The US military confirmed that it has deployed armed drones in Niger earlier this year – as had long been suspected.
Niger granted permission for the deployment in November 2017, not long after a deadly ambush drew attention to the little-known US military presence in the West African country. But neither side had confirmed that armed drones had actually been put into use, Al-Jazeera reported.
Deployed to Niger’s Air Base 101 in the capital, Niamey, the drones are meant to “improve our combined ability to respond to threats and other security issues in the region,” Samantha Reho, spokeswoman for US Africa Command, told the Associated Press.
The US now has around 800 soldiers in Niger, where they accompany Nigerien troops on intelligence gathering and other missions. But the drone program could well prove controversial in Niger as it has in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Somalia and Yemen – where critics blame the remote-control strikes for hundreds of civilian casualties.
It’s been a whirlwind few months for Ethiopia and Eritrea after the election of 42-year-old Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed in April ushered in a rapprochement between these two feuding nations.
In just a few months, leaders of the two nations ended a state-of-war that had frozen diplomatic relations between them for almost two decades. Ambassadors have been appointed, political prisoners have been released and citizens of both nations are hopeful that years of isolation, poverty and repression have reached an end.
Both countries stand to benefit from rejuvenated relations, Quartz reported.
For Eritrea – sometimes called the “North Korea of Africa” – the reopening of its ports to Ethiopian trade means a windfall of lucrative investments. And for Ethiopia, long saddled with rebel movements on its border with Eritrea, détente means increased national security and confidence in its booming economy.
But both nations also face steep challenges.
Prime Minister Abiy is a young go-getter seen as a reformer and unifier. He’s the nation’s first Oromo prime minister, an ethnic group that comprises one-third of Ethiopians but often claims it’s repressed by other groups. But he isn’t well-liked by Ethiopia’s political and military elite, who see his reforms as a challenge to the status quo, the Wall Street Journal reported.
His moves to open up state-owned entities to private investment and usher in an era of civil liberty and electoral reform have already sparked criticism – and even violence. A subverted grenade attack at a rally in the capital Addis Ababa last month is speculated to have been an assassination attempt, the Washington Post reported.
Meanwhile in Eritrea, though leaders have pronounced an end to “hate, discrimination and conspiracy,” questions remain about how revived relations with Ethiopia will affect change on the national level, the Associated Press reported.
Since Eritrea gained independence from Ethiopia in the early 1990s, hundreds of thousands of its citizens have fled for Germany, Israel, the United States and elsewhere due to its oppressive government and strict system of indefinite military conscription.
Families in both countries have celebrated the opportunity to be reunited with loved ones.
Some refugees, however, told the AP that there’s still “no trust in the current regime” in Eritrea. They’re wary to leave safe havens in the West and elsewhere while the prospect of peace is still in flux.
Even so, many argue that the potential for peace outweighs any unknown economic, diplomatic, or border demarcation questions both nations face in the future.
“I have never been more hopeful about Ethiopia’s prospects,” Mohammed Ademo, an Ethiopian journalist in exile in the United States since 2002, wrote for Al Jazeera. “For now, my exile and longing for home have come to an end. I am glad that it coincided with this defining and pivotal moment of renewal for Ethiopia.”
No longer flavour of the month, SA rethinks its bus rapid transit systems: It seems government’s love affair with bus rapid transit (BRT) systems has cooled. Courted in the Brazilian city of Curutiba – it is difficult to find a local government transport executive who has not been there on a study tour – and sworn to fidelity in the pressure cooker years before the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa, once ardent fervour has now turned to discontent.
More than five years ago, French soldiers defeated Islamic militants in Mali, paving the way for the central government in Bamako to reassert control over the country.
But as Malians prepare for a presidential vote on Sunday, the jihadist threat remains real and violence along communal lines is metastasizing.
Jihadists have killed almost 300 people in the landlocked West African nation this year. Most of the deaths were related to fighting between Dozos, or traditional hunters, Dogon and Bambara farmers, and Fulani herders who are vying for the same land for water and grazing, reported Agence France-Presse, citing United Nations figures.
Al Jazeera noted that the Al Qaeda-affiliated Group for Support of Islam and Muslims, which has ties to the Fulani community, is among those perpetrating the violence. That group has been recruiting Malians and using the country as a launching pad for incursions into Burkina Faso and Niger, too.
On July 16, for example, gunmen killed 14 people in Menaka, a village in eastern Mali near the border with Niger. “The assailants came and opened fire on people,” Mayor Nanou Kotia told Reuters. “One truck and three other vehicles were burned.”
Attacks near the same village in April and May resulted in 50 deaths.
Worryingly, the attacks come despite the presence of troops from France, the US, the UN and a coalition that includes Mali and four neighboring countries. Rather than curbing the violence, these troops have themselves been targeted by jihadists, the Local explained.
Malian troops have also alienated local populations by cracking down on jihadists, wrote Caleb Weiss in FDD’s Long War Journal, a blog published by the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. That’s not good news.
“Jihadists can also exploit anti-government or anti-French sentiments which have been further exacerbated by the eye-for-an-eye killings which continue to take place in the Menaka region,” Weiss argued.
As for Sunday’s election, Britain-based online news platform African Arguments predicted low voter turnout and triumph for incumbent President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita, or “IBK” as he is called, resulting in little change.
The website pointed out how a French profile of IBK depicted him as a “‘do-nothing king,’ a bright but vain figure who sleeps in late, keeps dubious company, and makes fine speeches while assiduously avoiding decisive action.”
But IBK must do something. The UN has sounded alarms over 1 million people in Mali who need emergency food aid and 4.3 million people who face food insecurity this summer and early fall, Africanews reported.
Earth to IBK: Governing is often described as a choice between guns and butter. Mali needs both.
China and India have been doling out money to win allies in Africa ahead of this week’s summit of the emerging economies dubbed the “BRICS” group.
On Tuesday, Chinese President Xi Jinping pledged $14.7 billion to South Africa, while Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that Uganda would receive $200 million, CNBC reported, noting that China has a much larger presence on the continent.
The Chinese cash will help South African President Cyril Ramaphosa make progress toward his goal of raising $100 billion in foreign investment to reboot the country’s lagging economy – with $2.8 billion going to South Africa’s primary state utility Eskom. India’s investment is slated to help Uganda develop its dominant agricultural sector and electricity distribution infrastructure, the news channel said. Xi and Modi also visited Rwanda to offer similar, though smaller, loan packages this week.
The grouping of five major emerging economies — Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa – has added significance this year amid the US assault on multilateral trade mechanisms and China’s trade practices, in particular, said India’s FirstPost.com.
Perpetual civil war has often seemed to be the fate of the people of South Sudan, where cease-fires and agreements come and go and the fighting grows ever more brutal.
Another such deal is on the anvil this month, with the warring factions representing President Salva Kiir and rebel leader Riek Machar agreeing to a permanent cease-fire and claiming to be on the brink of signing a power-sharing deal to end the war altogether, the National reported.
But the peace talks have been marred by the release of a United Nations report accusing Kiir’s government troops of alleged war crimes, Al-Jazeera said.
The UN human rights office (OHCHR) and the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) documented at least 232 civilian deaths and many more injuries between April 16 and May 24 in attacks by government-backed troops and armed youth on 40 villages in the opposition-held areas of Mayendit and Leer counties. At least 120 women and girls were raped or gang-raped, and at least 132 other women and girls were also abducted.
The testimony of the survivors drove home how brutal the conflict has become.
“How can I forget the sight of an old man whose throat was slit with a knife before being set on fire?” the BBC quoted a 14-year-old survivor as saying. “How can I forget the smell of those decomposed bodies of old men and children pecked and eaten by birds? Those women that were hanged and died up in the tree?”
Another woman testified that soldiers raped her while she was still bleeding from childbirth, but she was too frightened to resist because she’d seen what happened to other women who did so.
“There must be consequences for the men who reportedly gang-raped a six-year-old child, who slit the throats of elderly villagers, who hanged women for resisting looting, and shot fleeing civilians in the swamps where they hid,” Zeid Ra’ad al-Hussein, the UN high commissioner for human rights, said in a statement.
But such accountability is likely to be elusive until a lasting peace is established. And past experience suggests that any optimism should include a healthy dose of caution.
The latest round of talks, brokered by Uganda and Sudan, have been underway since June. On July 7, the two sides appeared to have reached a power-sharing deal under which Machar would join the government as Kiir’s vice president. But the rebels swiftly rejected the deal, claiming it didn’t dilute Kiir’s stranglehold on the real power. Ten days later, mediators in Sudan again said the parties were ready to ink a “preliminary” agreement by July 19 and a “final power-sharing accord” July 26. On Wednesday, South Sudan’s information minister, Michael Makuei Lueth, said the two leaders had initialed such a deal in Khartoum and they’d sign the final one Aug. 5, the Associated Press reported.
However, at least nine cease-fire agreements have been signed since the war began, the Economist reported. Only one has lasted longer than a month. Moreover, the new power-sharing deal is all but identical to one that was supposed to end the fighting in 2015.
That one ended in a shootout at the presidential palace.
A tourist takes a photograph of the rainbow over Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe, where the number of tourists jumped by nearly 50 percent in the first quarter of tis year (AFP Photo/Zinyange AUNTONY)
Victoria Falls (Zimbabwe) (AFP) - After nearly two decades in the doldrums, Zimbabwe's tourism sector is enjoying a rebound, with visitors returning in droves to see the majestic Victoria Falls and explore unspoilt safari reserves.
The number of foreign visitors to Victoria Falls, the southern African country's flagship destination, jumped nearly 50 percent in the first quarter of this year compared with the same period in 2017, the tourism minister says.
Countrywide, arrivals rose by 15 percent to 554,417, according to treasury statistics.
Political and economic turmoil under longtime autocratic ruler Robert Mugabe had wrecked the sector, but authorities and tourism operators now believe the industry has a new lease of life.
Mugabe was ousted in November after a 37-year repressive rule during which tourists shunned the country, fearful of police demanding bribes, crumbling infrastructure and scarce fuel.
Cash was also in short supply from 2009, when hyperinflation forced Zimbabwe to abandon its own currency in favour of the US dollar.
- 'Good vibes' -
"We were in a closed period for a long time," admitted Tourism Minister Priscah Mupfumira, speaking ahead of key elections on July 30. "We closed ourselves in, doors were locked."
Since Emmerson Mnangagwa took over as president from Mugabe in a de facto coup last year, "we are poised for growth," the minister told AFP.
"There are good vibes from the industry and from the international world --- everybody is so positive," she said.
With Zimbabwe's economy still in tatters, an influx of tourists is expected to help bring in desperately needed revenue, with the sector already contributing around 10 percent to GDP.
"It's a key pillar to our economy and a low-hanging fruit -- we just have to get our act together," Mupfumira said.
But visiting Zimbabwe is generally more expensive compared with neighbouring countries.
"It is not a cheap holiday," said Ilan Wiesenbacher, a restaurateur in Victoria Falls, where the Zambezi River plunges over a gorge and raises a mist that can be seen more than 20 kilometres (12 miles) away.
"We have seen a steady rise in numbers," said Wiesenbacher, manager at the Three Monkeys restaurant. "There is a general good feeling around Zimbabwe and tourism."
Even in the traditional low season from January to March, craft beer brewer Jake Le Breton had more glasses to fill at his River Brewing Company bar in Victoria Falls.
"We have just come out of a quiet season... (but) it was a busy time with a higher number of tourists than we have seen in previous years," said Le Breton, adding that local hotels have been fully booked.
"The general sense in this country, especially from a tourist, is one of anticipation, one of excitement."
Lloyd Machaka, who operates Chikopokopo Flights helicopter tours over the Victoria Falls, has also seen more visitors from Malawi and the southern African region.
"Hopefully we will have more investors coming in to build more hotels, bigger hotels. We want more airlines coming here," said Machaka, standing by one of his helicopters.
- Fresh start? -
Kenya Airways and Ethiopian Airlines now fly direct to Victoria Falls's smart new airport.
"I feel very safe, the people are welcoming. Getting the visa was really easy," said Canadian tourist Katelyn Pretzlaff.
French tourist Patrice Lehmann, who was visiting the Victoria Falls for the third time, said: "It's one of the most impressive things I have seen in my life."
Zimbabwe has also removed the notorious police roadblocks that had become a constant annoyance for motorists. Typically, drivers reluctantly paid bribes to evade long questioning over minor alleged offences.
"The issue of roadblocks -- it was a disaster, a real problem," the minister admitted.
Authorities have launched an aggressive drive to "reassure the world that Zimbabwe is open for business, Zimbabwe is a safe, peaceful tourist destination," Mupfumira said.
Alongside "Vic Falls", the country's highlights include Lake Kariba, the vast game-filled national parks of Hwange and Mana Pools and the Eastern Highlands mountains.
Mnangagwa, a former ally of Mugabe, has vowed to hold a clean election next week as proof of the country's fresh start, but many critics say the same ZANU-PF party chiefs still call the shots.
Mnangagwa is the favourite to win, but any dispute or violence over a close result could spell a return to instability.
Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s chief of staff said Sunday that the country must pursue a true multi-party democracy, suggesting that Abiy’s Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front will further loosen its grip on power amid a series of sweeping democratic reforms.
“PM Abiy concluded: Given our current politics, there is no option except pursuing a multi-party democracy supported by strong institutions that respect human rights and rule of law,” Reuters quoted Abiy’s chief of staff, Fitsum Arega as saying.
Apart from making peace with neighboring Eritrea, since taking office in April Abiy has released political prisoners and reduced the state’s control over the economy. This month, his government lifted a ban on opposition groups that were considered terrorists.
In theory, the country’s constitution already allows multiple political parties but the Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front has kept a tight stranglehold on power since it won control over the country in 1991.
Listed contractors feeling the pinch as construction sector dynamics change: A change in dynamics within the construction industry over the past few years is leading to the demise of the “big contractor” in South Africa. With the first potential “casualty” possibly being seen in the downward spiral of Basil Read, Industry Insight senior economist David Metelerkamp on Wednesday said the past few years had seen the grip of South Africa’s large, listed construction firms on the construction market steadily eroding in a sector that was already facing tough times.
Mandela centenary commemorated with banknotes and R5 coin: To commemorate late Statesman Nelson Mandela’s centenary, the South African Reserve Bank has launched commemorative banknotes and a R5 coin into circulation, depicting the most significant occasions in Mandela’s life. Marleny Arnoldi attended the launch.
For the first time, Zimbabweans will vote this month on a presidential ballot that does not include ex-president Robert Mugabe.
Mugabe, who turned 94 this year, was ousted from office in November after ruling for 37 years.
The campaign has been more open than past elections. The Globe and Mail noted how opposition politicians were allowed to broadcast their election manifestos, live and uncensored. Voters had never seen such openness. NPR detailed how activists were returning from abroad to build up their country’s democracy.
Don’t think everything is necessarily changing for the better in the southern African country, however.
“The dictator may be gone, but his machinery of repression is alive and well,” wrote Zimbabwean opposition politician and former finance minister Tendai Biti in a Washington Post opinion column.
A military coup brought incumbent President Emmerson Mnangagwa into office. He was Mugabe’s right-hand man, nicknamed the “crocodile” because of his “ruthless cunning,” according to the Guardian.
Like his mentor, Mnangagwa routinely targets political opponents and dissidents with “state-sponsored intimidation, imprisonment and torture,” Biti claimed. He also alleged that Mnangagwa had massacred ethnic groups, pilfered state assets, and perpetrated other crimes against his people.
That could be one reason behind a bombing on June 23 during a campaign rally where Mnangagwa was speaking. The Guardian ran a striking video of the incident, which state media have described as an assassination attempt. Two people died. More than 40 were injured.
The BBC reported that Mnangagwa has blamed supporters of Grace Mugabe, the ex-president’s wife, for the blast. Before the coup, the former first lady was suspected of wielding too much influence and jockeying to succeed her husband.
But Jonathan Moyo, a former minister of higher education and an ally of Grace Mugabe, tweeted that the explosion looked like an “inside job”. That conclusion is not so crazy, given how such attacks often divert attention from leaders’ human-rights abuses and instill patriotism and support among the undecided.
Mnangagwa’s main rival, Nelson Chamisa, feared the explosion would give the president cover to steal the election.
“We know that they would also want to use that as a pretext to clamp down on the opposition, they would want to use it to start targeting certain individuals, certain candidates that they perceive to be their credible opposition,” Chamisa told Reuters.
Mnangagwa is walking a fine line. He’s likely to win. He’s also inclined to crack down on dissent. But he needs the election to run smoothly if he wants to prove to the world that Zimbabwe is no longer a dictatorship and deserves foreign investment.
For the sake of his constituents, many hope he understands that.
Johannesburg came out as second-most expensive for the millennial lifestyle in 2018 among 11 cities in the world ranked by Swiss investment bank and financial services company UBS.
The study compared how much a "typical millennial shopping basket" costs around the world. The 11 cities in the study are Johannesburg, New York, Paris, London, Zurich, Dubai, Hong Kong, Moscow, Bangkok, Buenos Aires and Toronto.
“Millennial must-haves” in 2018 the study considered include an iPhone, a laptop, a pair of jeans, a pair of sneakers, a Netflix subscription, a cup of coffee, a Big Mac burger as a late-night craving and avocados - for their favourite avocado toast meal.
Avocados in Johannesburg are the fifth most expensive among the 11 cities surveyed, while a Big Mac came in second cheapest among the cities. A cup of coffee is the cheapest in Johannesburg.
Jeans were found to be the third cheapest among the 11 cities, while sneakers (tekkies) are by far the cheapest - almost a third of the price in Moscow, for example.
An iPhone, however, will cost you the second most in Johannesburg among the 11 cities, the same is true for a Notebook which is almost the same as the most expensive city for this product, Moscow.
Lastly, Netflix in Johannesburg is the fifth most expensive. It costs the same as in New York and Dubai.
One of the world's most expensive cities, Hong Kong, was actually found in the study to be the cheapest for the millennial lifestyle.
"Hong Kong turns out to be the millennial place to be," the report states.
Buenos Aires in Argentina was found to be the most expensive city on the list - although avocados are a bargain there.
In an overall comparison of 77 cities in the world - not just for the millennial lifestyle - Johannesburg was ranked 53rd on a price level, 51st on the earning level and 43rd on the purchasing power level.
The report states that Johannesburg has been undergoing rapid change, with new office and apartment developments springing up across the city.
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