Day: February 22, 2017

Landmarks of Donald J. Trump foreign policy

BGMN

From the first days of the American presidential primaries the world followed Trump’s discourse with both fear and astonishment. This mixed feeling is mainly due to the harsh and unprecedented tone used by the candidate. In fact, Donald Trump attacked everybody: women, blacks, disabled persons, Muslims, Jewish, Mexican etc. Moreover, the man’s foreign policy was not clear and the whole world was suspicious about the outcome of Trump’s arrival to the White House. Apart from his good relations with Russia, he showed a very dark future of the world diplomacy.…

Tunisia torture cases falling but abuses persist: NGO

BGMN

 Cases of torture in Tunisia are falling but abuses persist in prisons and detention centres, a rights group said on Wednesday. The Tunisian Organisation Against Torture (OCTT) reported 153 torture cases in the North African country from January to November. There were 250 cases in the previous year. In a report, it accused authorities of abuses including arbitrary arrest, ill-treatment and threats or attempts at rape.  The police were responsible for more than 60% of the abuses, followed by prison wardens and the National Guard, it said. “Until now, there…

Abdelaziz Bouteflika, Statesman in time of turmoil

BGMN

Fears have come up again as regards president Abdelaziz Bouteflika‘s health state after the postponement of Geman Chancellor Angela Merkel’s visit to algeria on February, 20. Observers are accustomed to see the president hosting some of the pillars of the Algerian State or its guests either pale or sick. Whatever the fears of the future of Algeria, the sisterly country is ready for all the unexpected scenarios, because Algeria went through the toughest crisis and turbulences under Bouteflika’s leadership. The latter has spent the longest period in the presidency of…

Investing in digital payments and ICT sectors through AKA Partners

BGMN

Entrepreneur, Ali Kassab, has recently ventured into private equity funding with the launch of AKA Partners, and is changing the way companies manage payment solutions. His firm will invest in fintech businesses across the Middle East region, starting with Wow Pay MENA, a digital payment platform. He has also been appointed CEO of MBME, a veteran in the payment industry which is the leading kiosk payment solution provider in the UAE. “Nearly AED 845 billion of consumer payments to government entities and merchants are processed each year in the UAE,”…

Tunisia underestimates imminent North Africa refugee crisis

BGMN

Tunisia has signed agreements with the EU for the return of  illegal Tunisian immigrants and to host asylum seekers from other African countries. But Tunis is now denying those deals, writes Mourad Teyeb. Mourad Teyeb is a journalist and consultant based in Tunis.  Since 2011, hundreds of thousands of Tunisian and sub-Saharan Africans have used the Tunisian soil and shores to sail to Europe in one of modern history’s most dreadful human tragedies. The numbers of the so-called “irregular migrants” vary from one month to another according to the political and…

Arab cities top survey on quality of African life

BGMN

Marrakesh was among four Moroccan cities to lead a survey that ranked the top 10 African cities for quality of life. Casablanca, Rabat and Fez joined Marrakesh – nicknamed the Ochre City for the walls surrounding its old medina district – at the top of the list published on Tuesday. “They are cities that are not huge, where real work has been done to improve infrastructure, people’s quality of life (and) housing in a stable political context,” said Swiss urban sociologist Jerome Chenal, who directed the survey. The study of 100 cities, which included all of the continent’s capitals and its…