Some 6,500 service personnel will likely return to assignments in the United States as the U.S. Africa Command based in Stuttgart, Germany, plans a move of AFRICOM headquarters announced this week. U.S. Army Gen. Stephen Townsend, commander of AFRICOM, acknowledged President Donald Trump’s decision to move from Germany while assuring…
German Chancellor Angela Merkel emphasized commitment to the African continent in a New Year’s Eve address to her nation that also underscored the climate crisis and a call for global climate action. Merkel, a champion of the G20 Compact with Africa economic initiative, said the continent will be a priority…
President Paul Kagame of Rwanda pointed to a new partnership with Volkswagen and Siemens, one that makes his nation Africa’s first to have an electric vehicle pilot program, as evidence of what can be achieved through the G20 Compact with Africa initiative launched in 2017. His brief remarks came during…
Germany says it plans to establish an art restitution office by next year, in order to assist museums and other holders of African art in navigating if and how to return pieces to their nations of origin, and ensure those nations find a simpler process for doing so. The move…
Germany’s Clemens Tönnies, board chairman of the FC Schalke 04 team in the popular Bundesliga football league, will step down from his role for three months as part of the response to allegations of racism following remarks he made about Africans last week. The club announced the decision after a…
The Germany Africa Business Forum (GABF) announced Thursday a multimillion-Euro funding commitment to invest in German energy startups that focus on Africa. The GABF, based in Berlin and Johannesburg, South Africa, said the funds are the first of their kind for the advocacy group seeking to advance German partnerships with…
What is being called the single greatest loss of life on the Mediterranean Sea this year has claimed an estimated 150 migrants traveling by boat from Libya, according to early reports from the United Nations refugee agency on Thursday. The shipwreck happened off the coast of Al Khoms, between Tripoli…
In Addis Ababa, President Sahle-Work Zewde met with his German counterpart Monday, and told President Frank-Walter Steinmeier that it was the right time for his nation to come to Ethiopia. That seemed evident when Steinmeier also participated in signing ceremonies with Volkswagen, as the German automaker announced an assembly plant…
German Chancellor Angela Merkel, speaking in Greece, conceded that a migration deal struck between Turkey and the European Union in 2016 isn’t working as planned but Europe will continue to support its implementation. That deal affecting Middle Eastern and North African migrants immediately ended crossings from Turkey into Greece, with…
China has pushed back against a German-media article that claimed China is “pocketing” Africa in unscrupulous ways, all intended to deliver undue political influence through unethical practices. The November 7 article written by Nils Kottmann for Bild, a tabloid frequently criticized for its sensationalism, asserted that China was spying on…
All eyes have been on British Prime Minister Theresa May during her visit to Johannesburg, where she signed a joint statement on trade with South Africa, Mozambique, Botswana, Namibia, Lesotho and Eswatini – but on Wednesday, it’s German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s turn to visit the continent. Merkel begins a three-nation tour…
Ghanaian President Nana Akufo Addo will meet Wednesday with Chancellor Angela Merkel in Germany, where he is finishing up a 10-day tour that also took him to Togo and the United States. The two are expected to discuss bilateral relations with an emphasis on economic partnership. Ghana is one of…
President Emmanuel Macron of France has announced €400 million (USD$474 million) in financial aid to Niger during his weekend press conference with President Mahamadou Issoufou in Niamey. Macron said the funding, planned through 2021, will support development in Niger and security in the Sahel. His remarks alongside Issoufou, who Macron praised…
Laureen is the editor of Africa Times
German Chancellor Angela Merkel was re-elected to her fourth term Sunday, although the elections saw a shift among coalition partners in a decision with implications for African countries. Merkel’s Christian Democratic Union and Christian Social Union (CDU/CSU) party received the most overall votes but not enough to hold a majority…
Within two weeks, German authorities plan to use automated software to analyze speech patterns of asylum seekers to verify their claimed place of origin, according to a Deutsche Welle report. The software is based on similar authentication programs used in the finance and insurance industries to assess speech patterns when…