English

theafricareport.com

Thursday, Apr 30

08

DRC army in crisis: Leaked report reveals deep dysfunction

The confidential briefing lays bare structural failures in the FARDC, from weak command and intelligence gaps to unpaid soldiers and rising reliance on poorly controlled militia groups.

Wednesday, Apr 29

19

Mali: Goïta speaks as fractures appear within the junta

Three days after the FLA and JNIM offensive, which claimed the life of defence minister General Sadio Camara, Assimi Goïta broke his silence on 28 April. But the crisis has already laid bare the divisions within the military regime.

16

Fresh Ethiopia-Tigray friction as leaked audio suggests shift in regional loyalty

Despite TPLF denials, a recording purportedly featuring a senior official indicates a willingness to trade with Eritrea and align with domestic armed groups against the federal centre.

14

Trump nominee takes hard line on Tanzania as Congress tees up penalties

US ambassador to Tanzania nominee William Trachman vows electoral violence ‘won’t be swept under the rug’.

13

Ghana pulls out of US aid talks over demands for personal data

Ghana is the latest in a string of African countries standing up to US President Donald Trump’s health aid conditions in order to protect its citizens’ data.

Is the Kremlin losing its grip on Mali and the Sahel?

The joint offensive by Tuareg separatists and JNIM in Mali has exposed the limits of Russia’s security guarantee – a ‘regime survival package’ that may not deliver for Assimi Goïta’s junta and the Alliance of Sahel States.

10

Lagos to Abidjan: Zenith Bank’s high-stakes gamble on the WAEMU market

With a $22.4bn balance sheet and a focus on corporate finance, the Nigerian lender aims to break the deadlock facing its peers in francophone West Africa.

08

Why Mali’s future hinges on the battle of Kidal

A blow-by-blow account of the recapture of the historic northern bastion by Tuareg rebels and JNIM exposes the fragility of Bamako’s military junta and the limits of Russian support in the Sahel.

DRC central bank chief André Wameso: ‘Confidence has returned’

The governor discusses the historic eurobond success, the fight against money laundering and why the country’s financial system must finally embrace transparency.

04

US-backed mining guard to secure Congolese cobalt sites, says Kinshasa

A new 20,000-man unit will oversee the transport and extraction of critical minerals as the DRC aligns with American industrial interests – but the US embassy denies direct funding.

Thursday, Feb 29

22

South Africa’s ANC launches election campaign to full stadium

The African National Congress presented its manifesto in Durban to enthusiastic activists, ahead of the general election on 29 May.

Africa’s megachurches: a glorious business

The evangelical movement in Africa has never been so successful. With their unabashed celebration of material success, megachurches from Lagos to Kinshasa attract tens of thousands of worshippers every Sunday, making their millionaire…

Nigeria: Food insecurity sparks wave of protests

Insecurity, lack of forex and low domestic production has pushed up the price of rice, making it unaffordable for many across the country.

French journalist detained in Ethiopia

A French journalist has been arrested and detained in Ethiopia since 22 February on suspicion of conspiring “to create chaos” in the country.

Kenya: Raila succession battle begins as he lobbies for AU job

A quiet succession battle to replace Raila Odinga as the leader of the opposition Azimio la Umoja coalition and the Orange Democratic Movement party, has started, as the veteran leader lobbies for the chairmanship of the African Union…

Senegal: Macky Sall announces amnesty bill to end poll-linked turmoil

Sall’s proposed amnesty for prisoners involved in protests since 2021 could itself prove divisive: some critics say it would release violent protesters, while others claim it would exonerate government officials for civilian deaths.

Ethiopia plans independent insurance regulator to steer industry growth: Mamo Mihretu

Ethiopian central bank governor Mamo Mihretu details how an independent regulator can drive increased insurance penetration.

Nigerians seeking cryptocurrency inflation hedge are likely to be disappointed

Cryptocurrencies are trapped by their conflicting claims to offer a vehicle for investment as well as a store of value.

Nigeria’s Yemi Kale picks up baton as Afreximbank chief economist

Yemi Kale, Nigeria’s longest-serving statistician-general and chief executive officer of the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), has joined the African Export-Import Bank less than a year after he returned to the private sector.

South Africa: ANC running out of time to sell economic programme ahead of elections

South Africa’s ruling African National Congress (ANC) is under pressure to grow the stuttering economy and regain voter trust ahead of the general elections in three months. Analysts warn Nelson Mandela’s party may lose its national…

Saturday, Feb 24

09

Zimbabwe: Battle for land continues decades after eviction of white farmers

Land ownership and rights remain contentious in Zimbabwe nearly 25 years after the harsh Land Reform Programme. New mass evictions by the government affect around 4,000 people – many card-carrying members of ZANU-PF.

Dakar Biennale 2024: For Salimata Diop, ‘Art has the power to turn the world upside down’

With the theme of ‘The Wake’ and the United States as guest country, the young Franco-Senegalese artistic director of this year’s Dakar Biennale aims to create a truly international show that strengthens the contemporary art ecosystem on…

Op ed: Sudan’s Hemeti, the criminal who’s winning the diplomacy war

The media rebranding attempts of the infamous Sudan Rapid Support Forces militia commander Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, AKA Hemeti, have reached unprecedented and absurd levels.

Nigeria: Will clampdown on Bureaux de Change solve country’s forex crisis?

Nigeria’s anti-graft commission has launched a crackdown on Bureaux de Change (BDCs) in the country as the government ramps up efforts to tackle a forex crisis.

Former putschist General Gowon reaches out to the juntas in Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso

To save ECOWAS from ‘disunity’, Nigeria’s 89-year-old former president Yakubu Gowon has returned to the pulpit to ask for sanctions against the rebel states to be lifted, and is pleading with them to ‘come back’.

AU Summit: AfCFTA boss discusses obstacles to free trade, defends Issoufou’s presence

Coups, wars, and bureaucratic barriers at borders are stumbling blocks to implementing Africa’s free trade agreement, which is championed by the former president of a country that experienced a coup itself recently.

Côte d’Ivoire’s traders brace for Sahel States’ split from ECOWAS

More than 1.3 million Burkinabes and half a million Malians live in the Côte d’Ivoire thanks to ECOWAS freedom of movement, many of them running small businesses. They fear for their livelihoods and their right to remain now that Burkina…

Senegal: President Macky Sall says he will step down on 2 April

Senegal’s embattled President Macky Sall said Thursday night that his mandate as president will end on 2 April, putting to rest concerns he may prolong his mandate amid confusion over his election postponement.

Thursday, Feb 22

22

How African wind power seduced global investment giant BlackRock

The US asset manager’s climate fund has reached an agreement with Denmark’s Vestas to buy its stake in the Lake Turkana project, Africa’s largest wind farm.

Ghana: VP contender Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu resigns as majority leader

Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu, the majority leader of Ghana’s parliament and a vice presidential contender, has resigned after days of speculations that the leadership of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) was planning to remove him.