: President Kagame After Algeria and Sudan, invites World leaders for Egypt’s president pressured CHOGM 2020 in Kigali to step down The events that recently occurred in Algeria( ouster Rwanda head of state of the president Bouteflika ) and in Sudan(ouster officially sent his invitation on Tuesday, of the long-serving president, Omar Al Bashir ), the September 24, 2019, to world leaders president of Egypt, Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, is facing to the next Commonwealth Heads of mounting pressure from the protesters to resign and Government Meeting (CHOGM) set to hand the power to another ‘eligible ruler’. be hosted in Kigali, Rwanda in June next year.

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BURUNDI AND EAST AFRICA WEEKLY BRIEFING SEPTEMBER 28th 2019 $ 3.50 No 024 Head of State officiated the inauguration of the new presidential palace The inauguration of the newly built presidential palace of Bu- rundi has seen the participa- tion of Burundi Head of state, Pierre Nkuruniziza, and other high ranking officials from Bu- rundi Governement and diplo- matic corps.

Image Credit: Akeza.net

ECONOMY SPORTS Burundi Head of Burundi welcomed State officiated more than 40 FIFA the opening of delegates Burundi welcomed on Tuesday, Burundi Central 25th September 2019 more Bank branch in than 40 delegates from 15 Aliko Dangote and Jakaya Kik- countries, including the presi- Rumonge. dents of the football associa wete among UN appointees to combat malnutrition globally 2 BURUNDI REGION WEEK SEPTEMBER 21 - SEPTEMBER 28, 2019 N° 024 Burundi Head of State officiated the inau- guration of the new presidential palace

The inauguration of the newly built presidential palace of Burundi has seen the participation of Burundi Head of state, Pierre Nkuruniziza, and other high ranking officials from Burundi Governement and diplomatic corps.

The official opening ceremonies were launched to- nitaires du pays&du Corps Diplomatique accrédité au #Burundi. day on September 27, 2019, of the new NTARE Ce palais a été construit avec le financement de la #Chine pic. RUSHATSI Presidential Palace, in the presence of twitter.com/O94La8mdjU the High Dignitaries of the country and the Diplo- — Ministère des Affaires Étrangères du Burundi (@MAEBurun- matic Corps accredited in Burundi. di) September 27, 2019 THE BIG PICTURE: The Chinese-sponsored It is expected that since the next Monday, all the staff of the office building of the new presidential palace of of president will officially kickstart their activities at the new Burundi has been built in Gatunguru locality, building of the Presidential Palace in Gatunguru. “ in Bujumbura Province, Northern part of Bu- On this occasion, Burundi head of State, Pierre Nkurunziza said jumbura town. that this ‘newly built presidential palace is dedicated to the first king of Burundi, Ntare Rushatsi Cambarantama and that Burun- It has been around 7 months since handed over dians recognize Ntare Ruhshatsi’s contribution as the father of the the newly-built palace to Burundi Government and the nation’.Μ Burundians. Burundi Head of State acknowledged that China sup- The president said that the newly built palace is reserved for the ported this huge project to facilitate the construction of new future generation to take care of it. “The palace is built but it this new presidential palace. is up to the future generation to take good care of it”, Pierre Nku- “We owe this palace on the good relations runziza said. and cooperation between China and Burundi for 56 years” , Burundi Head of State told Le projet @NtareHouse étant le fruit de l’excellente attendees of the ceremonies. coopération sinoburundaise, le Président de la Répub- “ lique S.E @pnkurunziza a appelé de son vœu le ren- This palace was built with the help of the Chinese aid, as “ forcement des relations d’amitié qui lient la République the Ministry of Foreign Affairs puts it. Populaire de Chine et le #Burundi depuis plus de cinq décennies. pic.twitter.com/smDNDDHou6 Sous le Haut Patronage de SE @pnkurun- — Ntare Rushatsi House (@NtareHouse) September 27, ziza:cérémonies d’ouverture officielle,ce 2019 27/9/2019, du nouveau Palais Présidentiel “ NTARE RUSHATSI,en présence des Hauts Dig- N° 024 REGION WEEK SEPTEMBER 21 - SEPTEMBER 28, 2019 BURUNDI 3 Burundi First Lady awarded in New York for being an ‘excellent role model’

Burundi First Lady, Denise Nkurunziza, has been awarded three extraordinary prizes in New York for being an excellent role model to be imitated in the world for positive change. WHY IT MATTERS: As noted on her own DIG DEEPER: Burundi First lady is accomplishing through website , Denise Bucumi Nkurunziza has been her Foundation Buntu to raise awareness to fight against the awarded as a woman who has positively in- social stigma and social discrimination, especially against mi- “ fluenced the Burundian society and who is an norities. Denise Nkurunzizan, through her charitable works, actor of change throughout her Foundation had been helping hopeless Burundians to regain power in or- called “Buntu”. der to live peacefully in their lives and make positive changes. Four organizations have awarded Burundi First Lady I am humble to see that our work is not only seen three awards for being an excellent role model in Bu- by God, but also by people. I am today suprised to rundi. Those organizations are “ Global Visionary be recognized as actess of Change. I dedicate these Publishing ”, “ iChange Nations ”, “ Purses Pumps and awards to my lovely husband, HE @pnkurunziza for Power Network” , and “ Organization for Poverty Alle- “ his unwavering support, to all #Burundi-ans especial- viator and Development (OPAD)”. ly women. pic.twitter.com/5j1mnNKB0g As Denise Nkurunziza’s website adds, the first prize — Denise B. Nkurunziza (@1stLadyBurundi) Septem- was named “Voice of Change”, was given by the Orga- ber 23, 2019 nization named “I change Nations”. As her website cites, Denise Nkuruniza said that these 3 “I Change Nations” is said to have recognized prizes show that frequent reports of instability in Burundi Denise Nkurunizza’s contribution to the change are mere false, taken into account that she has been awarded of mentalities by organizing awarenessraising these prizes. campaigns for women and young people, as Denise Nkurunziza took the opportunity to give thanks for “ these extraordinary awards and dedicated them to her be- well as advocacy for the abandoned class such as widows and orphans. loved husband, Burundi Head of State, Pierre Nkurunziza. The second prize titled “The Power of Collaboration “I give glory to the Lord for his kindness and mercy, Lifetime Achievement Award” was awarded by Global who enables me to perform all good deeds according Visionary Publishing, as an icon of the positive change to his plan”, said Burundi First Lady. of the society. The Third Prize “2019 Global Woman of Greatness “Denise Nkurubizza terminates by saying that these prizes will Award” was presented by a network of businesswom- be like ‘fuel’ to energize her in her endeavors to pursue digni- en “Purses Pumps and Power Network” operating in ty in all societies. North Carolina.

N° 024 REGION WEEK SEPTEMBER 21 - SEPTEMBER 28, 2019 SPORTS 5 Burundi welcomed more than 40 FIFA delegates

Burundi welcomed on Tuesday, 25th September 2019 more than 40 delegates from 15 coun- tries, including the presidents of the football associations in their respective countries, the FIFA consultants, experts, and curators in a two-day seminar that started on Wednesday 25 to 26 September 2019.

The objective of this seminar as it the first time He quotes a number of artificial turf pitches built in Bu- for Burundi is to learn if the Football Federation rundi since 2010. of Burundi infrastructures and other football These include Intwari stadium, ex Prince Louis Rwa- projects have been well established as funded by gasore stadium, Muyinga Stadium, Gitega Stadium, the World Football Governing Body (FIFA) funds National Technical Center, Ruyigi stadium, Cibitoke like any other member association. stadium and Kayanza stadium under construction. “The funding received by each FIFA member Speaking to the press after the official opening of the association is intended for setting up, cleaning seminar, the second vice-president of the FFB Samuga- up or maintaining the necessary infrastruc- bo Moustapha said that it is a great honor for Burundi ture in the football sector. All associations re- to be taken for pioneering in the development of mod- “ ern football fields, which are a necessity and a condition ceive equal shares at US $ 6 million over four years, US $ 1.5 million each year. which is none for the development of a country’s foot- ball. He added that it is a clear opportunity for Burundi Each association uses it according to the proj- to take advantage of it, “it is hoped that the future proj- ects and programs it presents to FIFA,” said ects that Burundi will present will be easily financed as Mr. Daniel KREBS, the speaker at the same our country serves as an example for other FIFA mem- time responsible for projects and infrastruc- ber associations, in the good management and good ture within FIFA before the official launch of conduct of the projects it finances.” the seminar. Currently, Burundi has 8 pitches including two in (Makamba and Kayanza) which are under construction. He indicated that Burundi was chosen to host this The 6 are the only stadiums that are used for the Bu- workshop because it serves as an example for oth- rundi Primus League championships. er FIFA member countries in the reasonable use of FIFA funds. 6 BURUNDI REGION WEEK SEPTEMBER 21 - SEPTEMBER 28, 2019 N° 024 Minister of Home Affairs evaluates the state of political parties ahead of the 2020 elections verely punish anyone guilty of segregation or discrimination based on belonging to such or such another political party. As for the executive secretary of the CNL, a party that was cited during this meeting as being at the root of the difficulties en- countered in political parties, he asked the participants to avoid globalization and to consider criminal responsibility as being personal and individual. For the Minister of the Interior, the preparation of the peaceful elections of 2020 is a watchword that guides the ad- ministrative and explains the holding once a month of a meeting between the administration at the high level with par- ty officials policies. He welcomed the fact that since June, the situation has com- pletely changed. According to Minister Barandagiye, clash- es between members of the various polit- ical parties decreased by 98%, reserving the 2% to isolated cases of people who get drunk and who, as a result, commit abus- es. “Apart from isolated cases, the situa- Authorized political party leaders in Burundi and provincial gover- tion is normal,” said the minister. nors met in Bujumbura on Wednesday, September 24, 2019, under “The bottom line is that the political par- the auspices of Interior Minister Pascal Barandagiye, to assess ties have agreed that the person who com- the implementation of their commitments to an election-friendly mits an offense is punished according to environment 2020. the law and individually and treated as such instead of pretending that it is his During the meeting, leaders of political parties and provincial governors party of origin who is targeted, “continued have expressed an inventory of cohabitation between political parties and the minister. relations between political parties and the administration. He took the opportunity to urge justice to Provincial governors have indicated in turn that the meetings they have crack down on all violators of the peace- held since June with provincial leaders of political parties have paid off. ful coexistence of political parties. For the According to provincial governors, political party cohabitation is generally minister, anyone who perpetrates acts good. of violence by considerations that take Nevertheless, most of them have indexed members of Agathon Rwagasa’s into account differences in membership CNL party, accusing them of indulging in acts of provocation and noncom- of political parties will have to be tried in pliance with the law governing political parties. flagrant proceedings. Political party leaders, for their part, said that clashes between members During the meeting, some governors and of their political parties have diminished since meetings between political leaders of political parties lambasted the parties and the administration were organized. Catholic Episcopal Council’s statement Some leaders of political parties have praised the attitude of administrative to Christians, claiming that the situation staff who intervene quickly when clashes erupt between supporters of dif- described in this letter does not prevail ferent political parties. Others have rather denounced the biased character and recommended to invite religious lead- of the administrators who favor the party in power at the expense of other ers to participate in this kind meetings to political formations. keep them abreast of developments in the In the provinces where there are misunderstandings between political par- political situation. ties or between political parties and the administration, the Minister of the In this regard, the Minister of the Interior Interior has recommended to the provincial governors and the leaders of said that the content of this letter is really the political parties concerned to meet as quickly as possible to find a land out of touch with reality on the ground, of ‘agreement. saying that the Bishops worked on the ba- He also recommended holding such evaluation meetings once a month at sis of the reports of two or three years ago. the provincial level and twice a month at the communal level. Minister Barandagiye who considers these In order to put an end to clashes between political party members, CNDD- prelates as disconnected from reality has FDD Secretary-General in power, Evariste Ndayishimiye proposed to se- nevertheless promised to associate them now if they wish. N° 024 REGION WEEK SEPTEMBER 21 - SEPTEMBER 28, 2019 NEWS 7 Rwanda: President Kagame invites World leaders for CHOGM 2020 in Kigali

Rwanda head of state Paul Kagame officially sent his invitation on Tuesday, September 24, 2019, to world leaders to the next Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) set to be hosted in Kigali, Rwanda in June next year.

The invitation was sent throughout a video by President The Head of State made case for the youth and argued Paul Kagame and Commonwealth Secretary-General that it was important to look at them as an important Patricia Scotland. and productive asset to transform economies across the The two announced that CHOGM 2020 will be held at world. the Kigali Convention Centre during the week starting “There is no way we can see our young peo- June 22, around the theme ‘Delivering A Common Fu- ple as a liability. For a very clear reason, they ture: Connecting, Innovating, Transforming’. are a huge asset and opportunity. Seeing “It will be a great pleasure to welcome leaders “ them as liability would be a failure on our of the Commonwealth when they gather in Ki- part,” he noted. gali”, President Kagame said. Creating the kind of environment that adds a lot of value “Kagame added that Rwanda will work hard to make every- to this asset of young people, he added, would be done body feel Rwanda is an extension of their home. through the provision of skills, access to technology and Commonwealth is a voluntary association of 53 indepen- having them get involved more in value chains across the dent and equal sovereign states and all Heads of State for world. these countries are expected to attend. According to the statement issued by the Secretariat, five Kagame particularly indicated that the unique tenor of the sub-themes have been identified for discussion: Gover- CHOGM 2020 will be the focus on youth empowerment, nance and Rule of Law, ICT & Innovation, Youth, Envi- especially through leveraging technology. ronment, and Trade. The Commonwealth is a political organization most of “The distinctive aspect of CHOGM 2020 will be whom are former colonies of Britain. connectivity including what young people can Rwanda, which joined the grouping in November 2009, do with technology to create vibrant societies is one of only two Commonwealth member countries with “ and develop our economies,” he noted in a video no colonial ties with the United Kingdom – the other be- posted on Tuesday evening. ing Mozambique. 8 ECONOMY REGION WEEK SEPTEMBER 21 - SEPTEMBER 28, 2019 N° 024 : 5 Banks fined over $800,000 for breaching antimoney laundering rule

Tanzania’s central bank fined five commercial banks over $800,000 for breaching anti-money laundering rules.

According to local Reuters, the move aims at NMB Bank, has been hit by a spike in bad tightening regulation in the financial services loans, which have stifled the growth of credit to sector in the East African nation. the private sector. In a statement released on Monday, the Bank In December last year, the International Mon- of Tanzania (BoT) said the fines were imposed etary Fund said nearly half of Tanzania’s 45 “for failure to conduct proper customer due to banks were vulnerable to adverse shocks and diligence and file suspicious transaction reports risked insolvency in the event of a global finan- to the (state-run) Financial Intelligence Unit cial crisis. (FIU).” I&M Bank was slapped with the biggest fine at Since coming to power in 2015, President John 655 million Tanzanian shillings ($284,782.61), Magufuli’s government has stepped up the followed by Equity Bank (580 million shillings), crackdown on everything from mineral process- UBL Bank (325 million shillings), Habib Af- ing to free speech and the registration of foreign rican Bank (175 million shillings) and African ships – earning him the title “The Bulldozer. Banking Corporation (145 million shillings). Officials also amended the Statistics Act, crim- BoT gave three months to the sanctioned banks inalizing the collection, analysis, and dissemi- to implement various anti-money laundering nation of any data without first obtaining au- measures, which include taking disciplinary thorization from the government — an issue action against all staff members “who were in- the World Bank said: “could have serious im- volved in opening implicated deposit accounts pacts on the generation and use of official and contrary to KYC (know your customer) require- non-official statistics, which are a vital founda- ments”. tion for the country’s development.” The country’s financial services sector, which is dominated by lenders like CRDB Bank and N° 024 REGION WEEK SEPTEMBER 21 - SEPTEMBER 28, 2019 BURUNDI 9 Burundi 2nd Vice-President kicks off works on Jiji and Murembwe Power Dams

Burundi Second Vice President, Joseph Butore, accompanied by the Minister of Energy, kick- started works on September 23, 2019, for the construction of two hydroelectric plants in Jiji and Murembwe. Jiji and Murembewe Hydroelectric dam is located in Songa Commune, Bururi Province.

THE BIG PICTURE: The partners who con- He pointed out that these Jiji and Murembwe tributed to the construction of these two dams plants will have a combined capacity of 49.5 are the World Bank, the European Invest- MWT, which will double the national supply ment Bank, the African Development Bank, and many Burundians would benefit from this the Government of Burundi and REGIDESO. project of such great importance. According to estimates, this project is slated to be finished end in 2023. In his speech, the 2nd Vice President of the Republic Joseph Butore said that thanks to According to the Minister of Energy, Come this gigantic project, the population will be Manirakiza, this is a project of the Govern- able to be employed, which will contribute to ment of Burundi that aims to increase hydro- decreasing the rate of unemployment. power generation capacity, a promising solu- tion to the problem currently handicapping The 2nd Vice-President of the Republic also the country’s energy sector. pointed out that this project of construction of Jiji and Murembwe power plants is within the ‘Increase the demand in the electricity’ framework of the National Development Pro- Come Manirakiza said the supply of electricity gram, in its section relating to energy increase. in Burundi is extremely limited. Specialists in The construction works of the Jiji and this sector estimate that the current demand Murembwe power plants will be executed by is estimated at more than 70 MWT while the two Italian and Egyptian companies. actual supply does not exceed 35 MWT for the moment. 10 REGION WEEK SEPTEMBER 21 - SEPTEMBER 28, 2019 N° 024 N° 024 REGION WEEK SEPTEMBER 21 - SEPTEMBER 28, 2019 AFRICA 11 After Algeria and Sudan, Egypt’s president pressured to step down

The events that recently oc- curred in Algeria( ouster of the president Bouteflika ) and in Sudan(ouster of the long-serv- ing president, Omar Al Bashir ), the president of Egypt, Ab- del Fattah al-Sisi, is facing mounting pressure from the protesters to resign and hand the power to another ‘eligible ruler’.

According to local media in Egypt, Ab- accused Abdel Fattah al-Sisi. and the military of corruption, local me- del Fattah al-Sisi(above) is accused of dai added. Since then, more than 350 people have been arrested across rampant corruption within his admin- Egypt since Friday, according to the Egyptian Commission for Rights istration, being the illegal ruler and who and Freedoms (ECRF). ‘The army to protect the protesters’ ascended to the power by means a coup The News Website, Yeni Safak, cited the UK-based media that the Egyp- d’etat. tian army will support the protesters in their bid to oust the president of THE BIG PICTURE: As demon- Egypt, Abdel Fattah al-Sisi. strations continue to spread A group of Egyptian army officers vowed to protect across Egypt, thousands of protesters as they urged citizens to take to the streets “ Egyptians have called for to oust President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and topple his putschist President Abdel- “ putschist regime, Yeni Safak reported. fattah alSisi to resign after a businessman exposed rampant The army said in a Facebook post that it would protect demonstrators regime corruption. “exactly as happened on 25 January 2011” when a revolution toppled the regime of . ‘Trump not worried by the Egyptian protests Hundreds of protesters took to the streets against Al-Sisi’ However, the President, Donal Trump, has thrown his in central Cairo and several cities on Fri- support for the incumbent president of Egypt, saying that Abdel Fattah day against Abdel Fattah alSisi, a former al-Sisi is a ‘highly respected’ president. army general who came in power in 2014 Trump said this on the sidelines of the 74 UN General Assembly in New after ousting democratically elected Presi- York when he met Abdel Fattah al-Sisi during mutual discussions. dent Mohamed Morsi. When reporters asked Trump what he can say about the ongoing pro- The protests came in response to calls for tests to oust Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, Trump said that ‘he is not worried’ Abdel Fattah al-Sisi to step down by Mo- about them. “I’m not concerned with it. Egypt has a great leader. He’s highly respected…So I’m not worried about it,” Donald Trump told re- hamed Ali, a former army contractor, who porters in New York.

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First Lady of Burundi H.E. Denise NKURUNZIZA MAIN SPEAKER N° 024 REGION WEEK SEPTEMBER 21 - SEPTEMBER 28, 2019 NEWS 13 Tanzania summons World Health Organization representative over Ebola suspects

On Tuesday, September 24, 2019, The Republic of Tanzania has summoned the World Health Organization’s local representative after the ’ health agency accused the government of refusing to share detailed information on suspected Ebola cases.

The news was announced by Hassan Abbasi, who es Salaam and was unofficially told the next day that is a spokesman for Tanzania government on Tues- the person had tested positive for Ebola. The wom- day, September 24, 2019, through his Twitter page an had died on Sept. 8. saying that WHO representative in the country WHO said in a statement issued in the weekend Tigest Ketsela Mengestu was summoned by dep- that it was unofficially told that Tanzania had two uty foreign affairs minister , in other possible Ebola cases. One had tested negative the commercial capital Dar es Salaam. and there was no information on the other. “The representative insisted that the WHO Officially, the Tanzanian government had said in has not declared that there is Ebola in the previous week it had no confirmed or suspected Tanzania, nor does it have any evidence cases of Ebola. “ on that and pledged to cooperate with the The government did not address the death of the woman directly and did not provide further infor- government,” Abbasi said. mation. “During the talks, the WHO agreed to Tanzania’s health minister said on September 14 strictly follow guidelines outlined by the that the government had investigated two recent agency itself and ratified by the govern- cases of unknown illnesses, but they were not Ebola. ment if it wants to get any additional The WHO made its weekend announcement days information from the Tanzanian govern- after the head of a U.S. government health agency ment.” traveled to Tanzania at the direction of America’s According to Reuters, The World Health Orga- health secretary, Alex Azar. Azar criticized Tanzania nization (WHO) said on Saturday it was made earlier last week for not sharing information. aware on Sept. 10 of the death of a patient in Dar 14 AFRICA REGION WEEK SEPTEMBER 21 - SEPTEMBER 28, 2019 N° 024 Aliko Dangote and Jakaya Kikwete among UN appointees to combat malnutrition globally The United Nations has appointed Africa’s richest man and President of Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, and President of the African Development Bank, Dr. Akinwunmi Adesina, as part of 27 global leaders to combat malnutrition across the world, media reported.

The leaders will also make commit- World Bank ments to achieve its objectives – look- Chris ELIAS (United States of Ameri- ing toward the 2020 Tokyo Nutrition ca), President of Global Development, for Growth Summit. Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Media reported that one in three peo- Shenggen FAN (China), Director Gen- ple suffer from malnutrition the world eral, International Food Policy Re- over and 149 million girls and boys are search Institute stunted, a trend the group is set up to Henrietta H. FORE (USA), Executive The appointment was made by the Secre- stop and reverse. Director, UNICEF, and Chair of the tary-General of the United Nations, António Gu- The 27 people appointed to the group SUN Movement Lead Group terres, as part of the Scaling Up Nutrition (SUN) are: Sophie HEALY-THOW (Ireland), Akinwumi ADESINA (Nigeria), Presi- Youth Leader Movement committed to fighting malnutrition dent, African Development Bank; Daniel KAPLAN DUNCAN, (Côte in all its forms. Aliko DANGOTE (Nigeria), Chairman d’Ivoire), Vice President Côte d’Ivoire According to a statement released by SUN to this and CEO, Dangote Group; Monica Katebe MUSONDA (Zambia), effect, the leaders will meet on September 24 to Manal AL ALEM (Jordan), Chef Reem Founder and CEO, Java Foods take a decision on the continuation of the SUN Ebrahim AL-HASHIMI (UAE), Cab- Jakaya KIKWETE (Tanzania), Former Movement into its third phases (2021-2025). inet Member and Minister of State for President United Republic of Tanza- International Cooperation; nia, Kikwete Foundation THE BIG PICTURE: The UN appointed Akin- Mercedes ARÁOZ FERNÁNDEZ Shinichi KITAOKA (Japan), Presi- wunmi Adesina and Aliko Dangote to the (Peru), Vice-President, Republic of dent Japan International Cooperation Scaling Up Nutrition (SUN) movement – The Peru; Agency (JICA) duo are part of a 27 man group tasked with Inger ASHING (SWEDEN), CEO, Maryam MONSEF (), Min- “ fighting malnutrition across the world – The Save the Children International; ister of International Development 27 leaders are expected to meet on the sus- Cherrie ATILANO (Philippines), and Minister for Women and Gender tainability of the project. Founder and CEO, Agrea Agricultural Equality, Canada Systems Internaional Inc.; David NABARRO (United Kingdom), The duo and 25 other world leaders were ap- Alicia BÁRCENA IBARRA, (Mexico), Sustainable Development Facilitator, pointed as part of a team to combat malnutrition Executive Secretary, Economic Com- 4SD across the world. mission for Latin America and the Sania NISHTAR (Pakistan), Founder António Guterres who is the secretarygeneral of Caribbean and President, Heartfile Foundation the United Nations made this appointment as David BEASLEY (USA), Executive Inia SERUIRATU (Fiji), Minister of part of the Scaling Up Nutrition (SUN) move- Director, World Food Programme Foreign Affairs, Fiji ment. Martin CHUNGONG (Cameroon), Feike SIJBESMA (The Netherlands), Secretary-General, Inter-Parliamenta- CEO, Royal Dutch DSM SUN said it is committed to fighting malnu- ry Union Gunhild Anker STORDALEN (Nor- trition across the globe as “improving nutri- Josefa Leonel CORREIA SACKO (An- way), Founder and President, EAT tion means driving progress across the host gola), Commissioner for Rural Econ- Foundation of challenges faced by the world today. Yet, omy and Agriculture, Gerda VERBURG (The Netherlands), “ it remains one of the world’s leastaddressed Commission UN Assistant Secretary-General and Annette DIXON (New Zealand), Vice Coordinator of the SUN Movement. problems.” President of Human Development, N° 024 REGION WEEK SEPTEMBER 21 - SEPTEMBER 28, 2019 ECONOMY 15 After Burundi, Sudan sees COMESA Summit cancelled for the second time

It has been official, the COMESA has been canceled, and not for the first time, but for the sec- ond time in row, and this in the last three years, the planned annual Common Market summit for Eastern and Southern Africa (Comesa), scheduled for the end of the year in Khartoum, Sudan, has been canceled

THE BIG PICTURE: Burundi was obvious reasons,” Mwangi Gakunga, COMESA’s also stripped of this occasion to head of corporate communications told host the COMESA Summit al- “ though the latter had already The EastAfrican. gone at all lengths to get ready This Zambia-based body of Common markets had for it. The COMESA Secretariat argued that conditions of peace been at loggerheads with some countries when it and stability in Burundi were not comes to hosting its general summit. conducive to holding the sum- mit, the reasons that Gitega re- The Authority is the supreme policy organ of the jected. Since then, COMESA had agreed to reimburse Gitega all Common Market and is responsible for the gener- the expenses it incurred during al policy and direction and control of the perfor- the preparations for the COMESA mance of the executive functions of the Common Summit. Market and the achievement of its aims and objec- “Sudan was supposed to host this tives and shall have such other powers as are vest- year’s annual summit but couldn’t for ed in it under the Treaty, the EA added. 16 BURUNDI REGION WEEK SEPTEMBER 21 - SEPTEMBER 28, 2019 N° 024 Burundi MPs vote a law to develop regional trade within EAC

Burundi MPs unanimously voted on Thursday, September 19, 2019, the bill ratifying the Re- public of Burundi’s agreement to create the Tripartite Zone of Free Trade Agreement (ZLET) between the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), the (EAC) and the Southern African Development Community (SADC).

The Minister of Trade, Industry and Tourism, This paragraph states that the commit- Jean-Marie Niyokindi, explained the reasons for tee shall be composed of nine qualified this free trade area before the MPs. and competent members in the areas of Niyokindi said that this free trade area is trade, customs, and law. aimed at developing and proposes to create inter-regional cooperation between the three The wording of this paragraph estab- “ regional communities based on three pillars, lishing the Customs Union of the EAC namely market integration, industrial devel- is such that the Trade Remedies Com- opment, and infrastructure development. mittee is restricted and closed. This agreement will allow Burundi to have access In addition, it does not allow a new to the market of the 26 countries of the tripartite country that joins this community region and to have a legal basis for continuing to be represented in this body. This negotiations and seeking funding for projects and means, according to Minister Niyok- tripartite programs of interest, he added. indi, that the Appeals Committee was incomplete and did not, therefore, be- Burundi MPs also analyzed and adopted unani- gin its actual work. mously the draft law by the Republic of Burundi The amended provision now reads as the amended Article 24, paragraph 2 of the Pro- follows: “The committee is composed tocol establishing the Customs Union of the East of qualified and competent members in African Community. the areas of trade, customs, and law”. N° 024 REGION WEEK SEPTEMBER 21 - SEPTEMBER 28, 2019 17 18 ECONOMY REGION WEEK SEPTEMBER 21 - SEPTEMBER 28, 2019 N° 024 Burundi Head of State officiated the opening of Burundi Central Bank branch in Rumonge.

The Burundi Central bank has opened today, on September 20, 2019, the third branch of its affiliation. The third bank was opened in Ro- monge province, in the southwest of the country.

The ceremonies of the opening of the Bank were en- to thank the Government of China for its relentless efforts to hanced by the presence of Burundi Head of State, help Burundian people. Rumonge province Governor took Pierre Nkurunziza. the floor and thank the Government of Burundi to help local Arrived at the scene around 11 am, Pierre Nkurunziza people and build this Rumnoge Branch facility which will help greeted the audience and all attendees of these cere- people for with their bank transactions. monies. The Governor also mentioned that the Ebola outbreak THE BIG PICTURE: The Burundi Central Bank is being contained to a maximum degree, as Rumonge had until now opened its two branches in Bu- is bordering DR Congo, where the Ebola virus has al- rundi such as of Ngozi and Gitega. Burundi Cen- ready spread in its eastern part of the country. “ tral Bank communication body told reporters “ that this Rumonge Branch will be used like a Rumonge people took the opportunity to give thanks to Bu- ‘backup bank’ or ‘alternative bank’. rundi Head of State by giving him 5 cows, fish, palm oil and so on. BRB communication body elaborated by saying that It should be noted that ahead of the official opening of the Bu- this bank branch will be used as a ‘substitute bank’ in rundi Central bank, Rumonge Branch, Burundi Head of State case the central bank located on Bujumbura Econom- officially opened the electricity water plant and a hospital. ic capital encounters any natural disasters such as BOTTOM LINE: The Rumonge Branch of the Burundi Cen- fire, earthquakes, etc. tral Bank facility is a three-story building, with high-tech Burundi Head of State took the opportunity to thank equipment, with a surveillance camera. The whole facility has the Governement of China for their kindness in giv- been budgeted to 27 billion BIF. ing Burundi another gift i.e the premises of the Bu- rundi Central Bank branch in Rumonge. #Burundi Ce 20 sept.2019, S.E. @pnkurunziza a ouvert China had already given Burundi the newly inau- officiellement le #SiteAlternatif et l’ #Agence de la @ gurated presidential palace in Bujumbura town and BankiNkuru #BRB à #Rumonge. pic.twitter.com/z7C- other buildings. Nkurunziza invited all Burundians “ THeOVZb — Banque de la République du Burundi (@ BankiNkuru) September 20, 2019 N° 024 REGION WEEK SEPTEMBER 21 - SEPTEMBER 28, 2019 19

N° 024 REGION WEEK SEPTEMBER 21 - SEPTEMBER 28, 2019 AFRICA 21 Rwanda welcomes first group of refugees from

The Rwandan government has Refugees from Libya after the Memorandum of Understanding between UNHCR, the African Union and Rwanda.

As AFP reported, the first batch of the 500 African However, the media coverage of the reception of the refugees and asylum seekers from Libya landed group was not allowed as officials said that the press in Rwanda yesterday on Thursday, September 26, conference of the signing of the MoU in Addis Ababa 2019. was enough, media reported. WHY IT MATTERS: Rwanda signed the MoU with According to the East African, the ministry barred the African Union dn the Un Refugees Agency, journalists from accessing the refugees because UNHCR on the plan to receive refugees in Libya some of them are emotionally and psychologically and other African refugees stranded in Libya on “ troubled by their ordeal, that government thought their move to Europe. it would be safe for them not to be exposed to the media in their state. The move comes after Rwanda, UNHCR and Afri- can Union signed a Memorandum of Understand- The group is composed of “many minors, single mothers ing early this month to evacuate refugees and asy- and families” and “a two-months-old little Somali girl lum seekers out of Libya detention facilities. born at the gathering and departure facility in Libya,” The group of 66 African refugees landed at the Ki- UNHCR Libya tweeted. gali International Airport on Thursday at 9:31 pm local time. In a Twitter post, Minema said that “more refugees and asylum-seekers from detention camps in Libya are ex- They were received by the Ministry in charge of pected in the coming weeks”. emergency management and UNHCR officials.

N° 024 REGION WEEK SEPTEMBER 21 - SEPTEMBER 28, 2019 ECONOMY 23 Airlines kicks off its flight to Bujumbura on Monday

Uganda Airlines announced that it will kickstart the long-awaited flights from Kampala, Uganda to Bujumbura, Burundi on Monday on September 30, 2019.

This announcement comes as a part of the Uganda “I don’t want to speak for what the rest are going national airlines to launch the regional flights from through. I will stick to my product. The type of air- Kampala to Nairobi, Juba, Mogadishu, Kilimanjaro, craft we have is owned by us, so we don’t have lease Bujumbura, and Dar es Salaam. “ costs. That’s why we can manage to have tickets According to local media, Uganda Airlines will be that are affordable”, Bamuturaki said last month that doing 3 flights a week to Bujumbura. Uganda Airlines is at an advantage and will deliver In a Twitter announcement , Uganda Airlines wel- the best product. comed Burundians to book the ‘early birds tickets’ to enjoy this much-awaited regional Airlines. “Two, we have made our schedules as flexible as possible for Uganda Airlines launched its commercial operations the passenger. We don’t have intermediary points. Dar es on August 28 with its first commercial flight to Nai- Salam we go direct, same as Mogadishu. So, people are able to robi (), two decades after the airline closed save time”. business. Passengers can book their flight online or through the Uganda Airlines Customer Centre, then pay using MasterCard, Visa or The Governor also mentioned that the Ebola American Express, or cash. outbreak is being contained to a maximum Burundians have expressed their gratitude for the regional degree, as Rumonge is bordering DR Congo, flights of Uganda Airlines. “ where the Ebola virus has already spread in its eastern part of the country.

RegionWEEK is a Weekly News Briefing about Brurundi and East Africa. Publisher: RegionWeek Ltd Editor in chief: Fabrice Iranzi Head of Africa Bureau: John Nshimirimana 11, Avenue du Gouvernement, Rohero Bujumbura-Burundi Tél: +257 79 43 28 86 P.O Box 6402 Bujumbura