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Cambodia seizes 3.2 tonnes of African ivory
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- Written by northsouth
- Category: Africa
- Hits: 94
PHNOM PENH - Cambodia has seized more than 3.2 tonnes of African ivory hidden in a storage container from Mozambique, a customs official has said.
The discovery of 1,026 tusks at the Phnom Penh Autonomous Port on Thursday followed a tip off from the US embassy.
The shipment arrived in the country last year and its unknown recipient did not arrive at the port to pick it up.
Demand from China and Vietnam has meant Cambodia has become a key transit point for the illicit wildlife trade.
"The elephant tusks were hidden among marble in a container that was abandoned," Sun Chhay, director of the Customs and Excise Office at the port, told the AFP news agency.
Sun Chhay said he did not know whether the shipment was intended for other countries.
Cambodia has made a number of high-profile busts over the past five years.
The largest before this week took place in 2014, when customs officials seized about three tonnes of ivory hidden in a container of beans at the southwestern port of Sihanoukville.(FA)
South Africa hosts Africa's first marijuana expo
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- Written by northsouth
- Category: Africa
- Hits: 98
PRETORIA - Dozens of businesses have converged in South Africa's capital Pretoria for what local media are reporting is Africa's first ever cannabisexpo.
The four-day event showcases "innovative products" and businesses that promote the medicinal, agricultural and lifestyle benefits of marijuana.
The expo, which is also taking place in Johannesburg, allows visitors to meet industry experts, learn about cannabis laws worldwide, and get free legal advice.
However, no cannabis will be allowed to be consumed at the event. Visitors were advised to smoke beforehand or risk possible arrest if found with any marijuana.
Priced at 10,000 Rand ($694:£552), the exhibition fee was criticised by some as "elitist".
Others said the price was justified.
Tlotlo Tswaelo, owner of the Pot Head Apparel clothing brand, told eNCA: "We wanted to be on this platform knowing what it can do. The exposure from this is something we can really benefit from in the future."
Expo director Silus Howarth added: "If you're a small business owner, the price of our stands is not that expensive if you consider...what you can make at the Cannabis Expo and how many people you can engage with."
In September, South Africa's constitutional court legalised the use and cultivation of cannabis in private spaces. However, the trade and distribution of marijuana remains illegal.(FA)
The four-day event showcases "innovative products" and businesses that promote the medicinal, agricultural and lifestyle benefits of marijuana.
The expo, which is also taking place in Johannesburg, allows visitors to meet industry experts, learn about cannabis laws worldwide, and get free legal advice.
However, no cannabis will be allowed to be consumed at the event. Visitors were advised to smoke beforehand or risk possible arrest if found with any marijuana.
Priced at 10,000 Rand ($694:£552), the exhibition fee was criticised by some as "elitist".
Others said the price was justified.
Tlotlo Tswaelo, owner of the Pot Head Apparel clothing brand, told eNCA: "We wanted to be on this platform knowing what it can do. The exposure from this is something we can really benefit from in the future."
Expo director Silus Howarth added: "If you're a small business owner, the price of our stands is not that expensive if you consider...what you can make at the Cannabis Expo and how many people you can engage with."
In September, South Africa's constitutional court legalised the use and cultivation of cannabis in private spaces. However, the trade and distribution of marijuana remains illegal.(FA)
Malnutrition crisis in Niger spreading, Save the Children
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- Written by alib
- Category: Africa
- Hits: 139
London - Months of warnings have failed to prevent a serious malnutrition crisis in Niger, according to the London-based charity Save the Children Fund.The charity says more than six million people are affected there, and about 18 million across West Africa. Save the Children says it is now moving to an emergency response as a rising number of children now need medical treatment for malnutrition and the crisis is reaching an alarming level of seriousness.
Save the Children's warning comes as this weekend's G8 meeting in Chicago, USA, is expected to discuss food security.
Alarm bells have been ringing about Niger - with its record of severe food crises - since late last year after erratic rainfall threatened crop shortages and food prices also soared. Aid organisations have been trying to mitigate the impact but more is needed to address the desperate situation in the region made even worse by tens of thousands of displaced people following the conflict in northern Mali who havge fled thye fighting to seek safety in neighbouring states.
The food crisis in the Sahel region has been brought on by the dry season and has taken hold of eight countries including Chad, Burkino Faso, Mauritania, Mali, Niger, northern Nigeria, northern Cameroon and Senegal, according to UNICEF.
One million children urgently need help in this part of the world, and their story is one that has largely gone untold.
This dire situation could soon deteriorate into a hunger emergency if funds are not forthcoming to address the growing crisis.
Millions of people short of food in Sahel this year
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- Written by alib
- Category: Africa
- Hits: 159
Geneva – Across Central Africa’s Sahel region, drought threatens to leave millions of people short of food this year. The UN estimates that 127,000 children under age 5 will be affected by severe acute malnutrition in 2012 in Chad’s Sahel region. These children require therapeutic care and life-saving treatment. Severe acute malnutrition puts them at greater risk of opportunistic diseases including diarrhoea and skin and respiratory infections.
In response to the crisis, the UN Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) has allocated US$1 million to the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) to treat 90,000 children with severe acute malnutrition. Earlier this year, CERF allocated $6 million to three UN agencies to reduce food insecurity and acute malnutrition among children under age 5 in Chad.
“Currently, 223 UNICEF nutrition centres are operational due to the significant support from CERF,” says UNICEF Chad Representative Bruno Maes. “CERF has helped UNICEF deliver life-saving food aid to more than 40,000 children admitted for severe acute malnutrition in the country.”
UNICEF is seeking an additional $18.8 million to continue its efforts to meet the growing needs of children in Chad.
At a medical clinic outside Bol, in Chad’s Lac Region, Adama Abdulai’s three-year-old son, Abdou, is being treated for severe acute malnutrition. Abdou weighs about the same as his nine-month-old brother: just 8 kilograms.
Adama, a 30-year-old mother of six, explains that while she was able to breastfeed her baby, there was not enough money to feed the rest of her family.
“Maize is so expensive in the market now and we cannot afford food every day, so sometimes we eat and sometimes we do not,” says Adama. “Our farm yielded no harvest this year so we have nowhere else to turn.”
She has been the sole breadwinner in the family since her husband left in search of work last year when food prices began to rise. He has not been back since.
In Chad, the failed rains and poor harvests of 2011 are expected to make this year’s lean season—an annual time of dwindling food stocks when families often do not have enough to eat—the most severe in years.
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