World News

African leaders on Wednesday underscored the urgent need to fast-track the continent’s regional integration process in order to accelerate Africa’s economic transformation. The call was made at the opening ceremony of the African Development Bank’s 2019 Annual Meetings, in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea, with the theme: “Regional Integration for Africa’s Economic Prosperity.” “Apart and divided, Africa is weakened. Together and united, ...

Ugandan officials have passed a law making it an offence to offer money, food or clothing to children living on the streets of the capital, in a controversial bid to stop exploitation and sexual abuse. The Kampala Child Protection Ordinance 2019 also criminalises children loitering in public places, begging or soliciting, vending or hawking, and bans the sale of alcohol ...

One in three African children are stunted and hunger accounts for almost half of all child deaths across the continent, an Addis Ababa-based think tank has warned. In an urgent call for action, a study by the African Child Policy Forum said that nearly 60 million children in Africa do not have enough food despite the continent’s economic growth in ...

The pomp and ceremony of Muhammadu Buhari’s inauguration will not mask the huge challenges the 76-year-old Nigerian president faces during his second term in office – in particular, the booming business of kidnapping for ransom. Even one of the president’s relations – a traditional ruler in Daura in northern Nigeria – is currently being held after he was seized from ...

Pope Francis has made it mandatory for Roman Catholic clergy to report cases of clerical sexual abuse and cover-ups to the Church. In an Apostolic letter, which is set to become Church law, he makes clear that any sexual advance involving the use of power will now be considered abusive. The clarification is being seen as a message to the ...

The UN human rights chief on Monday welcomed Cameroon’s willingness to cooperate over finding workable solutions to “major human rights and humanitarian crises”, caused by months of serious unrest and violence across the west and north of the country. The  announcement came after the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet, concluded a visit to the West African country. ...

More than 400 delegates from 120 countries met at Nova SBE Campus, Cascais, turning Portugal into a global hub for start-ups and digital innovators on the subject of “Purpose driven digital Innovation.” 82 international jury members have selected 9 Global Champions 2019 from the 45 WSA winners 2018, awarded by the City of Cascais, the Republic of Austria and UN-representatives ...

There has been a “serious regression” in the political power of women across the world in recent years, UN General Assembly President María Fernanda Espinosa told delegates to the annual summit of women activists at UN Headquarters in New York on Tuesday. The former Ecuadorian Minister of Foreign Affairs who leads the 193-member world body, pointed out that in 2015 it would ...

With mercenaries undermining global peace and security and weakening States’ capacities to protect their people, the UN Security Council on Monday shone its spotlight on their activities as a source of destabilization in Africa. “From antiquity to the medieval era to the present-day, those who fight for financial reward or other material compensation have been a near constant on the battlefield”, Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told the ...

The African Centre for the Study and Research on Terrorism (ACSRT) in its bi-weekly “Africa Terrorism Bulletin” has recorded a total of 614 terrorism-related deaths in Africa between the period of 1-15 January 2019. Out of the 614terrorism-related deaths,190 were killed by direct terrorist attacks whereas 424 were killed during counter-terrorism operations by security forces. The Sahel region recorded 90% ...