Consensus statement and the way ahead

African Development Forum Ill, Defining Priorities for Regional Integration, 3 - 8 March, 2002, Addis Ababa, EthiopiaAfrican unity is a challenge facing citizens of all African countries, governments, elected representatives, civil society, and the private sector. Africa’s political and economic integration is a concern for all Africans

9th Anniversary of the Rwanda genecide

Document collected by the University of Texas Libraries from the web-site of the Reseau Documentaire International Sur La Region Des Grands Lacs Africains (International Documentation Network on the Great African Lakes Region). The Reseau distributes "gray literature", non-published or limited distribution government or NGO documents regarding the Great Lakes area of central Africa including Rwanda, Burundi, and the Democratic Republic of Congo.UT Librarie

Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on Africa : how civil registration and vital statistics systems supported an emergency response

CRVS systems are essential services, providing critical mortality data and legal identity that underpin safety nets and public services. Developing measures to mitigate the impact of COVID-19 on the registration of vital events is critical. The United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), with the support of the Centre for Excellence for Civil Registration and Vital Statistics (CRVS) systems, is using its convening role to provide technical assistance to African countries. The programme will reinforce digital tools that make it possible to notify and register vital events as they occur.Global Affairs Canada (GAC

3rd African Drought Adaptation Forum report, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 17-19 September 2008

The Third African Drought Adaptation Forum was held in September 2008 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The Forum was organized so that participants could exchange practical experiences, findings and ideas on how to adapt to the increasing threat of drought and climate change in the drylands of Africa. The report contains a summary of sessions and outlines key themes that emerged from the discussions

Institutional Linkages, South-South Partnerships and Capacity Building Hands-on Workshop on Objective Climate Forecasts for the Agriculture and Food Security Sector in Eastern and Southern Africa

The institutional linkages, south-south partnerships, and capacity building hands-on workshop on "Objective Climate Forecasts for Agriculture, and Food Security Sector in Eastern and Southern Africa" was conducted between August 31- September 4, 2021, in Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe. The workshop brought together more than 50 experts from National Meteorological and Hydrological Services (NMHS), Regional Climate Centers, Research Institutions, Agricultural and Food Security institutions, and actors from 15 Southern, Eastern, and Horn of Africa nations. Mr. Munesu Munodawafa, the Permanent Secretary of Zimbabwe's Ministry of Environment, Climate Change, Tourism and Hospitality Industry (MECCTHI), officially opened the event. The main objectives of the training workshop were to build the capacities of national and regional experts in objective seasonal forecasting, enhance the co-production of reliable and improved climate information and services in the agriculture and food security sector, and establish multi-institutional and multi-stakeholder dialogue and knowledge sharing platform to strengthen institutional linkages and south-south partnerships. The UN Economic Commission for Africa's Climate Research for Development (CR4D) initiative convened the workshop, which is funded by the Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland through the Foreign Commonwealth Development Office (FCDO) within the Weather and Climate Information SERvice (WISER) Programme, the IGAD Climate Prediction and Applications Centre (ICPAC), and the CGIAR Research Program on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security East Africa (CCAFS-EA). ICPAC is a World Meteorological Organizations Regional Climate Center and a specialized institution of the Inter-Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD), while CCAFS is a program of the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR). Both ICPAC and CCAFS, which have long-standing records of public service accomplishments on climate change in Africa, are members of the Institutional Collaboration Platform (ICP) – one of the three governing arms of the CR4D. Complementing ICP in the governing of the CR4D are the Oversight Board (OB) and the Scientific Advisory Committee (SAC). The CR4D secretariat is domiciled at the lead continental climate think-tank, the Africa Climate Policy Centre (ACPC) of the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA). The workshop participants had the opportunity to practice the procedures developing the ICPAC objective seasonal forecasts. They practiced using Python-based Climate Predictability Tool (PyCPT) and ensemble regression method, which empowered them to generate the national seasonal forecast. Additionally, the co-production session enabled the participants to learn the theory and implications of co-production for generating reliable climate information and services for development and planning in the agricultural sector. To practice the idea of co-production, the participants were divided into five groups. They were provided questions where users, climate experts, agriculture experts, multi-institutional, and multi-stakeholders mixed to dialogue and share knowledge. Group representatives had a chance to present the result, highlighted the importance of such a rich discussion for co-producing climate services, and summarised the main points raised. Besides, they have emphasized the approaches were effective and provided recommendations. Furthermore, the workshop proved highly successful, demonstrating a keen appetite for closer collaboration and further consideration of future activities in similar contexts and content

Effects of global financial crisis on funding for health development in nineteen countries of the WHO African Region

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>There is ample evidence in Asia and Latin America showing that past economic crises resulted in cuts in expenditures on health, lower utilization of health services, and deterioration of child and maternal nutrition and health outcomes. Evidence on the impact of past economic crises on health sector in Africa is lacking. The objectives of this article are to present the findings of a quick survey conducted among countries of the WHO African Region to monitor the effects of global financial crisis on funding for health development; and to discuss the way forward.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>This is a descriptive study. A questionnaire was prepared and sent by email to all the 46 Member States in the WHO African Region through the WHO Country Office for facilitation and follow up. The questionnaires were completed by directors of policy and planning in ministries of health. The data were entered and analyzed in Excel spreadsheet. The main limitations of this study were that authors did not ask whether other relevant sectors were consulted in the process of completing the survey questionnaire; and that the overall response rate was low.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The main findings were as follows: the response rate was 41.3% (19/46 countries); 36.8% (7/19) indicated they had been notified by the Ministry of Finance that the budget for health would be cut; 15.8% (3/19) had been notified by partners of their intention to cut health funding; 61.1% (11/18) indicated that the prices of medicines had increased recently; 83.3% (15/18) indicated that the prices of basic food stuffs had increased recently; 38.8% (7/18) indicated that their local currency had been devalued against the US dollar; 47.1% (8/17) affirmed that the levels of unemployment had increased since the onset of global financial crisis; and 64.7% (11/17) indicated that the ministry of health had taken some measures already, either in reaction to the global financing crisis, or in anticipation.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>A rapid assessment, like the one reported in this article, of the effects of the global financial crisis on a few variables, is important to alert the Ministry of Health on the looming danger of cuts in health funding from domestic and external sources. However, it is even more important for national governments to monitor the effects of the economic crisis and the policy responses on the social determinants of health, health inputs, health system outputs and health system outcomes, e.g. health.</p

An analysis of the possible impact of mandatory audit firm rotation on the transformation and market concentration of the South African audit industry

Abstract: Orientation: Consistent with global concerns regarding the quality of audits and regulatory changes in Europe, South African audit regulations will require audit firms to rotate clients periodically, in an attempt to safeguard auditor independence and audit quality. In 2017 the South African audit regulator issued a ruling requiring mandatory audit firm rotation (MAFR) every 10 years, effective April 2023, primarily intended to improve audit quality. In addition to audit quality improvement, the regulator also believes that MAFR will stimulate transformation in the audit profession by building capacity of black-owned audit firms and allowing opportunities for small- and medium-tier audit firms to compete for the audits of listed companies..

The supply-side of corruption and limits to preventing corruption within government procurement and constructing ethical subjects

Corruption in government procurement programs is a perennial problem. The paper by Dean Neu, Jeff Everett and Abu Shiraz Rahaman emphasises the value of internal controls in government departments in constraining individuals and promoting ethical conduct. In response, this paper argues that good internal controls in government departments, though highly desirable, are unlikely to make a significant dent in corrupt practices to secure government contracts. A major reason for this is the supply of corruption by corporations keen to secure lucrative contracts. Within the spirit of contemporary capitalism, they have an insatiable appetite for profits and have shown willingness to engage in corrupt practices to secure government departments. The issues are illustrated with the aid of two case studies. It is argued that the supply-side of corruption severely limits the possibilities of preventing corruption in government procurement