BRAZZAVILLE IN BRIEF - MAY 11, 2009

UNCLAS BRAZZAVILLE 000143


DEPT FOR AF/EX, AF/C, AF/PAPD, AF/RSA, AF/EX, PM
PARIS FOR AFRICA WATCHERS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: EAID EINV ETTC ETRD PGOV CF
SUBJECT: BRAZZAVILLE IN BRIEF - MAY 11, 2009


1. The date has been set: Presidential elections for the
Republic of the Congo (ROC) will be held July 12. Eligibility
regulations were published: a candidate must be of Congolese
nationality, of good morality, must have 15 years of
professional experience, be between the ages of 40 and 70, and
with the exception of diplomatic personnel, must have lived in
the ROC for the past 24 months. Applications will be reviewed
one month prior to the election by the National Election
Commission (CONEL) and forwarded to the Constitutional Court if
there are questions about eligibility. No formal applications
have been received, including that of President Denis
Sassou-Nguesso. Campaigning is permitted for the two weeks
leading up to the election.


2. Housekeeping: Eleven magistrates representing various court
systems (including one from the Supreme Court) were removed from
office and sanctioned for abuse of power and mismanagement.
Also released was Damaze Bozongo, the director general, number
two, of the Ministry of Health, upon being found guilty of
embezzlement of national funds.


3. Cholera resurges: At least 130 cases of cholera have been
reported in the southern Pool region in the Republic of Congo
since April. A case of yellow fever, the first in 43 years, has
also been reported in the western Cuvette region, along the
border with Gabon, according to health officials. Yellow fever
vaccine costs about US$16, a price not within the reach of a
greater segment of the Congolese population.


4. Extractive Industries: In preparation for stepping up their
transparency initiatives, the GROC has presented a workshop to
train members of the government and civil society how to read
and analyze oil production and revenues. Funded by the
International Development Fund (IDA) and led by members of the
French Oil Institute (Institut Frangais de Pitrole) the training
includes initiation to the upstream industry, legal procedures,
costs, management and commercialization. The workshop is part
of the World Bank Transparency and Governance Capacity Building
Project for Congo.


5. Saving our trees: The European Union (EU) and the GROC
signed a Voluntary Partnership Agreement (VPA) to establish
policies to ensure that no illegally harvested wood products
will be exported to member states of the EU. The VPA will
ensure that wood imported from the ROC is taken from managed
forests that benefit local communities. About half of the
annual US$330 million wood industry exports are currently
purchased by Italy, Spain, Portugal, France, Germany, the
Netherlands and Belgium.

GREGG