In the news

Authorities in Ghana have denied introducing a mandatory insurance scheme for all travellers arriving in the country through the country’s main airport, the BBC reports. The National Insurance Commission (NIC) said the scheme popularly known as “Akwaaba” had not been approved and any reports that it had should be disregarded. …

The man who has been the face of the conflict in Ethiopia – senior army commander General Bacha Debele has been appointed as an ambassador. Details of his destination have not yet been revealed by the president’s office. On Wednesday, the president’s cabinet said it intended to end the state …

Authorities in Ghana have introduced a mandatory insurance scheme for all travellers arriving in the country through the country’s main airport. Popularly known as “Akwaaba”, it is to be supervised by a government-run firm and two other insurers. All visitors regardless of the duration of stay and nationality will have …

Mistakes made during childbirth lead to the deaths of more than 100 babies in Zambia every week, Sylvia Masebo, the country’s minister of health, has said. Between 10 to 15 women also die each week due to preventable complications from pregnancy or childbirth, the minister is quoted as saying by …

Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni has condemned military coups that have become commonplace in West Africa. The last dates from January 24 when soldiers from Burkina Faso overthrew President Roch Marc Christian Kaboré. West Africa has experienced several military coups in the past two years, notably in Mali, Guinea and recently …

The UN has condemned the killing of civilians in cattle raids at Jonglei state in eastern South Sudan and called for an investigation into the matter. The UN’s peacekeeping Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) says armed youth from Murle community carried out attacks and cattle raids in Dungrut and Machined …

The US State Department has approved the sale of 12 military transport planes to Egypt, in a deal worth more than $2 billion, the BBC reports. Air defence radar systems and other related equipment are also being sold for another $300m. The arms sales come despite recent criticism from the …

The Senegalese army says two of its soldiers have been killed and nine are missing after clashes in The Gambia, a country almost totally surrounded by Senegal. The troops were part of the West African peacekeeping mission that has been deployed in The Gambia for the past five years. Senegal’s …

At least nine people, including a child, have died and several others injured following floods and mudslides in Kisoro district in south-western Uganda, the Ugandan Red Cross said. Eight of the bodies had been retrieved by Tuesday afternoon, it said. “The ninth is a child that was caught up by …

Suspected Islamist militants have killed at least 12 civilians and burned houses and motorbikes during raids on two villages in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, local human rights groups said on Wednesday. Fighters believed to be from the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), a Ugandan militia active in eastern Congo since …