Africa

22 articles tagged with this topic

Sahel passport union records first full travel cycle as ECOWAS tariff schedule nears adoption

The Sahel passport union recorded its first complete travel cycle this week, with the alliance's three member states reporting normal cross-border movement under the new common passport regime.

4 min read

Sudan: RSF offensive in El Fasher displaces seventy thousand as aid corridor talks stall

Rapid Support Forces tightened their offensive perimeter around El Fasher this week, displacing approximately seventy thousand additional residents as humanitarian-corridor negotiations in Jeddah remained at impasse.

4 min read

Sahel Alliance passport union takes effect as ECOWAS prepares coordinated tariff response

The three junta-led states of the Alliance of Sahel States activated a shared passport and customs regime on Wednesday, even as the Economic Community of West African States circulated a draft common external tariff designed to apply pressure without forcing a final rupture.

4 min read

Sahel alliance closes Bamako summit with common tariff and joint border force, daring ECOWAS to follow through on June deadline

Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger agreed Monday to a unified external tariff, a joint border force and a shared diplomatic mission in Moscow, presenting a coordinated answer to the June 15 ECOWAS ultimatum on civilian transitions.

4 min read

ECOWAS sets June deadline for Burkina Faso transition plan as Sahel pressure mounts

West African leaders gave Ouagadougou's junta six weeks to publish a binding electoral calendar, the bloc's sharpest move yet against the Sahel breakaway states amid worsening insurgent violence.

4 min read

U.N. declares famine in North Darfur as attention shifts back to Sudan after Iran war

The U.N.'s food security body formally declared famine across three localities of North Darfur on Sunday, the first such classification on the African continent in seven years, as donors scramble to redirect attention after months of Iran-war fundraising.

5 min read

Failed long rains deepen Horn of Africa drought as aid agencies warn of fourth failed season

An unusually dry March-May rainy season across Somalia, eastern Ethiopia and northern Kenya has pushed more than 11 million people into acute food insecurity, U.N. agencies said Sunday, warning that the region is on the brink of a fourth consecutive failed rainfall cycle.

5 min read

IPC declares famine across four Sudanese states as aid agencies warn world is looking away

The IPC formally declared famine in four Sudanese states on Saturday, raising the area under confirmed famine fivefold and prompting U.N. officials to warn that donor attention drifting back from the Iran ceasefire was leaving Sudan's catastrophe critically underfunded.

5 min read

Burkina Faso hosts Sahel allies in Ouagadougou as junta deepens break with ECOWAS

Captain Ibrahim Traore convened the leaders of Mali and Niger in Ouagadougou on Sunday to formalize a new Sahel security pact, in a move that further isolates the three juntas from ECOWAS and Paris.

4 min read

Abuja Redraws Budget Math as Brent Retreat Tightens Nigerian Fiscal Squeeze

Nigeria's finance ministry began revising its 2026 spending plan over the weekend after Brent crude slid toward $95 a barrel in the wake of the Iran ceasefire, exposing a benchmark price set far above current levels.

5 min read

East African Capitals Brace for Gulf Remittance Shock as Stranded Workers Trickle Home

Treasury officials in Nairobi, Addis Ababa and Kampala began modeling a sustained drop in Gulf remittances Saturday as the first repatriation flights brought stranded workers home, threatening current account positions already stretched by the six-week war.

5 min read

ECOWAS Tightens Sanctions on Burkina Faso Junta as France Pulls Final Troops

West African leaders meeting in Abuja imposed fresh financial restrictions on Ouagadougou and demanded a credible transition timetable, hours after the last French logistics personnel departed northern Burkina Faso.

5 min read

From Tokyo to Lagos to Brussels, World Capitals Greet Iran Ceasefire With Relief and Skepticism

Governments from Tokyo and Beijing to Brussels and Lagos welcomed Sunday's Islamabad ceasefire announcement with a mixture of relief and cautious skepticism, as foreign ministries scrambled to weigh in on a deal that will take effect at midnight GMT on April 15.

4 min read

ECOWAS Tightens Pressure on Burkina Faso Junta as Sahel Diplomacy Shifts

West African leaders intensified financial restrictions on Burkina Faso's military government Friday, demanding a credible electoral calendar within 90 days as French withdrawal reshapes regional security.

4 min read

Alliance of Sahel States Unveils Joint Currency Framework, Deepens Break from ECOWAS

The junta-led governments of Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger announced a roadmap on Tuesday for a shared currency intended to replace the CFA franc, marking the boldest step yet by the Alliance of Sahel States to detach from West Africa's regional financial system.

5 min read

ECOWAS Summit Sharpens Sanctions Threat Against Sahel Juntas as Wagner Footprint Grows

West African leaders meeting in Accra warned Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger that secondary banking sanctions could follow within weeks unless the juntas accept a phased transition, even as Russian security contractors expanded their presence in Ouagadougou.

4 min read

ECOWAS Pressures Burkina Faso Junta Ahead of Bamako Summit

West African leaders pressed Burkina Faso's military government on Thursday to commit to a firm civilian-transition timetable, warning that further delays could trigger fresh sanctions when the bloc convenes in Bamako next week.

4 min read

Tea Shipments Stranded in Kenya as Iran War Disrupts Global Agricultural Supply Chains

Tea shipments were stranded in Kenyan ports and petrol shortages were spreading across Ethiopia on Saturday as the maritime disruption caused by the Iran war continued to fracture global agricultural supply chains, with analysts warning of a potential food security crisis if shipping disruptions extended into the planting season.

6 min read

Burkina Faso Military Junta Passes 'Revolution Charter' Formalizing Its Rule

Burkina Faso's ruling military junta passed legislation on Saturday formally adopting a Revolution Charter, consolidating the junta's governing authority and deepening concerns among international observers about democratic backsliding in one of the Sahel region's most troubled nations.

4 min read

African Union Rejects Macky Sall's Bid for United Nations Secretary-General

The African Union formally rejected former Senegalese President Macky Sall's candidacy for United Nations Secretary-General on Saturday, effectively ending the bid of a man many observers had considered a leading contender for the position.

4 min read

Flash Floods Kill 84 People Across Kenya, Displacing Thousands

Flash floods struck multiple regions of Kenya on March 24, killing at least 84 people and displacing thousands of others, as relief agencies worked to reach communities cut off by road damage.

5 min read

Strikes Kill 15 in Sudan's South Kordofan as Civil War Continues

At least 15 people were killed and 23 injured in strikes on the Lagawa District in Sudan's South Kordofan state. The Rapid Support Forces blamed the Sudanese Armed Forces, while rebel factions called on the UN to ban drone use against civilians.

4 min read