Category: APO-OPA

WASHINGTON, October 23, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — At the President’s direction, the U.S. Government is coordinating and operationalizing a comprehensive strategy to respond to the threat of Ebola here at home, enhance our broader domestic preparedness, and contain the epidemic in West Africa.

The President’s priority is the health and safety of Americans, and he has directed his team to take all necessary steps to stop the chain of transmission and address any shortcomings that come to light. Over the longer-term, we recognize that the only way to prevent additional cases at home will be to contain and end the epidemic at its source in West Africa.

Enhancing Our Domestic Preparedness

The President has remained focused on strengthening our coordination with and support for state and local officials in Dallas, Texas, as we also enhance our broader nationwide preparedness.

In recent days, the administration has announced:

New screening measures and travel restrictions: Earlier this month, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), implemented enhanced screening measures at five airports around the country—New York’s JFK, Newark, Dulles, Atlanta, and Chicago. As of today, all passengers arriving in the United States from or through one of the three countries will be required to fly into one of these five airports that have the enhanced screening and additional resources in place. Passengers flying into one of these airports whose travel originated in Liberia, Sierra Leone, and Guinea are subject to secondary screening and added protocols, including having their temperature taken, before they can be admitted into the United States. At present there are no direct, non-stop commercial flights from Liberia, Sierra Leone or Guinea to any airport in the United States.

New active post-arrival monitoring: CDC today announced that, in addition to exit screening and enhanced entrance screening as an added safeguard, state and local public health authorities will begin active post-arrival monitoring of all passengers whose travel originates in Liberia, Sierra Leone, or Guinea and who arrive in airports conducting enhanced screening. Under this protocol, state and local health officials will maintain daily contact with all travelers from the three affected countries for the entire 21 days following their last possible date of exposure to Ebola virus. Active post-arrival monitoring will begin next week in the six states where approximately 70 percent of incoming travelers are located: New York, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, New Jersey, and Georgia. State authorities have agreed that active post-arrival monitoring will begin in the rest of the states in the days following.

Specifically, state and local authorities will require travelers to report:

Their temperature daily;

The presence or absence of other Ebola symptoms, such as headache, joint and muscle aches, weakness, diarrhea, vomiting, stomach pain, lack of appetite, or abnormal bleeding; and,

Their intent to travel in-state or out-of-state.

Tightening of protocols: The CDC team has made specific improvements in the areas of personal protective equipment and infection control guidance, focusing on no skin exposure, rigorous training, and a trained monitor who watches healthcare workers take on and off personal protective equipment (PPE).

Dedicated Response Team: CDC is creating dedicated CDC response teams – an Ebola “SWAT” team – that could be on the ground within a few hours at any hospital that receives a confirmed patient with Ebola to assist hospitals.

Enhanced training and outreach: CDC is doing enhanced training designed to educate all of the relevant stakeholders, from frontline healthcare workers to hospital executives as well as local officials, on the lessons-learned from Dallas and how to respond to a potential Ebola case. Thousands of officials have taken part in these sessions, which will continue going forward.

Department of Defense (DoD) Medical Support Team: As an added prudential measure to ensure our nation is ready to respond quickly, effectively, and safely in the event of additional Ebola cases, Secretary Hagel has ordered his Northern Command Commander to prepare and train a 30-person expeditionary medical support team that could, if requested by the Department of Health and Human Services, provide short-notice assistance to civilian medical professionals in the United States. The team will consist of 20 critical care nurses, 5 doctors trained in infectious disease, and 5 trainers in infectious disease protocols.

Ensuring Federal, State, and Local Coordination: In order to ensure the Dallas response is able to leverage effective coordination between the federal, state, and local levels in Dallas—as well as with frontline healthcare workers—the administration, working closely with state and local Texas officials, has deployed a White House liaison to Dallas and appointed a FEMA coordinator to ensure all federal assistance is meeting the needs on the ground.

We also have facilitated the coordination and expertise of the Environmental Protection Agency, Occupational Safety and Health Administration, and the Department of Transportation with state and local authorities to ensure the Ebola-contaminated materials are treated, packaged, transported and destroyed safely and efficiently.

Ongoing U.S.-Led International Response to Stop Ebola in West Africa

Just as we fortify our domestic health infrastructure, the Administration has led an international coalition to stamp the virus out at its source in West Africa. The response leverages a civilian-led whole-of-government effort that calls upon the unique capabilities of the U.S. military to help bring the epidemic under control. We have been at this since March, when the first cases were reported, and we have scaled up that effort since:

Deployment of key medical and expert personnel: The United States has deployed to West Africa more than 170 civilian medical, healthcare, and disaster response experts from multiple U.S. government departments and agencies, some of whom are part of the U.S. Agency for International Development’s (USAID) Disaster Assistance Response Team.

Scaling-up the DoD presence: DoD announced the planned deployment of 3,200 troops, including 1,100 in the next two weeks. More than 600 U.S. military personnel are now in the region, and the total troop commitment will depend on the requirements on the ground. Personnel from the U.S. Naval Medical Research Center continue to operate three mobile medical labs, which provide 24-hour turnaround results on samples.

U.S. financial support: The United States has obligated more than $300 million toward fighting the outbreak in West Africa and announced its intentions to devote more than $1 billion to the whole-of-government Ebola response effort, by far the largest investment by any donor.

International financial support: This financial commitment had helped us galvanize support from international partners. Since the President’s speech at the CDC in mid-September, countries and international organizations have pledged more than $800 million to the effort, while also committing significant contributions of personnel, aircraft, and resources on the ground.

New hospital for infected workers: DOD is finishing construction of a hospital for infected medical workers, which will be operational and staffed by U.S. Public Health Service officers starting in November.

Progress on Ebola Treatment Units: The U.S. military is overseeing the construction of up to 17 100-bed Ebola Treatment Units (ETUs) in Liberia. The construction of three ETUs is underway, and they will be completed in November. The U.S. government also supports the construction of several ETUs by international NGOs in Liberia.

Community Outreach and Safe Burials: U.S. support helps to inform, educate and better equip communities to protect themselves and their loved ones against Ebola. Additional U.S. support has helped Liberia increase to 65 the number of safe burial teams working across every county to safely and respectfully dispose of bodies, largely reducing a primary vehicle of transmission of the disease.

KHARTOUM, Sudan, October 23, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — United Nations Secretary-General’s Humanitarian Envoy Abdullah al Matouq and UN High Commissioner for Refugees António Guterres returned yesterday from a visit to Sudan’s White Nile State, where more than 50,000 South Sudanese refugees currently reside in 4 sites. They visited the Joda border crossing through which the majority of the South Sudanese refugees have arrived in White Nile State and went to Al Alagaya refugee site, which hosts over 8,000 refugees. There they saw firsthand the living conditions of refugees who are fleeing insecurity and violence in South Sudan and seeking safety in Sudan.

“The refugees who have fled to Sudan from South Sudan are in an utterly desperate situation. They have lost their homes, their livelihoods and their loved ones,” said Mr. Guterres. “We are extremely grateful to the Government of Sudan and its people for the hospitality they continue to extend to South Sudanese refugees. We need to collectively build on these efforts and ensure that they can be sustained in order to not only support the refugee response but also mitigate the impact this large influx has had on Sudanese host communities. I am therefore appealing to the donor community for further financial support to ensure we have the means to respond to the continued influx from South Sudan,” he said.

In the Sudanese capital Khartoum today, Dr. al Matouq and Mr Guterres met with H.E. the President of the Republic Field Marshall Omar al Bashir and Government Ministers to discuss ways in which the international humanitarian community can strengthen its partnerships with the Government to improve cooperation on humanitarian assistance across Sudan, including for the South Sudan refugee crisis.

“The humanitarian challenges in Sudan are immense,” said Dr. al Matouq. “The number of people in need of humanitarian assistance in Sudan has risen by 800,000 since the start of 2014 (as of July 2014). This is in addition to some 6.1 million people who required humanitarian assistance at the beginning of 2014. We all must ensure that Sudan remains in the mind of those who can help make a difference,” he said.

Dr. al Matouq and Mr. Guterres thanked the Government of Sudan for their part in assisting refugees from South Sudan, but expressed concern that as conflict continues in South Sudan the number of people fleeing to Sudan will likely grow much higher. As such, Mr. Guterres emphasized the need for adequate planning for the increased numbers, particularly by allocating additional land for refugee sites and ensuring proper site planning. In his meetings, Guterres also highlighted the need for South Sudanese to be afforded a status grounded in a recognized legal framework that would give effect to the expressed Government position that South Sudanese are brothers and sisters and which would accord access to rights and adequate assistance in Sudan. For this registration and documentation would be key and UNHCR stands ready to support the Government of Sudan. He added that in addition to the new influx of refugees, UNHCR will continue to work with the Government and the international community to find solutions for the estimated 90,000 refugees in East Sudan living in a protracted situation, many of whom have been in Sudan for decades. He also congratulated the Government of Sudan for its leadership in hosting the African Union Regional Conference on Trafficking and Smuggling and its resolute efforts to combat this phenomenon in Sudan.

“I have been encouraged by the prospect of close cooperation between the Government, the UN, and humanitarian agencies on the ground… Humanitarian agencies operating in Sudan are here to support the Government of Sudan assist people in urgent need of help. Removing restrictions on access for humanitarian workers will permit an expansion of current efforts to support the Government’s response to those in need,” said al Matouq. In this regard, Dr. al Matouq and Mr. Guterres expressed their satisfaction at the commitment received from the Sudanese authorities to remove all obstacles for humanitarian organizations to work in Sudan. “These reassurances are extremely important to enhance donor confidence which we desperately need in a constrained global funding environment. It is only through continuous dialogue and mutual understanding between the Government of Sudan and the international community working in Sudan that it will be possible to give effect to the principles of international solidarity and responsibility sharing”.

Over 100,000 refugees have arrived in Sudan since the outbreak of violence in South Sudan in mid-December last year, with nearly 1,000 new refugees arriving every week. The growing number of refugees further compounds a deteriorating humanitarian situation across Sudan. In Darfur alone, over 400,000 people have been displaced since the beginning of the year, placing significant strain on the delivery of humanitarian services.

PARIS, France, October 22, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — France welcomes the European Parliament’s decision to award the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought to Dr. Denis Mukwege.

Through this award, the European Parliament pays tribute…

BRUSSELS, Kingdom of Belgium, October 22, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — I was very pleased to learn that the European Parliament has awarded Europe’s top human rights prize to Denis Mukwege for his work helping victims of sexual violence in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Dr Mukwege founded a hospital for rape victims and is a fierce advocate for women rights. Despite an attempted assassination on him a few years ago, he has returned to the DRC and continues working in his hospital, treating victims of sexual violence and those who have sustained serious injuries.

I have met Dr Mukwege on several occasions and also visited him at the Panzi hospital in Eastern DRC. I admire his dedication and readiness to take personal risks to pursue his vocation and continue advocating for change in his country.

Violence against women is a terrible crime and I strongly support actions that can protect women from the hands of aggressors. The EU supports numerous programmes to help the victims of sexual violence (incl. the Panzi Hospital) and we try to prevent these terrible crimes from happening. However the most successful change needs to come from within the country. That’s why people like Dr Mukwege should be encouraged and strongly supported in their daily fight to change the fate of the Congolese women.

To achieve this, the judiciary system has to be strengthened but education and culture also has an important role to play. We need to tackle all these factors simultaneously and that’s why in March, I announced a new EU support programme worth €20 million to tackle gender-based violence in the DRC. The programme will focus on the causes of gender-based violence in the city-province of Kinshasa and the provinces of Bandundu and Maniema by supporting behavioural change, empowering women and improving protection.

I hope that Dr Mukwege and many others will see winning the Sakharov Prize as an encouragement to continue the fight to make the DRC a safe place for women.

GENEVA, Switzerland, October 22, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — The Chadian government’s refusal to transfer two alleged accomplices of former Chadian dictator Hissène Habré to the special court in Senegal trying crimes during his rule will not prevent his trial, Human Rights Watch said today. The Chadian government should try the two men and others accused of Habré-era crimes in Chad based on international standards.

On October 18, 2014, the Extraordinary African Chambers in the Courts of Senegal, created to try the “person or persons” most responsible for international crimes in Chad between 1982 and 1990, announced that Chad had refused to transfer Saleh Younouss and Mahamat Djibrine to the court. Both men are detained in Chad on charges filed in national courts. The Chadian government had also refused the chambers´ request for permission to go to Chad to interrogate and possibly indict the two. Younouss was a director of the DDS, Habré’s political police. Djibrine was known as one of the “most feared torturers in Chad,” according to Chad’s National Truth Commission.

“The Chadian victims’ goal in seeking justice in Senegal since 2000 has been the trial of Hissène Habré, the head of state who directly controlled the security apparatus and had primary responsibility for his government’s actions,” said Reed Brody, counsel at Human Rights Watch who has been working with the victims since 1999. “The Extraordinary African Chambers will continue their work and if the investigating judges determine there is sufficient evidence, Habré’s trial should begin in early 2015.”

Habré was president of Chad from 1982 until he was deposed in 1990 by the current president, Idriss Déby Itno, after which Habré fled to Senegal and lived in exile. Habre’s one-party rule was marked by widespread atrocities, including the targeting of certain ethnic groups. DDS files recovered by Human Rights Watch in 2001 reveal the names of 1,208 people who were killed or died in detention, and 12,321 victims of human rights violations. He was indicted by the Extraordinary African Chambers in July 2013 and placed in pretrial detention.

The chambers’ prosecutor also requested the indictment of three other officials from Habré’s administration suspected of being responsible for international crimes. They are Guihini Korei, another former DDS director; Abakar Torbo, former director of the DDS prison service; and Zakaria Berdei, former special security adviser to the presidency, who has been implicated in the repression in southern Chad in 1984. Berdei is also believed to be in Chad, though he is not in custody. Torbo and Korei remain at large and appear to be subjects of international arrest warrants issued by Chad in May 2013 and by the Extraordinary African Chambers later that year.

The chambers have been seeking the transfer of Younouss and Djibrine from Chad for over a year. Faced with Chad’s stalling on the transfer, the chambers’ judges sent a request to Chad on October 13 for permission to visit Chad to interview and indict the two detainees. The Chadian government, which until then had not given a clear answer regarding the two, rejected the request in a letter dated October 14. Chad’s focal point for the case, Ousman Haroun, informed the chambers that Younouss and Djibrine could not be the subject of a second indictment for acts for which they had already been indicted by the Chadian investigating judge looking into similar charges.

Victims of Habré´s government filed torture and murder cases before Chadian courts in 2000 against several dozen Habré-era security agents, but it was not until 2013, when the Extraordinary African Chambers were created in Dakar, that a Chadian investigating judge indicted Younouss, Djibrine and 28 others. On September 4, the judge, Amir Abdoulaye Issa, issued a referral decision (arrêt de renvoi) sending for trial the Younouss and Djibrine cases and the cases of 19 other Habré-era agents. The judge dismissed proceedings against the other 9 agents.

“The Chadian authorities need to ensure that the trials of Saleh Younouss and Mahamat Djibrine and all of Hissène Habré alleged accomplices are fair, transparent and in full accordance with international standards,” Brody said. “The victims filed these cases 14 long years ago, and it’s high time for justice to be done in Chad as well as in Senegal.”

DAR ES SALAAM, Tanzania, October 22, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — Uzinduzi wa safari za ndege za Dar es Salaam na Unguja za shirika la ndege la flydubai (http://www.flydubai.com) lililo na makao yake Dubai ziliwasili nchini Tanzania leo. Njia hizo mpya zinasisitiza ukuaji wa haraka wa flydubai barani Afrika, na kukuza mtandao wa shirika hilo la ndege mara mbili likiwa na vituo 12 mwaka huu.

Logo: http://www.photos.apo-opa.com/plog-content/images/apo/logos/flydubai.jpg

Photos: http://goo.gl/x4XwdY

flydubai iliingia soko hili mnamo 2009 na safari za ndege za Jibuti, na mnamo 2011 Addis Ababa ikawa kituo cha pili cha flydubai katika Afrika Mashariki. Mnamo 2014, flydubai iliongeza njia sita mpya barani humu kwa kuanzisha safari za ndege za kuenda Burundi, Rwanda, Uganda na vituo vitatu nchini Tanzania.

Akizungumza kuhusu uanzishaji wa safari za Tanzania, Ghaith Al Ghaith, Afisa Mkuu MTendaji wa flydubai, alisema: “Umoja wa Falme za Kiarabu umetambua uwezo mkubwa katika masoko yanayokua ya Afrika Mashariki, kama vile Tanzania. Tunaendelea kufanya kwa bidii kusaidia malengo ya usafiri, biashara na utalii kwa kuimarisha muungano wa moja kwa moja katika ya Umoja wa Falme za Kiarabu na masoko haya ya Afrika.”

Wawalikishi wa flydubai wakiongozwa na Sudhir Sreedharan, Naibu Mkuu wa Rais wa Biashra (GCC, Bara Dogo na Afrika), walilakiwa na tamasha za uzinduzi zilizofanyika katika viwanja vya ndege vya Dar es Salaam na Unguja mnamo 22 Oktoba 2014. Kati ya maofisa wakuu waliozilaki ndege hizo za uzinduzi walikuwa Mheshimiwa Janet Z. Mbene (Mbunge), Naibu wa Waziri wa Viwanda na Biashara, Mheshimiwa Dkt Omary Mjenga, Balozi Mkuu wa Umoja wa Falme za Kiarabu na Mheshimiwa Samia Hassan Suluhu, Waziri wa Nchi.

“Kasi ya upanuzi wa safari za flydubai katika Afrika Mashaiki imeongezwa. Njia sita kati ya 23 mpya tulizozindua mwaka huu ziko barani Afrika. Uwezo tunaoona katika soko hili upeo mdogo wa uwezekano mkubwa kwani bado ni eneo ambalo halihudumiwi ipasavyo. Tuna furaha kuhusu safari zetu mpya za ndege nchini Tanzania, zitakazokuwa maarufu sana na abiria wetu ikiwa ni wa starehe au biashara,” alisema Sreedharan.

Hivi karibuni Tanzania imeibuka kama mbia muhimu wa kibiashara wa Dubai na ni kati ya wabia wakubwa wa biashara zisizo za mafuta barani Afrika ikifikisha Dola bilioni 1.86 za Marekani mwaka jana katika jumla ya mapato ya biashara ya mwaka, hii ni kulingana na bata mypa kutoka Chama cha Wafanyabiashara cha Dubai.

flydubai ilianza kutumia ndege zake mpya za Boeing 737-800 zilizo na Kitengo cha Biashara katika safari zake za Dar es Salaam, Kilimanjaro na Unguja kuanzia tarehe 16 Oktoba, 2014, ikiwapa abiria kati ya Tanzania na Umoja wa Falme za Kiarabu huduma rahisi sana, ya kiwango cha juu na ya kuaminika iliyo na chaguo ya kuunganisha safari kuelekea kitovu cha safari za anga Dubai.

Zaidi ya safari zake tatu nchini Tanzania, flydubai imeunda mtandao mpana barani Afrika na safari za ndege za Addis Ababa nchini Uhabeshi, Alexandria nchini Misri, Khartoum na Port Sudan nchini Sudani, mji mkuu wa Jibuti, Juba nchini Sudani Kusini pamoja na Bujumbura nchini Burundi, Entebbe nchini Uganda na Kigali nchini Rwanda.

Maelezo ya Safari za Ndege:

Dar es Salaam

flydubai itakuwa na safari za ndege za kila siku kati ya Dar es Salaam na Dubai kuanzia tarehe 16 Oktoba 2014.

FZ670 imepangiwa kuondoka Uwanja wa Kimataifa wa Julius Nyerere saa 6:20 machana saa za ndani, itue katika Kituo cha 2 cha Kimataifa cha Dubai saa 12:55 jioni saa za ndani.

FZ672/674 imepangiwa kuondoka Uwanja wa Kimataifa wa Julius Nyerere saa 12:20 jioni saa za ndani, itue katika Kituo cha 2 cha Kimataifa cha Dubai saa 7:00 usiku saa za ndani.

FZ669/671/673 imepangiwa kuondoka Kituo cha 2 cha Kimataifa cha Dubai saa 12:40 asubuhi saa za ndani, iwasili Uwanja wa Kimataifa wa Julius Nyerere saa 5:20 asubuhi saa za ndani.

Nauli za safari ya pande mbili

Nauli ya kuenda na kurudi ya Kitengo cha Uchumi kutoka Dar es Salaam hadi Dubai itaanzia Dola 399 za Marekani ikijumuisha mzigo wa 20kg uliokaguliwa, huku nauli ya kuenda na kurudi ya Kitengo cha Biashara itaanzia Dola 1,499 za Marekani na inajumuisha kodi zote na mzigo wa 40kg uliokaguliwa. Hizi ni nauli spesheli za uzinduzi zitakazotumika kwa mwezi mmoja.

Kilimanjaro kupitia Dar Es Salaam

flydubai itakuwa na safari mbili za ndege kwa wiki kati ya Kilimanjaro na Dubai kupitia Dar Es Salaam kuanzia tarehe 17 Oktoba 2014.

Jumatatu na Ijumaa:

FZ674 imepangiwa kuondoka Uwanja wa Ndege wa Kimataifa wa Kilimanjaro saa 10:10 jioni saa za ndani, itue Kituo cha 2 cha Kimataifa cha Dubai saa 7:00 usiku saa za ndani na katizo la safari la saa moja mjini Dar es Salaam.

FZ673 imepangwa kuondoka Kituo cha 2 cha Kimataifa cha Dubai saa 12:40 asubuhi saa za ndani, iwasili Uwanja wa Kimataifa wa Kilimanjaro saa 7:25 saa za ndani na katizo la safari la saa moja mjini Dar es Salaam.

Nauli za safari ya pande mbili

Nauli ya kuenda na kurudi ya Kitengo cha Uchumi kutoka Kilimanjaro hadi Dubai itaanzia Dola 399 za Marekani ikijumuisha mzigo wa 20kg uliokaguliwa, huku nauli ya kuenda na kurudi ya Kitengo cha Biashara itaanzia Dola 1,499 za Marekani na inajumuisha kodi zote na mzigo wa 40kg uliokaguliwa. Hizi ni nauli spesheli za uzinduzi zitakazotumika kwa mwezi mmoja.

Unguja kupitia Dar es Salaam

flydubai itakuwa na safari mbili kwa wiki kati ya Unguja na Dubai kupitia Dar es Salaam kuanzia tarehe 19 Oktoba 2014.

Jumanne na Ijumaa: FZ672 imepangiwa kuondoka Uwanja wa Ndege wa Unguja saa 9:40 mchana saa za ndani, itue Kituo cha 2 cha Kimataifa cha Dubai saa 7:00 usiku saa za ndani na katizo la safari la saa moja mjini Dar es Salaam.

FZ671 imepangwa kuondoka Kituo cha 2 cha Kimataifa cha Dubai saa 12:40 asubuhi saa za ndani, iwasili Uwanja wa Ndege wa Unguja saa 7:05 mchana saa za ndani na katizo la safari la saa moja mjini Dar es Salaam.

Nauli za safari ya pande mbili

Nauli ya kuenda na kurudi ya Kitengo cha Uchumi kutoka Unguja hadi Dubai itaanzia Dola 399 za Marekani ikijumuisha mzigo wa 20kg uliokaguliwa, huku nauli ya kuenda na kurudi ya Kitengo cha Biashara itaanzia Dola 1,499 za Marekani na inajumuisha kodi zote na mzigo wa 40kg uliokaguliwa. Hizi ni nauli spesheli za uzinduzi zitakazotumika kwa mwezi mmoja.

Tiketi zinaweza kununuliwa kuanzia leo kutoka kwa tovuti ya flydubai (flydubai.com), Kituo chake cha Ndani cha Simu +255 (22) 2124005, maduka ya usafiri ya flydubai au kupitia wabia wa usafiri. Taarifa na maelezo zaidi ya huduma za shirika hili za ukodishaji gari na bima ya safiri pia zinaweza kupatikana kwenye flydubai.com.

Distributed by APO (African Press Organization) on behalf of flydubai.

Media contact:

mediarelations@flydubai.com

Kuhusu flydubai:

Shirika la ndege lenye makao yake Dubai linajikakamua kuondoa vizuizi vya usafiri na kuimarisha uhusiano kati ya tamaduni tofauti katika mtandao wake unao endelea kukua. Tangu uzinduzi wa biashara yake mnamo 2009, flydubai (http://www.flydubai.com):

• Imeunda mtandao wa vituo 86, pamoja na safari 20 mpya zilitangazwa 2014.

• Imefungua safari 54 mpya ambazo hapo awali hazikuwa na safari za moja kwa moja hadi Dubai au hazikuwa zinahudumiwa na shirika la kitaifa la Umoja wa Falme za Kiarabu kutoka Dubai.

• Imeunda msafara wa ndege 41 mpya za Boeing 737-800 New Generation na inasubiri kuwasilishwa kwa zaidi ya ndege 100 ifikapo mwisho wa 2023.

Zaidi ya hayo, wepesi na urahisi wa flydubai kama shirika changa la ndege umeimarisha ukuaji wa uchumi wa Dubai, kufuatana na dira ya Serikali ya Dubai, kwa kuanzisha mtiririko wa biashara na utalii katika masoko ambayo hayakuwa na huduma hizi.

Kwa maelezo zaidi kuhusu huduma za flydubai, tafadhali tembelea http://www.flydubai.com.

Charting the Dynamic Rise of flydubai: http://www.apo-mail.org/141022.PDF

Fact Sheet: http://www.apo-mail.org/1410222.PDF

flydubai at a glance: http://www.apo-mail.org/1410223.PDF

flydubai Route Map: http://www.apo-mail.org/1410224.pdf

flydubai Cargo Route Map: http://www.apo-mail.org/1410225.pdf

DAR ES SALAAM, Tanzania, October 22, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — Dubai-based flydubai’s inaugural flights to Dar es Salaam and Zanzibar touched down today in Tanzania (http://www.flydubai.com). The new routes further underline flydubai’s rapid expansion in Africa, which has seen the carrier’s network double to 12 destinations this year.

Logo: http://www.photos.apo-opa.com/plog-content/images/apo/logos/flydubai.jpg

Photos of flydubai Inaugural Event held today in Dar es Salaam: http://goo.gl/7ubcNd

Photos: http://goo.gl/x4XwdY

Charting the Dynamic Rise of flydubai: http://www.apo-mail.org/141022.PDF

Fact Sheet: http://www.apo-mail.org/1410222.PDF

flydubai at a glance: http://www.apo-mail.org/1410223.PDF

flydubai Route Map: http://www.apo-mail.org/1410224.pdf

flydubai Cargo Route Map: http://www.apo-mail.org/1410225.pdf

flydubai entered the market in 2009 with flights to Djibouti, and in 2011 Addis Ababa became flydubai’s second East African destination. In 2014, flydubai added six new routes to the continent with the start of flights to Burundi, Rwanda, Uganda and three destinations in Tanzania.

Commenting on the start of flights to Tanzania, Ghaith Al Ghaith, Chief Executive Officer of flydubai, said: “The United Arab Emirates has recognised the immense potential in the emerging markets of East Africa, like Tanzania. We continue to work diligently to support the travel, trade and tourism objectives by strengthening the direct links between the UAE and these African markets.”

The flydubai delegation led by Sudhir Sreedharan, Senior Vice President Commercial (GCC, Subcontinent and Africa), was met with inaugural events held at Dar es Salaam and Zanzibar airports on 22 October 2014. Among the senior officials who met the inaugural flights were HE Janet Z. Mbene (MP), Deputy Minister for Industry and Trade, HE Dr Omary Mjenga, Consul General to the UAE and HE Samia Hassan Suluhu, Minister of State.

“The pace of flydubai’s expansion in East Africa has picked up. Six of the 23 new routes we have launched this year are to Africa. The potential we see for this market is just the tip of the iceberg as it is still a heavily underserved region. We are very excited about our new flights to Tanzania, which are going to be very popular for our passengers whether for leisure or business,” commented Sreedharan.

Tanzania has emerged as a noteworthy trade partner for Dubai recently and ranked among the major non-oil trade partners in Africa last year topping USD 1.86 billion in total annual trade, according to recent figures from the Dubai Chamber of Commerce.

flydubai started operating its new Boeing 737-800 fleet configured with Business Class on its Dar es Salaam, Kilimanjaro and Zanzibar flights from 16 October 2014, providing passengers between Tanzania and UAE with a more convenient, high-quality and reliable service with the option to connect onwards through Dubai’s aviation hub.

In addition to its three routes in Tanzania, flydubai has built up a comprehensive network in Africa with flights to Addis Ababa in Ethiopia, Alexandria in Egypt, Khartoum and Port Sudan in Sudan, Djibouti’s capital Djibouti, Juba in South Sudan as well as Bujumbura in Burundi, Entebbe in Uganda and Kigali in Rwanda.

Flight Details:

Dar es Salaam

flydubai will operate daily flights between Dar es Salaam and Dubai starting from 16 October 2014.

FZ670 is scheduled to depart Julius Nyerere International Airport at 12:20hrs local time, landing at Dubai International Terminal 2 at 18:55hrs local time.

FZ672/674 is scheduled to depart Julius Nyerere International Airport at 18:20hrs local time, landing at Dubai International Terminal 2 at 01:00hrs local time.

FZ669/671/673 is scheduled to depart Dubai International Terminal 2 at 06:40hrs local time, arriving into Julius Nyerere International Airport at 11:20hrs local time.

Round trip fares

Economy Class return fares from Dar es Salaam to Dubai will start at USD 399 including 20kg checked baggage, while Business Class return fares will start at USD 1,499 and are inclusive of all taxes and 40kg checked baggage. These are special inaugural fares valid for one month.

Kilimanjaro via Dar Es Salaam

flydubai will operate two flights a week between Kilimanjaro and Dubai via Dar Es Salaam starting from 17 October 2014.

Mondays and Fridays:

FZ674 is scheduled to depart Kilimanjaro International Airport at 16:10hrs local time, landing at Dubai International Terminal 2 at 01:00hrs local time with a one-hour stopover in Dar es Salaam.

FZ673 is scheduled to depart Dubai International Terminal 2 at 06:40hrs local time, arriving into Kilimanjaro International Airport at 13:25hrs local time with a one-hour stopover in Dar es Salaam.

Round trip fares

Economy Class return fares from Kilimanjaro to Dubai will start at USD 399 including 20kg checked baggage, while Business Class return fares will start at USD 1,499 and are inclusive of all taxes and 40kg checked baggage. These are special inaugural fares valid for one month.

Zanzibar via Dar Es Salaam

flydubai will operate two flights a week between Zanzibar and Dubai via Dar Es Salaam starting from 19 October 2014.

Wednesdays and Sundays: FZ672 is scheduled to depart Zanzibar Airport at 15:40hrs local time, landing at Dubai International Terminal 2 at 01:00hrs local time with a one-hour stopover in Dar Es Salaam.

FZ671 is scheduled to depart Dubai International Terminal 2 at 06:40hrs local time, arriving into Zanzibar Airport at 13:05hrs local time with a one-hour stopover in Dar es Salaam.

Round trip fares

Economy Class return fares from Zanzibar to Dubai will start at USD 399 including 20kg checked baggage, while Business Class return fares will start at USD 1,499 and are inclusive of all taxes and 40kg checked baggage. These are special inaugural fares valid for one month.

Flights can be purchased starting today from flydubai’s website (flydubai.com), its local Call Centre +255 (22) 2124005, flydubai travel shops or through travel partners. Further information and details of the carrier’s car rental and travel insurance services can also be found on http://www.flydubai.com.

Distributed by APO (African Press Organization) on behalf of flydubai.

Media contact:

mediarelations@flydubai.com

About flydubai:

Dubai-based flydubai (http://www.flydubai.com) strives to remove barriers to travel and enhance connectivity between different cultures across its ever-expanding network. Since launching its operations in 2009, flydubai has:

• Created a network of 86 destinations, with 20 new routes announced so far in 2014.

• Opened up 54 new routes that did not previously have direct air links to Dubai or were not served by a UAE national carrier from Dubai.

• Built up a fleet of 41 brand new Boeing 737-800 New Generation aircraft and will take delivery of more than 100 aircraft by the end of 2023.

In addition, flydubai’s agility and flexibility as a young airline has enhanced Dubai’s economic development, in line with the Government of Dubai’s vision, by creating trade and tourism flows in previously underserved markets.

For more information about flydubai services, please visit http://www.flydubai.com.

ROME, Italy, October 22, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — The European Union (EU) and FAO in collaboration with the African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States (ACP) have launched a €41 million, 4.5-year programme to bolster sustainable land management and restore drylands and degraded lands in Africa, the Caribbean and the Pacific.

The programme, named Action Against Desertification, is crucial in fighting hunger and poverty, fostering stability and building resilience to climate change in some of the world’s most vulnerable areas, the programme sponsors say.

More than 70 percent of people living in drylands and other fragile ecosystems across Africa, the Caribbean and the Pacific derive their livelihoods from natural resources. But population growth and climate change put increasing pressure on these ecosystems, exacerbating degradation and desertification of increasingly overexploited lands.

“Desertification and land degradation are very serious challenges. They lead to hunger and poverty, themselves at the root of many conflicts,” said José Graziano da Silva , FAO’s Director-General about the need for the programme. “But recent successes show that these problems are not insurmountable. We can boost food security, improve livelihoods and help people adapt to climate change.”

The EU’s Development Commissioner, Andris Piebalgs said: “Sustainable land management is crucial to tackling the triple challenges we face from climate change, loss of biodiversity and food insecurity. This new programme will help those communities most affected by these problems to better manage their resources, use them to create jobs and generate income and invest in them for future generations.”

“Hunger and poverty, climate change, deforestation, land degradation, desertification and the loss of biodiversity are all interlinked,” underlined Alhaji Muhammad Mumuni, Secretary General of the ACP. “Integrated approaches to landscape management are necessary, as well as new policies, investments and capacities to address these challenges in ACP countries.”

Building on the Great Green Wall

In Africa, the programme’s efforts build on the Great Green Wall for the Sahara and the Sahel Initiative, established in 2007, which has become Africa’s flagship initiative to combat the effects of climate change and desertification.

Action Against Desertification will continue supporting local communities, government and civil society in Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, the Gambia, Niger, Nigeria and Senegal in the sustainable management and restoration of their dryland forests and rangelands.

It will support agro-forestry and promote income-generation activities, as well as the creation of employment opportunities in rural areas, especially for youth and women, based on the sustainable production, processing and marketing of agricultural products and forest goods and services.

Farmer field schools and knowledge exchanges will allow farmers to learn about the causes of desertification and the best ways to combat and prevent it.

Faraway places, similar challenges

Although located on the other side of the globe, both the Caribbean and the Pacific face similar challenges as Africa. Unsustainable land management practices have caused soil loss, degraded natural habitats, contributed to the loss of biodiversity and reduced natural buffers to droughts and floods.

Action Against Desertification will concentrate on Haiti in the Caribbean and Fiji in the Pacific, and be an example of increasing South-South cooperation by building on lessons learned from Africa’s Great Green Wall Initiative to help local communities adopt improved sustainable land- and forest-management practices, while enhancing capacities of governmental and non-governmental organizations to support these efforts.

Action Against Desertification is a joint FAO and ACP-EU programme, whose funding includes €20 million from the European Development Fund.

It is implemented by FAO in partnership with the African Union Commission, the governments of the concerned countries, the ACP Secretariat, the Global Mechanism of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), the Royal Botanic Gardens of Kew and the Walloon Region of Belgium, as well as other partners

LAGOS, Nigeria, October 22, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — In advance of the Oct. 24 observance of World Polio Day 2014, Rotary (http://www.rotary.org) announces US$ 8.4 million in grants to combat polio in Nigeria. The funds – part of Rotary’s broader contribution of $44.7 million to end the paralyzing disease worldwide – will be used by UNICEF and the World Health Organization (WHO) to support high quality polio immunization campaigns in Nigeria.

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

For the second year in a row, Rotary will mark World Polio Day with a livestream event featuring a global status update on the fight to end polio as well as an array of guest speakers and performers. The event, which will stream live from Chicago, Ill., can be viewed at endpolio.org.

The funding commitment comes as Nigeria celebrates a 90 percent reduction in polio cases compared to this time last year, with only six cases recorded to date in 2014. As recently as 2012, Nigeria reported the highest number of polio cases in the world. Along with Pakistan and Afghanistan – Nigeria is one of only three countries where the wild poliovirus has never been stopped.

“Our country should be incredibly proud of the progress we have made towards ending polio in our borders,” said Dr. Tunji Funsho, Rotary’s National PolioPlus Chair for Nigeria. “However, even six cases are too many. We cannot and we will not stop fighting this disease until every child in Nigeria – and the world – is safe from this crippling disease.”

Experts warn that Nigeria’s progress against polio, while significant, is fragile. The recent decline in polio cases is due in large part to the attention of leaders at all levels of the Nigerian government in ending this disease.

“High-level oversight of the polio program must continue, even during upcoming presidential and state elections and during efforts to keep Ebola out of Nigeria’s borders,” said Dr. Funsho.

Rotary provides grant funding to polio eradication initiative partners UNICEF and the World Health Organization, which work with the governments and Rotary club members of polio-affected countries to plan and carry out immunization activities. Mass immunizations of children via the oral polio vaccine must continue until global eradication is achieved.

About $18.5 million will go to the three remaining polio-endemic countries: Afghanistan, Nigeria and Pakistan. Another $9.5 million is marked for previously polio-free countries currently reporting cases “imported” from the endemic countries: Cameroon, Ethiopia, and Somalia. And $10.4 million will go to polio-free countries that remain at risk of reinfection: Democratic Republic of Congo, India, Niger, South Sudan, and Sudan.

The remaining $6.3 million will go toward polio eradication research.

To date, Rotary has contributed more than $1.3 billion to fight polio. Through 2018, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation will match two-to-one every dollar Rotary commits to polio eradication (up to $35 million a year). As of 2013, there were only 416 confirmed polio cases in the world, down from about 350,000 a year when the initiative launched in 1988.

Distributed by APO (African Press Organization) on behalf of Rotary International.

Contact:

Stephanie Tobler Mucznik

+41 (0)44 387 7116

Stephanie.ToblerMucznik@rotary.org

About Rotary

Rotary (http://www.rotary.org) brings together a global network of volunteer leaders dedicated to tackling the world’s most pressing humanitarian challenges. Rotary connects 1.2 million members of more than 34,000 Rotary clubs in over 200 countries and geographical areas. Their work improves lives at both the local and international levels, from helping families in need in their own communities to working toward a polio-free world. In 1988, Rotary was joined by the WHO, UNICEF and the CDC to launch the Global Polio Eradication Initiative. Visit http://www.rotary.org and http://www.endpolio.org for more about Rotary and its efforts to eradicate polio. Video and still images will be available on the Rotary Media Center (http://goo.gl/DS86iD).

ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia, October 22, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — In advance of the Oct. 24 observance of World Polio Day 2014, Rotary (http://www.rotary.org) announces US$2 million in grants to combat polio in Ethiopia. The funds – part of Rotary’s broader contribution of $44.7 million to end the paralyzing disease worldwide – will be used by UNICEF to support high quality polio immunization campaigns.

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

For the second year in a row, Rotary will mark World Polio Day with a livestream event featuring a global status update on the fight to end polio as well as an array of guest speakers and performers. The event, which will stream live from Chicago, Ill., can be viewed at endpolio.org.

In Ethiopia, Rotary’s PolioPlus program will celebrate World Polio Day by hosting a commemoration ceremony in conjunction with the World Health Organization, UNICEF and the Ethiopian Ministry of Health. The PolioPlus program will also host a World Polio Day march to mark the occasion and raise awareness of the disease.

Polio is set to become the second human disease ever to be eliminated from the world (smallpox is the first). To date, Rotary has helped 193 countries stop the transmission of polio through the mass immunization of children. Rotary’s new funding commitment targets countries where children remain at risk of contracting this incurable, but totally vaccine-preventable disease.

There are only three countries in the world where the wild poliovirus has never been stopped: Nigeria, Pakistan and Afghanistan. However, the virus from these countries can travel and lead to outbreaks in other parts of the world. In fact, last year the majority of the world’s polio cases stemmed from outbreaks in countries that had previously been polio-free. In particular, an outbreak in the Horn of Africa resulted in 217 cases in 2013, including nine in Ethiopia.

“We are pleased it appears we have halted the polio outbreak in Ethiopia,” said Tadesse Alemu, Rotary’s National PolioPlus Chair for Ethiopia, referencing the country’s only case this year, recorded more than nine months ago on 14 January. “However, given the mobility of our global society, until polio is gone from Africa – and the world – Ethiopian children will remain at risk for this disease.”

Rotary provides grant funding to polio eradication initiative partners UNICEF and the World Health Organization, which work with the governments and Rotary club members of polio-affected countries to plan and carry out immunization activities. Mass immunizations of children via the oral polio vaccine must continue until global eradication is achieved.

Approximately $18.5 million will go to the three remaining polio-endemic countries: Afghanistan, Nigeria and Pakistan. An endemic country is one where the wild poliovirus has never been stopped. Another $9.5 million is marked for previously polio-free countries currently reporting cases “imported” from the endemic countries: Cameroon, Ethiopia, and Somalia. And $10.4 million will go to polio-free countries that remain at risk of reinfection: Democratic Republic of Congo, India, Niger, South Sudan, and Sudan.

The remaining $6.3 million will go toward polio eradication research.

Funds for these countries will be used to fight existing polio outbreaks, or to conduct campaigns to protect against the high risk for reinfection. Countries experiencing conflict, like Ethiopia’s neighbor Somalia, are at particular risk for polio outbreaks.

To date, Rotary has contributed more than $1.3 billion to fight polio. Through 2018, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation will match two-to-one every dollar Rotary commits to polio eradication (up to $35 million a year). As of 2013, there were only 416 confirmed polio cases in the world, down from about 350,000 a year when the initiative launched in 1988.

Distributed by APO (African Press Organization) on behalf of Rotary International.

Contact:

Stephanie Tobler Mucznik

+41 (0)44 387 7116

Stephanie.ToblerMucznik@rotary.org

About Rotary

Rotary (http://www.rotary.org) brings together a global network of volunteer leaders dedicated to tackling the world’s most pressing humanitarian challenges. Rotary connects 1.2 million members of more than 34,000 Rotary clubs in over 200 countries and geographical areas. Their work improves lives at both the local and international levels, from helping families in need in their own communities to working toward a polio-free world. In 1988, Rotary was joined by the WHO, UNICEF and the CDC to launch the Global Polio Eradication Initiative. Visit http://www.rotary.org and http://www.endpolio.org for more about Rotary and its efforts to eradicate polio. Video and still images will be available on the Rotary Media Center (http://goo.gl/DS86iD).