diplomacy&development

Today, 29 January 2021, Judge Reine Adélaïde Sophie Alapini-Gansou of Pre-Trial Chamber A (article 70) of the International Criminal Court (ICC), granted Paul Gicheru’s request for interim release with specific conditions restricting liberty. Pre-Trial Chamber A’s decision will be implemented as soon as the ICC Registry finalises all the necessary arrangements.  In the view of the Chamber, Mr Gicheru’s voluntary surrender demonstrates his concrete willingness to subject himself to the jurisdiction of the Court in relation to the allegations against him. The Chamber additionally noted that the Prosecutor did not oppose Mr Gicheru’s request for interim release together with conditions restricting liberty and that he is suspected of offences under article 70(1)(c) of the Rome Statute, consisting in corruptly influencing witnesses regarding cases from the situation in Kenya, which attract lower sanctions, if established. Moreover, the Chamber is of the view that the risks mentioned und...

DRC President Félix-Antoine Tshisekedi Tshilombo received in audience with the delegation from the United States Command for Africa (AFRICOM), led by Ambassador Andrew Young, Deputy Commander for the American Civil-Military Engagement for the 'Africa DRC President Félix-Antoine Tshisekedi Tshilombo received in audience this Thursday, January 28 a strong delegation from the United States Command for Africa (AFRICOM), led by Ambassador Andrew Young, Deputy Commander for the American Civil-Military Engagement for the 'Africa. In his suite, Ambassador Young was accompanied by Rear Admiral Heidi Berg, the Director of Intelligence and Mike Hammer, United States Ambassador to the DRC.  Their discussions revolved around the resumption of military cooperation between the DRC and the USA, in particular focused initially on "the professionalization of the FARDC and the anti-corruption program." According to the US ambassador in Kinshasa, the 2020 memorandum of understanding esta...

A revised version of the Code of Judicial Ethics of the International Criminal Court (ICC) enters into force this 27 January 2021. Following their discussions at the Judges’ retreat in 2020, which focussed on judicial ethics and which itself continued work on this topic commenced in 2018, the judges of the Court adopted amendments to the Code of Judicial Ethics on 19 January 2021, in accordance with regulation 126 of the Regulations of the Court. These amendments enter into force today, upon their publication on the ICC website. In revising the ICC Code of Judicial Ethics to reflect best practices, the judges of the Court reaffirm their strong commitment to the highest ethical standards. Key amendments have been made to article 5 of the ICC Code of Judicial Ethics concerning integrity, such as an express reference to judicial collegiality, an explicit prohibition of any form of discrimination, harassment and abuse of authority, and a new paragraph elaborating on ethical obligations in ...

Under the contract, GE will supply two 9E.03 gas turbines, one STF-A200 steam turbine, three A39 generators, two Heat Recovery Steam Generators (HRSG) and additional balance of plant equipment Project supports the Senegalese government’s target to enhance universal access to electricity by increasing its generation capacity. The Cap des Biches combined cycle gas turbine power plant is expected to generate 300 megawatts (MW), nearly 25% of the power consumed in Senegal and the equivalent electricity needed to power approximately 500,000 Senegalese homes; under the contract, GE (GE.com) will supply two 9E.03 gas turbines, one STF-A200 steam turbine, three A39 generators, two Heat Recovery Steam Generators (HRSG) and additional balance of plant equipment; upon completion, the project will be the biggest power plant in Senegal; project supports the Senegalese government’s target to enhance universal access to electricity by increasing its generation capacity. GE (NYSE: GE) announced today ...

UN experts said today 27 January 2021 that States must take resolute action against rising antisemitism and ensure deniers of the Holocaust and all levels of society are effectively educated about the Holocaust and other manifestations of antisemitism. Reminding governments of their international human rights obligations, the UN experts issued the following statement marking the 76th anniversary of the liberation of the Auschwitz concentration camp on 27 January, 1945. “In 2019, reports by the Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief and the Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of racism documented a dramatic and persistent increase in antisemitic rhetoric and incidents in many countries in recent years, both offline and online. During 2020, these trends grew even more worrying, with widespread reports of antisemitic rhetoric on social media and in traditional media outlets, promoting outrageous conspiracy theories and attributing responsibility for the COVID-19 pandemic...

Le Wagon, Teacher and Student Proven coding bootcamps will bolster Honoris innovations across the continent for future-ready student employability. Today, world-leading coding bootcamp, Le Wagon, announced its expansion into Africa by partnering exclusively with Honoris United Universities, the first and largest pan-African network of private higher education institutions, to open coding bootcamps across the continent.  The new partnership reflects Honoris’ commitment to develop African talent via internationally recognized and successful education models that bolster key competitive 21st century skills. With a steadfast focus on driving the employability of Africa’s future leaders, Honoris and Le Wagon will enable students to secure roles at tech and digital companies, to freelance or to follow entrepreneurial pursuits.  As a partner institution of Honoris, Le Wagon will establish a presence in Honoris communities – beginning with Mauritius and Morocco – alongside developing ...

Italy failed to protect the right to life of more than 200 migrants who were on board a vessel that sank in the Mediterranean Sea in 2013, the UN Human Rights Committee has found. In a decision published today, the Human Rights Committee said that Italy had failed to respond promptly to various distress calls from the sinking boat, which was carrying more than 400 adults and children. The State party also failed to explain the delay in dispatching its navy ship, ITS Libra, which was located only about an hour away from the scene.  The Committee’s decision responds to a joint complaint lodged by three Syrians and a Palestine national, who survived the accident but lost their families. On 10 October 2013, they arrived in Zuwarah, a fishing port in Libya, and joined a large group of people mostly escaping from Syria. They boarded a fishing vessel and set to sea around 1:00am. A few hours later, water was flooding in after the vessel was shot by a boat flying a Berber flag in internati...

WHO recommends that patients who have COVID-19 - both confirmed and suspected - should have access to follow-up care if they have persistent, new or changing symptoms. This is one of the recommendations made by WHO in revised clinical management guidelines. Evidence was gathered on the post COVID condition, so-called ‘long COVID’, where people who have recovered from COVID-19 continue to have longer-term issues like extreme fatigue, persistent cough and exercise intolerance.  Understanding this condition is one of WHO’s priority areas of work. In February 2021, WHO will organize a series of consultations to reach consensus on a description of this condition and its subtypes, and case definitions. This scientific understanding will inform the name of the condition. The consultations will include a broad range of stakeholders, including patient groups. For COVID-19 patients at home, WHO suggests the use of pulse oximetry to measure oxygen levels in the blood. This needs to be coordin...

DRC President Félix-Antoine Tshisekedi Tshilombo and the  President of the Federal Republic of Ethiopia,  Sahle-Work Zewde Sahle-Work Zewde, President of the Federal Republic of Ethiopia who arrived in Kinshasa, the Congolese capital since Tuesday, January 26, was received by her Congolese counterpart Félix Tshisekedi.  During their exchanges, they discussed bilateral and regional issues and this also enabled the President of Ethiopia to announce the upcoming opening in Kinshasa of the Ethiopian diplomatic representation in the DRC.  Taking the same opportunity, she promised the Head of State to provide her with help, hospitality and support during her tenure as head of the African Union. Recall that it was since October 2018 that she has been at the head of Ethiopia. Cassien Tribunal Aungane, Editor

Salhe-Work Zewde, President of the Democratic and Federal Republic of Ethiopia and the DRC Minister of Foreign Affairs, Marie Ntumba Nzeza Salhe-Work Zewde, President of the Democratic and Federal Republic of Ethiopia arrived in Kinshasa on Tuesday for bilateral and regional consultations with the President of the Republic, Félix Antoine Tshisekedi Tshilombo.  She was greeted when she got off the plane at Ndjili International Airport by the Minister of State, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Marie Tumba Nzeza, accompanied by the Ambassador of Ethiopia to the DRC, and the Ambassador from the DRC to Ethiopia, Ngandu-Ilunga.  Responding to a question from the press, Salhe-Work Zewde said, “The Democratic Republic of Congo is a second country for me. I have known this country for almost three decades; so it's a homecoming. I came to see my younger brother so that I could discuss matters of mutual, bilateral and regional interest. So these are consultations that we do regularly. It is ...

An international adaptation summit held on January 25-26. The President of the African Development Bank Group (www.AfDB.org), Akinwumi A. Adesina, will take an active part in the International Summit on Adaptation to Climate Change which opens on Monday 25 January.  The President of the Bank will speak in three sessions, including one devoted to the interministerial dialogue on global climate adaptation and another to the dialogue with Africa. At the summit, which continues on January 26, Akinwumi A. Adesina will also participate in the dialogue with heads of state and other world leaders.  To salute its commitment to climate finance, the Bank was chosen in 2020 by development partners to house the Africa Regional Office of the Global Center on Adaptation. President Adesina inaugurated this new center on September 16, 2020 in the presence of African heads of state and other eminent personalities, including Ban Ki Moon, former Secretary General of the UN, and Kristalina Georgie...

This training session brought together at least 70 representatives of the Caisses des Dépôts et des Consignations (CDC) around various themes. The African Development Bank (www.AfDB.org) has provided the five Caisses with deposits and consignments in the West African Franc Zone as well as those from Gabon and Tunisia, the tools necessary to better manage public savings and investments during a training and reinforcement session organized by videoconference from January 20 to 21. This training session brought together at least 70 CDC representatives around a variety of themes: asset and liability management, portfolio and credit risk management, loan and guarantee instruments, equity investments. The Bank's experts, notably from the Financial Sector Development Department (PIFD) and the Capital Markets Development Division, shared with senior CDC officials in Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d ' Ivoire, Niger, Senegal, Gabon and Tunisia, the Bank's experience.  They scrutinized ass...

Yesterday, 24 January 2021, Mr Mahamat Said Abdel Kani, also known as “Mahamat Said Abdel Kain” and “Mahamat Saïd Abdelkani” (“Mr Said”),  was surrendered to the International Criminal Court ("ICC" or "the Court") by the authorities of the Central African Republic ("CAR") on account of an ICC  warrant of arrest issued under seal on 7 January 2019. Mr Said is suspected of war crimes and crimes against humanity allegedly committed in Bangui (CAR) in 2013.  When issuing the warrant of arrest, the Single Judge of Pre-Trial Chamber II, Rosario Salvatore Aitala, found that there were reasonable grounds to believe that an armed conflict not of an international character was ongoing on the territory of the CAR from at least March 2013 until at least January 2014 between the Seleka – a coalition of armed groups predominantly composed of Muslims opposed to former president François Bozizé – and the Anti-Balaka – a movement opposed to the Seleka and supportive of for...

- COVAX announced the signing of an advance purchase agreement for up to 40 million doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine; rollout to commence with successful execution of supply agreements. - Additionally, COVAX announced that, pending WHO emergency use listings, nearly 150 million doses of the AstraZeneca/Oxford candidate are anticipated to be available in Q1 2021, via existing agreements with the Serum Institute of India (SII) and AstraZeneca. - COVAX is therefore on track to deliver at least 2 billion doses by the end of the year, including at least 1.3 billion doses to 92 lower income economies in the Gavi COVAX AMC. COVAX, the global initiative to ensure rapid and equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines for all countries, regardless of income level, today announced the signing of an advance purchase agreement with Pfizer for up to 40 million doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine candidate, which has already received WHO emergency use listing. Rollout will commence with the successful...

UN human rights experts today called on States to ensure migrants are included in national COVID-19 vaccination programmes, which must offer equitable access for all. “The pandemic has highlighted how now, more than ever, none of us will be safe until everyone is safe. Global access to COVID-19 vaccines for everyone who needs them is the only solution,” the UN Special Rapporteurs said. “The prioritisation of vaccines within countries should include all those who qualify under a priority group, regardless of who they are. Migrants should be granted access to vaccines on an equal basis with provisions for nationals.” The experts said it is critical that migrants, regardless of migration status, are included at all stages of public health responses, including national vaccination programmes. “The full inclusion of migrants is a vital issue for both the migrant population and the host community. We praise States that care for migrants like their own nationals, especially those who have sta...

High Representative/Vice-President Josep Borrell held talks with Turkey’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu in Brussels on Thursday. The talks provided an opportunity to take stock of EU-Turkey relations in the framework set by the European Council in December, and discuss the way ahead with focus on the situation in the Eastern Mediterranean, which is a centrepiece in EU-Turkey relation.  The European Council in December invited the High Representative and the Commission to submit a report on the state of play concerning the EU-Turkey political, economic and trade relations and on instruments and options on how to proceed.  The European Union has a strategic interest in the development of a cooperative and reciprocally beneficial relationship, anchored in values and principles. The meeting between J.Borrell and M. Çavuşoğlu permitted a cordial, frank and thorough exchange of views in order to advance in this direction. Cassien Tribunal Aungane, Editor

The DRC Head of State, Félix-Antoine Tshisekedi Tshilombo received in audience Madam Anick Van Calster, Director General of Bilateral Affairs at the Belgian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, this Wednesday, January 20, 2021, at the Palais de la Nation in Kinshasa.  Bilateral agreements between the Democratic Republic of Congo and Belgium, in particular military cooperation and the management of Covid-19 are the three points addressed during this interview. It should be noted that Mr. Johan Indekeu, Ambassador of Belgium in the DRC accompanied the Belgian diplomat to this audience.  Also taking part in this hearing were the Minister of State, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the DRC, Marie Tumba Nzeza, and the director of the a.i cabinet of the Head of State, Désiré Cashmir Kolongele Eberande. Cassien Tribunal Aungane, Editor

UN human rights experts released this 18 January 2021 a statement condemning the violent events at the US Capitol in Washington. It reads as follows: “We, the undersigned independent experts on human rights at the United Nations, strongly affirm and express our solidarity with the American people who stand for democracy, equality and the rule of law at this critical moment. The violent attempt to overturn the results of a free and fair election at the US Capitol on 6 January was a shocking and incendiary event. We strongly condemn the attack and the incitement to violence and hatred online and offline, and call for accountability.  We stand with the democratic outcomes of the recent elections and urge political leaders to do everything in their power to de-escalate tensions and unify the country in full respect for democracy and the rule of law. Notwithstanding the urgent need to tackle political violence of any kind, we urge the US Government, the private sector, civil society and...

The world will never be the same after COVID-19. Yet in a world changed and changing in ways unseen before, certain things do endure. The fraternity between China and Africa is one of them. Forged in the early nationhood of the People’s Republic of China and African countries, such friendship has grown into a towering tree defying winds and rains over the decades. And certainly, it will not be deterred by COVID-19. From 4 to 9 January 2021, Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi started his official visits to the world with a five-nation tour to Africa, a proud tradition upheld by every Chinese foreign minister over the past 30 years. Rain or shine, China and Africa are always there for each other. President Xi Jinping visited Africa on his maiden foreign trip in 2013. Many African leaders, like Tanzanian founding father Julius Nyerere, visited China quite a few times. From building TAZARA to fighting Ebola, China never hesitates to help African brothers and sisters. From...

"On Friday, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas enacted a decree-law on holding legislative, presidential and National Council elections in the coming months starting with legislative elections on 22 May. This is a welcome development as participative, representative and accountable democratic institutions are key for Palestinian self-determination and state-building. The EU has in the past years consistently supported and funded the work of the Central Elections Commission in order to prepare for holding free, fair and inclusive elections for all Palestinians. The EU stands ready to engage with relevant actors to support the electoral process. The EU also calls on Israeli authorities to facilitate the holding of elections across all the Palestinian territory". --- --- --- Cassien Tribunal Aungane, Editor

Acquires 45% of OML 17 from Shell, Total and ENI. Existing Production Capacity of 27,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day Estimated 2P Reserves of 1.2 billion barrels of oil equivalent. Estimated Additional 1 billion barrels of oil equivalent of further exploration potential Heirs Holdings (“HH”) (HeirsHoldings.com), the leading African strategic investor, in partnership with affiliated company Transnational Corporation of Nigeria Plc (“Transcorp”) (TranscorpNigeria.com), Nigeria’s largest publicly listed conglomerate, announced today the unconditional acquisition of a 45% participating interest in Nigerian oil licence OML 17 and related assets, through TNOG Oil and Gas Limited (a related company of Heirs Holdings and Transcorp) (TNOG.HeirsHoldings.com), from the Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Limited, Total E&P Nigeria Limited and ENI. In addition, TNOG Oil and Gas Limited will have sole operatorship of the asset. The transaction is one of the largest oil and gas ...

The COVID-19 pandemic continues to constitute a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC), according to the WHO Emergency Committee (EC) on COVID-19. The EC met virtually yesterday (14 January) at the request of WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus to review the emerging variants of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, and to consider the potential use of vaccination and testing certificates for international travel. On variants, the EC called for a global expansion of genomic sequencing and sharing of data, along with greater scientific collaboration to address critical unknowns. The committee urged WHO to develop a standardized system for naming new variants that avoids geographical markers, an area WHO has already begun work on. On vaccines, the committee underlined the need for equitable access through the COVAX Facility as well as technology transfer to increase global production capacities. The committee strongly encouraged vaccine manufacturer...