U s presidents

JAKARTA: Indonesia's President Joko Widodo will make the final decision on whether the country brings forward an export ban on mineral ore, the minister in charge of mining said on Tuesday (Aug 13). The ban is currently due to come into force in 2022. "The president's decision is expected sometime in the future," Luhut Pandjaitan, coordinating minister for maritime affairs and responsible for the mining ministry, told reporters on Tuesday. "We are awaiting the president's order." Pandjaitan favours bringing forward the ban from 2022 as it is aimed at attracting investment into the smelting industry. "In the current trade war condition, we need to attract as many investors as possible," he told reporters. Earlier on Tuesday, Pandjaitan said the revision to the mineral export rule is currently being drafted. Pandjaitan declined to specify whether the timetable will be changed for all exports of ore and concentrates or only for certain ores, such as nickel, which is mostly … [Read more...] about Indonesia’s president to decide whether ore export ban to be brought forward

JAKARTA: Indonesia will “truly be ashamed” if it cannot resolve the transboundary haze problem, said President Joko Widodo as he tasked the relevant agencies to double up efforts to tackle the problem. According to a report by news site Tempo , Mr Widodo said during a national coordination meeting on wildfires on Tuesday (Aug 6) that he was disappointed with how the haze issue has again made regional headlines. “Take extreme caution on this issue, we will truly be ashamed if we fail to solve this issue,” he reportedly said. He noted that while those in Malaysia and Singapore were generally glad that there has been no severe transboundary haze since 2015, the massive forest fires four years ago had harmed Indonesia’s economy and ties with its neighbours. READ: Indonesian forest fires exposed 69 million people to 'killer haze' Regional countries including Singapore and Malaysia are affected by the annual haze and Indonesia recorded the highest number of hot spots this year … [Read more...] about Indonesia will ‘truly be ashamed’ if transboundary haze is not resolved, says President Jokowi

JAKARTA: Indonesian President Joko Widodo on Monday (Aug 5) took state-owned utility company Perusahaan Listrik Negara (PLN) to task for not acting quickly to resolve a massive blackout that affected the greater Jakarta area a day earlier. Speaking during a visit to PLN’s head office, the president said: “There should be a contingency plan. My question is why PLN did not work fast. “I know a blackout occurred in Java and Bali 17 years ago; it should have been a lesson on how to prevent a recurrence of this type of incident," he was quoted as saying by Jakarta Globe . He added: "We know this not only damaged PLN's reputation, but many things outside PLN were also harmed." In response, PLN’s acting president director Sripeni Inten was quoted as saying by Jakarta Post : “I’m sorry … The process is slow, we admit it. “We need to be extra careful during times of emergency. Everything is down, so we need to turn it back on one by one carefully and with caution,” she … [Read more...] about President Jokowi demands answers after massive Java island blackout

JOHANNESBURG (AFP) - South Africa's President Cyril Ramaphosa delivers his annual address to the nation on Thursday (Feb 11) while appearing increasingly fragile politically, hit by massive health and economic crises as well as a divided ruling party. Each February, he outlines his national plan for the year, but this time he will be hard put to try to uplift a pandemic-weary and more impoverished population, while battling for political survival within his ANC. His country is Africa's hardest-hit by the coronavirus pandemic, which has sent the economy tanking to its worst in many decades, and a slew of government officials are embroiled in embarrassing cases of looting of funds meant to help fight the pandemic. His government has come under fire for its handling of the pandemic, and lately for delays in acquiring and rolling out vaccines. "He's going to get it from all sides," said political scientist Amanda Gouws of Stellenbosch University. Mr Ramaphosa will have to … [Read more...] about From pandemic to politics, tough road ahead for South African President Ramaphosa

PRETORIA (AFP) - South African President Cyril Ramaphosa on Tuesday (Jan 26) lashed out at “vaccine nationalism”, accusing rich countries of bulk-buying coronavirus vaccines and hoarding them to the detriment of others. Addressing the all-virtual 2021 World Economic Forum (WEF), President Ramaphosa said that low- and middle-income countries were being shouldered aside by wealthier nations able to acquire “up to four times what their population needs”. He warned: “We are concerned about vaccine nationalism. Rich countries in the world are holding on to these vaccines and we are saying, release the excess vaccines that you have ordered and hoarded.” Mr Ramaphosa’s comments coincides with growing concerns that bilateral deals between wealthier governments and coronavirus vaccine manufacturers could hike prices and limit supply in some regions. The World Health Organisation had already warned against “vaccine nationalism” and “price gouging” last year, before a successful jab was … [Read more...] about Stop hoarding Covid-19 vaccines, South Africa’s president tells rich nations