Politics and society

Members of parliament in Malawi have come under fire after one of them demand parliament to buy raincoats for them. The request was made on Wednesday by Lilongwe South MP Steven Kamsiyamo who said they needed to shield themselves from the rain while walking to the chamber from the car …

Authorities in Zimbabwe have announced the reopening of the country’s borders to people who have fully been vaccinated against covid-19 or tested negative for coronavirus. The reopening follows a drop in the southern African nation’s daily infection rates. Only lorries and trucks carrying essential cargo into the landlocked country – …

US State Department spokesman Ned Price has welcomed the lifting of the state of emergency in Ethiopia and called on authorities for the release of detainees. According to the spokesperson, the lifting of the state of emergency was “another important step” by the Ethiopian government paving the way “for a …

The Tanzanian president has announced that the country plans to produce its own vaccine against coronavirus and other diseases in the country. During a visit to European Union Council President Charles Michel in Brussels, Tanzanian President Samia Suluhu Hassan said the country was also aiming to export vaccines to countries …

Kenyan education minister says gay students infringing on the rights of other learners should not be allowed to attend boarding schools. Prof George Magoha advised instead that the gay students “moving from one bed to another” should be admitted to day schools. He said that while he had nothing against …

Police officers, who arrest and detain anyone suspected of having sexual intercourse with a married person, will face disciplinary courts, Dailymonitor reports, quoting Ugandan police spokesperson Fred Enanga, as saying. Police spokesperson Fred Enanga said it is not criminal to have sexual intercourse with married people and that the police …

At least two protesters have been shot dead as security forces confronted crowds marching in Sudan on Monday demanding the release of prisoners and an end to military rule, Reuters reports. Across the River Nile from Khartoum, soldiers fired teargas to try to disperse people who approached the disused parliament …

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said on Thursday his government wants to expand its nascent domestic cannabis industry as it looks to tap global demand and grow local production and exports. Africa’s most industrialized nation plans to streamline the “regulatory processes so that the hemp and cannabis sector can thrive …

Tanzanian MPs say the use of emergency contraceptives, known as P2, is on the rise among to prevent pregnancies among girls and women aged between 14 and 24. A recent report by members of a parliamentary health committee into the rise in HIV infections found that girls and young women …

Thousands of Ghanaians took to the streets of the capital Accra on Thursday to demonstrate against a controversial government-sponsored electronic transaction tax bill. The parliament is yet to pass the bill, which introduces a 1.75% tax on all money transactions above 100 cedis ($15; £11). The majority leader Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu …