Nigerians will begin their observance of Ramadan on Thursday, following an announcement from the Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (NSCIA) and its National Moon Sighting Committee that the crescent moon was observed, marking the start of the holy month of fasting and prayer. “May Allah make it a blessed…
Laureen is the editor of Africa Times
Africa’s startup founders and investors are watching what happens next for Silicon Valley Bank (SBV), which was shutdown by regulatory authorities in the United States on Friday—essentially freezing thousands of accounts at the tech-friendly bank and raising questions about what happens to startup funds. “Check in on your fellow tech…
Laureen is the editor of Africa Times
Beginning on Friday, travelers arriving in Ghana from China will require screening for COVID-19 due to concern over the current rise of coronavirus cases in China. They will need to produce a 48-hour negative PCR test and undergo a mandatory antigen test on arrival. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is…
Laureen is the editor of Africa Times
President Mokgweetsi Masisi of Botswana, right, served as speaker during a discussion of technology and digital services as part of Wednesday’s opening sessions of the U.S.-Africa Business Summit 2022 in Morocco. Masisi said he welcomed the opportunity to promote African economic development and opportunity, while making a specific case for…
The African nation of Chad has one of the world’s lowest rates for electricity access, but new investment in renewables is expected to reverse the situation, beginning with a solar plant expected to be fully operational in early 2023. Just 8% of Chad’s population had electricity in 2019, with access…
An earthquake that struck just off the coast of Morocco beneath the Mediterranean Sea was widely felt across the region, according to international geological agencies. The United States Geological Survey (USGS) said the magnitude-5.5 quake occurred at 1:35 p.m. and was centered 48 kilometers from Al-Hoceïma, a coastal city in…
African heads of state were among global leaders sending their condolences to the United Arab Emirates on Friday upon the news that President Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed al Nahyan had died. He was 73 years old. The news of his death was announced via state media, along with plans for…
An Israeli company scrutinized for its role in supplying spyware to foreign governments, a number of them on the African continent, has been placed under new restrictions by the United States government. NSO Group, which develops and supplies Pegasus software, is now on the Entity List at the US. Department…
Brahim Ghali, head of the Polisario Front in the Western Sahara territory, said renewed fighting with Morocco in the decades-long dispute with the Sahrawi people is likely to affect the entire region should it continue. “There is already war on the ground and to avoid its dire consequences for the…
A new World Bank report on climate migration begins, in part, in Morocco. The authors of “Groundswell” point to water challenges in the life of a village teen who thinks of moving to Rabat because the decreasing water supply is putting too much pressure on his family farm. These are…
Sekou Siby of Côte d’Ivoire survived the September 11 attacks in 2001, but many did not—and dozens of them were also immigrants to the United States who, like Siby, worked at the World Trade Center that day. As Americans gathered at the weekend to mark the 20th anniversary of terror…
The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations plans to put climate action at the center of all its projects and offices, following a meeting in Rome to evaluate a new strategy and discuss its impact. Speaking to participants, FAO chief Qu Dongyu said the world is facing…
Morocco, Egypt and Rwanda are just three of the nations where governments and their leaders are named in an ongoing investigation into the use of Pegasus spyware supplied by Israeli tech company NSO Group. The Pegasus Project, coordinated by the Paris-based NGO Forbidden Stories, looks at how the technology is…
Morocco and Kenya are leading the way on Africa’s clean energy transition, but more progress is needed as two-thirds of the continent’s expanding power generation is still supported by fossil fuels. That’s according to a new Global Electricity Review released by campaigners with the British NGO Ember. At 16 percent,…
Morocco’s King Mohammed VI became the first in his country to receive a COVID vaccination, setting the tone for a national campaign that aims to protect 80 percent of the population. The king rolled up his sleeve and got his shot at the Royal Palace in Fez on Thursday, according…