EU suspends budget support, security cooperation with Niger

Published

9 months ago

July 30, 2023

EU suspends budget support, security cooperation with Niger

The European Union (EU) says it has suspended its financial support and cooperation on security with Niger with immediate effect following the military coup there.

EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell disclosed this in a statement.

The coup leaders declared General Abdourahamane Tiani as head of state on Friday, ousting President Mohamed Bazoum.

The EU, the United States, and other countries have called for the unconditional release of Bazoum from detention and the restoration of democratic order in the country.

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“In addition to the immediate cessation of budget support, all cooperation actions in the domain of security are suspended indefinitely with immediate effect,” Borrell said.

Niger is a major recipient of Western aid and a key partner of the European Union in helping contain irregular migration from sub-Saharan Africa.

The EU also has a small number of troops in Niger for a military training mission.

The European bloc has allocated 503 million euros ($554 million) from its budget to improve governance, education and sustainable growth in Niger over 2021-2024, according to its website.

EU suspends budget support, security cooperation with Niger

(Reuters/NAN)

Floods kill over 200 in Kenya, cyclone approaches

Published

2 days ago

May 3, 2024

Trends Admin

Floods kill over 200 in Kenya, cyclone approaches

The death toll from flood-related accidents in Kenya has surpassed 200 since March, the interior ministry announced Friday as a storm approached the Tanzanian coast.

Torrential rains have lashed parts of East Africa, causing flooding and landslides that have wrecked crops, buried homes, and displaced hundreds of thousands of people.

According to a statement from Kenya’s interior ministry, 210 people have died “due to severe weather conditions,” with 22 deceased in the last 24 hours.

More than 165,000 people had been evacuated from their homes, with 90 others missing, increasing concerns that the toll may increase further.

Kenya and adjacent Tanzania, where at least 155 people have died in flooding, are bracing for Cyclone Hidaya, which will bring heavy rain, wind, and waves to their coastlines.

Tanzanian authorities warned Friday that Hidaya had “strengthened to the status of a full-fledged cyclone” around 3:00 a.m. local time (0000GMT), about 400 kilometres (248 miles) from the southeastern city of Mtwara.

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“Cyclone Hidaya has continued to strengthen further, with wind speeds increasing to about 130 kilometres per hour,” they said in a weather bulletin.

Kenya’s interior ministry predicted that the storm would “bring strong winds and large ocean waves, with heavy rainfall,” and hit the shore on Sunday.

Since September last year, Burundi’s heavier-than-usual rains have killed at least 29 people, injured 175 others, and displaced tens of thousands, according to the United Nations.

The rains have been exacerbated by the El Nino weather pattern, a naturally occurring climate phenomenon that is normally associated with increasing temperatures worldwide, resulting in drought in some regions of the world and torrential downpours in others.

More than 300 people were killed by rains and floods in Kenya, Somalia, and Ethiopia late last year as the area struggled to recover from its worst drought in four decades.

Cyclone season in the southwest Indian Ocean typically lasts from November to April and produces approximately a dozen cyclones every year.

Floods kill over 200 in Kenya, cyclone approaches

Africa

Man who has lived in America for over 13 years says he’s tired, wants to return home

Published

4 days ago

May 1, 2024

Trends Admin

Man who has lived in America for over 13 years says he’s tired, wants to return home

After 13 years of residing in the United States of America, a Kenyan man has expressed his strong desire to return to his homeland.

The man, whose identity remains undisclosed, reportedly relocated to the US in 2011, initially serving in the military for four years before transitioning into corporate employment.

During his time in the US, he held various positions, including a deployment in Afghanistan, and was earning a substantial salary of $12,000 per month.

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However, despite the financial security, he found himself grappling with a sense of unfulfillment, realizing that he was sacrificing his most valuable asset (time) for a pursuit that left him with little satisfaction.

In December of the previous year, he reportedly resigned from his corporate job and delve into entrepreneurship, seeking freedom and autonomy in his endeavors.

Man who has lived in America for over 13 years says he’s tired, wants to return home

Africa

23 killed in violent clashes over cattle in South Sudan

Published

5 days ago

April 30, 2024

Trends Admin

At least 23 people were killed and 44 were injured in violent clashes between different ethnic groups over cattle theft in South Sudan, a local official said on Tuesday.

Heavily armed cattle thieves attacked a village in the state of Eastern Equatoria, a local administration spokesman said.

Hundreds of cattle were stolen during the raid.

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Seven children and five women were also abducted during the attack.

Members of the Murle ethnic group were armed with machine guns and other rapid-fire weapons, he said.

The latest incident comes after other, deadly attacks relating to cattle theft in South Sudan.

Several ethnic groups in South Sudan breed cattle, with farming not only key for economic reasons and critical to prosperity, but also deeply embedded in their culture.