In a bid to provide further impetus to the National Pension System (NPS), the following provisions have been introduced in the Finance Bill 2017 laid down in the Parliament today.

A Financing Agreement for IDA credit of US$201.50 million (equivalent) for the “Third Technical Education Quality Improvement Programme (TEQIP III)” was signed with the World Bank here yesterday. The Financing Agreement was signed by Mr. Raj Kumar (Joint Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs) on behalf of Government of India and Mr. Junaid Kamal Ahmad, Country Director, World Bank (India) on behalf of the World Bank.

UK expertise in Oil & Gas at the centre of Mozambique Minister’s visit

The Mozambican Minister for Mineral Resources and Energy, Leticia Klemens, paid this February a four-day official visit to the United Kingdom, at the invitation of the British Government.

The visit program was centred mainly on the minister’s participation at the SubSea Expo 2017 Conference and Exhibition, which took place place 1 to 3 February in Aberdeen, Scotland – one of the most respected in terms of Oil & Gas expertise centres in the world.

The visit program included several meetings with representatives of the British Government and the private sector in London. The visit has been stimulated by UK’s expertise in Oil & Gas and by existing opportunities for cooperation and exchange of best practice. British High Commissioner in Mozambique, Joanna Kuenssberg, accompanied the Minister in the visit.

By collaborating and working with British experts and companies, Mozambique can maximize its potential in the sector and ensure that exploitation of mineral and energy resources has a positive impact on the country’s economic and social development. At the conference, the minister spoke of Mozambique’s energy sectors potential focusing on the business environment, the opportunities and challenges.

Apart from this, the minister joined by representatives of the National Petroleum Institute (INP) and the National Hydrocarbons Company (ENH) in a visit to the subsea international exhibition, attended by more than 150 organizations from various areas of expertise in the Oil & Gas sector.

Yet in Aberdeen, the minister visited Robert Gordon University, which has a top-of-the-range oil operations simulator. Oil companies use this type of equipment to create a more concrete notion of the infrastructure needed for gas exploration and production.

In the field of education, minister Klemens and the High Commissioner of Mozambique in the United Kingdom, Filipe Chidumo, interacted with Mozambican students learning different specialties on oil and gas. Some of these students have been in the UK on a Chevening scholarship, offered by the British Government.

The minister yet called on Aberdeen Lord Provost George Adam to strengthen partnership and cooperation between the municipalities of Aberdeen and Pemba.

In London, minister Klemens was welcomed by the FCO Minister for Africa, Tobias Ellwood, and also met the Minister of International Trade, Greg Hands, and the Prime Minister’s Commercial Envoy to Mozambique, Richard Benyon.

The program closed with meetings with international companies in the energy sector and a speech by the minister, organized by Chatham House – Royal Institute for International Affairs. The minister spoke about Mozambique’s context and interact with British companies and experts.

Notes for Editors

• On Aberdeen and Pemba: there have been two projects funded by the British government, which aimed to train Pemba Municipality officials on skills to attract more investment.

• Richard Benyon, Prime Minister’s Trade Envoy to Mozambique and also a member of the British Parliament, made his first visit to Mozambique in September 2016.

• David Mundell, who is the Secretary of State for Scotland also paid a visit to Mozambique in February 2016.

• (Chevening scholarships)[www.chevening.org]: for the 2016/17 school year, seven Mozambicans were awarded with scholarships from the UK government, two are in Scotland.

For further information, please contact:

Inayah.Sultan@fco.gov.uk

Sonia.Muchate@fco.gov.uk

The Environment Agency has accepted an offer of more than £127,000 for an enforcement undertaking from Kerry Ingredients UK Limited following a pollution incident in the River Cam in Gloucestershire.

The incident, which took place in June 2014, resulted in the deaths of more than 200 fish.

As a result, a financial contribution of £127,975 is being shared between Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust (£40,451), Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust (£19,766), Severn Rivers Trust (£52,758) and Bristol Zoological Society (£15,000)

The Environment Agency’s ability to accept Enforcement Undertakings was extended in 2015 to a far wider range of offences. The Environment Agency is increasingly using this method of enforcement for suitable cases to swiftly restore the environment, improve practices of the offending company and avoid longer criminal court cases. However prosecutions will still be taken, particularly in the most serious cases.

The Kerry case is one of a number revealed today in which charities will receive more than £1.5 million for projects benefitting wildlife and the environment as a result of enforcement action by the Environment Agency.

Peter Kellett, Legal Director for the Environment Agency said:

We take pollution incidents very seriously and the payments of £1.5 million we’re announcing today are the result of our firm but fair enforcement action and will benefit people and the environment across the country.

Enforcement Undertakings allow those who commit offences to restore the environment and to take steps to prevent a recurrence. When appropriate, they allow a quicker resolution than a prosecution and help offenders who are prepared to take responsibility for their actions to put things right with their local communities.