On behalf of the Government and people of the Republic of South Africa, President Jacob Zuma recently congratulated President Alassane Ouattara on his re-election as President of the Republic of Côte d’Ivoire, following the Presidential elections held on 25 October 2015.

President Zuma further congratulated the people of Côte d’Ivoire for conducting a peaceful, transparent, credible, free and fair election, as declared by the African Union and Economic Community of West African States election observer teams and the results announced by the Independent Election Commission of Côte d’Ivoire.

On behalf of the Government and the people of South Africa, President Jacob Zuma has conveyed a message of condolences to the families, relatives and friends of all the victims of the Russian Airbus A321 that crashed over the Sinai Peninsula in the Arab Republic of Egypt on Saturday, 31 October 2015, killing 224 people on board, most of whom were Russian citizens.

President Zuma said: “We extend our profound condolences to His Excellency President Vladimir Putin, the Government and the people of the Russian Federation. We stand with the Russian people and particularly with the families of the victims and their loved ones during this time of mourning”.

President Jacob Zuma says the late struggle icon Oliver Tambo contributed to making South Africa what it is today.

The President recently attended a wreath-laying ceremony in Wattville, near Benoni, to remember Tambo on his birthday.

Tambo was the longest-serving President of the African National Congress and was born on 27 October 1917 in Mbizana in the Eastern Cape.

He said Tambo was a rare leader not only in South Africa but around the world.

President Zuma said Tambo dedicated his life to the freedom of South Africans. – Source: www.SAnews.gov.za

South Africa has committed to using its chairpersonship of the OGP to develop and implement ambitious open government reforms.
South Africa and France assumed the OGP chair in Mexico recently.

Speaking at the OGP Summit at the Palacio de Bellas Artes, Mexico, Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa said during South Africa’s tenure, Pretoria would ensure that the OGP and its principles of open government remained a cornerstone of global efforts towards a sustainable future for humanity.

“It is important that the OGP consistently lead by example. It must be the embodiment of the values and principles we wish others to emulate,” he said.

The Deputy President said there were many lessons South Africa would share from the African continent to strengthen internal mechanisms to ensure greater transparency and inclusive participation.

During its tenure, Deputy President Ramaphosa said Pretoria intended to lead efforts and a conversation between governments to renew the vigour and political commitment that characterised the founding years of the OGP by proposing, among others, a standard annual parallel gathering of the heads of state and government on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly. – Source: www.SAnews.gov.za

• Prevention and mitigation of natural disasters (monitoring and early warning). Brazil leads cooperation in this area, through its National Centre for Monitoring and Early Warning of Natural Disasters, Cemaden.


• New and renewable energy, and energy efficiency, led by China's Ministry of Science and Technology.


• Geospatial technology and its application for development. This is led by India through its National Spatial Data Infrastructure.


• Water resources and pollution treatment. Russia leads this area through its Technology Platform for Sustainable Ecological Development.


• Astronomy, which South Africa leads through the National Research Foundation.

The Deputy Minister of International Relations and Cooperation, Luwellyn Landers, co-chaired the 12th JCM with his Cuban counterpart, Rogelio Sierra Diaz, in Havana from 29 to 30 October 2015.

South Africa is a beneficiary of Cuba's ongoing assistance to the priorities of the South African Government through joint programmes in health, labour, defence, social development, housing and infrastructure. One of success stories is the extensive cooperation between South Africa and Cuba regarding skills development training. 

Under the auspices of the South Africa Health Agreement, almost 3 000 South African students are currently receiving training in Cuba. In addition, the deployment of Cuban doctors, engineers and technical experts across South African provinces is a further demonstration of strong bilateral relations between the two countries.

South Africa and Cuba have maintained long-standing relations. Cuba established formal diplomatic relations with South Africa in 1994 and has become an established strategic partner for South Africa in the Latin America region.

Black women in the United States of America (USA) and South Africa remain on the fringes of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). Continued exclusion from these fields will affect innovation and undermine development, said Dr Beverley Damonse, Acting CEO of the National Research Foundation (NRF).

Dr Damonse was speaking at the three-day Women in STEM Conference that was held in Johannesburg recently. The conference, a partnership between the Department of Science and Technology (DST) and Howard University in the USA, discussed issues of diversity and gender equity in STEM in historically black higher education institutions in South Africa and the USA.

According to Dr Damonse, STEM is crucial in providing solutions and improving efficiencies across emerging and developing economies, and women have a significant contribution to make in this regard.

Dr Damonse said that women made up half of South Africa's population and it would be a waste not to use their talent, skills and energy. She found the lack of women in leadership roles in STEM concerning, but added that the NRF was making some progress in its commitment to gender parity in the postgraduate and research performing cohort, with R340 million contributed to female research in 2014 alone.

While some gender demographics might look impressive, particularly at student and lectureship levels, Dr Phethiwe Matutu, Chief Director for Human Capital Development at the DST, said black women were still under-represented in STEM, despite being the largest population group in the country.

Dr Matutu said that the conference would help delegates develop a better understanding of the unique challenges faced by black women in historically disadvantaged institutions, and improve their representation in STEM.  She said that interventions were needed at various levels to boost the development of the human resources needed to make South Africa a knowledge-based economy.

The parties have jointly agreed on areas of strategic cooperation and information-sharing and the agreement will allow employees from each organisation to learn from each other’s knowledge, skills and unique regional experience. The partnership with ACSA is Munich Airport Group's first agreement with an airport operator on the African continent.

ACSA CEO, Bongani Maseko, told Fin24 that, just as Munich Airport was rated as the best airport in Europe, the OR Tambo Airport in Johannesburg was rated as the best in Africa, while Cape Town International Airport had also won a number of accolades.

According to Airports Council International (ACI), Munich International Airport is the second-busiest airport in Germany in terms of passenger traffic after Frankfurt Airport, and the seventh-busiest airport in Europe, handling 39,7 million passengers in 2014. It was the first airport in Europe to receive a five-star rating from Skytrax, the United Kingdom-based specialist research and advisory firm dedicated to improving airline customer experience globally. 

"We believe we can learn from them and we equally believe we can offer something to them. We, therefore, see the agreement as an opportunity for both parties to increase passenger experience," said Maseko. – Source: news24.com

On 28 October, the Department of Environmental Affairs’ (DEA), RV Algoa, and the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries’ (DAFF), FRS Ellen Khuzwayo, embarked on a 10-day scientific research voyage to collect data on the humpback whale between Dassen Island and Groenriviermond off the West Coast of South Africa.

RV Algoa is focusing on environmental sampling for analysis of the chemical make-up of the region; this includes checking the available nutrients, and available food for whales. In addition to environmental sampling, a dedicated team of researchers is recording every whale seen along a pre-designed research path.

FRS Ellen Khuzwayo is dedicated the biological sampling of humpback whales encountered in the region. Biological sampling includes collecting DNA samples, taking photographs of whale tails/flukes which serve as a unique identifier similar to fingerprints in humans and attaching satellite-tracking instruments to understand their movement and behaviour, both on the West Coast and on their return to Antarctic feeding grounds. Small cameras will be attached on selected whales using suction cups in order to have a whale’s view of the ocean.

This scientific research is part of South Africa’s continued efforts to understand our oceans. The research is conducted by DEA in collaboration with the University of Pretoria’s Mammal Research Institute, DAFF, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration United States of America [USA], Oregon State University (USA), Aqualie Institute (Brazil) and invaluable contributions from Australian Department of Environment’s Marine Mammal Centre and BirdLifeSA.

Thirty-three lions rescued by Animal Defenders International (ADI) from 10 circuses in Peru and Colombia are to be relocated to the Emoya Big Cat Sanctuary in the Limpopo province in South Africa.

"We are delighted that these lions who have suffered so much will be going home to Africa where they belong," said ADI president Jan Creamer. "The climate and environment are perfect for them. When we visited Emoya Big Cat Sanctuary, we knew this was a dream come true for ADI and, more importantly, the lions."

Creamer said it had been a long and complicated process to move the large number of animals across three international borders but "we are grateful for the collaboration of officials in Peru, Colombia and South Africa to make this happen for these lions".

The organisation had originally planned to move the lions to sanctuaries in the United States of America, but the opportunity arose to home them in South Africa. "Moving the lions to Africa increases the flight costs but it is the ideal home for the lions and we know it is the right thing to do," the organisation said.

The ADI is funding the construction of a series of habitats for the rescued lions at Emoya, which will be completed for their arrival.

"Set in 5 000 hectares of pristine African bush on a private estate in Limpopo province, the sanctuary has a no breeding policy and is not open to the public, providing our rescued lions with the peaceful retirement they deserve." – Source: www.southafrica.info