The figure in 2021 marked an increase of 40 million people from the previous year with the situation only expected to worsen as the war in Ukraine continues, according to the Global Report on Food Crisis. 

The cause of this “appalling” increase was a “toxic triple combination” of conflict, the economic effects of COVID-19 and extreme weather, said the report, which was jointly produced by the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation, the European Union, and the World Food Programme.

However, conflict had the most impact, causing 139 million people to go into food insecurity in 24 countries.

“Today, if more is not done to support rural communities, the scale of the devastation in terms of hunger and lost livelihoods will be appalling,” the report said.

“Urgent humanitarian action is needed on a massive scale to prevent that from happening”.

Afghanistan, Ethiopia, Nigeria, South Sudan, Yemen, Syria and the Republic of the Congo were some of the most impacted countries, the report added.

And drought, conflict and the increasing cost of food could cause Somalia to experience the world’s worst food crisis this year.

The Global Report on Food Crisis report warned that the situation in Somalia and other African countries could worsen because of the war in Ukraine, as many in the region rely on wheat and fertilizer from Russia and Ukraine.

“When we look at the consequences of what’s happening as a result of the war in Ukraine, there is real cause for concern of how this will amplify the acute food needs that exist in these food crisis countries,” said Rein Paulsen, director of the Food and Agriculture Organisation’s office of emergencies and resilience.

The report called for $1.4 billion in aid to help farmers in the regions at risk.

The post Nearly 200 million people suffered from acute food insecurity in 2021 first appeared on Magazin Haber Ajansı.

Lawmakers from the central African country unanimously adopted a bill to make Bitcoin legal tender alongside its CFA franc and legalised the use of cryptocurrencies.

President Faustin Archange Touadera signed the measure into law, his chief of staff Obed Namsio said in a statement.

The CAR “is the first country in Africa to adopt Bitcoin as legal tender,” Namsio said.

“This move places the Central African Republic on the map of the world’s boldest and most visionary countries,” he added.

The new legislation covers the use of cryptocurrencies and those who use them, in online trade, “smart contracts… by blockchain technology” and “all electronic transactions”.

It also said cryptocurrency exchanges are not liable to tax.

However, due to the high volatility of the digital currency, some are wary of the move.

Martin Ziguele, a former CAR prime minister who is now an opposition MP, complained the bill was approved “by proclamation” while some legislators intend to file suit against it at the Constitutional Court.

“This law is a way of getting out of the CFA franc through a means that guts the common currency,” said Ziguele.

“It [the law] isn’t a priority for the country,” he said. “This move raises the question: who benefits from it?”

Regulators around the world share the same concerns. Some also say that transfers using crypto are a perfect tool for traffickers and money laundering as they can be anonymised.

Second country to adopt Bitcoin as legal currency

While countries such as India have in the past banned crypto transaactions, El Salvador became the first country to adopt Bitcoin as legal tender last September.

But the move by El Salvador was heavily criticised by the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

“The adoption of a cryptocurrency as legal tender, however, entails large risks for financial and market integrity, financial stability and consumer protection,” it warned.

The CAR is one of the world’s poorest countries and has been in the grips of a nine-year civil war that developed largely along sectarian lines.

In 2020, a coalition of rebels advanced on the capital Bangui, threatening to overturn Touadera as new elections loomed.

Russia dispatched paramilitaries to help repel the threat and then recover much of the rebel-held territory.

The operatives are described by Bangui as military advisers but by France, the UN, and others as mercenaries from the Kremlin-backed Wagner group, which has been accused of abuses.

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Recently, there have been growing concerns about the schemes being discussed on the large-scale production and export of green hydrogen in and from Africa. 

Some claim that instead of helping Africa’s green transition, these plans and partnerships will be a means for “neo-colonialism”.

Such views are also occasionally heard in Europe, notably in circles which have a very entrenched interest themselves. For example, the myth that Europe could and should produce the entirety of the emission-free electricity it needs on its own territory, with enough spare current to electrolyse all its hydrogen on its own. 

But there is no serious study or projection which would conclude that Europe can do this on its own and at home. 

Between 25 and 50 per cent of the green hydrogen needed in Europe as of 2030 will have to be imported. And obviously, there is a case for importing it from neighbouring countries, notably North and West Africa.

Would European countries once again plunder African resources – leaving impoverished communities and corrupt leadership behind, while comfortably revelling in the cheap green hydrogen they have extracted?

Nothing could be further from the truth. 

Hydrogen has the potential – and it is so far the only substance with such potential – to finally make Africa and Europe partners while propelling the African continent to the avant-garde of a new industrial age.

An African statesman said recently, how could Europe take things away from us if we produce and use hydrogen here? 

“We have our sun, our wind, and our waters, which have been here forever and none of which can ever be transported elsewhere,” added. Here lies the truth, the abundant African resources needed for the transition to a hydrogen economy are endless and cannot be stolen. 

Electrolysers at a hydrogen production plantHauke-Christian Dittrich/(c) Copyright 2020, dpa (www.dpa.de). Alle Rechte vorbehalten

They can only be used in partnership, so that Africa can transition to a renewables-based industrial economy while Europe gets some of the hydrogen it needs after having invested and paid for it.

Is harvesting African hydrogen for use in Europe a new form of colonialism?

Let’s imagine for a second that green hydrogen is produced in Africa and can start fuelling mineral transformation processes. 

Let’s imagine African mines producing ore can be made locally, instead of being shipped away with no added value, as has been the case for too long. Let’s imagine African societies which, due to the massive investments that would have been undertaken to produce green electricity would be able to power their grid by themselves – without continuing their age-old dependence on imported petrol. 

Let’s imagine the outline of Africa being brightly lit under the night sky because electrification of the whole continent would finally have come about, using the resources of Africa itself. Does that sound like colonialism?

Of course, Europe would be investing in Africa because it needs something, for its own personal gain. However, this time we will make sure that the African states concerned receive their own share of what their sun, wind and water can generate. 

Partnerships with African states and regional associations, potentially even with the African Union, would be designed in such a way as to establish from the very beginning that there is an African project which Europe will help become reality. 

We are talking about exports of hydrogen to Europe, yes, but we are talking above all about bringing about a dynamic of development that Africa hasn’t seen before. And what is wrong with a continent surging ahead, when it is producing far more than it needs and consumes itself?

In a former life, as a Member of the European Parliament, I have been following the Europe-Africa Summits for ten years. 

The rhetoric may have been compelling, the results were disappointing. Now we see that some European states seem to engage with African states in order to secure their own provisions of green hydrogen. All this doesn’t fit into the real narrative. 

The real narrative is that in the 21st century, the African and the European continents become true partners because they commit entirely to producing enough renewable energy to power their respective development.

There must not be competition between producing countries, but cooperation on a scale large enough to power continents, not individual states or industries. The coming hydrogen economy will have space and benefits for all.

Investing in Africa benefits everyone

There is often criticism around the presence of fossil fuels actors in hydrogen development schemes. 

Yes, they may be there. But no, they will not “extract” something in Africa and then take it away from Africa. 

They will invest in projects that will be beneficial to Africa before they will benefit anyone else – but have the potential to benefit everyone. At the same time, oil and gas fields will mean less and less in today’s world meaning because of the global green energy transition. 

Jorgo Chatzimarkakis has been working at Hydrogen Europe since 2016Cleared

The hydrogen produced in Africa will be for Africa first, and then for exports. I trust Africans will know how to use the potential of this new logic for their own good. 

Whole countries will become self-sufficient in energy if investments are used wisely. Development and cooperation can take on a whole new shape when African countries run on their own fuel – the eternal sun, wind, and waters.

With hydrogen at its current capacity, colonialism can finally be over for good.

The post View: Why Europe cannot decarbonise without African hydrogen first appeared on Magazin Haber Ajansı.

The school and orchestra get their name from its founder Ntumba Malamba Camunga. Camunga means “a small thing that is born, grows and then shines”, the founder tells us. He believes the name is particularly appropriate for this school as “it started off as a small project, then it grew and now it is shining”

The school was created in 2011 with just five students. 10 years later there are now 450 students and some of them have even become teachers at the school. 

Tough beginnings

Not all the students that attend the school have come from easy backgrounds and happy places.Ntumba Malamba Camunga explains that the school helps many children on the street, “children involved in delinquency, drugs and even prostitution.”

Kelson’s story

Kelson Bento Afonso is one student with a difficult past. He now considers the orchestra his home, family and place of comfort. But he has come a long way for that to be the case. Kelson admits that he would hang out with people who behaved badly, people who were also violent. 

After going to a party with some of the school’s students, Kelson visited the school and met the director, Ntumba. He was welcomed with open arms. His motivation was the main group playing. He says that it moved him and he wanted to be like them.

Kelson’s progression was gradual. He first learnt the viola for three months, but then the teacher realised his real vocation was wind instruments. 

However, it wasn’t just the straight and narrow for Kelson. He returned to bad habits. He took things that he shouldn’t have and fell ill because of it. When Ntumba realised Kelson had stopped coming to lessons, he went to his house to encourage him to come back. It worked and Kelson was able to start playing music again.

Ntumba Malamba Camunga, director and founder, Camunga Symphony OrchestraLuanda, Angola

Making the effort

Some of the music school’s students have to travel very far to get to the lessons. This is the case for 13-year-old Delcio Macedo. He travels 56 kilometres just for the music. He is passionate about playing the violin. “Music is really in his soul”, his mother says.

Social help

Part of the orchestra’s operation is to fight malnutrition. As Ntumba says, “you can’t do much on an empty stomach.” The students can get food at the school. 

The symphony orchestra is also community-driven and depends on donations. Once the students reach a level of proficiency with their instruments they become teachers there themselves. It’s what Ntumba describes as giving back what you take.

The Camunga Symphony Orchestra and the school go beyond the music, as Kelson aptly says the people you teach have to grow, “that’s the only way we can change the country.”

The post The Camunga Symphony Orchestra – More than just a musical education first appeared on Magazin Haber Ajansı.