Niamey, Niger Niger’s military leader, General Abdourahamane Tiani, recently held talks with China’s ambassador to the country, signalling Beijing’s continued support for the West African state’s reconstruction efforts following the 2023 coup. The meeting took place on 15 January at the presidential palace in Niamey, where Ambassador Lyu Guijun conveyed greetings from Chinese President Xi…
Nigeria’s government has signed a $9 million contract with a Washington-based lobbying firm to promote its efforts in protecting Christian communities, amid growing international scrutiny over alleged religious violence in the country. The deal, revealed in US Department of Justice filings, comes as U.S. president, Donald Trump’s administration intensifies pressure on Abuja following recent US…
The forested mountains of south-eastern Guinea houses what has been described as Africa’s largest mining venture, the Simandou ore mine. The site possesses the world’s richest, high-grade iron ore deposits, with an investment over $20 billion to build mines, a 600km railway, and a deep-water port to export up to 120 million tons annually. The…
Freetown, Sierra Leone The Sierra Leonean government unveiled a $5.8m investment in 62 small and medium-sized agribusinesses, aimed at enhancing food production and security in the country. The funding, supported by the World Bank through its Food Systems Resilience Programme (FSRP), will be matched by $1.25m from the businesses themselves. Half the amount is set…
Nigeria’s minister of education, Tunji Alausa (R) Nigeria’s federal government is scheduled to formally sign a renegotiated agreement with the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) on 14 January, potentially drawing a line under more than a decade of industrial action that has plagued the country’s higher education system. The deal, finalised on 23…
The latest effort by the Nigerian government to confront the country’s persistent security crises has seen the establishment of Presidential Forest Guards Initiative. The government recently graduated over 7,000 forest guards, deploying them immediately to patrol vast, ungoverned woodlands across the country’s northern regions. Launched in May 2025 by the president, Bola Tinubu, the Presidential…
The announcement by Burkina Faso’s military government that it thwarted a plot to assassinate the president, Captain Ibrahim Traoré, and destabilise the country has raised fears that the country may be on the brink of a new, more violent phase in its ongoing internal power struggles. The country’s security minister, Mahamadou Sana, announced on January…
By Editorial Board The United States’ abduction of Venezuela’s elected president, Nicolás Maduro, sends worrying signals to constituted authority across the globe, no less so for West Africa, a region where external forces have imposed political and economic dominance over its leadership for too long. Trump’s move was clearly a strategic mistake because it undermined…
Mamadi Doumbouya’s ascension to Guinea’s presidency represents a major shift in Guinea’s political space. The former coup leader has been transformed into a civilian head of state after a landslide victory in the December 28, 2025 election. With 86.72 percent of the vote, he now embarks on a seven-year term under a new constitution he…
Mali and Burkina Faso recently announced a defiant move imposing bans on US citizens entering their territories in response to restrictions imposed by the US on their citizens. The moves, which took effect immediately, follow reports of similar action by neighbouring Niger via state media. These West African states, all under military rule, cite the…
