Africa

Street sellers are a divisive presence in Barcelona. Now they're trying to change their image.

An intact mummy, excavated a century ago, is the first to be scanned by an advanced X-ray system.

December 5, 2017 (JUBA) - South Sudan is set to reinstate its power transmission system to light up the capital, Juba, an official said Tuesday.

Kapoeta power plant. Eastern Equatoria, South Sudan. Feb 4, 2011 (ST)

The minister of dams and electricity, Dhieu Mathok said power transmitted by South Sudan Electricity Corporation (SSEC) is to be revived.

"We are planning to test the electricity operation network on Dec. 16-17, and if things go well automatically we are going to operate the machines by Dec. 23," Mathok told reporters on Tuesday.

Plans, he said, are also underway to introduce prepaid connections and meters to enable SSEC maintain and stabilize supply of power.

"We have adjusted the power tariff, examined the tariff and found out that it was one of the reasons the power supply collapsed. We have revised the tariff to be in uniform within the region like Uganda, Kenya [and] Ethiopia," said Mathok.

According to the minister, they will cut fuel costs as the consumption will drop from 6 million liters to 2 million liters of fuel, a move that will save about 4 million liters of fuel for operating generators daily.

He further said that more electricity supply needed to light up Juba and other parts of the young nation will be boosted by the ongoing construction of new power plant along the River Nile worth 100 Mega Watts that is expected to conclude by August next year.

In October, South Sudan and neighbouring Uganda reached an understanding in an agreement that will see Kampala extend electricity to South Sudan's border towns of Kaya and Nimule. The deal is in line with the East Africa Community Power Pool Agreement that calls on all member states to connect electricity to each other.

South Sudan, according to the electricity minister, has the lowest electricity consumption per capita in Sub-Saharan Africa compared to Uganda's current electricity consumption of about 900MW.

However, as of March 2017, Uganda was reportedly exporting 51.1 megawatts (MW) of electricity to Kenya, 14.94MW to Tanzania and 0.27MW to the Democratic Republic of Congo. Also, besides Karuma (600MW) and Isimba (183MW), the landlocked East African country reportedly boasts of many other mini-hydropower plants, which are expected to add between 100MW and 200MW to the national grid.

South Sudan, statistics from African Development Bank (AfDB) show, has the lowest per capita electricity consumption in Africa, with a per capita consumption of between 1 to 3 kWh, compared to an average in Sub-Saharan Africa of 80 kWh. This is reportedly due partly to the underdeveloped energy infrastructure in the young nation, which has been severely impacted by decades of conflict.

According to a 2013 data, only 1% of South Sudan reportedly has access to grid electricity, due to the low level of power generation and the insufficient distribution network. Also, only 4% of urban areas are reportedly connected to power, but these areas are subject to load shedding and forced power outages.

(ST)

December 5, 2017 (KHARTOUM) - The British Ambassador to Sudan Michael Aron reportedly has pledged to work for a joint diplomatic action to support four Sudanese newspapers seized by the Sudanese security service for more than a week on daily basis.

British Ambassador to Sudan Michael Aron (Reuters Photo)

Aron on Tuesday met with the editors in chief of Al-Tayyar, Akhir Lahza, Al-Jarida, and Al-Watan as the National Intelligence and Security Services (NISS) confiscated the printed runs of the four dailies for the eighth day.

On Monday, the four journalists reached out the Prime Minister's Office, the Parliament, the NISS headquarters, the Union and the Press and Publications Council, a government body, to protest against the unjustified seizures of newspapers.

Sources close to the meeting told Sudan Tribune that the British ambassador sought to understand the reason behind the 8-day seizure who is behind the decision, the NISS or a political official. Also, he wondered if the confiscation would continue or would be stopped.

The sources further said Aron promised to discuss the matter with the ambassadors of the European Union and the United States to consider issuing a statement on this respect.

The same sources confirmed that the ambassador promised to discuss the issue with the ambassadors of the European Union and the United States, and expected a statement in this regard.

The British ambassador promised to register visits to the damaged newspaper headquarters after Foreign Minister Ibrahim Ghandour returned from a planned visit to London.

The confiscation of the printed edition is feared by the newspapers because it means a significant loss of money and affects their fragile economic conditions.

However, the media department of the NISS on Tuesday evening reached the editors-in-chief of the affected dailies and reassured them that they would not be confiscated, according to several sources.

The Sudanese government vowed to respect press freedom in line with the National Document endorsed by the National Dialogue Conference last year. But this recommendation and others related to religious freedom are not yet implemented.

(ST)

South Sudan's former deputy finance minister, Mou Ambrose Riiny Thiik (courtesy photo)

December 5, 2017 (JUBA) - South Sudan still owes neighbouring Sudan, from which it seceded in July 2011, up to $1.3 billion as part of a 2012 deal both nations inked to end their disputes over oil matters.

The South Sudanese ex-deputy finance minister, Mou Ambrose Thiik told Reuters prior to his removal from the ministerial post on Friday last week that the figure was equivalent to eight years worth of oil revenues for South Sudan.

South Sudan got the lion's share of the oil when it split from Sudan in 2011, but it's only export route is through Sudan, giving Khartoum leverage and leading to ongoing pricing disputes.

Since its independence, however, South Sudan has relied on oil for all incomes, a situation that has significantly compounded ongoing political and economic instability due to the fall in crude oil prices.

In 2012, South Sudan halted its oil production after it failed to agree with Sudan on payment for pipelines to export crude from its oilfields.

But after series of negotiations, South Sudan agreed to pay $3 billion to Khartoum following an agreement both countries signed in 2012.

South Sudan, according to the former deputy finance minister still owes Khartoum $1.3 billion of the amount agreed upon in 2012.

Meanwhile, South Sudan said on Monday that it hopes to reap from the global rise in oil prices to uplift an economy weakened by nearly four years of civil war that led to a halt in the nation's oil production.

"The oil market is appreciating now very well the oil price is going up its 65 dollars a barrel and yet in South Sudan, it's something we need to celebrate because our economy is driven by oil. We are going very well in the oil industry," Petroleum minister, Ezekiel Lol Gatkuot told reporters in the capital, Juba.

According to the Petroleum minister, members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), as well as non-OPEC states, have agreed to continue with the oil control to stabilize the market.

Gatkuoth, however, admitted that oil production declined due to ongoing civil war, but says efforts underway to improve the output.

According to South Sudanese officials, production in the past reached as high as 350,000 bpd but fell after a dispute with Sudan over fees for pumping South Sudan's crude through Sudan's export pipeline, which led South Sudan to halt production in 2012.

War-torn South Sudan depends 98% on oil revenues to fund its annual budget.

(ST)

December 4, 2017 (JUBA) – The four Kenyans who had been imprisoned in war-torn South Sudan since 2015 have been released.

Kenyans detained in South Sudan with their ambassador in Juba (NTV photo)

Kenya's President Salva Kiir had negotiated for the release of the four from South Sudan with his South Sudanese counterpart, Salva Kiir.

On 29 March, 2015, the four Kenyans working in South Sudan were arrested for alleged involvement in corruption at South Sudan's presidency, tried without lawyers and sentenced to 72 years in jail.

The four who worked at Click Technologies Limited, include Boniface Chuma, Ravi Ghaghda, Antony Keya and Anthony Mwadime.

South Sudanese authorities on Tuesday accepted to finally release the four Kenyans who are expected to return home on Wednesday.

The four Kenyans were jailed on suspicion that they conspired with others steal money from the office of the South Sudanese president.

Kenya's foreign affairs ministry launched an appeal after the families of the accused Kenyan nationals complained that the accused persons were being held in war-torn South Sudan without trial.

The families defended the four men against the accusation that they were involved in a cross-border money scam saying they were simply selling phones and computers for the South Sudanese government official said to have been the mastermind.

(ST)

December 5, 2017 (KHARTOUM) - The Khartoum Court of Appeals on Tuesday issued a ruling upholding the death sentence against the university student Asim Omer for the alleged killing a policeman during protests last year.

Last September, Khartoum North Criminal Court found Omer guilty of premeditated murder of a police officer and sentenced him to death by hanging.

The Khartoum Court of Appeals on Tuesday issued a ruling supporting the conviction of a 21-year-old university student and member of the opposition party.

He accused of killing an anti-riot policeman who died after a hit by a Molotov cocktail during the student protests in April 2016.

Meanwhile, the Sudanese Congress Party (SCoP) on Tuesday has warned of carrying out the death penalty against the student.

In a statement extended to Sudan Tribune Tuesday, the SCoP expressed confidence on his innocence, vowing to resist the court ruling until all rights to appeal have been exhausted.

The SCoP said he is facing a “political charge”, warning against serious consequences if the death sentence is executed.

“Our promise to Omer is that he will come out free and honoured against the will of the executioners who know with certainty that causing a little harm to him would ignite a far-reaching sedition,” read the statement.

(ST)

December 5, 2017 (KHARTOUM) - The Sudanese opposition umbrella National Consensus Forces (NCF) has announced the boycott of the 2020 general elections underscoring its commitment to overthrow the regime.

Sudanese opposition leader Farouk Abu Issa arrives at court for a hearing in his trial in Khartoum on 23 February 2015 (Photo: AFP/Ebrahim Hamid)

The leader of the rebel Sudanese People's Liberation Movement/North (SPLM-N Agar), Malik Agar, has recently called the opposition groups to consider participation in the upcoming elections

Agar call has stirred controversy among the opposition ranks as the Communist Party and the Broad National Front have rejected it while the Sudan Call alliance is expected to decide on it soon.

On the other hand, the ruling National Congress Party (NCP) welcomed Agar call, describing it as a real shift in the positions of the armed opposition regarding the peaceful transformation of power.

In a statement extended to Sudan Tribune Tuesday, the NCF said it is going forward with executing its plans to achieve the popular uprising through the peaceful means that the Sudanese know and develop daily.

The opposition alliance stressed rejection for any calls to a political settlement that keeps in place the regime and its political and economic policies.

“At the same time, we announce our boycott of the elections which the regime and its allies are preparing to hold in 2020,” read the statement

The NCF pointed out that it is exerting every possible effort to build the broadest popular front to overthrow the regime and run the transitional period.

Meanwhile, the NCF chairman Farouq Abu Issa said his alliance wouldn't accept to participate in a new “farce” in the name of the general elections.

The opposition group calls to overthrow the regime of President Omer al-Bashir through popular uprising.

Speaking at a press conference on Monday, Abu Issa criticized their previous alliance with the Sudan Call, saying that alliance caused his personal illness.

However, he pointed to ongoing contacts with the Sudan Call, saying the latter notified them of their rejection to participate in the 2020 elections.

The NCF which gathers mainly centre-left and leftist parties reject to take part in the African Union-brokered process to end the war and achieve democratic reforms. It includes the Sudanese Communist Party (SCP), the Arab Ba'ath Party (ABP), Nasserite Socialist Party (NSP) and the Unified National Unionist Party (UNUP).

The Sudan Call, which is favourable to a negotiated solution, includes the National Umma Party (NUP) and rebel umbrella of Sudanese Revolutionary Front (SRF) factions, and the Civil Society Initiative (CSI).

The NCF was a member of the Sudan Call but pulled out following their rejection of the African Union-mediated Roadmap Agreement which leads to join the national dialogue "without giving needed guarantees to meet and implement the dialogue's requirements".

(ST)

December 6, 2017 (JUBA) - The Jieng (Dinka) Council of Elders (JCE) has denied playing any negative role in the conflict, questioning rationality behind calls for its dissolution.

Ambrose Riiny Thiik, the JCE head told Sudan Tribune on Tuesday that his group was not the problem but a force looking for how best the conflict in the country could be resolved without importing foreign interest in the name of regime change.

“There are people calling for the Council to be disbanded. Such voices are acting out of emotions. They are not rational. They have no basis and it is clear from the way they make the demands that they do not know what they are talking about," said Thiik.

"There is freedom of association in the constitution. So what they are saying is that the President should violate the constitution for them to come out against and start making their accusations against every person they wanted to act. This is what it means,” he further added.

The Dinka tribal body has been accused of ruling the country and taking decisions in its regular meetings aiming to ensure the tribe control over the country. They are also allegedly playing the role of arbitration body to settle the inter Dinka differences and to cement the group's cohesion.

The former chief justice said his group was working around the clock to ensure peace and stability return to the country through peaceful means, not by the use of violence to affect the change.

“The stance of the Council has always been clear. The changes others are advocating should not be through violence. The power belongs to the people of South Sudan and it is the people to decide who they want to be the president. They voted for the current president in 2010 and it is through the same process that we say in the council that people should be allowed to make their judgment again. It should be done through shortcuts for some people to get to the power. No. it is never done that way and this is what the council is very clear in the process. It is never done that way. Replacement of the government through illegal means has never been a good thing. It sets a bad precedent,” he explained.

The head of the tribal group was reacting to voices through national dialogue subcommittee which went to Uganda last month to gather views on how the conflict should be resolved. The views expressed at consultative meetings with refugees in northern Uganda had called for disbandment of the council, accusing it of having played a negative role in the eruption and continuation of the current war.

Deng Dau Malek, head of the national subcommittee for refugees said through a statement released to the public upon conclusion of the consultations with refugees that one of the demands of the refugees was the call on the government and president Salva Kiir in particular to disband the Dinka council of elders.

(ST)

Instead of shouting to be heard, Nigerian soldiers are being told to learn more languages.

A gathering of senior representatives of the Somali Government, the United Nations and the international community concluded in Mogadishu today with a call for greater investment in the country’s economic development to create more job opportunities, rehabilitate essential infrastructure, and improve the living conditions of the Somali people.

Four in five children living with HIV in West and Central Africa are still not receiving life-saving antiretroviral therapy and AIDS-related deaths among adolescents aged 15-19 are on the rise, the United Nations Children&#39s Fund (UNICEF) has warned.

Secretary-General António Guterres has condemned the killing today of a Mauritanian peacekeeper and the wounding of three others of the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA) by anti-Balaka militia in Bria in the country’ s east.

Proceeds from the sale will fund projects in Sierra Leone, whose government rejected an earlier bid of $7.8m.

But the directive covering Chad, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Syria and Yemen still faces legal challenges.

At Somalia's first-ever security conference, hosted by the country’s Federal President Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed “Farmaajo” in the capital, Mogadishu, participants agreed to speed up security sector reform and develop a plan to transfer primary responsibility for the country’s security from the United Nations-backed African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) to its own security forces.

Money earmarked for schools and hospitals was used for commemorative T-shirts, a report says.

Nigeria's police orders a re-organisation of the anti-robbery unit after a social media campaign.

Senegal's sports minister Matar Ba says the Teranga Lions are aiming to reach the semi-finals of the World Cup in Russia next year.

Coaching staff from Morocco and Iran say their opening game at the World Cup in Russia will be like a 'final' for both nations.