Kenyan marathon prodigy Kelvin Kiptum, who was killed in a car crash, died of severe head injuries, a medical examiner said on Wednesday but toxicology tests were still under way. The world marathon record-holder died on February 11 at the age of 24 in the accident near his home in the Eldoret area of Kenya’s Rift …
South Africa plans to hike taxes and increase spending on social grants ahead of a general election in May amid sluggish growth and high debt, the government said on Wednesday.The treasury announced increases in income tax as well as alcohol and cigarettes duties as part of a national budget unveiled a day after President Cyril …
South Africa hikes taxes and social spending before voteWed, 21 Feb 2024 16:02:21 GMT Read More »
The bodies of two South African soldiers killed in a mortar strike in the Democratic Republic of Congo were repatriated on Wednesday, amid controversy at home around the army’s deployment. South Africa’s decision to contribute troops to the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Mission has been denounced by the main opposition as a mistake.But the defence minister defended …
South African soldiers killed in DR Congo return homeWed, 21 Feb 2024 15:49:13 GMT Read More »
Somalia’s cabinet and lawmakers on Wednesday endorsed a major defence deal with Turkey, with Mogadishu locked in a dispute with Addis Ababa over a maritime agreement it says threatens its sovereignty.Under the 10-year pact, close ally Turkey will help defend Somalia’s long coastline and also rebuild the naval forces of the fragile Horn of Africa …
Somalia endorses defence deal with TurkeyWed, 21 Feb 2024 15:19:12 GMT Read More »
Families of several jailed Tunisian opposition figures on Wednesday called for their release, including a number of detainees on hunger strike.Since February 2023, more than 20 opposition figures, whom Tunisian President Kais Saied has dubbed “terrorists”, have been held on suspicion of involvement in “conspiracy against the internal and external security of the state”.Among them …
Fifteen candidates in Senegal’s delayed presidential election have accused President Macky Sall of “ill will” and said they will take action to ensure a new poll date is swiftly established.The announcement came as the civil society collective Aar Sunu Election (Protect Our Election) said it had organised a new rally for Saturday.The collective is calling …
15 Senegal candidates decry delay in setting new poll dateWed, 21 Feb 2024 12:37:03 GMT Read More »
Dancers and drummers swarmed the Saudi delegation from the moment they touched down in Somalia’s capital to launch new aid projects, part of the kingdom’s ramped-up outreach to the African nation.Yet as they politely applauded agreements to provide stationery for schoolchildren and watering points for livestock, some Somali officials made clear they hoped Saudi engagement …
Gulf heavyweights vie for influence in African ‘backyard’Wed, 21 Feb 2024 06:29:05 GMT Read More »
A record drought wiped out nearly half of Iido Abdikarin Abdille’s herd in northern Somalia, but a livestock insurance programme is helping to ease the financial burden on pastoralists like her.Since her father’s death in 2010, the 34-year-old has taken on the responsibility of looking after her unwell mother as well as her own two …
Livestock insurance offers hope to drought-hit SomalisWed, 21 Feb 2024 06:15:57 GMT Read More »
Three decades after the advent of democracy, South Africa will go to the polls on May 29 for general elections and perhaps the first serious challenge to ANC rule.Opinion polls suggest President Cyril Ramaphosa’s party may win less than 50 percent in nationwide elections for the first time and may be forced to share power.In …
South Africa sets stage for May 29 general electionTue, 20 Feb 2024 19:12:52 GMT Read More »
The funeral for  world marathon record-holder Kelvin Kiptum, who was killed in a car crash, has been brought forward to Friday, Kenya’s athletics federation said.Kiptum’s death at the age of 24, just a few months after he smashed the world marathon record and before the Paris Olympics, shocked his home country and the world of athletics.”Kelvin …
