AFRICA

Former Nigeria’s minister of finance, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala is set to become the first African, woman to lead the seat of 164-member World Trade Organisation. Coast is clear for her to emerge for the top job as the United States government under the administration of President Joe Biden endorsed her on Friday, in what was expressed as a ‘strong support’, according …

The international business magazine Forbes has released its annual list of Africa’s most wealthy individuals. According to the report, the continent has 18 billionaires this year, down from 20 in 2020. Together, they are worth $73.8 billion, slightly more than the $73.4 billion aggregate worth of the 20 billionaires last year. Aliko Dangote of Nigeria is the richest person in …

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa on Tuesday urged the world’s wealthiest countries to stop “hoarding” vaccines and called for an end to “vaccine nationalism.” In remarks delivered at the World Economic Forum’s virtual Davos Agenda event, Ramaphosa cautioned that some countries had ordered more supplies of vaccines than they needed, and that this was counterproductive to the global recovery effort. …

According to a new report of the global news agency Reuters, Africa’s coronavirus case fatality rate stands at 2.5%, higher than the global level of 2.2%, a trend that is alarming experts. Earlier in the pandemic, Africa’s death rate had been below the global average, the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) head John Nkengasong is quoted as …

President Yoweri Museveni has been declared winner of the 2021 Presidential election by the country’s electoral commission. According to the commission on Saturday (16 January), Museveni won a sixth term in office with 58.6 percent of the vote, in an election disputed by his main rival Bobi Wine who trailed with 34.8 percent. “The electoral commission declares Yoweri Museveni… elected …

Our contributing editor Kester Kenn Klomegah writes on the difficulties African countries face to access coronavirus vaccines as the producers struggle to immunise their own populations and worldwide demand outstrips global production capacity —- With its large population and fragile health systems, Africa has recorded more than three million Covid-19 cases, according to the Africa Centers for Disease Control and …

PORTSMOUTH, United Kingdom, January 13, 2020 -/ African Media Agency(AMA)/- The African Leadership Magazine Persons of the Year Awards committee has unveiled the Director-General of the World Health Organization, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus as the African of the year 2020; the President of Ghana, Nana Akufo-Addo, as the African Political leader of the year 2020; Graca Michel as the African …

Here’s a statement issued by international personalities, from Adam Clayton to Bishop Desmond Tutu, from Wole Soyinka to Mary Robinson, calling for free and fair elections and a stop to the intimidation of Bobi Wine and other opposition leaders as Uganda goes to the polls: —– Please Help Bobi Wine and the People of Uganda Urge the International Community to …

A survey conducted by the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) in partnership with the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM), has shown that a predominant majority (79% average) of respondents in Africa would take a COVID-19 vaccine if it were deemed safe and effective. Conducted between August and December 2020, the survey interviewed more …

The United Kingdom on Thursday announced a ban on travellers entering England from southern African countries in a measure to prevent the spread of a new coronavirus variant identified in South Africa. The UK said it was responding to “new evidence showing an urgent need to halt travel from all southern African countries to help prevent the spread of a …

The last may not have been heard about Ghana’s last general elections. The candidate of the main opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), John Mahama, has gone to court to challenge the victory of President Nana Akufo-Addo in the hotly contested polls, held on 7 December. According to the result announced by the country’s election commission, Akufo-Addo of the governing New …

After months of delays caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) went into operation on 1 January. “Truly today is a historic day, a day in which we start officially trading under the preferences of the African Continental Free Trade Area. Today is a day we take Africa a step closer to a vision of …

Rita Ekua Yamoah reports on a recent program, organised by the Frankfurt-based non-governmental organisation Maisha e.V. for the empowerment of girls and women in Ghana against irregular migration, which took place in Accra. — Germany-based Maisha – African Women in Germany e.V. has again held a 5-day program to empower women who went through difficulties as a result of irregular …

Nigeria’s federal government has imposed fresh travel requirements on passengers travelling into the country from the United Kingdom and South Africa as from Monday. The National Coordinator of the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19, Sani Aliyu, disclosed this at its briefing in Abuja on Thursday, said penalties, including passport or visa suspension for at least six months, would be imposed …

Since several agencies of government have made registration for the National Identification Number (NIN) mandatory, the issue has become a source of concern to Nigerians including those in the diaspora. Last week, the Nigerian Communication Commission ordered telecommunications companies to suspend mobile phone SIM cards that are not linked to NIN. Abike Dabiri-Erewa, the chairman of the Nigerians In Diaspora …

Nigeria’s federal government has imposed new nationwide restrictions amid rising cases of coronavirus (COVID-19) infections in various parts of the country. Mr Boss Mustapha, the Chairman of the Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19, announced this on Monday at the briefing of the task force in Abuja, the nation’s capital. He explained that the directives were advisories issued to state …

COVID-19 cases in the African region have risen steadily over the past two months, underscoring the need for reinforced public health measures to avert a surge in infections, particularly as people gather or travel for end-of-year celebrations. Since mid-October, an average of 46,000 cases per week have been recorded in the 47 countries in the World Health Organization (WHO) African …

Following a directive to suspend the registration of new SIM cards nationwide, Nigerians with existing SIM cards have been directed to update their SIM registration details with their National Identification Number (NIN), sparking angry reactions. Our correspondent Abeeb Alawiye reports from Abuja —- Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), said in a statement on Tuesday that the country’s Minister of Communications and …

Despite allegations of malpractices by the opposition, our contributing editor, Kester Kenn Klomegah, explains why Ghana’s latest elections are a good sign for the country   Ghana has admirably shown its democratic credentials by holding another peaceful elections, both presidential and parliamentary, early December. In a tightly contested presidential election, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, an experienced politician and highly successful …

An association of German companies and institutions active in Africa has hailed the re-election of Ghana’s President Nana Akufo-Addo. In a press statement issued on Monday (14 December), Afrika-Verein der deutschen Wirtschaft e.V. said Akufo-Addo’s victory at the country’s recent elections signals political continuity and creates security for companies doing business in the country. “The re-election of incumbent Nana Akufo-Addo …