Fellow Gambians, my first preoccupation, as president and commander-in-chief of the armed forces and a patriot and the most sacred at that is to preserve at every instance and in every circumstance the lives of Gambians and this is a duty I hold sacrosanct. I have always pride for peace and security of our nation and Africa. During this entire …

“I have decided today in good conscience to relinquish the mantle of leadership of this great nation with infinite gratitude to all Gambians,” Yahya Jammeh said in a late night address on state television yesterday [Friday, 20 January]. The man who has ruled The Gambia for the past 22 years has finally agreed to give up power and leave the …

The International Green Week has opened today in Berlin. The exhibition, which is the world’s biggest fair for food, agriculture and horticulture, will run until 29 January. In a total of 26 exhibition halls, about 1,500 national and international exhibitors present typical regional products and services and invite visitors to discover the world’s foods and other treats. The International Green …

The German parliament has voted to allow the use of the drug for medical purposes. The issue had been a point of heated discussion in the country for a long time. Members of Germany’s parliament Bundestag voted unanimously on Thursday 19 January to legalize the use of medical marijuana. Seriously ill patients will qualify for medical marijuana if they have …

With the swearing in of President Adama Barrow yesterday in Dakar, Senegal, The Gambia now has an internationally recognized leader. Analysts say the event signalled the end of the presidency of Yahya Jammeh. He is now effectively a rebel leader and all efforts are being made to persuade him to vacate the State House in Banjul and leave the country. …

British tour operator Thomas Cook started evacuating nearly 1,000 holidaymakers from Gambia on Wednesday (18 January) after President Yahya Jammeh declared a state of emergency on his final day in office, increasing the chances of civil unrest. In a statement on its website, Thomas Cook said it had activated its contingency plans and was laying on extra flights in the …

President-elect Adama Barrow has announced that he would be sworn in today at the Embassy of The Gambia in Dakar, Senegal’s capital.  The constitutional term of office of former President Yahya Jammeh elapsed at midnight yesterday (18 January). “I would like to inform you that the Inauguration Ceremony is going to take place at the Gambian Embassy in Dakar, Senegal,” …

German Development Minister Gerd Müller has presented his long-awaited new Africa strategy. He’s proposing a new level of development cooperation, as Daniel Pelz reports from Berlin. Fighting poverty in Africa is not just a moral obligation, but also in the self-interest of wealthy countries like Germany, German Development Minister Gerd Müller said as he presented his long-awaited “Marshall Plan” for Africa in …

Any hopes that the lingering Gambian election crisis could peacefully be resolved have now vanished as President Yahya Jammeh yesterday [17 January]  declared a 90-day state of emergency. In a TV address to the nation, the embattled leader whose term of office expires at midnight on Wednesday, 18 January said the measure was necessary to avoid a power vacuum, insisting …

17 January 2017, Davos-Klosters, Switzerland – Chinese President Xi Jinping delivered a robust defence of globalization to business, government and civil society leaders in the opening plenary session of the 47th World Economic Forum Annual Meeting. China, Xi said, is committed to fulfilling its international responsibilities and contributing to addressing pressing global challenges, including climate change, the need for new …

I am a 31-year-old Kenyan. I left my home country more than twelve years ago, six months after I completed my secondary education. My initial reason for coming to Germany was my interest in the German language. Since I had already learnt it for four years in my secondary school, I wanted to further my skills before I embarked on …

Germany plans to step up its engagement within the framework of the MINUSMA peacekeeping mission, with deployment, not earlier than March 2017, of combat and transport helicopters and up to 350 additional soldiers. The new mandate was adopted by the cabinet on 11 January  and still needs to be approved by the German Bundestag. In 2012, Islamist groups managed to …

The 2nd German-African Business Summit (GABS) will take place in Nairobi, Kenya from 8 to 10 February 2017. The first edition of the event, which took place in Berlin in September 2015, provided a forum for some 400 participants from the worlds of business and politics, from Germany and Africa, to discuss Africa’s prospects and potential and to make new contacts. …

There was much excitement in Africa when Barack Obama was elected US president in 2008. But he didn’t live up to many expectations. Daniel Pelz recounts the legacy of the first US president with African roots. Jubilant crowds flooded the streets of Ghana’s capital Accra during Obama’s first visit to Africa as US president. Even members of Ghana’s parliament rose to chants …

Ethiopian Airlines has concluded preparations for new flight links to Chengdu, the capital of China’s Sichuan province. The carrier will launch the three weekly flights on 3 June 2017. Chengdu is the seventh largest city in China and is the country’s western centre of logistics, commerce, science, and technology, as well as a hub of transportation, manufacturing, and communication. Group …

Gambia’s Supreme Court has refused to stop the inauguration of President-elect Adama Barrow. Chief Justice Emmanuel Fagbenle yesterday declined to hear a petition brought by President Yahya Jammeh, seeking an injunction “restraining Mr Barrow, the Chief Justice of the Gambia or any judicial or quasi-judicial officer or any person in whatever capacity whatsoever to preside over the swearing-in or inauguration on …

Eight men own the same wealth as the 3.6 billion people who make up the poorest half of humanity, according to a new report published by Oxfam today to mark the annual meeting of political and business leaders in Davos. The eight individuals named in the report are Bill Gates, Inditex founder Amancio Ortega, veteran investor Warren Buffett, Mexico’s Carlos …

French President François Hollande has reaffirmed his commitment to peace in Mali in an address to more than 30 African leaders gathered at the 27th Africa-France Summit in Bamako on Saturday, 14 January.  The annual conference, which took place in the Malian capital this year, discussed cross-border jihad, governance challenges and Africa’s role in the European migrant crisis. Malian President …

Heads of State of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) have issued a 19 January deadline for the resolution of the Gambian political crisis. The leaders made the decision on the Gambian political crisis at the weekend where they met at the fringes of the 27th Africa-France summit in Mali’s capital Bamako. They repeated their calls on President …

Ahmed Hussen, who arrived in Canada as a refugee at the age of 16, is also the first Somali-Canadian to hold a seat in Parliament.