Pretoria, South Africa | AFP |  Cyril Ramaphosa takes the oath of office today Saturday as president of South Africa, facing a brew of expectations and scepticism after vowing to reform the country and revive its economy. Foreign heads of state will be among 36,000 people expected to witness the ceremony …

Florida, United States | AFP | SpaceX on Thursday launched a rocket containing the first 60 satellites of its “Starlink” constellation, which is intended to provide internet from space and could one day number 12,000 satellites. One of the company’s Falcon 9 rockets took off without incident from Cape Canaveral in …

Shanghai, China | AFP | Marcello Lippi was back as coach of China on Friday, four months after the World Cup winner quit and following a failed stint by fellow Italian Fabio Cannavaro. The 71-year-old Lippi’s return to the top job in Chinese football had been widely tipped in domestic media …

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Parliament has approved the payment of 947 billion shillings to 82 Ugandan companies that supplied goods and services in South Sudan. The traders supplied goods and services to the South Sudan government between 2008 and 2010 but were not paid due to the outbreak of …

Los Angeles, United States | AFP |  Olympic track and field star Allyson Felix joined a chorus of recent criticism against Nike on Wednesday, accusing the US sporting goods giant of penalizing female athletes who took time off to have a child. Felix, the only female track and field athlete to …

Teresópolis, Brazil | AFP | Copa America hosts Brazil began preparations for the tournament at their training centre in Teresopolis on Wednesday, despite missing most of their team. Only seven players are expected at the Granja Comary football complex near Rio de Janeiro for the first week of training. Neymar, …

Tokyo, Japan, | AFP | Japan’s Panasonic on Thursday said it would stop supplying some components to Huawei, joining a growing list of firms distancing themselves from the Chinese telecoms giant after a US ban over security concerns. The announcement came a day after four major Japanese and British mobile carriers …

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT |  More than 30,000 guns have so far been fingerprinted within Kampala Metropolitan Police – KMP, Katonga, Greater Masaka and Rwizi regions. This is according to Obiga Kania, the Minister of State for Internal Affairs. He made the revelation during the manifesto Implementation Week by the …

Malabo, Equatorial Guinea | AFP | In a country awash with oil, the poorest survive in shantytowns a stone’s throw from smart modern apartments and family homes supposedly built to help those most in need. The government of Equatorial Guinea had billed the rows of state-subsidised housing as never-to-be-missed home-owning opportunities for the poor. But …

Algiers, Algeria | AFP |  Algeria’s army chief said Wednesday he has “no political ambition”, days after the key powerbroker urged anti-government protesters to take part in presidential polls set for July. “I have personally committed myself repeatedly… to support the Algerian people” who are protesting “as well as the efforts …