Southern Africa leaders back Western Sahara at ‘historic’ talks Pretoria, South Africa | AFP | Several southern African leaders on Tuesday threw their support behind Western Sahara, with one calling the disputed territory the “last colony” on the African continent. Also attending is Uganda’s President Yoweri Museveni. President Cyril Ramaphosa, leader …
Read More »Regional leaders head to Addis to discuss DRC situation
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | African Regional leaders will meet in Addis Ababa tomorrow to help chat a way forward for the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The meetings will start with a Southern African Development Community (SADC) Double Troika Summit, that will be followed by a consultative meeting between …
Read More »Regional bloc urges DR Congo unity govt, vote recount
Kinshasa, DR Congo | AFP | An African regional bloc on Sunday called for a unity government in Democratic Republic of Congo following disputed presidential elections, while also urging a recount of the ballots. The Southern African Development Community (SADC) said political leaders should agree to a negotiated settlement after …
Read More »S.Africa, Zambia call for speedy finalisation of DR Congo vote result
Johannesburg, South Africa | AFP | South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa and his Zambian counterpart Edgar Lungu on Wednesday called on electoral officials in the Democratic Republic of Congo to quickly wrap up the vote collation and release the presidential election results. The two leaders held emergency talks in Pretoria …
Read More »Regional force deploys to Lesotho over security concerns
Maseru, Lesotho | AFP | A 258-strong regional force was deployed to Lesotho on Saturday to ease security concerns in the landlocked kingdom after the killing of the country’s top army commander in September. The move by the Southern African Development Community (SADC), a regional bloc, was approved in September …
Read More »Embattled Mugabe meets regional envoys in Harare
Johannesburg, South Africa | AFP | Zimbabwean opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai called on Thursday for President Robert Mugabe to step down after the military took control of the country. “In the interest of the people of Zimbabwe, Mr Robert Mugabe must resign,” Tsvangirai said, calling for a negotiated process to ease …
Read More »Zimbabwe declares holiday on Mugabe’s birthday
Harare, Zimbabwe | AFP | Zimbabwe has declared President Robert Mugabe’s birthday on February 21 a national holiday, a state daily reported Saturday, honouring the veteran politician in power since 1980 who opponents accuse of brutal repression and devastating the economy. The declaration of the Robert Mugabe National Youth Day …
Read More »ANALYSIS: Lessons from Burundi’s SADC move
EAC member states must do something flying geese do very well: have a leader Burundi’s recent attempt to join the Southern African Development Community (SADC) has been blocked. But it raises questions about what EAC member states should do about its cold neighbour. Burundi, which has been a member of …
Read More »Why Kenya lost fight for AU top job
And why East Africa lost more over outdated voting habits at continental body As the heads of state and government of the African Union meeting in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa, started voting on Jan. 30 for the next head of the continental body, Kenya’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Amina …
Read More »COMMENT: Lessons from Gambia
COMMENT: By Chris Saunders & Henning Melber What southern Africa can learn from West Africa about dealing with despots? Has the Economic Community of West African States (Ecowas) just taught the Southern African Development Community (SADC) a lesson? The West African states effectively took a dictator to task after he …
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