AFRICA

Juba, South Sudan | AFP |  South Sudan rebels rejected on Sunday a peace offer by President Salva Kiir to return to a system of 10 states, paving the way for a unity government. The rejection by rebel chief Riek Machar dashes hopes of breaking a deadlock and ending a six-year …

Cape Town, South Africa | AFP |  South Africa’s announcement that it will open up electricity generation to other players, effectively breaking Eskom’s monopoly, has been welcomed by many, especially the mining industry, a key sector in Africa’s most industrialised economy. President Cyril Ramaphosa in his annual state of the nation …

Windhoek, Namibia | AFP |  Namibia should by rights feel little concern about the coronavirus outbreak given that the sparsely-populated desert country is 12,000 kilometres from China and without a single confirmed case. But like many countries on the continent, the southern African nation hosts a big Chinese retail business community …

Bamako, Mali | AFP |  Forty people, including nine soldiers, have been killed in a spate of attacks in central Mali, authorities said Friday, with most of the deaths caused by inter-ethnic violence in the deeply troubled region. Thirty-one people were killed in an attack overnight in Ogossagou, a village mainly …

Juba, South Sudan | AFP |  South Sudan’s president said on Saturday he would return to a system of 10 states, a key opposition demand, paving the way for a unity government and an end to the country’s civil war. “The compromise we have just made is in the interest …

Cairo, Egypt | AFP |  Egypt’s health ministry on Friday confirmed its first case of the novel coronavirus, making it the first in Africa. The nationality of the person was not given in the joint statement with the population ministry, which added that they had shown no “symptoms”. Authorities have …

Paris, France | AFP | A son of Republic of Congo President Denis Sassou Nguesso has not been charged in a French probe into the assets in France of the families of several African leaders, his lawyer said Friday, although his name has been cited in the investigation. A lawyer …

Juba, South Sudan | AFP |  South Sudan President Salva Kiir on Friday dismissed international calls for compromise with his foes to break a deadlock that threatens a ceasefire in their six year war. Kiir and rebel chief Riek Machar are under increasing pressure to resolve their differences by February …

Kampala, Uganda  | THE INDEPENDENT | The U.S Agency for International Development (USAID) through the Prosper Africa initiative is partnering with the United Bank for Africa (UBA) to increase two-way trade and investment between the United States and the nations of Africa. The partnership will ensure that businesses are equipped …

Skoura, Morocco | AFP |  Dead palm trees lie on dry, yellowish earth near an abandoned adobe house in Morocco’s arid southeast, as drought threatens ancient oases. “I grew up in this oasis and I have seen it shrink,” says 53-year-old Mohamed El Houkari, who lives in Skoura, a rural oasis …