BBHAGSIA Celebrates Inaugural Dr. Mutulu Shakur Community Health Day With 4 Minute Fit Program

Today, August 8th, is the 72nd birthday of Dr. Mutulu Shakur. Unfortunately, Mutulu Shakur, an activist and holistic health care hero, has been behind bars as a New Afrikan political prisoner for more than 35 years and now, at 72, has several health issues, most notably stage-3 multiple myeloma, a blood cancer that can affect the bones and kidneys.

Shakur has endured drastic weight loss due to his illnesses and treatments; has had Covid at least twice; and has relied on IV feeding tubes on and off since May, his attorney, Brad Thomson, said. Thomson said doctors with the Federal Bureau of Prisons gave Shakur less than six months to live in May, noting that his cancer treatment had stopped working.

“At this point, the issue is getting him released so he can say goodbye to his loved ones, his family, his children, and grandchildren. To be surrounded by loved ones, so he can die in dignity, peace and comfort outside of prison.”

Shakur was diagnosed with myeloma in 2019, Thomson said, and his legal team requested his “compassionate release” in May 2020. U.S. District Judge Charles Haight Jr. in November 2020 denied Shakur’s request, holding that his crimes were too serious, and his health had not deteriorated enough to warrant release.

Today, the National Coalition of Blacks for Reparations in America (N’COBRA} Health Commission announced that August 8th is now Dr. Mutulu Shakur Community Health Day.

N’COBRA HEALTH COMMISSION (NHC)

DR. MUTULU SHAKUR COMMUNTY HEALTH DAY AUGUST 8TH 2022 DECLARATION

* any reference to “man” is to be understood as all members of the human family

 Whereas recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family* is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world, as stated by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights,

Whereas it is essential, if man* is not to be compelled to have recourse, as a last resort, to rebellion against tyranny and oppression, that human rights should be protected by law as stated by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights,

Whereas Member States, including the United States of America, have pledged themselves to achieve, in cooperation with the United Nations, the promotion of universal respect for and observance of human rights and fundamental freedoms, as stated by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights,

Whereas everyone has the right to equal access to public service in his* country, as stated by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights,

Whereas everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself *and of this family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services, and the right to security in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond his* control, as stated by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights,

Whereas education shall be directed to the full development of the human personality and to the strengthening of respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms, as stated by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights,

Whereas everyone has duties to the community in which alone the free and full development of his personality, as stated by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights,

Whereas every right heretofore mentioned – including all articles of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights not listed here- has been violated by the United States of America with respect to the egregious human rights violations against people of African ascent,

Whereas effective remedy by the competent national tribunals for acts violating the fundamental rights granted him* by the constitution or by law, is a set standard, so determined by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, have been denied,

Whereas the National Coalition for Reparations in American (N’COBRA) affirms the right to effective remedy known as reparations, according to all international norms,

Whereas the N’COBRA Health Commission has assumed the role to research, analyze, and organize people of good will to attend to the mission to define the rehabilitation aspect of reparations in the quest to obtain full reparations,

Whereas the N’COBRA Health Commission recognizes history and history makers as central to reconstructing the glorious account of resistance to oppression and the right to repair and the right to development,

Whereas Dr. Mutulu Shakur has assumed all of the duties known to himself, in consultation with his community, to fulfill his obligation to his community in which alone he has contributed to the free and full development of his and his peoples’ personality, to the best of his ability,

Whereas Dr. Mutulu Shakur has dedicated his life to the full enactment and enjoyment of all human rights, including those stated above, the right to self-determination, the right to health and the right of development,

Whereas Dr. Mutulu Shakur helped birth, transform and materialize the right of health self-determination through the introduction of acupressure and acupuncture to alleviate opioid addiction in the South Bronx, in response to the oppression and medical apartheid which continues today,

Whereas Dr. Mutulu Shakur pioneering work in acupuncture for opioid addiction was a precursor to the harm reduction movement and set a place forward for full recovery,  

Whereas Dr. Mutulu Shakur has provided the foundation and blueprint for the total well-being of people of African ascent, and all people of good will,

Whereas the life work of Dr. Mutulu Shakur is a significant contribution to the aims of the Durban Declaration (2001), the Decade of People of African Descent (2015-24) affirming recognition, justice and development, and the UN Permanent Forum for People of African Descent, who in other documents are referred to as AfroDescendants,

Whereas Dr. Mutulu Shakur is a pioneer public health social innovator, who is now being acknowledged, in universal recognition, for which his work merits,

Let it be now publicly known, on this day, August 8, 2022,  that the N’COBRA HEALTH COMMISSION (NHC), on his 72nd birthday, confers the honor he deserves and  declares that August 8th shall be celebrated annually as DR. MUTULU SHAKUR COMMUNTY HEALTH DAY 

WHEN OPIOD ADDICTION REACHED EMERGENCY LEVELS IN NEW YORK, DR. MUTULU SHAKUR TOOK RESPONSIBILITY AND TOOK ACTION!

Today, the major health crisis of the African American community is obesity. Like Dr. Mutulu Shakur, Siphiwe Baleka, founder of the Balanta B’urassa History & Genealogy Society in America (BBHAGSIA) and founder of Fitness Trucking and the 4 Minute Fit program, is also taking responsibility. Siphiwe Baleka was dubbed the “Fitness Guru to the Trucking Industry” for his revolutionary weight loss program designed for america’s most obese workers: truck drivers. Baleka’s program was a huge success and outperformed Weight Watchers in helping clients lose weight and reduce their risk for sixty medical disorder and twelve cancers. Baleka was even featured in Men’s Health, Sports Illustrated, and Good Morning America.

Now, Siphiwe Baleka is bringing his 4 Minute Fit program to NCOBRA, in the spirit of Dr. Mutulu Shakur, to help African American’s win the War Against Obesity. Click the links below for 4 Minute Fit vidoes and podcasts.

Prison doctors have given Mutulu Shakur, activist and Tupac Shakur’s stepfather, up to six months to live, according to his attorney

July 21, 2022

By Char Adams

Organizers have launched a movement to release Tupac Shakur’s stepfather from a decadeslong prison sentence as he faces a rare form of blood cancer that his doctors say is incurable.

Mutulu Shakur, an activist and holistic health care advocate, has been behind bars for more than 35 years and now, at 71, has several health issues, most notably stage-3 multiple myeloma, a blood cancer that can affect the bones and kidneys.

Shakur has endured drastic weight loss due to his illnesses and treatments; has had Covid at least twice; and has relied on IV feeding tubes on and off since May, his attorney, Brad Thomson, said. Thomson said doctors with the Federal Bureau of Prisons gave Shakur less than six months to live in May, noting that his cancer treatment had stopped working.

“His health situation is extremely dire right now. He’s very much on an end-of-life trajectory. We’re looking at a matter of months at the most but, realistically, it could be a matter of days or weeks,” Thomson told NBC News. “At this point, the issue is getting him released so he can say goodbye to his loved ones, his family, his children, and grandchildren. To be surrounded by loved ones, so he can die in dignity, peace and comfort outside of prison.”

Shakur was diagnosed with myeloma in 2019, Thomson said, and his legal team requested his “compassionate release” in May 2020. U.S. District Judge Charles Haight Jr. in November 2020 denied Shakur’s request, holding that his crimes were too serious, and his health had not deteriorated enough to warrant release.

“Should it develop that Shakur’s condition deteriorates further, to the point of approaching death, he may apply again to the Court, for a release that in those circumstances could be justified as ‘compassionate,’” Haight said in the ruling obtained by NBC News.

A spokesperson for Haight, who also presided over the 1988 case that landed Shakur in jail for bank robbery and other crimes, told NBC News that a new request for Shakur’s release is pending and the judge is waiting for guidance from the U.S. attorney’s office before making a decision. Shakur is being held at a federal medical center in Lexington, a prison in Kentucky for incarcerated people who require care.

Shakur is serving a 60-year sentence stemming from a 1988 conviction for conspiracy to violate the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, or RICO Act, bank robbery, armed bank robbery and bank robbery murder. He was convicted of leading a group of revolutionaries in a string of armed robberies in New York and Connecticut, including one that left three people dead. He was also convicted of helping JoAnne Chesimard, aka Assata Shakur, escape from a New Jersey prison in 1979, according to The Associated Press and Thomson.

However, Shakur and his supporters say that the acts were political, not criminal, in nature. Jomo Muhammad, an organizer with the Malcolm X Grassroots Movement working to free Shakur, as well as Shakur’s friends and family, said his incarceration is linked to his Black liberation efforts and his work with revolutionary Black nationalist groups in the 1960s, including the Revolutionary Action Movement and the Republic of New Afrika.

Muhammad said Shakur is being used as an example because of his activism. At the time of his 1986 arrest he was doing his own independent investigation of COINTELPRO, an FBI campaign to discredit radical groups including Black liberation movements that were deemed illegal, Muhammad said.

“Fifty years later, the United States government continues to hold a grudge,” Muhammad said. “You can make the argument that he is, in fact, a political prisoner.”

Along with being a respected activist, Shakur is called a “doctor” among his family and supporters. He is praised for his work bringing holistic health care to Black communities in the Bronx in the 1970s. He informally studied acupuncture and joined with several other activists, in groups like the Black Panthers and the Young Lords, to take over part of Bronx’s Lincoln Hospital and run the Lincoln Detox Center, a community center that used acupuncture to address drug dependence and provided political education that produced several community activists, according to The Washington Post.

A group of faith leaders and Shakur’s supporters gathered on Wednesday in front of the U.S. Department of Justice in a rally urging the U.S. Parole Commission, Bureau of Prisons, and Justice Department to free Shakur. Supporters said at the rally that Shakur is confined to a wheelchair and his brain function has deteriorated so much that he barely recognized his son during a visit two months ago.

“They claim he is a danger to public safety, a danger to society, and that he has the capacity to influence people. They don’t speak to the fact that he is a 71-year-old elder. They don’t speak to the fact that he has been incarcerated for 36 years,” Nkechi Taifa, founder of the Taifa Group, a social justice-centered consulting firm, said of the federal agencies.

A spokesperson for the Bureau of Prisons declined to comment on Shakur’s health, but said in an emailed statement: “The BOP has no direct authority to grant a reduction in an inmate’s sentence as a compassionate release measure. At all times, the decision on whether to grant such a motion — whether brought on behalf of the Director of the BOP, or the inmate themselves — lies with the sentencing court.” The spokesperson added that the bureau can recommend a person’s release. They have not done so for Shakur.

Shakur has been denied release several times over the years, Thomson said, though because of “various time credits,” he is set for mandatory release in December 2024. But Thomson, doctors and Shakur’s supporters say it’s unlikely he’ll live that long. Shakur was eligible for release in a 2016 mandatory parole hearing but was denied.

Thomson said that Haight’s assertion that the severity of Shakur’s crimes are what has delayed his release should not hold water because Shakur’s co-defendant Marilyn Buck, who was convicted of the same charges, was granted compassionate release in July 2010. She died of uterine cancer just weeks later.

“That’s exactly the situation that Dr. Shakur is facing now. We’re asking for that same relief,” Thomson said. “Everyone who was charged in that conspiracy, and overlapping conspiracies, all of those people have been released from federal custody.”

Shakur’s latest request for release is expected to see a resolution in the coming weeks. Although they are hopeful, Muhammad said he and Shakur’s advocates would be devastated if Shakur dies in prison.

“This is a clear injustice. Regardless of what he’s done in the past, which he’s taken responsibility for, he should be free,” Muhammad said. “We will continue to fight. There’s a lot of justice that needs to happen. A lot of freeing and healing of people, which is what Doc’s work was about. We would mourn our beloved elder and we’d do what he instructed us to do, which is to carry on straight ahead.”

#SAVESOIL GUINEA BISSAU: REVIEW OF THE NATIONAL AGRICULTURAL INVESTMENT PLAN (NAIP) AND THE IMPENDING FOOD SECURITY CRISIS

Photo: IBAP/ Up! / IUCN

“208. Agriculture, a key sector of the national economy, has failed to ensure food security or to create the conditions for improving the living conditions of rural populations, and even less to provide support for the development of others socioeconomic sectors. The weak results of the sector, in spite of the natural resources present, find their explanation in a series of factors such as: the low rate of investments made, the difficulties of access to means of production, credit and markets, the low technical level of holdings, etc.

209. The most important of these factors, which govern practically all the others, are however the inadequacy and limited effectiveness of public institutions and the extreme weakness of professional agricultural organizations which prevent the effective participation of farmers and the mobilization of potentialities. human and natural resources for development.

210. The Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Forestry (MAFP) is the Government body whose mission is to create favorable conditions for the development of agriculture with a view to achieving the main objectives of the National Plan of Agricultural Investment, thanks to the elaboration and implementation of adequate policies. The MAFP is however faced with multiple constraints, including: (i) weak institutional capacity to define priorities, coordinate and monitor public investment programs and the lack of qualified human resources. ii) lack of rigor in administrative management: deficiency in the administration of public assets, weak control, monitoring and evaluation mechanisms. Absence of a human resources policy (insufficiency of specialized executives), lack of financial incentives, and working conditions, etc. ; iii) an imbalance in the organization of the sector and weak intervention capacities in rural areas linked mainly to the concentration at the central level of trained or experienced managers; iv) a lack of real coordination capacity for harmonization of interventions; and (v) a lack of resources of all kinds and working methods.” 

- NAIP 2nd Generation Report 

History

Major droughts in Guinea Bissau occured in 1977, 1979, 1980, 1983, 2002, 2004 and 2013. The drought of 2002 affected an estimated 100,000 people which is more than any other climate-related disaster (including epidemics) between 1980 and 2010.

By adopting the The Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Program (CAADP), the agricultural component of NEPAD, the African Heads of State made the commitment in Maputo in 2003 to allocate at least 10% of their budgets to agriculture to make it the basis of the growth of their economies. This is how Guinea Bissau embarked on this dynamic.

As early as 2002, in the Agricultural Development Policy Letter, the Government set itself four priority objectives:

  • guarantee food safety;

  • Increase and diversify agricultural exports

  • Ensure the rational management and preservation of agro-sylvo-pastoral resources;

  • And improve the living environment of rural populations.

Their aim was, among other things, to meet food demand and nutritional needs by taking into account their increase and to halt the deterioration of productive capital.

According to the World Bank, in 2007, the country was hard hit by a spiral of skyrocketing international and domestic prices. Once a major exporter of rice, the country imported half of its food, including up to 90,000 metric tons of rice per year. At the request of the government in 2009, the World Bank and the European Union responded with US$9 million in emergency aid under the Emergency Food Security Support Project (EFSSP), or Projecto de Apoio a Emergência na Segurança Alimentar (PEASA) in Portuguese.

The food crisis hit the regions of Bafata and Gabu in the east the most severely. In the south, poor road infrastructure prevented the rice grown in Tombali, Blama, and Quinara from reaching wider markets.

With the help of the food security project, these regions turned the corner. In Camposa and Finette, two villages located in the Bafata region, rice production increased from one season to the next, said Alfredo Quidom, chairman of the NGO Etad.

"Before our interventions, farmers in Camposa produced just under 2,600 kilograms per hectar,” said Quidom. “We are now at over 4,200 kilograms, double the amount. In Finete, production went from 700 kilograms to 1,800 kilograms without any fertilizer!”

A visit from World Bank Managing Director Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala in July 2008 helped expedite the government’s request for emergency assistance to Guinea-Bissau. Three months later, the World Bank took a lead position and responded with initial financing of US$5 million. In February 2009, the World Bank provided additional financing through the European Union Food Crisis Rapid Response Facility Trust Fund for Euro 2.87 million (around US$3.93 million). These two operations were implemented in partnership with World Food Program (WFP) and the Government of Guinea-Bissau.

The WFP allocated over US$4 million to support the most vulnerable through school feeding and a food for work program to rehabilitate land and rural feeder roads. From March 2009 to January 2010, this program provided 14,000 meals a day to children, 48 percent of them girls. The school feeding also helped boost attendance and passing rates. With additional support from the EU, this number was increased to 28,000 meals a day. The program closed in August 2011.

The food for work component provided over 160,000 days of work and provided food assistance to over 180,000 beneficiaries. During this time, dike and drainage channels and anti-erosion banks were rehabilitated on over 5,000 hectares of land that can now be used for rice production. The project also provided additional assistance in seeds and agricultural instruments to farmers. In total, 466 microprojects were financed, with approximately 650,100 direct beneficiaries.

In February 2011, World Bank Project Manager Aniceto Bila and Program Coordinator of the World Bank's Agriculture and Rural Development Department Martien van Nieuwkoop announced in February 2011 that a Multi-Donor Trust Fund (MDTF) was being prepared with the ECOWAS States with an envelope of US$7 million for Guinea Bissau.

These funds were to provide new innovations to the PEASA when it came to an end in August 2011 (for EU funding) and September 2011 (for World Bank funding).  Efforts were to be refocused, in particular, on the rehabilitation of agricultural production zones, better transport services to other parts of the country, the direct transfer of resources to village communities, the use of innovative technologies for greater yields and diversification, as well as incentives to private sector involvement.

A national workship on The Formulation of the National Priorities Exercises in Ambit of the 5th Global Environment Facility (GEF) Restitution took place on September 21, 2012 in the Government Palace in Bissau. It was organized by the Secretary of State of Environment and Tourism and included more than 25 representatives of government institutions, public sectors, private sectors, NGOs, civil society and development partners. The objective of the workshop was to adopt a portfolio of projects that would serve as a base for accessing GEF resources for environment management that would contribute to the realization of obligations under the Convention on Biodiversity Diversity (CBD), the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the United Nations Convention to Combat Drought and Desertification (UNCCD). The opening ceremony was presided by Secretary of State of Environment and Tourism, Dr.Agostinho da Costa and the technical workshops were conducted by technicians Ing. Alexandre Cabral (climate changes); Dr. Abilio Rachid (biodiversity) and Ing. Seco Cassama (Land Degradation). Each group had a mandate to complete a list of projects that were identified before and to select priorities in focal areas of GEF for the period from 2010-2014.

The launch of the NAIP 1st Generation process took place in Gabu, on April 16-17, 2009 and the final document was discussed and validated by the actors intervening in the rural world during two national workshops, held in Bissau from August 9 to 13, 2010, and November 8-9. A Round Table was held in January 2011 and a pact signed by the Government, the Financial Technical Partners (PTF), ECOWAS, the African Union, Civil Society, Farmer Organizationsand the Private Sector. Its overall cost was estimated at 167,430,750,000 CFA francs (US$260,488,733). The first phase of of the NAIP was planned for a period of 5 years, starting in 2012. After the Round Table, the Business Meeting should be organized to allow the positioning of TFPs with regard to its financing. Unfortunately, this round table could not be held because of repeated political unrest, which resulted in low funding for the NAIP 1st Generation. Between projects and agreements, it was possible to mobilize 54,952,738,376 billion FCFA (US$85,495,461) out of 167.431 billion FCFA, or about 32.82% of the needs expressed. The interventions were mainly oriented in the realization of some hydro-agricultural developments, construction of a certain number of markets and stores, supply of some agricultural equipment such as tractors, motorized cultivators, cereal mills, hullers, small horticultural equipment , vaccines and medicine for breeding, phytosanitary products for pest control, small equipment for horticulture, etc. Overall, the achievements are very far from what was planned in the 1st generation NAIP.

The main partners who contributed to the financing of the 1st generation NAIP are:

BOAD with CFAF 15,150 billion ($23.6 million), IFAD 11,415 billion ($17.8 million), AfDB 9.8 billion ($15.2 million), UEMOA CFAF 9.6 billion ($14.9 million), FAO 7.789 billion CFA francs ($12.1 million), European Union 0.675 billion CFA francs ($ 1.1 million) and World Bank 0.420 billion CFA francs ($653,000).

The National Agricultural Investment Program (NAIP), initiated in April 2009, successively updated in 2012 and 2014, evolved into a second generation National Agricultural Investment Plan (See below).

The formulation of this second-generation National Agricultural Investment Plan is still part of aparticipatory approach. All national skills and experience were mobilized in its development. A team made up of experts from all the key sectors of the economy participated in its elaboration, (Agriculture, Forestry, Livestock, Research, Sectoral Ministries such as Fisheries, Economy and Trade), Farmer Organizations, Private Sector and Civil Society, development partners as well as the People's National Assembly, etc.

The process of drafting the NAIP 2nd generation still within the framework of the CAADP, Malabo and ODD agenda began in July 2016 and it follows the same steps of the NAIP 1st generation with the assistance of ECOWAS, the FAO, Hub Rural and IFPRI. It includes all ongoing and already funded programs, as well as new and expanded programs for which additional funding will be required during the plan period. It includes packages of sequential achievements that pass from basic studies, the establishment of an adequate institutional framework, the development of capacities and infrastructures to deliver specific services and products to peasant organizations and agro-industrial enterprises, to ensure the food and nutritional security of populations. The approach will be based on the promotion of value chains, and within this framework,efforts will be made to improve the business climate in the sector on the basis of a better partnership between the public and private sectors. The implementation of the plan should generate agricultural growth of at least 6% per year, reduce poverty by half and consolidate food security.

The National Agricultural Investment Program (NAIP) was pursued in an environment of extreme government corruption and severe wealth inequality which has caused Guine Bissau to be described as a “fragile state”. Guinea Bissau has one of the most unequal distributions of income, with a Gini coefficient of 0.51 in 2019 (worst among countries in Western Africa and 6th worst among small island developing states). Meanwhile, the World Bank ranked Guinea Bissau 176th out of 186 countries for government effectiveness which measures the perceived quality and credibility of a government and the services it provides. Transparency International ranked Guinea Bissau 163rd out of 186 countries in terms of corruption. This is the core determinant of the continued high levels of extreme poverty. 

According to the  Bertelsmann Stiftung’s Transformation Index (BTI) 2020 Country Report on Guinea Bissau:

“Public officeholders who benefit illegally from their positions are rarely held accountable by legal prosecution when they break the law and engage in corrupt practices. This concerns all the top government officials, including the president. Public contempt depends on relatedness and the reputation of the officeholder. As a rule, corrupt officials are widely perceived as getting away with their crimes without consequences. Usually, officeholders who break the law are dismissed, rather than prosecuted. Members of the government accused of corruption often return to official positions after an interim. Conflicts of interest and ethical misconduct are often not addressed.”

PUBLIC INVESTMENT

Public investment is almost entirely financed by external aid, with major donors including the UN System, the West African Development Bank, the World Bank, and the African Development Bank (World Bank Group 2016). More than 90 percent of the government’s health budget comes from international partners. As we see from the NAIP, this is no less true of the government’s agricultural budget.

A CONTINUATION OF HISTORICAL TRENDS WILL INCREASE THE HUMAN SUFFERING AND DEVELOPMENT BURDEN IN GUINEA-BISSAU.

It is therefore reasonable to speculate on the integrity of government agricultural programs and their funding in Guinea Bissau. 


THE IMPENDING FOOD SECURITY CRISIS COMING TO GUINE BISSAU

Globally around 24 billion tons of fertile soil and 27,000 bio-species are lost each year. Scientists are saying that by 2045, the planet will have 40% less food for 9.2 billion people and that there are only 40 to 60 harvests left before a critical global food shortage. According to the report Hunger in Guinea-Bissau: Causes and Prevention

“Food insecurity is the largest current concern for the Guinea-Bissau government. . . . Overall, 11% of Guinea-Bissau households are food insecure, though this figure spikes to as high as 51% in some areas. Food insecurity is the main cause of undernutrition, in addition to inadequate health services, poor water and sanitation, inadequate infant feeding practices and high illiteracy rates among women.

Most of the families in Guinea-Bissau that are involved in cereal farming, produce cereal for their own consumption. However, this is sometimes not enough to feed an entire family. Only 8% of families have enough cereal to cover their needs for one month and a half, with 48% having cereal stocks to cover just one month of food consumption. If the cereal that these families produce is ruined, more than half would not have anything to eat and would suffer from extreme food insecurity.

According to the Food and Nutrition Security Monitoring System, 28% of the population of Guinea-Bissau does not consume as many vitamins and nutrients as they need. Additionally, in 2019, Guinea-Bissau ranked 99th out of 117 in a study about countries with increased rates of food insecurity. This rank means that Guinea-Bissau has a severe problem with both hunger and malnutrition.”

The Proteus Global Food Security Index ranks Guinea Bissau 148th out of 160 countries. Even though most families are involved in growing rice for their own consumption, only 48% have enough cereal stocks to cover just one month of food consumption, resulting in a dependence on imported food, including rice. In 2020, Guinea-Bissau imported $52.2M in rice, becoming the 86th largest importer of rice in the world. At the same year, rice was the 1st most imported product in Guinea Bissau. Guinea Bissau imports rice primarily from: Pakistan ($24.9M), China ($17.2M), India ($4.26M), Senegal ($3.77M), and United States ($726k).

https://wits.worldbank.org/CountrySnapshot/en/GNB/textview

The Near Future

Meanwhile, with the predicted rise in population between 2019 and 2040, all scenarios project an increase in the number of people living in extreme poverty in Guinea Bissau with an expected 1.8 million people living in extreme poverty by 2040. 

SEE CURRENT STATUS OF GUINEA BISSAU: A REVIEW OF RELEVANT STATISTICS

WHAT THIS MEANS

During the COVID pandemic, Bissau-Guinean economist Aliu Soares Cassama stated, “Our economy has had a deficit in the trade balance for a long time. In other words, we import more and export less. We know that economic agents do not have purchasing power due to the total paralysis of the State, and this situation will further complicate the economic weakness that the country is experiencing.”

Because of the global soil extinction crisis and the impending global food shortages, Guinea Bissau, for all the reasons indicated above, will be one of the most vulnerable countries on the planet for starvation if nothing is done now to increase the organic content of its soil and diversify agricultural production to domestic food consumption.

WHAT CAN BE DONE? #SAVESOIL

For any soil to be agriculturally potent, it must have a minimum organic content of 3 to 6%. The average soil organic content of the United States is 1.4%, for Europe 1.2%, for India 0.6% and for Africa 0.3%. No data on the organic content of Guinea Bissau’s soil has been recorded.

Guinea Bissau has a total land area of 2,812,000 hectares of which approximately 58% is agricultural land (1,630,00 hectares). About 71% of the land is under forest while 38.4% is for permanent crops, arable land and other land, 80% of which is on plateaus. Agriculture in Guinea Bissau is mainly rainfed while irrigated farming is very limited. 

Agriculture, in the broad sense (agriculture, livestock and forestry) remains the dominant economic activity, contributing over 50% of GDP and over 80% of exports and employing 82% of the working population. It falls under two categories of producers:

  • small village producers (tabancas) estimated at nearly 130,000 farmers constitute the bulk of the rural population and produce 90% of production;

  • modern producers called "ponteiros" (2,200 concessions of which 1,200 are actually installed), generally modern farmers with large land concessions (average size of 136 ha, varying from 20 to 2,500 ha) provided by the State, covering 27% arable land (9% of the total area of the country) and occupying the best agricultural land in the country. For lack of financing in terms of credit, they are all in a latent state.

The area of land suitable for irrigated rice growing (mangrove and lowland rice growing) is 305,000 ha. Of this potential, approximately 50,000 ha are cultivated, or just over 16%. 

In terms of development, agriculture today is essentially occupied by two predominant crops: cashew and rice. The number of traditional farms is estimated at 130,000 for 1,200 agricultural enterprises. Cultivated areas are estimated at 400,000 ha (i.e. 11% of the country's area), including 220,000 ha in annual crops and 120,000 ha in perennial crops. For rice, the potential depending on the type of rice cultivation is within the following range: 

i) irrigated rice cultivation: mangrove rice with 106,000 ha, of which 51,000 ha are cultivated, and 

ii) lowland rice with 150,000 ha, of which 11,000 ha cultivated. Rice ranks first in the government's medium- and long-term priorities, given its place in Guinea-Bissau's diet and economy.

In 2020, rice, paddy production for Guinea Bissau was 198,000 tonnes.

Though Guinea Bissau rice paddy production fluctuated substantially in recent years, it tended to increase through 1971 - 2020 period ending at 198,000 tonnes in 2020.

https://www.indexmundi.com/agriculture/?country=gw&commodity=milled-rice&graph=production

NOTE: From 2012 to 2022 rice production (MT) increased from 119 MT to 129MT (8%).

WHAT IS THE GOVERNMENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF GUINEA BISSAU’S PLAN TO PREVENT THE IMPENDING FOOD SECURITY CRISIS?

According to NAIP 2nd Generation, this is the outline of the plan:

National Agricultural Investment Plan

December 2017

4. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PROGRAMS

4.1. SUB-PROGRAM 1: PROMOTION OF CROP PRODUCTION SECTORS

4.1.1. Component 1: Rural infrastructure

4.1.1.1. Action 1: Technical studies and formulation of the General Plan of Hydro-agricultural development

4.1.1.2. Action 2: Irrigation schemes

4.1.1.3. Action 3: Opening up production areas

4.1.1.4. Action 4: Construction and rehabilitation of storage and marketing infrastructure

 4.1.1.5. Action 5: Establishment of a Hydro Development Agency

4.1.1.6. Action 6: Dredging of rivers of agricultural importance

 4.1.2. Component 2: Development of food sectors

4.1.2.1. Action 1: Cereal sectors

4.1.2.2. Action 2: Development of roots and tubers

4.1.2.3. Action 3: Market gardening and fruit growing

4.1.2.4. Action 4: Food agro-forestry products

4.1.2.5. Action 5: Setting up and equipping a Horticultural Development Center

4.1.2.6. Action 6: Support for the establishment of youth and women's cooperatives

4.1.2.7. Action 7: Supply of various agricultural inputs and agricultural machinery

4.1.3. Component 3: Promotion of export crops

4.1.3.1. Action 1: Support for the development of the cashew sector

4.1.3.2. Action 2: Support for agricultural product export diversification

4.1.3.3. Establishment of an export crop development fund

4.2. SUB-PROGRAM 2: PROMOTION OF ANIMAL PRODUCTION

4.2.1. Component 1: Development of traditional livestock sectors

4.2.1.1. Action 1: Improvement of small family livestock production (Cattle, poultry, sheep, goats, pigs, others)

4.2.1.2. Action 2: Support for the organization of transhumance and development of routes

4.2.2. Component 2: Promotion of small and medium livestock enterprises

4.2.2.1. Action 1: Support for the development of peri-urban livestock farming

4.2.2.2. Action 2: Support for the promotion of livestock products

4.2.3. Component 3: Strengthening livestock services

4.2.3.1.Action 1: Improvement of health coverage

4.2.3.2. Action 2: Capacity building of the Directorate General of Livestock

4.3. SUB-PROGRAM 3: PROMOTION OF FISHERIES PRODUCTION SECTORS

4.3.1. Component 1: Promotion of artisanal fishing and aquaculture

4.3.1.1. Action 1: Support for the development of artisanal fishing and aquaculture

4.3.1.2. Action 2: Valorization of catches and local processing of fish production

4.3.1.3. Action3: Improvement of marketing circuits and conditions

4.3.1.4. Capacity building of actors in the sector and institutional support

4.3.1.5. Support for the creation of a credit fund for the fishing sector

4.3.2. Component 2: Strengthening of fisheries resource management mechanisms

4.3.2.1. Action 1: Strengthening control mechanisms for the exploitation of fishery resources

4.3.2.2. Action 2: Upgrading the Fisheries Information and Analysis System (SIAP)

 4.4. SUB-PROGRAM 4: SUSTAINABLE MANAGEMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES (WATER, SOILS, FORESTS)

4.4.1. Component 1: Integrated Water Resources Management

 4.4.1.1. Action 1: Updating or revision of the water master plan

 4.4.1.2. Action 2: Improvement of the state of knowledge of water resources

 4.4.1.3. Action 3: Integrated management of water resources in lowlands

 4.4.1.4. Action 4: Research, support and popularization of irrigation optimization techniques

 4.4.1.5. Construction of DWS infrastructure (fodder, large diameter wells) for rainwater retention and multi-use systems

4.4.1.6. Institutional support to the DGRH superficial and underground

 4.4.2. Component 2: Sustainable land management (land tenure and soil fertility

 4.4.2.1.Action 1: Soil fertility management) (GIFS)

 4.4.2.2.Action 2: Recovery and correction of degraded land

 4.4.2.3 Action 3: Land management:

 4.4.3. Component 3: Sustainable management of forest resources

 4.4.3.1. Action 1: Classification, development and management of forests (protection forests and production forests)

 4.4.3.2. Action 2: Forest management

 4.4.3.3. Action 3: Management of forest resources

 4.4.3.4. Action 4: National Herbarium of Flora

 4.4.3.5. Action 5: Institutional support

4.5. SUB-PROGRAM 5: AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH AND ADVISORY

 4.5.1. Component 1: Strengthening producer support services

 4.5.1.1. Action 1: Support for Producer-Research Extension partnerships

 4.5.1.2. Action 2: Capacity building of agricultural services

 4.5.1.3. Action 3: Support for the creation of field schools and support for priority sectors

 4.5.2. Component 2: Support for the development of promising sectors

 4.5.2.1.Action 1: Development and implementation of priority sectors development plans

 4.5.2.2. Action 2: Empowerment of producer organizations within the DIPS

 4.5.2.3. Action 3: Support for the development of identified promising sectors

4.6. SUB-PROGRAM 6: SECTORAL INSTITUTIONAL STRENGTHENING AND COORDINATION

 4.6.1. Component 1: Improvement of the institutional environment of the agricultural sector

 4.6.1.1. Action 1: Improvement of the institutional and organizational framework of Ministry in charge of the agricultural sector

 4.6.1.2. Action 2: Creation of mechanisms favorable to the development of sector

 4.6.1.3. Action 3: Creation of an Agricultural Credit Fund

4.6.2. Component 2: Strengthening agricultural sector management capacities

 4.6.2.1. Action 1: Construction, rehabilitation and equipment of public agricultural institutions

 4.6.2.2. Action 2: Technical capacity building of MAPF

 4.6.2.3. Action 3: Support for improving the institutional and organizational framework of professional agricultural organizations

 4.6.2.4. Action 4: Support for the creation of a national agricultural school and a higher agricultural training institute.

 4.6.2.5. Action 5: Agricultural census and establishment of a permanent mechanism for collecting and processing agricultural statistics and disseminating information

 4.6.2.6. Capacity building for monitoring and evaluating the implementation of the NAIP

 4.6.3. Component 3: Resilience, nutrition, crisis prevention and management

 4.6.3.1. Action 1: Establishment of mechanisms that guarantee food and nutrition security

 4.6.3.2. Action 2: Improving governance around food and food security

 4.6.4. Component 4: Gender and youth employment

 4.6.4.1 Action 1: Support for increasing the economic capacities of women

 4.6.4.2 Actions 2: Capacity building for the organization and management of women's associations

 4.6.4.3 Action 3: Support for job creation and entrepreneurship

 4.6.5. Component 5: Improved business environment

 4.6.5.1. Action 1: Trade promotion

 4.6.5.2. Action 2: Capacity building of support services for trade operators

 4.7 SUB-PROGRAM 7: ADAPTATION OF THE AGRICULTURAL SECTOR TO CLIMATIC CHANGES

 4.7.1 Component 1- Adaptation to climate change:

 4.7.1.1 Action 1: Research and popularization of plant and animal species resistant to the effects of climate change

 4.7.1.2. Action 2: Education, information and communication

 4.7.2. Component 2- Mitigation

THE TOTAL COST OF THE PLAN TO 2020 WAS BUDGETED AT 341,508,250,000 XOF (US$ 531,421,152)

Acoording to the NAIP,

“The program is part of a long-term perspective which can be divided into three successive phases of five years each. In order to avoid breaks in the flow of funding and to cut off the dynamism generated during the first phase represented by this program, the Generation must go hand in hand with the phases concerned. Goals of each phase are the following:

PHASE 1 (2015 - 2020): this phase is characterized by the creation or rehabilitation of production support structures and infrastructures. A general plan for hydro-agricultural development, intensification and diversification of production, as well as support programs for producers in production factors, training, supervision, structuring of the rural world and strengthening of its organizations will have to be implemented. During the 2015-2020 period, the NAIP 2nd generation will therefore tackle first and foremost solving the problems of equipment for producers and the rural world, the upgrading of peasant organizations, the opening up of the main poles of production, in particular in terms of food production (which appears to be the branch agriculture that would contribute the most to agricultural GDP growth with a strong contribution to poverty reduction).

Simultaneously, it will be essential to ensure the institutional strengthening of the MAFP and the sectoral coordination mechanisms, so as to be able to guarantee efficient management of the efforts developed within the framework of the NAIP 2nd generation. At the end of this phase, we should thus have better organized and better structured farmers, breeders and fishermen. We should have strong agricultural organizations capable of influencing the formulation of policies and better defending their class interest.

PHASE 2 (2021-2025): during this phase, priorities will be devoted to the strengthening and consolidation of private initiatives and investments, the development of cooperatives and the consolidation of Farmer Organizations and Micro-Finance Institutions. In this phase, the conditions will be created to revitalize the rural economy by supporting the establishment of interprofessional mechanisms for the management of sectors, to effectively combat poverty and food insecurity. In this phase, we will tackle the implementation of major programs for the development of facilities and cereal production with particular emphasis on rice, the processing of agricultural and livestock products, conservation and marketing both agricultural and livestock products.

At the end of this phase, Guinea Bissau should have a more productive and more competitive agriculture, diversified and capable of generating the marketable surplus. At the end of this phase, the cereal deficit, especially rice, should be reduced by at least 50%.

PHASE 3 (2026-2030): this will be a phase focused on strengthening and consolidating integration in regional, sub-regional and international trade, which should aim to conquer new markets and facilitate trade. At the end of this phase, farmers' sources of income will be diversified thanks to the development of marketing, rural savings will have increased significantly and micro-finance institutions will be functional. At the end of this phase, we should see the development of export flows of food products (including rice) to supply certain regional markets with a deficit (urban in particular). At the end of this phase, Guinea-Bissau should achieve food self-sufficiency in terms of rice, as the staple food of its population.

Each phase must be accompanied by the production of a balance sheet and an update. of the NAIP.

The total cost of the 2nd Generation NAIP is estimated at around CFAF 341,508,250,000 billion ($531,318,479), of which 19.982 billion ($31 million) (5.85%) concerns projects in execution until 2020. Therefore, funding is sought. (nearly 321.526 billion CFA francs ($500 million, or 94.14%). In terms of productive investments, by 2030, the NAIP 2nd generation will affect all sectors in a cumulative way about 130,000 producers in the sub-sectors of plant production and animal production and 20,000 fishermen in terms of fish production. 250 agricultural cooperatives of young people and women will be created and 50 small and medium enterprises in the livestock sector and 20,000 youth jobs will be created.”

Now, in light of the ambitious program, let us return to the section of the report quoted in the beginning of this post:

“208. Agriculture, a key sector of the national economy, has failed to ensure food security or to create the conditions for improving the living conditions of rural populations, and even less to provide support for the development of others socioeconomic sectors. The weak results of the sector, in spite of the natural resources present, find their explanation in a series of factors such as: the low rate of investments made, the difficulties of access to means of production, credit and markets, the low technical level of holdings, etc.

209. The most important of these factors, which govern practically all the others, are however the inadequacy and limited effectiveness of public institutions and the extreme weakness of professional agricultural organizations which prevent the effective participation of farmers and the mobilization of potentialities. human and natural resources for development.

210. The Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Forestry (MAFP) is the Government body whose mission is to create favorable conditions for the development of agriculture with a view to achieving the main objectives of the National Plan of Agricultural Investment, thanks to the elaboration and implementation of adequate policies. The MAFP is however faced with multiple constraints, including: (i) weak institutional capacity to define priorities, coordinate and monitor public investment programs and the lack of qualified human resources. ii) lack of rigor in administrative management: deficiency in the administration of public assets, weak control, monitoring and evaluation mechanisms. Absence of a human resources policy (insufficiency of specialized executives), lack of financial incentives, and working conditions, etc. ; iii) an imbalance in the organization of the sector and weak intervention capacities in rural areas linked mainly to the concentration at the central level of trained or experienced managers; iv) a lack of real coordination capacity for harmonization of interventions; and (v) a lack of resources of all kinds and working methods.” 

Sections 279. and 280. of the NAIP state:

“The quest for MDG1 in 2020 should lead to higher financing needs. These are estimated at 277 billion CFA francs (US $431,850,941) over the period 2010-2020, or an average of 25 billion (US $38,975,716) per year. The allocation of resources for financing investment and consumption expenditure would be CFAF 252 billion (US $392,875,2240 and CFAF 25 billion (US $38,975,716) respectively. Financing from the State's own resources would be around CFAF 27 billion (US $42,093,774). These internal resources would be allocated to investment and public consumption needs for CFAF 2 billion (US $3,118,057) and 25 billion (US $38,975,716) respectively. The financing “gap” to be sought is estimated at 250 billion CFA francs (US $389,757,167).

280. Mobilization of internal and external resources in pursuit of CAADP and MDG objectives in 2020. To achieve the average agricultural growth objective of 6%, the public expenditure required has been estimated at CFAF 133 billion. With a view to implementing the PDDA, the internal resources mobilized for this purpose are estimated at CFAF 13 billion over the period 2010-2015. As for external financing needs, they would therefore be around 120 billion CFA francs. In the quest to achieve the MDGs in 2020, the total cost of financing would be higher than in the case of the pursuit of the objectives of the PDDA since the expenditure would then be estimated at 277 billion CFA francs. The amount of financing from the State's own resources would be around CFAF 27 billion. As for external contributions, they would amount to 250 billion CFA francs. The projected allocation of resources to agriculture is summarized in Table 21:


Consider that 19.982 billion ($31 million) (5.85%) was obtained for projects in execution until 2020 and that “each phase must be accompanied by the production of a balance sheet and an update. of the NAIP.” Thus, the question must be asked -

HOW WAS THE $31 MILLION USED?

As an example, with respect to the cashew sector in Guinea Bissau, Section 107. of the NAIP states,

“The cashew sector experienced a boom from the 1980s and particularly the 90s, since exports increased from 57,870 tonnes in 1997, to 93,000 tonnes in 2004 and to 195,501 in 2016. Sixth largest producer in the world, Guinea Bissau is renowned for the quality of her cashew nuts, but she derives relatively little profit from them. Until now, in fact, it exports raw nuts, almost exclusively to India, which processes them, roasts them before re-exporting them to Europe and the United States. But currently, for lack of a minimum of organization and appropriate regulation, activities are carried out in a situation of relative “unfair competition and anarchy”.

SO WHERE DID THE MONEY REALLY GO? WHAT COMPANIES? WHAT WERE THE ACTUAL RESULTS? WHO BENEFITED?

Section 62. of the NAIP states,

“The active participation of all stakeholders at all levels (village associations, government officials, experts, NGOs, private sector, aid agencies, etc.) in the identification and design of projects should be encouraged.”

Section 230. states,

“GAPLA (The Agricultural Planing Cabinent within the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Livestock (MAFP)) as the structure responsible for planning the development of the agricultural sector and the service that piloted the formulation of NAIP 2nd Generation must be a key service in its implementation. As such, it should be strengthened both in terms of personnel and equipment and should have an adequate operating budget. It will also be necessary to contribute, under its aegis, to setting up permanent mechanisms for the collection, processing and dissemination of agricultural statistics.

Section 238. states,

“Actions to improve the agricultural statistics mechanism should focus on the development of less expensive but representative market survey and monitoring methodologies, capable of providing quality information in a timely manner.”

Meanwhile, Section 292. states that a National Steering Committee (CNP), will be placed under the supervision of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MAFP). Its creation as well as its mandate will be made by decree, signed by the Head of Government and will integrate the National Steering Committee, the General Directorates of Agriculture, Livestock, Forestry, and Fisheries, the Ministry of Trade, Environment, Infrastructure, Public Health, the General Directorates of Resources Water, Roads and Bridges, Customs, Public Treasury and Planning, as well as GAPLA which will provide the secretariat. Most importantly, section 293 states,

“The CNP will have the mandate to validate the documents relating to NAIP 2nd Generation and related projects, namely action plans and annual performance reports, strategic studies, etc. The CNP will meet at least twice a year when convened by the Minister in charge of Agriculture”;

Additionaly, section 294. states,

“At the regional level, a Regional Consultation Council (CRC) will be set up, in which, alongside the representatives of the decentralized services of the MAPF, the Regional Governors, the Prefects, the Religious Leaders and the representatives of grassroots associations and groups will participate. The CRC constitutes the basis for consolidating intervention requests, operational planning, the collection and organization of regional statistical data, and the monitoring and evaluation of actions. This structure serves as a forum for consultation and exchange on the effectiveness of the activities carried out under each sub-programme. The regional council will report directly to the National Steering Committee.”

Furthermore, section 301. stipulates the roles and responsibilities of cross-functional departments (DEA, DAF, DRH) As such, “they prepare, each according to its mandate, and at given intervals, for the attention of GAPLA and in the formats defined in the management manuals, consolidated national planning files, M&E and execution reports, financial management, training programs, opinions on strategic studies carried out on behalf of the ministry, statistical information, documents to be submitted to the steering committee, etc.” Specifically, section 302. states,

“The DRA (the Regional Directorates of Agriculture), under the authority of the Regional Director, is the anchoring structure of the Program at the regional level. It will be the geographical place of organization, animation, coordination of interventions, consolidation of the request for intervention, operational planning, collection and organization of regional statistical data, monitoring and evaluation of actions, control of standards and consistency with policies, development synergy between interventions, maintenance of dialogue with local partners and management of regional staff, development of regional budgets in accordance with the Finance Law in force and any framework notes, preparation of tender documents, monitoring of regional expenditure, preparation of regional financial statements, monitoring of the management of regional assets. Like the central technical departments, the DRAs prepare at given intervals, for the attention of the cross-functional central departments and according to the formats defined in the management manuals, the consolidated regional planning files, the M&E reports and for execution, financial management, etc. These files are received and used by the cross-functional departments in order to prepare the decision-making elements at the central level. The DRAs coordinate the CRCs.”

And finally, section 306. states,

“In general, it should be emphasized that MAPF structures are faced with problems of i) insufficient human resources, ii) technical skills and intervention capacities, and iii) obsolescence and /or lack of intervention standards and procedures. The success of the implementation of the Program will largely depend on the measures that will be taken to correct these shortcomings. These will be more marked at GAPLA, the DEA, DAF, DRA because of the mass of information that will converge at their level and the need for their quality processing in real time. In order to enable them to fully play their central role in the implementation of theNAIP 2nd Generation building their capacities in the areas of strategic planning, monitoring and evaluation, fiduciary management, human resources management, production and dissemination of sector statistics will be essential.”

Thus, in accordance with Article 34 of the Constitution of the Republic of Guinea Bissau (1984 revised 1996) which guarantees that “All have the right to information and legal protection in accordance with the law”, the Balanta B’urassa History & Genealogy Society in America calls on all citizens, and in particular, those groups and organizations concerned with agriculture and the future food security in Guinea Bissau, as part of the #savesolil movement in Guinea Bissau to

request, through the Regional Consultation Councils (CRCs) the finacnial statements prepared by the Regional Directorates of Agriculture (DRAs) and submitted to the National Steering Committee (CNP) through the GAPLA (The Agricultural Planing Cabinent within the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Livestock (MAFP) as mandated by sections 62, 230, 238, 292, 293, 294, 301, 302 and 306 of the NAIP 2nd Generation.

Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development

Current Minister: General Sandji Fati

Guinea Bissau ratified the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) on 27 October 1995 and ratified also the Kyoto Protocol on 18 November 2005 thus becoming a contracting Party to the Convention, committed to develop, update, publish the National Communications on Climate Change and other strategic documents on the same theme and participate in the Conferences of the Paties (COP).


He was born on August 8, 1956, in Bissau. Fighter for Homeland Freedom, leader of MADEM. He took the General Staff course in 1992/1993, in Portugal. Master's in military science (academy), in inter-branch (Navy, Air Force, Army and National Guard), in 1993/1994, at the Escola de Guerra in France. Parachutist officer in 1996, at the Air Transport School in the city of Pau (France). Graduated in Law from the Faculty of Law of Bissau, in 2003. He studied project management in the United States of America. Master's student in constitutional law at the Faculty of Law of Lisbon.He was Minister of National Education, he also held the portfolio of Defense and Freedom Fighters of the Homeland in the then executive of the government coalition and is appointed in the government of the presidential initiative to direct the portfolio of Agriculture.

PROJECTS

“Formulation of the National Priorities Exercises in Ambit of 5th GEF Restitution Final Report” - September, 2012  $30,000 from GEF. The support was conceded after the signature of agreement protocol between GEF and Guinea Bissau government.

“Strengthening of resilience and adaptability of the agricultural and water sectors to climate change in Guinea-Bissau” - GEF-supported project

“Supporting integrated climate change strategies” - UNDP’s signature programme, Guinea Bissau was supported with $200,000 and $10,000 co-funding from the government to support the development process of the Guinea-Bissau National Adaptation Programmes of Action (NAPAs). The NAPAs provide a process for Least Developed Countries (LDC) to identify priority activities that respond to their immediate needs to adapt to climate change, ultimately leading to the implementation of projects aimed at reducing the economic and social costs of climate change. 

“Increased Resilience and Adaptation to Adverse Impacts of Climate Change in Guinea’s Vulnerable Coastal Zones” - Least Developed Country Fund (LDCF) November, 2009 $5,150,000. In relation to this, a new project “Strengthening the resilience of vulnerable coastal areas and communities to climate change in Guinea-Bissau” is expected to leverage a proposed USD 12 million Global Environment Facility Least Developed Country Fund Grant to develop the strong institutions and policies needed to improve risk management in coastal zones, protect investments in coastal infrastructure and diffuse new technologies to strengthen resilience within coastal communities.

“Scaling up climate-smart agriculture in east Guinea-Bissau” - Adaptation Fund for a five-year (2017-2022) project implemented by the Banque Ouest Africaine de Developement (West African Development Bank). $9,979,000. The project seeks to strengthen practices and capacities in climate-smart agriculture in the project region and at institutional level. Through the project’s activities, food security and livelihoods are expected to be strengthened at household level while simultaneously increasing capacities in climate risk management and adaptation planning at all levels of governance.

“Strengthening adaptive capacity & resilience to climate change in the agrarian & water sectors in Guinea-Bissau” - This UNDP-supported, GEF-LDCF funded project in Guinea Bissau was designed to transform the country’s policy responses to climate change from that of ‘reactive’ measures, towards achieving more ‘anticipatory’ and ‘deliberate’ policy responses. $4,000,000

“Strengthening climate information and early warning systems for climate resilient development and adaptation to climate change in Guinea-Bissau” This project will work to enhance the capacity of the National Hydro-Meteorological Services (NHMS) in Guinea-Bissau, ensure the effective use of weather and water information to make early warnings, mainstream climate change information into long-term development plans, and work toward ensuring the sustainability of investments in new climate services. $6,000,000 from the Global Environment Facility’s Least Developed Countries Fund (GEF-LDCF).

TOTAL IDENTIFIED FUNDING: $37,369,000

The National Food Security Program, which constitutes a separate and already approved document….

 DEMOCRAT NEWSPAPER  04/19/2023 - “The National Cell for the Processing of Financial Information (CENTIF-GB) revealed on Tuesday, April 18, 2023, that risk assessment data on the processes that were reviewed, both at the Public Ministry and at the Judiciary Police, indicate that Guinea-Bissau Bissau is losing a lot and that 85 billion and 853 million of State assets could be in the hands of others.

The revelations were made by the president of CENTIF, Justino Sá, at the opening of the three days of training (18, 19 and 20) on matters of financial investigation, accusations and convictions for crimes of money laundering and financing of terrorism, held at the National School of Administration (ENA), aimed at actors in the criminal chain.

Justino Sá explained that the seminar was held as part of the implementation of the recommendations of the mutual risk assessment report that Guinea-Bissau was subject to in 2020 and 2021, arguing that the CENTIF should equip the law enforcement staff with tools that allow them to fulfill and fully perform its functions.

Justino Sá asked the Attorney General of the Republic to transform the office for the fight against corruption and economic rights and adopt the principle of mobility of magistrates, being a very sensitive office, having defended the specialization of magistrates so that Guinea-Bissau be more sensitive to the phenomenon of the fight against corruption.

According to Justino Sá, the amounts referred to are those found in the processes that were investigated from 2013 to 2018, revealing that the country could have lost 100 billion CFA francs.

Faced with this situation, Justino warned magistrates that they have a very important role to play in the fight against money laundering and terrorist financing.

He said that this situation should not only be a concern for the CENTIF, but also a national concern, especially for judges who have the mission to work for the credibility of justice.

The president of the CENTIF stressed that one of the shortcomings that the cell pointed out in the mutual evaluation was effectiveness, because “there was no conviction for the crime of money laundering and financing of terrorism in Guinea-Bissau, as well as the confiscation of assets of any corrupt people or traffickers.

In turn, the Attorney General of the Republic, Edmundo Mendes, said he hoped that the seminar would provide participants with the necessary tools to detect, investigate, prosecute and effectively condemn the actors of organized crime.”

By: Carolina Djemé


TOWARDS A PLEBISCITE FOR SELF DETERMINATION OF THE AFRO DESCENDANT COLONY IN THE UNITED STATES: AN IMARI OBADELE READER AND STRATEGIC PLAN

“Our method entails campaigns for consent, followed by plebiscites, followed by defense of our lands. . . .”

- Imari Obadele

PLEASE TAKE THE AFRODESCENDANT STEERING COMMITTEE SELF DETERMINATION SURVEY

The dictionary definition of a plebiscite is “the direct vote of all the members of an electorate on an important public question”

In WAR IN AMERICA, first drafted in October 1966 and revised and published January 1968, Imari Obadele writes,

“THE ANSWER TO FEDERAL OPPOSITION

THE answer to federal opposition to black state power is a complex of studied moves POLITICAL, DIPLOMATIC, ECONOMIC, AND MILITARY.

The crucial first step is the early acceptance of an essential and inevitable decision by those who seek black state power. This is the decision to withdraw the state (ultimately, withdraw the entire, new, five-state union of Mississippi, Louisiana, Alabama, Georgia, and South Carolina) from the United States and establish a separate nation.

This is necessary because the inevitable opposition of the federal government would be irresistible so long as it operates within the state; it must be put OUTSIDE the state.

Of first importance are the diplomatic moves. As Malcolm X taught, the black man’s struggle must be INTERNATIONALIZED, for it is only within the United States that we are a minority. Joined with other peoples of color beyond the American borders, black men bestow upon white men the status of a minority.

The struggle must be internationalized for an even more basic and directly negotiable reason: we must draw to our cause the moral and material support of people of good will throughout the world; this support, correctly used, could impose upon the United States federal government an amount of caution sufficient, when coupled with the military viability of the black state itself, to protect that state from destruction beneath certain and overwhelming federal Power.

In short, the effort to win public support for the black struggle from the Afro-Asian nations, started in earnest by Malcolm X and maintained so resolutely by Robert Williams, MUST BE CONTINUED AND INTENSIFIED; we must, moreover, continue and intensify the effort to raise serious, substantial questions concerning the status of black people in the United States and bring these questions before the United Nations and the World Court. Fortunately, the groundwork for this effort has already (by 1966) been faithfully laid by such men as Robert A. Brock, founder of Los Angeles’ SELF-DETERMINATION COMMITTEE, and Baba Oserjeman Adefumi, founder of the New York-headquartered YORUBA COMMUNITY.

As Adefumi, Brock, and their fellow workers have shown, the central questions to be brought before the United Nations and the World Court are Two:

A. THE RIGHT OF BLACK PEOPLE AS FREE MEN TO CHOOSE WHETHER OR NOT THEY WISH TO BE CITIZENS OF THE UNITED STATES. 

This right was never exercised: freed from slavery by constitutional provision, black people were given no choice as to whether they wished to be citizens, go back to Africa or to some other country, or set up an independent nation. Instead, the OBLIGATIONS of citizenship were automatically conferred upon us by the white majority, while the RIGHTS of citizenship for black people were made conditional rather than absolute, circumscribed by a constitutional provision that “Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation," and subjected to 90 years of interpretation and reinterpretation by the courts, the Congress, and the state legislatures.

Adjudication of this question must bestow upon those black people wishing it a guarantee of their right to be free of the jurisdiction of the United States and assure that their right to freedom shall not have been jeopardized by the payment of taxes, participation in the election process, or service in the military during the period before adjudication. These later acts are participated in by the blacks in America who seek adjudication, only under coercion and as defensive measures.

B. THE RIGHT OF BLACK PEOPLE TO REPARATIONS FOR THE INJURIES AND WRONGS DONE US AND OUR ANCESTORS BY REASON OF UNITED STATES LAW. 

Reparations have never been paid to black people for the admitted wrongs of slavery (or since slavery) inflicted upon our ancestors with the sanction of the United States Constitution — which regulated the slave trade and provided for the counting of slaves — and the laws of several states. The principle of reparations for national wrongs, as for personal wrongs, is well established in international law. The West German government, for instance, has paid 850 million dollars in equipment and credits, in reparations to Israel for wrongs committed by the Nazis against the Jews of Europe. Demands for reparations, funneled through a united black power Congress, must include not only the demand for money and goods such as machinery, factories and laboratories, but a demand for land. And the land we want is the land where we are: MISSISSIPPI, LOUISIANA, ALABAMA, GEORGIA, and SOUTH CAROLINA.

The bringing of the first question to the United Nations — the question of black people’s right to self-determination — creates a substantial question demanding action by that world body and puts the black power struggle in America into the world spotlight where the actions of the United States against us are open to examination and censure by our friends throughout the world. It provides these friends, moreover, with a legal basis for their expressions of support and their work in our behalf.

The raising of the demand for land, as part of the reparations settlement, infuses needed logic and direction into the American black struggle and increases the inherent justice of our drive for black state power and the separation of the new five-state union from the United States.

The separation is necessary because history assures us that the whites of America would not allow a state controlled by progressive black people, opposed to the exploitation and racism and organized crime of the whole, to exist as a part of the whole. Separation is necessary because black people must separate ourselves from the guilt we have borne as partners, HOWEVER RELUCTANT, to the white man in his oppression and crimes against the rest of humanity. Separation is possible because, first, it is militarily possible.

When the 13 American colonies declared their independence from Britain, they also forged an alliance with France, which not insignificantly contributed to the colonies’ victory. When the Confederacy separated from the United States, it formed alliances with Britain and other European powers, and these alliances might have sustained her independence had not this creature been so severely weakened by sabotage and revolts of the slaves themselves and their service in the Union Army. In more recent times the state of Israel was created in 1948 and maintained against Arab arms by her alliances with the United States and Britain. In 1956 the independence of Egypt was maintained against invasion by Israel, supported by France and Britain, by her alliance with Russia: Russia threatened to drop atomic missiles on London if the invaders did not withdraw. In 1959-1960 an independent, anti-capitalist Cuba was saved from invasion and subjugation by American might (as American might would invade and subjugate another small Caribbean island republic, the Dominican Republic, in 1965) because, again, of an alliance with Russia.

The lesson is clear: black power advocates must assiduously cultivate the support of the Afro-Asian world. MORE, that moment when state power comes into our hands is the same moment when formal, international alliances must be announced. Indeed, these alliances may prove our only guarantee of continued existence.

Excerpt from Imari Obadele speech to the Toward a Black University Conference at Howard University, November 1968:

Government Must Be By Consent

“Ever since the American Declaration of Independence an accepted principle of international law has been that men need only be bound by government that arises from the consent of the governed. That is to say, a group of persons must consent - must agree - to be governed by a government or else that government is a creature of oppression and its rule is tyranny. A group of people has a right - indeed, they have a duty to throw off such tyrannical government and institute such new government and new forms as to themselves seem most likely to assure their future happiness and success.

Thus, because the founders of the Republic of New Africa understood that the government of the United States rules black people without our studied consent, and because the founders understood, therefore, that for black people the United States government is tyranny and an exercise in oppression, we created a new government - The Republic of New Afrika - to which black people can freely and with great hope and justification, give their consent. The new forms which we are instituting to assure our future happiness and success are those to which black people throughout the United States have traditionally aspired, in order to achieve freedom, justice, prosperity, progress, and brotherhood. And they are spelled out in the ‘Aims of the Revolution’ contained in the Republic’s Declaration of Independence (March 31, 1968).

Primary Objective of the Republic of New Afrika: Win Consent of the People

Therefore, the primary objective of the government of the New Republic of of New Africa, in our peaceful campaign to win soverignty over lands on the continent that righfully belong to black people, has been to create opportunities for black people to show that the government of the United States does not have our consent, and that the Republic of New Africa does have our consent.

This continues to be our policy and the primary strategical objective of the Republic of New Africa. Wherever our Consulates and pledged citizens exist - whether in our subjugated colonies in the Northern cities or our subjugated territories in the South - the policy is the same and constantly pursued: to create the means for black people to express thier consent to be governed by the Republic of New Africa.

Massive Mis-Education of Black People in America Concerning Citizenship and Building a Separate Independent Black Nation

Because of the massive mis-education of black people in America concerning rights and obligations, the Republic’s campaigns for consent are often described as, and often become campaigns to win consent. For most black people do not understand that their present evidences of consent (payment of taxes, voting, serving in the Army, etc.) have been forced from us by a tyrannical government that has never allowed us a free choice - free consent - in the matter of citizenship. . . . 

To break through the massive mis-education of our people . . . it is necessary to make them understand - not just in their brains but in their gut-bottom emotions - that the only answer to ending the oppression and misery under which they daily live is to join in building a separate, free, powerful black nation of our own right now, right here on this continent. The next step  is to convince them that it can be done.

But the first, most difficult, but most important step is to convince them that our new nation is the only answer to misery and oppression.

Winning Consent for the Republic of New Afrika is Dangerous Work

This work - the work of convincing people anywhere in our subjugated areas within the United States, that our separate nation is the only answer and to join us in building it - is fraught with danger wherever we conduct it.

Even though the Republic’s official pronouncements have made it clear that (1) we wish to negotiate a peaceful settlement of our differences with the United States and that (2) we do not seek to overthrow the United States government or alter its form but only to set up our own independent government - despite this, the United States government is fully capable (though wrong under its own law and international law) of harassing and jailing our workers and leaders. Indeed, the likelihood of this happening increases geometrically as we become more successful and as mis-informed whites (the majority in America) feel tht we are seriously threatening their prestige and power (that is: their white supremacy and white domination).

Moreover, every state in the Union has its own laws on subversion, overthrow, syndicalism and the like. In the five states of the South these laws could be used against us with considerably more justification than similar federal laws - and almost certainly will be. . . . Then, there is the use of uniformed and uninformed white violence.

Workers and officers of the Republic face all these dangers . . . merely for organizing people to express their free consent for a government. It can be no other way. And because we understand the call of history, we can do nothing else but to press on for the freedom of our people, along this certain course: Independence.”

In 1970, Imari Obadele discussed the concept of the plebiscite in his work:

Revolution and Nation Building: Strategy for Building the Black Nation in America

by Imari Obadele

“The mechanical steps to independence . . . . We begin with a petition drive. . . . For the key to our legitimacy is consent: the will of the people. The petition simply asserts that the undersigned citizens agree to hold an election, with U.N. participation, to determine whether or not the District (the Afro Descendant colony in the United States) shall be independent of the jurisdiction of the United States. The petition also urges the New York legislature and the U.S. Congress to change the law so that communities which wish to separate peacefully (Siphiwe note: through emigration, repatriation, or independence) may do so.

Indeed, along with the petition drive a specific campaign must be conducted among New York legislators and U.S. Congressmen (particularly black ones) to make them - and, concurrently, the world - see that our cause is just under moral law and correct under international law and that the law of the United States is deficient in failing to provide a peaceful formula for the separation of communities seeking their independence.

No one need have any illusions about the prospect of changing the law. But the campaign among the lawmakers is a testament to our peaceful intentions and an important element in the battle for world opinion and support which New Afrika must wage . . . in capitals of the world and in the approaches to the United Nations. . . . 

Let us return a moment to the  first question: how sovereignty is to be achieved in the first place. From what has already been indicated, it is clear that the overall strategy is to present the United States, the United Nations, and the world with an implacable accomplished fact: the free vote of a community for independence. It is, then, to seek a favorable deployment of world-wide diplomatic pressures and internal (U.S.) political pressures. It is, finally, to follow up the independence vote with creation of a local government and a pattern of action by the local government and the Republic that constitutes the exercise of Sovereignty. In other words, the Government, after the vote, must act like a government.” pp. 42-45

“Oppressed as a group, we must rise up as a group. This is not only the common sense of physics applied to human dynamics, whereby the power of thirty million people acting in unison is greater than the power of thirty million people acting individually, it is also a common and noble instinct of man, having to do with survival of the species. . . . We are an oppressed people - oppressed not only by the white ruling class but in a quite real and deeply rooted sense by the WHOLE white majority. We are not a part of them. We are robbed by them, and ALL of them partake of the riches that flow to them spiritually and materially, from our exploitation. Let them if they would call to us and say, ‘Join us in the American political revolution first - and when we are in power, we will wipe out racial oppression.” No. We ARE no longer slaves. The fight for power WITHIN the American society is theirs. OUR energies now must be spent in marshaling our resources for our own well-being and strength, that we may, through our own power, free ourselves of oppression, that we may, through our own power, reconstruct the black personality, which is the first step toward freedom from oppression. We have a need, as a people, to march to a different drummer - and a right. We have a right to create a quality of life that is uniquely ours, meeting OUR needs, reflecting OUR ambitions. . . . Our method entails campaigns for consent, followed by plebiscites, followed by defense of our lands. . . . By this element we leave to the white majority any war for control of the American machinery of government. We seek no control over their people or their goods. Neither do we seek all of their states or half of them or even one-quarter of them. We seek but one-tenth of the states over which they claim sovereignty. Our claim finds its justice not simply in the fact that we are one-tenth of the people in America but that these states - Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia and South Carolina - have been our traditional home for three centuries, we have worked the land and developed it, and have fought to stay there against terror and murder and assault and intimidation and deprivations of all sorts. We can say: this land is ours. Here we shall build a new nation: in peace, if peace is permitted us; in war, if it is forced upon us. Our method of achieving this sovereignty over our land is the method of men of peace, of African men who love justice and honor law. . . . Next we shall demonstrate to the world, by means of a plebiscite, a vote, that it is New Afrika, not the United States, which has the consent of the people who dominate those areas.” pp 72-75

“But it is not enough to visualize the New Society. This has never been enough. It is not enough to make declarations and conceive structures through which to achieve those visions. Men have always had their lofty visions and their good intentions. What counts is men themselves: how men apply themselves to the tasks which MUST be performed if the visions are to materialize. And so, permit me a final thought, a final word - about US.

. . . . I know that victory is not assured. We can have victory, of course: IF the circumstances are right and IF we pay the price. Those of us who profess to be in the leadership work to make the circumstances right. But we wonder - I wonder, seventeen months after the founding of the Republic - if we are willing to pay the price. I wonder because in seventeen months I have seen ‘strong’ brothers and ‘beautiful’ sisters cop out. I have seen them fail one another. I have seen men who profess to be soldiers fail to be on time, fail to obey orders, fail to show up for duty. I have seen the makers of burning speeches fail to carry out the charges of their offices. I have seen citizens give money lavishly at emotional mass rallies and fail to pay their small regular taxes. I have seen us pledge our lives and our fortunes but fail to show up for an hour’s worth of typing, an hour’s drive to the printer’s or the airport. . . . The thing that is wrong with us is that we have been imbued with a slave mentality. We have been robbed of self-confidence, instilled with self-hate, and turned into a race of selfish, paranoic, super-sensitive individuals. It is almost needless to say that none of this was by accident. But the first step in the cure is to recognize and acknowledge the illness. We are the richest slaves in the world, but nowhere do we pay the freight in our fight for freedom. It was more than coincidence that soon after white money was withdrawn from SNCC and CORE they went into decline; it is more than accident that SCLC looks to whites for its largest donations. . . . In like manner we admire the resolute and victorious Vietnamese, but we seem not so sure that freedom and an uncertain future are better than well fed, indolent, two-car slavery. We want freedom but will risk noting important to get it. In this moment of crisis brothers and sisters cop out - leaving the Movement the poorer for their going - because they have to ‘get my own thing together,’ meaning their job or business or profession or the house with which they are trying to keep up with the Roosevelts Joneses. They cop out because they have been ‘left to do all the work,’ or because somebody’s attitude ‘bugged’ them, or because ‘everybody around here is jeffing,’ or because ‘i’ll be back when the real ‘get-down’ starts.’ A people like that deserves no freedom. What is more, they will get no freedom. But the children deserve it. Must we leave it for the children to get it, leaving them to the risk of becoming warped in this unchanged society? . . . It is, next, to understand the method, the technique for winning sovereignty, which has been laid out for us: the campaigns for consent, the development of foreign and domestic support, the limited objective and the strong military. Finally, it is to bring yourself to the Republic. It is to put down hesitation, stop waiting for the organization to be perfect - give up your special cop-out - and become a part of NEW AFRIKA NOW. It is to bring your talents and your devotion and pledge with us to work unceasingly and selflessly with great discipline - discipline - knowing that each of us, particularly because of the damage oppression has done to us, has many shortcomings and styles that may constitute severe sources of irritation, but vowing with your utmost determination that none of these will separate you from the Movement or from your brothers and sisters in the Movement.” pp 76-80

Eight Strategic Elements

“There are eight strategic elements which are required for the successful establishment of an independent black state on the American mainland. They are these:

  1. Brains

  2. Labor

  3. Natural Resources

  4. Internal Domestic Support

  5. International Support

  6. A Limited Objective

  7. Inherent Military Viability

  8. A Second-Strike Capability

The combination of brains, labor and national resources is what produces wealth, without which no country can contemplate true independence. . . . 

Non-New Afrikan Blacks in America Must Support the Provisional Government of the Republic of New Afrika

“Non-New Afrikan blacks in America must support us in a variety of ways. Support of the campaign for reparations is essential. Black Congressmen must take the lead in campaigning through Congress for a reparations settlement which includes substantial payment to the black nation, to the Republic of New Africa, even if it includes direct payments to individuals. But we are completely against reparations payments which go to whites or to U.S. government agencies to use for us - this is no reparations at all. We are also against using funds from our reparations settlement to pay capitalists for the plants and mines which we take over in the South. If at all, payment for these should be arranged in negotiation with our government. But the cold cash of our reparations settlement, and the trading credits, must be largely used to acquire the machine, to improve and expand industrial plants.

The support of non-New African blacks in America must, obviously, include sending dollars and gold, silver and diamonds, which we have in abundance in our jewelry to New Africa so that however long it takes to achieve a meaningful reparations settlement with the U.S. or however destructive our warfare in the South, we will not be without acceptable media for acquiring the machine through international trade. Blacks remaining within the U.S. must also - and importantly - use their influence, so long as it exists, to restrain the hand of the United States in using its court and military establishments against us. Indeed, to put this positively, blacks remaining in the U.S. must exert every influence to help us force the United States to settle with us justly - on the basis of plebiscites and international law - our claims to sovereignty and reparations.

International Support is Equally Important

But international support is equally important in staying the hand of the U.S. government against us. International Support is a crucial factor in assuring that our war for independence will neither be interminable nor unsuccessful.  It is not only a matter of direct material or arms aid; just as the deployment of United States forces on alert status in such places as the Sea of Japan and Korea has been of some value to the VIetnamese, so the same or similar deployments would be of value to us. Too, on the military side, the possibility - however remote, however logistically difficult -that Chinese troops might, if asked by us, make an appearance in the United States such as Alaska or Hawaii, or at some oversees point where the United States has military commitments; the possibility that African nations in retaliation for U.S. military action against us might take action against the U.S. within their countries, which could include breaking off relations, seizures of property and concerted military action  against . . . . allies of the U.S. and supported by and relied upon by the U.S. - these two possibilities count as major elements in our calculated use of foreign support to stay the hand of the U.S. agains us and move that government toward a peaceful settlement with us.

Thus, in New Africa we have upon us the obligation to cultivate unilaterally and through regional associations the support of foreign powers. Ultimately we look to the United Nations as the power where world opinion  - supported by the pressures generated by the operation of these eight strategic elements which we are discussing will validate our independence and our claim against the United States for reparations. But it seems clear that the enforcement of our claims, whatever validation we receive beyond these shores, will depend on our own success at arms.

We follow a classic principle of political science; that for a small nation (us) to maintain itself against a big nation (the United States), it is necessary for the small nation to have an alliance with another big nation (China) or groups of nations (the anti-imperialist nations of Africa and Asia).

The Sixth Strategic Element - the Limited Objective - Has a Clear and Undeniable Importance

This success is made not alone on the battlefield, or even in the very important - indeed vital - preparations behind the battlefield. It is made also through the terms of the war, through the objectives being sought or defended. The sixth strategic element - the Limited Objective - has a clear and undeniable importance.

What we are talking about here is that instead of seeking the overthrow of the U.S. government of the control of 50 states or even 25 states, we seek merely five states. This is only one-forth of the states, and we are one-tenth of the population. Together they are five of the poorest states in the Union. They have great numbers of black people, suffering both a relative and absolute educational poverty, severe health and nutritional problems, and, in many areas, an endemic culture of poverty. They are underdeveloped. In short, the land we seek is an area which white Americans may feel is well worth giving up - once they have reached the point where giving up something seems inevitable or, at least, a better course than destruction and death.

Military Viability

Now, how do we get white people to this point? We would hope that polemics and reason would do it. We would hope that things like this book and diplomatic and political pressures would do it. Unfortunately history seems to teach us otherwise. We would love to be wrong. Yet what we learn from history is the unmistakable promise that the white man will fight us. And so, we must be prepared to fight him - and win - for our limited objective. We must have, therefore, an inherent Military Viability. Our army and our people must be able to survive destruction, and survive not just for a day or a few days but for many weeks and months, for years, if necessary, to establish our independence. And we must at the same time be able to inflict severe damage upon the enemy.

Sometimes the will of our people to suffer through war and persevere for years for our freedom - as the Vietnamese have done, as the black Angolans are doing, as the white American colonists did in the past - is doubted. So many of us are such comfortable slaves. Only time will tell. But if we do not have the will, if we do not persevere we will not win our freedom. It is that simple. Foreign aid and foreign alliances will not win it for us. Only  through our own will. Only through our own perseverance in war, in the midst of suffering deprivation, and death. Only out of this.

And the role of the people is crucial. In the South, where we must ultimately deploy the Black Legion as our main-force army, our strategy has to include the people on the land and in the cities as a vital element. The Army must be able to move in secret and conceal itself. It must be able to depend on the people for reconnaissance and intelligence information, against the enemy. And it must be able to depend on the people to deny to the enemy food, general supplies, transport and sanctuary in order to maximize for the enemy his supply, concealment, and logistical problems. 

Finally, beyond the South, the black man’s SECOND STRIKE CAPABILITY must be believable. The second strike capability is the Underground Army, the black guerillas in the cities. So long as black people are able to remain in the cities - and there are over 120 major cities where the brothers have used the torch - and retain relative freedom of movement, the black man has, or can develop, the means for destroying white industrial capacity and - if need be - white America in general as mercilessly as a missile attack.

Although the Republic of New Afrika neither directs nor controls these guerrillas - nor is in anyway more positive than the rest of you that they even exist - to the extent that they do exist and support the national policy and objectives of the Republic of New Africa, and to the extent that their power is believable, to these extents is the war foreshortened and more quickly will come the success of our independent black state on the American mainland.”

In February 1972, The Black Scholar published Imari Obadele’s, “The Struggle is for Land” in which he wrote,

“The problem with international law is that there is nobody there to enforce it - except the powerful. Powerful nations enforce international law only when it suits them - or when they are forced to. . . . The development of foreign support, inside and outside the United Nations, is another of the vital supporting strategies. . . . “

In 1972, Imari Obadele also wrote

FOUNDATIONS OF THE BLACK NATION

“In two small books issued by me in 1968 and 1970 War In America and Revolution And Nation-Building I detailed the theory to be applied by Africans in the United States in liberating a land mass for our national home. Today We are applying those theories in the Kush District of Mississippi. The present book covers the period immediately following theory. It brings together letters and articles that have emerged during the first two years of the campaign in Kush as the Provisional Government seeks (1) to inform and organize the people on the land for a plebiscite and for revolutionary resistance, (2) to generate support among blacks throughout America for the struggle in Kush, (3) to engineer acceptance of black independence by the US. Govemmen", and (4) to use attacks upon the RNA Provisional Government~such as the armed assaul and prosectiuon of the RNA - 11 to accomplish the other three aims.

What is more, the struggle can be successful. A great deal, however, depends upon how fast and how completely Africans in America can un-track their minds from the inability to think about land, independent land, as not only an integral part of our struggle for freedom but as an essential primary goal. For success of the struggle depends a great deal upon the support those of us who now opt for and are working to build an independent African nation on this soil, get from those of us who do not now choose for themselves the route of an independent nation. We calculate that those who do not now opt for independence may number as many as two~fifths of Our people. And the support of these people must be founded upon Understanding of what the New Africans are about. . . . The problem with international law is that there is nobody to enforce it except the powerful. Powerful nations enforce international law only when it suits them  or when they are forced to.

Perhaps the best way for people to un-track their minds from the slaving inability to think of land as a real and legitimate goal of our struggle is to understandh how a people acquire claims to land. There is, of course, what we call the bandit rule of international law: that says, essentially, that if a people steals land and occupies it for a long time, the world will recognize that land as belonging to them. This, of course, is the manner in which the United States acquired claim to most of America: white folks simply stole it and held it. As a peopleWe Africans in America have been cowed by this rule; We have cringed before it (and before the power of the beast) as if it were the only rule of land possession. There is, fortunately, a civilized rule of land possession. It says that if a people has lived on a land traditionally, if they have worked and developed it, and if they have fought to stay there, that land is theirs. It isupon this rule of international law that Africans in America rest their claim for land in America. The essential strategy of our struggle for land is to array enough power ( as in jui-jitsu, with a concentration of karate strength at key moments) to force the greatest power, the United States, to abide by international law, to recognize and accept our claims to independence and land. The purpose of this strategy can be further simplified: it is to create a situation for the United States where it becomes cheaper to relinquish control of the Five States than to continue a war against us to take back or hold the area.

How do We accomplish such a thing? The implementing tactics are various, but they revolve around a set of supporting strategies first laid out by me in the short book War in America and further illuminated in another small book called Revolution and Nation-Building.

“We know whence the ‘start-money’ for the nation should come. It SHOULD come from the nation of our former slave masters, from the United States, whose wealth today is ALL derived, in essence, from the tri-cornered trade - that is to say, from the body and exploitation of the African slave. Repayments for this is what is known as reparations.

The principle of reparations is well established in international law. Nations pay reparations to nations. They pay reparations for the damage to each other, such as for accidental sinking of a ship in time of peace. They pay reparations for war: Germany to France, after World War I. They pay damages for crimes against people, for genocide: after World War II, for instance, Germany not only paid reparations to France for war, Germany paid reparations (over $800 million) to Israel for having slaughtered six million Jews not only during but before the war.

This last is particularly important to us, because the state of Israel, founded in 1948, did not even exist when the Nazis abused the Jews. The Jews used their reparations for economic development, as all reparations are intended to be used. New Africa’s use of reparations will be for precisely the same purpose. We have proposed a settlement to the United States federal government: $10,000 per individual descendant of slaves, some 300 billion dollars. (The US defense budget every year is well over 70 billion dollars.) Because of the special nature of our oppression and a belief within the RNA Government that economic development would best be advanced this way, we have proposed that 40% - $4,000 of the $10,000 - go directly to the individual.

From every state government with a black population, for demonstrable discrimination and oppression in the years after slavery, We are demanding $15,000 for every family which comes to a New African New Community in the South or already lives in the five states. All of this would be used to build the New Community ($7,500,000 for every community of 500 families).”

In 1973, republic of New Afrika President Imari Abubakari Obadele and Attorney Gaidi Obadele laid out the case for a plebiscite for African Americans in

THE ARTICLE THREE BRIEFS ESTABLISHING THE LEGAL CASE FOR THE EXISTENCE OF THE BLACK NATION THE REPUBLIC OF NEW AFRICA IN NORTH AMERICA

In May 1985, Imari Obadele submitted to the Temple University Graduate Board in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy

NEW AFRICAN STATE-BUILDING IN NORTH AMERICA: A Study of Reaction Under the Stress of Conquest

Nkechi Taifa writes in her memoir, Black Power, Black Lawyer,

"The spark for [the National Coalition of Blacks for Reparations in America - NCOBRA] founding emanated from a 1987 conference on Race and the Constitution spearheaded by the National Conference of Black Lawyers (NCBL) and held at Harvard University. . . . We also examined an act authorizing negotiations between a commission of the U.S. and a commission of the RNA to determine kind, dates and other details of paying reparations. We discussed the significance of 'government to government' reparations as the negotiated settlement that follows conclusion of war . . . . Out of that historic September 26, 1987 gathering, the National Coalition of Blacks for Reparation in America (NCOBRA) was born, bringing together diverse groups under one umbrella. Black Nationalist politics clearly dominated the room. . . . Since the creation of NCOBRA, the demand for reparations in the United States substantially leaped forward, generating what I've dubbed, the modern day Reparations Movement. It was the perfect storm. The Black Power Movement was open and receptive to a broad-based approach to further the issue of reparations. The Black legal community sanctioned the largely Black Nationalist effort . . . . I am appreciative that leaders in the New Afrikan Independence Movement had the humility to tone down their analysis and distinct ideological position in favor of facilitating broader acceptance of the concept of reparations and allowing new voices to come to the fore. " (pp. 174-179)

The REPARATIONS: A PROPOSED ACT TO STIMULATE ECONOMIC GROWTH IN THE UNITED STATES AND COMPENSATE, IN PART, FOR THE GRIEVOUS WRONGS OF SLAVERY AND THE UNJUST ENRICHMENT WHICH ACCRUED TO THE UNITED STATES THEREFROM prepared by President of the PGRNA Imari Obadele proposed the following, simple and logical formula for reparations:

1. One-third of the annual sum shall go directly to each individual;

2. One-third of the annual sum shall go directly to the duly elected government of the Republic of New Afrika and to any other state-building entity of New Afrikan people; and

3. One-third of the annual sum shall be paid directly to a National Congress of Organizations. And all of this to be framed and manifested through a PLEBISCITE.

It should be remembered that in Foundations of a Black Nation (1972), Imari Obadele stated,

“We know whence the ‘start-money’ for the nation should come. It SHOULD come from the nation of our former slave masters, from the United States

reparations: a proposed ACT TO STIMULATE ECONOMIC GROWTH IN THE UNITED STATES AND COMPENSATE, IN PART, FOR THE GRIEVOUS WRONGS OF SLAVERY AND THE UNJUST ENRICHMENT WHICH ACCRUED TO THE UNITED STATES THEREFROM

Today, several groups are now talking again about a plebiscite for New Afrikan Self Determination. Unfortunately, many of them do not have a proper understanding of the process nor the historical lessons of plebiscites in history. Of critical importance is understanding the very nature of a plebiscite - “the direct vote of all the members of an electorate on an important public question”.

To achieve an effective legal basis, a plebiscite traditionally must have a substantially significant majority participation [i.e. 90% of the adult New Afrikan people, or approximately 30 million people is ideal; a ⅔ majority vote in favor….], though there are exceptions. My personal opinion is that we are a decade, if not an entire generation, away from being able to reach this standard. However, should a source of substantial funding materialize - say through a multi-million dollar grant from a proposed Association of New Afrikan Professional Athletes for Self Determination or the Association of New Afrikan Celebrity Entertainers for Self Determination - it is possible, through a professional marketing campaign, to have a reasonable opportunity in perhaps three to five years. Participation of 1 to 5 million people is more reasonable, but this would require a different set of post plebiscite actions.

I believe that New Afrikans have both the personnel and technical knowledge  capable of conducting the plebiscite, but lack a proper organizational apparatus within which to function. Were we to secure the funding, a bid soliciting a New Afrikan marketing firm to handle the marketing/education campaign should be advertised. Similarly, high officials from all the National Councils of the various black church denominations should be called into a National Council of Black Churches for Self Determination to handle the logistics of conducting the plebiscite as the churches themselves are the most likely locations for plebiscite voting. It is questionable whether or not registered New Afrikan polling officials of the Democratic and Republican parties can be brought in as plebiscite polling officials. However, if we are going to seriously attempt to reach the 90% participation standard, their participation would be required so as to give legitimacy to “unconscious” New Afrikans as well as to the international community. A so-called plebiscite of a 130,000 “conscious” Afro Descendants/New Afrikans will not be accepted as a legitimate direct vote of all the members of an electorate . . . .

A New Afrikan Plebiscite Civil Service Exam is being created and will be used to train staff who will be supervised and responsible for all the range of necessary activities before and after the plebiscite. In particular, a disciplined New Afrikan Plebiscite Diplomatic Corp will be needed (at least 1,000 people). I see this Corp as consisting of a Steering Committee composed of a Council of Elders and staffed by people who pass the New Afrikan Plebiscite Civil Service Exam. Both the Steering Committee and Diplomatic Corps will need full-time professional salaries in addition to travel expenses. 

The small groups claiming to represent the “Afro Descendant” people talking about conducting a plebiscite to represent 50 million of us do not yet have the capacity in human and financial resoursces to conduct a proper campaign as outlined above to build consent which is a pre-requisite of a subsequent and successful plebiscite for Independence. A ton of educating still needs to be done. Towards that end, the following are some of the educational material included in the comprehensive training course for PREPARING FOR THE NEW AFRIKAN/AFRO DESCENDANT PLEBISCITE FOR SELF DETERMINATION IN THE UNITED STATES: FOUNDATIONAL KNOWLEDGE CONCERNING COLONIZATION AND THE EVOLUTION, RISKS, BENEFITS, PROCEDURES AND STRATEGIES FOR ESTABLISHING NATIONAL SOVEREIGNTY.

Different Elements and Parts of PG-RNA

The People’s Center Council (PCC)– Congress, National Legislature or Parliament is made up of District Representatives from PGRNA electoral districts across the U.S.A.

The People’s Revolutionary Leadership Council (PRLC) — A Cabinet headed by the National President, three National Vice Presidents, Ministries, Court System, and Other Govt. entities, including the Land Fund Committee, etc.

PG-RNA Cabinet in 1968:

1st President: Robert F. Williams (1925-1996) : He was in China 1966 to May 1968; Tanzania, May 1968 to Sept. 1969. 1st Vice President: Gaidi Obadele (Atty. Milton R. Henry) 2nd Vice President: Betty Shabazz (1934-1997) Minister of Information: Imari A. Obadele (Richard Bullock Henry) Minister of Health and Welfare: Queen Mother Moore (1899-1997) Minister of Education: Herman Ferguson Minister of State and Foreign Affairs: William Grant Minister of Defense: H. Rap Brown (now, Jalil Al Amin): He was also Minister of Justice for BPP in May 4, 1968 issue of The Black Panther. Co-Ministers of Culture: Imamu Amiri Baraka (LeRoi Jones), Maulana Karenga and Nana Oserjiman Adefumi Minister of Justice: Joan Franklin Minister of Finance: Raymond Willis Treasurer: Obaboa Owolo (Ed Bradley) Minister without Portfolio or Special Ambassador: Muhammad Ahmed (Maxwell Stanford)

PG-RNA Cabinet in 1969:

President: Robert F. Williams (1925-1997): He returned to U.S. (Detroit), Sept. 1969. (The Black Panther, Dec. 6, 1969; Jan. 3, 1970). 1st Vice President: Gaidi Obadele (Atty. Milton R. Henry) 2nd Vice President: Betty Shabazz (d. 1997) Minister of Education: Maulana Karenga: denounced and removed by PCC in Detroit, Apr. 5th. Herman B. Ferguson was afterwards appointed Minister of Education, East Coast Vice President, and acting director of Freedom Corps. Minister of State and Foreign Affairs: Wilbur Grattan Sr. Minister of Defense: Mwuesi Chui, commander of Black Legion

The “New Bethel Incident” took place in Detroit, Michigan, in March 31, 1969 during the First New Afrikan Nation Day Celebration at the New Bethel Baptist Church, on the West Side. One policeman killed and another wounded. Four Blacks wounded. Between 135 and 240 persons were arrested. Police later freed 125 persons [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_W._Crockett,_Jr. Criminal Court Judge George Crockett], frees 8 other Blacks. Chaka Fuller, Rafael Viera, and Alfred 2X Hibbets were charged with killing. All 3 were subsequent tried and acquitted. Chaka Fuller was mysterious assassinated a few months afterwards.

Southern Regional Minister of Defense: Jomo Kenyatta (Henry Hatches) Consul for Jackson, MS: Carolyn Williams April 2, 1969 – The New York BPP “21” arrested on conspiracy charges.

In 1969, a Newsweek magazine poll of Afrikans in the Northern U.S. showed that 27 percent of Afrikans under age thirty (and 18 percent of those over the age of thirty), wanted an independent Afrikan state.

PG-RNA Cabinet in 1970:

President: Imari A. Obadele Minister of Defense: Alajo Adegbalola (Leroy Boston) Dara Abubakaru (Virginia Collins)

PG-RNA Cabinet in 1971:

President: Imari Obadele , Minister of Defense: Alajo Adegbalola Minister of Information: Aisha Salim of Philadelphia Consul from Detroit: Chokwe Lumumba

Workers of the PG-RNA also announced that they would not permit those who opposed the peaceful plebiscite to shoot at them with impunity. The RNA cadres in Mississippi and elsewhere, in 1970 and 1971 were armed for self-defense.

March 5th, BPP sponsors a Day of Solidarity dedicated to “Freedom of Political Prisoners.”

On March 28th-Land Celebration Day-the RNA Capitol consecrated, Hinds County, Mississippi. Between 150 and 200 persons attended the dedication.

They used, and use, political means rather than military means. The United States Justice Department, instead of helping to organize the plebiscite; on 18 August 1971 a force of 60 FBI agents and 40 local Jackson police staged an armed attack on the official Government Residence (the main residence-office of the PG) in Jackson, Mississippi, supposedly to serve fugitive warrants on three RNA members (one being a FBI informant/agent provocateur). The seven people in the house were not wounded by the 20-minute barrage of bullets–a skirmish, but one police lieutenant died and another policeman and an FBI agent were wounded. Five young men and two young women at this house were captured, along with PG-RNA President, Imari Obadele, the Minister of Information and two others in a nearby office, and sent to jail.

The Suppressed History of New Africans Fighting For Independence- Haki Kweli Shakur

In the face of this unprovoked attack, three PG-RNA workers: Antar Ra, Maceo Sundiata (fsn Michael Finney) and Fela Sekou Olatunji (fsn Charles Hill) from the Bay Area, left in response to the call for Mississippi to provide support and defense for our assaulted movement. Clearly the U.S. had declared war on us! While driving east, the three were intercepted by a policeman whose aggressiveness caused his death. They then commandeered an airline and arrived in Cuba. They were granted asylum.

(On August 19th, FBI and police tried to assassinate President Imari Obadele.)

They are convicted two years later. Most served long years in jail. Their sovereign immunity demand was flatly rejected by the United States’ courts and executive branch, and no one was accorded treatment as a prisoner-of-war.

The Republic of New Afrika-Eleven (RNA-11): Citizens of the RNA: Imari Obadele; Hekima Ana and his wife, Tamu Ana, and Chumaimari Askadi (fsn Charles Stallings), all of Milwaukee; Karim Njabafudi (fsn Larry Jackson) of New Orleans; Tarik/Tawwab Nkrumah (fsn George Matthews) of Birmingham; Addis Ababa (fsn Dennis Shillingford) of Detroit; Offogga Qudduss (fsn Wayne Maurice James) and Njeri Qudduss, both of Camden, New Jersey; Spade de Mau Mau (fsn S. L. Alexander) of New Orleans; and Minister of Information Aisha Salim (fsn Brenda Blount) of Philadelphia.

PG-RNA Cabinet in 1972:

President: Gaidi Obadele Vice Presidents: Alajo Adegbalola, Chokwe Lumumba, Herman B. Ferguson New Afrikan Security Forces: Black Legion commander: Gen. Mwuesi Chui

In 1972, Ahmed Obafemi of New York had been sentenced on a gun charge clearly engineered by the F.B.I.’s Cointelpro. The F.B.I. succeeded in framing this key leader and officer of the RNA-PG. He was doing political work at the Democratic National Convention in Miami, Florida. Sentenced with him was Tarik Sonnebeyatta, of Camden, New Jersey. Brother Ahmed was jailed.

PG-RNA Cabinet in 1973:

Jan. 7, 1973 – Mark Essex, 23; is killed atop New Orleans hotel after killing 6 and wounding 15. Jan. 19th – One policeman killed and 2 wounded as Black freedom fighters seize a Brooklyn sporting goods store. May 2nd – Assata Shakur (fsn JoAnne Chesimard) wounded and Sundiata Acoli (fsn Clark Squire) arrested. Nov. 14th – Twyman Fred Myers, 23, BLA member, ambushed by FBI and New York police; was 6th BLA member killed in this fashion.

1975

PG-RNA Cabinet in 1980:

President: Imari Obadele A study conducted among Afrikan college students by Professor Luke Tripp which showed that 34 percent of the students favored an independent Afrikan state in North Amerika.

By the middle of 1980, because of public support and intense legal work, almost all of the RNA-11 (except for one) were set free and out of jail.

In the fall, some members of BLA, and some accused of being BLA personnel, had come under intense concentration by FBI and, principally, New York, New Jersey, and California police.

PG-RNA Cabinet in 1981:

President: Imari Obadele PCC Chairperson: Fulani Sunni-Ali

July 1983 – People’s Center Council (PCC) Meeting in Atlanta, Georgia, RNA National Territory.

Oct./Nov. 1984 – Third National New Afrikan Elections

Nov. 1985 – People’s Center Council (PCC) Meeting in Chicago, Illinois.

PG-RNA Cabinet in 1986:

President: Imari Obadele Minister of Justice: Nkechi Taifa Minister of Defense: Gen. Chui

July 1986 – People’s Center Council (PCC) Meeting in New Orleans, Louisiana, RNA National Territory.

July 1986 – People’s Center Council (PCC) Meeting in Detroit, Michigan.

Sept. 1986 – People’s Center Council (PCC) Meeting in Brooklyn, New York.

PG-RNA Cabinet in 1987:

President: Imari Obadele Minister of Justice: Nkechi Taifa

July 1987 – People’s Center Council (PCC) Meeting in Washington, DC (Banneker City).

Oct./Nov. 1987 – Fourth National New Afrikan Elections

Oct./Nov. 1990 – Fifth National New Afrikan Elections: Kwame Afoh elected president.

PG-RNA Cabinet in 1991:

President: Kwame Afoh PCC Chairperson: Imari Obadele

PG-RNA Cabinet in 1992:

President: Kwame Afoh PCC Chairperson: Imari Obadele

PG-RNA Cabinet in 1993:

President: Kwame Afoh PCC Chairperson: Imari Obadele

Nov. 1993 – National New Afrikan Elections: President Kwame Afoh re-elected.

In April 1994, several mainstream newspapers (New York Times, Washington Post, Chicago Sun-Times, and the Wall Street Journal) ran articles dealing with University of Chicago Professor Michael Dawson and Professor Ronald Brown of Wayne State University. The report concerned the findings of a random national survey of 1,206 Afrikans in the U.S., which in Dawson’s words showed ” a more radical Black America than existed even five years ago.” (Wall Street Journal). It found that fifty percent of Afrikans in the U.S. believe that our people are “a nation within a nation.”

Oct. 1996 – National New Afrikan Elections: President Kwame Afoh re-elected.

PG-RNA Cabinet in 1997:

President: Kwame Afoh PCC Chairperson: Marilyn Preston Killingham

PG-RNA Cabinet in 1998:

President: Kwame Afoh PCC Chairperson: Marilyn Preston Killingham

Oct./Nov. 1999 – National New Afrikan Elections

https://newafrikan77.wordpress.com/2014/08/18/republic-of-new-afrikan/

UNDERSTANDING THE SPORTS LANDSCAPE IN GUINEA BISSAU AND A PLAN TO FIX IT

Many people have been following my story after it was announced that Guinea Bissau named me to its Olympic Team and the story appeared in Sports Illustrated. My plan was to use all the attention - my “15 minutes of international fame” - to call attention to the struggle of Guinea Bissau’s athletes and to appeal to the world to raise money to help develop the sports infrastructure in Guinea Bissau. I wanted to give the next generation of undiscovered athletes in Guinea Bissau opportunites beyond playing local soccer (futbol) and the dream of playing professionally in a foreign league.

This was my biggest challenge yet. But then I was blocked from competing in the Olympics and until now, the complete story was never told. After being detained in a Tokyo airport during the Olympics, I returned to Guinea Bissau to begin building the national swimmming program. I did manage to represent the country at the 14th African Swimming Championships, but controversery continued to follow me because of the corruption within Guinea Bissau and I was blocked from competing in the CANA Zone 2 West African Swimming Championships and the FINA World Championships in Budapest, Hungary starting on June 18th..

In previous articles, I tried to explain the overall condition of Guinea Bissau and Why I Am Always Fundraising. I’ve even explored the subject of swimming, money and global inequality, comparing the support given to the swimmers of Ukraine versus the lack of support given to the swimmers of Guinea Bissau.

Rather than merely complain, I’ve tried to make a positive change by establishing a legal swimming federation in Guinea Bissau and raising money through the Swimming in Guinea Bissau: Hope for a Nation GoFundMe campaign.

However, to anyone OUTSIDE of Guinea Bissau, the real situation of what happaned to me, how I was sabotaged by the Guinea Bissau Olympic Committee, seems totally incredible. I now realize that if I was going to authentically represent the athletes in Guinea Bissau, I had to suffer as they have suffered. So now I have prepared this compilation of recent news stories from within Guinea Bissau to help the world understand how athletes are suffering and to inspire people to help change the situation by donating to our fundraising campaign.

WRESTLING: GUINEA-BISSAU PARTICIPATES IN AFRICAN CHAMPIONSHIP WITHOUT GOVERNMENT SUPPORT

“The president of the Guinea-Bissau Wrestling Federation regretted this Saturday (14.02) the lack of government support in the country's participation in the African championship of the sport.

The national sports caravan leaves the country at dawn this Sunday, (15.05) towards Morocco, to participate in the competition that will take place from the 17th to the 21st of May in the city of El Jadida.

Contacted by the editors of O Golo GB, Bernardino Soares da Gama, president of the Wrestling Federation, said that the Athletes prepared in the worst situations, without the minimum conditions to guarantee a decent participation.

“Our preparation was not the best, we worked with great difficulties, without minimum conditions, which can guarantee a decent participation of the country”, revealed the sports director, then recalling that in the last edition of the tournament, his athletes won eight medals. For the country.

Bernal, as he is also known, said that the country should participate with eight athletes, but due to the lack of funds from the executive, it was reduced to six elements, under the support of the Guinea-Bissau Olympic Committee, which assumed to pay the tickets for six elements of the sports caravan. , with four athletes, a selector and the president. [Siphiwe Note: where does the Olympic Committee get funds????]

Guinea-Bissau will defend the title of African champion (gold medal) in the 65 kg category, won in the last edition (2020), by M'Bundé Kumba M'Bali, and runner-up, in the 57 kg category with Diamantino Iuna Fafé (Silver Medal). The other two are, Caetano António Sá in the 74kg category, a category usually disputed by Augusto Midana who will be absent from the competition this year, and finally, Bacar Midana, nephew of Augusto Midana, in the 70kg category.

Despite the difficulties, the leader of the organization that manages Luta Livre in the country assured that the athletes will do their best to obtain good results and represent Guineans with dignity.

“We will do our best, athletes will do their best to bring medals,” he said.

However, Da Gama asked for more attention from the State to the sport that brought the most medals to the country, because, as he said, the wrestling caravans do not cost the country much.

This is not the first time that they participate in international competitions without the support of the executive, despite the good results achieved previously.

©️ The GB Goal”

TEQBALL CHAMPIONSHIP IS AT RISK IN THE COUNTRY

“The president of the Teqball Federation of Guinea-Bissau, Afonso Henrique Djú revealed that his federation is in uncertainty regarding the national championship of the sport, whose realization is at risk.

The federative leader spoke at the end of April, exclusively to the portal O Golo GB, to talk about the delay in holding the championship of this modality in the country, on the occasion Henrique Djú pointed out the difficulties.

“We are at an impasse, because we had promised that we will hold a national Teqball championship, so that all the followers and athletes are waiting for us, and we are not able to meet their expectations until this time, but we have not stopped, we continue to do the technical work. For those who followed our beginnings so far, you will certainly remember the great tournaments we held here in the capital, as well as in the countryside, all with the aim of decentralizing the sport”, he began by underlining.

Djú also added that the work of his direction is so that people can practice the sport and later have enough teams that will participate in the national Teqball championship.

“We were able to achieve our objective. We already have an average of 26 teams. Since the beginning, any activity is supported by the International Teqball Federation, we believed that we would have national support, but so far we are not having it, so it is difficult to hold a championship without conditions, and this year it will not be possible to have a Teqball championship, and in the future we will be able to hold tournaments in different areas of the country, so that teams and athletes do not stand still”, guaranteed the young president.

For Afonso Henrique Djú, the lack of the championship will undoubtedly have negative consequences, because the athletes are currently stopped and are not training given the lack of competition, which in his opinion, should not happen, but taking into account the various scenarios which often happen “creates a demotivation for athletes”, promising that if their institution has the conditions, it will hold the national championship.

Regarding the support of the Guinean government, Afonso Henrique Djú said that his federation, until the moment of this interview, has not received the subsidies that the executive has been giving to the different federations, and he says he has expectations that his federation may, in the future, receive these sports funds.

©️ Camnate M'bundé”

PRESIDENT OF THE VOLLEYBALL FEDERATION – “THE VOLLEYBALL SEASON IS THE BEST” 

“From what I know about the history of volleyball in the country, this season is going to be on another level, it is, without a doubt, one of the best moments of this modality”, began by saying the president of the Volleyball federation to Portal Desportivo O Golo GB.

As justification, Aladje Camará said: “We started the year with the conquest of the bronze medal, in January, in a tournament held in Gambia, where we showed the world that we have qualities. Another fact is the national championship that is taking place. The quality of the players, the spirit of competitiveness in the teams, is really fascinating. Although the country lacks the infrastructure or spaces to practice this modality, we are already doing something about it. In Canchungo, with the support of the local authority, we finance the rehabilitation of a camp, the same can happen with other areas of the country. Looking at these facts, I can say that we are meeting our goals and that Volleyball is experiencing one of its highest moments”.

“Our federation has an incredible desire to put volleyball at the top, maybe one day be in the same place as football, so we have the idea of ​​holding tournaments at a national level and also one day introducing this modality in physical education, in schools. of the country, it is a project that we will work together with the General Directorate of Sports, we can gain space and one day reach an even higher level,” said Aladje Camará, who later lamented: ‒ “unfortunately, at this time, we have not received no support from either the government or the Olympic Committee. All our work is paid for by us. So I appeal to public and private institutions and people of good will to support our federation. To those who gave up practicing this sport, I ask you to come back, because we are already rescuing everything that is good in volleyball”, he assured.

© Mamadi N'Djai

NANJÓ DEFENDS THE CREATION OF A SOCIAL FUND TO SUPPORT FORMER FOOTBALL PLAYERS

“Former Guinean footballer Fernando Jorge Tavares Pinto (Nandjó) defended the need to create a social fund to financially support former footballers who are in a very critical state of health.

“It is necessary for us to see for the people who once made our football grow, there are several football veterans who spent their entire youth in football and who today are without the means to support their families and are in a poor health phase, taking into account several injuries. contracted in their previous moments. Not only players, there are also former referees, coaches who also need support after they have finished their careers”, defended Fernando Tavares Pinto in an interview with the Guinean sports portal FUT 245.

“Puntchan”, as he is also affectionately called, took the opportunity to launch a vibrant appeal to the Government, the Olympic Committee and the Football Federation to give a little support to the former footballers who were once very important to the country. . . .

©️ FUT245

CYCLING: GUINEA-BISSAU MULTI-SPORTS CLUB RECEIVES DONATION FROM SENEGALE PARTNER

A Senegalese cyclist who has already competed in international competitions on behalf of Guinea-Bissau, delivered this afternoon a kit of equipment for bicycles for the athletes of the Multi-Sports Club of Guinea-Bissau.

The donation comprises 10 inner tubes, 10 tires, two pairs of chains and two front derailleurs, estimated at around 100,000 CFA Francs.

In the interview with O Golo GB, Youssou Ndoine, said that he made the offer for the satisfaction of seeing Guinea-Bissau compete in international cycling competitions that did not happen in the past, and with the emergence of the multisport club, with the will to leverage the modality , being one of the athletes of the aforementioned club, he only has to support the initiative in order to take the project forward.

Asked why he decided to compete on behalf of Guinea-Bissau, through Clube Multidesportivo, Youssou Ndoine revealed that it was not due to the lack of a club or the quality of representing clubs from Senegal, his country of origin, but due to the great passion tro motivate new Guinean athletes to continue to be present in international competitions.

Satisfied with the offer, Wilson Ié, president of the Clube Multisportivo da Guiné-Bissau, acknowledged that the materials received arrived at an important time and will help the athletes who are preparing to participate in the international tournament in Mauritania in December.

Wilson Ié, also regretted the fact that the athletes were preparing the tournament in Mauritania without minimum conditions, although he recognized the effort and openness of the Secretary of State for Youth and Sports.

According to the perspective, the national caravan should leave Guinea-Bissau for Mauritania on the 7th of December to participate in the international event that will bring together 12 countries on the African continent.

It should be noted that this is the Senegalese athlete's second donation to the Guinea-Bissau Multi-Sports Club. In July, he offered a pair of equipment to the national caravan that was representing the country at the international tournament in Thiès, Senegal.

© Goal GB”

I SAW THAT FIFA MONEY WENT TO SITUATIONS OTHER THAN THE DEVELOPMENT OF GUINEA-BISSAU" – GUILHERME FARINHA

“The Portuguese Guilherme Farinha ended in March the functions of national technical director of the Football Federation of Guinea-Bissau (FFGB), in the face of divergences in the work routines with the entity led by Carlos Teixeira .

“I saw that FIFA's money was going to situations other than the development of Guinea-Bissau. By ethics, I really like to respect the decisions of my hierarchy, but what is combined and programmed has to be fulfilled. I felt a lot of affection from the people. People still want me there today, write to me and call me, but the only thing I had to do was tell President Carlos Teixeira that it was enough for me," he shared.

The Lisbon coach, who even guided the federative leader in Praiense (1995/96) and the Guinean national teams, admitted in public that there are "several blockages" to his work, statements that fell badly in the FFGB and accelerated his dismissal two months ago.

"I couldn't work this way, because I really like the discipline, the organization and plan the work. I see that Guinea-Bissau has talent and possibilities, even though it is a country with two million inhabitants and 34 square kilometers. For me, it was a very great disgust and revolt to see a nation with a talent to reach the final stages of the tests giving priority to other situations. As such, my time is up," he noted.

©️ News by Minute and Lusa

KATIUSCIA YASMIRA: FROM FUTSAL TO THREE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP IN JIU-JITSU

“6 - How does it feel to represent Guinea-Bissau in major competitions?

A feeling with no explanation possible. I feel useful and in a way very happy to take the flag of my country to the high podiums.

7 - Are you thinking of taking this modality to Guinea-Bissau?

Yes, I'm taking care of it and it will be soon.

8 - Have the Guinean authorities ever contacted you when you started representing the national colors?

No, because unfortunately it is a country that prefers to put political problems in first place.

©️ Benazira Djoco – UNIESP PB”

FEDERATION COMPLAINS OF THE GOVERNMENT THE SAME FINANCIAL TREATMENT GIVEN TO THE OTHER FEDERATIONS

The Guinea-Bissau Wrestling Federation demanded from the executive the creation of identical "financial" conditions for all national sports federations, depending on the results in international competitions, representing the Guinean nation.

Bernardino Soares da Gama maintained that it is essential to promote national sports federations that bring positive results to Guinea-Bissau….

According to explanations by Soares da Gama, despite the financial difficulties, in the last three editions of the African Wrestling Championship (2019, 2020 and 2022), national athletes were able to bring 11 medals from the international competition to Guinea-Bissau.

Although the national caravan has participated in this competition on the African continent without financial support from the executive, the federative leader assured that he does not feel discouraged and will continue to dignify the country in international events.

By: Alison Cabral”

Wrestling Federation reveals that Guinean athletes are harassed by other countries

“The president of the Wrestling Federation of Guinea-Bissau (FLGB), João Bernardino Soares da Gama, revealed that national wrestling athletes have received invitations to compete on behalf of other countries in international competitions, due to lack of conditions. He added that none of these intentions were materialized, because “patriotism weighed heavily in the decisions of national athletes in this modality, who have won many medals for Guinea-Bissau for several years”.

“There have been constant requests from our athletes. Augusto Midana and Diamantino Luna Fafé received requests. They are young athletes that impress any manager or sportsmen who follow this sport”, he said, then alerting that it is a risk that Guinea-Bissau continues to face, due to the lack of support for national athletes”, he said.

“We continue to raise awareness among wrestling athletes to continue to compete on behalf of the country, but there will come a time when athletes will not accept the advice of the federation’s leaders and will fight for better living conditions”, underlined João Bernardino Soares da Gama. .

The federative leader stressed that the athletes are simply demanding improvements in working conditions, especially at the level of international competitions, where they represent the Guinean nation, ending up bringing medals to Guinea-Bissau.

Gama stressed that, despite the success that Guinea-Bissau has had in this modality, the body he directs has a debt of 7 million CFA francs with the International Wrestling Federation, following his absence from the 2021 World Championship in Norway. . With this debt, the country has not received technical and financial assistance from the organization that directs the sport at a world level.

In view of these facts, he expressed concern about the situation, however, he stressed that the Guinea-Bissau Olympic Committee (COGB) is making arrangements with the International Federation to repay the debt in question. [Siphiwe note: Where/how does the Guinea Bissau Olympic Committee get money???"]

“The wrestlers don’t deserve to go through all this and the country must stop begging, we all have to work to create conditions for the wrestling federation, because the results are visible to everyone's eyes”, he said.

Gama also revealed that the wrestling federation will fight for the executive to be able to set a monthly salary to Augusto Midana for the success achieved in international competitions, representing the Guinean nation. Available data indicate that the athlete won 20 medals for Guinea-Bissau, 10 of which are gold.

The national athlete participated in the four Olympic Games, although he never managed to win the first Olympic medal for Guinea-Bissau.

Handball: NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP OF THE FIELD CATEGORY STARTS ON JUNE 18 

“Indjai, who was speaking on Tuesday, June 7, 2022, in an interview given to the sports section of Jornal O Democrata, with the aim of addressing issues related to the beginning of the season in this modality, revealed that the championship will be held in a format of zones and the final will be held in national playoff games to know the winner.

“We hope it will be a good sports season for Handball, like last year, which was a very good season in terms of competitiveness and which was very strong, with the increase of teams and the participation of some handball school institutions”, he said. .

On the occasion, the federative leader regretted the delay in relation to the start of the national championship of the sport, due to the late release of funds to the four federations, Wrestling, Track and Field, Handball and Volleyball, by the government, to attract new talents for the 2021-2022 season. within the scope of the strategic plan for the development of sport.

“Since December 2021 a work program has been signed with the executive, four federations have been selected, including ours, and an amount of 12 million CFA francs has been stipulated with defined lines of actions that we will develop, but so far we have not received nothing and we waste time, because we have already carried out several activities without government support”, explained Indjai.

Asked where FAGB will seek funds to organize the youth and junior championship competitions, since the executive has not made the funds he had promised, Indjai revealed that the body has received support from the National Olympic Committee and the direction has already sent a letter to institution to apply for financial support. [Siphiwe Note: Where/How does the Guinea Bissau National Olympic Committee get funds????]

Indjai added that in addition to financial support from the Guinea-Bissau Olympic Committee, members of the FAGB executive board subsidized some expenses during the competition.

“CURRENT ADMINISTRATION OF THE FOOTBALL FEDERATION IS SUICIDATING NATIONAL FOOTBALL. FIFA AND CAF GIVE A LOT OF MONEY TO THE COUNTRY”

“The president of Sporting Clube da Guiné-Bissau this Thursday accused the direction of the Guinea-Bissau Football Federation, led by Carlos Alberto Mendes Teixeira, of having managed very badly the funds donated by FIFA and CAF and without clear justifications.

Ricardo Pascoal Caetano spoke about the events of the extraordinary congress of the entity, held last Saturday, from which the Report and Accounts of the last sports season 2021/2022 was approved, but without a vote from his club.

“The federation spent 279 million, 454 thousand and 312 CFA francs ($$35,677). He informed us that he spent 120,284,000 CFA francs alone ($187,526) on transport, foreign services, 340,309,000 CFA francs ($530,551), other charges, 421,158,000 CFA francs ($656,597)”.

“These are large amounts that, according to accounting rules, this expense had to have attachments. The federation simply lives off the subsidy that FIFA, CAF and UEFA makes available for sporting activities”, says the leonine official.

Having added that the sports entity received from FIFA 1 billion, 314 million and 193 thousand CFA francs ($2,048,864), from CAF, 138 million CFA francs ($215,145) and from UEFA, 21 million and 646 thousand CFA francs ($33,746) and other inputs, in a total of 3 million and 679 thousand francs ($5,735) totaling 1 billion and 678 million 483 thousand francs cfa ($1,678,483).

“How were these funds used? Because the federation aw (arded the national champion of the 2021/2022 season only 6 million CFA francs”, questioned the sports director.

Finally, Caetano also accused the current direction of the federation of being suicidal for national football, since the clubs are all lacking and in financial difficulties.”

THE GUINEA BISSAU NATIONAL OLYMPIC COMMITTEE

With the exception of the national sport of futbol, money for sports in Guinea Bissau is controlled by the National Olympic Committee.

Mr. Sergio Mane has been the either the Secretary General or the President of the Guinea Bissau National Olympic Committee since its inception in 1992 - that's thirty years. In 1996, Guinea Bissau competed in its first Olympics sending 3 athletes. In 2000 it sent 3 athletes, in 2004 it sent 3 athletes, in 2008 it sent 3 athletes, in 2012 it sent 4 athletes, in 2016 it sent 5 athletes and in 2021 it sent 4 athletes. That’s an average of 3.6 athletes per Olympics.

How does someone hold the position of President for 30 years - longer than any official in Guinea Bissau, with such poor job performance??????

A very important question is: where does the money come from to pay Mr. Sergio Mane’s salary, frequent travel, and staff??? What is the budget and how much of that is used for actual sports programs???

On November 6, 2020 I receveided two letters, one from the Guinea Bissau Swimming Federation and one from the National Olympic Committee promising me full support.

In December, I flew to Guinea Bissau at my own expense and met with Mr. Sergio Mane at the National Olympic Committee Headquarters. Based on this meeting and his promise of support and goodwill, I made the committment to come and train in Guinea Bissau in preparation for representing the country in the Olympics in Tokyo. In June of 2021, I met with Mr. Sergio Mane at the National Olympic Committee Headquarters to discuss competing in the Olympic qualifying event in Cairo, Egypt June 26. Now that I was a citizen of Guine Bissau, Mr. Mane agreed to pay my training and travel expenses. I did compete in Egypt, using my own money on condition that the National Olympic Committee would reimburse me upon my return, but never received any money from the National Olympic Committee.

Left: Sergio Mane; Middle: Siphiwe Baleka

I have also met with three different Ministers of Sport since January 2020, Prime Minister Nunio Gomes Nabiam who approved the funds for my travel expenses to the 14th African Swimming Championships in Accra, Ghana (which I never received), and with President Umaro Sissoco Embalo himself. Despite all their smiles in my face, all their promises, I have yet to receive a penny or a Certificate of Recognition as the President of the Guinea Bissau Swimming Federation.

Minister of Sport Dionesio Peirera

Minister of Sport Augusto Gomes

Letter from the Ministry of Finance notifying the Minister of Sport Fernando Dias that the Prime Minister has approved the funds for the 14th African Swimming Championships.

WHAT CAN BE DONE NOW FOR GUINEA BISSAU’S ATHLETES?

Because of my unique background, connections to United States Swimming and my recent election to the Presidency of the Guinea Bissau Swimming Federation, we can side-step the corruption of the National Olympic Committee which seems to be controlling the money, by crowndfunding. My plan is to set an example and show proof-of-concept to the other federations that it is possible to raise money from outside of Guinea Bissau and it’s established networks. We can have a MAJOR impact on the entire country if Americans, especially athletes, take advantage of this unique moment and donate to the Swimming in Guinea Bissau: Hope for a Nation GoFundMe campaign. If we can quickly raise the $10,000 fundraising goal, I can approach the Association of Sports Federations in Guinea Bissau with this proof-of-concept. We can then make a single, unified fundraising campaign to raise funds for ALL the federations instead of each federation fending for themselves. We’ve already started funding youth sports programs, having contributed $1,000 to The Sociedade Desportiva da Guiné-Bissau (S.D.G.B) through our Supporting Girls Sports in Guinea Bissau GoFundMe campaign.

Now we need everyone to donate $5 or $10, or, for those who can afford it, $1,000 and $5,000, to help fight corruption and transform this country through sports. Forward this post to your local media and to the athletes that you know. This can become one of the great sports stories of 2022, showing that the world cares about the athletes in the smallest and poorest of countries and is willing to promote global sportsmanship in the Olympic spirit.

LET’S MAKE IT HAPPEN!

RUMO A UMA POLÍTICA DE DIREITO DE RETORNO E CIDADANIA PARA OS DESCENDENTES DE PESSOAS RETIRADAS DE TERRITÓRIOS DA ÁFRICA DURANTE O TRÁFICO TRANSATLÂNTICO E ESCRAVIDÃO DE POVOS AFRICANOS

ESTUDO DE CASO GUINÉ BISSAU

CONVIDAMOS AOS INTELECTUAIS, JORNALISTAS, ADVOGADOS E PARTIDOS POLÍTICOS DA GUINÉ BISSAU A PREPARAR UM FÓRUM PARA DISCUTIR A OBRIGAÇÃO DA GUINÉ BISSAU DE LEGISLAR O DIREITO DE RETORNO DE AFRODESCENDENTES DE ORIGEM GUINÉ BISSAU CLASSIFICADOS COMO PRISIONEIROS DE THE DUM DIVERSAS WAR.

“Há um preconceito de muitas pessoas, mesmo da esquerda, de que o imperialismo nos fez entrar na história no momento em que começou sua aventura em nossos países. . . . Consideramos que quando o imperialismo chegou à Guiné-Bissau fez-nos sair da história - a nossa história. . . . No momento em que o imperialismo chegou e o colonialismo chegou, nos fez sair da nossa história e entrar em outra história”. - Amílcar Cabral

“A libertação e independência do povo da Guiné-Bissau ainda não está completa. O projeto de desenvolvimento nacional na Guiné-Bissau deve incluir as histórias dos povos de origem guineense que foram levados como escravos e sua plena incorporação à sociedade guineense. Devemos ligar as suas histórias à história da Guiné-Bissau.” - Siphiwe Baleka, Criador, Iniciativa Década de Retorno Guiné Bissau

TOWARDS A RIGHT TO RETURN & CITIZENSHIP POLICY FOR DESCENDENTS OF PEOPLE TAKEN FROM TERRITORIES IN AFRICA DURING THE TRANSATLANTIC TRAFFICKING AND ENSLAVEMENT OF AFRICAN PEOPLE

CASE STUDY: GUINEA BISSAU

Amilcar Cabral and Siphiwe Baleka

“There is a preconception held by many people, even on the left, that imperialism made us enter history at the moment when it began its adventure in our countries. . . . We consider that when imperialism arrived in Guinea Bissau it made us leave history - our history. . . . The moment imperialism arrived and colonialism arrived, it made us leave our history and enter another history.” - Amilcar Cabral

“The liberation and independence of the people of Guinea Bissau is not yet complete. The national development project in Guinea Bissau must include the stories of people of Guinea Bissau origin who were taken as slaves and their full incorporation into Guine Bissau society. We must connect their histories to the history of Guinea Bissau.” - Siphiwe Baleka, Creator, Decade of Return Initiative Guinea Bissau

_____________________________________________________________________________

In February 2021, the Decade of Return Initiative in Guinea Bissau was launched. The purpose was to ensure that Guinea Bissau would benefit from the use of cultural heritage tourism made popular by Ghana’s “Year of Return” program in 2019 and Sierra Leone’s in 2020. The highlight of both country’s efforts has been the granting of citizenship to Afrodescendants from America. In 2021, the Decade of Return Initiative witnessed twenty-three Afrodescendents of Guinea Bissau origin return to their ancestral homeland. Despite great public pronouncement from officials in Guinea Bissau to support citizenship for the Afrodescendants of Guinea Bissau origin, after one year, only Siphiwe Baleka has been granted citizenship. What has happened to the remaining naturalization applications?

GOVERNMENT OF GUINEA BISSAU; MINISTRY OF TOURISM AND CRAFTS
MINISTER'S OFFICE AND GOVERNMENT SPEECH

Your Excellency

Eng® Nuno Gomes Nabian
Prime Minister

BISSAU:
Bissau, June 25, 2021

Subject: Request of Acquisition of Nationality to African American Descendants of Guinea Bissau

No. Ref 2/ GMTA/2021

Excellency,
The Minister of Tourism and Crafts presents His best and respectful greetings to your Excellency, with the best wishes of success in the performance of your noble role for the development of Guinea-Bissau. We inform you that within the framework of our partnership, the members of the "Balanta Burassa History and Genealogy Society in the United States” began to return to their origins through an initiative called “Decade of Return” in which we have already received two groups of this audience. According to DNA tests, they discovered that they originate from Guinea-Bissau. As an initiative of capital importance for the tourist sector in Guinea Bissau, associated with the aforementioned factors, we hereby request the good offices of Your Excellency, in order to authorize the start of the process for the acquisition of nationality to these people, according to the attached documents. It should be noted that an inter-ministerial commission was created for this purpose, in which an element of the Ministry of Justice has guided this entire nationality application process. No more subject for the moment. Accept my distinct consideration.

Fernando Vaz, Minister of Tourism

In October of 2021, Siphiwe Baleka met with H.E. Dr. Erieka Bennett, Founder and Head of Mission, at the Diaspora African Forum (DAF) headquarters in Accra, Ghana, to discuss Guinea Bissau’s Decade of Return Initiative. At the same time, Siphiwe Baleka also helped draft a Motion to the African Union Executive Council 39th Extraordinary Meeting to expedite the participation of the African Diaspora within the structures of the Africa Union. The motion recognized

“the official launch of the ‘Welcome Home’ Initiative “Decada Do Retorno 2021-2031” by the Ministry Of Tourism, Guinea-Bissau May 2021 as the official programme of the government to recognise the descendants of people taken from homelands that became the nation of Guinea Bissau as a notable programme of the UN Decade”

and called for the implementation of legislation

“to assist African Diaspora RTR Repatriates with acquiring residency, an expedited path to citizenship, land acquisition, and cultural integration programs which includes the creation of a special immigration category to allow ease of repatriation for this group.”

A plan was created to position Minister of Foreign Affairs Suzi Barbosa as a Champion not only of the Afrodescendants of Guinea Bissau origin, but of the entire Right to Return movement. Although Siphiwe Baleka was informed of Minister Barbosa’s willingness to receive him, no such meeting has yet taken place.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, International Cooperation and Communities-Cabinet of the Minister of State offers its best regards to His Excellency Founder of the Balanta B'urassa History and Genealogy Society in America (BBHAGSIA) and, using the present, in compliance with the superior guidelines of Her Excellency Ms. Suzi Carla Barbosa, Minister of State, to acknowledge receipt and thank you for the note, dated September 8 of the current year. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, International Cooperation and Communities-Office of the Minister of State hereby informs Mr. Brassa Mada, that Her Excellency the Secretary of State for Communities shall receive him. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, International Cooperation and Communities-Office of the Minister of State thanks His Excellency Founder of the Balanta B'urassa History and Genealogy Society in America (BBHAGSIA) and takes this opportunity to reiterate the assurances of her high and cordial consideration of His Excellency Siphiwe Baleka Founder of the Balanta B'urassa History and Genealogy Society in America (BBHA GSIA) and Coordinator of the Decade of Return Initiative.

On November 26, 2021 a third Decade of Return group came to Guinea Bissau and a meeting was held with Prime Minister Nuno Gomes Nabian and Minister of Tourism and Crafts and Government Spokesman, FERNANDO VAZ, who assured that “everything will be done to accelerate the process of naturalization of the African Americans.”

Since then, and despite a follow-up letter to the Prime Minister on April 25, 2022, no government official has contacted His Excellency Siphiwe Baleka to inform him of any progress on the naturalization applications which have already been received, nor of any plans to create specific policy for this class of people of Guinea Bissau origin.

As a result, it has become necessary to consider creating legislation that would follow the recommendations made to the African Union.

With the help of Washington DC Businessman and Howard University Consultant Russell Jones, the 39-page policy paper TOWARDS A RIGHT TO RETURN & CITIZENSHIP POLICY FOR DESCENDENTS OF PEOPLE TAKEN FROM TERRITORIES IN AFRICA DURING THE TRANSATLANTIC TRAFFICKING AND ENSLAVEMENT OF AFRICAN PEOPLE: CASE STUDY GUINEA BISSAU has been translated into Portuguese and is now being distributed to Guinea Bissau society.

It is important that the people of Guinea Bissau understand that, as Amilcar Cabral put it, “Folk taken from Africa, namely from Guine, were placed. . . as slaves. . . .” Thus, the history of those people taken from Guinea Bissau and enslaved in the Americas is part of Guinea Bissau’s history and not some foreign history. It is on this basis, then, that both the moral and LEGAL obligation of the Republic of Guinea Bissau to assist it’s lost children, emerges. The policy paper below presents a complete historical and legal foundation so that policy makers in Guinea Bissau can fulfill their obligation under the Constitution of the Republic of Guinea Bissau and international law, and in particular, the Geneva Convention in which Guinea Bissau is a signatory.

WE NOW CALL ON INTELLECTUALS, JOURNALISTS, LAWYERS, AND POLITICAL PARTIES IN GUINEA BISSAU TO PREPARE A FORUM TO DISCUSS GUINEA BISSAU’S OBLIGATION TO LEGISLATE THE RIGHT OF RETURN OF AFRODESCENDANTS OF GUINEA BISSAU ORIGIN WHO ARE CLASSIFIED AS PRISONERS OF THE DUM DIVERSAS WAR.

YOU CAN SUPPORT THIS ONGOING, GROUND-BREAKING WORK TO ESTABLISH A HOMELAND FOR AFRODESCENDANTS OF GUINEA BISSAU ORIGIN BY DONATING HERE:

“14. We believe in the inherent right of the Negro to possess himself of Africa . . . . “

INTERNATIONAL SUPPORT FOR GUINEA BISSAU’S SWIMMERS: 1ST "DASH FOR CASH" EVENT AND ELITE TEAM SELECTION

Greetings Everyone!

The first step in our plan to prepare the best swimmers in Guinea Bissau for the 2024 Olympics is hosting the first swimming competition in Guinea Bissau's history (that we know of). The "Dash for Cash" will offer $500 each to the male and female over 16 winners and $250 each to the male and female under 16 winners. This is enough money to purchase food and pay school fees for a year! Please help us raise the $1,500 prize money! The competition is scheduled for June 18th (before the rainy season starts in full force) so we have just a few days to raise the money. Let's show the people of Guinea Bissau that there are people who care and are willing to provide development aid to help impact this country!

DONATE TODAY:

https://gofund.me/ed06364d

To understand why your support is so important, please read this.

NATAÇÃO, DINHEIRO E DESIGUALDADE GLOBAL: UMA COMPARAÇÃO DO APOIO DADO À FEDERAÇÃO DE NATAÇÃO DA GUINÉ BISSAU E À FEDERAÇÃO DE NATAÇÃO DA UCRÂNIA

O presidente da Federação de Natação da Guiné-Bissau, Siphiwe Baleka, conduz uma clínica de natação gratuita no rio perto da aldeia de Untche, na Guiné-Bissau.

Na segunda-feira, 16 de maio, tomei posse durante uma cerimônia de Estado realizada no Estádio Nacional da Guiné-Bissau "24 de Setembro" para servir como Presidente da Federação de Natação da Guiné-Bissau (FNGB) para os próximos quatro anos. Agora é minha responsabilidade desenvolver uma programação nacional de natação no 4º país mais pobre do mundo começando do zero - sem programas de natação, sem nadadores competitivos, treinadores, etc. Para entender meu maior desafio , assista a este vídeo e leia este relatório que preparei : SITUAÇÃO ATUAL DA GUINÉ BISSAU: UMA REVISÃO DE ESTATÍSTICAS RELEVANTES .

Obviamente, para fazer qualquer coisa, vou precisar de recursos, principalmente recursos financeiros. É por isso que a primeira coisa que fiz como Presidente da FNGB foi lançar a campanha GoFundMe Nadando na Guiné Bissau: Esperança para a nação . Nossa meta de arrecadação de fundos da Fase 1 para assistência imediata é de US$ 10.500. Nossa meta de arrecadação de fundos da Fase 2 para nosso Projeto de Desenvolvimento da Equipe Nacional de Elite 2022-2024, que enviará 1 menino e 1 menina para as Olimpíadas de 2024 em Paris, é de US$ 200.000 e nosso projeto da Fase 3, para construir uma piscina olímpica e centro de treinamento, será bem mais de US $ 1 milhão.

O MUNDO DA NATAÇÃO ESTÁ AJUDANDO OS NATADORES UCRANIANOS

Recentemente, o presidente da Ligue Européenne de Natation (LEN) declarou: “A LEN cobrirá a participação de atletas ucranianos no Campeonato Europeu de Esportes Aquáticos e agora está lançando seu próprio projeto de angariação de fundos para cobrir os custos de seus preparativos”. O site SwimSwam informou que

“A LEN, assim como a FINA e o Comitê Olímpico Internacional, contribuiu com US $ 100.000 para um novo fundo , que será compartilhado entre várias organizações aquáticas, federações nacionais que já estão fornecendo ajuda inestimável aos atletas ucranianos em toda a Europa…. A LEN estimou que um montante total de aprox. € 1.000.000 são necessários para cobrir o custo total de todos os atletas internacionalmente ativos para poder treinar e participar dos grandes eventos deste ano , incluindo o Campeonato Europeu de categorias de idade (júnior)….LEN abriu uma conta bancária dedicada onde qualquer pessoa (seja uma Federação, uma empresa, uma organização ou um indivíduo) podem fazer doações de qualquer magnitude”.

“Estamos mais do que certos de que muitos de vocês se juntarão a nós em grande número neste projeto especial de angariação de fundos, acendendo uma pequena luz de esperança na vida dos atletas ucranianos” , disse Silva. “Os atletas ucranianos são atletas da LEN e a LEN tem a obrigação moral de ajudá-los a continuar com seus sonhos aquáticos.”

E OS SONHOS AQUÁTICOS DOS NATADORES DA GUINÉ BISSAU?

Para colocar as coisas em perspectiva, considere a seguinte comparação entre a Guiné-Bissau e a Ucrânia:

AJUDA DOS EUA À GUINÉ BISSAU E UCRÂNIA: DESENVOLVIMENTO HUMANO VS. GUERRA

Guiné-Bissau: 13.948 sq mi

Ucrânia: 233.031 sq mi

Guiné-Bissau: 2 milhões de pessoas

Ucrânia: 44 milhões de pessoas

Guiné-Bissau: #175 de 189 países no Índice de Desenvolvimento Humano

Ucrânia: #74 de 189 países no Índice de Desenvolvimento Humano

Passaporte da Guiné-Bissau classificado em 92º de 112

Passaporte ucraniano classificado 34 de 112.

Ajuda dos EUA à Guiné-Bissau: A USAID não tem escritório neste país e não existe um programa de assistência direta dos EUA. No entanto, os EUA têm vários programas regionais ou mundiais, que beneficiam indiretamente a Guiné-Bissau. O último programa é o Cashew-LIFT de $39 milhões compartilhado com o Senegal e a Gâmbia.

Ajuda dos EUA à Ucrânia : Desde 2014, os Estados Unidos forneceram mais de US$ 6,4 bilhões em assistência de segurança para treinamento e equipamentos para ajudar a Ucrânia a preservar sua integridade territorial, proteger suas fronteiras e melhorar a interoperabilidade com a OTAN.

Em 11 de março, o Congresso aprovou US$ 13,6 bilhões em gastos emergenciais relacionados à luta da Ucrânia contra a invasão da Rússia. O dinheiro inclui armas, suprimentos militares e uma das maiores infusões de ajuda externa dos EUA na última década. Mas também cobre o envio de tropas dos EUA para a Europa e dinheiro para agências domésticas para aplicar sanções.

No mês passado, o presidente Biden solicitou US$ 33 bilhões ao Congresso. Na sexta-feira, o governo Biden anunciou um novo pacote de armas para a Ucrânia no valor de US$ 150 milhões. O mais recente pacote de ajuda militar, a nona parcela de assistência à segurança, eleva o compromisso de ajuda militar dos EUA para US$ 3,8 bilhões desde que Moscou invadiu seu vizinho no final de fevereiro.

MISSÃO DA FEDERAÇÃO INTERNACIONAL DE NATAÇÃO (FINA)

“A missão do programa de desenvolvimento da FINA é elevar a importância dos esportes aquáticos em todo o mundo, fornecendo uma estrutura para maior participação, promoção aprimorada e sucesso competitivo global no esporte. Concentrando sua atenção em: Promoção e apoio, educação, governança e administração e alto desempenho e treinamento.” - FINA.org

Um dos meus professores ensinou que uma definição funcional de justiça é:

1. ninguém é maltratado;

2. quem mais precisa de ajuda recebe mais ajuda

Você pode ver nos gráficos abaixo, a Guiné-Bissau recebeu apenas US$ 120 milhões em ajuda externa global em 2019, e pouco disso vindo dos Estados Unidos.

Vim à Guiné-Bissau para usar a minha experiência e paixão pela natação para ajudar um país que mais precisa de ajuda. Vim para cumprir a missão da FINA em um país cujos nadadores foram ignorados e cujo povo foi negligenciado. Nas minhas cartas ao Presidente da República da Guiné-Bissau e ao Comité Olímpico Nacional, afirmei:

“Se a Guiné Bissau conceder minha cidadania quando eu retornar em 31 de maio, e desde que o COMITÉ OLÍMPICO DA GUINÉ-BISSAU garanta com sucesso meu convite de Universality Place da FINA, meu plano seria o seguinte:

  1. Permaneça na Guiné-Bissau depois de 2 de junho para treinar na piscina do Ledger Hotel até a partida para Tóquio.

  2. Durante o período de treinamento, eu dava instruções de natação livre uma vez por dia para o povo da Guiné-Bissau. 

  3. Após as Olimpíadas, voltaria à Guiné-Bissau permanentemente para ensinar em uma das Universidades enquanto desenvolvia o programa nacional de natação da Guiné-Bissau, alavancando meus contatos e patrocinadores internacionais.     

Recebi a cidadania e estou mantendo minha parte no acordo. Agora apelo ao mundo da natação em particular, e às pessoas de boa vontade em todos os lugares, para que me ajudem a acender uma pequena luz de esperança na vida dos atletas da Guiné-Bissau que também trará uma luz de esperança para o povo da Guiné-Bissau.

DOE AGORA PARA O

Nadar na Guiné-Bissau: Esperança para a campanha GoFundMe

SWIMMING, MONEY AND GLOBAL INEQUALITY: A COMPARISON OF SUPPORT GIVEN TO THE GUINEA BISSAU SWIMMING FEDERATION AND THE UKRAINE SWIMMING FEDERATION

Guinea Bissau Swimming Federation President Siphiwe Baleka conducting a free swim clinic in the river near the village of Untche, Guinea Bissau.

On Monday, May 16th, I was sworn into office during a state ceremony held at the Guinea Bissau National Stadium "24 de Setembro" to serve as the President of the Guinea Bissau Swimming Federation (Federação de Natação da Guiné-Bissau - FNGB) for the next four years. It is now my responsibility to develop a national swimming programming in the 4th poorest country in the world starting from scratch - no swimming programs, no competitive swimmers, coaches, etc. To understand my biggest challenge, watch this video and read this report I prepared: CURRENT STATUS OF GUINEA BISSAU: A REVIEW OF RELEVANT STATISTICS.

Obviously, in order to do anything, I’m going to need resources, especially financial resources. Which is why the first thing I have done as President of the FNGB is to launch the Swimming In Guinea Bissau: Hope For The Nation GoFundMe campaign. Our Phase 1 fundraising goal for immediatate assistance is for $10,500. Our Phase 2 fundraising goal for our 2022 -2024 National Elite Team Development Project, which will ultimately send 1 boy and 1 girl to the 2024 Olympics in Paris, is $200,000 and our Phase 3 project, to build an Olympic swimming pool and training center, will be well over $1 million.

THE SWIMMING WORLD IS HELPING UKRAINIAN SWIMMERS

Recently, the Ligue Européenne de Natation (LEN) President stated, “LEN will cover the participation of Ukrainian athletes at the European Aquatics Championships and is now launching its own fund-raising project to cover the costs of their preparations.” The SwimSwam website reported that

“LEN, just like FINA and the International Olympic Committee, has contributed $ 100,000 to a new fund, which is to be shared among several aquatic organisations, national federations which are already providing invaluable help to Ukrainian athletes across Europe…. LEN has estimated that a total amount of approx. € 1,000,000 is required to cover the total cost of all internationally active athletes to be able to train and participate in this year’s major events, including the age-group (junior) European Championships….LEN has opened a dedicated bank account where anybody (whether a Federation, a company, an organisation or an individual) can make donations of any magnitude.”

“We are more than certain that many of you will join us in big numbers in this special fund-raising project, turning on a small light of hope in the lives of Ukrainian athletes” Mr Silva said. “Ukrainian athletes are LEN athletes and LEN has a moral obligation to help them in continuing with their Aquatics dreams.”

WHAT ABOUT THE AQUATIC DREAMS OF THE SWIMMERS OF GUINEA BISSAU?

To put things into perspective, consider the follwoing comparison between Guinea Bissau and Ukraine:

US AID TO GUINEA BISSAU AND UKRAINE: HUMAN DEVELOPMENT VS. WAR

Guinea Bissau: 13,948 sq mi

Ukraine: 233,031 sq mi

Guinea Bissau: 2 million people

Ukraine : 44 million people

Guinea Bissau: #175 out of 189 countries on the Human Development Index

Ukraine: #74 out of 189 countries on the Human Development Index

Guinea Bissau passport ranked 92nd out of 112

Ukrainian passport ranked 34 out of 112.

US Aid to Guinea Bissau: USAID has no office in this country, and there is no direct U.S. assistance program. However, the U. S. has a number of regional or worldwide programs, which indirectly benefit Guinea-Bissau. Latest program is the $39 million Cashew-LIFT shared with Senegal and Gambia.

US Aid to Ukraine: Since 2014, the United States has provided more than $6.4 billion in security assistance for training and equipment to help Ukraine preserve its territorial integrity, secure its borders, and improve interoperability with NATO.

On March 11, Congress approved $13.6 billion in emergency spending related to Ukraine’s fight against Russia’s invasion. The money includes weapons, military supplies and one of the largest infusions of U.S. foreign aid in the last decade. But it also covers the deployment of U.S. troops to Europe and money for domestic agencies to enforce sanctions.

Last month, President Biden requested $33 billion from Congress. On Friday, the Biden administration announced a new weapons package for Ukraine worth $150 million. The latest military aid package, the ninth security assistance installment, brings the U.S. military aid commitment to $3.8 billion since Moscow invaded its neighbor in late February.

Misson of the Fédération Internationale De Natation (FINA)

“The mission of the FINA development programme is to elevate the importance of aquatics worldwide by providing a framework for increased participation, enhanced promotion, and global competitive success in the sport. Focusing its attention on: Promotion and support, education, governance & administration and high performance & training.” - FINA.org

One of my teachers taught that a functional definition of justice is:

1. no one is mistreated;

2. those who need the most help get the most help

You can see from the graphics below, Guinea Bissau received just $120 million in global foreign aid in 2019, and little of that coming from the United States.

I have come to Guinea Bissau to use my experience and passion for swimming to help a country that needs the most help. I have come to fulfill FINA’s mission in a country whose swimmers have been ignored and whose people have been neglected. In my letters to the President of the Republic of Guinea Bissau and to the National Olympic Committee, I stated,

“Should Guinea Bissau grant my citizenship when I return May 31, and provided the COMITÉ OLÍMPICO DA GUINÉ-BISSAU successfully secure my Universality Place invitation from FINA, my plan would be the following:

  1. Remain in Guinea Bissau after June 2 to train at the swim pool at the Ledger Hotel until departure to Tokyo.

  2. During the training period, I would conduct free swim instructions once a day for the people of Guinea Bissau. 

  3. After the Olympics, I would return to Guinea Bissau permanently to teach at one of the Universities while developing Guinea Bissau’s national swimming program, leveraging my international contacts and sponsors.     

I was given citizenship and I am keeping my end of the deal. Now I appeal to the swimming world in particular, and people of goodwill everywhere, to help me turn on a small light of hope in the lives of Guinea Bissau athletes which will also bring a light of hope to the people of Guinea Bissau.

DONATE NOW TO THE

Swimming In Guinea Bissau: Hope For The Nation GoFundMe campaign

AT LOOK AT THE STRUGGLE TO BRING COMPETITIVE SWIMMING TO GUINEA BISSAU

Highlights of Siphiwe Baleka efforts to help FINA develop Swimming in Africa and the fight against him.

MISSION OF THE INTERNATIONAL SWIMMING FEDERATION (FINA)

“The mission of the FINA development programme is to elevate the importance of aquatics worldwide by providing a framework for increased participation, enhanced promotion, and global competitive success in the sport. Focusing its attention on: Promotion and support, education, governance & administration and high performance & training.” - FINA.org

“Your devotion to promote African swimming is quite laudable and wish we could have many more Siphiwes around.” 

- Doreen Tiborcz, Masters Committee Chairman at FINA, October 11, 2019

1988 - at 17 years of age, I swam the 100 meters freestyle in 53.17 at the Long Course Junior Olympic Championships in Orlando, Florida. In 1989, the African Continental record was 53.08, which would have made me the second fastest black swimmer on the African Continent.

1989 - at 18 years of age, I won the Illinois Swimming State Championship in the 200 meter breastroke in a time of 2:28.2, faster than the African Continental record at the time, 2:31.33 held by Nabil Ben Aissa of Tunisia.

1991 - at the age of twenty, I swam the 100 meters freestyle in 52.29 - nine-tenths of a second slower than the US Olympic Trial Qualifying time. My time was 22nd fastest in the United States and was fast enough to place 48th out of 65 swimmers at the 1992 Olympics. The time was also fast enough to break the African Continental record, 53.08, held by Mohamed Lattaoui of Egypt (1989). My 100 breast time of 1:07.4 was also faster than the African Continental record of 1:09.05 held by Abderazzek Bella of Algeria. Finally, my 200 IM time of 2:10.20 was faster than the African Continental record of 2:13.55 held by Samir Bouchlagem of Tunisia. Had I been advised to return to my ancestral homeland of Guinea Bissau and compete for them, i would have been considered one of Africa’s greatest swimmers at the time.

1996 -  “[Yale Swim Coach Frank] Keefe recalls meeting [Baleka] for lunch that semester and doing a double take when his former star walked into the diner. "He was a Rastafarian," Keefe said. "He said that he wanted to be the national swim coach of Ethiopia. We had a great conversation—with [Siphiwe] you always did. But, yeah, he was out there." from Sports Illustrated Article

AUGUST 28, 2015 -  1st attempt to compete in the African Swimming Championships email to CANA

From: Siphiwe Baleka <fitnesstrucking@gmail.com>

Date: Fri, Aug 28, 2015 at 2:00 PM

Subject: Eligibility to Swim in African Championships

To: <canazone4secretariat@gmail.com>

Greetings, 

My name is Siphiwe Baleka. I am interested in swimming on the African Continent in 2016. I was born and raised in America, but DNA testing shows that my paternal ancestry is Balanta (people living in Guinea Bissau today) and that my maternal Ancestry is Yoruba. I am a two-time US Masters Swimming National Champion and the first African-American on the All Ivy League Swim Team. Below are my recent race results at the 2015 US Masters Long Course Nationals. In 2012, I became the first African American to finish Ironman South Africa (see my book TriBlackAlete) You can find out more about me by watching the Fox Sports live video. 

I would like to know about the possibility of swimming in the African National Championships (on the basis of my ancestry) next year. 

 Thank you for your time,

Siphiwe Baleka

NOTE: NO RESPONSE FROM CANA ZONE 4 SECRETARIAT

DECEMBER 16, 2015 - Reaching out to the FINA Masters Technical Committee

From: Siphiwe Baleka <fitnesstrucking@gmail.com>

Date: Wed, Dec 16, 2015 at 5:06 PM

Subject: Competing in Africa in 2016

To: Mel Goldstein <goldsteinmel@sbcglobal.net>

Greetings Mel,

Any opportunity for me to compete somewhere in Africa in 2016?

Siphiwe Baleka

NOTE: NO RESPONSE FROM MEL GOLDSTEIN, FINA MASTERS TECHNICAL COMMITTEE

JANUARY 2, 2016 - Competing in Africa in 2016

From: Siphiwe Baleka <fitnesstrucking@gmail.com>

Date: Sat, Jan 2, 2016 at 3:02 PM

Subject: Competing in Africa in 2016

To: Mel Goldstein <goldsteinmel@sbcglobal.net>, Laura Hamel <lhamel@usms.org>

Cc: Shaun Adriaanse <canazone4secretariat@gmail.com>, analima29@hotmail.com, info@samastersswimming.com, kennedy@yebo.co.za, guyh@summercon.co.za, wahoosecretary@gmail.com, pjduffy@broll.com, bosmead@gmail.com, mangelos@mweb.co.za, "winrose@telkomsa.net" <winrose@telkomsa.net>, "odendaalannemarie0@gmail.com" <odendaalannemarie0@gmail.com>, "judy.collins@vodamail.co.za" <judy.collins@vodamail.co.za>, "hestersnyman@mweb.co.za" <hestersnyman@mweb.co.za>, marinetzswimmingclub@gmail.com, info@swimafrica.net, sports@ug.edu.gh, headofschool@lincoln.edu.gh, kmoolchandani@lincoln.edu.gh, info@softkenya.com, eth@telecom.net.et, "Green, Robert (DPR)" <robert.green@dc.gov>, Kathy Cooper <blackheritageswimming@gmail.com>

Greetings,

This email is going out to people and organizations that may be interested in my effort to become a World Champion at the 2017 FINA Masters World Championships (Men's 45-49 Age Group). If I am successful, I may become the first African American Masters Swimming World Champion. In preparation, I am planning to connect my passion for swimming with my ancestral heritage, something I did in 2012 when I became the US Masters Swimming National Champion in two evetns and then became the first African American to complete Ironman South Africa.

In preparation for 2017 Masters Swimming World Championships, I am planning my own personal Black Swimming tour in 2016 that begins with the 30th Annual BlackHistory Invitational Swim Meet in Washington, D.C. February 12th through the 16th. Then moves to the 14th Annual National Black Heritage Swim Meet in Cary, North Carolina May 28-29. I am hoping to culminate this tour with a competition in Africa sometime between August and December 2016. The purpose of such a trip would be:

1) interest African Americans in the sport of swimming at all levels, from kids through masters

2) provide historical and cultural components to the sport

3) connect black swimmers in America with black swimmers in Africa

4) propsect on possibilities for coaching black swimmers in Africa

5) compete against some of the best swimmers, white and black, on the African continent

6) provide personal fulfilment returning to the continent

In essence, this campaign is a way for me to combine two of the most important things in my life: my ancestors and swimming.

If you are able to provide any information about any opportunities to compete and participate in any ongoing swimming program on the African continent in the second half of 2016, please don't hesitate to contact me.

Respectfully,

Siphiwe Baleka

NOTE: NO RESPONSE

AUGUST 23, 2019 - Contacting Senegal and Guinea Bissau Swim Federations

From: Siphiwe Baleka <fitnesstrucking@gmail.com>

To: Kyle Deery

Cc: Fares Ksebati ; Mel Goldstein <goldsteinmel@sbcglobal.net>; Paige Walters

Sent: Friday, August 23, 2019, 11:56:18 AM EDT

Subject: Contacting Senegal and Guinea Bissau Swim Federations

Greetings Kyle,

My apologies for all the requests lately, but with Laura not at USMS anymore, you are the only one that I know. I need help contacting  Dr. Mohamed Diop, FINA Bureau Member from Dakar  I will be traveling to Senegal and Guinea Bissau in late December and I want to do some swim related activities, possibly some swim clinics. I need swimming contacts in these countries. Perhaps USA Swimming can help as well. I've contacted Mel Goldstein previously and he is CC'd on this email as well. I appreciate any help or contacts that you can provide.

Respectfully,

Siphiwe Baleka

From: Mel Goldstein <goldsteinmel@sbcglobal.net>

Date: Fri, Aug 23, 2019 at 7:26 PM

Subject: Re: Contacting Senegal and Guinea Bissau Swim Federations

To: Siphiwe Baleka <fitnesstrucking@gmail.com>

Cc: Kyle Deery, Fares Ksebati, Paige Walters

Siphiwe

Mohamond is from Senegal not Dakar.. I will forward your message to him and he will contact you if his federation is interested 

From: Siphiwe Baleka <fitnesstrucking@gmail.com>

Date: Fri, Aug 23, 2019 at 7:33 PM

Subject: Re: Contacting Senegal and Guinea Bissau Swim Federations

To: Mel Goldstein <goldsteinmel@sbcglobal.net>

Cc: Kyle Deery , Fares Ksebati , Paige Walters

Mel, Dakar is the capital of Senegal.

From: Mel Goldstein <goldsteinmel@sbcglobal.net>

Date: Sat, Aug 24, 2019 at 2:24 AM

Subject: Re: Contacting Senegal and Guinea Bissau Swim Federations

To: Siphiwe Baleka <fitnesstrucking@gmail.com>, Kyle Deery

Yes, my bad thinking of Doha .. I have sent your message to Mohammod.

Mel Goldstein, Education Services | U.S. Masters Swimming

 

Le 27 août 2019 21:08, Mel Goldstein <goldsteinmel@sbcglobal.net> a écrit :

Mohamed, 

I hope your travels were uneventful as was mine... This gentlemen contacted our National Office and wanted to make contact with you... I am reluctant to give out information.  If you want to contact him his email is below...

I still want that blue shirt...

Mel Goldstein, Education Services | U.S. Masters Swimming

On Tue, Aug 27, 2019 at 7:49 PM Mohamed Diop <drmohameddiop@yahoo.fr> wrote:

Dear Siphiwe

My friend foward me you email.

I will happy to meet you in Dakar in décembre.

Infortunally, Guinée Bissau don't have active fédération but i can give you One contact.

Please received my WhatsApp contact :

Dr Mohamed Diop +221766696539

Regards Mohamed 

OCTOBER 3, 2019 -

Siphiwe Baleka’s Sorcery Dominates 1st International Masters Swimming Championships

OCTOBER 19, 2019 -

On 9 Oct 2019, at 16:15, Siphiwe Baleka <fitnesstrucking@gmail.com> wrote:

Greetings Doreen,

It was a pleasure to meet with you in Egypt and have the opportunity to talk frankly about FINA and your work as the Masters Committee Chairman. Please keep me in mind whenever there is an opportunity to compete or promote swimming at all levels in Africa. Towards that end, African Sports Monthly will be featuring my interview in their magazine next month (see email thread below) to start this campaign. I will be working to promote African swimming for the 2022 Youth Olympics in Dakar, Senegal as well as to promote Masters Swimming, too. 

Respectfully,

Siphiwe Baleka

DECEMBER 29, 2019 - ASVG MOU for African Ancestry

From: Siphiwe Baleka <fitnesstrucking@gmail.com>

Date: Sun, Dec 29, 2019 at 12:13 PM

Subject: ASVG MOU for African Ancestry.docx

To: <asvgnorthamerica@gmail.com>


MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING

BETWEEN

THE AFRICAN SPORTS VENTURES GROUP (ASVG)

AND

AFRICAN ANCESTRY (AA)

WHEREAS, ASVG recognizes that the Global Sports market is a multi-billion-dollar highly lucrative industry witnessing continuous growth, expansion and benefits to many communities, generating US$700 billion in revenues annually;

WHEREAS, ASVG, headquartered in Accra, Ghana is a Limited Liability Sports Solutions, Services and Business Corporation with the vision to provide gifted athletes in Africa with the opportunity to thrive and reach their full potential while also developing the platforms and full services to provide for careers in the sports industry;

WHEREAS, ASVG reached a milestone agreement with the Federation of Africa University Sports (FASU) to institute a continental Student-Athlete Sports Scholarship program for Universities in Africa on November 22nd 2019, will now establish the first ever African Collegiate Sports League for all sports disciplines mirroring the NCAA in the USA;

WHEREAS, African Ancestry (AA) has helped more than 500,000 people of African descent recover their history, reconnect with their ancestors, and create a lasting legacy for future generations;

WHEREAS, AA has played a significant role in the “Year of Return” which the Ghana Tourism Authority reports has already witnessed 750,000 foreign visitors in 2019, a number that is expected to top 1M before the year ends with up to 1.9 billion dollars also expected to be accrued in revenue as a result of the Year of Return activities;

WHEREAS, AA has launched its Family Reunions initiative that will bring many members of the African Diaspora to several countries on the motherland; 

WHEREAS, ASVG sees an opportunity to include professional athletes in AA Family Reunions while giving them a secure opportunity to develop the sports industry in Africa;

WHEREAS, the relationship between the two organizations will be of mutual benefit in engaging increased benevolence, trade, investment and most importantly, reconnection with Africa;

NOW, THEREFORE, WE, the undersigned affix our signatures in agreement to work jointly in support of each other and the people of Africa and African descent this       day of 2019, in Accra, Ghana. Specifically, we will join our effort in taking the following steps:

  1. ASVG will direct professional athletes to take the AA matriclan and patriclan DNA tests;

  2. ASVG will connect the professional athletes with one of the 32 Universities in the African Collegiate Sports League closest to his ancestral homeland through ASVG’s Sports Scholarship Fund;

  3. ASVG works with AA to bring the professional athlete to his or her sponsored University through AA’s Family Reunion initiative

  4. ASVG promotes AA as an official sponsor of the African Collegiate Sports League; AA promotes ASVG Sports Scholarship Fund and refers professional athletes who take the AA test to ASVG.

  5. ASVG and AA work to match each of the 32 Universities with at least one professional athlete from America.

  6. All “Official” project materials to be jointly approved by ASVG and AA and shall contain respective logos and signage.

JANUARY 10, 2020 -

Guinea Bissau Prepares To Launch its "Decade of Return" Initiative: Report of the President of the Balanta B'urassa History & Genealogy Society in America Mission To Guinea Bissau

“MINISTER OF SPORT

In the morning, I went to the Palacio do Governo in my capacity as the African Sports Ventures Group (ASVG) North America Regional Director to meet with  the Guinea Bissau Minister of Sport Mr. Dionisio Pereira to discuss ASVG’s program to bring African American professional athletes to their ancestral homelands during the “Decade of Return”. The Minister agreed to write a letter of special invitation to a legendary multiple Olympic champion who happens to have Balanta ancestry to join our group during our Africa Day 2020 Tour to Senegal and Guinea Bissau. Once I receive the invitation letter, deliver it to the athlete, and confirm acceptance, I will announce who it is. I can’t wait.”

JANUARY 20, 2020 -

On 20 Jan 2020, at 18:18, Siphiwe Baleka <fitnesstrucking@gmail.com> wrote:

Greetings Doreen,

I just returned from Guinea Bissau. It was an amazing trip and you can read all about it here.

After talking to GB's Minister of Sport, Dionisio Pereira, he agreed that it would be a great thing if Guinea Bissau gave me citizenship (because of my Balanta ancestry) and I competed in this summer's Olympics for Guinea Bissau. I am writing to you to find out if there's anything preventing me from doing this according to IOC rules. Can you investigate this for me please? I believe I would be the first African American to compete for an African nation at the Olympics.

Thanks and I look forward to hearing from you soon.

Siphiwe Baleka