Seventeen African countries are taking part in a two-day Democracy summit hosted by US President Joe Biden, billed as an event to discuss ways to defend against the rise of authoritarianism. Observers say it highlights the contrasting priorities of the US and China on the continent. The summit comes just over a week after the…
The World Food Programme (WFP) has suspended distribution of food aid in two northern Ethiopian towns after gunmen looted its warehouses. Looters from rebel Tigrayan forces held aid staff at gunpoint in the town of Kombolcha, the United Nations said. They stole large quantities of essential food supplies – including some for malnourished children. Northern…
Burkina Faso’s government resigned Wednesday night after several protests by the population denouncing its inability to fight recurrent jihadist attacks that plague the West African country every week. Christophe Joseph Dabiré, Burkina’s Prime Minister, submitted a letter of resignation to President Roch Marc Christian Kaboré on Wednesday, who accepted it. “It is put an end…
The African Transformation Movement has resubmitted a motion of no confidence in President Cyril Ramaphosa. This follows a ruling by the Supreme Court of Appeal last week, which set aside a decision by the previous speaker who rejected a request for a secret ballot in the motion. ATM cites gross incompetence and a dismal economic…
Covid-19 has had a negative impact on African health systems. Many people have not been able to access medical services because of the pandemic. Many children have missed important vaccinations and health checks. A new study has found that many African children have missed vital medical treatments for HIV, malaria and tuberculosis, because of the…
Existing vaccines should still protect people who contract the Omicron variant from severe Covid cases, a World Health Organization (WHO) official says. It comes as the first lab tests of the new variant in South Africa suggest it can partially evade the Pfizer jab. Researchers say there was a “very large drop” in how well…
In our series of letters from African journalists, Ismail Einashe meets a man who recounts how he was tricked into going to work in Libya – and how he escaped. A young Bangladeshi migrant in the Italian city of Palermo sits uneasily shuffling in a chair and playing with his mobile phone as he recounts…
The Gambia’s re-elected president Adama Barrow has laid out plans for his second mandate. Speaking at a press briefing in Banjul on Tuesday, Barrow promised to be president for all Gambians. Barrow was easily returned to power in Saturday’s vote after his first five-year term ended the 22-year dictatorship of Yahya Jammeh. According to official…
Ethiopia’s government said Monday it had recaptured two strategic towns from rebel fighters, the latest in a rapid series of battlefield victories claimed by forces loyal to Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed. The announcement marks another dramatic twist in the 13-month-old conflict that has killed thousands of people and triggered a deep humanitarian crisis in the…
After more than 80 weeks of closure, questions loom over the effect of the shutdown on students and teachers. Kampala, Uganda – Long before Uganda’s President Yoweri Museveni announced last month that schools would reopen in January, 15-year-old Florence Nagawa had already decided she was not going to return to study. In March 2020, all educational facilities in…