Africa: Flawed Elections and Poor Governance Underlie Africa’s Backsliding

[ad_1] With nearly 20 polls this year, can a floundering AU give elections the attention they desperately need? How do we explain the developmental and governance reversals now haunting Africa? Reasons for the apparent collapse of security are complex, but the thread running through insurgencies, coups and instability is slow development, bad governance and the nature of Africa's demographic transitions. Geopolitics marked by increasing competition makes for an unfavourable international environment. And although the global context influences Africa's conflicts, a […]

January 18, 2024

Africa

Africa: Special Envoy for the Horn of Africa Hammer Travels to Uganda and Ethiopia

[ad_1] HomeOffice of the SpokespersonPress Releases...Special Envoy for the Horn of Africa Hammer Travels to Uganda and Ethiopia hide Special Envoy for the Horn of Africa Hammer Travels to Uganda and Ethiopia U.S. Special Envoy for the Horn of Africa Mike Hammer will travel to Kampala and Addis Ababa January 17-24. In Kampala, Ambassador Hammer will attend the 42nd Extraordinary Summit of the Inter-Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD) Assembly Heads of State and Government, focused on the ongoing situation between […]

January 18, 2024

Africa

Africa: Kenya and Ethiopia Could Show the Way On Migration Governance

[ad_1] These two Horn of Africa countries are heavily affected by migration, and well placed to lead on policy responses. Migration governance in Kenya and Ethiopia has significant implications for regional stability and human rights in the Horn of Africa and in each country. In 2023, East Africa, the Horn and the Great Lakes regions hosted 16.4 million refugees and internally displaced persons, around a third of whom were in Ethiopia and Kenya. By the end of 2024, these regions […]

January 18, 2024

Africa

Africa: Can South Sudan Meet Its Election Deadline This Time?

[ad_1] Missed peace agreement targets and poor election preparations could result in a disputed election or another extension. In August 2022, South Sudan's transitional government extended its term to February 2025, with elections planned for December 2024. The extension would allow time for ironing out challenges in implementing the country's 2018 peace agreement, which had initially scheduled polls for December 2022. Since signing the Revitalised Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in South Sudan in 2018, every milestone in […]

January 17, 2024

News

Nigeria: Airlines’ Trapped Funds – Pressure Mounts Despite U.S.$61 Million Release

[ad_1] Lagos — There's a mounting pressure on the federal government to make significant releases to clear the foreign airlines' trapped funds amidst their threat to exit Nigeria. This is despite the release of $61.4m by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) last week as part of efforts to clear outstanding liabilities and bolster the foreign exchange market. While there's no updated data on the foreign airlines' funds trapped in Nigeria, our correspondent reports that the money was $793m as […]

January 15, 2024

Africa

Africa: Urban Kenyans Mistrust Police Even More Than Rural Residents Do – Study Sets Out Why It Matters

[ad_1] Across the African continent - from Nigeria and Ghana to South Africa - widespread protests have taken place to demand police reform in the wake of police misconduct and brutality. A continent-wide survey done in 2022 shows very low trust in the police and a prevailing perception of the police as the most corrupt among key institutions. Low public trust in police poses a serious problem for the most central state institution tasked with upholding law and order. Trust […]

January 15, 2024

Africa

Africa: Tainted Charumbira Ousted After Sexual Assault, Embezzlement Accusations, Pan African Parliament Advertises Post

[ad_1] ZANU PF aligned Chief Fortune Charumbira has lost his position at the helm of the Pan African Parliament (PAP) where he was elected President in 2022. PAP's secretariat announced By-Elections to replace him and his fourth Vice President Francois Ango Ndoutoume of Gabon, without clarifying why the two had been ousted. Charumbira, a former Chiefs Council President, had however been forced to answer charges of embezzlement and sexual assault in 2023. After allegedly sexually assaulting one of his married […]

January 15, 2024

News

South Africa: SuperSport Secures Broadcasting Rights for Africa Cup of Nations – South African News Briefs – January 11, 2023

[ad_1] Afcon Bonanza! SuperSport Secures All 52 Games Live from Ivory Coast SuperSport has officially obtained the broadcasting rights for the Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon), as confirmed in a statement released, reports TimesLIVE. The pay-TV channel will air all 52 matches of the continental tournament hosted by Ivory Coast from January 13 to February 11. A commercially viable agreement was reached between MultiChoice, SuperSport's parent company, and the rights holders, New World TV (NWTV), for the 34th edition […]

January 11, 2024

Africa

Africa: What’s At Stake for Africa in 2024?

[ad_1] From a year of elections, to multiple summits, as well as conflict hotspots and debt burdens, 2024 will bring mixed fortunes for the African continent. Africa in 2024 will be the second fastest-growing economic region in the world (after Asia) at 4 per cent, according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), but behind the headline figure is a less auspicious reality. Fresh conflict, more military coups, the renewed Israel-Gaza conflict and the lingering Russia-Ukraine war are contributing to stifling […]

January 11, 2024

Governance