Democracy In The Making, Or More Of The Same?
Fifteen days after Cameroon’s presidential election concluded, the country’s Constitutional Council unsurprisingly declared that 85-year-old Paul Biya had been re-elected for a seventh seven-year term. Now wearing the crown of ‘Africa’s oldest dictator,’ the end result was really never in doubt. But despite winning with a miraculous 71% of the vote, President Biya’s external legitimacy […]
Fortifying Affordable Housing’s Role in Expanding Economic Growth
LAGOS, Nigeria — As the continent’s largest economy, international development experts, innovators and funders increasingly believe that Nigeria is positioned to provide a market-driven solution to one of the continent’s most significant challenges and opportunities: Affordable Housing. While Nigeria’s size, ability to scale and recalibrated post-recession economy provides the ammunition for such a task, the […]
Gambia Launches Truth Commission into Ex-Dictator’s Abuse
The tiny West African state of The Gambia on Monday swore in an 11-member commission tasked with shedding light on summary executions, disappearances, torture, rape and other crimes under ousted dictator Yahya Jammeh. President Adama Barrow hailed the panel as a vital step towards national healing. In a tweet, he said: “Let us stand together […]
833 children released by Nigeria militia group says U.N.
A militia group fighting against the Islamist militant group Boko Haram in northeast Nigeria has released 833 children from its own ranks, some as young as 11, the U.N. children’s agency UNICEF said on Friday. UNICEF spokesman Christophe Boulierac said the Civilian Joint Task Force (CJTF) was a local militia formed in 2013 by a […]
Political rift in Ivory Coast raises concerns for 2020
After more than a decade as allies, two of Ivory Coast’s largest political parties face off in local elections on Saturday after an acrimonious divorce that is making Ivorians nervous ahead of a presidential poll in 2020. The alliance struck in 2005 between President Alassane Ouattara’s RDR and former President Henri Konan Bedie’s PDCI was […]
African Development Bank Boosts Jobs for Youth in Africa Strategy with close to $2 Million
ABIDJAN, Ivory Coast — The African Development Bank’s www.AfDB.org Fund for African Private Sector Assistance (FAPA) (http://bit.ly/2xAJfTU), has provided funds totaling nearly US $2 million to its Jobs for Youth in Africa initiative. FAPA, of which the Government of Japan is a major donor, along with the Austrian Government and the African Development Bank, will […]
#NigeriaAt58 – No More Shady Oil Deals, Theft of Billions – Buhari
President Muhammadu Buhari says his administration is making progress in the fight against corruption as shady oil deals and the brazen theft of billions of Naira are no more. The president stated this in his address to the nation as part of activities to mark Nigeria’s 58th Independence Anniversary in Abuja on Monday. Buhari also […]
Final Farewell to UN’s Kofi Annan at Ghana State Funeral
ACCRA — World dignitaries laid to rest former UN secretary general Kofi Annan in his native Ghana on Thursday, with calls to keep alive the legacy of a “stubborn optimist” to create a better, more peaceful world. His widow Nane Maria led hundreds of mourners, including world leaders past and present, traditional rulers and global […]
Why This 48-Year-Old Woman Salma Okonkwo Is Building Ghana’s Biggest Solar Farm
For more than a decade, one 48-year-old entrepreneur in Ghana has been quietly building up a multimillion-dollar oil and gas outfit called UBI Group. Salma Okonkwo is a rare woman to head up an energy company in Africa. “I don’t stop when the door is being shut. I find a way to make it work,” […]
Boko Haram Fuelled By Shrinking Lake Chad – UN Deputy Chief
UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed has attributed the Boko Haram terrorism in Northeast Nigeria largely to the drying up of the once thriving Lake Chad, which provided millions with livelihood. Ms Mohammed stated this in Stockholm in her remarks to the opening plenary of 2018 World Water Week with theme: ‘Water, Ecosystems and Human Development, […]
