Category Archives: Production
The EurAfrican Forum in search for a common ground between Europe and Africa
The 3rd edition of the EurAfrican Forum (www.EurAfricanForum.org) to be held on July 2nd and 3rd in Cascais, Portugal will be gathering over 700 European and African key actors from more than 60 countries; 2020 edition will look for new opportunities for both continents as it unveils its theme In Search for a Common Ground; The program will focus on key topics as Africa and Europe relations, Free Trade Agreements, Climate Change, African Arts and Culture, Infrastructure, Connectivity and Off-grid solutions.
The annual meeting will gather over 700 African and European changemakers such as entrepreneurs, artists, activists, public and private decision leaders, in Cascais, Portugal, on July 2nd and 3rd 2020.
It is now time to establish a structured cooperation between Africa and Europe, engaging not only public decision makers but creating a denser network, embarking in the discussions entrepreneurs, young people, women, artists, scientists…rdquo; Joseacute; Manuel Duratilde;o Barroso, Chairman of the EurAfrican Forum.
Hosted by the Portuguese Diaspora Council and the Municipality of Cascais, with the High Patronage of the Portuguese Presidency, this third consecutive edition will focus on main issues such Africa and Europe relations, Free Trade Agreements, Climate Change, the influence of African Arts and Culture, Infrastructure, Connectivity and Off-grid solutions, under the theme In Search for a Common Ground.
2020 is a pivotal year for Europe and Africa as this new decade marks the unavoidable collaboration between our continents at a time when climate change, demographic challenges and the technologic revolution are central pieces of Africa and Europe’s sustainable development puzzlerdquo;, said Filipe de Botton, Chairman of the Board of the Portuguese Diaspora Council.
As Europe and Africa face common challenges, the EurAfrican Forum exists as a platform to work on future partnerships for sustainable solutions. Exploiting synergies and promoting business opportunities with mutual benefits, the event will be sharing initiatives, in search for a common ground.
Source: EurAfrican Forum.
Meeting of Minister Di Maio with the Minister of Defense of Djibouti, Hassan Omar Mohamed Bourhan
The Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Luigi Di Maio, met today at the Farnesina with the Minister of Defence of Djibouti, Hassan Omar Mohamed Bourhan.
Minister Di Maio, first of all, expressed his solidarity with the Chikungunya epidemic and the massive floods that have hit Djibouti in recent weeks, recalling how Italy has promptly provided help by sending a humanitarian flight to support civil protection operations in the country.
For Italy, Djibouti is an element of stability and an important partner in the Horn of Africa, a region where historical changes are underway; our country is following the situation with the utmost attention, the Minister recalled. He added that Italy considers it is essential that a strategic partner like Djibouti can be a protagonist of this dynamic.
Finally, the owner of the Farnesina expressed satisfaction at how the dialogue between Italy and Djibouti has deepened in recent years, starting from the collaboration in the defence sector but also thanks to the strengthening of economic-commercial relations and numerous cooperation initiatives.
Source: Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Italy.
Investors, Entrepreneurs Meet in Silicon Valley to Discuss African Investment
SAN FRANCISCO – Barbara Birungi Mutabazi has a vision: Train Ugandan women to code and do other technology work.
“The beauty of this is that even if there are not enough jobs in Uganda, if you have the right skills, you can work for any organization around the world, said Mutabazi, who runs Women in Technology, a skills-training organization in Uganda.
Mutabazi recently attended the African Diaspora Investment Symposium to find investors and possible employers for the young women she trains. The event brought together entrepreneurs, investors and businesses to talk about the future of Africa business.
“The African Diaspora Network is trying to bring Africans and friends of Africa together to collaborate, create and to imagine possibilities for the continent, said Almaz Negash, the founder and executive director of the African Diaspora Network and the event’s organizer.
One theme of the symposium was money how to tap into the African diaspora to fund small, medium and large companies on the continent.
‘Scaling’ remittances
Remittances money sent by people living in the U.S. to family in Africa has long been a key way to support people. More than $40 billion in remittances goes to sub-Sahara Africa, mostly to Nigeria, Negash said. This is a powerful source of support for families, but some speakers wondered if there are other ways to help spur growth.
“How do we scale remittances so that it can also be invested in other people than our family, Negash said. Supporting startups.
Another area of support could be to create a fund to help African entrepreneurs and businesses protect their intellectual property, said Joseph Mucheru, Google’s first sub-Sahara Africa lead and now a minister in the Kenyan government.
An IP fund
African leaders need to find ways to attract investors and businesses to invest and come in and work with our startups, protect our startups, ensure that the intellectual property that they build can be retained in the continent, he said.
For the roughly 50 African entrepreneurs attending the event, this was an opportunity to pitch their businesses. The kinds of businesses varied widely.
Aboubacar Komara, an architect from Guinea, is working on a housing startup.
“We’re implicating people in the process of actually building their homes. You know, we want to change the concept of what is architecture, because architecture has a lot to do with your identity, he said.
Neile Nkholise is the chief executive of 3DIMO, a sports technology company in South Africa. Sensors are sewn into sports garments, which send data that indicates whether an athlete is at risk of an injury. At the moment, she is focused on football, rugby and basketball.
She is raising her seed round of investment but is also looking for investors who can be partners, people who unlock access to networks and expertise that enable us to scale much faster, she said.
For many of the attendees, the event was a welcomed chance to talk about Africa successes. Thelma Ekiyor runs a Nigeria-based business accelerator and an investment fund for women-run businesses.
There is no doubt there are problems in Africa, she said, but for the diaspora, the lens through which you look at these problems must be different. For the diaspora, these problems are opportunities. For the diaspora, they are entry points.
Women in ‘the box’ of micro-lending
She said one of the challenges has been that the structure of financing women entrepreneurs in Africa and other developing regions has been “micro.
“Most of the funds available to women are micro-lending, as if women don’t know what to do with big money, she told the attendees. And so the first thing that I knew we had to do was change that and ensure that how we finance women was aspirational. We would start them at them micro-level and support them to grow.
The power of the symposium doesn’t stop after everyone goes home, said Negash of the African Diaspora Network.
Over the coming months, connections made may turn into something else a new business, a customer or partnership all with a focus on the African continent.
Source: Voice of America
UN Seeks $600 Million for Ethiopian Refugee Effort
GENEVA – The U.N. refugee agency and partners are appealing for $658 million this year for 735,000 refugees and more than half-a-million Ethiopians hosting them.
The U.N. refugee agency praises the many rights granted by the Ethiopian government to refugees during the last three years. They include granting refugees the right to work and access social services, primary education, register births, and other essential benefits.
But UNHCR spokesman Andrej Mahecic says resources are needed to expand existing social services and finance a number of other basic needs.
“The Ethiopia Refugee Response Plan covers humanitarian activities by UNHCR and 57 other humanitarian partners, said Mahecic. “It seeks to address huge gaps in health, nutrition, education, and shelter, while also investing in sectors including sanitation, energy and livelihoods.
Ethiopia has a long history of hosting refugees and asylum seekers. Mahecic tells VOA the country currently is hosting nearly three-quarter-million refugees of 26 nationalities. The majority, he says, is from South Sudan, followed by Somalia, Eritrea, and Sudan.
There is no massive influx right now, but the number of refugees is expected to grow substantially during the course of the year as the country continues to receive refugees with nearly, about 100,000 new arrivals that came in 2019, said Mahecic.
Mahecic notes Ethiopia also has a huge problem with internal displacement. As part of the overall inter-agency humanitarian effort, he says the UNHCR and partners will assist more than 1.5 million Ethiopians who have been forced to flee their homes because of conflicts and climate shocks.
Source: Voice of America
UN Seeks $600 Million for Ethiopian Refugee Effort
GENEVA – The U.N. refugee agency and partners are appealing for $658 million this year for 735,000 refugees and more than half-a-million Ethiopians hosting them.
The U.N. refugee agency praises the many rights granted by the Ethiopian government to refugees during the last three years. They include granting refugees the right to work and access social services, primary education, register births, and other essential benefits.
But UNHCR spokesman Andrej Mahecic says resources are needed to expand existing social services and finance a number of other basic needs.
“The Ethiopia Refugee Response Plan covers humanitarian activities by UNHCR and 57 other humanitarian partners, said Mahecic. “It seeks to address huge gaps in health, nutrition, education, and shelter, while also investing in sectors including sanitation, energy and livelihoods.
Ethiopia has a long history of hosting refugees and asylum seekers. Mahecic tells VOA the country currently is hosting nearly three-quarter-million refugees of 26 nationalities. The majority, he says, is from South Sudan, followed by Somalia, Eritrea, and Sudan.
There is no massive influx right now, but the number of refugees is expected to grow substantially during the course of the year as the country continues to receive refugees with nearly, about 100,000 new arrivals that came in 2019, said Mahecic.
Mahecic notes Ethiopia also has a huge problem with internal displacement. As part of the overall inter-agency humanitarian effort, he says the UNHCR and partners will assist more than 1.5 million Ethiopians who have been forced to flee their homes because of conflicts and climate shocks.
Source: Voice of America
