Angola wants to strengthen cooperation with Senegal

Luanda - The Angolan President, João Lourenço, Wednesday recommended the new Angolan ambassador to Senegal to work hard to strengthen the ties of friendship and cooperation between the two states.

At the swearing-in ceremony of new government officials, João Lourenço regretted the fact that Angola has not yet opened its diplomatic representation in that West African country, 46 years after national independence.

"Senegal is an important country for its culture and history and, above all, for the influence it has in the region where it is located," he said.

In this sense, the Head of State defended that the ambassador should work to compensate the opportunity lost along this time, aiming at the reinforcement of cooperation.

In relation to the deputy governor of Huambo, the Head of the Executive Power recommended that he help the governor to solve the main problems of the central province, for the benefit of the population.

The ambassador to Senegal, Adão Pinto and the deputy governor of Huambo for the technical and infrastructure sector, Elmano Inácio Herculano Francisco, were sworn in at the presidential palace.

The non-executive directors of the Board of Directors of the Central Bank of Angola were also sworn in, namely, Álvaro Teixeira Costa , Clarice dos Anjos Mendes Vieira , Daniela de Almeida Simão, Ermenegildo Oseias Fernando, Jaime Joaquim Pedro Fortunato and Luís Manuel Neto .

Central Bank of Angola

On the part of the new non-executive directors of the board of directors of the Central Bank of Angola, President João Lourenço said that their appointment came at a time when the bank had just gained greater independence for its performance.

He said on the occasion that the moment is "very good" following the reforms that have been implemented in the country, with the focus on better organising the national economy.

"With this we will be able to better organise our economy, as well as attract foreign investment," he stressed. 

CAN'2022: Tunisia lose to Mali

Luanda - Tunisia national team lost 0-1 Wednesday to Mali in the opening day of Group F of the African Nations Football Cup (CAN'2022) being held in Cameroon.

Played at the Omnisport Stadium in Lembe, Lembe, the goal of the match was scored by Kone, in the 48th minute through a penalty kick.

Refereed by the Zambian Janny Sikazwe, the match featured the performance of the Angolan Hélder Martins as fourth referee, after officiating Ethiopia-Cape Verde on Sunday.        

In the second match of the (Group F), Mauritania was defeated 0-1 by Gambia 0-1 thanks to a goal by Jallow, at minute 10.

In the last match of the day for group E, Equatorial Guinea lost 0-1 to Côte d' Ivoire. 

List of top scorers

Two goals: Vincent Aboubacar (Cameroon)

One goal: Sadio Mané (Senegal), Gustavo Sangaré (Burkina Faso), Júlio Tavares (Cape Verde), Issiaga Sylla (Guinea Conakry), Sofiane Boufal (Morocco), Aaron Boupendza (Gabon), Kelechi Iheanacho (Nigeria).

(Upcoming matches)

Thursday 13 January  

Group A: Cameroon - Ethiopia

Group A: Cape Verde - Burkina Faso

Friday 14 January

Group B: Senegal - Guinea

Group C: Morocco - Comoros

Group B: Malawi - Zimbabwe

Group C: Gabon - Ghana

 

Covid-19: Angola records 1,399 recoveries, 759 new cases

Luanda - With 1,399 patients recovered, Angola announced Wednesday the registration of 759 new infections and two deaths in the last 24 hours.

According to figures released by the health authorities, 883 people recovered reside in the province of Luanda, 381 in Huambo, 36 in Uíge, 43 in Bié, 22 in Lunda Sul, 14 in Huíla, 8 in Lunda Norte and 2 in Benguela.

Among the new cases, 343 were diagnosed in Luanda, 101 in Zaire, 84 in Huambo, 81 in Cabinda, 40 in Huila, 29 in Moxico, 27 in Benguela, 22 in Bié, 12 in Cuanza Sul, 10 in Uige, 7 in Lunda Sul, 2 in Bengo and 1 in Lunda Norte.

Aged between 23 days and 103 years, the list is made up of 485 male and 274 female patients.

In the last 24 hours, the laboratories processed 4,156 samples, with a daily positivity rate of 18.3 percent.

The deaths were registered in the provinces of Luanda and Lunda Norte.

Angola has 91,907 confirmed cases, 81,041 recoveries, 1,842 deaths and 9,024 active cases. Of the active cases, 14 are critical, 30 serious, 64 moderate, 95 light and 8,821 asymptomatic.

In the treatment centres, 203 patients are hospitalised, while 154 are serving institutional quarantine.

Covid: Viral photo highlights challenges of vaccinating Amazon

A photo of an indigenous man carrying his father on his back to take a Covid-19 vaccine in the Brazilian Amazon has gone viral, and became a symbol of the complicated vaccination logistics in one of the world’s most remote areas.

The photo taken by a doctor shows 24-year-old Tawy holding Wahu, 67, after both were given a vaccine dose.

They had to walk for hours through the forest to reach the vaccination site.

Official data say 853 indigenous people have died with Covid-19 in the country.

But indigenous rights groups say that number is much higher. A survey by Apib, a Brazilian NGO, said 1,000 indigenous people had died between March 2020 and March 2021 alone.

Tawy and Wahu belong to the Zo’e indigenous community, which has around 325 members. They live in relative isolation across dozens of villages in an area equivalent to 1.2 million football fields in the northern Pará state.

Erik Jennings Simões, the doctor who took the picture, said Wahu could hardly see anything and walked with difficulty because of chronic urinary problems. He estimated that Tawy carried his father on his back for five to six hours.

“It was a very beautiful demonstration of the lovely relationship between them”, Dr Simões told BBC News Brasil.

The picture was taken in January 2021, at the start of the Covid-19 vaccination campaign in Brazil, one of world’s hardest-hit countries by the pandemic. But Dr Simões only shared it on Instagram on 1 January of this year, to send a “positive message at the beginning of the new year”.

IMAGE SOURCE,SESAI

Image caption,

The huts were installed in open areas to reduce risk of infection

When vaccination against Covid-19 began in Brazil, indigenous people were considered a priority group. For the health team accompanying the Zo’e, a challenge emerged: it would be unfeasible for the agents to go to each village, as it would take weeks to vaccinate everyone, due to how spread out they were.

So they set up huts in the forest, and a vaccination system was agreed with the communities through a radio. “We’ve adopted practices that respect and take into account the culture and knowledge of the Zo’é people,” Dr Simões said.

• CONTEXT: ‘Everything you should not do, Brazil has done’
• IN CHARTS: Tracking the pandemic

Last September, Wahu died for reasons that remain unclear. Tawy remains with his family and has recently taken his third vaccine dose.

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South Africa minister tells schoolgirls to ‘open books and close legs’

A regional health minister has come under fire in South Africa for telling schoolgirls to “open your books and close your legs”.

Phophi Ramathuba made the comment during a visit to a secondary school in a bid to encourage abstinence and reduce teenage pregnancy rates.

Social media users criticised the remark and questioned why it was only directed at girls.

Ms Ramathuba defended the message, which she said was aimed at boys too.

The health minister for Limpopo province was visiting Gwenane secondary school in the township of Sekgakgapeng on Wednesday to mark the first day of the new academic year.

“To the girl child I say: Open your books, and close your legs. Don’t open your legs, open your books. Thank you very much,” she told students.

She added that girls were being lured by older men using luxuries like expensive wigs and smart phones.

The comments sparked criticism after a video of the speech was shared on social media.

“This is not an appropriate way to talk to kids about abuse, sex and consent”, one social media user wrote.

Opposition politician Siviwe Gwarube called the remarks “deeply problematic”.

“This was an opportunity to have a meaningful conversation with these learners about consent… Instead you victim blame. Place undue pressure on girls”, she said in a message on Twitter.

Ms Ramathuba told South African news site TimesLIVE that her statement had been taken out of context, and was directed at boys too.

“I told the boys to focus on their education and not sleep with girls,” she said.

She added that her constituents in Limpopo “appreciated the message”.

“They were even saying that they were afraid to say these things and thanked me for calling a spade a spade,” she said.

Government statistics show that almost 33,400 girls under the age of 17 gave birth in South Africa in 2020.

Save the Children says a lack of access to comprehensive sex education as well as affordable and appropriate health services are key factors contributing to teen pregnancies in South Africa.

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