DOCSLIB.ORG

And Africa Will Shine Forth a Statesman’S Memoir

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
And Africa Will Shine Forth a Statesman’S Memoir And Africa Will Shine Forth A Statesman’s Memoir Jean Ping And Africa Will Shine Forth And Africa Will Shine Forth: A Statesman’s Memoir Jean Ping International Peace Institute, 777 United Nations Plaza, New York, NY 10017 www.ipinst.org © 2012 by International Peace Institute All rights reserved. Published 2012. First published in French as Et l'Afrique brillera de mille feux © L'Harmattan, Paris, 2009. Translation services provided by Transperfect Translations, New York. International Peace Institute (IPI) is an independent, international institution dedicated to promoting the prevention and settlement of conflicts between and within states through policy research and development. Disclaimer: The views expressed in this publication represent those of the author and not necessarily those of IPI. IPI welcomes consid - eration of a wide range of perspectives in the pursuit of a well- informed debate on critical policies and issues in international affairs. ISBN: 0-937722-94-4 ISBN-13: 978-0-937722-94-7 CONTENTS Preface . vi Introduction . 1 PART ONE: Backward March: The Walk of the Crayfish . 11 1. The First Steps: Political Liberation and “Limited Sovereignty” . 13 2. Maturity: Economic Liberation and Opening to the World . 19 3. The Strong Return of the “Masters” and “The Great Leap Backwards” . 28 PART TWO: The New Major Challenges . 79 4. Living Free From Fear . 80 5. Living Free From Need . 99 PART THREE: The Revival of Pan-Africanism and Multilateralism . 109 6. Shared Management of African Affairs . 110 7. Shared Management of International Affairs . 130 CONCLUSION . 148 Together, Let us Build a Better Future for Africa AFTERWORD . 167 Peace, Security, and Development in Africa: A Conversation with Jean Ping ENDNOTES . 190 vii Preface This work was written mainly after the period when I assumed the position of President of the United Nations General Assembly and before my appointment as the Chairperson of the Commission of the African Union. The words and ideas it contains do not in any way commit these two prestigious institutions nor my country, Gabon. They are the result of personal reflections intended to add to the African debate. Jean Ping 1 Introduction Everyone knows that Africa, cradle of humanity, land of the Pharaohs and human civilization, and vast reservoir of human and natural resources, is not doing well. She crosses the deepest crisis that has shaken her since the end of colonial times. The specter of chaos lurks everywhere. She is now seen as the continent of “collapsing states” and “zombie nations”; the continent of extreme poverty, misery, and injustice; the continent of horrors, of the Rwandan genocide and of the worst atrocities committed in Liberia, Sierra Leone, Kenya, Darfur and elsewhere. This brutal reality has been, for quite some time now, analyzed by most observers and experts with certain fatalism, as testified by these book titles with pessimistic or even alarmist tones: “Black Africa Started on the Wrong Foot” (René Dumont), “Can Black Africa Take Off?” (Albert Meister); “And What If Africa Refused Development” (Axelle Kabou); “Africa Down” (Jacques Giri). By now, it is just a chorus of permanent lamentations about the “lost continent,” the “damned continent,” or the “cursed continent” whose past is not passing. And the rest of the world, which sees us as negligible, even contemptible (“all corrupt and all dictators,” they say), consider that henceforth, they no longer need us. 1 How could we have come to this? And yet, the African Continent, opened by gunfire five centuries ago to the influences of Western civilization and its fundamental values of humanism and progress, has always, more than any other part of the world, almost slavishly, done everything it was asked to do and yielded to the injunctions of all masters that succeeded each other at the head of the different world orders. “When the White people came to Africa,” as was said by Jomo Kenyatta, and quoted by European Commissioner Louis Michel, “we had the land and they had the Bible. They taught us to pray with our eyes closed. When we opened them, the White people had the land and we had the Bible.” 2 Not to “rehash the past” but to better understand where we come from and where we are going, we must remember that just 150 years ago, Africa was still under the yoke of slavery, deporta - 2 INTRODUCTION tion and the slave trade, and that fifty years ago, it was still the colonial regime of the “whip,” “ass-kicking,” and “hard labor.” So, to know where you are going and what you may become, you must necessarily know who you are, that is to say, where you come from and with what history. As the African proverb says, “When you do not know where you are going, look at where you came from.” Therefore, the current world order in which Africa is naturally inserted cannot be easily analyzed and understood without a brief look back to the orders of the past. At the heart of the issues and problems raised by these orders stands the sovereign nation-state, which has stood for, since its Western origin in the seventeenth century, the right of an independent state, master of its territory and the only legitimate holder of the use of coercion, to freely determine its choices (including economic and political) 3. It merges well with the concept of national independence. But it so happens that African countries became legally respon - sible for their own fate less than half a century ago, by freeing themselves from the European and imperial order under which they had been closely confined for centuries. Accessing this long-desired national sovereignty, the new states have gradually tried, with varying degrees of willingness and happiness, to become emancipated from their “intimacy” with their former European tutelage powers. This period of “breaking off” and the quest for real autonomy, however, gave rise to very limited economic and political choices, correspon - ding to the bipolar East-West order that prevailed during the Cold War and the ideological game of the two superpowers: capitalism or socialism. African states had to “choose” their camp, align themselves and define, depending on this choice, the nature of their internal and external policy. Not rallying meant being the enemy, without nuances. We must remember that it was for the purpose of freeing themselves from these Manichean two-sided (West-East) shackles of the Western Janus that, in 1955, emerging from the long colonial night, the “Movement of Non-Aligned Countries” was created. 4 And then abruptly, in August 1991, this bipolar order, firmly established after the Second World War, suddenly collapsed with the implosion of the USSR, paving the way to “globalization” and the birth of a new order. This created, in its infancy, great hopes and even a AND AFRICA WILL SHINE FORTH 3 phase of euphoria. Very quickly, however, Africans became disappointed and lost their illusions. They had to face reality: the market forces that had taken over the planet created winners and losers, the very rich and the very poor, dominants and dominated; it was not, as has been alleged with an air of bravado, a positive sum game that would finally prove the unity of the human race and bring “perpetual peace”; rather, it became the nightmare that, for Africa, followed the dream. African countries have been confronted with a new series of major challenges arising from the advent of another unfair order. At first, it was the rapid and radical challenge to their national sovereignty and their human dignity that had just been acquired. The brief historical digression of independence simply closed up. The “masters are back,” people whispered. And like the good old days, they said the law was for us, but did not apply it to themselves. They judged Africa only through their own lenses: gave orders and lessons, condemned and decreed fatal sanctions, convinced that they did so for the good of Humanity. Then came the unprecedented proliferation of barbaric wars, including ethnic conflicts, brought about or encour - aged in particular by the methodical deconstruction of the states and the systematic destruction of any authority. We were expecting the rule of law and human rights and we harvested “the failed states”, coups, massacres, and genocides. This was finally the regression and massive impoverishment that result from the creation of extreme wealth and poverty by the exacerbation of the market forces, under the strong momentum of structural adjustment programs and the imperatives of the “Washington Consensus.” That is how Africa regressed several decades and plunged into the ocean of poverty, disorder, and barbarism. Everything was reversed; now we walk backwards; the history of Africa stutters, it repeats itself. It is this phenomenon of reverse movement that the famous Italian writer Umberto Eco has called the “walk of the crayfish.” 5 So today, the black continent, unloved, weakened, degraded, humiliated and marginalized, is reduced to wondering whether the new order that was put in place is also its own. Faced with such a configuration of the international system, will African states finally succeed, like other states, in reacting and preserving a little bit of their national independ - 4 INTRODUCTION ence, their human dignity, their cultural identity and national security and stability, while meeting the major imperatives of change, develop - ment, modernity, universality, and unity of the human race? This is the central question that pervades this book from beginning to end. Enclosed in the folds of the new world order, subject to all sorts of threats, prisoners of ideological preconceptions, faced with the increase in all kinds of disorders, weakened by the refusal of any responsibility and privatization of everything (including “legitimate violence”), African states have had no other alternative at this stage than to hunker down again, once more.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Financing the African Union – on Mindsets and Money
    ecdpm’s Making policies work DISCUSSION PAPER No. 240 Financing the African Union on mindsets and money Political Economy Dynamics of Regional Organisations in africa PEDRO By Kesa Pharatlhatlhe and Jan Vanheukelom February 2019 Summary With 55 member countries, an elaborate institutional architecture, a broad policy agenda, and a high dependency rate on its former colonisers and main donors, the African Union (AU) is probably the world’s largest and most complex regional partnership configuration. Until 2017, repeated efforts at reducing dependency on foreign funding and increasing the yearly contributions from the member states of the AU had largely failed. Unpredictability and unreliability of funding by both African member states and by external funders led to wider management and staffing challenges. Due to a financial crisis of the AU around 2016, a renewed and joint push at different levels of the AU resulted in hands-on institutional reforms, piloted by Rwanda’s charismatic President Paul Kagame. This paper analyses the margins of manoeuvre for reformers and their external supporters to resolve money and governance matters within the wider context of institutional reforms of the AU. It has introduced a levy on eligible imported goods into the continent and has established systems to instill more discipline in planning, monitoring and implementing of budgets. A handful of donors are doing some soul searching as past promises to harmonise aid and align it with priorities and management systems of the AU have not effectively reduced the unintended burden of their fragmented, earmarked and overly ambitious support. Clearly, this paper is about money, and about the difficulties of financing the African Union.
    [Show full text]
  • Civilian Control Over the Military in East Asia
    Civilian Control over the Military in East Asia Aurel Croissant Ruprecht-Karls-Universität, Heidelberg September 2011 EAI Fellows Program Working Paper Series No. 31 Knowledge-Net for a Better World The East Asia Institute(EAI) is a nonprofit and independent research organization in Korea, founded in May 2002. The EAI strives to transform East Asia into a society of nations based on liberal democracy, market economy, open society, and peace. The EAI takes no institutional position on policy issues and has no affiliation with the Korean government. All statements of fact and expressions of opinion contained in its publications are the sole responsibility of the author or authors. is a registered trademark. © Copyright 2011 EAI This electronic publication of EAI intellectual property is provided for non-commercial use only, as long as it is unaltered and complete. Copies may not be duplicated for commercial purposes. Unauthorized posting of EAI documents to a non-EAI website is prohibited. EAI documents are protected under copyright law. The East Asia Institute 909 Sampoong B/D, 310-68 Euljiro 4-ga Jung-gu, Seoul 100-786 Republic of Korea Tel. 82 2 2277 1683 Fax 82 2 2277 1684 EAI Fellows Program Working Paper No. 31 Civilian Control over the Military in East Asia1 Aurel Croissant Ruprecht-Karls-Universität, Heidelberg September 2011 Abstract In recent decades, several nations in East Asia have transitioned from authoritarian rule to democracy. The emerging democracies in the region, however, do not converge on a single pattern of civil-military relations as the analysis of failed institutionalization of civilian control in Thailand, the prolonged crisis of civil– military relations in the Philippines, the conditional subordination of the military under civilian authority in Indonesia and the emergence of civilian supremacy in South Korea in this article demonstrates.
    [Show full text]
  • The Financial and Economic Crisis of 2008-2009 and Developing Countries
    THE FINANCIAL AND ECONOMIC CRISIS OF 2008-2009 AND DEVELOPING COUNTRIES Edited by Sebastian Dullien Detlef J. Kotte Alejandro Márquez Jan Priewe UNITED NATIONS New York and Geneva, December 2010 ii Note Symbols of United Nations documents are composed of capital letters combined with figures. Mention of such a symbol indicates a reference to a United Nations document. The views expressed in this book are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the UNCTAD secretariat. The designations employed and the presentation of the material in this publication do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the Secretariat of the United Nations concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area, or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. Material in this publication may be freely quoted; acknowl edgement, however, is requested (including reference to the document number). It would be appreciated if a copy of the publication containing the quotation were sent to the Publications Assistant, Division on Globalization and Development Strategies, UNCTAD, Palais des Nations, CH-1211 Geneva 10. UNCTAD/GDS/MDP/2010/1 UNITeD NatioNS PUblicatioN Sales No. e.11.II.D.11 ISbN 978-92-1-112818-5 Copyright © United Nations, 2010 All rights reserved THE FINANCIAL AND ECONOMIC CRISIS O F 2008-2009 AND DEVELOPING COUN T RIES iii CONTENTS Abbreviations and acronyms ................................................................................xi About the authors
    [Show full text]
  • Coup D'etat Events, 1946-2012
    COUP D’ÉTAT EVENTS, 1946-2015 CODEBOOK Monty G. Marshall and Donna Ramsey Marshall Center for Systemic Peace May 11, 2016 Overview: This data list compiles basic descriptive information on all coups d’état occurring in countries reaching a population greater than 500,000 during the period 1946-2015. For purposes of this compilation, a coup d’état is defined as a forceful seizure of executive authority and office by a dissident/opposition faction within the country’s ruling or political elites that results in a substantial change in the executive leadership and the policies of the prior regime (although not necessarily in the nature of regime authority or mode of governance). Social revolutions, victories by oppositional forces in civil wars, and popular uprisings, while they may lead to substantial changes in central authority, are not considered coups d’état. Voluntary transfers of executive authority or transfers of office due to the death or incapacitance of a ruling executive are, likewise, not considered coups d’état. The forcible ouster of a regime accomplished by, or with the crucial support of, invading foreign forces is not here considered a coup d’état. The dataset includes four types of coup events: successful coups, attempted (failed) coups, coup plots, and alleged coup plots. In order for a coup to be considered “successful” effective authority must be exercised by new executive for at least one month. We are confident that the list of successful coups is comprehensive. Our confidence in the comprehensiveness of the coup lists diminishes across the remaining three categories: good coverage (reporting) of attempted coups and more questionable quality of coverage/reporting of coup plots (“discovered” and alleged).
    [Show full text]
  • Appendix 25 Box 31/3 Airline Codes
    March 2021 APPENDIX 25 BOX 31/3 AIRLINE CODES The information in this document is provided as a guide only and is not professional advice, including legal advice. It should not be assumed that the guidance is comprehensive or that it provides a definitive answer in every case. Appendix 25 - SAD Box 31/3 Airline Codes March 2021 Airline code Code description 000 ANTONOV DESIGN BUREAU 001 AMERICAN AIRLINES 005 CONTINENTAL AIRLINES 006 DELTA AIR LINES 012 NORTHWEST AIRLINES 014 AIR CANADA 015 TRANS WORLD AIRLINES 016 UNITED AIRLINES 018 CANADIAN AIRLINES INT 020 LUFTHANSA 023 FEDERAL EXPRESS CORP. (CARGO) 027 ALASKA AIRLINES 029 LINEAS AER DEL CARIBE (CARGO) 034 MILLON AIR (CARGO) 037 USAIR 042 VARIG BRAZILIAN AIRLINES 043 DRAGONAIR 044 AEROLINEAS ARGENTINAS 045 LAN-CHILE 046 LAV LINEA AERO VENEZOLANA 047 TAP AIR PORTUGAL 048 CYPRUS AIRWAYS 049 CRUZEIRO DO SUL 050 OLYMPIC AIRWAYS 051 LLOYD AEREO BOLIVIANO 053 AER LINGUS 055 ALITALIA 056 CYPRUS TURKISH AIRLINES 057 AIR FRANCE 058 INDIAN AIRLINES 060 FLIGHT WEST AIRLINES 061 AIR SEYCHELLES 062 DAN-AIR SERVICES 063 AIR CALEDONIE INTERNATIONAL 064 CSA CZECHOSLOVAK AIRLINES 065 SAUDI ARABIAN 066 NORONTAIR 067 AIR MOOREA 068 LAM-LINHAS AEREAS MOCAMBIQUE Page 2 of 19 Appendix 25 - SAD Box 31/3 Airline Codes March 2021 Airline code Code description 069 LAPA 070 SYRIAN ARAB AIRLINES 071 ETHIOPIAN AIRLINES 072 GULF AIR 073 IRAQI AIRWAYS 074 KLM ROYAL DUTCH AIRLINES 075 IBERIA 076 MIDDLE EAST AIRLINES 077 EGYPTAIR 078 AERO CALIFORNIA 079 PHILIPPINE AIRLINES 080 LOT POLISH AIRLINES 081 QANTAS AIRWAYS
    [Show full text]
  • Arab American Literature and the Ethnic American Landscape: Language, Identity, and Community
    Arab American Literature and the Ethnic American Landscape: Language, Identity, and Community A dissertation submitted to the Graduate School of the University of Cincinnati in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Department English and Comparative Literature of the College of Arts and Sciences by Niven Herro, B.A., M.A. July 2018 Committee Chair: Jennifer Glaser, Ph.D. Committee Members: Lisa Hogeland, Ph.D., Laura Micciche, Ph.D. Abstract This dissertation explores the works of contemporary Arab American women writers with a focus on language, identity, and community. I am especially interested in the ways in which the Arab American immigrant experience mirrors that of other ethnic American groups, as demonstrated in their literatures. First, I argue that Randa Jarrar’s debut novel, A Map of Home (2008), which uses language—both Arabic and English—as a source of empowerment, reflects Chicana writer Gloria Anzaldúa’s concept of the “new mestiza consciousness.” Comparing the Chinatown community in Fae Myenne Ng’s Bone (1993), to the Muslim community in Mohja Kahf’s The Girl in the Tangerine Scarf (2006), reveals the complicated relationships the novels’ characters have with their communities. In both novels, the personal development of their young women protagonists is greatly influenced by their respective communities, which simultaneously serve as positive sites of support and complex sites of difficult negotiations. While the characters in A Map of Home and The Girl in the Tangerine Scarf ultimately learn to effectively navigate their hybrid subject positions as both Arabs and Americans, the failure to do so leads to a tragic end for the couple at the center of Laila Halaby’s Once in a Promised Land.
    [Show full text]
  • Africa's Role in Nation-Building: an Examination of African-Led Peace
    AFRICA’S ROLE IN NATION-BUILDING An Examination of African-Led Peace Operations James Dobbins, James Pumzile Machakaire, Andrew Radin, Stephanie Pezard, Jonathan S. Blake, Laura Bosco, Nathan Chandler, Wandile Langa, Charles Nyuykonge, Kitenge Fabrice Tunda C O R P O R A T I O N For more information on this publication, visit www.rand.org/t/RR2978 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available for this publication. ISBN: 978-1-9774-0264-6 Published by the RAND Corporation, Santa Monica, Calif. © Copyright 2019 RAND Corporation R® is a registered trademark. Cover: U.S. Air Force photo/ Staff Sgt. Ryan Crane; Feisal Omar/REUTERS. Limited Print and Electronic Distribution Rights This document and trademark(s) contained herein are protected by law. This representation of RAND intellectual property is provided for noncommercial use only. Unauthorized posting of this publication online is prohibited. Permission is given to duplicate this document for personal use only, as long as it is unaltered and complete. Permission is required from RAND to reproduce, or reuse in another form, any of its research documents for commercial use. For information on reprint and linking permissions, please visit www.rand.org/pubs/permissions. The RAND Corporation is a research organization that develops solutions to public policy challenges to help make communities throughout the world safer and more secure, healthier and more prosperous. RAND is nonprofit, nonpartisan, and committed to the public interest. RAND’s publications do not necessarily reflect the opinions of its research clients and sponsors. Support RAND Make a tax-deductible charitable contribution at www.rand.org/giving/contribute www.rand.org Preface Since the turn of the century, the African Union (AU) and subregional organizations in Africa have taken on increasing responsibilities for peace operations throughout that continent.
    [Show full text]
  • The African Union (AU): Key Issues and U.S.-AU Relations
    The African Union (AU): Key Issues and U.S.-AU Relations Nicolas Cook Specialist in African Affairs Tomas F. Husted Research Assistant December 16, 2016 Congressional Research Service 7-5700 www.crs.gov R44713 The African Union (AU): Key Issues and U.S.-AU Relations Summary U.S. relations with the African Union (AU), an intergovernmental organization to which all African countries except Morocco belong, have strengthened over the past decade. U.S.-AU cooperation has traditionally focused on peace operations and conflict prevention and mitigation. U.S. aid for AU democracy-strengthening initiatives is another key focus of engagement. Other areas of cooperation include economic development, health, governance, peace and security capacity building, and criminal justice. Direct U.S. aid to the AU Commission (AUC, the organization’s secretariat), which oversees AU program activity, is moderate; most U.S. aid in support of AU goals is provided on a bilateral basis or sub-regional basis. Consequently, such aid may not always be accounted for in analyses of U.S. support for the AU. President George W. Bush formally recognized the AU as an international organization in 2005, and a U.S. mission to the AU was established in 2006, making the United States the first non- African country to have an accredited diplomatic mission to the AU. In 2007, the first AU ambassador to the United States was accredited. In 2010, an agreement on U.S. aid for the AU was signed and in 2013, the AU and the United States established annual partnership dialogues and extended the 2010 aid agreement.
    [Show full text]
  • Download E-Book
    嘀漀氀⸀ ㈀ ㄀㘀⼀㈀⸀ Table of Contents Editorial 5 CHERRY JAMES – Brexit: What now for Study Mobility between 7 the UK and the EU? JUDIT TÓTH – RENÁTA BOZSÓ – TATIANA KALKANOVA – 21 MAJA LADIĆ – ANITA MANDARIĆ VUKUŠIĆ – NORBERT MERKOVITY – TAMÁS PONGÓ – TÜNDE SZÉKELY – Could Adult Education Become a Means of Active Participatory Citizenship for Young People in the EU? BARRETT JIZENG FAN – Convergence, Compatibility or Decoration: 38 The Luxembourg Court’s References to Strasbourg Case Law in its Final Judgments TAMÁS LATTMANN – Situations Referred to the International Criminal Court by 68 the United Nations Security Council – “ad hoc Tribunalisation” of the Court and its Dangers BIANKA MAKSÓ – Exporting the Policy - International Data Transfer 79 and the Role of Binding Corporate Rules for Ensuring Adequate Safeguards Review BENCE KIS KELEMEN – Avery Plaw – Matthew S. Fricker – 87 Carlos R. Colon: The Drone Debate – A primer on the U. S. use of unmanned aircraft outside conventional battlefields. Pécs Journal of International and European Law - 2016/II Editorial The editors are pleased to present to the reader issue 2016/II of the Pécs Journal of International and European Law, published by the Centre for European Research and Education of the Faculty of Law of the University of Pécs. In the current issue, Cherry James looks at the consequences of Brexit on study mobility to and from the UK. Judit Tóth and her co-authors analyse the potential of adult education in the context of active citizenship. Barrett Jizeng Fan provides a detailed investigation of references made by the Court of Justice of the European Union to the case law of the European Court of Human Rights.
    [Show full text]
  • Enhancing Africa Tourism Growth Through Aviation – Tourism Regulatory Convergence
    Enhancing Africa Tourism Growth through Aviation – Tourism Regulatory Convergence By Ray’ Mutinda, Ph.D Mt Kenya University School of Hospitality, Travel and Tourism UNECA CONSULTANT Drivers… Africa has witnessed a • Efforts to liberalize her aviation industry sustained growth in her air (particularly the outcomes of the Yamoussoukro transportation sector, Decision of 1999) rising by 6.6 % over the • A number of airlines from the U.S., Europe and last decade, making the Africa have continued to expand operations continent the second across the continent. fastest growing region • The growing alliances with counterpart regions globally after Asia. • The growth of LCCs in Africa (though not widely spread, with the current composition being in six countries-South Africa, Kenya, Egypt, Morocco, Traffic to, from, and within Tanzania, Zimbabwe) Africa is projected to grow • Accelerated economic growth (by the close of by about 6 percent per 2014, 25 African countries had attained middle- year for the next 20 years income status)- resulting in an economy based on (Boeing’s long term rising incomes, consumption, employment, and forecast 2014-2033) productivity (Boeing, 2014) • Growth in the middle class- 313 mn by 2011 (AfDB)-. Efforts towards the liberalization of Africa’s aviation industry… The aspirations for an integrated intra-regional air transportation has always existed in Africa… 1961 Yaoundé Provided for the creation of Air Afrique, the assignment of the Treaty international traffic rights of each signatory to Air Afrique and the definition
    [Show full text]
  • Text Begins Here
    SECRETARIAT - 150 route de Ferney, P.O. Box 2100, 1211 Geneva 2, Switzerland - TEL: +41 22 791 6033 - FAX: +41 22 791 6506 www.actalliance.org Appeal Mauritania Support to People Affected by Drought in Mauritania and Senegal and to the Malian Refugees in southern Mauritania-MRT121 Appeal Target: US$ 3,039,387 Balance Requested: US$ 2,711,036 Geneva, 6 March 2012 Dear Colleagues, Mauritania and the neighbouring countries (mainly Mali and Senegal) have been affected by the ongoing Sahel food crisis characterised by food insecurity and malnutrition due to drought and other underlying factors in the region. It has been projected that 800,000 people in Mauritania, will need humanitarian assistance in 2012. In addition to the drought situation, the ongoing armed conflict in Northern Mali has forced thousands of Malians to cross the border to Mauritania. The drought and conflict have negatively impacted the entire Sahel Region resulting to hunger, malnutrition, displacement of people, destruction of local economies/livelihoods, pressure on limited existing food and water resources, increase of insecurity and violence. ACT member, LWF/DWS will respond to the drought situation in Mauritania, Fatick region of Senegal and provide assistance to the Malian refugees in Mauritania by working through local partners. The local partners include: ARDM, AU SECOURS and BSF in Mauritania, and Lutheran Church in Senegal (ELS) in Senegal’s Fatick region. This appeal will supplement the Mauritania government’s emergency response plan called ‘’EMEL’’ (hope). The project target is 8,653 households including: 4,206 drought affected households from Mauritania, 1,447 drought affected Households in Senegal and 3,000 Malian Refugees’ Households.
    [Show full text]
  • GABON Gb 07:GABON Gb 07 17/04/07 14:48 Page 269
    GABON gb 07:GABON gb 07 17/04/07 14:48 Page 269 Gabon Libreville key figures • Land area, thousands of km 2 268 • Population, thousands (2006) 1 406 • GDP per capita, $ PPP valuation (2006) 7 668 • Life expectancy (2006) 53.6 • Illiteracy rate (2006) … GABON gb 07:GABON gb 07 17/04/07 14:48 Page 270 Gabon GABON gb 07:GABON gb 07 17/04/07 14:48 Page 271 THE 2005 PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION WAS a contest sources of income. Moreover, despite the government’s between opposition parties and a “presidential majority” promises that budgetary indiscipline linked to the 2005 coalition of about 40 other parties and groups backing presidential election would not be repeated, President Omar Bongo Ondimba for another seven- parliamentary elections in late 2006 are also expected year term. Bongo was declared by the constitutional to have been accompanied by Gabon should diversify court to have won re-election with about 80 per cent excessive spending. Inflation, its economy and prepare of the votes cast. which fell back in 2005, rose in for the after-oil era pursuing 2006 to 1.9 per cent, mainly institutional reforms to Despite shrinking oil reserves and declining owing to a higher wage bill for improve the investment production, oil was still Gabon’s main natural resource government workers. climate, governance, in 2005, providing more than half its GDP, 80 per and eradicate poverty. cent of export earnings and 63 per cent of tax revenue. Many institutional reforms Without new discoveries, however, the country will were introduced in 2005 affecting business
    [Show full text]