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A high court in Zimbabwe has blocked the release of electronic voters' roll to the public citing national security concerns that would expose the document to manipulation.

This follows a court case filed by opposition MP Allan Makharm after the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (Zec) refused to give him a copy that he requested in October last year.

The MP said the electronic copy was ideal for scrutiny as the printed version would be inconvenient and too expensive for him.

However, the Harare High Court on Tuesday said the voters' roll was a sensitive document to be released to the public without addressing security concerns raised by Zec.

The court said the electoral commission was mandated to protect the roll from manipulation and abuse.

Zimbabwe is scheduled to hold general elections in July.

Image source, AFP

Armed policemen have laid checkpoints on roads leading to State House in the capital, Nairobi, amid fears of planned opposition protests.

Motorists are being stopped and searched at various points on the roads.

It follows the lapse of a 14-day ultimatum issued by the opposition for the government to address concerns about the high cost of living.

Opposition leader Raila Odinga has been leading a series of anti-government rallies countrywide.

Image source, Twitter / Uganda police

Uganda's police on Wednesday briefly closed a busy expressway that connects the capital, Kampala, to the country's main airport after a security scare.

A bomb squad was deployed to conduct an investigation along the Entebbe expressway before it was cleared for public use, according to tweets by police., external

Motorists were diverted to the old road that runs near the expressway until investigations ended and normal traffic flow restored.

"We would like to applaud our bomb squad and crisis intervention teams... The suspicious object was removed and the highway reopened," police said

The Chinese-funded expressway was opened in 2018 and is the first-ever toll road in the country.

BBC World Service

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The United Nations says about 100,000 people have fled into Ethiopia from the self-declared republic of Somaliland in the past month.

Many others are internally displaced following fighting in the disputed city of Las Anod which has killed more than 200 people.

The UN said the refugees have gathered in the Doolo region of Ethiopia which is enduring its worst drought in four decades.

It takes aid workers two days of driving to reach the refugees who are sheltering in public buildings or sleeping outside.

Image source, AFP

Ghana's Deputy Defence Minister Kofi Amankwa-Manu has apologised for military excesses after soldiers were deployed early Tuesday in Ashaiman, a suburb of capital Accra.

The deployment followed the killing of a young soldier allegedly stabbed to death by unknown assailants in the area.

Social media users have been sharing pictures and videos of alleged soldiers' brutality on civilians during the operation.

"If decent, innocent residents of Ashaiman were caught up in these operations, I, in my capacity as deputy defence minister, I apologise for that, " Mr Amankwa-Manu said in an interview with a local TV, external.

"It is only proper that we admit when there are excesses in operations of this nature. But we are not going to apologise for [undertaking] the operations."

Mr Amankwa-Manu said the operation was sanctioned by the military high command “to bring to book the perpetrators of this heinous crime”.

A local MP said about 72 people were arrested in the operation.

The Ghana Armed Forces (GAF) is yet to comment on the matter.

Vumani Mkhize
BBC Africa Business

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South Africa’s gross domestic product shrank by 1.3% in the fourth quarter of 2022, much more than was expected.

Analysts had predicted a decline of just 0.4%, and blamed the record blackouts for taking a significant toll on productivity.

The impact of the rolling blackouts was bound to have a knock-on effect on the economy. Only two days of the fourth quarter were without power cuts.

Businesses have been paralysed by the disruptions and have seen production costs rise as they have to purchase contingency power.

Seven of South Africa’s 10 industries experienced a decline in the last three months of 2022. The agriculture and mining industries were the biggest victims, both contracting by over 3%.

Overall the South African economy grew by 2% in 2022, but is still well below the 5 to 6% target band that economists say will make a dent in the country’s 33% unemployment rate.

More on South Africa's power crisis:

• South Africa's minister of electricity: Can Ramokgopa end load-shedding?

BBC Monitoring
The world through its media

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The opposition in the Democratic Republic of Congo has expressed outrage over President Felix Tshisekedi's "attempt" to postpone the 20 December general elections over persistent insecurity in the east.

"The situation in the east of the country should not constitute an excuse for the president to postpone the elections," Cherubin Okende, the spokesperson for opposition politician Moise Katumbi is quoted by the French broadcaster RFI as saying

Mr Okende reminded Mr Tshisekedi of the promise he made in the early days of his presidency to set up the army headquarters in the east in an effort to effectively deal with armed groups.

"Four years later, the regime is still unable to restore peace in this part of the country," he said.

Opposition leader Martin Fayulu, said that according to article 70 of the constitution, the president is elected for a five-year term. "Come 23 January 2024, Tshisekedi must vacate his post," he said.

The two opposition politicians were reacting to Mr Tshisekedi's remarks to French President Emmanuel Macron that the conflict in the east may delay the elections.

However, critics believe various challenges could be used as an excuse by the ruling coalition to justify the postponement of the elections.

Pictures taken from above the continent show how the landscape is transformed by human activity.

Athlete Mary Ngugi hopes to protect young female runners from unwanted male attention after starting the country’s first girls-only running camp.

BBC Africa Daily podcast

Image source, Abdelrahman ElGendy

An Egyptian who fled to the US after being jailed as a teenager is now writing a memoir detailing the grave state of prisons in his home country.

Abdelrahman ElGendy was only 17 when he was sentenced to six years in prison, and still remembers the guilt he felt because his elderly father was being locked away for accompanying him during the protest back in 2003.

His father only went to keep him safe, he says, and had even warned his son beforehand that he felt it was a bad idea.

The pair sat in a parked car as Abdelrahman tried to record the events that were going on, until he was dragged by police officers, and severely beaten.

He and his father were rounded up with 68 other protesters and went through horrid ordeals from pre-trial detention to eventually being sentenced and facing abuse in Egyptian prisons.

Abdelrahman was determined not to miss out on an education while locked up and studied engineering.

After his release, his family decided to flee the country and settled in Pittsburgh in the US.

He tells the BBC's Africa Daily podcast he finally feels free.

• LIsten to the full episode here: Can new prisons improve the situation in Egypt’s jails?

Image source, Abdelrahman ElGendy

Former Chelsea striker Didier Drogba calls for better medical checks after the death of a player during an Ivorian top-flight game.

Dogs and other pets have been banned from voting centres in Nigeria ahead of governorship elections on Saturday.

Some voters had said they would take their dogs along with them this weekend after experiencing violence two weeks ago at the presidential election.

But on Tuesday Nigeria's police said that this won't be permitted, because "dogs could be classed as offensive weapons as their owners/handlers can use them to intimidate, harass and cause assault and bodily harm to others":

A Nigerian politician accused of attempting to exploit a man for his kidney says he thought he was being scammed.

South Africa's president has given a trusted aide the responsibility of ending the power crisis.

Jose Tembe
BBC News, Maputo

Image source, AFP

At least 10 people have been killed by Tropical Storm Freddy in Mozambique according to the UN, contradicting earlier reports by the Mozambican authorities that no-one had died.

In the same announcement the UN's humanitarian affairs agency, Ocha, confirmed the deaths of 11 people in nearby Madagascar, where more than 3,300 homes were destroyed on Sunday when it returned to the island.

"Freddy", which is expected to gain strength to become a cyclone once more, could hit central and northern Mozambique again this week, according to weather forecasts.

It is already one of the longest-lasting cyclones in recent decades, crossing almost the entire Indian Ocean from the coast of Indonesia to southern Africa.

Kennedy Gondwe
BBC News, Lusaka

Police in Zambia have arrested four women after they took part in a march against gender-based violence that also attracted LGBTQ-rights activists.

Same-sex relationships and marriages in Zambia are illegal and on Monday the government warned against the promotion of gay and lesbian rights.

The four women, all aged under 30, have been charged with giving false information to public officers, and of holding an unlawful assembly, according to police spokesperson Danny Mwale.

The march which took place at the weekend was organised by Sistah Sistah Foundation, a local non-profit organisation. They too are being investigated by police.

It is believed that while the protesters were allowed to march by police the procession was based on the event being an anti-gender-based violence event, not to allegedly advocate gay and lesbian rights.

Some Zambians have criticised the march for this reason. But others who attended the march, or support its aims, remain defiant.

Vumani Mkhize
BBC Africa Business

Rolling blackouts in South Africa are largely responsible for the country's gross domestic product (GDP) shrinking more than expected, analysts say.

Official data shows a drop of 1.4% between October and December, instead of the 0.4% predicted.

The impact of the power outages was bound to have a knock-on effect on the economy. Only two days of the period from October to December were without power cuts.

Businesses have been paralysed by the disruptions and have seen production costs rise as they have to purchase contingency power.

Seven of South Africa’s 10 industries experienced a decline in the last three months of 2022. The agriculture and mining industries were the biggest victims, both contracting by over 3%.

Overall the South African economy grew by 2% in 2022, but is still well below the 5 to 6% target band that economists say will make a dent in the country’s 33% unemployment rate.

Related stories:

• South Africa gets new minister to tackle power crisis
• No power, no pinot
• Why South Africa can't keep the lights on

Aid workers in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo say clashes are continuing between the army and M23 rebels despite a ceasefire agreement.

They said there was fighting on at least two fronts.

The M23 said it was committed to a peaceful solution but would continue to defend itself if attacked by the Congolese military or its allies.

The M23 and the army have accused each other of launching attacks on Monday, which led to significant civilian displacement.

Rwanda denies backing the M23 which has captured large swathes of territory over the past year and is threatening the regional capital, Goma.

BBC Monitoring
The world through its media

Eritrea's government has described a UN report on the human rights situation in the Horn of Africa nation as part of "unrelenting harassment" and "weaponisation of human rights in its crudest form against a developing country".

It came after the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) said in a report on Monday that Eritrea's human rights record "remains dire and shows no sign of improvement".

In response, the Eritrean delegation to the UNHRC said in a statement that "the unrelenting harassment of Eritrea for more than 10 years now through the unwarranted appointment of special rapporteurs stems from, and is inextricably linked with, the hostile agenda of its detractors".

It said the purpose of the mandate given to the UN rapporteurs was to "create platforms to advance their [Western governments'] ulterior political motives and agendas".

The statement said "Eritrea's inviolable rights for independent political choices and economic development should not be misconstrued and utilised as tools of harassment by certain external powers".

BBC World Service

Image source, AFP

A ceasefire has taken effect in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo, although it is not clear whether it is being respected.

The UN Secretary General has urged the M23 rebel group to stop fighting and withdraw from captured territory.

The rebels launched fresh attacks on Congolese army positions on Monday, seizing a town and several villages.

Rwanda denies backing the M23 which has captured large swathes of territory over the past year and is threatening the regional capital Goma.

Related articles:

• Why Kenya decided to put boots on the ground in DR Congo conflict
• Rwanda-DR Congo tension: Shooting of plane an ‘act of war’
• Soldiers get death sentence for cowardice against M23 rebels