a Lagos, Nigeria | AFP | When one of Africa’s richest men joined Twitter and posted his first tweet on May 11 this year, the fanfare in his native Nigeria was immediate. News that Femi Otedola had opened an account spread like wildfire and the billionaire head of Forte Oil …
Read More »South Sudan Vice President Machar back in Juba after 2 years
Juba, South Sudan | AFP | South Sudan rebel leader Riek Machar returned to the capital Juba for the first time in more than two years Wednesday, saying he arrived with a message of peace. Machar, who under the terms of the September deal is to be reinstated as vice president, …
Read More »DR Congo ‘not ready’ for December polls: opposition
Kinshasa, DR Congo | AFP | The Democratic Republic of Congo is “not ready” to hold long-delayed elections in December, the main opposition party said Tuesday, the day after the army handed over 150 trucks and a dozen aircraft for use by the electoral commission. “One hundred fifty trucks can’t …
Read More »Macron hails reformist Ethiopia PM on first Europe trip
Paris, France | AFP | French President Emmanuel Macron on Monday hailed “unprecedented” moves by Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed to transform his country as the young African leader makes his first trip to Europe. Abiy, 42, has won global praise for forging peace with neighbouring Eritrea, announcing economic reforms …
Read More »Water rights for African farmers threatened by law rooted in colonial times: study
Researchers at Africa Water Week call for efforts to “decolonize” and improve water permit systems, so more farmers are encouraged to invest in much-needed irrigation Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Millions of African farmers still face legal restrictions on water access, dating back to colonial times, according to a study …
Read More »Sierra Leone’s chimpanzees pay price of human expansion
Freetown, Sierra Leone | AFP | They have their hands full at the Tacugama Chimpanzee Sanctuary, where record numbers of orphaned chimps are being delivered to their care, victims of the relentless expansion of human activity. Poachers hunt them for their meat, farmers shoot them to protect their crops and …
Read More »Nigerian army silent as families seek news of the missing
Lagos, Nigeria | AFP | The soldier’s father remembers the exact day when he spoke to his son for the last time. It was August 26. He hasn’t heard from him since. He’s not alone: dozens of other soldiers stationed in northeast Nigeria, in the heart of Boko Haram’s Islamist …
Read More »Presidential poll embitters poor Madagascans
Antananarivo, Madagascar | AFP | “If I was to vote, I would definitely vote for the rubbish bins because at least they feed us,” scoffed Claudine Rajaonarison. She had been scouring the streets of Antananarivo since 4:00 am for plastic to sell. Rajaonarison, a 35-year-old mother of three, said she …
Read More »S.Africa coal belt among world’s pollution hotspots: Greenpeace
Johannesburg, South Africa | AFP | South Africa’s eastern Mpumalanga province has the most polluting cluster of coal-fired power stations in the world producing record levels of nitrogen dioxide, a report by environmental campaign group Greenpeace said Monday. Mpumalanga, which borders Mozambique, is the hub of South Africa’s coal industry …
Read More »Libya’s south falls prey to foreign armed groups
Tripoli, Libya | AFP | Neglected by rival authorities in Tripoli and the country’s east, Libya’s southern desert has increasingly become a hideout for foreign rebel groups that stand accused of stoking growing insecurity. “Kidnapping, theft and banditry have multiplied” in the region, said Ali Akri Molia, commander of a …
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