Latest Africa News
In Senegal, the bastion of the region's Francophonie, French is giving way to local languages
DAKAR, Senegal (AP) — For decades Senegal, a former French colony in West Africa, has been touted as the bastion of the French language in the region. Leopold Sedar Senghor, the country’s first president and a poet, is considered one of the founding fathers of the concept of Francophonie, a...
Two men close to Benin's president jailed after alleged coup plot
COTONOU, Bénin (AP) — Two men close to Benin's president who were arrested last week on suspicions of plotting a coup in the small West African country were remanded in custody ahead of their trial, one of their lawyers said Tuesday. Olivier Boko — a businessman and longtime...
Nigeria’s independence anniversary is marked by protests and frustration over economic hardship
ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) — Nigerians on Tuesday staged protests against economic hardship as the West African nation marked its 64th independence anniversary with its president calling for patience. Police fired tear gas to disperse some of the protesters, resulting in clashes. Dozens...
Dikembe Mutombo, a Hall of Fame player and tireless advocate, dies at 58 from brain cancer
Dikembe Mutombo, a Basketball Hall of Famer who was one of the best defensive players in NBA history and a longtime global ambassador for the game, died Monday from brain cancer, the league announced. He was 58. His family revealed two years ago that he was undergoing treatment in...
The EU is failing to dissuade African migrants despite spending billions, auditors say
BRUSSELS (AP) — The European Union is failing develop ways to dissuade migrants from Africa leaving for Europe without authorization and could do more to limit abuses against people trying to make the journey, the EU’s financial watchdog warned on Wednesday. The findings come in...
Biden is making his long-awaited visit to Africa in October. He'll stop in Germany, then Angola
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden will make his long-awaited visit to Africa when he travels to Germany and Angola in mid-October, the White House announced Tuesday. Biden had promised during a summit of African leaders he hosted in Washington in late 2022 to visit Africa the...
'Water is flooding everywhere' as torrential rains sweep through West and Central Africa
ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) — Houses swept away to the very last brick. Inmates frantically fleeing the city's main prison as its walls got washed away by water rising from an overflowing dam. Corpses of crocodiles and snakes floating among human bodies on what used to be main streets. As...
Fortified bouillon cubes are seen as a way to curb malnutrition in Africa as climate worsens hunger
IBADAN, Nigeria (AP) — In her cramped, dimly lit kitchen, Idowu Bello leans over a gas cooker while stirring a pot of eba, the thick starchy West African staple made from cassava root. Kidney problems and chronic exhaustion forced the 56-year-old Nigerian woman to retire from teaching, and she...
Bill Gates calls for more aid to go to Africa and for debt relief for burdened countries
NEW YORK (AP) — The billionaire Microsoft co-founder and philanthropist Bill Gates thinks the richest governments should increase their support for African countries that have been overshadowed by development funding increasingly going toward the humanitarian response to the war in Ukraine as...
Democracy declined for 8th straight year around the globe, institute finds
COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Last year had the worst decline in credible elections and parliamentary oversight in almost a half-century, driven by government intimidation, foreign interference, disinformation and the misuse of artificial intelligence in campaigns, an organization promoting...
