Kenyan opposition leader Odinga says protests on despite police ban

 Odinga has called for indefinite twice-weekly protests, citing the high cost of living and accusing President Ruto of electoral malpractice.

Kenyan opposition leader Raila Odinga says protests against President William Ruto’s government over the high cost of living would go ahead as scheduled despite a police ban.

In a Twitter post, Odinga called for protests on Monday and Thursday, hours after accusing Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua of “coordinating a campaign of mayhem” against the planned demonstrations.

Last week, protests in Nairobi and other cities turned violent, and one person was killed. Police arrested more than 200 people, including lawmakers belonging to Odinga’s One Kenya Coalition Party from both houses of parliament.

Kenya’s police chief on Sunday announced a ban on the protests called by Odinga, saying such acts remained illegal.

“We have been restraining ourselves. We cannot do that any more,” Inspector General of Police Japhet Koome told reporters at a media briefing. “We are ready as the police force to maintain peace.”

During last week’s protests, police used tear gas and water cannon, including at Odinga’s convoy. Nairobi’s central business district had a heavy police presence before Monday’s planned rallies.

Odinga, 78, has called for indefinite twice-weekly protests, citing the high cost of staples such as maize flour, which has kept inflation high. He also has accused Ruto of cheating in last year’s presidential election.

Ruto, who inherited a huge foreign debt and has scrapped fuel subsidies, said last week that the protests were hurting businesses and Kenya’s people.

Odinga, a former prime minister, has lost five elections in a row in his bid to be president. He challenged the most recent result before the Supreme Court, which upheld Ruto’s victory.

SOURCE: AL JAZEERA AND NEWS AGENCIES

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Heavy police presence amid Kenya protests

 Kenya’s riot police are on the streets of the capital, Nairobi, in a bid to prevent protests called by the opposition over the high cost of living and alleged election malpractices.

There is also heavy police presence in Kibera and Mathare – the largest informal settlements in the city – where protesters are being blocked from moving into the city centre.

A car carrying local journalists in Kibera was attacked by a crowd and its occupants robbed at knife point, according to reports.

Shops have been closed in downtown Nairobi as business owners fear looting.

In the western city of Kisumu, an opposition stronghold, tear gas has been fired to disperse crowds of protesters who were being led by their local governor.

Police have said they will take pictures of protesters and file charges against them for participating in illegal protests.

Source: BBC

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Key suspect in Ghana’s alleged coup plot dies

 Frederick Mac-Palm, one of the main suspects accused of attempting to overthrow the Ghanaian government in 2019 has died. Local media say he collapsed in his house on Saturday and was rushed to hospital where he was pronounced dead.

Mr Mac-Palm and two others were arrested in September 2019 for allegedly plotting to destabilise the country. He was the owner of the Citadel clinic where security officials reportedly seized several weapons, ammunition and explosive devices.

The three are among six other suspects who have been facing charges of treason since 2019.

They were accused of being part of a group known as the Take Action Ghana (TAG). The group, according to the prosecution, planned to organise a series of demonstrations and also attempted to overthrow the government.

Mr Mac-Palm is a native of Kpando in eastern Volta Region – where separatists have been agitating for secession from Ghana. He was released on court bail in 2020.

Source: BBC

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Actor Jonathan Majors Arrested In New York On Assault Charges

 The actor Jonathan Majors was arrested in New York City over the weekend on assault and harassment charges, leading to the U.S. Army pulling new advertisements featuring the “Creed III” star.

Majors, who recently presented an award at the Oscars alongside his “Creed III” co-star Michael B. Jordan, was arrested on Saturday morning in Manhattan following a domestic dispute, according to police and his defense lawyer.

A 30-year-old woman suffered minor injuries to her head and neck and was taken to a hospital in stable condition, the New York Police Department said. Majors, 33, appeared in court for an arraignment later on Saturday and was released without bail.

He was charged in a criminal complaint of striking the woman’s face with his open hand, causing a laceration behind her ear, and of grabbing her hand and neck, causing bruising.
Priya Chaudhry, Majors’ defense lawyer, said in a statement that Majors was innocent and that he was “provably the victim of an altercation with a woman he knows.”

She said that the episode occurred in a vehicle, and that the driver who witnessed it would help exonerate Majors. She also said that the woman, who has not been publicly named, had provided two written statements “recanting these allegations.”

The U.S. Army said it was temporarily pulling new campaign advertisements featuring Majors.
“While Mr. Majors is innocent until proven guilty, prudence dictates that we pull our ads until the investigation into these allegations is complete,” Laura DeFrancisco, a spokesperson for the Army Enterprise Marketing Office, said in a statement.

Majors rose to fame in the 2019 film “The Last Black Man in San Francisco” and appeared in Marvel’s “Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania,” released this year.

Source: Reuters

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State Minister reiterates women's role in conflict resolution

 Luanda - The Minister of State and Head of the Military Affairs Office of the President of the Republic, Francisco Pereira Furtado, stressed this Monday the need for the increasing involvement of women in the prevention, management and resolution of conflicts.

The retired general was speaking at the opening of the I Course on Defence and National Security from a Gender Perspective, taking place until March 31st, under the scope of the UN Security Council resolution 1325 of October 31st, 2000. 

 

The resolution 3125 on women, peace and security creates an international political basis that supports the promotion and defence of the transversal dimension of gender equality, allowing women to assume a prominent role during and after conflicts. 

 

General Francisco Furtado informed that there has been a growing awareness in the country about the importance of women's integration and participation in the various fields of National Defence, namely the Armed Forces. 

 

He also stressed that issues related to women, conflicts, peace, national and public security, as well as community and domestic violence have been deserving major attention.

 

In the current context of geopolitical change, the updating and consolidation of knowledge must be permanent and generalist, and concerns all citizens, including civilians who have a relevant role to play in the analysis of phenomena that are transversal to their comfort zone. 

 

To the Minister of State, the formative and informative actions must take a privileged place to mould behaviours and attitudes to face the complex scenarios that may present themselves.

 

He went on to say that the Angolan State has never left aside the participation of women, reserving for the female gender, since the beginning of the National Liberation Struggle, high positions in the various bodies that make up the Defence and National Security System. 

 

He referred that although the Military Service Law does not oblige the entrance of women, about four thousand women are part of the Angolan Armed Forces (FAA), and sixteen thousand are in the National Police, in general and commissary positions, superior and subordinate officers in the different specialties, and that the numbers tend to grow. 

 

Gen. Furtado  declared that women are fierce defenders of the preservation of peace, in the management and resolution of conflicts, because they are the ones who suffer the most under such circumstances.

 

He paid "humble homage" to Angolan women on the occasion of the month of March for being "brave, mysterious, intuitive, sensitive, virtuous, intelligent, delicate, graceful and wise beings”.

 

In an initiative of the National Defence Institute (NDI), the course is promoted in partnership with public institutions from Portugal and the Community of Portuguese Speaking Countries (CPLP). 

 

Themes on the agenda include "The Gender Issue in Defence and Security Organs", "The Perspective of Gender Participation in Peace Operations", "The Status of Women in Defence and Security Organs", and "The Inter-sector connection in National Security".

 

On the occasion, the secretary of State for National Defence, Former Combatants and Homeland Veterans, Domingos Tchikanha, informed that 767 auditors from all provinces and CPLP member countries are participating in the training programme, in zoom platform.

New international airport starts operation in 2023

 Luanda - The new Luanda Dr. António Agostinho Neto International Airport will start operating at the end of this year (2023), said on Monday the President of the Republic, João Lourenço.

The new international airport takes an area of 1,324 hectares and will have capacity for 15 million passengers and a volume of goods of 50,000 tons per year. 

 

Speaking to journalists  at the end of  visit to the  international airport, the Head of State expressed his satisfaction with the physical progress of the works. 

 

"We will have the airport by the end of the year. We will unveil it", he said, without giving an exact date.

 

During the visit, João Lourenço met with members of the Aviation Industry Corp of China (AVIC), institution in charge of the construction work. 

 President Lourenço  said that until the inauguration date, the airport will be in conditions to serve passengers. 

 

João Lourenço reiterated that, in order to satisfy the movement of passengers, taking into account the potential of the new airport, negotiations are underway with the American aircraft manufacturer Boeing, for the acquisition of new aircraft. 

 

"We are negotiating with Boeing. It is a negotiation that has been going on for some time and we want to believe that this time, yes, we will end up negotiating a new package of Boeing airplanes for long haul", he said.

 

During the guided tour, accompanied by members of the government, João Lourenço inspected the air navigation and airport management building, the regional and integrated control center, the passenger terminal, the boarding area, the commercial, check-in, vip, screening, baggage collection, domestic and regional landing areas, among others.

The new airport has two double runways and is sized to receive, among others, B747 and A380 aircraft, currently the largest commercial aircraft. 

 

The southern runway, the airport's largest, is 4,000 meters long and 60 meters wide, so, in June 2022 it received the first experimental flight of a Boeing 777 aircraft from the Angolan airline TAAG. 

 

President João Lourenço last visited the works of the new airport in December 2022.

African Guarantee Fund makes available USD 100 million for firms

 Luanda - The African Guarantee Fund (AGF) has US$100 million available for the next 10 years to provide financial guarantees to Angolan micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) through the commercial banks in Angola.

The African Guarantee Fund is a non-banking financial institution, whose mission is to support financial institutions in providing financing to small and medium-sized companies in Africa.

 

The availability of this amount results from the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between the Angolan Guarantee Credit Fund (FGC) and the African Guarantee Fund, an agreement that foresees to contribute to the development and promotion of financial solutions, aligned with the specific needs of MSMEs. 

 

The document was signed by the  FGC´s  CEO, Luzayadio Simba, and on the AGF side by  CEO  Jules Ngakam, an event witnessed by the secretary of State for Budget and Public Investment, Juciene de Sousa, representatives of the National Reserve Bank of Angola, among other partners.

 

The Memorandum also aims to identify and guide small and medium enterprises that intend to obtain financing through the guarantee lines, as well as to support the development, accounting and financial organization of these companies. 

 

According to the FGC´s CEO, Luzayadio Simba, each year, the AGF will make available USD 10 million, over a period of 10 years, totalling USD 100 million. 

 

According to  the CEO, these are new opportunities in terms of credit guarantees for the national business community, essentially constituted by MSMEs and individual entrepreneurs.

"With this Memorandum, we intend to ensure that MSMEs have easier access to financing lines for the materialization of their respective projects with commercial banks, through public guarantees, which will be ensured by the FGC in partnership with AGF", he  said.

 

For Luzayadio Simba, the referred memorandum comes in a context in which proactive measures are needed to explore the current macroeconomic scenario that is characterized by moderate growth of the country's economy, after successive years of economic recession. 

 

This partnership will involve a contribution of 50% each of guarantees to be made available by FGC and AGF, according to the projects that have been presented by the companies to the commercial banks. 

 

AGF has seven billion dollars  

On his turn, Jules Ngankam, AGF´s CEO, the institution is making available seven billion dollars for financing small and medium enterprises in more than 200 institutions in Africa, via the African Development Bank (AfDB).

 

 "Today we want to replicate all the success we have in various countries in Africa and here in Angola", said Jules Ngankam, highlighting the importance of the agreement, which is expected to strengthen the south-south partnerships, covering more countries, starting from Kenya (headquarters of the Fund), to Angola, Senegal, Cote d'Ivoire, Benin and other countries. 

 

They are committed to promoting financial facilitation and growth of MSMEs in Angola, reducing the risks they take. 

 

According to study data advanced by the official, in Africa, the MSMEs contribute with 80% of new jobs also contribute with 30% of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), a reduction considered still very small if compared to other countries such as Europe, between 40% and 50%, and in Asia, up to 60%. 

 

In his opinion, MSMEs are very active, both in the private and informal sectors, but they need a lot of support, such as capacity building.

 

He also admitted that MSMEs face several challenges in Africa, linked to infrastructure quality, business environment, access to electricity, water, and finance. 

 

Referring particularly to Angola, he says it is a country where the costs to start an MSME business are very low, but when it comes to business development or getting financing from banks, it is still a big challenge.