THIS WEEK

 

26: The 55th Session of the UN Human Rights Council. The council will consider human rights issues in 50 different countries, including Myanmar, Syria and Ukraine. The crisis in Palestine is one of the key priorities on the agenda. In a recent statement, independent human rights experts warned that any transfer of weapons or ammunition to Israel that would be used in Gaza is likely to violate international law (Geneva).

 

26: The KwaZulu-Natal High Court in South Africa will rule on an  application by the trio charged with the 2018 murder of a British botanist couple to have their prosecutor recused. Senior state advocate Mahen Naidu has denied all allegations made against him by Aslam Del Vecchio, Fatima Patel and Malawian national Mussa Ahmad Jackson. They are charged with killing celebrated botanists Rodney Saunders and his wife, Rachel, in February 2018. The Saunders had dual citizenship for SA and the UK, and their killing drew international condemnation (Durban).

 

27-3: Joburg Film Festival returns for a sixth edition, where 60 films and documentaries from more than 30 countries are expected to be screened. A documentary telling the story of iconic South African photographer Sam Nzima will be screened for the first time. Nzima captured the iconic 16 June 1976 photo of a dying 13-year-old Hector Pieterson in Soweto (Johannesburg).

 

28: Sahara Marathon. The 2024 event is organised under the leadership of the Ministry of Youth & Sports, and in collaboration with the National Sahrawi Women’s Union and other organisations (Tindouf, Algeria).

 

28: 7th Pension Funds and Alternative Investments Africa Conference. The event brings together pension fund managers, investment managers, institutional managers and industry leaders to explore new investment avenues, especially in alternative investments, and addressing the challenges that accompany them (Mauritius).

 

29: Deadline for submissions for the 2024 SADC Media Awards competition. The awards are open to journalists from the SADC member states. The first prize winners will receive their prizes and certificates on the margins of the 44th SADC Summit of Heads of State and Government. Journalists who wish to enter the competition can access more information about the competition from the www.sadc.int

 

29: Deadline for nominations for the Mail & Guardian’s annual 200 Young South Africans awards.

 

1: UN Zero Discrimination Day

 

3: UN World Wildlife Day

 

OTHER:

 

* Algeria's President Abdelmadjid Tebboune on Sunday officially opened The Great Mosque of Algiers, the largest mosque in Africa. It is also the third-largest in the world, after the mosques in Saudi Arabia's Islamic holy cities of Mecca and Medina. It is spread across 70 acres (28ha) and can hold up to 120 000 worshippers at one time. It is expected to host prayers during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan, which begins in two weeks.

  

* The African Development Bank (AfDB) Group has signed a memorandum of understanding to rehabilitate and restore the Lake Chad Basin. The agreement signed with the Lake Chad Basin Commission will mobilise financial and technical resources to improve the development and management of water resources, support livelihoods and restore peace in the region, a statement by AfDB said. Lake Chad, once considered the sixth-largest inland water body on earth for livelihood, has shrunk in area by some 92% in recent decades. The larger Chad Basin contributes to food security for about 50m people.

 

* Former Sierra Leonean President Ernest Bai Koroma has been granted permission to travel abroad on medical grounds despite facing treason charges. The High Court ruling comes amid speculation that Ernest Bai Koroma has agreed to go into exile if charges against him were dropped. He was accused of treason and other offences over a failed coup last November during which 20 people died. A court order stipulates that he must not stay in Nigeria for more than three months and that he must appear in court on 6 March.

 

* The Botswana Vaccine Institute is collaborating with Uganda to develop a vaccine for foot and mouth disease, which has been endemic since 1953. Uganda has offered Botswana companies the opportunity to procure maize from Uganda for stockfeed, and there may be a deal on milk. In January, Uganda enforced quarantines in 32 districts in the cattle corridor because of an outbreak first reported in November.

 

* The East African Court of Justice (EACJ) has asked activist groups to file a written submission in an appeal seeking to overturn a ruling that sought to block the construction of the East Africa Crude Oil Pipeline project. The regional court, sitting in Arusha, in November 2023 threw out a case in which activist groups, including the African Centre for Energy Governance (AFIEGO), had filed against the pipeline project between Uganda and Tanzania. The court then ruled that it had no jurisdiction to hear the case because it was filed too late or out of time.

 

* A second trial of four members of the Egyptian security forces accused of murdering an Italian student in 2016 has begun in Rome. The suspects, who have denied the charges, are being tried in absentia. Giulio Regeni was studying for a doctorate at Cambridge University when he went missing while on a research trip in Egypt. Days later, his mutilated body was found in a ditch near Cairo.

 

* A delegation from SA’s KwaZulu-Natal province is travelling through India to showcase the province and to forge relationships with international tour operators. The roadshow which commenced last week covers Jaipur, Delhi, Ahmedabad, Bangalore and Mumbai – five of the most populous cities in India.