Chadian film Lingui – The Sacred Bonds, directed by Mahamat-Saleh Haroun has enjoyed its world premiere in Competition at the Cannes Film Festival. Set near N’djamena in Chad, Lingui – The Sacred Bonds, charts the connection between a mother, Amina, played by Achouackh Abakar Souleymane and her teenage daughter, Maria, played by Rihane Khalil Alio. The film deals […]

There are a record two African films competing in this year’s Official Competition at the Cannes Film Festival (06/07/21 – 17/07/21) with one of the jury members being Senegal’s Mati Diop. In a first for African films, two were selected for the official competition, Chadian film Lingui – The Sacred Bonds from director Mahamat-Saleh Haroun, […]

Distraught and heartbroken parents have told news agencies in Nigeria that their children have been plucked overnight from a boarding school and kidnapped. Around 150 students are believed to have been taken by armed men from the hostel at Bethel Baptist High School in Kaduna state, sometime between 11pm on Sunday night and 4am Monday. […]

The South African government says it “notes with great concern” the ongoing political and security situation in the Kingdom of Eswatini, where protestors have burned buildings and the army has reportedly used violent force against them (watch video below) with shots fired in the streets and citizens filmed being beaten up by soldiers. According to […]

Angry protestors in Eswatini (formerly Swaziland) have reportedly ignored a 6pm to 5am curfew set by the government on Tuesday night and are burning businesses with ties to King Mswati as their protest against the royal leader continues. According to award-winning Zimbabwean journalist and documentary filmmaker, Hopewell Chin’ono, “the King deployed the military to quell […]

President Cyril Ramaphosa and other Southern African heads of state agreed on Wednesday to the deployment of the SADC’s Standby troops to Mozambique to combat the horrific terrorism that has rocked northern parts of the country. The Southern African Development Community (SADC) met in Maputo to consider the SADC’s proposed response to address the attacks […]

The COVID-19 crisis has revived discussions on localising vaccine manufacturing to the African region to reduce the dependence on imports. The fact that Africa is lagging so far behind on the COVID-19 vaccination compared with Europe and North America has highlighted the importance of the issue. Most African countries depend on the WHO-sponsored COVAX scheme, […]

Kenneth Kaunda, the former president of Zambia, who has died in hospital in the capital, Lusaka, at the age of 97, was the last of the giants of 20th century African nationalism… writes Gavin Evans, Birkbeck, University of London. He was also one of the few to depart with his reputation still intact. But perhaps […]

Botswana has announced the discovery of a diamond which they say is the third largest in the world. The whopping 1,098.3 carat diamond, was found on 1 June 2021. Holding the precious stone, President Dr Mokgweetsi Masisi commended Debswana Diamond Company’s discovery, their largest to date. The largest diamond ever was discovered in South Africa […]

JOHANNESBURG (Thomson Reuters Foundation) – Armed groups in Mozambique are increasingly kidnapping children as a warfare tactic, putting victims at risk of sexual violence, early marriage and being used as fighters in the country’s worsening conflict, aid groups said on Wednesday… writes Kim Harrisberg. At least 51 children have been abducted over the last year in […]

Charismatic – and controversial – Nigerian preacher and pastor, Prophet TB Joshua, has passed away at the age of 57. The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) in South Africa led tributes from the continent and abroad. A post on the evangelist’s Instagram page says: “God has taken His servant Prophet TB Joshua home – as it […]

A river of boiling lava has reportedly stopped just in time to spare the city of Goma in the Democratic Republic of Congo. A mass evacuation had been ordered after one of the world’s most dangerous and active volcanoes – Mount Nyiragongo – erupted last night. Thousands of frightened residents fled into the dead of […]

When talking about Africa’s gaming market specifically, or about its economy in general, two trends are of essential importance. The first is the huge size of the African youth population – there are even indications that it might double over the next several decades. The other important fact is that the mobile phone market is […]

(Reuters) – Kenya began its first national wildlife census on Friday, aiming to aid conservation and identify threats to its vast but threatened wildlife populations. The census will run until July, with rangers, researchers and community members counting animals on land and from helicopters. It will focus on counting rare species such as the pangolin, […]

MADAGASCAR (Reuters) – Families have resorted to eating locusts and leaves in southern Madagascar where famine is looming, the UN’s World Food Programme (WFP) said on Friday. Following a devastating five year drought, and strong sandstorms this year, harvests have been ruined and the people are starving in a way the UN senior director of […]

A 15-hectare piece of land on Cape Town’s Liesbeek River has been identified as the location where Amazon will have its headquarters in Africa, and will include numerous names and landmarks dedicated to the Khoisan people. The announcement earlier this week that Amazon would be centering its Africa operations in Cape Town was followed up […]

With long queues at clinics in South Africa and Covid-19 restrictions, women struggling to access health services are turning to an illicit market for birth control pills. The pills are widely used and freely distributed in Zimbabwe, but smuggled into and sold in South Africa. Birth control pills freely distributed in Zimbabwe are being smuggled […]

SADC Heads of State have reiterated commitment to contribute towards the efforts of bringing about lasting peace and security, as well as reconciliation and development in the Republic of Mozambique. This comes amid a spate of attacks in the country’s Cabo Delgado Province in the last two weeks. The leaders condemned the violence during this […]

A life-size pencil drawing of an African elephant is bringing its viewers to tears, so magnificent and realistic is the artwork… an homage in fact to a real-life elephant named Makavuzi, affectionately known as Mak. The stunning picture, which captures Mak’s soul, was created by talented Zimbabwean artist David Filer with an all-Zimbabwean team taking […]

KAMPALA, UGANDA – Six lions have been killed in Uganda by suspected poisoning. The Uganda Wildlife Authority said in a statement that it is “saddened” to announce the death of the lions in Queen Elizabeth National Park. The lion carcasses were found yesterday evening in the Ishasha sector, which is well known for its tree-climbing […]

John Joseph Pombe Magufuli was a man who deftly played the long political game. He was nevertheless a puzzle both to Tanzanians and the world… writes Aikande Clement Kwayu, University of Wisconsin-Madison. When he first entered the presidency in 2015, he gained worldwide acclaim for his no-nonsense approach to fighting corruption and imprudent government spending. […]

The Namibian government will put 170 wild elephants up for sale today, 29 January, justified by false population statistics and disputed claims of human-elephant conflict. More than 100,000 people have signed a petition condemning the action… writes Don Pinnock, Daily Maverick. See petition here. The Namibian government says it has too many elephants and that […]

Armed men have killed at least six rangers and wounded several others in an ambush in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo’s (DRC) Virunga national park. This park is a sanctuary for endangered mountain gorillas. Staff working in the park have often come under attack. Judith Verweijen and Esther Marijnen – experts on armed mobilisation and […]

The African Vaccine Acquisition Task Team (AVATT) has confirmed the acquisition of provisional 270 million vaccine doses for African countries, with at least 50 million being available for the crucial period of April to June 2021. The 10-member AVATT, which was established by African Union Chair, President Cyril Ramaphosa in August, on Thursday confirmed this […]

The Harare Magistrates Court has dismissed a bid by journalist Hopewell Chin’ono to have a charge against him of “spreading falsehoods” declared invalid. The Harare Magistrates Court has upheld charges of “spreading falsehoods” against an award-winning Zimbabwean journalist. Hopewell Chin’ono was arrested on Friday and remains in custody. This week Chin’ono tried to challenge the […]