International

By Muhammad Jameel Yusha’u, PhD

Apart from hosting us in their house during the Thanksgiving holiday, Danielle Callaway Njama and her husband, Philip Njama, booked a ticket for us to visit the National Museum of African American History in Washington DC. It was another rich historical voyage. I strongly recommend visiting the museum if you happen to be in Washington DC.

The museum, formally launched by President Barack Obama in 2016, documents the history of slavery and the unspoken contribution of Africans to European and American economies.

Walking through the floors of the museum, an air of historical insecurity, goosebumps, and lamentation engulfs you. As you read through the stories of how the enslaved Africans were transported to Europe and North America in chains and other inhuman conditions, you feel the blood of sympathy circumambulating in your veins.

While these thoughts were going through my mind, there was sudden silence among my family. I turned back, and my eldest daughter was in tears, struggling to hold her emotions while reading through the stories of Africans like Ayoub Suleiman from The Gambia, who was enslaved in Maryland, and Mahommah Baquaqua from Benin, who was sold in Brazil and transported to New York.

Being a student of economic development, I couldn’t miss the section in the museum that estimated the value of cotton produced by African Americans to $250,000,000 in 1861; and the value assigned to enslaved African Americans at $3,059,000,000 in 1860. What is the value in today’s terms?

This is a difficult history, but as I have discussed many times with friends and colleagues, Africans shouldn’t allow themselves to be the psychological prisoners of the trauma caused by slavery. Yes, it is difficult, but Africans must move forward with zeal and unparalleled determination to write a glorious chapter of their story no matter the odds against them. Creating a path to development is the antibiotic to economic dependency.

Takeaway: Torturous lessons of history are difficult to ignore. It is the lessons from history that help determined communities to write a glittering chapter for future generations.

Muhammad Jameel Yusha’u, PhD, is a candidate for a Mid-Career Master’s in Public Administration at Harvard University, John F Kennedy School of Government. He can be reached via mjyushau@yahoo.com.

By Muhammadu Sabiu

After conducting a survey in which the decision was barely supported by users, Twitter’s new owner Elon Musk announced that Donald Trump’s account had had the ban placed on it lifted.

Elon Musk set up a poll on the site on Saturday, asking users if they thought the former president should be permitted back onto the app.

A sizable majority of 52% of the more than 15 million users who took part in the poll voted to reinstall the former US president.

“The people have spoken. Trump will be reinstated,” Musk tweeted of the former US president’s account, which was banned last year after a mob of his supporters attacked the US Capitol.

By Ahmad Deedat Zakari

The Embassy of Nigeria in Qatar has advised Nigerians traveling for the World Cup to obey the rules and regulations of the host country.

The advice was contained in a statement signed by the embassy in Doha on Thursday.

“The Embassy wishes to strongly advise that Nigerians traveling for the soccer fiesta should endeavour to obey and respect the laws of the host country while in Qatar and ensure that they comply with all relevant guidelines/requirements for visiting fans before embarking on any trip” The statement read.

The statement further disabused the minds of Nigerians from any attempt to change the special world cup visa and entry permit to work visa. The embassy argued that it is not possible and Nigerians should not fall victims to unscrupulous elements.

“Moreso, the Embassy wishes to state unequivocally that the special world cup visa called Haya card and Entry permit cannot and will not be changed or transferred to work visa or permit. Nigerian should therefore not fall victim to unscrupulous elements spreading fake news in that regard to rip off innocent Nigerians” The statement further stated.

Nigeria did not qualify for the 2022 World Cup and will not be participating in the tournament.

By Muhammadu Sabiu

Due to a policy change made by Fifa two days before the tournament’s commencement, alcohol will not be sold at any of the eight World Cup stadiums in Qatar.

Even though alcohol sales are legally prohibited in the Muslim nation, it was planned to be served in select places within stadiums.

Alcohol will still be available for purchase in the corporate sections of the stadiums during the competition.

When Qatar plays Ecuador on Sunday, the World Cup officially begins.

Beer manufacturer AB InBev owns Budweiser, a significant sponsor of Fifa, and it had exclusive rights to sell beer at the World Cup.

A statement from world football’s governing association states, “Following discussions between host country authorities and Fifa, a decision has been made to focus the sale of alcoholic beverages on the Fifa fan festival, other fan destinations and licensed venues, removing sales points of beer from Qatar’s Fifa World Cup 2022 stadium perimeters.”

By Ahmad Deedat Zakari

Yusuf Aminu Anka, a law student of Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, has emerged winner of the 2022 Rory Peck’s Sony Impact Award for Current Affairs in London.

Mr Anka disclosed the milestone on his verified Twitter handle on Thursday. 

“I’m honored to have won the @rorypecktrust, @sonyproeurope impact award in the midst of many courageous and important reportings from Afghanistan and around the world. I am extremely happy and proud of the support I receive from family, friends, and colleagues here.” He wrote on Twitter.

Mr Anka made a short documentary for BBC News Africa titled ‘The Bandits Warlords of Zamfara.” 

The award-winning documentary tells the story of banditry and kidnappings in Zamfara and its effects on people’s lives. 

Reacting to the award, Mr Anka said, “Every day, I am reassured that the story of Zamfara is significant not only to us but to everyone who values humanity.” 

The Sony Impact Award for Current Affairs honours the work of freelance journalists in long-form current affairs that examines a single issue, story or situation and has an impact on the viewer, policy or public awareness.

By Ahmad Deedat Zakari

The population of humans on earth has reached an unprecedented 8 billion people.

The United Nations disclosed this in a statement on Tuesday.

According to the UN, 1 billion people were added to the global population in just 12 years.

The UN said this was made possible because of increased lifespan due to medicine, hygiene and persistent fertility in some countries.

“This unprecedented growth is due to the gradual increase in human lifespan owing to improvements in public health, nutrition, personal hygiene and medicine. It is also the result of high and persistent levels of fertility in some countries,” the UN statement read.

CNN reported that Middle-income countries, mostly in Asia, accounted for most of the growth over the past decade, gaining some 700 million people since 2011. India added about 180 million people, and is set to surpass China as the world’s most populous nation next year.

With this development, by 2030, Nigeria’s population is estimated to reach 263 million. Experts are anxious to see what plans and actions Federal and state governments would take to address the needs of this skyrocketing number.

By Ahmad Deedat Zakari

Amazon founder and second world’s richest man, Jeff Bezos, has hinted on plans to give away most of his massive fortune.

Bezos, in a response to CNN’s journalist question on whether he planned to give most of his wealth away, said: “Yeah, I do.”

He told CNN that he and his girlfriend, Lauren Sanchez, were building the capacity to be able to give away his money .

“We are building the capacity to be able to give away this money,” he said.

According to him, the money will go to causes that are dear to his heart. These include tackling climate change and supporting people who can unify humanity.

Jeff Bezos is the latest billionaire to make promises of giving away his massive fortune. While Warren Buffett and Bill Gates lead the world in support for philanthropic causes, Bezos has only given $2.4bn to philanthropic causes in his lifetime.

According to Forbes, his donations to charity is dwarfed by that of his ex-wife, Ms Scott, who has given away $12.8 bn of her money.

By Dr. Yakubu Wudil and Umar F. Ahmad

As we head into the second week of the 27^th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP27), which started on November 6, delegates and observers have been involved in discussions on various subjects regarding how to achieve climate action and build sustainable economies around the world. Therefore, taking a step back and reviewing some of the successes and drawbacks recorded based on the first week of the climate negotiation conference is essential.

COP27 is taking place, knowing fully that there is an inadequate will to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The past year has witnessed unprecedented heatwaves around the world and ravaging floods like the ones experienced in Pakistan and some parts of Nigeria. These saw millions of people confronting the impacts of concurrent crises in food, water, energy, and cost of living, worsened by fierce geopolitical tensions and conflicts. However, with all these adverse effects, some countries have reversed climate policies and returned to business as usual. This, in turn, poses a threat to the host continent, which remains vulnerable to the effects of climate change and has contributed the least to global warming.

The African Union (AU) marked the second day of the conference as ‘Africa Day.’ Africa Day offered the African Development Bank (AFDB) and countries, including development partners, the opportunity to pinpoint measures that can guide them in tapping the continent’s unique economic potential. However, a caution was raised by the AFDB president Akinwumi Adesina, “even with Africa’s unique and vast arable land, we cannot unlock our agricultural potential unless we adapt to climate change.”

A youth leader, Lucky Abeng, made it clear to the AU to ensure that the conference implements decisions reached at the meetings without further delay. The Global Center for Adaptation and the African Union Commission signed a memorandum of understanding that involves the mobilization of at least $25 billion for the African Adaptation Acceleration Program over five years. This will quickly prepare the continent for the consequences of climate change.

The national statement delivered by the President of Senegal made it clear that Africa is reaffirming its commitments under the Paris Agreement and its obligations to the continent’s specific needs being taken into account. “What we need is a just transition,” he further stressed. While these statements were ongoing, there happens to be a big climate financing for the African continent. Starting with the commitment made by a group of about 85 African insurers to come up with a facility that will climate-proof the most vulnerable in the continent known as the African Climate Risk Facility (ACRF). This commitment will provide $1.4 billion in climate risk insurance to protect 1.4 billion people against droughts, floods, and cyclones through African sovereigns, NGOs, and aid agencies. These measures will contribute to bridging the wide climate risk gap on the continent exerted by wealthy nations for compensation due to ‘loss and damage’ caused by global warming.

On decarbonization day, Africa’s renewable energy share is 40%, the highest in the world, says Amani, the Commissioner for Infrastructure and Energy of the African Union. She added that the “African common position on energy access and just transition stipulates that Africa will continue to use its resources, including oil and gas, the cleanest form of fossil fuels.”

However, even with fossil fuels, the recent Russia-Ukraine war has exposed the world’s lack of preparedness to meet its energy challenges. These challenges have sparked present-day political debate due to scientific and public concerns about the environment. Consequently, the recent effort by Germany to restart its previously shut downed three nuclear power plants has made the world reconsider its position regarding nuclear power.

The African continent should be looking towards deploying all low-carbon energy sources, including nuclear, in the energy mix. Complementing renewables such as solar and wind, which are intermittent sources of energy, nuclear energy requires less land to generate the same amount of electricity 24 hours a day.

The President of the United States (U.S), Joe Biden, echoed that “the climate crisis is about human security, economic security, environmental security, national security, and the very life of the planet.” He further announced bolder protections against methane pollution from the oil and gas industry and that the U.S. will meet its emissions target by 2030.

The European Union announced its goal of becoming the first climate-neutral continent by 2050 and is set to host a high-level event in the second week of the conference to launch an initiative called ‘Team Europe Initiative on Climate Change Adaptation and Resilience in Africa.’ Consequently, a recent article by Nigeria’s president, Muhammadu Buhari, reported that “many of my peers are frustrated with Western hypocrisy and its inability to take responsibility.” He argued that governments have repeatedly failed to honour their commitments to the $100 billion fund for climate adaptation and mitigation in the developing world. Some also cite this as his decision to shun this year’s event.

Interestingly, the African continent sends many delegates to these summits. Still, there has been noticeable silence from leading African activists on turning ambition into action. This may be attributed to the no active role participation assigned to these delegates but rather appointed as observers viewing these proceedings on a TV screen.

Meanwhile, other African delegates seem to not care about the continent they are representing, however, and sadly, become ‘attack dogs’ for African governments in lobbying for ‘Climate Financing’ reparations and are being sponsored by their governments to attend these summits. The UN Environment states that Africa needs 3 trillion US Dollars to implement the continent’s National Determined Contributions (NDCs), but the question remains whether the national budget of African governments is considered a climate action instrument or whether they are utilizing their available resources to build climate-smart communities. In the remaining days of the conference, the delegates and observers from African nations need to look within the continent and work together as there are saviours out there.

Mr Umar Ahmad is a nuclear physicist working with the Centre for Renewable Energy Research at Bayero University, Kano, Nigeria (oumarulfarouq@gmail.com). Dr Yakubu Wudil is with the Renewable Energy Research Center, KFUPM, Saudi Arabia. (yswudil@yahoo.com)

By Abubakar Aminu Ibrahim

Qatar is a peninsular Arab country whose terrain comprises an arid desert, and a long Persian (Arab) submerse shoreline of tantalising sceneries. It is also an industrial country with ultramodern architecture, dawning from its ancient Islamic infrastructure.

Doha, Qatar’s capital city, is well known for its elfin skyscrapers and alluring shores. It is a world-class capital city, home to the limestone Museum of Islamic Art. Thanks to the World Cup tournament, the oil-producing country is ready to spread its dominance by hosting the global spectacle this year.

However, this write-up is not purposely to eulogise Qatar or its capital city, nor attempt to lay statistical predictions of the World Cup tournament. No! But if you are an intending immigrant, if you have started giving a deposit to an agent that will take you to Qatar as a worker, if your dream is to get to Qatar and share all the pictures on WhatsApp, Facebook and Instagram, then fasten your seat belt. The ride is yours.

First of all, let me clarify one thing for you, my friend. Having a dream is not wrong at all; it is, in fact, something inherent in all of us. On the contrary, having the vision of migrating to any country is not wrong. So, chase your dream and work for it. However, you must be careful enough not to be fooled, enslaved and handcuffed by projections and assumptions. If you go anywhere, ensure you hold yourself tied to your honour and integrity. Make sure that your personality as a human is assured.

I write this piece to enlighten some of my people who intend to migrate, especially to Qatar. Qatar is a veiled bride if you are a third-class groom! This write-up shall unveil the bride.

This is an output of research that dip into the plight of migrants in Qatar. Perhaps, emigrants suffer in different places worldwide for specific reasons, but Qatar is uniquely infamous for its treatment of migrants.

 I watched a series of documentaries that taped agonising stories of how blacks and Asians are maltreated in Qatar. Usually, our people cooperate with agents and pay a lot of money to process their migration to countries like Qatar. Contracts are signed with promises, such as shelter, food and a monthly salary. Such deals are always mouth-watering to suffering Nigerians and others across developing countries. But they always come with unbearable prices.

 If you refer to how this write-up described Qatar in the opening lines, the least you should expect from such a country is having almost zero judicial systems that will handle civil charges in courts. But not until 2018 did the city of Doha get a labour court parlour with only six judges to address complaints of its migrant workers. It is even more baffling to hear that the labour court in Doha admitted that out of over two thousand complaints, only sixty-nine were processed (wow!).

These complaints are, in most cases, against host companies of these migrant workers whose salaries are withheld for months. Ibrahim (a Kenyan migrant in Qatar) laments in a France 24 documentary that he and his co-workers received no pay for over three months, and this practice is regular. He added that they were promised good living conditions, food and timely salaries in the contract they signed, but none of these was ever honoured. Worse still, their passports were seized, meaning they could not return home at will.

In another interview with some Philippinos working under a Qatari lady, they said that day was their first day off in their three years of work. Another one cried that he would not want his people to see his condition, and he sometimes goes out at night to snap some happy pictures, even though the police sometimes chase him!

It is disheartening that even in airports, Qatari security agents embarrass travellers and deny them basic provisions, especially if their visitor holds passports from an African country, especially a Nigerian one.

An undersecretary for the Minister of Labour admitted that despite having a tribunal now, some business leaders are opposed to them. Therefore some of the policies are purely and only theoretical. Some migrants taped in court waiting rooms appear visibly hopeless and helpless.

All these are only some of the realities in Qatar, only the victims of this ancient way of thinking can tell you how it feels to be denied your fundamental rights as a human just because of your skin colour or social status. The Doha News proclaimed how migrants build almost all the infrastructures in the country. Yet, when workers die at construction sites, the only tribute they get is having their pictures pasted on a wall. Thanks to the mobile stadium constructed for the World Cup, hundreds of people sacrificed their lives to win bread for their families.

In the final analysis, I aim to make you pause and pose a question for yourself: in what capacity are you migrating? Who are you going to work for? What type of job are you looking for? How are you planning to return home if things do not work out? But, on the other hand, what is your reward at the end if things are working?

Think twice. It is said in Hausa, “tsalle daya a ke a fada rijiya, amma sai an yi dubu ba a fito ba“, which means it takes a single jump into a well, but one will jump a thousand times without getting out.

Abubakar Aminu Ibrahim wrote from Katsina via matazu247@gmail.com.

By Muhammadu Sabiu and Auwal Umar

Nigeria has received 31 tonnes of humanitarian help from the United Arab Emirates (UAE), including food and other necessities of life.

According to the UAE’s news agency, the assistance has been delivered to help Nigerians, primarily women and children, who were harmed by the recent floods that ravaged 34 of the country’s 36 states.

Dr Fahad Obaid Al Taffaq, UAE’s ambassador to Nigeria, said, “This is part of the UAE’s solidarity with Nigeria and its people in facing the impact of the floods and the casualties and material damages they caused.

“It reflects the close relations between the two countries and the leading role of the UAE in extending a helping hand to countries affected by natural disasters and the effects of climate change worldwide, including throughout Africa.”

This year, Nigeria saw the worst floods in ten years, which have been attributed to excessive rain and the discharge of the Lagdo dam in neighbouring Cameroon.

Over 600 people were killed, and 1,546 were injured by floods that occurred last month.