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Africa - Voice of America Somali Capital Experiences Post-Shabab Building Boom
MOGADISHU - Somalia's capital, Mogadishu, is experiencing something of a building boom.  After throwing off the shackles of al-Qaida-linked radicals, its citizens have begun carting away the rubble and repairing the damage of two decades as Africa's worst failed state.    ​​Eight months ago, Mogadishu's bombed out parliament building was a symbol of 20-years of anarchy.  Today, it is under reconstruction to house a new legislature expected to be ...
Africa - Voice of America Convicted Lockerbie Bomber Dies After Cancer Battle
A former Libyan intelligence officer convicted of the 1988 Lockerbie bombing has died of cancer in Tripoli, nearly three years after Scottish authorities released him from prison on compassionate grounds.    Abdel Baset al-Megrahi died at his home Sunday at the age of 60.  He was the only man convicted of the Pan Am Flight 103 attack that destroyed a U.S. passenger jet over the Scottish town of Lockerbie, killing 270 people, 11 of them on the ...
Africa - Voice of America Sudan Releases Captured Foreigners
Sudan has released four foreigners who were detained last month in the disputed Heglig region and accused of spying for South Sudan.   The defense ministry handed the four on Sunday to former South African president and African Union mediator Thabo Mbeki.   The four appeared to be in good health during a ceremony in Khartoum, which took place one day after Mr. Mbeki met with President Omar al-Bashir.   The mediator is working to convince ...
Africa - Voice of America Rights Group Accuses Egyptian Military of Torture
An international human rights group has accused Egypt's military of beating and torturing protesters arrested during a huge rally near the Defense Ministry in Cairo earlier this month. The New York-based Human Rights Watch said Saturday soldiers fired tear gas and water cannon at thousands of demonstrators demanding an immediate end to military rule and arrested some 350 people as part of its crackdown on the protests. Joe Stork, deputy Middle East and North Africa director for ...
Africa - Voice of America Activists Protest G8 Summit
THURMONT, Maryland - As U.S. President Barack Obama finished meetings with leaders from the Group of Eight leading industrialized nations and African heads of state at the Camp David retreat in Maryland, demonstrations erupted in nearby towns. The protesters involved regulars of the Occupy movement as well as anti-government Ethiopian activists.   ​Several hundred Ethiopian activists came from across the United States to protest meetings involving Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles ...
Africa - Voice of America Egyptians Living Abroad Cast Votes for New President
WASHINGTON - Voters in Egypt go to the polls Wednesday and Thursday [May 23 and 24] to choose a new president. Ahead of that historic election, Egyptians living overseas have been able to cast their ballots at local consulates and embassies. In the shade outside of her office in Washington, Nihal Elwan is about to do something she’s never done before. She’s voting for the president of her homeland - Egypt. She has 13 candidates to choose from - including Islamists, leftists and ...
Africa - Voice of America Eritrean President Discusses Path to Development
Eritrean President Isaias Afewerki calls the country’s development drive over two decades of independence “a success story.”     “We have achieved a lot, and our culture has helped us a lot to create an environment for sustainable development,”  he told VOA in an exclusive interview ahead of the 21 st anniversary of his country’s independence on May 24. “Our main objective for the last 21 years was to create an environment for real independence… We have put ...
Africa - Voice of America UNESCO: Warns Heritage Sites in Mali, Arab World at Risk
UNITED NATIONS - The United Nations cultural organization, UNESCO , warns that world heritage sites in the West African country of Mali and in the Arab world are at risk of damage and theft as political upheaval sweeps through those states.  Distruction of historical manuscripts The ancient city of Timbuktu saw its golden age as an Islamic intellectual and spiritual center in the 15th and 16th centuries. Its three great mosques, the Djingareyber, Sankore and Sidi Yahia, ...
Africa - Voice of America Record Number of Africans Flee to Yemen
A record number of African refugees and migrants have arrived in Yemen this year. Most are from Ethiopia. U.N. refugee agency spokesman Andrej Mahecic says more people are crossing the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden to get to Yemen. “There are now more than 43,000 people – migrants and refugees – from the Horn of Africa who have reached Yemen during the first four months of this year. We are looking at the record figures compared to the same period last year or any other year before,” he said. ...
Africa - Voice of America Obama Announces Food Initiative for Africa
WHITE HOUSE - U.S. President Barack Obama has announced a plan aimed at lifting 50 million Africans out of poverty in the next 10 years. Private companies from around the world have pledged more than $3 billion toward the effort.   With the leaders of several African countries watching, the president said Friday that governments, private industries and organizations will work together to improve Africa's food security. ​​ "Today, I can announce a new ...
Africa - Voice of America Egypt's Moussa Stresses Experience in Time of Flux
CAIRO - Veteran diplomat Amr Moussa is one of the top contenders in Egypt's presidential election May 23-24.    Moussa's past is both a strength and a weakness. The former foreign minister and ex- Arab League chief says he is ready to lead the nation.   "The country is in a major crisis," noted Moussa. "And a major crisis would not justify at all a president who will ask around 'What do I do on this point, or that point' and gaining ...
Africa - Voice of America West African Mediators, Mali Militants Open Talks
DAKAR - President Blaise Compaore of Burkina Faso has begun negotiations with armed rebel and Islamist groups who seized control of northern Mali after the March 22 coup toppled the civilian government in Bamako. Compaore has been leading West African mediation efforts aimed at reuniting Mali and returning it to constitutional rule. Burkina Faso's foreign affairs minister, Djibrill Bassole, told reporters Thursday that President Compaore is engaged in talks with militant groups in ...
Africa - Voice of America Eritrea President Denies Stifling Free Speech
Eritrean President Isaias Afewerki has denied that his country stifles freedom of speech, just days after media rights group Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) identified Eritrea as the most censored country in the world. Listen to VOA's interview with President Isaias In an interview with VOA's English to Africa service Thursday in the capital, Asmara, President Isaias said his government is not interested in keeping people from expressing their ...
Africa - Voice of America US Activists, Officials Seek to Protect Africa's Gay Refugees
As the world marked the International Day Against Homophobia Thursday, in Washington, U.S. activists and officials outlined efforts to protect an extremely vulnerable group - gay refugees in east Africa.  Kenya is host to more than 600,000 refugees, while there are an estimated 135,000 refugees in Uganda. Both countries criminalize homosexuality.  In Uganda, what are called "unnatural offenses" carry a risk of life in prison, with some lawmakers even advocating ...
Africa - Voice of America US Congressional Panel Examines International Human Rights Violations
CAPITOL HILL - The Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission held a hearing Thursday on threats and restrictions faced by civil society and human rights defenders around the world.  The hearing focused on laws recently enacted and pending legislation in countries such as Ethiopia that are limiting the ability of nongovernmental organizations to operate freely and independently. One of the co-chairmen of the bipartisan commission, Democratic Representative James McGovern of Massachusetts, ...
Africa - Voice of America Press Advocates: Obama Should Talk Freedom at G8
Press freedom advocates are calling for President Barack Obama to address limitations on journalists who report on food insecurity when he meets with four African leaders at the G8 Summit on Saturday. The group is set to discuss solutions to food crises on the continent. But Mohamed Keita, the Africa Advocacy Coordinator for the Committee to Protect Journalists, said government censorship is part of the problem.  “We believe that such practices harm the domestic and international ...
Africa - Voice of America Zimbabwe Finance Minister Says No Money for Polls
HARARE - Zimbabwe's finance minister has ruled out holding elections this year, saying the troubled nation does not have enough money to fund the polls. He blamed the problem on diamond mining firms failing to pay the government its share of revenue.   Addressing journalists in Harare, Finance Minister Tendai Biti said it was essential that the country’s precious stones help turn around the nation’s fortunes. As a result of diamond revenue not reaching the treasury, Biti ...
Africa - Voice of America Oil Transit Fee Obstacle to Sudan Talks
The deadline for Sudan and South Sudan to return to the negotiating table in Ethiopia came and went Wednesday without a resumption in talks. One of the major obstacles is oil transit fees.  During negotiations last year Sudan proposed South Sudan pay $32 per barrel, whereas South Sudan offered one dollar, which is much closer to international standards. South Sudan inherited about three-quarters of the Sudanese oil after it split from Khartoum last year, but Sudan has the ...
Africa - Voice of America Trials of Politicians, Journalists Test Ethiopia's Anti-Terrorism Law
ADDIS ABABA - In Ethiopia, a series of high-profile trials is being closely watched as a test of recently-enacted anti-terrorism legislation. A three-judge federal panel is hearing the trials of as many as 150 people arrested on terrorism-related charges last year, including prominent politicians and journalists.   Almost every week for the past few months, a small group of journalists and diplomats has  gathered at Addis Ababa's Lideta federal court complex to ...
Africa - Voice of America African Jihadist Group Threatens To Kill Spanish Hostage
DAKAR - An extremist group in West Africa is reportedly threatening to kill a Spanish hostage seized in western Algeria last October.  The group is believed to have split from al-Qaida's North Africa branch last year with the aim of spreading jihad further south beyond the Sahara.   The Movement for Oneness and Jihad in West Africa, referred to by its acronym MOJWA, emerged on the Sahelian terrorist scene in late 2011 after it kidnapped two Spanish aid workers and one Italian ...
Africa - Voice of America South Sudan: SPLA Soldiers Hold Frontline Position
South Sudanese troops at standstill as they await talks on UN Security Council resolution; commanders awaiting orders on next move
Africa - Voice of America Possible Talks between Nigerian Government, Boko Haram
ABUJA - Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan appears to be once again preparing to negotiate with the militant group Boko Haram, after a man claiming to be a spokesperson for the Islamist group called for renewed talks.   Many people in Nigeria have expressed anger and frustration with the government’s failure to stop the relentless deadly attacks blamed on the militant group known as Boko Haram.  Some now say it is time to find out what Boko Haram wants and negotiate.   ...
Africa - Voice of America G8 Summit to Focus on Africa Food Security
STATE DEPARTMENT - As host of this week's summit of the world's Group of Eight leading industrial nations (G8), President Barack Obama has put African food security on the agenda. Food security remains a recurring problem across Africa, despite hundreds of millions of dollars in foreign aid each year. The Horn of Africa endured a severe drought last year that turned to famine in Somalia, and several countries in West Africa are now going through a food shortage that aid ...
Africa - Voice of America G8 Leaders to Weigh Euro Crisis, Food Security
Global economic recovery and food security are expected to be major topics at this weekend’s G8 summit. Leaders will gather at a short, scaled-down version of their annual meeting at Camp David in Maryland. John Kirton, co-founder of the G8 Research Group, said the summit may be brief, but also significant. “The G7 leaders, together with Dmitry Medvedev from Russia, will be meeting to deal with the latest eruption of the Euro crisis coming out of the elections in Greece and of ...
Africa - Voice of America Aboul Fotouh Courts Egypt's Broad Political Base
CAIRO - Islamist Abdel Moneim Aboul Fotouh is being touted as a frontrunner in next week's presidential election in Egypt.  It will be the first presidential vote since Hosni Mubarak was forced from office last year.  ​​ Aboul Fotouh was a longtime Muslim Brotherhood member who broke with the group to run his independent campaign. He has done what few Egyptians thought possible, by projecting a calm and unifying presence during a tense and polarized time.  A ...
Africa - Voice of America ICC Judges to Consider Libyan Request to Try Gadhafi Son
UNITED NATIONS - The International Criminal Court, or ICC, next month will consider whether to grant Libya’s request to try the son of former dictator Moammar Gadhafi in a domestic court.  The international court has issued an arrest warrant for Saif al-Islam Gadhafi to be tried at The Hague.  He is being held by a Libyan militia outside the capital, Tripoli. Libya's deputy U.N. ambassador, Ibrahim Dabbashi, told the U.N. Security Council that Libya is not a party to the ICC ...
Africa - Voice of America Poll: Swazi King Among Africa’s Least Popular Leaders
A founding member of Swaziland’s banned opposition People’s United Democratic Movement (PUDEMO) party said Swazis cherish the institution of the monarchy, but hate the way the country is governed.  “First of all, we are Africans with a long background of monarchy," said opposition leader Mphandlana Shongwe. "But in this country, the problem is with the government per se.  You will find that on the ground, the people still like King Mswati III.  But, the ...
Africa - Voice of America Mombasa Separatists Still Want Split from Kenya
A Kenyan separatist group is not abandoning its call for secession, despite constitutional reforms that could give leaders from its region an increased voice in the national government. Ali Saie, youth leader for the Mombasa Republican Council, says the constitutional reforms do not change their stance, because they still do not trust the national government. “In a way, the constitution is very good, if the national leaders are good,” Saie said. But he said “we expect nothing, they’re ...
Africa - Voice of America Greenpeace: Congo Government Complicit in Timber Violations
KINSHASA, Congo - Environmental activists say timber companies are flouting the law in the Democratic Republic of Congo, with the complicity of the government. The environmental pressure group Greenpeace on Monday revealed results of a study showing that companies operating in the Congo are using illegal permits to get around a ban on new logging concessions.   Greenpeace says it has evidence timber companies are expanding their operations despite a ban on new logging ...
Africa - Voice of America Nigerian Activists Say Fuel Fraud Protests 'Last Resort'
ABUJA, Nigeria - Two weeks ago, activist leaders in Nigeria issued an ultimatum to the government: Either take concrete steps to punish officials responsible for stealing billions of dollars from the public’s fuel subsidy or face massive protests. Activists now say they will hold off on protests, but complain the steps that have been taken are more "sandy" than "concrete."   Activists say they are not happy with the progress that has been made so far in ...
Africa - Voice of America Arab League Joins Campaign for Sudan Aid Corridor
STATE DEPARTMENT -- The Arab League has joined United Nations and African Union in pressing Sudan to allow the delivery of humanitarian aid to the provinces of Southern Kordofan and Blue Nile, where aid agencies say more than 140,000 people need more food. But opening humanitarian access to the region is complicated by the continuing rebellion there. According to Sudanese rebel leader Abdelaziz al-Hilu, fighters in the Nuba Mountains who were not eligible to secede along with South Sudan ...
Africa - Voice of America US Says Mali and Guinea Bissau Must Return to Civilian Rule
STATE DEPARTMENT - The Obama administration says leaders of military coups in Mali and Guinea Bissau must agree to West African demands to return their countries to democratic rule. U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs Johnnie Carson says the March military coup in Mali is a glaring exception to democratic progress in Africa. "Twenty-one years of democratic governance was swept aside by a few mutinous soldiers who seem more concerned about their own welfare than ...
Africa - Voice of America Guinea-Bissau Prepares For Arrival Of ECOWAS Peacekeepers
BISSAU -  Five weeks after a military coup in Guinea-Bissau, the country is preparing for the installation of the new transitional government and the arrival of regional peacekeepers, scheduled for Friday. Some residents fear the developments will lead to further upheaval. Guinea-Bissau has been at an impasse since April 12, when soldiers seized power in a coup and arrested the country's interim president and his prime minister. After weeks of talks among heads of state in ...
Africa - Voice of America Report: Congo Mutiny Using Child Soldiers
NAIROBI -- Human Rights Watch says a renegade general is forcibly recruiting child soldiers to support his mutiny in the northeastern Democratic Republic of Congo. HRW's new report says at least 149 boys and young men between the ages of 12 and 20 have been forcibly recruited to fight alongside soldiers loyal to Bosco Ntaganda, a former rebel leader who is already wanted by the International Criminal Court for recruiting children as a deputy commander in the Union of Congolese ...
Africa - Voice of America Rights Group: Mali Facing 'Worst Crisis Since Independence'
Selah Hennessy
Africa - Voice of America Non-Communicable Diseases Cause Most Deaths Worldwide
GENEVA - The World Health Organization reports almost two-thirds of all global deaths are due to heart disease, cancer, diabetes and other non-communicable diseases. The World Health Statistics Report provides information on the state of health in 194 countries.   Non-communicable diseases are not just a problem of wealthy countries. The World Health Organization says they mainly affect people in poorer countries, of whom half die before they reach the age of 70. Cardiovascular ...
Africa - Voice of America Former Liberian President Speaks at War Crimes Sentencing Hearing
Former Liberian president Charles Taylor has said he has "deepest sympathies" for those who suffered during Sierra Leone's brutal civil war - but stopped short of apologizing for atrocities committed by rebels he armed in exchange for diamonds. Instead, Taylor told judges in The Hague Wednesday that his actions during the bloody conflict were "done with honor" to bring peace to the Sierra Leone. "I say with all stupor [sic] that my actions ...
Africa - Voice of America Mali Separatists Send Group to Talk to Protestors
Forces from the National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad (MNLA) have sent local leaders to reach out to protestors in Gao – after a protest Monday ended in violent clashes between MNLA forces and civilians. “The MNLA today in Gao is trying to talk to the people to organize security and organize the town. If they want to protest peacefully, they can protest peacefully, but not kill people,” said a spokesman for the MNLA, Moussa ag Assarid. Ag Assarid added forces from the MNLA ...
Africa - Voice of America Urgent UN Appeal For South Sudan Food Aid
The United Nations is calling for more than $500 million in emergency aid for the people of South Sudan. Late last year the UN appealed for nearly $800 million to fund humanitarian operations in South Sudan but it received about a third of that amount.  The UN said the bulk of the $505 million it needs would go toward providing food to tens of thousands of South Sudanese, many of whom are returning home from Sudan. The UN Humanitarian Aid Program Coordinator in South Sudan, Lisa ...
Africa - Voice of America Food Voucher Initiative in Somaliland Called Big Success
GENEVA - The World Food Program says a program in Somaliland that allows people to buy food with cash vouchers instead of receiving handouts is proving to be a huge success. Based on the favorable results, WFP says it plans to expand the initiative to other accessible parts of Somalia.   The World Food Program says thousands of people in Somaliland are enjoying a better, more varied diet since it introduced its voucher scheme. Under the program, people receive $80 worth of ...
Africa - Voice of America UN Fears for South Sudanese as Austerity Bites
JUBA, SOUTH SUDAN - The United Nations has voiced concern about South Sudan’s ailing economy and says its people could suffer from spiraling inflation in the coming months, while around half the population already faces food shortages.   South Sudan has taken in little revenue since January, when the government shut down oil production amid a dispute with Sudan over transit fees.   South Sudan’s U.N. humanitarian coordinator, Lise Grande, said Tuesday the organization ...
Africa - Voice of America WFP: Sahel in Urgent Need of Aid
The U.N. World Food Program said time is running out to prevent the full impact of the food crisis in Africa’s Sahel region. It said a donor funding shortfall of hundreds of millions of dollars could soon affect emergency aid programs. WFP West Africa spokesman Malik Triki said food crises in the Sahel have become more frequent in recent years – but not like this. “This current food crisis in the Sahel is one of the most complex and widest reaching food crises to hit the Sahel ...
Africa - Voice of America Report: Food Insecurity a Huge Problem in Africa
NAIROBI -  Despite impressive economic growth rates across Africa, many of the continent’s people remain food insecure.  That is the major finding of Africa’s first Human Development Report , released Tuesday in Kenya’s capital.   In the lead-up to the report’s launch, Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki painted a grim picture of his continent’s food security situation.   “Sub-Saharan Africa is most affected, with an estimated 239 million people, representing 30 percent ...
Africa - Voice of America Rival Nigerian Communities Learn to Save Lives Together
JOS, NIGERIA  - In what is known as Nigeria’s “Middle Belt,” sectarian clashes have killed thousands of people in the past eleven years.  In an effort to prepare communities for outbreaks of violence, the International Committee of the Red Cross and the Nigerian Red Cross Society are training community members in emergency response techniques.  Outside a small school in the countryside of Plateau State, this Nigerian Red Cross trainer scrutinizes his students as they learn ...
Africa - Voice of America UN Urges Uganda to Prosecute Captured LRA Commander
The United Nations is urging Uganda to prosecute a captured field commander of the rebel Lord's Resistance Army.   Ugandan forces captured Caesar Acellam, one of the LRA's top military leaders, in the Central African Republic on Saturday. Since then, multiple Ugandan officials have said Acellam could receive a pardon under the country's Amnesty Act.   Radhika Coomaraswamy, the U.N. special envoy for children and armed conflict, said in a statement ...
Africa - Voice of America Cut in Uganda’s Health Budget Alarms AIDS Activists
KAMPALA - Uganda is at the beginning of a months-long budgeting process for the country’s next fiscal year. AIDS activists are already alarmed at a proposed reduction in the health budget and are demanding more money to curb the country’s epidemic.   The possibility of funding cuts come despite ambitious targets set by the government last December to virtually eliminate mother-to-child HIV transmission by 2015. Kampala also pledged to double the number of new HIV patients on treatment ...
Africa - Voice of America EU Naval Force Strikes Somali Pirate Base
NAIROBI - European Union naval forces say they have destroyed pirate skiffs on Somalia's coast, in their first-ever on-shore operation.  Somalia's Transitional Federal Government says it welcomes the EU's efforts, but is concerned about the risk to civilians.   The naval forces targeted pirate boats lined up along the shoreline near the town of Haradhere in Somalia's Galmudug region, a major center of pirate activity. Lieutenant Commander Jacqueline Sherriff, ...
Africa - Voice of America ECOWAS Urged to Include Politicians to Resolve Mali Crisis
Party leader Niankoro Yeah Samake says sub-regional bloc is yet to make any significant impact on Mali’s political and security situation
Africa - Voice of America Ghana’s Female Pilots Are Ready for Takeoff
Patricia Mawuli was nineteen years old and had just finished high school when she saw an airplane for the first time. As she was collecting wood in a field outside of her uncle’s house in a rural area of Ghana, Mawuli heard loud noises that she said scared her at first. “I saw these airplanes flying overhead, but because I was very close to the airfields, I thought the airplanes were chasing me,” she recalled years later. But Mawuli said her fear did not last long. Before long, ...
Africa - Voice of America ICC Seeks to Arrest Ntaganda, Mudacumura for DRC Crimes
UNITED NATIONS - The chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court says he is seeking arrest warrants for two warlords he says are responsible for crimes against humanity and war crimes in the Democratic Republic of Congo.   Bosco Ntaganda, known as “the Terminator,” has been wanted by the court at The Hague since 2006 for recruiting child soldiers in the district of Ituri. The children were used to fight in Thomas Lubanga’s militia, known as the Union of Congolese ...
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