March 07
Senegal: Senegal Sets March Date for Delayed Presidential Polls, but Confusion Prevails
Senegalese President Macky Sall has said delayed presidential elections will be held on 24 March after the country's top court found it would be unconstitutional to hold the vote… Read more »
March 05
Liberia: Former Liberian Rebel Commander Appeals Life Sentence for War Crimes
Former Liberian rebel commander Kunti Kamara will on Tuesday begin his appeal against a life sentence handed down by a Paris court in 2022 for complicity in crimes against… Read more »
March 01
Ghana: Ghana Activists Denounce New Bill That Makes Identifying As LGBTQ+ a Crime
Ghana has joined Uganda and Kenya in passing harsh legislation that not only penalises LGBTQ+ people, but also those who defend them, with up to 10 years' imprisonment. Activists… Read more »
March 03
Cote d'Ivoire: 'Festival of Laughter' in Abidjan Celebrates African Stand-Up Comedy
Comedians from across French-speaking Africa are in Abidjan this weekend for the ninth Festival of Laughter - an event that aims to promote stand-up comedy on the continent,… Read more »
Burkina Faso: Prosecutor Says Around 170 'Executed' in Attacks On Villages
Around 170 people were "executed" in attacks on three villages in northern Burkina Faso a week ago, a regional prosecutor said in a statement on Sunday. Read more »
March 01
Senegal: Senegal Opposition Demands Election to Pick New President By April
Senegal's President Macky Sall has again insisted he will leave power on 2 April, the day his mandate ends, despite postponing the election that would have picked his successor.… Read more »
February 28
Senegal: Dakar's University Reopens After Months of Closure Following Sonko Protests
Cheikh Anta Diop University in Dakar had been closed since last June as a result of protests following the arrest of political opposition leader Ousmane Sonko. It has slowly… Read more »
February 26
Senegal: Mon - Symbolic Votes Replace Real Polls As Senegalese Declare a Day of 'Mourning' for Democracy
Dakar, Senegal - Since 1978, presidential elections have always taken place in Senegal in February. This Sunday was the first time that this tradition was not observed. However,… Read more »
February 27
Senegal: Elections Before End of July - Sall
Senegal's President Macky Sall has announced that he aims to fix a date before the end of July for the presidential elections. He also announced a general amnesty for political… Read more »
February 25
Senegal: Senegalese Demonstrate in Dakar Both for and Against President Sall
Sunday was supposed to be the day of the presidential election in Senegal. Instead, the weekend was marked by a series of protests in Dakar, with the opposition and civil society… Read more »
Senegal: Franco-Senegalese Documentary 'Dahomey' Wins Berlin's Golden Bear
Dahomey, a documentary by Franco-Senegalese director Mati Diop probing the thorny issues surrounding Europe's return of looted antiquities to Africa, won the Berlin Film Festival's… Read more »
February 22
Senegal: Macky Sall to Address Nation As Calls to Set Election Date Intensify
Senegalese President Macky Sall has promised he will address the nation on Thursday evening in a bid to quell rising anger over the delay in setting a new election date. The… Read more »
February 19
Senegal: Senegalese Presidential Candidates Unite in Call for New Election Date
Fifteen of the 20 candidates who were approved to stand in Senegal's delayed February presidential poll have called for the new vote to be held no later than 2 April, the day… Read more »
February 08
West Africa: Mali, Niger and Burkina Say They Don't Feel Bound By One-Year Period to Leave Ecowas Ahead of Meeting
Mali reaffirmed its exit "without delay" from West African bloc Ecowas, saying it was not bound by the organisation's one-year timeframe for withdrawal. A few hours later, Burkina… Read more »
February 07
Senegal: 'They Have Taken the Country Hostage'
Senegal's opposition Tuesday denounced a "constitutional coup" after parliament voted to delay the presidential election by 10 months, plunging the country into its worst crisis in… Read more »
February 03
Senegal: President Macky Sall Calls Off February 25 Election
Senegalese President Macky Sall on Saturday announced the indefinite postponement of the presidential election scheduled for February 25, just hours before official campaigning was… Read more »
Nigeria: Afcon 2023 Semis - 'We Are Ready for Them'
Nigeria and Democratic Republic of Congo moved into the semi-finals of the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations on Friday night after victories over Angola and Guinea respectively. Read more »
February 01
Senegal: Senegal to Probe Constitutional Council's Handling of Presidential Polls
Lawmakers in Senegal have opened an inquiry into why presidential candidate Karim Wade, son of former president Abdoulaye Wade, was excluded from running in this month's elections.… Read more »
January 31
West Africa: Ecowas' Future in Jeopardy After Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso Exit
The withdrawal of Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso from the West African economic bloc triggered strong reactions among the group's members, with some promising to reverse the Sahel… Read more »
January 26
Ghana: Britain to Return Looted Crown Jewels to Ghana, but Only On Loan
The UK is set to "loan back" a selection of gold and silver artefacts once worn by members of Asante royalty that were taken from Ghana some 150 years ago. The precious regalia… Read more »
January 28
West Africa: Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso Quit Ecowas Regional Block
Three West African junta-led states Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso said on Sunday they are leaving the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) immediately, according to a… Read more »
January 24
Cote d'Ivoire: Gasset Fired As Ivorians Wait for Fate At Africa Cup of Nations
Ivorian football chiefs on Wednesday sacked the national football team head coach Jean-Louis Gasset despite his players having a slim chance of qualification for the knockout… Read more »
West Africa: Blinken Tours West Africa Offering U.S. Support to Offset Russian Influence in Sahel
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is on a diplomatic mission to reverse the decline of democracy in West Africa. RFI's Bineta Diagne spoke exclusively with the top US envoy in… Read more »
January 23
Senegal: Human Rights Watch Warns of Senegal Repression Ahead of Elections
Human Rights Watch (HRW) on Monday denounced Senegalese authorities for repressing opposition leaders, media and civil society, in a report published only five weeks before the… Read more »
January 22
Senegal: Sonko and Wade Excluded From Senegal's List of 20 Presidential Candidates
Senegal's Constitutional Council has published the final list of 20 candidates for the highstakes 25 February presidential election. Supporters of jailed opposition leader Ousmane… Read more »