The government says "stopping the boats" is a key political priority, but how is it going about it?

The BBC explores key issues in a vote that will test how far Zimbabwe has come since Robert Mugabe.

For the latest updates, go to bbc.com/africalive

Grief and anger persist, 10 years after a notorious mass killing at a protest camp in Cairo.

Pittards, which was founded in 1826, files a notice of intention to appoint administrators.

The BBC explores the many reasons why the central Mediterranean is among the deadliest migration routes.

Who is the 45-year-old who fell from grace in 2020 but is once more vying to be president?

Mohamed Bazoum's doctor visits him in a basement prison amid fears for his health after military coup.

A crack had been discovered in one of the walls on Thursday, an official told local media.

The incident is thought to have happened after a suspect demanded his ID back, a police statement says.

Mollie Perella
BBC World Service Newsroom

Image source, Getty Images

A mosque in the Nigerian city of Zaria has collapsed during Friday prayers, killing at least seven people.

Several others have been hurt. A local official said hundreds of worshippers were in the building at the time.

Rescue teams have been searching the rubble.

The Emir of Zaria told local media that a crack had been discovered in one of the walls on Thursday.

Grant Ferrett
BBC World Service

Image source, AFP

A planned meeting by West African chiefs of defence staff to discuss the coup in Niger has been postponed at short notice.

The talks - called by the regional bloc, Ecowas - had been expected to take place in the Ghanaian capital, Accra, on Saturday.

No reason was given for the delay. On Thursday, West African leaders ordered a standby military force to be activated in readiness to restore civilian rule in Niger.

Large crowds of supporters of last month's coup gathered near a French military base in Niamey on Friday to denounce Ecowas and France.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has expressed grave concern for the family of deposed president of Niger, who he said were being held under worsening conditions.

Chigozie Ohaka
BBC News, Lagos

Image source, AFP

Resident Doctors in Nigeria under the National Association of Resident Doctors (Nard) have suspended their strike and will resume work on Saturday.

The president of the association, Dr Emeka Orji told the BBC that the doctors would return to work after the government approved the 2023 Medical Residency Training Fund and officials assess doctors' demands for ways to address the impact of the brain drain in government hospitals.

According to Orji, these are their two major demands, and they will review any progress made after two weeks.

Resident doctors who make up more than 60% of doctors in Nigeria's government hospitals walked out of work on 26 July.

Four Nigerian stowaways set out for Europe on a tanker rudder. Two weeks later they were in Brazil.

People are already feeling the impact of economic sanctions imposed after a military coup.

Protesters gather in Niamey after a West African bloc approves intervention against coup leaders.

That's all for now from the BBC Africa Live team - we'll be back on Monday morning at bbc.com/africalive.

Until then you can find the latest updates at BBCAfrica.com and listen to the Focus on Africa podcast for stories behind the news.

A reminder of our wise words of the day:

Click here to send us your African proverbs.

We leave you with this picture of a Maasai performer in Kenya dressed in traditional gear, marking the International Day of the World's Indigenous Peoples from our week in pictures which you can have a look at here.

Image source, Getty Images

The EU is planning to send a group of observers to Liberia before a general election in October, Reuters news agency reports.

"The deployment of this election observation mission confirms our long-standing commitment to supporting competitive, transparent and peaceful elections in Liberia, the oldest democracy in Africa," Josep Borrell, the EU head of foreign policy said.

"The European Union is a close partner of Liberia and is committed to continue its support to democratic governance," he added.

In the last election current President and former football star George Weah secured a stunning run-off victory in the country's first democratic transfer of power in decades.

Read more about Liberia here.

Nicola Mandil
BBC News, Juba

The approval of South Sudan's 2023-2024 national budget has come to a halt after opposition MPs walked out of the session in the capital, Juba, over a proposed salary increase for civil servants on Friday.

The country is in its second month of the new financial year without an approved national budget as cabinet and the parliament disagree on the nature of the budget.

MPs from the main opposition political party, the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement in Opposition (SPLM-IO) of First Vice President, Riek Machar, want a 600% salary increment for civil servants in order to meet the high cost of living.

Meanwhile, the Minister of Finance and Planning, Bak Barnaba Chol, insisted that the MPs should pass the budget with a proposed 400% increment.

This rift led to the walking out of the opposition MPs.

A prominent civil society group, the Community Empowerment for Progress Organisation (CEPO), says it was disheartened and disturbed by the failure of the MPs to pass the budget during the third reading.

Edmund Yakani, Executive Director of CEPO, says failure to pass the national budget will have negative implications on the "political transition process" the country is undergoing.

South Sudan is planning to hold elections in December 2024. The polls will be the first in the world’s newest country, which seceded from Sudan 12 years ago.

DJ Edu
Presenter of This Is Africa on BBC World Service

Kenyan singer, songwriter and guitarist Nviiri Sande is an artist who has a love for storytelling, so much so that he has warned people to be “careful” when telling him stories as they “might end up in one of my tracks”.

He wants his audience to focus just as much on what he is saying as the way he sings.

“I live in my head a little bit more than usual,” he says. “I can create scenarios out of thin air.”

Nviiri studied mechanical engineering in Kenya, then spent a bit of time teaching IT before turning his hand to video production and editing.

And that’s what got him his lucky break – because through that work he met Kenyan Afropop super group Sauti Sol.

They worked together to create their 2018 comeback hit Melanin - featuring Nigerian Patoranking. And then they signed him to their label the Sol Generation Records.

He had his first big solo hit in 2019 with Pombe Sigara. In English that means alcohol and cigarettes - but the song is about being addicted to love.

For a couple of years, Nviiri the Storyteller did mostly love songs – becoming, he says, “the principal of the School of Heartbreak” in Kenya.

But in 2021 he mixed up his style, releasing his track Nikita, and reinventing himself as Bwana Sherehe – a rockstar man of the party. He grew his dreadlocks long and became more vocal, pushing for changes and improvements in the Kenyan music industry.

He has just released his second album, Inside Out. The 15 tracks are a mix of different genres – Amapiano, RnB, Afrobeats and Kenya’s own Gengetone, which evolved from Genge-rap, and blends rap, Reggaeton and Dancehall.

It includes a collaboration with Nigerian Afrobeats star, and former This is Africa guest, Chike.

The songs are proving popular not just in Kenya, other African countries, and the UK, but also in places like Russia and Croatia.

“Thanks to the internet, your music can go anywhere now – as long as it hits the right person, the right ear, and the right emotion.”

To hear the full interview with Nviiri , listen to This is Africa on BBC World Service radio and partner stations across Africa, and online here.