Top Africa News

Guinea today declared the end of the Marburg virus disease outbreak having recorded no new cases over the past 42 days—two incubation periods, or the time between infection and the onset of symptoms. The virus was confirmed on 9 August, marking the first time the disease emerged in the country and in West Africa. Only one case—the index patient who ...

As the COVAX Facility is forced to slash planned COVID-19 vaccine deliveries to Africa by around 150 million this year, the continent faces almost 500 million doses short of the global year-end target of fully vaccinating 40% of its population. This shortfall comes as Africa tops 8 million COVID-19 cases this week, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has said. With ...

The UK, US and Australia have announced a historic security pact in the Indo-Pacific, in what’s seen as an effort to counter China. It will let Australia build nuclear-powered submarines for the first time, using technology provided by the US. The pact, to be known as Aukus, will also cover artificial intelligence, cyber and quantum technologies. It is the biggest ...

Nigeria’s Information Minister Lai Mohammed has said the country would “in a few more days” lift the ban on social media platform Twitter. He, however, did not give a specific date when pressed, Reuters news agency reports. Mr Mohammed said Nigerian authorities and Twitter officials had to “dot the I’s and cross the T’s.. it’s just going to be very, ...

The Board of Directors of the African Development Bank Group has approved a $50 million Trade Finance Unfunded Risk Participation Agreement (RPA) facility between the African Development Bank and Standard Chartered Bank. The agreement is expected to boost intra-Africa trade, promote regional integration, and contribute to the reduction of the trade finance gap in Africa, in line with implementation aspirations ...

Angola’s ex-president Jose Eduardo dos Santos on Tuesday arrived in the southern Africa nation from Spain, the first time he has returned home since retiring, the state press agency said. Dos Santos left the country in 2019 after handing the reigns over the previous year, to President Joao Lourenco, who has since targeted the former first family in an anti-graft ...

Ghana’s Foreign Affairs Minister, Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey, has revealed that ECOWAS tried on several occasions to stop Guinea’s deposed President Alpha Conde from usurping that country’s constitution to seek a third term. Addressing journalists at a Press Conference on Wednesday, Ayorkor Botchwey said claims that ECOWAS stood aloof and failed to prevent Mr Conde from going ahead to change the ...

Some 240 prisoners have escaped after unidentified gunmen attacked a facility in Nigeria’s Kogi state, officials say. It is the second mass jailbreak this year in Nigeria, which is struggling with multiple security crises. The attackers blew up the prison’s perimeter fence to gain entry, according to the Reuters news agency. Nigeria’s prison service says the gunmen were heavily armed ...

A BBC Panorama investigation has found evidence that suggests one of Britain’s biggest companies paid a bribe to the former Zimbabwean leader Robert Mugabe. Documents show British American Tobacco (BAT) was involved in negotiations to pay between $300,000 and $500,000 to Mugabe’s Zanu-PF party in 2013. The documents also reveal BAT was paying bribes in South Africa and using illegal ...

The African Union announced on Friday it has suspended Guinea following a coup in the West African country that saw its President, Alpha Conde arrested. The pan-African body said on Twitter that it “decides to suspend the Republic of Guinea from all AU activities and decision-making bodies”. The move came after Guinean special forces seized power on Sunday and arrested ...