AFRICA

Khartoum, Sudan | Xinhua | Chairman of Sudan’s Transitional Sovereign Council Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan on Saturday reaffirmed the commitment of the military to exit the political process in the country. Al-Burhan made the remarks in a speech to the nation on the occasion of the 67th anniversary of Sudan’s independence. “We reiterate …

The first phase of Lagos’ new elevated rail system has been commissioned and testing will now begin ahead of operations that should see as many as 250,000 people transported daily. Lagos, Nigeria | BIRD AGENCY |  The first phase of a light rail system that is set to transform commuting …

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia | Xinhua | The International Organization for Migration (IOM) has said more than 100,000 Ethiopian migrants have returned from abroad during the first ten months of 2022. Between January and October 2022, IOM registered over 100,000 returning migrants to Ethiopia, with the majority — more than 71,000 — coming …

Windhoek, Nambia | Xinhua | Namibia’s Ministry of Finance and Public Enterprises has announced that the Value Added Tax (VAT) Amendment Act, 2022 will come into effect on Jan. 1, 2023. The amendments to the Act include the reclassification of the supply of sanitary pads as a zero-rated supply, said Wilson Shikoto, …

Juba, South Sudan | Xinhua | South Sudanese President Salva Kiir on Wednesday bid farewell to more than 700 peacekeepers to be deployed in the neighboring Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Kiir told the troops to stick to the mission, maintain discipline and stay away from criminal activities. “I want …

Lusaka, Zambia | Xinhua | Zambia on Friday announced the results of its first-ever electronic national census, which indicated the country’s population stood at 19.6 million, up from 13.1 million in 2010. The sixth census of population and housing was conducted between Aug. 18 and Sept. 14, 2022. According to preliminary …

Johannesburg, S.A. | Xinhua | The South African National Parks (SANParks), a body responsible for managing national parks in the country, said on Thursday that they are in the process of developing a standard operating procedure to implement the recently approved polygraph testing policy to combat criminal activities by its employees. …

Young, savvy university graduates are chosing farming over white-collar jobs as Zimbabwe seeks a return to its breadbasket status Harare, Zimbabwe | BIRD AGENCY | When Tavuya Manungo, 29, returned to his home town in Shamva in north-eastern Zimbabwe, he did so with a master’s degree in finance and investment, …

Tunis, Tunisia | Xinhua | Germany has signed two agreements to donate 105 million euros (112 million U.S. dollars) to Tunisia to support the country’s economy, the Tunisian Foreign Affairs Ministry said in a statement on Friday. “The two agreements cover vital areas of cooperation, including regional development, support for decentralization, …

  Despite individual African governments having an essential role in tourism management, private wildlife reserves are proving to be the sector’s driving force. But are conservancies the way to go? Montral, Canada | BIRD AGENCY | This week, over 190 countries attending a UN Biodiversity Conference in Montreal, Canada committed to …