The pan-African magazine of choice since 2009
Diamonds may be forever, but the question of who has the rights to the sparkly stones is anything but set in stone. This was made clear when the government of Botswana won a new “agreement in principle” with De Beers, the inter- national diamond conglomerate, after a round of tough negotiations. Under the new agreement, …
British police said they had charged former Nigerian oil minister Diezani Alison-Madueke with bribery offenses, saying they suspected she had accepted bribes in return for awarding large oil and gas contracts. Alison-Madueke, 63, was a key figure in the administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan, serving as petroleum minister from 2010 to 2015. She also …
Ex-Nigerian oil minister faces bribery charges in U.K. Read More »
Russian President Vladimir Putin courted leaders from Africa at a summit in St. Petersburg in late July, hailing the continent’s growing role in global affairs and offering to expand political and business ties. Addressing the Russia-Africa summit, Putin said Moscow would closely analyze a peace proposal for Ukraine that African leaders have sought to pursue. …
Russian President Vladimir Putin woos African leaders Read More »
African countries want China to shift its focus from building infrastructure on the continent to local industrialization, China’s top Africa diplomat said at a briefing on the sidelines of the BRICS summit in South Africa in late August. “African integration is already escalating and many African countries [have] asked China to consider [a] shift [of] …
Seven opposition parties in South Africa reached an agreement in August to form a coalition to unseat the ruling African National Congress (ANC) if it fails to gain an outright majority in next year’s general election. The parties, which include the country’s main opposition party, the Democratic Alliance, and a string of small parties, agreed …
Uganda’s president has slammed the World Bank, calling the global lender “insufferable” for holding up new loans after the East African country enacted an anti-gay bill that includes the death penalty in some cases. President Yoweri Museveni said in a statement that he was struggling to restrain himself “from exploding with anger.” The World Bank …
Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni slams World Bank Read More »
The former president of Gabon, Ali Bongo Ondimba, knew well the threat of military coups in his part of the world. But he swore one wouldn’t happen to him. “While our continent has been shaken in recent weeks by violent crises, rest assured that I will never allow you and our country Gabon to be …
If American star Megan Rapinoe’s short pink hair was the lasting image of the 2019 Women’s World Cup, Nigerian Rasheedat Ajibade’s close-cropped blue might be an omen of the future. The 23-year-old forward has already played in two World Cups and on the teams that won the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations in 2018 and …
Africa’s economies have been battered by external shocks over the past three years, and several countries are in debt trouble. That gives governments a dilemma: Austerity measures can help attract foreign investment that improves the economy, but at the price of raising the cost of living and provoking popular backlash. Menzi Ndhlovu and Ronak Gopaldas …
Last year, thousands of Russian prison inmates were offered pardons if they served for six months in the war against Ukraine, fighting in the Wagner Group’s mercenary army. Three of those who did were Africans, from Tanzania, Zambia, and Cote d’Ivoire, who’d migrated to Russia and run afoul of its harsh drug laws. Two of …
The tales of 3 Africans who fought with Russia’s Wagner mercenaries in Ukraine Read More »