Politics

South African new electricity minister will assume full responsibility for overseeing all aspects of the country’s response to crippling power cuts, Reuters agency reported on Thursday, citing President Cyril Ramaphosa. Ramaphosa said he would appoint the new minister last week during a State of the Nation Address (SONA) in parliament. …

Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari is due to address the nation on Thursday morning amid a shortage of the newly designed banknotes that has led to a lack of cash. The presidency says Mr Buhari’s address will start at 07:00 local time (06:00GMT), but gives no hint on what he will …

Uganda’s military has denied accusations of abducting and torturing an opposition activist, a day after pictures emerged showing the victim with visible marks of torture on his chest, local media reported. In a Twitter thread, opposition leader Bobi Wine had said his supporter was burnt with hot metals on the …

The African Union has appointed former Kenyan president Uhuru Kenyatta to lead its observation mission in the forthcoming general elections in Nigeria. Nigerians go to the polls on 25 February. The observer mission includes representatives from the AU member states’ election bodies, civil society, independent experts and AU organs. Its …

More than seven million children are affected by the devastating earthquakes that hit Turkey and Syria, Unicef said on Tuesday, fearing that several thousand of them may have lost their lives. “In Turkey, the total number of children living in the ten provinces affected by the two earthquakes amounted to …

The mission of Morocco’s ambassador to France ended without a successor being appointed, in a climate of diplomatic crisis between Rabat and Paris, local media reported on Friday. “In accordance with the High Royal Instructions, it has been decided to terminate the functions of Mr. Mohamed Benchaâboun as Ambassador of …

Ethiopia has limited access to social media and messaging platforms amid mounting tensions between the authorities and the Orthodox church, local media reported. Netblocks, an organisation that monitors freedom of access to the internet, said the restrictions impacted Facebook, Messenger, Telegram and TikTok. This comes after the church’s highest body, …

South African president Cyril Ramaphosa has declared a state of disaster to try to deal with an energy crisis. The president’s announcement on Thursday gives the government additional powers to tackle crippling electricity shortages that have worsened in recent months. He insisted South Africa would emerge with a more efficient …

American billionaire Elon Musk, owner of SpaceX, which is in charge of the Starlink satellite Internet access system, has confirmed that Kyiv can no longer use this network for the control of combat drones. Already icy, relations between Elon Musk and the Ukrainian government are likely to strain a little …

Uganda’s environmental management agency says it will start imposing fines from April on motorists driving private cars without rubbish bins. Offenders will face a maximum fine of up to 6,000,000 Ugandan shillings ($1,630; £1,350), according to a penalty scheme announced on Wednesday. Motorists who refuse to pay the fines will …