KIGALI, Rwanda — Rwanda has confirmed six deaths and 20 cases of Marburg disease, the country’s health minister Sabin Nsanzimana said late on Saturday.

The majority of victims are health workers in the intensive care unit, Nsanzimana said in a video statement posted on X.

“We are counting 20 people who are infected, and six who have already passed away due to this virus. The large majority of cases and deaths are among healthcare workers, mainly in the intensive care unit,” the health minister said.

Marburg disease, a viral hemorrhagic fever, can cause death among some patients, with symptoms including severe headache, vomiting, muscle aches and stomach aches, the ministry has said.

Institutions and partners are working to trace those who have been in contact with the virus-affected individuals, the minister added.

With a fatality rate of as high as 88%, Marburg is from the same virus family as the one responsible for Ebola and is transmitted to people from fruit bats. It then spreads through contact with bodily fluids of infected people.

Neighboring Tanzania had cases of Marburg in 2023, while Uganda had similar ones in 2017. 
…

Port Sudan, Sudan — Two days of attacks by Sudanese paramilitaries on the Darfur city of El Fasher killed 48 people, a medical source told AFP on Friday, after world leaders appealed for an end to the country’s suffering.

Artillery fire from the Rapid Support Forces killed 30 people and wounded dozens on Friday, a medical source at El Fasher Teaching Hospital told AFP, as the paramilitaries and regular army vie for control of the North Darfur state capital.

The shelling comes a day after an assault on a market brought “18 dead to the hospital” on Thursday, “some of them burned and others killed by shrapnel,” the source said, requesting anonymity for their protection in light of repeated attacks on health workers and hospitals.

The plight of Sudan, and El Fasher in particular, has been under discussion this week at the U.N. General Assembly in New York after 17 months of devastating fighting between the RSF and the regular army.

“We must compel the warring parties to accept humanitarian pauses in El Fasher, Khartoum and other highly vulnerable areas,” the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, said Wednesday.

The Teaching Hospital is one of the last still receiving patients in El Fasher, where reports of a “full-scale assault” by RSF last weekend led U.N. chief Antonio Guterres to call for an urgent cease-fire.

The paramilitaries have besieged El Fasher since May, and famine has been declared in Zamzam refugee camp near the city of 2 million.

The war has killed tens of thousands of people. The World Health Organization has cited a toll of at least 20,000, but U.S. envoy Tom Perriello has said some estimates reach 150,000.

U.S. President Joe Biden, who raised particular concern over the assault on El Fasher, on Tuesday urged all countries to cut off weapons supplies to the country’s warring generals, armed forces chief Abdel Fattah Burhan and RSF commander Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo.

“The world needs to stop arming the generals,” Biden told the U.N. General Assembly.

On the sidelines of the U.N. talks, Guterres met with Burhan, expressing concern about escalation and the risk of “a regional spillover,” the UN said.

Both sides have been repeatedly accused of war crimes.

The RSF, which has its origins in Darfur’s notorious Arab tribal militias, the Janjaweed, has been specifically accused of crimes against humanity and ethnic cleansing.

Darfur, a region the size of France, is home to around a quarter of Sudan’s population but more than half of its 10 million people are internally displaced.
…

WASHINGTON — Bomb blasts in Mogadishu and a town in the country’s Middle Shabelle region killed at least six people and injured 10 others Saturday, police said and witnesses confirmed to VOA.

“An explosives-laden vehicle, which was parked on the road near a restaurant in the busy Hamar Weyne district, went off. I could see the dead bodies of at least three people, two of them women,” Mohamed Haji Nur, a witness, told VOA.

The explosion site is opposite of Somalia’s National Theater, about one kilometer from the president’s office.

The target of the attack is still unknown, but the affected Gel Doh restaurant is frequented by government staff and people from the diaspora for serving traditional Somali food.

In a separate incident, a bomb planted in a livestock market in Jowhar city in Somalia’s Middle Shabelle region killed one person and injured three other civilians, Jowhar police Commander Bashir Hassan told a news conference.

It was not immediately clear who had carried out the attacks. However, the Islamist militant group al-Shabab is known for orchestrating bombings and gun attacks in Mogadishu and elsewhere in the Horn of Africa country.

Barre addressed UN General Assembly

Somalian Prime Minister Hamza Abdi Barre publicly accused Ethiopia before the U.N. General Assembly on Friday of actions that he says “flagrantly violate” Somalia’s territorial integrity.

This accusation comes as tensions continue to escalate between the two neighboring countries since January, when Ethiopia struck a controversial maritime deal with the breakaway region of Somaliland.

This region, at the northern tip of the country, declared independence in 1991 but lacks international recognition.

Under the deal, Somaliland would lease 20 kilometers of shoreline to Ethiopia in return for recognition, a move that raised alarms in Mogadishu.

“Somalia currently faces a serious threat from Ethiopia’s recent actions, which flagrantly violate our territorial integrity,” Prime Minister Barre stated at the U.N. General Assembly.

Somalia has accused Ethiopia of unlawfully attempting to build a naval base and commercial port in Somaliland.

“Ethiopia’s attempt to annex part of Somalia under the guise of securing sea access is both unlawful and unnecessary,” Barre emphasized, highlighting the gravity of the situation.

Ethiopia, a landlocked nation, has long sought access to the sea, but its move to deal with Somaliland infuriated the Somali government.

Barre elaborated on the implications of Ethiopia’s actions, saying, “Somalia ports have always been accessible for Ethiopia’s legitimate commercial activities, reflecting our commitment to regional trade and cooperation.”

He warned, though, that “Ethiopia’s aggressive maneuvers undermine Somalia’s sovereignty and embolden secessionist movements, which could threaten national unity.”

“These actions also serve as propaganda for terrorist groups like al-Shabab, who exploit Ethiopia’s provocations to recruit and radicalize vulnerable individuals,” he said.

Ethiopia denies accusations

Addressing the General Debate of the 79th Session of the United Nations General Assembly, Taye Atske-Selassie, minister for foreign affairs of Ethiopia, denied Somalia’s accusation.

“Ethiopia’s memorandum of understanding with Somaliland is based on existing political dispensation in Somalia,” he said.

“Our objective is a shared growth and prosperity in the region. Similar agreements have been concluded by other states, and there is no reason for the government of Somalia to incite hostility that obviously intends to cover internal political tensions. I therefore reject the unfounded allegations leveled against my country.”

In a show of defiance, several times Somalia has threatened to expel Ethiopian troops who have been part of an African Union mission against al-Shabab militants since 2007.

Afyare Abdi Elmi, a Mogadishu-based professor of international affairs, told VOA that recent Egyptian military cooperation with Somalia raised concerns in Addis Ababa.

“The stakes are raised further, as Mogadishu has signed a military deal with Cairo and received weapons shipments that have alarmed Ethiopian officials.”

“I am afraid that the unfolding events signal a crucial moment in the Horn of Africa, with the potential to reshape the region’s geopolitical landscape and security dynamics,” said Somalia analyst Abdiqafar Abdi Wardhere, who is based in Virginia.

Last week, the Somali government accused Ethiopia of sending an “unauthorized shipment of arms and ammunition” to Somalia’s semiautonomous region of Puntland.

“Ethiopia must be held accountable for actions threatening to destabilize the Horn of Africa,” Barre warned in his speech to the U.N. General Assembly.

As the African Union mission prepares to transform at the end of the year, Egypt has offered to replace Ethiopian troops for the first time.

Somalia may also push for the removal of the estimated 10,000 Ethiopian troops stationed in Somalia’s regions along the border, aimed at preventing incursions by Islamist militants.

Although he did not name Egypt, Ethiopia’s foreign minister said that other actors’ actions are undermining regional stability.

“The recent maneuvers of actors from the outside of the Horn of Africa region undermine these efforts. Ethiopia will not be deterred from its resolute commitment to combating terrorism,” Atske-Selassie said. “I am confident that the government of Somalia will reckon and recognize the sacrifice we made to Somalia’s liberation from the grip of terrorist groups.”

Some information in this report is from Reuters.
…

Madrid — A boat carrying migrants capsized off Spain’s Canary Islands overnight, killing at least nine people and leaving 48 missing, the national maritime rescue service said Saturday.

Eighty-four people were on board and 27 were saved after rescuers responded to a distress call received shortly after midnight from off El Hierro, one of the islands in the Atlantic archipelago, a statement said.

This follows the death of 39 migrants in early September when their boat sank off Senegal while attempting a similar crossing to the Canaries, from where migrants hope to reach mainland Europe.

Thousands of migrants have died in recent years setting off into the Atlantic to reach Europe onboard overcrowded and often dilapidated boats.

The latest tragedy “again underlines the dangerousness of the Atlantic route,” Canaries regional President Fernando Clavijo wrote on X.

“We need Spain and the EU to act decisively in the face of a structural humanitarian tragedy” as lives are lost “meters from Europe’s southern border,” he said.

In late August, Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez visited Mauritania and Gambia to sign cooperation agreements to crack down on people smugglers while expanding pathways for legal immigration.

As of August 15, some 22,304 migrants had reached the Canaries since the start of the year, up from 9,864 in the same period the previous year.

Almost 40,000 migrants entered the Canaries in 2023, a record on course to be broken this year as easier navigation conditions from September tend to lead to a spike in crossing attempts.

The Atlantic route is particularly deadly, with many of the crowded and poorly equipped boats unable to cope with the strong ocean currents. Some boats depart African beaches as far as 1,000 kilometers from the Canaries.

The International Organization for Migration, a U.N. agency, estimates that 4,857 people have died on this route since 2014.

Many aid organizations say that is a massive undercount, with Caminando Fronteras, a Spanish nongovernmental organization that aids migrants, saying 18,680 have died trying to reach Europe.
…

JOHANNESBURG — Seventeen people, including 15 women, were killed in two mass shootings that took place near each other in a rural town in South Africa, police said Saturday.

A search was under way for the suspects, national police spokesperson Brigadier Athlenda Mathe said in a statement. The victims were 15 women and two men, she said. One other person was in critical condition in the hospital.

The shootings took place Friday night in the town of Lusikisiki in Eastern Cape province in southeastern South Africa. Video released by police showed that the shootings occurred at two houses in the same neighborhood, which is a collection of rural homesteads on the outskirts of the town.

Twelve women and a man were killed in one house, and three women and a man were killed in the other house, police said.

Four women, one man and a 2-month-old baby survived.

“A manhunt has been launched to apprehend those behind these heinous killings,” Mathe said.

Local media reported that the people were attending a family gathering at the time of the shooting, but the motive for the killings remains unknown.

Police minister Senzo Mchunu told media on Saturday that a team of detectives and forensic experts had been deployed.

“We have full faith and confidence in the team that has been deployed to crack this case and find these criminals. Either they hand themselves over or we will fetch them ourselves,” Mchunu said.

South Africa, a country of 62 million, recorded 12,734 homicides in the first six months of this year, according to official crime statistics from the police. That’s an average of more than 70 a day. Firearms are by far the biggest cause of deaths in those cases.

Mass shootings have become increasingly common in recent years, sometimes targeting people in their homes.

Ten members of the same family, including seven women and a 13-year-old boy, were killed in a mass shooting at their home in the neighboring KwaZulu-Natal province in April 2023.

Firearm laws are somewhat strict in South Africa, but authorities have often pointed to the large number of illegal, unregistered guns in circulation as a major problem.
…

GENEVA — Sudan’s warring parties are using sexual violence as a weapon of war, and “gender-based violence has increased more than two-fold” since the conflict erupted in April 2023, according to U.N. Women, a United Nations agency that focuses on women’s rights and social progress, in its new report.

“Sexual violence is being used as a weapon of war throughout this conflict,” Hodan Addou, U.N. Women’s regional director for East and Southern Africa, told journalists in Geneva at the launch of the report Friday.

“The ongoing violent conflict has exacerbated the risks faced by women and girls in Sudan, with rising reports of conflict-related sexual violence, sexual exploitation and abuse, particularly in Khartoum, Al Jazeera, Darfur and Kordofan states,” she said, speaking from South Sudan via a video link.

Authors of the report have issued what they call a “Gender Alert” to highlight the catastrophic impacts of Sudan’s conflict on women and girls. They note that nearly 5.8 million internally displaced women are particularly vulnerable, with many cases of sexual violence going unreported “due to fear of stigma, retribution and the lack of adequate support.”

‘It is … despicable’

Addou observed that rape and sexual violence is used as “a way of breaking communities and tarnishing the social fabric of a community by targeting the most vulnerable.”

“It is a despicable and human rights violation,” she said. “The impact this conflict has had on the lives of women and children is horrendous.

“Many of them are seeing their loved ones killed in front of their eyes. They have seen brutal sexual violence against children, against women used as a way of putting more trauma, more fear on communities.”

The report finds more than 6.7 million people needed services related to gender-based violence by December 2023, underscoring that “this figure is estimated to be much higher today.”

“While men and boys also are victims of gender-based violence, most of these cases involve women and girls,” it says.

The United Nations calls Sudan one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises. Since rival generals of the Sudanese Armed Forces and paramilitary Rapid Support Forces plunged the country into war more than 17 months ago, an estimated 20,000 people have been killed and tens of thousands injured.

Some 10.8 million people are displaced inside Sudan and an additional 2 million as refugees in neighboring countries, making Sudan the largest displacement crisis in the world. According to the U.N., Sudan now is also the world’s largest hunger crisis, with nearly 26 million people facing acute hunger.

‘Women and girls are eating least and last’

Addou said women and children are suffering most from the looming famine gripping the country.

“With 64% of female-headed households experiencing food insecurity compared to 48% of male-headed households in 10 states, women and girls are eating least and last,” she said, adding that they also are disproportionately affected by the lack of safe and easily accessible water, sanitation and hygiene.

The World Health Organization reports people lack access to health care services because of insecurity, attacks on medical facilities and a shortage of medicines and medical supplies.

The U.N. health agency says critical services, including maternal and child health care, the management of severe acute malnutrition, and the treatment of patients with chronic conditions have been discontinued in many areas because 70% to 80% of hospitals are not functional.

“Across Sudan, women are dying from pregnancy or childbirth-related complications, whether or not those pregnancies are a result of gender-based violence, or whatever,” Dr. Margaret Harris, WHO spokesperson, said. “Women are not getting the standard care that saves your life and saves the life of your child during childbirth or before childbirth.”

She added that childhood vaccinations have been disrupted, as have disease surveillance and vector control, and this “has created the perfect conditions for the spread of disease outbreaks.”

‘Calling for protection’

U.N. Women is calling for urgent action to protect women and girls and to provide them with access to food, safe water, and sexual and reproductive health services.

“We are calling for protection for all women and girls, in particular the retributions that they need to address. We are calling for accountability and the provision of justice to all of the victims,” Addou said.

“The high-level sexual violence and exploitation being used as a weapon of war is preventing women from accessing much-needed resources … and the psychosocial support they need because of the chaotic nature of this conflict.

“All those engaged in this violent conflict must be held to account,” she said. “We cannot let Sudan become a forgotten crisis.”
…

NAIROBI, Kenya — The rhino population around the world has increased slightly but so have the killings, mostly in South Africa, as poaching fed by huge demand for rhino horns remains a top threat, conservationists said in a recent report. 

The number of white rhinos increased from 15,942 in 2022 to 17,464 in 2023, but numbers of the black and greater one-horned rhino stayed the same, according to the report published by the International Rhino Foundation ahead of World Rhino Day, observed each year on September 22. 

Another subspecies, the northern white rhino, is technically extinct with only two females being kept in a secure private conservancy in Kenya, known as Ol Pejeta. A trial is ongoing to develop embryos in the lab from an egg and sperm previously collected from white rhinos for transferring into a surrogate female black rhino. 

A total of 586 rhinos were killed in Africa in 2023, most of them in South Africa — which has the highest population of rhinos at an estimated 16,056. The killings increased from 551 reported in 2022, according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature. 

With all five subspecies combined, there are just under 28,000 rhinos left in the world, from 500,000 at the beginning of the 20th century. 

Poaching is top threat

Rhinos face various environmental threats like habitat loss due to development and climate change, but poaching, based on the belief that their horns have medicinal uses, remains the top threat. 

Philip Muruthi, the vice president for species conservation at the Africa Wildlife Foundation, said protection has played a big role in increasing rhino population. In Kenya, their numbers rose from 380 in 1986 to 1,000 last year, he said. “Why has that happened? Because the rhinos were brought into sanctuaries and were protected.” 

Muruthi advocates for a campaign that will end the demand for rhino horn as well as adoption of new technology in tracking and monitoring rhinos for their protection while also educating communities where they live on the benefits of rhinos to the ecosystem and the economy. 

Known as mega herbivores that mow the parks and create inroads for other herbivores, rhinos are also good for establishing forests by ingesting seeds and spreading them across the parks in their dung. 

Murithi lamented that the northern white rhino should have never gotten so close to the brink of extinction. 

“Don’t get the numbers to where it’s very expensive to recover and we are not even sure that it will happen,” he said. 

The body of the last male northern white rhino – named Sudan – that died in 2018 has been preserved and displayed at the Museums of Kenya in Nairobi. 

A research scientist and curator of mammals at the museum, Bernard Agwanda, said preserving Sudan will tell the story of how the species lived among humans and why conservation is important. 

“So we expect that the northern white rhino behind us here is going to live for one or two centuries to be able to tell its story for generations to come,” he said.
…

New York — On the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly, Kenyan President William Ruto sat down with VOA’s Peter Clottey for an in-depth conversation Thursday. 

Ruto discussed his recent visit to Haiti, where he met with the top police commanders leading efforts to combat gangs and restore order in the Caribbean nation. He also addressed the proposal for Africa to secure two permanent seats on the U.N. Security Council, as well as the growing protests by Kenya’s Gen-Z demanding reforms in the East African country.

The following has been edited for length and clarity.

VOA’s Peter Clottey: Thank you very much, Mr. President, for having us this morning. What was your overarching message during your speech at the U.N. General Assembly?

Kenyan President William Ruto: Three messages: the ravaging war around the world, tensions and conflict — you know, from Ukraine, Darfur, Sudan, DRC [Democratic Republic of the Congo] — and the failure of the multilateral system, especially the U.N. General Assembly and specifically the U.N. Security Council, to be a force of good and a place where we resolve issues.

In fact, it has become a gridlock and part of the problem. There is urgency in reforming the U.N. Security Council so that it reflects the dynamics and responds to the urgency of the situation that we face at the moment. It is our position that the U.N. needs to be reformed yesterday — to make it democratic, representative and agile — so that it can respond to the times of challenges of our time.

Number two is the challenge we have about the debt situation, the economic situation globally, and the fact that many countries in the Global South, many countries are facing the possibility of debt default. And a need to reform the international financial system, deal with credit rating agencies, ensure that there is longer-term financing, there is concessional financing, there is financing that is at scale to make sure that countries can be able to push their development programs, pay for social services and manage the serious challenges of debt.

Thirdly, climate change and the huge potential and opportunity that we have, especially in the Global South, and more particularly in Africa, for the huge resources, energy resources that we have, mineral resources that are in plenty, and the human capital that exists, that we can use to turn the climate change that is ravaging the world into an opportunity for Africa to industrialize, to create jobs, and to decarbonize the whole world. So, these were my very three pointed messages. Of course, not forgetting the challenge we have in Haiti and what Kenya is doing about it.

VOA: You were there recently and met with Kenyan police officers. What were your observations, and what did the Kenyan police officers tell you about the challenges they face in Haiti?

Ruto: I met with Haiti’s political leadership, and we had a candid conversation. I was supposed to be there for an hour but stayed for four. I also met the commanders of the Kenyan contingent, the Multinational Security Support Mission [MSS] and the Haitian police leadership. My assessment was more positive than I initially thought. The reports I received indicated that the pessimists and critics who saw no hope in Haiti are changing their tune. The airport, which used to be under gunfire, is now safe, with more flights coming in and out. The palace is secure, the National Hospital is in good hands, and the National Police Academy, which had been overrun by gangs, is now training officers. I see a very positive trajectory.

The Kenyan commanders on the ground and the Haitian police confirmed this to me, though they still face logistical challenges and need more resources and personnel.

VOA: Will Kenya provide that additional support?

Ruto: I immediately made the decision that Kenya is going to have another 600 security officers sent to Haiti to add on to the 400 already there — 300 next month, and 300 in November. And I am going to mobilize the rest of the global community to make sure that by January, we have 2,500 police officers so that we can execute the mandate that was given to us by the U.N. resolution setting up the MSS in Haiti.

VOA: There are suggestions that perhaps the U.N. should lead this effort. Where does Kenya stand on that?

Ruto: Whichever way we go, so long as we deploy the requisite personnel on the ground, mobilize resources necessary, the logistics that are needed for us to do the job in Haiti, whatever name we call it, whatever color we give it, my position is that we must focus on making sure that within a year.

VOA: What is your plan for the youth of Kenya in terms of listening to them instead of coming up with specific plans to meet their calls and demands? And how do you react when they said, “Mr. President must go. He has not kept his promises. He has to go”?

Ruto: Kenya is a robustly democratic country. I mean, because we are a democracy, I see people even in New York here demonstrating and making all manner of statements, and that is the beauty, that is the diversity of democracy.

I have a very clear, elaborate plan on job creation, our housing plan. Our digital footprint plan, our plan on export of labor. We just signed today here in New York a bilateral labor agreement with Austria, where Kenyan young people, the best resource we have, will find jobs in Austria. I came last week from, the other week, from Germany, doing the same thing, creating opportunities for the young people of Kenya to work in Kenya and to work abroad.

This is my plan. It is elaborate, understood, and I’m rolling out, and I’m confident that before leaving Nairobi, I launched Climate Works. That is going to hire another 200,000 young people across Kenya on climate action and make sure that we deal with the environmental issues and climate change that is threatening humanity and having significant adverse effects on the people of Kenya swinging from drought to floods, and that program is now on its way beginning 1st of October.

This Q&A originated in VOA’s English to Africa Service.
…

MBABANE, ESWATINI — Eswatini Sexual and Gender Minorities, an LGBTQ advocacy group, was denied registration by authorities in 2019, and even after seeking relief from the Supreme Court, which had ruled the group must be registered, its efforts have been unsuccessful.

Human rights lawyer Sibusiso Nhlabatsi said the harsh legal environment for LGBTQ individuals in the southern African kingdom causes significant problems.

“There is denial that they exist, so they do not have any form of protection as a group,” Nhlabatsi said. “They only rely on protection from the law or enjoyment of any rights from the law as human beings under Chapter 3 of our Bill of Rights of our Constitution. So I can say it’s quite challenging, because there’s no instrument that seeks to protect them. There’s no instrument that seeks to recognize them as a group of people that exist. I don’t think there’s any progress that has been made.”

Besides the lack of legal recognition, LGBTQ individuals in Eswatini often face discrimination in gaining access to services, high rates of intimate partner violence, and exclusion from public discussions.

Sisanda Mavimbela, executive director of Eswatini Sexual and Gender Minorities, said the idea of LGBTQ rights is considered contradictory to traditional African values and religious beliefs, perpetuating a climate of exclusion and marginalization.

“The community cannot equally enjoy rights like all Swazis do, as per their birthright,” Mavimbela said. ESGM has been denied “a right to associate, which is a right to all Swazis as per the Constitution.”

Eswatini is also known by its former official name, Swaziland.

In the LGBTQ community, “justice comes hard and sometimes is not reached at all,” for what are usually quoted as “non-African, unreligious or cultural” reasons, Mavimbela said. 

Colonial-era laws

In refusing to register Eswatini Sexual and Gender Minorities, the government cited the country’s colonial-era laws, which still have a profound influence on the country’s legal framework.

Registration of the group would allow it to operate as a nonprofit organization with the ability to, among other things, open a bank account and receive international funding.

If the Ministry of Commerce, Trade and Industry continues to refuse to register ESGM despite the Supreme Court ruling, the court could issue a mandamus order requiring the government to carry out the action.

However, no such order has been issued, and it remains to be seen if the court will do so.

The ESGM case reached the Supreme Court after the group appealed a ruling by the High Court, a lower-level body. The appellants argued that the High Court had erred in law, and in fact, by stating that the applicants sought to create rights that don’t exist.

On June 16, 2023, a five-panel bench of the Supreme Court set aside the High Court’s decision to dismiss ESGM’s application to register as a nonprofit organization.  

But on September 27, 2023, the Minister of Commerce, Trade and Industry ordered the Registrar of Companies not to register ESGM, citing the organization’s name and objectives and asserting that it offends the customs and principles of Eswatini.

Despite the opposition to LGBTQ rights in Eswatini, Bishop Zwanini Shabalala, the former secretary-general of the Council of Swaziland Churches, has called for understanding and acceptance of the LGBTQ community without discrimination.

“This is an area that still needs more and more dialogue in churches and in society. … Our position as the church is that we should welcome everyone who comes to church and also advocate for access to services that are rendered by the country from government to all other institutions,” Shabalala said. LGBTQ citizens “should also be treated like anyone else, without looking at their sexual orientation.”

With little to no local support, the LGBTQ community finds solace and support in the Eswatini offices of the European Union and the U.N. Development Program.

The EU and the U.S. Embassy to Eswatini backed LGBTQ residents throughout the court battle, and the development program continues to run dialogue sessions and workshops.

The situation remains dire, however, as the community faces a lack of recognition, acceptance and equal rights.
…

Abuja, Nigeria — Leaders in Africa say the fight against malaria on the continent is facing significant funding gaps due to the ongoing global financial crisis and the impact of climate change.

African leaders this week met in New York on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly and called for a concerted effort to avert a funding crisis they say could set back decades of progress in the fight against malaria.

The African Leaders Malaria Alliance, or ALMA, which hosted the high-level meeting, said if malaria funding continues to shrink, there will be an expected additional 112 million cases and some 280,000 deaths by the year 2029.

Africa already accounts for an estimated 236 million malaria cases — or 95% of the global total — and 97% of deaths. Nigeria accounts for nearly a third of that burden.

Guinea-Bissau President Umaro Sissoco Embalo, who serves as chair of ALMA, said that Africa stands at a critical moment in the fight against malaria.

“We must act urgently to protect lifesaving malaria intervention,” he said. “This is very important because our target is to finish with malaria in Africa.”

Experts said Africa needs up to $6.3 billion in malaria funding annually to eliminate the disease and called for continued support for malaria financing within the global funding framework.

ALMA also said the impact of climate change and growing resistance to insecticide and antimalarials are further hampering progress against the disease in Africa.

Ngashi Ngongo, head of the Executive Office at the Africa Union, said, “Achieving the elimination of malaria alongside progress toward other endemic diseases such as HIV and TB will lay the foundation for reducing Africa’s disease burden and further propel the achievement of universal health coverage on the continent.

“This progress is essential for strengthening health systems, and it is a necessity as we prepare for future pandemics, which are inevitable,” he said.

Following the World Health Organization’s approval last year, the first malaria vaccines are being introduced into routine child immunization schedules across Africa.

And on Thursday in New York, Nigerian health authorities signed a deal with U.S.-based drone company Zipline to use artificial intelligence-powered drones to expand access to medical supplies, including blood and vaccines.

Abdu Muktar, who is the national coordinator of Nigeria’s Unlocking Healthcare Value-Chain Initiative, commended the “very bold agenda” for producing health care products locally.

“But now we also have to be able to deliver,” he said. “What Zipline is doing is using technology to make sure you deliver. You’ll be able to reduce wastage in whatever it is — vaccines, therapeutics. You’ll be able to be accountable. … You are able to reach more people.”

In 2022, governments of malaria-endemic countries contributed about $1.5 billion toward combatting the disease.
…

Johannesburg — This week at U.N. meetings in New York, the United States said that two African countries should have permanent seats on one of the world’s major decision-making bodies, the United Nations Security Council.

For years, numerous African leaders have called for the continent to have representation on the U.N. Security Council, which since World War II has had just five permanent members: the U.S., France, the UK, Russia and China.

This week, the top representative of one of those permanent seats, U.S. President Joe Biden, threw his weight behind the idea. However, there was one major caveat, which Kenyan analyst Cliff Mboya said is not going over well on the continent. The new African members would not have veto power on decisions.

“We’ve already seeing a lot of backlash… like this is a big joke, the question is what is the point in joining the Security Council if you don’t have veto powers, what are you going to do there?” asked Mboya.

That could play in China’s favor, as it has long positioned itself as a fellow developing country and leader of what’s become known as the Global South, while disparaging the West for its colonial past, said Mboya, a postdoctoral fellow at the Center for Africa-China Studies at the University of Johannesburg.

“So I don’t think this helps the U.S. and the West in terms of perception and narratives, and it will only embolden African countries to lean more to the East because it just speaks to the hypocrisy,” he said. “China’s been able to, you know, build this coalition of emerging and developing countries against the U.S. and Western-led world order.”

But Paul Nantulya, a research associate with the Africa Center for Strategic Studies, said he thought the announcement was a “win’’ for U.S. diplomacy and would mostly be welcomed by African nations as it opens the door to further negotiations.

“Regarding China, China has been very, you know, kind of like sitting on the fence. So rhetorically China has said all the right things, supporting Africa’s, what it calls Africa’s legitimate interests in the United Nations, including the United Nations Security Council,” he said.

But its plan for that has been hazy, he added.

“When it comes to specific details, in terms of whether China supports permanent African representation on the council with veto power, when it comes to that China has not articulated a position.”

Among those in New York this week calling for U.N. reform was South African President Cyril Ramaphosa. He said, quote: “Africa and its 1.4 billion people remain excluded from its key decision-making structures.”

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has also called for reform, saying the UNSC hasn’t kept up with a changing world and Africa is underrepresented.

Some African countries want veto power in the Security Council dispensed with entirely.

If there is reform, and Africa gets the two seats on the Security Council that the U.S. proposes, key contenders could include the continent’s largest economy, South Africa; most populous country, Nigeria; or North African heavyweight Egypt, Nantulya told VOA.

However, analysts say any future process of adding African countries as permanent members is likely to face hurdles, as there will be problems reaching consensus. Nantulya said some African politicians think it could even drive a wedge between countries on the continent.

There are also concerns the U.S. statement could just be rhetoric — and so far no timeline has been given regarding the next steps. Under U.N. rules, any change to Security Council membership would need approval from two-thirds of the General Assembly, including all five permanent members.
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United Nations — Sudan’s de facto ruler said Thursday that he wants to end the war in his country, but he said he will not sit with his rival general unless he withdraws his fighters.

“We are keen on stopping the war and restoring peace and security, without any pre-conditions,” Army Chief Abdel-Fattah al Burhan told reporters in New York, where he was attending U.N. General Assembly meetings.

However, he stated several conditions for talks to start.

“We will never sit with Hemedti unless his forces pull out, and unless they implement what we agreed to,” he said referring to his rival, the head of the Rapid Support Forces, Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, known as “Hemedti.”

Once allies in Sudan’s transitional government following a 2021 coup, the two generals have turned into bitter rivals for power. On April 15, 2023, fighting erupted between their forces in the capital, Khartoum. It has since spread across Sudan, resulting in widespread atrocities and killing.

Burhan was asked about new fighting that erupted between his forces and the RSF in Khartoum on Thursday, but did not offer any new details.

Earlier Thursday, Burhan addressed the U.N. General Assembly annual debate. He used most of his speech to talk about the war in his country. Not to be outdone, his rival, Hemedti, issued a “General Assembly speech” of his own, on the social media platform X.

Ten million people have been displaced and half of Sudan’s population, 26 million people, are struggling with crisis levels of food insecurity.  Famine was confirmed in August in Sudan’s Darfur region, which has seen heavy fighting. At least 14 other areas of Sudan are considered at risk of famine in the coming months.

“The food gap is there, but it hasn’t reached the level of famine yet,” Burhan told reporters.

Regarding efforts by the United States and Saudi Arabia to bring the parties to the negotiating table in Switzerland in August, the army chief said it didn’t happen because “external parties interfered” with the process.

The Sudanese military accuses the United Arab Emirates of arming and equipping the RSF. The UAE was invited to a meeting in Switzerland in August and Burhan did not attend.

He said he was also not happy with how the invitation was sent to him – in his personal capacity, not as head of state. He added that any peace process should be purely Sudanese-led.

Asked about a July phone call he had with the leader of the UAE, Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed, Burhan said he told the Emirati that the RSF has received either direct or indirect assistance from the UAE in the forms of weapons and training.

He said MBZ, as the UAE leader is known, “promised to reconsider the situation.”

A report by a U.N. panel of experts earlier this year said there was substance to media reports that cargo planes originating in the UAE capital had landed in eastern Chad with arms, ammunition and medical equipment destined for the RSF.

Publicly, the UAE denies that it arms the RSF and says it has only sent humanitarian aid to Sudan.
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nairobi, kenya — As the global race to acquire economically vital minerals unfolds, those working in Africa’s mining sector are calling for the protection of women and children laborers who keep it running. 

Women in Mining Africa, an advocacy group that aims to mitigate harsh working conditions in rural communities, organized a virtual meeting this week with organizations and experts. They are working to promote gender equity and social justice in the mining sector as demand for African resources continues. 

“We seek to empower women in mining by advocating for equal access to resources, opportunities, and leadership roles across the continent,” said Comfort Asokoro Ogaji founded Women in Mining Africa, which works in 36 African countries. 

“We also work to promote responsible mining and advocate for sustainable, ethical, and socially inclusive mining practices,” Ogaji said. “Child protection in mining communities is at the core of our mission and also capacity building and collaboration across the continent.” 

Challenges women face in industry

The World Bank says women represent 30% of the industry known as Artisanal and Small-scale Mining, or ASM. However, women are often barred from entering the mines and relegated to lower-paying jobs. 

According to the International Institute for Sustainable Development, women’s contributions are overshadowed by the historically dominant role of men, hindering women’s meaningful participation and resulting in unequal pay. 

Women, unlike their male counterparts, also face gender inequality, violence and harassment. 

Jose Diemel works as a senior adviser at Levin Sources, a consulting firm that drives the transition to just and sustainable minerals value chains. Diemal has worked with artisanal and small-scale miners in the Democratic Republic of Congo. She said the management of mining fields has improved over the years. 

“I’ve seen the mentality change towards artisanal mining, and we slowly started to talk about artisanal management plans around the possibility of peaceful coexistence,” said Diemel. “And now we’re working at 11 sources, we very regularly receive a request from large-scale mining companies, industrial mining companies, to help them set up ASM management plans that range from peaceful coexistence to collaboration.” 

Mining experts say miners are being empowered, receiving different ways to sustain their livelihood and undergoing safety training. 

The small-scale miners also have been able to obtain loans to purchase equipment that ease their work, increase their product, and their income. 

Call to get more women into sector

Thokozile Budaza advocates for women’s rights in South Africa, the largest platinum and manganese producer in the world. She said the voices of the resource owners and those working on them must be included in decision-making. 

“African leaders can better anticipate the ripple effects of their policies and decisions and the lack of decisions ensuring that the benefits of mining are equitably distributed and the voices of the stakeholders, especially those marginalized, are heard and respected while dealing with investors coming into Africa to source critical materials for development,” said Budaza.

A World Bank report released at the 2024 Mining Indaba Conference urges implementation of gender-focused legislation to improve mining rules and regulations and promote greater participation of women in the sector. 

The report also calls for changing property laws and land tenure agreements that restrict women’s ability to own land and access mineral resources. 
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According to the International Energy Agency, the world now invests almost twice as much in clean energy as it does in fossil fuels. But with that shift comes environmental risks related to the mining of critical minerals. VOA’s Jessica Stone looks at how nations are navigating the environmental challenges of creating a renewable future.
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Gaborone, Botswana — U.S. Africa Command, or AFRICOM, is working with southern African countries to combat gender-based violence in the military. This week, AFRICOM and regional military officials are holding a series of workshops in Zambia to strengthen regional collaboration in the fight against workplace harassment.

AFRICOM and its component, the U.S. Air Forces in Europe and Air Forces Africa, or USAFE-AFAFRICA, have united with the Zambia Defense Force to foster strategies to tackle gender-based violence in the region.

Botswana and Zambia are participating in efforts to strengthen regional initiatives against sexual assault.

Lieutenant Colonel Linda Jones, USAFE-AFAFRICA chief for African health engagements, said it is imperative to come up with strategies to fight gender-based violence in the armed forces.

“It is the responsibility of leaders that all of us set the tone, including an environment where everyone is valued and empowered to speak up against misconduct,” she said. “This involves not only enforcing policies but also modeling respect for behavior and actively supporting those who report incidents.”

In 2021, U.S. Defense Department officials reported sexual violence had reached the highest level ever reported, with 8.4% of women assaulted on duty.

U.S. Air Force Tech Sergeant Samara Brown said if left unchecked, gender-based violence can affect execution of military tasks.

“Gender-based violence undermines the core values of any military organization,” Brown said. “It erodes trust, disrupts unity, cohesion and ultimately compromises mission readiness. We must take a firm stand against it, not just as a matter of policy but a commitment to uphold the principles of honor, integrity and respect that define our service.”

Retired U.S. Air Force official and workplace development consultant Keith Castille facilitated the Lusaka workshop. He said such collaborations with the Zambia Defense Force can ensure gender-based violence is addressed within regional militaries.

“No military can tackle this issue alone,” he said. “By sharing knowledge and collaborating across branches and communities, we can develop more effective strategies to combat gender-based violence. Engaging in open dialogue, facilitating workshops and creating joint initiatives will enable us to learn from one another and strengthen our collective efforts.”

Attending the workshop in Lusaka, Zambian Defense Force Major Stephen Muleya said the military workplace must be free of gender-based harassment.

“When individuals know that they can perform their duties without the threat of harassment or violence, they are more likely to focus fully on their missions,” he said. “We must actively cultivate an atmosphere where everyone can thrive free from fear and intimidation.”

Zambian officials said they’re planning to open a regional office for innovative gender-based violence solutions.

Zambian air force legal adviser Major Glory Musonda said collaboration with U.S. partners should result in solutions to gender-based violence within the force.

“We all have a responsibility to build military environments where respect and dignity are upheld,” Musonda said. “It’s not enough to simply acknowledge the issue, we must  actively work toward solutions that ensure the safety and well-being of every service member.”

Meanwhile, officials representing the U.S. Army War College are in Lusaka for discussions on women, peace and security, which aligns with efforts to address gender-based violence in the region.
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tunis, tunisia — A Tunisian court sentenced presidential candidate Ayachi Zammel to six months in prison on Wednesday on charges of falsifying documents, his lawyer told Reuters, the second prison sentence against him in a week, days before the presidential election. 

The verdict highlights rising tensions ahead of the election, amid opposition and civil society groups’ fears of a rigged election aimed at keeping President Kais Saied in power. 

Zammel was sentenced to 20 months in prison last week on charges of falsifying popular endorsements. 

“It is another unjust ruling and a farce that clearly aims to weaken him in the election race, but we will defend his right to the last minute,” Zammel attorney Abdessattar Massoudi told Reuters. 

Zammel was among only three admitted candidates competing for the position of president alongside incumbent Saied and Zouhair Magzhaoui. 

Political tensions in the North African country have risen ahead of the October 6 election since an electoral commission named by Saied disqualified three prominent candidates this month amid protests by opposition and civil society groups.
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The war in Ukraine, Sudan’s humanitarian crisis, and an escalation between Israel and Hezbollah dominated the second day of the United Nations General Assembly meetings. VOA U.N. Correspondent Margaret Besheer reports.
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johannesburg — South Africa is planning a massive mouse eradication project on a sub-Antarctic island to try to stop the invasive species from wiping out the precious seabirds that nest there.

Marion Island, in the southern Indian Ocean almost 2,000 kilometers from Cape Town, is a remote and windswept South African territory that’s home to extensive bird life, including the wandering albatross.

But those birds face an unusual threat: predatory mice that have been feasting on their chicks. The mice are an accident of history, but their population has been increased by climate change.

“The mice were introduced accidentally in the early 1800s,” said Anton Wolfaardt, a conservationist who is leading the program to eradicate the mice. “They came ashore – they were essentially stowaways on the vessels of the early seal hunters that visited the island.”

Huge jump in population

As the island has grown warmer and drier because of climate change, it has also grown more favorable for the mice. Now, by the end of the summer, the mouse population will have increased by 500 percent, he said.   

It was only fairly recently that researchers on Marion observed the mice preying on chicks, but the phenomenon has increased. 

The rodents are such a threat now, Wolfaardt said, “that experts predict that 19 of the 29 bird species on Marion Island face local extinction in the presence of mice.” 

Elsa van Ginkel, a researcher who was employed by the University of Pretoria to collect data on the island last year, said the island region was “truly out of this world. Walking among wandering albatross chicks every day and watching them grow into fledglings – wow, just wow, it’s an absolute privilege.”

But they are slowly being wiped out.

“These fledglings have no means of defending themselves from a mouse that actually starts eating it alive,” van Ginkel said. “It’s quite horrific.”

So Birdlife South Africa, a nongovernmental organization, and South Africa’s forest, fisheries and environment department are planning a major intervention to try to save the seabirds and restore the island to its natural state. 

Wolfaardt is heading the initiative, which is still seeking funding and is scheduled to take place in a few years.  

“Very simply, the operation involves broadcasting a specialized rodenticide bait, from bait spreader buckets that are slung beneath helicopters that are guided by GPS technology,” he said.

The pellets of rodent poison won’t negatively affect the rest of the flora and fauna on the island, experts say.  

A similar project has been undertaken before. In the 1940s, feral cats were introduced to Marion Island to try to control the mice, but then the felines started preying on the seabirds.  

The cats were successfully eradicated in the early 1990s, although that, of course, left the mice to flourish.
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Oslo, Norway — Norwegian police on Wednesday said they had arrested a man on suspicion of incitement to commit crimes against humanity in Cameroon, where a radio station identified him as “separatist leader” Lucas Cho Ayaba. 

The Kripos police unit that deals with war crimes and crimes against humanity said in a statement that it had arrested “a man in his 50s” on Tuesday, but did not name him. 

“Norwegian police have arrested the separatist leader Lucas Cho Ayaba. He is implicated in atrocities committed in the northwest and southwest,” said CRTV radio station. 

Two sources had earlier told AFP that Ayaba, 52, was the man arrested. 

Cameroon has been gripped since 2016 by a bloody conflict in its two anglophone regions, in the northwest and southwest, between separatists and state forces. 

The conflict was sparked by the brutal suppression of peaceful protests in the anglophone regions by long-time President Paul Biya. 

“Kripos considers that the suspect is playing a central role in the ongoing armed conflict in Cameroon,” the Norwegian police statement said. 

The anglophone community, which has long complained of marginalization and discrimination, makes up about 20% of the largely francophone central African country. 

Ayaba is the leader of the Ambazonia Defense Forces, one of the main armed groups operating in the anglophone areas. 

International NGOs accuse both the armed separatists and government forces of abuses. 

More than 6,000 people have been killed and at least a million displaced during the conflict, the International Crisis Group has said. 

A lawyer representing victims of the conflict filed a complaint in the United States against Ayaba and the Norwegian state. 

In February, the lawyer, Emmanuel Nsahlai, also petitioned the International Criminal Court to launch an investigation. 

Ayaba was a former student union activist in the 1990s and holds German nationality. 

It was the first time that Norway had arrested someone on suspicion of inciting crimes against humanity. 

If convicted, he could face 30 years in prison.
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Nairobi — As cases of mpox rise across the African continent, public health experts and world leaders are sounding the alarm, saying more needs to be done to contain the viral outbreak.

Fifteen countries in Africa are assessed as having active outbreaks, with Morocco being the latest to report a case.

Samuel Boland, mpox incident manager for the World Health Organization regional office for Africa, said that while the Democratic Republic of Congo and Burundi account for almost 90 percent of confirmed cases, more instances are popping up in other countries.

“DRC, Burundi [are] especially affected but also Cameroon, Central African Republic, Nigeria, Cote D’Ivoire, Republic of Congo, Liberia, Uganda, Kenya, Gabon, Rwanda, South Africa and Guinea,” he told VOA, speaking from Brazzaville in the Republic of Congo.  

The WHO says two distinct clades, or strains, have been identified. Clade I was formerly known as the Congo Basin clade, and Clade II was formerly West African clade. 

Previously known as monkeypox, the viral disease can spread through close contact between people, according to the World Health Organization, and occasionally via objects and areas touched by a person with mpox. 

Signs and symptoms include fever, rash, and swollen lymph nodes.  

Boland said there have been 6,580 confirmed cases so far this year, but there’s a bigger number of suspected cases. Suspected cases are clinically compatible with mpox but may not have been tested due to various limitations in several countries. That number has climbed to nearly 32,000. 

“Now amongst that large number of suspected cases, 844 people have died. But when focusing on the confirmed cases this year as in from the first of January, 32 people have, unfortunately, passed away,” Boland said.

In a virtual briefing last week, Jean Kaseya, director-general of the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, said mpox is not under control in Africa. He said that while vaccine donations are trickling in, the amount is insufficient to contain the outbreak. 

“Today, we have almost around 4 million commitments of doses, but we say we need more,” Kaseya said. 

U.S. President Joe Biden, in an address to world leaders at the United Nations General Assembly on Sept. 24, 2024, highlighted the need to “move quickly” to confront the mpox outbreak in Africa.  

“We’re prepared to commit $500 million to help African countries prevent and respond to mpox and to donate 1 million doses of mpox vaccine now,” he said. 

No specific date was given as to when the vaccines will arrive in Africa, but Biden said the investments will be delivered bilaterally, through existing relationships with partner countries, as well as through multilateral institutions.  

In addition to vaccines, Boland said this mpox outbreak requires interventions across the full spectrum of the public health sector. He said the world needs to scale up and make sure it can deliver in several areas.  

“Things like surveillance, which will include case investigation and contact tracing — both going out into communities and looking for cases,” he said. “Also engaging and encouraging communities to report cases when people become unwell.”  

He said this approach includes infection prevention and control, case management and vaccination. 
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Abuja, Nigeria — Nigeria has joined the growing calls by Africans leaders for permanent representation on the United Nations Security Council.

On the sidelines of the 79th U.N. General Assembly in New York on Tuesday, Nigerian Defense Minister Mohammed Badaru said such a change would promote fairness and inclusivity.

“We have been in 41 different United Nations’ missions to provide security across the world,” Badaru said. “Based on that background and the effort of Africa, we also call on the United Nations to reform the Security Council so that Africa can have a permanent seat. It is time. We deserve it for justice and for equity.”

Other African nations also are clamoring for change.

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa on Sunday said, “Placing the fate of the world’s security in the hands of a select few when it is the vast majority who bear the brunt of these threats is unjust, unfair and unsustainable.”

Similarly, Kenyan President William Ruto criticized the multilateral system, saying, “It has proven inadequate.”

Many African countries were still under colonial rule at the time the Security Council was established. In 2005, the African Union adopted the so-called Ezulwini Consensus in Ethiopia for Africa to have at least two permanent and five nonpermanent seats at the U.N. council.

To date, though, the U.N. General Assembly elects five new members from different geographical zones for two-year terms on the council. Africa has three rotational seats on the 15-member council.

The founder of Security Watch Africa Initiative, Patrick Agbambu, said Africa needs to be united to make a good representation.

“The biggest threat to Africa getting that seat is Africa itself,” Agbambu said. “Africa does not have a united front; they do not have a common voice to be able to push two countries or one country forward. You can’t go for such with a divided house.

“As it stands, the various blocs in the African Union seem very divided, with each having a very strong opposition to the other. So, the world is just watching Africa,” he said.

Last week, the United States, one of five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council, said it is open to having two African seats on the council but without the veto power of the original permanent members: Britain, China, France, Russia and the U.S.

Security analyst Senator Iroegbu said African representation on the Security Council is the right call but warned that it wouldn’t solve all problems.

“Nigeria stands in the right mix because it’s one of the most important countries in Africa and it’s the most populous nation in Africa, with huge economic potential,” he said. “But just being a member of [the] U.N. Security Council doesn’t guarantee stability at home if all the factors causing insecurity are not well addressed.”
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Gaborone, Botswana — Botswana is hosting delegates from 33 African elephant range states for talks on the trade in live elephants. They are also seeking a common position as Africa battles increasing elephant populations in some areas, while the numbers decline elsewhere on the continent.

Botswana’s environment and tourism minister, Nnaniki Makwinja, said Africa must speak with one voice despite the peculiar challenges each region faces. 

“We are cognizant that the challenges that we face are diverse and there is no silver bullet to address these challenges,” Makwinja said Monday during the opening of the four-day meeting. “We call upon these countries to engage with us before they adopt measures that may undermine our efforts to conserve our wildlife heritage and sustainable development goals.”  

In 2022, delegates from Africa attended talks in Panama on the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, or CITES. They were divided over elephant management. 

Southern African nations want CITES to relax measures on elephant trade, but some parts of the continent, particularly the eastern and western areas, want stricter controls. 

Dan Challender, a conservation scientist on the wildlife trade based at the University of Oxford, said this week’s meeting in Botswana might not address all concerns given the uneven distribution of the animals across the continent. 

“The meeting provides an opportunity for African countries to come together and discuss trade in African elephants. I would expect them to find common ground on some issues but not all, recognizing the different status of the species and policy environments across the continent,” Challender said. 

The meeting is open to governments, but non-profit conservation organizations are not invited. 

Local conservationist Isaac Theophilus of the Botswana Wildlife Producers Association said delegates from countries that oppose trade in elephants should get a chance to see the impact of human-wildlife conflict. 

“We have two opposing blocks that will be seated around the same table to look at issues relating to elephant management,” Theophilus said. “My hope and wish is that those states attending would have an opportunity to interact with people in the (wildlife) area and get firsthand information relating to problems associated with living with an increasing elephant population.” 

Veterinarian and wildlife management expert Dr. Eric Verreynne said trade in live elephants poses logistical challenges. 

“Transporting elephants from one country to another brings with it some challenges. Most of these challenges relate to logistics,” Verreynne said. “They are bulk animals; it’s very, very expensive to transport. When you talk about females and calves, you have to take your family groups in one. The capacity to transport large numbers of elephants is limited.” 

Africa’s elephant population is estimated at 415,000, with more than half of the number living in southern Africa.
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Egypt’s second-largest city, Alexandria, lies in the Eastern Mediterranean, a top climate change hotspot that has dealt with record global air and ocean temperatures this year. Egypt-based photojournalist Hamada Elrasam presents scenes of everyday life that have been impacted by the changing climate phenomenon in the low-lying metropolis that has survived over two millennia, only to find itself on this century’s climate frontlines. Written in collaboration with Elle Kurancid.
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A Kenyan conservancy is using reformed poachers to protect wildlife. Conservation authorities say the program has helped to significantly reduce cases of poaching, especially in northern Kenya where communities are notorious for illegal hunting. Victoria Amunga reports from Meru, Kenya. Camera and video editing by Jimmy Makhulo.
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