🇬🇦 Gabon's foreign minister dies of heart attack
Gabon's Foreign Minister Michael Moussa Adamo died on Friday of a heart attack, President Ali Bongo said in a statement.
Government sources said that he was in a council of ministers meeting when he suffered the cardiac attack. He was rushed to the hospital and died shortly after midday despite specialist treatment, said a government statement.
"He was a very great diplomat, a true statesman. For me, he was first of all a friend, loyal and faithful, whom I could always count on," said Bongo.
#Gabon
@africaintel
Gabon's Foreign Minister Michael Moussa Adamo died on Friday of a heart attack, President Ali Bongo said in a statement.
Government sources said that he was in a council of ministers meeting when he suffered the cardiac attack. He was rushed to the hospital and died shortly after midday despite specialist treatment, said a government statement.
"He was a very great diplomat, a true statesman. For me, he was first of all a friend, loyal and faithful, whom I could always count on," said Bongo.
#Gabon
@africaintel
🇿🇲 Court told mining giant turned blind eye to Zambian lead poisoning
South Africa’s High Court was told that Anglo American Plc turned a “blind eye” to lead poisoning in the Zambian town of Kabwe, where it held a stake in a mine for almost 50 years.
"Anglo American's Zambian lead mine were poisoning local women and children but it failed to address the issue," lawyers have told a South African court.
Lawyers for the plaintiffs made their case on Friday before a Johannesburg court that is to decide whether to give the go-ahead to a class-action lawsuit against the British firm’s South African subsidiary.
Anglo American denies responsibility.
#Zambia
@africaintel
South Africa’s High Court was told that Anglo American Plc turned a “blind eye” to lead poisoning in the Zambian town of Kabwe, where it held a stake in a mine for almost 50 years.
"Anglo American's Zambian lead mine were poisoning local women and children but it failed to address the issue," lawyers have told a South African court.
Lawyers for the plaintiffs made their case on Friday before a Johannesburg court that is to decide whether to give the go-ahead to a class-action lawsuit against the British firm’s South African subsidiary.
Anglo American denies responsibility.
#Zambia
@africaintel
🇳🇬 The allegations were made against the leading presidential contenders in Nigeria
Nigerians voting for a new president next month will have 18 contenders to choose from but the three men seen as the leading candidates have been separately accused of trading in narcotics, money laundering and global tax avoidance.
The three top contenders are Bola Tinubu from the governing All Progressives Congress, Peter Obi from the Labor Party and Atiku Abubakar from the People's Democratic Party.
None of them has ever been indicted, which would rule them out from running for office, but the high-profile allegations have raised questions over their candidacy. All three say they made their fortunes legitimately and deny any wrongdoing.
"It is choosing between bad candidates," said head of the Nigerian branch of anti-corruption watchdog Transparency International.
#Nigeria
@africaintel
Nigerians voting for a new president next month will have 18 contenders to choose from but the three men seen as the leading candidates have been separately accused of trading in narcotics, money laundering and global tax avoidance.
The three top contenders are Bola Tinubu from the governing All Progressives Congress, Peter Obi from the Labor Party and Atiku Abubakar from the People's Democratic Party.
None of them has ever been indicted, which would rule them out from running for office, but the high-profile allegations have raised questions over their candidacy. All three say they made their fortunes legitimately and deny any wrongdoing.
"It is choosing between bad candidates," said head of the Nigerian branch of anti-corruption watchdog Transparency International.
#Nigeria
@africaintel
🇨🇫🇷🇺 CAR wants to increase the number of Russian instructors for military training
Central African Republic (CAR) wants to increase the number of Russian instructors for military training in the country to counter armed groups, Prime Minister Felix Molua said.
"The security situation has greatly improved to the satisfaction of the entire population, in addition, people are asking for an increased presence of Russian units to completely prevent the actions of armed groups," he added.
CAR also notified the UN that it plans to increase the number of Russian instructors to be recruited in the country by 3000, so their number could reach more than 4000.
#CAR #Russia
@africaintel
Central African Republic (CAR) wants to increase the number of Russian instructors for military training in the country to counter armed groups, Prime Minister Felix Molua said.
"The security situation has greatly improved to the satisfaction of the entire population, in addition, people are asking for an increased presence of Russian units to completely prevent the actions of armed groups," he added.
CAR also notified the UN that it plans to increase the number of Russian instructors to be recruited in the country by 3000, so their number could reach more than 4000.
#CAR #Russia
@africaintel
Africa Intel
🇬🇲 Gambia declares seven days of mourning after VP dies The Gambia's President Adama Barrow has declared seven days of mourning following the death of Vice-President Badara Alieu Joof at the age of 66. Joof died on January 17 in India after a short illness.…
🇬🇲 Body of late Gambian vice-president to return home
The body of the Gambia's late vice-president, who died in India while undergoing treatment on January 17, will arrive back home on Saturday.
President Adama Barrow paid tribute to his late deputy, describing him as a "dedicated and committed" public servant who "touched the lives of many Gambians".
An elaborate military ceremony has been planned to receive Joof's body before it is taken to a mortuary in the capital, Banjul.
#Gambia
@africaintel
The body of the Gambia's late vice-president, who died in India while undergoing treatment on January 17, will arrive back home on Saturday.
President Adama Barrow paid tribute to his late deputy, describing him as a "dedicated and committed" public servant who "touched the lives of many Gambians".
An elaborate military ceremony has been planned to receive Joof's body before it is taken to a mortuary in the capital, Banjul.
#Gambia
@africaintel
🇨🇩 At least 145 people missing in a shipwreck in DR Congo
At least 145 passengers are missing after a motorized boat overloaded with goods and animals sank overnight in a river in the northwestern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
About 55 people survived the disaster, authorities said. The boat was heading for neighboring Republic of Congo when it capsized on the Lulonga River near the town of Basankusu.
Jean-Pierre Wangela, president of civil society groups in the region, told that at least 145 people were missing. He blamed the sinking on an overload but said residents had few other options. “There are no other means of transportation currently in our province and here in Basankusu territory,” he said.
#DRC
@africaintel
At least 145 passengers are missing after a motorized boat overloaded with goods and animals sank overnight in a river in the northwestern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
About 55 people survived the disaster, authorities said. The boat was heading for neighboring Republic of Congo when it capsized on the Lulonga River near the town of Basankusu.
Jean-Pierre Wangela, president of civil society groups in the region, told that at least 145 people were missing. He blamed the sinking on an overload but said residents had few other options. “There are no other means of transportation currently in our province and here in Basankusu territory,” he said.
#DRC
@africaintel
Africa Intel
🇧🇫 Abducted Burkina women flee jihadist gunmen through bush A few women managed to escape armed militants who had kidnapped them and other women in Burkina Faso last week. Women asked to remain anonymous for fear over their safety. The escapee said the militants…
🇧🇫 Kidnapped women and children freed in Burkina Faso
Security forces have rescued 66 women and children who were kidnapped by armed fighters in northern Burkina Faso last week. Armed men seized the women and their children on January 12 and 13 outside two villages in the district of Arbinda.
Security forces conducted a rescue operation and freed 27 women and 39 babies, children and young girls in the adjacent Centre-Nord region. It is not clear if their captors have also been detained.
Women and children are now in the capital, Ouagadougou, where they are expected to be questioned to find out "more about their abductors, their detention and their convoy".
#BurkinaFaso
@africaintel
Security forces have rescued 66 women and children who were kidnapped by armed fighters in northern Burkina Faso last week. Armed men seized the women and their children on January 12 and 13 outside two villages in the district of Arbinda.
Security forces conducted a rescue operation and freed 27 women and 39 babies, children and young girls in the adjacent Centre-Nord region. It is not clear if their captors have also been detained.
Women and children are now in the capital, Ouagadougou, where they are expected to be questioned to find out "more about their abductors, their detention and their convoy".
#BurkinaFaso
@africaintel
Africa Intel
🇲🇼 Cholera outbreak in Malawi claims 750 deaths The worst cholera outbreak to affect Malawi in two decades has now claimed 750 lives, a government minister said. According to Malawi's Health Minister, cases continue to rise across the country despite some…
🇲🇼 Malawi is running out of cholera vaccine amid its worst epidemic in decades
Malawi’s worst cholera epidemic in decades has sparked massive demand for vaccines but stocks are reportedly running low.
Malawi secured a tranche of 2.9 million doses from the Gavi-supported Global Oral Cholera Vaccine Stockpile in November.
As of January 20, Malawi’s health authorities reported a total of 631 new cases of cholera; 17 new deaths.
The cumulative confirmed cases and deaths reported since the onset of the outbreak stood at 28,132 and 916 respectively.
#Malawi
@africaintel
Malawi’s worst cholera epidemic in decades has sparked massive demand for vaccines but stocks are reportedly running low.
Malawi secured a tranche of 2.9 million doses from the Gavi-supported Global Oral Cholera Vaccine Stockpile in November.
As of January 20, Malawi’s health authorities reported a total of 631 new cases of cholera; 17 new deaths.
The cumulative confirmed cases and deaths reported since the onset of the outbreak stood at 28,132 and 916 respectively.
#Malawi
@africaintel
🇲🇬 Madagascar's 1st tropical storm of season floods 700 houses, 1 missing
The city of Sambava in the northeastern Madagascar was hit by the tropical storm Cheneso. According to the National Office for Risk and Catastrophe Management, preliminary reports indicate that one person is missing, about 300 people have been evacuated. More than 700 houses have been flooded. Diana, Sava and Analanjirofo regions were placed under red alert.
Tropical Storm Cheneso made landfall in the north of Antalaha Town in Sava Region, on the north-eastern coast of the island, 19 January. After landfall, the storm headed south-west, with average winds of 90 km/h and wind gusts up to 120 km/h.
It's Madagascar's first tropical storm of the 2022-2023 cyclone season.
#Madagascar
@africaintel
The city of Sambava in the northeastern Madagascar was hit by the tropical storm Cheneso. According to the National Office for Risk and Catastrophe Management, preliminary reports indicate that one person is missing, about 300 people have been evacuated. More than 700 houses have been flooded. Diana, Sava and Analanjirofo regions were placed under red alert.
Tropical Storm Cheneso made landfall in the north of Antalaha Town in Sava Region, on the north-eastern coast of the island, 19 January. After landfall, the storm headed south-west, with average winds of 90 km/h and wind gusts up to 120 km/h.
It's Madagascar's first tropical storm of the 2022-2023 cyclone season.
#Madagascar
@africaintel
🇹🇿 Tanzania opposition holds first rally since ban lifted
Thousands of supporters from Tanzania’s main opposition party Chadema are flocking to the venue, in the city of Mwanza, of its first rally since a six-and-a-half-year ban on such gatherings was lifted two weeks ago.
Security was equally tight around the city and its surroundings as some police officers had parked their vans besides the roads while others were escorting the procession.
At the beginning of January, President Samia Suluhu Hassan lifted the ban that was initially placed by her predecessor, the late President John Pombe Magufuli.
#Tanzania
@africaintel
Thousands of supporters from Tanzania’s main opposition party Chadema are flocking to the venue, in the city of Mwanza, of its first rally since a six-and-a-half-year ban on such gatherings was lifted two weeks ago.
Security was equally tight around the city and its surroundings as some police officers had parked their vans besides the roads while others were escorting the procession.
At the beginning of January, President Samia Suluhu Hassan lifted the ban that was initially placed by her predecessor, the late President John Pombe Magufuli.
#Tanzania
@africaintel
🇳🇬 Nigeria sets date for first census in 17 years
Nigeria will start its first national census in 17 years at the end of March, as authorities seek updated data on the exact population and the size of different ethnic groups.
Nigeria's estimated population is more than 200 million and the United Nations expects that to double by 2050. That would make Nigeria the world's third most populous country, overtaking the United States.
Census figures in Nigeria affect the sharing of oil revenues and political representation among the 36 states and 300 ethnic groups. Previous counts were discredited after disputes among the three main groups, the Fulani, Yoruba and Igbo.
#Nigeria
@africaintel
Nigeria will start its first national census in 17 years at the end of March, as authorities seek updated data on the exact population and the size of different ethnic groups.
Nigeria's estimated population is more than 200 million and the United Nations expects that to double by 2050. That would make Nigeria the world's third most populous country, overtaking the United States.
Census figures in Nigeria affect the sharing of oil revenues and political representation among the 36 states and 300 ethnic groups. Previous counts were discredited after disputes among the three main groups, the Fulani, Yoruba and Igbo.
#Nigeria
@africaintel
🇱🇾 Tripoli is preparing to host the meeting of Arab countries foreign ministers
The Government of National Unity (GNU) in Libya, headed by Abdul Hamid al-Dabaiba, is preparing to host the consultative meeting of Arab countries foreign ministers.
The upcoming Arab ministerial meeting is considered a preparatory meeting for the regular Arab ministerial meeting scheduled in Cairo next month.
Although the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the GNU has not yet specified any arrangements for the meeting, the government has announced an "official leave of absence for state authorities located within the greater Tripoli area on the occasion of the preparatory conference of Arab foreign ministers."
#Libya
@africaintel
The Government of National Unity (GNU) in Libya, headed by Abdul Hamid al-Dabaiba, is preparing to host the consultative meeting of Arab countries foreign ministers.
The upcoming Arab ministerial meeting is considered a preparatory meeting for the regular Arab ministerial meeting scheduled in Cairo next month.
Although the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the GNU has not yet specified any arrangements for the meeting, the government has announced an "official leave of absence for state authorities located within the greater Tripoli area on the occasion of the preparatory conference of Arab foreign ministers."
#Libya
@africaintel
🇲🇦🇩🇿 Morocco and Algeria are competing for the African Union presidency in 2024
The Moroccan-Algerian competition is raging in political, economic, diplomatic and sports fields.
The intensity of diplomatic competition has increased between the two countries a few weeks before the next African Union conference in Comoros, as both countries seek to assume the presidency of the organization in 2024 to enhance their political influence in Africa.
“The competition will be fierce between Morocco and Algeria to win the presidency of the African Union, and it will not be easy, of course, due to the continental polarities,” said an expert from the Faculty of Legal, Economic and Social Sciences in Marrakech.
#Morocco #Algeria
@africaintel
The Moroccan-Algerian competition is raging in political, economic, diplomatic and sports fields.
The intensity of diplomatic competition has increased between the two countries a few weeks before the next African Union conference in Comoros, as both countries seek to assume the presidency of the organization in 2024 to enhance their political influence in Africa.
“The competition will be fierce between Morocco and Algeria to win the presidency of the African Union, and it will not be easy, of course, due to the continental polarities,” said an expert from the Faculty of Legal, Economic and Social Sciences in Marrakech.
#Morocco #Algeria
@africaintel
🇧🇫🇫🇷 Burkina Faso announces the departure of the French army from its territory
The government of Burkina Faso denounced the agreement that regulates the presence of French armed forces on its territory since 2018.
According to the terms of the agreement of December 17, 2018, this denunciation gives French armed forces one month to leave the territory of Burkina Faso.
For several months, citizens of Burkina Faso have been regularly demonstrating to demand the departure of the soldiers of Operation Sabre, stationed in Kamboinsin, northeast of Ouagadougou. The protesters accuse France of not doing enough to help Burkina Faso, which is undergoing terrorist attacks, and of being in league with the attackers.
#BurkinaFaso #France
@africaintel
The government of Burkina Faso denounced the agreement that regulates the presence of French armed forces on its territory since 2018.
According to the terms of the agreement of December 17, 2018, this denunciation gives French armed forces one month to leave the territory of Burkina Faso.
For several months, citizens of Burkina Faso have been regularly demonstrating to demand the departure of the soldiers of Operation Sabre, stationed in Kamboinsin, northeast of Ouagadougou. The protesters accuse France of not doing enough to help Burkina Faso, which is undergoing terrorist attacks, and of being in league with the attackers.
#BurkinaFaso #France
@africaintel
🇳🇬 Nigeria confirms diphtheria outbreak
Nigeria's health authorities confirmed a deadly outbreak of diphtheria on Friday.
In Kano state, one of the worst-hit states in the country's north, Dr. Aminu Tsanyawa the health commission for the state has recorded more than 70 suspected cases along with 25 deaths related to the infection. The total number of confirmed cases and deaths is not yet known.
Nigeria's Centre for Disease Control and Prevention revealed it initiated an emergency response to the outbreak and is monitoring the situation in four of the nation’s 36 states.
#Nigeria
@africaintel
Nigeria's health authorities confirmed a deadly outbreak of diphtheria on Friday.
In Kano state, one of the worst-hit states in the country's north, Dr. Aminu Tsanyawa the health commission for the state has recorded more than 70 suspected cases along with 25 deaths related to the infection. The total number of confirmed cases and deaths is not yet known.
Nigeria's Centre for Disease Control and Prevention revealed it initiated an emergency response to the outbreak and is monitoring the situation in four of the nation’s 36 states.
#Nigeria
@africaintel
🇬🇦 Gabon's foreign minister suddenly dies from a heart attack
Gabon's foreign minister Michael Moussa Adamo died after suffering a heart attack during a cabinet meeting.
The 62-year-old, an ally of President Ali Bongo Ondimba, suffered a heart attack and died "despite efforts by specialists" to revive him, the government said .
After a decade as Gabon's ambassador to the United States until 2020, he became, first, defence minister and then foreign minister in March last year.
#Gabon
@africaintel
Gabon's foreign minister Michael Moussa Adamo died after suffering a heart attack during a cabinet meeting.
The 62-year-old, an ally of President Ali Bongo Ondimba, suffered a heart attack and died "despite efforts by specialists" to revive him, the government said .
After a decade as Gabon's ambassador to the United States until 2020, he became, first, defence minister and then foreign minister in March last year.
#Gabon
@africaintel
🇨🇲🇨🇦 Canada says Cameroon warring parties agree to enter peace process
The government of Cameroon and some separatist factions in the English-speaking regions of the country have agreed to enter into a process aimed at resolving a conflict, Canada's foreign ministry said.
The statement said Canada had accepted a mandate to facilitate the process and the parties have agreed to form technical committees to begin work on confidence-building measures. Anonymous source in Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's office said that there had already been three "secret meetings".
Parties of the agreement are: the Republic of Cameroon, the Ambazonia Governing Council, the Ambazonia Defiance Force, the African People's Liberation Movement, the Southern Cameroons Defense Force, the Interim Government, the Ambazonia Coalition Team.
#Cameroon #Canada
@africaintel
The government of Cameroon and some separatist factions in the English-speaking regions of the country have agreed to enter into a process aimed at resolving a conflict, Canada's foreign ministry said.
The statement said Canada had accepted a mandate to facilitate the process and the parties have agreed to form technical committees to begin work on confidence-building measures. Anonymous source in Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's office said that there had already been three "secret meetings".
Parties of the agreement are: the Republic of Cameroon, the Ambazonia Governing Council, the Ambazonia Defiance Force, the African People's Liberation Movement, the Southern Cameroons Defense Force, the Interim Government, the Ambazonia Coalition Team.
#Cameroon #Canada
@africaintel