APO International

Tunisian authorities have sentenced two political opposition activists to prison terms for criticizing the government under a 2022 cybercrime decree, Human Rights Watch said today. Instead of using the decree to address cybercrime, the authorities have used it to detain, charge, or place under investigation at least 20 journalists, lawyers, students, and other critics for their public statements online or in the media. Chaima Issa, a prominent figure of the opposition […]

The Eswatini National Plant Health Inspection Services (NaPHIS), working in collaboration with the International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC) Secretariat, and other partners – including the Ministry of Agriculture, Ministry of Commerce and Trade, Ministry of Tourism and Environment, Peak Timbers, Nisela Farms, and NamBoard among others - has concluded a seven-month assessment of Eswatini’s phytosanitary system. The third and final consensus workshop took place from 27 November to 1 December. […]

Responding to the outbreak of fighting between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in Sudan’s second city Wad Madani, Amnesty International’s Regional Director for East and Southern Africa, Tigere Chagutah, said: “We’re deeply concerned about the plight of civilians in Wad Madani. Amid fear and panic, many thousands of people have fled the city in recent days. We urge the SAF and RSF to protect civilians […]

Shipment of the world’s first WHO-recommended malaria vaccine, RTS, S, procured by UNICEF with the support of Gavi, arrived in Sierra Leone on Friday. The delivery of 550,000 doses worth US $5.5 million will contribute significantly to curb malaria cases among children under five years of age across the country.  Malaria remains the number one killer disease of children under five in Sierra Leone with over 100 deaths for every […]

The World Health Organization (WHO) Ethiopia’s Country Office hosted the Inter country, capacity building workshop for the National Immunization Technical Advisory Groups (NITAGs) of the host Ethiopia, Lesotho, Namibia, Mauritius, Seychelles, and Somalia from the WHO EMRO Region. The NITAG’s capacity building workshop was held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia from 11 to 15 December 2023. The overall objective of the workshop was to strengthen NITAGs members and secretariats of participating […]

The Health Development Partnership for Africa and the Caribbean (HeDPAC), a new initiative to strengthen South-South health cooperation between Africa and the Caribbean, was launched today. The initiative stems from the recognition that the burden of the COVID-19 pandemic fell most heavily on developing countries, especially on women and children. The pandemic led to the reversal of health gains, including maternal mortality. HeDPAC will focus on strengthening the health workforce […]

The Board of Directors of the African Development Fund, the concessional window of the African Development Bank Group (https://apo-opa.co/3trS2Yo) (http://www.AfDB.org), has approved a $302.9 million loan co-financing for a multinational power project that will connect 100,000 households across Mauritania and Mali. The Mauritania-Mali 225kV Electricity Interconnection and Solar Power Plant Development Project form part of the Desert to Power (https://apo-opa.co/3ROS5H3) Initiative. The funds comprise $269.6 million for Mauritania and $33.3 […]

The Board of Directors of the African Development Bank Group (www.AfDB.org/en) has approved a $25 million trade finance line of credit facility to the Central Africa Building Society of Zimbabwe, to be used to boost local firms and small and medium-sized enterprises. This facility will enhance foreign currency liquidity support for the building society amidst a tough economic climate in Zimbabwe. The facility will cover some of the trade finance […]

Today, President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi received a phone call from Tunisian President Kais Saied, who congratulated the President on his re-election and stressed Tunisia’s keenness to continue cooperation with Egypt in all fields in light of the distinguished relations between the two countries. President El-Sisi thanked the Tunisian president and stressed Egypt’s keenness to continue working to increase cooperation, coordination and consultation between the two countries, to be commensurate with […]