The United Nations has appointed Anita Kokui Gbeho, a Ghanaian, as Deputy Joint Special Representative for the African Union-United Nations Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID). Her appointment was announced Tuesday by the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and African Union Commission Chairperson Moussa Faki. Ms. Gbeho brings to the position a wealth of experience from her … Read more
Ghana’s Police Service has served notice it will dismiss any of its personnel accused of sexual exploitation in South Sudan if found guilty after investigations. The Service says it has written to the UN to grant it permission to send a team from Ghana to South Sudan to have firsthand information about the sexual scandal … Read more
The Ghana Police Service has requested the United Nations to permit a three-member team to be immediately deployed to Wau in South Sudan “for a better understanding” of sexual abuse and exploitation claims against its peacekeeping officers. A preliminary investigative report by the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) cites Ghana’s Formed Police Unit … Read more
Children in South Sudan have been forced to watch their mothers being raped and killed, the UN says. A report by UN human rights investigators says that 40 officials may be individually responsible for war crimes and crimes against humanity. It says civilians have been tortured and mutilated, and villages destroyed on an industrial scale. … Read more
Ghana has recorded its worst performance in the last six years in its fight against corruption, the latest corruption perception index (CPI) has revealed. The country dropped three points from its 2016 score of 43 to 40 in 2017, and ranked 81 out of the total of 180 countries. Cumulatively, Ghana has dropped eight points … Read more
Four Ugandan government officials have been suspended amid allegations of inflating refugee figures. According to the Guardian, the country’s commissioner for refugees Apollo Kazungu and three of his senior staff are being investigated for alleged collusion with the United Nations (UN) and the World Food Programme (WFP). The Ugandan Daily Monitor, which first reported the … Read more
Sudan goalkeeper Akram El Hadi saved two penalties in the shootout as his side beat Libya to finish third at the African Nations Championship (CHAN). The sides were locked at 1-1 after 90 minutes in Marrakech at the tournament for locally-based players. Akram had earlier failed to deal with the cross from which Salem Ablo … Read more
Sudan ended their African Nations Championship campaign with bronze following a penalty victory over Libya in the third-place playoff on Saturday. The Falcons of Jediane had to rely on the shootout to edge the Mediterranean Knights, having settled for a 1-1 draw in regulation time. Walaa Eldin Musa and substitute Salem Ablo cancelled out each … Read more
The Ghanaian migrants who just returned from detention in Libya have narrated several shocking and excruciating experiences they had in the North African country. About 127 Ghanaians were rescued from the trending Libya slavery after the government intervened on their behalf and flew them home. The illegal migrants who were freed from detention centres in … Read more
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo delivered a speech on behalf of Ghana at the 72nd United Nations General Assembly on Thursday, 21st September, 2017. Nana Addo’s UN address was his first at the Assembly, having assumed position as the President of the Republic of Ghana in January this year. Nana Addo’s position as the President … Read more
Hawkish Japanese defence minister Tomomi Inada on Friday announced her resignation over a long-brewing scandal involving the handling of military documents, in a political blow to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. “I decided to resign as defence minister,” Inada told a press conference at the defence ministry. “I submitted my resignation to the prime minister and … Read more
Japan’s defence minister Tomomi Inada will resign over an alleged coverup involving military documents, local media reported on Thursday, potentially dealing a fresh political blow to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. Public broadcaster NHK reported that Inada, 58, will submit her resignation to Abe as early as Friday before a cabinet reshuffle expected next week. Inada, … Read more
Only 30 percent of $1.4 billion aid needed in 2017 for refugees fleeing the conflict in South Sudan has been raised, a UN official said Monday, raising fears of aid cuts. Nearly two million South Sudanese have fled, and tens of thousands have been killed, since the country descended into civil war nearly four years … Read more
After representing Eritrea in cycling tournaments across Africa, Daniel Teklay took a journey of a different sort last year when he escaped across his country’s militarised border to a new life as a refugee. A year later Teklay is back on his bike, only now he competes in Eritrea’s neighbour and bitter rival Ethiopia, where … Read more
The United States on Thursday praised Sudan’s efforts in fighting terrorism ahead of a decision expected in October on whether to lift decades-old sanctions on Khartoum. “The United States notes Sudan’s improved counterterrorism efforts through enhanced interagency and international cooperation to address the threat from ISIS and other terrorist organizations,” Heather Nauert, a spokeswoman for … Read more
Tanzanian President John Magufuli on Thursday called on Burundians who have fled their country to return home, after talks with President Pierre Nkurunziza who was making his first foreign trip in more than two years. The visit — kept secret up to the last moment — was aimed at reviving dialogue on Burundi’s enduring political … Read more
The United States warned Thursday that a new regional plan to shore up South Sudan’s failing peace agreement was the last chance for Juba’s leaders to end the war, now in its fourth year. US Deputy Ambassador Michele Sison told the UN Security Council that Washington will reconsider its support for the deal signed two … Read more
Thouk Reath, 19, was recovering from a leg amputation after being shot in fighting in northeastern South Sudan when the clinic he was in had to be evacuated because of approaching gunfire. Patients and doctors at the clinic in the town of Maiwut risked being caught up in an army offensive closing in on the … Read more
Pope Francis is unlikely to visit India and Bangladesh this year as widely expected, a senior church official said Tuesday, with the high-profile visit postponed due to schedule clashes with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The Pope had announced last year that he would “almost certainly” travel to South Asia in 2017 but no dates were … Read more
South Sudan’s president Salva Kiir has declared a state of emergency in part of the country’s north-west. The statement, broadcast on state television, did not give a reason for the decree. The state of emergency is expected to last for three months. The conflict in South Sudan has killed tens of thousands of people and … Read more