Bay Area

Burundi’s Ambassador visits Oakland to unite and collaborate with Oakland-Burundi Sister Cities

In a remarkable display of international goodwill and cooperation, Ambassador Dr. Albert Nasasagare, the former Special Advisor to President Évariste Ndayishimiye of Burundi, Africa, embarked on a historic visit to Oakland, California. Invited by Dr. Maritony Ann Jones, a fellow ambassador and humanitarian, the visit took place on Sept. 25th-26th, and it offered a unique opportunity to foster international relations and showcase Oakland’s hospitality by the Oakland-Burundi Sister Cities executive team.

Published

2 years ago

October 3, 2023

Oakland Post

(l-r) Ray Bobbit, Royl L. Roberts, Burundi Ambassador Albert Nasasagare, Ottis Bruce Jr., Dr. Maritony Jones, Jonathan Fitness Jones visited the office of Alameda County DA Pamela Price (Photo by Richard Johnson)

By Post Staff

In a remarkable display of international goodwill and cooperation, Ambassador Dr. Albert Nasasagare, the Special Advisor to President Évariste Ndayishimiye of Burundi, Africa, embarked on a historic visit to Oakland, California. Invited by Dr. Maritony Ann Jones, a fellow ambassador and humanitarian, the visit took place on Sept. 25th-26th, and it offered a unique opportunity to foster international relations and showcase Oakland’s hospitality by the Oakland-Burundi Sister Cities executive team.

The visit was hosted and sponsored by JonathanFitnessJones, Oakland Post Ambassador to the Community/AASEG, and Ray Bobbit founder of African American Sports & Entertainment Group (AASEG), underscoring the significance of this diplomatic engagement.

Dr. Albert Nasasagare, met with the board and staff of the Oakland Private Industry Council (PIC) and was briefed on how projects like the AASEG could become a resource of hope and opportunity for groups like the Formerly Incarcerated Giving Back (FIGB) founded by Richard Johnson. The Ambassador was given information on how to develop and utilize youth employment and training programs by PIC CEO Ray Lankford.

Dr. Nasasagare also visited the offices of Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Y. Price where he met with DA Senior Staff Ottis Bruce Jr., Chief Assistant District Attorney, and Royl L. Roberts, Chief Assistant District Attorney, and Antwon Cloird Senior Program Specialist.

Their discussions revolved around the Burundi-Oakland Sister Cities exchange students program plans which were proposed to be in alignment with DA Price’s program called “Drum Major for Justice, ” which was launched this summer for the youth.

The Ambassador visited the Oakland Post and was invited by Paul Cobb, publisher of Oakland Post to join him at the City Hall, where he met District 6 City Councilmember Kevin Jenkins. Cobb invited the Ambassador to join him as an observer to a press interview at the City of Oakland Mayor’s office.

Ray Bobbit took the Ambassador on a city-wide tour and shared a brief history of Oakland, stopping at the local landmarks and seeing all parts of Oakland which also included touring the Oakland Coliseum.

The Ambassador wanted to immerse himself in the local culture and to learn of the city’s diversity. He engaged with residents who spoke French, Swahili and Kirundi, connecting with African communities in California. Ambassador Nasasagare said his visit was marked by “meaningful discussions and interactions, aimed at addressing common challenges and exploring opportunities for collaboration.”

One of the pressing issues discussed during the visit was the rising crime rates in California, particularly in the city of Oakland. Ambassador Nasasagare’s insights, drawn from his experience in Burundi, where a decade-long civil war wreaked havoc, proved invaluable. He emphasized the importance of listening to the voices of youth in the community, and the victims affected by crime and the need to work collectively to find solutions as a united community.

Ambassador Nasasagare’s journey to Oakland reflects his life story. Hailing from Burundi, a country in central Africa, he said he had witnessed firsthand how “political agendas exploited youth, leading to a decade-long civil war from 1993 to 2006, resulting in a staggering death toll of over 300,000.”

Poverty in Burundi surged during this period, reaching 67% of the population. Ambassador Nasasagare, even in his youth, recognized the need for change and rallied young people to work together to shape their future.

The Ambassador’s advocacy for youth empowerment led him to serve for fifteen years as Deputy Chief of Staff in Charge of Protocol for late President Pierre Nkurunziza, and was the former Special Advisor to Burundi President Evariste Ndayishimiye for three years. He is also the founder of the Youth Coalition in Action (YCA), a local NGO dedicated to helping children in need, mentoring youth and women for financial empowerment, and promoting community development and environmental protection.

The visit culminated in a dinner where future collaborations between sister cities and Burundi were discussed. The potential for empowering youth and organizing exchange programs for Oakland’s youth in Burundi, providing training and job opportunities, was a focal point of discussion and the visit. Mwaro in Burundi will become the first city in Burundi to be part of the Oakland-Burundi Sister Cities International, a project initiated by Ambassador JonathanFitnessJones.

Jones said Ambassador Dr. Albert Nasasagare’s visit to Oakland “has opened doors to new possibilities, emphasizing the importance of global cooperation, youth empowerment, and community development. It is a testament to the power of dialogue and partnership in addressing complex challenges and building a brighter future for all.”

Oakland Post

Posts by Oakland Post

Up Next

The Power of a President Standing on the Picket Line

Don't Miss

People’s Republic of China Celebrates 74th Anniversary: Expression of Hope that China – U.S. Friendship and Prosperity Will Continue to Grow

Oakland Post

Click to comment

Activism

Oakland Post: Week of May 21 – 27, 2025

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of May 21 – 27, 2025

Published

5 days ago

May 25, 2025

Oakland Post

To enlarge your view of this issue, use the slider, magnifying glass icon or full page icon in the lower right corner of the browser window.

Oakland Post

Posts by Oakland Post

Bay Area

Chevron Richmond Installs Baker Hughes Flare.IQ, Real-time Flare Monitoring, Control and Reduction System

While the sight of flaring can cause concern in the community, flares are essential safety systems that burn pollutants to prevent them from being released directly into the atmosphere. They activate during startup and shut-down of facility units or during upsets or equipment malfunctions. The typical flare stack is about 200 feet high so that vapors are well above street levels.

Published

2 weeks ago

May 19, 2025

Oakland Post

Image courtesy The Richmond Standard.

The Richmond Standard

Chevron Richmond recently installed flare.IQ, a real-time, automated system that will improve the facility’s flaring performance.

The technology, developed by Panametrics, a Baker Hughes business, uses sensors to monitor, reduce and control flaring in real time. It collects and assesses data on refinery processes, such as temperature, pressure, gas flow and gas composition, and adjusts accordingly to ensure flares burn more efficiently and cleanly, leading to fewer emissions.

“The cleaner the flare, the brighter the flame can look,” said Duy Nguyen, a Chevron Richmond flaring specialist. “If you see a brighter flame than usual on a flare, that actually means flare.IQ is operating as intended.”

“A key element in Baker Hughes’ emissions abatement portfolio, flare.IQ has a proven track record in optimizing flare operations and significantly reducing emissions,” said Colin Hehir, vice president of Panametrics, a Baker Hughes business. “By partnering with Chevron Richmond, one of the first operators in North America to adopt flare.IQ, we are looking forward to enhancing the plant’s flaring operations.”

The installation of flare.IQ is part of a broader and ongoing effort by Chevron Richmond to improve flare performance, particularly in response to increased events after the new, more efficient hydrogen plant was brought online in 2019.

Since then, the company has invested $25 million — and counting — into flare minimization. As part of the effort, a multidisciplinary refinery team was formed to find and implement ways to improve operational reliability and ultimately reduce flaring. Operators and other employees involved in management of flares and flare gas recovery systems undergo new training.

“It is important to me that the community knows we are working hard to lower emissions and improve our flaring performance,” Nguyen said.

Also evolving is the process by which community members are notified of flaring incidents. The Community Warning System (CWS), operated by Contra Costa County is an “all-hazard” public warning system.

Residents can opt-in to receive alerts via text, e-mail and landline. The CWS was recently expanded to enable residents to receive notifications for “Level 1” incidents, which are considered informational as they do not require any community action.

For more information related to these topics, check out the resources included on the Chevron Richmond, CAER and Contra Costa Health websites. Residents are also encouraged to follow @chevronrichmond and @RFDCAOnline on Facebook and X (formerly Twitter), where additional information may be posted during an incident.

Oakland Post

Posts by Oakland Post

Activism

Oakland Hosts Town Hall Addressing Lead Hazards in City Housing

According to the city, there are 22,000 households in need of services for lead issues, most in predominantly low-income or Black and Latino neighborhoods, but only 550 to 600 homes are addressed every year. The city is hoping to use part of the multimillion-dollar settlement to increase the number of households served each year.

Published

2 weeks ago

May 18, 2025

Oakland Post

iStock.

By Magaly Muñoz

The City of Oakland’s Housing and Community Development Department hosted a town hall in the Fruitvale to discuss the efforts being undertaken to remove lead primarily found in housing in East and West Oakland.

In 2021, the city was awarded $14 million out of a $24 million legal settlement from a lawsuit against paint distributors for selling lead-based paint that has affected hundreds of families in Oakland and Alameda County. The funding is intended to be used for lead poisoning reduction and prevention services in paint only, not water or other sources as has been found recently in schools across the city.

The settlement can be used for developing or enhancing programs that abate lead-based paint, providing services to individuals, particularly exposed children, educating the public about hazards caused by lead paint, and covering attorney’s fees incurred in pursuing litigation.

Most of the homes affected were built prior to 1978, and 12,000 of these homes are considered to be at high risk for lead poisoning.

City councilmember Noel Gallo, who represents a few of the lead-affected Census tracts, said the majority of the poisoned kids and families are coming directly from neighborhoods like the Fruitvale.

“When you look at the [kids being admitted] at the children’s hospital, they’re coming from this community,” Gallo said at the town hall.

In order to eventually rid the highest impacted homes of lead poisoning, the city intends to create programs and activities such as lead-based paint inspections and assessments, full abatement designed to permanently eliminate lead-based paint, or partial abatement for repairs, painting, and specialized cleaning meant for temporary reduction of hazards.

In feedback for what the city could implement in their programming, residents in attendance of the event said they want more accessibility to resources, like blood testing, and information from officials about lead poisoning symptoms, hotlines for assistance, and updates on the reduction of lead in their communities.

Attendees also asked how they’d know where they are on the prioritization list and what would be done to address lead in the water found at several school sites in Oakland last year.

City staff said there will be a follow-up event to gather more community input for programming in August, with finalizations happening in the fall and a pilot launch in early 2026.