Africa

Trump Ends Deportation Protection for Liberians in the U.S.

By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network

NEW YORK | MONROVIA (IDN) – Liberians living in the U.S. since a devastating civil war that took 250,000 lives from 1989 until 1997 are now in the crosshairs of the current Trump administration which has terminated their protected status with effect from March 31, 2019.

Some five thousand Liberians have been eligible for either Temporary Protected Status (TPS) or Deferred Enforced Departure (DED) since March 1991, allowing them to remain in the United States. But the total number of Liberians in the U.S. is estimated at 100,000.

: Global Information Network; THE WORLD; USA and Canada; 30 March 2018

Photo: Members of the women's cooperative use climate-resilient organic compost and biopesticides in their farm. Credit: UN Women

Women Farmers in Africa Fight Impact of Climate Change

By Ronald Joshua

NEW YORK | BAMAKO (IDN) – Fatou Dembele is a farmer in landlocked Mali, where half of the population engaged in agriculture are women. Agriculture is a key sector to lift women out of poverty. But the increasing degradation of land and natural resources caused by climate change is making women more vulnerable.

Therefore when Dembele’s plants first started dying, she thought the plot of land was ruined, and her livelihood was at risk. “We thought the land was sick. We didn’t know that there were live parasites that attacked the roots of the plants and could kill them,” says Dembele.

: Ronald Joshua; THE WORLD; Africa; 27 March 2018

Social activities with NGOs - GBSH Consult - Johannesburg (South Africa)

The Role of NGOs in Africa: Are They a Force for Good?

By Sally Matthews

Dr. Sally Matthews is Senior Lecturer in Politics, Rhodes University, South Africa. This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article.

JOHANNESBURG (IDN) – Non-governmental organisations have become key actors in responding to poverty and related suffering. In Africa, NGOs play a leading role in providing health care and education.

The non-profit sector continues to grow rapidly in Africa and around the world. In South Africa alone, there are more than 100,000 registered non-profit organisations and in Kenya the number of NGOs grew by over 400% between 1997 and 2006. And for most observers, they seem to be well-intentioned actors who do a lot of good on the continent.

: Africa & ME Editor; THE WORLD; Africa; 26 March 2018

Photo: Australian High Commission in Pretoria. CC BY 3.0

White Australians Debate Fast-Track Visas for Afrikaners Fleeing Land Reform

By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network

NEW YORK (IDN) – Australia’s national security minister has proposed fast-tracking immigrant visas for white South Africans facing "horrific circumstances" under Cyril Ramaphosa, the country's President since February 15, 2018. He was elected head of the African National Congress in December 2017.

Barely a month into his presidency, Ramaphosa vowed to speed up the seizure of land from white owners and turn the properties over to blacks. "This original sin that was committed when our country was colonized must be resolved in a way that will take South Africa forward," he declared.

: Global Information Network; THE WORLD; Africa; 20 March 2018

Asylum-Seeking Mother and 7-Year-Old Daughter Reunited

By Global Information Network

NEW YORK (IDN) – After an episode described as both cruel and horrific, an asylum-seeking mother and her daughter have been reunited in Chicago. The daughter, who just turned 7, had been held thousands of miles apart from her mother since November 2017.

According to an American Civil Liberties Union attorney representing the family, the mother and child fell into each other's arms crying in a moment of tremendous emotion upon meeting after so much time apart.

: Global Information Network; THE WORLD; Africa; 20 March 2018

Obama Foundation To Launch Leaders Africa Program in July

NEW YORK (IDN) – The Obama Foundation, which aims "to inspire and empower people to change their world", is launching a 'Leaders Africa Program', and is seeking to identify a group of emerging African leaders from all sectors – government, civil society, and the private sector.

They should have demonstrated a commitment to advancing the common good, reports New York based africa.com. "The objective of the program is to build a growing network of innovative and ethical changemakers, who seek to drive positive change in their communities."

: Santo D. Banerjee; NEWSBRIEFS; 16 March 2018

Photo: U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson delivers remarks at a joint press availability at the Aso Rock Presidential Villa, Abuja, Nigeria on March 12, 2018. [State Department photo/ Public Domain]

Sacked Tillerson Cuts Short Long-Awaited Africa Visit

By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network

NEW YORK (IDN) – An extended visit to Africa by the U.S. Secretary of State to mend fences after President’ Donald Trump's crude description of African and the Caribbean countries was cut short March 13 by the dismissal of the embattled Secretary Rex Tillerson.

President Trump had announced such a visit in late January. In a letter to all African leaders, he reportedly described the purpose of the "extended" visit as reaffirming "the partnerships and values we share with the African Union, member states and citizens across the continent".

: Global Information Network; THE WORLD; Africa; 13 March 2018

Infrastructural Boom Spreads Across Southern Africa

By Jeffrey Moyo

HARARE (IDN) – Waving a red cloth tied to a stick while signalling vehicles to stop, 35-year old Denford Muzvidziwa who dons blue overalls and a white helmet, joyfully busies himself on the Harare-Mutare high way which is still being upgraded.

For over a decade after he completed a degree in Social Work at the University of Zimbabwe, Muzvidziwa has never found a formal job that suits his qualification, but he is happy with his new found job in the construction sector, saying the job nevertheless earns him some bit of money to caution him in the face of this country’s fledgling economy.

: Jeffrey Moyo; THE WORLD; Africa; 12 March 2018

Photo: President Ramaphosa delivering his first State of the Nation Address on 3 March 2018. Credit. Wikimedia Commons.

New South Africa President Endorses Land Transfers to Blacks

By Global Information Network

NEW YORK (IDN) – Barely a month into his presidency, Cyril Ramaphosa has taken sides on a hot button issue whose resolution had eluded previous leaders. He vowed to speed up the seizure of land from white owners and turn the properties over to blacks.

"This original sin that was committed when our country was colonized must be resolved in a way that will take South Africa forward," he declared.

: Global Information Network; THE WORLD; Africa; 06 March 2018

Photo: Dr Vera Songwe, the executive secretary of the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), addressing Africa Business and Investment Forum in Addis Ababa on January 30 on the margins of the African Union (AU) Summit. Credit: Jessica Hope

Africa’s Mounting Thirst for Foreign Direct Investment

By Jeffrey Moyo

HARARE | ADDIS ABABA (IDN) – He was just 17 when his country Zimbabwe gained independence. Now, 38 years later, Trynos Hove is over half a century old and what he remembers is persistent underdevelopment and repeated calls for foreign investment.

Without meaningful foreign direct investment in this Southern African nation, says Hove, suffering will continue for the majority of citizens who are now bearing the brunt of joblessness.

“I’m one of the Zimbabweans who are without employment today. I worked for Lever Brothers before I was sacked as the company scaled down operations owing to the failing economy here,” Hove told IDN.