02 November 2021
Ethiopia: The Council of ministers has declared a nationwide state of emergency.
BBC Africa Live 02 November 2021. 15:07
Ethiopia: “In total breach of international humanitarian law”, there has been intentional and targeted destruction of Tigray’s health system (including health personnel) which leaves the majority of Tigrayans without healthcare. While there were 47 hospitals, 224 health centres, 712 health posts and 269 functional ambulances before the war, the health system is in the authors’ view now “in a similar (if not worse) position to the early 1990s, when it had only 4 functional hospitals, 10 health centres and 102 clinics”.
https://theconversation.com/decades-of-progress-gone-in-one-year-tigrays-healthcare-system-has-been-destroyed-170406
Nigeria: 4 lecturers and 2 of their children have been kidnapped by gunmen at the University of Abuja which “is located opposite a military facility near the Abuja airport.”
BBC Africa Live 02 November 2021. 9:46
Zimbabwe: A “race to retrieve a rod from the Mazowe River in Rushinga” (300km north-east of Harare) was to determine who would baptise the congregation of popular Vadzizi VaJeso Apostolic religious sect. 8 church elders “drowned, 2 were rescued and no-one retrieved the stick”. The government will cover funeral costs.
BBC Africa Live 02 November 2021. 12:39
Gambia: The article presents the “underdog” candidates in Gambia’s presidential elections. The real race will likely be between incumbent Adama Barrow and long-time opposition leaders Ousainou Darboe, Mama Kandeh and Halifa Sallah. There is one female candidate, Marie Sock, but she’s a bit of a scandal – not only is her age unknown, on top of that she is unmarried and her dress code and hair style are seen as “inappropriate”.
BBC Africa Live 02 November 2021. 14:24
01 November 2021
Dune/A Scramble for Africa allegory: Denis Villeneuve’s science fiction film “Dune” – adapting Frank Herbert’s 1965 novel of the same name – examines the geopolitics behind resource extraction and also reflects on our planet’s ecological fragility.
https://theconversation.com/dune-a-prophetic-tale-about-the-environmental-destruction-wrought-by-the-colonisation-of-africa-170583
Algeria/Morocco: So far, Algerian natural gas was being provided to Spain through a pipeline passing through Morocco – which was paid royalties for the passage and also used about 10% of the gas itself for producing electricity. The contract ended yesterday Sunday, with Algerian oil company Sonatrach ordered by the president to cut off supplies, relations between the two countries having considerably worsened recently. Algeria supplies gas to Spain also through the Medgaz undersea pipeline – but capacity of that would need to be upgraded to make up for delivery through Morocco being interrupted.
BBC Africa Live 01 November 2021. 5:59
South Africa: Local elections are being held today. Voter turnout is likely to be low – with a third of eligible voters not having registered to cast their ballots.
BBC Africa Live 01 November 2021. 5:28
Ethiopia: In a move that very much resembles panic, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has called for the use of “any weapon” to stop the advance of Tigrayan forces in the Amhara region and to “block, destroy and bury” them. On top of the TPLF, the Oromo Liberation Army (OLA) claims to have taken Kemise, a city about 50 km from Kombolcha.
BBC Africa Live 01 November 2021. 4:38
Sudan: Allies of former President al-Bashir have been released from prison by last Monday’s coup leaders, amongst them Ibrahim Ghandour, formerly Foreign Minister and head of the former ruling National Congress Party. This “is the strongest indication yet of the former leader’s hand – or that of people loyal to him – in last week’s coup.” But apparently, Ibrahim Ghandour was re-arrested shortly after his release.
BBC Africa Live 01 November 2021. 10:57
BBC Africa Live 01 November 2021. 11:56