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call to action

Africa faces a coronavirus catastrophe

As of 20 March, “only” a thousand cases of coronavirus had been confirmed in over 40 African countries. Obviously, this figure seems rather ... low. Still, regardless of whether there is simply a delay in the spread of the virus or shortcomings in how cases are reported, we cannot assume that Africa will long remain immune.

continental response

Coronavirus: “We’ve gone from looming threat to looming disaster”

John Nkengasong, the director of the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC), part of the African Union, is leading the ... continental response to the Covid-19 pandemic.

corona chronicles

Journalism in a time of coronavirus

Dear Africa Report Reader, ...

Talking Africa podcast

Coronavirus: 5 key lessons from the 2014 Ebola outbreak

When Ebola hit Liberia in 2014, W. Gyude Moore was working as deputy chief of staff for President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf.
...

twin visions

God, the Saudis and the coronavirus

If the Saudis truly believed what they preach, when faced with the coronavirus they would be satisfied with calling on everyone to implore the ... Creator for mercy. But by closing the Great Mosque of Mecca, they’ve proven that they’re capable of exercising common sense just like any agnostic or deist ruler.

finance fightback

Angola: Finance Minister Vera Daves has one of Africa’s toughest jobs

When she took over as Angola’s Finance Minister last October, Vera Esperança dos Santos Daves had the gargantuan task of restructuring Africa’s ... fifth biggest economy.

pumped up

DRC-Angola: Tshisekedi and Lourenço locked in oil struggle

Congolese President Félix Tshisekedi is growing impatient with the sluggish pace of negotiations with his Angolan counterpart João Lourenço ... for an offshore oil production-sharing agreement.

friends with benefits

France-Libya: Marshal Haftar, the controversial friend of the Élysée

Officially, Paris recognizes the legitimacy of the Tripoli government and supports the political process. In practice, it is the controversial ... Khalifa Haftar who is in its favour. It is a relationship as privileged as it is risky.

small bore

Nigerian Central Bank’s economic package is “too tiny to matter”

The response of Nigeria's cental bank to the coronavirus pandemic shows the scale of the problem has not yet been grasped. ...

home truths

Coronavirus: “It would be suicidal for Africa not to learn the lessons from Europe.”

Professor Moussa Seydi, who coordinates the medical care of patients in Senegal, called on African countries to take drastic measures against ... the spread of Covid-19. And to avoid at all costs the epidemic reaching the same levels as in Italy and France.

consumer protection

The journey to better protecting Nigerian consumers

Chief Executive of the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) of Nigeria gave The Africa Report an interview exploring ... his work and plans for the future of the Commission.

soft power

Coronavirus: U.S. vs. China in the battle of perceptions

Providing global “public goods” in health, security and other areas has long been a responsibility taken on by the United States. Now, though, ... as the United States struggles to contain the COVID-19 outbreak at home and with its “America First” foreign policy doctrine, Washington is less inclined to providing global leadership, giving China a unique opportunity to fill the void.

final flourish

Alassane Ouattara: ‘I did it my way’

In his first interview since announcing that he would not run for office, the Ivorian head of state looks back on his political career and explains ... the reasons that led him to choose his successor.

Illusory Control

African Stock Markets: The Show Must Go On

The Philippines and Sri Lanka have become the first countries to halt stock market trading on the coronavirus crash.
...

reform headache

Angola is collateral damage of coronavirus hit on oil, China

The oil price crash and coronavirus may scupper Angola’s hopes to come out of recession in 2020. ...

shovel it

With its oil terminals under siege, Tripoli considers mining

Libya's geology contains significant reserves of gold, iron, and magnesium. The minerals have not been exploited, and the Tripoli government ... sees them as a "remedy" in the face of falling oil production.

Money for Nothing

 Kenya: Study reveals scale of foreign aid diversion offshore

Kenya is an economic success story by any measure. ...

chasing payments

M-Pesa paved the way – but can others follow?

Africa’s mobile payments ecosystem experienced its birth and adolescence in Kenya, as the M-Pesa service took the country by storm. ...

programme parasites

DRC: Rawbank CEO Thierry Taeymans incarcerated

Twenty-four hours after his arrest and the judicial hearing of the investigations into the use of funds earmarked for the 100-day presidential ... programme, Rawbank's managing director, Thierry Taeymans, was transferred to Makala Central Prison on Friday.

fresh blood?

Cameroon: National Assembly President clings on to job

A defiant Cavaye Yéguié Djibril said he has no intention of leaving the presidency of the National Assembly, even though the corridors of the ... Etoudi Palace are rife with rumours of his disgrace.