Month: May 2022

1. Despite a recent increase of rainfall, drought persists in southern Madagascar.

2. Abnormally dry conditions persist across southern Mozambique, much of Zimbabwe, and parts of northern Botswana.

3. Inconsistent rainfall since late December 2021 worsened dry conditions and led to drought in parts of southern Angola and northern Namibia.

4. Erratic and poor rainfall distribution led to abnormal dryness across several parts of eastern Africa. Longer periods of dryness resulted in drought conditions in northeastern Ethiopia, northeastern Kenya, and southern Somalia.

5. Despite a recent increase of rainfall, drought persists in southern Madagascar.

6. Abnormally dry conditions persist across southern Mozambique, much of Zimbabwe, and parts of northern Botswana.

7. Inconsistent rainfall since late December 2021 worsened dry conditions and led to drought in parts of southern Angola and northern Namibia.

8. Erratic and poor rainfall distribution led to abnormal dryness across several parts of eastern Africa. Longer periods of dryness resulted in drought conditions in northeastern Ethiopia, northeastern Kenya, and southern Somalia.

Source: Famine Early Warning System Network

This report provides summary migration statistics of IGAD Member States from 2010 to 2019. The data used to generate the report was collected from the Member States as part of two initiatives: the Joint Labour Migration Program (JLMP) and the African Union – International Organization for Migration (AUIOM) Horn of Africa Initiative on Human Trafficking and Migrant Smuggling.

Migration trends

Data from the Migration Database of the African Union Institute for Statistics (STATAFRIC) indicated that the international migrant population in Africa grew from 17.2 million in 2010 to 26.3 million in 2019, representing a 4.8 percent average annual growth rate. Seventy-seven percent of international migration in Africa in 2019 occurred among the working-age population.

According to STATAFRIC, the international migrant population grew from 3.1 million in 2010 to 6.5 million in 2019, representing a 7.4 percent average annual growth rate. Furthermore, at the end of December 2020, there were 8.9 million conflict-related internally displaced persons, 4.6 million refugees and asylum seekers, and nearly 3 million people who were newly displaced by disasters (Global Report on Internal Displacement, 2021).

The IGAD region is prone to mixed migration flows that are mainly destined for: (a) Europe through Sudan, Libya, and Egypt; (b) The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries through Djibouti, Northern Somalia, and Yemen; and (c) South Africa through Kenya, Tanzania, Zambia, and Malawi.

Global, continental and regional frameworks

The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) comprise 169 targets, of which eight are associated with international migration. In 2018, the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration and the Global Compact on Refugees were adopted by the United Nations.

At the continental level, the African Union Commission (AUC) adopted two key instruments for better management of migration within the continent. The JLMP was adopted by the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the African Union in January 2015. The revised Migration Policy Framework for Africa and Plan of Action (MPFA 2018-30) was adopted in 2018 to provide comprehensive guidelines to assist the Member States and regional economic communities with designing and implementing migration policies. In January 2018, the African Union adopted the Protocol on Free Movement of Persons in Africa to foster more significant intra-Africa trade and labour mobility.

Migration and displacement dynamics within the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) region are addressed within the Regional Migration Policy Framework (RMPF), which was adopted in 2012 and has become the primary IGAD policy reference on migration. The RMPF acknowledges the importance of migration data as an essential component of policy formulation, with a particular focus on the collection and analysis of migration data (9.1) and strengthened regional migration data exchange (9.2).

Source: Intergovernmental Authority on Development

ADDIS ABABA— Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has once again requested to address the African Union (AU), Moussa Faki Mahamat, AU Commission Chairperson said.

In a tweet, Faki said he received the president’s request during a phone call from Ukraine’s foreign minister.

“I received a call from Ukraine Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba. He renewed a request from President Zelensky to address the African Union Heads of State,” he said.

The two also talked about Zelensky’s “wish to develop closer ties with the AU”.

Mr Faki, however, did not say whether the president’s request would be accepted but said he strongly stressed the need for a peaceful solution of the ongoing war with Russia.

Earlier this month, Zelensky called on his Senegalese counterpart and current African Union chairperson, Macky Sall, to address African leaders.

Zelensky’s renewed request comes as African countries were divided on voting during last month’s UN resolution adopted to deplore Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

The resolution saw support by 141 out of the 193 UN member states.

Out of the 54 African states, 28 voted in favour of the resolution while 17 African countries abstained from voting, including Algeria, South Africa, and Angola.

Eight African countries, including Ethiopia, Cameroon, and Morocco refrained from submitting a vote.

Eritrea was the only African country which voted against the UN resolution.

Earlier this month, South Africa President Cyril Ramaphosa reportedly said that the conflict in Ukraine has exposed the inability of the United Nations Security Council to fulfil its mandate of maintaining international peace and security.

He described the five-member UN Security Council, which includes China, France, Russia, Britain and the United States, as “outdated and unrepresentative”, adding that it disadvantaged countries with developing economies.

“The conflict has exposed the failure of the UN Security Council to fulfil its mission of international peace and security,” Ramaphosa said.

Source: NAM NEWS NETWORK

NAIROBI— Education ministers at the 21st Conference of Commonwealth Education Ministers (CCEM) in Nairobi, Kenya, have issued a joint statement in which they recognised the urgent need to increase investment in education and skills at all ages, with particular focus on ensuring foundational skills for all.

With Kenya hosting the Conference, Ministers also recognised the urgent issues raised in the Kenyatta Call to Action on Education Finance in 2021 and agreed to look for suitable opportunities to consider the financing of education and welcomed initiatives that support the capacity building of ministries of education on financing of education.

Hosted by the Government of Kenya in collaboration with the Commonwealth Secretariat and Kenya’s Ministry of Education, the two-day conference focused on the theme, ‘Rethinking Education for Innovation, Growth and Sustainability post-Covid-19’ and accorded ministers, policymakers, civil society, and development partners the opportunity to share knowledge and good practice, and explore trends and innovative approaches that can be adapted by member countries to develop sustainable and resilient education systems.

With regard to charting the way forward in the recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, ministers committed to building resilient education systems that can withstand future threats and disruptions and sought to improve access to digital connectivity and skills to support teaching and learning.

Ministers resolved to build back better and with resilience for fair, inclusive economic recovery, and a sustainable future in the Commonwealth.

Ministers also acknowledged the Commonwealth of Learning’s focus on promoting learning for sustainable development through the use of technologies and noted the report and good work in support of distance education and learning, especially during COVID-19 pandemic.

In her concluding remarks, the Commonwealth Secretary-General, Patricia Scotland QC, said: “Over the last two days, we have discussed important issues such as financing education, Covid-19 mitigation and recovery strategies, education and employability, redefining learning spaces and education for sustainability and peace. I gladly received your ministerial statement and look forward to working with Kenya to implement these new ideas and recommendations for the next three years. Education, we know, lays the foundation for personal and social development, responsible action and good citizenship. It is a human right and the best guarantee against unemployment and poverty. But for our communities and societies to reap these benefits, we need high-quality and inclusive education systems throughout the Commonwealth. Let us build, reinforce, and sustain our partnerships to deliver the targets and SDGs.”

Declaring the conference officially closed, the new Chairman of the Education Ministers Action Group (EMAG) and Kenya’s Minister of Education, Prof George Magoha, said: “As was well elaborated during the proceedings of this meeting the benefits of education at the individual and economic levels are enormous and permeate all our lives. The Conference of Commonwealth of Education Ministers provides a platform for the members of this family to review our progress, build synergies and forge a common way forward towards improving education in our countries. It is, therefore, my earnest hope that our discussions in the last two days and the direction provided in the Declaration emanating from this meeting will accelerate momentum towards the achievement of the Education 2030 commitments.”

On the occasion, the Commonwealth Secretariat also launched an exciting children’s book series on sustainable energy and the global transformation of energy systems.

The books present the concepts of sustainable and inclusive energy in a digestible and engaging format for young readers, aged 7-12, to find out why they can be part of the change in the way the world produces and uses energy. These books are among publications, toolkits, manuals and other educational resources that the Secretariat provides free of charge to member states.

The six finalists of the 2022 Commonwealth Education Awards were also revealed at a virtual ceremony on the margins of the conference. The awards recognise and celebrate promising and innovative programmes, projects, and people that have made a positive impact on the education sector across the Commonwealth.

The meeting concluded with ministers expressing their sincere appreciation to the Government of Kenya for the effective chairmanship and excellent arrangements made for the 21st CCEM.

Policy proposals from the ministerial statement that was issued will inform discussions at the upcoming Commonwealth Head of Government Meeting (CHOGM), scheduled to take place in June 2022 in Kigali, Rwanda.

Over 200 international delegates from 40 Commonwealth countries, and over 200 participants from Kenya, attended the conference, which was convened in a hybrid format for the first time with some ministers and delegates attending the in-person event in Nairobi, while the rest joined virtually.

The meeting also marked the first time the Commonwealth education family came together in Nairobi since 1987 when it hosted the 10th Commonwealth Conference of Education Ministers on the theme of ‘vocational orientation of education’.

The next CCEM will take place in three years’ time in 2025.

Source: NAM NEWS NETWORK