Author: Database of Press Releases related to Africa

ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia, April 9, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — The Chairperson of the Commission of the African Union (AU), Dr. Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, welcomes the formal commencement of the Sudan National Consultative Dialogue through the…

ABIDJAN, Côte d’Ivoire, April 9, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — YooMee Africa Group (http://www.yoomee.ci), a Swiss based provider of mobile broadband Internet in sub-Saharan Africa, launches its operations in Côte d’Ivoire. After becoming the market leader of broadband Internet in Cameroon, YooMee Africa continues its expansion by deploying its network in Côte d’Ivoire.

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Broadband internet in the Ivorian market

YooMee Côte d’Ivoire, based in Abidjan, is launching its LTE services to individuals and businesses. These services are based on the latest global technology TD-LTE, which ensures a new, faster Internet experience with more stability and better reliability for Ivorian users. With these advantages, its great success in Cameroon and an unrivaled quality of service, YooMee anticipates strong growth in the number of Internet users and subscribers for Internet access in Côte d’Ivoire.

YooMee Côte d’Ivoire Technology

LTE (Long Term Evolution) is the latest wireless broadband Internet technology used worldwide, by the leading operators in the United States,China, Japan, Europe and the Middle East, etc. The LTE allows Internet communication with data transmission speeds beyond 10 Mbit/s. YooMee relied on the proven expertise of Alcatel-Lucent, a global provider of LTE equipment.

LTE technology frees the mind of those who want to stay connected while traveling. Whether browsing the Internet, watching videos or listening to live-stream music, LTE provides a great connection speed regardless of where the user is located; at home, in the office, or outdoors.

As stated by Mr. Dov Bar-Gera, CEO of YooMee Africa Ltd., “I am very proud that the authorities of Côte d’Ivoire have issued to YooMee the necessary permissions and spectrum to build the first LTE network in the country. With this network, West Africa is leapfrogging into a new era of the Internet.”

YooMee Côte d’Ivoire Internet Equipment

YooMee is to launch its services with a variety of usage plans for their subscribers with 3 product groups: a USB Key and Mobile WiFi, both dedicated for the mobile usage, and the desktop YooMee Box for the office or for home usage. Device prices will varyfrom US$ 100 up to US$ 160.

Mr. Peter Ziegelwanger, Group CTO of YooMee Africa, added, “Our local team deployed the first base of the network in only 100 days. We are all very proud of such achievement.In the coming days, the quality of Internet in Abidjan will be comparable to the great capitals of the world.”

Contracts

Customers can easily add credit to their YooMee account, thanks to a multitude of partner outlets available to the public throughout the city.

Several types of contracts, or packages, are available, depending on the needs of the customer. The attractive offers start at only US$ 30 for a volume of 8.5GB of data usage. Other offers are available to individuals or businesses, seeking larger volumes of up to 100GB of data usage.

The YooMee Africa Group continues its expansion and plans to soon enter other countries in the region.

Distributed by APO (African Press Organization) on behalf of YooMee Africa Group.

Media Contact:

Ms. Pauline Dubois

+41445532231

Email : pauline.dubois@yoomee-africa.com

For more information on YooMee Côte d’Ivoire as well as for products and services offered, please visit our website: http://www.yoomee.ci and follow us on our social networks:

https://www.facebook.com/yoomeecotedivoire

https://twitter.com/yoomeeci

http://youtube.com/yoomeecm

http://www.linkedin.com/company/yoomee-ivory-coast

DUBAI, UAE, April 9, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — APO (African Press Organization) (http://www.apo-opa.com), the sole press release newswire in Africa and the global leader in media relations relating to Africa, was today named agency of the month by the Middle East Public Relations Association (MEPRA) (http://www.mepra.org), a non-profit organisation that represents the interests of PR practitioners working in the Middle East. MEPRA endeavours to highlight the strategic role of public relations and help set high standards for quality and ethical conduct by all practitioners.

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APO manages Africa Wire®, the newswire service for press release distribution and monitoring in Africa. This reaches over 50,000 media outlets, bloggers and social networks, and redistributes content to more than 50 African websites, as well as to Bloomberg Terminal, Thomson Reuters, Lexis Nexis, Dow Jones Factiva and others.

Used by some of the world’s largest companies, communications agencies, institutions and organisations, Africa Wire® guarantees the most extensive outreach in Africa and acts as a channel that allows APO’s clients to target audiences in all parts of the continent and also the world.

“We are proud to be named Agency of the month by MEPRA. This comes as a confirmation that our decision to establish ourselves in Dubai has been a successful move. We are receiving daily enquiries for our online press conference service; it is simply fantastic!”, comments Nicolas Pompigne-Mognard, APO Founder and CEO.

More information about Africa Wire®, the service for newswire press release distribution in Africa, is available at http://www.apo-opa.com/services.php

Contact:

Aïssatou Diallo

bdm@apo-opa.org

+41 22 534 96 97

About APO

APO (African Press Organization) (http://www.apo-opa.com) is the sole press release newswire in Africa and is a global leader in media relations relating to Africa.

With offices in Senegal, Switzerland, Dubai, India, and Seychelles, APO owns a media database of over 50,000 contacts and is the main online community for Africa-related news.

It offers a complete range of services, including press release distribution and monitoring, online press conferences, interactive webcasts, media interactions, strategic advice, public diplomacy, government relations and events promotion. To find out more, please visit http://www.apo-opa.com.

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OTTAWA, Canada, April 9, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — The Honourable Christian Paradis, Minister of International Development and La Francophonie, today announced $2 million in additional funding to support the World Health Organization (WHO) work in Somalia and $1 million to UNICEF in response to recent polio outbreaks in East Africa and the Horn of Africa.

Minister Paradis made the announcement at a gathering co-hosted by Aga Khan Foundation Canada, the Canadian Network for the Maternal, Newborn and Child Health, and UNICEF Canada.

“All children, regardless of where they live, deserve a future with hope and optimism. That is what drives Canada’s effort to eradicate polio once and for all. Through the Prime Minister’s Muskoka Initiative we are working to ensure that every last child is reached,” said Minister Paradis. “Vaccines are among the most cost-effective investments in global heath, saving about 2.5 million lives each year. As long as polio exists on the planet our government will be a steadfast partner in the fight to make polio history.”

The Government of Canada continues to support key partners, such as the WHO, UNICEF and Rotary International, to help reach the goal set by the Global Polio Eradication Initiative by 2018. Last year, Canada pledged $250 million between 2013 and 2018 to this mission and has already disbursed more than $100 million toward polio eradication activities around the world, including in Afghanistan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Pakistan.

“To achieve a polio-free world, sustained support from generous donors like the Canadian government is absolutely critical as it allows us to reach children living in the most remote, disadvantaged and conflict- affected regions of the world,” said UNICEF Canada’s President and CEO David Morley. “Canada’s continued support of polio eradication worldwide reinforces its position as a global leader in maternal, newborn and child health.”

“Canada has been at the front line of this global initiative. Through its government, institutions and organizations, Canada has contributed essential financial and technical resources to consign polio to the history books once and for all,” said Dr. Bruce Aylward, WHO Assistant Director-General for Polio and Emergencies. “We need Canada’s ongoing leadership, to help secure the financial resources needed to complete the job, and to advocate with leaders in the remaining infected countries to ensure every child is reached with the polio vaccine.”

“Rotary commends the Government of Canada for its longstanding support of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative,” said Wilfrid J. Wilkinson, PolioPlus National Advocacy Advisory, Rotary International. “Canada is a true leader in its commitment to ending polio, and the lessons we learn will be applied to other maternal and child health issues worldwide.”

Quick Facts

• Canada was the first country to donate to the Global Polio Eradication Initiative when it was launched in 1988 by national governments, WHO, Rotary International, the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and UNICEF.

• Canada has been the single-largest donor to polio eradication in Afghanistan, where more than 12 million children have been vaccinated because of our support.

• Since 1988, Canada and its partners have supported the immunization of hundreds of millions of children, and polio cases have decreased by more than 99 per cent.

• The polio virus is had been limited to parts of Afghanistan, Pakistan and Nigeria (where the number of cases was at an all-time low in 2013).

• There have been recent outbreak areas in the Horn of Africa, Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea and Syria, which are on track to be stopped in the coming year.

NAIROBI, Kenya, April 9, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — Police in the semi-autonomous republic of Somaliland on Thursday raided the Hargeisa offices of the independent Somali-language paper Haatuf and its sister English-language weekly, Som…

BRUSSELS, Kingdom of Belgium, April 8, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — The spokesperson of Catherine Ashton, High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and

Security Policy and Vice President of the Commission, issued the following statement today:

“The High Representative extends her condolences to the family of former President Kumba Yalá and to the people of Guinea Bissau.

On 13 April, Guinea-Bissau will hold a general election. The High Representative calls on all

Bissau-Guineans to pursue the electoral process peacefully in conformity with the electoral code and in respect of democracy and rule of law and to accept the election results. Only appropriate legal channels should be used to seek redress for any grievances. The EU has deployed an Election Observation Mission to follow the election process until its completion.

The High Representative reiterates her full support for the efforts of ECOWAS and the UNSG

Special Representative Ramos-Horta in helping the country to move towards a stable democracy.

The EU stands ready to engage with the legitimate authorities resulting from peaceful, free and credible elections and to support their efforts to reform, consolidate and reconcile the country.”

MOGADISHU, Somalia, April 8, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — The National Union of Somali Journalists (NUSOJ) is outrageous by the closure of the Haatuf Newspaper offices in Hargeysa by the Somaliland police and urges the authorities to re-o…

JOHANNESBURG, South-Africa, April 8, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — Infobip (http://www.infobip.com), a global provider of mobile messaging and payments, announced today that it has launched the first ever end-to-end business messaging solu…

LAGOS, Nigeria, April 8, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — The power sector in Nigeria is undergoing positive reform, paving the way for significant economic growth in all industries. The success of the power sector will need robust companies with the financial capability and the technical support of global technical partners in order to develop high performance power solutions.

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JMG Limited (http://www.jmglimited.com) has always been a leader in Nigeria’s power generator industry. In order to leverage on the dynamic changes in the country’s power sector, it has signed a partnership agreement with Mitsubishi Turbocharger and Engine Europe B.V. (being the headquarters of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd products in Europe, Middle East and Africa). The partnership enhances JMG’s capabilities to offer solutions in power plants, cogeneration, independent power projects, and gas turbines.

Mitsubishi is well known for its engine technology capable of producing high efficiency power systems. It manufactures superior engines totaling 10 GW output every year and featuring the best fuel efficiency figures in the world. Mitsubishi is also the owner of Pratt & Whitney, one of the manufacturers of gas turbines for power generation. The conglomerate is confident about the opportunities available in Nigeria’s power sector and is committed towards expanding its operations to the country. Mitsubishi Turbocharger and Engine Europe B.V. (MTEE) Sales and Marketing Manager, Mr. Morten Brix visited Nigeria during the Nigeria Oil and Gas Exhibition 2014 in Abuja to celebrate Mitsubishi’s partnership with JMG and emphasize the company’s focus on Nigeria. He was quoted saying; “working closed with our local partner has proved highly effective. We have commenced sales in Nigeria and are ready to prove our expertise on the ground”.

JMG’s Managing Director, Mr. Mazen Jubaili, underlined the company’s investments over the past decade in developing technology and human capacity to better serve Nigeria’s needs. The partnership with Mitsubishi highlights JMG’s active role in providing the country with high performance power solutions.

JMG’s launch pad for this exciting new venture was the Nigerian Oil and Gas Exhibition from the 18th to the 20th of March in Abuja. Experts from JMG and MTEE presented the companies’ capabilities and engaged with visitors on various topics.

Distributed by APO (African Press Organization) on behalf of Harith General Partners (Pty) Ltd.

Media contact:

Jad Moukarim

JMG Limited

+234 (0)80 66 99 90 71

jadsgood@gmail.com

• For more information on JMG Ltd please visit http://www.jmglimited.com

• For more information on MTEE please visit http://www.mtee.eu

• For more information on Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd please visit http://www.mhi-global.com

GENEVA, Switzerland, April 8, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — The recent mass expulsion of over 150,000 irregular Ethiopian migrants from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia highlighted the human challenges posed by people smuggling in the Horn of Africa.

The Ethiopian Government now recognizes the need to improve public awareness of the risks associated with irregular migration and is taking action to remedy the problem.

To complement the government’s efforts, IOM Ethiopia, in partnership with the government and civil society, has launched an initiative to engage Ethiopians through “community conversations.”

These are intended to create a forum through which communities can discuss local alternatives to migration and ways to combat irregular migration.

In the coming two months, IOM plans to train over 800 community conversation facilitators. They will include religious and community leaders and representatives of vulnerable groups, including the elderly and women.

When trained, the facilitators will engage their communities to discuss irregular migration and will report on community initiatives to ensure that the information reaches policy makers at regional and federal levels.

The project aims to reach some 350 community groups in kebeles (districts) in five high risk migration regions, including Oromia, Tigray, Amhara, SNNPR National Regional States and Addis Ababa City Administration.

IOM Ethiopia is also actively engaged in sensitizing the public through other channels, including national and regional workshops, radio programmes and touring theatre shows with tailored messages for specific groups. In January IOM presented a popular touring theatre show entitled ‘Mutach’ in rural areas traditionally associated with irregular migration.