Evelin Uachave
BBC Monitoring

Image source, EPA

Angola's president and candidate of the ruling party, João Lourenço, has cast his vote, state-owned broadcaster TPA has reported.

President Lourenço is the first presidential candidate to cast his vote in the elections, which have been described by analysts as highly contested.

The National Electoral Commission expects 14.4million registered voters to cast their vote between 07:00 and 17:00 local time across 13,238 poling stations in Angola and in the diaspora.

Eight political parties are participating in the elections.

Angola’s electoral process was marred by tensions between the government and the opposition over alleged lack of transparency in the electoral process.

Ishaq Khalid
BBC News, Abuja

Image source, AFP

The US has agreed to return another instalment of $23m (£19m) to Nigeria - part of money allegedly looted and stashed abroad by former Nigerian military ruler Sani Abacha.

This is part of a deal sealed on Tuesday in the Nigerian capital, Abuja, between the two countries.

Justice Minister Abubakar Malami signed on behalf of Nigeria while the US ambassador to Nigeria Mary Leonard signed the agreement on behalf of the US government.

Mr Malami said the funds to be repatriated ''soon'' will be spent on infrastructural development in the country.

The US had in 2020 returned more than $300m to the West African country.

General Sani Abacha died while in office in 1998. He was accused of stealing billions of dollars of public funds and stashing them in Europe and the US.

In recent years, the Nigerian government has secured the release of part of the loot from several countries including Switzerland, Britain and the US.

Read more:

• Sani Abacha - the hunt for the billions stolen by Nigeria's ex-leader

Image source, PUBLIC DOMAIN

A Kenya Airways plane flying from New York to Nairobi had to be diverted to Morocco after a passenger was taken ill and then died on board.

The airline said the death happened on Monday.

In a statement, external, Kenya Airways said the flight was diverted to Casablanca, Morocco, where medical personnel at the airport found the passenger "unresponsive and was confirmed to have passed away".

Kenyan media report that the passenger had developed breathing complications.

Family members are quoted as saying that the passenger had an underlying condition.

The medics on board the flight are reported to have expressed concern about the passenger's organs showing signs of rapid failure.

Image source, AFP

Uganda is set to install 2,000 wi-fi hotspots across the country in a new project aimed at improving internet connectivity.

The internet will be used by government offices during working hours and will be available to the public past working hours and during weekends.

The government had already installed hotspots in regional cities and the capital, Kampala, although critics say the internet is unstable.

The additional hotspots will be installed in every location where the government’s national backbone infrastructure exists.

The project is part of the Uganda Digital Acceleration Programme.

Lebo Diseko
BBC News, Johannesburg

Image source, Cosatu / Twitter

Thousands of people across South Africa are taking part in a national strike in protest at the rising cost of living.

Two of the country's largest unions are leading the strike, calling for a “total shutdown” of the economy in protest against high unemployment levels, and rising fuel and electricity costs.

Marches are expected in all provinces, with the largest rallies likely to be in Cape Town and Pretoria.

The unions want a government cap on fuel prices, as well as a drop in interest rates and an income grant.

Around a third of South Africans are unemployed, and the country is grappling with the economic impact of global events such Covid and the war in Ukraine.

While organisers of Wednesday’s action say they aim to bring the country to an economic halt, they have also acknowledged that numbers on the streets may not match similar shutdowns in previous years.

The government says a no-work no-pay principle will apply - and essential workers cannot take part.

But unions say they see this is as the start of a series of actions they’re willing to undertake, until they get results

BBC World Service

People in Angola are voting in a general election which is expected to be the most closely fought since its independence in 1975.

n the race for the presidency, incumbent João Lourenço of the governing MPLA faces the leader of the one-time rebel group Unita, Adalberto Costa Júnior.

The MPLA, which has been in power for more than four decades, has been criticised for not tackling high levels of inflation, poverty and unemployment.

President Lourenço has promised to reform Angola's oil-driven economy but correspondents say many voters may not believe him.

Image source, Getty Images

A Tanzanian government employee has been sacked for opposing the introduction of charges for mobile money transfers on social media.

Jonas Afumwisye, a regional manager for Tanzania Railways Corporation, confirmed that he has received a dismissal letter and would appeal to the Public Service Commission, the Citizen newspaper reports.

The letter stated that he had gone against the Public Service Act of 2003.

It's unclear which app the official used as the dismissal letter just referred to social media.

Mr Afumwisye is also accused of opposing the government's vaccination efforts and defaming President Samia Suluhu in his social media posts.

Trade union boss Tumaini Nyamhokya said they oppose the dismissal of the worker because he had a right to express his opinion, the Citizen newspaper reports.

Under the previous President, John Magufuli, Tanzania had been criticised for cracking down on government critics.

Ishaq Khalid
BBC News, Abuja

Nigeria's president has condemned the killing of a prominent Islamic cleric last weekend in the north eastern state of Yobe.

President Muhammadu Buhari described the attack on Sheikh Goni Aisami as an "unprovoked and cold-blooded murder".

Sheikh Aisami is said to have been shot dead by a solider in the Karasuwa area.

Two suspects have been arrested in connection with the killing.

The president directed the military to "punish the perpetrators of this heinous crime without delay, and flush out other elements with such criminal tendencies".

Sheikh Aisami's killing has been widely condemned in Nigeria.

BBC World Service

Image source, AFP

Polls are due to open in a few hours in Angola for the general election which is expected to be the most closely fought since its independence in 1975.

In the race for the presidency, incumbent João Lourenço of the governing MPLA faces the leader of the one-time rebel group Unita, Adalberto Costa Júnior.

The MPLA, which has been in power for more than four decades, has been criticised for not tackling high levels of inflation, poverty and unemployment.

President Lourenço has promised to reform Angola's oil-driven economy but correspondents say many voters may not believe him.

Our proverb of the day:

Click here to send us your African proverbs.

The weekend's deadly hotel siege served as a reminder that the militants remain a potent threat.

A disgruntled youthful population weigh up whether to back the MPLA, in power for more than 40 years.

Kenya's losing presidential candidate must now wait for his petition to be heard in court. Does it have merit?

That's all for now from the BBC Africa Live team, but we'll be back on Wednesday morning.

Until then you can find the latest updates on the BBC News website, or listen to our Africa Today podcast.

A reminder of our African proverb of the day:

Click here to send us your African proverbs.

And we leave you with this photo of worshippers making their way through the cave of Saint George during Ashenda festival in Lalibela, Ethiopia:

Image source, AFP

They say their families were forcibly evicted from fertile land to make way for tea plantations.

Nigeria says it wants to protect local talent and boost the economy by banning foreign models and foreign voiceovers from adverts.

In the announcement posted to Twitter, Nigeria's information ministry says the new rules will come into effect in October.

It says the change does not apply to "ongoing" advertising campaigns that have already been rolled out:

Mansur Abubakar
BBC News Pidgin

Image source, Image supplied

Until a few days ago, if you mentioned the name "Bello Turji" to any northern Nigerian you would most likely get a vexed and fearful response.

Over the last couple of years, Mr Turji gained notoriety as the banditry and insecurity troubling north-western Nigeria worsened.

Amongst other alleged crimes, he was accused of ordering the burning alive of 23 passengers including a pregnant woman last year in Sokoto state.

But over the weekend, the regional government of Zamfara state announced Mr TurjI had now embraced peace and was vowing to fight active bandits.

"We have succeeded in reaching a peace deal with [Mr] Turji, and in the past six weeks not a single person was killed in the areas he operates," senior Zamfara state official Hassan Nasiha told reporters on Sunday.

This marks a big turnaround for the man who had been on regional police's most-wanted list.

What else do we know about the man? For more insight, the BBC spoke to an academic who has written a book called I Am a Bandit.

Dr Murtala Ahmad Rufai of Usman Danfodio University says Mr Turji was born to Fulani parents in Shinkafi local government area, and grew up as a pastoralist as well as working in a cattle market like his father.

"Bello Turji would be in the region of 27 to 30 years old. His father Usman was a well-known person in Shinkafi who related well with everyone," Mr Murtala added.

Mr Turji had only completed primary education but went a bit further in terms of Islamic education.

His family was said to be against his newly chosen lifestyle, which made them to migrate to Kura town in Kano then to neighbouring Jigawa state.

Related stories:

• The motorcycle bandits terrorising northern Nigeria
• How Nigeria and its president are being held to ransom
• WATCH: Inside Nigeria's kidnap crisis

Mike Thomson
BBC World Service News

Image source, AFP

The UN says it’s deeply worried about ongoing clashes between armed groups in Libya and the threats to use force to solve the country’s political crisis.

Libya has been emmeshed in political stalemate for months after the country’s eastern-based parliament appointed a new prime minister, despite the fact there was already a prime minister in post in Tripoli who was refusing to cede power without an election.

There have been several recent shoot-outs between armed supporters of both men, which the UN fears could reignite wider conflict after two years of comparative peace.

Read more about Libya:

• How six brothers - and their lions - terrorised a Libyan town
• Gaddafi's favourite son announces bid for president - but is later disqualified
• Libya to close 'inhuman' migrant detention centres after outcry

Yordanos Brhane fled Eritrea aged 15 and had been building a life in Birmingham before her murder.

Ishaq Khalid
BBC News

The Nigerian military says it has killed at least 25 members of extremist group, Islamic State West Africa Province (Iswap) in a series of air strikes in the north-east of the country.

The number of casualties has not been independently verified.

According to a Nigerian Air Force spokesman, the militants were targeted in the Sambisa Forest in Borno state where they had gathered.

Iswap's local leader Fiya Ba Yuram was one of the people targeted but it's not clear if he was killed, Nigeria's military spokesman added.

The military also says it has killed an unspecified number of suspected militants in another round of bombardment that began on Saturday, in Tunbuns area on the shores of Lake Chad, also in Borno state.

The militants were said to be conducting training when the Nigerian military struck.

Iswap broke away from Boko Haram in 2016. The two groups have continued to carry out deadly attacks against civilian and military targets.

But a multi-national military campaign in the region has had some impact in recent years.