Paris, France | AFP | President Emmanuel Macron’s campaign for a “French Renaissance” kicks into overdrive Monday as he welcomes 140 multinational business leaders before this week’s jamboree of the rich and powerful in Davos. The business-friendly president will host executives at the grand Versailles chateau near Paris for an …
Read More »Joy and hope in Liberia at Weah inauguration ceremony
Monrovia, Liberia | AFP | The inauguration of former football star George Weah as president of Liberia got underway on Monday to scenes of joy and giddy optimism on Monday, a moment marking the troubled country’s first peaceful democratic transition since 1944. Weah, 51, takes over from Nobel laureate Ellen …
Read More »Pope Francis urges DR Congo to ‘avoid all forms of violence’
Lima, Peru | AFP | Pope Francis called Sunday for authorities in the Democratic Republic of Congo to “avoid all forms of violence” after a crackdown on protesters in the capital left six dead. Francis, who was in Peru on the final day of a South American tour, called on …
Read More »Making tourism work
Tourism cannot aid economy unless some things are done right Kampala,Uganda | SUSANNE BECKEN | Would it not be great if something as simple and pleasurable as international travel could help end something as grinding and enduring as poverty? After all, the industry is booming, globally growing at least 4% …
Read More »Landslide kills 13 in Colombia
Bogota, Colombia | AFP | A landslide in southwestern Colombia has killed 13 people on a small public bus in a rain-soaked mountainous area, authorities said Sunday. The landslide struck an area not far from the town of Tuquerres in Narino on Saturday. Rescuers have so far found the bodies …
Read More »George Weah: from football icon to Liberia president
Monrovia, Liberia | AFP | George Weah emerged from Liberia’s slums to become a superstar footballer in the 1990s, and has spent the last 13 years building political credibility to match his status as a sporting icon. Weah, 51, put education, job creation and infrastructure at the centre of his …
Read More »US shutdown extended as crunch vote delayed
Washington, United States | AFP | US lawmakers failed to reach an agreement Sunday on ending a government shutdown before the start of the working week as they postponed a crunch vote in the Senate despite marathon negotiations. Although leaders of President Donald Trump’s Republican party and the opposition Democrats …
Read More »Ghana looks to convert grassroots rugby into global success
Accra, Ghana | AFP | Some of the girls wear hijabs, others are barefoot and the sandy pitch is marked out in charcoal. But the 14 players could be Ghana’s rugby stars of the future. One of them, Maimuna Dawda, used to watch matches on television before she got the …
Read More »Sanchez ‘arrives at Man Utd training ground’
London, United Kingdom | AFP | Alexis Sanchez arrived at Manchester United’s training ground ahead of his expected move from Arsenal on Sunday, reports said, as his swap deal with Henrikh Mkhitaryan edged closer. Earlier, the Chile international posted a video on Instagram, apparently showing him walking across an airstrip …
Read More »George Weah to be sworn in with Liberian hopes sky-high
Monrovia, Liberia | AFP | Former international footballer George Weah will be sworn in as Liberia’s new president on Monday, a landmark moment that marks the troubled country’s first peaceful democratic transition since 1944. Weah will become the 25th president of the West African nation, taking power from President Ellen …
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