Africa

The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) said today that it is responding to a growing food security emergency causing malnutrition in children in both rural and urban areas of crisis-gripped South Sudan.

August 5, 2016 (JUBA) - South Sudan President, Salva Kiir, has dispatched a high level delegation on Friday to attend a regional summit at which its political and security situation tops the agenda.

President Salva Kiir (R) embraces Taban Deng Gai after his swearing-in ceremony as FVP at the Presidential Palace in the capital of Juba, July 26, 2016 (Photo Reuters Jok Solumun)

However, the delegation led by the newly appointed First Vice President, Taban Deng Gai, has reportedly been denied access to the official IGAD summit of the Heads of State and Government.

The government sanctioned delegation, confirmed in a statement from the office of the president, is being led by Gai, who has replaced the armed opposition leader, Riek Machar.

“The First Vice President of the Republic Taban Deng Gai is travelling to Addis Ababa to represent South Sudan at the emergency IGAD (Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) summit. The summit is being convened to discuss the recent fighting that broke out in South Sudan. The meeting is also scheduled to discuss a regional response, including the issue of intervention force,” the statement reads in part.

This comes after armed opposition leadership under Riek Machar issued a strong statement criticizing the manner in which international community and guarantors of peace process have acted at the time amid violations, accusing them of being passive to the political turmoil in the country. The guarantors include Ethiopia, Uganda, Kenya and other African countries in the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) trade bloc.

“There is a serious lack of support from the international community and the guarantors to the peace agreement,” Machar's Sudan People's Liberation Movement/Army in Opposition (SPLM/A-IO) said in a statement Wednesday.

According to the statement, “the daily violation of peace by the government followed by illegal appointment of Taban Deng Gai resulted in the collapse of the peace agreement.”

Machar fled Juba in July and went into hiding after new clashes broke out between his forces and government soldiers, saying he would only return when a third-party force is deployed to act as a buffer.

On July 25, South Sudan's President Salva Kiir sacked Machar as first vice-president, replacing him with Gai. The move threatens to split the armed opposition into two factions: one backing Gai in Juba to support implementation of the peace implementation, and another faction that only recognizes Machar as the first vice-president according to the peace accord signed in August 2015.

East Africa's eight-nation trade and security bloc, IGAD, is scheduled to meet in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa on Friday to look into the crisis in South Sudan, which has been a growing concern for the region. The latest statement comes after Kiir, acting on advice from his new vice president dismissed about half a dozen ministers representing the SPLM/A-IO.

On Monday, a prominent opposition figure who had held ministerial position in the Transitional Government of National Unity announced his resignation, saying the government in Juba was “dead”.

“We are not surprised by the steps being taken by President Kiir and Taban Deng changing IO ministerial position and Transitional Legislative Assembly,” the SPLM-IO statement said.

“We are just waiting for the deployment of the regional force [a third-party intervention recommended by the IGAD and the UN] …so we can take further steps towards putting an end to the suffering of the people of South Sudan,” it added.

Gai, the new first vice president, is reportedly denied attending the official IGAD summit of the Heads of State and Government as South Sudan was not invited to participate in the matter discussing its conflicts.

Observers however said Gai may only meet IGAD officials in the corridors to argue his position, but not in the official deliberations on South Sudan. The SPLM-IO delegation loyal to Machar will equally do the same.

South Sudan gained independence from Sudan in 2011 following 50 years of Africa's long-running civil war.

Two years later the country slide back into chaos after Kiir accused his longtime rival Machar of a coup attempt which resulted in the death of tens of thousands of people and displaced 2.4 million others.

Machar dismissed the coup narrative as false and a way by President Kiir to silence the voices calling for democracy in the country.

The ongoing fighting between forces loyal to the two leaders threatens the peace deal itself.

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August 5, 2016 (EL-FASHER) - Thousands of South Sudanese refugees in North Darfur state have launched an appeal to the Sudanese government and aid groups to provide them with food, clothing and shelter.

Last month Sudan said it has received 500,000 South Sudanese refugees since 2013.
South Sudanese tribal chief Ajack Deng Kual told Sudan Tribune that 7,000 refugees have arrived in the locality of Al-Leit, 325 km. south east of North Darfur capital, El-Fasher from Bahr el-Ghazal region in South Sudan.

He pointed that there are no official statistics on the exact number of refugees who arrived in North Darfur, saying they are in dire need for food, shelter, drugs and clothing.

For his part, Deng Malonk Akol, a refugee from Awil town, pointed to the miserable situation in South Sudan, saying the vast majority of refugees in North Darfur are women, children and the elderly.

Joseph Garang Atak, a refugee from north Bahr el-Ghazal, said they sleep on the floor of the farms in which they took refuge, demanding the Sudanese government and aid groups to provide them with shelter.

Last month, fighting erupted in South Sudan's capital Juba between followers of President Salva Kiir and Riek Machar, the former rebel leader who became vice president under a deal to end a two-year civil war.

The violence, which has killed hundreds of people, broke out as the world's newest nation prepared to mark five years of independence from Sudan on July 9.

Last month, UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said that refugees fleeing conflict and food insecurity in South Sudan continue to arrive in Sudan.

It pointed out that “as of 3 July, 79,571 people from South Sudan had arrived in Sudan since 1 January 2016, of whom 53,273 in East Darfur”.

On 17 March, Sudanese government announced a decision that all South Sudanese in Sudan are to be treated as foreigners, instead of ‘brothers and sisters' as they were previously regarded.

South Sudan broke away from Sudan in July 2011 and established its own independent state after decades of war between the two former northern and southern regions of one country.

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August 5, 2016 (JUBA) – The ruling party in South Sudan, the Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM) chaired by President Salva Kiir, has dismissed suggestions that a peace deal signed in August last year has collapsed.

South Sudanese president Salva Kiir (L) shakes hands with rebel leader and former vice-president Riek Machar after signing an agreement on the reunifiation of the SPLM in Arusha, Tanzania on 21 January 2015 (AP)

It also condemned the recent media comments by the party's former secretary general, Pagan Amum, who called for international intervention and for the country to be put under United Nations trusteeship.

Amum said the leadership of South Sudan has failed its people and the nation and therefore the need for the United Nations to take it over for a period of time.

However, a senior official of the SPLM in government accused Amum of inviting foreigners to meddle in the internal matters.

“The SPLM party denounces in the strongest terms the call by Pagam Amum, the former Secretary General and leader of the SPLM Former Detainees (SPLM-FDs) for the intervention of the international and regional communities in the internal affairs of South Sudan. Political coercion insights conflict, no one should understand this more clearly than Pagan; a politician whose actions contributed to turmoil in the country,” said Mangar Amerdid, adviser for political affairs and mobilization in the ruling party.

“The false claim being perpetuated by Pagan that the peace agreement has collapsed is his way of attempting to revive his political career. The peace agreement has not collapsed and it is being implemented daily by the various political organs of TGoNU [Transitional Government of National Unity]. The primary interest of TGoNU is to serve the people of South Sudan while working to restore peace and stability in the country,” he added.

He warned that any intervention that is not approved by the TGoNU that aims to invade or meddle in the affairs of a sovereign State will “warrant a strong response.”

He also said the new first vice president, Taban Deng Gai was nominated by the opposition faction of the SPLM-IO, adding there was nothing wrong about it.

The party adviser's official was responding to the conclusions that the peace deal has collapsed and that the nomination of Gai was not consistent with the August 2015 peace agreement and did not qualify the internal process of the SPLM-IO.

“The mandates of the Peace Agreement signed in August 2015 stipulate that the First Vice President (FVP) of the TGoNU shall be selected by the SPLA-IO. This was successfully accomplished with the appointment of Taban Deng Gai by the SPLM/A-IO as the FVP and was warmly received by President Kiir,” he argued.

AMUM AND AGOOT TRAITORS?

Another official described Amum and Majak Agoot as traitors for supporting regional and international intervention in South Sudan's conflicts.

Gordon Buay, a South Sudan diplomat residing Washington DC, vowed that he would block Amum from conducting a rally in the US to mobilize support for the international intervention.

“I am appealing to South Sudanese in the U.S not to attend Pagan Amum's rally scheduled for August, 11 in New York city at UN Building. Mr. Amum's agenda is to push for UN takeover of South Sudan,” Buay wrote in a statement extended to Sudan Tribune.

“Pagan Amum and Majak Agoot drafted a document entitled "United Nations Temporary Administration For South Sudan" to urge the UN Security Council to pass a resolution for UN Trusteeship.”

He said any South Sudanese who will attend the rally organized by Amum will be declared a “traitor.”

“Pagan Amum is the number one traitor now followed by Majak Agoot. These traitors think that the only way to get to power is through UN Trusteeship,” he added.

He said “in few weeks, the supporters of South Sudan independence and territorial integrity will organize “a rally of 10,000 compatriots in the U.S who will go to UN Building to condemn Pagan Amum as a traitor number one.”

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August 5, 2016 (KHARTOUM) - Mauritanian government has decided not to impose financial penalties on Sudanese miners who were arrested while illegally prospecting for gold in its territories, said Sudan's Foreign Ministry.

Workers break rocks at the Wad Bushara gold mine near Abu Delelq in Gadarif State, Wad Bushara on 27 April 2013 (Photo: Reuters/Mohamed Nureldin Abdallah)

Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Gharib Allah Khidir said the Sudanese ambassador to Nouakchott has discussed the issue of the Sudanese gold prospectors with the Mauritanian minister of interior, saying the latter decided not to impose a fine on them.

He told the official news agency (SUNA) that the Mauritanian government has handed the miners their travel documents back and asked them not to conduct surface mining unless approved by the competent authorities.

Khidir said the Mauritanian government has mentioned that surface mining is a prohibited practice according to the regulations, saying those who violate the law would incur a daily fine that could exceed $90.

He added the Mauritanian law also provides for the detention of those who practice surface mining and to seize their passports, saying the authorities usually hand them their travel documents back upon deportation.

According to Khidir, the Sudanese ambassador to Nouakchott said the Mauritanian minister of interior assured him that there are no Sudanese nationals in their prisons.

The spokesperson called on those who wish to visit Mauritania to observe laws pertaining to the surface mining, saying Mauritania welcomes Sudanese to work and invest in any other field.

Last Monday, Sudan's Foreign Ministry said Mauritania would deport 100 Sudanese miners who had sneaked into its territory illegally.

In 2014, hundreds of Sudanese gold prospectors were evacuated from Niger to the Chadian city of Abeche before being transferred to the West Darfur state capital, Al-Geneina.

Also, in August 2015, Egyptian authorities released 37 miners after being held for 5 five months on charges of cross-border infiltration. But their properties estimated at $8 million are still held by the Egyptian Army.

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August 4, 2016 (KHARTOUM) - Sudanese Presidential Assistant Ibrahim Mahmoud Hamid reiterated his government refusal for a national dialogue preparatory meeting, adding that talks on the cessation of hostilities and humanitarian access will start immediately after the signing of the Roadmap Agreement by the opposition.

Presidential Assistant, Ibrahim Mahmoud Hamid (SUNA Photo)

In a press conference held on Thursday, Hamid announced that the government received an invitation from the African Union High Level Implementation Panel (AUHIP) to resume talks on the Two Areas and Darfur from nine to eleven August, stressing the government readiness to reach a peace agreement.

"There is no room for a preparatory conference. The dialogue mentioned in the Roadmap Agreement is the one the President of the Republic called for in his speech of 2014," he said.

"Once the opposition signs the roadmap we will hasten to sign an agreement on the cessation of hostilities and to end war permanently, after what we will move to the humanitarian access," he added.

Following a meeting last July in Paris, the opposition Sudan Call groups said they would sign the Roadmap Agreement after talks with the AUHIP head on eight August .

They further said they received reassurances from the Chief Mediator Thabo Mbeki that the meeting mentioned in the Roadmap is actually the preparatory meeting and it would be inclusive as they can compose their delegation from all the factions of the opposition umbrella.

The presidential aide who leads the government negotiating delegation said that the government rejects the existence of two separate armies in the country adding that the political arrangements will be synchronized with the security arrangements.

The Sudanese official was referring to a demand by the Sudan Liberation Movement - North (SPLM-N) to maintain two armies during the transitional period until the full implementation of the peace agreement.

Regarding the talks with the armed groups in Darfur region; he said the framework agreement with these groups would not take more than two weeks. He further added that the international community formed a commission to follow the implementation of security arrangements.

On the power sharing in the transitional government after end of the process, the presidential assistant said "We do not want a large ministerial government but if the power sharing would stop war we have no objection to increase the cabinet members because the bill of war is expensive".

The Sudanese official told reporters that the African Union roadmap includes two steps to end the Sudanese crisis peacefully. The first is to end the armed conflicts and the second is to discuss the national issues in an inclusive national dialogue .

He added the purpose of the ongoing dialogue is to come out with a national document to manage the affairs of the state, but also through which an agreement will be reached on a system of governance and a permanent constitution will be adopted.

"The national document not be made by political parties alone, but all the Sudanese will be involved through the societal dialogue," he added.

In a related development the opposition Future Forces of Change (FFC) announced they received an invitation from the AUHIP to attend the signing of the Roadmap Agreement by the opposition Sudan Call and the launch of talks on security arrangements and humanitarian assistance from 9 to 11 August.

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By Tesfa-Alem Tekle

August 4, 2016 (ADDIS ABABA) – A Chinese company has commenced the construction of a major power transmission line project which will link grids of Ethiopia with Kenya.

The Grand Renaissance Dam is under construction on the Blue Nile River in Ethiopia. (Photo AFP/William Lloyd-George)

The firm, China Electric Power Equipment and Technology (CET) announced it has launched the construction of the $ 1.26 billion mega project this week.

The 500 KV transmission line which originates in Ethiopia's Wolayita Sodo will have power transferring capacity of 2,000 MW and runs about 1,045km, of which 445km stretches into Ethiopia's territory.

Kenya has a signed agreement to purchase 400 megawatts of electricity from Ethiopia but Nairobi says it wants to raise the power imports by multiple folds when Ethiopia completes the power plant projects currently under construction.

Currently, electricity access in Kenya's rural areas stands at around 4% however the government plans to boost power supply by tenfold to 40% by 2020 in a bid to curtail chronic power shortage.

The East African nation further intends to replace the fossil fuel based thermal energy by importing the mainly hydro-power processed clean and cheap energy from sources in Ethiopia.

According to the African Development Bank the joint power interconnection will guarantee electricity access to around 870,000 households by 2018.

The joint venture slated for completion in 2017 will be jointly funded by the World Bank and the African Development Bank.

Sudan Tribune has learnt that the project launch ceremony took place on Monday at Wolayta Sodo, some 420 km south of the capital, Addis Ababa, in the presence of officials from the state power utility, Ethiopian Electric Power (EEP) and the Chinese company.

Mokenen Kasa, a political analyst based in Addis Ababa sees benefits of such joint venture between countries beyond economic benefits.

“Such cooperation not only does it boost Ethiopia's economy by generating foreign currency but also bolsters ties among countries which would have crucial role to foster regional peace and stability” Mokenen told Sudan Tribune.

He said countries should widely engage in peaceful co-operation to maintain stability and thereby to harness strategic and economic benefits.

According to official estimates, Ethiopia has potential power production capacity 60,000MW from hydro, geothermal, wind and solar energy.

The country is putting huge investments in building hydropower plants intending to become prime regional power exporter, with a potential of $1bn a year in revenues from renewable power.

Ethiopia currently exports electricity to Sudan, Djibouti and Kenya.

It also has plans to link its grids with South Sudan, Uganda, Rwanda, Tanzania and Yemen.

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