Politics and society

Mahamudu Bawumia, Vice President of Ghana, held an important meeting with Pope Francis at the Vatican, with the aim of strengthening diplomatic ties between Ghana and Vatican City. Discussions focused on strengthening the already positive relations between the Holy City and Ghana. The historic meeting took place in the Vatican’s …

Ghana’s vice-president, who is also the presidential candidate of the ruling party, has opposed LGBTQ+ practices, saying they go against his religious faith and the country’s cultural norms. It is the first time Mahamudu Bawumia has publicly disclosed his stance on LGBTQ+ issues, which are currently dividing the West African …

The director of a Vietnamese real estate giant was sentenced to the death penalty in a fraud case whose damages were estimated by the prosecution at 25 billion euros in total. It is the biggest financial scandal Vietnam has ever known. The actions of Truong My Lan, boss of the …

The United Kingdom has returned 32 royal artefacts looted from Ghana’s Asante Kingdom in the 19th Century. The royal objects were taken from the Palace in Kumasi during the Anglo-Asante Wars, including the infamous Sagrenti War of 1874. They were returned on Tuesday by the British Museum (BM) and the …

Gambian lawmaker Almaneh Gibba launched his campaign to overturn the 2015 ban on female genital mutilation after the country imposed its first fines on those found guilty of the practice last year, Reuters reported. Despite concerns about the leniency of the sentences – a $220 fine for three women accused …

More than 100 people died and several others remain missing, after their boat capsized in the northern coast of Mozambique, President Felipe Nyusi said on Monday. Lourenco Machado, an official from the country’s Maritime Transport Institute (INTRASMAR) said the vessel carrying 130 passengers was an overloaded fishing boat and was …

In the United States, in Missouri, a petition was launched to ask the governor that one of the prisoners not be executed as planned for Tuesday, April 9. The signatories, including many guards of the prison where the death row inmate is being held, believe that the latter has reintegrated …

Meta has deleted a Facebook group which offered Pakistani women a space to discuss taboo subjects in a conservative country where they speak their voices often muzzled, online or in public space, its founder told AFP on Friday. The Soul Sisters group, created in 2013, had more than 300,000 members …

Will all Japanese people have the same last name? At least that’s what predicts a study by economist Hiroshi Yoshida, professor of economics at the Center for Research on Aging, published in the daily Asahi Shimbun. This study was carried out as part of a campaign to obtain reform of …

Authorities in Ivory Coast’s biggest city, Abidjan, have announced a ban on begging to try to combat what they call urban disorder, local media reported. The city’s Deputy Governor, Vincent N’cho Kouaoh, said begging in all its forms – including the use of handcarts – was forbidden in order to …