FCA CRS Briefing on the Covid-19 3rd Wave in Southern Africa. 2 July 2021

As parts of Africa are experiencing a third wave of COVID-19 infections, health experts from Catholic Relief Services (CRS) will provide a roundtable discussion at 11am on Thursday 1st July 2021. CRS experts will offer brief opening remarks about the public health trends and challenges some countries are facing and take questions afterward.

The speakers include:

Dr. Marisa Wilke, a nurse who for decades has worked on health programs with community and faith-based leaders in South Africa.

Dr. Hilda Rakotondraibe has managed CRS’ Gavi programming in Madagascar for years; working with civil society to drive vaccinations. Dr.Rakotondraibe will speak in French and a translator will be provided.

Dr. Chalilwe Chungu, a paediatrician and child health specialist on the CRS Zambia health team with vast experience working with the government in epidemic response, vaccination and strengthening health systems.

The briefing may be downloaded here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/18tqvLaY89Km7OWIPv1SaZmHBGX3s2q8M/view?usp=sharing

FCA Briefing on the situation in Cabo Delgado - 24 February 2021

With many of our members trying, but unable to get accreditation to report from northern Mozambique, the FCA held a briefing at 10am on Wednesday 24th February with four experts who updated members on the situation in the region and also took questions.

The speakers were: Calton Cadeado, a security researcher at the Joaquim Chissano University in Maputo; Alex Vines, director of the Africa program at Chatham House; Jasmine Opperman, Africa analyst at Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project; and Tom Bowker, editor of Zitamar News.

Audio Logs of this briefing can be downloaded here.

FCA Briefing with WFP/ActionAid and ESAFF - 7 September 2020

The spread of Covid-19 throughout Southern Africa is worsening the region’s already dire rates of food insecurity and malnutrition, pushing millions more people into poverty and hunger. 

 

Regional experts on food insecurity from the World Food Programme (WFP), ActionAid and the Eastern and the Southern Africa Small-Scale Farmers’ Forum (ESAFF), will be sharing the latest from the frontlines of the food and climate crisis.  

 

Time is running out for governments to act, as hunger is already increasing among people in urban areas, who rely on local food markets where prices are soaring, and in rural households that depend on remittances, tourism and school meal programmes, which have all stopped due to Covid-19. Rural food insecurity is predicted to reach a peak between November 2020 to January 2021, when most family farmers are expected to have exhausted their own food supplies.

 

A new policy brief by ActionAid and the Eastern and Southern Africa Farmers Forum (ESAFF) highlights the roots of the escalating food crisis in a systemic failure of regional policies, including an over-reliance on food imports and missed opportunities to invest in climate resilient agricultural practices. 

 

It calls for transformation of agricultural development to improve climate resilience and accountability, with a focus on women farmers, who contribute more than 60% of total food production in the region. 

 

The latest figures from the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) supported by the WFP, show that 44.8 million people in Southern Africa are food insecure, meaning they do not have access to enough affordable, nutritious food. This is a shocking increase of 67% since 2017 and up 10% from last year, when 41.2 million people were facing food insecurity.

 

In Zimbabwe, the most severely affected country, the number of food insecure people is likely to double by the end of 2020: about 8.6 million people, including 5.3 million people in rural areas and 3.3 million people in urban areas. 

Zambia and Malawi are also severely affected while Mozambique is facing not only food insecurity but an increasing threat from terrorism. 

A recording of this briefing is available here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1DevAsPEfDyGo-yyKph1P7z-mxMjtKYJa/view?usp=sharing

Screenshot 2020-09-07 at 16.28.18.png

FCA Briefing with Professor Salim Abdool Karim - 6 May 2020

This Foreign Correspondents’ Association of Southern Africa (FCASA) briefing was held online due to the COVID-19 Lockdown.

Professor Karim is an Epidemiologist and Infectious Disease Specialist, as well as chair of the South African ministerial advisory committee on COVID-19. The briefing was moderated by FCASA Board Member, Andrew Harding (BBC) from Johannesburg, while Prof Karim was at his office in Durban on 6 May 2020.

The video may be viewed here and is available for public sharing, all social media, online and broadcast use with credit to be made to The Foreign Correspondents’ Association of Southern Africa. Contact secretary@fcasa.net should you require a transcript:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/178yyrxEcJFAKO4Y43ETINToqwQmmHLlj/view?usp=sharing

Screenshot 2020-05-07 at 18.13.50.png

Briefing with ANC Secretary General Gwede Mantashe

In June 2017, we had a thorough and engaging briefing with the ANC Secretary General Gwede Mantashe, ANC spokesman Zizi Kodwa and the ANC's economic transformation chair Enoch Godongwana. Mr Mantashe confirmed the ANC's wish for a speedy-constituted public inquiry into issues of State Capture by the Guptas and other corporates, said no matter what happens before, a new person will be leading the ANC into elections in 2019 and said people should still trust the ANC which "more good people than bad". For further quotes from the event please follow @FCASAfrica.

 

Recent events

2013 

Democratic Alliance (DA) party briefing, Cape Town (February) 

Agang party founder Mamphela Ramphele briefing, Johannesburg (June)

Raymond Louw and Emma Sadleir, media law expert panel, Johannesburg (August)

Brand SA CEO Miller Matola, Johannesburg (October) 

 

2012

Ms Lindiwe Mazibuko, Leader of the Opposition in Parliament, Cape Town (February)

South African Taxi Association briefing, Johannesburg (April)

Clem Sunter, briefing on strategies and tactics, Johannesburg (July)

South African Inter-Ministerial Committee on Marikana, Johannesburg (August)

Social event with comedian Riaad Moosa, Johannesburg (September)

FAIR (Forum for African Investigative Reporters) meeting, Johannesburg (October)

South African President Jacob Zuma breakfast briefing, Johannesburg (November)

South Africa Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe, Union Buildings, Pretoria (November)

Chamber of Mines briefing, Johannesburg (December)