AFRICA

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia | AFP | African Union officials said Thursday the continent is struggling to compete with rich countries for testing kits and other equipment necessary to curb the spread of the coronavirus. “We need aid for testing equipment,” Kwesi Quartey, the deputy chair of the African Union Commission, told …

Khartoum, Sudan | AFP |  A year after one of Africa’s longest serving leaders, Omar al-Bashir, was ousted from power in the face of mass street protests, Sudan is still reeling from daunting crises including deep economic woes. Bashir was overthrown on April 11, 2019 by the military, which was responding …

Khartoum, Sudan | AFP |  Since his ouster last year, Sudan’s veteran leader Omar al-Bashir has been detained and convicted of corruption, becoming the Middle East’s latest fallen strongman. The 76-year-old, held in Khartoum’s Kober prison where many of his opponents were detained during his rule, had ruthlessly crushed dissent after …

Khartoum, Sudan | AFP |  A recap of key events in Sudan one year after mass protests toppled its president Omar al-Bashir from power, ending three decades of iron-fisted rule. – Bashir rule ends – On April 11, 2019, four months after mass protests sparked by a hike in bread prices …

Cairo, Egypt | AFP |  Haggard and dishevelled from the stress of making ends meet, day labourers line up in Cairo for food parcels after losing their jobs to the sharp downturn caused by the coronavirus. Sayed Shaaban, 42, who used to work in a cafe, said for him the pandemic …

Nairobi, Kenya | AFP |  Hundreds of people held under mandatory quarantine in Kenya after returning from abroad are up in arms after the government extended their confinement for another 14 days. Around 2,000 people were placed in forced quarantine as they arrived in the country from March 22 until international …

Washington, United States | AFP | The new coronavirus isn’t picky about who it infects — so why does data emerging from some states suggest that African Americans are bearing the brunt? Experts say the community is disproportionately impacted by underlying conditions linked to poverty, and often faces challenges in accessing …

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The World Health Organization Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has said that Africa will not be used as a testing ground for COVID-19 vaccines. His comments come after two French scientists suggested that vaccine trials should take place in Africa because there is a …

Conakry, Guinea | AFP |  Guinea’s President Alpha Conde has enacted a new constitution following a referendum last month on changes that critics fear are aimed at extending his time in office. Changing the constitution was hugely controversial in the west African nation, spurring mass demonstrations that left dozens dead. After …

Addis Abeba, Ethiopia | AFP | Millions of lost jobs, mounting debt woes and plunging remittances are among the economic hardships African countries can expect because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the African Union said in a study published Monday. “Nearly 20 million jobs, both in the formal and informal sectors, are threatened with destruction on …