Category: APO-OPA

NEW YORK, July 17, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — Checked against delivery

I have just briefed the Security Council on the humanitarian situation in Sudan and South Sudan, which continues to deteriorate for hundreds of thousands of people in both countries.

It is more than two years since the Council adopted resolution 2046 in May 2012, expressing deep concern at the humanitarian impact of fighting between the Government of Sudan and the SPLM-North in South Kordofan and Blue Nile.

Hundreds of thousands of innocent people in South Kordofan and Blue Nile continue to be affected by war, and no progress has been made in ensuring that they have access to even the most basic humanitarian assistance.

I told Council members that this suffering is taking place in an increasingly complex environment.

Reputable sources cite estimates of some 170,000 people displaced within SPLM-North areas in the first half of this year.

Humanitarian premises, including hospitals, have been bombed. Attacks on medical facilities, whether deliberate or indiscriminate, are clearly unacceptable and in direct contravention of resolution 2046 and international humanitarian law.

I noted my deep concern that intensified bombing and fighting during the planting season – May, June and July – is likely to have an impact on the harvest and families’ ability to feed themselves.

The consequences of this conflict include failure to vaccinate children against polio in SPLM-North controlled areas of South Kordofan and Blue Nile.

Under the leadership of the Humanitarian Coordinator, humanitarian workers in Sudan have continued to appeal to the parties to allow basic assistance to be provided to people who most need it.

We are seeing significant inter-connections between the humanitarian situations between the two countries.

Deepening conflict in Darfur. Continuing deterioration of the humanitarian situation in South Sudan. Refugee outflows; and worrying food insecurity across the region.

We have already heard that the Famine Early Warning Systems Network has forecast that emergency levels of food insecurity are likely to persist among the internally displaced and host communities in SPLM-N controlled areas of South Kordofan between now and September.

I warned the Council that if aerial bombardment continues to disrupt agricultural activities, we can expect the impact to extend well beyond the harvest in September.

Food security assessments in May and June this year indicate acute food and livelihoods crisis or an emergency situation in ten counties in Jonglei, Unity and Upper Nile States. A warning of possible famine over the months of July and August was also given.

The conflict in South Sudan has effectively blocked off traditional areas of refuge across the border.

It has also disrupted the cross-border movement of goods and services coming into South Kordofan and Blue Nile.

And it has compounded the suffering of more than 200,000 Sudanese refugees in Upper Nile and Unity States.

There are also currently close to 83,000 refugees from South Sudan in Sudan as a result of the ongoing fighting.

Given the dire situation in South Kordofan, Blue Nile and Darfur and the unfolding humanitarian disaster in South Sudan, it is clear that urgent action is needed now.

I appealed to the Council to take action to ensure immediate and unhindered access for the United Nations and our humanitarian partners, as called for under Resolution 2046.

I also asked the Council to call on the parties to unequivocally welcome the renewed vaccination proposal and ensure a conducive environment – including issuance of the necessary permits and security guarantees – for the safe and efficient implementation of this critical humanitarian operation.

I also warned the Council that, if we don’t take action now, we will see a major humanitarian crisis unfolding in South Sudan with respect to food security and the possibility of famine.

Thank you very much.

NEW YORK, July 17, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today announced the appointment of Babacar Gaye of Senegal as his Special Representative and Head of the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA). MINUSCA was established by Security Council resolution 2149 (2014) of 10 April 2014.

Mr. Gaye is currently the acting Special Representative of the Secretary-General for the Central African Republic and Head of MINUSCA. Until April 2014, he served as Representative of the Secretary-General for the Central African Republic and Head of the United Nations Integrated Peacebuilding Office for the Central African Republic (BINUCA).

Mr. Gaye brings to this position many years of diplomatic, political and military experience with the United Nations system particularly in the field of peacekeeping and his national Government. He served as Assistant Secretary-General and Military Adviser to the Under-Secretary General for Peacekeeping Operations from 2010-2013 at United Nations Headquarters. He also served as Force Commander for the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUSCO and previously the United Nations Organization Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo, or MONUC) from 2005-2010, and in several peace missions including in Lebanon and Iraq.

A graduate of the École spéciale militaire de Saint-Cyr in France, he holds several national and international decorations.

Mr. Gaye is married and has two children.

DAR ES SALAAM, Tanzania, July 17, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — The Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) today approved a new three-year Policy Support Instrument (PSI) for Tanzania.1 The IMF recently concluded the final review of the country’s economic performance under a Standby Credit Facility (SCF) arrangement (See Press Release 14/182), together with the Article IV consultation with Tanzania on April 25, 2014 (See Press Release No. 14/227). The SCF expired on April 30, 2014.

The PSI for Tanzania aims to support the authorities’ medium-term objectives. These include: the maintenance of macroeconomic stability, the preservation of debt sustainability, and the promotion of more equitable growth and job creation.

Following the Executive Board discussion, Mr. Naoyuki Shinohara, Deputy Managing Director and Acting Chair, said:

“Tanzania is expected to sustain its recent positive macroeconomic performance over the medium term, leading to a gradual reduction relative to Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of its still large current account deficit. This positive outlook is predicated in part on the authorities’ intention to undertake further reforms to improve the investment climate and diversify the economic base.

“The current budget appropriately targets a smaller deficit than in the previous fiscal year. Going forward, the authorities will need to continue the fiscal adjustment underway while opening up room for badly needed spending on infrastructure and social services. Steps to mobilize additional revenues and improve public financial management, including by addressing domestic arrears, will be critical, in this regard. Although Tanzania remains at a low risk of debt distress, fiscal risks, including those arising from public enterprises and social security funds, need to be better monitored and managed.

“Tanzania stands to benefit from potential revenues from offshore extraction of natural gas, likely to start in the early 2020s. In approving the PSI, the IMF Executive Board stressed the need for a comprehensive framework to manage natural resource wealth. Such a framework should ensure full integration of resource revenues in the budget, and institutionalize the transparency and accountability of spending decisions.

“The authorities failed to provide accurate information to the Fund with respect to the accumulation of new external arrears by the government within the context of completion of several reviews under the recent PSI. The inaccurate reporting of arrears data, associated with a government-guaranteed lease contract with a public enterprise, also gave rise to a non-complying disbursement under the SCF arrangement. However, in light of the corrective measures taken by the authorities to improve external debt management, the Executive Board maintained its overall positive assessment of Tanzania’s program performance under the recent PSI and granted a waiver of non-observance of the performance criterion that gave rise to the non-complying disbursement under the SCF.”

ANNEX

Recent economic developments

Tanzania has enjoyed strong and stable real GDP growth, projected at 7 percent in 2014 and in the medium term. Inflation is at 6 percent, projected to gradually converge to the authorities’ 5 percent medium-term objective. The external current account deficit remains among the largest in the region, at 14 percent of GDP this year. The overall fiscal deficit in 2014/15 is projected at 4.9 percent of GDP. Based on the debt sustainability analysis, Tanzania remains at low risk of debt distress.

In the long term, the macroeconomic outlook remains favorable, based on the projected completion of a natural gas pipeline and adequate natural gas-fired power plants in 2014/15. The availability of cheaper energy is expected to benefit economic growth and the current account. Nevertheless, with continued strong domestic demand and sizable foreign direct investment, the current account deficit is projected above 10 percent of GDP in the medium term. Tanzania will need to maintain strong policies that preserve fiscal sustainability and deliver low, stable inflation, and undertake growth-enhancing structural reforms aimed at improving the business environment and the diversification of the export base.

Program Summary

Building on the achievements under the previous Fund-supported programs, Tanzania’s new PSI will support the authorities’ program to promote sustainable, broad-based high growth, price stability and poverty reduction. In the fiscal area, the focus will be on strengthening public finance management practices to improve efficiency and transparency of public spending, and on further broadening of the tax base, to mobilize revenues and reduce aid dependence. In addition, the PSI aims to strengthen the framework for monitoring and managing fiscal risks. Through these efforts, the program aims to provide the fiscal space to allow for infrastructure and priority social spending. The authorities have identified infrastructure, education, health, and essential social services as priority spending areas to foster inclusive growth. The program will support the authorities’ efforts to ensure that potential revenues from offshore natural gas—which are likely to accrue in the 2020s—benefit all Tanzanians.

The Bank of Tanzania (BoT) will maintain the current prudent monetary policy stance in order to preserve inflation in mid-single digits. The intended modernization of the policy framework envisages a gradual move toward the use of interest rates as the main policy tool. This is expected to strengthen the BoT’s ability to communicate with markets and to preserve price and financial stability. The program will also support reforms to the financial stability framework to ensure it keeps pace with rapid development in the sector, driven by the increasing sophistication of financial institutions, regional financial integration, and technological innovations such as mobile banking.

Tanzania: Selected Economic and Financial Indicators, 2010/11–2017/18

2010/11 2011/12 2012/13 2013/14 2014/15 2015/16 2016/17 2017/18

Prog.1 Prel. Prog.1 Proj. Proj. Proj. Proj. Proj.

Annual percentage change (unless otherwise indicated)

National income and prices

Nominal GDP (in billions of TSh)

34,913 41,125 48,264 48,348 55,228 55,559 63,263 71,718 80,801 90,810

Real GDP growth (calendar year) 2

6.4 6.9 7.0 7.0 7.2 7.2 7.0 7.1 7.0 6.8

Real GDP growth

6.7 6.7 7.0 6.9 7.1 7.1 7.1 7.1 7.0 6.9

Consumer prices (period average)

7.0 17.8 11.6 11.3 7.2 6.1 5.1 5.0 5.0 5.0

Consumer prices (end of period)

10.9 17.4 9.5 7.6 6.0 5.7 5.0 5.0 5.0 5.0

GDP deflator (period average)

8.1 10.3 … 10.0 … 7.4 6.3 5.9 5.3 5.1

External sector

Exports, f.o.b (in billions of U.S. dollars)

4.9 5.6 5.9 5.4 6.5 5.5 6.1 6.6 7.3 7.9

Imports, f.o.b. (in billions of U.S. dollars)

8.0 10.6 11.0 10.5 12.3 11.5 12.4 13.3 14.3 15.6

Export volume

10.9 8.9 2.0 -2.2 12.6 9.6 12.7 10.7 10.6 9.1

Import volume

6.2 28.8 3.2 -2.0 10.2 10.1 9.1 8.7 8.0 8.9

Terms of trade

1.2 1.6 3.4 -1.5 -2.5 -6.9 -1.3 0.2 -0.5 0.3

Nominal effective exchange rate (end of period; depreciation= -)3

-17.7 6.4 0.6 1.2 … … … … … …

Real effective exchange rate (end of period; depreciation= -)3

-13.7 21.5 6.0 6.1 … … … … … …

Money and credit

Broad money (M3)

22.0 10.9 14.5 14.9 13.0 14.5 15.5 14.8 14.1 13.8

Average reserve money

19.3 14.2 15.7 14.5 11.9 14.9 13.9 13.4 12.7 12.4

Credit to nongovernment sector

24.3 18.6 17.4 17.1 13.9 16.5 16.0 14.8 13.9 13.9

Velocity of money (GDP/M3; average)

3.2 3.2 3.3 3.3 3.4 3.4 3.3 3.3 3.3 3.2

Treasury bill interest rate (in percent; end of period)

4.8 13.8 … 13.9 … … … … … …

(Percent of GDP)

Public Finance

Revenue (excluding grants)

16.4 17.6 18.1 17.5 19.9 18.4 19.4 19.7 19.9 20.1

Total grants

4.7 4.5 3.7 3.6 4.2 3.3 2.3 3.5 3.0 3.0

Expenditure

27.0 26.2 27.6 28.0 29.1 26.9 26.7 27.2 26.9 27.2

Overall balance (excluding grants)4

-11.4 -8.6 -9.5 -10.5 -9.2 -8.5 -7.2 -7.5 -7.0 -7.0

Overall balance (including grants)4

-6.6 -5.0 -5.8 -6.8 -5.0 -5.2 -4.9 -4.0 -4.0 -4.0

Domestic financing (excluding gas pipeline financing)

3.6 0.7 1.0 2.2 1.0 1.4 0.9 0.5 0.7 0.7

Domestic debt stock (end of period)5

9.6 11.1 10.4 11.6 10.1 10.5 10.1 9.4 9.1 8.7

Total public debt5,6

39.4 39.8 41.6 40.8 43.3 41.5 42.7 42.2 42.5 42.6

Savings and investment

Resource gap (net exports of goods and services)

-15.3 -17.6 -16.7 -15.6 -15.6 -14.8 -14.0 -12.9 -12.0 -11.4

Investment

34.5 35.5 39.2 34.4 38.3 33.4 32.1 31.5 31.5 31.6

Government

8.5 8.8 9.1 8.6 8.9 8.4 8.6 9.0 9.6 10.2

Nongovernment7

26.0 26.8 30.2 25.8 29.4 25.0 23.6 22.4 22.0 21.5

Gross domestic savings

19.3 18.0 22.6 18.8 22.7 18.6 18.2 18.6 19.5 20.2

External sector

Current account balance (excluding current transfers)

-12.5 -20.8 -16.0 -15.7 -17.0 -15.7 -14.5 -13.3 -12.7 -12.2

Current account balance (including current transfers)

-9.4 -18.4 -14.3 -14.0 -15.2 -14.4 -13.4 -12.3 -11.7 -11.3

(Billions of U.S. dollars, unless otherwise indicated)

Balance of payments

Current account balance (excluding current transfers; deficit= -)

-3.0 -5.4 -4.8 -4.8 -5.7 -5.4 -5.6 -5.7 -6.0 -6.3

Gross official reserves (end of period)

3.6 3.8 4.2 4.4 4.5 4.6 5.2 5.6 6.1 6.7

In months of imports of goods and services (current year)

4.3 3.5 3.8 4.1 3.6 3.9 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.2

Total external debt stock (end of period; percent of GDP)7

33.1 34.4 35.0 35.7 36.8 36.8 37.9 37.6 37.8 37.9

Exchange rate (period average, T Sh per U.S. dollar)

1,475 1,594 1,580 1,603 1,636 1,668

Exchange rate (eop, T Sh per U.S. dollar)

1,572 1,569 1,603 1,623 1,649 1,687

Sources: Tanzanian authorities and IMF staff estimates and projections.

1 From the second review under the SCF arrangement.

2 E.g. Calendar year corresponding to 2012/13 is 2013.

3 The figure for 2012/13 reflects the change from July 2012 through June 2013.

4 Actual and preliminary data include adjustment to cash basis.

5 Net of Treasury bills issued for liquidity management.

7 Including change in stocks.

1 The PSI is an instrument of the IMF designed for low-income countries that may not need balance of payments financial support but seek to maintain a close policy dialogue with the IMF through the IMF’s endorsement and assessment of their economic and financial policies. The PSI, once approved by the IMF’s Executive Board, signals to donors, multilateral development banks, and markets, the strength of a member’s policies (see http://www.imf.org/external/np/exr/facts/psi.htm).

TUNIS, Tunisia, July 17, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — A mission from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), led by Mr. Amine Mati, visited Tunis during June 10–24, 2014 to conduct discussions on the fourth review of Tunisia’s economic performance under the 24-month Stand-By Arrangement (SBA) approved by the IMF Executive Board on June 7, 2013. (See Press Release No. 13/202). The mission held productive discussions with senior government and central bank officials. It also met with representatives of the banking and private sectors, trade unions, parliamentarians, the donor community, and civil society.

At the end of the discussions, Mr. Mati issued the following statement:

“The mission welcomes the progress made in pushing ahead with policies to preserve macroeconomic stability and generate higher and more inclusive growth in a challenging national and international environment. In view of this, the IMF mission reached staff-level understandings on the fourth review under the SBA detailed in an updated Memorandum of Economic and Financial Policies.

“The announcement of a clear calendar for the legislative and presidential elections to be held before the end of 2014 is a key achievement in Tunisia’s transition to democracy. This increased clarity at the political level will bolster confidence in the Tunisian economy, and reduce investors’ wait-and-see attitude. However, the economic situation remains fragile with growth not high enough to make a significant dent in unemployment, in particular, amongst the youth.

“Economic activity remains modest. Growth estimates for 2013 have been revised down to 2.3 percent. GDP will expand by 2.8 percent in 2014, with the good performance of the agricultural sector helping offset weaker than expected activity in the tourism sector. After having declined to 5 percent at end-March, headline inflation is on the rise, reaching 5.7 percent at end-June 2014, driven mainly by higher food prices. Tunisia’s external imbalances have been widening, putting pressures on gross foreign reserves and the exchange rate, which has been depreciating.

“The authorities’ reform program remains on track, with all end-March quantitative performance criteria met and those for end-June expected to have been met. The indicative ceilings on social spending and current primary spending were met, despite some wage overruns.

“Fiscal performance was stronger than-expected during the first five months of the year, thanks to considerable revenue mobilization. Additional wage payments and pension transfers put pressure on attaining the end-year fiscal target, but additional revenue measures and savings on expenditures ensure that fiscal consolidation remains on track. The ongoing reduction in energy subsidies is a welcome development and is necessary to lower energy consumption and create fiscal space for priority spending on health and education. The mission welcomed steps taken to combat tax evasion, simplify the presumptive tax system, modernize tax administration, and strengthen the public enterprise monitoring and governance framework.

“The mission welcomed the Central Bank of Tunisia’s decision to increase the policy rate in view of possible inflationary pressures arising from recent minimum wage increases, electricity tariff increases, and a depreciating exchange rate. The mission recognizes the authorities’ readiness to increase the policy rate further if core inflation rises rapidly or if depreciation pressures persist. The mission urged the authorities to continue rebuilding foreign exchange reserves, including through further exchange rate flexibility.

“Important steps have been taken to strengthen the reform agenda, particularly in the banking sector. A banking strategy has been designed, restructuring plans for public banks are being finalized in line with international best practices, and plans for creating an asset management company are advancing. Reducing the vulnerabilities of the Tunisian economy and fostering more inclusive growth would also require rapid implementation of structural reforms, including creating a level playing field for investors and the rapid adoption of key legislation on bankruptcy, competition law, and public-private partnerships.

“Protecting the most vulnerable in the population from the impact of reforms and fiscal consolidation remains a priority for the Tunisian authorities and the IMF. In this context, the authorities have established a program to support vulnerable households to accompany the energy subsidy reform, have increased minimum wages, and are finalizing work on a unique social identification number that will improve the existing targeting mechanism.

“The mission thanks the authorities and all those with whom they met for their warm welcome, and frank and fruitful discussions.

“The IMF Executive Board is tentatively scheduled to discuss the fourth review of Tunisia’s SBA in late August. The completion of this review would make SDR 143.3 million (about US$220 million) available to Tunisia.”

ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia, July 16, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — African Union Commission Chairperson, H.E. Dr. Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma has arrived in Ezulwini, Swaziland to participate in the Seventh Conference of African Ministers in charge …

TOKYO, Japan, July 16, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — 1． Parliamentary Senior Vice-Minister for Foreign Affairs Nobuo Kishi will visit Egypt, Jordan, Israel, the Palestine and Turkey from July 19 to July 26.

2．Mr.Kishi, in his visit to Cairo, capital of Egypt, between July 19 and July 20, will hold discussions with Egyptian government officials.

3．From July 22 to 24 , Mr.Kishi will visit Jordan to hold discussions with Jordanian government officials, then continue on to Israel and Palestine, where he will pay a courtesy call on H.E.Dr.Mahmoud Abbas, President of the Palestinian Authority, and hold discussions with parties involved in the Middle East Peace Process.

4．In addition, on July 25 Mr.Kishi will move to Istanbul, Turkey, and visit the site of the Marmaray Project (an undersea rail tube crossing under the Bosphorus Strait), which is one of Japan’s leading ODA projects in Turkey, and will also meet and exchange opinions with representatives of Japanese companies doing business in the Turkish market.

ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia, July 16, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — The Peace and Security Council of the African Union (AU), at its 446th meeting held on 9 July 2014, adopted the following decision on the situation in Darfur and the activities of the African Union-United Nations Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID):

Council,

1. Takes note of the report of the Chairperson of the Commission on the situation in Darfur and the activities of UNAMID [PSC/PR/2 (CDXLVI)], as well as of the briefings made by the Commissioner for Peace and Security and the Joint Special Representative for UNAMID and Joint Chief Mediator for Darfur. Council also takes note of the statements made by the representative of the Government of Sudan (GoS), as well as those made by Nigeria, France, the United Kingdom (UK),the United States of America (USA) and the European Union (EU);

2. Recalls its previous decisions and communiqués on the situation in Darfur, including communiqué PSC/PR/COMM.(CDXXV), on the review of UNAMID operations, adopted at its 425th meeting, held on 24 March 2014;

3. Reiterates its appreciation to UNAMID leadership and personnel for their dedication and contribution to the promotion of peace, security, stability and reconciliation in the Darfur region of Sudan, and notes with satisfaction the progress made in the implementation of UNAMID’s mandate, including with respect to the protection of civilians. In this regard, Council pays tribute to the UNAMID personnel who have paid the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty for the cause of peace in Darfur;

4. Takes note of the efforts deployed by UNAMID to implement the recommendations of the Review conducted by the UN and the AU Team, in accordance with resolution 2113 (2013) of 30 July 2013, and communiqué PSC/PR/COMM.(CD), adopted at its 400th meeting held on 17 October 2013. Council welcomes the progress made in the strategic priority areas as identified by the Review Team, notably the protection of civilians, the facilitation of the delivery of humanitarian assistance and the safety and security of humanitarian personnel and support to mediation relating to inter-communal conflicts;

5. Strongly condemns all attacks against UNAMID personnel and assets, as well as against humanitarian organizations and their staff, and urges the GoS to spare no efforts in identifying the authors of these criminal acts and bringing them to justice;

6. Reiterates its firm support to the Doha Document for Peace in Darfur (DDPD) as a viable framework for bringing lasting peace and reconciliation in Darfur. In this context, Council welcomes the progress made in the implementation of the DDPD, as illustrated by the steps recently taken towards the implementation of its security provisions, the launching, on 22 June 2014, of the Justice, Truth and Reconciliation Committees that are expected to work with the native administration to address the root causes of the conflict in Darfur and the inauguration, on 26 May 2014, in El-Fasher, of the Darfur Internal Dialogue and Consultation (DIDC) Implementation Committee. Council encourages the Parties to expedite their efforts towards addressing the outstanding issues, and calls on the international community to enhance its support to the implementation process. In this context, Council underscores the complementarity of these processes;

7. Notes that, while fighting between the Government forces and the armed movements has reduced significantly over the past months, violence continued with renewed fighting between ethnic groups over resources. Council urges for renewed efforts to address the prevailing situation and, in this respect, commends UNAMID for the initiatives taken to prevent inter-ethnic and inter-communal conflicts and facilitate their resolution when they occur;

8. Expresses deep concern at the continued human rights violations in Darfur, including the increase in sexual and gender-based violence. Council strongly condemns these violations and calls on the GoS to take appropriate measures to address this situation, notably by identifying their perpetrators and bringing them to justice. Council welcomes the capacity building support provided by UNAMID to GoS institutions and relevant civil society organizations;

9. Reiterates its earlier appeals to all armed belligerents to cease all acts of violence in Darfur and recommit themselves to the peaceful resolution of the conflict in that region. In this respect, Council calls on the holdout armed movements to join the peace process on the basis of the DDPD, welcomes the consultations undertaken by the AU Commissioner for Peace and Security and the JCM with the Qatari authorities, in Doha, on 5 May 2014, and reiterates its support to the continued engagement of the JCM with both the GoS and the holdout armed movements. Council looks forward to the holding of the envisaged meeting, in Addis Ababa, between the GoS and the armed movements, as part of the process of confidence-building and ensuring inclusivity of all parties for national reconciliation;

10. Stresses the need for the efforts to address the Darfur crisis to be part of the holistic approach to the challenges of peace, governance and democracy in Sudan, and that the national initiative for dialogue, announced by President Omar Hassan Al-Bashir, in January 2014, provides a unique opportunity that the GoS and all other stakeholders should seize in order to advance peace and reconciliation in Sudan, taking into account Decision Assembly/AU/Dec.501 (XXII), by which the Assembly declared 2014-2024 as the Madiba Nelson Mandela Decade of Reconciliation in Africa. Council further welcomes the coordination between the AUHIP and the JCM, and reiterates its call to all parties to create a conducive environment for the success of the initiative;

11. Expresses concern at the prevailing humanitarian situation in Darfur, including the increase in the number of internally displaced persons (IDPs), and appeals for renewed efforts to address the challenges at hand, including mobilization of additional resources and capacities. In this regard, Council encourages the GoS to engage more with humanitarian aid agencies with a view to facilitating their work in the communities affected;

12. Appeals to AU Member States and the larger international community to continue to provide the much-needed support with a view to enhancing the capacity of UNAMID to more effectively discharge its mandate and to alleviating the humanitarian crisis in Darfur;

13. Reiterates the critical importance of continued UNAMID presence in Darfur, in order to contribute to the protection of the civilian population and advance the search for peace, security, stability and reconciliation in that region. Accordingly, Council decides to extend, for a further period of 12 months, the mandate of UNAMID as defined in its communique PSC/PR/Comm.(LXXIX) of its 79th meeting held on 22 June 2007 and UN Security Council resolution 1769 (2007) of 31 July 2007. Council requests the UN Security Council to do the same;

14. Decides to remain actively seized of the matter.

PRETORIA, South-Africa, July 16, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — The International Organization for Migration has appointed Mr. Richard Ots as the new Chief of Mission for the IOM mission in South Africa effective from 1 July 2014.

Mr. Ots will oversee the South Africa main office based in Pretoria including three sub-offices in Durban, Cape Town and Musina.

As the head of IOM in South Africa, Mr. Ots will oversee the implementation of all IOM activities in South Africa.

Under his leadership, the IOM office in South Africa will continue its mandate of supporting the government of South Africa to analyse national migration issues and emerging trends in order to plan, develop and implement programmes aimed at addressing these migration issues.

Mr. Ots, a Dutch national, holds a Bachelor of Economics from the Hogeschool voor Economische Studies in Amsterdam; a Masters of Economics from the University of Sarajevo and an MBA from the University of Delaware. He speaks fluent English, Dutch, French, German and Bosnian. He is married with 2 children.

Prior to joining IOM, Mr. Ots worked for a number of public and private sector organizations in Kosovo, Jordan, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia, Serbia, USA and The Netherlands. He joins IOM South Africa from Mauritania where he served as Chief of Mission for the past 4 years.

“It is broadly recognized that migration is a phenomenon that is of tremendous importance in the whole of Africa, from a historical, cultural and social perspective. What is perhaps not sufficiently know is the great contribution that migrants bring to the economic growth of the national economies, not only of the continent’s lower-income countries but also of countries such as South Africa. Migration truly has the potential to benefit people in the countries of origin, transit and destination. I look forward to serving IOM’s mandate of promoting humane and orderly migration, for the benefit of all in South Africa,” says Mr. Ots.

ABIDJAN, Côte d’Ivoire, July 16, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — Orange (http://www.orange.com) has opened today West Africa’s first very large-capacity IP Point of Presence (PoP). The operational launch of this facility, which is located in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, is set to enhance Internet connectivity in the sub-region by offering faster connection speeds and improved reliability for wholesale customers. An IP Point of Presence is part of the technical infrastructure equipment necessary to enable local networks to access the Internet through an interconnection point with long-distance carrier networks.

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

investing to guarantee congestion-free service and increased reliability

Abidjan also hosts a landing point for the ACE submarine cable, a 17,000km-long cable which runs down the west coast of Africa from Europe. This makes it an ideal location for the IP PoP facility and allows for optimal connectivity with networks across the entire region.

As a fully redundant IP PoP, this new facility opens up the region and allows Orange to offer high quality, secure connections over the wholesale market to West African countries. Over the medium and long term, the Abidjan IP PoP will facilitate the expansion of the African IP Market, which is an area of rapidly growing economic activity that sees Internet traffic rising at a rate of 41% per year (Telegeography 2013).

By connecting to this very large-capacity PoP, wholesale customers, regional operators and Internet Service Providers will benefit from cost-effective connections to a Tier 1 operator. Additionally, the customer experience will be improved due to this connection point which will bring content providers closer to Internet users.

a continued effort to extend connectivity

Orange is a major Internet connectivity enabler and already has a strong position in Africa, where capacity is constantly increasing. Orange’s objective is to adapt to changes in the industry and become the leading operator in the Internet era.

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

Press contacts: +33 1 44 44 93 93

Tom Wright, tom.wright@orange.com

about Orange

Orange (http://www.orange.com) is one of the world’s leading telecommunications operators with sales of 41 billion euros in 2013 and has 164,000 employees worldwide at 31 March 2014, including 101,000 employees in France. Present in 30 countries, the Group has a total customer base of more than 239 million customers at 31 March 2014, including 182 million mobile customers and 16 million fixed broadband customers worldwide. Orange is also a leading provider of global IT and telecommunication services to multinational companies, under the brand Orange Business Services.

Orange is listed on the NYSE Euronext Paris (symbol ORA) and on the New York Stock Exchange (symbol ORAN).

For more information on the internet and on your mobile: www.orange.com, www.orange-business.com, www.livetv.orange.com or to follow us on Twitter: @orangegrouppr.

Orange and any other Orange product or service names included in this material are trademarks of Orange or Orange Brand Services Limited.

KHARTOUM, Sudan, July 16, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — A significant increase in humanitarian needs in Sudan during the first six months of 2014 has necessitated a revision of the Sudan Response Plan. Aid agencies in Sudan now urgently require $982 million to assist 6.9 million people in need of humanitarian assistance (roughly 20% of Sudan’s population). Humanitarian needs vary to include shelter, protection, nutrition, health, and potable water.

The first half of 2014 saw more people displaced in Darfur than in any single year since the height of the crisis in 2004. Conflict in South Sudan has driven over 85,000 people across the border to seek refuge in Sudan, particularly in White Nile State. And, following a comprehensive Sudan-wide survey, revised the planning figures for malnutrition showed an increase in people suffering from acute malnutrition especially children.

Given these new needs, aid agencies in Sudan have reassessed their priorities and refocused primarily on the immediate delivery of life saving assistance. Although many of the conflicts generating humanitarian needs in Sudan are protracted, the vulnerabilities faced by affected communities are acute. For example, the water and sanitation services for newly displaced people who have fled to Darfur’s camps are now severely overstretched, giving rise to the spread of diseases such as jaundice and hepatitis E.

“Saving lives is a priority. The humanitarian needs generated by new displacement in Darfur come in addition to the needs of some 2.2 million people in Darfur who live in camps, displaced by a conflict that has gone on for over 11 years. Due to the scale of this new displacement and the declining capacity of relief agencies, the delivery of basic humanitarian services in Darfur is inadequate. This revised appeal pivots on ensuring people at immediate risk are prioritized for assistance,” said the Humanitarian Coordinator in Sudan, Ali Al-Za’tari.

“The Sudan humanitarian response plan has been revised to reflect the deteriorating situation in Darfur, the influx of new refugees from South Sudan, and Sudan’s acute malnutrition crisis,” said Mr. Al-Za’tari. “To ensure that people made vulnerable by these crises get the assistance they need, I call on the donor community to support the Plan and help aid agencies obtain the humanitarian space needed to deliver relief where it is needed most”.