GEM Sites Bi-Weekly Updates

                                                               June 19th - June 28th, 2024

Kenya

Kenya shocked as protests over finance bill turn deadly in Nairobi Kenya is in a state of shock following unprecedented scenes that left parts of Parliament ablaze as protests over a finance bill recommending tax hikes turned deadly, prompting President William Ruto’s government to deploy the military.The mainly youth-led rallies began largely peacefully last week, with thousands of demonstrators marching in the capital, Nairobi, and across the country against the tax increases.

Lawmakers voted to pass the contentious finance bill amid rising unrest over the cost-of-living crisis in the country. Tensions flared on Tuesday as police officers fired live rounds on crowds who later breached the Parliament building in Nairobi, with rights groups, including the Kenya Medical Association, saying five people were killed in the violence and more than 30 injured. Hours later, Defence Minister Aden Bare Duale announced that the government had deployed the army to support the police in tackling “the security emergency” in the country. In a late-night press briefing, Ruto warned that his government would take a tough line against “violence and anarchy”, likening some of the demonstrators to “criminals”.

Youth groups demands following State’s violent response to protests Punctured by the police brutality that led to the killing of at least 23 people and injury of thousands of others, youth movement groups have demanded the implementation of a raft of measures to rescue the country from socio economic and polical disarrays that triggered the recent anti-Finance Bill protests. 

Part of the reforms they want effected include the immediate reconstitution of the Independent  Electoral and Boundaries (IEBC) and continuous voter registartion exercis to enable them to participate in all election processes. In an open memorandum to President William Ruto, the more than 10 youth groups operating under the #Reject FinanceBill2024, #ProtectTheChildren and #FreeTheAbducted, condemned the killing of protesters by the police and demanded the release of those abducted and detained by the security agencies. 

3 asylum seekers killed as skirmishes hit refugee camp in Kenya Three asylum seekers were killed and dozens injured on Tuesday after chaos erupted at Kakuma Refugee Camp in northwestern Kenya's Turkana county, local officials said on Wednesday.

Yusuf Salat, deputy county commissioner of the Turkana West, said that asylum seekers from South Sudan's two rival clans -- Nuer and Anyuak -- had engaged in deadly fighting. "Three people were killed and a number of others injured. We have deployed police to calm the situation," Salat told Xinhua. Edwin Chabari, the Kakuma Refugee Camp manager, warned asylum seekers against lawlessness, adding that stern action will be taken against perpetrators of the latest flare-up

Lebanon

US reiterates caution over travel to Lebanon as war looms The US has doubled down on its warning against citizens travelling to Lebanon, as the conflict between Hezbollah and Israel risks becoming a full-on war.

Washington's embassy in Beirut warned citizens “to strongly reconsider travel to Lebanon,” while the security environment “remains complex and can change quickly”. It came as some US naval assets are being moved closer to Israel and Lebanon for potential military-assisted evacuations of Americans if fighting intensifies, NBC reported, quoting past and present US defence officials. Germany and the Netherlands are the latest countries to call for their citizens to depart Lebanon, amid rising tensions between the Lebanese armed group Iran-backed Hezbollah and Israel, raising fears of a war. The European nations joined Canada, North Macedonia and Kuwait in urging their citizens to leave the country amid escalation on the Lebanon-Israel border. France, a key interlocutor in Lebanon, said it is extremely concerned by the gravity of the situation.

Prague to lead safety mission to Syria as refugees pressed to return The mission, exclusively confirmed to The National by officials in Prague, would be the country's first such initiative. It may also involve Cyprus, which has pushed to establish so-called safe zones in Syria for those returning. Only a handful of EU countries have organised such visits as most of the bloc severed diplomatic ties with Damascus after the government's repression of a popular uprising in 2011, which turned into a civil war. The planned mission may deepen divisions in the EU between major powers and smaller players on how to deal with Syria, as the refugee issue returns to the forefront of politics on the continent.There is also growing unease among exiled Syrians that their protection status could change in a number of EU states that are running out of patience with their continued presence.

Rwanda

Reflections from a decade of expanding higher education for refugees - transitions to employment Every year, on the 20th of June, we celebrate World Refugee Day. For the last 20 years, Kepler has been dedicated to providing pathways to employment for vulnerable African youth. Next year will mark ten years since we began serving refugee populations. 

We are continually reflecting on our lessons learned and how they can benefit the expansion of higher education for refugees. Yesterday, I shared on the genesis of our campus in Kiziba refugee camp in Western Rwanda, and how we repackaged our proven model to serve young refugees in an isolated setting. The second lesson we learned is that our model would not be successful if refugees could not find employment and take care of themselves and their families. Unlocking formal employment for our refugee graduates in Rwanda required a dual focus on advocacy and our usual robust skills preparation.

Reflections from a decade of expanding higher education for refugees - transitions to employment Every year, on the 20th of June, we celebrate World Refugee Day. For the last 20 years, Kepler has been dedicated to providing pathways to employment for vulnerable African youth. Next year will mark ten years since we began serving refugee populations.

We are continually reflecting on our lessons learned and how they can benefit the expansion of higher education for refugees. Yesterday, I shared on the genesis of our campus in Kiziba refugee camp in Western Rwanda, and how we repackaged our proven model to serve young refugees in an isolated setting. The second lesson we learned is that our model would not be successful if refugees could not find employment and take care of themselves and their families. Unlocking formal employment for our refugee graduates in Rwanda required a dual focus on advocacy and our usual robust skills preparation.

South Africa

Ramaphosa sworn in as South Africa’s president for second term Cyril Ramaphosa was sworn in for a second term as South Africa’s president, hailing his broad coalition government as the “beginning of a new era”.

Ramaphosa, whose inauguration took place on Wednesday in Pretoria, now faces the challenge of appointing a cabinet featuring his weakened African National Congress (ANC) party and coalition partners.Lawmakers voted overwhelmingly to re-elect the 71-year-old last week, after elections in May that produced no outright winner, forcing the ANC to strike deals with five other parties, including the centre-right Democratic Alliance (DA), to form a government of national unity.

Eastern Cape Government To Close About 1000 Schools In Rural Areas Eastern Cape Education MEC Fundile Gade has announced a move to close 1,000 schools. (Sithandiwe Velaphi/News24).

The Eastern Cape Department of Education will close about 1,000 schools deemed unviable due to small student numbers. The provincial government is struggling to clear the infrastructure backlog of billions of rands. Eastern Cape Education MEC Fundile Gade said the province’s infrastructure backlog currently stands at R72 billion. Gade added that according to the department’s rationalization and merger policy, a primary school had to have a minimum of 135 students and a secondary school had to have 200.

Malawi

Malawians brace for more economic hardship as Water Boards are set to effect 44% hike water Water boards in the country appear to be set in their quest to effect an increase in the price of water with the Ministry of Water and Sanitation hinting that nay new tariffs will exclude low-income earners. 

The Consumers Association of Malawi (Cama) has since welcomed the move to spare low-income earners but said the water boards need to improve on efficiency and recovering arrears, especially from government ministries, departments, and agencies (MDAs). Since last November, the water boards have been pushing for a 44 percent hike in their tariffs purportedly to enable them to meet. In an interview yesterday, the Water Services Association of Malawi (Wassama) president Francis Munthali said discussion are on-going with government on their proposal.

End!!!!!!!!!!!!