June, 2021 - The African Mirror

Jun

2021

Namibian rescues ravaged economy

NAMIBIAN President Hage Geingob has appointed an 11-member Business Rescue Task Force to review business and insolvency legislation with the aim of rescuing businesses in financial distress. The Southern African nation, whose mining and tourism-dependent economy has been ravaged by the COVID-19 pandemic, is in the midst of a deadly third wave of infections that is threatening to take more businesses under. The task force, which consists of individuals with skills and experience in corporate management, banking, legal and insolvency laws, legal drafting and entrepreneurship, will start work on July 1 for a period of eight months, the president's office…

Jun

2021

By The African Mirror

Zimbabwe imposes dusk to dawn curfew

COVID-19

ZIMBABWE’S President Emmerson Mnangagwa has imposed a dusk to dawn curfew, banned inter-city travel and cut business hours with immediate effect in response to increasing coronavirus infections. The southern Africa nation, which has recorded more than 47,000 cases since the outbreak last year, has seen its 7-day average infection rate increasing five times to 727 compared to two weeks ago. Mnangagwa said businesses would now open between 8 a.m. and 3 p.m. while a curfew would start from 6:30 p.m. to 6 a.m. Companies would be required to only have 40% of their workforce, he said. The measures would be…

Jun

2021

By The African Mirror

AU wants Covishield approved

COVID-19

THE African Union has criticised an EU decision not to include Covishield, a version of AstraZeneca's coronavirus vaccine used by the global COVAX facility, on a list of approved vaccines for a digital certificate meant to ease travel in the bloc. Covishield is produced by the Serum Institute of India (SII) and has been distributed to African nations as part of the COVAX initiative to give poor and developing countries access to COVID-19 vaccines. But Covishield is not one of four vaccines approved by the European Union for its planned digital vaccination certificate, which is intended to allow people to…

Jun

2021

By The African Mirror

Kenya secures $130 mln from the World Bank for COVID vaccines

BUSINESS

KENYA has secured $130 million of additional funds from the World Bank to help buy vaccines to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic, the bank has announced. Like other countries around the continent, the East African nation has been hit by deadly waves of COVID-19 infections this year, forcing it to re-impose strict, partial lockdown measures. "This additional financing comes at a critical time when the Government of Kenya is making concerted efforts to contain the rising cases of COVID-19 infections," said Keith Hansen, the World Bank's country director in Kenya. The financing will help Kenya buy vaccines through an African Union…

Jun

2021

By The African Mirror

U.S. welcomes Sudan clearance of $1.4 billion in IMF arrears

BUSINESS

THE U.S. Treasury said on Tuesday it welcomed Sudan's clearance of about $1.4 billion in arrears to the International Monetary Fund, paving the way for the first phase of debt relief under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries initiative. Treasury said in a statement that it committed to contribute up to $120 million in grant resources to fund IMF debt relief for Sudan in the first phase under HIPC. The Treasury provided bridge financing of about $1.15 billion in March to help Sudan clear its arrears at the World Bank. U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said that Sudanese authorities were committed…

Jun

2021

By The African Mirror

Rescue workers make slow progress at Florida building collapse

WORLD

GABRIELLA BORTER SEARCH-and-rescue operations have stretched into a sixth day at the site of an oceanside Florida condominium complex that partially collapsed, although with no survivors found since last week hopes are dim for the 150 people still missing. Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava told reporters that no bodies had been recovered from the rubble since Monday, keeping the official death toll at 11. What caused a major section of the 40-year-old high-rise to crumble into a heap remains under investigation. Initial attention has focused on structural deficiencies described in a 2018 engineer's report. In April 2021, the condo…

Jun

2021

By The African Mirror

Stung by pandemic, G20 foreign ministers urge greater cooperation

WORLD

CRISPIAN BALMER and HUMEYRA PAMUK G20 foreign ministers have called for multilateral cures for global crises like the COVID-19 pandemic and climate emergency at their first face-to-face meeting in two years. The one-day gathering in the heat-soaked southern city of Matera focused on how to improve cooperation and revive the world's economy following the pandemic and how to boost sustainable development in Africa. "The pandemic has highlighted the need for an international response to emergencies that transcend national boundaries," Italian Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio told his counterparts from the Group of 20 major economies. The G20 members account for…

Jun

2021

By The African Mirror

Dutch defence minister: “irresponsible” Russian jets harassed frigate in Black Sea

WORLD

THE Netherlands' defence minister said on Tuesday that Russian fighter jets armed with air-to-surface missiles had harassed a Dutch navy frigate in the Black Sea earlier this month, conducting mock attacks and jamming communication systems. The Russian actions took place over the span of five hours on June 24 and violated rights to free use of the sea, the ministry said. The frigate, Evertsen, was sailing with Britain's Carrier Strike Group, which was carrying out a patrol in the area at the time. Defence Minister Ank Bijleveld-Schouten called the Russian action "irresponsible". The "Evertsen has every right to sail there,"…

Jun

2021

By The African Mirror

Anti-apartheid veteran Zuma casts long shadow over South Africa

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

ALEXANDER WINNING WHEN Jacob Zuma finally caved to pressure to quit as South African president in 2018, he ranted to the state broadcaster for an hour about the ill-treatment he had received at the hands of the party he had served since his teenage years. Zuma, besieged by sleaze and graft scandals throughout his years in power from 2009 to 2018, said it was "unfair" the African National Congress (ANC) had told him to resign, mainly because his comrades had not followed proper party procedure. To South Africans who suffered economic stagnation and national embarrassment under Zuma, it was yet…

Jun

2021

By The African Mirror

Senegal’s Olympics dream dashed

SPORT

BOITUMELO RANTAO AFRICAN basketball powerhouses Senegal will not compete in the Olympic Qualifying Tournament (OQT) hosted by the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) in Belgrade, Serbia. The Senegalese camp, which was based in Germany for the duration of their camp, has reported several COVID-19 cases which caused several delays in their preparations. The team's plans to travel to Serbia were eventually cancelled. FIBA was informed by the National Federation of Senegal about COVID-19 related disruptions to their preparations in Germany. Despite continuous efforts from FIBA and the German Basketball Federation to support the Senegalese delegation, the team will not be able…