Author: Chukwuebuka Festus

Festus Chukwuebuka Agbo is a trained journalist with keen interest in events across the African continent. He is passionate about African politics, culture, economy, education and takes pride in telling the world about these events.
Drought Killed 70 Kenyan Elephants In One Year
Agriculture, Environment, Kenya, News

Drought Killed 70 Kenyan Elephants In One Year

Over 70 elephants have died in the last year as a result of the ongoing drought affecting all of East Africa, Kenya’s Tourism Minister Najib Balala has said. The animals were in Tsavo National Park, one of the country’s oldest parks. It is also one of the world’s largest wildlife reserves. The Kenyan authorities fear the ecosystem will experience more wildlife deaths if the drought continues. A number of giraffes have also died, said Mr Balala. Read Also: Elephants Killed 60 Zimbabweans this Year – Official "We have an abundance of wildlife but still every animal counts and we care if one goes down," he added. The Kenyan government is aiming to use an old dam to create water pans in the area to prevent further wildlife deaths. The drought in East Africa has also a...
Mozambique Detects First Wild Polio Case In 30 Years
News

Mozambique Detects First Wild Polio Case In 30 Years

Mozambique has declared an outbreak of wild polio after a young child was diagnosed with the disease in the country’s north-eastern Tete province - its first case in 30 years. The World Health Organization (WHO) says doctors detected it when the child began experiencing the onset of paralysis in late March. Neighbouring Malawi reported a similar case in February this year. “The detection of another case of wild polio virus in Africa is greatly concerning, even if it’s unsurprising given the recent outbreak in Malawi. However, it shows how dangerous this virus is and how quickly it can spread,” WHO's regional director for Africa, Dr Matshidiso Moeti, said in a statement. Read Also: President Buhari Salutes Health Workers as WHO Declares Nigeria Polio Free The health mini...
Niger President Says Mali’s Withdrawal Marks ‘Death’ Of G5 Sahel Alliance
Mali, News, Niger, Security, Terrorism

Niger President Says Mali’s Withdrawal Marks ‘Death’ Of G5 Sahel Alliance

Niger's President has said Mali's withdrawal from the G5 Sahel, a multinational force created to fight Islamist militants, will mark the end of the alliance. President Mohamed Bayoum made the remarks in an interview with French daily La Croix. Bazoum said Mali's isolation was undermining the fight against insurgents. Bamako this week announced that it was quitting the G5 Sahel, after being blocked from assuming the group's rotating presidency.  It blamed 'a state outside the region' for trying to foment divisions among the member states. Created in 2014, the alliance which also includes Mauritania, Chad, Burkina Faso, and Niger was to help the countries jointly tackle Islamist militants. Read Also: Mali Withdraws From Regional Anti-jihadist Force Since 2020, Mal...
Zimbabwe Premier Soccer League Suspends All Matches Over Fan Violence
News, Sports, Violence, Zimbabwe

Zimbabwe Premier Soccer League Suspends All Matches Over Fan Violence

Zimbabwe's Premier Soccer League (PSL) has suspended all matches until further notice following pitch invasions, violence and vandalism at a game between Highlanders and Dynamos on Sunday. The biggest fixture in Zimbabwean football was abandoned as the scenes at Barbourfields Stadium in Bulawayo included a supporter attacking a referee, perimeter fences being pushed over and the net of one of the goals being torn by Dynamos fans, which also vandalised the posts. The incidents were sparked after Highlanders went 1-0 up in second-half injury time, with Dynamos protesting about a challenge on their goalkeeper. The PSL's decision means Zimbabwe has a suspension of domestic top-flight action and international football, with the country also under a FIFA ban. Football's world go...
11 Migrants Die In Shipwreck Off Algeria
Algeria, News

11 Migrants Die In Shipwreck Off Algeria

Eleven migrants have reportedly drowned after their boat sank off the Algerian coast of Tipaza as they attempted to reach Europe. International Centre for the Identification of Missing Migrants CIPIMD, a Spanish NGO, said that a boat carrying 16 migrants had set sail from North Africa for Spain's Balearic Islands. "Eleven harragas (Arabic nickname for illegal migrants) who had set sail from Fouka (near Tipaza), died and five young people, including two children, were rescued," the private television channel El-Hayet TV reported on its Facebook page. Read Also: Over 40 Migrants Drowned Off Western Sahara Photos of the victims have gone viral on social media. According to Algerian social media users, the victims hail from the town of Fouka, in the Tipaza prefecture, 70km wes...
Ghana Match-fixing: Ashanti Gold, Inter Allies Players, Officials Sanctioned
Corruption, Ghana, News, Sports

Ghana Match-fixing: Ashanti Gold, Inter Allies Players, Officials Sanctioned

Ashanti Gold and Inter Allies have been relegated to the third tier of Ghanaian football, with players and officials of both clubs also sanctioned for match-fixing. A Ghana Premier League game between the two sides in September ended 7-0 to Ashanti Gold, with Hashmin Musah scoring two own goals as he claimed to try and prevent a pre-arranged 5-1 scoreline. Musah's claims and notifications of suspicious betting patterns were investigated by the Ghana Football Association (GFA), who has found both teams guilty of match manipulation. As well as both teams having to play Division Two football next season, several club officials, coaches and players were banned from football. The most severe sanction was given to Inter Allies volunteer Emmanuel Nii Amoah, also known a...
White Student Filmed Urinating On Black Student’s Property In South Africa
African Development, Human Rights, News, South Africa

White Student Filmed Urinating On Black Student’s Property In South Africa

A white student in South Africa has been suspended from university after he was accused of urinating on the property of a black student at Stellenbosch University, the institution confirmed. The university has said the incident will be investigated and further action including expulsion and criminal charges may be taken, depending on the outcome of the investigation. Scores of students protested at Stellenbosch University on Monday demanding swift action against the first-year student. The university – like many on social media who have seen the widely circulated video – has said the incident appears to have been racially motivated. Read Also: Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta Condemns Racism, Says No Community is Superior In a statement, Stellenbosch University spokesper...
Mali Withdraws From Regional Anti-jihadist Force
Armed Forces, Mali, News, Security

Mali Withdraws From Regional Anti-jihadist Force

Mali said Sunday it was withdrawing from a west African force fighting jihadists to protest its being rejected as head of the G5 regional group, which also includes Mauritania, Chad, Burkina and Niger. "The government of Mali is deciding to withdraw from all the organs and bodies of the G5 Sahel, including the joint force" fighting the jihadists, it said in a statement. The G5 Sahel was created in 2014 and its anti-jihadist force launched in 2017. A conference of heads of state of the G5 Sahel scheduled for February 2022 in Bamako had been due to mark "the start of the Malian presidency of the G5." But nearly four months after the mandate indicated this meeting "has still not taken place," the statement said. Bamako "firmly rejects the argument of a G5 member state whic...
Somalia Re-elects Hassan Sheik Mohamud As President
Elections, News

Somalia Re-elects Hassan Sheik Mohamud As President

Former Somali president Hassan Sheikh Mohamud has been re-elected to the country’s top job after defeating incumbent leader in a contest decided by legislators in a third round of voting late Sunday. Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, who served as Somali president between 2012 and 2017, won the contest in the capital, Mogadishu, amid a security lockdown imposed by authorities to prevent deadly militant attacks. The first round of voting was contested by 36 aspirants, four of whom proceeded to the second round. With no candidate winning at least two-thirds of the 328 ballots, voting then went into a third round where Mohamud won by a simple majority. Read Also: APC Ticket: Osinbajo, Tinubu, Fayemi, Others Fail To Agree On Consensus Members of the upper and lower legislative chambers pick...
Slavery Still Exists In Mauritania – UN Envoy
African Development, Child Abuse, Human Rights, News, Violence

Slavery Still Exists In Mauritania – UN Envoy

A UN human rights expert has called on the authorities in Mauritania to take urgent measures to implement an anti-slavery law which was passed in 2015. Following a visit to the West African country, Tomoya Obokata - the UN Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of slavery - said some progress had been made in abolishing the practice but warned much more needed to be done. He said people were still being born into slavery and people affected by the practice needed help to seek justice and achieve equality. Read Also: UN Watchdog Reports Continued Human Rights Abuses in Burundi Mr Obokata said people were now more willing to discuss the issue openly. But he said caste-based slavery and chattel slavery – where one person owns another – were still happening. He warned tha...