News in brief
Posted by African Press International on June 7, 2008
Also in this Edition; Briefly Noted… Zimbabwe‘s government has ordered all humanitarian aid groups to suspend their operations in the nation - a prohibition that relief agencies estimate will deprive two million people of food aid and other basic assistance. [The New York Times/Factiva]
South Africa‘s Health Minister Manto Tshabalala-Msimang said Thursday that HIV infection rates among pregnant women declined for the second straight year and claimed it was proof of the success of government policies. Full results of the annual survey will be released in the coming weeks, she told parliament. [The Washington Post/Factiva]
World Bank Managing Director Juan Jose Daboub, will begin a tour of Central America Sunday, where he will visit Honduras, Guatemala, El Salvador and Nicaragua. During the tour, Daboub will meet with members of governments, private sector representatives and civil society, and will visit some projects financed by the agency, he explained in a teleconference. [Thomson Reuters/Factiva]
Subsidies that distort farm trade should be abolished, although that is not possible in the current round of world trade talks, Foreign Minister Celso Amorim said on Thursday. [Thomson Reuters/Factiva]
US President George W. Bush on Thursday pressed fellow rich nations to make good on their pledges to provide $60 billion to help African countries combat diseases like malaria and HIV/AIDS. The G8 nations promised the money at their summit in Germany last year but set no timetable for disbursing the funds, raising some questions about the commitment to help the world’s poorest continent. [Thomson Reuters/Factiva]
World Bank Country Director for China David Dollar says the reconstruction process in Sichuan may last as long as eight years. The World Bank has pledged to lend its expertise to the process. [China Daily/Factiva]
The Chinese government said on Thursday it had mobilized state-owned enterprises to build 1million prefabricated houses in three months for survivors of last month’s devastating earthquake. [The Financial Times (UK)/Factiva]
Indonesia‘s Environment Minister Rachmat Witoelar said on Thursday that events in Jakarta, hit by flooding due to unusually high tides this week, served as a timely warning of the impact of global warming on coastal cities. He urged G8 countries to show their commitment to tackling global warming, which threatens many coastal and low-lying areas. [Thomson Reuters/Factiva]
Indonesia has changed its policy on reporting bird flu cases and will only announce the death toll from the disease every six months, the health minister said on Thursday. [Thomson Reuters/Factiva]
Central banks in Indonesia and the Philippines increased benchmark interest rates by 25 basis points on Thursday. It is the latest sign of policymakers attempting to contain soaring inflation driven by rocketing oil and food prices. [The Financial Times (UK)/Factiva]
A two-hundred strong assessment team will be deployed to the Irrawaddy delta area beginning Thursday, Secretary-General of ASEAN revealed after a meeting with Tripartite Core Group in Yangon. The ASEAN-UN-Myanmar Tripartite Core Group agreed that after two days of intense briefing for their Emergency Rapid Assessment Team (ERAT), they are now ready to move into the cyclone stricken remote delta areas to begin full assessment of the extent of the damage and the urgent needs of the victims of Cyclone Nargis. [BBC Monitoring Asia Pacific/Factiva]
Global food price rises may push some Afghan farmers to plant wheat instead of opium but officials say any real switch will only come from government pressure as poppies are still more profitable. This year’s worldwide jump in prices has hit Afghanistan hard, with wheat – the country’s dietary staple food – doubling in some areas and reports of people eating grass to survive. [Agence France Presse/Factiva]
The sovereign ratings of Middle Eastern states could be hit by the political and economic risks caused by soaring inflation across the region, Moody’s ratings agency said yesterday. Poorer regional states, such as Egypt and Jordan, are most likely to be affected in the short term, as inflation prompts strikes and fiscal loosening by governments under pressure. [The Financial Times (UK)/Factiva]
————————————————–
African Press International – api Chief Editor Korir africanpress@getmail.no
