Salem-News.com Africa articles Page 43

Africa: Faces in Words

New weekly update on the breaking stories in the African nations.

(PORTLAND, Ore.) - Unseen, unheard; no one should be the bearer of these two words. Unfortunately, Africa is often in the forefront of this.

Our common humanity should change this; we should never look away because it is too distant.

Japanese Cargo Vessel Seized In Somali Waters

A French warship is monitoring the situation as the Izumi heads toward Somalia.

(NAIROBI, Kenya) - While a spokesman for the Japanese transport ministry said Monday that the Japanese multi-purpose ship MV Izume is being surrounded by pirates in waters off Kenya, EU Navfor confirmed finally today that it was sea-jacked already yesterday, allegedly 80nm off the Kenyan coast.

"We received a report today at about 05:00 pm (0800 GMT)," the Japanese spokesman told AFP.

Iraq was a Happy Accident

(WASHINGTON D.C.) - Perhaps because I have been reading too much Thomas Friedman lately, I feel compelled to mention a recent experience I had on an airplane.

I promise the experience did not involve deciding based on a word written on the back of a fellow passenger’s jacket that Pakistan is either the Titanic or the iceberg.

Hunger costs Poor Countries $450 Billion a Year

(PORTLAND, Ore.) - ActionAid has released their report revealing the cost developing nations face in the fight against hunger, an estimated $450 billion a year - more than ten times the amount needed to halve hunger by 2015.

“Fighting hunger now will be ten times cheaper than ignoring it. Every year reduced worker productivity, poor health and lost education costs poor countries billions. And the cost is not just financial..."

One Billion Slum Dwellers Cannot be Ignored

Effective mechanisms to hold governments accountable can strengthen efforts.

(PORTLAND, Ore.) - Amnesty International is urging international communities and their governments to the protect the world's poorest and most vulnerable people.

An estimated 70 percent of those living in poverty are women, yet, the MDG efforts in many countries fail to address the wide-spread discrimination women face in accessing food, water, sanitation and housing.

Africa: Faces in Words

New weekly update on the breaking stories in the African nations.

(PORTLAND, Ore.) - Unseen, unheard; no one should be the bearer of these two words. Unfortunately, Africa is often in the forefront of this association.

Morocco: Forced Police Raids Leave Hundreds Abandoned

Between 19 August and 10 September, police ransacked cities throughout Morocco...

(PORTLAND, Ore.) - Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) is deeply concerned about the deterioration of the medical and humanitarian situation facing many displaced inside Morocco.

Recent raids and mass expulsions by Moroccan police forces have left hundreds of families, women and children, abandoned on the border between Morocco and Algeria; deported into no man’s land during the night without food and water.

Creating New Partners and Homes for Over 340 Zimbabwean Families

In 2009, tensions erupted after labor disputes. The result was a wave of farm evictions, building destruction and homelessness.

(PORTLAND, Ore.) - Forced evictions and violence last year in Chipinge, Zimbabwe displaced more than 340 families, driving them into emergency displacement camps, International Organization for Migration (IOM) has begun resettling the families in the village of Mugondi.

Since October 2009, IOM and partners have been the support and assistance for the displaced families...

President Kagame We Were Listening, Will You?

All the Opposition Parties have expressed a desire to have an open and honest dialogue with you Mr. President...

(PORTLAND, Ore.) - In an open letter to the President of Rwanda, those voicing strong criticisms against the ruling Rwanda Government are calling for an open and honest dialogue in an effort to seek answers and see justice prevail.

Cholera Outbreak Spreads in Cameroon

Government cuts have slashed the budget to try to cope with the outbreak, only to encounter more obstacles.

(PORTLAND, Ore.) - Children’s Aid Agency Plan International is appealing the UN for $200,000, Cameroon is facing the worst cholera outbreak in a decade as the deadly disease envelops remote villages. The epidemic has thus far killed 421 people since May and infected 6,300 more.

“Some sick children have not got enough food to eat because their families are so poor,” says Plan’s country director in Cameroon, Casimir Youmbi.