Category: General

The European Union is pledging to donate 200 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines to low-income countries by mid-2022.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen made the pledge Wednesday in Strasbourg, France during her annual State of the European Union speech before the European Parliament. Von der Leyen said the 200 million doses the EU plans to contribute is in addition to an earlier promise of 250 million doses, which she described as “an investment in solidarity, and it is an investment in global health.”

Von der Leyen said “the scale of injustice and the level of urgency is obvious” with less than 1% of all global doses of COVID-19 vaccines administered in low- and middle-income countries.

“Let’s do everything possible so that it does not turn into a pandemic of the non-vaccinated,” she told the EU lawmakers.

US Army requirement

Meanwhile, U.S. Army officials issued a mandatory vaccination order for all uniformed personnel. Officials said Tuesday that the Army expects all active-duty soldiers to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 by December 15, while imposing a deadline of June 30, 2022 for all Reserve and National Guard soldiers.

The statement said soldiers who refuses the vaccine will “be first counseled by their chain of command and medical providers,” but warns that if they continue to refuse and have not been exempted from the vaccine, they will be suspended from their duties or even dismissed from the service.

Alaska situation

In the United States, the largest hospital in the remote northwest state of Alaska announced Tuesday that it has begun rationing care due to a raging outbreak of new COVID-19 infections. Providence Alaska Medical Center in Anchorage, the state’s largest city, said Tuesday it is now operating under a policy of “crisis standard of care,” meaning the hospital is unable to provide an equal quality of medical care to all patients.

The hospital said in a statement that an overflow of COVID-19 patients in its emergency room has left other patients waiting in their cars for hours before they are seen by a doctor for urgent care.

Providence Alaska Medical Center joins a growing number of hospitals across the U.S. who have been forced to ration or even deny medical care to their communities as COVID-19 patients fill their halls beyond capacity.

Source: Voice of America

Luanda – Angolan Head of State João Lourenço Wednesday in Luanda discussed with the president of the African Union Commission (AU), Moussa Faki, the political situation in the Central African Republic (CAR ).

Moussa Faki has been in Luanda to attend the Mini-Summit of Heads of State of the International Conference on Great Lakes Region (ICGLR), taking place on Thursday (16).

The event is taking place at the initiative of the Angolan statesman, João Lourenço, in his capacity as chairperson of ICGLR.

Speaking to the press, at the end of the audience, Moussa Faki highlighted the consolidation of peace and security in the CAR, as well as the efforts undertaken by the Angolan president to ensure the leadership of the ICGLR.

Source: Angola Press News Agency

Luanda – At least 360 new cases, two deaths and 79 recovered patients are the statistics registered in the last 24 hours in Angola.

According to the daily bulletin, 190 were diagnosed in Luanda, 99 in Benguela, 17 in Huíla, 16 in Cabinda, 15 in Huambo, 15 in Namibe, 7 in Uíge and 1 in Lunda Norte.

The list includes 188 male and 172 female patients, whose ages range from 6 days to 88 years old.

The deaths were registered in Benguela and Luanda, with one case each, respectively.

Among those recovered, 35 reside in Huambo, 27 in Huila, 23 in Luanda, 5 in Namibe and 4 in Moxico.

In the last 24 hours, laboratories processed 3,444 samples.

In the treatment centres, 312 patients are hospitalised, while 229 citizens are in institutional quarantine and 1,702 contacts of positive cases are under epidemiological surveillance.

Angola has 51,407 cases, of which 1,360 have died, 45,507 have recovered and 4,540 are active. Of the active cases, 26 are critical, 53 serious, 153 moderate, 80 light and 4,228 asymptomatic.

Source: Angola Press News Agency

Luanda – National Award of Human Rights was launched on Wednesday in Luanda aimed at enhancing the merit, excellence, competence and pro-activities of the concerned personalities and institutions.

Sponsored by Ministry of Justice and Human Rights, the prize also serves to awaken the society on a greater participation in the promotion, defence and protection of human rights.

It also ensures promotion and encourage social players for the strengthening of citizenship in Angola.

Also to acknowledge the quality, skills and the talent of the people and institutions that acts in the sector of human rights and stimulate the academic community and society in general for the development of the scientific research in matter related to human rights.

Addressing the ceremony, the incumbent minister of Justice and Human Rights, Francisco Queirós, said the award was approved by the Head of State, João Lourenço, and is aligned with the National Strategy of Human Rights, representing one of the main instruments for its execution.

He added that the new vision on the process of promotion, defence and protection of Human Rights involves all the society, either individual or collective public or privates.

The official noted that the National Strategy of Human Rights consecrates the need to recognise in public the merit of those who stands out in the promotion, defence and protection and in the citizenship through granting of the National Award of Human Rights.

The award will be granted every years, recognition and distinguishing people and entities that have conducted relevant actions in these fields, such as protection of rights of children and teenagers, women, disable people, environment, resolution to conflicts, child labour, citizenship and social inclusion, human trafficking, among others.

The award covers four categories: Personality of the Year in Human Rights.

The second category has to do with the Human Rights Search, with the third category linked to the Community and Humanitarian Actions.

While the fourth and last category is related to the Culture of Peace and Citizenship.

The prize will be awarded on every 4th April. The applications may be submitted by natural or legal persons, upon submission of the relevant process.

The country currently has around 800 civil society organisations, dedicated to the defence and promotion of human rights.

Source: Angola Press News Agency

Cuito – State Secretary for Energy, António Belsa da Costa is working today in Bié province to check the progress of several projects related to the sector, namely in Cuito, Chitembo, Andulo and Nharêa municipalities.

António Belsa da Costa met with the provincial governor, Pereira Alfredo, visited several social infrastructures in Chitembo and the works of Cuito municipal hospital in Cunje commune.

Antonio Costa’s schedule for today includes a visit to the Camacupa dam, as well as the sector’s infrastructures in Andulo and Nharêa districts, 130 and 175 kilometres north of the capital, respectively.

Speaking to the press, after the audience with governor Pereira Alfredo, the secretary of State acknowledged that the sector is facing a lack of financial resources to materialise projects in several regions of the country.

He appealed to the clients of the National Electricity Company (ENDE), to pay for their consumption, in order to obtain resources that will be used in favour of the population.

However, he regrets the acts of vandalism that the sector has suffered by people of bad faith, calling for denunciation in order to hold the perpetrators accountable.

Source: Angola Press News Agency

Luanda – The 835 projects approved by commercial banks under the Programme to Support Production, Export Diversification and Import Substitution (PRODESI), since 2019, amount to an approximate value of Kz 729.4 billion, the Secretary of State for the Economy, Dalva Allen, said today in Luanda.

Speaking in her debut at the usual Briefing of the Ministry of Economy and Planning (MEP), Dalva Allen noted that the projects approved provided for over 67,000 jobs.

She also said that 45 projects were under negotiation with the commercial banks, which ended the week without any new approval.

She noted that the 45 projects were linked to financial instruments notice 10/20 of the National Bank of Angola (BNA) 34 and PAC 11.

She said that the sectoral distribution of approved projects included agriculture with 388, commerce and distribution 203, manufacturing 118, livestock 45, aquaculture 43, sea fishing 32 and continental fishing 6.

Dalva Allen said that in the area of access to the internal market, the registration of producers on the National Production Disclosure Portal (PPN) continues. In accumulated terms, since it became operational, the Portal has 20,666 national producers, 1387 more than last week.

Source: Angola Press News Agency

Luanda – A memorandum of understanding for training Angolan technicians in the transport sector and exchanging experience was initialled Tuesday in Lisbon, between the National Institute of Road Transport (INTR) and the Mobility and Transport Authority (AMT).

The document initialled by the Acting Director-General of the INTR, Énio Renato de Magalhães Costa, and by the Chairwoman of the Board of the Mobility and Transport Authority, Ana Paula Vitorino, includes the exchange of information and cooperation in terms of regulation, operation and supervision of road transport, particularly in terms of exchanging technological, technical and capacity-building experience.

With the memorandum, it is intended to strengthen and promote, on an equal basis, mutually beneficial cooperation in different areas in the field of road transport system, including road infrastructure, as well as the service of dangerous goods transport, freight and passenger transport, especially with regard to economic regulation of the various modes.

The areas of cooperation between the Parties under this Memorandum will relate to the regulation, operation and supervision of infrastructure and services, in the road mode, concerning passenger and freight transport, infrastructure technology and services, in the road mode, concerning passenger and freight transport.

The cooperation between the Parties provided for in this Memorandum may take forms such as exchange of information and documentation, by means of research reports, publications, consultancy, studies or other instruments.

Source: Angola Press News Agency

Ndalatando – The governor of Cuanza Norte province, Adriano Mendes de Carvalho, reaffirmed today in Ndalatando, the government’s continued commitment to re-launch the agro-livestock activity in the region.

For Adriano Mendes de Carvalho, the re-launch of this activity will allow the province to regain the golden era when coffee, cotton, sisal, palm oil, among other products, were decisive for the development of the region’s economy.

Adriano Mendes de Carvalho, who was speaking at a meeting with the President of the Republic, João Lourenço, also argued the need to turn the province into an important logistics centre for the country, capable of supplying the central, southern, eastern and northern regions.

He said that this was due to the province’s strategic location, which gave it the status of a hub.

He said the transformation of the region into the country’s logistics centre would boost the province’s ongoing development activities.

Cuanza Norte is located in northwest Angola, bordered to the north by the province of Uige, to the west by Bengo and Luanda, to the east by Malanje and to the south by Cuanza Sul.

The province is linked by many national roads which connect it with the Angolan capital, Luanda.

Source: Angola Press News Agency

Luanda – The former President of the Republic, José Eduardo dos Santos, returned Tuesday to the country, after staying for two years in Barcelona, Spain, ANGOP reported.

The former Head of State, who went to Barcelona in April 2019, landed at the 4 de Fevereiro International Airport, in Luanda, around 11am.

José Eduardo dos Santos, 79-year old, came to power as President of the Republic in September 1979, following the death of António Agostinho Neto.

He held office for 38 years, until September 2017, when he was succeeded by the current President of the Republic, João Lourenço.

In addition to being President of the Republic, José Eduardo dos Santos was Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Angola (FAA) and president of MPLA, the party that has ruled the country since the proclamation of national independence on 11 November 1975.

Source: Angola Press News Agency

Ondjiva – Officials from the Ministry of Interior (MININT) in Cunene province are taking part as of Tuesday in Ondjiva in a training session on humanitarian border management to strengthen security and fight illegal immigration.

The two-day training session is aimed at specialists of the Migration and Foreigners Services (SME) and Border Guard Police, promoted by the Ministry of Interior in partnership with the International Organisation for Migration (IOM).

The event is addressing issues related to the concept of humanitarian border management, the difference between interview and interrogation, identifying possible cases of human trafficking, smuggling and types of migrants.

At the opening session, the SME Cunene provincial director, migration sub-commissioner Silvestre Cassinda, said that the subjects being taught are indispensable for the definition of operationalization strategy and sustaining of migration planning processes.

Source: Angola Press News Agency