High-level officials in Burundi say they strongly reject the conclusions of a United Nations report released Wednesday, one that expressed concern over risks associated with human rights concerns as the volatile nation moves toward 2020 elections. The report, completed by a team of UN experts including Doudou Diène of Senegal…
Resistance to malaria treatment drugs that began with a strain of malaria in Cambodia has quickly spread to other Southeast Asian nations, according to authors of a new study that may have implications for the African continent. The researchers from the Wellcome Sanger Institute, University of Oxford, and Thailand’s Mahidol…
Africa has made some great strides in reducing HIV infection rates and their impacts, but the trends are uneven on the continent and across the globe. That’s worrying as progress in the fight against HIV/AIDS has slowed, according to an annual report from UNAIDS. “We urgently need increased political leadership…
Several nations and entities on the African continent have been noted with concern in the new annual report from the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), which evaluates the world’s worst violators of religious freedom and advises President Donald Trump and other key officials on policy toward those…
South Africa is one step closer to implementing controversial land reforms through expropriation, after a majority in its parliament on Tuesday voted to adopt a recommendations report on amending the country’s constitution. “The National Assembly has agreed that section 25 of the Constitution be amended to make expropriation of land…
South Africa is one step closer to implementing controversial land reforms through expropriation, after a key committee announced Thursday that it has adopted a recommendations report on amending the country’s constitution. The Joint Constitutional Review Committee (JCRC) said the African National Congress, the Economic Freedom Fighters and the National Freedom…
Despite strong GDP growth over the last ten years, Africa has failed to generate economic opportunities for its young population – and that spells trouble for a sustainable future. It’s a key finding of the 2018 Ibrahim Index of African Governance (IIAG), released Monday by the Mo Ibrahim Foundation. The…
Disasters such as earthquakes and floods have killed 1.3 million people over the last 20 years and left a further 4.4 billion injured, homeless or in need of humanitarian aid, United Nations experts said on Wednesday. In many of those situations, climate change is making matters worse, the UN said….
A key climate report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released Monday warns that the global community must act decisively and dramatically to try and limit catastrophic impacts from climate change – and that some impacts remain unavoidable even if global warming is held to the 1.5°C level….
A new report from UNAIDS warns that HIV infections are on the rise in nearly 50 countries, with West and Central Africa lagging behind on reducing infection rates and securing access to treatment. “We are sounding the alarm,” said Michel Sidibé, executive director of UNAIDS. “Entire regions are falling behind,…
The commanders from three United Nations peacekeeping missions in Africa briefed the UN Security Council on Wednesday on the evolving security challenges they face in their respective roles. Jean‑Paul Deconinck, commander for United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA), was joined by Frank Mushyo Kamanzi, the commander of United…
The United Nations needs to “change the way we are doing business” when it comes to peacekeeping operations, because the high-risk environments encountered in today’s conflict zones – especially on the African continent – come with new and greater threats to the traditional mission. That’s the conclusion of a newly…
Laureen is the editor of Africa Times
South Africa’s Democratic Alliance (DA), the country’s lead opposition party, welcomed the news that President Jacob Zuma will appoint a long-delayed commission of inquiry into government corruption allegations and Zuma’s ties to the wealthy and well-connected Gupta family. Yet DA leader Mmusi Maimane warned that the party will not allow…
The vast majority of all malaria cases reported to the World Health Organization in 2016 arise from sub-Saharan Africa, according to an annual WHO report released Wednesday. Just 15 countries, all in the region except for India, account for 80 percent of the global malaria burden. There are overall positive…
Mauritius remains the highest-ranking African nation for good governance, although with some of the warning signs and slowing improvement found in nearly half of the countries on the continent, according to the annual Mo Ibrahim Foundation report released Monday. The 2017 Ibrahim Index of African Governance (IIAG) measures a range…