Pope Francis wraps up Africa visit in South Sudan

Pope Francis wraps up Africa visit in South Sudan

Pope Francis completed a week-long visit to Africa in Juba on Sunday, celebrating Mass with a call to peace and praise for the courage of the South Sudanese people. “When our strength seems paltry before the magnitude of our problems and the blind fury of violence, we Christians are able…

Laureen Fagan

Laureen is the editor of Africa Times

Calls for diplomacy as Rwanda, DR Congo fighting escalates

Calls for diplomacy as Rwanda, DR Congo fighting escalates

The Democratic Republic of Congo has expelled Rwandan ambassador Vincent Karenga, the latest move in escalating tensions between the neighboring Central African nations. Karenga was told to leave by Tuesday following the capture of Kiwanja and Rutshuru, towns in the volatile eastern DR Congo, by March 23 (M23) rebels over…

Africa’s part in the global energy transition

In a bid to adapt to climate change and provide cheaper electricity to the general population, Zimbabwe is boosting solar power, and to a lesser extent hydropower, as part of a government programme to cut energy-related emissions by about a third before the end of the decade. Authorities have set…

Top U.S. diplomat Blinken set for three-nation African tour

South Africans will welcome United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken next week, as he begins a three-nation tour meant to strengthen U.S. relationships with African nations. While in Pretoria, Blinken plans to present the U.S. Strategy for Sub-Saharan Africa. It reaffirms the U.S. position that “African countries are geostrategic…

Felix Tshisekedi’s diplomatic sea change

The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is facing yet another crisis in its relations with neighbour Rwanda, following reports that the M23 rebel group has seized a key town in DRC territory. Military leaders have described the rebel capture of Bunagana, just 60 kilometers northeast of the major city…

Pope cancels trip to DR Congo, South Sudan

Pope Francis has canceled a trip to African nations that was set for early July due to health reasons, according to a Vatican spokesman. “At the request of his doctors, and in order not to jeopardize the results of the therapy that he is undergoing for his knee, the Holy…

Second Ebola death reported in DR Congo

A second person has died of the Ebola virus in the Democratic Republic of Congo, following reports of a new outbreak in Equateur Province in the northwestern part of the country. The World Health Organization says the 25-year-old woman died after first exhibiting symptoms nearly two weeks ago. She was…

DR Congo reports new case of Ebola virus

A new case of Ebola virus has emerged in the Democratic Republic of Congo, claiming the life of a 31-year-old man living in Equateur Province in the northwestern part of the country. The man began having symptoms on April 5 in the city of Mbandaka, according to the World Health…

How endemic logistics corruption undermines global Covid recovery

A specially commissioned report into the “state capture” perpetrated under the former South African president Jacob Zuma via logistics firm Transnet reveals the depths of malfeasance in the country during his tenure. The 646-page report has implicated over 1,400 individuals in cronyism and corruption that cumulatively caused public losses of…