News That Matters To Africa©️
Quote of the Day:
“When a clown moves into a palace, he doesn’t become a king, the palace becomes a circus.”
HIGHLIGHTS
30th Anniversary of the Genocide Against the Tutsi
Nigeria’s ex-central bank head faces 26 fresh charges
Angolan court overturns conviction of ex-president’s son
Greek judge refers nine Egyptians to trial .
TOP NEWS
Eastern Africa
Ethiopian bank names and shames customers over bank glitch money
Explainer: Ethiopia/Sudan border – How crossborder conflict is shaping trade and the control of land
US accuses Kenyan officials of corruption in contract awards
Madagascar calls for departure of EU envoy over criticism
Coverage of the 30th Anniversary of the Genocide Against the Tutsi
World failed us in 1994, Kagame says
France lacked the will to stop Rwanda genocide – Macron
Reporter: ‘My first time home 30 years after I fled the genocide’
U.S must come clean about the Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda
From the Horror to the Envy of Africa: Rwanda’s Leader Holds Tight Grip
Somaliland will not close Ethiopian consulate
A year on, no sign of truce in Sudan
Sudan’s prosecutors have accused former PM Hamdok of ‘inciting war against the state’.
West Africa
Ivory Coast bans begging in Abidjan to bring order
Liberia uncovers 40,000 illegal civil servants
Britain’s hidden helicopter war in Niger
Nigeria’s ex-central bank head faces 26 fresh charges
Nigeria’s tax agency apologises after Easter message outcry
Senegal’s new government has been appointed
Sierra Leone declares emergency over drug kush – made from human bones
Togo arrests opposition members over campaign against new constitution
Southern Africa
Angolan court overturns conviction of ex-president’s son
Mozambique bans import of dog breeds deemed dangerous
SA Supreme Court upholds release of report revealing US spying on ANC
Anatomy of a fall: How SA Speaker went from ‘superwoman to villain’
Zimbabwe launches gold-backed currency to replace battered local dollar
North Africa
Greek judge refers nine Egyptians to trial over deadly migrant shipwreck
Egypt detains ten pro-Palestine protesters on charges of ‘spreading fake news’
Egypt: Nile Delta police station allows ‘torture sessions’ with impunity
Ex-Irish soldiers training Khalifa Haftar’s forces in Libya amid UN arms embargo
AFRICA GENERAL
Global South scholars call for new legal debt relief structure
A Dubai company’s land deals risks Indigenous livelihoods
The man who ran the length of Africa
UN-RELATED
UN resolution on AI co-sponsored by Kenya spells hope for Africa
TWEET OF THE DAY
”Nigerians must stop paying tithes and start paying taxes.”
PODCAST OF THE DAY
The Political Economy of Ruto-Raila Handshake
AFRICA RELATED BOOKS/PUBLICATIONS
Jonathan Ancer’s book “BULLSH!T: 50 Fibs That Made South Africa”,
(21) ARTICLES ON ANALYSIS, EDITORIAL & OPINION
Eastern Africa
ETHIOPIA
Commercial Bank of Ethiopia names and shames customers over bank glitch money
An Ethiopian bank has put up posters shaming customers it says have not returned money they gained during a technical glitch. Notices bearing their names and photos could be seen outside branches of the Commercial Bank of Ethiopia (CBE) on Friday. The bank says it has recovered almost three-quarters of the $14m (£12m) it lost, its head said last week. He warned that those keeping money that is not theirs will be prosecuted. Last month, an hours-long glitch allowed customers at the CBE, Ethiopia’s largest commercial bank, to withdraw or transfer more than they had in their accounts. Most of the money was reportedly withdrawn by university students and 490,000 transactions were made before CBE realised there was a problem. Since the CBE demanded the money be returned and threatened those who don’t do so with arrest, thousands have voluntarily given back excess funds, the bank said. Outside a CBE branch in the capital, Addis Ababa, a poster displaying the images of 28 people reads: “Those who did not return the money they inappropriately took from Commercial Bank of Ethiopia.” The bank has never explained exactly what caused last month’s glitch, but said it was not the result of a cyber-attack and that customers should not be worried as their personal accounts were intact.
ETHIOPIA/SUDAN
Explainer: Ethiopia–Sudan border: How cross-border conflict is shaping trade and the control of land
Violent conflict along the Ethiopia–Sudan border is profoundly destabilizing communities on both sides, disrupting trade in key resources and displacing thousands of people from productive farmlands. Trade routes are becoming militarized and commodities are being used to fuel other conflicts – notably the war that is devastating other parts of Sudan. Borderland disputes and conflict are not new to the two Horn of Africa countries. Ethiopia and Sudan have long competed for the control of land and agricultural production in these fertile areas. Cycles of cross-border violence have been shaped by each country’s internal political dynamics and the prevailing bilateral relations – as have intermittent periods of cooperation.
KENYA
US accuses Kenyan officials of corruption in contract awards
American firms are losing out on business and contracts in Kenya because top government officials demand bribes, the U.S. trade office said in a report released last week, warning that corruption will hurt foreign investment. According to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, American businesses are finding it hard to secure Kenyan government contracts meant to develop the East African nation because senior government officials seek a bribe before awarding such jobs. The 2024 National Trade Estimate Report on Foreign Trade Barriers said that the contracts are going mainly to foreign firms willing to pay the bribes. This level of corruption, say the authors of the report, will cause Kenya to lose future investment from businesses and countries that shun or punish corrupt activities. Cleophas Malala, secretary general of Kenya’s ruling party, acknowledged that Kenya’s procurement and payment system has been a problem but said President William Ruto and the government are working to solve the problem. According to a survey by Kenya’s Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission, the country’s interior, health and transport ministries are the most corrupt. The survey showed that the size of the average bribe doubled in 2023. Kenyan activist Boniface Mwangi told VOA that American businesses are simply being asked to follow what has become a standard procedure in Kenya. “Kenyans pay bribes every day, not because they want to, but because they are forced to,” Mwangi said. “If you want to apply for an ID, you need to pay a bribe. You go to the police, you tell them to investigate a crime, you pay a bribe. You want to ask for a passport, you pay for a bribe. We are a bribe nation”. Kenya finished low on the Transparency International corruption rankings for 2023, ranking 126th out of 180 countries measured for perception and prevalence of corruption.
MADAGASCAR
Govt calls for departure of EU envoy over criticism
Authorities in Madagascar have asked the EU ambassador, Isabelle Delattre, to leave the island, following remarks she made that they said were critical of the government. She reportedly criticised a new law – that was passed in February – for convicted child rapists to be surgically castrated. The EU confirmed that the ambassador would leave her post in July or August. A spokesperson for the embassy said they wanted good relations with Madagascar but warned of what he described as political and financial consequences. The new castration law has faced criticism from international rights groups, but was supported by local activists who praised it as an appropriate deterrent to curb rape cases.
RWANDA
Coverage of the 30th Anniversary of the Genocide Against the Tutsi
World failed us in 1994, President Paul Kagame says
Rwanda’s president said the international community “failed all of us”, as he marked 30 years since the 1994 genocide that killed around 800,000 people. President Paul Kagame addressed dignitaries and world leaders who had gathered in Rwanda’s capital, Kigali, to commemorate the bloodshed. “Rwanda was completely humbled by the magnitude of our loss,” he said. “And the lessons we learned are engraved in blood.” On this day in 1994, extremists from the Hutu ethnic group launched a 100-day killing spree, in which members of the Tutsi minority and Hutu moderates were slaughtered. On Sunday, Mr Kagame and a group of dignitaries placed wreathes on mass graves at the Kigali Genocide Memorial – where more than 250,000 victims are believed to be buried. The president also lit a remembrance flame. In a speech later, Mr Kagame thanked fellow African countries including Uganda, Ethiopia and Tanzania for their assistance in accepting Tutsi refugees and ending the genocide. “Many of the countries representing here also sent their sons and daughters to serve as peacekeepers in Rwanda,” he said. “Those soldiers did not fail Rwanda. It was the international community which failed all of us. Whether from contempt or cowardice.” Former US President Bill Clinton, who was among the visiting leaders present, has called the genocide the biggest failure of his administration. In a video message recorded for the memorial, French President Emmanuel Macron acknowledged that his country and its allies could have stopped the genocide but lacked the will to do so.
France lacked the will to stop Rwanda genocide – Macron
President Emmanuel Macron has said that France and other countries could have stopped the 1994 Rwandan genocide, where ethnic Hutu extremists killed more than 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus. “France, which could have stopped the genocide with its Western and African allies, lacked the will to do so,” Mr Macron said in a video message. The video is set to be aired during the 30th commemoration of the Rwandan genocide on Sunday, President Macron’s office said. The event is set to be attended by several international guests including French Foreign Minister Stéphane Séjourné and ex-US President Bill Clinton. Relations between France and Rwanda have recently been on the mend, following years of tensions over France’s alleged involvement in the genocide. France has been accused of failing to do enough to stop the Rwanda genocide. French leaders have denied its complicity in the genocide. However, in a 2021 visit to Rwanda, Mr Macron said that France had a duty to “recognise the suffering she has inflicted on the Rwandan people by too long valuing silence over the examination of the truth”.
Reconciliation made in Rwanda
Rwanda commemorated on April 7 the genocide of the Tutsis 30 years ago. At least 800,000 people were massacred in 100 days, between April and July 1994. Since then, the national justice system has tried over a million people. The time for retribution has passed. And Rwandans have had to relearn how to “live together” and some were asked what this “reconciliation” means for them.:
From the Horror to the Envy of Africa: Rwanda’s Leader Holds Tight Grip
Blood coursed through the streets of Rwanda’s capital, Kigali, in April 1994 as machete-wielding militiamen began a campaign of genocide that killed as many as 800,000 people, one of the great horrors of the late 20th century. Thirty years later, Kigali is the envy of Africa. Smooth streets curl past gleaming towers that hold banks, luxury hotels and tech startups. There is a Volkswagen car plant and an mRNA vaccine facility. A 10,000-seat arena hosts Africa’s biggest basketball league and concerts by stars like Kendrick Lamar, the American rapper, who performed there in December. Tourists fly in to visit Rwanda’s famed gorillas. Government officials from other African countries arrive for lessons in good governance. The electricity is reliable. Traffic cops do not solicit bribes. Violence is rare. The architect of this stunning transformation, President Paul Kagame, achieved it with harsh methods that would normally attract international condemnation. Opponents are jailed, free speech is curtailed and critics often die in murky circumstances, even those living in the West. Mr. Kagame’s soldiers have been accused of massacre and plunder in the neighboring Democratic Republic of Congo. But the anniversary is also a sharp reminder that Mr. Kagame, 66, has been in power for just as long. He won the last presidential election with 99 percent of votes. The outcome of the next one, scheduled for July, is in little doubt. Under Rwanda’s Constitution, he could lead for another decade. The milepost has given new ammunition to critics who say that Mr. Kagame’s repressive tactics, previously seen as necessary — even by critics — to stabilize Rwanda after the genocide, increasingly appear to be a way for him to entrench his iron rule.
To be a force for good in Congo, the U.S must come clean about the Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda
The Americans, like the French before them, are involved in blackmail to achieve geostrategic interests
‘My first time home 30 years after I fled the genocide’
Victoria Uwonkunda makes an emotional journey back to Rwanda, where she grew up. She was visiting for the first time since she fled the 1994 genocide with her family at the age of 12. Victoria retraces her journey from the capital Kigali, to the border with the Democratic Republic of Congo. In April 1994 extremists belonging to the Hutu majority ethnic group in Rwanda killed an estimated 800,000 people, mainly minority Tutsi and some moderate Hutu. It happened in 100 days. The mainly Tutsi forces which took back power following the genocide were also alleged to have killed thousands of Hutu in retaliation- an allegation they deny.
SOMALILAND
Ethiopian consulate will not be closed
The self-declared republic of Somaliland and Somalia’s semi-autonomous Puntland region have condemned the Mogadishu government’s move to close two Ethiopian consulates. On Thursday the Somali government expelled the Ethiopian ambassador after accusing the diplomat of meddling in the internal affairs of the country and infringing on its sovereignty. The expulsion was sparked by a controversial port deal between Ethiopia and Somaliland which has fuelled diplomatic tensions for months. Things were further heightened after an Ethiopian delegation met with Puntland officials in Addis Ababa earlier in the week. The two Ethiopian consulates that Somalia ordered to close are in Hargeisa and Garowe, the capitals of Somaliland and Puntland, respectively. “The embassy shall remain open irrespective of what Mogadishu says,” Rhoda Elmi said, Somaliland’s deputy foreign minister. Both Puntland and Somaliland said they will not respect the decision. Mohamud Aydid Dirir, Puntland’s information minister, told the Voice of America’s Somali radio service: “Somalia’s decision will not work.” In January, Ethiopia signed a deal with Somaliland to lease a 20km (12 miles) strip of coastline, so it could build a navy base. Somalia described the deal as an act of aggression over its territory, which Ethiopia denies.
SUDAN
A year on, no sign of truce in Sudan
Sudan’s war will next week be entering its second year with no end in sight. And analysts say outsiders are losing or profiting from it, factors that may fuel the conflict for longer. Since April 15, 2023 when the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) launched attacks on the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF), actors from the neighbourhood and beyond have played one role or the other in seeking to end or prolong the war. They include members of the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (Igad) such as South Sudan and Kenya, Sudan’s other neighbours like Chad and Egypt, Gulf countries like the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia, Russia, as well as the US and other Western countries. By this week, four main countries remained critical in the war: South Sudan, Chad, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Although no country has publicly called for the war to continue, human rights watchdogs have fingered the UAE for fuelling it. And the Saf have claimed some weapons from the UAE had been smuggled into Sudan via Chad disguised as aid. For Egypt, a secure southern border is only possible if the SAF win the war. Russia also wants to have naval base on Sudan’s shores and was hedging its bets between Hemedti and Burhan before the head of Wagner was killed by Putin.” Yet for the US, the prospect of a Russian influence in Sudan could be damaging, especially since it could open the ground for private military deployment like Wagner. At the same time, Chad is already fingered to be a conduit to the RSF, same as Central African Republic (CAR). For Chad, it has suffered the biggest burden of hosting more than 550,000 refugees. Yet the burden seems to have covered up its play in fuelling the war. “Looking at these, the SAF sees that it needs to continue fighting until the RSF is defeated or until it’s backers are overturned in Chad, CAR and the UAE gives into pressures and stop it’s support to the RSF.”
Prosecutors have accused former PM Hamdok of ‘inciting war against the state’.
Sudan’s prosecution accused on Wednesday former prime minister Abdalla Hamdok of “inciting war against the state” and other charges that could carry the death penalty, according to state television. The prosecutor’s office is loyal to military chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, whose regular armed forces have been at war since April 2023 with paramilitary leader Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo. 15 other people, including journalists and politicians who, like Hamdok, live abroad, face similar charges such as “violating the constitution”. Hamdok, Sudan’s most prominent civilian politician, was the country’s first premier in a fragile transition following a popular uprising after decades under Omar al-Bashir’s rule.
Hamdok was placed under house arrest after an October 2021 coup by former allies Daglo and Burhan. After a brief reinstatement, Hamdok resigned in January 2022 and fled to Abu Dhabi. He has since re-emerged as part of a new coalition known as Taqadum. Hamdok has been in talks for several months with Sudanese and regional figures in a bid to put an end to the war. These efforts have seen Daglo, who heads the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), embrace Hamdok. However, analysts say that Daglo’s embrace of civilian partner Hamdok offers the chance to gain international legitimacy.
Western Africa
IVORY COAST
’Begging’ banned in Abidjan to bring order
The authorities in Ivory Coast’s biggest city, Abidjan, have announced a ban on begging to try to combat what they call urban disorder. The city’s Deputy Governor, Vincent N’cho Kouaoh, said begging in all its forms – including the use of handcarts – was forbidden in order to improve people’s living conditions, ensure their safety and improve traffic flow. In 2013, the interior ministry prohibited begging at street junctions, but it failed to curb the practice. Attempts in other African cities have also resulted in a similar lack of success. The latest ban follows mass evictions and demolitions in several of the city’s slums. The Ivorian capital is one of the most gridlocked cities in Africa with a population of about six million people.
LIBERIA
Authorities uncover 40,000 illegal civil servants
The Liberian government says it has discovered over 40,000 illegal civil servants in its system.
The director general of the Civil Service Agency (CSA), Josiah Joekai said details of the civil servants were entered incorrectly or not at all into the Personnel Action Notice (Pan). The Pan process is a mandatory requirement for employment. There are at least 70,000 civil servants in Liberia and more than 50% are currently illegal because they did not do the Pan process, he said. Mr Joekai said the process comprises the full details of individuals who are entered on the government employment roster after completing evaluation and credential checks. Mr Joekai revealed that some people were placed on the civil service payroll through text messages, telephone calls, emails and WhatsApp, between 2019 and 2023. The CSA boss said that since these workers cannot be held responsible, they are affording them a grace period of 90 days to register properly. Those who fail to complete the process will be fired. President Joseph Boakai’s government says it intends to reduce what it called a bloated payroll and reduce the government wage bill. It says it wants a smaller and more efficient public service. It is not clear how the new scheme will be greeted by the Liberian population.
NIGER
Britain’s hidden helicopter war in Niger
Royal Air Force helicopters flew more than 100 missions into Niger and Burkina Faso ahead of military coups across west Africa. The revelation comes as Niger’s junta expelled US forces on Sunday. Thousands of French troops had already been kicked out last year following the coup. America and France, the former colonial power, stationed troops in Niger throughout the war on terror in a supposed effort to stamp out attacks by Islamic extremists. However their presence had become deeply unpopular after they failed to stop a surge in violence that spilled over from NATO’s toppling of Libya’s Gaddafi regime in 2011. Little is known about British involvement with France’s failed counter-terrorism campaign in Niger. The RAF only made a one reference in passing to the Niger sorties in a wider press release about a deployment to Mali. It said the twin-rotor Chinook helicopters “first arrived in West Africa during July 2018 to provide a heavy lift helicopter support capability to [France’s] Op Barkhane. The Chinooks therefore regularly carry out troop movements, resupply missions and logistical support to the French forward operating bases and desert locations around Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger.” While most publicity focused on the Chinook operations in Mali, their cross-border flights largely escaped scrutiny. Declassified has found that RAF Chinooks flew 57 sorties into Niger from Mali between February 2019 and June 2022, and a further 58 into Burkina Faso. The data was disclosed in a freedom of information response from the Ministry of Defence (MoD). The RAF did not publicly mention the Niger sorties until mid-2021, by which time Chinooks had flown 39 missions into the country. Records show there were up to three cross-border sorties a day, transporting dozens of French troops and tonnes of supplies. Based at Gao in a remote region of Mali, the Chinooks flew to Niger’s capital and parts of Burkina Faso, at a cost of more than £13m per year.
NIGERIA
Nigeria’s ex-central bank head faces 26 fresh charges
The former central bank governor Godwin Emefiele will appear in a Lagos court on Monday after the country’s anticorruption body on Friday filed 26 fresh charges against him alleging misuse of authority and corrupt practices. Emefiele is already facing procurement fraud charges in another court in the capital Abuja – which he has denied – after being detained in June last year by the Department of State Services. He was later transferred to anticorruption body the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, and was granted bail in November. The latest charges include receiving bribes, accepting gifts via intermediaries, engaging in corrupt practices, obtaining property fraudulently, and providing improper benefits to his associates, court documents showed. The former central bank governor was suspended by President Bola Tinubu on June 9 and arrested a day later. He resigned in August, paving the way for the appointment of new governor Olayemi Cardoso in September. On Friday a special investigator hired by President Tinubu to probe the central bank under Emefiele said he had completed his work. The conclusions of his report have not been made public.
Tax agency apologises after Easter message outcry
Nigeria’s tax agency has apologised over an Easter message that was criticised as offensive and disrespectful by some Christians in the country. The Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) on Sunday shared a post on X saying: “Jesus paid your debts, not your taxes”, local media reported. The now-deleted post was denounced by a number of Christian organisations, which demanded that the tax agency apologise. In the apology issued on Tuesday, FIRS spokesperson Dare Adekanmbi said the post was not intended to detract from the significance of Easter. “The message was our way of uniquely engaging taxpayers and to remind them of the need to prioritise payment of their taxes as a civic obligation,” he added.
SENEGAL
Senegal’s new government has been appointed
A new government with 25 ministers and five junior ministers has been formed, Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko said on Friday, following the president’s landslide election victory in March. The cabinet was approved by President Bassirou Diomaye Faye, 44, who was inaugurated on Tuesday and appointed Sonko, a key backer, as prime minister. Faye succeeded President Macky Sall, whose 12-year presidency saw a rising wave of public discontent. The cabinet will be closely watched after Faye made radical campaign promises such as dropping the CFA franc West African common currency. He has slightly backtracked on that pledge, but this week the former tax inspector promised an audit of the oil, gas and mining sectors. Key appointments include Cheikh Diba as finance minister. Diba was previously the finance ministry’s director of budget programming. Abdourahmane Sarr was named economy minister. The oil and energy ministry will be led by Birame Souleye Diop, who was vice president of Sonko and Faye’s now dissolved Pastef party. Two generals were named interior and defence ministers.
SIERRA LEONE
Emergency declared over drug kush – made from human bones
Sierra Leone’s president has declared a national emergency over rampant drug abuse. Kush, a psychoactive blend of addictive substances, has been prevalent in the country for years. President Julius Maada Bio called the drug a “death trap” and said it posed an “existential crisis”. One of the drug’s many ingredients is human bones – security has been tightened in cemeteries to stop addicts digging up skeletons from graves. Groups of mostly young men sitting on street corners with limbs swollen by kush abuse is a common sight in Sierra Leone. There is no official death toll, but one doctor said that “in recent months” hundreds of young men had died from organ failure caused by kush in the capital, Freetown. The psychoactive substance also takes a toll on mental health – the Sierra Leone Psychiatric Hospital, the country’s only institution of its kind, says between 2020 and 2023, admissions linked to kush surged by almost 4,000% to reach 1,865. And the spike in kush use has seen Freetown’s main cemeteries request police security to protect themselves from young men digging up skeletons – ground-up human bone is one of the many ingredients used to make kush, although it is not clear why. In a nationwide broadcast on Thursday night, President Bio said: “Our country is currently faced with an existential threat due to the ravaging impact of drugs and substance abuse, particularly the devastating synthetic drug kush.”
TOGO
Opposition members arrested over campaign against new constitution
Nine Togolese politicians who were running a campaign against a new constitution that could allow President Faure Gnassingbe to extend his 19-year rule have been arrested, a spokesperson for an opposition coalition said. Opposition voices are growing in the tiny phosphate producing country over constitutional reform that could change the way the president is elected. Some members of the opposition coalition were detained on Wednesday afternoon while they were campaigning against the constitution at a market in the suburbs of Togolese capital Lome, spokesperson Thomas Nsoukpoe said. Others were detained at night during a meeting at the house of a coalition member. Togo’s opposition parties started their campaign after the national assembly adopted the new constitution that lengthens presidential terms by one year to 6 from 5 while limiting the number of terms to one. Under the new constitution, which introduces a parliamentary system of government, the president will no longer be elected by universal suffrage, but by members of parliament. The constitution does not take into account the time already spent in office, which could enable Faure Gnassingbe to stay in power until 2031 if he is re-elected in 2025. In reaction to opposition voices, the president’s office on Wednesday announced nationwide consultations on the revision of the constitution and delayed parliamentary and regional elections initially scheduled for April 20.
Southern Africa
ANGOLA
Angolan court overturns conviction of ex-president’s son
Constitutional Court has overturned a five-year sentence that had been handed to the son of former President José Eduardo dos Santos for fraud. José Filomeno dos Santos was sentenced in 2020 for his role in the illegal transfer of $500m (£378m) from Angola’s Sovereign Fund to a private account in the UK. He appealed against the verdict in 2022. In a ruling published on Thursday, the Constitutional Court declared his conviction as “unconstitutional”, because it breached “the principles of legality, adversarial proceedings, a fair and consistent judgement and the rights of the defence”. The former leader’s son, also known as Zenu, was the head of Angola’s Sovereign Wealth Fund from 2013 to 2018. He was sentenced alongside the ex-governor of Angola’s national bank and three others. The transfer of the money was agreed in 2017, in the last few weeks before his father stood down as president – after 38 years. José Eduardo dos Santos was president from 1979 until he resigned in 2017, to be replaced by the man he had handpicked for the job, his former defence minister Joao Lourenço.
MOZAMBIQUE
Importation of dog breeds deemed dangerous is banned
Mozambique’s agriculture ministry has banned the import of dog breeds considered to be dangerous. The decision is aimed at combatting the numerous dog attacks that have been reported all over the Southern African country. Dog bites are common in Mozambique. In the first half of last year, around 9,000 people were bitten, a reduction of 21% from 2022. Some of the attacks have ended in serious injuries, amputations and even death. The ban affects 26 breeds, including pit bulls, Rottweilers, bull terriers, bullmastiffs, German Shepherds, and Boerboels. The measure however excludes dogs used by public security agencies, private security companies and disaster and rescue services. Guide dogs and companion dogs for disabled people are also exempt. All banned breeds that are already in the country, as well as their cross-breeds, must be registered with the authorities within 60 days.
SOUTH AFRICA
Supreme Court upholds release of report revealing US spying on ANC
In December 2021, Thabo Makwakwa, a journalist with South African news holding company Independent Media, obtained the report about Washington spying on the South African ruling party, but the country’s State Security Ministry forbade him from publishing any details. The South African Supreme Court of Appeal granted Independent Media the green light to publish contents from a leaked State Security Ministry report, showing that the US is gathering intelligence on the African National Congress (ANC), the court’s ruling said. The court thus granted the appeal of journalist Thabo Makwakwa who, after receiving the report three years ago, approached the South African deputy minister of state security, but in response was confronted with the ministry’s demand that the report be returned because his possession was “unauthorized.” The South African State Security Ministry filed an urgent application in the High Court, alleging that the publication of the report would “affect diplomatic relation between South Africa and the US and endanger national security.” The appellate court, in a fresh decision, disagreed with the ministry’s arguments, noting that it “failed to discharge its onus to establish that the publication of the report would endanger national security.” The court added that there is nothing sensitive contained in the report as the information contained in the report was already in the public domain. “The report is about the US Embassy and its intelligence community which were said to be observing the widely reported factions in the ruling party, the ANC to influence domestic policy and shape the US’s own decisions,” the ruling said
Anatomy of a fall: How SA Speaker went from ‘superwoman to villain’
In male-dominated sectors, the women who succeed at breaking the glass ceiling and reach high positions are often hailed as heroes. However, when one such woman falls, she should expect an enormous amount of pressure and public scrutiny. Former National Assembly Speaker Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula fits into this mould. She was recently given bail in the Pretoria Magistrate’s Court after being accused of collecting gratifications worth millions when she was defence minister. The 67-year-old Mapisa-Nqakula was charged with 12 counts of corruption and resigned on April 3 as the National Assembly Speaker and Member of Parliament (MP)….Mapisa-Nqakula is the latest in a line of prominent ANC politicians, including the president and vice-president, to get caught up in corruption scandals. In March, members of an investigation team appointed by the National Prosecution Authority (NPA) conducted a raid on Mapisa-Nqakula’s home, an affluent property in an eastern suburb of Johannesburg. As the 2024 general election draws near, this will be a headache for the ANC who have taken hit after hit in terms of scandals.
ZIMBABWE
Gold-backed currency launched to replace battered local dollar
Zimbabwe is replacing its collapsing local currency with a new one backed by gold and foreign currencies that it hopes will be more stable and help bring down inflation, the central bank said on Friday. The Southern African country relaunched its own currency in 2019 after a decade of dollarisation, but it struggled to win public trust and more than 80% of domestic transactions are now conducted in foreign currency. The new currency – called Zimbabwe Gold (ZiG) – will circulate alongside foreign currencies, central bank governor John Mushayavanhu told a press conference in the capital Harare. The bank referred to the new currency as “structured”, saying it would be “anchored by a composite basket of foreign currency and precious metals (mainly gold) held as reserves for this purpose by the Reserve Bank”. Banks are to convert their current Zimbabwean dollar balances into ZiG with immediate effect, while people will have 21 days to exchange their old notes and coins for new ones, the monetary policy statement said. The central bank also said on Friday that it had $100 million in cash and 2.52 tonnes of gold worth $185 million in reserve assets.
North Africa
EGYPT
10 pro-Palestine protesters held on charges of ‘spreading fake news’
Security forces on Thursday detained 10 young men who took part in a protest that denounced Egypt’s role in the siege on Gaza. According to Hossam Bahgat, executive director of the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights, the detainees have been referred to the Supreme State Security Prosecution for investigations. They are facing charges of “collaborating with a terrorist group” and “spreading and publishing fake news”. Wednesday’s demonstration was held in front of the Journalists’ Syndicate in Cairo, where dozens of journalists and activists gathered to protest against the ongoing Israeli onslaught on Gaza. Activists shared videos of one of the protesters chanting against business tycoon and government ally Ibrahim al-Organi, whose companies have been charging Palestinians thousands of dollars to exit Gaza. The government of President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi has been criticised for failing to challenge Israel’s siege on Gaza during the current conflict, and for allowing state-linked companies to profit from the movement of people and aid via the Rafah crossing. Egyptian security forces have detained dozens of pro-Palestine protesters since 20 October, when thousands took part in a rally in Cairo’s iconic Tahrir Square, which symbolises the revolution that culminated in the resignation of President Hosni Mubarak in 2011. Following the crackdown on that mass uprising, protests have been smaller in size and quickly dispersed by security officials. .
Greek judge refers nine Egyptians to trial over deadly migrant shipwreck
Nine Egyptian men who were on board a migrant boat that sank off Greece last year, killing hundreds of people, are to face trial next month, accused of people smuggling, Greek judicial sources said on Friday. The circumstances of the sinking of the Adriana in June remain a source of dispute between the Greek authorities and groups supporting the rights of survivors and migrants – meaning the trial could be the first opportunity to officially hear the accounts of some of those present at the time. Survivors have accused the Greek coastguard of capsizing the boat. The authorities, which monitored Adriana for hours, say it overturned when a coastguard vessel was about 70 metres away. The coastguard service has denied any wrongdoing. It remains unclear what happened in the time between the coastguard being alerted to the presence of the vessel and when it capsized. In a report in December, EU border agency Frontex – which had spotted the boat from the air before the coastguard – said that Greek authorities failed to reply to its follow-up calls and its offers for assistance. It said it could not conclude what caused the Adriana to capsize. The overcrowded fishing trawler was carrying hundreds of migrants from Pakistan, Syria and Egypt when it sank off the southern town of Pylos, in international waters, on its way from Libya to Italy. Some 104 men survived and only 82 bodies have been recovered. It was the worst disaster in years and again highlighted the dangers for migrants crossing the Mediterranean Sea to Europe.
Nile Delta police station allows ‘torture sessions’ with impunity
A police station in the Egyptian Nile Delta governorate of Sharqiya has seen “torture sessions” for detainees with the consent of senior officers, a rights group said on Thursday. The Egyptian Network for Human Rights (ENHR) documented the death of a detainee at the Minya al-Qamh police station in Sharqiya on 11 March after officers denied him urgent care over a chronic medical condition. The ENHR obtained a leaked letter from the police station documenting various purported acts of torture and abuses suffered by detainees, including denial of medical care and severe overcrowding…The letter added that “At Minya Al-Qamh police station detention cells, officers commit all kinds of violations against detainees by overcrowding them multiple times the capacity of cells, and leaving the cells at the disposal of a number of registered dangerous inmates to practice all forms of physical and psychological torture on everyone,” the letter read, adding that some dangerous inmates “have plastic water pipes to beat the other inmates to control them, and they take bribes from everyone, and those who do not pay are tortured”. Moreover, the letter said that illegal drugs were allowed to be used and distributed among inmates, with the knowledge of the station management “in exchange for huge sums of money every week”.
LIBYA
Ex-Irish soldiers training Khalifa Haftar’s forces in Libya amid UN arms embargo
An Irish company is using former Irish soldiers to train the military forces of Libyan general Khalifa Haftar in the east of the country. The training, conducted by a company called Irish Training Solutions, is for the self-styled Libyan National Army’s 166 Infantry Brigade, an investigation has found. According to the investigation the Ireland-based company, co-owned by former soldiers, took a multimillion-euro contract in both 2023 and 2024 for the training. The training included special forces training on close quarters combat, house assaults and raids against drug smuggling, as well as in the use of firearms and mortars, and reconnaissance and medical training. Both the training and supplying of armed forces in Libya has been under a UN arms embargo since 2011 following the outbreak of civil war between former Libyan dictator and Muamm ar Gaddafi and anti-regime fighters.The EU has also placed restrictions on training and technical assistance for forces in Libya, with Ireland participating in attempts to enforce said embargo in 2023, as the training was occurring. Haftar leads a military force in the country’s east which attempted to overthrow the UN-backed Tripoli government from 2019 through to 2020. That campaign, which was backed by the UAE and Russia’s Wagner mercenary group, was stopped after Turkey intervened to militarily support the Tripoli government. The Tripoli government and rival Tobruk-based government have since been undergoing years-long negotiations to hold fresh elections in a bid to form a unity government for the whole of the country.
AFRICA – GENERAL NEWS
Global South scholars call for new legal debt relief structure
Scholars and public finance policy specialists from the Global South want an overhaul of the Debt Sustainability Analysis framework used by the Bretton Woods institutions (the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund) for its grave shortcomings. At a conference in Accra, Ghana on Africa’s debt crisis, scholars affiliated to the International Development Economic Associates Africa Network and the African Forum and Network on Debt and Development said the debt sustainability framework does not favour economies in the Global South, worsening current fiscal pressures. “I was on the World Bank side of the debt sustainability analysis for a number of years, and I have realised they have a major conceptual problem. They are plagued by an over-optimism bias which has to do with exaggerated projections of growth; they do not incorporate climate shocks; they are done secretly, and private creditors are not involved and so they systematically under-estimate the haircut that is needed for countries to resume what is a stable solvency situation”, said Ali Zafar, UNDP economic adviser and currently involved in advising Ethiopia’s government on external debt. Mr Zafar also highlighted the outsized role of China as a creditor to African economies and called for a change in its debt restructuring negotiations. According to Boston University’s China Loans to Africa database, the cumulative loans from China to Africa between 2000 and 2022 stood at $170.0 billion. The scholars also want a framework which will compel creditors to come to the negotiating table and accept haircuts; that is a reduction in the outstanding principal or interest payments – a radical shift in the global debt resolution architecture.
A Dubai company’s staggering land deals in Africa raise fears about risks to Indigenous livelihoods
In the past year, the Liberian government has agreed to sell about 10% of the West African country’s land — equivalent to 10,931 square kilometers (4,220 square miles) — to Dubai-based company Blue Carbon to preserve forests that might otherwise be logged and used for farming, the primary livelihood for many communities. Blue Carbon plans to make money from this conservation by selling carbon credits to polluters to offset their emissions as they burn fossil fuels. Some experts argue that the model offers little climate benefit, while activists label it “carbon colonialism.” A raft of agreements between at least five African countries and Blue Carbon could give the company control over large swaths of land on the continent. In Kenya, Indigenous populations already have been evicted to make way for other carbon credits projects, according to rights groups like Amnesty International and Survival International. They have criticized the projects as “culturally destructive,” lacking transparency and threatening the livelihoods and food security of rural African populations. Africa contributes the least to greenhouse gas emissions, but its vast natural resources, such as forests, are crucial in the fight against climate change. Indigenous populations traditionally rely on forests for their livelihoods, highlighting the tension between climate goals and economic realities. Cash-strapped governments in Africa are attracted to these kinds of conservation initiatives because they generate badly needed income despite concerns about human rights abuses and transparency.
The man who ran the length of Africa Russ Cook
A man from West Sussex has successfully run the full length of Africa, crossing the finish line in Tunisia on Sunday after 352 days. Before he set off on the mammoth challenge to run the entire length of Africa, Russell Cook said he hoped to look back at his life and have no regrets. The 27-year-old from Worthing said he had struggled with his mental health, gambling and drinking, and wanted to “make a difference”. After running through 16 countries in 352 days, and countless complications later, the man nicknamed “Hardest Geezer” has raised in excess of £570,000 for charity and has completed his final run. As he crossed the finish line at about 16:40 BST in Ras Angela, Tunisia, Mr Cook was greeted by a shouting crowd, with many chanting “geezer”.
UN RELATED NEWS
UN resolution on AI co-sponsored by Kenya spells hope for Africa
Africa’s status as a net consumer of artificial intelligence (AI) innovations may soon change after the United Nations General Assembly (Unga) adopted a resolution which could see millions come to the continent in the form of financial assistance from developed countries to boost AI uptake and governance. Sponsored by the United States and cosponsored by Kenya and other countries, the Unga resolution on “Seizing the opportunities of safe, secure, and trustworthy artificial intelligence systems for sustainable development,” is the first ever on AI governance, and has been touted as a win for Africa. Amongst the recommendations of the resolution are for developed countries, including the US, to cooperate with developing ones including by providing “technical and financial assistance” for AI development. A dispatch from the inter-governmental organisation indicated that the resolution, which was passed unanimously without a vote, is meant to “bridge AI and other digital divides between and within countries and promote safe, secure and trustworthy AI systems to accelerate progress towards the full realisation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.” Besides sending financial and technical assistance to developing countries like Kenya, the resolution will also see AI innovators test their systems before deployment, and also push for the development of tools that detect AI-generated content and trace their origin. Kenya’s current Permanent Representative to the UN Martin Kimani said Nairobi negotiated for the resolution to “include development, bridging digital divides, technology transfer, and for language protecting linguistic and cultural diversity plus disability, gender and racial equality.”
TWEET(s) OF THE DAY
“If Nigeria must progress, Nigerians must stop paying tithes and start paying taxes…Nigerians prefer paying tithes to their churches and then demanding for roads and proper infrastructure from their government to whom they hardly pay taxes…The statistics are clear: countries with high tax payments and low tithe payments prosper individually and collectively more than nations with low tax payment and high tithe payment.
Yeshua said “give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar, and give to God what belongs to God.”
Reno Omokri @renoomkori on “X”
PODCAST OF THE DAY
The Political Economy of Ruto-Raila Handshake
We are hostages of this venal, idiotic class that harps on sovereignty and independence because all they can do now is enclose us in these colonial borders in the name of Handshakes and Handouts.
AFRICA RELATED BOOKS/PUBLICATIONS
Jonathan Ancer’s book “BULLSH!T: 50 Fibs That Made South Africa”
An outrageous miscellany of lies, myths, untruths, fibs and fabrications that tell the woeful history of South Africa. Aimed at offending and entertaining everyone in equal measure, this will have South Africans sniggering and spluttering into their porridge. It will also pique their curiosity.
AFRICA – ANALYSIS, EDITORIAL/OPINION
The impact of public debt on income inequality in Africa
Why Africans hold the future of global democracy in their hands
The US War on Terror in West Africa Is a Continuing Disaster
The Unremarkable Death Of Migrants In The Sahara Desert
The EU Pays To Stem Migration
Ukraine’s grain exports are crucial to Africa’s food security
Understanding the debate over IMF quota reform
TotalEnergies at 100: A legacy of destruction in Africa
Bandung: How the historic Asian-African conference challenged imperialism
The Black Cross: Racism, Xenophobia, and Tribalism
To fight racism, xenophobia and tribalism, Africa must take a strong unified stance, and greater efforts must be made to enforce human rights laws on the continent.
Mountain gorillas, Safari Rally, M-Pesa and the vast possibilities of EA tourism
ESWATINI
Eswatini’s democratic reform process in jeopardy
ETHIOPIA/SUDAN
The ‘conflict economy’ of sesame in Ethiopia and Sudan
How the sector has become entangled in local and transnational conflict, and how policymakers need
NIGER
Niger’s Pivot To Moscow: What’s Next For US Engagement In Africa?
What Does the Coup in Niger Tell Us about the War in Ukraine?
NIGERIA
Managing global economic headwinds: Lessons from Nigeria’s policy responses
SOMALIA
Can the AU’s achievements in Somalia survive global geopolitical, security and economic competition?
Competing strategies and approaches are undermining AU’s achievements in Somalia
SOUTH AFRICA
Mapisa-Nqakula ‘no more equal than other animals
South Africa’s conservation model: why expanding the use of biodiversity to generate money is a good idea
TOGO
Could Togo’s New Constitution Jeopardize Its Stability?
UNITED NATIONS
What Is The World Signing Up For With The WHO?
The Africa Edition ©️ 
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