diplomacy&development

Fatma El-Kindiy, Administrator, Project Manager, Botswana Rugby Africa’s #TryAndStopUs campaign showcases diversity of women’s rugby across the African continent. Rugby Arica’s “Unstoppables” (RugbyAfrique.com) have proved just how unstoppable they are!  Since being selected three months ago, these 12 women have utilised their energy and passion to raise the profile and fast-track the development of women’s rugby in Africa. “The participation of women in rugby forms a critical part of the overall strategic development plan of Rugby Africa.  It is the key area of growth and potential success on the international stage for Rugby Africa,” says Khaled Babbou, President of Rugby Africa As part of the #TryAndStopUs social media campaign, Rugby Africa called on all women in rugby across its member unions to share their inspiring stories to become one of the “Unstoppables. Over 60 women from 19 countries applied. Twelve women and girls were chosen for unstoppable’ qualities, showcasin...

The UN Special Rapporteur on minority issues, Fernand de Varennes, welcomed on 18 December 2020 the adoption of a resolution by the European Parliament to protect national and linguistic minorities, calling it one of the most important developments in decades for minorities. “These are much needed and welcome developments, as the human rights of minorities appear increasingly threatened or ignored in many countries, even by international and regional organisations,” the UN expert said. He pointed out that the resolution underlines concerns about the alarming increase of hate crime and hate speech, motivated by racism, xenophobia or intolerance, directed at people belonging to national and linguistic minorities in Europe. The resolution, which as adopted on 17 December 2020, was in a response to a massive petition submitted as a European Citizens’ Initiative ‘Minority SafePack – one million signatures for diversity in Europe’. De Varennes said minorities worldwide were being scapegoated...

On 17 December 2020, Benjamin B. Ferencz was decorated with the title of 'Distinguished Honorary Fellow of the ICC' and his bust was unveiled to be housed permanently at the ICC’s premises On 17 December 2020, Mr Benjamin B. Ferencz, former Prosecutor at Nuremberg in charge of the historic Einsatzgruppen trial was decorated with the title of 'Distinguished Honorary Fellow of the International Criminal Court' (“ICC” or the “Court”), during an online event held with ICC Officials and Staff.  At the event, a bust of Mr Ferencz was unveiled to be housed permanently at the Court’s premises as ICC Principals praised his extraordinary career and relentless commitment in the service of international criminal justice.  Speaking at the event, ICC President Judge Chile Eboe-Osuji stated that the honorary title was extended to Mr Ferencz as “a token of the Court’s appreciation for all he has done and what he has stood for as a beacon of light in the fight against impunity for atroc...

Migrants and refugees say COVID-19 has dramatically worsened their lives. The COVID-19 pandemic has had a highly negative impact on the living and working conditions of refugees and migrants reveals a new WHO study, launched today on International Migrants Day. More than 30,000 refugees and migrants from different regions around the world participated in the first ever survey to assess the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on their mental and physical health as well as their ability to work and support themselves. They were asked to grade the impact on a scale from 0 (nothing at all) to 10 (extreme). The average impact assessment reported was 7.5. “Refugees and migrants live and work in often-harsh conditions with inadequate access to health, housing, water, sanitation and other basic services,” says Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General. “It is vital for all countries to reduce barriers that prevent refugees and migrants from obtaining health care, and to include them in n...

The UN Committee on Enforced Disappearances (CED) has just registered the 1,000th urgent action request, marking a significant milestone for the mechanism.  Among registered cases, 49% concern disappearances in Iraq and 42% disappearances in Mexico. An urgent action is a request from CED to a State party to immediately take all necessary measures to search and locate a disappeared person.  Established by the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance, the urgent actions procedure allows families, relatives and representatives of disappeared persons to submit a request to CED after having reported the disappearance to the relevant national authorities. “Behind each urgent action request, there is a human tragedy. The whole family of the victim suffers from the absence of their loved one and from the uncertainty as to whether the victim is still alive. As time passes, the chance of finding the person alive reduces and the grievance inc...

The African Development Bank is pleased to announce the appointment of Aissa Touré as head of country office for Rwanda  A Senegalese national, Aissa Touré has been appointed Head of the Country Office of the African Development Bank (https://www.AfDB.org/) in Rwanda. Economist and development specialist, with more than 25 years of experience acquired on three continents, in 12 countries and on behalf of five international organizations, his professional experience covers rural development, in particular agriculture, the rural economy and climate adaptation and mitigation.  Aissa brings to the Bank strong skills in strategic management, institutional representation and partnership management at the national, regional and global levels. Prior to her appointment, Aissa served as Representative of WaterAid (2003-2007) and Deputy Director for West Africa of Oxfam America (2007-2009). She worked at the Sahara and Sahel Observatory (OSS) as coordinator of the research for developmen...

MicroSave Consulting (MSC), in partnership with the Mastercard Foundation, Deloitte and the Africa Fintech Forum (AFF), announced this Wednseday 16 December 2020, that they are working to develop the first multidimensional FinTech ecosystem network in French-speaking Africa. Emerging technologies create job opportunities and offer the possibility of reducing the costs of distributing products and services adapted to advance financial inclusion. By creating technology products and solutions, such as mobile money, online payment processing, loans and investments, FinTechs are filling important gaps that exist in local financial services industries.  Across the African continent, FinTech companies have raised $ 320 million in funds since the start of 2015. Ecosystem growth has jumped 60% over the past two years and the number of technology centers has doubled in the past two years. According to the World Bank, by 2021, 62.5% of fast-growing African economies will be in French-speaking...