The Lagos State Government has unveiled a statue in memory of the late Afrobeat pioneer and human rights activist, Fela Anikulapo Kuti. The event which took place on Sunday was to mark his posthumous 79th birthday and the 20th anniversary of his passage. The ‘Liberation Statue’ was formally unveiled by the state governor, Mr Akinwunmi Ambode, in the presence of …

The wood-frame house that was once home to the civil rights pioneer Rosa Parks has been sitting as an art exhibit in a garden in the Wedding neighbourhood of Berlin since 2016. The symbol of the American civil rights era has attracted many visitors including Germany’s Vice-Chancellor Sigmar Gabriel. Clementine Ewokolo Burnley writes on the relevance of the house to …

Morocco has replaced Kenya as hosts of the 2018 African Nations Championship (CHAN), the Confederation of African Football (CAF) announced on Sunday. The Emergency Committee of the body chaired by its president, Ahmad Ahmad, met on Saturday in Lagos, Nigeria, and unanimously decided to grant the organization of the fifth edition of the football competition to the Royal Moroccan Football …

In what has been described as the deadliest terror attack in Somalia since the Islamist al-Shabab group launched its insurgency in 2007, a massive bomb attack in a busy area of the capital Mogadishu on Saturday killed at least 230 people. Hundreds more were reportedly wounded when a lorry packed with explosives detonated near the entrance of a hotel. Police …

The withdrawal of NASA presidential candidate Raila Odinga from the upcoming election rerun raises major political and constitutional challenges for Kenya. The country has seen many opposition rallies against the electoral commission that threaten public peace and security leading to government banning demonstrations altogether in the centres of Nairobi, Mombasa and Kisumu. It is currently unclear if there will be …

Former French culture minister Audrey Azoulay has been chosen as the new Director-General of the United Nations Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). Azoulay defeated Qatar’s Hamad bin Abdulaziz al-Kawari after the fifth round of voting and the decision will now be put forward for approval to UNESCO’s 195 members on 10 November. If Azoulay’s election is approved, she will succeed …

More than 500 people have been swept up in mass arrests following violent demonstrations in Cameroon’s English-speaking regions earlier this month, Amnesty International has said. Troops and attack helicopters opened fire on protesters calling for independence at rallies on 1 October killing more than 20 people and escalating a long-simmering conflict with the Francophone-dominated central government. A central government spokesman …

Former international football star George Weah and Vice President Joseph Boakai held commanding leads in provisional presidential election results announced on Saturday, setting up a likely run-off next month between the two men. Weah and Boakai lead the 20-candidate field to succeed President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf in what would be Liberia’s first democratic transfer of power in more than 70 …

Manchester City star Yaya Touré has announced his support for the Football People action weeks and the thousands across Europe and beyond that during the period unite to tackle discrimination in football and promote social inclusion. Speaking in a short film produced to support the campaign, which runs until 19 October, Touré said: “I have been abused by racism and …

A long-delayed election in Democratic Republic of Congo to replace President Joseph Kabila cannot take place until at least April 2019, the electoral commission has announced. This is certain to enrage opponents who say Kabila is clinging to power. The polls were originally scheduled for November 2016. The new schedule outlined by the electoral commission would torpedo an agreement between …

Success rates for asylum applications in Germany vary widely from state to state, according to a new report by Funke Mediengruppe. But the varying rates raise questions over how Germany processes asylum requests. Iraqis much more likely to get asylum in Bremen than in Berlin, official figures show. For example, the protection rate for Iraqi refugees in Bremen during the …

Former international football star George Weah has taken the lead in the early election results announced by Liberia’s electoral commission on Thursday evening. The National Elections Commission (NEC) Chairman Jerome Korkoya announced the results of 1,232 polling places out of the 5,390 in the 15 counties. Weah led in 11 counties including Grand Kru, Sinoe, River Gee and Grand Gedeh …

BY STEFANIE HIRSBRUNNER / With Germany and Malta, yet another two European countries have recently approved gay marriage. While this is an important step forward in the struggle for equality, many LGBTQ people in other parts of the world still face severe discrimination [LGBTQ is an acronym for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer or questioning. These terms are used …

Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy opened up to a possible reform of Spain’s regional system on Wednesday (11 October), while threatening to suspend Catalonia’s autonomy if the region’s leaders confirmed Wednesday’s declaration of independence. After an emergency cabinet meeting in the morning, Rajoy gave the Catalan government five days to “confirm whether or not it has declared independence.” On Tuesday …

Vote counting is underway in Liberia where large number of voters turned out on Tuesday to vote for a new president and lawmakers. The National Elections Commission (NEC) in its last press statement at the close of polls said there was a high turnout in the largely peaceful process. Election officers and party agents stayed overnight to count ballots. NEC …

A video showing a mob of men beating up a Nigerian man in Delhi, India, has gone viral in the country. The attack actually took place in late September but the footage only began to circulate this week. Some people think the attack is just another in a series of racist assaults on African people. In the footage, the man, …

Despite the fact that Africa has a growing consumer market, a rapid evolution in technology, and robust growth prospects, people still tend to focus on the negative, argues Zandre Campos*. The history of the African continent is long and complicated and it has impacted the current generation of Africans. Today, many Africans tend to have a very negative mentality. Despite …

Policies aimed at reducing the number of migrants arriving in Europe across the Mediterranean from Libya are trapping refugees in the country where they’re exposed to harsh living conditions and widespread human rights abuses, group warns. Would-be Nigerian migrants have been advised to avoid Libya due to recent developments in the North African country. The advice was issued in a …

In a much awaited speech nine days after the 1 October independence referendum, Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont has said that the region “has won the right to be independent”, but stopped short of unilaterally declaring secession from Spain in a plea for dialogue. “The ballot boxes, the only language we understand, say yes to independence. And this is the route …

Kenyan opposition leader Raila Odinga said on Tuesday he would not stand in a court-ordered re-run of August’s presidential election that is scheduled for 26 October. Odinga has repeatedly said he would boycott the polls if the election board did not replace officials he blamed for irregularities in August. “In the interest of the people of Kenya, the region and …