AFRICA

President Muhammadu Buhari launched a digital currency for Nigeria on Monday in Abuja. The eNaira will complement the physical naira. “We have become the first country in Africa and one of the first in the world to introduce a digital currency for our citizens,” Buhari said at the event, which took place at the State House. He added that the …

LAGOS, Nigeria, October 12, 2021 -/African Media Agency(AMA)/- Speaking to Victory Yinka-Banjo is like drinking a fizzy drink. She bubbles with ideas and confidence. Little wonder that this 17-year-old Nigerian was chosen to be this year’s youth ambassador for Africa Code Week, the continent’s biggest digital skills youth initiative. Even at her young age, Victory is no stranger to publicity. …

DAKAR, Senegal, 7 October 2021 -/African Media Agency(AMA)/- A global network of humanitarian agencies, including Catholic Relief Services, Save the Children, Action Against Hunger, Plan, Oxfam and World Vision, have signed a climate risk insurance policy that will protect up to 160,000 people in Senegal from the effects of drought. One of the first of its kind, the policy will …

“More than 50,000 girls have benefited so far from ALDEPA’s work, which is rooted in mobilising entire communities, especially through the involvement of parents, children and community leaders."

A conference bringing Nigerians from across the globe together will hold on 2 October. The Nigeria Global Diaspora Conference, a one-day hybrid (physical and virtual) event, focuses on how to better engage Nigerians in diaspora in the development of their homeland at a time it’s going through many challenges. Organised by the Society of Young Nigerians in Diaspora for International …

There is a resurgence of a once forgotten infirmity in West Africa, writes Steve Ogah, as he comments on the increasing spate of military interruption of democratic governance in the sub region. Once, on the rise to the pinnacle of some of the finest ethos of democracy, the West African sub region is now fast backsliding into the dark and …

The Ford and MacArthur Foundations have announced the launch of Nigeria Youth Futures Fund (NYFF), to the tune of US$5 million to support and strengthen youth leadership ecosystem in Nigeria. The Foundations in close partnership with Leadership, Effectiveness, Accountability & Professionalism (LEAP) Africa, in charge of fund management will build on momentum in the region, inspired by the youth-led #EndSARS movement. …

The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has imposed sanctions, including a freeze in financial assets and travel bans, on members of the new Guinean military government. This followed the Extraordinary Summit of the Authority of Heads of State and Government of ECOWAS member-states on the political situation in Guinea and Mali on Thursday (16 September). The bloc has …

German Africa Prize 2021 has been awarded to Ethiopian human rights activist Daniel Bekele. The Prize is awarded annually by the German Africa Foundation (Deutsche Afrika Stiftung e.V. or DAS) to “outstanding individuals for their long-standing endeavours to foster democracy, peace, human rights, art, culture, the social market economy and social concerns” in Africa. An independent 24-member jury of experts …

President Muhammadu Buhari has fired Senator Basheer Mohammed, Director-General of the National Agency for Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP), and appointed Dr Fatima Waziri-Azi to replace him. Mohammed had been appointed on 27 May 2021 to replace Imaan Suleiman Ibrahim. Ms Ibrahim herself had only been on the job for less than six months before her removal, having been …

The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has suspended the membership of Guinea in the regional bloc. The leaders of the body, who met via a video conference on Wednesday, was reacting to the recent coup d’état in the country. ECOWAS, in a communiqué issued after the 1-day meeting, announced the suspension of Guinea from the body and called …

Former Chadian dictator Hissène Habré died in a Senegalese prison on 24 August. He was serving a life sentence for the widespread human rights abuses and atrocities committed by his regime during its reign of terror in the country from 1982 to 1990. Prof David Monda writes on the lessons of Habré’s conviction, the first by an African court, for …

International criticism of the alleged military takeover of power in the West African country of Guinea is growing louder. After UN Secretary General António Guterres condemned the coup, the European Union, the African Union, ECOWAS, France and Britain have also publicly expressed their criticism. The exact background and circumstances of the turbulent events of Sunday in the country’s capital city …

Experts and international organisations generally summarise migration from Nigeria in three main waves. The first wave being the period 1914–1960s, capturing the era when the country was under colonial rule, followed by the second wave, 1960s – 1980s, encapsulating the first two decades after independence. Then, the third wave, 1980s until today. A new project, by the Society of Young …

A big housing project for Nigerians living outside of their home country is to be built in Abuja. When completed, the Diaspora Mega City Housing Project, which is expected to consist of over 17,000 housing units of different models, will give Nigerians in the Diaspora an opportunity to have a roof over their heads in the nation’s capital city. Senator …

Many African heads of state saw off German Chancellor Angela Merkel at the Compact with Africa summit in Berlin. Merkel once more underlined Africa’s potential — and what needs to be done to use it. DW’s Silja Fröhlich, Bob Barry, Saleh Mwanamilongo and Wendy Bashi report ————– It was a moment of goodbye: At the conclusion of the Compact with …

JOHANNESBURG, South Africa, August 26, 2021 -/African Media Agency(AMA)/- African university students with ambitions for a career in the fast-paced world of technology are receiving welcome support in the form of the SAP Dual Study Program, a skills development initiative aimed at closing the digital skills gap among graduates. According to Johann Pretorius, Director of Training at the SAP Training …

New study shows huge opportunity in digital health with 41% of internet users in Africa regularly using their mobile phones to search for health information. It tells the story of a continent on the cusp of digital health transformation. ——JOHANNESBURG, South Africa,, August 24, 2021 -/African Media Agency(AMA)/- There has been an exponential rise in the number of people engaging …

Opposition leader Hakainde Hichilema has defeated incumbent Edgar Lungu in Zambia’s presidential election in a stunning landslide victory, the electoral commission announced on Monday. Hichilema got 2,810,777 votes against Lungu’s 1,814,201 – a difference of about one million votes. This means the president-elect won 57.9 per cent of the votes and Lungu, 37.3 per cent. There were seven million registered …

Zambians will on Thursday vote at their country’s presidential and parliamentary elections. Our contributing editor, African political analyst and university don, Prof David Monda*, looks at the polls and poses critical questions about the democratic credentials of Zambia in view of recent developments and he explains why the victory of incumbent President Edgar Lungu could cast a shadow over the …