Brussels, Belgium | AFP | Britain formally launched the process to leave the EU on Wednesday, handing a letter to EU president Donald Tusk formally notifying the bloc, an AFP journalist said. Tim Barrow, Britain’s ambassador to the European Union, personally delivered the letter signed by British Prime Minister Theresa May …

COMMENT: Surface water resources, such as desalinated seawater or recycled wastewater, will not close the global gap between supply and demand By Yasmin Siddiqi We live on a parched planet. Farmers till arid pastureland, and policymakers fret over empty reservoirs, dry rivers, and thirsty cities. And that only scratches the …

Johannesburg, South Africa | AFP | President Jacob Zuma will not attend the funeral on Wednesday of celebrated South African anti-apartheid activist Ahmed Kathrada, who in recent years had become fiercely critical of the government. While most of the country’s leadership will be present, Kathrada’s family asked Zuma to skip the …

  Isaiah60 Productions Announces First Project at Launch Natasha Karugire and Esteri Akandwanaho have partnered to form a film production company Isaiah60 Productions to take part in the unfolding African narrative, by telling a unique perspective of, and from, the continent. The new Ugandan production house Isaiah60 Productions launched its brand …

  BRIDGE ACADEMIES: Legal/regulatory pitfalls and lessons for impact investors in Uganda By Stephen Tumwesigye In November 2016, the High Court in Uganda made an order closing the Bridge International Academies schools following an order by the Ministry of Education. The Bridge International Academies are set up under a relatively …

Abidjan, Ivory Coast | AFP |  An Ivory Coast jury on Tuesday acquitted former first lady Simone Gbagbo of crimes against humanity during the 2010-11 post-election crisis in a stunning verdict after the prosecution had sought to jail her for life. “A majority of the jury declared Simone Gbagbo not …

Lusaka, Zambia | AFP | Zambia opened public consultations this week on the government’s plan to leave the International Criminal Court, as several other African countries re-assess their membership. South Africa recently revoked its planned departure from the ICC, based in The Hague, and The Gambia’s new president, Adama Barrow, reversed …

Montreal, Canada | AFP | British and US bans on laptops and tablet computers in flight cabins are not sustainable in the long term, the head of the association representing airlines said Tuesday. “The current measures are not acceptable as a long-term solution to whatever threat they are trying to …

Johannesburg, South Africa | AFP | Celebrated South African anti-apartheid activist Ahmed Kathrada, one of Nelson Mandela’s closest colleagues in the struggle against white rule and a fellow Robben Island prisoner, died Tuesday aged 87. Kathrada was among those tried and jailed alongside Mandela in the 1964 Rivonia trial, which …

Zurich, Switzerland | AFP | Barcelona star Lionel Messi was suspended for four Argentina matches by FIFA on Tuesday for swearing at an assistant referee, a ban that will see the striker miss out on decisive qualifiers for the 2018 World Cup. Messi was found guilty of “having directed insulting …