To mend fences with African countries whose nationals were victims of recent xenophobic attacks targeted at foreign African residents in South Africa, President Cyril Ramaphosa dispatched three special envoys to seven African countries to deliver messages of apology and solidarity on 15 September. Analysts across the continent are interpreting the gesture and its likely impact on the future safety of …

Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali, a former president of Tunisia has died in exile, his family said. Ben Ali, 83, fled to Saudi Arabia when he left office and was living there before his death on Thursday. His funeral will take place on Friday in Saudi Arabia, his lawyer told Reuters news agency. Ben Ali’s death is coming days after Tunisia …

West Africa is embracing technology to power the response to infectious disease outbreaks. The 15 member states of the West African Health Organisation (WAHO) are leveraging technology that will help them prevent cross-border outbreaks of epidemics including Ebola, cholera, yellow fever, Lassa fever, measles, onchocerciasis and meningitis. As part of the USAID funded Regional Action through Data (RAD) program, WAHO …