Category: General

The Director of the National Agency for Information and Communication Technologies, ANTIC has said more than 33,000 domain names in “cm” have been recorded to this day.

He announced the figures on June 7, 2023, during the 3rd edition of the National DNS Forum (Domain Name System) that was held in the city of Bertoua, East Region of Cameroon.

The forum of discussion unfolded under the theme “DNS and digital sovereignty of Cameroon”.

The third edition of the forum, ANTIC sought to engage representatives of public and private administrations of the East Region in insightful exchanges with internet and DNS experts.

According to the Director General of ANTIC, Pr Ebot Ebot Enaw, this figure makes Cameroon’s internet domain name one of the most sought-after in our continent and they seek to make the session more practical

” This edition of the forum is more practical, mindful of the fact that it comes at a time when subscribers of electronic communication services are increasingly expressing concerns with regard to the poor quality of service offered by internet service providers.” He said.

He also added that “it is with this framework that internet access and Service Providers have been invited to this forum, to better inform participants about existing offers as well as exchange with experts in the domain on how service quality could be streamed”

He further explained that to overcome the said challenges, the Domain Name System, DNS, which serves as a phone book of the internet, was created.

Source: Cameroon News Agency

Three Cameroonian women, Sally Mboumien, Esther Omam, and Marthe Wandou have been awarded the German Prize for Africa Award 2023 for their outstanding contributions in promoting peace and the protection of the rights of women and children in Cameroon.

Sally Mboumien, a teacher and feminist, and Esther Omam, Executive Director of the NGO, Reach Out and a finalist for the prestigious World Women Building Peace Award from the United States Institute of Peace who hail from the Southwest and Northwest regions have been coordinating efforts towards promoting peace to end the Anglophone crisis.

The third is a lawyer and activist Marthe Wandou who in 1998 founded the NGO Action Locale pour un développement participatif et autogéré (Aldepa) in the Far North region which aimed at encouraging parents to send their children to school, especially the girl child.

In 2021, she received the Alternative Nobel Prize for her commitment to gender equality for more than 20 years.

They will officially receive their prizes in Berlin, Germany come September 2023.

According to the Secretary General of the German Foundation for Africa, Sabine Odhiambo, the prizes were awarded to these women to raise awareness of the English-speaking crisis and the conflict caused by Boko Haram in Cameroon.

” One of the reasons why we place particular emphasis on the situation in Cameroon is because many people in Germany do not know what is happening there. These conflicts have been much neglected by Germany, and I think this is the opportunity for us to make our share of contribution to these women. It is difficult for us to understand what they are going through… It is really touching to hear these inspiring stories, to see how these women are still working for peace in their country, “she explained.

The laureates reacted saying “I feel like a child, I’m happy and I say to myself: yes! The work of women has been rewarded. It’s a victory for us, women peacebuilders”, Sally Mboumien, teacher and feminist stated.

“This prize represents the efforts of the women of the National Convention for Peace in Cameroon. It is a victory”, Esther Omam, Executive Director of the NGO Reach.

The German Prize for Africa has been awarded since 1993 by the German Africa Foundation to exceptional African personalities, in recognition of their special commitment to the fields of democracy, peace, human rights, sustainable development, research, art, and culture or social issues in Africa.

The prize was awarded in 2022 to Zimbabwean scientists Sikhulile Moyo and South African Tulio de Oliveira, the first to discover the Omicron variant of Covid-19.

Source: Cameroon News Agency

Angolan minister of Fisheries and Marine Resources Carmen Neto Thursday in Luanda defended a multiple and inclusive approach, aimed to ensure balances between the exploitation and conservation of the seas and oceans.

Delivering her speech at an opening ceremony of the workshop on the implementation of the Marine Spatial Planning Plan, the minister stressed the importance of focusing on quality perspective of performance of each area, operating with environmental protection standards.

The minister considered crucial sharing knowledge about the sea for the development of common strategies, capable of ensuring the protection of ocean resources, and challenges States to permanently define global governance solutions, guaranteeing a sustainable blue economy.

Carmen Neto highlighted that the Marine Spatial Planning Plan determines that the area is a productive, healthy, preserved, safe and conflict-free space, managed in an integrated and sustainable way.

According to her, the identification of protected marine areas is one of the main strategies for the conservation of marine biodiversity in Angola, and the plan will allow the country to achieve, in the best way, the goal of 30% for the preservation of marine areas.

Carmen Neto said the sector is working on the elaboration of the Management Manual to guarantee an effective and cohesive implementation of the plan.

On the other hand, she considered the commitment to ecological tourism to be fundamental, as it is an important economic activity for the conservation of marine

biodiversity and for the promotion of sustainable socio-economic development in Angola.

The Presidential Decree nº 88/23, of March 30th, which approves the Marine Space Planning Plan (POEM), contributes to the social and economic development of the

country in the coming years.

POEM defines a series of objectives related to the management, conservation, benefit sharing, research and scientific investigation, stakeholder engagement, awareness and monitoring of marine resources.

The National Strategy for the Sea of Angola 2030 (ENMA) is meant to contribute to the improvement of social well-being, through the economic enhancement of the maritime

space, its resources and natural values, in an integrated and sustainable manner.

Source: Angola Press News Agency (APNA)

The government plans to resume iron mining exploitation within three years in Kassala-Kitungo mines, northern Cuanza Norte Province, the secretary of State for Mineral Resources, Oil and Gas, Jâneo Correia Victor said Wednesday in Ndalatando City.

The re-launch of the iron exploration is expected to take place at the end of the prospecting studies that began early this year, whose aim is to determine the mining potential for concession to companies.

Correia Victor disclosed the information to the press during a workshop with mining operators.

Prospecting will be carried out by British company Capital Mining, which already has the equipment in the area, located in Caxissa, Dange ya-Menha municipality, 40 kilometers away from Ndalatando City.

According to the company’s technician, Pedro Sebastião, the activities planned for the reactivation of the mine include metallurgical tests, an economic and environmental impact studies, geological information and training of staff.

Sebastião added that the mine has to date around 70 extraction holes, with a depth of 16 to 200 metres.

The secretary of State explained that reactivation of Kassala-Kitungo aims to boost the supply of iron ore on the national market, promote an increase in public revenues and improve job opportunities, particularly for young people.

The Kassala-Kitungo mines, which cover 7,000 square metres, were once exploited in the colonial period.

The Ministry of Mineral Resources, Oil and Gas, according to the secretary of State, is committed to strengthening policies for exploration of mineral resources and will take measures against companies that fail to comply with the rules of the activity.

During the training session an updated geological study of Cuanza Norte Province was presented, which established the existence, on a large scale, of iron, copper and manganese reserves, mainly in the municipalities of Ambaca and Cambambe.

The participants advocated the adoption of a new model for supervision and granting of mining licences, since a large number of the 13 agents operating in the province operate with expired licences.

It was noted that most of the companies do not have environmental impact studies, an exploration plan, protection equipment and licences posted at the entrance to the mines.

Source: Angola Press News Agency (APNA)

The Chantal Biya Foundation has reaffirmed its commitment and engagement to continue with the provision of efficient actions to help the sick, the needy and the most disadvantaged in Cameroon.

This was affirmed during the fundraising gala dinner organised by the Sovereign Military Order of Malta in Yaounde on Saturday, June 3, 2023, in which Mrs Chantal BIYA was the guest of honour.

First Lady Chantal Biya’s charitable and humanitarian actions were highly acclaimed by the head of the order’s diplomatic mission to Yaounde and the special representative of Fra’ John Dunlap, Grand Master of the Order of Malta. It was revealed that the programme to cater for children suffering from cancer at the Chantal BIYA Foundation touched the lives of 1,200 kids last year. The positive result of this collaboration was a major booster for both institutions to reaffirm this engagement.

The fundraising unfolded through the auction sale of a 60kg bag of Arabic Coffee, a painting, metal and wood structures, calabashes and more that generated the sum of about 30 MFCFA.

The event, attended by 280 invitees, was marked by a successful auction sale – whose proceeds will be put at the disposal of three main projects run by the charity body in Cameroon.

These organs include the Saint John of Malta Hospital in Njombe, the Children’s Cancer Centre of the Chantal BIYA Foundation in Yaounde, and the Roham Chabot Centre for Leprosy and Child Care in Mokolo.

The Ambassador of Malta said, ” I am grateful to the first lady for honouring us with her presence without which we may not have had the joy, excitement and support for our humanitarian activities and this charity dinner is the first of its kind in Cameroon”.

The First Lady, Chantal Biya later on Monday, June 5, 2023, visited the Chantal Biya Foundation where she was received by the Secretary-General and some important dignitaries from the Sovereign Order of Malta.

Source: Cameroon News Agency

For the past two days, Prime Minister, Chief Dr, Joseph Dion Ngute, has been wooing investors at the Africa CEO Summit that took place in Cote D’Ivoire’s defacto capital, Abidjan.

The Prime Minister who was representing President Paul Biya, urged investors to try destination Cameroon, enumerating the potentials the central African country has.

The forum is said to be the largest gathering of African investors in the private sector and decision-makers.

This year, the forum was held under the theme “Succeeding in the Past Crises – From 300 to 3000: How to Accelerate the Emergence of the Next Generation of African Champions”.

About 20 Cameroonian companies were selected to represent the Cameroonian delegation at the 2023 Africa CEO Summit. The companies are specialized in areas of public works, processing, production, services, communication, transport, and logistics.

They brainstormed in areas like energy transition adapted to Africa, the impact of mining and agribusiness, the need for Africa to be more vocal on major international issues, and the means available to companies to adapt to inflation.

Source: Cameroon News Agency