US warns China it will defend Philippines against attacks on its ships or aircraft in South China Sea
The United States has warned it will defend the Philippines against any attack on its ships or aircraft in the South China Sea. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken made the statement on the sixth anniversary of a 2016 decision by an international arbitration tribunal that largely ruled in favour...
Environmental expert cautions South Sudan on dredging of rivers, equates ongoing projects to treason
South Sudan’s president has ordered the suspension of all dredging-related activities in the country until evidence-based studies are carried out on their impact on surrounding communities and the ecosystems they rely on. President Salva Kiir Mayardit’s announcement, which was made during his address on the country’s 11th independence anniversary on...
Kenya heads to elections with serious integrity concerns hanging over polls agency, technology reliability
Leading candidates in next month’s presidential election in Kenya, Raila Odinga and William Ruto have expressed reservations about the country’s polls agency’s capacity to deliver free, fair and credible election. They fear the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) is unprepared for the upcoming polls, raising alarm bells that the...
How long running and bitter standoff between Kenya president and deputy will impact August 9 polls results
Kenya’s Deputy President William Ruto had a falling out with President Uhuru Kenyatta in 2018, ending a decade-old partnership dubbed “Uhuruto.” Ruto presents himself as an “insurgent candidate,” deriding the Odinga ticket as a continuation of the dynastic politics of the Odinga and Kenyatta families that have loomed large over...
Kenya’s August 9 elections a test of its bumpy road to democracy in politically volatile continent
Kenya’s competitive presidential elections reflect hard-earned progress in establishing independent constitutional and judicial guardrails, although a history of electoral violence demands all sides show restraint. Kenyans will vote on August 9 in their fifth presidential election since the re-introduction of multiparty politics in 1991. The competitiveness of the elections, and...
Kuje prison break is stark possibility that Nigeria is out of security options and criminal gangs run the show
On July 5, the Boko Haram breakaway faction Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) led a successful attack on a well-secured prison in Nigeria’s capital, Abuja. The group shot its way into the Kuje Medium Security Custodial Centre after overpowering security guards in a well-coordinated assault. The government said 879...
Interpol coordinated clampdown on illicit firearms in West and Central Africa seizes 480 firearms, 6,000 parts
An Interpol co-ordinated police operation targeting illicit firearms in Central and West Africa saw 120 arrests and seizure of firearms, gold, drugs, fake medication, wildlife products and cash. Operation Trigger VIII over six days in June, involved 520 law enforcement officials targeting 35 hotspots across Burkina Faso, Central African Republic...
People, livestock die in rural Somalia as Horn of Africa nation grapples with worst drought in 40 years
Faduma Hassan Mohamed has never witnessed a time like this. When rains failed to fall as in previous years, she thought the river near her village of Buulo Warbo in Somalia’s southern Kuntunwarey district would not run dry. First, the skies above became cloudless, she said, then the air hot...
‘Everything that is a success today has its foundation in failing’ – bullish investor says of African tech industry
Akintoye Akindele is a man on a mission to build a new Africa and he is not afraid to fail to get there. Changing the continent’s narrative will entail solving old problems while also harnessing the power of new technologies, says Akindele, a serial entrepreneur and investor from Nigeria. Speaking...
‘Shell-shocked’ British PM resigns, but hanging around to ‘wait’ for successor as new frontrunner emerges
Boris Johnson has been struck by another hammer blow as the new Tory leadership favourite emerges from the pack, Express reported hours after the prime minister announced his resignation. The newspaper reported that Defence Secretary Ben Wallace has been identified as the frontrunner to take over Johnson’s job and leader...
