Category: MIL-OSI

Source: APO

From 29 June to 1 July 2026, Dakar will host the first-ever Yidan Prize Conference in Africa, themed “Unleashing Africa’s potential: the role of education in a new era of development.” Held under the auspices of the Ministry of National Education of Senegal, the Conference is co-convened by the Yidan Prize Foundation, Associates in Research and Education for Development (ARED) (https://ARED-EDU.org), and the Association for the Development of Education in Africa (ADEA). Over 200 delegates, including ministers, researchers, practitioners, and funders from across Africa and beyond, will gather to showcase innovative research and practice in education. The Conference will announce major commitments to advance education in Africa.

A gathering to accelerate Africa’s education agenda

The 2026 Yidan Prize Conference builds on the growing momentum in strengthening learning, skills development, and systems transformation across Africa. Education ministers from Senegal, the conference host country, The Gambia, and Ghana, along with a representative of the education ministers of Côte d’Ivoire and Mauritania, and the Chief Minister of Sierra Leone, will open the Conference and share their insights on leading change in education for development.

The Honorable Moustapha Mamba Guirassy, Minister of National Education, Senegal, said, “We are pleased to host the 2026 Yidan Prize Conference. It is an opportunity to celebrate a champion for Senegal — Mamadou Amadou Ly. It also brings together institutions that can support our growth into the education hub we envision — here in Africa and in Senegal.”

Albert Nsengiyumva, Executive Secretary of ADEA, said, “This Conference builds on previous conversations and dialogues to advance Africa’s education priorities. Including the 2024 Africa Foundational Learning Exchange, the 2025 ADEA Triennale on Education and Training, and the forthcoming 2026 edition of the Africa Foundational Learning Exchange. It provides the platform to strengthen collaboration and exchange among countries, across institutions and regions, and to advance African-led solutions to shared challenges facing education.”

Language as a bridge to learning and inclusion

A key focus of the Conference will be foundational multilingual education, recognizing language as a powerful bridge to learning, identity, and dignity. Sessions will highlight how the use of national languages can promote learner engagement, build confidence, and create pathways to further education, employment, and civic participation.

Countries such as Senegal, The Gambia, and Mauritania have been advancing multilingual education at the systems level, supported by ARED. Mamadou Amadou Ly, Executive Director of ARED and 2025 Yidan Prize for Education Development Laureate, said, “For over 25 years, ARED has worked alongside teachers, communities, governments, and development partners to integrate national languages into education systems. At the 2026 Yidan Prize Conference, we look forward to sharing lessons and demonstrating how foundational multilingual learning can drive meaningful and lasting change.”

Education at the heart of a new era of development

The Conference will highlight the central role of education in driving sustainable development across Africa. “Education transformation is a shared endeavor that depends on our willingness to learn from one another across sectors and borders. The Yidan Prize Foundation serves as a platform to spotlight changemakers and impactful innovations and connect people and ideas globally. This Conference will showcase Africa as a driving force for its development and share its education innovations with the world,” said Dr Charles CHEN Yidan, founder of the Yidan Prize.

Supporting organizations of the Conference include Echidna Giving, the Global Partnership for Education, Imaginable Futures, International Education Funders Group, Mastercard Foundation, and UNESCO International Institute of Educational Planning.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Associates in Research and Education for Development (ARED).

Note to editors: 
Download images of the press conference here (https://apo-opa.co/43BcEMa)

Source: APO

.

The deadly Ebola outbreak in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is continuing to spread with a spike in child infections an increasingly likely scenario in the days ahead, UN agencies said on Friday.

“Every day, cases are being identified in new health zones. And that reflects really the scale of this outbreak, a scale that is much bigger than what is being detected and the high mobility of the population in this part of the DRC,” said Dr Olivier le Polain, unit head epidemiology and analytics for response at the World Health Organization (WHO).

In the approximately three weeks since the fast-moving outbreak was confirmed, the DRC health authorities have reported 676 cases and 136 deaths from the rare and deadly Bundibugyo species of Ebola virus.

Infections have been identified in a zone spanning from Aru in the north of Ituri province to Miti Murhesa in South Kivu, some 1,000 kilometres. “And we have 34 health zones affected as of yesterday, so, those health zones [with Ebola] continue to expand, with new areas in North Kivu which also reported [cases] yesterday,” Dr le Polain told journalists in Geneva, via video from Beni.

Those leading the response stressed that many youngsters in the region are malnourished and unvaccinated against preventable illness. This means that they are extremely vulnerable to disease in the resource-rich region where a humanitarian crisis is already playing out, caused by decades of fighting between government forces and armed militia.

Households the new target

To date, most infections have been among adults going about their daily lives, “but as the outbreak evolves, we must be prepared for increasing household transmission which means we may see more children affected in the days ahead”, warned Dr Douglas Noble, UNICEF Global Lead for Public Health Emergencies and Global Incident Manager for Ebola. 

“The point is, these are already very vulnerable children, so the capacity for this community to absorb any additional stressors was already stretched to breaking point,” he said, noting that more than half of children under five in Ituri province are “chronically malnourished”. More than one in five are also “zero dose” children, meaning that they have never had their first dose of diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis vaccine. 

Estimating the number of children who may be affected is problematic because sufficient surveillance tracking data is not yet available.

Nonetheless, past Ebola outbreaks in DRC have shown that children “made up a significant share of cases and an even greater share of deaths, with the youngest facing the highest fatality rates and many left orphaned or separated from caregivers”, Dr Noble explained.

As part of its six-month response to help 3.7 million people, the agency has dispatched eight transport flights with more than 100 tonnes of emergency humanitarian supplies to DRC, with support from the European Union.

The emergency cargo includes personal protective equipment for frontline health workers, medicines, hygiene materials and medical supplies to confront the virus in affected communities.

‘Schools can stay open’

Although Ebola can be lethal, it transmits very differently from COVID and commonly via body fluids, so children who can go to school should continue to do so, the UNICEF official stressed. “There’s no reason for a school to close. Infection prevention and control measures do have to be taken and there does have to be education within the school, amongst the teachers and the staff and amongst the children.”

Unlike for Ebola-Zaire strains of the disease, there are currently no approved Bundibugyo virus-specific therapeutics or vaccines. This highlights the need for greater support for surveillance efforts to contain transmission, said Dr le Polain. “We’re now at just over 70 per cent in terms of the contacts that are being appropriately traced. That’s a huge improvement from where we were about a week or two ago, but it’s still too low to ensure appropriate control.”

Improving local testing capacity is another key factor in overcoming the health threat as the full scale of the outbreak is “not yet clear”, the WHO official explained. He noted that in Beni a testing laboratory processed 500 tests on Thursday alone. “That will really help get clarity about the scale of the outbreak in Beni as well,” he added.

For its part, UNICEF has also deployed more than 1,600 community health workers and mobilisers, and 24 decontamination teams, already reaching more than 160,000 households.

“We can spare children the worst of this outbreak. Fast detection, strong paediatric care, monitoring of contacts and communities that are informed and engaged can help bring this outbreak under control,” said Dr Noble. “What we now need are the resources, humanitarian access and the trusted communities to succeed.”

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of UN News.

Source: APO

.

Calls for unity, reconciliation, and the systematic inclusion of young people in governance architecture dominated the third annual convention of the Central Equatoria State Youth Union.

Held under the theme “Youth are the Lead Actors for Sustainable Peace and Development,” the three-day forum served as a safe space for young leaders to deliberate on shared efforts to build a brighter future for conflict-prone South Sudan.

“We must rise above communal differences to successfully claim our rightful place in building peace, unity and democracy,” said Aggrey Duku Arcangelo, Chairperson elect of the State Youth Union.

Addressing the delegates, Jackson Ariap, Assistant Bishop of the Juba Episcopal Diocese, urged the youth to channel their energies into national development. “You are the real architects of peacebuilding in this nation. Say no to division, conflict, and corruption,” he said.

In a statement delivered on his behalf by Gender Advisor Maria Guli Zaharia, the Governor of Central Equatoria State, Emmanuel Adil Anthony, highlighted the government’s commitment to youth empowerment through education, vocational training, and technology. He pressed young people to shun criminal activities and embrace dialogue.

The Governor’s statement also strongly emphasized that gender inclusion is vital for sustainable peace. “If young women are empowered, communities and nations prosper, and families transform,” the statement noted.

For his part, UNMISS Head of Field Office for Central and Eastern Equatoria states, Christopher Murenga, underlined that effective youth participation in the political and civic life of a nation begins at the grassroots.

“UNMISS has been supporting youth to become active participants in peacebuilding and national reform processes,” said Mr. Murenga. “This is achieved by institutionalizing activities that expand political and civic space from the grassroots up, ensuring equitable participation in conflict mitigation, mediation, and social cohesion.”

Mr. Murenga also urged young South Sudanese to leverage technology responsibly to boost the country’s social economy, secure jobs via the gig economy, and counter negative narratives. “Apart from just sharing information, technology can help fight misinformation, disinformation, and hate speech,” he added.

South Sudan’s Vice President and Chair of the Economic Cluster, James Wani Igga, closed the event by urging youth to champion mutual respect.

“You should show leadership by being an example for others to emulate,” said Vice President Igga. “Every young South Sudanese should put the country’s interest above all else.

“Complementing this vision, the State Minister of Culture, Youth, and Sports, Bush Buse, noted that his ministry is working with partners to train 1,500 young people in various professional skills this year.

The event concluded with the election of a new executive body and brought together over 150 participants. This included 95 youth delegates from across Central Equatoria, senior government officials, and civil society representatives. Discussions centered on leadership prerequisites, climate change, and the mandate of the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS).

The convention was jointly funded by the UN Peacekeeping mission’s Civil Affairs Division, the Central Equatoria State Government, Juba City Council, and the Future for Health Organization, among other partners.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS).