The Latest Breaking News from Africa

The 125th anniversary of the Anglo-Boer War of 1899-1902 is marked on 11 October 2024. Also known as the South African War or the Second Boer War, the brutal conflict between the colonising forces of the British and the Boers (originally Dutch settlers, today known as Afrikaners) affected all cultural…

Mozambique will hold presidential and legislative elections this Wednesday, with the ruling Frelimo party expected to extend its 50-year grip on power. However, the party is contending with a prolonged Islamist insurgency in one of Africa's largest gas fields.

Kenya's National Assembly has voted to impeach Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua. Some 281 MPs voted for the motion, with 44 voting against. Having fallen out of favour over the past year, Gachagua was criticised by both the opposition and deputies aligned with President William Ruto. Meanwhile, the civil war may…

One in every 100 deaths globally is by suicide. Each year, more than 700,000 people die by suicide. A staggering 77% of suicides occur in low- and middle-income countries, with the African region bearing the highest burden at a rate of 11.2 deaths per 100,000 people. In Kenya, the crude…

The United Kingdom is resetting its relations with Africa and other countries in the global south after more than a decade of neglect. At the United Nations in September, British prime minister Keir Starmer promised his government was

In the rural village of Téssékéré, the increasing number and intensity of droughts linked to climate change is making the lives and livelihoods of the local Fulani communities increasingly vulnerable. Here, in the northern Sahel desert region of Senegal (known as the Ferlo), the pastoral population walks over dry, dusty…

A geomagnetic storm lit up the night sky in parts of the US during the first weekend in October. South Africa’s National Space Agency (Sansa) told reporters that the storm had originated from a solar flare “that erupted from sunspot 3842 on October 3”. It said this was the strongest…

A major health challenge of our time is when drugs no longer work to treat infections. This happens when the agents that cause infections – they may be bacteria, viruses or fungi – become resistant to the drugs.

Seven West African nations are facing backlash after supporting a proposal to resume commercial whaling – claiming it would help fight food insecurity. The move, unexpected from nations with no whaling tradition, was met with dismay from conservation groups.