Africa Now - Weekly Newsletter (Week 8, 2023)

Welcome to Africa Now, your weekly newsletter for Africa, presenting the most important developments in the continent - news that matters.

COMMENTARY

What India's "One Earth, One Health" Policy means for Africa

Last year, at the G20 Summit, Prime Minister Narendra Modi put forward the vision of 'One Earth, One Health' to the world. Click here to read... [2]

Can a political underdog save Nigeria?

“Obi, obi, obi” chants the bouncing crowd, fists in the air, as Peter Obi strides into a campaign rally after having unexpectedly taken a lead in the race to become the next president of Nigeria. Click here to read... [3]

NEWS

Tunisian Islamist leader arrested in crackdown on opposition

Tunisian authorities arrested the leader of the Ennahda opposition Islamist movement in a crackdown on rival politicians. Click here to read... [4]

Opposition leader detained as Senegal tensions rise

Senegalese opposition politician Ousmane Sonko was forcibly removed from his vehicle by security forces Thursday after his supporters were dispersed by teargas, in a new bout of tension ahead of presidential elections due next year. Click here to read... [5]

Insecurity threatens Nigeria’s democracy as voters elect a new president

Bandits spraying villages with bullets, killing residents and setting buildings ablaze. Rampant cattle rustling and clashes between farmers and herders. Mass kidnappings for ransom. Click here to read... [6]

Nigeria's naira shortage: Banks attacked in Warri and Benin City

Angry protests have broken out in some Nigerian towns and cities as people struggle to get hold of new banknotes. Click here to read... [7]

The Gambia National Day

On behalf of the Government of the United States of America, I extend my congratulations to the people of The Gambia on the 58th anniversary of your independence. Click here to read... [8]

Libya marks twelve years anniversary of the revolution that ousted Moammar Gadhafi

Libyans on Friday marked the 12th anniversary of their 2011 uprising. Many cities witnessed major celebrations and in the capital, Tripoli, residents took to the streets to celebrate, with squares decorated with national flags and lights. Click here to read... [9]

Dollar-strapped Egypt resorts to selling state assets to Gulf nations

Egypt is running out of dollars and is attempting to bolster its finances by selling state assets to rich Gulf countries, showed a media report. Click here to read... [10]

South Africa: Russia-China drills strain ties with West

Pretoria's Western allies are unhappy about South Africa hosting upcoming joint naval exercises with Russia and China. Historical ties between Moscow and the ruling ANC may explain President Ramaphosa's stance. Click here to read... [11]

Europe Parliament bans Morocco lawmakers from entering headquarters

European Parliament has voted on a recommendation preventing Moroccan lawmakers from entering its headquarters until investigations into an alleged corruption case are completeClick here to read... [12]

Tunisia expels European Trade Union chief for 'interference'

Esther Lynch, who is Irish, has been expelled from Tunisia for participating in a protest organized by the country's trade union. Click here to read... [13]

Israeli observer delegation kicked out of African Union summit in Addis Ababa

Foreign Ministry blames South Africa and Algeria for severe diplomatic breach; Israel gained official observer status in 2021. Click here to read... [14]

Zimbabwe polls predict a Chamisa triumph over Mnangagwa

Results of an independent survey of Zimbabwean voters show that opposition leader Nelson Chamisa could defeat the incumbent president, Emmerson Mnangagwa, in the national elections later this year. Click here to read... [15]

Zimbabwe opposition fears skewed election over crackdown, bias

Fears are growing in Zimbabwe of another disputed poll, considering the ongoing political violence and a clampdown on the opposition. Click here to read... [16]

Mali, Guinea, Burkina Faso push for return to AU in spite of coups

Suspended countries Mali, Guinea and Burkina Faso are lobbying to be re-admitted to the African Union, more than a year after coups plagued the West African region. Click here to read... [17]

Burkina Faso: 5 people killed in a jihadist attack

Five people, including two soldiers, were killed Thursday in an attack by suspected jihadists in eastern Burkina Faso, Click here to read... [18]

Zambia criticises debt restructuring delays

Zambia's finance minister criticised the prolonged nature of the country's debt restructuring negotiations. Click here to read... [19]

US try to control China’s dominance of rare minerals from Africa

Cape Town in South Africa hosted the Indaba Mining Conference from February 6 to 9. Several experts at the event pointed out that the United States and China are in a race to gain more crucial minerals that will dominate the world’s projected transition to clean energy. Click here to read... [20]

Ghana mining fund in talks over Atlantic Lithium investment

The MIIF said it plans to take an equity stake in Atlantic Lithium and that the company had agreed to list on the Ghana Stock Exchange. Click here to read... [21]

Mali PM cuts short visit to north over security fears

Malian Prime Minister Choguel Kokalla Maiga Saturday cut short his visit to the extremist-hit north due to security threatsClick here to read... [22]

Sudan military finishes review of Russian Red Sea base deal

Sudan’s ruling military concluded a review of an agreement with Russia to build a navy base on the Red Sea in the African country, two Sudanese officials said Saturday. Click here to read... [23]

African nations wary of China’s soft loan trap

Witnessing the living example of Sri Lanka’s economic crisis, African countries, which are caught in China’s soft loan trap, are fearing that Beijing won’t bail them out, Pardafas.com reported. Click here to read... [24]

Germany mulls sending refugees to Africa

The German government has installed a special representative to make deals with African countries and other states to help with asylum procedures. But migration experts say they've seen these proposals before. Click here to read... [25]

Somalia: 5 shebab killed in an American strike

The US military announced on Thursday that it had killed five Shebab fighters in a strike in a remote region of Somalia. This country is waging a major offensive against this group of radical Islamists affiliated with Al-Qaeda. Click here to read... [26]

Rwanda accuses DR Congo soldiers of attack on army border post

DRC authorities have denied its soldiers entered a neutral zone and opened fire on Rwanda’s troops as tensions rise between the countries. Click here to read... [27]

France says its troops misrepresented in ‘Wakanda Forever’

France’s defense minister has denounced the way he says French soldiers deployed in Africa appear to be depicted in the Marvel Studios superhero film “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” as “false and misleading.” Click here to read... [28]

US first lady Jill Biden expected to visit Namibia

UNITED States first lady Jill Biden is expected to visit Namibia next week. Biden's African trip is expected to include a visit to Kenya. Click here to read... [29]

Uganda loses EU Shs70b railway line repair grant

Uganda has lost funding to a tune of €18m (about Shs70.3b), part of a €21.5m (Shs84b) grant that the European Union (EU) had made available to facilitate rehabilitation of the 375km metre-gauge Tororo– Gulu railway. Click here to read... [30]

Tanzania is ready to welcome Elon Musk’s Starlink into the country

The Tanzanian government has distanced itself from reports that its bureaucracy would continue to refuse Mr. Elon Musk's Starlink application permission to operate in the nation. Click here to read... [31]

Botswana’s Longtime Diamond Deal With De Beers Under Threat

Botswana's president, Mokgweetsi Masisi, is threatening to walk away from a diamond mining deal with industry giant De Beers unless the firm offers better terms. Click here to read... [32]

Cyclone Freddy Could Slam Madagascar Next Week on Rare, Long Voyage From Near Indonesia

Cyclone Freddy is already formidably strong in the southern Indian Ocean and is an increasing danger to Madagascar, then possibly parts of southern Africa, next week. Click here to read... [33]

The Israeli Hackers Who Tried to Steal Kenya’s Election

The campaign by Kenya’s opposition to cast doubt on William Ruto’s 2022 victory was aided by Israeli hackers, who accessed the Telegram accounts of the president’s senior officials. Click here to read... [34]

INDIA IN AFRICA

International Solar Alliance and West African Power Pool hosts 13 African countries in New Delhi to share best practices in solar deployment

International Solar Alliance (ISA), in collaboration with Grid Controller of India Ltd (Grid-India) and West African Power Pool (WAPP), is hosting delegates from the West African Region in New Delhi, India, from 14th to 18th February. Click here to read... [35]

India, Mauritius discusses cooperation in area of urban development

Union Minister for Housing & Urban Affairs, Hardeep Singh Puri met his Mauritian counterpart Louis Steven Obeegadoo and vowed to strengthen cooperation between the two countriesClick here to read... [36]

Mauritius minister thanks India on Chagos Islands, confirms US base in Diego Garcia will remain

His visit is part of a series of visits expected from Mauritius to India this year, given that the country has been invited to be a guest country during India's G20 PresidencyClick here to read... [37]

Vistara to start Mumbai-Mauritius flight service from 26 March. Details here

Vistara has announced the launch of its flight services from Mumbai to Mauritius starting from 26 March. Click here to read... [38]

India – Egypt hold 3rd ‘Joint Working Group on Counter Terrorism’ meeting

India has been collaborating with numerous countries and organizations to counter global terrorism at various levels. Click here to read... [39]

India, Egypt call upon countries to root out all forms of terrorism

Just about three weeks after Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi completed a successful visit to India, during which both sides had condemned cross-border terrorism and vowed to step up counter-terror cooperation. Click here to read... [40]

India-Egypt counter-terror ties: countering terror finance & use of UAVs

Both sides discussed way forward to address new and emerging challenges posed by virtual currencies, unmanned aerial systems and misuse of cyber space by terrorists for terrorist propaganda. Click here to read... [41]

Indian diaspora in Nigeria celebrates Sankranti

More than 400 people of the Telugu community in Nigeria participated in the Sankranti festivities organised at Darlington hall, Illupeju in Lagos on February 5. Click here to read... [42]

Madurai businessman Arunraja appointed trade commissioner of India Africa trade Council-Ghana

World Pulses Day 2023 was celebrated on the 10th of February in Hotel Alisa by the India Africa Trade Council in Accra with the collaboration and support of the Ministry of Agriculture and the Indian High Commission in Accra to accelerate the trade relationships between both countriesClick here to read... [43]

Union Cabinet gives nod to pact between India, South Africa on cooperation in disability sector

The pact will assist Persons with Disabilities (PwDs) and ageing population in both countries who especially require modern, scientific, durable, cost effective aids and assistive devicesClick here to read... [44]

New India-Africa cooperation ushering in an era of sustainable agriculture for the continent

A new era of cooperation between India and African countries is bringing a range of benefits to the agricultural sectors of both regions. Click here to read... [45]

South Africa witnesses 200% surge in Indian travellers amid strong recovery

For the third consecutive year, South African Tourism finished another extremely successful partnership with South Asia's premier travel exhibition, SATTE 2023Click here to read... [46]

2nd batch of 12 cheetahs expected to arrive at MP's Kuno on Feb 18, says official

Prime Minister Narendra Modi released the first batch of eight cheetahs – five females and three males – from Namibia into a quarantine enclosure at KNP on his 72nd birthday on September 17. Click here to read... [47]