A new year, a new Amandla
Scores of Africans Detained at U.S.-Mexico Border NYC Taxi Driver Earnings Drop 44% Since 2013 Land Reform Versus Food Secuity in Zimbabwe Page 3
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Contact us today for the 2019 Media Kit Volume 18 Issue 6 | Pan-African Community Newspaper | June 15, 2019 | amandlanews.com
Middle-Class Exits Nigeria Full Speed Ahead Into Debt In Africa’s most populous nation, nearly half (45%) of adults say they plan to move to another country within five years, by far the highest share among 12 countries surveyed across four continents, according to a survey conducted by Pew Research Center. Nigeria’s continued exit of its middle-class is costing the nation two generations in one shift, as young and newly married couples account for thousands who migrate each year. Their reason for making the move boils down to one thing: thinking of their future children.
Kenya has slashed the reported earnings from its new standard gauge railway (SGR) between Mombasa and the capital Nairobi, raising fears over the profitability of the project and the ability of Kenya’s government to repay the $3.2bn it borrowed from China to get it built. The news isn’t better for its northern neighbor Ethiopia, which borrowed billions of dollars from Beijing for a railway that links the capital Addis Ababa to neighbouring Djibouti. Ethiopia is now seeking to renegotiate the terms of the loan, to avoid being buried by the “serious” debt woes tied to China’s controversial infrastructure push.
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Crisis for Asanteman U.S. Leadership Resolved
Elephant Hunting Ban Lifted in Botswana
Internal divisions and dissensions, parochial interests, and shenanigans had threatened to stymie years of cultural progress and stability within some Asanteman Associations in the U.S. However, emissaries of the King of Asante who were in New Jersey for a cultural event marathon meeting to resolve conflicts within some of the associations.
Botswana has announced that it is lifting a ban on elephant hunting, much to the objection of conservationists and prowildlife groups. Trophy hunters have hailed the announcement as a step in the right direction. Botswana contends that the 2014 ban increased elephant populations but has caused havoc to livestock and livelihood.
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Amandla
Volume 18 Issue 6
Editorial Time to Acquire Africa Center is Now! According to 2015 research, there were more than 1.7 million Africans in the United States, and the 2010 American Community Survey found out that the largest numbers of African immigrants are in California, New York, Texas, Maryland, and Virginia. New Jersey has about 86,000 Africans, Maryland 120,000, Georgia 75,000 and Florida 60,000, according to 2018 revised figures. Amandla thinks Africans in the U.S. are not doing much to help themselves, due to a lack of leadership and focus exacerbated by divisions and dissensions. For the past several decades, Africans in New Jersey and elsewhere have been consciously or otherwise throwing money to the wind. Between March and November each year, more than $250,000 (conservatively speaking) is pumped into three non-African churches in northern New Jersey alone in hall rental for funerals, retirement parties, anniversaries, and other occasions. The money goes to these churches that do not offer any religious services and support such as counseling in times of need and/or grief to the African
Asanteman Leadership Crisis Resolved The first known Ghanaian non-religious, non-political, and non-profit organization in the United States is Asanteman Association of New York. The association, formed almost forty years ago, was patterned after traditional setups in their native Asante, Ghana. The premier Constitution of New York Asanteman – crafted with doses of Western and Asante elements – was
Publisher & Editor in Chief Kwabena Opong Deputy Publisher & Editor Kofi Ayim P. O. Box 7030 West Orange, NJ 07052 973-731-1339 / 201-704-5838 contact@amandlanews.com Amandla is a monthly publication of the Amandla Company. It is an associate member of the New Jersey Press Association. The publishers may not necessarily share the opinions and viewpoints expressed in the articles that appear in the publication.
drinking, libation etc. in their social halls whereas the African churches see these acts as ungodly. These non-African churches not only give unto Caesar what is Caesar’s, but they understand the simple economics of raising funds through other nonreligious means. In New Jersey, West Africans, especially Ghanaians and Nigerians, constitute more than 90% of hall renters in a given year. African churches with halls big enough for rentals do not allow “ungodly” sociocultural acts such as drinking and/or libation near their premises. And so up the creek and without a paddle, the African community has no choice but to “invest” in a venture that is not beneficial to its causes. On the other side of the coin, for lack of enough revenue, African churches depend on tithes and other biblical obligations to raise funds while their halls became white elephants on weekend nights when most events are held. With limited funds, some African churches are shadows of themselves, financially speaking and members are made to bear the brunt of needed revenues to sustain the church and carry out the goodwill mission work of God. community. But they have opened up their halls Amandla thinks as a commufor rentals because they are less strict nity, church et al., this is a retrogressive than the African churches, allowing and non-productive act that African
churches need to re-evaluate. There are several vibrant and professional African communities in the United States. For example, in almost all U.S. metropolises, there are variations of Ghanaian umbrella councils. In New York, it is the National Council of Ghanaian Associations (NCOGA); in New Jersey it is the United Ghanaian Council (UGC), and so on and so forth. Such umbrella councils, either solo or in collaboration with other African non-profit organizations and/or professional bodies, must spearhead aggressive efforts to acquire real estate properties, not only for funerals, retirement, graduation, and other parties, but a center par excellence of learning where youth of Africa and other interested people and parties can visit to learn and study about Africa, culture and all. An Africa Culture House or Center should consist of a library, drumming and dancing lessons, symposia and forums and visual arts, etc. Amandla thinks this is one way to unite the community, showcase its culture, and instill African identity and personality in its youth. Otherwise, not only will we exercise poor judgement in our social life, but we will eventually lose it all! TUFIAKWA!
basically duplicated by Asanteman associations in other states. Instead of a conventional president or a chairperson, Asanteman associations utilize Nana, a kingly or noble prefix title for a typical Akan ruler. A vice-president or chair is a Krontihene, a public relations officer is a Nseniehene, and so on and so forth. This setup made Asanteman associations in North America unique among the lot and cultural ambassadors of Akan or even Ghanaians in the diaspora. But in the past several years, these cultural expositions have seemed to backfire and have created unpalatable scenarios in Dallas, Texas; New York City, New York; and elsewhere. In short, the hitherto, sought-after culture of Asante has become an albatross that is asphyxiating Asante/Akan culture. In the case of New York, it ended up in the State’s Supreme Court where the litigants were advised to go find an amicable solution. Either by default of applicable Constitutional rules or design of parochial interest to usurp the Constitution, leadership disarray and chaos have caused Asanteman the unenviable accolade of “the Court-prone Ghanaian association in North America,” so much so that there are two parallel umbrella organization: Asanteman North America (ANA) and Asanteman Council of North America (ACONA).
Aben II, Otumfuo’s Sasaamopaninhene and Naa Taa-Asiakwa Agyeman Adjei, Asiakwahene, the traditional rulers were able to resolve two of the contentious leadership problems that has plagued Asanteman Associations in North America. The feuding factions in Dallas and New York City have smoked the peace pipe and we hope it sticks. Amandla hopes those in leadership positions will be able to pick up the pieces and unite all factions so that Asanteman Associations would regain the respect and dignity that used to characterize it and epitomize Ghana’s rich culture heritage in the U.S. Let’s accord His Royal Highness the quiet and peace he deserves.
Amandla has learned from deep throat sources that these actions have caused sleepless nights at Manhyia Palace, the seat of Asante monarchy, at a time when the Overlord of the Asante people, His Royal Highness Otumfuo Osei Tutu II has embarked on a nationwide mission with a sense of unity and belongingness of Ghanaians. But as the Akan adage goes, “it’s bent but not broken. “Two emissaries of the King of Asante to North America, Nana Adusei Atwenewa Ampem, Paramount Chief of Tepa Traditional Area and Oheneba Agyemang Badu, Otumfuo’s Atipimhene were in New Jersey for the inaugural ceremony of the State’s Asanteman Association. Together with Nana Otimpie
Nana Adusei Atwenewa Ampem, one of three emissaries to North America for His Royal Highness, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, King of Asante has a duty, among others, to resolve conflicts and confusions within and among Asanteman Associations.
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North America “Look Homeward!” Ambassador Akyaa Pobee Tells Ghanaian Diaspora E. OBIRI ADDO
Ghana’s Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the United Nations has challenged the Ghanaian diaspora to remain true to their roots during their sojourn overseas, and more importantly, to look back to help develop Ghana. Her Excellency Martha Ama Akyaa Pobee made these remarks in a keynote address at a colorful inaugural dinner dance of the Asanteman Association of New Jersey on May 26, 2019 in Union, New Jersey. She observed that the occasion which saw the display of the beautiful Asante culture was in line with the declaration of 2019 as the “Year of Return” by His Excellency President Nana Addo Danquah Akufo-Addo. This is a “a year within which all people of African descent are invited to embark on a spiritual and birth-right journey back to our roots in Africa, to mark 400 years of the arrival of the first enslaved Africans in Jamestown, Virginia,” she explained. According to Ms. Pobee the “Year of Return” and its accompanying “Disaporan Homecoming Conference” are intended to celebrate ways in which
(Left to right) Prof. Samuel Amoako, Ghana’s Consul General, New York; H.E. Mrs. Martha Pobee, Ghana’s Permanent Representative to the U.N.; Hon Ras Baraka, Mayor City of Newark; Mrs. Linda Baraka
African people “turned around” years of humiliation, deprivation and human inhumanity to contribute in immense ways to the building of the Americas and elsewhere. “Our culture has not been allowed to die out or drown in the oceans we had to cross to get here,” she stressed. Ambassador Akyaa Pobee, who is herself a Regent of the Akusu stool of Asante, commended diaspora Ghanaians on their ability to preserve their cultural identity and pass it on generationally. “Ours is a rich culture and history and we should make sure that our
children continue to take pride in it,” she added. The dinner dance was the culmination of two-day event that marked the installations of and swearing-in ceremony of Otafregya Opoku Frimpong as Asantefuohene and Nana Akua Boahemaa as Asantefuohemaa of New Jersey. The events were supervised by Nana Adusei Atwenewah Ampem, Paramount Chief of Tepa Traditional Area on behalf of the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II. Also present to grace the occasion were Prof. Samuel Amoako,
US Border Patrol Arrests 153 Africans at Texas Border U.S. Border Patrol agents have apprehended more than 150 African immigrants attempting unauthorized crossings into Texas at the U.S. southern border within the past week, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP). On Saturday, agents arrested a group of 37 undocumented immigrants from Central Africa who had crossed the winding Rio Grande onto U.S. soil, the CBP said in a news release Tuesday. The agency said the immigrants consisted of family groups, including small children, from the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Republic of Congo. Last Thursday evening, agents picked up a group of 116 African immigrants crossing the river in the Del Rio sector, the CBP said in a May 31 news release. Video footage shared by the CBP shows men and women wading through hip-deep water, many of
Since May 30th, more than 500 people from the continent of Africa have been arrested by the U.S. Border Patrol.These groups are primarily made up of family units from the Republic of the Congo, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Angola.
them carrying young children and possessions. The news release said the immigrants — including nationals from Angola, Cameroon and Congo — comprised the first large group of
African people apprehended at the Southwest border this year. Theirs also was the first large group of individuals caught in the Del Rio sector, the agency said. The Del
Ghana’s Consul-General in New York, Hon. Ras Baraka, Mayor of the City of Newark, New Jersey, Dr. Zachary Yamba, President Emeritus of Essex County College, Hon Simon Osei-Mensah, Ashanti Regional Minister, and representatives of Ghana’s media. The dinner-dance was chaired by Nana Otimpie Aben II. Otumfoo Osei Tutu’s Sasaamopaninhene who is also the proprietor of Charlottfields International Food Distributors Corp. The writer, Dr. E. Obiri Addo is a Senior adviser of Amandla News Rio-Acuña port of entry lies almost 260 kilometers (160 miles) west of the Texas city of San Antonio. “This large group from Africa further demonstrates the complexity and severity of the border security and humanitarian crisis at our Southwest border,” according to the sector’s chief, Raul Ortiz. Immigrants apprehended on Saturday were taken to the Eagle Pass South Border Patrol Station, about 240 kilometers (150 miles) southwest of San Antonio, near the Mexican city of Piedras Negras. In an emailed response to VOA, a CBP spokesman said that of the 37 in the group, “23 were from the Republic of the Congo and 13 were from the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Four were evaluated at a local hospital but did not require treatment.” The CBP said 20 of them have been released and will be notified of a hearing. The rest are still being processed. Border Patrol agents have apprehended more than 27,000 people from 37 countries other than Mexico since Oct. 1, the start of the 2019 fiscal year, the CBP said.
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Amandla
North America Blacks, Latinos at Risk of Undercount in 2020 Census MIKE SCHNEIDER
Emily Bonilla is worried her district in metro Orlando will be undercounted during next spring’s once-in-a-decade head count of everybody in the United States because of who lives there: new arrivals, immigrants, the poor, renters and rural residents who sometimes regard government with suspicion. “We’re growing so fast that I know we have more people in the area than the data is stating. This area already is undercounted,” said Bonilla, a county commissioner in one of the fastest-growing metro areas in the U.S. With the 2020 census count less than a year away, a new report says undercounting certain populations will be likely, despite the best efforts of the U.S. Census Bureau, nonprofits and state and local officials to encourage participation. Nationwide, the decennial census could fail to count anywhere from 900,000 to 4 million people, with blacks, Hispanics and children younger than 5 most vulnerable to being overlooked, according to estimates released Tuesday by the Urban Institute. Florida, California, Georgia, New York, Nevada, Texas and New Mexico have the highest risk for undercounting, according to the Urban Institute, a think tank that conducts social and economic research. Undercounting could diminish power and money in those areas for the next decade. The 2020 census determines the allocation of more than $675 billion in federal spending on schools, transportation and health care, as well which states gain or lose U.S. congressional seats. “A child at age 3, if they’re missed, these decisions matter for the next 10 years. That child is then 13 and their school has missed out on their fair share of funding because of that miscount,” said Diana Elliott, a senior research associate at the Urban Institute. The Urban Institute report said that even if the 2020 census count has the same participation rate as the 2010 count, which was considered successful, communities across the country could still be undercounted because the United States has grown more diverse in the past
decade and has more renters. Also increasing the risk are budget shortfalls that limited tests for the count and the fact that the Census Bureau for the first time is encouraging residents to answer questions online. Adding a question about citizenship could further dampen the response among some populations. The U.S. Supreme Court is expected to rule later this month on whether the form will have a question about whether respondents are citizens. The U.S. Justice Department claims it’s needed to protect the voting rights of minorities who are citizens, but opponents say it will suppress the count of immigrants who fear law enforcement will get the information. States with large Hispanic populations also will be undercounted, opponents say. Hard-to-count populations are less likely to respond via the Internet than groups that have been overcounted in the past, such as homeowners and whites, according to the Urban Institute report. Previous studies “suggest that while the Internet-first approach will be efficient and save costs to the Census Bureau, it won’t necessarily find those people who are hard to count,” Elliott said. Wealthy populations may be overcounted because some families own a second home and could be counted twice, according to the Urban Institute and other research
groups that study the census count In Orlando, Bonilla, the county commissioner, said all the residents in her district need to be represented correctly because so much is at stake.
“We need the data to be accurate and as up-to-date as possible, and we can only do that if everybody is counted,” Bonilla said.
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North America NYC Yellow Cab Drivers’ Earnings Have Fallen 44 Percent Since 2013 RUSCHELL BOONE
Yellow cab drivers in New York City say they don’t need a study to tell them what they already know: the drop in fares over the last six years has been devastating. “You can see it every day. You can feel it, what going on,” one driver said. The New York City Taxi and Limousine Commission (TLC) reported Thursday that total fares are down 44 percent since 2013, from $193,991,786 in March 2013 to $108,847,814 in March 2019. This past March, yellow cabs earned, on average, roughly $9,100 - a revenue drop of 36 percent over six years. The fares per medallion dropped from $14,432 in March 2013 to $9,127 in March 2019. That has devastated owners like Placida Robinson, who bought her medallion in 2006. She’s now in foreclosure and facing bankruptcy. “I can’t even get any relief, and
I’m looking at a default judgment and I’ll still owe the $1.2 million on the medallion while they take the medallion away,” Robinson said. “That is what’s happening to countless of other medallion owners. In a lot of cases, the medallion owners own homes and a lot of homes are foreclosed on as well.” Robinson blames the city. She said lawmakers failed to protect the cabbies, who have been facing a mountain of expenses, dwindling income, and the growth of ride-hailing apps like Uber and Lyft. “When the expenses outweigh the income, that spells instant foreclosure.
And we have mortgages to pay, unlike Uber,” Robinson said. “We have bank loans. $4,000 a month, in addition to all of these other congestion price tax that we have to turn over to the state, in addition to the commercial motor roadway tax, the medallion renewal licensing fines.” Bhairavi Desai, the president of the Taxi Workers Alliance, is calling on lawmakers to help turn around the yellow industry. “We have been ringing the alarm,” Desai said. “We have been testifying about the number of suicides that has been in this industry, the
historic number of bankruptcies, and foreclosures, and just a level of economic desperation.” “This is a problem that can be fixed,” Desai added. “This was a problem that was politically made; it can be fixed with proper regulations and laws. The Taxi Workers Alliance and drivers plan to rally in Albany next month, calling on legislators to do away with the $2.50 congestion pricing surcharge, which went into effect a few months ago. They argue the surcharge is further killing their business.
The New York City Comptroller’s Office is Holding Millions in Wages Owed to
Over 1,200 Workers
If you worked for a private contractor on a construction or building service contract with a NYC government agency and your name is on our list, we may be holding money for you!
VISIT OUR WEBSITE TO CHECK THE LIST AND FIND OUT IF WE ARE HOLDING MONEY FOR YOU:
comptroller.nyc.gov/unclaimedwages
To collect your award you must file a proof of claim by visiting comptroller.nyc.gov/unclaimedwages online or by visiting the Comptroller’s Bureau of Labor Law in person at One Centre Street, Room 651, New York, NY from 9am – 5pm, Monday – Friday. Questions? Call 212-669-4443 or email laborlaw@comptroller.nyc.gov
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Volume 18 Issue 6
North America Asanteman Association of New Jersey Showcases its Culture at Inauguration AKOSUA OFORIWAA-AYIM
Asante culture was at its best on May 25, 2019, when the Asanteman Association of New Jersey celebrated the enstoolment and swearing-in ceremony of its leaders. The elaborate cultural extravaganza that took place at Christ the King’s Church, Hillside, NJ, was well attended by guests from around the country and beyond. The Ahenema Cultural Group set the pace for the evening with traditional drumming and dancing to usher in traditional rulers from New Jersey, New York, Colorado, Ohio, Texas, and several other places. The New York–based cultural ensemble was complemented by a local DJ. The room was regally decorated and all wore Ghanaian attire or costume. However, the chiefs to be sworn in wore black clothes, which is customary for royal enstoolment. A large part of the evening consisted of welcoming traditional leaders – kings, queens, and chiefs from other ethnicities of Ghana who reside in the State of New Jersey as well as local and outside traditional leaders of Asante people. The crescendo of culture came when a procession of a large retinue that consisted of two emissaries of the King of Asante Otumfuo Osei Tutu II – Nana Adusei Atwenewa Ampem and Nana Agyemang Badu – entered the hall amidst charged drumming and dancing. As tradition demands, the retinue went around the room to greet before being seated at the dais. The two emissaries, led by Nana Adusei Atwenewa Ampem, paramount chief of Tepa Traditional, and Nana Agyemang Badu, Otumfuo’s Atipimhene, wore black mourning clothes. The energy in the room was palpable. Once seated, a libation was offered that asked for, among other things, peace, blessings, wisdom, and good health for the yet-to-be chief of the Asanteman Association of New Jersey and his sub-chiefs. Before the swearing-in, some chiefs offered words of wisdom and caution to the new leader as he embarks on his role to lead the Asanteman Association of New Jersey. Heaving his wrap-around clothes lower to show a bare chest – as a symbol of humility – before Nana Adusei Awenewa Ampem and other
Nana Otafregya greeting Nana Adusei Atwenewa Ampem after swearing in.
Nana Otafregya Opoku Frimpong (with raised sword) swearing Oath of Allegiance before Nana Adusei Atwenewa Ampem
traditional rulers, the soon-to-be leader held a ceremonial sword (afena) with both hands and raised it up to the heavens. He then lowered the sword to the ground and made the sign of the Cross on the ground, to signify the power of the Omnipotence.
With a praenomen of Otafregya, the new chief is now known as Nana Otafregya Opoku Frimpong. The subchiefs swore the Oath of Allegiance prior. Special guests included Hon. Simon Osei-Mensah, Ashanti Regional Minister; Rev. Dr. Eleanor
Moody-Shephard, Professor (Emerita) of Women Studies; Rev. Dr. Wanda Lundy, Assistant Professor of Mission Studies and Director of the Center for World Christianity, both of the New York Theological Seminary, and Her Lordship Ellen Edwards, a Brooklyn Criminal Court Judge.
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North America “Reach Out to Give Back”—University Alumni Association Told The highest goal of any effective alumni association is to network to provide resources to sustain their Alma Mater. Members should consider themselves “blessed indeed for the opportunity of higher education” which propelled them to various successes in life. This consideration should motivate them to give back, for “to whom much is given, much will be expected.” This challenge came from Dr. Zachary Yamba, President Emeritus of Essex County College, Newark, NJ, in a keynote address at the 3rd Anniversary of the University of Cape Coast Alumni Association— USA, on May 25, 2019, at their dinner-dance in Elizabeth, New Jersey. Dr. Yamba opined that while alumni gatherings are meant to foster “homecoming” opportunities, space for networking between the past and the present, the centerpiece of the bonding should be the former University itself. “The Alma Mater must sustain itself through its offspring…those
Medgar Evers College Jazzy Jazz Festival Honors Eddy Grant This Summer Trail-blazing musician, Eddy Grant will headline the 23rd Jazzy Jazz Music Festival sponsored by the Department of Mass Communications, Creative and Performing Arts and Speech, Medgar Evers College, The City University of New York scheduled July 5th through Labor Day weekend. A number of featured musicians and performers will bring to the yearly Jazzy Jazz festival more than half a century experience in the entertainment and showbiz industry. The event will also honor the legendary 71-year-old Guyanese-born showbiz impresario, Eddy Grant famous for his immutable Ringbang songs – a bridge between all the rhythms that originated from Africa, with strong resonance with Caribbean people and culture. Coming on the eve of the 50th anniversary Medgar Evers College,
(Left to right) Prof. Kobina Armoo, Dr. Zachary Yamba, Ms. Juliet Amponsah, and Mr. Solomon Osei Boadaa.
who have been nurtured by caring and dedicated professors,” he explained. Dr. Yamba recalled his own journey from Navrongo Secondary School in 1952, through Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, into Winneba College of Education, and eventual transfer to Seton Hall University, U.S.A. “The journey was long and arduous, but my struggles were nothing compared to the sacrifices and generosity of many people who made
it possible for me to be successful,” he added. He encouraged the Alumni to remember the daunting and haunting questions facing Ghana’s current educational system. These include the adequacy of resources, infrastructure, human and technological capacities, and above all, “the adaptation of new, dynamic modalities of instruction which are learner-centered.” He challenged his audience to explore ways to give back for the
benefit of the next generation of students. Dr. E. Obiri Addo of the Africana Studies Program at Seton Hall who chaired the occasion, admonished the Alumni to consider initiating short-term seminars to Ghana in particular and Africa in general for young people as a way to generating appreciation for their roots. “Africa is often marginalized in Study Abroad programs in this country. Take the lead to organize and sponsor our young people during their summer and winter breaks,” he stressed. The theme for three-day series of events was “Networking: A Key to Alumni Growth and Sustainability” The National President of the Association, Professor Kobina Armoo recounted their growth from “small beginnings to the present towards a great future.” He challenged his fellow members to seek the best for UCC, “for the best is yet to come,” he added. The leadership of the Association that attended the events included Prof. Grace Lartey, National Vice President, Mr. Daniel Opare Ayisi, National Communications Director, and Dr. Ras Acolatse, Events & Programs Director.
honoring Eddy Grant at this year’s Jazzy Jazz is significant because of his commitment towards the redemption of colored peoples through his music, just like the late civil rights leader – Medgar Wiley Evers. Eddy Grant has been recognized as a vociferous promoter of the culture and achievements of contemporary black people through socio-political commentary. He founded the first black-owned professional recording studio in Europe, the “Coach House Recording Studio.” An inspiration to legendary musicians including Bob Marley, Eddy is the only living person to have four postage stamps of his image issued in his native Guyana. He is a recipient of numerous awards in the UK and elsewhere for his contribution to music, notably the Caribbean Music Awards at Harlem’s Apollo Theatre in New York City. The Jazzy Jazz festival will take place at the College’s Academic Complex building at the corner of Bedford Avenue and Crown Street. The program is from 7:00 to 10 pm. Seating is on a first come basis. This event is FREE to the public.
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West Africa
Nigeria New Wave of MiddleClass Emigration Deepens Nigeria’s Skill Shortage TOPE ALAKE
A new wave of emigration among Nigeria’s middle class is robbing the oil-rich West African nation of skills and putting local recruitment under pressure. An anemic economy that contracted for the first time in two decades in 2016, poor health facilities and schools, a worsening insecurity marked by a decade-old Islamist insurgency in the northeast, kidnapping and herdsmen attacks in other parts of the country are driving the exodus. It comes at a time when Nigeria has become the nation with the largest number of poor people. Per capital income dipped by 37% since its 2014 peak and is projected to continue declining in the next four years, according to the International Monetary Fund. The exodus in the nation of almost 200 million people is hitting the IT, finance, consumer and health industries particularly hard. “Those who emigrate can timetravel,” said Charles Robertson, chief economist at Renaissance Capital. “They jump forward decades of
economic development to work in countries which are usually more stable, wealthier, with better education for their children and better health care.” President Muhammadu Buhari, 76, who was sworn in Wednesday for a second term, has promised to tackle insecurity and boost economic growth in the continent’s biggest oil-producing country. His spokesman, Garba Shehu, declined a request to comment. Canada’s liberal immigration policy is a strong pull for Nigeria’s top talent that faces rising living costs and stagnant incomes. Inf lation has been at double digits since 2015, while the unemployment
rate has hit its highest level since 2010. Applications for permanent residency in Canada have risen threefold since 2015, data from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada show, while those for temporary residency has almost doubled over the same period. The number of Nigerians suspected overstaying in the U.S. with visitor visas has more than quadrupled from 2015 to last year, according to data from the U.S. department of Homeland Security. The overstay rate of Nigerian students studying in the U.S soared to 22% last year from 4% in 2015.
Of about 155 countries that have citizens overstaying in the U.S. as non-immigrants with business and pleasure visas, Nigeria ranks among the top 10 sharing places with countries such as Djibouti, Eritrea, Yemen, South Sudan, Syria, Chad and Burundi.
Increasing Overstay Almost 30,000 Nigerians admitted with business and tourist visas are overstaying in the U.S as of 2018. The health-care industry is one of the most affected by the exit of professionals. About 9 out of 10 medical doctors in practice are exploring work opportunities abroad, a 2017 survey by polling company NOI Polls shows. In Britain there are currently 6,312 medical doctors of Nigerian origin, according to data on the U.K. General Medical Council website, a 44% increase on 2015 figures. That’s worsened health care in a country that has one doctor to serve 5,000 people, according to the Nigeria Medical Association. “All professional firms and major corporations in Nigeria are affected by the brain drain,” said Andrew S. Nevin, advisory partner and chief economist at PwC Nigeria. “The Nigerian government needs to create an economic and social environment sufficiently attractive to keep our educated young people.” Bloomberg
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West Africa
Ghana Ghanaian Government is Making Heading in Efforts to Reverse U.S. Visa Restrictions MAGDALENE TEIKO LARNYOH
Ghana’s Ambassador to the United States, Dr Barfuor Adjei-Barwuah, says the government is making some progress in its quest to reverse visa restrictions imposed on the country by the United States government. According to Dr Barfuor AdjeiBarwuah, a government delegation led by the Foreign Minister, Ms Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey, has held two successful meetings with the US authorities to help bring the restrictions to an end.
Sierra Leone China to Construct Two Major Water Dams in Sierra Leone ABDUL RASHID THOMAS
Sierra Leone’s minister of water resources – Dr Jonathan Bonopha Tengbe, has confirmed to the Sierra Leone Telegraph that he has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Chinese engineering firm – China Gezhouba Group Company Limited (CGGC) to carry out the Orugu and Congo Dams and Water Treatment Plants projects. Dr Tengbe who is currently in China, signed the MOU in Beijing, China, on Tuesday, 4 June 2019, in the presence of the Ambassador of Sierra Leone to China – Ernest Ndomahina and the Managing Director of Guma Valley Water Company (GVWC) Maada S. Kpenge. Situated in the Mortem village on the Regent to Grafton highway, the Orugu Dam and Treatment Plant will enable GVWC to supply a minimum of 70 million litres of water per day.
His Excellency Dr. Barfuor Adjei-Barwuah
“We are about holding the third meeting in the coming weeks and we trust that there will be finality to the restrictions based on mutual understanding,” he told the Daily Graphic. The US government imposed
visa restrictions on Ghana for what it said was the government’s failure to issue travel documents to over 7,000 Ghanaian citizens awaiting deportation from the United States. In February, the Department of
The Orugu Dam will provide access to clean, safe drinking water to over 600,000 people living in communities in the East of Freetown, especially Grafton, Jui, Waterloo, Allen Town, Calaba Town, Wellington and Kissy. It will also support the Rokel River Water Supply, for which the feasibility study is on-going. Located in the upper reaches of Regent, the Congo Dam and its Treatment Plant when completed, will supply 30 million litres of water per day to the mountain communities of Regent, Leicester, Gloucester, Kortright/Fourah Bay College, Charlotte, Bathurst, IMATT and Hill Station. After thorough due diligence conducted on CGGC in Ghana by the Ministry of Water Resources, the government of Sierra Leone, CGGC and GVWC will commence evaluation of the technical aspects and environmental impacts of the projects. Both the government and CGGC will agree innovative financing solutions for the projects that will not pose a great debt burden on the people of Sierra Leone. Speaking in the UK to the Sierra Leone Telegraph about this latest
development, Dr AA Sesay, a globally renowned specialist in water treatment engineering, commended the government but said he is hoping that the Sierra Leone government will ensure that the construction contract with CGGC will include a clause that guarantees technology, knowledge and skills transfer to Sierra Leone.
Dr. Jonathan Bonopha Tenbe (front-L) signs MOU with Chinese representatives.
Homeland Security ordered the US Embassy in Ghana to discontinue issuing all non-immigrant visas (NIV) to two groups of Ghanaian applicants, starting February 4, 2019. They are the domestic employees of Ghanaian diplomats posted to the United States. Limitations were also placed on the validity and the number of entries on new tourists and business visas for all Ghanaian Executive and Legislative branch employees, their spouses and their children under 21 years to a one-month single entry. After the imposition of the restrictions, some workers of public institutions who used to receive fiveyear visas now get up to three weeks maximum. Ghanaians have expressed fear that if the government does not resolve this issue, the restrictions will be extended to other citizens. Pulse “It is very important that the Chinese company utilises as much local labour (local content) in carrying out the construction works, as well as ensure that Sierra Leoneans are trained in managing and maintaining the facilities, once completed,” Dr Sesay told the editor of the Sierra Leone Telegraph.
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East Africa
Feature Ethiopia and Kenya Struggling to Manage Debt for Chinese-Built Railways YUNNAN CHEN
In the wake of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) Forum in Beijing six weeks ago, Ethiopia gained another Chinese debt-concession. China’s second-largest African borrower and prominent BRI partner in infrastructure finance also received a cancellation on all interest-free loans up to the end of 2018. This was on top of previous renegotiated extensions of major commercial railway loans agreed earlier in 2018.
These concessions highlight the continuing debt-struggles that governments have in taking on Chinese large infrastructure projects But they also demonstrate the advantages and flexibility, that African governments can gain in working with China—if they can leverage it. Ethiopia’s railway projects have been an instructive case of both the benefits and pitfalls of Chinese finance. It has been over a year since the Chinese-built and financed AddisDjibouti standard gauge railway (SGR) opened to commercial service in January 2018. A flagship project of China’s Belt and Road Initiative in the Horn of Africa, and constructed in parallel with Kenya’s showy Chinese-built SGR, the project was Ethiopia’s first railway since a century ago (another urban-rail project, the Addis light-rail transit (LRT) was completed earlier in 2015), as well as being the first fully-electrified line in Africa.
Chinese train masters on the Addis Ababa to Djibouti line
Costing nearly $4.5 billion, the SGR was partly financed through $2.5 billion in commercial loans from China Eximbank, according to figures from SAIS-CARI with further loan packages dedicated to transmission lines and the procurement of rolling stock and locomotives. Part of China’s wider ‘export-supply chain’ strategy, the railway uses a package of Chinese trains, Chinese construction companies, Chinese standards and specifications—and is currently operated under a six-year contract by a joint venture of the two Chinese contractors, CREC and CCECC, who built it. As part of a wider nine-line railway network plan under the Ethiopian Railway Corporation (ERC), the line cuts travel time from the capital Addis Ababa to Djibouti from two days by road to 12 hours. Passing several industrial zone clusters in Addis Ababa and Dire Dawa, it also serves the government’s wider
export-led industrialization strategy, through the strategy of “transit-oriented development”, writ on a national scale. But despite these lofty ambitions, the project has been afflicted by technical and financial challenges, calling into question the wisdom of relying on Chinese technology, as well as debt-financing, for major infrastructure Despite the line’s completion in 2016, delays in the construction of the transmission network held up the railway’s commission, and problems with power outages and technical issues of over-voltage have continue to plague the line in the first year of operation. Other social challenges have also emerged out of railway design choices: the decision to not erect fencing along rural tracts of the railway (both for costsaving purposes and a concern to not divide pastoral communities) has led to the regular phenomenon of collisions between the train and livestock, resulting in conflicts over compensation; the railway become a target for blockades in
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East Africa regional ethnic tensions in the last year, leading several instances of disruption to service. On an economic front, actual uptake of the railway by the industrial zones it was intended to serve remains low—even after a year, the vast majority of the railway’s freight cargo is made up of imports, not exports. Integration with export and industrial zones is low, as the main trunk line does not connect to individual industrial zones, creating significant last-mile shipping and logistics for firms, particularly at port connections Most exporters continue to use road transport, despite the higher time and financial cost, due to its greater flexibility and reliability compared to the train’s twice-daily schedule. This is a major problem for the railway’s economic prospects Few passenger-based rail systems in the world are profitable; in developing countries, most railways connect to mines: one of the few bulk goods that can generate Railway attendants stand in line during the inauguration of the new train line linking Addis Ababa-Djibouti line in October 2016. capital-intensive shortage, worsened by poor export performance, has challenged Ethiopia’s ability to repay many of the loans that financed these projects China also bears the costs State insurer Sinosure publicly Repayments on the principal for commented on $1 billion in losses writ- the Chinese railway loan began in 2017, ten off for the project, and Eximbank before the line was even operational has halted previously-discussed funding As of the beginning of 2019, the for the country’s second line, the section ERC was not only behind in its loan repayments to China, but also unable to from Weldiya to Mekele Though contracted to another front the remainder of the management Chinese SOE, CCCC, Ethiopia faces fees for the Chinese companies operatlittle prospect of further loan finance ing the railway. from China, until the first railway can In late 2018, Ethiopia negotiated with Beijing to restructure of the show demonstrable success. Further financial challenges afflict Eximbank loan terms, extending the rethe projects, along with Ethiopia’s grow- payment period from 15 to 30 years. China’s railway loan concessions to ing debt burden A long-term foreign exchange the Ethiopian government also contrast returns for transport.
such
to the other debt-financed railway project the government is constructing: under Turkish contractor Yapi Merkezi, Ethiopia’s second railway line from Awash to Weldiya is still under construction, financed by a consortium of mostly European lenders including Turkish Eximbank and led by Credit Suisse Despite its delayed Chinese debt repayments, Ethiopia has reportedly never missed a payment to its European creditors, where the penalties to future access to credit are harder. In this, China’s deep and strategically-tied pocketbook has been a big advantage, allowing Ethiopia to juggle CONTINUED ON PAGE 12
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East Africa
The extravagant Mombasa terminal of the SGR line constructed by the China Road and Bridge Corporation (CRBC) and financed by the Chinese government in Kenya
ETHIOPIA AND KENYA RAILWAY DEBT CONTINUED FROM PAGE 11 its external obligations and leverage Chinese flexibility where it can Ethiopia’s renegotiation and rollover of debt indicates that this BRI project is unlikely to have a Hanbantotaesque Chinese takeover In contrast, Kenya’s MombasaNairobi railway—another Chinesedesigned and built SGR which has seen similar concerns over debt-burdens— but curiously has not received similar concessions from China—and has struggled to gain further funding from China for its expansion Longer-term challenges remain in the national railway’s development and success Financial concessions buy Ethiopia more time, but the government still faces an ongoing challenge of capacity building for the eventual handover of railway operations to Ethiopian ownership China has supported through training exchanges in the form of student exchanges and in the construction of a new railway academy dedicated to vocational staff training—and the case of the light rail transit shows some early success: after three years, daily operation has been entirely localized to Ethiopian staff.
However, the Addis-Djibouti SGR has seen more missed opportunities: the very fact that operations and maintenance were awarded to construction contractors with no actual railway operations experience is indicative of the failure of adequate capacity building during construction The government too, has learned from this, pressuring Turkish contractors Yapi Merkezi in the Awash-Weldiya rail project much harder on capacity building for ERC engineers and construction staff. Under Ethiopian premier Abiy, the Horn of Africa country is also learning and adapting in other ways in managing its external partners, increasingly looking to encourage private sector finance and public private partnerships to finance future railway developments. Outside of railway, though, China remains a viable partner: the recent signing of a new power project still demonstrates the considerable sway that China holds as a financier where other international sources of credit remain scarce But both sides have been burned: while the strategic discourse of the Belt and Road mean that the SGR will not be abandoned, both lender and borrower now show greater caution in the infrastructure they pour money into. Quartz
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Central Africa
Cameroon Mass Detention of Opposition Members in Cameroon ILARIA ALLEGROZZI
At least 350 members and supporters of Cameroon’s main opposition party, including its vice president, were arrested across the country this weekend after they tried to hold demonstrations. The arrests, targeting the Cameroon Renaissance Movement (MRC) party, appear to mark yet another step in the government’s attempt to limit political dissent. Cameroon security forces have used excessive and indiscriminate force to snuff out other MRC demonstrations. And in late January, MRC leader Maurice Kamto and some of his closest allies were arrested alongside
Rwanda Rwanda Receives Global Recognition For Strengthening Youth Involvement In Agriculture The Ministry of Agriculture and Animal Resources (MINAGRI) was awarded this year’s Edouard Saouma Award, a global prize instituted by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), for outstanding efforts in involving youth in Rwanda’s agriculture transformation. MINAGRI has been selected as joint winner, with the Ministry of National Food Security and Research in Pakistan for Strengthening youth
Young farmers harvesting tea leaves in Rwanda
Cameroonian opposition leader Maurice Kamto was arrested in Douala on January 28, 2019 for what appears to be politically motivated reasons.
another 200 MRC members and supporters after they held country-wide protests. They remain in detention on politically motivated charges. Over the past few weeks, the MRC submitted several requests for authorization to protest Kamto’s arrest and call for his release. The requests were rejected by administrative authorities,
citing security reasons. But last weekend, MRC leaders and supporters decided to disregard the ban, marching in several cities across the country. One MRC’s lawyer, Emmanuel Simh, told Human Rights Watch: “We filed dozens of requests to hold peaceful marches and as usual authorities refused them all. But we think the
roles and access in the Agricultural sector in Rwanda. The award consists of an inscribed medal, a scroll describing the winner’s achievements and a cash prize of $25,000. Winners are presented with the award by the Director-General at a special ceremony held during the year of the FAO Conference. The award will be presented to Rwanda during the 41st FAO Conference on Wednesday June 26 to be held in Rome, Italy. The award winning project, “Strengthening youth roles and access in the Agricultural sector in Rwanda” funded by the FAO Technical Cooperation Programme (TCP) has supported the establishment of Rwanda Youth Involvement in Agribusiness (RYAF), a platform that brings together different youth organizations, individual youth farmers and entrepreneurs in Agriculture Sector
working in one or many of the agriculture value chains. Today, Rwandan youth involved in Agriculture who are registered under RYAF counts to 12,000+ with more than 1,300 businesses.
constitutional right to peaceful assembly cannot be taken arbitrarily away from us.” Government authorities clearly did not agree. MRC demonstrators in the city of Douala were dispersed with water cannons, while in the capital Yaoundé at least three demonstrators were injured during their arrest and another was beaten upon arrival at the city’s police headquarters. MRC members and supporters remain in detention. At least 75 protestors have been released, some of whom say they were held without access to lawyers at the Secretariat d’Etat à la Defense in Yaoundé, a prison where Human Rights Watch has documented the use of torture. A recent UN Security Council meeting flagged the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Cameroon’s restive anglophone regions, and these arrests are likely to provoke further international concern. The government should know that the world is watching closely. Human Rights Watch These youth are categorized in 5 clusters based on what they do, i.e Agro-processing, Livestock production, Crop production, Inputs and Agro-services, and ICT4Agriculture.
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Volume 18 Issue 6
Central Africa
Dem. Rep. of Congo Ebola Outbreak Cases Have Doubled in Just Two Months Crossing the 2,000-mark YOMI KAZEM
The Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is spreading at an alarming rate. In the last two months alone, the World Health Organization has recorded 1,000 cases—as many as it did in the first seven months after the outbreak was first confirmed in the country’s North Kivu Province last August. As of June 3, the World Health Organization reported 2,020 reported Ebola cases, with 1,354 resulting in deaths. The rapid transmission of the virus that causes a hemorrhagic fever is exacerbating a crisis that’s already surpassed the 1976 outbreak as the country’s worst ever. In comparison, the outbreak in 1976—the first ever recorded—saw only 318 cases identified. The ongoing outbreak is the tenth in DRC’s history. The spiraling outbreak also betrays the DR Congo’s perceived expertise at containing the disease given its relative success with its nine prior outbreaks. But the continued failure to
Ebola related deaths in the DRC have crossed the 2000-mark in just two months
contain the disease’s spread is linked to the location of the outbreak as DRC’s northeast region is home to armed rebel militias and highly prone to conflict. As such, the lack of safety for WHO and local health ministry staff has proved a stumbling block to widespread screening and vaccination as well as tracking possible contacts and cases—all crucial elements of controlling an Ebola outbreak. The UN has described the situation as “working in an operating environment of unprecedented
complexity.” It’s a problem that does not appear to be slowing either as, in 2019 alone, there have been 174 attacks on health facilities or workers in the North Kivu—triple the number of attacks in the last five months of 2018, per WHO. In one of such attacks, Dr Richard Valery Mouzoko Kiboung, a prominent Cameroonian epidemiologist with WHO, was killed in April following an attack on a university hospital in North Kivu. Yet, unless there is a semblance
of security for health workers to work safely at a faster pace, the outbreak is unlikely to abate. Should that happen, it will allow WHO and DRC health ministry officials to deploy rVSV-ZEBOV, the most effective Ebola vaccine currently in use, more widely. During its testing, rVSV-ZEBOV showed a 100% protection rate with thousands of people tested in Guinea all confirmed as virus-free within 10 days. Quartz
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Southern Africa
Mozambique Islamic State Claims Presence in Region, But Police Beg to Differ The Islamic State group has claimed it was involved in an insurgent clash in Mozambique for the first time, but analysts expressed doubt and police dismissed the claim outright. A jihadi insurgency has been growing in the northern Mozambican province of Cabo Delgado since 2017, with more than 200 people killed and many villages torched. According to SITE Intelligence, a company that monitors extremist activity, Islamic State issued a statement late Tuesday claiming involvement in an apparent gunfight with the Mozambique military in Cabo Delgado. “The soldiers of the Caliphate were able to repulse an attack by the Crusader Mozambican army in Metubi village, in the Mocimboa area,” said the statement, according to a SITE translation. “They clashed with them with a variety of weapons, killing and wounding a number of them. “The mujahideen captured weapons, ammunition, and rockets as spoils.” Insurgents regularly attack villages,
Botswana Botswana Lifts Ban On Elephant Hunting SASHA INGBER
Botswana’s government is lifting a ban that protected its elephants from being hunted, part of a series of decisions that could have lasting impacts on the country’s conservation efforts. In a letter to reporters, the Ministry of Environment, Natural Resources Conservation and Tourism referred to elephants as predators and said their numbers “appear to have increased.” It said a subcommittee found that conflicts between humans and elephants had risen, harming livestock and the livelihoods of Botswana’s people. The announcement marked a sharp departure from the policies of former President Ian Khama, who suspended elephant hunting after data showed the population in decline. The ban took effect in 2014 but did not stop hunting in registered game ranches. In May, Botswana’s newly elected president, Mokgweetsi Masisi, made international headlines for giving three African leaders stools made of elephant
A Mozambique National Police spokesperson addresses the press in Maputo, on the recent attacks in northern Mozambique for which Islamic State has claimed responsiblity
kill local people — sometimes beheading them — and burn down houses despite a heavy police and military presence in the province that borders Tanzania. “There are Islamist groups in Mozambique that feel represented by IS,” Fernando Jorge Cardoso, an African specialist at the University Institute of Lisbon in Portugal, told AFP. “But this does not mean that there was a movement of armed men to this place. “It’s good for IS — because they can say that they are spreading, and it’s good for the local group — because they feel that they are part of a greater movement.
It’s propaganda, but it has some meaning.” Another expert on the Mozambique insurgency, who declined to be named, said Islamic State ranks were unlikely to have any direct contact with local fighters. “Islamic State is not in Mozambique … but they might have links,” he said. “Islamic State are struggling to survive but want to give the idea that they are active in Africa.” Police on Wednesday dismissed the Islamic State claims, which came as Muslims worldwide marked the holiday of Eid al-Fitr after the holy month of Ramadan.
feet. In June, he requested a review of the ban on hunting elephants. His study group recommended “regular but limited elephant culling,” in addition to establishing elephant meat canning for pet food and other products. Among other conclusions, it recommended the government expand Botswana’s safari hunting industry. Authorities said Thursday that the government accepted all recommendations except the regular culling of elephants and the establishment of meat canning. “This was rejected because culling is not considered acceptable given the overall continental status of elephants. Rather, a more sustainable method such as selective cropping should be employed,” the government said. Conservationists around the world took to social media to denounce the government’s reversal on elephant hunting. “Horrific beyond imagination,” said Paula Kahumbu, CEO of the Kenya-based WildlifeDirect. She said hunting was an archaic way to address the problems of living with mega fauna. “Africa, we are better than this,” she tweeted. German organization Pro Wildlife wrote that hunting was a bloody sport, “#cruel, outdated, unethical and often undermining” conservation. Other groups celebrated Botswana’s
announcement, including Safari Club International, a U.S.-based organization that supports regulated trophy hunting. President Paul Babaz called it “heartening” in a statement. “These findings clearly show that hunting bans actually hurt wildlife conservation; hunting is the key to providing the necessary revenue to fund anti-poaching efforts and on-theground conservation research,” he said. Fewer than 400 elephant licenses will be granted annually, the government of Botswana announced on Twitter Thursday. It said it was planning for “strategically placed human wildlife conflict fences” and compensation for damage caused by wildlife. All migratory routes for animals that are not considered “beneficial” to Botswana’s conservation efforts
“The security forces distance themselves from these reports,” police spokesman Orlando Mudumane told reporters in Maputo. “The information is not true. The police reiterate the readiness of the security forces to combat whatever wrongdoers do.” The police and government have a policy not to comment on any insurgent activity, even if attacks are confirmed by local people. Militant Islamists have targeted remote communities in gas-rich, Muslimmajority Cabo Delgado since October 2017, but the group’s identity and motives remain unclear. Using local sources, AFP tracked the unrest through May, recording 14 attacks and more than 40 deaths. Attacks have forced temporary closures of voting registration stations ahead of October elections. Lucrative gas fields off Cabo Delgado add an extra dimension to the insurgency as international exploration companies have been caught up in the violence. According to local sources, 16 people were killed in a highway ambush on May 31, in the highest single death toll of the insurgency. Attackers threw home-made explosives into a truck — a new tactic — and then opened fire. AFP
will be closed, including an antelope route to South Africa. Northern Botswana is home to Africa’s largest elephant population, according to the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service. The population grew steadily from 80,000 in 1996 to 129,000 in 2014. It happened as habitat loss and poaching devastated elephant populations across Africa. Between 2010 and 2012 alone, poachers slaughtered 100,000 African elephants, National Geographic reported. Last September, the carcasses of 87 elephants were found close to a protected sanctuary in Botswana. They had been killed for their tusks. NPR
Botswana has the highest population of elephants on the African continent.
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Volume 18 Issue 6
Southern Africa
Zimbabwe Choosing Between Land Ownership Reform and Food Security SELLA ONEKO
Farfell Coffee Estate is known in countries such as Sweden, France and the US for its products The farm employs 600 workers, exports macadamia nuts and sends 1,300 tons of avocados to France each season Its coffee is in demand in more than 50 countries around the world. For estate owner Richard Le Vieux, the future of the farm is, however, uncertain He is facing charges for refusing to make way for Remembrance Gwaradzimba, son of provincial minister Ellen Gwaradzimba, who went to the farm together with the police holding a letter claiming ownership of parts of the farm in February 2019.
The demand was that Le Vieux should cede half of his estate to the new owners who were purportedly given a land offer by the government. Le Vieux resisted but what followed were arrests, detention and court appearances that have disrupted operations at the farm for the past four months “It is very unfortunate what has happened here. I have been targeted in an individual capacity,” Le Vieux told DW. “It is counterproductive for everything that the new administration is trying to achieve, which is to move the country forward after the chaos of the previous 20 years.” For the farm laborers the land dispute has also resulted in uncertainty Leni Kambarami, a mother of three, has worked in the farm’s avocado packing sector for four years She is worried about losing her job if the compulsory acquisition of the farm is allowed to go ahead. “I have three children, two are going to school I will not be able to pay their school fees, let alone have income
Farfell owner Richard Le Vieux has been grappling with court cases over the ownership of his farmland
unfair land ownership imbalances datto buy food,” she said. “If this farm is taken, it will be a ing back to the colonial era, the difference today is that Zimbabwe is very big blow.” aware of the economic downturn the ‘Anything productive should country experienced over the past 20 years. be protected’ Although not as violent as in the Additionally the country’s image early 2000s, the land redistribution on an international playing field is at claims have again cropped up, with a stake. After years of economic isolation, few remaining productive white com- the country “is open for business,” mercial farmers being targeted. Although this was done to correct as President Emmerson Mnangagwa
Aerial view of Farfell Coffee Estate, known in countries such as Sweden, France and the US for its products. The farm employs 600 workers, exports macadamia nuts and sends 1,300 tons of avocados to France each season. Ownership of the estate, caught in the middle of Zimbabwe’s land reform initiatives, is now left to a decision by the courts.
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Southern Africa mentioned repeatedly after the ousting of longtime leader Robert Mugabe. In what could provide some interim relief, the government is said to have taken a decision to stop any fresh farm invasions and occupations. “Government policy is to protect the current businesses that are going on. Anything that is productive is protected,” proclaimed government spokesperson Nick Mangwana. “It is not our policy to disrupt productive land. It is not our policy to disrupt or confiscate land or property, we respect property rights.” The director of the Commercial Farmers Union of Zimbabwe, Ben Gilpin, said the government should fix landownership policies and put a stop to attempts to acquire the land of remaining productive farms. “We would like to see this become policy Clearly, we have asked for a moratorium many times in the past and it would send a positive signal,” Gilpin said “Any time there is disruption on productive land it sends a negative message and investors get very gun shy when they see that this kind of thing can still happen at this time.” Zimbabwean economic analyst Vince Musewe believes that the handling of land redistribution is currently based more on politics than on actual research. “You can see that there is a disconnect between national policy and what happens on the ground at provincial level,” Musewe told DW. Musewe criticizes the government for dragging its feet. “There’s plenty of land for everybody if you want to get into farming But the problem has been that people who have jobs elsewhere end up getting a farm and not being
The farm produces avocados, coffee and macadamia nuts for local use and export.
productive on the farm.” Proper land redistribution can only be done when a land audit that is currently underway is finished. The problem is, he says, that in the past one and a half years, only eight percent of the land has been audited.
Currently Zimbabwean farmers are producing just over half that amount. “The priority is to make sure that the large farms are being productive. The second is the issue of small-scale farmers – if they are productive, you also have food security because they
don’t have to be fed,” says Musewe. “We have the land, we have the water systems So it’s a matter of investment, implementation and project management.” Deutsche Welle
Food insecurity In the last land reforms, about 4,500 productive commercial farmers lost farms and only a small number, estimated at fewer than 500, are still operating Much of the redistributed land is either idle or poorly utilized. What is even more harrowing than fresh land disputes, however, is a looming drought, says Musewe In the event of another drought, the country needs about 1.3 million tons of food to be food secure, he says
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60 Evergreen Place, Suite 308 East Orange, NJ 07018 Authorities say productive farms like Farfell shouldn’t be targeted.
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Volume 18 Issue 6
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North Africa
Sudan Surge in Violence Results in African Union Membership Suspended CATHERINE BYARUHANGA
The African Union has suspended Sudan’s membership “with immediate effect”, amid an upsurge of violence in the capital that has seen dozens killed. The pan-African body has warned of further action if power is not transferred to a civilian authority - a key demand of pro-democracy protesters. Opposition activists say a paramilitary group has killed 108 people this week, but officials put the figure at 46. Residents said pro-government militia were all over the capital Khartoum. The violence intensified on Monday when security forces stormed a weeks-long sit-in outside military headquarters in the capital. It is the deadliest incident since veteran President Omar al-Bashir was ousted by the military in April after months of peaceful protests. Talks between opposition activists and the ruling interim military council have since broken down. “The AU Peace and Security Council has with immediate effect suspended the participation of the Republic of Sudan in all AU activities until the effective establishment of a Civilian-led Transitional Authority, as the only way to allow the Sudan to exit from the current crisis,” the AU tweeted. The decision was made unanimously by members at an emergency
Sudan has seen its most violent week since the ousting of President Omar al-Bashir in April
meeting of the AU in Addis Ababa that lasted more than five hours. The chairman of the African Union commission, Moussa Faki Mahamat, on Monday called for an “immediate and transparent” investigation into the killings. Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed was heading to Khartoum on Friday to try to mediate between the two sides, Reuters news agency reported, quoting diplomatic sources. The Sudanese authorities spoke out for the first time on Thursday about the death toll, denying that it was as high as 100 and claiming it was “at most” 46. Doctors linked to the opposition say the figure is as high as 108, and that 40 bodies were pulled from the River Nile in Khartoum on Tuesday. The deputy head of the military council, Mohammed Hamadan, defended the violent suppression, claiming that the protesters had been
infiltrated by rogue elements and drug dealers. Meanwhile, residents in Khartoum told the BBC they are living in fear, with much of the city in lockdown in the wake of the killings. Numerous reports said a paramilitary unit, the feared Rapid Support Forces (RSF), was roaming the city’s nearly deserted streets on Monday, targeting civilians. Formerly known as the Janjaweed militia, the RSF gained notoriety for brutal atrocities in the Darfur conflict in western Sudan in 2003. People are still coming to terms with the violence of the last few days. At the former sit-in area - there are torn and charred posters as well as burnt-out tents. The fear is that more of the dead could still be there. Security forces seem to outnumber civilians on the streets of the capital. Reports continue to come in of their brutal crackdown.
Security forces continue to patrol the streets of Khartoum, three days after Monday’s violence
At Ibrahim Maleek Teaching Hospital - the doctors and nurses have not come to work because they’re afraid of being targeted. Instead, it is the medical students who are treating patients. Thirty-three-year-old Mohanned Mirghani said he was shot at close range by the Rapid Support Forces. “They shot me from close range; the RSF were the distance that you are from me now,” he said. “Two of my friends were also shot but I don’t know what happened to them.” It is hard to get a proper sense of what happened. One big hindrance is the fact that the military rulers have cut off the internet. Sudan has been controlled by a military council since pro-democracy protests ended President Bashir’s 30-years of authoritarian rule. Demonstrators had been occupying the square in front of the military headquarters, while their representatives had negotiated with the military council and agreed a three-year transition that would culminate in elections. But after security forces swept in and opened fire on unarmed protesters in the square on Monday, the head of the military council - General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan - announced that the agreement was cancelled and an election would take place within nine months. After an appeal from Saudi Arabia to resume talks, Gen Burhan reversed course and said the military council would “open our arms to negotiate with no restriction”. But the offer was rejected by the opposition activists, who said the military council could not be trusted after the crackdown. BBC
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