Africa

The report with the theme "Fight against poverty and vulnerability in Africa during the Covid-19 pandemic", was issued by the ECA during the 54th session of the Conference of African Ministers of Finance, Planning and Economic Development that's being held from May 11 to 17 in Dakar, capital city of the West African country Senegal.

While many equate this to the Covid-19 pandemic, others see it as China's gradual exit from Africa after depleting its resources and profiting from its trade there, Makram Rabah wrote in a recent article. Rabah is a lecturer in the Department of History at the American University of Beirut. "Undoubtedly, China can be the true superpower it aspires to become. Yet, these aspirations should not come at the expense of weak or desperate nations. Nor should they be a gateway to further chaos and instability," Rabah wrote in Al Arabiya.

"Our nation is going through difficult times. At this precise moment, we must safeguard our democratic achievements. I invite those who have taken up arms to lay them down in the higher interests of the nation. It is through dialogue and listening that we must resolve our contradictions," read the tweet posted on Monday.

On Sunday, a country-wide curfew was imposed in Burkina Faso, following reports of gunfire in some barracks in the morning, according to a decree signed by President Kabore, Xinhua news agency reported. Another statement, from the Minister of National Education, announced the closure of schools on Monday and Tuesday.

Burkina Faso's government has confirmed gunfire in some barracks but denied the information on social media about the Army takeover. Gunshots were heard early Sunday morning in barracks in the capital Ouagadougou. The motives for these shots are unknown, Xinhua news agency reported.

In a televised address, Hamdok said a new agreement was needed for Sudan's transition to democracy, the BBC reported on Sunday. "I decided to give back the responsibility and announce my resignation as prime minister, and give a chance to another man or woman of this noble country to... help it pass through what's left of the transitional period to a civilian democratic country," he said.

The first Turkey-Africa Partnership Summit was held in Istanbul, the second in Malabo. Over 100 government ministers and 16 Presidents from Africa attended the summit, which was held under the theme, ‘Enhanced Partnership for Common Development and Prosperity. Cooperation between Ankara and Africa, which is steadily increasing, is of vital importance to Turkey. Trade volume between Turkey and Africa is enormous.

In a provisional assessment provided on Saturday night by General Ekenge Sylvain, spokesman for the governor of the North Kivu province, at least six people, including the suicide bomber, were killed and 13 others wounded in this "terrorist attack" in the city of Beni. According to the update delivered this Sunday morning by the medical director of the General Hospital of Beni, two other people died from the serious injuries caused by the explosion, adding that 14 other people were wounded, some in serious condition, Xinhua news agency reported.

The incident took place on Thursday. According to the same source, the identification of the victims is still underway by the national gendarmerie, Xinhua news agency reported. The government strongly condemns this barbarity, and the president has decreed national mourning of forty-eight hours on Sunday and Monday.

The assailants stormed Government Bilingual High School in Ekondo Titi locality on Wednesday when students were studying, and detonated an improvised explosive device, Xinhua news agency quoted the Divisional Officer of Ekondo Titit, Timothe Aboloa as saying. Three students, namely 12-year-old Emmanuel Orume, 16-year-old Joyceline Iken, 17-year-old Kum Emmanuel, and a French language teacher Celestina Fien were killed in the attack.