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Welcome to WordPress. This is your first post. Edit or delete it, then start writing ..read more

Somalia and neighboring Horn of Africa nations are bracing for extreme rains likely to cause more flash flooding, according to the forecasting service of the regional Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD). Extremely heavy and widespread rains are forecast for Kenya’s northeast, Ethiopia’s southeast, and the south of Somalia. More limited risk affects Uganda, South Sudan and Burundi. Heavier than expected seasonal rains are influenced by El Nino patterns and the Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD) shift, according to the IGAD experts. The shifts create the potential for crop losses as well as ..read more

MINUSMA, the United Nations mission in Mali, announced Tuesday the end of its presence in the country’s northeast Kidal region. The withdrawal from Kidal marked the eighth of 13 MINUSMA bases in Mali left behind ahead of a December 31 deadline for all UN peacekeepers to leave the country. “The last MINUSMA flight from Kidal reached Gao late yesterday afternoon,” said MINUSMA. The last road convoy of peacekeepers also left Kidal for Gao, with two IED attacks causing damage along their route. Armed Tuareg fighters from Mali’s north immediately claimed they had taken over the base. Troops from Ch ..read more

The Israeli government has confirmed the identities of two people from Tanzania believed to be held by Hamas since the October 7 attack on communities in southern Israel, near the border with Gaza. Joshua Loitu Mollel and Clemence Felix Mtenga were in Israel as a part of an agricultural internship program, according to information from Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. “They were kidnapped by Hamas terrorists and are being held hostage in Gaza,” the message said. “Please join us in praying for their safe and immediate return.” Mollel and Mtenga were part of a group of students staying at K ..read more

Africa is emerging as the “new frontier” for Bitcoin, with the increased regulation in other nations driving its development across the Global South. The Central African Republic made it an official currency last year, and it’s taking off in Nigeria, Ghana, and beyond. But a new United Nations-affiliated report warns of the environmental impacts with a look across 76 nations and the impact on energy, water and other resources. The results, they say, are shocking. “Technological innovations are often associated with unintended consequences and Bitcoin is no exception,” said Dr. Kaveh Madani, di ..read more

Scientists have launched the new Congo Basin Science Initiative in order to better understand the nearly 2.4 million square kilometers of tropical forest that’s critical to managing carbon emissions and climate change. They hope to match the effort that has, for years, been focused on the Amazon’s rainforests. The forests that span Gabon, Cameroon, and others are a global biodiversity hotspot, home to elephants and bonobos, with rainfall that replenishes African rivers as far off as Ethiopia and Egypt. But despite discoveries in the Congo Basin, scientists warn that failure to protec ..read more

Rwanda has issued another warning over tensions with the Democratic Republic of Congo, following more than a year of military clashes and diplomatic negotiations. The warning followed the shooting of a Rwandan citizen who was injured by a stray bullet that crossed the border in Rubavu on Monday, in the country’s Western Province. The government’s statement said the bullet was “originating from clashes among the coalition of Kinshasa-backed illegal armed groups” operating in the eastern DR Congo. Rwanda said the incident is another example of violations of peace negotiations coordinated by Ango ..read more

The Ecostar Energy firm has signed an agreement with the U.S. Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) in support of a biomass power plant to be developed in the Boundiali region of Côte d’Ivoire. EcoStar, based in Washington D.C. with a mission to design and develop power with African partners, says the grant agreement provides technical assistance for building the 25-megawatt facility, to run on cotton stalk biomass. Delphos International Ltd. will carry out the assistance. “Like most African countries, the Ivorian economy is heavily reliant on agriculture. Biomass generated as a byproduct of fa ..read more

China’s Belt and Road Initiative Forum in Beijing has ended with renewed commitments to the African continent. They include some $6 billion in Nigerian investment and debt relief for Ethiopia and Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, who continues a tour of Shanghai and other Chinese cities. Yet the International Monetary Fund (IMF) warns that China’s own economic slowdown, changing demographics and other shifts will impact China’s oft-criticized relationships with sub-Saharan Africa. “Negative spillovers would emerge primarily from trade links, both from a deceleration in export volumes and from commodi ..read more