Summary

  • Nigeria's secret police arrest alleged IS recruiter

  • Zimbabwe appeals for $1.5bn in drought aid

  • South Africa president's lawyer says report on paying for home improvements is now binding

  • Disgruntled gambler in Kenya kills two after losing his money

  • Campaign to get Nigerians to buy Nigerian goods to support the naira trends

  • Ghanaian MP murdered in his home in Accra

  • Email stories and comments to africalive@bbc.co.uk - Tuesday 9 February 2016

  1. Scroll down for Tuesday's storiespublished at 18:00

    We'll be back tomorrow

    That's all for today from the BBC Africa Live page. Listen to the Africa Today podcast and keep up-to-date with developments across the continent on the BBC News website.  

    A reminder of today’s African proverb:

    Quote Message

    Just because you are struggling it doesn't mean you have failed; keep trying."

    A Chewa proverb sent by Bruce Kasoka, Lusaka, Zambia.

    Click here to send us your African proverbs.

    And we leave you with this picture of German President Joachim Gauck being greeted by playwright Wole Soyinka and a cultural troupe during his tour of Nigeria:

    German president in NigeriaImage source, AFP
  2. Kenya 'will not shun' Rio Olympicspublished at 17:55

    The head of Kenya's Olympics committee has denied reports that his country could pull out of the Rio Olympics because of the Zika virus.

    "Everything is entirely with the Brazilians to clear those things... Kenya is going to go there. We are preparing a team to go there,"  Kipchoge Keino told Reuters news agency.

    It had earlier quoted the same Mr Keino saying: "We are not going to risk taking Kenyans there if this Zika virus reaches epidemic levels." 

    The virus has been linked to thousands of babies being born with underdeveloped brains.

    Brazilian authorities insist there will be no risk to athletes and spectators, except pregnant women, when the Rio Games take place in August. 

  3. Zimbabwean found guilty of plotting to bomb first lady's dairypublished at 18:01 Greenwich Mean Time 9 February 2016

    A leader of a minor Zimbabwean opposition party has been found guilty of plotting to blow up a dairy run by President Mugabe's wife, the AFP news agency reports

    It says that Owne Kuchata pleaded guilty to having weapons that could be used for "insurgence, sabotage, banditry or terrorism".

    He was arrested last month with three other opposition activists.

    The country's Prosecutor General Johannes Tomana had dropped charges against two of the men which led to him being arrested for obstructing justice.

    Johannes TomanaImage source, AFP
    Image caption,

    Johannes Tomana was arrested and appeared in court last week after dropping charges on some of those allegedly involved in the plot

  4. Made in Nigeria trends in naira campaignpublished at 17:47 Greenwich Mean Time 9 February 2016

    Nigerians have been responding on Twitter to a campaign to encourage people to buy locally-made goods in an effort to support the currency, the naira.

    It has been losing value recently on the black market despite its official rate being kept at around 200 naira to the dollar.

    We've been asking Nigerians to send us their pictures of what made in Nigeria goods are available.

    Kingsley in Yola sent us this picture of local fashions:

    Nigerian fashionImage source, Kingsley

    And we also got this picture of candles proudly bearing the Nigerian flag.

    Nigeria candles
  5. Nkandla: South Africa's Zuma challenged in top courtpublished at 17:47 Greenwich Mean Time 9 February 2016

    South Africa's top court has been hearing an opposition case that President Jacob Zuma should repay about $23m (£15m) of state funds used to renovate his rural home.

    Karen Allen reports from Johannesburg.

  6. More than two million Libyans need aid, UN sayspublished at 17:31 Greenwich Mean Time 9 February 2016

    Rana Jawad
    BBC North Africa correspondent, Tunis

    Libyan hospitals will run out of life-saving medical supplies by the end of March if the international community does not meet its funding needs, a senior UN official has told me. 

    Ali al-Zaatari, who is the UN humanitarian coordinator to Libya, says it’s only received 1% of pledged donations to assist 2.4 million people in the country who are in need of some form of aid. 

    Chaos and political deadlock that followed the overthrow of long-term leader Col Muammar Gaddafi has put a strain on state institutions in the country.  

    Mr Zaatri told me that part of the problem is that humanitarian efforts are explicitly linked, by donors, to the political process.

    UN humanitarian coordinator to Libya Ali Al-Za'tari
    Image caption,

    Ali Al-Zaatari says the conflict and political deadlock is affecting​ the UN's work

    Libyan hospitals have been facing shortages in equipment and medicines for over a year, including access to dialysis machines and chemotherapy drugs.  

    Libya crisis in numbers

    • 1.3 million to be affected by absence of life-saving medical supplies
    • 1.08 million to be affected by shortage of vaccines
    • 2.4 million in need of some form of aid or protection [includes Libyans, and migrants and refugees]

    Source: WHO, OCHA, UNSMIL

  7. Zimbabwe appeals for $1.5bn in drought aidpublished at 17:19 Greenwich Mean Time 9 February 2016

    Brian Hungwe
    BBC Africa, Harare

    Zimbabwe's government has appealed for international assistance to deal with the impact of the continued drought.

    Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa says the government needs $1.5bn (£1bn) to finance humanitarian aid operations until the end of this year. 

    There are now about three million Zimbabweans - or around 30% of the population -  who need food aid.

    "It is is clear that there is a threat to human and animal life as safe water, irrigation water and drinking water sources for animals are increasingly drying up." Mr Mnangagwa said.  

    A special cabinet committee has been set up to oversee the response to the drought.

    Dried up lake in ZimbabweImage source, AFP
    Image caption,

    The long-running drought has led the government to declare a state of disaster in some parts of the country

  8. Kalou considers Ivory Coast futurepublished at 17:06 Greenwich Mean Time 9 February 2016

    Salomon KalouImage source, Getty Images
    Image caption,

    Salomon Kalou helped Ivory Coast win the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations

    Ivory Coast forward Salomon Kalou is weighing up whether to stop playing international football.

    The former Chelsea player has 81 caps and 29 goals for his country but hinted he could be about to end his nine-year career with the Elephants.

    He told BBC Sport: "I won the Africa Cup of Nations and played in two World Cups. But you have to think about if it is the right moment to stop.

    "I turn 30 this year and I will start having to think about resting my body."

  9. Nigeria 'terror cell funded by a Sudanese'published at 17:01 Greenwich Mean Time 9 February 2016

    Nigeria's secret police have been giving more details about the alleged recruiter for Islamic State (IS) they arrested in the north of the country. 

    A statement from the police said Abdussalam Enesi Yunusa is part of a terrorist cell funded by a Sudanese man on behalf of IS in West Africa. 

    A number of people suspected of having links to the militant group have also been arrested, the statement added.

    In a related development, the secret police or DSS, say they have arrested five people accused of planning to carry out "terror attacks" in several northern states.

    It is not clear whether those arrested have links with militant Islamist group Boko Haram who have been carrying out deadly attacks in the region.

  10. Three South African mine workers still trappedpublished at 16:59 Greenwich Mean Time 9 February 2016

    Three South African mine workers who were trapped when part of the mine collapsed are still stuck under tonnes of rubble.

    There were in a container which fell into a sink hole when one of the mine's supporting columns broke on Friday.

    Contact had been made on Monday, but rescuers are still trying to move the tonnes of debris.

    A South African journalist has been tweeting comments made by one of the mine managers Mike Begg:

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    Families waiting at mineImage source, AP
    Image caption,

    Worried family members are waiting for news at the mine

  11. 'IS recruiter' arrested in Nigeriapublished at 16:26 Greenwich Mean Time 9 February 2016

    Nigeria's secret police have arrested a university student accused of recruiting young people to join the so-called Islamic State (IS) group in Syria and Iraq.

    Abdussalam Enesi Yunusa was arrested on 17 January in the northern city of Kano after he tried to join an IS training camp in Libya with other people he recruited, the police said in a statement.

    Mr Yunusa, who is studying Information and Media Technology in central Niger State, was radicalised and joined a member of an extremist cell who was being trained in Libya. 

    Last year, Nigeria's militant Islamist group Boko Haram pledged allegiance to IS and changed its name to Islamic State in West Africa.

    Islamic State flagImage source, Reuters
    Image caption,

    The IS militant group controls parts of Syria and Iraq

  12. Media blackout in Guineapublished at 16:25 Greenwich Mean Time 9 February 2016

    Alhassan Sillah
    BBC Africa, Conakry

    Guinean newspapers have not been published today and there have been no TV and radio news bulletins in protest over the killing of a journalist at an opposition rally last week.

    It's the first time that the state broadcaster has joined in such a blackout.

    Thirty-year-old El Hadj Mohamed Diallo was killed last Friday when he was hit by a bullet during a confrontation between rival opposition supporters. 

    The government has condemned the killing and officials have promised to find the culprit.

  13. Kenyan anger over growth in casinospublished at 16:02 Greenwich Mean Time 9 February 2016

    The BBC's Abdinoor Aden has been speaking to people in the Nairobi suburb of Eastleigh, where a disgruntled gambler killed two casino employees before being killed himself.

    He says that the man had been drinking heavily and got cross when the casino was unwilling to give him credit so that he could continue playing on the gambling machines.

    He got a knife and attacked the employees, a mob then killed him.

    A local businessman Ahmed Mohammed told our reporter that he had predicted that this kind of incident could happen, and said that people in the area had been complaining about the growth in the number of gambling places.

    Gambling machine in the casino
  14. Toyota Jeeps for winning DR Congo playerspublished at 15:59 Greenwich Mean Time 9 February 2016

    Toyota jeeps
    Image caption,

    Local TV broadcast the prize-giving ceremony

    Democratic Republic of Congo's President Joseph Kabila has given each player from the country's football team, which won the African Championship trophy, a Toyota Jeep worth $60,000 (£40,000).

    The players were also given gold medals by the president.

    The Leopards beat Mali 3-0 in the final in Rwanda's capital, Kigali, last week to become the first country to win the trophy twice.

    Victorious teamImage source, AFP
  15. SA Constitutional Court wraps up hearingpublished at 15:42 Greenwich Mean Time 9 February 2016

    The hearing at South Africa's Constitutional Court over the upgrades to President Jacob Zuma's private home is now over. 

    His lawyer conceded he should have abided by the Public Protector's report which said he should repay some of the money, but says he has not breached the constitution.

    The judges now have to consider their verdict.

    A South African Constitutional expert has been tweeting through the day:

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    He warns that we may not know the decision for a while:

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  16. Ghana investigates opposition MP murderpublished at 15:42 Greenwich Mean Time 9 February 2016

    Police in Ghana have launched an investigation into the murder of a senior opposition MP Joseph Boakye Danqua Adu in the capital, Accra (see 10:46 post).

    Greater Accra regional police commander George Dampare told AFP news agency that two security guards at Mr Ado's house were taken in for questioning after Tuesday's incident.

    In 2010, the late MP was attacked and stabbed, suffering deep cuts to his hand. Three people were convicted for the attack in 2013, AFP reports.

    Attacks on politicians are rare in Ghana but another leading member of the opposition New Patriotic Party, Adam Mahama, died in May last year after an acid attack.

    The country will hold a general election in November this year.

  17. Mahrez 'did not know how to take a throw-in'published at 15:22 Greenwich Mean Time 9 February 2016

    Algerian football journalist Maher Mehazi reveals how a "street style of play" affected Leicester's Riyad Mahrez so much that he didn't know how to take a throw-in.

    Mehazi adds that despite the midfielder's great form this season, he is "improving tactically after a late start to his career".

    There's some more great insight in this BBC Radio 5 Live page clip:

  18. UN warns of IS-Boko Haram alliancepublished at 15:00 Greenwich Mean Time 9 February 2016

    The UN's special envoy to Libya has warned of the growing strength of the so-called Islamic State militant group in the country. 

    Martin Kobler told the BBC that the current power vacuum in Libya was creating a risk that IS fighters there could join up with militants elsewhere on the continent.

    He said "fragmentation is creating a political vacuum and a military vacuum" which is allowing IS to spread.

    "Particularly worrisome [is] the expansion of zones of influence to the south. 

    "And if they are going further to the south they could team up with terrorist organisations in Niger and Chad, Boko Haram and the like. And that's why it's really important to get a government of national unity in place as soon as possible," Mr Kobler said.

    A Libyan fireman stands in front of smoke and flames rising from an oil storage tankImage source, afp
    Image caption,

    IS have been blamed for a number of attacks in Libya including on an oil storage facility in Ras Lanouf last month

  19. SA opposition wants more from Zumapublished at 14:52 Greenwich Mean Time 9 February 2016

    Nomsa Maseko
    BBC Africa, Johannesburg

    Lawyers representing South Africa’s President Jacob Zuma have said he will repay the money spent on non-security upgrades to his private home in Nkandla. 

    Mr Zuma had always described the corruption watchdog’s findings as mere recommendations which were not binding, but it looks like he has now changed his mind.   

    Opposition parties took the matter to court after Mr Zuma failed to comply with a 2014 report which stated that the president unduly benefited from refurbishments at his home which were estimated to have cost $23m. 

    But the parties do not only want the president to repay the money, they also want the Constitutional Court to rule on the powers of Public Protector Thuli Madonsela, who had written the report into the Nkandla spending.

    Mr Zuma has also been accused of violating the constitution, but his lawyers have refuted this as it would allow grounds for his impeachment.

    EFF supportersImage source, EPA
    Image caption,

    Opponents of President Zuma have been demonstrating outside the Constitutional Court in Johannesburg

  20. Proudly 'made in Nigeria'published at 14:39 Greenwich Mean Time 9 February 2016

    We've been getting a response from a lot of Nigerians on our WhatsApp number (+447341070844) about whether they buy Nigerian-made goods.

    This is after some people on Twitter called for people to buy locally-made products to help support the naira which has come under a lot of pressure on the currency market.

    We got this photo of a pair of sandals bought in a village in the north of Nigeria:

    Pair of sandals

    Shadrach Yusuf has been proudly showing off a bag of sugar he bought:

    Selfie with bag of sugarImage source, Shadrach Yusuf

    Thank you for your contributions so far - and do send us more pictures.