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Live Reporting

All times stated are UK

  1. Death reported in Sudan protest

    Protesters shouting and holding up placards
    Image caption: Protests continued in Sudan this week

    Activists in Sudan have said that one person has been killed and three injured amid ongoing demonstrations in the capital of Khartoum, Al Jazeera has reported.

    People at the scene have filmed on their phones what appears to be gun shots being fired.

    Earlier on Wednesday, Sudan's military leaders announced an agreement with the opposition alliance for a three-year transition period to a civilian administration.

    At least five protesters died and several injured in clashes on Tuesday.

  2. Jumia sued for 'false and misleading statements'

    A Jumia delivery driver on his motorbike

    Jumia is being sued by investors who accuse the online retailer of making "materially false and misleading statements".

    The investors allege the e-commerce giant made misleading claims or omitted information regarding its orders, cancellations and undelivered or returned orders.

    The website techcrunch reported that Jumia CEO Sacha Poignonnec responded that Jumia would not be "distracted by those who look to create doubt, to profit at our expense and that of our long-term stakeholders”.

    He referred to the claims as "market rumors rather than facts”.

    In March, Jumia, whose main customer base is in Africa, was listed on the New York stock exchange.

    In 2016, it was valued at $1bn (£800m). The company offers a range of online goods and has branched into food delivery, hotel and flight booking and mobile tariffs.

    Read more: Jumia goes on NY Stock Exchange

  3. Soldiers killed in ambush in Niger

    BBC World Service

    At least 17 soldiers in Niger have been killed and several more are missing after their patrol was ambushed by gunmen close to the border with Mali.

    The incident happened on Tuesday near the town of Tongo Tongo in the Tillaberi region.

    That is the same region where four US and five Niger soldiers were killed when their joint patrol was ambushed in 2017. That attack was claimed by fighters from an Islamic State affiliate.

    M14 automatic rifle (R) and a M240-SLR (L) machine gun
    Image caption: These guns were said to belong to the US soldiers ambushed in 2017
  4. Malawi President Mutharika dissolves cabinet

    Emmanuel Igunza

    BBC Africa, Malawi

    One of President Mutharika's supporters holds his portrait at a campaign in April
    Image caption: A supporter of President Mutharika holds his portrait at a campaign in April

    Malawi President Peter Mutharika has dissolved his cabinet ahead of presidential and parliamentary elections next week.

    Campaigns for the elections, which analysts say will be closely contested, have intensified with candidates crisscrossing the country seeking votes.

    A statement from Malawi’s state house said the cabinet had been dissolved and the president would assume all ministerial duties.

    This is in line with the country’s constitution that requires the cabinet to be disbanded ahead of the polls.

    Incumbent President Mutharika is facing competition from six other candidates including two of his own ministers. Vice-President Saulos Chilima is vying on a United Transformation Movement ticket while immediate former Health Minister Atupele Muluzi is the flag bearer of the United Democratic Front party.

    Meanwhile the Malawi Electoral Commission says it has received all ballot materials for the vote. This will be the first time the country will be using electronic voting.

    Malawians will be electing a president, parliamentarians and local councilors in the elections on Tuesday 21 May.

  5. Why we're documenting twins and their stories

    Video content

    Video caption: Stories from Igbo-Ora, the town with the highest birth rate of twins in the world

    Igbo-Ora in Nigeria has one of the highest birth rates of twins in the world.

    But there is deep suspicion of twins in some communities, who believe the powerful twin spirit will bring bad luck.

    Photographers Bendicte Kurzen and Sanne de Wilde have been documenting twins and their stories, and visited a twin orphanage near Abuja, to help generate a more positive attitude.

  6. UK urges for support to fight Ebola in DR Congo

    Anne Soy

    BBC Africa, Nairobi

    Health workers help bury the coffin of an Ebola victim
    Image caption: Health workers help bury the coffin of an Ebola victim

    Britain says it will put pressure on other international donors and the UN system to properly coordinate the Ebola response in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.

    More than 1,000 people - including 100 health workers - have died in the world’s second biggest and most complicated outbreak of Ebola.

    The newly appointed international development secretary, Rory Stewart, made the remarks at the end of an expert meeting he convened to discuss the outbreak, where he stressed the need for people living in the area to co-operate with Ebola health workers and urged international donors to help out.

    The outbreak is showing no signs of slowing down and myths about the disease are fuelling attacks on health centres.

    The UK is helping to fund the production of Ebola vaccines.

  7. Party atmosphere as Malawians prepare to vote

    Rob Wilson

    BBC Focus on Africa radio in Nkhotakota, Malawi

    Drummers celebrating as the election approaches
    Image caption: Drummers in Malawi creating a party atmosphere as the election approaches

    Campaigning is going on all over Malawi as presidential, parliamentary and local council candidates are making final bids to voters.

    The electorate seem really fired up everywhere we go, telling us that they can’t wait to get out and cast their ballots.

    Pick-up trucks fitted with blaring speakers and carrying party supporters have been a regular feature of the areas we’ve visited.

    Along the shores of Lake Malawi we stopped at a rally for the ruling Democratic Progressive Party’s candidate for Nkhotakota North constituency, Chimunthu Banda.

    It’s normal at campaign rallies in Malawi for traditional dancers to get the crowd excited and this one didn’t disappoint. A troop of Gule Wamkulu dancers were in full swing when we arrived.

    Asked about the party’s record, Mr Banda told us: “In Malawi when we talk about agriculture it is more about food security than anything else.

    "For the past five years that the president has been in office he’s made sure that people have enough food and nobody has died of hunger, and that is our strength.”

    Traditional dancers in Nkhotakota, Malawi
    Image caption: Traditional dancers in Nkhotakota, Malawi
  8. MTN to trade shares on Nigerian stock exchange

    Charles Gitonga

    BBC News

    The MTN logo

    MTN Nigeria, a subsidiary of Africa’s largest telecommunications company MTN Group, will start trading shares on the Nigerian Stock Exchange on Thursday.

    The South African company says this is the first step to increasing local ownership.

    MTN Nigeria will list by introduction, meaning its current shares will be listed on the exchange without an additional public sale.

    It will be the first mobile provider on the stock market and the firm says it could still do a public offering in the future.

    The listing values MTN Nigeria at $6bn (£4.5bn).

    The deal is part of an agreement with the Nigerian government after MTN was ordered to pay $8.1bn to Nigeria's central bank following a tax dispute.

    Last year, the company agreed to pay $53m to resolve the dispute.

    Nigeria is MTN’s biggest market in Africa with nearly 60 million customers at the end of last year. The company is also listed in South Africa and Ghana, with expectations to list in Uganda following a push for local ownership by authorities in Kampala.

  9. 'Step towards civilian rule' for Sudan

    Alastair Leithead

    BBC Africa correspondent

    Protesters holding placards and chanting
    Image caption: Protesters in the capital of Khartoum yesterday

    The agreement for a three-year transitional administration including a parliament dominated by opposition groups is a major step towards civilian rule in Sudan.

    A cabinet will also be appointed by the opposition Declaration of Freedom and Change Forces.

    But the question of who will be ultimately in charge remains unanswered.

    A council of generals is currently the top tier of control.

    Who will be on the new executive body to replace it has been a sticking point for some time.

    Both the military and the opposition groups want not just representation, but a majority.

    The joint news conference by those involved in talks said this would be settled within 24 hours, but protesters remain on the streets until they are sure real and lasting change will come with the new transitional agreement.

  10. Zambia former minister arrested for misspending aid money

    Kennedy Gondwe

    BBC News, Lusaka

    Authorities in Zambia have arrested an ex-government minister for "for abuse of authority of office", a statement from Zambian anti-corruption and anti-money laundering agencies said.

    Emerine Kabanshi, who was formerly in charge of a community development and social services, was arrested by a joint team of investigators following concerns on how she spent funds donated by the UK government.

    The $3.5m (£2.7m) was intended for poor families as part of Zambia's social cash transfer programme, an initiative to help vulnerable households in extreme poverty.

    Ms Kabanshi is accused of collaborating with Zambia postal services to misspend the money on expensive vehicles, prompting the UK, along with Ireland, Sweden and Finland, to freeze aid to Zambia.

    President Edgar Lungu sacked Ms Kabanshi last year following the accusations.

    She is currently awaiting a date to appear in court. Ms Kabanshi has declined to comment.

  11. Malawi’s presidential barber shop

    Rob Wilson

    BBC Focus on Africa radio

    A presidential barber shop displaying portraits of the presidential candidates

    Ogos Executive Barber Shop is in the centre of Mzuzu in northern Malawi.

    With the country’s elections coming up, the hairdresser has added portraits of some of the main presidential candidates: Lazarus Chakwera, incumbent President Peter Mutharika, and Vice-President turned opposition leader Saulos Chilima.

    It appears they had also added former President Joyce Banda, who was initially running, but she pulled out of the race earlier in the year causing them to paint her out of the race on the barber shop wall.

    Malawians won’t be waiting long to find out who will be making the cut as the election takes place on Tuesday 21 May.

  12. Critics outraged at shipwreck used as art

    Barca Nostra

    Anger has been growing among art critics at the use of a fishing vessel - in which at least 700 people died - as an exhibition at Venice Biennale.

    The boat was travelling between Libya and Italy when it sank in April 2015.

    Hundreds of migrants, many from Africa, were hidden in the hull.

    Swiss-Icelandic artist Christoph Büchel brought the ship to the exhibition with the intention to highlight it as a "a relic of a human tragedy but also a monument to contemporary migration", he said in a statement.

    But art critics complain that there are no notices explaining what the boat is, creating an environment where people are sipping aperitifs and taking selfies.

    They call it barbarous, vile, abhorrent, and mawkish.

    Read more on the BBC News website.

  13. Nigerians arrested for 'eating during Ramadan fast'

    Ishaq Khalid

    BBC Africa, Abuja

    Sudanese protesters prepare Iftar meal for fellow demonstrators outside military headquarters in Khartoum on May 14, 2019.
    Image caption: Muslims are encouraged to share food when they break their fast

    The Sharia police in northern Nigeria's Kano state briefly detained 80 people accused of eating in public, rather than fasting from dawn to sunset as Muslims are required to do during their holy month of Ramadan.

    The Islamic police, known as Hisbah, say the people were arrested at different times across the city of Kano in the past couple of days.

    Kano state is one of the several states in northern Nigeria where Sharia was re-introduced since 2000.

    Islamic religious law is being implemented partially along with the country’s secular law.

    The Hisbah spokesman in Kano state, Adamu Yahaya, told the BBC that all those arrested were Muslims and officers do not target non-Muslims because they were not bound by Islamic law.

    He said some of those arrested told the Sharia office that they were eating because they did not sight the Ramadan crescent themselves while others feigned sickness, but the authorities found their excuses baseless.

    The 80 were admonished and released because they were ''first-time offenders", Mr Yahaya added.

    They were warned that if they were caught again, they would be taken to court. The Hisbah say they will continue with their patrols throughout Ramadan with a view to arresting Muslims who do not observe the fast.

    The Ramadan fast is compulsory for all adult Muslims but some categories of people - such as those who are seriously ill - are not required to fast.

  14. Lack of jobs causes Ramaphosa 'sleepless nights'

    Vumani Mkhize

    BBC Africa Business

    Mr Ramaphosa speaking after winning the election on May 11
    Image caption: President Cyril Ramaphosa has been talking touch since the ANC's election victory

    In one of his first public engagements since his party won last week’s general election, South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa said the main priorities of his new administration were job creation, fixing state-owned enterprises, reducing the size of government and dealing with corruption.

    At 27.6 %, unemployment is at its highest since 2017, for young people the figure is double.

    Speaking at an investor conference in Johannesburg, Mr Ramaphosa said the jobless rate gives him sleepless nights, adding that government was working on measures to stimulate economic growth that would aid job creation. He also called on the private sector to create one million job opportunities for young people in the next three years.

    According to Mr Ramaphosa, state power utility, Eskom, which has around $30bn (£23bn) of debt on its books, will not be allowed to fail. He said a credible business plan was already being implemented. He also eased labour union concerns by stating that the utility would not be privatised.

    Speaking about the land issue, President Cyril Ramaphosa told investors that land expropriation without compensation would be done in a manner that did not jeopardise the South African economy and food stability, and that no land grabs would be tolerated.

    Read more: Cyril Ramaphosa vows to tackle ANC corruption

  15. US pilots raised fears about Boeing 737 Max

    American Airlines pilots confronted Boeing about concerns regarding the Boeing 737 Max, the model that crashed in Ethiopia on March 10, US media has reported.

    A meeting took place in November last year following a crash in Indonesia that killed 189 people.

    Pilots said they hadn't been fully informed about the new anti-stall system, which investigators say may have caused the crashes.

    Boeing promised to make changes to software but this was still in progress when the Ethiopian Airlines plane crashed and killed all 157 people on board.

    The 737 Max is currently grounded worldwide.

    Read more: Boeing 737 Max: What went wrong?

    The aircraft that crashed near Bishoftu, Ethiopia on March 10
    Image caption: The aircraft that crashed near Bishoftu, Ethiopia on March 10
  16. Social media shut in Eritrea

    Teklemariam Bekit

    BBC Tigrinya

    Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki (L) reviews the honor guard during his welcome ceremony in the Sudanese capital, Khartoum, on June 11, 2015
    Image caption: President Isaias Afwerki rules with an iron-fist, his critics say

    Social media services have been blocked in Eritrea, with people now sending messages via VPN.

    The reason for the shutdown is unclear, but speculation is that the government has blocked social media sites to prevent people from using them to organise protests that could disrupt Independence Day celebrations on 24 May.

    Discontent about the lack of political reform is growing in Eritrea, a one-party state ruled by President Isaias Afwerki since independence in 1993.

    According to Internet World Stats, Eritrea has one of the lowest internet penetrations in the world. In 2018, it had only 71,000 internet users. They made up 1.3% of the population.

    Communication in Eritrea is strictly controlled by the government. There is no private media, and the internet cannot be accessed via mobile phones.

    Read: Is Eritrea coming in from the cold?

  17. Netflix under fire for bad Swahili subtitles

    Netflix has come under fire in Kenya for botching Swahili subtitles on its TV and film services.

    In an article, Nairobi News says the subtitles indicate "the translators at Netflix have a very poor grasp of Swahili", the most common language spoken in East Africa.

    "The subtitles in Swahili have largely been woeful, if not downright laughable and Kenyans on social media are now asking the paid channel to bring their inaccurate translation up to scratch," the news site adds.

    The one below, for instance, was wrongly translated to "your lover was dead and he was high". The proper translation should have been "your partner was late and he was high".

    View more on twitter

    One tweeter suggests the subtitles have distracted her from the show she was watching:

    View more on twitter
  18. Mozambique village 'at risk of famine'

    Famine is closing in on a village in the north of Mozambique, Radio Mocambique has said.

    Droughts followed by Cyclone Idai and Cyclone Kenneth has affected about 1,000 farmers in the Tete province.

    They say they are in need of seed to start the farming a new season of crops, which were mainly destroyed by combined floods and torrential rains.

    Farmers standing amid destroyed crops
  19. Zimbabwe's energy minister fired amid blackouts

    Young boys play pool by torchlight in the gathering darkness in the town of Chitungwiza where electricity is only provided for a few hours, usually late at night, in Chitungwiza, Zimbabwe, on October 8th 2015.
    Image caption: The power cuts come at a time when Zimbabweans are facing tough economic times

    Zimbabwe's President Emmerson Mnangagwa has sacked the Minister of Energy and Power Development, Joram Gumbo, amidst the worst electricity blackouts since 2016.

    He has been replaced by Fortune Chasi, the transport and infrastructural development deputy minister.

    Mr Gumbo has been made a minister in the president's office, in charge of implementation and monitoring performance of government departments.

    The state-owned power firm said on Monday there would be blackouts of between five and eight hours a day because of a drop in output at its largest hydro plant and ageing coal-fired generators.

  20. 'Fencing is a passionate sport'

    Tonfunmi is a 13-year-old from Nigeria who learnt how to fence in his spare time after his mum signed him up.

    His club held their first competition in 2015, which Tonfunmi won.

    In his career as a fencer, he hopes to teach others about strategy and confidence.

    Video content

    Video caption: Teen fencer: 'I want to teach others strategy and confidence'

    A BBC Africa One Minute Story, produced byBBC What's New?