Category: APO-OPA

BERLIN, Germany, October 27, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier issued the following statement today (26 October) on the parliamentary elections held in Tunisia:
The parliamentary elections are a milest…

VATICAN, Holy See, October 27, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — Today the Holy Father Francis received in audience in the Vatican Apostolic Palace the president of the Republic of Uganda, Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, who subsequently met with Card…

WASHINGTON, October 27, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — Press Statement
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Washington, DC
October 27, 2014

I join President Obama in congratulating the Tunisian people on the success of yesterday’s legislative ele…

GENEVA, Switzerland, October 27, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — The UN Human Rights Committee will be holding a news conference to discuss the outcome of its 112th session on Thursday 30 October at 13:30 in Press Room III, Palais des Nation…

BRUSSELS, Kingdom of Belgium, October 27, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — Today, the EU has confirmed that it will support the wider region of the Horn of Africa with a total of €3 billion until 2020, primarily coming from the 11th European Development Fund (EDF). The largest share of this will be channelled through bilateral funding to Ethiopia, Eritrea, Uganda, Somalia, Djibouti and Kenya; parts will also go to regional organisations. EU Development Commissioner, Andris Piebalgs, commented: “The EU stands ready to further deepen its long-standing partnership with the Horn of Africa – helping to build robust and accountable political structures, enhancing trade and economic cooperation, financing peace keeping activities and providing humanitarian assistance and development cooperation. Our support will help the people of the Greater Horn on their path to much needed peace, stability, resilience and growth.” The comprehensive approach of the EU in the region covers for instance support to better connections between countries within the Horn of Africa region (e.g. transport, energy); support to the state building process in Somalia and the African peace keeping force AMISOM, as well as training of Somali security forces; fighting piracy in the Western Indian Ocean through an EU naval force (EU NAVFOR – Atalanta).

GENEVA, Switzerland, October 27, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — Detainees and prisoners in Guinea are held in squalid, overcrowded facilities that fall far short of international human rights standards, according to a new UN report released Monday on human rights in detention centres in the country.

Based on visits by the UN Human Rights Office in Guinea to 30 detentions centres and 53 police and gendarmerie holding cells, the report documents human rights violations at various stages of the justice process, including the lack of respect for due process guarantees during arrest, detention and in the conduct of court cases.

“The application of fundamental rights and procedural guarantees, such as the rights to physical integrity, the right to a lawyer during the penal process and the right of an accused to be brought before a judge within a reasonable time, have been severely restricted,” the report states. The report has also documented numerous cases of torture and other ill treatment in detention.

It cites the “quasi-systematic recourse to provisional detention” and the lack of regular court hearings as key causes for the serious overcrowding in Guinean prisons. At the “Maison centrale de Conakry” prison, for example, of 1,140 detainees as of May last year, only 250 had been convicted while 890 were in provisional detention. The Maison centrale was originally built to hold 300 prisoners.

“[Holding cells] are cramped, dark, overheated and unsanitary. They lack ventilation and decent latrines,” the report notes. “Prisoners sleep on the floor.”

In some detention facilities, minors share cells with adults. There are also no detention centres for women, meaning that women are sometimes held in the corridors of detention facilities or forced to share the same latrines with men. Accused and convicted individuals are also often detained in the same cells.

The report acknowledges the Government’s efforts to reform the security sector, in particular through the adoption of a national security policy. The Government has also adopted measures to improve conditions of detention, including the construction or renovation of some prisons, and the improvement of quality of food in prisons. It has also worked to renovate judicial, police and gendarmerie infrastructure.

However, it urges the Government to redouble its efforts to ensure that conditions of detention conform to international norms and standards. It also calls for the prompt adoption of a law criminalising torture and measures to ensure that every allegation of torture is thoroughly and impartially investigated.

GENEVA, Switzerland, October 27, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — The UN Committee Against Torture is meeting in Geneva from 3 November to 28 November to review the following countries:
Sweden (4-5 Nov), Ukraine (5-6 Nov), Venezuela (6-7 Nov…

DAR ES SALAAM, Tanzania, October 27, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — In its recent Investment Policy Review the OECD cited energy in Tanzania as a “critical bottleneck” and that the problem of reliable energy was the top barrier to doing business in Tanzania. This view was echoed during the Tanzania panel at the Africa Energy Forum in Istanbul in June at which TANESCO and EWURA specifically addressed this point. (http://www.energynet.co.uk/fr/event/powering-africa-tanzania)

Logo: http://www.photos.apo-opa.com/plog-content/images/apo/logos/web1_0.png

It’s clear that project developers are keen to participate and that a multitude of funds are available to support them, however developers encounter the stumbling blocks of non-project financeable risk allocation in power purchase agreements and concerns with tariff structures. The issue of how to implement structural reform that would result in, rather than undermine, a streamlined project finance structure in Tanzania, providing predictable investment returns for investors and therefore confidence to funders is therefore hugely important to the market.

Against this backdrop, the Ministry of Energy and Minerals (MEM) has published an Electricity Supply Industry Reform Strategy and Roadmap for 2014 to 2025 (the Roadmap). The Roadmap seeks to respond to private sector concerns with its key focal points being TANESCO operational and financial transformation, strengthening of the governance and performance of the sector and attracting private investment. The Roadmap has attracted headlines due to its reference that the proposed reform would involve investment of US$11.4 billion (US$1.9 billion per annum) of which 73.5% is allocated towards generation. Further, the Roadmap acknowledges that such funds cannot be raised by Government of Tanzania (GoT) and development funds alone, and therefore that private sector involvement is required, particularly in respect of generation. This reference has been accompanied by clear statements of recognition across the GoT energy sector that private sector involvement is required and that such involvement entails credible financial and institutional reform.

Following the recommendations in a series of external consultants’ reports, the Roadmap proposes the staged unbundling of TANESCO, provision for TANESCO paying off its current debts, and the retirement of costly emergency power producers (EPPs).

The Roadmap takes the long term view, focussing on an increase in installed power capacity to at least 10,000 MW by 2025, at which point the phased unbundling of TANESCO would be completed. The time periods are broken down into immediate term, short term, medium term and long term. In terms of structure, the electricity sector is set to transition from the current integrated monopoly model through to a single buyer model (with a separate state generation company and distribution companies), and thereafter to a retail competition model which should ensure competition and cost efficiency.

We are currently in the immediate term (which expires in June 2015), and during this period can expect to see, amongst other reforms, establishment of a task force to monitor the implementation of the Road Map, a transition and change management team at TANESCO to manage the reform process, ring-fencing of TANESCO into strategic business units, valuation of TANESCO’s assets and liabilities, a human capital needs assessment, retirement of EPPs upon expiry of their contracts and development of a technology based standard power purchase agreement.

TANESCO’s indebtedness is to be fixed by improvement of debt collection, prepaid revenue collection – the mass roll out of LUKU prepaid meters, including at governmental institutions – and the recent 39.92% retail tariff increase to ensure a cost-effective base. This is expected to enable TANESCO to pay its EPP and IPP creditors in the near term, with the further assistance of funds being drawn down through World Bank and AfDB disbursements.

The Roadmap states GoT will review the existing regulatory framework to create necessary conditions for participation of the private sector. Under the current legislative framework GoT is only permitted to guarantee TANESCO’s liabilities in respect of its borrowings; it does not cover unpaid amounts under power purchase agreements. It was anticipated that the Public Private Partnership Act would deal with this, but this remains under development. Until these challenges are addressed and a strong track record for supporting IPPs is realised, developers will need robust additional support from GoT to really push investment forward.

The Roadmap nods to the diversification of energy sources, and in particular envisages large increases in gas and coal at 3,968MW and 2,900MW of additional capacity respectively. As for renewables, 200MW of wind, 100MW of solar and 200MW of geothermal are contemplated. The point was well made by a renewables developer at the Africa Energy Forum that – as many of TANESCO’s problems were caused by the dire effect of climate change on East Africa’s previously predictable rainy seasons curtailing output of hydropower plants – it is right that renewable power is a strong feature of Tanzania’s proposed energy portfolio.

The role of the regulator, EWURA, will be unchanged during the unbundling process except for naturally transitioning its realm of responsibility to cover the proposed unbundled entities and preparing the necessary licensing regime and other documentation to support the Roadmap. However, we note that EWURA’s role on the proposed REFIT policy is not specifically mentioned in the Roadmap, and the position of this policy within the energy sector must not be forgotten. The Rural Energy Agency will also continue its role in facilitating installation and maintenance of rural grids and has similarly unveiled its strategy in this respect.

From Norton Rose Fulbright’s engagement with the private sector and stakeholders, what they wish to see going forward are mechanisms to back up the Roadmap, together with a clear statement of mid to long term changes. The Roadmap is encouraging in stating that GoT is committed to ensuring its timely implementation, and also recognises that delays in improving TANESCO’s financial performance would jeopardise reform.

Furthermore the Roadmap’s reference to increased communication and participation by MEM and TANESCO at conferences is encouraging – they were part of a key session at the Africa Energy Forum in Istanbul and indeed it is anticipated that they will have a strong presence at the upcoming EnergyNet Powering Africa: Tanzania meeting this November 13-14 in Dar Es Salaam.

Distributed by the African Press Organization on behalf of EnergyNet Ltd.

For more information please contact:

Amy Offord | Senior Marketing Executive

EnergyNet Ltd.

Tel +44 20 7384 8068

Amy.Offord@energynet.co.uk

About EnergyNet:

EnergyNet Ltd. organise a global portfolio of investment meetings, conferences and infrastructure events focused specifically on the power and industrial sectors across Africa.

Proven to engage the decision makers and technical directors behind Africa’s most exciting economies, Energynet places economic development at the heart of industrial solutions, helping to generate a more stable and viable investment option for organisation in Africa. We challenge the way businesses work in Africa; the information we provide isn’t available on the internet and isn’t out of a dusty old textbook.

What we do:

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We listen to stakeholders from both the public and private sectors so that we can react better to the changing investment climates around the world.

Trust and confidence shape our relationships and we appreciate that we often represent major corporations globally and their brands. The responsibility of caring for each of our clients’ brands is something that we take very seriously.

How can Energynet support your P&L and help limit your risk:

EnergyNet works with governments, energy and infrastructure ministries and national utilities across Africa. We work with our partners to understand their strategic needs and bring together solution providers to support those goals.

We focus on core industry providers including private power developers, investment banks and DFIs, Lawyers, credible consultants, EPCs and immediate power providers to support contract delivery and project success.

GENEVA, Switzerland, October 27, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — Guinea’s record on women’s rights will be examined by the UN Committee on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) on Thursday 30 October 2014 in meetings that will be webcast live. Guinea is one of the 188 States parties to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women and is required to submit regular reports to the Committee of 23 independent experts on how it is implementing the Convention.

Among the issues likely to be discussed by the Committee and the delegation of the government of Guinea are: impunity for rape and other sexual violence committed on 28 September 2009; safety and protection for victims of sexual violence and witnesses; measures to end harmful practices including early and forced marriages, FGM; progress in prosecution of perpetrators of sexual violence committed between 2007 and 2010; high rate of maternal mortality; obstacles to girls’ access to education.

Location: Room XVI, Palais des Nations, Geneva

Time and date: 10:00 – 17:00 (08:00 – 15:00 in Conakry) on 30 October

The webcast of the session will be at http://www.treatybodywebcast.org/.

Guinea’s report and a full list of issues that are likely to come up can be found here: http://tbinternet.ohchr.org/_layouts/treatybodyexternal/SessionDetails1.aspx?SessionID=816&Lang=en

A news conference is scheduled for 7 November at 13:30, Palais des Nations, to discuss CEDAW’s concluding observations on Guinea and the other countries being reviewed – Venezuela; Poland; China, China (Hong Kong) and China (Macao); Ghana; Belgium; Brunei Darussalam; and Solomon Islands. The concluding observations will be published on 7 November here: http://tbinternet.ohchr.org/_layouts/treatybodyexternal/SessionDetails1.aspx?SessionID=816&Lang=en

ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia, October 27, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — Leaders of global and regional institutions today begin an historic trip to the Horn of Africa to pledge political support and major new financial assistance for countries in the region, totaling more than $8 billion over the coming years. UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, the World Bank Group (WBG) President, Jim Yong Kim, as well as the President of the Islamic Development Bank Group and high level representatives of the African Union Commission, the European Union, the African Development Bank, and Intergovernmental Agency for Development (IGAD) are combining forces to promote stability and development in the Horn of Africa.

On the first day of the joint trip, the World Bank Group announced a major new financial pledge of $1.8 billion for cross-border activities in a Horn of Africa Initiative that will boost economic growth and opportunity, reduce poverty, and spur business activity.

The initiative covers the eight countries in the Horn of Africa — Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, and Uganda.

“This new financing represents a major new opportunity for the people of the Horn of Africa to make sure they get access to clean water, nutritious food, health care, education, and jobs,” said World Bank Group President Jim Yong Kim. “There is greater opportunity now for the Horn of Africa to break free from its cycles of drought, food insecurity, water insecurity, and conflict by building up regional security, generating a peace dividend, especially among young women and men, and spurring more cross-border cooperation.”

Leading the trip to the Horn of Africa, the United Nations Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon said “The countries of the Horn of Africa are making important yet unheralded progress in economic growth and political stability. Now is a crucial moment to support those efforts, end the cycles of conflict and poverty, and move from fragility to sustainability. The United Nations is joining with other global and regional leaders to ensure a coherent and coordinated approach towards peace, security and development in the Horn of Africa.”

The European Union also announced that it would support the countries in the region with a total of around $3.7 billion until 2020, of which about 10 percent would be for cross-border activities; the African Development Bank announced a pledge of $1.8 billion over the next three years for countries of the Horn of Africa region; while the Islamic Development Bank committed to deploy up to $1 billion in new financing in its four member countries in the Horn of Africa (Djibouti, Somalia, Sudan and Uganda).

The Horn is diverse, with some of the fastest growing economies and huge untapped natural resources. However, it also has many extraordinarily poor people and populations that are now doubling every 23 years. Unemployment is widespread among growing numbers of young people. Women, in particular, face huge obstacles because of their gender, including limited land rights, limited education, and social customs that often thwart their ability to pursue economic opportunity, and improve living conditions for their families and communities.

Countries in the region are also vulnerable to corruption, piracy, arms and drug trafficking. Terrorism, and related money flows are significant and interconnected threats in the Horn of Africa. People-trafficking is also a growing problem in the region. However, there are commendable efforts being made through regional cooperation in parts of the Horn to tackle the root causes of these problems.

The new financing announcement will support those efforts and comes on the first day of the trip led by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, to discuss peace, security, and resilience. In addition to the UN Secretary-General, other leaders making the trip are World Bank Group President Jim Yong Kim; Islamic Development Bank Group President Ahmad Mohamed Ali; African Union Commission Deputy Chairperson Erastus Mwencha; Intergovernmental Agency for Development (IGAD) Executive Secretary, Ambassador Mahboub Maalim; African Development Bank Group Special Advisor to the President, Youssouf Ouedraogo; Deputy Director General for Development and Cooperation, European Commission, Marcus Cornaro and European Union Special Representative for the Horn of Africa, Alexander Rondos.

The World Bank Group said its new $1.8 billion packaging, which is in addition to its existing development programs for the eight countries, would create more economic opportunity throughout the region for some of the most vulnerable peoples, including refugees and internally displaced populations and their host communities. Wars and instability have generated more than 2.7 million refugees along with over 6 million internally displaced people. The Bank Group will also help the region build up its communicable disease surveillance, diagnosis, and treatment capacity.

Many of these diseases are associated with or exacerbated by poverty, displacement, malnutrition, illiteracy, and poor sanitation and housing. Increased cross-border trade and economic activity in the Horn of Africa will necessitate simultaneous investments in strengthening disease control efforts and outbreak preparedness.

The Bank Group will also support greater regional links between countries with regional transport routes, stronger ICT and broadband connectivity, more competitive private sector markets, increased cross-border trade, regional development of oil and gas through pipeline development, and the expansion of university and other tertiary education.

The Bank Group’s pledge includes $600 million from the IFC, its private sector arm, which will support economic development in the countries of the Horn. IFC investments under the new Horn Initiative will include a regional pipeline linking Uganda and Kenya; greater investment in agribusiness expansion in storage, processing, and seeds; possible public-private partnerships in pharmaceuticals, renewable energy and transport; and financial advice and support to government and companies to improve business confidence and investment, access to markets, and access to private finance. Another $200 million is for guarantees against political risks from the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency.

A new World Bank Group paper forecasts that the Horn will undergo dramatic and lasting change when oil production starts in Kenya, Uganda, and possibly Somalia and Ethiopia.

For its part, the European Union’s Horn of Africa approach is based on a strategic framework adopted in 2011. Support programs for 2014-2020 will be guided by the same analysis that underpins the World Bank’s Horn of Africa Initiative and will focus on the development challenges that must be tackled to unlock the region’s considerable potential. EU support will mostly target the three pillars of the Horn of Africa Initiative: boosting growth, reducing poverty by promoting resilience, and creating economic opportunities.

“The EU stands ready to further deepen its long-standing partnership with the Horn of Africa – helping to build robust and accountable political structures, enhancing trade and economic cooperation, financing peace keeping activities and providing humanitarian assistance and development cooperation,” said European Development Commissioner Andris Piebalgs prior to the trip.

Other leaders on the trip said that the Horn of Africa region needs new development assistance in order to secure peace and opportunity to thrive and prevent future conflicts.

The Islamic Development Bank Group said its new financing for Djibouti, Somalia, Sudan and Uganda over 2015-2017 would focus on critical infrastructure development, food security, human development, and trade. A further $2 billion could be provided by the Arab Coordination Group over the same period.

Commenting on this announcement, Islamic Development Bank Group President Ahmad Mohamed Ali said “The Horn of Africa is an important gateway to Africa and a bridge to Western Asia. Bringing stability and sustainable development to the Horn of Africa will undoubtedly significantly contribute to stability across the entire African continent. The Islamic Development Bank Group salutes this renewed focus on the Horn of Africa and stands ready to work with all partners, including the Arab Coordination Group, to support regional cooperation and the economic revival of the Horn of Africa, especially in its four member countries.”

“Given the complexity of the environment prevailing in the region, we must convince ourselves that it is not the financial means that will win in the Horn of Africa region, but our commitment and determination to act under the leadership of the countries in a united and coordinated manner,” said African Development Bank Group Representative, Youssouf Ouedraogo, Special Advisor to the President.

African Union Commission Deputy Chairperson, Erastus Mwencha, added, “Our efforts to create peace and stability must be reinforced by investments in the peoples and countries of the Horn.”

A new WBG regional study on the Horn of Africa released today at the start of the trip found reasons for hope for the region: “Despite the challenges the Horn of Africa faces, there are encouraging signs of political momentum for enhanced regional economic interdependence. Increasingly, Horn of Africa countries are members of the East African Community, IGAD in Eastern Africa, and the Common Market for East and Southern Africa. Some countries are showing strong political will to solve both security and development issues through increased cooperation—for example, many have sent troops to participate in peace-keeping efforts and have participated in diplomatic initiatives.”

“This mission is the apex of an ambitious partnership approach that will provide the necessary instruments to strengthen the resilience agenda in the IGAD region,” said IGAD Executive Secretary, Ambassador Mahboub Maalim.