African Union - The African Mirror

Mar

02

2021

New report ranks how friendly – or not – African governments are towards girls

EDUCATION

THERE are approximately over 308 million girls below 18 years on the African continent. While the African Union’s legal and policy framework does refer – patchily – to the rights, interests and plight of girls; continental bodies and national governments can and should do more to protect girls, provide for them and ensure that they participate fully in society. RONGEDZAYI FAMBASAYI, Doctoral Researcher: Faculty of Law, North-West University Not only do governments have legal obligations to protect the life and well-being of girls, doing so also has economic benefits. For instance, it’s argued that every dollar invested in a girl’s…

Mar

01

2021

By The African Mirror

U.S. calls on AU to exert pressure Tigray

NEWS

PHIL STEWART U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken has called on the African Union and other international partners to help address a deepening crisis in Ethiopia's northern Tigray region as he condemned alleged atrocities in fighting there. Blinken's statement suggested growing frustration with the response so far from Ethiopia and neighboring Eritrea to what America's top diplomat described as a "worsening humanitarian crisis." His remarks came a day after Amnesty International released a report accusing Eritrean forces of killing hundreds of civilians in Tigray in a 24-hour period last year, an incident it described as a potential crime against humanity.…

Mar

22

2021

By The African Mirror

SA sells vaccines to other African countries

COVID-19

SOUTH Africa has concluded the sale of AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccines it had acquired but did not use to other African Union (AU) member states, the health ministry has announced. The country had paused AstraZeneca vaccinations last month because of a small trial showing the shot offered minimal protection against mild to moderate illness caused by the dominant local coronavirus variant. At the time, South Africa had received 1 million AstraZeneca doses from the Serum Institute of India and the delivery of another 500,000 was pending. The ministry said it had in the past weeks worked to ensure that all member…

Mar

19

2021

By The African Mirror

AU urges use of AstraZeneca shot

COVID-19

THE African Union has urged African countries should continue to use AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine, echoing the World Health Organization (WHO) by saying the shot's benefits outweigh risks. The recommendation comes after more than a dozen European countries suspended use of the AstraZeneca vaccine amid concerns over the risk of blood clots. Africa has lagged wealthier parts of the world in vaccinations, with many countries on the continent using free AstraZeneca shots distributed by a global scheme co-led by the WHO to kick-start immunisation campaigns. John Nkengasong, director of the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, told a news conference…

Mar

18

2021

By The African Mirror

APRM celebrates 18 years of promoting good governance on the African continent

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

SENZO MCHUNU THE year 2003 marked a historic turn on the African continent as Member States of the African Union (AU) voluntarily acceded to a mutually agreed self-monitoring mechanism called the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM). This mechanism is aimed at fostering good governance in the continent through systematic peer learning and self-assessment. The APRM was adopted by African Heads of State and Government as a systematic peer learning and self-assessment mechanism originating from the NEPAD foundational document, “The Declaration on Democracy, Political, Economic and Corporate Governance” which was adopted in Durban, South Africa in July 2002. The primary purpose …

Mar

16

2021

By The African Mirror

Sudan requests mediation over Ethiopian dam

NEWS

SUDAN’S prime minister has written to the African Union, the United Nations, the European Union, and the United States to formally request their mediation on the Nile water being used to fill Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), the Sudanese foreign ministry announced yesterday. Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok expressed concern over Ethiopia's stated intention of adding more water to the reservoir behind the hydropower dam for a second year in letters sent on Saturday, the statement added. Sudan had already floated the idea of the four-party mediation with Egyptian support after an African Union-led mediation effort stalled.

Mar

14

2021

By The African Mirror

Africa a rocky terrain for these vaccines

COVID-19

JOE BAVIER and DAVID LEWIS RUSSIA and China are racing to plug the COVID-19 vaccine gap in Africa, hoping to cement their influence on a continent where many countries have yet to administer a single shot. But, so far, vaccine donations from Beijing and Moscow have been small, the commercial deals they offer are costly, and some African governments are wary about a lack of data. As rich countries ramp up their inoculation drives, Africa, without the resources to pre-order Pfizer, AstraZeneca , Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccines, is being left behind. With Western nations facing criticism for hoarding…

Mar

06

2021

By The African Mirror

South Africa in AU talks on vaccine for 10 million people

COVID-19

ALEXANDER WINNING and WENDELL ROELF SOUTH Africa is negotiating with an African Union (AU) platform to buy COVID-19 vaccines for at least 10 million of its people, a senior health official said yesterday. The country was provisionally allocated 12 million doses developed by AstraZeneca, Pfizer and Johnson & Johnson (J&J) in an AU vaccine plan, but it was unclear how many vaccines it would seek to buy after it halted plans to use the AstraZeneca shot. Sandile Buthelezi, Department of Health director-general, did not say which vaccines the country would order via the AU in comments to parliament. South Africa…

Aug

01

2020

By The African Mirror

African Union celebrates powerful women

NEWS

AFRICAN MIRROR REPORTER POWERFUL black female leaders from Africa and the world, amongst them a former head of state, authors, Nobel Prize winners and freedom fighters are the face of a bold campaign by the African Union celebrating African Women’s Day. Leading the Africa’s Women’s Day campaign are: Dr Nkosazana Zuma, the first woman to lead the African Union Commission. Funmilayos Ransome-Kuti, a leading anti-colonial activist, educator and women’s rights advocate. Aona Keita, writer, activist and the first in French-speaking Africa to be elected as a member of Parliament. Asli Hassan Abade, Africa’s first female pilot. Taytu Betul, Empress of…

Sep

27

2020

By The African Mirror

Ethiopia tells U.N. ‘no intention’ of using dam to harm Egypt, Sudan

NEWS

ETHIOPIAN Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has the United Nations that his country has "no intention" of harming Sudan and Egypt with a giant hydropower dam on the Blue Nile that has caused a bitter water dispute between the three countries. Ethiopia, Egypt and Sudan failed to strike a deal on the operation of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam before Ethiopia began filling the reservoir behind the dam in July. But the three states have returned to African Union-led mediation. "I want to make it abundantly clear that we have no intention to harm these countries," he told the 193-member U.N.…