Will U.S. troops headed back to Somalia pose more problems?
The Biden Administration is sending hundreds of U.S. soldiers back into Somalia to “advise and assist” and on a “training mission” for African forces fighting the Somalian resistance group Al-Shabab. The Pentagon announced the decision during a recent press briefing. However, Africa watchers say it’s a bad move considering America’s sordid history in Somalia and the Horn of Africa...
Colonial-era currency limits economic freedom of African countries
“Playing neocolonial games with African money” is how the African Executive, a weekly Nairobi-based opinion and business magazine, framed a 2020 article on the CFA franc penned by this writer. CFA is short for Communauté Financière Africaine or African Financial Community. The article chronicled French President Emmanuel Macron’s 2019 joint press conference with Ivorian President Alassane Ouattara announcing the “end” of...
U.S. gives conditions for lifting sanctions on Sudan
Misleading Congress On Sudan (BlackElectorate.com) KHARTOUM, Sudan (PANA)–Secretary of State Colin Powell recently reiterated to visiting Sudanese Foreign Minister Mustafa Osman Ismail that economic sanctions against Khartoum would only be lifted after an accord has been signed with southern rebel group. "The Secretary of State told me that economic sanctions against us could be lifted immediately after a draft peace...
Zimbabwe unveils statue honoring anti-colonialist heroine
HARARE, Zimbabwe—Zimbabwe’s president on May 25 unveiled a towering bronze statue in the center of Harare, the capital, honoring a 19th-century Black anti-colonialist heroine who was hanged for leading a rebellion against White occupation. President Emmerson Mnangagwa vowed to press for the return of her skull from Britain. Nehanda Charwe Nyakasikana, more widely known as Mbuya (grandmother in Shona) Nehanda, was hanged...
Libyan sides agree plan on implementing ceasefire deal
Military officers from Libya’s warring parties have agreed practical steps towards implementing a ceasefire agreement, following the signing of an historic accord in Geneva in October, the UN mission in the country, UNSMIL, has reported. The two-day meeting of the Joint Military Commission (JMC)—which comprises five members each from the Government of National Accord (GNA) and the Libyan National Army (LNA)—concluded...
Africa provides a ‘home for hope’ despite new challenges: UN chief
On Africa Day, the world celebrates the diverse and dynamic continent’s “enormous promise and potential,” the UN chief said in an upbeat message to mark the day on May 24. “Africa is a home for hope,” said Secretary-General António Guterres, citing the continent’s “growing and vibrant youth population.” And with initiatives such as the African Continental Free Trade Area, the Decade of...
U.S. effort to block Ethiopian dam recalls legacy of British colonialism
(GIN)—Based on guidance from President Trump, the State Department is suspending $130 million in security-related aid to Ethiopia over a nearly-completed dam that would lift Ethiopia from poverty and end the shadow of British colonialism that favored Egypt. Programs on the chopping block include security assistance, counterterrorism and military education and training, anti-human trafficking programs, and broader development assistance funding,...
Ambitions, plans of African Union Chair Moussa Faki Mahamat raising questions
The pretty bizarre exhortations by current Chairperson of the African Union (AU) Moussa Faki Mahamat and published in the daily Sudan Tribune, speaks to the ambitions of the former Chadian prime minister. The AU chairperson is a “ceremonial head” position, but Chairman Mahamat sometimes acts more like a chief potentate than a spokesperson representing 55 heads of African states. Born...
Zuma loses bid to stay out of jail, in latest top court ruling
(GIN)—Former South African President Jacob Zuma has lost his latest bid to remain out of jail after refusing to respond to a corruption inquiry. “The application for rescission is dismissed,” Justice Sisi Khampepe said as she read the majority decision, which included an order for Mr. Zuma to pay court costs. It was the latest legal setback for the 79-year-old anti-apartheid...
The Diaspora returns to Africa
ACCRA, Ghana (Finalcall.com) - Meeting and greeting many African Americans in a hotel lobby, some even from your own hometown, may seem like no big deal in the U.S., but what are the chances of bumping into each other in a hotel lobby in Ghana, West Africa? According to reports of the 446,000 tourists pouring into Ghana in 2005,...