Mahamadou Issoufou, the outgoing president of Niger, is the recipient of the 2020 Ibrahim Prize for Achievement in African Leadership. The US$5 million prize, paid over 10 years through the Mo Ibrahim Foundation, is awarded to leaders who demonstrate a commitment to human development and democratic principles. Successful candidates are always…
President Nana Akufo Addo of Ghana has been elected the new head of the 15-nation Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and will replace outgoing chief Mahamadou Issoufou, his Nigerien counterpart. “I am fully aware of the challenges which confront West Africa,” said Akufo Addo in his acceptance speech,…
Leaders in Niger and France said they were in close contact following the deaths of eight people attacked at the Kouré Giraffe Reserve on Sunday, seven of them working with the aid organizations ACTED and IMPACT Initiatives. President Mahamadou Issoufou said he had spoken with French President Emmanuel Macron by…
The Malian opposition continued to demand the resignation of President Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta on Tuesday, rejecting a national unity plan and related measures proposed following an Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) summit meeting on Mali. The Mouvement du 5 Juin – Rassemblement des Forces Patriotiques, led by Mahmoud…
West African heads of state concluded an extraordinary summit on Mali on Monday, with a plan to move beyond the current political and security crisis discussed during a video conference with embattled President Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta. The delegation from the 15-member Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), led by…
Nigerien President Mahamadou Issoufou, attending the Aswan Forum on African peace and security, has instead returned from Egypt to Niamey to deal with one of the worst extremist attacks on the nation’s military in modern history. Some 71 Nigerien fighters were killed at a military camp near Inates on Tuesday,…
Laureen is the editor of Africa Times
The African Continental Free Trade Area agreement has been signed by 80 percent of African Union member nations, paving the way for expanded markets and economic growth and development. Eighty percent of the 55 AU nations heeded the call of AU Chairman Paul Kagame, the president of Rwanda, and AU…
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
The international news coverage on Libyan slave markets over the past week has resulted in a lot of issued statements, coming from outraged and passionate Parisian street protesters to British sports heroes to presidents and diplomats. “I am here because I saw my brothers sold in Libya as tomatoes on a counter,…
Laureen is the editor of Africa Times
U.S. President Barack Obama was in Washington D.C. on Saturday, speaking at the dedication of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture. German Chancellor Angela Merkel met with leaders in Vienna to discuss EU borders and migrants. Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari met with media to wrap up…
It was announced yesterday that nine military officers in Niger have been arrested on suspicion of planning a coup in the country. “Nine officers identified as responsible for the attempted coup have been arrested and will be presented before a military court,” Niger’s interior minister Hassoumi Massaoudou said. On December…