Author: Adelae Jones

The Lake Chad Basin is the largest inland drainage area in Africa and covers an area of 2,434,000 km2, equal to eight per cent of the total area of the African continent. The Minister of Water Resources, Suleiman Adamu, has urged the international community to fully support Nigeria’s quest to save Lake Chad from extinction and revive its potential. Mr Adamu, who made the call in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in New York, said it was important to lend his voice to President Muhammadu Buhari’s call to revive Lake Chad. Mr Adamu was in New York to…

The Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) debottlenecking program allowed for an increase in the pipeline capacity to approximately 72.5 million tons per annum from Kazakhstan in 2022, said CPC Director General Nikolay Gorban at the meeting with Kazakh Prime Minister Alikhan Smailov on Feb. 16, reported the Prime Minister’s press service. The sides addressed the company’s results in 2022, current activities, and future plans, focusing on the CPC’s stable operation and development. According to Smailov, the CPC plays a significant role in Kazakhstan’s oil industry, and its operational stability is crucial for the government. Smailov also focused on the need to…

Government officials across the Middle East and North Africa region are targeting lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people based on their online activity on social media, Human Rights Watch said in a report released today. Security forces have entrapped LGBT people on social media and dating applications, subjected them to online extortion, online harassment, and outing, and relied on illegitimately obtained digital photos, chats, and similar information in prosecutions, in violation of the right to privacy and other human rights. The 135-page report, “‘All This Terror Because of a Photo’: Digital Targeting and Its Offline Consequences for LGBT People in the Middle…

South Africa’s state power utility Eskom on Sunday said it would implement “Stage 6” power cuts continuously until further notice due to breakdowns of eight generation units on Sunday afternoon. Further changes on the stages of loadshedding at short notice are possible given the high number of breakdowns, Eskom said in a statement. Eskom has been implementing the worst rolling blackouts in South Africa on record, leaving households in the dark, disrupting manufacturing and hurting businesses of all sizes, leading to President Cyril Ramaphosa declaring a national “state of disaster” earlier this month over his country’s crippling power shortages. The…

On February 15, 2023, President Serdar Berdimuhamedov received Alexei Miller, Chairman of the PJSC Gazprom Management Committee. Expressing sincere gratitude for his time, the guest conveyed warm greetings and best wishes from President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin to the head of state. At the same time, the interest of the largest energy company of the Russian Federation in mutually beneficial cooperation with Turkmenistan was confirmed. Welcoming the head of PJSC Gazprom, President Serdar Berdimuhamedov noted that his current visit to our country would help strengthen productive cooperation in the fuel and energy sector and, in general, serve to…

The rapid recovery of air travel after Covid-19 underlines a lasting feature of a globally connected world: the urge of ever-growing numbers of people to explore the planet in search of new adventures and opportunities. In the decade to 2018, the number of flights booked and flown nearly doubled to 4bn; by 2030, we could see it double again. Yet the growth in air travel, and its economic benefits, are not evenly spread. Major African hubs such as Johannesburg and Addis Ababa typically attract a larger share of arrivals, tourism growth, business activity and investment. Smaller countries and secondary cities must, meanwhile,…

The aim of this meeting is to discuss with EU civil society the latest developments in EU-Africa trade and investment relations and exchange views on EU trade and investment policy in Africa.The Trade Policy Review Communication published by the European Commission in February 2021 confirmed the importance of Africa in the EU’s trade policy. It proposed to enhance further sustainable trade and investment links, both between the EU and Africa and in Africa itself, while also strengthening existing regional integration processes. The Joint Declaration signed at the margins of the European Union-African Union summit held in Brussels in February 2022 presented a joint vision…

Africa holds mineral wealth with diverse commodities that are sought after the world over. In the diamond industry, local communities miss out on profits despite multilateral certification measures. In diamond-rich parts of Africa, the revenue generated from mineral extraction does little to improve quality of life for the people who live in those countries, with Botswana being the only exception. Instead of uplifting communities through mineral riches, many people find themselves stuck in a vicious cycle of exploitation and abuse. DW asked diamond industry insiders and experts why the extraction of the gemstones fails to result in local socioeconomic benefits. Big names benefiting from…

Karpowership, the Turkish company seeking to supply 1,220 megawatts of power to South Africa, will get a decision on its application to proceed with the projects from the nation’s environment department by March 7. The application, which was filed earlier this month, comes at a time when the nation is suffering its worst-ever power cuts. An earlier appeal was rejected by the department after a legal challenge from environmental activists and the company has since carried out a fresh series of public consultations. The Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment confirmed the receipt of the application and the decision…

© WHO / Kiana HayeriA team of doctors prepare to perform a C-section at Malalai Hospital in Kabul, Afghanistan on 21 November 2022. ©Credits On 23 January 2023, the World Health Organization will launch its Health Emergency Appeal 2023 in Geneva. The event will be live-streamed from this page. From climate change to conflict, and from infectious disease outbreaks to soaring rates of malnutrition, the health and well-being of millions of people is under attack. As we enter 2023, the number of people in need of humanitarian relief has increased by almost a quarter compared to 2022, with a record…