Blog

Believers bring figurines of deities associated with twins – called hoxo – to Benin’s Twins Festival in Ouidah on Sunday. Children clean classrooms in this suburb of Dakar on Saturday before the new school year begins in Senegal. DANIEL TEREFE / ANADOLU / GETTY IMAGES Members of Ethiopia’s Oromo community celebrate Ireecha – a thanksgiving […]

The Kenyan Catholic Church has introduced a new brand of altar wine for Holy Mass after the previous one became widely available in local bars. Simply labelled Mass Wine, the new sacramental drink bears the coat of arms of the Kenya Conference of Catholic Bishops (KCCB) and an official signature to certify its authenticity. “The […]

Burkina Faso’s military government says it has arrested eight members of a Dutch-based humanitarian organisation, accusing them of “spying and treason”. They are three Europeans, a Malian, and four Burkinabé – among them the NGO’s country director and deputy. The organisation said they were detained some time ago but it was not previously reported. Security […]

Nigeria’s Minister of Innovation, Science and Technology Uche Nnaji has resigned just days after allegations emerged that he had forged his academic credentials. The resignation follows a newspaper investigation that claimed Nnaji submitted falsified certificates to President Bola Tinubu during his ministerial appointment in 2023. Presidential spokesperson Bayo Onanuga confirmed Nnaji’s resignation in a post […]

Somalia is to introduce Swahili, the lingua franca of East Africa, to its national curriculum, the president has announced. English is used as the language of instruction for most subjects nationwide at secondary schools, with Arabic the only other compulsory second language taught at the moment. But President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud said Swahili should also […]

Ethiopia has accused Eritrea of preparing to wage war against it in collusion with an opposition grouping, in the latest sign of escalating tensions between the two neighbours over control of the Red Sea. Ethiopia’s accusation is contained in a letter sent by its Foreign Minister Gedion Timothewos to UN chief Antonio Guterres, warning that […]

Madagascar’s President Andry Rajoelina has asked for one year to fix the country’s challenges, promising that if they persist, he will resign. He said this during a town-hall style meeting at his palace with various groups of government supporters. Many attendees had the opportunity to ask the president questions or simply share their views – […]

Madagascar’s embattled President Andry Rajoelina has appointed an army general as the new prime minister in a bid to end youth-led protests against his rule. He said the nation needed a premier “capable of restoring order and the people’s trust” before naming Gen Ruphin Fortunat Zafisambo to the post. Coming days after the president expressed […]

The mother of missing former Tanzanian diplomat Humphrey Polepole has made an emotional appeal for police to help bring him home. “If he is alive, return him to me. If he is not, bring his body and let me bury my child myself. They should not go and throw him into the sea,” Annamary Polepole […]

The Chadian government has terminated its agreement with a controversial conservation organisation that has the Duke of Sussex on its board of directors. It accused the charity African Parks of failing to curb poaching, ending a 15-year mandate to manage two of its protected sites in the central African country. The environment ministry said African […]