18 November 2022
Botswana: While lithium prices are increasing on world markets, four men have been arrested with 40 lithium batteries from mobile phone towers worth close to 80,000 USD. Such thefts compromise mobile phone services.
BBC Africa Live 18 November 2022. 6:45
African mountains in times of climate change: With less snow and ice covering mountains, they become darker and hotter (white ice/snow reflects light/heat, keeping the ground cool) – so “(m)ountains worldwide are already warming twice as fast as the global average.” In Africa, glaciers still existing on Mount Kenya, Kilimanjaro and the Rwenzori mountains are in rapid retreat and will be gone by 2050. The disappearance of glaciers means that rockfalls, landslides and debris flows will become more frequent. Furthermore, surrounding communities may be deprived of their water sources. “Climate change may (also) pose problems for both the survival of keystone species and for overall biome integrity”, Afromontane biogeographical region being a global biodiversity hotspot.
https://theconversation.com/african-mountains-are-feeling-the-heat-of-climate-change-194642
Senegal & Wolof/French: French is the country’s one and only official language (Malinke, Wolof, Serer, Diola, Soninke, Pular and 15 more being ‘national languages’), but “the golden age of the French language in Senegal seems to be over”. Wolof is “spoken and understood by at least 90% of the population”. “French is no longer the language of privilege”, Africanisation is taking place. Media and alphabetisation in other languages than French have contributed to the upswing of Wolof and the recession of French.
https://theconversation.com/wolof-is-reclaiming-ground-in-senegal-as-the-french-language-wanes-194750
Ghana: Online campaigns can be enhanced by practical offline actions. The latter help avoid ‘slacktivism’ – people not truly engaged or devoted to the cause. The author bases his article on the OccupyGhana, #RedFriday and #OccupyFlagstaffHouse campaigns.
https://theconversation.com/social-media-campaigns-can-be-effective-if-offline-action-is-also-taken-a-case-study-from-ghana-194257
Mozambique: In the country and inside Frelimo, the party that has been ruling since independence, democracy is in decline. The Economist Intelligence Unit now classifies Mozambique as an authoritarian regime (it used to be ‘hybrid’). Within Frelimo, Nyusi and the 11 provincial secretaries were elected unopposed at the latest party congress. Being in total control and Frelimo having a two-thirds majority in parliament, Nyusi could easily change the constitution and run a third time for president. But internationally, nobody seems to notice, attention is “focused on fighting the northern Mozambique insurgency and on the country’s first liquefied natural gas export to ease Europe’s energy crisis since the start of Russia’s war against Ukraine.”
https://issafrica.org/iss-today/can-mozambiques-march-to-authoritarianism-be-stopped
17 November 2022
Serbia/Burundi/Tunisia: Having been threatened by a suspension of its own visa waiver by the EU commission, Serbia is now introducing visa for Tunisians and Burundians. In talks with Hungarian and Austrian authorities, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic yesterday Wednesday promised “to deploy more police resources along Serbia’s southern border, a major route for undocumented migrants.”
BBC Africa Live 17 November 2022. 5:10
Tigray/Eritrea/Ethiopia: The Eritrean forces are allegedly continuing to commit atrocities in Tigray. The TPLF said “Tigrayan fighters would not lay down their arms until the federal government ensured the withdrawal of Eritrean and other forces from the region.” Addis says that issues with Eritrea will be resolved once federal troops will be “stationed in Tigray’s border areas.”
BBC Africa Live 17 November 2022. 14:55
Ghana: From 1st of January, the daily minimum wage will be increased to 14,88 cedis (1USD) – an increase of 10%, a next to ridiculous increase seen that yearly inflation stands at 40%.
BBC Africa Live 17 November 2022. 13:40
Alaa Abdel Fattah/Egypt: “(T)he best known of Egypt's estimated 60,000 political prisoners” collapsed last Friday in his cell – then awoke with an intravenous drip in his arm, so his fast was broken for him by prison authorities. According to his family, who has been able to see him, he is very frail but well.
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-63665790