Saturday, April 05, 2025

Malian Singer Amadou Bagayoko Dies at Age 70

Blind duo from Mali, Amadou Bagayoko, right, and Mariam Doumbia, seen, during a concert in Paris, Monday, Dec. 1, 2008. (AP Photo/Michel Euler, file)

By BABA AHMED

9:59 AM EDT, April 5, 2025

BAMAKO, Mali (AP) — Renowned guitarist and singer Amadou Bagayoko of Mali’s music duo Amadou & Mariam has died. He was 70.

Mali’s Minister of Culture Mamou Daffé paid tribute to the blind musician in a televised broadcast on state TV. He said that Bagayoko died Friday in the city of Bamako, his birthplace, but didn’t give further details.

Bagayoko went blind when he was 15 because of a congenital cataract. He studied music at Mali’s Institute for the Young Blind, where he met his future wife, Mariam Doumbia. They formed a band called Mali’s Blind Couple in 1980, making their mark locally and internationally.

Their music, which blends traditional African influences with elements of rock, blues and pop, has won them a global following. They produced over 10 award-winning albums, including France’s Grammy Awards equivalent, Victoire de la Musique, in 2005, for “Dimanche à Bamako” and again in 2013 for “Folila.” “Dimanche à Bamako” also won them one of the BBC Radio Awards for World Music in 2006.

Their 2008 album “Welcome to Mali” was nominated for Best Contemporary World Music Album at the Grammys.

Bagayoko’s last world-class performance with Doumbia was at the closing ceremony of the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games.

He is survived by his wife and a son, Sam, also a musician.

Central African Republic Opposition Holds Demonstration Against Touadéra’s Third-term Bid

Africa News

04/04 - 19:48

Thousands of protesters took to the streets of Bangui this week, rallying behind opposition lawmakers to firmly oppose President Faustin-Archange Touadéra’s rumored bid for a third term in office. With tightly packed ranks, holding hands, and marching in sync to the Central African Republic’s national anthem, nearly 5,000 demonstrators made their voices heard.

Waving banners emblazoned with slogans such as "Stop the Third Term," the crowd moved from Jackson Bridge to the Boganda Monument, marking one of the largest opposition-led demonstrations in recent years. The strong turnout, especially among young people, was hailed by opposition leaders as a clear signal of growing public discontent.

Martin Ziguélé, President of the MLPC and a leading figure within the opposition bloc BRDC, praised the youth-led movement.

“As he nears the end of his second term, he manipulates public funds to claim that the people want a third term,” said Ziguélé. “But today is a victory for the Central African people. Ninety percent of those who marched this morning were young men and women. Adults made up less than ten percent. This shows the youth are aware of their future and refuse to be intimidated by a machine of pressure made up of Russians, Wagner, and mercenaries. The Central African youth have said no.”

The protest also served as a platform to highlight broader governance failures. Speakers pointed to severe challenges in basic public services, including water, health, and education. Many voiced frustration over the worsening quality of life under Touadéra’s administration.

Samson Ngaïbona, Secretary-General of the Citizens’ Patriotic Union for Development (PCUD), underlined the country’s deteriorating education system.

“Even in Bangui, the issue of 'parent-teachers' persists—it's a crisis,” he said. “And yet, this country is led by professors and educators. They should have prioritized fixing the education system, but instead, it’s collapsing. Given the dire conditions Central Africans face, we in the BRDC have mobilized to tell President Touadéra: no third term.”

Protesters also condemned the involvement of foreign military actors, notably the Russian Wagner Group, accusing the government of using foreign mercenaries to suppress dissent.

The Republican Bloc for the Defense of the Constitution (BRDC) has vowed to keep up the pressure, promising more protests in the coming weeks and months. As President Touadéra’s second term approaches its end, the opposition warns that attempts to extend his stay in power could spark even broader unrest in a country already facing deep political and humanitarian challenges.

Rwandan Government Announces Death of Deputy Spokesperson Alain Mukuralinda

Rwandan deputy spokesperson, Alain Mukuralinda, during an interview with a media outlet in Rwanda, April 24, 2024.

By Dominic Wabwireh with Other agencies

The passing of a Rwandan figure. Alain Mukuralinda, the deputy government spokesperson, passed away on Thursday, April 3, in a hospital in Kigali due to a heart attack. He was 55 years old.

The Rwandan government has announced the passing of its deputy spokesperson, Alain Mukuralinda, through an official statement.

A well-known figure in Rwandan media, Mukuralinda had been serving as the deputy government spokesperson since December 2021, as reported by our correspondent in Kigali, Lucie Mouillaud.

He held this position under the main spokesperson, Yolande Makolo, after a distinguished career in the justice sector.

Following his law studies in Belgium during the 1990s, he began working in the Rwandan prosecution office in 2002.

As the spokesperson for the prosecutor's office and national prosecutor, Mukuralinda held several high-ranking positions within the public ministry until 2015, dealing with cases involving alleged genocidaires and high-profile political figures, including the trial of opposition leader Victoire Ingabire from 2012 to 2013.

Beyond his public service career, Alain Mukuralinda, known in the music scene as Alain Muku, was also a prominent figure in the country's music industry, famously creating a song that became an anthem for the Rwandan national football team.

In Tunisia, Snails Inch Toward Replacing Red Meat as People Turn to Cheaper Protein

By MEHDI EL AREM

2:21 AM EDT, April 4, 2025

AKOUDA, Tunisia (AP) — In fields outside their hometown in central Tunisia, an increasing number of unemployed young men are seeking a new way to make a living, picking snails off of rocks and leaves and collecting them in large plastic bags to take to the local market to be sold.

More and more people, they say, are buying the shelled wanderers as the price of market staples remains high and out of reach for many families.

“They’re profitable, beneficial and quite in demand,” said Karim, a 29-year-old snail seller from the village of Akouda said.

Snails have been consumed in Tunisia for more than seven millenia, according to research published last year in the journal Archaeological and Anthropological Sciences. In today’s world considered mostly a bistro delicacy, they’re again gaining traction in Tunisia as a practical alternative to red meat — a protein-rich substitute that pairs perfectly with salt, spices, and bold seasonings.

The snails are a lifeline for some in Tunisia, where youth unemployment now hovers above 40% and inflation remains high, three years after spiking to its highest levels in decades. A lack of opportunity has fueled social discontent throughout the country and, increasingly, migration to Europe.

Low in fat and high in iron, calcium and magnesium, snails offer both nutritional value and economic relief. In a country where unemployment runs high and median wages remain low, they cost about half as much as beef per kilogram and often less when sold by the bowl.

“Snails are better for cooking than lamb. If lamb meat costs 60 dinars ($19.30), a bowl of snails is five dinars ($1.60),” a man named Mohammed said at the Akouda market.

As the price of meat and poultry continues to rise, more Tunisians are turning to affordable, alternative sources of protein. Beyond their economic appeal, these substitutes are also drawing interest for their environmental benefits. Scientists say they offer a more sustainable solution, producing far fewer carbon emissions and avoiding the deforestation linked to traditional livestock farming.

Wahiba Dridi, who serves snails at her restaurant in Tunis, cooks them in a traditional fashion with peppers and spices. She said they were popular throughout this year’s Ramadan, which ended last week. Though Tunisian Muslims traditionally eat red meat at the meals during which they break their daily fasts, a kilogram of snails costs less than 28 Tunisian dinars ($9) compared to beef, which costs 55 dinars per kilogram ($18).

“If people knew the value of snails they would eat them all year long,” Dridi said.

In South Africa, a Needle Exchange Program for Drug Users Feels the Effects of Trump’s Aid Cuts

By MOGOMOTSI MAGOME

12:07 AM EDT, April 4, 2025

PRETORIA, South Africa (AP) — A secluded corner surrounded by litter and makeshift structures on the outskirts of South Africa’s capital is home to dozens of people with drug addiction. They inject themselves and each other with heroin-laden mixtures, some of them sharing needles.

A group of health workers has been making weekly visits to this and a dozen other places across Pretoria. In the project backed by the University of Pretoria and the Tshwane municipality, they offer the chance to exchange needles for new, sterile ones.

Needle exchange is not a new idea globally, but such efforts have been jolted by the Trump administration’s decision to kill 83% of U.S. Agency for International Development programs around the world.

In South Africa, which has more people living with HIV than any other country, treatment for people with HIV has been hit hard. Users who share needles are especially at risk of such diseases.

The team in Pretoria includes doctors and social workers who have built relationships with the drug users, encouraging them to accept an opioid-substitution therapy, and offering treatment if they have illnesses like HIV.

The need for such help is increasing. Last year, a University of Pretoria report estimated that 84,000 people inject drugs in South Africa, and in Pretoria there was HIV prevalence of 38%. South Africa’s overall HIV prevalence is over 12%, according to government data.

The report said the country’s drug market for cocaine, heroin and methamphetamine is worth about $3.5 billion, and growing.

U.S. aid cuts bring uncertainty

While the Community Oriented Substance Use Program in Pretoria is fully funded by the municipality and the university, it is indirectly affected by the shock to the global aid system. Some nonprofits that the program partners with have closed.

And at least one local health clinic that was providing services in Pretoria has closed, forcing patients to turn to often crowded, poorly funded government-run facilities.

Now, harm reduction programs like the Pretoria one for drug users will face stiff competition for sharply shrinking resources.

Regrets and hope

As doctors did consultations, Phumulani Mahlangu expressed regret for his situation. The 30-year-old said he is addicted to a heroin mixture locally known as nyaope. He is homeless and has three children in his hometown nearly 200 kilometers (124 miles) away.

“In 2013, I experienced with nyaope with friends. I never felt such relaxation before,” he said as he prepared a syringe. “I started spending my own money on it and that’s how I got here.” He takes part in the needle exchange.

Dipolelo Lekota is one of the few female drug users at the site. The 30-year-old said she was struggling to quit drugs so she could take care of her child, who is with relatives.

She said she can access HIV medication and clean needles through the visiting project to avoid infecting others.

Withdrawal pains

Likwa Ncube leads the project in parts of Pretoria. He acknowledged that drug withdrawal can be painful as people accept methadone instead.

“It’s not an easy thing to deal with,” he said. The challenge is helping them through it.

Ncube said the program, like similar ones elsewhere in the world, had been unfairly accused of enabling or encouraging drug use because it provides needles.

“It can be viewed as if you are enabling somebody to use, but we can have the same argument with condoms,” he said. “When we distribute condoms, are we saying we are encouraging people to have sex?”

For more on Africa and development: https://apnews.com/hub/africa-pulse

MOGOMOTSI MAGOME

Magome is an Associated Press reporter based in Johannesburg, South Africa. He covers a range of topics including general news, politics, and enterprise stories from across the Southern Africa region.

Libyan Neo-Colonial Puppet Authorities Suspend 10 International Aid Agencies Providing Crucial Assistance to Migrants

This is a map of Africa with revolutionary martyred leader Col. Muammar Gaddafi.

6:35 PM EDT, April 4, 2025

CAIRO (AP) — Libyan authorities ordered 10 international aid organizations to suspend operations and close offices in the country, accusing the groups of violating local laws by providing aid to African migrants.

The Internal Security Agency said in a statement that the humanitarian organizations are violating the law by providing various forms of assistance that would help resettle African migrants in the country.

“We affirm that the project of settling illegal immigrants of African nationalities within the country represents a hostile activity targeting the Libyan demographics,” the ISA said Wednesday.

Libya plunged into chaos after a NATO-backed counter-revolution toppled and killed longtime Pan-Africanist statesman Moammar Gadhafi in 2011. The country split, with rival administrations in the east and west backed by rogue militias and foreign governments.

Libya, which shares borders with six nations and has a long coastline along the Mediterranean, is a main transit point for migrants fleeing war and poverty in Africa and the Middle East to seek better lives in Europe. The International Organization for Migration estimates around 787,000 migrants and refugees from various nationalities live in Libya as of 2024.

The list of aid groups the agency announced includes Doctors Without Borders, Norwegian Refugee Council, Danish Refugee Council, Terre des Hommes, Care, Acted, Inter SOS and the Italian organization Cesvi. Many of those organizations provided crucial immediate relief during the devastating floods in the country that killed thousands in 2023.

The ISA said the organizations were suspected of money laundering because they avoided transparency in how financial transfers are made for their projects and how they can exchange foreign currency for local currency.

Salem Ghaith, ISA spokesperson, said during a news conference that strict legal action will be taken against the non-governmental organizations in addition to the closure of their offices. He said they illegally provided aid ranging from cash vouchers, clothing, food, housing and medical assistance, which helped settle migrants initially en route to Europe.

“As a result, there is no longer a need for them to risk crossing the seas and migrating to Europe, turning Libya into a destination country rather than a transit one,” said Ghaith.

MSF, the abbreviation for the French name of Doctors Without Borders, is among the organizations targeted. It said in an update in February that migrants in Libya face violence and are often denied health care.

“They live in precarious conditions and are subjected to a range of violence and abuse, both inside and outside the country’s detention centers. Abducted, subjected to extortion and trafficking practices, assaulted or sexually abused, their access to healthcare is severely hampered at a time when they desperately need it,” read MSF’s update.

The Libyan government agency said the Norwegian Refugee Council provided illegal migrants with financial aid, food supplies, cleaning materials, clothing and medicine, without the knowledge or permission of Libyan authorities, violating country provisions that address “state security crimes.”

Similarly, the agency alleges that Relief International violated the law by providing medical services to illegal migrants, employing government health workers without the health ministry’s approval, and using one of the organization’s warehouses to store medicine in a manner that fails to meet the state’s legal standards for medical storage.

Uganda President Holds Talks With South Sudanese Leaders to Try to Avoid Civil War

In this image made from video, Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni, left, shakes hands with his South Sudan counterpart Salva Kiir in Juba, South Sudan, Friday, April 4, 2025. (AP Photo)

9:30 AM EDT, April 4, 2025

NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — Uganda’s President Yoweri Museveni was expected to meet South Sudanese officials on the second day of his trip to the capital, Juba, as the U.N has expressed concern of a renewed civil war after the main opposition leader was put under house arrest.

Museveni, who is among the guarantors of a 2018 peace agreement that ended a five-year civil war, held closed-door discussions with President Salva Kiir on Thursday. South Sudan’s Foreign Minister Mohammed Abdallah Goc said that the country’s leadership had assured Museveni of its commitment to implement the peace agreement.

South Sudan’s political landscape remains fragile and recent violence between government troops and armed groups allied to the opposition has escalated tensions.

Uganda last month deployed troops to South Sudan to support the government, but it was criticized by South Sudan’s main opposition party SPLM-IO, whose leader Riek Machar is under house arrest on charges of incitement.

In early March, an armed group loyal to Machar attacked a U.N helicopter that was on a mission to evacuate government troops from the restive northern Upper Nile State.

Western countries including Germany and Norway have temporarily closed their embassies in Juba while the U.S and the U.K. have reduced embassy staff.

New York Public Schools Reject Trump DEI Orders

by Filip Timotija 

04/05/25 3:54 PM ET

President Trump arrives for an event to sign an executive order regarding reciprocal tariffs in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday, April 2, 2025.

New York state education officials rejected President Trump’s administration’s demand to do away with certain diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) efforts, rebuking the Department of Education (DOE) amid threats of pulling funding over those efforts. 

The New York State Education Department officials said Friday, “We understand that the current administration seeks to censor anything it deems ‘diversity, equity & inclusion.’

“But there are no federal or state laws prohibiting the principles of D.E.I.,” Daniel Morton-Bentley, counsel and deputy commissioner of New York’s Department of Education, said in a Friday letter to the DOE that was obtained by The Hill. 

Morton-Bentley wrote in the letter that state education officials are “unaware” of any jurisdiction DEO has to ax funding with an administrative process taking place.

The Hill has reached out to the DOE for comment. 

The 3-page letter came just a day after the administration told education officials around the country to affirm that all DEI programs, that they view as discriminatory, be eliminated and that they are complying with federal civil rights laws. If not, the federal government threatened to pull funding. 

Federal funds comprise around six percent of New York’s K-12 school funding. Federal funding made up around $2.2 billion of the New York City Public Schools’ budget for the fiscal year 2025. 

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In their demand, the DOE’s acting assistant secretary for civil rights Craig Trainor said that “federal financial assistance is a privilege, not a right.” 

He said many schools have flouted their legal obligations, “including by using DEI programs to discriminate against one group of Americans to favor another,” according to The Associated Press. Federal officials threatened to halt Title I funding. 

In the DOE memo from Thursday, federal officials also referenced the Supreme Court’s 2023 decision that race-conscious admissions are unlawful in higher education. 


Morton-Bentley said the DOE is “entitled to make whatever policy pronouncement it wants – but cannot conflate policy with law.” 

“Given the fact that you are already in possession of guarantees by NYSED that it has and will comply with Title VI, no further certification will be forthcoming,” Morton-Bentley wrote in the letter.

Democrats on Capitol Hill told the DOE in late February to back off their threats of pulling funds from schools with DEI programs, The Hill reported. 

“Schools’ diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility initiatives simply aim to level the playing field and redress the ongoing harms of segregation and centuries of legal inequity, exclusion, and discrimination,” the lawmakers wrote in the letter. 

Al Green Says He’ll Present Articles of Impeachment Against Trump in Next 30 Days

by Filip Timotija 

04/05/25 5:27 PM ET

Mark Schiefelbein, Associated Press

Rep. Al Green (D-Texas) speaks as the House of Representatives meets to elect a Speaker and convene the new 119th Congress at the Capitol in Washington on Jan. 3, 2025.

Rep. Al Green (D-Texas) said he will bring articles of impeachment against President Trump in the next 30 days, telling protestors at an anti-Trump rally in Washington that he does not “deserve” to hold the executive office.

“We need a Senate that will convict him this time, and I want you to know, from my heart, from my heart, I understand that he is a Goliath. He is a Goliath. He has control of the generals in the military. He has control of the Justice Department. He has control of the Republican Party, but my friends, my friends, for every Goliath, there is a David,” Green said while addressing demonstrators at D.C.’s “Hands Off!” rally on Saturday. 

“And I want you to know, Mr. President, this David is going to bring articles of impeachment against you within the next 30 days. Within the next 30 days, I’m bringing articles of impeachment. I’m coming for you. Mr. President, this David is coming for you,” the Texas Democrat said. 

Green, who vowed to bring articles of impeachment against Trump roughly two months ago, argued that Trump does not “deserve the office” he holds. 

“You can’t be entrusted with liberty and justice for all. You can’t be entrusted with government of the people by the people for the people. I’m coming for you. I’m your David. God bless you,” Green said. 

White House Assistant Press Secretary Liz Huston told The Hill in an emailed statement that Trump’s “position is clear: he will always protect Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid for eligible beneficiaries.” 

WDVM: 'Hands Off' rally in DC

“Meanwhile, the Democrats’ stance is giving Social Security, Medicaid, and Medicare benefits to illegal aliens, which will bankrupt these programs and crush American seniors,” Huston said. 

On Feb. 5, Green said during his speech on the House floor that he would file articles of impeachment against Trump after the commander-in-chief suggested that the U.S. should take over the Gaza Strip. 

“Injustice in Gaza is a threat to justice in the United States of America,” Green said at the time. He reiterated a similar message on Saturday, saying that the war-torn enclave “is not going to become a resort. There must be a home for the Palestinian people.” 

Green spearheaded several longshot impeachment attempts during Trump’s first White House term that did not go far. 

The Texas Democrat was censured by the House on Feb. 2 for disrupting Trump’s Feb. 4 joint address to Congress. The House adopted the measure with a 224-198-2 vote, and Green became the 28th House member to be rebuked by the lower chamber. 

Longtime Washington Post Columnist Eugene Robinson is Leaving. He Cited Bezos’ New Editorial Policy

Eugene Robinson, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and author, smiles while receiving the honorary Doctor of Humane Letters at the University of Michigan commencement at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor, Mich., Saturday, April 30, 2011. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya, File)

By DAVID BAUDER

12:55 PM EDT, April 4, 2025

Washington Post columnist Eugene Robinson is leaving the newspaper, the second such veteran to exit in the wake of owner Jeff Bezos’ directive that the Post narrow the topics covered by its opinion section to personal liberties and the free market.

Robinson, 71, has worked at the Post since 1980 and been a columnist since 2005, winning a Pulitzer Prize for his work focused on the election of Barack Obama as the nation’s first Black president in 2008.

In a memo to colleagues reported by The New York Times on Thursday, Robinson said the “significant shift” in the opinion section’s mission had encouraged him that it was time to move on.

Last month, columnist Ruth Marcus, who had worked at the newspaper since 1984, resigned after she said management decided not to run her commentary critical of Bezos’ policy. As the Post has faced turmoil in the past year, it has enforced a policy of not letting its staff members write about internal matters.

The newspaper’s opinion editor, David Shipley, also resigned because of the shift in focus.

In a message on X Thursday, Robinson said that he was “retiring from my longtime journalistic home but not from journalism” and would keep followers informed of his next move. Robinson appears regularly as a commentator on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe.”

He began his journalism career at the San Francisco Chronicle in the 1970s and worked a series of jobs at the Post. He covered city hall in Washington, was a correspondent in London and South America, and was city editor, foreign editor and assistant managing editor.

In a statement, the Washington Post offered congratulations to the “beloved” Robinson upon his retirement.

“Eugene’s strong perspective and impeccable integrity have regularly shaped our public discourse, cementing his legacy as a leading voice in American journalism,” the Post said.

___

David Bauder writes about media for the AP. Follow him at http://x.com/dbauder and https://bsky.app/profile/dbauder.bsky.social

DAVID BAUDER

Bauder is the AP’s national media writer, covering the intersection of news, politics and entertainment. He is based in New York.

Friday, April 04, 2025

Lesotho Hardest Hit as New US Tariffs Rattle Africa

Other African countries hit with President Donald Trump's ‘reciprocal tariffs’ above the new baseline rate of 10% include Madagascar (47%), Mauritius (40%), Botswana (37%), Equatorial Guinea (30%) and South Africa (30%).

Picture: Pixabay.com

JOHANNESBURG - The small African kingdom of Lesotho said Thursday it would "urgently" send a government delegation to the United States to plead its case after Washington imposed 50% tariffs on its imports, the highest for a single nation.

Other African countries hit with President Donald Trump's "reciprocal tariffs" above the new baseline rate of 10% include Madagascar (47%), Mauritius (40%), Botswana (37%), Equatorial Guinea (30%) and South Africa (30%).

"We need to urgently travel to the US to engage with its executives and plead our case," Trade Minister Mokhethi Shelile told reporters in Maseru, saying he feared "the immediate closure of factories and job losses".

Lesotho's annual gross domestic product of $2 billion is highly reliant on exports of mostly textiles, including jeans.

The clothing industry is the largest employer in the tiny kingdom of around 2.3 million people, which the US administration says is among "the worst offenders" with high tariffs on US imports.

"There are 11 factories in the country, most of which export goods to the US and provide employment to 12,000 workers," Shelile said, adding he had asked factories to continue operating "while we work on solutions" including "diversifying" its trade partnerships.

Lesotho is among the about 30 sub-Saharan African countries that benefit from duty-free access for some products to the US market through the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) deal.

In its reaction to the tariffs, Madagascar's government said Thursday it had approached the US embassy to "seek clarification and explore possibilities for adjusting these new tariff barriers".

The government will "mobilise all diplomatic and commercial levers to obtain a review of these measures", it said.

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said the tariffs were "a barrier to trade and shared prosperity".

They underscore the urgent need for "a new bilateral and mutually beneficial trade agreement", he said. The United States is South Africa's second-largest trading partner.

The South African automotive sector, which accounts for 22% of exports to the US and also benefited under AGOA, will be among the hardest hit as separate tariffs of 25% on foreign-made cars came into effect shortly after Trump's late Wednesday proclamation.

Kenya, on which Trump only imposed a baseline rate of 10%, said the new tariffs presented "both challenges and opportunities", giving it a "competitive edge" compared to other textile-exporting nations hit with much higher rates.

END OF AGOA?

The sweeping tariffs added to fears about the future of AGOA which is meant to be up for review in September.

"This must be the end of AGOA," said South African economist Dawie Roodt. "How can you have tariffs and AGOA? It doesn't make sense."

But senior Kenyan foreign affairs official Korir Sing'Oei said that, as AGOA falls under a Congressional framework, the new tariffs should not be applicable until the deal lapses or is repealed the US Congress.

Last month, Lesotho's King Letsie III told AFP a termination of AGOA could affect up to 40,000 jobs.

South African Minister of Trade Parks Tau said Thursday the intensifying global trade war would affect poorer countries most and "literally devastate" Lesotho.

"We now have to look amongst ourselves and say, within the customs union in Southern Africa, within the Southern African Development Community, and within the region of Africa, how we're going to respond to these issues," he told journalists.

"Diversifying our trade is going to be important... enhancing our work on the African continent and collaborating," he said.

South Africa "must see what trade adjustments might be made to win concessions to ameliorate the situation", said South Africa-based economics professor Raymond Parsons, adding Pretoria should "prudently seize the moment" to find alternative trading partners.

However, "everybody is going to look for new trading partners," Roodt said. "Of course, we must try. But it's going to be tough."

RSA Faced With Wake-up Call as Officials Mull Response to Trump Tariffs

This week, Trump announced a 30% tariff on South African products exported to the US. The move was part of a broader decision against all US trade partners.

JOHANNESBURG - South Africa is now faced with a wake-up call as officials mull the country’s response to tariffs imposed by US President Donald Trump.

This week, Trump announced a 30% tariff on South African products exported to the US.

The move was part of a broader decision against all US trade partners.

Some countries will be charged a 10% base tariff to do business with the US, while countries with a trade deficit with the superpower will pay higher tariffs.

"South Africa, 60% 30% and they have got some bad things going on in South Africa. You know, we are paying them billions of dollars, and we cut the funding because a lot of bad things are happening in South Africa," Trump said on Wednesday.

Altough the tariffs by US President Donald Trump were widely expected, the extent may have come as a bit of a surprise.

Granted, there were some exemptions listed on a 37-page document published by the US, the tariffs are still set to affect the South African economy.

Secretary-general of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), Wamkele Mene, said that the weaponisation of trade policy and macroeconomic policy called for introspection.

"These factors combined should compel the continent of Africa to reflect very deeply on accelerating a domestic market in Africa."

While South Africa is deeply concerned by the impact, some officials have called on a diplomatic response, unlike other global leaders who have hit back with their own tariffs against the US.

Trump Envoy Says US-Congo Mining and Security Deal Moving Ahead

Bloomberg News 

| April 3, 2025 | 10:57 am

The US and Democratic Republic of Congo are preparing a minerals and security partnership, President Donald Trump’s senior adviser for Africa said after meeting with President Felix Tshisekedi Thursday.

Massad Boulos was in Congo’s capital, Kinshasa, to discuss an offer by Tshisekedi to invest in the country’s rich mining industry in exchange for security assistance in the nation’s fight against a rebel group in its east backed by neighboring Rwanda. Congo is the world’s second-largest source of copper and biggest producer of electric vehicle battery mineral cobalt.

“We have reviewed the DRC’s proposal, and I am pleased to announce that the president and I have agreed on a path forward for its development,” Boulos said after the meeting, according to audio shared by Tshisekedi’s office. The Trump administration looks forward “to fostering US private sector investment in the DRC, particularly in the mining sector.”

Tshisekedi is hoping US interest in Congo’s minerals will encourage the country to back his government, which is teetering amid the continued rebel advance in the east. Congo also holds vast reserves of critical minerals including lithium, tantalum and manganese.

Boulos gave no details of the proposed partnership, but said the US was working to end the fighting.

“We seek a lasting peace that affirms the territorial integrity and sovereignty of the DRC, and lays the foundations for a thriving regional economy,” he said.

Boulos will head to Rwanda, Kenya, and Uganda to discuss the conflict in eastern Congo and US private sector investment in the region, according to the State Department. Boulos is also Trump’s Arab and Middle Eastern Affairs and father-in-law of his daughter, Tiffany.

(By Michael J. Kavanagh)

Mineral-rich, War-torn DRC First Stop for Trump's New Africa Czar

April 3, 20252:15 PM ET

By Kate Bartlett

Massad Boulos, Tiffany Trump's father-in-law, sits for a portrait at a hotel in New York on Sep 4, 2024.

Jeenah Moon/The Washington Post via Getty Images

JOHANNESBURG, South Africa — President Trump's new senior advisor for Africa kicked off his first official trip to the continent on Thursday in the mineral-rich but conflict-ridden Great Lakes region.

In his first stop Massad Boulos met Congolese President Felix Tshisekedi in Kinshasa, amid speculation surrounding a possible minerals-for-security deal.

"You've heard about a minerals agreement. We've reviewed the DRC's proposal, and I'm pleased to announce that the President and I have agreed on a path forward for its development," Bolous said, according to a statement by the Congolese government.

"I look forward to working with President Félix Tshisekedi and his team to build a deeper relationship that benefits the Congolese and American people, and to stimulate American private sector investment in the DRC, particularly in the mining sector, with the shared goal of contributing to the prosperity of both our countries," he added.

On the security situation in the country he said only: "We want a lasting peace that affirms the territorial integrity and sovereignty of the DRC."

Boulos, a Lebanese-American businessman with companies in Nigeria, was made the president's Africa czar earlier this week and is hitting the ground running — heading to Rwanda, Kenya and Uganda after the DRC.

Boulos is the father-in-law of Trump's younger daughter Tiffany, who is married to his son. He's the second extended family member to be awarded a role, after Charles Kushner, the father-in-law of Trump's other daughter Ivanka, was nominated as ambassador to France.

The State Department said Boulos, who also serves as senior advisor to the president on Arab and Middle Eastern Affairs, would meet with heads of state and business leaders to try and advance peace efforts in DRC and "promote U.S. private sector investment in the region."

The Congolese army is battling M23 rebels in the country's east. This year the rebels have made significant gains, including seizing the provincial capitals of Goma and Bukavu.

Kinshasa, the U.S. and U.N. experts amongst others, believe the M23 are backed by neighboring Rwanda and are using the conflict to loot DRC's mineral wealth. Rwanda denies this.

DRC is rich in the critical minerals essential for the global supply chain like uranium, cobalt and lithium. U.S. rival in Africa, China, has lots of investments in the country.

President Tshisekedi, who has compared the situation in his country to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, recently mentioned being open to a mining deal with the U.S., but has not said if reciprocal issues, like security assurances, are part of that.

Ahead of Boulos' visit, the Congolese government overturned the death sentences of three Americans who were convicted last year for their involvement in a failed coup attempt. The Americans — Marcel Malanga Malu, Tylor Thomson and Zalman Polun Benjamin — were among 37 people handed the death sentence in September, but have now been given a presidential pardon.

Malanga Malu's father, Christian Malanga, a U.S. national of Congolese origin, was believed to have been the mastermind behind the May attacks on the presidential palace and a Tshisekedi ally's home. He was killed when the attempted putsch was foiled.

Thursday, April 03, 2025

The US is Negotiating a Minerals Deal with Conflict-hit DR Congo, a Trump Official Says

Massad Boulos visits The Great Commoner, Friday, Nov. 1, 2024, in Dearborn, Mich. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson, File)

By JEAN-YVES KAMALE and MARK BANCHEREAU

8:29 PM EDT, April 3, 2025

KINSHASA, Congo (AP) — A Trump administration official said Thursday the United States is in talks with conflict-plagued Congo on developing its mineral resources under a deal the Congolese president has said could help make his country safer.

U.S. President Donald Trump’s senior adviser for Africa, Massad Boulos, did not provide details of the potential deal following talks with Congo’s President Felix Tshisekedi in Kinshasa, but he said it could involve “multibillion-dollar investments.”

“You have heard about a minerals agreement. We have reviewed” the Congo’s proposal, Boulos said. “I am pleased to announce that the president and I have agreed on a path forward for its development.”

American companies would be “operating transparently” and would “stimulate local economies,” Boulos said.

Congo is the world’s largest producer of cobalt, a mineral used to make lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles and smartphones. It also has substantial gold, diamond and copper reserves.

Tshisekedi said last month that he was open to a deal on developing critical minerals with the United States if the American involvement could help quell insurgencies and boost security in the African country.

“I think that the U.S. is able to use either pressure or sanctions to make sure that armed groups ... can be kept at bay,” he said on U.S. TV broadcaster Fox.

The Trump administration also is negotiating with Ukraine over a minerals deal in that country, which originally was proposed by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy last fall in hopes of strengthening his country’s hand in its conflict with Russia by tying U.S. interests to Ukraine’s future.

Eastern Congo has been in conflict for decades with more than 100 armed groups, most of which are vying for territory in the mineral-rich region near the border with Rwanda. The conflict has created one of the world’s largest humanitarian crises with more than 7 million people displaced, including 100,000 who fled homes this year.

The M23 is the most potent armed group and is backed by Congo’s neighbor Rwanda. In a major escalation since January, the M23 rebels have captured the cities of Goma and Bukavu and several towns in eastern Congo, prompting fears of regional war.

On Thursday, M23 withdrew from Walikale, a key mining town in eastern Congo it captured last month, after weeks of fighting with Congolese forces and its allied Wazalendo militia.

M23 spokesman Lawrence Kanyuka said the group decided to “reposition its forces” from Walikale and its surrounding areas in line with a unilateral ceasefire it declared in February.

Willy Mishiki, a national deputy representing Walikale, said the rebels left under pressure from the Wazalendo. Walikale resident Faustin Kamala said it’s not clear where the rebels went.

The Walikale area is home to the largest tin deposits in Congo and to several significant gold mines. The Bisie tin mine, around 60 kilometers (35 miles) northwest of the town, accounts for the majority of tin exports from North Kivu province.

___

Banchereau reported from Dakar, Senegal. Associated Press writer Justin Kabumba in Goma, Congo, contributed to this report.

A Leaked Draft Letter From Somalia to Trump Offers US Exclusive Access to Bases and Ports

By OMAR FARUK

1:09 PM EDT, April 2, 2025

MOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — The draft of a letter from Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud to U.S. President Donald Trump offering exclusive access to air bases and seaports has reignited tensions between Somalia’s government and the breakaway region of Somaliland.

In the letter, Somalia offers “exclusive operational control” over the Berbera and Baledogle air bases and the ports of Berbera and Bosaso to “bolster American engagement in the region.” The U.S. for years has helped Somali forces with airstrikes and other support against the al-Shabab extremist group and an affiliate of the Islamic State.

The letter, dated March 16 and leaked on social media last week, speaks of “ensuring uninterrupted military and logistical access while preventing external competitors from establishing a presence in this critical corridor.”

The letter was confirmed as “an authentic draft” by a senior official in Somalia’s foreign ministry, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to give press interviews.

The official was not sure if the final letter, which made the same offer, was sent. A spokesperson with the U.S Embassy declined to comment.

One of the ports, Berbera, is in a key city located in Somaliland, whose long assertion as an independent state has not received international recognition.

Somaliland’s President Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi, speaking during an Eid al-Fitr address on Saturday in Hargeisa, called the Somali president’s move “dangerous.”

Abdullahi warned the international community not to be misled and reiterated that any nation wishing to engage with Berbera must do so through Somaliland’s elected leadership.

“Somaliland governs itself, controls its own land, sea and airspace, and makes its own decisions,” he said.

Somaliland, a former British protectorate, declared independence from Somalia in 1991 following the collapse of the central government. It maintains its own government, security forces and currency and has held elections.

The incident underscores the complex geopolitics of the region.

Somaliland last year signed an agreement with neighboring Ethiopia, a landlocked country, granting it access to the sea to build a port. Somalia condemned the agreement and criticized Ethiopia for what it called interference.

Somalia’s federal government also faces uncertainty over its relations with Puntland, a semi-autonomous region whose port city of Bosaso was mentioned in the leaked draft. Puntland has not commented.

Senegal Revises Amnesty Law That Covered Deadly Protests

Demonstrators run after police officers fired tear gas during a protest in support of the main opposition leader Ousmane Sonko in Dakar, Senegal, Monday, May 29, 2023. (AP Photo/Leo Correa, File)

By MARK BANCHEREAU and BABACAR DIONE

7:26 AM EDT, April 3, 2025

DAKAR, Senegal (AP) — Senegal’s parliament approved revisions to a law passed under the former president that granted amnesty for offences committed during deadly opposition protests in the West African country.

The law was passed in March 2024, shortly before the presidential election, and granted amnesty for offences by both security forces and protesters during violent demonstrations between 2021 and 2024. Rights group Amnesty International said at least 65 people were killed during the clashes.

Rights groups and lawyers criticized the law because it prevented any prosecution of the sponsors and perpetrators of the violence.

The protests were triggered by concerns that the president at the time, Macky Sall, was attempting to muzzle his opponents and seek a third term in office despite being prevented by the constitution. Sall denied seeking a third term.

The protests were exacerbated by the arrests in 2023 of the top opposition figures Bassirou Diomaye Faye and Ousmane Sonko on charges that were largely seen as politically motivated.

Faye and Sonko were released in March 2024 after the amnesty law took effect less than two weeks before the presidential election. Faye was catapulted into the presidency when Sonko — who was barred from running due to a previous conviction — backed the political novice and Faye easily beat the candidate backed by Sall.

On Wednesday, Senegalese lawmakers adopted a revision of the law removing amnesty for specific crimes including murder, torture and forced disappearance. The measure passed by a vote of 126-20.

Aissata Tall Sall, the leader of the opposition coalition Takku Wallu Senegal, criticized the measure as a “law of settling scores that risks further dividing the Senegalese, instead of reconciling them.”

“The new law does not seek revenge but justice,” Ismaïla Diallo, a lawmaker for the ruling PASTEF party, said.

Study Says More Women Than Men in Africa Will Likely Lose Outsourcing Tasks to AI

By IGNATIUS SSUUNA

2:42 PM EDT, April 3, 2025

KIGALI, Rwanda (AP) — More women than men working in Africa’s outsourcing sector will likely see their tasks in the workplace replaced by automation and artificial intelligence by 2030, a report said Thursday.

The report, released at a conference on AI in the Rwandan capital, also said that the now-surging growth of the outsourcing industry on the African continent may slow, and it urged workers to boost their skills so that they can trade up to better jobs.

More than 1,000 policymakers, business leaders, and interest groups were gathered in Kigali for the first-ever Global AI Summit for Africa.

Rwandan President Paul Kagame, who addressed the conference on its opening day, called for more investments, innovation and creativity.

African countries should “go back to the drawing board and build a strong foundation for connectivity,” Kagame said. “Let’s continue working together, and driving AI to reduce inequality, and allow more and more of our citizens to benefit from the good AI can deliver to all of us,” he said.

The new report by Caribou and Genesis Analytics in partnership with the Mastercard Foundation says that tasks performed by women are on average 10% more vulnerable to automation than those by men in the same sector. This disparity will exacerbate gender-based inequalities in the sector’s workforce if not proactively addressed, it said.

The study finds that lower-paying jobs, which make up 68% of the workforce, are particularly at risk. It found that up to 40% of human tasks in Africa’s outsourcing sector could be automated.

But AI experts at the summit said that with the right investments and training, women and youth could access better-paid, higher-skilled work than what the currently do.

Jeremy Jurgen, managing director of the World Economic Forum, which is co-hosting the conference, said there was a shortage of AI workers and a need to invest in developing talent to address that.

African leaders present called for more collaboration.

“African countries need to have clarity on what they want to do with AI and what they’re bringing to the table, then we can start talking about collaborating on AI without compromising our sovereignty,” Nigerian Communication Minister Bosun Tijani said during the conference.

Leaked Files Raise Fears Over Safety of Shell Oil Production Fleet, Years After Devastating Spill

(AP Illustration / Peter Hamlin)

By ED DAVEY

3:38 AM EDT, April 3, 2025

Off the coast of Nigeria, one of the world’s largest oil production ships, called the Bonga, was taking oil from a field on the ocean floor and transferring it to a tanker ship. Such transfers are routine in the offshore oil industry, but something went wrong on the Bonga, owned by energy giant Shell.

A major leak began in one of the lines that connected the two vessels. Over the next three hours, the crew detected that more oil was being pumped from the ship than the tanker was receiving. Another hour passed before an oily sheen was spotted on the water. An hour after that, the crew member in charge of the fueling shut off the flow.

By then, about 40,000 barrels of oil had escaped into the Atlantic Ocean, according to an English High Court evaluation, making the December 2011 incident one of Nigeria’s worst spills in a decade. At the height of the spill, an oil slick spread over 685 square miles (1,776 square kilometers), twice the size of New York City. Nigerian regulators later fined the subsidiary Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company (SNEPCo) $3.6 billion, an amount being appealed today.

Now a confidential review of Shell’s fleet of production ships, obtained by The Associated Press, plus internal company safety surveys and interviews with two whistleblowers, show that as recently as three years ago — almost 11 years after the Bonga spill — there were safety issues with the fleet, including the Bonga. The 2022 review found fault with the same systems involved in the Bonga spill. The whistleblowers said the problems risk another Bonga-type disaster.

Problems flagged with the Bonga

Oil production ships like the Bonga are a critical part of the offshore oil industry. Often permanently moored in one location, they take oil from wells on the ocean floor and transfer it to tankers.

The 2022 review of the Bonga was an attempt to address maintenance and safety problems in Shell’s oil production ship flotilla. It was authored by Shell senior maritime auditor Zubair Ali Khan. It found issues on several ships, ranging from corrosion to bad upkeep and poor firefighting systems, and cited a “lack of clear and established standards and processes.”

For example, the report noted “continuously deficient” systems for oil transfer and firefighting and lifesaving equipment. Oil transfer systems are what had failed in the massive 2011 spill, and in 2022, the problems on the Bonga with oil transfer systems were deemed “high risk.” Replying to a LinkedIn message, Khan declined to comment.

Tony Cox, an accident investigator with decades of experience in the offshore oil industry, said it was concerning that transfer problems persisted on the Bonga 11 years after the giant spill given that transfers are a “recognized hazard” and “well known to be a potential point of spillage.”

A Shell spokesman said by email that the company’s safety record was continuously improving. Serious accidents aboard this ship have gone down from one per year on average to zero since 2018, Shell said, with less serious incidents reduced by 70% and spills by 90% since 2020. A total of 369 pieces of critical safety equipment were not in satisfactory condition in 2014, the spokesman said, dropping to two last year.

Shell did not respond when asked if all the recommendations in the report were adopted.

The review cited problems with other ships

Beyond the Bonga ship, the 2022 internal safety report said there were other “recurring incidents.”

The report described “severe corrosion” in pipes and protective barriers around oil tanks in the vessel Fluminense, off Brazil.

Two workers were left “with moderate to severe burns” after an incident on a vessel off the U.S. coast in 2016.

There were “degraded facilities” on the gas-producing ship Prelude anchored off Australia, where fire broke out in 2021. In 2023, more than a year after the safety report, problems on the Prelude persisted, according to Australian regulators who found health and safety violations related to “exposure to chemicals and risk of an explosion.” They ordered improvements.

In the case of the Prelude, Shell said a dedicated local team of safety engineers and experts looked after the vessel but didn’t provide more details.

Other incidents have been reported by regulators or in the press. For example, another Shell ship off Nigeria, the Sea Eagle, began to take on seawater in 2022 and needed urgent repairs, something Cox said was highly unusual for floating production vessels.

The company is currently in the midst of a wrongful dismissal lawsuit with a former employee, a safety engineer from London, whom Shell said was fired for poor performance. An interim court ruling leaned toward Shell’s argument and a Shell spokesman said the company is “clear about the merits of our case.”

The former employee, Irina Woodhead, advised on safety standards aboard the Prelude. She said that in the 2021 fire incident off Australia, safety systems didn’t activate. Seven people had to seek medical treatment for heat exhaustion, Shell said. Woodhead said she blew the whistle on safety failings and was fired for doing so.

“One mistake can cost a lot of lives,” Woodhead said, and a future disaster is “absolutely” possible. “If you don’t maintain that equipment, that’s when the fires happen, that’s when the explosions happen.”

Regarding the Fluminense, off Brazil, a Shell spokesman said it identified problems, shut down production and took the vessel out of service. In the case of the Sea Eagle, off Nigeria, the spokesman said Nigerian regulators were promptly informed of the leak and it was swiftly repaired. The incident that left two workers with burns off the coast of the U.S. in 2016 isn’t reflective of the company’s overall safety culture, he said.

Internal surveys show concern about safety at Shell

Similar issues were raised in safety surveys carried out by statistician Caroline Dennett, a former Shell consultant. Beginning in 2012, she surveyed thousands of Shell workers on the company’s safety culture. She quit in 2022 over Shell’s climate policies and became an activist.

The surveys measured employees’ perception of performance in 10 areas, including maintenance, communication and safety awareness. Surveys obtained by AP of 97, 159 and 128 workers on the Bonga, done in 2012, 2014 and 2021 respectively, show that employees’ views of company performance overall dropped in nine categories.

The Bonga was problematic “from day one,” said Dennett, citing a lack of manpower, difficulty getting spare parts and falling standards.

“The fear was getting more severe over time as skilled personnel were not replaced,” she added.

The surveys also invited workers aboard the vessel to make their own comments. Based on these, in 2014, Dennett was concerned enough to write to a Shell manager, flagging worker fears that Bonga was a “keg of gunpowder” and in “impending peril,” with everyone on it “at risk.” The manager promised to act.

The next year, a leaked memo by the operational safety team for Nigeria said the need for “drastic improvements” was shown by the 2012 survey. They were also “worried” by the “thought provoking” 2014 survey, which had worse results.

In an email, Shell said safety has improved on the Bonga since the 2012 and 2014 surveys, when a worker described it as a powder keg.

Still, as recently as 2021, some 59% of workers on the Bonga thought maintenance needed either a lot of or some improvement. Another 3% said it was failing outright. Only 28% of team leaders felt positively about the levels of maintenance the company performed on its equipment. A majority, 57%, were concerned about the level of resources and expertise on the vessel.

In response, the company noted that more than 90% of those surveyed in 2021 felt positive about another category measured, the Bonga’s safety processes, and the overwhelming majority felt comfortable speaking out about problems.

Internal emails seen by AP show Shell safety experts and lawyers had agreed that if 10% of workers thought a safety category was failing or needed considerable improvement, it would be considered “legally critical.” The issue would then need to be resolved within 18 months. If that figure hit 20%, it would be urgent with a one-year deadline. The negative responses about the Bonga more than passed these thresholds.

But the company later eliminated these commitments, according to an email seen by AP. “This steer comes from legal,” Shell health and safety advisor Bradd McCaslin wrote to another Shell safety manager in 2018. After that date, the thresholds disappeared from surveys reviewed by AP.

Safety reviews don’t work if people don’t make the suggested improvements, said safety expert Cox.

McCaslin did not respond to LinkedIn messages from AP seeking comment.

In internal correspondence from 2012, also seen by AP, Shell’s U.S. operations chose not to use the surveys at all after a lawyer raised “legal liability concerns.” The company said its common practice for legal teams to advise on processes, and it doesn’t fall to just one team to direct how risk is managed.

Rich Howe, Shell’s vice president for deep water operations, said a “relentless focus on safety” was “deeply ingrained in the Shell culture,” and its standards are “widely recognized across the sector.”

“These documents are evidence of that culture,” said Howe, speaking of the surveys and safety report. “A company which is continually looking to strengthen safety performance by proactively seeking out problems or concerns that can then be addressed.”

UK Watchdog to Probe Charity Co-founded by Prince Harry After Boardroom Dispute

By DANICA KIRKA

12:10 PM EDT, April 3, 2025

LONDON (AP) — Britain’s charity regulator has opened an investigation into an African charity co-founded by Prince Harry, a week after the prince and the organization’s board of trustees resigned amid a dispute with the charity’s chairwoman.

Sentebale, which provides support for young people in Botswana and Lesotho, has been wracked by turmoil since Harry and his co-founder abruptly resigned March 26, saying the relationship between the board and its chair was beyond repair. Chair Sophie Chandauka later accused the prince of orchestrating a campaign of bullying and harassment to try to force her out.

The Charity Commission said Thursday that it was in “direct contact” with parties on both sides to gather evidence in its compliance case.

“The regulator’s focus, in line with its statutory remit, will be to determine whether the charity’s current and former trustees, including its chair, have fulfilled their duties and responsibilities under charity law,” the commission said in a statement.

Chandauka criticized Harry in an interview with Sky News on Sunday, saying that filming for the prince’s latest Netflix program interfered with a scheduled fundraiser for Sentebale and an incident with his wife, Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, became a source of friction.

Harry co-founded Sentebale, which means “forget me not” in the language of Lesotho, nearly 20 years ago in memory of his late mother, Princess Diana.

He said he hoped the Charity Commission would uncover “the truth” about what caused him to resign as patron of Sentebale.

“What has transpired over the last week has been heartbreaking to witness, especially when such blatant lies hurt those who have invested decades in this shared goal,” he said in a statement. “No one suffers more than the beneficiaries of Sentebale itself.”

Harry’s resignation came as Chandauka made allegations of bullying, harassment, sexism and racism against unnamed board members.

Harry and co-founder Prince Seeiso of Lesotho were patrons of Sentebale but weren’t on the board of trustees. They said they decided to relinquish their roles as ambassadors for the charity to support the former trustees in their dispute with Chandauka.

Chandauka, a corporate lawyer and businesswoman from Zimbabwe, welcomed the commission’s actions and said she had reported various governance and administration issues to the agency in February. She also said Sentebale initiated its own internal review last year.

“We hope that, together, these actions will give the general public, our colleagues, partners, supporters, donors and the communities we serve comfort that Sentebale and its new Board of Trustees are acting appropriately to demonstrate and ensure good governance and a healthy culture for Sentebale to thrive,” she said in a statement.

Wednesday, April 02, 2025

Nigerian President Sacks Board of State Oil Company

By Al Mayadeen English

2 Apr 2025 15:13

President Bola Tinubu dismissed Nigeria's state-run oil company's leadership and appointed a former Shell executive to lead a major overhaul.

Nigerian President Bola Tinubu removed the entire leadership of Nigeria's state-owned oil company on Wednesday, appointing a former Shell executive to lead the organization as part of a major restructuring.

Among those dismissed were Mele Kyari, the group chief executive of the National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited, and Pius Akinyelure, the company's chairman and a close ally of Tinubu.

Kyari was swiftly replaced by Bayo Ojulari, a former managing director of Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company (SNEPCO), a subsidiary of Shell.

"The board's restructuring is crucial for enhancing operational efficiency, restoring investor confidence, boosting local content, driving economic growth and advancing gas commercialisation and diversification," Tinubu's media advisor, Bayo Onanuga, said in a statement.

The NNPC has faced ongoing allegations of corruption, political interference, and poor management of Nigeria’s oil resources.

The new leadership will focus on reviewing strategic partnerships, boosting daily oil output to address a revenue gap, meeting rising local demand, and tackling widespread oil theft.

Nigeria's oil production fell below a million barrels per day in 2023, but the government aims to increase output to two million barrels per day by 2027 and three million by 2030.

With a mix of state and private sector involvement, the NNPC is expected to contribute at least 10 percent of the country's daily oil output by 2027.

A source in the presidency informed AFP that President Tinubu was worried about the "crisis of confidence" in the oil sector, which is crucial to the country’s ongoing economic reforms. However, another insider emphasized that the dismissals were not a criticism of the previous board.

"There are certain positive reforms that the president wants to achieve in the industry," the source told AFP, while also offering praise for Kyari's role in reviving the company's refineries.

Zimtrade Courts China for Agricultural Exports

2 April 2025

The Herald (Harare)

By Business Reporter

China represents a pontentially lucrative market for Zimbabwe's agricultural exports, national trade promotion and development body ZimTrade said, ahead of a visit by a team of Chinese buyers, as the trade body explores a new market for the country's avocado and macadamia nuts produce in the world's second largest economy.

ZimTrade will facilitate a Zimbabwe-China Avocado and Macadamia Inward Buyer Mission from April 8-10, 2025, in Chipinge.

China is an important trade partner in many facets globally, as the world's second-largest economy by nominal gross domestic product, and since 2016 has been the world's largest economy when measured by purchasing power parity (PPP).

Zimbabwe and China already enjoy excellent trade relations, rooted in their long-standing cordial political relations dating back to the African country's struggle for independence from Britain. Trade between Harare and Beijing remains robust and growing, with a focus on agriculture, minerals, and machinery, reaching US$3 billion in the first nine months of 2024, a 25,6 percent increase year-on-year.

As such, the ZimTrade inward trade mission is expected to deepen the bilateral trade relations between the two friendly nations, open the doors for Zimbabwean producers to tap into the rapidly growing Chinese market, and strong demand for high-quality agricultural products, including avocados and macadamias.

The mission is expected to connect local producers directly to potential Chinese buyers while providing them an invaluable opportunity to showcase their products and establish meaningful business links.

ZimTrade's inward buyer mission will commence with a seminar, followed by a business-to-business networking session, and conclude with farm and company visits to allow the prospective Chinese buyers to appreciate Zimbabwe's farming practices and production capacity.

This would help the farmers better understand the nuances of the Chinese market and how to effectively navigate the complexities of exporting agricultural products to such a large and diverse economy.

The mission aims to bridge the gap between Zimbabwean avocado and macadamia producers and Chinese buyers, providing a platform for the farmers to tap into China's vast market and establish new trade partnerships.

The inward buyer mission follows the signing of the "Protocol for Phytosanitary Requirements for Export of Zimbabwean Fresh Avocado to China" at the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) Summit in Beijing in September 2024.

This protocol removes barriers for Zimbabwe to access China's expansive and lucrative market, creating significant opportunities for local farmers to compete with top avocado-exporting countries.

ZimTrade chief executive officer Mr Allan Majuru said the mission would facilitate market access for Zimbabwean producers and connect them with Chinese buyers seeking high-quality produce.

"China represents a massive opportunity for Zimbabwean agriculture.

"This mission will deepen our trade relations with China, open doors for Zimbabwean producers to tap into a rapidly growing market in demand for high-quality agricultural products, including avocados and macadamias.

"We are confident that the business connections forged during this Mission will result in significant business deals that benefit both Zimbabwean producers and the broader economy.

"This Mission will allow us to directly engage with Chinese buyers who are looking for fresh, high-quality produce, and that's exactly what Zimbabwe can offer," said Mr Majuru.

With China's demand for avocados steadily rising due to the fruit's nutritional benefits and increasing popularity in health-conscious diets, Zimbabwean farmers are well-positioned to capitalise on this lucrative market.

According to Trade Map, China's avocado imports increased from US$112,1 million in 2022 to US$151,2 million in 2023.

The mission also seeks to promote business-to-business engagements, drive sustainable export growth, and enhance the competitiveness of Zimbabwean producers in the global market.

Additionally, it will facilitate knowledge exchange, enabling local producers to gain valuable insights into Chinese market trends, logistics requirements, and quality standards.

Read the original article on The Herald.

Zimbabweans Demonstrate Full Support for President

2 April 2025

The Herald (Harare)

Zimbabweans demonstrated their full support for President Mnangagwa and their appreciation of the peace prevailing in the country by ignoring calls to demonstrate by some shadowy terror groups on Monday, Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services Minister Dr Jenfan Muswere, has said.

Speaking at a post-Cabinet media briefing in Harare yesterday, Dr Muswere said the failure of the protests was testament to the citizens' confidence in the constitutionally-elected Zanu PF Government, led by President Mnangagwa.

"In terms of what cyber terrorists had planned which did not materialise yesterday (Monday), this is a clear demonstration that Zimbabweans fully support the Government that they elected, that is the Zanu PF Government which is headed by His Excellency President Mnangagwa. This also shows that we still fully appreciate peace and tranquillity in our country," said Dr Muswere.

He described those who incited the protests as misguided and delusional figures with unrealistic ambitions.

"Yes, these cyber-terrorists were led by one (Blessed) Geza, a liberation war mistake with a lot of delusional hallucinations in that he actually believed he could create an uprising in our country which is a clear misdirection of ambition. We are here and we can witness that peace and tranquillity continues to exist in our country," Dr Muswere said.

He emphasised the importance of collective responsibility in achieving national development goals and assured the nation that the security sector remained vigilant in addressing such activities.

"Zimbabweans have got a shared responsibility in order to achieve Vision 2030 which seeks to achieve an upper middle society by the year 2030," said Dr Muswere.

A planned demonstration that had been called for Monday by former Zanu-PF Central Committee member, Geza, was a monumental flop as Zimbabweans chose to uphold the peace and tranquillity prevailing in the country.

Peace prevailed nationwide, with no meaningful demonstrations recorded as it was business as usual.

Schools were open and learners attended classes as usual.

National police spokesperson Commissioner Paul Nyathi said the situation was generally calm countrywide.

Read the original article on The Herald.

Trump Aid Cut - Zim to Unveil HIV Funding Plan

2 April 2025

The Herald (Harare)

By Africa Moyo

Chinhoyi — ZIMBABWE will unveil an HIV sustainability plan expected to address funding issues following the suspension of development partner support through United States President Donald Trump's Executive Order, Permanent Secretary for Health and Child Care Dr Aspect Maunganidze said yesterday.

Speaking at a two-day editors workshop organised by the National AIDS Council (NAC), which ends here today, Dr Maunganidze said Zimbabwe has taken active steps to fill the gap left by the withdrawal of US funding.

"This workshop comes at a time when our health delivery system is at crossroads given the abrupt cessation of funding from some of our foreign partners," he said.

"As a Ministry, we have already taken steps to ensure that our people are not severely affected especially those taking antiretroviral therapy. Part of these steps include budget allocation, budget reprioritisation, national health insurance and others to ensure that our health programmes continue to function and to serve our people as before.

"I am glad that the move by the United States government came when we were already engaged in processes to develop an HIV sustainability plan, which will be ready soon."

Dr Maunganidze said the media, especially editors, should inform the nation about the funding gaps, the discussions and decisions needed to be taken to ensure the Government's response is sustainable and meets the expectations of "our people without leaving anyone behind".

"Your power is not just in informing and educating but in setting the national policy agenda, reframing narratives and advocating for the health and social transformation envisioned by the Second Republic.

"As a Ministry and working together with the National AIDS Council in this regard, we are aware that the health and well-being of our nation will strongly benefit from this engagement today.

"I therefore want to challenge you continue educating the public with accurate, science-backed information, eliminate stigma through responsible, inclusive reporting and to amplify the voices of those living with HIV, ensuring their stories are told with dignity," he said.

Dr Maunganidze added that as the nation moves towards the goal of ending AIDS by 2030, his ministry will continue to strengthen partnerships with the media.

Accurate and timely information has always been a vital resource in public health, which policy makers, media practitioners and the public prioritise, he explained.

The workshop has been convened, rooted in the need to ensure the media continue to prioritise HIV and related morbidities within their coverage and reportage.

Government says without correct and timely information, the public is left to the perils of inaccurate information often peddled by social media.

"Your role is profound in facilitating accurate, objective, and sensitive reporting, debunking myths, and promoting awareness through responsible media coverage, ultimately contributing to public health and well-being," said Dr Maunganidze.

Read the original article on The Herald.

Zimbabwe: ZANU-PF Commends Citizens for Upholding Peace

2 April 2025

The Herald (Harare)

By Joseph Madzimure

ZANU PF has applauded Zimbabweans for heeding President Mnangagwa's call for peace.

Zimbabweans on Monday rejected an attempt by ex-Zanu PF Central Committee member Blessed Geza and his handlers to incite disorder after they snubbed his call for street protests.

The so-called M31 planned demonstration turned out be a monumental flop as Zimbabweans chose to uphold the peace and tranquillity prevailing in the country by staying at home and maintaining peace.

The day served as a testament to the resilience and commitment of Zimbabweans to maintain harmony in their communities, despite the call for unrest.

Speaking at a press conference in Harare yesterday, Zanu PF spokesperson Cde Christopher Mutsvangwa said Zimbabweans showed restraint and discipline as they refused to take part in mayhem and despondency by staying at their homes.

He said those who planned the demonstration failed to execute their plans.

"Their leaders Tendai Biti and Saviour Kasukuwere should understand the geo politics of the world. The USA will never support the shenanigans of planning to topple the Zanu PF Government.

"People want confidence in a leader before they follow him. Then Geza expected people to follow him, maybe it was those behind him who gave him courage.

"You cannot just wake up thinking you can change a Government in Africa; things and systems have changed.

"President Mnangagwa has addressed the majority of challenges in Zimbabwe, (for example) the marginalisation of the War veterans is being addressed," said Cde Mutsvangwa.

"Someone (Geza) was wearing a military uniform at the age of 70 trying to be a saviour, Zimbabweans are not interested in the farce which happened yesterday. The revolution is very much alive".

Zanu PF, he said, reaffirms its commitment to the security, stability, and economic progress of Zimbabwe.

"As a Government that serves the interests of the people, we take security issues seriously and remain steadfast in ensuring that Zimbabweans continue to uplift their lives and livelihoods without disruption," Cde Mutsvangwa said.

Zimbabweans, he said, are fully aware of the severe damage inflicted on the economy by so-called demonstrations, which served only to cripple progress and undermine national development in previous years.

Cde Mutsvangwa added that the Government remains focused on implementing policies that empower its citizens, strengthen the economy and uphold peace and security.

Read the original article on The Herald.