Ivory Coast arrests 237 youths protesting authoritarian drift after removal of presidential terms limits
Ivory Coast, a nation of 32 million and the largest economy in Francophone West Africa, is due to hold a presidential election in two weeks. Earlier this year, four main opposition figures, including former President Laurent Gbagbo and former Credit Suisse Chief Executive Tidjane Thiam, were barred from running by the electoral commission.
Seychelles holds a runoff in a tight race between president and opposition challenger
A week before the first round of voting, activists filed a lawsuit against the government challenging a recent decision to issue a long-term lease for a 400,000-square-metre (100-acre) area on Assomption, one of the country’s 115 islands, to a Qatari company to develop a luxury hotel. The largest island in the archipelago is Mahé.
Kenya’s taxman introduces station-less PIN service delivery to improve taxpayer convenience
To further expand access, KRA is rolling out an agent model, like those used by banks and mobile service providers, to reach rural and underserved areas. The authority plans to recruit 10,000 agents this year to offer basic services such as registration, tax filing, and payments.
East Africa Ocean Festival cancelled after boat capsizes in Indian Ocean with 23 people, three feared dead
Mombasa Governor Abdulswamad Nassir said the annual private-organised event ended prematurely after a boat that was in a race capsized, 19 people were rescued, while three are still missing.
Kenyan university produces third best computing student in the world after outshining 80,000 others in Singapore Quant finals
Before reaching Quant final, he outshone over 9,000 contestants in Kenya to secure the spot among top 12 national finalists. The competition brought together brilliant minds from across the country and being named the best was more than an achievement and a confidence booster.
Blue economy: Kenya collects views from communities along Indian Ocean coast for Marine Spatial Plan development
Dr Jackeline Uku explained that the process will bring together county governments and users of marine resources, to agree on how specific spaces are allocated, helping to minimise potential conflicts between competing activities.
How Trump bulldozed Netanyahu to apologise to Qatari emir that earned him Hamas trust, peace deal
An important development during the talks was the mediators’ success in convincing Hamas that its continued holding of hostages had become a liability for it rather than leverage, the senior US official and the Palestinian official in Gaza said. Hamas came to a view that continuing to hold hostages undermined global support for Palestinians, and that without them, Israel would have no credibility to restart fighting, the Palestinian official said.
Kenya revisits plan to demolish asbestos-roofed houses with help of World Bank, European Union
Director of London Institute of Railways, D Lawson Kamau Mbuguss, who said resident of crowded settlements like Nairobi’s Eastlands, Kongowea in Mombasa, Nyalenda in Kisumu or Langa Langa in Nakuru, are at a high risk of cancer.
Education minister says Kenyan government will engage striking lecturers to resolve salaries dispute
According to Ogamba, SRC has maintained that money owed to the lecturers was Ksh624 million instead of the Ksh7.9 billion as claimed by the universities Union, as part of the 2017-2021 and 2021-2025 Collective Bargaining Agreements (CBAs).
Why out of seven by-elections in Mbeere and Malava are eliciting the most state interest
A common denominator in either by-election is the strong presence of state and ruling party, United Democratic Alliance (UDA). The ruling party has mobilised state machinery at national and grassroots levels to stomp for the nominees, raising fears of possible rigging by the state where possible outcomes may appear to be tilting away from the ruling party.
