East Africa

East Africa

Details: East Africa; 21 February 2023; 452

Trade Cabinet Secretary Moses Kuria (centre) with EU Ambassador to Kenya Henriette Geiger (right) at the European Investment Bank Vice-President Thomas Ostros at the EU-Kenya Business Forum in Nairobi on February 21, 2023. PHOTO | DIANA NGILA | NMG

Both the EU and the Kenyan government announced they would resume talks on the deal known as the interim EU-Economic Partnership Agreement (iEU-EPA) this week before its conclusion in March.

“We are resuming negotiations this week, and we hope these negotiations will be completed when the President (William Ruto) travels to the EU next month,” EU Ambassador to Kenya Henriette Geiger said.

“By the 31st of March, we must conclude our economic partnership agreement,” added Trade and Investments Cabinet Secretary Moses Kuria.

The interim agreement is expected to be a placeholder for the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) between the EU and the East African Community (EAC) countries, of which Kenya is a member.

The interim pact will mirror the actual EPA initiated in 2014. Kenya and Rwanda signed the deal in September 2016, but only Nairobi has ratified it, with other EAC partner states as holdouts.

This left the EU-EAC-EPA in limbo as it has been a prerequisite that the agreement is endorsed by all EAC member states for it to become effective.

The signing of the EPA deal was initially delayed because some states wanted a provision for special export taxes to protect certain sectors they consider sensitive and to discourage the exportation of raw materials to Europe.

Kenya’s neighbours, which are classified as least developed countries (LDCs), enjoy preferential access to the EU market. This has forced Kenya, a lower middle-income economy, to seek a temporary arrangement with the EU as its goods stood to attract higher taxes.

EU-Kenya forum

“Our neighbours must aspire to rise from the least developed category. We cannot incentivise poverty,” said Trade CS.

President Ruto has urged the Kenyan and EU officials to close the deal during the negotiations set to happen at the sidelines of the inaugural EU-Kenya Business Forum, which runs on Monday and Tuesday this week.

“Doing business in Kenya is strategic and highly beneficial. It is in the EU’s best interest to complete the deal,” President Ruto said.

The temporary EU-Kenya deal is expected to liberalise trade in goods on a mutual basis, giving Kenya duty-free access to the EU market for all exports and partial and gradual opening of the Kenyan market, including agriculture and fishery products.

The interim pact will remain open for other EAC partner states to join.

EU is a key trading partner to Kenya and is the largest market for domestic exports.

Kenyan exports to the EU mainly cover coffee, cut flowers, tea and vegetables.

Imports from the EU broadly cover machinery and mechanical appliances, equipment and parts, vehicles and pharmaceutical products.

Kenya is also leading negotiations that will establish a tripartite deal between the EAC, the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (Comesa), and the Southern African Development Community (SADC). By KEPHA MUIRURI, Business Daily

Details: East Africa; 21 February 2023; 439

Investigating cases of sodomy is still complicated for detectives because the majority of the victims are still shy to report, despite the escalation of the cases in the country, the Uganda Police Force-UPF has revealed.

According to Police Spokesperson Fred Enanga, many people have been coerced into sodomy but only a few individuals have filed complaints with the police. “The most important part is to encourage victims of sodomy to come out because there is always evidence that can help the police to progress with the investigations. It is easy to identify the perpetrators and whether they are linked to organizations or individuals,” Enanga said.

The call by the police follows two separate cases that were registered over the weekend. One of the cases in Mbarara city resulted in the arrest of Michael Saturday, a businessman in Nyamityobora for sexually harassing six of his male employees in the night.

“He was repeatedly sodomizing these boys who are below seventeen years and some above 18 years. But we want to thank one of the victims who came out and reported the matter, because he got the courage, that most victims haven’t taken to report these acts,” Enanga noted. He explained that the victims were subjected to medical examinations, which indeed showed that they were sodomized.

“The charges of aggravated defilement, rape, and engaging in unnatural sexual practices have been slapped on the suspect,” he said. Police also registered another case in Kasangati where suspect Jimmy Peter Matovu, 30, a resident of Lubatu zone attempted to forcefully sodomize his friend who visited him in the night.

“This is a man who picked a knife and put it on his friend’s neck at around 10pm and ordered him to undress so that he can sodomize him. But luckily this victim was strong enough and managed to fight his way out of the room, and made an alarm,” Enanga said.

He asked all victims of sodomy and other kinds of sexual abuse to always come out and report for assistance.

Recently, the NGO Bureau revealed that it was investigating the operations of 22 NGOs across the country suspected to be involved in the promotion of LGBTIQ activities. Police say they are still waiting for a call from the Internal Affairs Ministry to join the investigations.

According to Section 145 of the Penal Code Act, of 1950, it is criminal to have unnatural sexual intercourse and it attracts life imprisonment on conviction. It provides that “Any person who has carnal knowledge of any person against the order of nature commits an offense and is liable to imprisonment for life.” By URN, Tower Post

Details: East Africa; 20 February 2023; 471

Minister of Finance, Planning and Economic Development Matia Kasaija. PHOTO | FILE

What you need to know:

Uganda is currently experiencing an epic rise in the heat wave, with the scorching sun withering crops across the country. Finance minister Matia Kasaija has warned that the country is heading to tougher times if the government does not put aside a special budget for climate change mitigation.

Uganda is currently experiencing an epic rise in the heat wave, with the scorching sun withering crops across the country.

“It has not been normal to budget [on climate change]. This phenomenon is new. We have been using mainly grants or donated money for climate change. We have not been collecting money [tax] to use for climate change,” he said.

The minister made the remarks during a meeting that brought together directors of climate finance in the national treasuries and ministries of finance and climate change from the East Africa region at Kigo, Kampala, last Friday.

The two-day session kick-started a regional dialogue on climate finance access and mobilisation for enhanced regional climate action.

Mr Kasaija said climate change is real and deadly. “Our people are doing things ignorantly and they damage the environment. The first money, if donated, will be to educate the population. People must conserve the environment,” he added.

Ms Dagmar Zwebe, the Country Representative of the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI), said climate change does not know borders.

She said GGGI is, for example, supporting projects of solar irrigation. “If you have the traditional form of irrigation with diesel, it’s very polluting, so by removing the diesel and using the sun, Uganda will have fewer emissions moving forward,” Ms Zwebe said.

Mr Ladislaus K. Leonidas, the principal environment and natural resources officer of the East Africa Community, said the region receives $2.5 billion from international public finance sources, far below the required $21.18 billion required to implement partner states’ updated Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs).

UK donor aid representative Benjamin Smith said climate finance needs to be based on climate adaptation priorities. The Uganda Climate Change Act, 2021, empowers the Finance minister in consultation with his Water and Environment counterpart to provide for climate change financing. By Tonny Musani, Daily Monitor

Details: East Africa; 20 February 2023; 525

Senator says DP's remarks might tarnish principles held by Kenya Kwanza government

In Summary

•DP Gachagua's remarks on Saturday, that the government was operating as a company of shareholders drew mixed reactions from Kenyans.

•According to the Senator, the second in command remarks might tarnish the principles held by the Kenya kwanza government .

Makueni Senator Dan Maanzo has urged Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua to be careful with the words he utters in public.

According to the Senator, the second in command remarks might tarnish the principles held by the Kenya Kwanza government.

"I have a lot of respect for the Deputy President who is a friend of mine and we served in Parliament together," Maanzo said on Monday.

"You really have to be careful what you say to the nation because your speech may end up rubbishing the principle of Kenya Kwanza."

The Senator also told the DP to always have in mind that Kenyans have expectations towards the government and some utterances can cause disunity in the country.

DP Gachagua's remarks on Saturday, that the government was operating as a company of shareholders drew mixed reactions from Kenyans, including the politicians.

He said that the Hustler government would reward its staunch supporters and those who toiled to put the current regime in office and give the least consideration to the opposition.

“This government is a company that has shares. There are owners who have the majority of shares, and those with just a few, while others do not have any," Gachagua said.

"You invested in this government and you must reap. You sowed, tilled, put manure and irrigated, and now it is time to reap."

by MAUREEN KINYANJUI, The Star

Details: East Africa; 20 February 2023; 709

The Artistic Director has appointed curator Luca Raffaelli (comic expert and historian) to manage the permanent collection. This utilises a multimedia, interactive experience, enabling visitors to admire roughly 200 original pages by the most famous comic artists of all time, as well as over 500 sketches, scripts, historic and rare publications, costumes used in films based on comics, set designs and video content from all around the world, collected through purchases, loans and donations.

Located within the 2200 square metres of exhibition spaces at PAFF!, the collection is distributed across one floor of the museum. It is divided into nine different sections and includes original pages by numerous masters and outstanding artists such as Carl Barks, Milton Caniff, Giorgio Cavazzano, Will Eisner, Floyd Gottfredson, Chester Gould, Benito Jacovitti, Magnus, Milo Manara, George McManus, Andrea Pazienza, Hugo Pratt, Alex Raymond, Charles M. Schulz and Art Spiegelman. A sculpture by Ivan Tranquilli will also be on display, while Davide Toffolo has created a board for the museum introducing “proto-comics”, illustrated stories (for example those decorating Trajan’s Column or drawings in nineteenth-century publications), which came before the birth and success of the comics industry.

Luca Raffaelli has provided an original approach to the structure of the museum visit, rooted in the different formats in which comic art, over more than 100 years of history, has been read, experienced and loved all around the globe, based on the cultures, economic conditions and social habits of readers. Thus we encounter first the birth of the Sunday pages in colour supplements of American newspapers, and later strips and comic books. Meanwhile, in Italy we find the newspaper format (like that used for Corriere dei Piccoli) and the strips of Tex, which then led to the success of the eponymous format; and in France volumes called albùm, and Japan Tankōbon, small books used to publish popular manga.

PAFF! is therefore the only museum in the world dedicated to comics with a primary focus on comparing original pages with reproductions, newspapers, albums and books in which comics live.

This emphasises the surprising formats adopted for the publication of some works, and demonstrates interaction between comics and other disciplines (cinema, painting, fashion, design, the avant-garde, theatre and literature) and fields (education and entertainment). It also clarifies better than ever before the relationship between comics and the communications industry, enabling audiences of different cultures, ages and origins to explore new themes and languages.

The majority of comics are created for a specific publishing context, which dictates the space and time available to tell a story. But events and success can change everything. A good example of this is the Sunday comic Flash Gordon, in a large and eye-catching colour version, then reduced to a black-and-white pocket format. Another is L’eternauta, a science-fiction comic first created in horizontal “Argentine format” in the fifties (renowned for having foretold the tragedy of Los Desaparecidos), which became a success in Italy in the vertical Lanciostory format twenty years later. And then there is Maus by Spiegelman, which began life as a supplement in an underground magazine and a distribution of just a few thousand copies, before becoming one of the most famous graphic novels globally, winning the Pulitzer Prize in 1992.

The permanent collection presents original pages in all the different stages of the publishing process, clarifying better than ever before the relationship between comics and the communications industry, thus opening up a new perspective on this art form for audiences of different cultures, ages and origins, also in terms of the relationship with other artistic disciplines and their languages. The multimedia component of the Museum is also particularly rich and skilfully curated, including 56 touch screens, Wi-Fi connection with a dedicated server for interactive monitors, neckbands and latest-generation tablets offering visitors a truly unique interactive experience of comic art.

By the end of 2023, the International Museum of Comic Art will also boast an archive with climate-controlled storage for original pages, drawings and publications in the Museum’s collection. The archive will be equipped with a precision high-energy-efficiency system to keep the environment at a constant temperature of 18°C, with no greater than 45% relative humidity.

https://campaign-image.eu/zohocampaigns/17925000016267004_zc_v14_1675855222241_paff.jpg

Giulio De Vita - Luca Raffaelli - Ivo Milazzo

“The exhibition and museum as conceived by Giulio De Vita and Paff! is unique and innovative, presenting comics as a complete format for communication, yet one capable of interacting with the other arts. There will be plenty of original works and, as demonstrated by the list of prestigious authors, these are of the highest level. But visitors will be able to admire them after first viewing their reproductions.”

Luca Raffaelli, curator of the PAFF! permanent collection International Museum of Comic Art

Kenya looks to close trade deal with European Union in March

EU-Kenya forum

Sodomy Victims too Shy to Report – Police

We need special budget for climate change – Kasaija

Maanzo to Gachagua: Be careful with your words

Senator says DP's remarks might tarnish principles held by Kenya Kwanza government

PAFF! International Museum of Comic Art

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