More than 200,000 cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed on the African continent, and the sweep of the pandemic is accelerating, according to World Health Organization (WHO). Officials said Thursday the coronavirus count reached the benchmark of 100,000 cases in 98 days, but it then took only 19 days to…
Opposition leaders in Ethiopia warn of the potential for additional unrest following parliament’s decision to allow Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed to remain in office beyond the end of his term. A joint statement from the Oromo LIberation Front (OLF) and Oromo Federalist Congress (OFC) followed Wednesday’s decision to keep Abiy…
President Pierre Nkurunziza has died in Burundi, according to the government on Tuesday. Nkurunziza, 55, died of a heart attack in hospital. The statement, issued by secretary general and Burundi government spokesman Prosper Ntahorwamiye, said Nkurunziza fell ill late Saturday in the northern Ngozi community following a sporting match. He…
Beijing on Friday was quick to welcome the news from Burundi, where the constitutional court has confirmed May 20 presidential election results that will put Evariste Ndayishimiye into office, replacing outgoing President Pierre Nkurunziza but maintaining power for the CNDD-FDD party. “We believe that under the leadership of President Ndayishimiye,…
By Arman Sidhu After suffering its first economic contraction in nearly 45 years, China finds itself facing a deluge of economic threats, many of which stem from criticism of Beijing’s handling and response to the COVID-19 pandemic. From alternative supply chains, to new policy measures designed to screen Chinese foreign…
In Zimbabwe, three women activists with the opposition Movement for Democratic Change – Alliance party who were detained following protests two weeks ago are back in custody pending a final bail ruling on Thursday. The women, including MDC-Alliance MP Joanah Mamombe, above, were charged earlier this week in connection with…
In a remarkable display of resilience, Uganda has thus far managed to avoid the carnage which the Covid-19 pandemic has caused in other parts of the world. As of 19 May, Kampala has officially registered 274 infections, along with 63 recoveries and, astonishingly, no deaths. Despite this good news, the…
President Paul Biya of Cameroon has kept a low profile in recent months but delivered a televised address to the troubled West African nation to mark its National Day, one muted by the coronavirus pandemic and the absence of festivities. The 87-year-old Biya focused on the COVID-19 crisis during his…
Prime Minister Tom Thabane of Lesotho resigned on Tuesday, making good on public statements he’s made for weeks that promised he’d step down before summer amid allegations he is implicated in the 2017 murder of his former wife. Moeketsi Majoro, the country’s finance minister, is expected to be sworn in…
Beijing was on the defensive Monday, as the World Health Assembly in Geneva began with a draft resolution from 110 nations, many of them on the African continent, calling for an inquiry into the source of the deadly coronavirus believed to have originated in China in late 2019. The seven-page…
Germany has been involved in development projects in Liberia since at least 2005, providing millions in funds and expertise to the country in areas ranging from infrastructure to health. This, however, will now come to an end. Berlin recently announced earlier this week it would withdraw support for the country…
I am a London-based researcher specialized in security issues and environmental protection. He is currently writing a book about the role lobbying plays in keeping African leaders in power.
In Zimbabwe, the international community joins local groups in their concern over the latest arrest of opposition leaders, this time three women including Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) MP Joanah Mamombe. Mamombe, along with MDC leaders Cecilia Chimbiri and Netsai Marowa, has been missing since Wednesday after participating in protests…
Leaders of four East African Community (EAC) member nations have agreed to new measures for truck drivers, spurred by the coronavirus pandemic and the frequent crossing of regional borders. The presidents of Uganda, Rwanda, South Sudan and Kenya say they’re coordinating a plan to have drivers tested and certified at…
Ethiopia and Tunisia have been removed, but four African nations are now on a financial crimes watch list issued by the European Union. Botswana, Ghana, Mauritius and Zimbabwe are identified as high-risk countries for money laundering and the potential for funding terrorism, according to an EU statement. The additions are…
The Human Rights Watch organization is sounding the alarm over Egypt’s COVID-related emergency powers legislation, which would expand the power of President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi regardless of any public health link to a stated emergency. “President al-Sisi’s government is using the pandemic to expand, not reform, Egypt’s abusive Emergency Law,”…