aid

India offers aid as Botswana confronts acute medicine shortages India has offered to assist Botswana in addressing a severe shortage of essential medicines, officials said during a visit by Indian President Droupadi Murmu. The offer was announced by Botswana President Duma Boko at a joint media briefing, underscoring the urgency of the country’s health supply crisis. President Boko announced the offer while briefing the media alongside visiting Indian President Droupadi Murmu. Available reports put the stock of essential…

Somalia faces a growth squeeze as international aid ebb slows recovery Somalia’s recent economic gains now face a stark test: a sharp drop in development assistance from major donors that, according to the country’s finance minister, has reduced projected growth from roughly 4% in 2024 to nearly 1% in 2025. That slowdown is not simply a statistical wobble. It is a signal that Somalia’s fragile, donor-dependent development model is colliding with new global priorities and domestic limits to revenue generation. From aid-led…

Why Sweden’s Quiet Mission in Somalia Matters MOGADISHU — This summer, small units of the Swedish Armed Forces arrived in Somalia. They are not the first foreign troops to set foot here, but their focus — training, advising and what militaries call “technical exploitation” — speaks to a shift in how European nations are choosing to engage with fragile states long shadowed by jihadist violence. “We were invited,” a Swedish defence statement said, underscoring a rarely spoken rule of intervention in Somalia: foreign help is…

Burkina Faso's Human Rights Crisis: The Detention of Aid Workers Raises Alarm In the heart of Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso's capital, a troubling storm is brewing that threatens not only the humanitarian efforts crucial to the nation but also the very fabric of its governance. Recently, several aid workers from a Netherlands-based non-governmental organization (NGO) found themselves enveloped in a web of serious accusations, as the government detained them on charges of spying and treason. This incident has raised serious…

Somalia at a Crossroads: moving beyond emergency fixes to durable statecraft Somalia has achieved one of the landmark technical milestones of post‑conflict recovery—completion of HIPC debt relief in December 2023 and continued engagement with the IMF under an Extended Credit Facility—but the country’s deeper fractures are widening rather than closing. IMF staff forecasts for 2025 now point to growth near 3 percent, down from about 4 percent in 2024, and officials warn the economy is vulnerable to political paralysis,…

Israeli navy intercepts international aid flotilla; at least eight Irish citizens detained An international flotilla attempting to bring food and medicine to Gaza was intercepted and boarded by Israeli naval forces on Wednesday, organisers and officials said, in a tense standoff that recalled a deadly raid more than a decade ago. Video livestreams from the boats showed passengers in life jackets sitting on deck, hands raised, as military vessels closed in. Detentions and immediate reactions Global Sumud Flotilla…

Israeli navy intercepts international aid flotilla en route to Gaza; Greta Thunberg among those taken to port Israeli forces boarded and detained vessels from a high-profile international flotilla attempting to reach Gaza on Saturday, seizing 39 boats, according to the organizers, and leaving only one ship still underway. Live-feed footage verified by Reuters showed soldiers in helmets and night-vision goggles climbing onto decks as passengers — some wearing life vests and huddling with their hands raised — were taken into…

U.S. halts support for Somalia’s elite Danab commandos, raising alarm as AU forces prepare to leave MOGADISHU, Somalia — The United States has suspended its support for Somalia’s elite Danab special forces, reliable sources told Axadle on Monday, a move that could reshape the fragile security balance as African Union troops prepare to withdraw next year. The decision, described to journalists by sources who asked not to be named because of the sensitivity of the subject, follows growing U.S. concerns about “accountability…

Finland’s Development Aid Standoff: A Tug of Policy and Humanity HELSINKI, Finland — A cultural tug-of-war is playing out in the frosty Scandinavian air as Finland suspends its development aid to Somalia, pressuring Mogadishu to accept more deportees. This policy stalemate, spearheaded by Development Minister Ville Tavio, underscores a growing tension in Europe over migration, deportations, and international diplomacy. A Diplomatic Tightrope "I think it is fair that an administration that does not welcome its citizens…

A Desperate Hunger: African Children Face a Nutrition Crisis In a landscape already marred by conflict, instability, and natural disasters, the looming shortage of life-saving nutritional aid in four African countries presents a new and urgent humanitarian crisis. The depletion of essential supplies threatens the survival of millions of children and puts a spotlight on the broader global challenge of funding cuts amid escalating needs. The Bitter Reality of Hunger Among the hardest hit are Nigeria, Kenya, Somalia, and South…