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tea party vibes

Nigeria: How Rivers Governor Wike’s VAT law sets a new precedent for Abuja

The controversy playing out in Nigeria over Governor Nyesom Wike's new value-added tax (VAT) law in Rivers State is not so much about the expected ... earnings from the tax, but rather about how other states will respond. The law has brought back the debate about restructuring in Nigeria and some see it as a wake-up call for states to become more independent of Abuja.

The ultimate betrayal

Guinea: Who is Mamady Doumbouya, the man once closest to Alpha Condé?

Mamady Doumbouya, leader of the special forces, seized power on 5 September. The former French legionary returned to Guinea barely three years ... ago and managed to gain the confidence of President Alpha Condé, whom he has since turned against.

Article 3/10 of "Guinea Coup – the Fall of Alpha Condé"

staying power

Ghana: The risks when Chieftaincy conflicts are mixed up with politics

Chieftaincy is one of Ghana’s oldest traditional institutions. It has remained resilient despite attempts by both colonial and post-independent ... governments to control and undermine it. According to Article 270 of Ghana’s 1992 constitution, the chieftaincy institution is recognised as part of the country’s governance system.

Talk and troops

Mozambique: Without dialogue will SADC’s intervention be another Afghanistan?

The Southern African Development Community (SADC) and Rwanda's military interventions are delivering quick wins on the ground, but will that ... be enough to turn the tide of the Islamist insurgency in Mozambique's Cabo Delgado Province? Analysts have some doubts.

Last-Chance Saloon

Lafarge Egypt: Cement options narrow as production quotas make slow start

Egypt’s cement industry will be running out of options if production limits imposed by the government fail to lift prices, Lafarge Egypt CEO ... Solomon Baumgartner tells The Africa Report.

Predicting peace

Ethiopia’s rocky road to peace in the post-Tigray conflict days…when it happens

All wars end. So will the Tigray conflict. But when and how will peace come, and will it be sustained? What can we learn from other experiences ... of war and peace?

Military coup

Tunisia: What role is the army playing in the country’s political crisis?

After Tunisia’s President Kaïs Saïed led an institutional coup de force on 25 July, the military rapidly mobilised itself, notably to prevent ... members of parliament from entering the Assembly. As a result, questions have been asked about the military’s involvement in the head of state’s surprising manoeuvre.

More top stories

Trojan horse

La vie en rose? How the CIA manipulated Louis Armstrong in the Congo

Newfound allies

Gambia: Will Jammeh help Adama Barrow secure a second term?

Wheeler Dealer

South Africa: Mediclinic to cut Eskom dependence with renewable-energy accord

Trojan horse

La vie en rose? How the CIA manipulated Louis Armstrong in the Congo

Newfound allies

Gambia: Will Jammeh help Adama Barrow secure a second term?

Wheeler Dealer

South Africa: Mediclinic to cut Eskom dependence with renewable-energy accord

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push back

Guinea: International uproar after coup d’état against Alpha Condé

The soldiers who instigated a coup against Guinea's Alpha Condé summoned the outgoing ministers on Monday 6 September, stating that, “any ... refusal will be considered a rebellion”.

Article 2/10 of "Guinea Coup – the Fall of Alpha Condé"

security problems

Nigeria: Hushpuppi, Abba Kyari and the need for police reform

Recently, the world heard the announcement of the indictment of Abba Alhaji Kyari, Nigeria's deputy commissioner of police, and five others by ... a federal grand jury in the US District Court for the Central District of California.

last run

Kenya: Has Raila Odinga used up all his chances to become president?

Has Kenya’s Raila Odinga already used up all the luck he has ahead of a fifth go at next year’s presidential elections? After being abandoned ... by his closest allies, to a narrow chance at winning the hearts of the formidable Mount Kenya constituencies, is there any hope left for Raila?

Bourdillon-upon-Thames

Nigeria: Tinubu’s London home turns into Mecca for politicians

It has been over two months since ruling party chieftain Bola Tinubu left the shores of Nigeria for medical treatment in London. But while out ... of sight is usually out of mind for most politicians, this has not been the case for the former governor of Lagos State whose London home has become a magnet for Nigerian politicians. But one Lagos leader tells us that visits to Tinubu are being weaponised on these politicians' return to Nigeria; where they falsely claim Tinubu's backing for their own agendas.

renewable energy

Will Hydrogen fuel Morocco’s industrial projects of the future?

Morocco, already endowed with significant renewable energy resources, is betting on hydrogen - the 'fuel of the future' - by embarking on several ... industrial projects. Will it bet the farm on energy exports?

coup maker

Coup in Guinea: What we know about the putsch that toppled Alpha Conde

A coup in Guinea has toppled President Alpha Condé. Since early in the morning of 5 September, the Guinean presidential palace and its environs ... saw heavy gunfire. The putsch was carried out by the Special Forces Group, led by Mamady Doumbouya.

Article 1/10 of "Guinea Coup – the Fall of Alpha Condé"

It’s all about the oil

Côte d’Ivoire: Eni’s mega oil discovery revives the Ouattara government’s ambitions

On 1 September, the Italian oil company Eni, which is based in Milan and headed by Claudio Descalzi, announced that they had discovered a very ... promising oil field in offshore Côte d'Ivoire.

bad influence

Nigeria: How the freestyling hit ‘Bad Influence’ launched Omah Lay into stardom

Early last year, Nigeria’s Omah Lay (Stanley Omah Didia) posted a minute-long clip of an unreleased song on his Instagram. In the caption, ... he told his fans that if they got him 300 comments, he'd drop the full song. It was a bluff. In reality, all he had was that one-minute clip, which was actually just a freestyle he’d recorded and posted as filler because he hadn’t posted for a while. Little did he know that freestyle filler would grow to be a sensational hit of 2020.

employer etiquette

Rwanda: Video of Chinese employer beating local employee goes viral

From Sierra Leone to the DRC and now Rwanda, videos of Chinese managers viciously beating local employees is becoming a trend, with new clips ... appearing on social media channels every few weeks.

COINING IT IN

Nigeria’s planned e-naira will not be enough to deter cryptocurrency users, analysts say

Nigeria’s plan to launch the 'e-naira' digital currency is unlikely to end the use of cryptocurrencies among investors seeking hedges against ... naira weakness and inflation, analysts say.

Best of Talking Africa

Nigeria – ‘The Making Of Nigeria from Jihad to Amalgamation’ [Replay]

In this week's pick of some our favourite discussions over 2020-2021, we revisit the making of the nation of Nigeria. Its turbulent history has ... plenty to tell us about the current malaise. After all, as the poet Maya Angelou once said: "If you don't know where you have come from, you don't know where you are going."

justice vs morals

Egypt’s ‘TikTok girls’: Jailed as a convenient scapegoat

Young women 'influencers' from poor backgrounds are being jailed by the Egyptian government for posting videos on TikTok. Abdel Fattah al-Sisi ... may have muzzled the Muslim Brotherhood, but his electorate and country is still torn between competing forces of modernisation and conservative traditions. Activists claim the Egyptian authorities - keen to burnish their traditionalist credentials -- are using these defenceless women as convenient scapegoats.

MONEY MOVE

South Africa: City Lodge’s exit from loss-making East Africa assets prompted by lucrative offer

An unsolicited offer, accompanied by a lucrative number, swayed South Africa's City Lodge Hotel Group (CLHG) to dispose of its East Africa portfolio, ... CEO Andrew Widegger tells The Africa Report.