Africa

The United States Special Envoy for the Sahel on Thursday, September 24, announced an extension of humanitarian aid. At the military level, the U.S. Chief of Staff of the U.S. African Command (Africom) announced a few months ago a reduction in staff on the ground. But the US commitment remains intact, the State Department assures. Washington will pay $ 150 million to Niger, Mali, Mauritania and Burkina Faso. Objective: to help some 2.5 million people displaced by insecurity in these areas plagued by terrorist groups.…

In Praise of the Blood of Canadian Judi Rever is a book that examines the crimes committed by the Rwandan patriotic army led by Paul Kagame, a rebel who has become the national army of Rwanda. Published since mid-September by the Max Milo editions, organizations such as Ibuka, the Survivors' Associations, or SOS Racism described the work as a negationist in a column published in the newspaper Liberation. As it passed through France to promote its work, the Canadian journalist, like her French publisher, insisted on the…

The Ivorian opposition "United Front" organized three joint meetings in Abidjan in the municipalities of Yopougon, Anono and Gonzagueville on Saturday 26 September. RFI visited the Anono field and noted that the crowd was not there this first day of mobilizing the opposition coalition. A fine fog is watering the land in Anonos' headquarters, where one of the opposition coalition meetings is being held. All opposition sensitivities, with the exception of the independent candidate Kouadio Konan Bertin, called for…

"I got to break and get into theater writers." Author and director Souleymane Bah, 46, will receive the RFI Theater 2020 award for La Cargaison on Sunday 27 September at the Festival des Francophonies, Les Zébrures d'Automne, in Limoges. The text from the Guinean author, exiled in France for four years, invites us to a "macabre stroll" populated by ruined destinies, stranded somewhere. Relaxed and determined at the same time, equipped with an easy opportunity to choose words and speech, during our meeting with the winner,…

Interview with Gilles Olakounlé Yabi, economist and political analyst. He is the founder of the West African Citizen Think Tank, Wathi (www.wathi.org). Commentary on the future of democracy in French-speaking Africa. RFI: What is your assessment of the state of democracy in Africa in 2020?? Gilles Yabi: Difficult to answer this question without first remembering the diversity of the continent. This diversity has profound implications for the assessment that can be made of the state of democracy in Africa. Political…

NGO Human Rights Watch investigated the violence that shook the city of Nzérékoré in southern Guinea during the double vote on March 22. It takes stock of at least 32 dead, 90 wounded and extensive property damage and also involves the security forces in this tragedy. Polling stations were attacked, places of worship burned down and dozens of dead have done so Nzérékoré mourned in a double vote of March 22nd. HRW believes the defense and security forces "did not do enough" to stop the inter-municipal clashes that erupted…

Following the convening of a coalition of NGOs and associations, a white and silent march against violence against women was organized in Bamako, in which several hundred people participated. They demand that Parliament pass a special law against gender-based violence. And this while the so-called "Sidiki Diabaté" affair arouses great emotion in Mali. The former companion of the famous musician accuses…

Libyan talks in Bouznika, Morocco, resume this Sunday, September 27. Two opposing delegations, representing the State High Council in Tripoli and the parliament in Tobruk, are meeting for another round of negotiations after starting in early September. Delegations must define the mechanism for selecting the personalities who will take the head of state sovereign positions. They must also decide on the new restructuring of the Presidential Council and the next government of national unity. These new meetings in Bouznika…

It is a project that worries Benin and is unanimous in Nigeria. Last Wednesday, the Nigerian director announced that it had released pledges of $ 1.9 billion for the construction of a 250km railway line that will connect Nigeria to neighboring Niger. A project whose foundations were launched in 2015, but whose costs and real interest rates are discussed. The future railway line will connect the city of Kano in Nigeria with Maradi in southern Niger and pass through Jigawa, Katsina and Jibia. But the announcement of this…

Two months after the sinking of a Japanese ship in Mauritius, the first overview of the consequences of the oil spill on biodiversity. It will take several months to assess the impact of the 1,000 tonnes of fuel spilled on the coral reef. Also on land, oil spills can have consequences, especially for two bird species that are already in danger. The water in the lagoon is petrol blue. Two months after the oil spill that hit Mauritius in the Indian Ocean, "we sometimes find oil products on the surface," said Vikash Tatayah,…