NEWS - The African Mirror

Nov

28

2023

Mozambique fine-tunes new $80 bln energy transition blueprint

NEWS

MOZAMBIQUE has approved an ambitious new energy transition plan until 2050, hoping to attract investments of some $80 billion to boost renewable energy capacity and increase electricity availability, a senior energy official said. Mozambican President Filipe Nyusi is expected to officially present the energy strategy to international partners and potential donors on December 2 during the COP 28 climate summit in Dubai. Priority plans between next year and 2030 include adding 2,000 megawatts of new hydropower capacity by upgrading existing plants and completing the new Mphanda Nkuwa hydro project, expanding the national electricity grid and switching to electric vehicles to…

Nov

29

2023

By BONFACE ORUCHO, BIRD STORY AGENCY

Africa is steadily marching toward gender parity

NEWS

NAMIBIA is among a select group of nine nations globally that have successfully closed over 80% of their gender gap, marking a significant stride towards equality. According to a 2023 report from the World Economic Forum, Namibia has achieved an impressive 80.2% closure, securing the rank of 8th worldwide in bridging this gap. Leaders include Iceland (91.2%), Norway (87.9%), Finland (86.3%), New Zealand (85.2%), Sweden (81.5%), Germany (81.5%), and Nicaragua (81.1%), with Namibia next, at 80.2%. “Sub-Saharan Africa’s parity score is the sixth highest among the eight regions at 68.2%, ranking above Southern Asia, the Middle East and North Africa,”…

Nov

28

2023

By The African Mirror

Nigeria can defeat banditry by reconstructing the police system – criminologist

NEWS

SECURITY in Nigeria has degenerated in the last 10 years. Various non-state armed groups have emerged countrywide. These actors include criminal gangs, separatist groups, Islamic fundamentalists and kidnappers. They all have different motivations and ways of operating. One of the country’s most pressing security challenges is described as “banditry”. It includes armed robbery, kidnapping, murder, rape and illegal possession of firearms. OLUWOLE OJEWALE, Regional Coordinator, Institute for Security Studies Attacks by bandits increased from 124 to 1,031 incidents between 2018 and 2022. There were around 13,485 banditry-related deaths between 2010 and May 2023. The activities of bandits are fast spreading…

Nov

27

2023

By The African Mirror

Death toll from flooding in Somalia climbs to nearly 100

NEWS

THE number of people killed by floods from heavy rains in Somalia has climbed to 96, state news agency SONNA said. "Somalia's flood death toll climbs to 96," SONNA said in a post on X, formerly Twitter, adding the figure had been confirmed by Mahamuud Moallim, the head of the country's disaster management agency. Like the rest of East and Horn of Africa, Somalia has been battered by relentless heavy rains that began in October, caused by the El Nino and Indian Ocean Dipole weather phenomena. Both are climate patterns that impact ocean surface temperatures and cause above-average rainfall. The…

Nov

28

2023

By LOUCOUMANE COULIBALY and MEDIA COULIBALY

Ivory Coast tourist haven battles coastal erosion and rogue waves

NEWS

ON a shrinking strip of beach in southeast Ivory Coast, hotel owner Habib Hassan Nassar has to stack thousands of sandbags each week to protect his property from the rising sea. Thanks to the metres-high sandbag barricade, the Kame Surf Camp hotel clings to its section of beach in the resort of Assinie, even as the waves hem the hotel in on three sides and, in a recent surge, devastated the businesses of its neighbours. "Frankly, I am exhausted," said Nassar, 50, who first came to the area as a child when this stretch of beach on the Gulf of…

Nov

28

2023

By HUMPHREY MALALO

Kenyan parliamentary committee call for reforms to electoral body

NEWS

A committee set up by the Kenyan parliament has called for reforms to the country's electoral body and a review of tax policy, public spending and social security, a copy of their report seen by Reuters shows. The bipartisan committee formed to study opposition grievances wants the electoral commission reconstituted and an audit of the last presidential election. Kenya was gripped by violent protests early this year triggered by complaints by opposition leaders and supporters about electoral malpractices, the high cost of living and rising taxes. As a result, the committee was formed in August with the backing of a parliamentary…

Nov

28

2023

By The African Mirror

Somali pirates likely behind attempted tanker seizure -US military

NEWS

AN attempted hijacking of a commercial vessel in the Gulf of Aden appears to have been carried out by armed Somali pirates and not Yemeni Houthis, despite the firing of missiles from Houthi-controlled territory in Yemen afterwards, the Pentagon said on Monday. "We're continuing to assess, but initial indications are that these five individuals are Somali," said Pentagon spokesperson Brigadier General Patrick Ryder. "Clearly a piracy-related incident," Ryder added. A U.S. Navy warship responded to a distress call on Sunday from the chemical tanker Central Park. The attackers were taken aboard the U.S. warship Mason, the U.S. military said, and…

Nov

27

2023

By UMARU FOFANA

Sierra Leone repels attack by ‘renegade soldiers’ on Freetown barracks

NEWS

SIERRA Leone said it had pushed "renegade soldiers" who attempted to break into a military armoury in Freetown during the early hours of Sunday back to the outskirts of the capital and had restored calm, after imposing a nationwide curfew. The West African country's civil aviation authority urged airlines to reschedule flights after the curfew was declared, while a soldier on its frontier with neighbouring Guinea told Reuters they had been instructed to shut the border. A Reuters journalist, who earlier witnessed an armed group of men commandeer a police vehicle near the Wilberforce barracks, said nearby streets were mostly empty. "We'll…

Nov

26

2023

By NYASHA CHINGONO

Zimbabwe restricts gatherings, food vending as cholera cases spike

NEWS

ZIMBABWE'S government has started restricting public gatherings and food vending while monitoring burials in all areas affected by cholera after cases of the disease spiked this week. New cholera cases in the southern African country trebled from 437 to 1,259 this week, the biggest jump since the latest outbreak of the water-borne disease started in February. This has triggered panic in Zimbabwe, where more than 4,000 people died from cholera in 2008. To date, the country has recorded 155 deaths linked to cholera from 8,787 cases, according to the health ministry. The authorities declared a state of emergency in the…

Nov

26

2023

By NELLIE PEYTON and BHARGAV ACHARYA

Oscar Pistorius: from ‘Blade Runner’ hero to convicted murderer

NEWS

OSCAR Pistorius, known as the "Blade Runner" for his carbon-fibre prosthetic legs, was granted parole in January after he sought early release from prison where he is serving a more than 13-year sentence for killing his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp. Pistorius, a South African, went from public hero as a Paralympic champion to a convicted killer in hearings that drew worldwide attention nearly a decade ago. Below is a timeline of his life: 1986 - November 22 - Oscar Pistorius is born in Johannesburg. Born without fibulas, he has both legs amputated below the knees before turning one year old. Olympic and…