Mali’s Militant Islamist Insurgency at Bamako’s Doorstep
The security situation in Mali has deteriorated sharply since the military junta seized power in August 2020. Militant Islamist groups are now actively threatening Bamako. This acceleration in militant Islamist group violence can be seen over both time and territory. Regarding time, Extremist violence has been worse in every quarter since the military coup than in any quarter prior to the junta taking control. Africa Center for Strategic Studies
Angola’s Ruling Party, MPLA, Retains Power in Tightest Election Yet
Angola’s ruling party on Monday was declared the winner of the general election, but it was its weakest showing in the five elections that have taken place since the country gained independence. The Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola, or MPLA, the liberation army turned political party that has governed Angola since the end of Portuguese colonial rule in 1975, won 51.17 percent of the vote, the country’s electoral commission announced…UNITA said it planned to challenge the result, but the electoral commission dismissed calls for a recount. New York Times
Angola’s Ruling Party Will Extend Its Half Century of Dominance over Africa’s Oil Riches
Angola’s oil production capacity, at times the largest in Africa this year but usually behind Nigeria’s, will remain under one party’s control. Lourenco’s MPLA won 51.07% of the vote against the main opposition’s 44.05% while also nabbing 56% of 220 legislative seats, enough to remain in charge of the policies that steer the country’s wealth of 9 billion barrels of crude oil reserves and 11 trillion cubic feet of natural gas reserves. The wealth doesn’t often go around the country, however. Angola’s poverty rate is estimated at 40% by the Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative, a policy center of the University of Oxford. More than half of Angola’s workforce is unemployed. Quartz Africa
Japan to Push for Africa Seat on the UN Security Council
Japan will push for an African seat at the United Nations by using its place on the world body’s Security Council. “Japan reiterates its determination to redress the historical injustice against Africa of not being represented through a permanent membership on the Security Council,” Prime Minister Fumio Kishida told the Tokyo International Conference on African Development in Tunis, Tunisia on Sunday. “In order for the UN to work effectively for peace and stability, there is an urgent need to strengthen the UN as a whole through Security Council reform,” he said. The UN faces “a moment of truth.” Al Jazeera
African Nations Call Out Climate Injustice Ahead of COP27
African countries on Monday called for an end to a “climate injustice” saying the continent causes less than four percent of global CO2 emissions but pays one of the highest prices for global warming. Government officials, international organisations, NGOs and the private sector from more than 60 African nations attended Monday’s opening of Africa Climate Week in Gabon’s capital to prepare for the COP27 UN climate conference in Egypt in November. Host President Ali Bongo Ondimba told the gathering the continent has to speak with one voice and offer “concrete” proposals for COP27. “The time has come for Africans to take our destiny into our own hands,” he said, deploring the global failure to meet climate targets. AFP
Morocco Recalls Tunisia Ambassador over Western Sahara
Morocco has recalled its ambassador to Tunis for consultations and cancelled its participation in a pan-African investment conference, after Tunisia’s president hosted the head of the Polisario Front, which wants independence for Western Sahara…The row opens a new front in a series of disputes over Western Sahara that has already dragged in Spain and Germany and escalated a regional rivalry between Morocco and Algeria, Polisario’s main backer. Tunisia has this year grown closer to Algeria, which it relies on for energy, with President Kais Saied meeting Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune in July. Al Jazeera
Latest Court Ruling Might Just Be the End to Central African Republic’s Crypto Ambitions
A top court in the Central African Republic (CAR) has ruled that it is unconstitutional for foreigners to purchase citizenship and lands in the country using cryptocurrency…The Sango Coin initiative makes room for foreign nationals to become CAR citizens through the purchase of $60,000 worth of crypto, the Sango equivalents of which would be held as collateral for five years. In the same vein, e-residencies could also be purchased for $6,000. More so, interested individuals can purchase a 250-square plot of land for $10,000..But the country’s Constitutional Court ruled that the entire process is unconstitutional. Business Insider Africa
Kenya Poll Petition: The 9 Issues to the Judges Will Consider
The Supreme Court of Kenya has framed the nine issues they will consider to determine the presidential petition challenging the declaration of Dr William Ruto as President-elect. During the pre-trial conference at the Supreme Court on Monday, Chief Justice Martha Koome read out the areas the seven-judge bench will consider as parties to the petition submit their evidence. Hearings began Tuesday, and the verdict of the top court is expected on Monday, September 5. East African
Former Benin President Ends Mediation Mission in Guinea Conakry
Thomas Boni Yayi, former Beninese President who also doubles as the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) mediator in the Guinean political crisis, concluded Saturday his second mission in the West African country without scoring any point, Turkish news agency Anadolu reports.
Guinea has been ruled since September last year by a transition led by Colonel Mamady Doumbouya who toppled elected president Alpha Conde. North Africa Post
Emirates and Other Airlines May Receive Some of Their $400 Million Trapped in Nigeria
In what is the latest episode underscoring an ongoing liquidity crisis in Nigeria, especially concerning availability of dollars, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) recently complained that airlines have $464 million in revenues that they could not repatriate out of Nigeria. This is amplifying a crisis that had led to flight ticket hikes and the threat to the aviation sector of the potential exit of big employers…On Aug. 26, the Central Bank of Nigeria said it has made $265 million available for release to the airlines. The money appears to have been raised from the bank’s foreign exchange reserves and an auction to importers. IATA, the global trade group for airlines, welcomed the gesture. There is an implied belief that the rest of the withheld funds will be released. Quartz Africa
Nigeria: Dangote Says New Sugar Project Will Cut Imports by 40%
The management of Dangote Sugar Refinery Plc on Monday said it will significantly reduce the importation of sugar into the country by 40 per cent and pave the way for the employment of over 30,000 youth. A statement by the company quoted the president of Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, to have said that the firm was embarking on Phase II of its sugar project, which will cover over 100,000 hectares to make the sugar plant, the largest in Africa. Mr Dangote said the integrated sugar complex to be located in Tunga, Awe Local Government Area of Nasarawa State, comprises 60,000ha sugar plantation and two sugar factories with the capacity to produce 430,000 tonnes of refined white sugar per annum. Premium Times Nigeria
In Cameroon, Refugees Get a New Lease of Life with Digital IDs
“Having the ID card has really helped me,” said Yazembrou, 34, who works as a community organiser, helping aid agencies and local authorities assist nearly 30,0000 Central African refugees at the camp. “It isn’t as good as Cameroonian nationality, but I’m still grateful,” she told the Thomson Reuters Foundation. Violence in CAR has forced more than 700,0000 people to leave the country since rebels removed then-President François Bozizé from power in 2013, according to UNHCR. About half of them found refuge in neighbouring Cameroon, mostly in eastern and northern regions. Al Jazeera