Governments issue orders to cut off Internet but telecoms reserve ability to hit the `kill switch’ COMMENT | KIZITO BYENKYA & ALEX HUMPHREY | Much to the dismay of the government in Addis Ababa, “Zone 9” has become a household name in Ethiopia. Since 2012, this small group of journalists-turned-online activists …
Read More »How digital technology can help reinvent basic education
E-learning innovations: How digital technology can help reinvent basic education TECHNOLOGY | Rohen d’Aiglepierre, Amélie Aubert & Pierre-Jean Loiret | African countries have worked hard to improve children’s access to basic education, but there’s still significant work to be done. Today, 32.6 million children of primary-school age and 25.7 million adolescents …
Read More »Why push is increasingly shove in African regime change
Dakar, Senegal | AFP | Regime change in Africa may not guarantee greater democracy but, as Robert Mugabe’s downfall shows, patience for autocrats who overstay their welcome is wearing ever thinner, experts say. After 37 years of outmanoeuvring his political enemies, Mugabe was finally cornered on Tuesday and handed in …
Read More »Mugabe: the last of Africa’s ‘fathers of independence’
Paris, France | AFP | Robert Mugabe, who resigned as Zimbabwe’s president on Tuesday, was the last living African head of state to have fought for his country’s independence before becoming its leader. Mugabe, 93, had used his aura of liberator from a colonial power to stay in power but had …
Read More »African Union welcomes Mugabe resignation
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia | AFP | The African Union has welcomed Robert Mugabe’s decision to step down as president of Zimbabwe, saying the people had expressed their will for a “peaceful transfer of power.” AU commission chairperson Moussa Faki Mahamat said he “welcomes the decision by President Robert Mugabe to …
Read More »Mugabe: the last of Africa’s ‘fathers of independence’
Paris, France | AFP | At 93, Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe is the last living African head of state to have fought for his country’s independence from a colonial power before becoming its leader. He has used his aura of liberator to stay in power but has increasingly become seen as …
Read More »France says ‘go ahead’ to African security initiatives
Dakar, Senegal | AFP | France’s Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian on Tuesday encouraged African nations calling for greater autonomy over their security to “go for it”, following the launch of a regional anti-jihad force in the Sahel. France currently has its own a 4,000-strong counter-terror force named Barkhane tackling jihadists …
Read More »Full statement by Zimbabwe Army on TV today
Harare, Zimbabwe | THE INDEPENDENT | Text of statement read out Wednesday by the Zimbabwe army. “Good morning Zimbabwe. Fellow Zimbabweans. Following the address we made on 13 November 2017, which we believe our main broadcaster Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation and the Herald were directed not to publicise, the situation in …
Read More »European, African ministers vow to better protect migrants
Geneva, Switzerland | AFP | Ministers from 13 European and African countries on Monday pledged steps to ease the migrant crisis around the Mediterranean, vowing especially to improve conditions for migrants held in Libya. Interior ministers and other representatives from countries impacted by the ongoing wave of migration up through Africa …
Read More »Kagame, Senegal’s Sall urge support for new African security doctrine
Dakar, Senegal | AFP | African leaders on Monday used a regional forum to call for extra support as the continent moves to assure its own security after years of Western interventions. The annual Dakar International Forum on Peace and Security this year brings together the presidents of Mali, Rwanda …
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