pains to go away,” she said.

Cameroon is largely populated by French-speakers, but since November 2017, Anglophone minority have formed armed groups to fight for the independence of the English-speaking regions after complaining of decades of marginalization.

Source: Xinhuanet

17, April 2019

Biya regime holds workshop to lay groundwork for implementing AfCFTA ⁰

Cameroon organized a workshop in collaboration with the UN Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) in the capital on Tuesday to lay the groundwork for the implementation of Africa Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA).

Government officials said the two-day workshop gives Cameroon the opportunity to assess what the country will benefit from the agreement.

“We are talking about a continent of over 1 billion people and there are 25 million of us in Cameroon. The advantages of the free trade zone are so many for an economy like ours. It is necessary for us to work day and night to be part of the advantages and not disadvantages. We are confident that it will bring a lot of prosperity and stability to our economy,” Cameroon’s Minister of Trade, Luc Magloire Mbarga Atangana, told reporters.

The workshop, the first of its kind, brings together more than 100 stakeholders from the private sector, academia and civil society to evaluate Cameroon’s readiness to ratify the agreement.

Twenty two African nations have already ratified the agreement, the minimum threshold expected to approve the deal among the 55 members of the African Union.

According to ECA, AfCFTA represents a potential market of 1.2 billion consumers today, and nearly 2.5 billion in 2050, and is a powerful lever to stimulate exports, industrialization, job creation and economic diversification of the African continent.

Source: Xinhuanet

16, April 2019

Southern Cameroons Crisis: Women Fleeing Violence Use Moss As Tampons ⁰

Women who have fled into the bushes from the conflict in English-speaking regions of Cameroon are using moss squashed into balls as tampons, risking infection. One 16-year-old explained to BBC Focus on Africa the challenges she is facing since she left her home:

Quote Message: There is no way we can get sanitary towels in the bushes. The nearest town is too far away and it’s not safe to go there. We use rags during our periods and it’s not easy finding pieces of cloth to use. I know it’s dangerous and one can easily get infected.”There is no way we can get sanitary towels in the bushes. The nearest town is too far away and it’s not safe to go there. We use rags during our periods and it’s not easy finding pieces of cloth to use. I know it’s dangerous and one can easily get infected.”

Another woman explained to me what she had been using for the last six months:

Quote Message: Moss plant – it grows on cocoa trees. Our mothers used it in those days when sanitary towels did not exist. You crush it and shape it into a small ball or tampon. Then you insert it deep into your body. This is what I’ve been using for the six months I’ve been in the bush. Moss plant – it grows on cocoa trees. Our mothers used it in those days when sanitary towels did not exist. You crush it and shape it into a small ball or tampon. Then you insert it deep into your body. This is what I’ve been using for the six months I’ve been in the bush.

Health workers strongly warn against this because of the risk of infection. More than 300,000 people have been forced to flee their homes, according to the International Crisis Group.

Militias began to emerge in 2017 after a security force crackdown on mass protests, led by lawyers in wigs and teachers in suits, over the government’s alleged failure to give enough recognition to the English legal and education systems in the North-West and South-West.

The government was accused of relying heavily on people trained in the French legal and educational tradition to work in key posts and generally marginalising Cameroon’s English-speaking minority, who make up about 20% of the population.

Source: BBC

16, April 2019

Douala: Customs seizes tonnes of smuggled drugs and fuel ⁰

Cameroon customs seized tonnes of smuggled drugs and fuel in the economic capital, Douala, late Sunday in its latest move to curb the inflow of “overseas dangerous and illicit” drugs and goods into the country, customs officials said in a statement Monday.

According to the customs, the drugs including 100,051 tramadol pills, 100,072 combiart tablets and 7,000 liters of fuel were seized in an operation that involved Cameroon Marine and Cameroon customs brigade in charge of combating illicit trade.

The illicit goods were smuggled from a neighboring country through Cameroon’s seaport in Tiko locality and then transported to Douala in a “heavy duty truck”, the officials, said adding that the suspects have been remanded in custody.

According to Cameroon police, tramadol is one of the most abused substances in the country and is making its way into schoolyards.

“There is growing addition to the pills which are readily available on black market. The opioid is also known to be used by terrorists in the country to boost courage and commit atrocities. It is also widely used by students. So we are doing all we can to put an end to this malaise,” a police officer, Emmanuel Watat revealed.

Source: Xinhuanet

16, April 2019

AFCON 2019: Shameless Cameroon unveil new kit ⁰

2017 Africa Cup of Nations champions, Cameroon have unveiled new kit ahead of the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations.

The unveiling was done in Yaoundé as the team continued its preparations for the biennial tournament.

The team maintained its fitted and round neck style which is known for in the past but the dark green of the body became lighter a little bit.

The Indomitable Lions has been placed alongside four times AFCON winners Ghana, Benin and Guinea-Bissau.

Despite the country being stripped of the hosting right of the competition, they will still have the opportunity to defend the trophy they won two years ago.

Cameroon remains one of the most successful teams in the history of the AFCON, having won it five times with only the seven-time winners Egypt having bettered their record.

Reported by Prime News Ghana

16, April 2019

Southern Cameroons War: 3 Restoration Forces, 4 French Cameroun soldiers killed in clashes ⁰

At least three armed separatists and four members of the government forces died Sunday night in violent clashes in Bali, a locality in the Northwest, one of the two war-torn English-speaking regions of Cameroon, local sources said.

“Civilians have fled the area and fighting is intensifying. I saw three corpses when I was escaping. Many people are injured,” a local resident who asked not to be named said.

Government forces interviewed confirmed the confrontation and stressed that a mission to restore peace and security in the locality was in progress.

Ambazonian Communication Secretary Chris Anu warned of “dangerous times” for the locality.

“Mayhem has been unleashed on the people of Bali. We are urging everyone in Bali to look for a safer location to move to,” Anu said last Sunday in a widely circulated WhatsApp voice.

Clashes are escalating between government forces and armed separatists in Cameroon’s two Anglophone regions of Northwest and Southwest, where separatists have created an independent nation they call “The Federal Republic Ambazonia”.

Source: Xinhuanet with editing from CCN

15, April 2019

African players in Europe: Salah, Mane, Pepe star ⁰

Egyptian Mohamed Salah, Senegalese Sadio Mane and Ivorian Nicolas Pepe shared the glory among the African stars in Europe at the weekend.

Salah scored with an unstoppable shot from outside the box to complete a 2-0 win for Premier League leaders Liverpool over Chelsea after Mane had nodded the first goal.

Pepe took his Ligue 1 goal tally for the season to 19 by scoring once and also provided two assists as Lille stunned runaway leaders Paris Saint-Germain 5-1.

ENGLAND

SADIO MANE (Liverpool)

He set Liverpool on their way and settled some nerves after a goalless first half by taking advantage of being unmarked to head in Jordan Henderson’s pin-point chipped cross at the back post. For the 27-year-old Senegalese star it was his 18th Premier League goal of the campaign, his best return in his time in England and a reflection of his often unsung contributions to his club sides.

MOHAMED SALAH (Liverpool)

Played a major role in Mane’s goal and added a glorious second minutes later with an unstoppable drive from outside the area for his 22nd goal of the campaign and 19th Premier League strike. The 26-year-old’s celebrations were worth the admittance fee as he knelt on one knee and later kissed the turf. It was a perfect riposte to the Chelsea fans who chanted an Islamopbobic song about him prior to last Thursday’s Europa League clash with Slavia Prague.

VICTOR WANYAMA (Tottenham Hotspur)

The Kenyan powerhouse midfielder has found holding down a regular starting position this season tough through a mixture of injury and form. However, he showed his old sparkle in scoring Spurs’ first in their routine 4-0 humbling of relegated Huddersfield, benefitting from Fernando Llorente pulling an opposition defender with him. The 27-year-old Wanyama profited by getting the better of Tom Hamer and slotting the ball home.

SPAIN

STANLEY CHUKWUEZE (Villarreal)

The Nigerian scored after seven minutes as Villarreal climbed out of the La Liga relegation zone with a 1-0 win at fellow strugglers Girona. However, a tough battle lies ahead for Chukwueze and his teammates as they are just two points above endangered Valladolid.

ITALY

KALIDOU KOULIBALY (Napoli)

Senegal defender Kalidou Koulibaly bagged a brace as Napoli beat Chievo 3-1 to delay Juventus’ bid to win Serie A and condemn the Verona side to relegation. Koulibaly, 27, headed in the opening goal in the 15th minute and claimed his first double nine minutes from time. “We are angry. We want to show another face of Napoli,” added Koulibaly, following his first goals this season, after losing 2-0 to Arsenal in a Europa League quarter-final first leg.

FRANCK KESSIE (AC Milan)

Ivorian Kessie scored from the spot to keep AC Milan in the Champions League places with a 1-0 win over Lazio. Kessie slotted in on 79 minutes to end Milan’s four-match winless run, and stay one point ahead of Roma. The 22-year-old came under fire, however, after the game for holding Francesco Acerbi’s shirt aloft like a trophy along with teammate Tiemoue Bakayoko after the Lazio player had swapped it with French midfielder following the game at the San Siro.

GERMANY

NABIL BENTALEB (Schalke)

The Algerian midfielder returned to action for Schalke for the first time in a month after being dropped for poor discipline. Bentaleb came off the bench in Schalke’s 1-1 draw with Nuremberg to make his first appearance in a royal blue shirt since the 7-0 Champions League drubbing by Manchester City in mid-March. Interim coach Huub Stevens had banished Bentaleb to the reserves for undisclosed disciplinary reasons, but welcomed him back into the fold last week.

ISHAK BELFODIL (Hoffenheim)

Algerian international Belfodil was denied his sixth goal in three league games after his first-half strike against Hertha Berlin was wrongly disallowed for offside. The decision was not overturned by VAR because the whistle had already blown by the time Belfodil fired the ball in. Though Belfodil did not make the scoresheet, Hoffenheim won 2-0.

FRANCE

NICOLAS PEPE (Lille)

The Ivory Coast striker continued his excellent season with a goal and two assists in Lille’s stunning 5-1 thrashing of champions elect Paris Saint-Germain. The 23-year-old gave Lille the lead shortly after half-time by slotting in his 20th goal of the campaign, before teeing up defenders Gabriel and Jose Fonte late on as his side condemned PSG to their heaviest Ligue 1 defeat since 2009.

WAHBI KHAZRI (Saint-Etienne)

The Tunisian international’s 55th-minute penalty set Saint-Etienne on their way to a crucial 3-0 win over Bordeaux as Les Verts chase a Champions League spot. The 28-year-old has scored 14 goals this term since signing from Rennes.

AFP