AFRICA

Tunis, Tunisia | AFP |  Despite priding itself on being the sole country to emerge from the Arab Spring uprisings as a functioning democracy, Tunisia faces challenges on its new political path. The cradle of the autocrat-ousting movements that swept the region nine years ago, the North African country has been …

Mongoumba, Central African Republic | AFP | Under the tarpaulin shading the back of the lorry, the heat is still stifling on a rough road for some 30 refugees travelling home to the strife-weary Central African Republic. Potholes rattle spines and send up fine grit that sticks to the sweaty bodies …

Harare, Zimbabwe | AFP | The body of Zimbabwe’s ex-president, Robert Mugabe, was flown out of Singapore Wednesday, heading home for burial in a country divided over the legacy of a former liberation hero whose 37-year rule was marked by repression and economic ruin. Mugabe, a guerrilla leader who swept to …

Japan, S.A and AFDB unveil priorities in technology at TICAD 7 Science, technology and innovation as well as human resource development are critical in Africa, a continent, which has the biggest potential on earth, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said at the Science and Technology in Society (STS) forum held on …

Yaoundé, Cameroon | AFP |  Cameroon President Paul Biya on Tuesday announced that he intends to hold a major “national dialogue” later this month in a bid to put an end to the conflict between security forces and armed separatists from the anglophone minority in the west. Over the past two …

Johannesburg, South Africa | AFP | Beverlyn Nyamakwenje was fast asleep in her home in the east Johannesburg township of Katlehong when she was woken by gunshots. Instructed by her panicked father, the 19-year old Zimbabwean grabbed a few belongings and fled with him to a police station for safety. “We …

Rabat, Morocco | AFP | The trial of a Moroccan journalist accused of having a late-term abortion and sexual relations outside marriage was postponed on Monday after hundreds of people protested outside a court in the capital Rabat. The case brought against Hajar Raissouni, who writes for the Arabic-language newspaper Akhbar …

Juba, South Sudan | AFP | South Sudan’s exiled rebel leader Riek Machar arrived in Juba on Monday for the first time in a year and held rare talks with President Salva Kiir as the rivals try to salvage a stalled peace agreement. Machar landed in the capital in a Sudanese …

S.Sudan rebel leader in Juba in bid to salvage peace deal Juba, South Sudan | AFP | South Sudan’s exiled rebel leader Riek Machar arrived in Juba on Monday for the first time in a year and held rare talks with President Salva Kiir as the rivals try to salvage …

The continent must also overcome significant hurdles if it is to grab the 4IR opportunity | THE INDEPENDENT | Africa has taken three significant steps in recent months on its journey to a stronger economic future. In March, the African Union launched the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). This …