Why the fences, Kigali House owners lament KCC
BY GEORGE KAGAME
Johannesburg
Kigali City authorities are a busy lot; they are working around the clock to ensure that the city is beautiful, attractive and is on time to achieve everything that Vision 2020 stands for.
Having realized the cut throat competition and its ‘pulling power’ to win the favour of tourists that visit the East African Community, city managers along with other more glamorous agencies like tourism, they decided that security was crucial in winning over the tourists.
As a result, it is a known fact that Kigali has many disadvantages in comparison to other neighbouring urban centres but the one thousand hills centre is high up on the grader of safety to its residents and visitors.
After visiting our sacred gorillas, Kigali visitors and its dwellers can walk around the city and its surrounding environs with their most expensive possessions and have no fear of being mugged or shoved over a bridge overlooking Cadillac night club safely on their way to Kimiruhura or any of other various summer homes mushrooming in the suburbs.
In comparison regional cities, Kigali has also created itself a niche as a clean, green and paved city-however the observers responsible for that publicity seem to have limited their mission in Kacyiru, Kiyovu and never at all visited my neighbourhood in Nyamirambo, Kacyiru Kabagari or even the busy district of Nyabugogo. Had they made the effort, Kigali’s attributes and description would be far more balanced and fair.
The race to please Kigali’s observers has however left many with sour stories about our city administrators. In recent times the administrators decided that hedge fences which were one of the most enduring images of Kigali were spoiling its surface beauty and decreed that all hedges were to be destroyed henceforth and replaced by wall fences.
To be fair to KCC, when the decision to de-hedge city houses was taken, a loan facility was introduced to help house owners that could not afford to build wall fences but this facility has been criticized for its unnecessary stringent conditions that urban peasants fear are made to chase them away far from the city.
Those that could not afford to build wall fences were instructed to cut the hedges down. This left many house owners in Kigali cursing city managers, as a recent roadside ranting by three home owners at Kwa’Rubangura taxi stand reveals.
House owner one: With all the statistics and talk about poverty in the country, it is a blessing to my own house in Kigali. My major concern like that of many fellow Rwandans is to have a house. And if am lucky to have hedges for a fence am very lucky. I belong to the small statistics of this country.
House Owner two: The genocide has on several occasions been blamed on the obedience of Rwandans; we follow all kinds of instructions-even ones that we cannot understand. This is one that we should unite to refuse. We should tell this to our loving woman MP who in turn will plead our tribulations to the parliament.
House owner three: What is wrong with the mayors? They decide for us where, which types of houses to build and what materials to use. Do we still have any independence left to ourselves? I will not be surprised if the next Imihogo paper suggests which type of woman my son should marry! As if asking me to buy a radio and television set in the current ones was not humiliating enough.
Wednesday 5 November 2008
Ndaru maintains high coffee blends and natural juice selection in the city centre
Ndaru maintains high coffee blends and natural juice selection in the city centre
BYGEORGE KAGAME
Situated in the up market part of Kigali city, the part of high rising office blocks, UN agencies, embassies, banks and crucially Minecofin offices, Ndaru coffee house is a quite restaurant and meeting place that deserves its place as one of the most enduring images of Kigali lifestyle and Rwandan coffee.
Its location, service and reputed selection of juices and coffees have earned the beautiful coffee house many reviews in and outside the country. But read as much as you can about it, theirs is always something inviting about this simply designed place. And it needs all the publicity for it’s hidden in the middle of office blocks that almost only the curios easily find it.
For the single person, if you had a long weekend out on the town, there are just a handful of places where you can find decent and affordable breakfast to cure the ills of a long night out. At Ndaru coffee house you are treated to a wide variety of choices on the menu, to name just a few, scrambled eggs, Halaal sausages, natural juices and salads of all kinds all ranging from 2500 to Frw 5000.
For the family person, the coffee house offers a good ambiance for members to interact in a close environment, the in house ‘waterfalls’ and well tuned music selection are handy if you are in need of mediation or conversation.
The service at Ndaru coffee house is very efficient and hygiene is a high priority here, and it is not just cleanliness that the owners of the coffee house emphasize. The spirit of courtesy around the coffee house is so strong that on the day I was there an official working in the bank next to the coffeehouse was willing to give me a lift home without asking.
Ndaru is renowned for serving the best traditional meals for lunch from Monday to Friday and its juices are also worth a try. A glass of fresh juice goes for only Frw 500 while buffet meals range from 1800 to Frw 2500. There are op alcoholic beverages in the coffee house.
Ndaru coffee house is located right in front of the BCR headquarters and is open from seven days a week.
BYGEORGE KAGAME
Situated in the up market part of Kigali city, the part of high rising office blocks, UN agencies, embassies, banks and crucially Minecofin offices, Ndaru coffee house is a quite restaurant and meeting place that deserves its place as one of the most enduring images of Kigali lifestyle and Rwandan coffee.
Its location, service and reputed selection of juices and coffees have earned the beautiful coffee house many reviews in and outside the country. But read as much as you can about it, theirs is always something inviting about this simply designed place. And it needs all the publicity for it’s hidden in the middle of office blocks that almost only the curios easily find it.
For the single person, if you had a long weekend out on the town, there are just a handful of places where you can find decent and affordable breakfast to cure the ills of a long night out. At Ndaru coffee house you are treated to a wide variety of choices on the menu, to name just a few, scrambled eggs, Halaal sausages, natural juices and salads of all kinds all ranging from 2500 to Frw 5000.
For the family person, the coffee house offers a good ambiance for members to interact in a close environment, the in house ‘waterfalls’ and well tuned music selection are handy if you are in need of mediation or conversation.
The service at Ndaru coffee house is very efficient and hygiene is a high priority here, and it is not just cleanliness that the owners of the coffee house emphasize. The spirit of courtesy around the coffee house is so strong that on the day I was there an official working in the bank next to the coffeehouse was willing to give me a lift home without asking.
Ndaru is renowned for serving the best traditional meals for lunch from Monday to Friday and its juices are also worth a try. A glass of fresh juice goes for only Frw 500 while buffet meals range from 1800 to Frw 2500. There are op alcoholic beverages in the coffee house.
Ndaru coffee house is located right in front of the BCR headquarters and is open from seven days a week.
African governments cautioned on Japan’s agenda on TICAD
African governments cautioned on Japan’s agenda on TICAD
BY GEORGE KAGAME
Johannesburg
Professor Ben Toruk, a South African economist and legislator has advised African governments to assess whether TICAD-a Japanese development initiative for African countries, differs from other aid programmes from developed countries which have proved inefficient in helping Africa out of poverty so far.
Turok was addressing members of parliament from across Africa attending the 10th session of the Pan African Parliament in Johannesburg today while presenting a paper on the assessment of TICAD 1V conference held earlier in the year in Tokyo.
TICAD- Tokyo International Conference on African Development was launched by Japan in 1993 to promote high-level policy dialogue between African leaders and development partners, it stressed equal partnerships between Africa and developed countries instead of patronage by richer nations.
Turok said TICAD does not offer Africa a different relationship from other developing partners, he termed the relationships as “actually domination which are branded as partnerships”
At the end of the TICAD 1V, Japan promised to double its aid to Africa by 2012.
Then Japanese Prime Minister Yasuo Fokuda said Fukuda said Japan's official development assistance (ODA) would double by 2012, bringing its five-year average annual ODA to $1.8 billion from the current $900 million. With TICAD, Japan insists that it hopes to promote aid in Africa that was based on partnership and increased ownership of donor funds and projects by African government.
Turok said that for any relationship to be called a partnership it must be mutually agreed as helping both partners even at government level but: “Japan engages in tied aid, wherever they engage in aid, Japan ties their aid to Japanese input, their aid must have conditions such as employing Japanese experts, and using Japanese goods. This is domination not partnership as they have stressed it would be.”
The former Apartheid activist added most developed countries were very interested in Africa today and had hidden behind the aid tag but in truth they are masking their competition for African resources: “There is a revived interested in Africa but in reality China, India, Europe, US and now Japan is for the resources we have on the continent.”
He further that the TICAD was important because the amount of money it suggested was substantial: “But is seems unmanageable because it’s too broad, there’s no institutional infrastructure suggested to manage such a programme I Africa. It is a paper document which will not be realized and therefore Africa should be careful,” he wondered if TICAD added value to Africa rather than Japan.
Turok said that TICAD like other aid initiatives for Africa was a negotiation between African executives and their European colleagues: Aide is a transfer of tax payers’ resources from developed countries to citizens in developing countries not a meeting of executives from donor countries to recipient ones.”
BY GEORGE KAGAME
Johannesburg
Professor Ben Toruk, a South African economist and legislator has advised African governments to assess whether TICAD-a Japanese development initiative for African countries, differs from other aid programmes from developed countries which have proved inefficient in helping Africa out of poverty so far.
Turok was addressing members of parliament from across Africa attending the 10th session of the Pan African Parliament in Johannesburg today while presenting a paper on the assessment of TICAD 1V conference held earlier in the year in Tokyo.
TICAD- Tokyo International Conference on African Development was launched by Japan in 1993 to promote high-level policy dialogue between African leaders and development partners, it stressed equal partnerships between Africa and developed countries instead of patronage by richer nations.
Turok said TICAD does not offer Africa a different relationship from other developing partners, he termed the relationships as “actually domination which are branded as partnerships”
At the end of the TICAD 1V, Japan promised to double its aid to Africa by 2012.
Then Japanese Prime Minister Yasuo Fokuda said Fukuda said Japan's official development assistance (ODA) would double by 2012, bringing its five-year average annual ODA to $1.8 billion from the current $900 million. With TICAD, Japan insists that it hopes to promote aid in Africa that was based on partnership and increased ownership of donor funds and projects by African government.
Turok said that for any relationship to be called a partnership it must be mutually agreed as helping both partners even at government level but: “Japan engages in tied aid, wherever they engage in aid, Japan ties their aid to Japanese input, their aid must have conditions such as employing Japanese experts, and using Japanese goods. This is domination not partnership as they have stressed it would be.”
The former Apartheid activist added most developed countries were very interested in Africa today and had hidden behind the aid tag but in truth they are masking their competition for African resources: “There is a revived interested in Africa but in reality China, India, Europe, US and now Japan is for the resources we have on the continent.”
He further that the TICAD was important because the amount of money it suggested was substantial: “But is seems unmanageable because it’s too broad, there’s no institutional infrastructure suggested to manage such a programme I Africa. It is a paper document which will not be realized and therefore Africa should be careful,” he wondered if TICAD added value to Africa rather than Japan.
Turok said that TICAD like other aid initiatives for Africa was a negotiation between African executives and their European colleagues: Aide is a transfer of tax payers’ resources from developed countries to citizens in developing countries not a meeting of executives from donor countries to recipient ones.”
PAP legislators criticize NEPAD’s ineffectiveness
PAP legislators criticize NEPAD’s ineffectiveness
BY GEORGE KAGAME
Johannesburg
African legislators have criticized the New Partnership for Africa’s Development initiative as being inefficient in addressing crucial programmes on the continent for which the initiative was created.
NEPAD was formed in 2002 as one of the changes in the new African Union that replaced the Organization of African Unity. Debating on NEPAD’s report on the state of infrastructure in Africa, the MPs said NEPAD is a well elaborated document on paper but its enforcement remains elusive while its designers continue to travel to conferences in “air conditioned rooms” while the grassroots Africans which it seeks to help continue to revel in poverty. The MPs were discussing the state of Infrastructure in Africa during the 10th session of the Pan African Parliament 10 session in Johannesburg today.
They were reacting to a presentation by Algerian MP, Dr. Boudina Mostepha who emphasized that the state of transport networks in Africa was “very very poor”, he suggested that the transport sector on the continent should be privatized so as to increase its efficiency.
Suzan Vos (South Africa) said has a large deficit in transport infrastructure with only 1.9km of the continent’s massive landscape covered by a road system, she added that these roads are not only of low density but they are mainly poor quality.
Vos said as a result of this poor state of physical infrastructure on the continent, it was very expensive to transport goods and services across boarders among African countries and this had a great impact on the prevailing high levels of poverty in Africa. She added that 25 percent of total investment budgets on the continent were taken by transport costs and hindered integration measures across Africa.
Rachael Chebet (Kenya) said that corruption is the single most important cause of sabotage in developing a vibrant infrastructure network on the continent. She attributed the culture of political patronage in many African countries as dangerous because incompetent companies end up getting most contracts to build roads, health centres, railway lines on the basis of their relationship with policy makers. “We need to depoliticize infrastructural projects because projects won out of political patronage many of these projects only survive for a very short time.”
Sunnir Dawarkasing (Mauritius) called upon African policy makers to support the proposed Inga energy on River Congo in the Democratic Republic of Congo; “the Inga project will solve all Africa’s energy requirements once and for all, we need to raise the 80bn USD to fund it.”
The New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD) is an economic development program of the African Union. NEPAD was adopted at the 37th session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government in July 2001 in Lusaka, Zambia. NEPAD aims to provide an overarching vision and policy framework for accelerating economic co-operation and integration among African countries.
BY GEORGE KAGAME
Johannesburg
African legislators have criticized the New Partnership for Africa’s Development initiative as being inefficient in addressing crucial programmes on the continent for which the initiative was created.
NEPAD was formed in 2002 as one of the changes in the new African Union that replaced the Organization of African Unity. Debating on NEPAD’s report on the state of infrastructure in Africa, the MPs said NEPAD is a well elaborated document on paper but its enforcement remains elusive while its designers continue to travel to conferences in “air conditioned rooms” while the grassroots Africans which it seeks to help continue to revel in poverty. The MPs were discussing the state of Infrastructure in Africa during the 10th session of the Pan African Parliament 10 session in Johannesburg today.
They were reacting to a presentation by Algerian MP, Dr. Boudina Mostepha who emphasized that the state of transport networks in Africa was “very very poor”, he suggested that the transport sector on the continent should be privatized so as to increase its efficiency.
Suzan Vos (South Africa) said has a large deficit in transport infrastructure with only 1.9km of the continent’s massive landscape covered by a road system, she added that these roads are not only of low density but they are mainly poor quality.
Vos said as a result of this poor state of physical infrastructure on the continent, it was very expensive to transport goods and services across boarders among African countries and this had a great impact on the prevailing high levels of poverty in Africa. She added that 25 percent of total investment budgets on the continent were taken by transport costs and hindered integration measures across Africa.
Rachael Chebet (Kenya) said that corruption is the single most important cause of sabotage in developing a vibrant infrastructure network on the continent. She attributed the culture of political patronage in many African countries as dangerous because incompetent companies end up getting most contracts to build roads, health centres, railway lines on the basis of their relationship with policy makers. “We need to depoliticize infrastructural projects because projects won out of political patronage many of these projects only survive for a very short time.”
Sunnir Dawarkasing (Mauritius) called upon African policy makers to support the proposed Inga energy on River Congo in the Democratic Republic of Congo; “the Inga project will solve all Africa’s energy requirements once and for all, we need to raise the 80bn USD to fund it.”
The New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD) is an economic development program of the African Union. NEPAD was adopted at the 37th session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government in July 2001 in Lusaka, Zambia. NEPAD aims to provide an overarching vision and policy framework for accelerating economic co-operation and integration among African countries.
DR Congo urged to solve crisis instead of accusing constantly Rwanda
DR Congo urged to solve crisis instead of accusing constantly Rwanda
BY GEORGE KAGAME&
ARTHUR MORDAUNT
Johannesburg
The Executive Secretary of the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region Liberata Mulamula has called upon the DR Congo government to find a solution to the strife in the Eastern part of the country instead of its continued accusations against Rwanda
Mulamula who was addressing journalists at the sidelines of the 10th session of the Pan African Parliament in Johannesburg South Africa said the Great Lakes Region was facing conflicts because countries in this area were emerging from longstanding conflicts and therefore do not have mechanisms to control internal problems. She added that DR Congo was at the epicenter of all conflicts in the region.
Talking about the recent outbreaks of war in the Eastern part of DR Congo, Mulamula said the country had failed to deal with the issues that led to the raise of dissident General Laurent Nkunda: “the Nkunda factor is an internal problem for DR Congo but it has heightened relations between the country and Rwanda. They constantly allege that Rwanda supports Nkunda but nobody even the UN force in the region –MONUC has comer up with evidence to suggest this is true.”
She continued that accusations of Rwanda’s support to Nkunda do not help anybody in bringing peace to Eastern Congo. Mulamula advised the Congolese government to deal with the negative forces of Interahamwe which cause legitimate security concerns for Rwanda: “there was no Nkunda factor before the Interahamwe issues; it is only when these negative forces are repatriated that peace will prevail in the region,” Mulamula said.
Mulamula further congratulated Angola and Rwanda for creating stable economies with even peaceful and successful elections while some of its neighbours were fighting.
She however lamented the various initiatives that have been undertaken to bring about peace IN THE Great Lakes Region saying they were documents which are not implemented because of limited political will from some stakeholders.
Eastern Congo is currently in crisis after heavy fighting between the government forces against those of the troops under the command of dissident General Laurent Nkunda, the fighting between the two warring sides has displaced over 150,000 people in the region.
BY GEORGE KAGAME&
ARTHUR MORDAUNT
Johannesburg
The Executive Secretary of the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region Liberata Mulamula has called upon the DR Congo government to find a solution to the strife in the Eastern part of the country instead of its continued accusations against Rwanda
Mulamula who was addressing journalists at the sidelines of the 10th session of the Pan African Parliament in Johannesburg South Africa said the Great Lakes Region was facing conflicts because countries in this area were emerging from longstanding conflicts and therefore do not have mechanisms to control internal problems. She added that DR Congo was at the epicenter of all conflicts in the region.
Talking about the recent outbreaks of war in the Eastern part of DR Congo, Mulamula said the country had failed to deal with the issues that led to the raise of dissident General Laurent Nkunda: “the Nkunda factor is an internal problem for DR Congo but it has heightened relations between the country and Rwanda. They constantly allege that Rwanda supports Nkunda but nobody even the UN force in the region –MONUC has comer up with evidence to suggest this is true.”
She continued that accusations of Rwanda’s support to Nkunda do not help anybody in bringing peace to Eastern Congo. Mulamula advised the Congolese government to deal with the negative forces of Interahamwe which cause legitimate security concerns for Rwanda: “there was no Nkunda factor before the Interahamwe issues; it is only when these negative forces are repatriated that peace will prevail in the region,” Mulamula said.
Mulamula further congratulated Angola and Rwanda for creating stable economies with even peaceful and successful elections while some of its neighbours were fighting.
She however lamented the various initiatives that have been undertaken to bring about peace IN THE Great Lakes Region saying they were documents which are not implemented because of limited political will from some stakeholders.
Eastern Congo is currently in crisis after heavy fighting between the government forces against those of the troops under the command of dissident General Laurent Nkunda, the fighting between the two warring sides has displaced over 150,000 people in the region.
MPs dismiss fact finding mission to assess Zimbabwe’s election mess
MPs dismiss fact finding mission to assess Zimbabwe’s election mess
BY GEORGE KAGAME
Johannesburg
Representatives to the 10th session of the Pan African Parliament have dismissed a motion seeking to send a fact finding mission to Zimbabwe to sort out the mess that has persisted in that country since the March 2008 presidential elections.
The motion proposed by Njingum Musa (Cameron) sought to get up “to date briefing on the situation so as to recommend on how to expedite the finding of a peaceful solution to the stand off.”
Suzan Vos, (South Africa) said that the PAP had earlier compiled a report through the African Union and the Zimbabwean matter was being handled at the Heads of State level and so by tabling another motion, the PAP would preempt the steps of the Heads of State.
Vos was supported by the majority of the house members; many agreed that it was hypocritical that the PAP was very concerned by the election violence in Zimbabwe while other parts of the continent were undergoing worse political violence situations. They noted the crisis in Eastern Congo and Somalia as among conflicts in the continent that needed urgent missions, they noted that the MPs were interested in Zimbabwe because of its wealth and the attention it has got from western powers.
BY GEORGE KAGAME
Johannesburg
Representatives to the 10th session of the Pan African Parliament have dismissed a motion seeking to send a fact finding mission to Zimbabwe to sort out the mess that has persisted in that country since the March 2008 presidential elections.
The motion proposed by Njingum Musa (Cameron) sought to get up “to date briefing on the situation so as to recommend on how to expedite the finding of a peaceful solution to the stand off.”
Suzan Vos, (South Africa) said that the PAP had earlier compiled a report through the African Union and the Zimbabwean matter was being handled at the Heads of State level and so by tabling another motion, the PAP would preempt the steps of the Heads of State.
Vos was supported by the majority of the house members; many agreed that it was hypocritical that the PAP was very concerned by the election violence in Zimbabwe while other parts of the continent were undergoing worse political violence situations. They noted the crisis in Eastern Congo and Somalia as among conflicts in the continent that needed urgent missions, they noted that the MPs were interested in Zimbabwe because of its wealth and the attention it has got from western powers.
PAP representatives welcome AU summit resolutions
PAP representatives welcome AU summit resolutions
BY GEORGE KAGAME
Johannesburg
Representatives to the 10th session of the Pan African Parliament have welcomed the resolutions passed at the AU Heads of State summit held in earlier in year in the Egyptian resort city of Sharm El Shiekh.
Presenting the AU heads of state report to the PAP, Dr. Mohamed Farhat said the heads of state expressed concern at the political fragility in Zimbabwe caused by the outbreak of violence after parliamentary and presidential elections held in March. The report expresses “deep concern at the prevailing situation and the implications for political stability as well as its humanitarian consequence; deplores the violence and the loss of life that has occurred in Zimbabwe.”
The report states that the AU leaders discussed a wide range of issues that are currently affecting the continent especially the theme of the meeting which was water and sanitation. The leaders committed themselves increasing the number of people with access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation in Africa.
Sunil Dawarkasing (Mauritius) emphasized this was very crucial as access to safe water was a major target of the Millennium Development goals and if it was achieved a lot of funds would be saved which are currently use in the treatment of preventable diseased caused by drinking poor quality water.
Concerning the increasing food prices on the continent, the report highlighted that African countries have been hardest hit by higher food prices and set back the progress registered in the fight against poverty and hunger and undermined achieving the MDGs.
The summit however was not very clear on the progress towards forming a union government that brings together politically the continent of Africa. The leaders tasked the AU commission to prepare recommendations to be discussed by the January 2009 summit; they also adopted the implementation of the regional and continental integration agenda.
Peace and security in Africa also featured high on the agenda of the HOS summit; they expressed concern on the volatile relations between Ethiopia and Eritrea, Djibouti, Chad, Sudan, Burundi, Comoros, DR Congo, Somalia, and Darfur. The leaders were also unanimous in their support of Sudanese president Omar Bashir who has been indicted by the International Criminal Court for his alleged role in crimes against humanity that are being committed in Darfur.
The report states the principle of universal jurisdiction was abused by the ICC in indicting Bashir, they noted that arrest of that nature are of a “political nature and abuse the principle of universal jurisdiction by judges from some non-African states against African leaders, particularly Rwanda, is a clear violation of their sovereignty and territorial integrity.”
It further noted that the abuse and misuse of indictments against African leaders have destabilizing effects that will negatively impact on political, social and economic development of member states and their ability to conduct international relations.
Rachel Shebesh (Kenya) called upon developed countries that committed themselves pledged to partner African countries in achieving the MDGs to honour their pledges because so far the race to achieve the goals was not serious as African countries lacked the promised support.
In a related development African leaders will hold a summit on Sunday in the latest effort to break the political deadlock in Zimbabwe. Leaders from the Southern African Development Community (Sadc) are due to meet in South Africa; they will also discuss recent fighting in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
BY GEORGE KAGAME
Johannesburg
Representatives to the 10th session of the Pan African Parliament have welcomed the resolutions passed at the AU Heads of State summit held in earlier in year in the Egyptian resort city of Sharm El Shiekh.
Presenting the AU heads of state report to the PAP, Dr. Mohamed Farhat said the heads of state expressed concern at the political fragility in Zimbabwe caused by the outbreak of violence after parliamentary and presidential elections held in March. The report expresses “deep concern at the prevailing situation and the implications for political stability as well as its humanitarian consequence; deplores the violence and the loss of life that has occurred in Zimbabwe.”
The report states that the AU leaders discussed a wide range of issues that are currently affecting the continent especially the theme of the meeting which was water and sanitation. The leaders committed themselves increasing the number of people with access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation in Africa.
Sunil Dawarkasing (Mauritius) emphasized this was very crucial as access to safe water was a major target of the Millennium Development goals and if it was achieved a lot of funds would be saved which are currently use in the treatment of preventable diseased caused by drinking poor quality water.
Concerning the increasing food prices on the continent, the report highlighted that African countries have been hardest hit by higher food prices and set back the progress registered in the fight against poverty and hunger and undermined achieving the MDGs.
The summit however was not very clear on the progress towards forming a union government that brings together politically the continent of Africa. The leaders tasked the AU commission to prepare recommendations to be discussed by the January 2009 summit; they also adopted the implementation of the regional and continental integration agenda.
Peace and security in Africa also featured high on the agenda of the HOS summit; they expressed concern on the volatile relations between Ethiopia and Eritrea, Djibouti, Chad, Sudan, Burundi, Comoros, DR Congo, Somalia, and Darfur. The leaders were also unanimous in their support of Sudanese president Omar Bashir who has been indicted by the International Criminal Court for his alleged role in crimes against humanity that are being committed in Darfur.
The report states the principle of universal jurisdiction was abused by the ICC in indicting Bashir, they noted that arrest of that nature are of a “political nature and abuse the principle of universal jurisdiction by judges from some non-African states against African leaders, particularly Rwanda, is a clear violation of their sovereignty and territorial integrity.”
It further noted that the abuse and misuse of indictments against African leaders have destabilizing effects that will negatively impact on political, social and economic development of member states and their ability to conduct international relations.
Rachel Shebesh (Kenya) called upon developed countries that committed themselves pledged to partner African countries in achieving the MDGs to honour their pledges because so far the race to achieve the goals was not serious as African countries lacked the promised support.
In a related development African leaders will hold a summit on Sunday in the latest effort to break the political deadlock in Zimbabwe. Leaders from the Southern African Development Community (Sadc) are due to meet in South Africa; they will also discuss recent fighting in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
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