AFP Africa

Under a mango tree in a residential area of Bangui, the filming of “Problem Booth” is under way, a series of skits imagined by Lemuel Luther-King Godonam and a few fellow comedians.Filming, then uploading the videos to build a following is an uphill struggle in the Central African Republic, a war-scarred country that is one …

Online or on stage, C.African comics try to break throughTue, 20 May 2025 05:54:26 GMT Read More »

Singing sweetly as she packed her bag to leave the rehab centre, Mariama Turay vowed never again to smoke kush, the fearsome drug that wrecked her marriage — and countless lives in Sierra Leone.”This drug is killing us slowly,” sighed the gentle-mannered 29-year-old, elegantly made up with shiny rings in her ears and nose. “I’m promising …

Addicts fight synthetic ‘kush’ hell at S.Leone rehab centresTue, 20 May 2025 05:50:47 GMT Read More »

Securing South Africa’s trade ties with the United States will be a key aim of President Cyril Ramaphosa, who Monday began a Washington visit that will feature a meeting with Donald Trump, Ramaphosa’s office said.Ramaphosa arrived late Monday accompanied by four cabinet ministers on the high-stakes visit. He is expected to meet Trump at the …

S.Africa says talks with Trump aim to salvage tradeMon, 19 May 2025 19:15:11 GMT Read More »

Young Cameroonian voters hoping for change in this year’s elections still face the possibility that 92-year-old President Paul Biya could announce a bid to extend his more than four decades in power.Biya, who took the reins in 1982, has remained tight-lipped on whether he plans to stand again in October.But with just a month to …

Young Cameroonians face prospect of new bid by 92-year-old leaderMon, 19 May 2025 16:48:04 GMT Read More »

Akinola Davies Jr — who has made history by directing Nigeria’s first ever film in competition at the Cannes film festival — lost his father when he was two.”I’ve always collected father figures growing up,” said the maker of “My Father’s Shadow”, which is in the running for the Camera d’Or for best first film.His …

Nigeria needs good fathers, says director who made Cannes historyMon, 19 May 2025 16:20:23 GMT Read More »

The top United Nations court on Monday sided with Equatorial Guinea in a decades-long dispute with Gabon over three tiny islands in potentially oil-rich waters.The two west African nations have been squabbling over the 30-hectare (74-acre) island of Mbanie and two smaller low-lying islets, Cocotiers and Conga, since the early 1970s.The islands themselves are tiny …

ICJ backs E.Guinea in spat with Gabon over oil-rich islandsMon, 19 May 2025 15:05:41 GMT Read More »

French judicial authorities have closed an investigation against the widow of Rwanda’s former president Juvenal Habyarimana into claims she played a role in the country’s 1994 genocide, without pressing any charges against her, several sources close to the case told AFP.Agathe Habyarimana, 82, who has been living in France since 1998 and whose extradition has …

France closes probe against widow of Rwanda ex-leader: sourcesMon, 19 May 2025 12:51:26 GMT Read More »

Tanzanian opposition leader Tundu Lissu vowed to keep fighting on Monday as he appeared in court on a treason charge that carries a potential death penalty. Activists say the case is another sign that democracy is eroding in several east African nations.An opposition leader is also on trial for treason in neighbouring Uganda, while opposition movements …

Tanzania opposition leader defiant as he appears for treason trialMon, 19 May 2025 12:30:08 GMT Read More »

Jihadists in northeastern Nigeria are surging — and using social media to spread the word of their campaigns and recruit fighters.At least 100 people were killed in the new wave of jihadist attacks in April alone, as the governor of Borno, the epicentre of the violence which has raged since 2009, said the state is …

Jihadists in Nigeria turn to TikTok to spread propagandaMon, 19 May 2025 12:21:59 GMT Read More »

The top United Nations court will on Monday rule on a decades-long dispute between Gabon and Equatorial Guinea over three tiny islands in potentially oil-rich waters.The two west African nations have been squabbling over the 30-hectare (74-acre) island of Mbanie and two smaller low-lying islets, Cocotier and Conga, since the early 1970s.The islands themselves are …

ICJ to rule in Gabon-E.Guinea spat over islands in oil-rich gulfMon, 19 May 2025 05:49:02 GMT Read More »