Women and girls in the midst of the brutal conflict between rival militaries in Sudan are being disproportionately impacted, including 5.8 million who are now displaced, according to an alert released by UN Women on Friday.

The need for gender-based violence-related services has increased 100 per cent since the crisis began in April 2023, the UN agency championing gender affairs reported, with up to 6.7 million people needing assistance by the end of last year.

Cases of conflict-related sexual violence, sexual exploitation, and abuse have been growing since then, especially in Khartoum, Darfur, and Kordofan.

Many cases of abuse perpetrated against displaced women and girls go unreported due to a fear of stigma from other community members and inadequate support.

Insufficient food and healthcare

With cases of acute food insecurity and abuse now at a record high in war-torn Sudan, female-headed households are being more affected than male-headed households.

Additionally, 1.63 million women of reproductive age lack access to adequate healthcare services, even though around 54,000 childbirths are expected over the next three months.

The alert explained that “women and girls also continue to be disproportionately impacted by the lack of safe, easily accessible, and affordable water, sanitation, and hygiene.”

“At least 80 per cent of the internally displaced women are unable to secure clean water due to affordability, safety concerns, and distance,” it continued.

Education crisis

Access to education for girls in Sudan is also a major concern as more than 2.5 million school-aged girls are unable to return to the classroom which increases the risk of “being subjected to harmful practices such as child marriage and female genital mutilation.”

“Women and girls in Sudan are facing unimaginable challenges, yet their strength and resilience continue to inspire us,” said Hodan Addou, acting Regional Director for UN Women’s East and Southern Africa office. “We cannot let Sudan become a forgotten crisis.”

Call for action

UN Women said urgent action is needed to protect women and girls in Sudan and secure their access to food, safe water, and sexual and reproductive health services.

The office is calling on the international community and humanitarian partners to support funding for women-led organizations that are prioritising protecting and empowering women and girls.

“Now, more than ever, the international community must rally together to support women in Sudan, ensuring they have the resources and protection they need to survive and rebuild their lives,” Ms. Hodan Addou.

UN Women is also demanding an immediate halt to the fighting but all international efforts to bring about a ceasefire between the RSF militia and Government forces have so far fallen short.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of UN News.

Today, the United States, through USAID, announced $5 million to support the people of Gabon in their transition to democratic governance. Through the African Democratic and Political Transitions (ADAPT) Initiative – announced by President Biden during the 2022 U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit – USAID will support the constitutional referendum and transitional elections in accordance with the transition timeline outlined by the Gabonese authorities.

Working in partnership with the Consortium for Elections and Political Process Strengthening and the United States Institute of Peace, USAID will provide technical assistance to strengthen election administration and voter education. This technical assistance will also include supporting journalists and civic groups to monitor election processes and contribute to democratic decision-making throughout the transition period. Additionally, the funding will contribute to strengthening people-to-people ties through workshops and exchanges in an effort to maintain international attention on Gabon’s democratic transition.

The Biden-Harris Administration’s ADAPT initiative reaffirms the U.S. commitment to engage with complex democratic transitions in Africa and demonstrates U.S. government support to governments and civil society at critical moments.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of United States Agency for International Development (USAID).

Government has been urged to establish mechanisms of preserving and promoting indigenous seeds and animal breeds, in a motion moved by Bufumbira East County representative, Hon. James Nsaba Buturo.

The Nsaba Buturo motion which was largely supported by legislators, calls on government to move fast in protecting, preserving and promoting the traditional seeds and breeds to counter the impending competition by multi-national organisations promoting genetically modified seeds and breeds (GMOs).

“The multi-national companies are behind the drive to take over worldwide control of the seed sector and the sale of fertilizers and herbicides which will make them monopolies, Uganda is facing a serious challenge which deliberately designed to lead to extinction of traditional seeds,” Nsaba Buturo said.

He argued that such an arrangement should concern government, saying it has potential to affect its political stability and independence.

“These companies will turn our farmers dependent people who will have to buy from them every season, it will condemn us to seed insecurity and loss of seed sovereignty which will inevitably affect our political stability,” said Nsaba Buturo during the plenary sitting on Thursday, 25 September 2024 chaired by Deputy Speaker, Thomas Tayebwa.

The Bufumbira East County MP made a case for traditional seeds saying they are more affordable, accessible, taste better and are better adaptable to local conditions as compared to GMOs or improved seeds.

In his prayers, Nsaba Buturo asked government to come up with policies to safeguard traditional seeds and breeds, finance research on seed preservation and carry out sensitisation of farmers on how to identify and preserve quality seeds and breeds.

He proposed that a department in the Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries be created to promote, preserve and protect traditional/indigenous seeds and breeds.

MPs recognised that the motion requires urgent attention saying the threats of GMOs is imminent. Kimanya-Kabonera Division MP, Hon. Abed Bwanika, said government could learn from South Africa which preserved the best quality of its indigenous goats that currently have a worldwide market.

“We buy Boers and Savannah goats from South Africa, those are their traditional goats – what they did is they invested in selection. Government must finance research to conduct studies on how to select our good traditional seeds and breeds otherwise the threats of GMOs will come to us soon,” Bwanika said.

Members were concerned with the improved seeds on the market that have replaced traditional seeds, saying they are not only expensive for farmers but adversely affect the soil quality since they depend on fertilizers and chemicals.

“Currently the improved seeds require farmers to keep on applying chemicals in order to yield and survive, which is deadly to our soils yet our traditional seeds used to perform well without fertilizers and other chemicals,” said Hon. Gilbert Olanya (FDC, Kilak South County).

There are MPs who feared that GMOs were already in the market which agricultural and veterinary practitioners, such as Bwanika rejected.

Kiboga District Woman MP, Hon. Christine Nakimwero, noted that the current regulations do not cater for the preservation or promotion of the traditional breeds and seed, and expressed the need for a legislation to effect the motion.

She appealed to government to consider the effects of climate change on soil, proposing that it is the indigenous seeds that can stand the adverse effects of climate change.

“As climate change activists, what we are saying is that one of the adaptive methods to its effects is to use traditional seeds because in most cases they have stood droughts, heavy winds and floods,” said Nakimwero.

Kasilo County MP, Hon. Elijah Okupa, said there is potential in our traditional seeds and breeds if they are well promoted, citing the Ankole cattle breed which President Yoweri Museveni has been promoting and is now sold in South Africa.

The Minister of State for Trade, Industry and Cooperatives (Industry), Hon. David Bahati, said government vehemently supports the motion citing the comparative advantage traditional seeds and breeds have over the improved ones.

“We believe in science but science without ethics can be dangerous. We know there is evidence that indigenous seeds and breeds of animals and birds have a higher propensity to survive in the ever changing climate,” he said.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Parliament of the Republic of Uganda.

The Ambassador of the Republic of Korea to the Seychelles, H.E Mr. Jung Kang, met with the Principal Secretary for Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Vivianne Fock Tave, at Maison Queau de Quinssy on Wednesday 25th September 2024, to discuss cooperation issues.

The meeting focused on the outcome of the 1st Korea-Africa Summit held in June 2024, in Seoul and the two diplomats agreed that the areas in which cooperation could be strengthen include renewable energy, digital technology, Tech4Africa Initiative and trade.

The signing of the Visa Waiver Agreement for Diplomatic and Official Passport holders, the conclusion of such an agreement for normal passport holders, and the Seychelles-South Korea Joint Commission were also discussed.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Tourism – Foreign Affairs Department, Republic of Seychelles.