Day: April 11, 2023

The Office of Deputy President Paul Mashatile on Tuesday announced key appointments to ensure that he effectively fulfils his mandate.

Following a swearing-in ceremony in March, a transitional period took place involving a handover process, particularly on the delegated responsibilities that the Deputy President would inherit from his predecessor as delegated by President Cyril Ramaphosa.

The Deputy President has been tasked with leading Government Business in the National Assembly, fast-tracking land reform, championing the South African National AIDS Council, and promoting social cohesion among Traditional and Khoi-San Leaders and Military Veterans, among others.

“To achieve these objectives, the Office of the Deputy President supports the Deputy President in his Constitutional responsibility of assisting the President in the execution of the functions of government.

“A well-capacitated office with technical skills to achieve the objectives of government will ensure that the Deputy President is able to effectively fulfil his mandate,” the statement read.

In terms of the administration of the Office of the Deputy President, former Acting Director-General at the Gauteng Provincial government Mduduzi Mbada will Head the Office of the Deputy President.

Melene Rossouw, who will lead the Personal Support and Advisory Services, will also support the Deputy President.

In addition, Vukani Mde will take on the role of a Spokesperson and Communication, while Lerato Ntsangani will handle Strategy and Special Projects.

Meanwhile, several individuals will form the advisory team of the Deputy President.

These include the former Head of Communication in the African National Congress (ANC) as Political Advisor Keith Khoza, former Presidential Spokesperson as International Relations Advisor Mukoni Ratshitanga, Specialist on cities and former government communicator as Strategy and Spatial Transformation Advisor Tshilidzi Ratshitanga.

Deputy President Mashatile has retained former Deputy President David Mabuza’s two advisors, Madala Masuku who will advise the Deputy President on Service Delivery and the District Development Model and Thulani Mdakane who will counsel him on Land Reform and Social Cohesion.

The Deputy President’s delegations are:

• Leader of Government Business in the National Assembly, in terms of section 91(4) of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa.

• Leading government effort to fast-track land reform and the coordination of government programmes to accelerate land reform and agricultural support

• Implement rapid response interventions on service delivery and trouble-shooting in service delivery hotspots

• Assist the President in the rollout of the District Development Model through effective coordination of the different spheres of government, which will improve the functioning of municipalities and address community concerns

• Lead the South African National AIDS Council and the country’s integrated response to the challenges facing HIV and AIDS

• Special envoy on South Sudan and leading peace missions on the continent as required.

• Lead the Human Resources Development Council of South Africa and foster collaboration between government and social partners towards addressing the shortage of skills in critical sectors of the economy.

• Promote social cohesion initiatives with a particular focus on Traditional and Khoi-San Leaders, as well as Military Veterans.

• Chair the governance, State capacity, and institutional development as well as the Justice, Crime Prevention and Security Cabinet Committees

The Presidency has stressed that all appointments are subject to public service and administration processes. – SAnews.gov.za

Source: South African Government News Agency

The Prime Minister of the Federal Government of Somalia, H.E Hamza Abdi Barre received in his office the Ambassador of Qatar to Somalia, Mr. Abdalla Binu Saalim Al-Nu’eymi. The Prime Minister and the Ambassador discussed the strengthening of bilateral relations and cooperation between the two nations in the fields of security, economic development, trade and humanitarian affairs.

Source: Somali National News Agency

The Minister of Internal Security of the Federal Government of Somalia, H.E Mohamed Sheikh Ali (Discussion) had an official meeting with the Minister of Internal Affairs and Security of Serbia, Mr. Bratislav Gašic. In the meeting, the two Ministers discussed the strengthening of relations between the Federal Republic of Somalia and the Republic of Serbia, especially cooperation in the field of security. Minister Gašic said that Serbia will support Somalia in security because the Federal Government and the Somali people have achieved important victories in the fight against terrorism. The two Ministers agreed that the two countries should have security cooperation.

Source: Somali National News Agency

The County Government of Bomet has embarked on vaccination against zoonotic diseases such as Anthrax, Black quarter, and Rabies which pose a great risk not only to livestock but also to humans. Between October 2022 and January this year, 179 cases of Rabies and another 22 cases of Anthrax have been reported. This situation has prompted the county to roll out a mass vaccination exercise to combat the spread of these diseases. Speaking during the launch Bomet Governor Prof. Hillary Barchok revealed that the county has embarked on vaccinating both people and animals against these diseases. ‘This vaccination exercise targets both humans and livestock across the country. So far 3,250 people and 12,479 dogs and cats have been vaccinated against Rabies, over the same period,’ said Barchok. He confirmed that his administration has procured 20,000 doses of Anthrax/Black Quarter vaccines to be administered to animals that are most susceptible to the diseases. He further revealed that the county will be partnering with other non-governmental organizations like Framing Systems that have been monitoring the well-being of animals in the county to realize the vaccination of both people and animal drives within the area. ‘As part of our commitment to controlling all zoonotic diseases in livestock, we are partnering with Farming Systems Kenya, Kenya Red Cross, and Tenwek Hospital Community Health and Development to ensure that vulnerable populations have access to the vaccines,’ explained the governor. The vaccines will be distributed to the five sub-counties within the county where vaccination exercises will be initiated immediately. The exercise comes in handy after reports indicate a stray dog with rabies bit severely people in the Kiperes ward in Bomet East Sub-county. One of the victims succumbed to the infection.

Source: Kenya News Agency

The County Government of Nakuru has embarked on an ambitious plan to reinvigorate the cooperative societies sector, to help farmers market their produce in order to avoid exploitation by brokers. The devolved unit’s administration has highlighted its willingness to assist the farmers to form and register societies as one way of putting more profits in their pockets. While noting that farmers should be protected from any form of exploitation, County Executive Committee Member (CECM) in charge of Agriculture Mr Leonard Bor further indicated that cooperative societies are the best way to attract funding from government and financial institutions. ‘Governor Susan Kihika’s administration and the national government are keen to help farmers organized in cooperatives. A significant number of farmers have not realized maximum market potential because they are not members of cooperatives,’ stated Mr Bor. He stressed that farmers should come together and establish societies where they will deliver their harvests for sale. ‘Unless the farmers get more organized, they will be exploited forever. By becoming ‘middlemen’ themselves, cooperatives shield the farmer from the lop-sided relationship with the middlemen. Through aggregation, they enhance their bargaining power and prices owing to economies of scale. It also reduces the cost associated with individual trading,’ he cautioned. He was speaking at his office when the County Agricultural Technical Committee received a presentation on the inclusive model for agricultural transformation to boost food production and promote food security from the Presidential Economic Transformation Secretariat. The model according to the CECM is in line with Kenya Kwanza Coalition’s manifesto to boost food production, promote food security and re-engineer the entire food production, storage and distribution chain to ensure that all Kenyans have access to affordable food all year round, come rain or drought. ‘The model proposes to restructure the agricultural sector through the formation of Ward Cooperatives. In the model, farmers are encouraged to form and join ward cooperatives in which the government will invest in. This will create multiple value chains that increase agriculture production and boost economic value. They will also utilize food production resources and reorganize production to reduce the cost of marketing while maximizing profitability to the farmers,’ Mr Bor explained. The CECM challenged farmers to move from subsistence farming and penetrate the high-value export market, besides joining cooperatives to help access services and market their produce. ‘We have initiated plans to ensure Nakuru exports her crops to East African countries like Uganda and also international markets including Europe. I urge farmers to seek ways of optimizing their production,’ stated Mr Bor. He stated that forming cooperatives at ward level will address the power balance which favours the middleman, adding that under the umbrella of cooperatives, small-scale farmers have a bigger voice to bargain. ‘Middlemen cannot be eliminated but they can be managed. By making a cooperative a marketing vehicle, it can take advantage of information and communications technology to gain access to market information to expand the business beyond the local market,’ added the CECM. According to official records the county has currently more than 1,000 cooperatives. County executives for Trade and Agriculture have been holding sensitization forums across the devolved unit to encourage farmers to join cooperatives. Mr Bor disclosed, ‘We are in talks with the national government and development partners to help farmers avoid post-harvest losses through establishment of, for instance, cold rooms for produce like potatoes and carrots and value addition factories. Those targeted by the Nakuru government include dairy farmers, whom the county wants to help tap into value addition for their milk so that they can compete effectively in the market. Other products targeted are coffee, potatoes and avocados among other crops. The county government is also seeking to help farmers create market linkages to tap into the insatiable international market. It is also working to revive pyrethrum farming and inject new life into the collapsed, yet lucrative sector. Nakuru, regarded as a key food basket in the Rift Valley region, is an agriculturally rich county and a leading producer of potatoes, carrots, milk, vegetables and pyrethrum among other crops. Molo, Kuresoi South and North, Subukia, Njoro and Bahati are among the county’s main agricultural producers. The county has also enacted legislation that supports Saccos and cooperative movements. The Cooperative Revolving Development Fund Act mandates the county government to set aside money for the Revolving Development fund in its financial estimates. The fund provides money for low interest loans to cooperative societies with a view to scaling up their lending activities. It also aims at improving entrepreneurship and productivity. ‘The fund will revive institutions in areas that can have an immediate impact on the household economy,’ read a section of the Act. The Act provides that the fund be managed by a board. Money borrowed by the entity must be approved by the assembly. The fund managers are required to conduct civic education to promote awareness and understanding of the operations of the fund among stakeholders. Mr Bor reiterated the importance of farmers linking with ward and sub-county agriculture officers and to work collectively to improve their product and service quality and reduce risks. He also encouraged farmers to register at their respective sub-county offices so as to benefit from subsidized farm inputs. ‘Registered farmers have access to cheaper fertilizer and seedlings provided by the national and county governments,’ he said.

Source: Kenya News Agency