<p>Last week, South Africa hosted  Brahim Ghali, President of the Saharawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR), on a working visit to the country. Before the visit, South Africa’s Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Maite Nkoana-Mashabane published <a href="https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2017-01-04-op-ed-independence-of-western-sahara-is-an-inalienable-right">an op-ed in the Daily Maverick</a>, in which she reaffirmed “South Africa’s unwavering commitment towards the right to self-determination of the Saharawi people” and its “solidarity with the Polisario Front liberation movement.”</p>
<p>“The final status of the state of Western Sahara will only be settled,” she writes, “when a [United Nations] UN-supervised referendum is held in which the country’s inhabitants must exercise their legitimate right to self-determination” and adds that “South Africa remains confident that a date for holding of a referendum on the self-determination of the people of Western Sahara, will be realised.”</p>
<p>Although the title of the op-ed is Independence of Western Sahara is an inalienable right, the word ‘independence’ is actually avoided throughout, and Ms Nkoana-Mashabane uses the term ‘self-determination’ instead. This is important.</p>
<p>The relevance of the timing of Mr Ghali’s visit to South Africa is that the African Union (AU) is preparing to elect the chair of the AU Commission to replace Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma who is likely to contest the presidency of the African National Congress (ANC) in South Africa.</p>
<p>An election to choose the Commission chair was supposed to take place in July 2016, but then the strategic abstention of a group of West African countries forced a re-run, scheduled for January, which allowed for the nomination of two new candidates: Kenya’s Foreign Affairs Cabinet Secretary Amina Mohamed and Senegal’s Abdoulaye Bathily, a career diplomat.</p>
<p>The other candidates are Pelonomi Venson Moitoi from Botswana, Agapito Mba Mokuy from Equatorial Guinea and Moussa Faki Mahamat from Chad.</p>
<p>We are fairly sure the first race will be between Ms Mohammed and Mr Bathily, but the chair must be elected with a two-thirds majority, and this will complicate matters. The election is expected on the final day of the ordinary session of the AU Assembly in Addis Ababa on January 31.</p>
<p>The relevance of the Western Sahara question is that Morocco has, in the past year, been working more forcefully than before to rejoin the AU. It quit the AU’s predecessor body, the Organisation for African Unity (OAU), in 1984 when the SADR was admitted as a member.</p>
<p>In July it sent a delegation to the AU’s annual summit being held in Kigali, which successfully lobbied the West Africans to withdraw from the AU Commission chair election so that Mr Bathily’s name could be put forward. In the latter half of the year King Mohamed VI travelled across Africa and visited a few countries that still recognise the SADR, including Rwanda, Nigeria and Ethiopia. The latter two, along with Algeria and South Africa, are the main supporters of the SADR in the AU.</p>
<p>Wherever he travelled, King Mohamed managed to seal major business deals with the aim of swaying governments towards support of the Moroccan position on the Western Sahara: some form of autonomy but with no consideration of outright independence as a possibility.</p>
<p>It seems, thus, as if the AU Commission chair election will have much, if not mostly, to do with the question of Morocco’s readmission and what that means for the SADR’s seat. Mr Bathily has the strong support of Senegal’s President Macky Sall and the francophone West African bloc; Ms Mohamed, who visited the Sahrawi refugee camps in Tindouf (Algeria) last year, seems set to be the champion of those supporting Polisario (essentially the Angolphone and Lusophone countries plus Algeria and Mali).</p>
<p>By our count, since Zambia withdrew its recognition of the SADR in July 2016, 25 AU member states recognise the SADR and 29 do not, giving the advantage to those defending the Moroccan position. Of the latter, 28 wrote a letter in July requesting the SADR’s suspension. </p>
<p>Given the importance of the Moroccan issue, we expect it to dominate thinking and lobbying at the Addis Ababa summit in January, and for a messy diplomatic negotiation to ensue. Because the AU Commission chair must be elected with a two-thirds majority, even if Mr Bathily gets the votes of the 29 countries who do not recognise the SADR, he can still be blocked by those who do.</p>
<p>Either Moroccan lobbying will win seven more votes for Mr Bathily, or else a compromise will be found and one of the ‘other’ three candidates will eventually be elected. If Mr Bathily gets the job, this will pave the way for Morocco’s return and for greater support on the continent for the Moroccan position: some degree of internal autonomy but with Rabat still in firm charge of borders and security and Moroccan companies dominating the economic landscape.</p>
<p>Ms Nkoana-Mashabane’s use of “self-determination” rather than “independence” in her letter makes us think that previously firm Polisario backers, like South Africa and Ethiopia, might start to press Mr Ghali to accept something less than independence in exchange for a position in government, rather than dying in exile like his late predecessor Mohamed Abdelaziz. Under Mr Bathily the AU can be expected to be less supportive of the SADR position, notably in its relations with the UN.</p>
<p>This is a positive development. Independence for the Western Sahara made sense in 1975, when Morocco re-established rule over the territory after the Spanish withdrew, and might have made sense in 1991 when a ceasefire ended the war between the Moroccans and Polisario, but would, in our view, be regionally destabilising were it to happen now. And there is no chance that it will – the territory is too important for Morocco on too many levels which is why it has stubbornly ignored the UN resolution on the referendum for the past 25 years.</p>
<p>Unlike Ms Nkoana-Mashabane, we do not think the referendum will ever happen.</p>
<p>If Morocco returns to the AU, that would be positive. There is a degree of security risk, in that young Sahrawis who feel betrayed and hopeless by such developments may tend to turn towards terrorism – a danger that Ms Nkoana-Mashabane noted in her letter. ﻿</p>
<p> </p>
<p><em>* The 28th Ordinary Session of the Summit of the African Union will take place at Addis Ababa, Ethiopia from 22-31 January 2017﻿.</em></p>


Op-Ed: Morocco, the SADR and the AU Commission chair

<p>Ivory Coast President Alassane Ouattara dismissed the heads of the army, police and gendarmes on Monday after a two-day military mutiny that spread unrest across the West African nation, according to a presidency statement.</p>
<p>Prime Minister Daniel Kablan Duncan also resigned and dissolved the government, a move that had been expected after elections last month but which was delayed two days by the weekend uprising.</p>
<p>Disgruntled soldiers demanding the payment of bonuses and wage increases began their revolt on Friday, seizing control of Bouake, the second largest city, before troops in military camps in cities and towns across the country joined the mutiny.</p>
<div class="teads-inread">
<div>
<div class="teads-player" id="teads1"></div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="teads-inread">
<div>
<div class="teads-player" id="teads0"></div>
</div>
</div>
<p>Army chief General Soumaila Bakayoko &#8211; the former military head of a 2002-2011 rebellion, who has become increasingly unpopular with many troops &#8211; was replaced by his second in command, General Sekou Toure, the presidency statement said.</p>
<p>Gervais Kouakou Kouassi, superior commander of the National Gendarmerie, and Director General of the National Police Bredou M&#8217;Bia were also replaced by their deputies with immediate effect, according to the statement, read on national television.</p>
<p>The uprising of mainly former rebels now integrated into the army was the second such army mutiny in less than three years.</p>
<p>As happened in the first uprising, the government conceded to the low-ranking soldiers&#8217; demands and agreed to pay bonuses likely to cost state coffers tens of millions of dollars.</p>
<p>Defence Minister Alain-Richard Donwahi was briefly trapped inside the house in Bouake where negotiations took place on Saturday after some mutineers opened fire outside, having initially rejected the timetable for bonus payments.</p>
<p>&#8220;I assure you that the president of the republic understands you. He is a man of his word,&#8221; Donwahi said on Monday in a televised address aimed at the disgruntled soldiers.</p>
<p>He said he planned to return to Bouake on Friday to meet again with the mutinous troops.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>UNSTABLE MILITARY PUTS ECONOMIC RECOVERY AT RISK</p>
<p>Years of conflict and a failure to reform the army, cobbled together from rival rebel groups and government soldiers, have left it hobbled by divisions.</p>
<p>Ivory Coast, French-speaking West Africa&#8217;s largest economy and world&#8217;s biggest cocoa producer, emerged from a 2002-2011 political crisis as one of the continent&#8217;s rising economic stars. But Ouattara&#8217;s failure to rein in an ill-disciplined, factionalised army could threaten that recovery.</p>
<p>Duncan, the outgoing premier, had been expected to stand down on Saturday but held off after the army mutiny erupted.</p>
<p>&#8220;I have tendered my resignation and that of the government,&#8221; he said after a meeting with Ouattara.</p>
<p>The president retained his majority in the Dec. 18 parliamentary vote. However, Ivorian legislative elections are usually followed by a change of government as a matter of procedure.</p>
<p>Ouattara was expected to name a new prime minister in the coming days.</p>
<p>Earlier, Guillaume Soro was re-elected as president of the National Assembly with 95 percent of the votes cast by deputies.</p>
<p>Soro led a rebellion that controlled the northern half of the country for nearly a decade starting in 2002. He later served as prime minister between 2007 and 2012.</p>
<p>The government&#8217;s dissolution paves the way for the implementation of measures contained in a new constitution.</p>
<p>Ouattara signed the new charter, which had been approved by referendum, into law in November, casting it as the way to ensure peace is maintained in Ivory Coast. [nL8N1D975N]</p>
<p>It modifies clauses in the old constitution that lay behind the conflict, especially concerning nationality requirements for presidential candidates.﻿</p>
<p> </p>


Ivory Coast's president dismisses heads of army, police & gendarmes

<p>Ivory Coast Prime Minister Daniel Kablan Duncan resigned and dissolved the government on Monday, a move that had been expected following elections last month but which was delayed two days by an<a href="/news/western-africa/2017/01/07/c%C3%B4te-divoire-mutiny/"> army mutiny</a>.</p>
<p>Duncan had been expected to stand down on Saturday, but held off after dissident soldiers took over army bases in cities across the West African country on Friday demanding bonus payments.</p>
<p>It took 48 hours to reach the deal to quell the revolt in an army that is made up of government troops and former rebels and riven with divisions.</p>
<div class="teads-inread">
<div>
<div class="teads-player"><strong>READ: </strong><a href="/news/western-africa/2017/01/06/ex-soldiers-seize-control-of-ivory-coasts-second-city/">Ex-soldiers seize control of Cote d&#8217;Ivoire&#8217;s second city﻿</a></p>
<p>&#8220;I have tendered my resignation and that of the government,&#8221; he said after a meeting with President Alassane Ouattara.</p>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<p>Ouattara kept hold of his majority in the Dec. 18 parliamentary polls. But legislative elections are usually followed by a change of government as a matter of procedure.</p>
<p>The resignations pave the way for the implementation of measures contained in a new constitution.</p>
<p>Ivory Coast is French-speaking West Africa&#8217;s largest and most prosperous economy, as well as the world&#8217;s leading grower of cocoa. In 2011 it emerged from a spate of short wars and a protracted crisis lasting nearly a decade to retake its place as the economic engine of the region.</p>
<p>Ouattara signed a new constitution that had been approved by referendum into law in November, casting it as the way to ensure peace is maintained in Ivory Coast.</p>
<p>It modifies clauses in the old constitution that lay behind the conflict, especially concerning nationality requirements for presidential candidates.</p>
<p>Though largely resolved, the aftermath of the conflict has left the government hostage to an ill-disciplined and factionalized military, and Ouattara&#8217;s inability to reign it in threatens to undermine its economic success.</p>
<p>(Reporting by Loucoumane Coulibaly; Writing by Tim Cocks; Editing by Joe Bavier and Richard Lough)﻿</p>
<p> </p>


Ivory Coast PM resigns and dissolves government

<p>Five Nigerian soldiers and more than 15 Boko Haram fighters were killed when the jihadists attacked an army base in the remote northeast where the group has been fighting for an Islamic state, a military source said on Sunday.</p>
<p>Boko Haram attacked an army brigade in Buni Yadi in Yobe state late on Saturday, an army spokesman said by text message, without giving a casualty figure.</p>
<p>&#8220;Five soldiers lost their life in the attack though more than 15 Boko Haram were killed by troops,&#8221; the military source said.</p>
<p>Several explosions could be heard on Sunday in Maiduguri, capital of Borno state where Boko Haram started its seven-year insurgency that has killed about 15,000 people and displaced more than 2 million.</p>
<div class="teads-inread">
<div>
<div class="teads-player" id="teads11"></div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="teads-inread">
<div>
<div class="teads-player" id="teads10"></div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="teads-inread">
<div>
<div class="teads-player" id="teads9"></div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="teads-inread">
<div>
<div class="teads-player" id="teads8"></div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="teads-inread">
<div>
<div class="teads-player" id="teads7"></div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="teads-inread">
<div>
<div class="teads-player" id="teads6"></div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="teads-inread">
<div>
<div class="teads-player" id="teads5"></div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="teads-inread">
<div>
<div class="teads-player" id="teads4"></div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="teads-inread">
<div>
<div class="teads-player" id="teads3"></div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="teads-inread">
<div>
<div class="teads-player" id="teads2"></div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="teads-inread">
<div>
<div class="teads-player" id="teads1"></div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="teads-inread">
<div>
<div class="teads-player" id="teads0"></div>
</div>
</div>
<p>Officials or medics were not immediately available to give a casualty figure.</p>
<p>In early 2015, Boko Haram controlled an area about the size of Belgium. It has been pushed out of most of that territory over the past year by Nigeria&#8217;s army and troops from neighboring countries, moving to a base in the Sambisa forest.</p>
<p>Last month, the army said it had taken Boko Haram&#8217;s key camp in the forest, although the group has staged suicide bombings since then.</p>
<p>Security analysts say the group&#8217;s ability to carry out attacks in neighboring Niger, Cameroon and Chad suggests it has multiple bases.﻿</p>
<p> </p>


Boko Haram attacks Nigerian army base

<p>The streets of Ivory Coast&#8217;s second-largest city Bouake were calm and the military presence was gone, residents said on Sunday, after a two-day soldiers&#8217; mutiny took over the city before spreading across the country.</p>
<p>The mutiny began early on Friday when rogue soldiers demanding bonus pay seized Bouake. Soldiers at military camps in cities and towns across Ivory Coast, including the commercial capital Abidjan, joined the rebellion.</p>
<p>A deal was reached between the government and the soldiers late on Saturday. A mutineer close to the negotiations said soldiers had returned to barracks.</p>
<div class="teads-inread">
<div>
<div class="teads-player" id="teads1"></div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="teads-inread">
<div>
<div class="teads-player" id="teads0"></div>
</div>
</div>
<p>&#8220;We have cleared the corridors everywhere as promised and we have been in barracks since last night,&#8221; Sergeant Mamadou Kone told Reuters. &#8220;All over the country all our men have returned to barracks and wait for their money. The mutiny is over for us.&#8221;</p>
<p>He said the soldiers expect to be paid on Monday under the deal brokered by Defence Minister Alain-Richard Donwahi, raising pressure on a government that faces further unrest if demands are not met. In a sign of tensions, renegade troops on Saturday opened fire outside the house in Bouake where the negotiations took place, temporarily trapping Donwahi, witnesses said.</p>
<p>The terms of the final deal were not made public, but sources said that the soldiers demanded 5 million CFA francs ($8,000) each, which for more than 8,000 soldiers could cost tens of billions of CFA francs.</p>
<p>Ivory Coast &#8211; which has French-speaking West Africa&#8217;s largest economy &#8211; has emerged from a 2002-2011 political crisis as one of the continent&#8217;s rising economic stars.</p>
<p>But years of conflict and a failure to reform its army, made up of former rebel fighters and government soldiers, have left it hobbled by division.</p>
<p>The revolt comes two years after a near identical uprising which ended when the government offered mutineers amnesty from punishment and a financial settlement. A repeat of the solution raises the risk soldiers will be encouraged to do it again.</p>
<p>Traffic in Bouake, snarled since Friday by roadblocks and barricades, was clear on Sunday, residents said. The gunfire of recent days had stopped.</p>
<p>Other cities were also calm, residents said, including Abidjan, where a day earlier loyalist troops were deployed at strategic locations and residents rushed to buy bottled water and other provisions.</p>
<p>There was no military on the streets on Sunday. People were seen walking to church, shops were open and traffic moved as normal, a Reuters reporter said.</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>($1 = 622.7500 CFA francs)﻿</p>
<p> </p>


Calm in the streets of Ivory Coast after soldier mutiny

<div>
<p>BOUAKE, Ivory Coast Jan 7 (Reuters) &#8211; A delegation led by Ivory Coast&#8217;s Defence Minister Alain-Richard Donwahi reached an agreement on Saturday with mutinying soldiers to end a two-day revolt that has spread unrest across the West African nation, said a local official involved in the talks.</p>
<p>&#8220;We have a deal. There&#8217;s white smoke,&#8221; said Djande Lorgn, the sub-prefect in the city of Bouake where the talks took place. &#8220;This accord ends the mutiny.&#8221;</p>
<p>Earlier in the day mutinying soldiers entered Ivory Coast&#8217;s military headquarters and fired into the air inside the compound housing the defence ministry, a diplomatic source said.</p>
<div class="teads-inread">
<div class="teads-player">
<p>The uprising began early on Friday when disgruntled soldiers &#8211; mainly former rebel fighters &#8211; demanding wage increases and bonuses seized Bouake, the second-largest city, then spread to at least four other cities and towns later in the day.</p>
<p><strong>READ:</strong> <a href="/news/western-africa/2017/01/06/ex-soldiers-seize-control-of-ivory-coasts-second-city/">Ex-soldiers seize control of Cote d&#8217;Ivoire&#8217;s second city﻿</a> </p>
<p>Residents and soldiers reported shooting in Man, Toulepleu, Bondoukou and Abidjan, a city of nearly 5 million residents where the president, administration and parliament are based.</p>
<p>&#8220;There&#8217;s a lot of shooting in the air inside the ministry of defence,&#8221; said the diplomatic source who saw and spoke to the mutineers. &#8220;It&#8217;s in the hands of the bad guys.&#8221;</p>
<p>Rogue soldiers had also erected makeshift barricades around the nearby military headquarters, the source said.</p>
<p>President Alassane Ouattara was visiting neighbouring Ghana for the swearing-in of its new president, after which he returned to Abidjan in the afternoon for a special cabinet meeting.</p>
<p>Saturday saw the revolt rapidly gain momentum as angry soldiers took to the streets in town after town, often firing their guns in the air and warning residents to return home.</p>
<p>Defence Minister Alain-Richard Donwahi travelled to Bouake on Saturday in an attempt to negotiate with the mutiny&#8217;s leaders and quell the uprising.</p>
<p>&#8220;I came, as promised, to meet with our brothers. I am there to reassure them, as the president asked me to,&#8221; Donwahi said before meeting with leaders of the revolt. &#8220;We are going to listen and find a solution.&#8221;</p>
<p>Ivory Coast &#8211; French-speaking West Africa&#8217;s largest economy &#8211; has emerged from a 2002-11 political crisis as one of the continent&#8217;s rising economic stars.</p>
<p>However, years of conflict and a failure to reform its army, thrown together from a patchwork of former rebel fighters and government soldiers, have left it with an unruly force hobbled by internal divisions.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>STANDOFF</p>
<p>Heavy gunfire was heard during the night in the northern city of Korhogo and early on Saturday in Bouake.</p>
<p>The revolt then spread to the Akouedo military base located in a residential section of Abidjan, where gunfire was confirmed by a soldier inside the camp and a local resident.</p>
<p>Another diplomatic source said armed dissident soldiers &#8211; some of whom blackened their faces with ashes or wore scarves around their heads &#8211; blocked a main road near the camp and threatened people in passing cars.</p>
<p>Loyalist troops sought to reinforce security in Abidjan. A Reuters reporter saw elite Republican Guard soldiers deployed on two of the three bridges spanning the lagoon that divides the city&#8217;s northern and southern halves.</p>
<p>Members of a special police and military security unit were positioned near the third bridge, the first diplomat said.</p>
<p>Abidjan residents, meanwhile, rushed to supermarkets to buy bottled water and other provisions, fearing violence could eventually paralyse the city.</p>
<p>A Reuters reporter in Bouake, who met some of the mutineers, said they were composed of low-ranking soldiers but also included some demobilised combatants.</p>
<p>Nearly all appeared to be former members of the New Forces rebellion, which had used Bouake as its de facto capital and controlled the northern half of Ivory Coast from 2002 until the country was reunited following a 2011 civil war.</p>
<p>Defence Minister Donwahi arrived in Bouake in the early afternoon accompanied by Lieutenant-Colonel Issiaka Ouattara, known as Wattao, a former rebel leader who is now the deputy commander of the Republican Guard.</p>
<p>Troop reinforcements were sent towards Bouake on Friday after word of the revolt reached the army headquarters in Abidjan, creating a standoff with renegade soldiers holding positions at the entrance to the city.</p>
<p>Soldiers from the country&#8217;s U.N. peacekeeping mission were also blocked on the outskirts of Bouake on Saturday after mutineers refused to let them enter.</p>
<p>During a similar uprising in 2014, when hundreds of soldiers barricaded roads in cities across Ivory Coast demanding back pay, the government agreed a financial settlement.</p>
<p>(Additional reporting by Loucoumane Coulibaly; Additional reporting and writing by Joe Bavier; Editing by Dale Hudson and Stephen Powell)﻿</p>
</div>
</div>
<div class="teads-inread">
<div>
<div class="teads-player">© Thomson Reuters 2017 All rights reserved﻿</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<p> </p>


Côte d'Ivoire government reaches deal to end army mutiny as uprising spreads

<div>
<p>LONDON (Reuters) &#8211; A court in London will decide in coming weeks whether Royal Dutch Shell can face trial in the UK over oil spill allegations in Nigeria, a decision some legal experts predict could attract more cases against multinationals in Britain.</p>
<p>The High Court will judge whether members from two communities, Bille and Ogale in Nigeria&#8217;s oil-rich Delta region, can sue the Anglo-Dutch company in British courts.</p>
<p>The communities say Nigerian courts are unfit to hear the case against Shell subsidiary Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria (SPDC). Shell says the case should be heard in Nigeria because the matter is “uniquely a Nigerian problem”.</p>
<div class="teads-inread">
<div>
<div class="teads-player"></div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="teads-inread">
<div>
<div class="teads-player"></div>
</div>
</div>
<p>Shell also denies responsibility for the spills, which it says were due to sabotage and illegal refining.</p>
<p>If the High Court rules in favour of the communities, some legal experts say other claimants against British-based multinationals would be emboldened to pursue legal action through the British courts.</p>
<p>Some legal experts also warned that a victory by the communities could encourage unscrupulous residents to let oil spills worsen at remote sites by denying clean-up access, as payouts are often linked to the scale of the damage.</p>
<p>&#8220;This case brings home the message that multinationals may increasingly face claims in the English courts arising from disputes which have little or no connection to England,&#8221; said Tom Cummins, a partner at law firm Ashurst.</p>
<p>The Bille and Ogale groups launched their claim just months after Shell agreed a 55 million pound ($68 million) settlement in 2015 with another Nigerian group, the Bodo community.</p>
<p>That case covered two pipeline leaks in 2008, which Shell accepted were its fault due to corrosion, and marked the largest ever out-of-court settlement relating to Nigerian oil spills. Law firm Leigh Day, which is representing the Bille and Ogale communities and also brought the Bodo case in London against Shell, says Nigeria&#8217;s court system is not robust enough to give a fair ruling in reasonable time.</p>
<p>Leigh Day, which is licensed only to practise in Britain, has also raised concerns over whether companies will conduct clean-up operations properly without international pressure.</p>
<p>&#8220;You&#8217;ve got a dual problem: the systemic ineffectiveness of the courts and the fact that people (in local communities) just can&#8217;t get the evidence together or even representation to take on these companies,&#8221; Daniel Leader, partner at Leigh Day, told Reuters.</p>
<p>For its part, the Nigerian government’s National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency defended the effectiveness of the Nigerian court system, saying it had successfully sanctioned and sued several companies locally, including SPDC.</p>
<p>Shell said it settled the Bodo case in part because it admitted responsibility for the spill, but never agreed that the case should be tried in London.</p>
<p>It said it would fight to stem a potential landslide of cases from groups whose lands Shell says were spoiled by sabotage, oil theft and illegal refining that are endemic across the Delta.</p>
<p>&#8220;We fully intend to have this (jurisdictional issue) decided by a trial judge, to determine the issue once and for all,&#8221; said Gaurav Sharma, senior legal counsel for Shell&#8217;s global litigation team.</p>
<p>Shell said 92 percent of all oil spilled from SPDC facilities in 2009-13 was a result of theft, sabotage or illegal refining.</p>
<p>In part due to such attacks, the oil major is divesting pipelines and other onshore assets after more than 50 years of operations in Nigeria.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>FEW GOOD SOLUTIONS The Bodo case was hailed by some as a victory for communities, but more than eight years after the spill, the clean-up has not yet begun.</p>
<p>Shell paid the agreed damages, but said the community denied it access in August 2015 when work was set to begin – asking instead for cash to do it themselves.</p>
<p>Barisi Kkabe, a Bodo youth leader, told Reuters the community was unhappy with the contractor picked by Shell, and &#8220;out of fear that (the clean-up fund) may be misappropriated, decided that &#8230; they should share it among the people&#8221;.</p>
<p>An SPDC spokesman said the company was unable to meet the Bodo community’s request to distribute clean-up work to local contractors because it was “not procedurally correct”.</p>
<p>A United Nations Environmental Programme report into oil pollution in Nigeria’s Ogoniland said communities should avoid protracted negotiations over access to spill sites as delays result in far greater environmental damage.</p>
<p>&#8220;Communities deserve compensation for damages when it&#8217;s Shell&#8217;s fault,&#8221; said Aaron Sayne of the Natural Resource Governance Institute, a non-profit group that advises nations on how to manage oil, gas and mineral resources without financial links to the oil industry.</p>
<p>&#8220;But I don&#8217;t think it&#8217;s going to be easy for a foreign court to get its head around how complicated it is.&#8221;</p>
<p> </p>
<p>(Additional reporting by Anamesere Igboeroteonwu in Onitsha, Nigeria; Editing by Dale Hudson)</p>
<div class="linebreak"></div>
</div>
<p class="copyright">© Thomson Reuters 2017 All rights reserved﻿</p>
<p> </p>


Shell battles Nigerian communities in high-stakes London lawsuit

<div>
<p>(Reuters) &#8211; Germany was sued for damages in the United States on Thursday by descendants of the Herero and Nama people of Namibia, for what they called a genocide campaign by German colonial troops in the early 1900s that led to more than 100,000 deaths.</p>
<div class="teads-inread">
<div>
<div class="teads-player"></div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="teads-inread">
<div>
<div class="teads-player"></div>
</div>
</div>
<p>According to a complaint filed with the U.S. District Court in Manhattan, Germany has excluded the plaintiffs from talks with Namibia regarding what occurred, and has publicly said any settlement will not include reparations to victims, even if compensation is awarded to Namibia itself.</p>
<p>&#8220;There is no assurance that any of the proposed foreign aid by Germany will actually reach or assist the minority indigenous communities that were directly harmed,&#8221; the plaintiffs&#8217; lawyer Ken McCallion said in an email. &#8220;There can be no negotiations or settlement about them that is made without them.&#8221;</p>
<p>The proposed class-action lawsuit seeks unspecified sums for thousands of descendants of the victims, for the &#8220;incalculable damages&#8221; that were caused.</p>
<p>U.S. representatives of the German government did not immediately respond to requests for comment.</p>
<p>The slaughter took place from roughly 1904 to 1908, when Namibia was a German colony known as South-West Africa, after the Herero and Nama groups rebelled against German rule.</p>
<p>According to many published reports, victims were also subjected to harsh conditions in concentration camps, and some had their skulls sent to Germany for scientific experiments.</p>
<p>Some historians view what occurred as the 20th century&#8217;s first genocide, and a 1985 United Nations report said the &#8220;massacre&#8221; of Hereros qualified as a genocide.</p>
<p>Germany has paid victims of the Holocaust, which occurred during World War Two.</p>
<p>The plaintiffs on Thursday sued under the Alien Tort Statute, a 1789 U.S. law often invoked in human rights cases.</p>
<p>The U.S. Supreme Court narrowed the law&#8217;s reach in a 2013 decision, Kiobel v. Royal Dutch Petroleum Co, saying it was presumed not to cover foreign conduct unless the claims sufficiently &#8220;touch and concern&#8221; the United States.</p>
<p>McCallion said Kiobel and later rulings &#8220;leave the door open&#8221; for U.S. courts to assert jurisdiction in genocide cases.</p>
<p>The plaintiffs, including some from New York, also brought federal common law and New York state law claims.</p>
<div class="linebreak"></div>
</div>
<p class="copyright">© Thomson Reuters 2017 All rights reserved﻿</p>
<p> </p>


Nambians seek restitution from Germany over early-1900s slaughter

<p>A Catholic Relief Services (CRS) survey of more than 1,500 Liberians reveals deep-seated fears of renewed violence as the country prepares for historic presidential elections in October. </p>
<p>The <a href="http://www.crs.org/our-work-overseas/research-publications/state-peace-reconciliation-and-conflict-liberia" target="_blank">nationally representative study</a>, conducted from March to May 2016 in each of Liberia’s 15 counties, applied both quantitative and qualitative methods. It’s one of the first studies to reveal how Liberians perceive the state of peace, reconciliation, and conflict since the country&#8217;s devastating 14-year civil war that ended in 2003.</p>
<p>“Liberians are telling the world that the causes of the long civil wars are still there and they have genuine fears of their country returning to violence,” said Jennifer Overton, Regional Director for CRS in West Africa. “We now have some very specific key indicators for potential risks of conflict. But we have to address them now.”</p>
<p>Among the key findings, the study found that the wounds inflicted by the wars have not fully healed. Respondents cited three key factors that could lead to renewed violence: systemic corruption in the public sector, disputes over land ownership and high rates of youth unemployment.</p>
<p>“This <a href="http://www.crs.org/our-work-overseas/research-publications/state-peace-reconciliation-and-conflict-liberia" target="_blank">report</a> is an inventory of issues that require urgent and serious attention,” said Pilate Johnson, Acting Director for the ‎Catholic Justice and Peace Commission in Liberia.</p>
<p>“We all have a responsibility to act,” he said. “Both the Liberian government and the international community cannot afford to be complacent about peace in Liberia. This study makes that very clear.”</p>
<p>Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, Liberia’s incumbent president and Africa’s first elected female head of state, is stepping down from the presidency of the country founded by freed slaves from the United States in 1847.  Her departure would mark the first peaceful democratic transfer of power since the 1970s. But it comes as the UN’s peacekeeping force, UNMIL, will have significantly pulled out from Liberia, increasing the possibility of a return to fighting.</p>
<h2>KEY FINDINGS:</h2>
<p> </p>
<ul>
<li>Fragile peace: Respondents were evenly split on whether Liberia is at risk of once again descending into large-scale violent conflict (50.6% for “high to very high risk” and 43.7% for “no to low risk”).</li>
<li>Reconciliation: More than 80% of respondents felt that people who suffered grave injury during the war did not receive justice through the national Truth and Reconciliation Commission. Half of respondents (49.7%) believed that post-war reconciliation failed to achieve its objectives.</li>
<li>Key actors: Political leaders (71.8%) and unemployed youth (58.2%) topped the list of those who could instigate violence.</li>
<li>Flashpoints: Nimba, Grand Gedeh, and Montserrado were cited as the counties most likely to spark conflict, due to both historical and current factors. Inhabitants of Rivercess (79.3%), Nimba (74.9%); Grand Kru (74.4%); and Grand Cape Mount (74.2%) assessed the risk as highest, while respondents in River Gee were the most optimistic.</li>
</ul>
<p>CRS and the Catholic Church, which have been active in Liberia’s post-war healing and reconciliation processes, will use these findings to guide its continued work toward inclusive development and sustainable peace.</p>
<p>In the time leading up to November 2017 elections, new programs will be promoting voter education and registration, and supporting vulnerable groups such as women and youth to participate in electoral and political processes.</p>
<p>Simultaneously, CRS and the Church will be sharing the findings of this study at county and district levels in Liberia through faith-based networks and will engage with other interested civil society partners and government to share the results more broadly.</p>
<p>“For peace to thrive, we also need to build a better future for young people in Liberia,” said Overton. “They need to heal and advance their livelihoods through job training, education, and leadership development.”</p>
<p>A summary of the study can be downloaded here.</p>
<p>Please contact <a href="http://www.crs.org/media-contacts/tom-price" target="_blank">Tom Price</a> for experts who can provide commentary on <a href="http://www.crs.org/our-work-overseas/research-publications/state-peace-reconciliation-and-conflict-liberia" target="_blank">the study</a>.</p>
<p>Click <a href="http://www.crs.org/media-center/current-issues/liberia-fragile-peace" target="_blank">here to read</a> more information on the current situation in Liberia.</p>
<p>###</p>
<p><em>Catholic Relief Services is the official international humanitarian agency of the Catholic community in the United States. The agency alleviates suffering and provides assistance to people in need in more than 100 countries, without regard to race, religion or nationality. CRS’ relief and development work is accomplished through programs of emergency response, HIV, health, agriculture, education, microfinance and peacebuilding. For more information, please visit <a href="http://crs.org/">crs.org</a> or <a href="http://www.crsespanol.org/">crsespanol.org</a> and follow CRS on social media: <a href="https://www.facebook.com/CatholicReliefServices">Facebook</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/CatholicRelief">@CatholicRelief</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/CRSnews">@CRSnews</a>, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/catholicrelief">YouTube</a>, <a href="https://instagram.com/catholicreliefservices/">Instagram</a> and <a href="https://www.pinterest.com/catholicrelief/">Pinterest</a>.﻿</em></p>
<p> </p>


Study reveals deep concerns for peace in Liberia ahead of elections

<div>
<p>LONDON (Reuters) &#8211; Nigeria&#8217;s sovereign wealth fund is setting up a company in partnership with London-based local currency guarantee firm GuarantCo to enable pension funds to invest in Nigerian infrastructure bonds, its chief executive said on Thursday.</p>
<p>The new business will be launched in a few weeks&#8217; time and aims to overcome some of the challenges facing the financing of infrastructure projects in Africa&#8217;s most populous nation.</p>
<p>&#8220;The company will provide enhancements for infrastructure bonds, and we believe this will make an effective platform for Nigerian pension funds to invest in them,&#8221; said Uche Orji, chief executive of the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA), which has some $1.25 billion under management.</p>
<div class="teads-inread">
<div>
<div class="teads-player"></div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="teads-inread">
<div>
<div class="teads-player"></div>
</div>
</div>
<p>GuarantCo facilitates infrastructure development in low income countries by providing credit guarantees denominated in local currency to financial institutions and bond investors. It is funded by Britain, Switzerland, Sweden, the Netherlands and Australia, and specialises in frontier market infrastructure.</p>
<p>Poor infrastructure and access to capital is a major bottleneck to growth in Nigeria, and the government has identified infrastructure investment as a major priority.</p>
<p>Unlocking fresh sources of capital will help, with Nigeria&#8217;s pension fund assets at $26.4 billion at December 2015, according to data from Nigeria&#8217;s National Pension Commission.</p>
<p>Orji said that currently, when municipalities want to issue bonds to fund infrastructure projects, most pension funds won&#8217;t buy them because the credit rating of the issuer isn&#8217;t strong enough.</p>
<p>The new venture will provide a form of monoline insurance, giving a guarantee and allowing pension funds and insurance companies to invest. &#8220;The NSIA cannot give guarantees by itself, so we have created a company that can do this,&#8221; he explained.</p>
<p>The tie-up is the latest in a series of partnerships for the NSIA. In August it announced agreements with Old Mutual Investment Group and UFF Agri-Fund to establish two funds to invest in real estate and agriculture respectively.</p>
<p>Orji said these could make their first investments in the first quarter of 2017.</p>
<p>The Agri-Fund aims to improve Nigeria&#8217;s food security and is seeking investments in farms, storage and irrigation infrastructure for everything from arable crops to dairy farming and fish farming.</p>
<p>&#8220;That is more advanced in terms of being able to make an investment, and the first quarter is likely to be very busy,&#8221; Orji said.</p>
<p>The real estate fund is targeting commercial property such as offices, hospitality, logistics and industrial parks.</p>
<p>The NSIA also signed a strategic partnership agreement with its Moroccan peer, Ithmar Capital, to co-operate on bilateral investments.</p>
<p>These include a Trans-African gas pipeline which it is envisaged will support the creation of industrial hubs. Orji said this was an ambitious project but it would be cheaper and more effective than trying to build LNG facilities across Africa to export Nigeria&#8217;s gas.</p>
<p>With a recovery in the oil price in late 2016, and a better macro environment, Orji expects further injections into the NSIA in 2017 following 2016&#8217;s $250 million additional funding.</p>
<p>&#8220;There&#8217;s been a strong commitment shown by the administration in continuing to support the fund, and even in 2016, as difficult as it was with the oil price, there was still an injection,&#8221; he said.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>(Editing by Hugh Lawson)</p>
<div class="linebreak"></div>
</div>
<p class="copyright">© Thomson Reuters 2017 All rights reserved﻿</p>
<p> </p>


Nigeria's strategic plan to boost funding for its infrastructure

<div>
<p>MAIDUGURI, Nigeria (Reuters) &#8211; Nigerian soldiers have found a schoolgirl who was one of more than 200 pupils kidnapped by Islamist militant group Boko Haram from their school in the northeastern town of Chibok in April 2014, an army spokesman said on Thursday.</p>
<p>The troops had found Rakiya Abubkar wandering around near Algarno, a former Boko Haram stronghold, the spokesman said. She had a six-month-old baby with her.</p>
<p><a href="/news/western-africa/2016/10/14/boko-haram-frees-21-kidnapped-chibok-girls-nigerian-government/"><strong>READ:</strong>﻿ Boko Haram frees 21 kidnapped Chibok girls &#8211; CNBC Africa﻿</a></p>
<p>A total of 276 schoolgirls were abducted by Boko Haram from Chibok in 2014 in one of the most infamous actions of their insurgency. More than 20 were released in October in a deal brokered by the International Red Cross. Others have escaped or been rescued but about 200 are believed to be still in captivity.</p>
<div class="teads-inread">
<div class="teads-player"><strong>READ:</strong> <a href="/news/western-africa/2016/12/29/boko-haram-may-have-used-chibok-girls/">Boko Haram may have used Chibok girls as shields during attack﻿</a></p>
<p>Boko Haram has killed 15,000 people and displaced more than two million during a seven-year-old insurgency aimed at creating an Islamic caliphate in northeast Nigeria.</p>
</div>
</div>
<p>The group controlled an area about the size of Belgium in early 2015 but has been pushed out of most of that territory over the last year by Nigeria&#8217;s army and troops from neighbouring countries.</p>
<p>Last month, the army said it had seized a key Boko Haram camp in its last enclave in Nigeria in the vast Sambisa forest. The jihadists still stage suicide bombings in northeastern areas and in neighbouring Niger and Cameroon.</p>
<p>(Reporting by Lanre Ola, Alexis Akwagyiram and Ulf Laessing; Editing by Angus MacSwan and Dominic Evans)</p>
<div class="linebreak"></div>
<div class="pageNavigation"></div>
</div>
<p class="copyright">© Thomson Reuters 2017 All rights reserved﻿</p>
<p> </p>


Nigerian soldiers find Chibok girl kidnapped in 2014

<div>
<p>LAGOS (Reuters) &#8211; The Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers ordered on Thursday a strike at Total fuel truck depots across the OPEC member nation in protest against sackings.</p>
<p>&#8220;We have stopped the operation of Total. We are at the table with Total discussing the situation of the workers,&#8221; Tokunbo Korodo, union chairman in the southwest of the country, said.</p>
<p>(Reporting by Alexis Akwagyiram and Tife Owolabi; Editing by Ulf Laessing and Susan Thomas)</p>
<div class="linebreak"></div>
<div class="pageNavigation"></div>
</div>
<p class="copyright">© Thomson Reuters 2017 All rights reserved﻿</p>
<p> </p>


Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers plan to shut down Total Nigeria

The price of Africa's puff

<p><em>Daniel Monehin, Division President for Sub-Saharan Africa, Mastercard, shares insights ﻿on Africa’s digital transformation, and its work in Rwanda, creating a new payment ecosystem. The interview below first appeared in Forbes Africa and is republished with its permission. Subscribe today by contacting Shanna Jacobsen <a href="mailto:Shanna.Jacobsen@abn360.com">Shanna.Jacobsen@abn360.com</a>﻿﻿</em></p>
<p>Leading Mastercard’s business across sub-Saharan Africa as Division President, Daniel Monehin is primarily focused on establishing Mastercard’s brand presence, deploying innovative payment solutions and partnering with governments and market regulators. Passionate about making the lives of people around him better, his community-focused volunteer efforts are based on leadership development among the youth, entrepreneurs and professionals. Here, he speaks to FORBES AFRICA:</p>
<p class="Default"><em>Q: With the growing number of incubators in Africa that are churning out newer and newer propositions on the payments and remittance side, what is Mastercard’s strategy to protect traditional income lines?</em></p>
<p>It is an exciting time to be working in Africa, with the public sector and other key stakeholders willing to adopt technology to advance the move away from inefficient cash to a digital payment ecosystem. Mastercard does not view our place in the move towards a ‘cashless Africa’ as being solely in the traditional card space, no – we view our role as a technology company to explore and implement cutting-edge solutions that will meet the needs of economies across the continent, better servicing all citizens.</p>
<p>At Mastercard, we don’t limit our thinking to ‘traditional’ vs. ‘new’ – we explore what is going to meet the needs of a market and its citizens as there is not one solution that can meet all needs. Rather our focus is on creating a ‘world beyond cash’, developed through partnerships and driven by advances in technology.</p>
<p>We get excited about start-ups challenging the status quo, and in fact we have developed our very own <a href="https://www.mastercard.us/en-us/about-mastercard/corp-responsibility/social-sustainability/the-mastercard-labs-for-financial-inclusion.html">Mastercard Labs for Financial Inclusion</a> that is based in Nairobi.</p>
<p>The purpose of the Labs is to drive innovation that meets the various needs across the continent, with specific focus right now on East Africa. Great advances are being made in this space, and it is very much a collaboration with NGOs, local financial institutions and anyone able to provide insight that will feed the development of smart and practical solutions.</p>
<p>The remittance space, for example, is an environment we have solid experience in and are extremely excited about – we do a great deal of work in this area with HomeSend. Launched in 2014, HomeSend is a joint venture of Mastercard, eServGlobal and BICS that enables business to business cross-border and cross-network transfers. Consumers can send money to and from mobile money accounts, payment cards, bank accounts and cash outlets, regardless of their location or that of the recipient.</p>
<p>Recently, we announced a partnership with the <a href="https://newsroom.mastercard.com/mea/press-releases/homesend-mastercard-aim-to-transform-the-3bn-remittance-industry-in-ethiopia/">Commercial Bank of Ethiopia</a> (CBE) to introduce the remittance solution to more than 100 million Ethiopians, empowering them with a safe and easy to use solution directly from their mobile device.</p>
<p>With advances in the payment industry, it is also still very important for us to develop partnership to roll-out full suites of digital payment solutions, including prepaid, debit and credit cards. This year alone, we have seen significant partnerships being forged with the likes of United Bank Africa (UBA) that will impact 18 new markets on the continent.</p>
<p>However, we are also working with our partners to drill down deeper into specific markets – recently announcing a collaboration with <a href="https://newsroom.mastercard.com/mea/press-releases/partnership-boosts-development-rwandas-digital-payment-ecosystem/">Guaranty Trust Bank Rwanda Ltd.</a> Besides the Platinum and Classic debit cards being introduced, we are also introducing the first student card (GTCrea8) to the market to educate the youth on the importance of going cashless and also saving. The partnership will also result in SecureCode being introduced to the market – a solution focused on protecting online payments.</p>
<p><em>Q: How big is the cash economy in Africa, and Rwanda specifically, where you have a tie-up with the government?</em></p>
<p>According to a recent <a href="file:///C:/Users/rankf/Downloads/MGI-Digital-Finance-For-All-Executive-summary-September-2016%20(2).pdf">McKinsey Report</a>, two billion people remain outside of the formal economy.</p>
<p>Various studies confirm that over 90% of retail transactions in sub-Saharan Africa are in cash. In Rwanda, only 42% of adults own a financial account, whether formal or informal, and a total of 1.6 million people have opened accounts in the country’s <a href="http://www.rca.gov.rw/IMG/pdf/Umurenge_SACCOs_strategy_February09.pdf">national SACCO savings and loan program</a>me.</p>
<p>We know that government cannot achieve financial inclusion alone, and neither can the private sector – we need to work together. Rwanda is one of our key markets and to highlight this, we partnered with the <a href="http://www.rdb.rw/">Rwanda Development Board (RDB)</a> to drive financial inclusion. The <a href="http://newsroom.mastercard.com/press-releases/government-of-rwanda-collaborates-with-mastercard-to-meet-rwandas-2020-vision-of-a-cashless-society/">collaboration with the Rwandan</a> government aims to address common challenges faced by poor and remote populations, such as the lack of financial identification and financial illiteracy.</p>
<p><em>Q: What are Mastercard’s efforts to convert cash to electronic?</em></p>
<p>Our work in Rwanda:In May, the Rwandan government announced a partnership with Mastercard which aims to fast-track the country’s move to include 90% of its citizens in the financial mainstream, as set out in its Vision 2020 strategy. <a href="http://newsroom.mastercard.com/press-releases/government-of-rwanda-collaborates-with-mastercard-to-meet-rwandas-2020-vision-of-a-cashless-society/">Read more here</a>. These solutions will include the digitization of school fees and national healthcare claim payments, providing an <a href="http://newsroom.mastercard.com/mea/press-releases/mastercard-bank-of-kigali-and-rwandaonline-help-rwanda-leapfrog-into-the-digital-economy-through-e-commerce/">online payment gateway</a> for RwandaOnline, contributing to the creation of a common mobile banking platform, and contributing to the effective management of spending activities across borders. ﻿</p>
<p>On October 20, Ecobank Group and Mastercard entered an agreement to roll-out MasterpassQR, a mobile payment solution, across 33 African markets with the intention of impacting 100 million new customers by 2020.</p>
<p><em>Q: At a time when customers have so many choices in payment systems, why should they choose Mastercard?</em></p>
<p>Mastercard is at the forefront of driving a ‘world beyond cash’, and what this means for all people is a more inclusive, innovative and safe payment ecosystem that will benefit everyone.</p>
<p>The benefits of working with Mastercard include: proven track record for providing safe world class payment systems as a result of our partnerships across the continent; we operate the world’s fastest payment processing network, connecting consumers, financial institutions, merchants, governments and businesses in more than 210 countries and territories. We use technology and expertise to make payments safe, simple and smart for everyone; we know safety and security are the top priorities for customers, cardholders and partners, so we are continuously committed to developing new and better ways to keep payments safe.</p>
<p>But, it is our commitment to meaningful innovation that really sets us apart. We use advances in technology to directly deal with challenges being faced by governments, policy makers, financial institutions, business and merchants as well as consumers. </p>
<p><em>Q: How is Mastercard tackling other fintech companies?</em></p>
<p>Diversity in the financial sector is important to advancing the evolution of economies, and we view partnerships with fintechs as being an important part in meeting the various needs of people in Africa.</p>
<p>An example of our continued commitment to supporting start-ups in this technology sector, is our start-up engagement program <a href="https://www.startpath.com/">Start Path Global</a>, which works with startups to give them a platform to learn and grow – as well as to connect to our global network. We frequently call for submissions throughout the year from start-ups to apply for our program as there is a vibrant and talented community of start-ups in Africa. Additionally, our Lab for Financial Inclusion works with fintechs to develop sound market insight before developing solutions. This methodology is one shared by our entire business.</p>
<p>– Interviewed by Methil Renuka</p>
<p> </p>


Towards a cashless Africa

<div>
<p>YENAGOA, Nigeria (Reuters) &#8211; Nigeria has resumed payments of cash stipends to former militants agreed under a 2009 amnesty in the country&#8217;s Niger Delta oil hub, an official said on Thursday.</p>
<p>&#8220;Two months of the ex-militants stipends were paid yesterday&#8230;The rest of their stipends will be paid later in batches by (central bank) CBN,&#8221; said Piriye Kiyaramo, an officer in the Amnesty Office.</p>
<div class="teads-inread">
<div>
<div class="teads-player"></div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="teads-inread">
<div>
<div class="teads-player"></div>
</div>
</div>
<p>He said the paid stipends covered August and September.</p>
<p>(Reporting by Tife Owolabi; writing by Ulf Laessing; editing by Jason Neely)</p>
<div class="linebreak"></div>
<div class="pageNavigation"></div>
</div>
<p class="copyright">© Thomson Reuters 2017 All rights reserved﻿</p>
<p> </p>


Nigeria resumes payments to former Niger Delta militants: official

<p><em>Abebe Aemro Selassie was appointed as the African Department Director of the International Monetary Fund﻿ (IMF) in 2016. He reflects on his vision for the IMF in Africa, the challenges of the continent, why Sub-Saharan Africa has immense economical potential and finally gives advice to those who may want to emulate such a public career.</em></p>
<p><em>Q: Upon your appointment, [the Managing Director of the IMF Christine] Lagarde said the “IMF remains deeply committed to serving our members in Africa”. Tell me [about] the role of the IMF in Africa.</em></p>
<p>Aemro Selassie: Sub-Saharan Africa remains a region of great importance for the IMF. We work closely with the authorities in the region as they address their development challenges and promote strong, durable and inclusive growth. Our support takes the form of policy advice, financial support (where needed), and capacity development.</p>
<p>As elsewhere, the IMF maintains a close policy dialogue with all its members in Sub-Saharan Africa on broad macroeconomic issues, such fiscal and monetary policies, inflation, or balance-of-payments developments. Of course, we adapt our advice to each country’s specific circumstances, including for countries in the region on ways to foster sustainable growth that benefits the entire population and gradually improves standards of living.</p>
<p>The Fund also provides financial assistance, mostly on concessional terms, when financing needs arise. This is typically in the context of an economic programme geared at achieving macroeconomic stability and fostering economic resilience. At present, 18 countries in the region have such programmes, with access to a total amount of over US$4.5 billion in balance of payments support from the IMF. Fund programmes also play a catalytic role in mobilizing financial assistance from other international financial institutions or bilateral donors.</p>
<p>One aspect of our work with the authorities in the region that is not well known—but is nonetheless of critical importance—is technical assistance and training. There, our experts provide recommendations in very specific areas to improve the impact and implementation of economic decisions. This covers a wide range of topics, from, for example, helping draft new tax laws, to training civil servants, or reforming policy frameworks.</p>
<p>Last year [2015], Sub-Saharan Africa received the largest share, about 40 percent, of all technical assistance provided by the IMF across the globe. Increasingly, it is being provided through the five technical assistance centres located in the region. Through these efforts, the IMF is helping African countries build administrative and governance capacity in areas such as public expenditure management, revenue mobilisation, and monetary and exchange rate policy</p>
<p>Q: You are described as someone that can bring a “unique blend of extensive knowledge and experiences” to your new role. You are known to have a wide array of experience in the private and public sector. Tell me about yourself?</p>
<p>Aemro Selassie: Early in my career, I did a stint in the private sector working on sovereign credit risk issues for the Economist Intelligence Unit. Following this, in 1992 I moved back to Addis Ababa to work as an adviser in the Office of the President for a few years, an experience I found greatly enriching and gratifying.</p>
<p>In late 1994, I joined the IMF where, over the years, I have had the opportunity to work on a wide-range of countries and assignments. To give you a flavour, the countries I have worked on directly include Kenya, Mauritius, Estonia, Iran, Poland, Romania, Thailand, and Turkey. Later, I was mission chief for South Africa and, most recently, Portugal during the Eurozone crisis. I also was the Fund’s Senior Resident Representative in Uganda between 2006 and 2009, an assignment that I enjoyed immensely.</p>
<p>In addition to country work, I have also always been attracted by policy and programme design issues and worked on those quite a bit. And I always enjoyed research, in particular when it is geared towards informing policy advice, for example during my time as the Head of the African Department’s Regional Studies Division.</p>
<p><em>Q: What do you think are some of the challenges of the continent and how is the IMF helping to tackle them?</em></p>
<p>Aemro Selassie: Many countries in sub-Saharan Africa are facing very difficult challenges at the moment. In fact, after a decade and a half of very robust growth, economic momentum in the region has weakened markedly, and growth this [2016] year looks set to slow to its lowest level in more than 20 years, at 1½ percent, well below population growth.</p>
<p>Two broad factors help explain this deceleration. First, the external environment facing many of the region’s countries has deteriorated, notably with commodity prices at multi-year lows and financing conditions markedly tighter. But, as importantly, the policy response in many of the countries most affected by these shocks has been much delayed and incomplete, raising uncertainty, deterring private investment and stifling new sources of growth.</p>
<p>This aggregate picture, however, masks considerable heterogeneity, and the full picture is more one of multi-speed growth. Commodity exporters, in particular oil exporters are under a severe economic strain, including the region’s three largest countries, Angola, Nigeria, and South Africa. But it is also important to keep in mind that most of the countries that do not rely substantially on commodities for their export earnings—about half of the countries in the region—perform well, as low oil prices, an improved business environment, and strong infrastructure investment continue to support their strong growth momentum. This group includes the likes of Côte d’Ivoire, Ethiopia, Senegal, and Tanzania where economic output is set to expand by six percent or more this year [2016].</p>
<p><em>Q: What are some of the policy reforms needed to address these challenges?</em></p>
<p>Aemro Selassie: The hardest-hit countries, especially oil exporters, need to act promptly as the adverse external environment is set to endure and their buffers have been exhausted. In these countries, a growth rebound will require strong economic reforms to re-establish macroeconomic stability. This implies fully allowing the exchange rate to absorb external pressures in countries outside monetary unions (such as Angola and Nigeria), coupled with strong and orderly fiscal consolidation, and a tighter monetary policy stance focused on containing inflation. For countries within monetary unions (such as oil exporters in the Central African Economic and monetary Community (CEMAC)), the fiscal reforms required to deal with the shock are likely to be considerably greater still and central bank financing of excessive fiscal deficits should be sharply curtailed to safeguard the credibility of their currency arrangements.</p>
<p>A few words are also in order about the countries in the region that are continuing to sustain strong growth. In many cases, despite the strong growth outcomes of recent years, fiscal deficits have been widening and debt levels have started to increase. To a large extent, this reflects stepped-up development spending. While policy action is not as urgent as for the hardest-hit countries, here too, with few exceptions, there is a need to strike a better balance between increased investment spending needs and debt sustainability considerations. In this respect, reforms to increase revenue mobilization would be particularly helpful.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, the IMF stands ready to provide financial support to countries in the region that request it. Indeed, if accompanying reforms are anchored in a credible medium-term framework and supported by that type of concessional financing, the pace of adjustment can be made more gradual attenuating the near-term growth impact significantly.</p>
<p>Let me end by saying that Sub-Saharan Africa remains a region of immense economic potential. But in some cases, this potential is being stymied by elevated macroeconomic imbalances and rising policy uncertainty. Addressing this challenge promptly and forcefully will be very important in the coming months.</p>
<p><em>Q: You were the head of the effort of the IMF during the Ebola epidemic in West Africa. What were some of the highlights?</em></p>
<p>Aemro Selassie: Time was of the essence in responding to the Ebola outbreak. As the severity of the Ebola outbreak became apparent in July/August 2015, we worked with the governments of Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone to quickly assess the macroeconomic implications and the required policy response. It made sense for countries to expand their budget deficits to fight the outbreak.</p>
<p>And given these countries’ limited access to market financing, we also needed to help address the large financing gaps that they faced. Under expedited procedures, the Fund moved quickly to provide US$130 million zero-interest financing as early as September 2014 to the three affected countries. This was followed with a further US$160 million zero interest financing in early 2015. In addition, we granted the three countries a further US$100 million in debt relief.</p>
<p>The IMF is generally only associated with austerity policies. I think the work we did in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone showed us moving very rapidly to support our member countries in their hour of need.</p>
<p><em>Q: To a young African who is intent on a career in public service such as yours, what advise do you have for them?</em></p>
<p>Aemro Selassie: I am not sure how well-suited I am to answer this question. In many ways, I have had the good fortune of being given the opportunity to work with great people, from whom I learned much.</p>
<p>The one thing that I did do, and which possibly helped at the margin, is to read a lot. I have always loved reading, a habit that I am very grateful to my mother for helping me sustain when I was very young. Growing up in Ethiopia in the late 1970s and early 1980s, books were very expensive and difficult to get hold off. She would buy me as many books as were available and I also did whatever I could to find some on my own—sometimes stuff that was way too complex for a 12-13 year-old (a battered copy of Das Kapital, for example). This love of reading has luckily stayed with me and allows me to broaden my thinking and cultural perspectives.﻿</p>
<p><em>*<a style="font-family: 'Noto Serif', serif; font-size: 2em; font-weight: bold;" href="https://twitter.com/GetachewS" class="ProfileHeaderCard-nameLink u-textInheritColor js-nav">Samuel Getachew</a> is an Ethiopian &#8211; Canadian. Based in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia and is currently with Addis Fortune newspaper. </em></p>


IMF's African Department Director Abebe Aemro Selassie's vision for Africa

<div>
<p>LAGOS/LONDON (Reuters) &#8211; State-run Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) has awarded its 2017 crude oil term contracts to 39 companies, the company said on Tuesday.</p>
<p>The contracts covering about 1.31 million barrels per day (bpd) of crude oil were awarded to 18 Nigerian companies, 11 international trading houses, five foreign refineries, three national oil companies and two &#8220;NNPC Group trading arms,&#8221; the firm said in a statement.</p>
<p>NNPC said the contracts, worth a total of more than $72 million per day at Tuesday&#8217;s crude prices of around $55.60 per barrel, were each for 32,000 barrels per day (bpd), apart from Duke Oil Ltd, an NNPC Group subsidiary, which was for 90,000 bpd.</p>
<div class="teads-inread">
<div>
<div class="teads-player"></div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="teads-inread">
<div>
<div class="teads-player"></div>
</div>
</div>
<p>The list compared with 27 companies that won contracts of varying sizes for 2016. OPEC member Nigeria typically produces just over 2 million bpd of crude oil, although its 2016 output was hobbled by militant attacks.</p>
<p>China&#8217;s Sinopec and India&#8217;s Indian Oil Corp were among the winners, as were international firms including the trading arms of BP and Total and trading houses Litasco and Glencore.</p>
<p>Absent from this year&#8217;s list were the trading arms of oil majors ExxonMobil, Shell and Eni, trading houses Mercuria and Taleveras and refiner Saras, all of whom were on the 2016 contract list. Vitol&#8217;s trading arm was also not on the list, although, Varo Energy, a joint venture between Vitol and private equity firm Carlyle Group, was.</p>
<p>NNPC head Maikanti Baru said the group had received bids from 224 companies. He said the decision to announce the winners reflected NNPC&#8217;s commitment to transparency.</p>
<p>&#8220;We&#8217;ll ensure transparency and fairness in the process,&#8221; Baru said in a statement.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Contract holder Volume (&#8216;000 bpd)</p>
<p>Refiners</p>
<p>Hindustan Refinery 32</p>
<p>Varo Energy 32</p>
<p>Sonara Refinery 32</p>
<p>Bharat Petroleum 32</p>
<p>Cepsa 32</p>
<p>International Trading Companies</p>
<p>Trafigura 32</p>
<p>ENOC 32</p>
<p>BP Trading 32</p>
<p>Total Trading 32</p>
<p>UCL Petro Energy 32</p>
<p>Mocoh Trading 32</p>
<p>Trevier Petroleum 32</p>
<p>Heritage Oil 32</p>
<p>Levene Energy 32</p>
<p>Glencore 32</p>
<p>Litasco Supply and 32</p>
<p>Trading</p>
<p>Government to Government</p>
<p>Indian Oil Corp. (India &#8211; 32</p>
<p>IOC)</p>
<p>Sinopec (China) 32</p>
<p>SacOil (South Africa) 32</p>
<p>Nigerian Companies</p>
<p>Oando 32</p>
<p>Sahara Energy Resouce LTD 32</p>
<p>MRS Oil and Gas 32</p>
<p>A.A. Rano Nigeria Limited 32</p>
<p>Bono 32</p>
<p>Masters Energy 32</p>
<p>Hyde Energy 32</p>
<p>Britania-U 32</p>
<p>North West Petroleum 32</p>
<p>Optima Energy 32</p>
<p>AMG Petroenergy 32</p>
<p>Arkleen Oil &amp; Gas Ltd 32</p>
<p>Shoreline Limited 32</p>
<p>Emo Oil 32</p>
<p>Setana Oil 32</p>
<p>Prudent Energy 32</p>
<p>NNPC Trading Companies</p>
<p>Calson/Hyson 32</p>
<p>Duke Oil Incorporated 90</p>
<p>Total: 39 1.31 million</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>(Reporting By Alexis Akwagyiram in Lagos and Libby George in London; editing by Grant McCool)</p>
<div class="linebreak"></div>
</div>
<p class="copyright">© Thomson Reuters 2017 All rights reserved﻿</p>
<p> </p>


Nigeria

Op-Ed: Morocco, the SADR and the AU Commission chair

Ivory Coast's president dismisses heads of army, police & gendarmes

Ivory Coast PM resigns and dissolves government

Boko Haram attacks Nigerian army base

Calm in the streets of Ivory Coast after soldier mutiny

Côte d'Ivoire government reaches deal to end army mutiny as uprising spreads

Shell battles Nigerian communities in high-stakes London lawsuit

Nambians seek restitution from Germany over early-1900s slaughter

Study reveals deep concerns for peace in Liberia ahead of elections

Nigeria's strategic plan to boost funding for its infrastructure

Nigerian soldiers find Chibok girl kidnapped in 2014

Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers plan to shut down Total Nigeria

The price of Africa's puff

Towards a cashless Africa

Nigeria resumes payments to former Niger Delta militants: official

IMF's African Department Director Abebe Aemro Selassie's vision for Africa

Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation awards 2017 crude oil contracts

News Tips

Advertise With Us

Nigeria

Op-Ed: Morocco, the SADR and the AU Commission chair

Ivory Coast's president dismisses heads of army, police & gendarmes

Ivory Coast PM resigns and dissolves government

Boko Haram attacks Nigerian army base

Calm in the streets of Ivory Coast after soldier mutiny

Côte d'Ivoire government reaches deal to end army mutiny as uprising spreads

Shell battles Nigerian communities in high-stakes London lawsuit

Nambians seek restitution from Germany over early-1900s slaughter

Study reveals deep concerns for peace in Liberia ahead of elections

Nigeria's strategic plan to boost funding for its infrastructure

Nigerian soldiers find Chibok girl kidnapped in 2014

Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers plan to shut down Total Nigeria

The price of Africa's puff

Towards a cashless Africa

Nigeria resumes payments to former Niger Delta militants: official

IMF's African Department Director Abebe Aemro Selassie's vision for Africa

Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation awards 2017 crude oil contracts

News Tips

Advertise With Us

Newsletters