The international community pledged $1.8 billion at a conference to drum up support for Sudan on Thursday, in an effort to help the northeast African country battle economic woes after the ousting of long-time dictator Omar al-Bashir.”This conference opened a new chapter in the cooperation between Sudan and the international community to rebuild the country,” German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said at the video conference co-organised by Germany with Sudan, the European Union and the United Nations.
 
Some 50 countries and international organisations pledged a total of more than $1.8 billion, while the World Bank Group offered a grant of $400 million.
 
“This conference marks the start of a process, which will be followed by subsequent engagement by the international community to take stock of the progress made by Sudan in implementing reforms and to allow its partners to adapt their support accordingly,” the conference’s concluding statement said.
 
Sudan’s Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok called the conference “unprecedented” and said it laid a “solid foundation for us moving forward”.
 
Sudan has been battling an economic crisis since Bashir was ousted by the military in April 2019 after months of street demonstrations against his three-decade rule.
 
Facing mounting cases of coronavirus, the country is now also grappling with acute medicine shortages.
 
Last week, dozens of pharmacists protested in the capital Khartoum holding banners that read: “Lack of drugs kills in silence” and “Medications are a right, not a privilege.”
 
They urged Hamdok, who took office in August heading a post-Bashir transitional administration, to make funds available to import medicine. 
Economic initiatives
 
Much of the aid pledged on Thursday will go towards economic initiatives, including Sudan’s Family Support Program, which aims to provide assistance to millions of vulnerable people.
 
But direct help is also envisaged to enhance Sudan’s efforts to tackle COVID-19.
 
The pledges included $356 million from the United States, which voiced optimism on Wednesday for a resolution in the coming weeks on Sudan’s hopes to be delisted as a state sponsor of terrorism.
 
Washington first blacklisted Sudan in 1993 as Bashir turned toward Islamism.
 
Sudan’s Foreign Minister Asma Abdalla told AFP on Tuesday that the government was finishing a deal to compensate victims of the simultaneous 1998 bombings of the US embassies in Kenya and Tanzania.
 
Once the deal is complete, she said she expected the US to move ahead with the delisting of Sudan “as soon as possible.”
 
Germany said it would contribute 150 million euros ($168 million) and France 100 million euros.
 
Sudan’s new transitional government has sought to repair the country’s international standing, but it still faces daunting economic challenges more than a year after Bashir’s ouster.
 
The International Monetary Fund says Sudan’s economy “contracted by 2.5 percent in 2019 and is projected to shrink by eight percent in 2020” because of the pandemic.
 
Other challenges include galloping inflation, massive public debt and acute foreign currency shortages. 
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Eastern Congo marked an official end Thursday to the second deadliest Ebola outbreak in history, which killed 2,280 people over nearly two years, as armed rebels and community mistrust undermined the promise of new vaccines.Thursday’s milestone was overshadowed, though, by the enormous health challenges still facing Congo: the world’s largest measles epidemic, the rising threat of COVID-19 and another new Ebola outbreak in the north.”We are extremely proud to have been able to be victorious over an epidemic that lasted such a long time,” said Dr. Jean-Jacques Muyembe, who coordinated the national Ebola response and whose team also developed a new treatment for the once incurable hemorrhagic disease.The announcement initially was set for April but another case emerged just three days before the Ebola-free declaration was expected. That restarted the 42-day waiting period required before such a proclamation can be made.The epidemic, which began in August 2018, presented an unprecedented challenge for the World Health Organization, Congo’s Health Ministry and international aid groups because it was the first Ebola epidemic in a conflict zone. Armed groups posed such a risk that vaccinations sometimes could only be carried out by small teams arriving by helicopter.But much of the risk to hospitals and health workers came from the communities, often angered by the presence of outsiders and the amount of money being spent on Ebola as far more people died of perennial killers like malaria. Some suspected the epidemic was a political scheme, a theory that grew after then President Joseph Kabila canceled the national elections in Ebola-affected areas.Only a few years earlier, West Africa’s Ebola epidemic killed more than 11,000, as at that time there was no licensed vaccine or treatment. By the time of the eastern Congo outbreak there was not one but two new experimental vaccines to ward off the disease that kills about half its victims.After more than a quarter century of conflict, though, distrust of government health workers and other outsiders was exceptionally high in eastern Congo. Many residents initially outright refused the vaccine, fearing it would harm them.New treatment options also offered promise, and the aid group ALIMA even developed a way for patients to feel less isolated. A transparent enclosure for individual patients allowed visitors to still see their loved ones who were undergoing treatment. Yet fear of dying alone still kept many people from going to medical facilities until it was too late.Ultimately two different experimental vaccines were made available in eastern Congo on a compassionate use basis — one manufactured by Merck, the other by Johnson & Johnson. Those vaccines later received regulatory approval and now are expected to be used again in Congo’s northern Equateur province where a new outbreak already has claimed 11 lives. That area also had an outbreak in 2018 that killed 33 people before it was brought under control within months.And with the arrival of COVID-19, health teams in eastern Congo are once again trying to persuade people that a virus they’ve never heard of before could still kill them. The COVID-19 outbreak in the region has been minimal so far, but the challenges of Ebola underscore how fraught it could be to test and treat those in areas under the control of armed rebels.Some, though, are hopeful the region can weather coronavirus — people here already know how to social distance. Schools, churches and mosques are already armed with hand-washing kits.  “Ebola has changed our culture,” said Esaie Ngalya, whose grandmother died from the virus. “Now I go to see my uncle but we don’t shake hands. In our culture that is considered disrespectful but now we have no choice because health comes first.” 
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Cameroon says the temporary closure of most restaurants and border trade during the COVID-19 pandemic has dropped food prices by up to 70 percent.  While food sellers are suffering the lost income, cheaper prices have helped some of Cameroon’s poorest to cope during the economic disruption. After the COVID-19 pandemic forced restaurants to close in Cameroon’s capital, Yaounde, a new way of business emerged to sell the surplus of cheap food.  Trucks that used to deliver large quantities of food to the city’s eateries and hotels now go from street to street, selling fruit, vegetables, and chicken to the general public.    But food distributors like Christoph Nanze say the pandemic is destroying their business.   He says his wholesale buyers have dried up with restaurant closures and the banning of large gatherings and border trade.  Nanze says they are suffering because vegetable, meat and chicken sellers no longer have access to markets in Nigeria, Gabon and Equatorial Guinea.  Since the neighboring countries sealed their borders to stop the spread of COVID-19, he says, food prices have decreased sharply.  Nanze says the price of a 20-liter bucket of fresh tomatoes has dropped from $15 to only $4, while the price of a chicken that weighs 1.5 to 2 kilograms has fallen from $10 to about $3 to $4. But in poor neighborhoods, where day laborers and laid off workers have been struggling during the pandemic, the cheap food is a blessing.  Among the buyers is 39-year-old unemployed single mother of two, Amina Awah.  She says it is the first time in her life that she can afford to buy a few meals of meat per week for her children.   She says she is very happy that food is now very cheap and poor Cameroonians like her can add chicken to their diet.  Awah says she does not like seeing people infected and dying from COVID-19 but, she wishes for prices to remain low so that the poor can also eat well. But as the poor like Awah express joy, Cameroon’s farmers trade unions have called on the government to assist them.   The Cameroon Poultry Trade Union’s Joseph Tchomb says the fall in food prices means members are unable to repay their loans.  He says farmers are also discouraged from producing and, if no government assistance comes soon, Cameroon may face a food shortage.   Tchomb says the COVID-19 crisis has exposed Cameroon’s fragile economy.  If the government does not give financial assistance to farmers and food sellers, he says, their businesses will crumble.  Tchomb says banks that gave out loans to traders should renegotiate the terms because so many people cannot afford to pay them back. FILE – Women work at an onion field near Gazawa on March 7, 2020.Cameroon’s Minister of Finance Louis Paul Motaze says the government is preparing a rescue plan for farmers.   He says the government plans to give farmers tax breaks and subsidies to ensure production. Motaze says the government and Cameroon’s President Paul Biya are very much aware of the difficulties that traders are going through.  He says they are doing everything possible to assist them.  Although the government is already losing close to $2 billion in revenue due to COVID-19, says Motaze, Biya has removed taxes for food stuffs. Motaze says the government has vowed not to allow the possibility of any food shortages.   
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Senegalese President Macky Sall is self-quarantining as a precaution after coming in contact with someone who tested positive for COVID-19.The president’s office issued a statement late Wednesday, saying although Sall tested negative for the virus, he will isolate himself for 15 days based on advice of doctors.Meantime, Yeya Diallo, a Senegalese lawmaker who announced Wednesday that she had tested positive for the coronavirus, is urging people to takes steps such as social distancing to avoid becoming infected and spreading the virus.So far, Senegal has confirmed more than 6,100 coronavirus cases and 93 deaths.  
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South Africa is taking part in Africa’s first human trials aimed at producing a potential vaccine against the novel coronavirus, which continues to surge in the country. Oxford University, in conjunction with South Africa’s University of the Witwatersrand, announced Wednesday thousands of volunteers between the ages of 18 and 65 who received the vaccination will be monitored for 12 months to see how well the vaccine guards against COVID-19.      South Africa is the second country outside of Britain taking take part in the Oxford trial after Brazil launched its study on Wednesday.  Oxford University scientists, who developed the vaccine, also known as AZD1222, are working with AstraZeneca on development and production. Shabir Madhi, professor in vaccinology at Wits University said, this is most likely the first of at least three to four other vaccine studies on COVID-19, that will be done in South Africa over the period of the next six months. South Africa, which is gradually relaxing coronavirus lockdown restrictions, has the highest rate of infections in Africa, with more than 100,000 cases and more than 2,000 deaths. Meantime, Brazil’s Health Ministry said Wednesday, the country’s coronavirus cases and deaths are surging, resulting in nearly 1.2 million cases since the pandemic began, and more than 53,800 deaths.  
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Malawi’s ruling party said Wednesday that opposition supporters tried to intimidate its backers during voting the day before in the presidential election, an assertion the opposition MCP party denied.At a news conference, Democratic Progressive Party spokesman Nicholas Dausi showed reporters photographs of some DPP supporters who he said were assaulted by thugs sent by the opposition Malawi Congress Party.“As we are talking, Democratic Progressive Party monitors in the areas of Kabudula, Lilongwe-Mapungu North and Lilongwe-Kasiya were abducted,” Dausi said, adding that “four girls and four boys” were missing.He said MCP members also manhandled DPP Secretary-General Greselida Jeffrey and burglarized the home of her husband.“The thugs went to his house,” Dausi said. “They damaged the government’s vehicle and stole almost K11 million, which was meant for DPP monitors in Salima district.”Finger pointed at DPPMaurice Munthali, spokesperson for the opposition MCP, told VOA on Wednesday via telephone that the DPP assertions were laughable because there was no evidence that those attackers were members of the Malawi Congress Party.“If anything, what we have heard … is that DPP was on it again, trying to rig the elections,” Munthali said. “DPP, if anything, would not have expected Malawians to sit idle as [they] see such nasty things happening around them.”MCP candidate Lazarus Chakwera was the main challenger to President Peter Mutharika of the DPP in the election. The poll was a rerun of last year’s election, won by Mutharika but annulled by Malawi’s Constitutional Court because of massive irregularities.At a press conference Wednesday, Malawi Electoral Commission chairperson Chifundo Kachale said the commission had received a total of four complaints from both the MCP and DPP parties alleging intimidation during the voting.Kachale said the commission would ensure that all complaints were amicably addressed before an announcement of election results within eight days.
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African leaders and health experts have called for equitable and fair access to any approved vaccine against the coronavirus.  As the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Africa has surpassed 300,000, governments across the continent are organizing themselves to manufacture any vaccine quickly.
 
Director-General of the World Health Organization Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said Wednesday that a huge investment was needed for any approved COVID-19 vaccine to be quickly made available throughout Africa.   
 
“Only one virus in history has been eradicated.  It’s likely that COVID-19 will be with us for the foreseeable future and we must learn to live with it.  A vaccine is an essential tool for doing that,” Tedros said.
 
He was speaking at a conference in Addis Ababa organized by the African Union and the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).   
 
Africa is seeing increasing numbers of confirmed infections, as testing on Tuesday became available in every country on the continent.   
 
The WHO on Wednesday said Africa had over 321,000 confirmed infections.   
 
African leaders and health experts attending the conference said the continent’s most vulnerable and health workers would need a vaccine soonest.   
 
Director of the Africa CDC Dr. John Nkengasong said countries should be preparing.
 
“As a continent, we should be positioning ourselves to conduct clinical trials in a network fashion.  We should also enable regulatory processes that would facilitate uptake of vaccines. …We also need to secure deals through bilateral governments,” Nkengasong said.
 
South Africa, the African country worst hit by the virus with over 100,000 confirmed infections, on Tuesday reported its highest daily death toll — 111 people — since the pandemic began.FILE – People affected by the coronavirus economic downturn line up to receive food aid in Pretoria, South Africa, May 20, 2020.Salim Abdool Karim, chair of the South African Ministerial Advisory Committee for COVID-19, said countries would need to deal with intellectual property issues to move quickly to manufacture a vaccine.
 
“Most of the companies that are developing vaccines are developing it basically with a two-fold market strategy. The first is to have a profitable market in the wealthy countries and then to have a voluntary license market in the countries that will not be able to afford purchasing the vaccine.  In terms of countries that can’t afford the vaccine, the voluntary licensing will enable big manufacturers in India and China to manufacture it under license, and then they would supply it to various countries,” he said.  
 
Karim said that the world’s poorest countries would likely be covered through Gavi, a global vaccine alliance spearheaded by the United Nations and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.   
 
He said that developing countries such as South Africa would likely purchase vaccines at a fraction of the cost.
 
Meanwhile, African countries are responding to the pandemic, but there are gaps with providing safety equipment and inconsistent measures to stop the virus that still make the continent vulnerable.   
 
WHO chief Tedros said the pandemic is now accelerating at an alarming rate globally.  
 
And while it took more than three months for the virus to infect 1 million people, the last 1 million cases were reported in just one week.  
 
 
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Hundreds of people have been killed in inter-communal violence raging in South Sudan’s Jonglei state in recent weeks, and the cycle of attacks and revenge attacks is only going to continue if the national government fails to establish a rule of law that holds cattle raiders and other criminals accountable, according to one Juba-based analyst.   On Tuesday, President Salva Kiir issued a presidential decree forming a committee to resolve ongoing inter-communal violence involving the Dinka Bor, the Lou Nuer and Murle tribes in Greater Jonglei. In his decree, Kiir said he expects the panel to ensure that stability is restored in the area within the next 21 days.  South Sudan’s vice president James Wani Igga makes a speech during his visit to the Mangateen Internal Displaced Persons Center in Juba on Nov. 17, 2018.Vice President James Wani Igga will head the committee. Interior Minister Paul Mayom Akec and other senior officials have been appointed to the panel. The panel’s formation is a good first move, but stacking it with senior politicians in Juba may not solve the problem, said Abraham Kuol, professor of political science at the University of Juba.  “The committee is composed of major politicians and secondly, the people that might represent those communities might also come from Juba, and as a result of that, there is going to be … superficiality,” Kuol said to VOA’s South Sudan in Focus.He suggests appointing community leaders and paramount chiefs from the affected areas to the panel so that the root problems driving the inter-communal violence will be addressed, not the least of which is the absence of justice for past crimes committed.  “The government does not make the people who are culprits responsible for their mistakes and as a result of that it encourages them because the government is not doing anything. So, apart from the committee, there should be serious laws that should be put in place that should be able to deter people from such practices,” Kuol told VOA.  In the past, the government has initiated campaigns to disarm civilians but they have failed to end the escalating cycle of violence in Greater Jonglei and Lakes and Warrap states.   In 2018, Vice President Taban Deng Gai was sent to the region to try to mediate between communities involved in cattle raids and other inter-communal attacks. He met with traditional chiefs and political leaders in hopes of finding ways to reconcile the warring communities. South Sudan’s First Vice President Taban Deng Gai speaks during the General Debate of the 73rd session of the General Assembly at the United Nations in New York on Sept. 28, 2018.Gai failed on his diplomacy mission in part because he was talking to the wrong people.  “He was dealing with intellectuals and political perspectives of how to resolve these problems and as a result of that, that is why it failed. Some of the conferences need not be done in the major towns, they need to be done in the villages, let’s say the most remote areas of these communities; not in Pibor, not in Bor town, not in Juba, but in a very local place like payams [villages] so that the people affected should be part and parcel of the peace process,” Kuol told VOA.The ongoing violence in Greater Jonglei is driven in no small part by an endless competition for resources, according to Kuol.“One of the major resources that are bringing the problem here is both the cattle resources and the human capital. The cattle resources is that people would wish to own as much cattle as possible and the second issue is that there are people who don’t want to take care of their own children and keep their biological children but they want to make sure they take other people’s children,” said Kuol.  Kuol said Greater Jonglei needs a program that will come up with concrete solutions to end the clashes once and for all which he said must include the proper administration of law and order. Carol Van Dam Falk  contributed to this report.
 
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The International Criminal Court’s chief prosecutor hopes the trial of an alleged Sudanese war criminal Ali Kushayb which began this month will help break the cycle of violence’ in Sudan. In a one-on-one interview with VOA’s Salem Solomon, the chief prosecutor says the proceedings are a signal to war criminals that they cannot escape justice.Produced by: Salem Solomon
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Despite churches in Nigeria emerging from lockdown to once again hold weddings, they’re trying to cut down on the number of guests. The ongoing coronavirus pandemic has led many couples to get married online through video conferencing platforms bug Nigeria’s large wedding industry, which is geared towards entertaining large numbers of guests, is struggling to adjust to the new reality. Timothy Obiezu reports from Abuja.Camera: Emeka Gibson 
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One person was killed, and two others were injured after a suicide bomber blew himself up near the Turkey-Somalia military training academy in Mogadishu on Tuesday, witnesses and officials say.   The incident occurred outside a primary school supported by the academy, according to witnesses.  The bomber, strapped with a suicide vest, tried to join a line of military cadets outside the military training facility known as TurkSom. Members of Somali National Army guarding the facility opened fire after they suspected him, but the man detonated his suicide vest.  A civilian bystander was killed, and two cadets were injured according to the officials.  The al-Shabab militant group claimed responsibility for the attack.  The Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemned the bombing.   Turkey inaugurated the military facility in Somalia’s capital on Sept. 30, 2017. It’s the largest overseas military training academy built by the Turkish government.   Four battalions of the Somali National Army have graduated from the TurkSom facility so far, and the fifth is currently being trained at the facility, according to Turkish officials.  A total of 150 officers and 250 non-commissioned officers also graduated from TurkSom since 2018.   Somali military officials say the facility has been key to rebuilding the Somali National Army as some of the battalions who graduated have already been fighting Shabab militants in Lower Shabelle region.  
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One person was killed, and two others were injured after a suicide bomber blew himself up near the Turkey-Somalia military training academy in Mogadishu on Tuesday, witnesses and officials say.   The incident occurred outside a primary school supported by the academy, according to witnesses.  The bomber, strapped with a suicide vest, tried to join a line of military cadets outside the military training facility known as TurkSom. Members of Somali National Army guarding the facility opened fire after they suspected him, but the man detonated his suicide vest.  A civilian bystander was killed, and two cadets were injured according to the officials.  The al-Shabab militant group claimed responsibility for the attack.  The Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemned the bombing.   Turkey inaugurated the military facility in Somalia’s capital on Sept. 30, 2017. It’s the largest overseas military training academy built by the Turkish government.   Four battalions of the Somali National Army have graduated from the TurkSom facility so far, and the fifth is currently being trained at the facility, according to Turkish officials.  A total of 150 officers and 250 non-commissioned officers also graduated from TurkSom since 2018.   Somali military officials say the facility has been key to rebuilding the Somali National Army as some of the battalions who graduated have already been fighting Shabab militants in Lower Shabelle region.  
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 Millions of Malawians cast votes Tuesday in the re-run of last year’s presidential election.  The fresh election comes after Malawi’s Constitutional Court nullified President Peter Mutharika’s victory in last year’s election, citing massive fraud.  Malawi’s Electoral Commission (MEC) says it expects a free and fair election this time, although a few incidents of violence were reported. Electoral officials said people started queuing as early five o’clock in the morning Tuesday, waiting for the polling centers to open at six.     Honasis Mphepo is the commission’s presiding officer at Goliati polling station in Thyolo district in southern Malawi.     “We have a good number of registered voters. Turn up was just very good, and individuals are coming in large number according to how they registered and they are voting,”  he said.MEC officials said in many parts of the country voters started queeing an hour earlier to cast their votes. (Lameck Masina/VOA)The election took place as Malawi continues to register a rise in COVID-19 cases.  As of Tuesday, the southern African country had 803 cases with eleven deaths since the first case was confirmed in April.   But Mphepo said all preventive measures were observed throughout the voting process. “We are provided with the hand sanitizer, face masks and also we are observing the distance which is required; one meter apart when they [voters] are coming towards administration clerk,” he said.He said voters were also encouraged to use their own pens for marking the ballots. The MEC chairperson, Chifundo Kachale, told a press conference in Blantyre that the voting process was generally peaceful and that 99 percent of the polling stations opened on time.  President Mutharika was among those who voted in his home village, Goliati, in Thyolo district. The president condemned acts of violence reported in some parts of the country.  In at least two locations, opposition backers beat supporters of the ruling party who they suspected of trying to rig the polls.  Mutharika said the violence would likely make some people afraid of voting. “This is very sad that this is happening.  It’s obvious the people are afraid of the people who are engaged in these barbaric acts. I condemn it completely,”   he said.  Voters queueing in Thyolo district in fresh presidential elections. (Lameck Masina/VOA)Voters who spoke with VOA said they were happy to participate in the fresh elections and that they are eagerly waiting the results.   The MEC says vote counting starts soon after voting ends and the final results will be announced within eight days, as required by the law.       
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The coronavirus pandemic has some world athletes struggling to stay sharp for next year’s Tokyo Olympics after training facilities were shut down and competitions cancelled.  Ugandan runner Halima Nakaayi, the gold medalist in the 800 meters at the 2019 World Athletics Championships, is doing her best to prepare under the restrictions imposed by COVID-19.  Halima Athumani reports from Kampala.   VIDEOGRAPHER: Francis MukasaPRODUCER: Rod James
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Egypt wants the United Nations Security Council to “undertake its responsibilities” and prevent Ethiopia from starting to fill its massive, newly built hydroelectric dam on the Blue Nile next month without an agreement, Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shukry told The Associated Press on Sunday, accusing Ethiopian officials of stoking antagonism between the countries. Ethiopia announced Friday that it would begin filling the dam’s reservoir in July even after the latest round of talks with Egypt and Sudan failed last week to reach an accord governing how the dam will be filled and operated.  Egypt formally asked the Security Council to intervene in a letter the same day.  “The responsibility of the Security Council is to address a pertinent threat to international peace and security, and certainly the unilateral actions by Ethiopia in this regard would constitute such a threat,” Shukry said in an interview with the AP.  Filling the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam would potentially bring the years-long dispute between Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia over the $4.6 billion mega-project to a critical juncture. Ethiopia said the electricity that will be generated by the dam is a crucial lifeline to bring millions out of poverty. With the start of the rainy season in July bringing more water to the Blue Nile, the Nile’s main tributary, Ethiopia wants to start filling the reservoir.Egypt, which relies on the Nile for more than 90% of its water supplies, fears a devastating impact if the dam is operated without taking its needs into account. Sudan, which also largely depends on the Nile for water, has been caught between the competing interests.The United States earlier this year tried to broker a deal, but Ethiopia did not attend the signing meeting in February and accused the Trump administration of siding with Egypt. Last week, the U.S. National Security Council tweeted that “257 million people in east Africa are relying on Ethiopia to show strong leadership, which means striking a fair deal.” Shukry warned that filling the reservoir without an accord would violate the 2015 declaration of principles governing their talks — and rule out a return to negotiations.”We are not seeking any coercive action by the Security Council,” he said. In a three-page letter to the council, Egypt asked it to call Ethiopia back into talks for a “fair and balanced solution” and to urge it refrain from unilateral acts, warning that filling the dam without a deal “constitutes a clear and present danger to Egypt” with repercussions that “threaten international peace and security.” ‘Declaration of war’Hanging over the dispute has been the fear it could escalate into military conflict, especially as Egypt — facing what it calls an existential threat — repeatedly hits dead ends in its attempt to strike a deal. Commentators in Egypt’s pro-government media have often called for action to stop Ethiopia. One commentator, Moustafa al-Saeed, said in a Facebook post that starting to fill the reservoir would be a “declaration of war” and urged the government to block Ethiopian traffic through the Suez Canal. Shukry underlined that the Egyptian government has not threatened military action, has sought a political solution, and has worked to convince the Egyptian public that Ethiopia has a right to build the dam to meet its development goals.  “Egypt has never, never over the past six years even made an indirect reference to such possibilities,” he said of military action.  But, he said, if the Security Council cannot bring Ethiopia back into negotiations and filling begins, “we will find ourselves in a situation that we will have to deal with,” he said. “When that time is upon us, we will be very vocal and clear in what action we will take.” He called on the U.S and other Security Council members, along with African nations, to help reach a deal that “takes into account the interests of all three countries.”  Sticking points in the talks have been how much water Ethiopia will release downstream from the dam if a multi-year drought occurs and how Ethiopia, Egypt and Sudan will resolve any future disputes. William Davison, senior analyst at the International Crisis Group, said the Security Council taking up the issue likely won’t change Ethiopia’s stance. “The U.S., EU, Gulf powers and African Union should try and convince all parties to make the necessary final compromise to get an agreement over the line,” he said. Failed talksThis month, ministers from the three countries held seven days of negotiations by video conference, but talks ended Wednesday with no deal. No date was set for a return to the table.  Ethiopian Foreign Minister Gedu Andargachew told the AP on Friday that filling the dam would begin with the rainy season in July and dismissed the need for an agreement. He accused Egypt of trying to “dictate and control even future developments on our river.” Egypt’s Shukry on Sunday countered that Ethiopia was backing out of previously agreed-upon points. “We have on many occasions been flexible and been accommodating. But I can’t say that there is a similar political will on the side of Ethiopia,” he said.  He called Andargachew’s comments “disappointing,” pointing to “the escalation of antagonism that has been intentionally created.” Starting to fill the reservoir now, he said, would demonstrate “a desire to control the flow of the water and have effective sole determination” of the water that reaches Egypt and Sudan. After the end of talks on Wednesday, Sudan’s irrigation minister said his country and Egypt rejected Ethiopia’s attempts to introduce articles on water sharing in the dam deal. Egypt has received the lion’s share of the Nile’s waters under decades-old agreements dating back to the British colonial era. Eighty-five percent of the Nile’s waters originate in Ethiopia from the Blue Nile. Shukry said Egypt maintains that an agreement can be achieved, but that it “has to be negotiated in good faith.” He said any future deal on shares of the Nile’s water should take into account that Ethiopia has other water sources besides the Nile. 
 
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The coronavirus curfew and restrictions on movement in Kenya have led to an increase in violence against women, say health workers.  Kenya’s LVCT group, which works on HIV prevention and reproductive health issues, says economic insecurity is putting stress on families that often explodes in abusive men beating their wives.  Mohammed Yusuf reports from Nairobi.Camera: Mohammed YusufProduced by: Jason Godman
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The coronavirus pandemic has some top-flight athletes struggling to stay sharp for next year’s Tokyo Olympics after training facilities were shut down and competitions cancelled. Ugandan runner Halimah Nakaayi, the gold medalist in the 800 meters at the 2019 World Athletics Championships, is doing her best to prepare under the restrictions imposed by COVID-19.          With the games postponed and Uganda’s gyms and stadiums closed since March to curb the spread of COVID-19, her only option is Kampala’s open roads.     But the 25-year-old runner said training at home is the least of her worries.       “Around January, February, we’d got an opportunity to participate in the indoor games (World Athletics indoor, Nanjing), of which the main target was Tokyo. So, due to COVID, all the races were cancelled. And the worry mostly, being a lady, my time in sports is so short. So, I have to use my body — if it’s in position — to deliver good results.”   Stuck in Uganda and without international competitions, Nakaayi trains with other runners who are also preparing for the Tokyo Games.  They are only allowed to train in small groups to abide by measures to curb the spread of the virus.  
 Uganda’s Winnie Nanyondo reacts after her women’s 800m heat at Carrara Stadium during the 2018 Commonwealth Games on the Gold Coast, Australia, April 12, 2018.Another Ugandan runner, Winnie Nanyondo, said the lockdown and delayed Olympics has also been mentally challenging.“We have to focus; we have to remain in training. Because, next year is (the) Olympics,” Nanyondo said. “This year, there’s nothing. Just only diamond leagues. And the other year is world championships.”  The Diamond League is a series of top-tier athletic competitions for elite athletes. Most of the competitions have been canceled, although there is hope one might take place in Monaco this August.  Uganda’s National Council of Sports admits the pandemic has posed challenges for athletes to stay fit and motivated.    Ismail Dhakaba is the National Council of Sports spokesperson.   “It’s been very challenging. Because in an Olympic year is when the athletes are most fit,” Dhakaba said. “I’ve got to say, that’s when their bodies, their minds, are in the best shapes of their lives. Because they are trying to do everything to win Olympic gold or to raise their status. Now, without the Diamond League happening, it’s a very unfortunate situation, for one reason, that, that’s where they make most of their money.”      These Ugandan athletes hope that restrictions on international competitions can be lifted as soon as possible.     Nakaaayi wants to race at the Diamond League in Monaco in August, assuming that COVID-19 is by then under control.    
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The AIDS pandemic cut a deadly path through South Africa, leaving the nation with the world’s highest burden of the disease. But 25 years ago, new, promising medications — which later made their way to South Africa – first emerged, providing hope in the fight against the HIV virus. VOA’s Anita Powell speaks to those who have been part of South Africa’s struggle against AIDS.Camera: Zaheer Cassim
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Drivers of minibus taxis in South Africa’s financial hub Gauteng went on strike on Monday to demand more financial support from government, leaving thousands of commuters stranded.
 
Dozens of taxis blocked busy roads in Johannesburg and Pretoria, confronting police and soldiers. Many people were stuck at taxi ranks, while others walked to work or piled onto buses.
 
Since a coronavirus shutdown began in late March, taxis have been permitted to operate at only 70% capacity under strict social distancing measures, a difficult situation as the industry depends on maximum passenger loads at low prices.
 
The loss of income from smaller loads and lower volumes due the shutdown, which saw most workplaces completely closed, has caused unhappiness in the industry, with operators threatening price increases of more 100% in some areas to cover losses.
 
The lockdown has been gradually eased and most of the workforce are now allowed to go to work.
 
On Friday, Transport Minister Fikile Mbalula announced a 1.1 billion one-off payment to registered taxi operators, amounting to about 5,000 rand ($287) per driver. He said this was not compensation for loss of revenue due to coronavirus restrictions but rather assistance from the government.
 
Taxi operators rejected the relief and the conditions linked to government’s plan to formalize the industry. 
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Prosecutors at the International Criminal Court (ICC) said “grave errors” were made in acquittal last year of former Ivory Coast president Laurent Gbagbo, as they began their bid to overturn the decision at an appeals hearing on Monday.The ICC, the world’s first permanent war crimes court, said in January last year that prosecutors had failed to prove any case against Gbagbo.Prosecutors at the Hague-based court in the Netherlands have appealed the decision mainly on procedural grounds, arguing that there were legal faults with the way the decision was announced and the way evidence was assessed.They have said they will seek a re-trial for Gbagbo on charges of crimes against humanity for his role in post-election violence in Ivory Coast in 2010-2011.Monday’s hearing was streamed online as the ICC is closed due to measures aimed at curbing the spread of the novel coronavirus.The 75-year-old former president, who is living in Belgium on conditional release after spending more than seven years in custody in The Hague, joined Monday’s hearing via video link.
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At least seven people were killed in two separate attacks by the al-Shabab militant group in Somalia in the last 24 hours.The deadliest attack took place in the town of Wanlaweyn, 90 kilometers west of Mogadishu, when an improvised explosive device planted near the home of a military officer exploded on Saturday evening. Moments later a second explosion went off as people gathered at the scene of the first explosion.Five people were killed including the wife of the military officer who was not at home at the time.Deputy Governor of Lower Shabelle region Ahmed Yusuf confirmed the death of the officer’s wife to VOA Somali.“The wife of the officer has died, may Allah give him strength,” he said. “Her elder son is among the wounded.”Yusuf said several suspects were arrested and investigation is ongoing.Separately, a suicide car bomb exploded at a checkpoint outside a military base in the town of Ba’adweyne, 170 kilometers southeast of Galkayo town in central Somalia, early on Sunday morning.  Residents told VOA Somali that two soldiers were killed, although military officials deny any of them were hurt.The commander of the 21st Division of the Somali National Army General Abdiaziz Abdullahi Hogollof told VOA Somali that the soldiers at the entrance of the base were ready and prevented the explosive-laden car from penetrating.Al-Shabab claimed responsibility for both attacks.Mukhtar Mohamed Atosh and Abdiwahid Moallim Ishaq contributed to this report. 
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Nigerian doctors in state-run hospitals on Sunday called off a week-long strike over welfare and inadequate protective equipment as new coronavirus cases spike in the country. The strike by the National Association of Resident Doctors (NARD), which represents some 40 percent of Nigeria’s doctors, began last Monday but had exempted medics treating coronavirus patients. The group’s directors decided to suspend the strike action from Monday June 22 by 8 am, the association said in a statement. NARD said the decision, which followed the intervention state governors and others, was to give the government time to fulfill the outstanding demands. The organisation had called the strike over a range of issues, including the “grossly inadequate” provision of protective equipment and calls for hazard pay for those working on the virus.  Other demands focused on improving general welfare and protesting dismissals or pay cuts for doctors in two regions.  Strikes by medics are common in Nigeria, where the health sector has been underfunded for years.  The authorities fear that any reduction in capacity could severely hamper its ability to tackle the pandemic as the number of cases continues to rise.  The main nationwide doctors union briefly staged a warning strike in commercial hub Lagos over police harassment of its members. Nigeria, Africa’s most populous nation of 200 million inhabitants, has recorded nearly 20,000 cases and 506 deaths since the first index case of the virus in February. More than 800 health workers have been infected by the virus, according to the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control. joa/pma © Agence France-Presse  
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Ivory Coast’s octogenarian former President Henri Konan Bedie will run for office again in presidential elections in October, he said in a statement on Saturday.Bedie’s candidacy is the latest twist in a turbulent build-up to a vote that is wide open after current President Alassane Ouattara said he would not run again after 10 years in power.”I am both surprised and happy with the content of your messages asking me to be a candidate in the election,” Bedie told members of his PDCI-RDA coalition. “I feel honored.”Bedie, 86, was president from 1993-1999. The coalition between his PDCI party and that of Ouattara’s RDR, forged in 2005, was meant to dominate for generations and help heal the political rifts that led to civil war three years earlier.The pact propelled Ouattara to presidential election victories in 2010 and 2015 but collapsed in September 2018 when the parties bickered over whose candidate should be in pole position in 2020.The race will be hard to call, say political analysts. Guillaume Soro, the former rebel leader and presidential candidate, was convicted in absentia of embezzlement and sentenced to 20 years in prison in April, a verdict likely to exclude him from the election.Ouattara said last year that he would run for a third term if his predecessors Bedie and Laurent Gbagbo decided to run, raising concerns of a constitutional crisis given that Ivory Coast has a two-term mandate limit.He backed down in March saying he wanted to hand over power to a new generation. 
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Zimbabwe’s health minister was released from police custody Saturday on about $600 bail after being arrested the day before on corruption charges related to the illegal procurement of COVID-19 medical equipment.James Mutizwa, the attorney for Health Minister Obediah Moyo,  told journalists Saturday outside Magistrate Court in Harare, “Bail was granted. He is out on bail. No comment. Thank you.”Moyo is facing three counts of criminal abuse of office as a public official in relation to the procurement of material worth $60 million to fight COVID-19 in Zimbabwe.Following the arrest, a doctors group said it was worried about the abuse of COVID-19 funds.Dr. Nyika Mahachi, the president of Zimbabwe College of Public Health Physicians, said, “This is an unfortunate development. As an apolitical association, it is our interest in public health to ensure that resources that are allocated for COVID-19 response, health services or public services in general are used in a transparent and fair manner. … What we look forward to is a full understanding of the investigation of what really transpired to ensure that the culprits are brought to book, whoever they are.”Since coming to power in 2017, President Emmerson Mnangagwa has said he is committed to fighting corruption, which was associated with senior officials of the government of his predecessor, the late Robert Mugabe.Information Ministry Secretary Nick Mangwana issued a statement Saturday saying, “The biggest mistake I can ever make as a public officer is to doubt President Mnangagwa’s commitment to fighting graft. He has made it clear to us that we are not immune from prosecution and nobody will be insulated from having their day in court.”Moyo is expected back in court this month, when he could get a trial date.
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