On April 22 and 23, Moscow hosted a meeting of BRICS sherpas/sous-sherpas, chaired by Deputy Foreign Minister, Russia’s BRICS Sherpa Sergey Ryabkov. The meeting participants discussed current issues on the agenda of the Russian year in BRICS, including the implementation of decisions adopted at the Johannesburg Summit on August 22-24, 2023.

Russia’s representatives also informed the other participants about the ongoing preparations for the upcoming BRICS Foreign Ministers’ meeting, scheduled to take place in Nizhny Novgorod on June 10-11, 2024.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation.

The African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM), in collaboration with strategic partners including the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB), UN World Food Program (WFP), International Fund for Agriculture Development (IFAD), Tunisian Agency for Technical Cooperation, and Rwanda Cooperation Initiative (RCI), successfully concluded its second continental capacity program on South-South and Triangular Cooperation (SSTrC). This program is developed by the APRM Monitoring and Evaluation Directorate to raise awareness and knowledge of SSTrC in Africa and global south to accelerate the implementation of Agenda 2063 and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), marking a significant milestone in advancing Africa’s developmental agenda.

The training, held from March 6 to April 11, 2024, brought together 286 participants from across Africa and beyond, including notable representation from India and Brazil. This diverse cohort engaged in an intensive four-week program aimed at deepening their understanding of SSTrC and its pivotal role in implementing Agenda 2063 and 2030.

Beneficiaries gained insights into SSTrC history and its critical importance for Africa’s development. They also delved into horizontal partnerships within South-South Cooperation and explored SSTrC role in aligned development programs. Participants were familiarized with monitoring and evaluation frameworks to assess its impact in Africa, enhancing their ability to measure effectiveness.

The program featured access to APRM’s Knowledge Hub platform, where participants engaged with knowledge materials and interacted through public guest lectures with renowned experts such as Amb. Amr Aljowaily (AU Commission), Dr. Willy Mugenzi (RCI) , Mr. Dageng LIU and Luara Loped from the World Food Program,  Mr. Adamou Mayaki and Mr. Sameh Hussein (IsDB), and Dr. Denis Nkhala from the United Nations office for South-South Cooperation (UNSSC).

The success of the program underscores the commitment of African countries and their partners to utilize SSTrC for regional and global development, aligning with the AU-UN framework for Agenda 2063 and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Moving forward, these outcomes will support the Technical Support to the third Africa High-Level Forum on Triangular and South-South Cooperation, scheduled to take place in Sierra Leone by December 2024 as per the recommendations of APR heads of states summit in February 2024. This forum will leverage the program’s momentum to coordinate national and regional efforts  for maximzing benefit of  South-South and triangular Cooperation especially with the recent adoption of the Second-Ten Year Implementation plan of Agenda 2063 (STYIP) emphasizing SSTrC importance in Africa’s developmental priorities on the global stage.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM).

The Director-General of International Relations and Cooperation, Mr Zane Dangor, and his counterpart, Mr Lounes Magramane, the Secretary General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Community Abroad, of the People`s Democratic Republic of Algeria, held Political Consultations during a Working Visit to South Africa. The consultations formed part of the Bi-National Commission (BNC) mechanism at the Senior Officials level between the two countries.

South Africa and Algeria enjoy very good political and fraternal relations dating back to the period when Algeria supported the South African anti-Apartheid struggle. Furthermore, these consultations took place within the current context of a challenging global geo-political landscape characterised by rising tensions and conflicts that threaten to further destabilise international peace and security, including the multilateral system. During the meeting, among others, they exchanged views on developments in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), the Sahel, and other conflict situations on the African continent, as well as other critical matters of global concern such as climate change.

Director-General Dangor and Secretary General Magramane also discussed areas of bilateral cooperation, particularly in many areas such as political, economic, scientific, educational, cultural, and people-to-people matters. Relations between South Africa and Algeria in the past three decades were initially anchored in the formation of a Ministerial Joint Bi-National Commission of Cooperation (JBC) in 1998 and later with its elevation to a Bi-National Commission (BNC) at Heads of State, established in 2000. The latter provides a framework for the consolidation and deepening of bilateral cooperation for the mutual benefit of both countries. In this regard, the visit and the consultations held, contributed towards the strengthening of bilateral relations.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Republic of South Africa: Department of International Relations and Cooperation.

The Cabinet has approved the revised guidelines on the terms and conditions of service for board members and staff of State Corporations.

These guidelines, the Cabinet said, were in line with the recent directives given by President William Ruto on fiscal consolidation and management of State Corporations.

The new policy also aligns the determination of the terms and conditions of service in the agencies with the provisions of the Constitution and the relevant laws.

Consequently, the revised guidelines will provide salary bands and allowances for CEOs, board members, Vice-Chancellors, Chancellors and members of university councils.

President Ruto chaired the Cabinet meeting on Tuesday at State House Nairobi.

Additionally, the Salaries and Remunerations Commission and the State Corporations Advisory Committee will be key players in determining the terms and conditions for State corporations.

The guidelines also provide a new standard for the governance and ethical behaviour of board members and staff of State corporations.

The Cabinet was briefed on the ongoing industrial action by healthcare workers. The members were informed that 19 issues were in contention, but only four concerned the National Government – basic salary arrears, scholarships for postgraduate studies, medical insurance and stipends for medical interns.

All the issues have been resolved save for the stipend of interns. The Cabinet was adamant that it is unsustainable to continue paying KSh206,000 a month to the interns.

The Cabinet endorsed the government directive to set the internship stipend at KSh70,000, saying other interns in public service are paid KSh25,000.

The Cabinet was also briefed on fertiliser distribution. The members were informed that fertiliser has been distributed in 42 counties, with uptake going up by 100 per cent.

So far, 2.9 million bags have been distributed to 538,061 farmers compared to 1.09 million bags to 270,000 farmers in April last year.

Farmers registered on the fertiliser online portal have hit 5.9 million compared to 2.3 million last year. In addition, 9.5 million e-vouchers.

On suppliers of sub-standard fertiliser, President Ruto directed that tough measures be taken against “anyone who adulterates an important national programme”.

Members of Cabinet also approved the terms of a negotiated settlement of the commercial contracts and financing agreements for Itare and Arror dams.

The matters that the contractor, CMC de Ravenna, had taken for arbitration have since been withdrawn. Consequently, the government and CMC de Ravenna will enter into a court settlement.

In the new terms, Itare Dam will be completed, while the construction of Arror Dam will begin.

The Cabinet also approved the purchase of six parcels of totalling 11,000 acres of land in Naivasha, including 6,000 acres for settling squatters and 5,000 acres for industrial purposes.

The Cabinet also discussed and approved the following:

Kenya’s Ratification of the Treaty Establishing IGAD
Kenya’s Ratification of the WTO Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies
Hosting of Eastern Africa Sub-Regional Forum on Artificial Intelligence
Provision of an Office for the African Economic Research Consortium
Preparation for the 59th Labour Day Celebrations
Progress on the Implementation of the 15 Billion Tree-Growing Programme

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of President of the Republic of Kenya.