Doubts Persist Whether Angolan Opposition Will Take Office
The international community has praised Angola for the general elections and President João Lourenço for his re-election, after the constitutional court validated the results on August 24th. For many, the fact that countries such as Spain and the US recognize the elections in Angola increases the credibility of the electoral process. “The recognition of the international community came only to give the agreement of their representatives who were here in Angola and who watched in person, and from eye to eye, what happened in the polling stations”, said Angolan pedagogue, Alexandre Costa. Angolan professor and political scientist, Olívio Nkilumbo has a different understanding of events. “We saw an electoral process that had an impasse, that had a dispute, and now it’s in a post-electoral crisis, because there is no legitimacy, because there are those who do not accept the results, and with good reason from the point of view of the observation of the facts presented, and therefore no matter how much external recognition there is, it does not demand legitimacy”, argues Nkilumbo. AfricaNews
Central African Farmers Say Hunger Looms as Ukraine War Disrupts Imports
Farmers’ associations from 11 Central African countries say disruptions in food supplies caused by Russia’s war in Ukraine have deepened the struggles of millions of Africans to survive. The farmers, meeting Tuesday in Cameroon’s capital, called on the region’s governments to help people cope with food shortages. Farmers say scarcity, high prices and a worsening economic situation are reducing access to food for most households across central Africa. Representatives of more than 60 farmers associations met Tuesday in Cameroon’s capital Yaounde and asked the governments of 11 central African countries to invest in agriculture and ease dependency on food imports. Voice of America
Tea, Coffee, Dairy Bag Long Cushion in EAC-AfCFTA Trade Plan
A host of top agricultural produce including tea, roasted coffee, cut flower, beef, and dairy will enjoy lengthy protection as Kenya and its East Africa Community (EAC) partners offered tariff concessions for transition into the new Africa free trade area. A review of a newly published schedule by chairman of the EAC Council of ministers, Ezekiel Nibigira shows that the crops will be protected until 2029 to save growers from competition. Under the Africa Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agreement, intra-Africa trade will be liberalised by 2030 via removing all cross-border taxes, in a series of actions that officially began last year. Nation
Influx of Affordable Devices Fuels Adoption of 5G Smartphones in Africa
Africans are upgrading their smartphones to 5G faster than the rate at which their home countries are developing and rolling out network infrastructure to support high-speed internet. The number of 5G devices shipped into the market rose significantly in the second quarter of 2022 as vendors intensified their battle to grow market share in the world’s biggest young and tech-savvy market. US-based tech-research firm International Data Corporation (IDC) says competition among handset-makers to bring to market the most advanced, but affordable, models is fuelling adoption. Mail & Guardian
African Leaders Are Questioning “Microcredit” and Other Norms Excluding Women from Trade
Despite the fact that women run most small and medium scale businesses in Africa, they have a $42 billion gap in funding versus men. Female owned businesses tend to be underfunded, but over mentored with the ring-fencing of certain small pools of funding to them, ironically sometimes putting them at a disadvantage. “Why are we pegged to microcredit, small amounts that don’t really make a difference? How does a woman grow and develop her business,” Liberia’s vice president, Jewel Taylor, asked at a conference in Tanzania this week centering women and youth as the necessary “engine” for Africa’s historic free trade agreement to succeed. Merely setting schemes aside for women doesn’t cut it if big money pots available to men are out of reach, she added. Quartz Africa
Africa Losing Up to 15pc of GDP Growth to Climate Change – AfDB
Africa is losing five per cent to 15 per cent of its per capita economic growth due to the effects of climate change and is facing a gaping climate finance shortfall, according to the African Development Bank (AfDB). Africa has been hit disproportionately hard by the fallout from climate change, which has aggravated droughts, flooding and cyclones across the continent in recent years. African nations received around $18.3 billion in climate finance between 2016 and 2019, Kevin Urama, the AfDB’s acting chief economist, said in a statement released on Tuesday. But they are staring down a nearly $1.3 trillion climate finance gap for the 2020 to 2030 period. East African
Sudan: Protesters Return to the Streets of Khartoum
Thousands of Sudanese protesters took to the streets of the capital, Khartoum, on Tuesday to press demands for a return to civilian rule following a military coup last year. Many carried posters criticizing the military; others showed pictures of some of the 116 people that pro-democracy medics say have already been killed in a previous crackdown on the anti-coup protests. “A solution can only be reached by achieving our demands. We’ll keep on protesting, there isn’t a time frame for the revolution. Once you fulfil our demands, the demonstrations will stop”, affirmed protester Tarek Othman. Sudan has been rocked by waves of demonstrations since the armed forces led by General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan grabbed power in October. In July, Burhan pledged in a televised address to step aside and make way for Sudanese factions to agree on a civilian government. Civilian leaders dismissed the move as a “ruse.” AfricaNews
Sudan Committee for Missing People in Rebel-Govt Fighting Commenced Its Work
The Committee for Prisoners and Missing Persons working to gather more information on those who went missing during battles between armed rebel movements and Sudanese military forces before the 2020 Juba Peace Agreement officially commenced its work in its office in Khartoum yesterday and is now open to receiving complaints and information from stakeholders. In a press conference on Sunday at the premises of the Sudan News Agency (SUNA), Head of the committee Suleiman Hajjana said that the committee deals with those who went missing or were captured during battles between the Sudanese government and armed rebel movements between 2002 and 2020, before the signing of the Juba Peace Agreement. The committee was formed by decree of the Senior Public Prosecutor. Amongst its members are representatives from the various military and security authorities of Sudan: the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF), the Rapid Support Forces* (RSF), the General Intelligence Service (GIS), and the Sudanese police forces. Dabanga
10 Killed in Twin Air Strikes on Ethiopia’s Tigray: Hospital
Ten people were killed in a second day of air strikes on Ethiopia’s Tigray region Wednesday, a hospital official said, in attacks that came after authorities there expressed readiness for a ceasefire. Twin drone attacks hit a residential neighbourhood in the regional capital Mekele, killing 10 people and injuring others, said Kibrom Gebreselassie, a senior official at Ayder Referral Hospital, the biggest in Tigray. “Death toll raised to 10,” Kibrom told AFP via text message, after earlier reporting six killed and more than 10 injured in the two blasts around 7:30 am (0430 GMT). AFP
Five Aides Killed After Gunmen Attack Nigerian Senator’s Convoy
Gunmen in Nigeria killed five aides including security personnel during an attack on the convoy of a Nigerian senator in southeastern Anambra state on Sunday evening, the senator’s spokesman said on Monday. Senator Ifeanyi Ubah’s convoy was attacked in Enugwu-Ukwu, a community in the Njikoka local government area of Anambra but he escaped without injuries because he was travelling in a bullet-proof vehicle, spokesman Kameh Ogbonna told Reuters. Ogbonna said he was in the same car with Ubah at the time of the attack, which he described as an assassination attempt. Reuters
Buhari Blames Nigerian Elite for Insecurity, Poor Infrastructure
President Muhammadu Buhari has blamed Nigerian elite for not contributing to the development of the country, particularly the fight against insecurity. Mr Buhari stated this on Tuesday shortly after commissioning some projects in Imo State done by Governor Hope Uzodinma’s administration The projects commissioned included the dualised 36-kilometer Owerri-Orlu Road and the first phase of the dualised 53-kilometer Owerri-Okigwe Road. He also commissioned the newly reconstructed Imo House of Assembly Complex. Mr Buhari said Nigeria has not recorded the expected developments because of a number of factors and inability of the elite to assist the country. Premium Times Nigeria
UN Office of Counter-Terrorism to Help Togo Fight Terrorism
The United Nations Office of Counter-Terrorism (UNOCT) will help Togo better fight cross-border terrorism. The two parties inked a memorandum of understanding (MoU) in this framework last Thursday, September 8, 2022. The UN Office will set up a multi-agency unit in the country to collect data on travelers. The facility will allow Togolese authorities to prevent terrorists from passing through Lomé’s airport. “Also, UNOCT will deploy and finance training for all staff of the air safety and security in Togo,” said Gnama Latta, Managing Director of the National Civil Aviation Agency (ANAC)…Togo -the first African country to sign such an agreement with UNOCT- has been recording terrorist attacks since November 2021. Togo First
Silicon Island? Zanzibar Bets on E-Commerce, Tourism to Make It the Next Tech ‘Valley’
The semi-autonomous group of islands off the coast of Tanzania does not feature in global startup ecosystem rankings but the move by its government is seen as deliberate positioning to make “Silicon Zanzibar” Africa’s next destination for talent and innovation. The region’s leadership says it will work with entrepreneurs to ensure that the environment is conducive to tech startups. “We are excited to officially partner with Wasoko and other tech companies coming to Zanzibar to co-create policies and initiatives that will transform Zanzibar into a leading tech centre for the African continent,” said Zanzibar’s minister of investment and economic development, Mudrick Soraga. Mail & Guardian