Dan Eboka
BBC News

Image source, Reuters

Funding constraints and rising humanitarian needs could force the UN's World Food Programme (WFP) to halt assistance to more than a million people in Chad many of whom have fled the conflict in Sudan, the UN says.

Sudan's seven-month civil war between the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) has forced more than six million to flee their homes.

Some of those have left the country including 450,000 who have crossed into neighbouring Chad, according to the UN's refugee agency.

"To insure continued support to crisis-affected populations in Chad over the next six months the WFP urgently requires $185m (£150m),” said the UN secretary-general's deputy spokesperson Farhan Haq.

If the UN does not receive the money then in December the WFP would have to suspend food aid to the internally displaced and refugees in Chad, Mr Haq said this week.

He added that in January help would then be halted to all those receiving it across Chad and also to any new arrivals from Sudan.

Isaac Adongo had compared his vice-president's economic policies to the Manchester Utd star's performances.

Will Ross
Africa editor, BBC World Service

Image source, Ortn

The military ruler of Niger, Gen Abdourahamane Tiani, is in Mali on his first international trip since seizing power in July.

Niger's neighbours - Mali and Burkina Faso - are also run by military leaders following coups since 2020.

The three countries have pledged solidarity in the face of international condemnation and sanctions.

They are also facing immense security challenges due to the presence of Islamist militants who carry out frequent attacks.

Gen Tiani has said Niger will return to civilian rule within three years.

Mali postponed a presidential election that was scheduled for early next year.

Priya Sippy
BBC News

Image source, AFP

Veteran Kenyan politician and former governor of Meru county, Kiraitu Murungi, has announced on his Facebook page that he has completed a one-year course in happiness studies, external with the US Happiness Studies Academy.

“I am now fully equipped to spearhead the happiness revolution in my motherland,” the 71-year-old wrote.

The New York-based academy, which offers online courses, was founded by Dr Tal Ben Shahar, who previously taught positive psychology and the psychology of leadership at Harvard University.

Mr Murungi said his motivation for doing the course came after losing the governorship in the 2022 elections after 30 years in politics, which caused him stress and depression.

“My journey as a lawyer and a politician took a toll on me. I was anxious and worried most of the time,” he posted on Facebook.

“Nobody is completely happy. In life, everybody is happy and sad but you try. Where I am now, I am happy. I am making good progress in my pursuit of happiness.”

The website of the Happiness Studies Academy says that participants on its course get "the knowledge and practical tools to cultivate happiness across various dimensions, including the individual, interpersonal, organizational, and national levels".

Earlier this year, Mr Murungi launched a magazine, the Happiness Journal, which is published by his company, the Happiness Resource Centre. He is the chief happiness officer at the company.

Will Ross
Africa editor, BBC World Service

The Kenyan president has said his government is ready to privatise 35 state-owned companies which he said were currently functioning inefficiently due to bureaucracy.

In a bid to boost productivity, President William Ruto said 100 other firms were also being looked at for possible privatisation.

Mr Ruto's announcement comes as the country is facing severe economic challenges including high inflation and rising levels of debt.

Last month, the Kenyan government changed a law to make it easier to sell state enterprises to private companies.

The IMF recently agreed a loan of close to $1bn (£800m) and urged reforms in public sector firms including the power company and Kenya Airways, which suffered record losses last year.

Alfred Lasteck
BBC News, Dar es Salaam

Image source, MASHAV Israel

The body of Clemence Mtenga, one of the two Tanzanians who the Israeli authorities said had been taken hostage by Hamas on 7 October, is expected to arrive back in his home country on Friday.

Officials and friends held a memorial service for him in Israel on Wednesday.

It is unclear how Mr Mtenga died.

He had been in Israel as part of his agriculture studies and was living and working on Kibbutz Nir Oz near the border with Gaza.

Hamas targeted the kibbutz during its attack in which at least 1,200 people died and more than 200 were taken hostage.

The authorities are still following up on what has happened to the other missing Tanzanian student, Joshua Mollel.

Thursday marks the day when Mr Mtenga was supposed to be awarded his degree at the Sokoine University of Agriculture.

Mr Mtenga’s friends there have been talking about his character.

Cleopatra Mluge, a graduate and classmate, told the BBC that he “was like a leader because he was humble and always ready to assist and advise friends”.

Another classmate Irene Chaboma said: “He was a hard worker in class and one of the best performing students. May his soul rest in peace.”

Denis Kimaro said Mr Mtenga was polite and a team player in all activities that he took part in at the university.

Read more on this story:

• Tanzanian student in Israel: 'Shift change saved me, but my friends are Hamas hostages'

Moses Kollie Garzeawu
Journalist, Monrovia

Image source, EPA

The party of Liberia's President George Weah, the Coalition for Democratic Change (CDC), has alleged that the opposition rigged last week's presidential run-off vote. However, it has said that while it raised the issue it would not take the matter further as the party wanted to maintain unity in Liberia.

President Weah conceded on Friday evening once it was clear that his rival, Joseph Boakai, had a slim but unassailable lead.

The final results, released on Monday, showed that he won by just over 20,000 votes.

Local and international election observer groups, including from the regional bloc Ecowas and the European Union, all declared the polls free, fair, transparent and credible.

But CDC Secretary-General Jefferson Koijee told a news conference on Wednesday evening that his party had proof that the opposition interfered with the vote.

“We have empirical evidences that the elections were stolen," he said.

He took out a folder in which he said there were tally sheets from 21 counts that showed that there was ballot stuffing. Journalists were not able to see the evidence.

Mr Boakai's Unity Party has not yet responded to the allegations.

In his widely praised concession speech last week, Mr Weah said "the Liberian people have spoken and we have heard their voice" and that it was "a time for graciousness in defeat, a time to place our country above party, and patriotism above personal interest".

But he added that the CDC would remain a strong opposition. He is due to step down in January.

Read more on the election aftermath:

• Liberian leader George Weah hailed for his sportsmanship after accepting defeat

The US and UN paused humanitarian aid in the East African country after allegations of theft.

Image source, AFP

Madagascar’s incumbent President Andry Rajoelina appears set to secure another term as he continues his commanding lead in the presidential election, with votes from more than three-quarters of polling stations counted.

Mr Rajoelina currently leads with 59.7% of the vote, far ahead of his closest opponents, ex-President Marc Ravalomanana at 13.2% and Siteny Randrianasoloniaiko at 12.5%.

Madagascar’s electoral body, Ceni, has so far tallied votes from 21,000 out of 27,000 polling stations and is expected to announce the full results on Saturday.

The tallied voting stations recorded a voter turnout of just 45%, considered to be one of the lowest voter turnouts in the island country’s election history.

The low turnout followed calls for poll boycott by 10 presidential contenders, who also withdrew their candidacies over concerns about the credibility of the election.

Ian Wafula
Africa security correspondent, BBC News, Nairobi

At least 75 people have died in the past two weeks because of violence between rival communities in the disputed area of Abyei on the border between Sudan and South Sudan, the UN's representative in South Sudan Nicholas Haysom has said.

He called on the government to investigate the attacks and reduce tensions. He also urged community leaders not to use violence as a solution.

There have been ongoing clashes between the Ngok and Twic communities over resources in Abyei.

Earlier this week the South Sudan army was accused by a local leader of co-ordinating attacks with rival armed youth - allegations the military denies.

The embassies of Norway, UK and US issued a statement asking the South Sudan government to withdraw its troops from Abyei to prevent further violence.

Both Sudan and South Sudan have claimed oil-rich Abyei but agreed on temporary administrative arrangements in a 2011 deal.

However, both sides have been accused by human rights activists of going against the agreement.

Abyei currently remains under the protection of UN peacekeeping troops.

BBC Newsday
World Service radio

Image source, AFP

The head of an animal rescue centre in the middle of a war zone has told the BBC how difficult a task it has been to get stranded animals, including lions and hyenas, away to safety.

Osman Salih said it was a "nerve-wracking couple of days" to get the stranded animals out of the Sudan Animal Rescue centre on the outskirts of the capital, Khartoum.

Since war broke out seven months ago between Sudan's national army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), managing the animals, including getting food supplies, has not been easy.

"It was a very difficult task, we had a lot of our cars stolen that we used to bring supplies with... we had our base raided several times," Mr Salih told the BBC's Newsday programme.

At the beginning of the war, the centre had 23 lions, six hyenas and 30 other animal species.

But over the months, Mr Salih said some of the animals had died from illnesses, as vets were not able to go in or send medical supplies.

He said being in the middle of an area controlled by the RSF, the evacuation from the conflict area "took a lot of permissions, communications from both sides and a lot of time to organise".

It was an "almost impossible task" to do and a "huge risk for the team", he said.

The animals are now being safety rehabilitated in another city outside the capital.

Mr Salih says there are plans to have them re-housed in "species-appropriate places" and there were offers from a number of places both inside and outside the country.

After withdrawing from qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup, when will Eritrea next play international football?

Image source, Getty Images

The governor of Kenya’s capital, Nairobi, has come to the aid of a 14-year-old Burundian boy who was harassed by county officers for hawking peanuts on the streets.

Videos of the boy weeping after county officers allegedly spilled his peanuts on the street went viral on Tuesday, eliciting an outpouring of sympathy for the boy and outrage against county officers.

It prompted a response from Nairobi Governor Johnson Sakaja, who revealed on Wednesday that the boy was a Burundian minor trafficked to work as a hawker in Kenya.

He added that he had been in talks with the Burundian ambassador for the boy to resume school.

He, however, denied harassment allegations, saying that county officers were stopping the boy from hawking outside designated hours.

“Unfortunately, when [he] was caught and the enforcement officer impounded his goods, the minor struggled for the bucket, spilling its contents on the ground after the handle broke,” he added.

Mr Sakaja said he would work with the foreign affairs ministry to address the rise of child trafficking and unlawful immigration.

The authorities have previously said that foreigners, including children and people with disabilities, are trafficked to work in Kenya, often as beggars or hawkers.

Priya Sippy
BBC News

Image source, .

A ceremony was held on Wednesday at a mortuary in Petah Tikva, Israel, to commemorate the life of Clemence Mtenga, a Tanzanian student who was taken hostage in the Hamas attack on Israel.

The ceremony was attended by representatives from the Tanzania foreign embassy, from Israel foreign ministry and students on the academic programme that Clemence was completing.

A fellow student, Ezekiel Kitiku, who had been living with Mr Mtenga on Kibbutz Nir Oz, told the BBC it had been an incredibly painful time.

“We spent so much time together, we cooked together and we always spent our evenings together talking about our day. For him to leave suddenly is very painful.

“But I am a Christian and I believe I will meet him again one day.”

Mr Kitiku is now living in Kiryat Malachi and continuing the agriculture internship.

The Tanzanian foreign ministry said that they are liaising with the Israel government to send Mr Mtenga's body home.

Read more on this story:

• Tanzanian students taken hostage by Hamas in Gaza named
• Tanzanian student in Israel: 'Shift change saved me, but my friends are Hamas hostages'

Kalkidan Yibeltal
BBC News, Addis Ababa

More than 50 people have died in Ethiopia’s northern Tigray and Amhara regions due to drought-induced hunger, local officials have told the BBC.

According to Tigray’s Disaster Risk Management office, 46 displaced people died after having already left their homes because of drought.

The deaths occurred in a town called Yechila, the office’s head Gebrehiwot Gebregziabher said.

In the neighbouring Amhara area of Wag Hemra, at least six people and 4,000 cattle have died because of food shortages prompted by drought, a local official has said.

For more than five months, the US and the UN had suspended food aid to Ethiopia following allegations of massive theft.

This exacerbated the humanitarian crises in the country where war and extreme weather events had left millions dependent on aid.

While parts of northern Ethiopia are facing a severe drought, the country’s southern and eastern regions are expected to be hit by unusually heavy rains.

According to the UN, more than 40 people have died in recent weeks because of floods and landslides, many of them in the eastern Somali region.

Image source, Getty Images

South African opposition leader Julius Malema and five other MPs from his Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) party have been suspended from parliament for a month without pay.

On Wednesday, the parliament's powers and privileges committee found them guilty of contempt of parliament for storming the stage during President Cyril Ramaphosa’s state-of-the-nation address in February.

The speaker had to suspend proceedings as security removed Mr Malema and the other MPs from the hall.

The committee added that "each member must also make an apology in person in the House to the president, the speaker and the people of South Africa" for disrupting the president's address and "putting the country in a bad light".

The suspensions will run during the whole month of February next year, meaning that Mr Malema and the other five MPs will be blocked from attending the president's next state-of-the-nation address, which is due that month.

On Monday, the EFF MPs refused to participate in the hearings against them after the committee declined their request for a postponement.

Mr Malema also protested against the appointment of advocate Anton Katz as the initiator in the hearing.

“I will not be persecuted by a white man,” Mr Malema said.

Will Ross
Africa editor, BBC World Service

The army in the Democratic Republic of Congo says it will punish any soldiers in contact with a largely Hutu rebel group linked to the 1994 Rwandan genocide.

The army said anyone - regardless of rank - who broke the ban on dealing with the FDLR militia would be arrested.

The announcement follows pressure from the United States on both Congo and Rwanda to lessen tension between them.

Rwanda is widely believed to have set up the Tutsi-led M23 rebel group to counter the FDLR - Rwandan authorities have always denied allegations of supporting the group.

Favour Nunoo
BBC News, Accra

Image source, Getty Images

Manchester United footballer Harry Maguire has accepted the apology of a Ghanaian MP who ridiculed him last year.

Isaac Adongo had caused laughter in parliament when he described Maguire as “the biggest threat at the centre of the Manchester United defence”.

The opposition MP publicly apologised on Tuesday, admitting the defender was now a “transformational footballer… now scoring goals for Manchester United”.

Responding to the apology, Maguire wrote on X, formerly Twitter: “MP Isaac Adongo apology accepted. See you at Old Trafford soon.”

Mr Adongo had compared Maguire’s performance to that of Ghana’s Vice-President Mahamudu Bawumia, whom he continues to criticise for the poor management of the country’s economy.

"As for our Maguire, he is now at the IMF, with a cup in hand," Mr Adongo said after his apology.

Ghana is currently under a $3bn (£2.4bn) IMF programme after experiencing the worst inflation in a decade, coupled with soaring debt levels.

Image source, Getty Images

Mali's military government has signed an agreement with Russia that includes a gold refinery project in the Malian capital, Bamako.

The deal involves building the refinery to process 200 tonnes of gold annually.

It is valid for four years and does not specify the timelines for the construction.

Gold is Mali's leading export product by value and one of its largest contributors to economic growth, according to the country's mining ministry.

The project will allow Mali to control all gold production in the country and "correctly apply all taxes and duties", according to Finance Minister Alousséni Sanou.

Mali has strengthened its relations with Russia in recent years following the military coup in 2021 and the withdrawal of French forces from the country a year later.

Image source, AFP

Twenty-five people have died in Nigeria's Niger state after the truck they were travelling in lost control and crashed on a busy expressway.

The vehicle, which was headed to the economic hub of Lagos from Sokoto state, was speeding and overloaded with passengers and cargo, the federal road safety agency said on Wednesday.

Some of the more than 200 passengers who survived the accident sustained serious injuries.

The accident happened on Tuesday night but was confirmed by authorities on Wednesday.

President Bola Tinubu on Wednesday described the accident as “a harrowing tragedy” and directed emergency response agencies to ensure the injured survivors receive necessary treatment.

Niger state governor Mohammed Bago also issued a directive against the use of trucks and other haulage vehicles to carry passengers.