On 7 March Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) President Joseph Kabila held a meeting with the heads of the largest mining companies operating in the DRC (namely, Randgold, Glencore, Ivanhoe and China Molybdenum Co.), to discuss the contentious new Mining Charter, also referred to as the mining code. After the six-hour meeting, Kabila stated …
East African regional heavyweight Ethiopia, boasting record economic growth and reporting a five-fold increase in foreign direct investment (FDI) in a decade in 2017, has again been rocked by protests and violence with possible widespread consequences for the region. Reflecting growing political turmoil parliamentarians on 2 March 2018, passed legislation to keep the latest State …
At 22h00 on 26 February 2018, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa announced his first cabinet reshuffle since taking office on 15 February 2018. This new cabinet is the first major show of Ramaphosa’s political security and his commitment to addressing South Africa’s many challenges. The new cabinet appointments are as follows: Deputy President: David Mabuza …
In a significant development for the ongoing Mozambican peace process, President Filipe Nyusi announced that the government had agreed to the principle of decentralisation and would be soon submitting a constitutional amendment bill to parliament to realise this. This announcement is a major step towards a lasting peace agreement between the Frelimo-led government and the …
Instability in the DRC looks set to continue in 2018 after the year got off to a volatile start with a demonstration on New Year’s Eve 2017 that saw the killing of 12 people with another six left dead during 21 January protests demanding that President Joseph Kabila ‒ whose term of office expired over …
Zimbabwe is on edge after the military seized control of key facilities in the capital Harare in the night of 14 November 2017. According to a statement aired on the national broadcaster, the Zimbabwean Broadcasting Commission (ZBC), on 15 November, Zanu-PF remains in charge of the government and Robert Mugabe is still the President. Rather …
On 6 November 2017, the Zimbabwean government announced that President Robert Mugabe had relieved first Vice-President Emmerson Mnangagwa of his duties. The statement, released by Minister of Information, Media and Broadcasting Services Simon Khaya Moyo, said Mnangagwa was removed due to consistent “disloyalty, disrespect, deceitfulness, and unreliability”. However, in reality, Mnangagwa was removed due to …
On 5 September 2017, about 30 militants attacked three police stations in Mozambique’s Cabo Delgado Province killing at least two police officers. According to officials, 14 of the assailants were killed in the resultant firefight and several others were captured. The incident occurred in the coastal town of Mocimboa da Praia when militants attacked police …
In an unexpected decision, Kenya’s Supreme Court on 1 September 2017 found that the 8 August national election failed to meet constitutional muster and accordingly nullified the results and ordered a new vote be held within 60 days. The Court found there was merit to the argument put forward by the opposition coalition, the National …
Angolan elections are set to take place on 23 August 2017. It can be expected that there may be pockets of politically related violence in the days leading up to elections, although opposition parties in general are not expected to make any material indents on the current political landscape and ruling party. On 21 July …