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Date: Sat, 13 Apr 2002 15:07:54 -0700
From: charlotte utting <[log in to unmask]>
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Subject: [WASAN] FW: WEST AFRICA NEWSLETTER, Vol.2, No.2, April 12, 2002
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Date: Sat, 13 Apr 2002 16:33:04 -0500 (CDT)
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Subject: RE: WEST AFRICA NEWSLETTER, Vol.2, No.2, April 12, 2002
International Center and Liberia Institute of Journalism
WEST AFRICA NEWSLETTER
Reporting on Human Rights, Democracy & Development
Vol. 2 No.2 April 12, 2002
Please send this newsletter to anyone who is interested!!!
CONTENTS
1. EDITOR’S COMMENTS
2. RIGHTS AND DEMOCRACY
3. REFUGEES
4. HEALTH/ ENVIRONMENT
5. DEVELOPMENT
6. MEDIA/TECHNOLOGY
7. ELECTIONS/WEST AFRICA
8. WORLD BANK PIPELINE
9. ANNOUNCEMENTS
10. ABOUT US
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
1. EDITOR’S COMMENTS
The world greatest feastival kicks off in June, in Japan and South Korea.
Africa is being represented by five teams: Nigeria, Tunisia, South Africa,
Senegal and Africa's best Cammeroon. Watching their test practice matches
since
the end of the Nations Cup in Mali, only Cammeroon and Senegal have been a
little impressive. If Africa is to be a contender in this year's World Cup
tournament her five representatives need to buckle down and play soccer at
world class level. Being trashed by a little known football team like the
Georgians that flocked South Africa 4-1, will not get us too far. Africa has
the chance to win of one the two greatest prizes in soccer that is up for
grabs. Hayatou running his bulldozer over Blatter in the FIFA's election or
Africa bringing home the crown jewel--"the World Cup". For us at WEST AFRICA
NEWSLETTER (WAN), we will settle for either one. Our pray is that both team
MUST do well on both fields of play. We hope that FIFA employs her fair play
rule during the election and not Robert Mugabe's Style or the Mickey Mouse
elections that took place in Florida that brought George Bush to the White
House. We say, go Africa and Hayatou all the way!
2. RIGHTS AND DEMOCRACY
Another Rabat Summit in the Making As MRU Foreign Ministers Meet
http://www.allafrica.com
Foreign Ministers of the Mano River Union member states are reportedly
holding
talks in Rabat, the capital of Morocco, to lay ground works for a second
meeting among the heads of state of Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone.
Foreign lenders cut Ivory Coast's debts
http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/business/newsid_1923000/1923385.stm
The Paris Club of rich lending nations has agreed to restructure $2.26bn
(£1.57bn) of the Ivory Coast's external public debt.
Nigeria: Military Massacres Unpunished Obasanjo's Human Rights Progress
Called
into Question http://www.hrw.org/press/2002/04/nigeria040102.htm
(New York, April 1, 2002) -- The Nigerian government has so far failed to
conduct any investigation or prosecution into the massacre of more than two
hundred unarmed civilians by the Nigerian army in Benue State in October
2001,
Human Rights Watch charged in a report published today
</reports/2002/nigeria/>
3. REFUGEES
Exploiting Refugees
http://allafrica.com/stories/200204100267.html
A RECENT disturbing report on the sexual exploitation of two Sierra Leonean
women refugees at a camp in Liberia once again underscores how human beings
can
take advantage of the helplessness of others for their selfish ends.
According
to the touching report from the refugee transit camp in Zemmi Liberia, two
Sierra Leonean women complained that they were subjected to excruciating
experiences the worst of which was their being compelled to provide sex for
humanitarian workers when they ran to the neighbouring country to escape the
ravaging civil war in their country.
100 Diamond Pieces Found With 'Blood Diamond' Suspects
Sidiq Asemota, Head, Judicial Desk,Banjul
http://allafrica.com/stories/200204050642.html
According to authoritative sources Pieter Diorvan, a Belgian and Ibrahim
Turay,
a Sierra Leonean who were arrested recently by Gambian security personnel
were
found with 100 pieces of diamond.
The two suspects were apprehended last month by the security personnel on a
tip-
off.
WFP in Urgent Appeal for Drought Victims
http://allafrica.com/stories/200204030540.html
The World Food Programme launched an urgent appeal for US $7.5 million on
Tuesday for 250,000 Mauritanians most affected by drought, the agency
reported.
Refugees Settle Into New Sites
http://allafrica.com/stories/200204120458.html
The Sierra Leone government has approved the gradual transformation of sites
built for returning refugees, into settlements for Liberians fleeing
fighting
in their country, UNHCR said in its weekly update 5-11 April.
4. HEALTH/ENVIRONMENT
Second Polio Immunisation Round Ends
http://allafrica.com/stories/200204100491.html
A second polio immunisation round targeting children under five years has
ended
in eight districts in the north and east of Sierra Leone, Alhassan Seisay,
coordinator of the national Expanded Programme on Immunisation (EPI) at the
Ministry of Health, said on Wednesday.
Second World Assembly on Ageing
http://www.who.int/home-page/
The Second UN World Assembly on Ageing will explore the implications of
rapid
population ageing worldwide. Particular attention will be given to the
importance of maintaining health and quality of life as individuals age. WHO
will unveil a new roadmap for designing healthy ageing policies.
Who Conference On Health And Disability
http://www.who.int/home-page/
17-20 April 2002 / Trieste, Italy
The International Conference on Health and Disability will address how best
to
classify the functioning, health and disability of people around the world.
Experts will discuss the conceptualisation and measurement of population
health
and disability and new definitions of disability.
5. DEVELOPMENT
THABO MBEKI'S NEW PARTNERSHIP FOR AFRICA'S DEVELOPMENT: BREAKING OR
>SHINING
THE CHAINS OF GLOBAL APARTHEID? ***
By Patrick Bond
Patrick Bond's discussion paper is available in its entirety at:
><http://www.fpif.org/papers/nepad/index.html>
(Editor's Note: Launched in October 2001, the New Economic Partnership for
>Africa's Development (NEPAD online at http:// www.nepad.org) aims to establish
a >"new framework of interaction with the rest of the world, including the
>industrialized countries and multilateral organizations" as a means of
>putting Africa on a high-growth path. As a project of the African Union, >it
tries to articulate a regional development strategy. The NEPAD outlines >a
reciprocal set of commitments between Africa states, donor governments, >and
the private sector as a framework for managing Africa's integration >into
the
world economy.
New FAO Project to Tackle Illegal Fishing
http://allafrica.com/stories/200204100396.html
A programme to combat fish poaching implemented by the Food and Agriculture
Programme, is to target illegal trawling in West African countries including
Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Senegal and Sierra Leone, the United Nations agency
reported on Friday.
Chinese President Arrives Nigeria Tomorrow
http://allafrica.com/stories/200204130036.html
President Jiang Zemin and his wife, Wang Yepin, will arrive Abuja, Nigeria
on
tomorrow at the start of a three-day state visit. They will be received by
President Olusegun Obasajo and his wife, Chief (Mrs.) Stella Obasanjo
6. ELECTION/WEST AFRICA
Transparency At the Core of Presidential Elections
http://allafrica.com/stories/200204110495.html
Mali has mandated two new bodies to ensure transparency in presidential
elections due later this month, and allocated equal time on state radio and
space in the government newspaper for each candidate, officials in the
capital,
Bamako, said on Wednesday. Some 24 candidates are vying for the presidency.
UN Publication On Elections And Human Rights
http://allafrica.com/stories/200204110527.html
The UN Mission in Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL) launched publications on Wednesday
designed to help police officers uphold human rights issues during the
upcoming
elections.
Peace And Conflict Resolution Centre Proposed
http://allafrica.com/sierraleone/
A Sierra Leonean NGO, Current Evangelism Ministries (CEM), aims to open a
peace
and conflict resolution centre in the capital, Freetown, if it receives
adequate funding, according to a project proposal IRIN received.
7. MEDIA/TECHNOLOGY
African Journalist of the Year Finalists Emerge
http://allafrica.com/stories/200204120054.html
Tunde Okoli With Agency Reports, Lagos
The finalists of the seventh CNN African Journalist of the Year Competition,
held in partnership with the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC)
and
sponsored by a number of pan-African companies, were announced on Monday by
Dr.
Doyinsola Abiola, Managing Director/Editor-in-Chief, of the rested Concord
Press Nigeria titles. Abiola is the chairperson of the independent panel.
World Health Organization's Journalism Fellowship Programme
For more details log on to the below listed webpage.
http://www.who.int/inf/en/fellowship_programme.html
April 10-12, Rooms X and X bis
22nd session of the Intergovernmental Council of the International Programme
for the Development of Communication (IPDC)
http://www.unesco.org/bpi/eng/current_events/2002/index.shtml
The Council will discuss recommendations to reform its working methods. A
debate will be held on April 11 (3 p.m.) "Is there still a need for the IPDC
-
and if yes, why? Media development: what direction will it take and what
role
will the IPDC play in it?"
For more than 20 years, the IPDC has focused on the most pressing priorities
in
the communication field in developing countries, promoting press freedom,
and
media independence and pluralism. Since it was founded, the IPDC has raised
some US$85 million for more than 900 projects in over 130 developing
countries
8. WORLD BANK PIPELINE PROJECT
World Bank and IMF Support Additional Debt Relief for Burkina Faso Under
Enhanced HIPC Initiative
Contact Person:
Anthony Gaeta (202) 473-1798
[log in to unmask] <mailto:[log in to unmask]>
http://www.workdbank.org
WASHINGTON, April 12, 2002 -- The World Bank's International Development
Association (IDA) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) agreed this week
that Burkina Faso has taken the steps necessary to reach its completion
point
under the enhanced framework of the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC)
Initiative. Burkina Faso becomes the fifth country to reach this point,
joining
Bolivia, Mozambique, Tanzania and Uganda
LACK OF WATER HOLDS AFRICA BACK.
http://www.worldbank.org
An international study to be released today warns that there can be no
progress
on Africa's social, political or economic challenges without immediate
action
to address acute water shortages on the continent, the Toronto Star (Canada)
reports.
In a report produced by the Accra Water Conference, in advance of a summit
in
the Ghanaian capital next week, leaders of the industrialized nations are
warned that countries can never escape poverty when people are subsisting on
10
liters of water per day.
Making Monterrey Work For Africa
New study highlights dwindling aid flows, mounting challenges
http://www.worldbank.org/developmentnews/stories/html/041102a.htm
April 11, 2002—Africa urgently needs rich nations to deliver on their
promises
of more generous aid and wider trade opportunities to reverse the cruel
effects
of the HIV/AIDS pandemic, civil wars, and persistent low growth rates, the
World Bank said Wednesday.
9. ANNOUCEMENTS
Launching of the Asante Akim Multipurpose Community Telecentre (AAMCT) This
is
the first major project we embarked on after the GhaCLAD 2000 conference.
The
AAMCT is the first solar-powered multipurpose telecentre in Ghana (see
details
at <http://www.patriensa.com>). For the first time in the history of Ghana,
rural underserved people now have access to computers, the Internet, and
electronic networks. This project is being used to promote rural electronic
commerce, computer education, and "digital culture." You can now listen to
music from the village of Patriensa at <http://www.e-greenstar.com/Music>.
This
pilot project will be duplicated around the country through GhaCLAD's
Telecentre Franchise Network (TFN). If your organization is interested in
becoming part of the TFN, kindly contact us for additional details.
10. ABOUT US
The WEST AFRICA NEWSLETTER (WAN), is an online publication of the Liberia
Institute of Journalism (LIJ), located at the corner of Broad and Johnson
Sts.,
in Monrovia, Liberia, West Africa, and funded by the International
Center-731 -
8th S.E., Washington, DC. To subscribe just log on to our webpage at
http://www.lij.kabissa.org and click WAN.
We do publish news, information and articles free of charge send all to the
editor Vinnie Hodges at [log in to unmask]
The Liberia Institute of Journalism(LIJ), is a non-profit journalists
training
Institue that being supported by the National Endowment for Democracy(NED),
Open Society Initiatives for West Africa(OSIWA), World Press Freedom
Committee
(WPFC), The International Center and ICFJ.
---
WestAfrica-Newsletter is hosted on Kabissa - Space for change in Africa
To post, write to: [log in to unmask]
Website: http://www.kabissa.org/lij
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Next WASAN meeting is Wednesday, April 24, 2002. Location: Safeco Jackson Street Center, 306 23rd Ave. S @ S. Main St, Suite 200, Seattle (enter parking lot off of S. Main, between 23rd and 24th)
7:00 PM WASAN business meeting
7:30 PM PROGRAM: "Kenya: Development Challenges and Successes form the Grassroots" with Wriko Waita. A free event.
We usually meet the fourth Wednesday of the month. For a calendar of local Africa events see http://www.ibike.org/africamatters/calendar.htm . To post a message: [log in to unmask] To subscribe send a message to [log in to unmask] To unsubscribe send a message to [log in to unmask] . All past postings are archived at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wa-afr-network
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