It’s dawn. I’m in a reflective mood. So many thoughts & emotions to consider. I’m not a night owl, although the moon has held me captive on many occasions. It’s still up there. Far away. But this is the sun’s turn to rise. The light is still soft. It’s bathing our garden in gentle pastel […]

Zimbabwe’s army claimed on Thursday that soldiers accused of beating residents in townships following protests over fuel price hikes were impostors who tarnished the name of the military. Security forces have been cracking down on violent demonstrations that erupted last week after President Emmerson Mnangagwa decreed a sharp increase in the price of fuel. Rights […]

More than half of South Africa’s farmers are suffering depression and anxiety as SA’s farms lost R7 billion ($510 million) in potential revenue and 31,000 jobs were cut since January 2018 because of the severe drought ravaging parts of South Africa, according to a survey of farmers. The figures were released by Agri SA on […]

The impact of Kenya’s recent terrorist attack will be felt greatly by its tourism industry. Terrorism, and insecurity generally, is largely responsible for the sector’s poor performance over the last decade. Between 2011 and 2017, there were on average 60 attacks each year carried out by different groups, each varying in magnitude. Over half of […]

HARARE – President Emmerson Mnangagwa declared Zimbabwe’s internationally renowned musician Oliver Mtukudzi a national hero on Thursday, granting him a status following his death yesterday this is normally reserved for ruling party elites and independence veterans only. Mtukudzi (66) – affectionately known as “Tuku” – died at a local clinic on Wednesday from diabetes, ending […]

Zimbabwe’s most successful and internationally renowned musician Oliver Mtukudzi died on Wednesday after suffering from diabetes, ending a career that spanned four decades and 67 albums. Zimbabwean publisher of Africapedia, Charles Onyango-Obbo also pointed out that the legendary Mtukudzi has passed away on the same date as South African jazz legend Hugh Masekela, who died […]

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa called on Tuesday for sanctions against Zimbabwe to be lifted and said the South African government was in discussions with Harare about how best to help. He said Zimbabwe’s situation was a challenge for the whole of Africa and he planned to meet its President Emmerson Mnangagwa at a later […]

Legal challenges to a brutal clampdown on dissent by Zimbabwe’s government were set in motion on Monday, as fears that the country is veering back towards authoritarian rule drove some leaders of the main opposition party into hiding. The fragile state of Zimbabwe’s economy was also in focus as President Emmerson Mnangagwa headed home early […]

South Africa turned down a request from its southern African neighbour Zimbabwe for a $1.2 billion loan in December, a spokesman for the finance ministry said on Monday. “South Africa doesn’t have that kind of money,” National Treasury spokesman Jabulani Sikhakhane said. Zimbabwean officials were not immediately available for comment. Zimbabwe was hit by anti-government […]

Congo’s political standoff deepened on Sunday after the top court backed the contested presidential election victory of Felix Tshisekedi, then his main rival rejected the ruling, called for protests and declared himself leader. As Tshisekedi’s supporters celebrated the ruling in the streets of Democratic Republic of Congo’s capital, runner-up Martin Fayulu said the decision had […]

BAMAKO – Ten U.N. peacekeepers were killed and several were wounded while repelling an attack by armed assailants near a village in northern Mali on Sunday, the West African nation’s U.N. mission said. The identity of the attackers was not immediately clear. U.N. peacekeeping and French forces are stationed in northern Mali to combat well-armed […]

HARARE – A crackdown last week on protests in Zimbabwe is a foretaste of how the government will respond to future unrest, the president’s spokesperson said, fuelling concerns that the country is reverting to authoritarian rule. Police claim three people died during protests over fuel price hikes in Harare’s capital and second city Bulawayo that […]

Author of such books as ‘African Tears’ and ‘Beyond Tears’, Cathy Buckle last night posted a letter on social media to her friends and family… except she couldn’t post it herself because she’s in Zimbabwe. So a friend posted it on her behalf. This is her letter… Dear Family and Friends, This has been one […]

South African grain and red meat farmers are bracing for hard times after dry weather conditions and an outbreak of the highly contagious foot and mouth disease suspended meat exports, officials said on Friday. Maize prices have climbed amid concerns that dry conditions in the main part of South Africa’s maize belt have delayed crop […]

HARARE – Zimbabwe’s biggest mobile operator Econet Wireless said on Friday the government had ordered it to shut down its internet services until further notice following days of deadly protests over steep fuel price hikes. (Please see UPDATE at bottom of page.) Zimbabweans accuse President Emmerson Mnangagwa of failing to live up to pre-election pledges […]

OUAGADOUGOU – A Canadian kidnapped this week in a restive region of Burkina Faso has been found dead, a spokesman for the security ministry told Reuters on Thursday. The man was abducted after nightfall on Tuesday by a dozen gunmen on a mining site owned by Vancouver-based Progress Minerals in the northeast near the border […]

NAIROBI – Gunmen blasted their way into a hotel and office complex in the Kenyan capital on Tuesday, killing at least seven people and sending workers diving under desks from an attack claimed by Somali Islamists al Shabaab. Police warned the “terror attack”, which echoed a 2013 assault on a Nairobi shopping centre, may be […]

HARARE – Soldiers patrolled Zimbabwe city streets on Tuesday and confrontations with angry civilians threatened to boil over, as the government offered public workers more money a day after protests over a disintegrating economy turned deadly. Monday’s unrest, in which several people died, followed sharp hikes in fuel prices decreed by President Emmerson Mnangagwa. The […]

As South Africa heads for the polls in a few months time in its sixth democratic election, political party electioneering has begun in earnest. President Cyril Ramaphosa kick started the governing African National Congress’s (ANC’s) election campaign in his January 8th Statement celebrating 107 years since the birth of the liberation movement. This campaign continued […]

HARARE – Zimbabwe will introduce a new currency in the next 12 months, the country’s Finance Minister said, as a shortage of U.S. dollars plunges the financial system into disarray, forcing businesses to close and threatening unrest.  The southern African nation abandoned its own hyperinflation-wrecked currency in 2009 at the height of an economic recession, […]

WINDHOEK – Namibia has suspended meat imports from South Africa due to the outbreak of the highly contagious foot and mouth disease, state broadcaster, NBC, said on Wednesday. The disease, which causes lesions and lameness in cattle and sheep, was detected in a northern district of Limpopo province, South Africa’s agriculture department announced this week. […]

DAKAR – Egypt will host the 2019 African Nations Cup finals, the Confederation of African Football (CAF) confirmed after a meeting of their executive committee in Dakar on Tuesday. They will stage the expanded 24-team event in June-July after initial hosts Cameroon were stripped of the tournament last month over concerns at the slow pace […]

NAIROBI – Girls in western Kenya returning to school after the Christmas break are undergoing compulsory tests for female genital mutilation in a move to crackdown against the illegal and harmful practice, a senior government official said on Friday. They are also being tested to see if they are pregnant. George Natembeya, commissioner for Narok […]

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Three former Credit Suisse Group AG bankers were arrested in London on Thursday on U.S. charges that they took part in a fraud scheme involving $2 billion in loans to state-owned companies in Mozambique, a spokesman for U.S. prosecutors said. Andrew Pearse, 49; Surjan Singh, 44; and Detelina Subeva, 37 were […]

Due to increased demand, South African Airways (SAA) has expanded its non-stop service between Ghana and the US. In a statement on Wednesday, the national carrier announced that it will increase its frequency on nonstop flights between the Ghanaian capital Accra’s Kotoka International Airport and Washington D.C’s Dulles International Airport to five days a week. […]