Africa
Ethiopia / Somaliland: port agreement angers Somalia
An agreement on 1 January by breakaway Somaliland to allow Ethiopia to use the Red Sea port of Berbera has been condemned by Somalia as dangerous for regional stability. Since 1991, when Eritrea…
DRC: crucial elections complicated by technical problems
On 20 December, amid widespread delays and logistical complications, polling stations opened in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Because of the delays, it was decided to extend the voting for a second…
South Africa: plans for new nuclear power stations
The government has announced that South Africa, battling crippling power blackouts, plans to add 2,500 megawatts of new nuclear generation. The country has Africa's only nuclear power station, but the Koeberg plant near…
Madagascar: re-elected president has to ensure electoral reforms
The USA, Japan, and the European Union have expressed their willingness to collaborate with Madagascar's re-elected president Andry Rajoelina, provided he ensures electoral reforms in the country. The country has a history of…
Sierra Leone: weekend coup attempt foiled
The information minister has declared that attacks on several locations in the capital, Freetown, were in fact a failed coup attempt led mainly by bodyguards of the previous president, Ernest Koroma. On 26…
DRC: UN peacekeepers agree to withdraw
After nearly two decades, the United Nations Stabilisation Mission in Congo (MONUSCO) has signed an agreement to withdraw its 15,000 peacekeepers from the Democratic Republic of Congo. The foreign minister and MONUSCO's head…
Kenya: surprise public holiday to plant trees
On 13 November a government-led initiative saw citizens planting seedlings in Nairobi, even under heavy rain, following the declaration of a public holiday dedicated to tree planting. This effort, part of president William…
Liberia: close race in presidential election
Votes are being counted in the presidential run-off election between incumbent George Weah and ex-vice president Joseph Boakai. The election, held peacefully on 14 November, saw more than 2.4 million voters choosing between…
Cameroon: 20+ killed by English-speaking separatists
On 6 November more than twenty people, including women and children, were killed in an attack by English-speaking separatists in western Cameroon. Since the end of 2016, this area (populated mainly by the…
East Africa: German president apologises for killings, King Charles ‘regrets’
During a visit to southern Tanzania, German president Frank-Walter Steinmeier apologised and asked for forgiveness for colonial-era killings during Germany’s rule. He vowed to raise awareness of the atrocities in his country, in…
