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The President of the Republic, Head of State and of the Government, H. E. Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, granted an audience this Monday 24th October to Alhada Alkache, Minister for Trade and Special Envoy of H. E. Bazoum Mohamed, President of the Republic of Niger.
The African Union will hold a conference in November on the industrialisation of the continent and work on the creation of the African continental free trade zone. Niamey, capital of the Republic of Niger, will be the venue for this work for members, at the Heads of State level.

That is why Alhada Alkache, Minister for Trade, went to the People’s Palace in Malabo on Monday 24th October 2022, for an audience with the President of the Republic.

“I was received by H. E. the President of the Republic, as the bearer of a message from H. E. Bazoum Mohamed, President of the Republic of Niger, for his counterpart. The message was in relation to the upcoming African Union summit on the industrialisation of the continent. The summit will discuss work on the creation of the African continental free trade zone. You know that one of the challenges facing the African continent is its industrialisation; and another is to develop inter-state trade, a somewhat weak aspect until now, which is why the Heads of State from members of the African Union have decided to promote or relaunch this trade. The audience was thus to invite H. E. Obiang Nguema Mbasogo to the summit to be held in Niamey on 25th November”.

The delivery of this text message to the Head of State was attended by the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, Simeon Oyono Esono Angue and Job Obiang Esono Mbengono, Deputy Minister for Missions to the Presidency of the Republic.

H. E. Obiang Nguema Mbasogo agreed to participate personally in the work of these African Union summits, as confirmed by Alhada Alkache.

Source: Official Web Page of the Government

In order to immortalise her work, the First Lady, Constancia Mangue de Obiang, suggested that the Fishtown Market be named after the deceased.
The Vice-President of the PDGE and National President of the Specialist Women’s Organisation of the Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea, Constancia Mangue de Obiang, laid a wreath as a symbol of recognition and homage to the deceased, Cirila Bindang Osa, co-founder of the Fishtown market.

“Cirila was a woman I admired a great deal for her values. She fought for the common good, and thanks to her, a permanent church was built, in addition to the stretch of road linking the urban district to Esandón Eves, in Nsok Nsomo, and she is co-founder and general coordinator of the Ela Nguema Fishtown Market “, acknowledged Mangue de Obiang, while suggesting that the market be named after the deceased, as a lasting tribute. This suggestion was made in the presence of Roger Job Engono, Mayor of Ela Nguema.

Christian and a member of the Carmelite Order at Malabo Cathedral, where she was married 32 years ago.

She was born on 5th June 1956 in Nsang Oyek (Nsok Nsomo). She married Leonardo Nsue Mba under canon law in 1990 and they had four children.

She died at the age of 66 on 10th October, in Tunisia. He leaves behind a widower, a daughter, 23 grandchildren and one great-grandchild. She died due to illness.

Her remains lie in the Ela Nguema cemetery.

Source: Official Web Page of the Government

The new Resident Coordinator of the United Nations Office in Equatorial Guinea.Anna Marttinen Pont, who is in New York, visited our country’s permanent mission, at the UN headquarters.
The meeting, described as a courtesy visit, focused on acknowledgements, and guidance for Anna Pont from the Ambassador Permanent Representative of Equatorial Guinea before the UN in New York, Anatolio Ndong Mba.

“I am very happy to be working in Equatorial Guinea and to be able to accompany the Equatoguinean people in their development,” the Finnish diplomat said, before the TVGE cameras.

“The United Nations is working to ensure that the SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals) are met throughout the world,” said the new head of the United Nations Office in our country, who also confirmed that “we are supporting development issues through our various agencies, which have already been working in Equatorial Guinea for many years”.

Pont has 25 years’ experience in development, humanitarian affairs, diplomacy, and peaceful conflict resolution, mainly with the United Nations and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies in Africa, Asia-Pacific, Latin America and the Caribbean. In her last posting she served as regional head of the UN Verification Mission in Colombia, where she led the regional verification of the implementation of the peace accords.

The new Resident Coordinator is a mother of two and a lover of tropical flora and fauna. In addition Finnish, her mother tongue, she is fluent in Spanish, English and Swedish, in addition to Urdu, a local language in Pakistan. She holds a master’s degree in anthropology and development studies, and a bachelor’s degree in Hispanic philology from the University of Helsinki, Finland.

Anna Pont has already taken up her duties and had the opportunity, in her own words, to tour much of Equatorial Guinea together with the entire United Nations team in the country.

Source: Official Web Page of the Government

6.9 million people estimated in need of humanitarian assistance for Protection-GBV in the West and Central Africa region in 2022. 70% of these people in need were targeted for humanitarian response plan 2022. A total of US$ 138.7 million required to deliver GBV life-saving assistance and protection to 4.8 million people across the 7 countries including Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central Africa Republic, Chad, Mali, Niger and Nigeria in the region which have developed Humanitarian Response Plans, only 8.9 per cent of the required funds were met.

Despite funding shortfalls and operational challenges, humanitarian partners assisted 33 per cent of the targeted population. More than 1.6 million people were reached with 202300 Women and Girls including male reached by Specialized GBV services/GBV Response , 68486 reached with GBV Risk Mitigation &Dignity kits/security or hygienic Kits distribution, 891729 reached with GBV Awareness raising & Sensitization , 9035 on Economic and Social empowerment activities, 5213 on Training and capacity-building activities. Mains challenges raised across countries are low coverage of intervention areas by specialized GBV services, critical need to scale up lifesaving GBV services and advocate for access to reach affected communities

Source: UN High Commissioner for Refugees

Canadian High Court Weighs Immigration Agreement With US

Canada’s highest court is deliberating whether to overturn a nearly 20-year-old immigration agreement with the United States on the grounds that asylum-seekers cannot safely be returned to Canada’s southern neighbor. The story by Craig McCulloch and VOA’s immigration reporter Aline Barros.

Venezuelan Migrants in Mexico Protest New US Border Policy

Venezuelan migrants hoping to enter the United States from Mexico protested over the weekend a new U.S. program granting legal entry to 24,000 people from the crisis-wracked country while deporting all those who cross the southern border illegally, Agence France-Presse reports.

US Policy Prompts Some Venezuelan Migrants to Change Route

Venezuelan Gilbert Fernandez still plans to cross the dangerous Darien jungle into Panama and head toward the United States over land, despite a U.S. announcement that it will grant conditional humanitarian permits only to 24,000 Venezuelan migrants arriving by air, The Associated Press reports.

New York City Opens Tent Shelter for Hundreds of Migrant Men

New York City Wednesday opened an emergency tent shelter to alleviate some of the strain the city has felt recently from the steady stream of migrants who have arrived on buses sent by officials in Texas and other southern U.S. states. The Humanitarian Emergency Response and Relief Center on Randall’s Island, east of Manhattan, will be the temporary home for 500 single migrant men who arrived in the city after their long journeys that began in Venezuela and other places south of the U.S. border, The Associated Press reports.

Migration around the world

New Arrivals: Afghan Refugees Camped in Brazilian Airport

About 150 refugees from Afghanistan are camped out in the main airport of Sao Paulo, Brazil’s financial capital and most populous city. Many more are expected to arrive in the coming months, but aid workers say the government has no plans for a wide-scale response to the growing crisis. For VOA, Yan Boechat has this report from Sao Paulo, Brazil, with Heather Murdock in Istanbul.

Migrants Caught in Middle as Turkey-Greece Tensions Escalate

A photograph of migrants found exposed, without clothing, along the border of Greece and Turkey last week shocked the world and is raising international concerns that migrants and refugees are becoming the latest victims of a growing dispute between Turkey and Greece. From Istanbul, Dorian Jones reports both nations blame each other for the incident.

Botswana Expresses Concerns Over Influx of Asylum-Seekers

Botswana has expressed concern over an influx of asylum-seekers who fled from countries where they had been granted refugee status. Nearly 700 refugees have arrived from neighboring Zimbabwe, citing poor conditions at the refugee camps, while others have come from South Africa, driven out by xenophobic attacks. Mqondisi Dube reports for VOA from Botswana.

News Brief

— The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced updates to remove barriers to naturalization for applicants with disabilities.

— A new asylum process for Venezuelans is now online.

— The Office of Inspector General (OIG) released a new report following its initial review of the Afghan special immigrant visa (SIV) program. The OIG made nine new recommendations “that are intended to further improve the Afghan SIV program” including revising the Standard Operating Procedures for Quarterly Congressional Reports, develop and implement procedures to establish ongoing interagency coordination until the Afghan SIV program concludes, and implement an updated staffing plan to adjust resources for all Department of State offices involved with the Afghan SIV program, among others.

Source: Voice of America

South Africa will overhaul its anti-corruption strategy and ensure the independence of prosecutors, President Cyril Ramaphosa said Sunday, responding to recommendations from a state inquiry into alleged corruption under his predecessor.

A judicial commission of inquiry was established to examine allegations of high-level graft during former President Jacob Zuma’s nine years in power from 2009 to 2018.

“The people of South Africa are tired of corruption and want it to end,” Ramaphosa said in a live television broadcast. “As a country, we are emerging from a dark and difficult period.”

The inquiry found Zuma had allowed businessmen close to him – brothers Atul, Ajay and Rajesh Gupta – to plunder state resources and influence policy, commonly known as ‘state capture’ in South Africa.

The Guptas deny any wrongdoing and have left the country but face extradition proceedings in Dubai. Zuma denies wrongdoing and at one stage refused to cooperate with the inquiry, leading to his imprisonment in July 2021 for contempt of court.

Inquiry reports said investigations, which implicated ANC politicians and company executives, found rampant graft across key economic sectors including state-owned companies such as power utility Eskom and freight and logistics group Transnet.

Evidence uncovered by the inquiry can be used by authorities to pursue criminal charges.

Ramaphosa said of plans to overhaul South Africa’s anti-graft strategy: “Through the implementation of the actions contained in this response, we can start a new chapter in our struggle against corruption.”

In a letter addressed to the Speaker of the National Assembly, Ramaphosa said his response outlined steps government will take to catch suspects and other reforms.

Ramaphosa, who served as deputy state president under Zuma, testified at the inquiry that he chose to “remain but resist” rather than resign when allegations surfaced.

Source: Voice of America

The refugee population in the DRC has slightly increased from 518,899 to 521,512, an increased of 0.50%, mainly due to updated data, especially for South Sudanese refugees.The number of asylum seekers decreased from 2,183 to 1,291 or 41% owing to the refugee status recognition of Burundians by the eligibility commission. Some 520 people were assisted to repatriate to Rwanda; 2,484 Congolese (ex-refugees) also returned to the DRC.

Source: UN High Commissioner for Refugees

Seven countries from the Group of 20 (G20), sought to collaborate in distributing pharmaceutical research centres and manufacturers to poor countries in the southern hemisphere, Indonesian Health Ministry’s spokesperson, Siti Nadia Tarmizi said, yesterday.

Argentina, Brazil, India, Indonesia, Saudi Arabia, Turkiye and South Africa, agreed to bring up the plan to the 2nd Health Ministers Meeting, that would be held in Indonesia’s Bali on Oct 27-28, this year, Tarmizi said. They called on the other G20 members to join the collaboration.

“The distribution will open broader access to vaccines, medicines, and diagnostic tools, to the countries in the southern hemisphere, particularly the middle and low-income ones. They deserve to participate in strengthening health resilience at the global level,” Tarmizi told a virtual press conference.

She also said that, all this time, the distribution of pharmaceutical research centres were still centralised in the countries in the northern hemisphere.

Source: Nam News Network