- The United Nations Security Council has approved the extension of the African Union peacekeeping mission in Somalia [AMISOM] by six months.
The mission comprises of at least 3,000 peacekeepers from Uganda and Burundi.
The extension was in response to an earlier decision by the African Union Peace and Security Council at the just-ended summit in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa.
All the 15 members of the council unanimously approved the extension under 1801 UN resolution.
There has been calls for AMISOM to be replaced by a UN mission. But the extension means a delay in the replacement of a mission bereft of financial and human resources.
According to the UN resolution, the council has taken this latest decision pending the release of the Secretary General's report due on 10 March. The publication of Ban Ki-Moon's report will give the council the "options to prepare for the possible deployment of a UN peacekeeping force to succeed AMISOM."
Dumisani Khumalo, South African Ambassador to the UN told reporters he had reluctantly voted for the enforcement of the resolution because "we really feel that the UN is letting down the people of Somalia."
UN had earlier expressed concern about the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Somalia, a country that had been without a proper functioning government since the country's former dictator, Siad Bare, was forced out of power in 1991.
afrol News - It is called "financial inclusion", and it is a key government policy in Rwanda. The goal is that, by 2020, 90 percent of the population is to have and actively use bank accounts. And in only four years, financial inclusion has doubled in Rwanda.
afrol News - The UN's humanitarian agencies now warn about a devastating famine in Sudan and especially in South Sudan, where the situation is said to be "imploding". Relief officials are appealing to donors to urgently fund life-saving activities in the two countries.
afrol News - Fear is spreading all over West Africa after the health ministry in Guinea confirmed the first Ebola outbreak in this part of Africa. According to official numbers, at least 86 are infected and 59 are dead as a result of this very contagious disease.
afrol News - It is already a crime being homosexual in Ethiopia, but parliament is now making sure the anti-gay laws will be applied in practical life. No pardoning of gays will be allowed in future, but activist fear this only is a signal of further repression being prepared.
afrol News / Africa Renewal - Ethiopia's ambitious plan to build a US$ 4.2 billion dam in the Benishangul-Gumuz region, 40 km from its border with Sudan, is expected to provide 6,000 megawatts of electricity, enough for its population plus some excess it can sell to neighbouring countries.
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