The European Union introduced two new projects in Nigeria: Small Hydro Power Development for Agro-industry Use (SHP-DAIN) and Advancing Nigeria’s Green Transition to Net Zero through Circular Economy Practices. Both will be executed by the United Nations Industrial Organization (UNIDO) as part of a 9 million euro contract over three years, aimed at promoting small hydropower development and circular economy approaches.

Adenayo Adelabo, Nigerian Minister of Power, officially launched the projects and inaugurated their steering committees. The event included diverse stakeholders, such as Ministry officials and State representatives. UNIDO oversees the implementation of this fully funded European Union project under the EU’s Multilateral Indicative Programme 2021-2027 and other EU-Nigeria Cooperation initiatives. 

Acknowledging the support of UNIDO and the EU, Adelabo noted “Nigeria’s abundant energy resources, will forever remain potentials unless properly harnessed, therefore, the federal ministry of power is delighted to continually work with the EU and UNIDO on small hydropower in powering energy through decentralized systems”.

In his opening speech, Massimo De Luca, EU Head Cooperation, acknowledged the longstanding cooperation between the EU and the Nigerian government. He stressed that “Nigeria’s green transition will remain at the heart of our cooperation with Nigeria, as one of the key areas of the EU Global Gateway Strategy for sustainable and trusted connections that work for people and the planet”.

The projects aims to enhance energy accessibility and promote circular economy practices to address pollution and climate change in Nigeria. It comprises two subprojects. First, Small Hydro Power Development for Agro-industry Use in Nigeria (SHP-DAIN). This subproject aims to boost small hydropower capacity in the energy mix, increase agricultural productivity, and improve livelihoods, thereby enhancing food security and job opportunities. Second, Advancing Nigeria’s Green Transition to Net Zero through Circular Economy Practices. This subproject aims to enhance the management of used off-grid energy equipment and plastics through circular economy practices to mitigate pollution and greenhouse gas emissions.

Multiple stakeholders are involved in the project including the Federal Ministries of Agriculture and Rural Development, Environment, Industry, Trade and Investment, Power and Water Resources, as well as federal-level agencies, commissions, and banks. Selected State Governments will also be involved in relevant project activities.

Nigerian Minister for Environment Balarabe Abbas Lawal voiced his  appreciation to UNIDO and the EU for their strong collaborative support. In his keynote he mentioned that “the Ministry of Environment stands ready to support critical initiatives such as electronic wastes, and management of mini-grids systems components which are niche markets requiring regulation” .

The UN Resident Coordinator in Nigeria, Mohamed Malick Fall expressed confidence that the projects would not only enhance the management of used off-grid energy equipment and plastics but also increase agricultural productivity and improve livelihoods, he stated that “it’s been very remarkable supporting the multiple impactful projects of UNIDO. The UN in Nigeria and people of Nigeria have a strong partner in UNIDO, these new initiatives are a definition of exactly that”.

Additionally, a wide range of associations represented will play key roles in the project including the Renewable Energy Association of Nigeria (REAN), the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), the E-waste Producers Responsibility Organization of Nigeria (EPRON), the Alliance for Responsible Battery Recyclers (ARBR), the Women in Renewable Energy (WiRE), the Food and Beverage Recycling Alliance (FBRA), the Waste Management Association of Nigeria (WAMASON), the Recyclers Association of Nigeria (RAN), the Association of Waste Recyclers and Collectors of Nigeria (AWARECON), the Recycling and Economic Development Initiative of Nigeria (REDIN), the Waste Pickers Association of Nigeria (WPAN), the National Association of Scrap and Waste Workers of Nigeria (NASWON), and the Civil Society Organizations (CSOs).

At the end of the launch ceremony, the first Project Steering Committees (PSC) for both projects were held, followed by technical sessions led by the project managers.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO).

Insecurity in the volatile eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has worsened since the end of recent elections, UN Special Representative Bintou Keita told the Security Council on Wednesday. 

Ms. Keita, who also heads the UN peacekeeping mission in the country, MONUSCO, sounded the alarm over the humanitarian disaster “unfolding before our very eyes”.

More than seven million people in the country are displaced, particularly due to the operations of armed groups such as the M23 and the Allied Defense Forces (ADF) across the eastern provinces of North Kivu, South Kivu and Ituri. 

“As this Council has regularly reiterated, echoed by a recent statement of the Peace and Security Council of the African Union, all foreign forces illegally operating on DRC’s territory need to withdraw, and national and foreign armed groups, such as the ADF and FDLR, need to be disarmed,” she said.   

Security reform a priority 

Ms. Keita presented the latest MONUSCO report, which covers political, security, human rights and humanitarian developments in the DRC over the past three months.

She said the presidential, national, and provincial legislative elections held in December were largely peaceful, despite major logistical challenges.

President Félix Tshisekedi secured a second term in office and announced that reform of the security and defense sector would be one of his main priorities. Negotiations around the formation of a new government are underway.

Tensions and atrocities

However, the security situation in the east deteriorated further following December’s polls, she said, with the M23 making significant advances and expanding its territory to unprecedented levels. This has resulted in an even more disastrous humanitarian situation, with internal displacement reaching unparalleled numbers.

The reporting period also saw Angola mediating in the wake of regional tensions between the DRC and Rwanda, and the start of the deployment of the Southern Africa Mission to the DRC (SAMIDRC) to North Kivu.

Although the M23 crisis has drawn a great deal of attention, Ms. Keita highlighted atrocities committed by other groups, such as ADF, particularly on the border between North Kivu and Ituri.

Almost 200 people have been killed there since the beginning of the year, she said, noting that insecurity in Ituri is fueled by the actions of four militias – CODECO, Zaire, FRPI and FPIC – as well as the ADF.

South Kivu has also seen a resurgence of tensions, driven by armed groups and inter-community rivalry. Frequent rumours about the presence of M23 elements, and the extension of the conflict from North Kivu towards the south, have further compounded the situation.

An escalation of tensions between Rwanda and Burundi, which led to the closing of their border by the Burundian authorities, was another issue that could lead to destabilization of the province and the region as a whole, she added.

Protecting civilians

To protect civilians, MONUSCO and the Congolese army have continued joint operations in Ituri and North Kivu, and strengthened a defensive operation known as “Springbok” in efforts to protect areas in the vicinity of Goma, the North Kivu capital, and nearby Sake.

Ms. Keita said UN peacekeepers have come under direct and indirect fire “almost on a daily basis”. Recently, mortar fire from M23-occupied positions landed on MONUSCO bases in Sake, wounding eight peacekeepers and six civilian staff, which she condemned. 

The M23 also managed to occupy all former positions held by East African forces, which withdrew completely in January after more than a year in place, allowing the group to move further south to encircle Goma and Sake.

In the meantime, deployment of SAMIDRC continues and troops have begun providing assistance to the Congolese forces.

Waves of displacement

Turning to the humanitarian situation, Ms. Keita said the situation is in particular due to the escalation of the M23 crisis in North Kivu as well as the prolonged armed violence in Ituri and South Kivu.

Some 7.1 million people are internally displaced, according to the UN humanitarian affairs office, OCHA, or 800,000 more since she last briefed the Council three months ago.

Furthermore, 23.4 million Congolese are facing hunger and malnutrition, one in four, making the DRC the country which is most affected by food insecurity.

Waves of internally displaced persons continue to arrive in Goma and the surrounding area. As of last month, more than 104 displacement sites were recorded around the city alone, hosting more than 630,000 people.

Record spike in gender-based violence 

“Cases of gender-based violence and sexual exploitation have also reached new records. In January 2024 alone, 10,400 cases of gender-based violence were reported across the country, a much higher increase than in previous years,” she added.

Ms. Keita urged the international community to address the humanitarian disaster.  However, she noted that the $2.6 billion humanitarian response plan for the DRC this year is only around 14 per cent funded.   

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of UN News.

Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) has been working with Sierra Leone’s Ministry of Health through the National Leprosy and Tuberculosis Control Program since 2020, with a focus on improving the diagnosis and treatment of tuberculosis (TB) in children. MSF teams work in Makeni Hospital and in 12 directly observed therapy sites located in clinics across Bombali district.

In 2022, MSF started implementing the use of new tools to help diagnose TB, in line with the newly released guidelines from the World Health Organization. These guidelines include treatment decision algorithms using stool samples for molecular testing, or urine samples for children living with HIV. MSF teams have also set up an efficient sample transportation system from 12 directly observed therapy sites to the laboratory at Makeni Hospital, where the samples undergo molecular testing.

Diagnosing TB in young children, however, is particularly challenging, since it can be very difficult for them to produce sputum (mucus expelled from the respiratory tract)— the traditional way of diagnosing TB in the lungs, known as pulmonary TB. In addition, TB in children can be located outside the lungs—a condition known as extrapulmonary TB, which makes getting samples and accurate diagnostic results even more challenging.

Malnutrition increases the risk of TB

When children are undernourished, their immune systems are compromised, putting them at heightened risk of developing TB. Malnutrition is a problem countrywide in Sierra Leone, making it even more important to be alert to the signs of TB in children.

“I left my village and brought my son here because he was not getting better,” said Aruna, father of three-year-old Augustine. “He was losing weight and coughing a lot. He sweats throughout the night—I have to get up and wipe his sweat away. He is my youngest child; I am scared to see him like this.”

Augustine was diagnosed with TB at the Makeni Regional Hospital in Sierra Leone’s Bombali district, which is supported by MSF. Alongside TB treatment, he is being fed specially formulated therapeutic milk to treat severe malnutrition. “Since he was admitted, the nurses have only been feeding him milk,” said Aruna.

“We treated a three-year-old patient for TB but, after completing her treatment, her mother brought her back because she had TB symptoms again,” said MSF nurse Umu Amara, who works at Makeni Hospital. “We did a stool test for the child and the results were still negative for TB. Because she showed all the signs of TB and she was living with HIV, we did the urine test, and the results showed she had TB.”

As with Augustine, an alarming number of children under five being treated for TB are found to be severely malnourished. MSF’s team in Bombali district also provides malnutrition treatment as part of its pediatric TB program.

Teams are treating significantly more patients

Across Bombali district, when patients come for a consultation, the teams at directly observed therapy sites check the progress of their treatment and refill TB medicine prescriptions. Malnourished children also receive supplies of ready-to-use therapeutic food—like Plumpy’Nut—sachets of peanut paste enriched with vitamins and minerals used to prevent and treat malnutrition—which they can eat at home. This reduces the number of consultations patients must attend, which is crucial in places where the closest health facility is a two-hour journey away.

“With the high number of TB cases in children in Sierra Leone, it is clear that the National Leprosy and Tuberculosis Control Program needs more support from the government and donors to scale up and replicate this successful TB diagnostic and treatment model throughout the country,” said MSF medical coordinator Dr. Kennedy Uadiale.

“By using the new tools available, bringing treatment closer to patients, and providing nutritional support in the directly observed therapy sites to children who are undernourished, we have been able to enroll and successfully treat significantly more patients,” added MSF medical team leader Jobin Joseph.

Helping children recover

Fatmata was brought to Makeni Hospital by her grandmother after she developed symptoms and was quickly diagnosed with TB. Due to the long course of treatment, which takes around six months, children like Fatmata often face prolonged absences from school. Many also find themselves isolated from their communities due to continuing stigma around the disease.

In 2023, a total of 2,148 people with drug-sensitive TB (which can be treated with first-line anti-TB drugs) were enrolled in the TB program in Bombali district. After implementing the new diagnosis tools, the number of children under the age of 15 in the drug-sensitive TB program increased substantially, from 31 in 2020 to 405 patients in 2023.

About our work in Sierra Leone

MSF has been working in Sierra Leone since 1986 and is currently providing medical care in three districts: Bombali, Tonkolili, and Kenema. At Makeni Regional Hospital, Bombali district, MSF teams support the Ministry of Health in providing treatment for patients with drug-resistant tuberculosis, while working to improve the diagnosis and care of adults and children with drug-sensitive tuberculosis in primary health care facilities across the district. In Mile 91 and Magburaka town, Tonkolili district, MSF teams work with the Ministry of Health to provide health care for mothers and children in local health centers and in Magburaka District Hospital. In Kenema district, MSF teams finished the construction of a mother and child hospital in Hangha in 2019, where its teams provide comprehensive emergency obstetric and newborn care. Our teams also provide general health care in a number of Ministry of Health-run local health centers across Kenema district.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Médecins sans frontières (MSF).

Today, Deputy Administrator Isobel Coleman announced the launch of the Africa Trade Desk, a signature trade platform from Prosper Africa that links large U.S. food retailers to African producers. The announcement was made during the Atlanta Phambili: A Trade&Investment Gateway to Africa&South Africa event, an event highlighting the economic relationship between the United States and Africa, with a spotlight on South Africa.

The Africa Trade Desk, a public-private partnership between Prosper Africa and Afritex Ventures, is set to facilitate at least $300 million in export sales between Africa and the United States within the next 18 months. The Africa Trade Desk bridges the gap between African suppliers and U.S. retailers by establishing a secure supply chain from Africa to U.S. retailers by consolidating logistics, insurance, and track and trace technology from farm to retailer. Initially, the focus will remain on specialty food products such as seafood, peppadews, stone fruit, citrus, and high-value herbs and vegetables. This initiative aggregates products from African suppliers, secures firm orders from its established network of U.S. buyers, and accesses financial resources to fund large orders. It supports U.S. retailers in diversifying their sourcing, reducing dependencies on traditional supply chains, and embracing high-quality, sustainable products from Africa, and also aims to mentor and scale African suppliers for success in the U.S. market. The Africa Trade Desk will help streamline business for African farmers by addressing hurdles including logistics and overseas marketing.

Prosper Africa is a U.S. Presidential-level national security initiative created to increase trade and investment at transformative levels. Prosper Africa is leading innovative approaches to U.S.-Africa trade relations and is changing the way we do business with Africa.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of United States Agency for International Development (USAID).