Ugandans are heading into Thursday, January 15’s presidential election under tight security and an Internet blackout, after authorities ordered mobile providers to shut down public Internet access less than two days before voting. The Uganda Communications Commission states that the move, which commenced at 6 p.m. today, Tuesday, January 13, aims to curb misinformation, electoral fraud, and incitement. Soldiers and armored trucks have also been deployed across Kampala, a show of force that opposition figures say signals rising authoritarianism. President Yoweri Museveni, 81, is running for a seventh term, which would extend his rule past four decades. His main challenger…
Author: Montage Africa
By Chris Takudzwa Muronzi Caledonia Mining Corporation (CALq.L), opens new tab, plans to spend $132 million this year to launch development of what, once operational, will be Zimbabwe’s largest gold mine, the company announced on Wednesday. Miners are riding a wave of record bullion prices to expand output. Spot gold prices hit another record high of $4,639.48 an ounce early on Wednesday, fuelled by escalating tensions in Iran, concern over the Federal Reserve’s autonomy and softer inflation readings that boosted rate cut bets. Caledonia said in a production update that the planned spending, part of a $162.5 million total capital expenditure programme for…
A Tunisian appeal court on Wednesday ordered the release of journalist Chatha Belhaj Mubarak, jailed since 2023 in a conspiracy case, after reducing her prison sentence, her family said. The court cut her sentence from five years to two, making her eligible for immediate release, her brother told Reuters. She was convicted in the so-called “Instalingo” case, which involved politicians, media figures and other defendants accused of conspiracy and financial crimes. Belhaj Mubarak denied the charges. “Chatha is free and leaving prison,” her brother, Amen Belhaj Mubarak, said. He said her health had severely deteriorated during her time in prison.…
Egypt is accelerating its green energy transition with a significant $1.8 billion investment in new renewable projects. The cornerstone of this initiative is a major contract with Norwegian firm Scatec to build a massive 1.7-gigawatt solar plant in Minya, supported by substantial battery storage to stabilize supply. At the same time, a new Sungrow factory in the Suez Canal Economic Zone will manufacture energy storage batteries, with part of its output feeding the Minya project. Together, the projects will add several gigawatts of clean capacity and strengthen Egypt’s local energy supply chain, moving Cairo closer to its goal of sourcing 42% of…
By Africanews Somalia’s President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud has announced that his government has cancelled all agreements with the United Arab Emirates, accusing the Gulf state of failing to respect Somalia’s sovereignty and unity. In a televised address, Mohamud said the federal cabinet decided to terminate agreements covering economic infrastructure, security and defence. He stressed that while relations with the UAE had initially been based on good faith, Abu Dhabi did not engage Somalia as a single, unified state. “The UAE did not treat us as a single, unified government with sovereignty and independence,” Mohamud said. “We repeatedly requested that they…
Isaline Attelly, a native of the Caribbean island of Martinique, had been living in Benin for nearly a year before she learned that her family’s connection to the West African country went back much further. Genealogical records confirmed her great-grandmother on her mother’s side was born in what is now Benin and, at the height of transatlantic slavery, was trafficked across the Atlantic Ocean. The discovery last year prompted Attelly, a 28-year-old content creator, to enrol in a new programme offering Beninese citizenship to people of African descent. The “My Afro Origins” programme is an important piece of President Patrice…
For the first time in a few years, the All Africa Music Awards (AFRIMA) are happening. The festivities kicked off with a welcome soiree on January 7 and will continue with masterclasses, a concert featuring several artists, and will be capped by the award show on Sunday, January 11. This puts an end to AFRIMA’s hiatus since the award show last took place at the Grand Arena in Dakar, Senegal in January 2023. This ninth edition, moved forward from its initial November 2025 date, marks the seventh time the awards are taking place in Lagos, Nigeria. Anticipation for this year’s AFRIMA depends…
By Rédaction Africanews with AFP Could a prominent exiled imam be the one to unite the Malian population against the country’s authoritarian junta leaders? Mahmoud Dicko, who inspired protests that preceded the fall of former president Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta in a 2020 coup, has been living in Algeria since 2023. An initial supporter of the junta, Dicko was quickly sidelined and became a nuisance for the military. With his new movement, the Coalition of Forces for the Republic, Dicko is aiming to re-establish dialogue between various parties and overthrow the junta. This religious leader and former head of the High…
Having captivated global audiences with performances at NPR’s Tiny Desk series and AFROPUNK, Sampa The Great, the internationally acclaimed musician and rapper, is now poised to make her mark in South Africa with her brand-new single, “Can’t Hold Us” featuring Mwanje. Released via Loma Vista Recordings, the track signals the launch of a new era for Sampa, introducing her signature sound: Nu Zamrock—a fearless fusion of rock, hip-hop, soul, and African rhythm that is both ancestral and futuristic. The single is accompanied by a striking visualiser directed by Iggy London, capturing the energy and confidence of Sampa as she steps fully into…
World shares hovered around record highs on Wednesday, as traders found ways to justify why increasingly complicated world economics and politics would not affect stocks, though jitters were apparent in precious metal and oil markets. Investors were trying to balance those big-picture concerns with what will be a busy day in terms of short-term developments with U.S. corporate earnings gathering pace, a raft of Federal Reserve speakers and the possibility of a Supreme Court ruling on tariffs. Ahead of that, broad share indexes in Asia (.MIAPJ0000PUS), opens new tab and Europe (.STOXX), opens new tab both rose to all-time peaks with the former buoyed…