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August 23, 2023
BRICS Countries Agree on Expansion Rules

Leaders of the BRICS bloc of leading developing nations — Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa — agreed on mechanisms for considering new members, South Africa's Foreign Minister Naledi Pandor said on Wednesday. The question of expanding BRICS remained up in the air following a divergence of vision among the group's members, including Brazil, which is concerned that expansion will dilute its influence. "We have a document that we've adopted which sets out guidelines and principles, processes for considering countries that wish to become members of BRICS ... That's very positive," Pandor said on Ubuntu Radio, a station run by South Africa's foreign ministry. Pandor added the bloc's leaders would make a more detailed announcement on expansion before the summit concludes on Thursday.
August 23, 2023
Kenyan Court Orders 21-Day Mediation in Meta Labor Dispute

NAIROBI — A Kenyan court has given Facebook's parent company Meta and content moderators suing it for unfair dismissal 21 days to resolve their dispute out of court, a court order showed on Wednesday.
August 22, 2023
UN Libya Envoy: ‘Unified Government’ Prioritized For Elections

United Nations Libya envoy Abdoulaye Bathily said on Tuesday that "a unified government, agreed upon by the major players, is an imperative for leading the country to elections," an apparent shift from an earlier position that elections should come first. The dangers of Libya's unresolved conflict were manifested last week when armed factions battled in Tripoli, resulting in the killing of 55 people in the worst fighting the city has witnessed in years. "All elections-related issues should be resolved through discussions and compromises between all relevant actors,” said Bathily in his address to the U.N Security Council.
August 22, 2023
African Union Suspends Niger Following Coup

JOHANNESBURG — The African Union has suspended Niger from all its activities following the military coup there on July 26, telling its members to avoid any action that might legitimize the junta.
August 22, 2023
Wagner's Prigozhin Hints He Is in Africa in First Video Since Russia Mutiny

Wagner mercenary group chief Yevgeny Prigozhin posted his first video address since leading a short-lived mutiny in Russia late June, appearing in a social media clip which he suggested was shot in Africa.
August 20, 2023
What to Expect From BRICS Summit?

Expansion of the BRICS group of nations is likely to be in focus at a summit in South Africa next week — as the bloc looks to challenge the West for geopolitical dominance. Leaders of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa will be in physical attendance — with one notable exception. That's Russian President Vladimir Putin who faces an international arrest warrant over alleged war crimes in Ukraine — though he is expected to attend virtually. David Doyle of Reuters has more.
August 20, 2023
Art Flourishes in Niger Despite Political Crisis

In Niger's capital Niamey artists are contributing to the narrative around a military coup that has shaken the stability of not only the country but the wider region. David Doyle of Reuters has more.
August 19, 2023
Google to Train 20,000 Nigerians in Digital Skills

Google's initiative aligns with the government's commitment to increase youth participation in the digital economy
August 18, 2023
UN: Bazoum Prosecution Has ‘No Legal Basis'

The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Turk, on Friday said there was no legal basis for Niger's military junta to prosecute deposed President Mohamed Bazoum for high treason, saying the "very notion of freedoms" in the country was at stake. The military junta, which seized power in a coup last month, said it would prosecute Bazoum for high treason over his exchanges with foreign heads of state and international organizations, prompting condemnation from the United States and West African leaders.
August 17, 2023
ECOWAS Ready 'to Answer to the Call of Duty' in Niger

West African bloc, ECOWAS, stands ready to intervene militarily if all else fails to reverse a coup in Niger, a senior official said on Thursday. "Valiant forces of West Africa... are ready to answer to the call of duty," said ECOWAS commissioner for political affairs, peace and security, Abdel-Fatau Musah, during his address to army generals from member states who were meeting in Ghana. "By all means available, constitutional order will be restored in the country and this meeting today bears testimony to that," Musah added.
August 16, 2023
Niger: 17 Soldiers Killed in Ambush Near Burkina Faso Border

NIAMEY — Niger's junta on Wednesday said 17 of its soldiers were killed in an ambush by insurgents, the deadliest attack since a July 26 coup whose leaders have cited persistent insecurity as a justification for deposing the civilian government.
August 16, 2023
Niger Junta-appointed PM: 'Independence' Necessitates any Dialogue

Niger's junta-appointed Prime Minister Ali Mahamane Lamine Zeine has reiterated his country is open to talks to resolve the regional crisis stemming from the military takeover, but stressed that the Sahelian nation's "independence" necessitated any dialogue. Zeine made the remark Tuesday when he made his first trip to Chad on behalf of the military council that seized power in a military coup last month. Zeine, whom military leaders appointed prime minister early last week, met with Chad's President Mahamat Deby, who staged his own coup in 2021. Western powers and democratic African governments have called for the coup leaders to reinstate ousted President Mohamed Bazoum, but the junta has refused and rejected attempts at negotiation.
August 16, 2023
Kyiv: Russian Drones Damaged Grain Silos at Ukraine Port

KYIV — Russian drone strikes damaged grain silos and warehouses at the Ukrainian river port of Reni on the Danube, a vital wartime route for Ukrainian food exports, senior officials said on Wednesday.
August 15, 2023
Kenya Reinstates Fuel Subsidy After Public Uproar

Kenya has reinstated a small fuel subsidy, the energy regulator said late Monday, in a reversal of government policy which aims to stabilize retail fuel prices over the next 30 days. The reversal follows public anger over the high cost of living. The regulator, known as EPRA, said the maximum price of a liter of petrol would remain constant at 194.68 shillings ($1.35). Fuel prices shot up when President William Ruto scrapped the subsidies and again after the government doubled the fuel tax. Mukelwa Hlatshwayo has more details.
August 14, 2023
UN: Bazoum's Prosecution ‘Very Worrying’

An attempt by Niger's junta to bring charges of high treason against democratically-elected President Mohamed Bazoum is "very worrying," United Nations spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said on Monday. "We remain extremely concerned about the state of being, the health and safety of the president and his family, and again we call for his immediate and unconditional release and his reinstatement as head of state," Dujarric told reporters.
August 14, 2023
Safeguards Needed for Haitian Security Force, HRW Says

International security assistance for Haiti's police should include safeguards to prevent abuses, Human Rights Watch said Monday, as debate intensifies over a Kenya-led force to help stem worsening gang violence.
August 13, 2023
Indonesia's Capital Jakarta Named World's Most Polluted City

Jakarta, which has a population of over 10 million, registers unhealthy air pollution levels nearly every day, according to IQAir
August 13, 2023
Ugandan Orphans Cycle Long Road to Elites

LONDON — Elite road cycling remains overwhelmingly white and largely the preserve of riders from wealthy nations so the idea of two orphans from a village in Uganda setting out to make it as pros would appear an unlikely journey.
August 12, 2023
Music, Stars Woo Zimbabwe's Crucial Youth Voters

HARARE — The local version of Jamaican dancehall has become the unofficial soundtrack of Zimbabwe's presidential election as candidates go all out to woo a key generation of voters who were children when long-time ruler Robert Mugabe was ousted six years ago.
August 10, 2023
West Africans Divided Over Military Intervention in Niger

As West African heads of state are meeting Thursday in Abuja, Nigeria, to agree on a plan of action for Niger, residents in Niamey, Niger, Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, and Dakar, Senegal, are divided over whether military intervention could bring a swift resolution to the crisis.

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