Bank of Kigali's CIPS integration may enhance regional trade efficiency and strengthen Africa's financial ties with China, impacting currency dynamics.
CryptoBriefing•Editorial Team5h ago
As global leaders gather for Unstoppable Africa 2026, Roche (www.Roche.com) has reaffirmed its commitment to advancing healthcare as a primary driver of economic resilience across the continent.
Sunil Bharti Mittal’s Airtel Money targets $9bn IPO in boost for ailing UK stock market A payments business that operates across Africa and is ultimately controlled by an Indian billionaire has announced its intention to float on the struggling London Stock Exchange . Airtel Money, the mobile money arm of Airtel Africa, is planning one of the biggest UK listings in years, in a boost for the shrinking London market that has faced a string of recent departures . Continue reading...
The Guardian•Joanna Partridge8h ago
Condor will launch a new route between Stockholm Arlanda and Frankfurt on 13 May 2027, operating twice daily with Airbus A320-family aircraft seating up to 180 passengers. The service will strengthen links between Sweden and Germany while providing connections through Condor’s Frankfurt hub to destinations across North America, the Caribbean, Africa and Asia. Connecting options […]
Aviation24.be•André Orban9h ago
Migrants previously convicted by US courts have been imprisoned in Africa’s last absolute monarchy, Eswatini, over the past several months. Since being deported from the US, they have found themselves in a country about which they know nothing, and where local residents look on these “criminal” arrivals with suspicion. Their abrupt journey to the small southern African kingdom stems from a secret deal struck by Trump administration as part of his programme of mass deportations investigated by “The Deportation Project”, undertaken by Forbidden Stories and a network of 72 journalists across 15 countries.
Morocco held, and most of the continent is expected to follow, with three central banks expected to hike as energy costs threaten to reverse disinflation
‘The tools we have developed together are not only protecting children’s lives in Africa, but will help us protect and respond to similar risks in the UK,’ says one researcher
New York: The high-level week of the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly opened today at UN Headquarters in New York, bringing together heads of state, government leaders and senior officials to discuss some of the most pressing issues facing the world. This year's general debate is being held under the theme "Restoring Trust, Managing Transformation: A United Nations that Delivers Results for All", set by the President of the 81st session of the General Assembly, Ibrahim Khalilzad. The discussions take place against a backdrop of growing international challenges, including conflicts in the Gulf region, the Middle East, parts of Africa and Europe, as well as humanitarian crises, climate change, sustainable development challenges and rapid technological transformations. The general debate will continue from 22 to 26 September, before resuming on 28 September. Global leaders take the podium The opening session features the presentation of the UN Secretary-General's annual report on the organisation's activities by António Guterres, followed by an address from the President of the 81st session of the General Assembly. In keeping with long-standing UN tradition, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva is the first head of state to address the Assembly, followed by US President Donald Trump, as the United States hosts the United Nations headquarters. High-level meetings Alongside the general debate, a series of high-level meetings and events will focus on key global issues. On Wednesday, the UN will hold a high-level meeting marking the 40th anniversary of the Declaration on the Right to Development, as well as a high-level event on climate action and a just transition. On Thursday, leaders will discuss the existential threats posed by rising sea levels, while Friday will feature a high-level meeting on pandemic prevention, preparedness and response. The programme also includes discussions on peace and security, sustainable development, artificial intelligence, governance, climate change and international cooperation. Focus on restoring trust The current Presidency of the General Assembly is placing particular emphasis on strengthening confidence in multilateralism and enhancing the United Nations' ability to respond to global transformations. To support this objective, six interconnected priorities have been identified: Promoting peace Leaving no person or country behind Protecting the planet Rights and protection Inclusive innovation Renewing multilateralism and advancing UN reform The high-level week remains one of the United Nations' most important annual gatherings, providing a platform for member states to address shared challenges and explore solutions through international cooperation.
British Airways is expanding its network with the addition of two new destinations in Tanzania - Kilimanjaro and Zanzibar. Launching in May 2027, these two new routes will offer customers easy access to explore this fascinating East African country, home to bucket list travel experiences including the Great Migration, Africa’s highest mountain, pristine beaches and world-class diving.
The Argiope bruennichi , spotted in Cheshire for first time, part of worrying trend that could threaten native species She is an unlikely harbinger of the climate emergency: a venomous black and yellow spider who spins mysterious patterns in her webs and eats her mates for breakfast. Native to mainland Europe, north Africa and Asia, the Argiope bruennichi – commonly known as a wasp spider – is rarely seen in the north and west of Britain. But a fully grown female has been spotted in Cheshire for the first time by conservationists from Chester zoo, who stumbled across the large, brightly striped arachnid in a rewilded field. Continue reading...
The Guardian•Donna Ferguson22 Sept
The disease is soaring as funding is cut. African nations are plugging the gap but they need help with the transition Botswana nearly defeated malaria. In 2024, we recorded just 290 cases and one death. Through our elimination efforts, many of our districts had seen no local malaria cases since 2010. Then, as is unfortunately the nature of malaria, it came back. In the first 23 weeks of 2025 we recorded 2,223 cases and 11 deaths . The disease reached places where previously there was no malaria. We were not alone. Namibia recorded more than 95,000 cases in 2025, and Zimbabwe more than 156,000 , according to government figures. Continue reading...
The Guardian•Duma Gideon Boko22 Sept
Ripple technology now powers Absa Digital Asset Custody, giving institutional clients in South Africa bank-grade digital asset safeguards.
BANTEN, Indonesia : All signs are pointing toward a record-breaking El Nino this year, which experts say may cause severe drought in Asia and other extreme weather across the world, threatening food security for millions of people. El Nino is part of a natural climate cycle of warming ocean temperatures, but this year’s is expected to reach new extremes of drought, heat waves, flooding and other climate-related disruptions in South America, Africa and Asia. Southeast Asia is one of the world's most climate vulnerable regions. It's already beset by an energy crisis triggered by the war in Iran. El Nino is already fueling wildfires across farmland, depleting water supplies for major cities and hurting fish catches in the region. Asian governments that have been drawing on their financial reserves to mitigate the war's ripple effects of higher energy costs and scarce fertilizer supplies have less capacity to cope with this year's intensifying El Nino, which is forecast to peak in December. The phenomenon may amplify other crises in Southeast Asia, according to Paul Teng, with Singapore’s ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute, who said, "El Nino is only compounding all the other problems that we see.” During El Nino years, sea surface temperatures in the Pacific Ocean are warmer than usual. This happens every few years and often alters global weather patterns. This year, the seas already are hotter than average, with global oceans hitting new temperature records in August as the climate warms, said Kareff Rafisura, chief of the Disaster Risk Reduction Division at the U.N. Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific. This intensifying El Nino may be the "strongest in living memory,” according to the United Kingdom’s national weather and climate service. Similarly, the U.S.' National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said there is a 69% chance that this will be the strongest recorded El Nino since record-keeping began in 1950. El Nino's impact will be felt differently across regions, but it is expected to jeopardize food security worldwide. It could push at least 49 million more people into acute food insecurity by the end of 2027, according to the United Nations’ World Food Program. The problem will be worst in parts of Central America and southern Africa, with significant effects also anticipated in eastern Africa and South and Southeast Asia, warned the food agency. In Southeast Asia, wildfires are torching forests and peatlands in Indonesia, sending up plumes of toxic haze. The water level of a major reservoir supplying the bustling capital city of Jakarta - the world's biggest metropolis - is dropping inch by inch. As the lake dries, the ruins of one of 11 villages that had been inundated by the reservoir have emerged, as alarm grows over the need for alternative water supplies for the city of 42 million. "I would have rather not moved. There were plenty of livelihood opportunities here,” said Hussen, who only uses one name, as he ferried people across the receding reservoir. This is just the beginning, said Erma Yulihastin with Indonesia's Research Center for Climate and Atmosphere, who warned El Nino has only just begun its "super phase.” Less rainfall and hotter temperatures are putting pressure on Southeast Asia's fisheries, an essential source of protein. It's a pressing problem along the Mekong, a river basin that flows through six nations and is being disrupted by mining and construction of hydropower dams. "It’s one punch after another,” said Zeb Hogan, with the University of Nevada, Reno, who runs the research and conservation project, Wonders of the Mekong. "If the river doesn’t catch a break, we will reach a point where it’s no longer going to sustain people in the way that it always has.” Lower flows are especially hard on communities along the Mekong that depend on predictable water levels for fishing and farming, said Kongmeng Ly, with the Mekong River Commission, an intergovernmental group for Cambodia, Laos, Thailand and Vietnam. Southeast Asia's wet season generally runs from June to October, when rains usually replenish reservoirs, cool overheated cities and supply water for irrigation ahead of the next planting season. Drought may force farmers to delay planting, reduce acreage or switch crops entirely, said Rafisura, with the U.N. "Agriculture is definitely on the front line,” she said. Cutbacks in staple crops like rice and palm oil can have global impacts. The world's top three exporters of rice - India, Vietnam and Thailand - are among the nations most likely to be hit hard by El Nino this year. North of the Thai capital Bangkok, rice farmers like 55-year-old Boonmark Marksuuk are already facing tough choices. Apart from pricier fuel and fertilizer because of the war, he's spending most of his days pumping water into his rice fields because he no longer trusts the rain. El Nino is also bearing down on Indonesia and Malaysia, suppliers of about 85% of the world’s palm oil, which is used in everything from cookies and lipstick to toothpaste and laundry detergent. Malaysia’s prime minister has ordered its Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security to find ways to mitigate El Nino’s impact, which is forecast to hit Malaysia hardest in November. In Indonesia, farmers rely on rain to dissolve fertilizers into the soil to avoid burning the plants, explained Eddy Martono, chairman of the Indonesian Palm Oil Association. "If it doesn’t rain, everyone will definitely stop fertilizing,” which will hurt national production, he said. While the total economic fallout of an extreme El Nino is hard to calculate, losses from past events have reached trillions of dollars, according to HSBC’s Global Investment Research, which warns the numbers could be even bigger this time. Analysts at the investment bank Goldman Sachs estimate this El Nino could push global food commodity prices up more than 15%. "Whatever happens to agriculture really determines whether people stay below or just slightly above the poverty line,” Rafisura said. "Coming back to Southeast Asia, whatever happens here, the extent to which countries can protect production levels, will have global impacts.”
Accra Reset’s report states countries in the region and global south should take greater control of their health development after USAID debacle The United States’ withdrawal from key aid programs has put has put healthcare in Africa and the Global South “under growing strain” a new report warns. The report says the Trump administration’s cuts to programs such as US Agency for International Development (USAID), as well as the Covid-19 pandemic and rising costs of living globally have brought “new urgency” for the need to reform healthcare in the region. Continue reading...
The Guardian•Tobi Thomas health and inequalities correspondent21 Sept
Prime ministers of Australia and Iceland discuss effects on their countries even as some shy away in face of war and inflation World political leaders are descending on New York for the UN general assembly and some of them are putting the climate crisis on the agenda as they spoke on Monday at the start of the city’s annual Climate Week. This year’s Climate Week – which runs alongside UNGA – comes after months of extreme heat in large parts of the world including Europe and the US, wildfires in Africa, flash flooding in Asia and a record-breaking El Niño . Continue reading...
The Guardian•Sara Sneath in New York and Oliver Milman21 Sept
Sofia Alvarez Jurado, investigative journalist, member of th Deportation project speaks about the international investigation into Trump’s migrant policy.
One month after a Honduran migrant was deported to a country in Africa, a federal judge has ordered the U.S. government to return him to the United States.
ABC News21 Sept
A network targeting workers in Africa, Asia and Belarus relies on Western tech and platforms to recruit people for Russia's war effort, according to a new investigation.
Dubai: Want to enjoy an African safari? You don’t have to travel out of the UAE. The Sharjah Safari Park, which is the largest safari park outside Africa, reopens today for Season 5, giving you a chance to see Africa’s endemic wildlife. Here’s all you need to know about what is new in Season 5, and what to expect during your trip. What is Sharjah Safari? Photo credit: WAM Inaugurated in 2022, Sharjah Safari extends over an area of eight sq. km. and is host to more than 120 species of animals, which live in Africa and up to 50,000 animals, ranging from birds, reptiles and mammals; such as lions, elephants, giraffes, black and white rhinoceros, crocodiles, deer, bulls and many other endangered animals. The safari reopened on Monday, September 21, with new experiences this season, including behind-the-scenes animal-care tours, which will be available during specific periods, details for which will be announced at a later date. However, visitors this season can look out for several new arrivals, as the safari’s breeding and conservation programme successfully recorded 186 animal births during the second quarter of 2026 alone, including South African giraffes, elephants, lions, oryx, blue wildebeest, impala, nyala and zebra. Six critically endangered radiated tortoises have also recently hatched at the safari. The Environment and Protected Areas Authority (EPAA) in Sharjah, which manages the safari describes Sharjah Safari as a conservation and scientific project, with breeding programmes focused particularly on rare and endangered species. What to expect at the safari Sharjah Safari features 12 environments inspired by different parts of Africa and their landscapes. Depending on the ticket you choose, your journey can take you through the following areas: Birds of Africa (aviary experience) East African Islands Zanzibar Village Boma African Farm Sahel Safari Savannah Serengeti trail Tswalu safari camp Ngorongoro Moremi Niger Valley Kalahari safari The safari is designed to recreate the animals' natural environments, allowing visitors to see species across large open habitats rather than simply moving between individual enclosures. Among the animals you may encounter are giraffes, elephants, lions, rhinoceroses, crocodiles, antelopes, gazelles and numerous species of birds. There are also several dining and rest facilities spread across the safari park, giving you enough time to pace out your trip. How much are Sharjah Safari tickets? Bronze ticket Adults: AED40 Children aged three to 12: AED15 Children under three: Free If you simply wish to spend a few hours walking around the safari and seeing some of the wildlife, a bronze ticket is a good option as it offers a basic walking experience through areas such as Birds of Africa, East African Islands, Boma and Zanzibar Village. Silver ticket Adults: AED120 Children aged three to 12: AED50 Children under three: Free This ticket gives you a vehicle seat on a shared safari vehicle, and will take you through areas including Niger Valley, Sahel, Moremi, Savannah, Ngorongoro, Kalahari and Tswalu. The experience also includes Zanzibar Village, a bird show and a stop at Safari Camp. Gold ticket Adults: AED275 Children aged three to 12: AED120 Children under three: Free If you want an upgraded experience, the gold ticket offers all the options in the silver ticket, along with a personal guide and a walking safari experience through the Serengeti habitat. Private safari options You can also opt for completely private safari tours, starting from AED1,500 (which has a maximum capacity for six people) up to Dh3,500, for a group of 15. You can buy the tickets online, through www.sharjahsafari.ae or purchase tickets at the venue. What to bring Hat Sunscreen Sunglasses Comfortable walking shoes Binoculars Camera Reusable water bottle Timings The safari is open daily from 8.30am to 6pm. However, don't leave your visit until late in the afternoon, particularly if you are buying a Silver or Gold ticket. Last Gold/Silver ticket: 1.30pm Last Bronze ticket: 4pm Last Gold/Silver safari tour departure: 2pm How to get there Sharjah Safari is located within the Al Bardi Reserve in the city of Al Dhaid. To get to the safari, on Sharjah-Khorfakkan Road – E55. To get on E55, take Exit 77 on Emirates Road – E611. Once you are on E55, drive for another 30 km. As you cross the Al Dhaid cricket ground to your left, you will see an exit for Sharjah Safari to your right. Follow the signs to reach the entrance to the safari.
South African lender Absa switched on Absa Digital Asset Custody on Sept. 21, putting Ripple’s custody technology live inside one of Africa’s largest banking groups 11 months after the two firms first announced the partnership. What Went Live Today? Absa’s corporate and investment banking arm announced the offering via X on Monday morning, calling the […]
Bitcoin.com News•Shiraz Jagati21 Sept
