The White House said Tuesday it shared concerns over South Africa’s relationship with Russia after lawmakers called for the longtime US partner’s expulsion from a major trade pact. Four senior members of the US Congress across party lines asked whether South Africa should remain in the African Growth and Opportunity Act, or AGOA, which offers duty-free […]

South Africa, which is battling a scourge of cigarette trafficking, on Monday 12th June, 2023 began incinerating 20 million illicit cigarettes smuggled into the country through its border with neighbouring Zimbabwe. The South African Revenue Service (SARS) said that the contra band of 20 million cigarettes, valued at more than $2.3 million, and smuggled into […]

An employee with the World Health Organization was among those killed in the weekend siege of a beachside hotel in Somalia’s capital Mogadishu, the head of the UN health agency said on Sunday 11th June, 2023. The siege left six civilians dead and another 10 wounded, according to police. “I’m heartbroken that we have lost […]

The Ethiopian government on Saturday 10th June, 2023 criticised a move by two major aid organisations to halt the sending of food assistance to the country after discovering it was being diverted from those o need it. The Ethiopian government’s spokesman Legesse Tulu told journalists the decision by USAID and the World Food Programme (WFP) […]

More than four years ago, African countries gave the ceremonial push to a deal to scrap internal trade barriers — a historic scheme that would create a continent-wide single market worth trillions of dollars. But African business leaders say cross-border trade remains entangled in customs duties, administrative hurdles and varying national regulations. Costs and delays […]

Injury-plagued utility back Francois Steyn was the big-name omission from the 40-man Springbok training squad named on Saturday for next month’s Rugby Championship. Steyn, now 36, was a key figure in the Springboks’ 2019 Rugby World Cup triumph in Japan as well as the 2007 victory in France. His chances of becoming a champion for a third time appear to […]

The US halts food aid to Ethiopia, citing “a widespread and coordinated campaign” to divert donated supplies from the needy. USAID halted food aid to Ethiopia Thursday 8th June, 2023, citing “a widespread and coordinated campaign” to divert donated supplies from the needy as Addis Ababa vowed to hold perpetrators to account. “We made the […]

A top United Nations official said Wednesday 7th June, 2023, during a visit to DR Congo, that peacekeepers should withdraw from the conflict-torn central African country “as quickly as possible” yet responsibly. Addressing reporters in the capital Kinshasa, UN Under-Secretary-General for peacekeeping operations Jean-Pierre Lacroix, also warned that the Congolese state had to step up […]

New Zealand announced a ban on disposable vapes Tuesday, tightening the nation’s chokehold on smoking as it also phases in a near-total prohibition on tobacco sales. Disposable vapes — defined as those without removable or replaceable batteries — will be banned from August, Health Minister Ayesha Verrall said. “Too many young people are vaping, which is why […]

German police said they smashed a human trafficking network Wednesday accused of smuggling hundreds of people in “inhumane” conditions. German police said they smashed a human trafficking network Wednesday accused of smuggling hundreds of people in “inhumane” conditions, with six suspects arrested in raids across Germany, Romania and Bulgaria. The suspects are believed to have trafficked […]