The Secretary General of the African Federation of Environmental Journalists (AFEJ) Mr. Daud Abdi Daud who has been tracking the rape case and was among few journalists present at the attorney general on Tuesday 22 January to follow the case affirmed that the raped women clearly stated her position and tells the attorney general that she was raped by uniformed government soldiers even her father and uncle were confirmed the case as well as her husband who is in a one of the detained people publicly voted for that his wife was raped by uniformed government soldiers.
The drivers and dynamic in this case should be investigated and prosecuted by the African Union and the United Nations as publicly acknowledged that rape violence is a tactics of war crime according Zeinab Hawa Bangura the special secretary general representative in conflict related sexual violence.
The human rights groups worried the situation and issued triangle statement today to address the rape violence and the journalist custody. For your information kindly have looked the below statement from the Committee to Protect the Journalists (CPJ), Human Rights Watch (HRW) and Amnesty International.

Somalia: Free Journalist, Others Unlawfully Detained
Police Response to Sexual Violence Chills Media Freedom
http://www.hrw.org/news/2013/01/12/somalia-free-journalist-others-linked-rape-allegation

The African Federation of Environmental Journalists (AFEJ) calls in need of attention release by all the detained innocent people including the journalist without political row among the Somalia government institutions over the ongoing rape violence and generally solicited Somalia environmental journalists to do accurate coverage over the rape issues which is now imperative one with a lot of worry.
For more information of the ongoing Somalia rape violence please contact AFEJ Secretary General Mr. Daud Abdi Daud who is now tracking the cases wholly on +252616349997 or email dimbil@afejnews.org

(Addis Ababa, January 21, 2013) – The African Union (AU) should make human rights central to its discussions about crises situations in Africa at its summit meeting this week in Ethiopia, Human Rights Watch said today in an open letter to the AU chairperson, Dr. Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma. The Ordinary Summit begins on January 21, 2013, and AU heads of state are due to meet on January 27 and 28 in Addis Ababa.

The AU summit should address the human rights crises in Mali, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Sudan, and Somalia as well as the human rights challenges around upcoming elections in Kenya and Zimbabwe, Human Rights Watch said. Of particular concern are the human rights implications of the deployment of an African Union/United Nations-supported international military force in Mali and the need to ensure proper safeguards for protecting civilians and a human rights monitoring capability. Potential abuses not only by the Malian security forces but also by the armed forces of countries potentially taking part in the operation bring particular urgency to the situation, with the recent resumption of hostilities in Mali.

“The AU summit is an important regional forum for ensuring that human rights considerations are injected into every crisis response,” said Tiseke Kasambala, Africa advocacy director at Human Rights Watch. “The AU has a crucial role to play in ensuring that the military intervention in Mali does not contribute to further human rights violations in already insecure environments. That means abiding by international law and making civilian protection a priority.”

In eastern Congo, concerted regional and international action is required to help end the cycle of abuses, Human Rights Watch said. Over the past nine months, M23 rebels in eastern Congo have committed widespread abuses amounting to war crimes, including deliberate killings of civilians, summary executions, rapes, and recruitment of child soldiers. The rebels have received significant logistical and military support from neighboring Rwanda.

Talks between the M23 and the Congolese government, which began in December 2012 and resumed in January, appear to be faltering and so far, have made little progress.

“The violence in eastern Congo continues to lead to appalling loss of civilian life,” Kasambala said. “Rwanda should immediately stop supporting the abusive rebel group M23 and the AU should insist that M23 commanders implicated in war crimes are brought to justice.”

Ongoing talks over the deployment of an African-led intervention brigade as part of the UN peacekeeping mission in Congo should consider mandating this force to support arrest operations of suspects sought on international and national warrants for war crimes and crimes against humanity, Human Rights Watch said.

In Sudan, the human rights and humanitarian situation has deteriorated, particularly in the conflict-affected areas of Southern Kordofan, Blue Nile, and Darfur. The fighting between the Sudanese armed forces and the rebel Sudan People’s Liberation Army-North (SPLA-North) in Southern Kordofan and Blue Nile states has affected nearly one million people, forcibly displacing hundreds of thousands from both states since mid-2011. The Sudanese military has used indiscriminate aerial bombardments in populated areas of both states. 

Government forces along with government-affiliated militia are also responsible for other serious abuses against civilians in both states, such as ground attacks on villages, destruction of grain and water sources that are critical to the survival of the population, arbitrary detention, and sexual violence against women and girls. Sudan has blocked humanitarian aid groups from the areas outside government-controlled towns where civilians are in dire need of food aid.

In Darfur, armed conflict between the government forces and militias and the rebel groups continues, in addition to inter-ethnic clashes over resources. Scores of people have been killed in the fighting and the AU/UN Mission in Darfur (UNAMID) peacekeepers have repeatedly come under attack. The Sudanese government restricts the movement of AU/UN peacekeepers and nongovernmental organizations, preventing access to large parts of the region. The AU should press the government of Sudan to grant immediate and unfettered access to humanitarian agencies in the conflict-affected areas of Darfur, and Blue Nile and Southern Kordofan, Human Rights Watch said.

“An urgent response is required to resolve the humanitarian and human rights crisis in Sudan,” Kasambala said. “The AU should demand that the Sudanese government immediately stop the indiscriminate aerial bombardments and other violations of international human rights and humanitarian law in Southern Kordofan and Blue Nile states.”

During the past year, a new government replaced the transitional authority in Somalia, and AMISOM troops made significant military advances into territory held by the Islamist armed group Al-Shabaab. The human rights situation in Somalia nonetheless remains poor, Human Rights Watch said. State security forces have been implicated in serious violations of fundamental rights that contribute to the insecurity of the population. These include killings of journalists in government-controlled areas, rape, and severe restrictions on access to food and shelter for displaced people.  

Foreign forces including Kenyan forces under AMISOM command, as well as Ethiopian forces, have also committed abuses in south-central Somalia during military operations, including indiscriminate shelling.

“The AU should urge the Somali authorities to end abuses by state security forces,” Kasambala said. “The AU should also ensure that respect for humanitarian law and accountability for abuses during military operations by AMISOM are a priority.”

The deployment of a long-term AU election observer mission to Kenya this coming March is an important contribution to free and fair elections, but the possibility of election-related violence is a growing concern, Human Rights Watch said. In the past year, 400 people have been killed and over 200,000 people displaced in incidents of ethnic, resource-based, and politically motivated violence in the coast region of Northern Kenya and parts of Nairobi. The pre-election violence has been among the worst in Kenya since 1992.

Few of those responsible for the violence that followed the 2007 elections in Kenya have been brought to justice, raising fears that those responsible for the violence during the 2007 elections could carry out further acts of violence in 2013.

“The ongoing violence and lack of justice for victims of human rights abuses during the 2007 elections makes it vital for the AU to send a strong message to the Kenyan authorities that grave abuses should not go unpunished,” Kasambala said.

The AU should provide for early deployment and sufficient numbers of Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) and AU election observers to Zimbabwe, where a lack of institutional and legal reform has raised the specter of violence and other rights abuses during elections to be held in 2013. The AU should keep the monitors on the ground after the elections, long enough to deter violence and intimidation.

For more Human Rights Watch reporting on Mali, please visit:
http://www.hrw.org/africa/mali
 For more Human Rights Watch reporting on the Democratic Republic of Congo, please visit:
http://www.hrw.org/drc
 For more Human Rights Watch reporting on Sudan, please visit:
http://www.hrw.org/africa/sudan

For more Human Rights Watch reporting on Somalia, please visit:
http://www.hrw.org/africa/somalia

For more Human Rights Watch reporting on Kenya, please visit:
http://www.hrw.org/africa/kenya
 

For more Human Rights Watch reporting on Zimbabwe, please visit:
http://www.hrw.org/africa/zimbabwe

For more information, please contact:
In Addis Ababa, Tiseke Kasambala (English): +251-927-423-196 (mobile); or kasambt@hrw.org
In New York, Daniel Bekele (English, Amharic): +1-212-216-1223; or +1-917-385-3878 (mobile); or bekeled@hrw.org
In Amsterdam, Leslie Lefkow (English): +31-6-21-59-73-56 (mobile); or lefkowl@hrw.org
In Paris, Jean-Marie Fardeau (French, English, Portuguese): +33-6-45-85-24-87 (mobile); or fardeaj@hrw.org
In London, Carina Tertsakian (English, French): +44-207-713-2764; or +44-790-350-3297 (mobile)

Mercury Treaty: Last Chance to Address Health Effects
In Final Talks, Western Governments Should Agree to Include Prevention, Treatment

(Geneva, January 10, 2013) – A proposed international treaty to address the damaging effects of mercury should include specific provisions to protect the health of children and other vulnerable populations, Human Rights Watch said today. Governments are to meet in Geneva beginning January 13, 2013, for a fifth and final round of talks for the treaty. Mercury is a toxic metal that attacks the central nervous system and is particularly harmful to children.

So far, the draft treaty has been focused on the environment and neglected the important role that the health sector has to play in addressing the problems caused by mercury, Human Rights Watch said. Western governments have resisted including stronger health provisions.

“Delegates to the mercury treaty negotiations should seize this last chance and draft effective health strategies to prevent and treat mercury poisoning,” said Juliane Kippenberg, senior researcher at Human Rights Watch. “Millions of people around the globe are exposed to mercury on a daily basis, in artisanal mining and elsewhere. There is a dire need for stronger prevention and treatment of mercury poisoning.”

Human Rights Watch research has documented how small-scale gold miners use mercury to extract gold from the ore, and risk mercury poisoning as a result. At least 13 million people work as artisanal gold miners globally, including many children. Few are aware of the harm mercury can cause.

In Mali, Human Rights Watch interviewed children as young as 11 about their daily work with mercury. In Papua New Guinea, a doctor told Human Rights Watch researchers about the impact of mercury on small-scale gold miners: “We have dozens of cases of mercury poisoning. ….They stare blankly at the wall. You cannot talk to them, they are not conversant, nothing. They are like zombies. And we have several cases that did not recover.”

Many health systems are ill-equipped to address mercury poisoning. During a Human Rights Watch investigation in Tanzania, a medical officer in a mining area expressed concern that health workers were “failing to diagnose” people suffering from mercury poisoning because they lack training.

A proposal by Latin American governments for a stand-alone article on health in the mercury treaty was a positive move, Human Rights Watch said. The article should require more public health information, research, surveillance, testing, treatment, and capacity-building of health systems to respond to mercury exposure. In a submission to governments, Human Rights Watch proposed specific language for a health article.

Human Rights Watch welcomed the fact that the current treaty article on small-scale gold mining requires parties to undertake public health activities for artisanal mining communities, but said this is not sufficient to address the problem. Mercury is used in a variety of areas, and as a result affects many different populations. Among other things, it is used in the production of chlorine, of poly vinyl chloride (PVC), a type of plastic, and of batteries, and in dental medicine. Burning fossil fuels, primarily coal, also significantly contributes to mercury emissions.

At the last round of negotiations, in July 2012, Western governments – in particular Canada, the United States, and European Union members – rejected including a stand-alone article on health, contending that treaty is primarily about the environment.

They indicated that including health strategies might interfere with the health sector and drive up the cost of the treaty’s implementation. They also said that current references to health strategies in the draft text were sufficient. Their stance caused a heated debate with Latin American and African governments, whose representatives wanted a stronger health article.

“The position of the United States, Canada, and the European Union has been disappointing,” Kippenberg said. “Wealthier countries should recognize that environmental and health strategies on mercury go hand in hand, and provide financial support for both.”

The treaty is scheduled to be adopted toward the end of 2013 as the “Minamata Convention” in Japan. In the 1950s, the city of Minamata in Japan was the scene of one of the worst mercury poisoning disasters in history, in which more than 1,700 people died and many more suffered lifelong disease and disability. Japan has remained in the background, though, in the debate over including health strategies in the treaty.

“Today, Japan has a chance to say, ‘Never again,’” Kippenberg said. “It should take a lesson from Minamata and actively press to include health strategies in the mercury treaty.”

Around the world, environmental degradation – including contamination from mercury – has resulted in the denial of rights, including the right to health, Human Rights Watch said. Governments should recognize international human rights law in the preamble to the treaty and integrate human rights into environmental law.

Mercury poisoning can cause a wide range of health problems. Mercury can attack the cardiovascular system, the kidneys, the gastrointestinal tract, the immune system, and the lungs. Symptoms of exposure include tremors, twitching, vision impairment, headaches, and memory and concentration loss. Higher levels of mercury exposure may result in kidney failure, respiratory failure, and death.

Mercury is particularly harmful to unborn babies and infants, and can be transmitted during pregnancy and through breast milk. It can cause irreversible damage to a child’s development. Researchers have described mercury poisoning as an “invisible epidemic.”

For more Human Rights Watch reporting on the dangers of mercury, please visit:
http://www.hrw.org/dangers-of-mercury

To read the Human Rights Watch report on the dangers of mercury in Mali, please visit:
http://www.hrw.org/reports/2011/12/06/poisonous-mix
To read the Human Rights Watch report on the dangers of mercury in Papua New Guinea, please visit:
http://www.hrw.org/reports/2011/02/01/gold-s-costly-dividend

For more information, please contact:
In Geneva, Juliane Kippenberg (English, French, German): +41-77-472-9194 (mobile); or kippenj@hrw.org
In New York, Joseph Amon (English): +1-917-519-8930 (mobile); or amonj@hrw.org

Members of the Somali Media for Environment, Science, Health and Agriculture (SOMESHA) made a tremendous nationwide climate monitoring outlook after the government of Somalia announced yesterday morning that weather storms may hit many coastal areas in the country.

After a cabinet meeting in Mogadishu yesterday, the government has called all communities living on the coasts to be vigilant as weather forecasts predict that storms may hit Somali coastal areas widely.

SOMESHA members in Puntland and Mudug regions reported that heavy rains with strong winds have been battering parts of Puntland in north east Somalia for the last 20 hours particularly towns and villages alongside the coast.

Residents in the coastal communities have been bracing for the bad weather after forecasts of the weather have been extensively aired and posted through the local media throughout Somalia.

Most of the areas, where the strong winds and heavy downpour are affecting, are towns and villages with large numbers of internally displaced and the IDPs live ramshackle camps so there is a concern that their houses may be destroyed by the winds.

“The Kenyan authority decision is an intimidation to the laws and conventions of the human rights as I believe and is also a threat to many civilians who similarly escaped terrorist acts by Shabab due to reprisal including women, children, human rights activists and journalists”said Daud Abdi Daud the Secretary General of AFEJ from Mogadishu, Somalia.

“ As Kenya’s President H.E. Mwai Kibaki said that his country is malleted with terrorist attacks and attributed the incursions of being planned from neighborhood Somalia. I’ agree with the president of Kenya that shabab is threat to Kenya security but women, children and journalists cannot be similar to Shabab and they need to be protected as 18 journalists killed in Somalia only this year of 2012 by Shabab, however, this quandary among Kenya and Somalia authorities still waits global involvement by United Nations and the African Union” Mr. Daud added
This statement from the secretary General of AFEJ comes after when the President of Somalia H.E. Hassan Sheikh Mohamoud traveled to Kenya today and met Kenya authorities since he was elected as a president.

The political scene of the two countries recently was not good and its widely believed that this bilateral presidential meeting could boost the hope of many Somalis or pave the way a new humanitarian upheavals against dozens of Somalia refugees.

(Nairobi, December 11, 2012) – Sudanese authorities should immediately investigate the deaths of four student protesters and the disappearance of two others at the beginning of December 2012, in Madani, Jazeera state, and hold those responsible to account, Human Rights Watch said today.

“The murky circumstances of these deaths are fueling more protests and violence,” said Daniel Bekele, Africa director at Human Rights Watch. “Sudanese authorities should immediately investigate, bring those responsible for these deaths and disappearances to justice, and stop its security forces from using violence and excessive force against protesters.”

The student deaths have caused violent protests in Khartoum and other towns, with protesters calling for justice and for the government to be replaced. Sudanese security forces used teargas, beat protesters with sticks and batons, and arrested dozens, including lawyers and high profile opposition party members, on December 9 and 10.

News emerged on December 7 that the bodies of three students, Mohamed Younis al-Nil, Adel Mohamed Ahmed, and Alsadiq Abdullah Yagoub, had been found in a sewage canal near Al Jazeera University. The body of a fourth student, Nu’man Ahmed Koreishi, was also found later in the canal. The students were reported missing earlier in the week during protests over the university’s refusal to register Darfuri students unless they paid full tuition. Under the Darfur peace agreements of 2006 and 2010, Darfuri students qualify for a tuition exemption. Sudanese universities have interpreted the provision inconsistently, however, prompting protests by Darfuri students at several campuses in recent years.

On December 2, national security officials entered the university and arrested 11 Darfuri students who had appealed to the administration for a fee waiver. In the following days, students protested at the university. Police, national security officers, and pro-government students clashed with the protesters.

Approximately 60 were arrested on December 5, according to Sudanese groups following the case. Witnesses interviewed by Human Rights Watch said the government security forces pushed the protesters toward the canal, causing several students to fall in. Six protesters were reported missing, including the four whose bodies were later recovered from the canal. Two other students are still missing.

The circumstances of the deaths are unclear. One witness told Human Rights Watch the bodies of three of the deceased bore signs of beatings, suggesting at a minimum that they had been beaten, most likely by security forces, before they died. The university administration said the students drowned. Authorities have refused to provide the medical examiner’s report. National security officials arrested Mohammed Zain Osman, a lawyer for one of the deceased students’ families, when he requested the report on December 7.

Sudan’s Justice Ministry announced on December 10 the formation of a commission of inquiry into the deaths. The investigation should be independent, transparent, and capable of identifying those responsible for the deaths, Human Rights Watch said.

“Withholding the autopsy report only gives the impression the authorities have something to hide,” Bekele said. “Sudan needs to find out what happened to these students and make the findings public. The government should impartially investigate the deaths and prosecute those responsible for these deaths and disappearances.”

Sudan has consistently failed to follow through on promises to investigate abuses in which officials and government forces are implicated. Its failure to investigate crimes in Darfur led the United Nations Security Council to refer the situation to the International Criminal Court, which hears cases when a government is unable or unwilling to investigate on its own. In 2010, the government said it would investigate the death of Mohammed Musa following a demonstration in Khartoum, but investigation results were never made public and no one was identified as responsible or prosecuted for the crime.

Crackdown on student protests
From June through August of 2012, Sudanese security forces cracked down on a wave of student protests, sparked initially by austerity measures, in towns across Sudan. National security officials detained protesters for weeks or months, subjecting many to beatings, insults, and other mistreatment and torture while in detention.

Darfuri students were treated particularly harshly during the protests, former detainees told Human Rights Watch, describing beatings, sleep deprivation, and racist insults. Security forces also responded particularly harshly to protests in Darfur, shooting live ammunition to disperse protests and killing 13 in South Darfur in August.

For more information, please contact:
In New York, Jehanne Henry (English, French): +1-212-216-1291; or +1-917-443-2724 (mobile); or henryj@hrw.org
In Amsterdam, Leslie Lefkow (English): +31-6-21-59-7356 (mobile); or lefkowl@hrw.org
In Johannesburg, Tiseke Kasambala (English): +27-11-484-2640 (mobile); or kasambt@hrw.org
In London, David Mepham, (English): +44-20-7713-2766; or +44-7572-603995 (mobile); or mephamd@hrw.org

Out of the 26 million persons internally displaced due to conflict or human rights violence in 2011, an estimated 10 million were in Africa, with at least a  further half million internally displaced due to sudden onset natural disasters, such as floods.  While precise figures are not yet available, the continent is also impacted by displacement related to slow onset natural disasters, such as desertification and more frequent droughts, associated with the effects of climate change.

However, I believe that the significance of the Kampala Convention goes beyond Africa – as an international model this comprehensive Convention represents the culmination of over two decades of work during which Governments, civil society and the international community have sought to improve the way we address the plight of millions of internally displaced persons across the globe.

In many contexts, the situation of internally displaced persons affects the stability of states. This is especially the case in post conflict /crisis situations, as I have seen through my missions for example, in Kenya, Cote d’Ivoire and Sudan. The Kampala Convention can contribute to stabilizing displaced populations through the specific obligations it sets out to States and other actors, such as obligations relating to humanitarian assistance, compensation, and assistance in finding lasting solutions to displacement as well as accessing the full range of their human rights.

The unique ‘added value’ of this Convention stems from how comprehensive it is and the manner in which it addresses many of the key challenges of our times, and indeed, of Africa.  If implemented well, it can help States and the African Union address both current and potential future internal displacement related not only to conflict, but also natural disasters and other effects of climate change, development, and even mega trends such as population growth and rapid urbanization. The Convention provides a solid legal framework for dealing with many of the complex dynamics of internal displacement in Africa today.

The Convention is significant in many respects. It sets out the obligations of the State parties, but also of the African Union, international organizations and members of armed groups, to prevent displacement, protect and assist people once displacement has occurred, and to find lasting solutions to displacement. Under the Convention, States have specific obligations to allocate resources, adopt national policies and strategies and enact or amend national laws to ensure that displacement is prevented and that IDPs are protected and supported until they reach a sustainable solution to their displacement.

Based on the spirit of partnership on which the Kampala Convention is founded, it is vital that the international and donor communities now support African States, the African Union and civil society in raising awareness and building the capacities to implement the Convention. This is and will remain one of the key priorities of my mandate over the next few years.

I also urge those States that have not yet done so, to sign and ratify this landmark Convention, which embodies principles of good governance, respect for human rights and preparedness so necessary to prevent and address the human crisis related to situations of internal displacement.”

(*) The Kampala Convention, which was adopted in October 2009 and has been signed by 37 African Union Member States, has come into force today – one month after receiving the 15th ratification by Swaziland on 6 November 2012. Check the Convention: http://www.unhcr.org/4ae9bede9.html

                                                                                                 ENDS

Chaloka Beyani, a Zambian national and professor of international law at the London School of Economics, was appointed as Special Rapporteur on the Human Rights of Internally Displaced Persons by the Human Rights Council in September 2010.  Learn more about the mandate and work of the Special Rapporteur, visit: http://www2.ohchr.org/english/issues/idp/index.htm

For more information and media requests, please contact Rosa da Costa (+41 22 917 9140 /rdacosta@ohchr.org) or write to idp@ohchr.org

For media inquiries related to other UN independent experts:
Xabier Celaya, UN Human Rights – Media Unit (+ 41 22 917 9383 / xcelaya@ohchr.org)

Residents of Jalingo, Taraba State capital in Northern Nigeria, are groaning over the unending scarcity of portable water, writes AYODELE SAMUEL, a blogger at www.ayodelenews.blogspot.com reports.

“Water, they say is life”, and the human body constitute of 70% of this liquid substance, as such water tops the priority list of the demand of mankind. 80% of diseases plaguing humanity are due to use or consumption of unsafe water.

It is generally believed that the accessibility of sufficient quantities of  portable water and safe sanitation facilities to a household determines the quality of life of the people and potential for poverty alleviation. This leads to the welfare improvement and is generally linked to a decrease in infant and maternal mortality, increase nutritional values and environmental hygiene.

In Jalingo, accessing portable water by residents remains a major battle forcing residents of the city to rely on local vendor popularly called Mai ruwa and few streams for water, while public water supply remained exclusive for the rich in the state.

Children at a bole hole n Jalingo

Wurom Musa, is a one of the slum communities in Jalingo, and is inhabited mainly by farmers and traders. Here the only source of water for domestic consumption is a local stream about 7 killometers  away. away. What would have served as a safer source of water supply- a two  hand-pump boreholes donated to the community 5 years ago,  had collapsed

In another slum community, Barade ward, there are tales of woes and anguish  whenever the Lamorde River, the only source of water in the area,  dries up, typically  during dry season. When this occurs, residents of the  community are left with no other option than to buy from ‘Mai Ruwa’ water vendors, whose source of water is unknown.

In another community, Agangagwasa, a resident, ,  Julian Bala narrated that getting water for domestic use is a major challenge.

“because here is a new area with plenty people, water is our problem, when the wells in the area  are dried up, it’s a difficult  to get water because, we trek long distance searching for water as if you are looking for petrol, its saddening because water board is not here”

Another resident, Mrs. Franca Osita told me that  she starts her day by searching for water, “I  have to wake up early and walk to   the stream to get water, or else buy from the water vendors and then prepare the children for school before resuming business, this is usually difficult for me”

She called on the government to show more concern to the untold suffering water scarcity has brought upon the people, by making provision for more boreholes and making sure that the taps are running again.

The Ward head of Mayo-Gwoi Village, in peri urban Jalingo, Mr. Aliyu Jassa, said the lack of access to portable water in the city is harming their health.

“ Due to lack of water from the taps, some of us depend largely on  Mai ruwa, and those who cannot afford to buy, have to depend on the river. Unfortunately we’ve had cases of cholera that have resulted to the loss of lives, especially pregnant women and children, I almost lost my children too, but thank God for quick intervention”

Hamman Yakubu a retired bank official, on his part lamented the hike in price of water by local vendors.  “Me and my family consume not less than three trucks a day at N200 per a truck of ten jerry-cans each, but we are at the mercy of the water vendors, who sometimes hike the price of the water at will,” adding that  it’s  too expensive for an average citizen in the state who earns less than N18, 000 per month, considering  other family expenses like sending the children to school.

Mr. Yakubu also noted that though there are pipes laid down for distribution to homes, but too expensive to embark upon, as it will cost N60,000 for the installation per home; adding  that the pipes have rusted due to non-usage resulting to  health hazard for the few consumers.

Other residents across the city bemoan the recurrent shortage of water andoverdependence for water supply on Mai ruwa whom sources of water is not known to the consumer.

Chairman of Taraba state water vendors, Mr. Muhamadu Ahmed said “there are over 20,000 members of the association scattered in various location of Jalingo”

Danlami Musa a water vendor said, he  sells as much as fifteen trucks a day and due to the high demand of the product he often have to go in search of water from the stream, stating that sometimes the water from the borehole is not sufficient to go round.

Secretary of the Association of water vendors in Jalingo, Mr. Iliya Jacob who had been in the business for more than 14 years said his service is an alternative to government.

“ I have been providing water for this entire area for 13 years, people troop in from distances to come here for water, sometimes we have to give them for free, as a humanitarian service, we see the untold hardship on our people, we regard our services as an alternative to the government, because most people cannot afford to buy trucks of water per day, there is no other option for getting portable water”  he added.

He identify causes of water scarcity in city as “dryness of well and stream majorly during dry season and well water  changing color during raining seasons, and sometimes due to the activity of the pumping machine, it drains water from the ground which often cause some temporal water shortage from the ground, and leads to dry wells.”

The Area Manager of Taraba Water Supply Board, Jalingo district,  Mr. Bitrus Bambur admitted to ravaging  water shortage in the city:

“the product don’t seems to be available, however the government is doing its best to meet up with the challenges.“ The Government is doing its best, the Taraba water supply board is operational on a daily basis, but coverage is not much, due to the growing population of the city, the coverage area is presently at 32%,”

Some of the challenges facing the State Water Board according to investigation includes obsolete machines that needs renovation and replacements,  inadequate funding , deficiency in human resource development, and manpower that has reduced from 600 to 324 since the creation of the state.

Other challenges according to Mr. Mambur, is the need to upgrade the facilities  for water distribution, stating that  only six out of the fourteen boreholes  in the Board are functional. Calling on the  the government to subsidize water supply, in the state  rather than putting  more money  in providing drugs, Mr Mambur said the proper funding of the Board and efficient supply of safe water will help prevent diseases.

A government official who does not want his name in print confirmed that that the State Government recently  accessed a loan from the African Development Bank, to enable it upgrade the water supply  coverage in the state from 32% to 75% .

The story is contributed by Ayodele Samuel, and published under the pro poor WASH stories project implemented by the Water and Sanitation Media Network Nigeria, with the support of West Africa WASH Media Network, WaterAid, and Water Supply and Sanitation Collaborative Council.

Harare / New York -

Food insecurity continues to be a chronic problem in southern Africa, particularly in Lesotho, Malawi, Swaziland and Zimbabwe. Across the region, more than 5.5 million people in eight countries – a 40 per cent increase from 2011 – face food shortages due to the impact of recurrent natural disasters like droughts and floods, and rising food prices.

“Southern Africa is facing a silent food insecurity emergency,” said Ms. Bragg, Assistant Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, who visited Botswana, South Africa and Zimbabwe. “Regional food production has been weakened by recurrent disasters. In Lesotho, about a third of the population does not have enough food to eat or sell. In Zimbabwe, 1.6 million people are expected to be food insecure and many families are selling their own livestock to cope with this dire situation.”

In Zimbabwe, Ms. Bragg met with Government officials, including the Ministers of Regional Integration and International Cooperation, and Labour and Social Services, to discuss ways to further strengthen the resilience of affected communities. With the humanitarian community, Ms. Bragg also reviewed increased efforts to usher Zimbabwe into recovery.

Earlier in the week ASG Bragg met with representatives from the Southern African Development Community (SADC) in Botswana, to discuss ways to further strengthen the partnership, including in disaster preparedness and response. A civilian stand-by surge mechanism for disaster response is expected to soon become operational.

In South Africa, Ms. Bragg also met representatives from the Ministry of International Relations and Cooperation and the nascent South African Development Partnership Agency to discuss closer partnership between OCHA and the Government.

“South Africa has been increasingly active in supporting regional and international humanitarian responses. It has provided significant financial support to the CERF, and for humanitarian responses to the earthquake in Haiti and the Sahel crisis,” said ASG Bragg.

History dating as far back as the 5th century is literally being chipped away with pick axes and shovels at the hands of an extremist rebel faction in northernMali. Holy Muslim shrines in the ancient city ofTimbuktuhave become targets of the Ansar Dine. For the Islamist faction, the Sufi shrines are a form of idolatry.

But for many others in the overwhelmingly Muslim country, the mausoleums of Islamic saints are religiously significant, and regularly draw crowds of people, including Muslims preparing for the Hajj, or pilgrimage, toMecca. These ancient buildings and monuments — some listed by the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) as World Heritage Sites — are also an integral part of world history and the collective memory of the people ofMali.Timbuktu was an intellectual and spiritual capital that played an essential part of the spread of Islam across Africa’s Sahara andSahel in the 15th and 16th centuries.

A number ofTimbuktu’s sacred tombs are now gone, reduced to piles of rubble. “Repugnant” is how Irina Bokova, director-general of UNESCO, has described the vandalism. “There is no justification for such wanton destruction. I call on all parties engaged in the conflict to stop these terrible and irreversible acts, to exercise their responsibility and protect this invaluable cultural heritage for future generations.”

Still in danger are the pyramidal structures of the Tomb of Askia, as well as other religious and cultural artifacts, including 1,000-year-old Islamic manuscripts. The manuscripts — a testimony to Africa’s written history — are specific toWest Africaand unique in the Islamic world.

The United Nations has now placedTimbuktuand the Tomb of Askia on its List of World Heritage in Danger. Ansar Dine’s threats to destroy more have broughtFadima Diallo,Mali’s minister of culture, to tears. The African Union called its actions “criminal.” The new chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, Fatou Bensouda of Gambia, has warned that her office will open an investigation into what she calls “war crimes,” under the Hague Convention of 1954 for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict.

The destruction in the fabled city follows a deepening crisis in the region since a military coup inMali’s capital in March. Separatist Tuareg rebels took advantage of the instability to proclaim northernMalian independent state. The Ansar Dine (“Protector of the Faith”) then in turn ousted the Tuareg rebels and took control ofTimbuktu.

The UN Security Council has condemned the group’s destruction and threatened to impose sanctions against it. The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) is seeking the Council’s support for an armed intervention to regain control of northernMali.

For hundreds of years,Timbuktuhas endured every major upheaval thrown its way, foreign invasions, armed raids, an earthquake, famine.Africaand the world are hoping that it will survive the current threat.