Month: July 2023

The KwaZulu-Natal provincial government will host a series of high-level engagements as a precursor to the 15th BRICS Summit that will take place in August.

Led by Premier Nomusa Dube-Ncube, the engagements will kick off with the BRICS Gender Dividend Debate to be hosted by the City of Durban at Inkosi Albert Luthuli International Convention Centre (ICC) on Friday, 14 July 2023.

The debate will be led by prominent female political leaders, including government officials, and economists from BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) and African nations.

Dube-Ncube said the objective of the debate is to explore the political economy of gender in a multipolar world, framing “Tomorrow’s multipolar world, through a gender lens” for Women by Women in BRICS and African nations.

She said the main topics of discussion will include the impact of the evolving BRICS and African political and economic landscape on transforming industries to become gender-neutral and inclusive.

“The debate will also focus on identifying revolutionary decisions, investments, and measures of success that BRICS leaders need to deploy to promote gender equity and equality, fostering inclusive and prosperous BRICS and African economies.

“Furthermore, the debate will emphasise converting promises and hopes into practical solutions and framing resolutions, to advance the BRICS needle on gender equality by 2030, contributing to the Johannesburg XV BRICS Summit Declaration,” said the Premier.

The event will be followed by the 9th BRICS Youth Summit and the Meeting of Ministers responsible for Youth Affairs, to be hosted by the National Youth Development Agency (NYDA) which will be held from 18-21 July 2023.

The BRICS Youth Summit is a platform for dialogue for delegates from member states, striving for the promotion of peace, security, development in a multi-polar inter-dependent and increasingly complex, globalizing world.

Held under the theme “BRICS and Africa: Partnership for Mutually Accelerated Growth, Sustainable Development and Inclusive Multilateralism” the objectives of the summit are to bring together youth participants, affording them an opportunity to share ideas and work on a concrete Action Plan for co-operation in economic, humanitarian, mass media and the science sphere.

NYDA spokesperson, Bongekile Skosana, said this year, South Africa as the Chair of BRICS will direct the summit to focus mainly on discussions that aim to encourage young leaders amongst BRICS nations to actively participate in addressing significant global challenges, economic, social issues, and contribute to the developmental agenda.

“It further focuses to establish constructive engagements on issues relating to youth empowerment, the advancement of youth development and in creating a conducive environment where youth will devise a path to a brighter and better future,” Skosana said.

The BRICS Urbanisation Forum taking place from 26-27 July 2023, will also bring together various stakeholders from the BRICS countries, including BRICS Ministerial delegations, representatives from local governments, policymakers, and other stakeholders to place key issues of urbanisation on their agenda for action.

The Forum will highlight how to build productive and sustainable urban economies and livelihood survival strategies in urban environments as well as creating inclusive urban spaces.

The last edition of the forum was hosted online under the presidency of China in 2022.

BRICS-AFRICA Women Business Alliance

The events will conclude with BRICS-AFRICA Women Business Alliance (BRICS WBA) Trade Conference, taking place on 20-21 August 2023.

The BRICS WBA Trade Conference is a unique event that brings together 500 women-owned businesses, including micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises from 18 different countries, namely South Africa, Brazil, Russia, India, China, Nigeria, Ivory Coast, Rwanda, Zambia, DRC, Egypt, Ghana, Tanzania, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Namibia, and Lesotho.

The conference is set to be a ground-breaking event, featuring several highlights, including the first ever physical meeting of BRICS WBA national chapters, the launch of the Agrowex e-commerce platform, and the unveiling of the BRICS Center for Labour Mobility and Education Services, “Work and Study”.

BRICS Summit

South Africa will host the 15th BRICS Summit at the Sandton Convention Centre, Johannesburg, from 22 – 24 August 2023.

The Summit will take place under the theme: “BRICS and Africa: Partnership for Mutually Accelerated Growth, Sustainable Development and Inclusive Multilateralism”.

Source: South African Government News Agency

Minister of Public Enterprises Pravin Gordhan says Komati Power Station not only represents a practical example of how South Africa will conduct its Just Energy Transition but also provides a glimpse into Eskom’s future.

The power station, which was decommissioned in October last year, is the first coal fired power station in Eskom’s fleet to transition to a renewable energy hub.

“Whilst there’s a section that will say we have shutdown the power station. In fact, we are bringing it down so that it can rise again. It’s not a complete shutdown. We are not breaking anything. We are repurposing and preparing it for a different kind of future and it’s a future that the world itself…is preparing for.

“Komati is South Africa’s reality. It’s where South Africa’s Just Energy Transition is going to be tested and prepared for. Komati is the place where…the tyre hits the road,” he said.

Eskom envisions that within the next few years, the Komati site will feed some 370MW of solar, wind and battery storage power to the grid.

Gordhan said this and the Just Energy Transition presents “huge opportunities” for South Africa and emphasised that through this transition, no one will be left behind.

“The ‘just’ in the Just Energy Transition is absolutely crucial. Not only for saying how do we ensure that our communities cope with the changes that are going to take place at Komati but also in the course of changing the nature of the relationship between Komati and the communities around Komati.

“Can we find new ways of economic inclusivity? Can we find new ways of economic empowerment? Can we find new ways of creating a whole lot of new entrepreneurs in this area? [This] is so that it can become real economic activity as opposed to dependence on one power station.

“In that way we reduce the levels of unemployment; we increase the levels of entrepreneurship in South Africa and people learn to become part of the new world,” he said.

Turning to the question of the employment of people who previously worked at the plant, Gordhan highlighted that these workers have either been relocated to other plants or are being re-skilled to do other jobs.

“There are both a number of ideas but also the beginnings of new programmes which will address the issue of jobs, the issue of training and people development and learning how to deal with new forms of technology that we have to inevitably deal with,” he said.

Source: South African Government News Agency

Wild Africa Fund has called for urgent actions to curb illegal wildlife trade, deforestation and climate change to reduce the risk of future disease transmissions.

The call came as the world marked World Zoonoses Day on July 6.

Mr Kelechukwu Iruoma, Nigerian Representative, Wild Africa Fund, in a statement on Thursday said that Africa faced a growing risk of zoonotic diseases as it grappled with population growth, rapid urbanisation, deforestation and the commercial bushmeat trade.

He said that there had been a 63 per cent increase in the number of zoonotic outbreaks, such as Ebola and monkeypox diseases in the region from 2012 to 2022 compared to the previous decade (2001 to 2011).

Quiting the World Health Organization (WHO), he said that over 60 per cent of human infectious diseases across the globe were believed to be spread by deadly germs found in animals.

Also quoting the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), Iruoma said that zoonotic diseases had caused economic losses of more than $100 billion in the last two decades before the emergence of COVID-19.

“Zoonotic diseases such as COVID-19, Ebola, Anthrax, Yellow fever, Marburg virus, and Monkeypox (Mpox) are increasingly common throughout Africa and around the world.

” Scientists say there are about 700,000 unknown zoonotic diseases that can potentially jump from animals and infect humans.

“In the last 12 months, several infectious disease outbreaks have been recorded in Africa and across the world, including these major zoonotic disease outbreaks: COVID-19 pandemic, Anthrax, Marburg virus, Monkeypox (Mpox) Ebola, Yellow fever, and Lassa fever, ” Iruoma said

He said that the recent outbreaks of anthrax, monkeypox (now known as Mpox) and Marburg virus in some parts of Africa as well as the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic serve as a reminder that zoonotic diseases continue to pose a significant threat to our health, economies and global security.

The country representative noted that the Nigerian government recently issued an advisory, warning citizens to desist from consuming bushmeat in the immediate aftermath of the outbreak of anthrax — believed to have spread from animals — in Northern Ghana.

According to him, Wild Africa Fund is running an awareness campaign using television, radio, print media, billboard and social media to inform people across Africa that the health of humans, animals and the environment are highly interconnected.

He called on everyone to protect wildlife to protect ourselves :“Keep them wild, keep us safe.”

Iruoma said that following the coronavirus outbreak, which was believed to have spread from a live animal market, the Chinese government banned the breeding, sale and consumption of most wild animals for food.

He added that in spite of this action, across Africa, particularly in West and Central Africa, unregulated live wildlife markets persist despite the risk of a future outbreak.

Iruoma quoted Dr Mark Ofua, Veterinarian and Wild Africa Fund Nigerian Spokesperson as saying:

“As a notable hub for trafficking of illegal wildlife Nigeria cannot afford to be the epicentre of the next pandemic, disastrous in terms of human health and economically.

” We must quickly pass the new wildlife law introduced before the election, increase our enforcement and awareness efforts to stop illegal bushmeat trade, to mitigate the spread of zoonotic diseases and to protect our environment.

Iruoma also quoted Prof. Akin Abayomi, an health expert as saying:

“If you don’t know what’s out there, you are destroying that ecosystem, and you are creating that pathogenicity for humans to encroach into animals’ space to cut down trees and destroy their environment and come into contact with wildlife.

“If the human population is not used to any particular pathogen, it will have no immunity, which now creates an opportunity for it to spread quickly among the human population.

“Ebola will kill six out of 10 people. Lassa fever will kill five out of 10 people.

Iruoma also quoted the International Monetary Fund(IMF) as saying:

“The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in the deaths of nearly seven million people – more than the size of New Zealand’s entire population – and is estimated to cost the global economy $12.5 trillion over the next year.

Iruoma quoted Mr Peter Knights, OBE. Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Wild Africa Fund as saying:

“We must defuse this ticking bomb by moving urban consumers away from illegal bushmeat through education and enforcing laws and preserving what wildlife habitat remains.

“At the same time we must develop alternatives sources of income and protein for those that hunt bushmeat.”

Source: News Agency of Nigeria

The National Universities Commission (NUC), has called on African universities to recognise the value of forging partnerships with institutions worldwide to provide students with skills needed for employment.

The Acting Executive Secretary, NUC, Mr Chris Maiyaki, gave the advice at the 3rd Annual Conference of the Forum for Innovation in African Universities (FIAU) in Abuja on Friday.

The conference has the theme: “Strengthening Africa’s Higher Education in a Post COVID-19 world.”

Maiyaki said that embracing international collaborations would enable universities to tap into a wealth of expertise, resources, and opportunities for their students and faculties.

While noting that there is a challenge of resource constraint faced by universities across Africa, he said that to address the situation, the institutions require strategic partnerships.

“Collaboration with governments, private sector entities, philanthropic organisations, and international development agencies is crucial in pooling resources, sharing expertise, and creating sustainable funding models,” he said.

He added that the commission had championed the development of guidelines for the implementation of Transnational Education (TNE) in Nigeria for the purpose of partnering with other institutions abroad.

“TNE presents a wide range of opportunities such as increasing access to higher education for our youth and promoting strategic alliances between countries and regions.

“These partnerships must, however, be built on mutual respect, shared objectives, and a commitment to nurturing talent and promoting global citizenship,” he said.

Maiyaki stressed the need to integrate technology into the delivery of university education to ensure its resilience in a Post-COVID-19 world.

He said this would help in harnessing the power of innovation and also make the institutions to foster sustainable university-industry partnerships that transcend traditional boundaries.

“These partnerships will allow us to align our curricula with the evolving needs of the job market, creating graduates who are not only well-versed in theory but also possess the practical skills demanded by employers.

“Furthermore, collaboration with industries will enable our universities to conduct impactful research that addresses real-world challenges that continue to impact mankind, so as to secure tangible socio-economic development,” he added.

He called on university academia to ensure collective responsibility to address the challenges before it and forge a path towards a stronger and more resilient future for higher education in Africa.

He said to ensure that graduates of the continent are fully equipped with the required skills and knowledge to succeed in the 21st Century, there is a need to constantly strive to improve and update educational programmes in consonance with the realities of global best practices.

He said that higher education must shift to offer every student opportunities for the continuous refinement of the skills needed for employment in a competitive world.

“One of such innovative steps is taken recently by the NUC as part of its efforts to reposition the Nigerian University System for excellence and global competitiveness.

” This initiative was the launch of the Core Curriculum Minimum Academic Standards (CCMAS) for the 17 disciplines in the Nigerian University System, with emphasis on the acquisition of 21st Century employability and entrepreneurial skills.

Also speaking, the Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Education, Mr David Adejo, said there was a great prospect for African universities to make progress in the Post-COVID-19 era.

Adejo said that Africa is fortunate because predictions about the severity of the pandemic in the continent did come true.

He, however, said the continent had not been able to properly deal with the socio-economic impacts of the pandemic, saying forum for Innovation in African Universities (FIAU), in 2019 was a direct response to the adverse effects of the pandemic on the educational sector in Africa.

He commended FIAU for encouraging knowledge exchange and working closely with regional and global partners to pool resources to support African universities, adding that it is what the continent needs to enable it overcome its challenges.

Meanwhile, the FIAU co-Founder, Prof. Pascal Anosike, in a remark, said that African universities had made remarkable progress in the areas of curriculum review and private sector investment, but more still needed to be done in widening access and improving employability rate.

Anosike called for the use of modern technology to support students’ learning, adding that his organisation would strengthen the capacity of African universities to tackle these challenges.

Source: News Agency of Nigeria

Rear Adm. Olukayode Olotu has assumed duty as the 20th Commandant of the National Defence College (NDC) with a pledge to build on the foundation laid by his predecessor, Rear Adm, Murtala Bashir.

Olotu, at an event to mark the signing of the handover and takeover note on Thursday in Abuja said he would toe the lines of his predecessor.

He said his administration would focus on the development of academic programme of the college, infrastructure and staff welfare.

“I have listened very attentively to the remarks by the immediate past commandant and for every word he said, it was as if I was the one making the remarks.

“We are two people of very like minds because in his remark, he talked about the academic programme of the college which in my mind is the main essence of the college.

“He talked about infrastructural development of the college which of course is very important to the academic programme of the college.

“He talked about the welfare of personnel which is key because without it, there will be no motivation for the work force.

“So in the same vein, I intend to toe the same line because we have gone round all the college facilities and spent time to deliberate on ongoing programme,” he said.

Olotu called for support and cooperation from members of the college, which he said were necessary for him to succeed.

He pledged to run an open door policy and carry every member of staff along in the running of the college.

Earlier, the immediate past commandant, commended members of the college for the support and cooperation offered to him during his administration.

Bashir said the focus of his administration upon assumption of office in January, 2022 was in the area of curriculum, infrastructure and welfare of staff.

“For the curriculum, I felt we needed to inject some things to make it more responsive to current and emerging issues globally.”

He said his administration was able to embed Masters programme in the 11 months duration of the Higher Strategic Course.

“As it is now, the participants will spend 11 months and get their masters degree without going to University of Ibadan or Nigeria Defence Academy.

“The only challenge left in this direction is that participants still go back to the institutions for their convocation.

“So going forward, it is important for the college to restructure the centre in liaison with the National Universities Commission to upgrade the institution to a full fledged university.

“`By doing that, we will be able to domicile the master degree completely in the college by having the participant have their convocation in the college instead going to other institutions,” he said.

He called on the new commandant to step up efforts to make the college a full ffledged niversity for the Masters Programme.

Source: News Agency of Nigeria