Thursday, November 12, 2009

From Creamer Media in Johannesburg, I'm Brad Dubbelman.

Making headlines:

The law should do more for victims, the poor and the ignorant, President Jacob Zuma said in Cape Town on Wednesday.Speaking to delegates at an international conference of heads of prosecuting services, he asked, "At what point will the law develop a stance to be proactive... in defence of the victims?" He said that the law should be for every citizen, not only the rich, and that equal rights means equal access to the law. Zuma also reaffirmed South Africa's support for the International Criminal Court and other justice agencies.

Sub-Saharan Africa needs to double its infrastructure spending to $93-billion a year, 15 % of regional output, to drag its road, water and power networks into the twenty-first century, a report said on Thursday. The research compiled by the Infrastructure Consortium for Africa identified the continent's woeful electricity grids as its most pressing challenge, with 30 countries facing regular blackouts and high premiums for emergency power. Despite the gulf between its target figure and the $45-billion spent now, the report says governments could narrow the funding gap to $31-billion by making $17-billion in relatively simple efficiency gains, such as making more electricity users pay their bills. The report says that infrastructure improvements to date, mainly in telecommunications, have accounted for more than one-half of the rapid growth rates of recent years on the poorest continent. Analysts and policymakers have tended to regard high commodity prices, debt relief and improved governance as drivers of the 5% annual growth experienced from 2003 to 2008.

Mozambican President Armando Guebuza, has won a resounding general election victory, officials said on Wednesday, with his Front for the Liberation of Mozambique (Frelimo) party capturing enough parliamentary seats to change the constitution at will. Frelimo, in power since it led the country to independence from Portugal in 1975, won 191 parliamentary seats out of 250. Guebuza, seen as welcoming greater foreign investment, beat his rivals, long-time opposition leader Afonso Dhlakama, and the head of the new party, Daviz Simango, capturing 75,46% of the presidential vote.

Also making headlines:

Former President Thabo Mbeki says, countries on the African continent must not forget their partnerships with developed countries such as China.
Head of the UN peacekeeping in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Alan Doss, says it would be wrong to withdraw UN soldiers backing government forces, despite the "moral and practical dilemma" involved.
Minister of Planning in the Presidency, Trevor Manuel, warns of the dangers of climate change.
And, the head of Côte d'Ivoire's election commission has announced a "slight delay" on the original November 29 election date.

That's a roundup of news making headlines today.