Author: pr.web

L’église catholique a procédé samedi 02 juillet 2022, à l’ordination sacerdotale et diaconale. C’était à la paroisse Mutoyi dans l’archidiocèse de Gitega. Les cérémonies étaient présidées par l’archevêque de Gitega Bonaventure Nahimana, en compagnie de Monseigneur Simon Ntamwana, l’Archevêque Emérite de Gitega.

Au cours des cérémonies, 12 acolytes ont été ordonnés diacres tandis que 14 anciens diacres ont été ordonnés prêtres et ont reçu l’onction, afin de servir dans le ministère d’évangélisation et d’enseignement de la parole de Dieu, aux côtés des Evêques et d’Archevêques.

Avant de recevoir solennellement leurs titres de diacres et de prêtres, les candidats ont eu d’abord l’occasion d’écouter la charge religieuse qui leur est dévolue, charge présentée par Monseigneur Bonaventure Nahimana. Il leur a prescrit l’attitude et le comportement qu’ils devront adopter une fois devenus diacres ou prêtres.

Selon Monseigneur Bonaventure Nahimana, l’humilité doit être leur lot quotidien, à l’image de Jésus Christ qui les appelés à marcher dans ses traces afin de sanctifier le peuple par la parole de Dieu. Il les a invités à lire cette parole de Dieu, à la croire, à l’enseigner et à manifester une vie conforme à ce qu’ils auront enseigné.

L’ordination de ces diacres et prêtres a été également marquée par les cérémonies d’obédience à l’Archevêque de Gitega, suivies de leur onction, et l’imposition des mains par le même Archevêque qui leur a conféré également les ordres sacrés.

Il sied de mentionner que la majorité de ces nouveaux diacres et prêtres proviennent de l’archidiocèse de Gitega et que la paroisse de Mutoyi n’avait pas encore abrité les cérémonies du genre depuis 1986.

Source: Radio Television Burundi

La première Dame du pays Angeline Ndayishimiye en compagnie du ministre en charge de l’agriculture, du représentant résident du système des Nations Unies au Burundi, du représentant de la FA0, celui du FIDA et le consul d’Italie au Burundi a procédé dimanche 03 juillet 2020 à la 3ème récolte des tomates cultivées sous serre par la famille présidentielle à son domicile sise à Kibimba, commune Giheta de la province Gitega.

Le ministre en charge de l’agriculture a félicité la famille présidentielle qui a pris l’initiative de développer le métier d’agriculture. Le Président de la République a prêché par l’exemple même dans des initiatives de recherche, a-t-il poursuivi. En tant que ministre en charge de l’agriculture, Déo Guide Rurema a fait savoir que son ministère est entrain de développer un volet de promotion de l’agriculture en serre car c’est une technologie qui permet de rentabiliser les théories d’irrigation goute à goutte, la bonne maîtrise de la fertilisation mais permet aussi d’obtenir des produits de qualités exemptes de maladies et ravageurs.

Le ministre de l’environnement, de l’agriculture et de l’élevage réitère son engagement à soutenir la technologie de la culture en serre pour pouvoir intensifier ce genre d’expérience qui ne demande pas beaucoup d’espace pour produire beaucoup, en suivant le modèle donné par le Président de la République. Le ministre a expliqué que sur les 20 sur 8 mètres cultivés, la 3ème récolte est de plus de 223 kg, précisant qu’au total, la production avoisine les 700 kg de tomates.

Le ministre Deo Guide Rurema a profité de l’occasion pour lancer un rappel aux investisseurs afin qu’ils suivent le modèle du Président de la République pour accroître la fourchette de l’exportation. Il a souligné que c’est une fierté pour le pays car cela montre que le Burundi est sur la voie du développement et fait appel aux agences du système des Nations Unies pour appuyer ce genre d’initiatives.

Le représentant résident du système des Nations Unies au Burundi, encourage pour sa part le Président de la République pour son champ-témoin de la culture de tomates sous serre. Et d’ajouter que diriger un pays ce n’est pas seulement prendre des décisions mais aussi prêcher par l’exemple dans les différents domaines dont l’agriculture. Le représentant résident du système des Nations Unies au Burundi a fait savoir qu’il a été impressionné par cette expérience innovatrice qui a introduit surtout la culture de tomates sous serre et qui donne des produits de bonnes quantités.
Cela montre qu’au Burundi, il est très possible de pratiquer la culture sous serre et de sortir progressivement des méthodes de l’agriculture traditionnelle, a-t-il précisé, souhaitant que l’expérience du Président de la République puisse se propager au niveau des coopératives et des familles.

En tant que partenaires au développement, le représentant résident du système des nations unies au Burundi a promis que les agences du système des Nations Unies vont poursuivre les discussions avec le ministère de l’environnement, de l’agriculture et de l’élevage en vue de déterminer dans quels domaines elles peuvent soutenir le Burundi dans ses initiatives pour le développement.

Source: Radio Television Burundi

GENEVA — The World Health Organization is warning of growing health risks in the Horn of Africa as acute hunger spreads there.

The World Health Organization’s incident manager for the Horn of Africa, Sophie Maes, says urgent action is needed to slow the health and hunger crisis that is sickening and killing increasing numbers of people in the region.

WHO has released $16.5 million from its emergency fund for operations there.

“Due to the acute food insecurity, malnutrition rates are getting higher and higher, and especially children and pregnant and lactating women are very, very vulnerable,” said Maes. “… There is this synergy between malnutrition and disease where malnourished children become more easily sick and sick children more easily malnourished.”

The World Food Program warns 20 million people are at risk of starvation as drought in the Horn worsens.

Speaking from the Kenyan capital, Nairobi, Maes says the priority is to ensure everyone has access to food. At the same time, she says it is important that’ health needs are not neglected.

She warns the risk of disease outbreaks is higher because of a lack of clean water. She says the drought has dried up water sources, forcing people to leave their homes in search of food, water, and pasture for their cattle. Consequently, she says people are more likely to get sick as their living conditions deteriorate.

“And we are seeing a spike in disease outbreaks. We are looking at measles in Djibouti, Ethiopia, South Sudan, Somalia, Sudan,” said Maes. “Cholera and acute water diarrhea in Kenya, in South Sudan and Somalia. Meningitis, Hepatitis E, to name but a few.”

Maes appeals for international support to help WHO provide needed care to severely malnourished children.

She says it is crucial to respond to disease outbreaks quickly, to have sufficient supplies of drugs and equipment available, and to ensure children receive needed vaccines.

Source: Voice of America

NAIROBI — As Kenya heads toward a highly contested presidential election, many are worried about a repeat of deadly violence seen in past votes. The Kenyan group Mothers of Victims and Survivors is calling for all sides to maintain peace during this year’s polls.

Benna Buluma, also known as Mama Victor, is clutching photos of her two deceased sons at her makeshift home in the Mathare section of Nairobi.

Election time brings painful memories to the 48-year-old widow.

On August 9, 2017, her sons; Benard and Victor Okoth, both young men, were shot dead following a police crackdown on election protests in the area, just a day after the presidential polls. Five years later, the killers still have not been held accountable.

If it was my sons who had killed someone on the road, they would have been arrested, says Buluma as she fights back tears. But the police who killed my sons have not been arrested to date, she says, and that is what pains me the most. I ask myself why, she adds. They are all human beings, and the law should serve everyone equally.

Mathare, one of the biggest slums in Africa, with some of the most densely populated poor neighborhoods in Nairobi, has remained a constant hotspot of election violence.

MarryAnn Kasina is the co-founder of Social Justice Center, an organization that advocates for social justice in Nairobi.

“Every time we have elections, they know what our issues are, but they have not actualized,” Kasina said. “So, bringing your manifesto, to say that you are bringing water, you’ll do this…it just brings horizontal violence because you are already living in poverty. It is violence already living in it, you know.”

Mama Victor founded the group Mothers of Victims and Survivors Network to help families seek justice.

The group is urging election authorities and participants in the August presidential election to refrain from violence.

We want a peaceful election, she says. And that’s not all – we, as mothers of victims, we want justice for our children, and compensation, she adds.

The Kenyan police have been accused of using excessive force in handling past election-related protests.

With just over a month to the general elections, the National Police Service says it is prepared to provide a secure environment for the polls to run peacefully.

In a statement to VOA, police spokesperson Bruno Shioso said steps have been taken to improve security, including new election security training and additional equipment for officers.

Past elections in Kenya have been marred by deadly violence. In the most notorious incident, more than 1,100 people were killed in riots and attacks after the disputed 2007 vote.

But, as the clock ticks toward this year’s balloting, observers are cautiously optimistic that the polls will be peaceful.

Source: Voice of America

CAIRO — A senior U.N. official for Libya on Saturday condemned the storming of the parliament’s headquarters in the east of the oil-rich country as part of protests in several cities the previous day against the political class and deteriorating economic conditions.

Hundreds of protesters marched in the streets of the capital, Tripoli, and other Libyan cities Friday, with many attacking and setting fire to government buildings, including the House of Representatives in the eastern city of Tobruk.

“The people’s right to peacefully protest should be respected and protected but riots and acts of vandalism such as the storming of the House of Representatives headquarters late yesterday in Tobruk are totally unacceptable,” said Stephanie Williams, the U.N. special adviser on Libya, on Twitter.

Friday’s protests came a day after the leaders of the parliament and another legislative chamber based in Tripoli failed to reach an agreement on elections during U.N.-mediated talks in Geneva. The dispute now centers on the eligibility requirements for candidates, according to the United Nations.

Libya failed to hold elections in December, following challenges such as legal disputes, controversial presidential hopefuls and the presence of rogue militias and foreign fighters in the country.

The failure to hold the vote was a major blow to international efforts to bring peace to the Mediterranean nation. It has opened a new chapter in its long-running political impasse, with two rival governments now claiming power after tentative steps toward unity in the past year.

The protesters, frustrated from years of chaos and division, have called for the removal of the current political class and elections to be held. They also rallied against dire economic conditions in the oil-rich nation, where prices have risen for fuel and bread and power outages are a regular occurrence.

Protesters also rallied Saturday in Tripoli and several towns in western Libya, blocking roads and setting tires ablaze, according to livestreaming on social media.

There were fears that militias across the country could quash the protests as they did in 2020 demonstrations when they opened fire on people protesting dire economic conditions.

Sabadell Jose, the European Union envoy in Libya, called on protesters to “avoid any type of violence.” He said Friday’s demonstrations demonstrated that people want “change through elections and their voices should be heard.”

The U.S. ambassador to Libya, Richard Norland, urged Libyan political leaders and their foreign backers to work for a compromise to hold elections.

“It is clear no single political entity enjoys legitimate control across the entire country and any effort to impose a unilateral solution will result in violence,” he warned on Twitter following a call with Mohammad Younes Menfi, head of the Libyan presidential council.

Libya has been racked by conflict since a NATO-backed uprising toppled and killed longtime dictator Moammar Gadhafi in 2011. The country was then for years split between rival administrations in the east and west, each supported by different militias and foreign governments.

Source: Voice of America

To achieve Zero Hunger by 2030, WFP and our partners need to identify what works best for the people we serve. We must know which interventions work best in each area we operate. To do this, we must both generate and follow the evidence.

In 2021, WFP completed the pilot phase of its Impact Evaluation Strategy (2019–2026). The strategy has an explicit aim of supporting the organization to use rigorous impact evaluation evidence to inform policy and programme decisions, optimize interventions and provide thought leadership to global efforts to achieve Zero Hunger.

The pilot phase enabled WFP to test the level of demand and start developing approaches to support and deliver impact evaluations. It also provided the space needed to explore operational models for impact evaluations that meet organizational needs.

In 2021, the Office of Evaluation (OEV) commissioned an external review of the WFP Impact Evaluation Strategy. Overall, the review confirms that WFP can and should play a leading role in generating impact evaluation evidence to support organizational learning and contribute to global evidence. The review also highlighted challenges to be addressed as the organization moves beyond the pilot phase.

WFP established the Strategic Advisory Panel (SAP) to guide its efforts to build capacity and deliver impact evaluations. The advice of the SAP to inform WFP’s response to the 2021 review recommendations is important as we move towards institutionalizing impact evaluation.

As Director of Evaluation, I am pleased to share the 2021 Annual Report of the Strategic Advisory Panel, which captures progress to date, lessons learned from piloting our strategy and key issues for consideration in 2022.

Source: World Food Programme