Eye on Africa

Libya's eastern administration on Tuesday officially handed over power to a new executive set to unite the war - torn country and steer it towards elections later this year. The Government of National Unity (GNU), elected through a UN-backed process, is the latest internationally supported bid to end a decade of chaos in the North African nation and unite rival administrations. Under the leadership of the caretaker Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbeibah, the GNU replaces both the Tripoli-based National Accord Government…

MOGADISHU, Somalia - Water sources in Somalia are rapidly drying up when an impending drought intensifies, leaving 70 percent of families across the country without access to safe drinking water. Thousands of children are now dependent on emergency water transport and unprotected wells or are being forced to leave their homes in search of water, according to a new assessment from Save the Children. The assessment, which covered 632 households in eight regions of Somalia, shows reduced rainfall and severe water shortages…

The outgoing president of the Congo-Brazzaville, Denis Sassou-Nguesso, was re-elected with 88.57% of the vote for a period of five years, according to the official preliminary results of the election commission announced by the interior minister. Interior Minister Raymond Mboulou read the results district by district live on public television on Tuesday afternoon. Two-hour statement on the results, which was an accumulation of triumphs for the outgoing president, to whom the figures in the election commission offer a…

KISMAYO, Somalia - The UN's top aid worker in Somalia has called for swift action to prevent a disaster in Somalia in the midst of an impending drought. Adam Abdelmoula, Deputy Special Representative for the Secretary-General and UN-Residential and Humanitarian Coordinator for Somalia, said about 3.4 million people are expected to be affected by the drought in the country. Extreme dry conditions and water scarcity are reported in 34 districts; the hardest hit areas are Somaliland, Northeastern State, Galmudug,…

MOGADISHU, Somalia - As part of the second phase in 2021, the Salaam Somali Bank branch in Bakaro provided free microfinance to the owners of the small businesses in Somalia's largest thriving market. The investment program called Qardu Hassan is part of Salaam Somali Bank's annual free microfinance fund, which aims to develop and improve small businesses effectively across the Horn of Africa. Some of those lucky enough to receive free microfinance today said they were very pleased with the support and thanked the bank…

Troops from the Eritrean neighborhood entered the northern Tigray region during the conflict that took place five months earlier, Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed acknowledged for the first time on Tuesday since military operations began against the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF). Abiy said Eritrean troops had entered the border because they were worried they would be attacked by Tigrayan forces, adding that the Eritreans had promised to leave when the Ethiopian military could control the border. The…

In the country, the degree of positivity is high. That is, out of the total number of tests performed, it turns out that a large number are positive for Covid-19. The situation is not yet critical in hospitals, but the epidemic is there and it is affecting more and more Ivorians. Out of five deaths recorded in December, the country has counted 17 in January, 35 in February and 30 died since early March. A total of 222 people have officially died of Covid-19 in Ivory Coast since the onset of the disease. This increase…

Customs duty is growing in Niger. On the evening of Monday, March 22, the government announced that attacks on Sunday against villages and camps in the Tahoua region near Mali resulted in the deaths of 137 people. These attacks are the deadliest committed in the country by suspected jihadists in recent years. A three-day national mourning was issued from this Tuesday.…

The Democratic Republic of Congo, where the deadly Ebola virus first appeared in 1976, has begun a countdown to the official end of its latest outbreak, this time in the east of the country, health officials said on Tuesday. The last patient to be treated for Ebola tested negative for the second time on Sunday, triggering a 42-day countdown from Monday, the World Health Organization's (WHO) DR Congo office said. The period represents twice the average maximum duration of Ebola's incubation, the Agence…

Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed admits Eritrean forces are in Tigray Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed admitted on Tuesday that troops from neighboring Eritrea were present in the conflict-ridden Tigray region and suggested they may have been involved in the abuse of civilians. The shooting comes after months of denials from Addis Ababa and Asmara, and accusations from rights…