Author: Editorial Staff

A SCHOOL headmaster in South Africa has been charged with child abuse after lowering an 11-year-old student into a pit latrine to search for the official’s cellphone, according to local news reports. The headmaster of Luthuthu Junior Secondary School in the Eastern Cape province, Lubeko Mgandela, appeared in court and was released on bail Wednesday. He has been suspended from his job while officials investigate the incident before taking him to a disciplinary hearing. There are also calls for his educator’s license to be withdrawn. The incident happened early this month after Mgandela accidentally dropped his cell phone into a…

TANZANIAN President John Magufuli has died at a hospital in Dar es Salaam hospital. Annoucing the sad event on state television on Wednesday night, the Vice-President, Samia Suluhu Hassan, said Magufuli died of heart failure at 6 pm local time at the Mzena Hospital. He was 61. Africa Briefing understands that Magufuli, who had been using a pacemaker for some time, also contracted Covid-19, which might have caused complications with his heart condition. Magufuli was last seen in public at an event on February 27 and his absence caused widespread speculation about the state of his health, with some Tanzanians…

IN promoting women to fully participate in all areas of our society, we become a better and inclusive world where everyone irrespective of their gender has a voice, responsibility and a seat at the table, writes Agnes Gitau. In commemorating International Women’s day 2021, I reflect on key areas that our society needs to address in our journey towards women empowerment in this interview with Arise TV’s Boason Omofaye (https://youtu.be/iwqi_vHyK2k). Whilst there are many factors that discriminate against women, the humble opinion of my #ChoosetoChallenge is that by giving women equal opportunities to access education, healthcare, finance, security and establishing…

GIFTY Nuako has just turned 18, an age when a young person stands on the threshold of life. Instead, her future looks bleak. Last December, she became pregnant – ‘a mistake,’ she says in a whisper. She wanted to have an abortion, but her boyfriend’s family refused. Today, in the back streets of Jamestown, one of the poorest neighbourhoods in the Ghanaian capital Accra, the teenager hides her barely rounded stomach under a long skirt and scarves. ‘Now I can’t work, I can’t go back to school. I don’t know what to do any more,’ she said. Unwanted teenage pregnancy…

BOOMPLAY, the leading music streaming and download service based in Africa and Universal Music Group (UMG), the world leader in music-based entertainment have announced  a new landmark licensing agreement that will extend licensing of UMG’s global music catalogue from 7 to 47 countries across the African continent, as part of an extended relationship that will benefit African musicians and talent and expand the listening experience for Boomplay users across Africa. In 2018, UMG became the first major global music company to license music to the service, which has continued to grow its audience reach and influence across Africa in recent…

A TANZANIAN opposition leader on Tuesday urged the government to tell the public about the health of President John Magufuli, who has not been seen in public for more than two weeks, saying citizens had the right to know about his condition. Speculation in East Africa is rife that Magufuli, 61, a vocal Covid-19 sceptic, is ill with the coronavirus, though his vice president said on Monday that Tanzania was safe and citizens should ignore rumours from outside the country. ‘It is important for the government to inform the public about the president’s health to reduce ongoing fear,’ Zitto Kabwe, leader…

A ‘DIRTY WAR’ causing suffering for ‘defenceless’ victims is unfolding in Ethiopia’s northern Tigray region, a general has said in a briefing with diplomats, according to an audio recording of his comments obtained by AFP. The statement from General Yohannes Gebremeskel Tesfamariam, head of a task force formed in response to the Tigray conflict, represents an unusually stark assessment of conditions in the region, where Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s government asserts normalcy is returning. ‘This is a dirty war because it’s affecting everything. You don’t see fronts. The cost is immediately to those who are defenceless,’ Yohannes said during the…

NIGERIAN inflation hit a four-year peak in February as food prices jumped more than 20 percent, heaping financial pressure on households already faced with a shrinking labour market and a stagnant economy at a time of mounting insecurity. Inflation, in double digits since 2016, reached 17.33 percent, driven by the impact of a coronavirus epidemic that has also induced a drop in the price of oil, Nigeria’s main export, and weakened the naira currency. Tuesday’s inflation reading was the highest since the 17.78 percent touched in February 2017. The economy was in a slump then and is teetering on the…

WHERE is Tanzania’s President John Magufuli? Tuesday marks 17 days since the 61-year-old has been seen in public, and despite a clamour of rumours of ill-health, the Tanzanian authorities have yet to provide clear answers as to his whereabouts. The mere question is now leading to arrests, as the government seeks to contain the rumours. And analysts say the silence is telling. ‘I think whatever happens … it is clearly true the regime is trying to buy time,’ said Nic Cheeseman, professor of democracy at the University of Birmingham. ‘And it only really makes sense that the regime is trying…

SEVERAL countries, mostly European, have temporarily suspended the use of AstraZeneca’s Covid-19 vaccine over fears it may have caused some recipients to develop blood clots. The measures come despite assurances from the British-Swedish multinational, EU regulator the European Medicines Agency (EMA), and the World Health Organization (WHO) that the jab is safe. The WHO’s Advisory Committee on Vaccine Safety is reviewing available data and is meeting with the EMA on Tuesday. The EMA will convene its own expert safety committee on Tuesday and will hold another meeting on Thursday to decide any necessary actions. Here is what you need to…