https://africanbulletin24.com/ On the ground for 20 years. Online for the continent. Africa news — politics, business, climate, security, tech, sport, health & fitness, culture. Publisher: James King. en Thu, 29 Oct 2026 20:35:00 +0200 https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/mnt-halan-egp-4bn-capital-increase-parent https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/mnt-halan-egp-4bn-capital-increase-parent A week after one of Egypt’s biggest listings in years, Dutch parent MNT Investments has paid up a capital increase of about $71 million, about half of what it raised by selling shares. Its stake rises to just over 80%. Regulators must still sign off. Thu, 29 Oct 2026 20:30:00 +0200 Yasmine El-Sayed Business https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/south-africa-local-elections-record-special-votes https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/south-africa-local-elections-record-special-votes The Electoral Commission has approved more than double the special votes of 2021. Officials will make more than 600,000 home visits on 2 and 3 November, before 29.2 million registered voters can go to the polls on 4 November. Thu, 29 Oct 2026 20:25:00 +0200 Zanele Nkosi Politics https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/ethiopia-su-35-jets-s-400-eritrea-standoff https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/ethiopia-su-35-jets-s-400-eritrea-standoff Abiy Ahmed says Ethiopia has taken delivery of its first 12 Su-35 fighters, a year early, with four S-400 batteries to follow. Russia’s arms exporter says two jets have been handed over so far. No price or financing has been disclosed. Thu, 29 Oct 2026 20:20:00 +0200 Lemlem Bekele Security https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/kenya-african-union-russia-army-recruits-mudavadi https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/kenya-african-union-russia-army-recruits-mudavadi Foreign minister Musalia Mudavadi says Nairobi does not know how many Kenyans were drawn into Russia’s army and that the issue belongs with the AU. Official records list 354 Kenyans linked to the war. Families and an intelligence report put the number far higher. Thu, 29 Oct 2026 18:30:00 +0200 Wanjiku Kamau Security https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/liberia-un-security-council-presidency-december https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/liberia-un-security-council-presidency-december Monrovia has launched a “Road to the Presidency” calendar ahead of December, when Liberia takes the Council’s rotating chair. President Joseph Boakai is due to lead a high-level debate on maritime security on 3 December. Thu, 29 Oct 2026 18:25:00 +0200 Kwame Mensah Politics https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/tunisia-zied-el-heni-four-years-terrorism https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/tunisia-zied-el-heni-four-years-terrorism A Tunis terrorism chamber convicted the radio host after he tried to verify leaked recordings attributed to former Ennahda interim leader Mondher Lounissi and refused to hand over his phone without a warrant. Lounissi received nine years. Press-freedom groups call it an escalation. Thu, 29 Oct 2026 18:20:00 +0200 Rania Benali Politics https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/cameroon-fsnc-tchiroma-party-suspended https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/cameroon-fsnc-tchiroma-party-suspended The territorial administration minister accuses the National Salvation Front of calling for insurrection and threatening public order, and cites its leader’s residence abroad. Opposition parties call it a political manoeuvre before elections due early next year. Thu, 29 Oct 2026 16:30:00 +0200 Fatou Diallo Politics https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/afreximbank-oryx-energies-975m-management-buyout https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/afreximbank-oryx-energies-975m-management-buyout Chief executive Moussa Diao and trading head Hervé Bouvet are buying the Geneva-based fuel trader and distributor from founder Jean-Claude Gandur. Afreximbank is sole lender on a deal reported at about $1bn, as importers look for supply security in a fuel-price shock. Thu, 29 Oct 2026 16:25:00 +0200 Chinedu Eze Business https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/rwanda-us-sanctions-defence-ministry-zigama https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/rwanda-us-sanctions-defence-ministry-zigama Washington’s Treasury says the ministry directed thousands of Rwandan troops to fight alongside M23 and that Zigama, the security services’ savings bank, moved money for weapons and gold. Kigali says Congo has not met its own commitments under the Washington Accords. Thu, 29 Oct 2026 16:20:00 +0200 Lemlem Bekele Security https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/niger-moussa-kaka-journalist-disappeared https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/niger-moussa-kaka-journalist-disappeared The veteran Radio Télévision Saraounia director disappeared on 31 August, two days after a failed mutiny. The justice minister has since confirmed he is in custody but has given no location or charge. Human Rights Watch and RSF call it an enforced disappearance. Thu, 29 Oct 2026 14:30:00 +0200 Fatou Diallo Politics https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/mozambique-central-bank-domestic-gold-reserves https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/mozambique-central-bank-domestic-gold-reserves Governor Felisberto Navalha told the Bank of Mozambique’s advisory council in Tete that a work plan with the mining ministry is being drawn up. No volumes or start date yet, and output has been falling while Manica and Niassa mines are suspended. Thu, 29 Oct 2026 14:25:00 +0200 Thabo Molefe Business https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/namibia-repo-rate-7-percent-fuel-peg https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/namibia-repo-rate-7-percent-fuel-peg The unanimous 25-basis-point hike takes prime lending to 10.5%. Inflation has jumped to 5.4% on transport costs, the trade deficit has nearly doubled, and the central bank wants to narrow the rate gap with South Africa before money leaves. Thu, 29 Oct 2026 14:20:00 +0200 Naledi van Wyk Business https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/nigeria-tinubu-21-7bn-external-borrowing https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/nigeria-tinubu-21-7bn-external-borrowing The 2026–27 supplementary external borrowing plan — $20.52 billion plus €1.045 billion — now sits with the Senate debt committee. The finance minister says about $10.6 billion is for transport; opposition candidates want project-by-project disclosure first, 80 days before the presidential vote. Thu, 29 Oct 2026 12:20:00 +0200 Amara Okonkwo Business https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/caf-champions-league-draw-sundowns-out https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/caf-champions-league-draw-sundowns-out Wednesday’s group-stage draw in Cairo confirmed a Champions League without the defending champions, record winners Al Ahly or TP Mazembe. Orlando Pirates carry South Africa’s hopes into Group C; play starts on 27 November with a record US$6 million for the winners. Thu, 29 Oct 2026 12:15:00 +0200 Sipho Dlamini Sport https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/tanzania-election-anniversary-no-accountability https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/tanzania-election-anniversary-no-accountability On the first anniversary of the 29 October 2025 vote, Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch say the killings of at least 518 people remain unpunished, the first inquiry report is still unpublished, and counterterrorism and treason laws are being turned on critics. Thu, 29 Oct 2026 12:10:00 +0200 Amina Yusuf Politics https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/ebola-bundibugyo-10000-cases https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/ebola-bundibugyo-10000-cases The Bundibugyo-strain outbreak — with no approved vaccine or treatment — has now killed nearly 5,000 people, almost all in DR Congo, with cases confirmed in Kenya and Nigeria. Africa CDC convened ministers on 28 October. Thu, 29 Oct 2026 10:30:00 +0200 Amina Yusuf Health & Fitness https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/egypt-mada-masr-closure-attalah https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/egypt-mada-masr-closure-attalah Eight days from summons to verdict: the New Cairo Misdemeanour Court convicted the independent outlet’s editor of running an unlicensed website, ordered closure and confiscation, and held her for about seven hours. The Journalists Syndicate says it will appeal. Thu, 29 Oct 2026 10:25:00 +0200 Yasmine El-Sayed Politics https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/moyale-ethiopia-kenya-displacement https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/moyale-ethiopia-kenya-displacement UNHCR says Kenyan local authorities now put arrivals at up to 50,000 since 22 October — up from 36,000 a day earlier — with food the most urgent need in a Marsabit County that was already short before the influx. Thu, 29 Oct 2026 10:20:00 +0200 Lemlem Bekele Security https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/glp1-weight-loss-compounding-crackdown https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/glp1-weight-loss-compounding-crackdown SAHPRA and the Pharmacy Council are clamping down on pharmacies mass-producing semaglutide and tirzepatide, with new compounding rules due in early 2027. Thu, 29 Oct 2026 09:45:00 +0200 Sipho Dlamini Health & Fitness https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/harith-flysafair-clearance https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/harith-flysafair-clearance The infrastructure investor’s 100% takeover from ASL Aviation comes with conditions on information-sharing and Lanseria access — closing is expected in late 2026. Thu, 29 Oct 2026 09:30:00 +0200 Thabo Molefe Business https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/atp-fitness-single-ingredient-supplements https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/atp-fitness-single-ingredient-supplements Founded by medical students who could not find clean protein, ATP Fitness strips each product back to a single ingredient — and has been welcomed as a refreshing new range on South Africa’s supplement shelves. Thu, 29 Oct 2026 08:30:00 +0200 Sipho Dlamini Health & Fitness https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/egypt-ebrd-scatec-renewables-equity https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/egypt-ebrd-scatec-renewables-equity The bank’s minority position in Egypt Renewables Holdings B.V. is pitched at 2.7 GW solar, 900 MW wind and 4.2 GWh of storage — a North Africa business lead about institutional capital, not a completed build-out. Thu, 29 Oct 2026 05:55:00 +0200 Rania Benali Business https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/sa-lge-2026-sandf-kzn https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/sa-lge-2026-sandf-kzn With 4 November ballots still being reprinted after a Constitutional Court candidate order, President Ramaphosa’s 510-strong SANDF deployment to KZN frames a politics lead that is about logistics and force posture — not Thu, 29 Oct 2026 05:40:00 +0200 Thabo Molefe Politics https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/kenya-opposition-wamunyoro-2027 https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/kenya-opposition-wamunyoro-2027 After Kalonzo Musyoka’s 26 October visit to Rigathi Gachagua’s Wamunyoro home, principals say they will field a single candidate against President William Ruto — while December-versus-late calendars remain unresolved. Wed, 28 Oct 2026 22:20:00 +0200 Amina Yusuf Politics https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/afdb-undp-ai-10-billion https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/afdb-undp-ai-10-billion After a 5–7 October UNDP mission to AfDB headquarters in Abidjan, the partners say implementation begins in five unnamed countries, with a path to 20 by end-2027 — and a $1bn-a-year mobilisation ambition, not a cash pile Wed, 28 Oct 2026 22:05:00 +0200 Amina Yusuf Tech https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/tanzania-mnazi-bay-gas-discovery https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/tanzania-mnazi-bay-gas-discovery Energy Minister Juma Homera put 223 billion cubic feet of estimated reserves on the Kasa-1X ST2 well. Production is pitched for early November — a domestic-power story more than an LNG boom narrative. Wed, 28 Oct 2026 21:55:00 +0200 Amina Yusuf Climate & Energy https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/gabon-prospector5-rig-incident https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/gabon-prospector5-rig-incident Borr Drilling’s Prospector 5 sank on 24 October during preload jacking on BW Energy’s Dussafu licence. Of 115 aboard, 110 were accounted for; President Oligui Nguema visited Port-Gentil as search continued with Congolese Wed, 28 Oct 2026 21:50:00 +0200 Chinedu Eze Climate & Energy https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/sudan-uk-elfasher-sanctions https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/sudan-uk-elfasher-sanctions London designated RSF and SAF figures over atrocities including conflict-related sexual violence, with travel bans and asset freezes — and £15m in survivor and humanitarian packages that will not stop the war. Wed, 28 Oct 2026 21:40:00 +0200 Lemlem Bekele Security https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/dakar-yog-2026-opening-eve https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/dakar-yog-2026-opening-eve From 31 October to 13 November, Senegal hosts about 2,700 young athletes across Dakar, Diamniadio and Saly — with a cultural programme that organisers treat as part of the Games, not a sideshow. Wed, 28 Oct 2026 21:25:00 +0200 Sipho Dlamini Sport https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/accra-pagya-literary-festival-10 https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/accra-pagya-literary-festival-10 Writers Project of Ghana, Goethe-Institut and FCA-Ghana staged the tenth Pa Gya! from 16–18 October in Cantonments — readings, prizes and comics in a city that still builds its shelf the hard way. Wed, 28 Oct 2026 21:10:00 +0200 Wanjiku Kamau Culture https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/dangote-refinery-ipo-closes https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/dangote-refinery-ipo-closes Africa’s largest refining IPO shut its books on 27 October after an SEC extension. Company materials cite investor interest from 120 countries; how much capital lands and at what allotment remains the next filing. Wed, 28 Oct 2026 20:15:00 +0200 Amara Okonkwo Business https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/ruto-moscow-russia-africa-summit https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/ruto-moscow-russia-africa-summit At the Third Russia-Africa Summit, Kenya’s president pitched manufacturing, fertiliser and a Sh5.2 trillion infrastructure pipeline — while bilateral trade remains heavily tilted toward Russian imports. Wed, 28 Oct 2026 19:45:00 +0200 Amina Yusuf Politics https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/egypt-red-sea-littoral-declaration https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/egypt-red-sea-littoral-declaration Egypt, Eritrea, Somalia and Sudan’s Sovereignty Council issued a New Alamein declaration on 4 October backing coastal control of Red Sea rules and freedom of navigation through Bab el-Mandeb — a document that does not na Wed, 28 Oct 2026 19:10:00 +0200 Yasmine El-Sayed Politics https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/au-mycm-el-alamein-afcfta https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/au-mycm-el-alamein-afcfta African leaders and regional blocs met in Egypt on 4 October and adopted a declaration that re-centres preferential trade, non-tariff barriers, corridors and a clearer division of labour between the AU and the RECs. Wed, 28 Oct 2026 18:55:00 +0200 Lemlem Bekele Politics https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/mozambique-china-debt-reschedule https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/mozambique-china-debt-reschedule Finance Minister Carla Loveira and China’s ambassador signed a supplementary framework in Maputo on 26 October. Exim Bank instruments come next; revised schedules and amounts have not been published. Wed, 28 Oct 2026 18:50:00 +0200 Thabo Molefe Business https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/sahel-displacement-funding-gap https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/sahel-displacement-funding-gap UNHCR says displacement across Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger has roughly doubled since 2020, with the agency’s Sahel response only about 27% funded against a $329.6 million requirement as of September 2026. Wed, 28 Oct 2026 18:20:00 +0200 Fatou Diallo Security https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/west-africa-trade-corridor https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/west-africa-trade-corridor ECOWAS is pushing digital transit tools and AfCFTA coordination along the Abidjan–Lagos spine — where freight still meets too many checkpoints for a single market that exists mostly on paper. Wed, 28 Oct 2026 17:55:00 +0200 Kwame Mensah Politics https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/ghana-cocoa-season-2026-27 https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/ghana-cocoa-season-2026-27 COCOBOD set the producer price at GH¢42,400 per tonne (GH¢2,650 per 64 kg bag) from 25 September under Act 1182’s 70% FOB floor — even as production forecasts for the season have been cut. Wed, 28 Oct 2026 17:40:00 +0200 Kwame Mensah Business https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/west-africa-coastal-asylum-pressure https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/west-africa-coastal-asylum-pressure Almost 500,000 Burkinabè refugees and asylum-seekers sought safety in neighbouring countries in 2026, UNHCR says — pushing Benin, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana and Togo into a protection crisis that began far from their coasts. Wed, 28 Oct 2026 17:05:00 +0200 Amara Okonkwo Politics https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/solar-md-cape-storage-export https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/solar-md-cape-storage-export Solar MD’s Richmond Park manufacturing footprint sits at the centre of South Africa’s push to turn load-shedding-era demand into an export industry — with a 3 GWh plant built for export. Wed, 28 Oct 2026 16:45:00 +0200 Thabo Molefe Business https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/saev-battery-backed-charging-rollout https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/saev-battery-backed-charging-rollout Cape Town’s SAEV Charge is pairing roughly 120 kW DC bays with onboard storage so stations keep working when the grid does not — a test case for e-mobility on unstable networks. Wed, 28 Oct 2026 16:40:00 +0200 Naledi van Wyk Climate & Energy https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/nairobi-fintech-licence-wave https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/nairobi-fintech-licence-wave Kenya’s Central Bank now lists dozens of authorised payment service providers — a regulatory thicket that is becoming the real infrastructure of East Africa’s digital money rails. Wed, 28 Oct 2026 16:20:00 +0200 Amina Yusuf Tech https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/alamein-investment-platform-2027 https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/alamein-investment-platform-2027 Algeria, Egypt, Nigeria, Senegal and South Africa announced a vehicle targeted for February 2027 around the AUDA-NEPAD track in El-Alamein. No capitalisation figure has been published. Wed, 28 Oct 2026 16:05:00 +0200 Rania Benali Business https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/sonah-ev-charging-distribution https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/sonah-ev-charging-distribution As charge-point operators expand, B2B distributors such as Cape Town’s SONAH Group are positioning to put battery-backed hardware into contractor channels — a supply-chain story behind the highway plugs. Wed, 28 Oct 2026 15:40:00 +0200 Naledi van Wyk Business https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/opinion-grid-reliability-industrial-policy https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/opinion-grid-reliability-industrial-policy Opinion: Factories, charge points and export ambitions in South Africa increasingly price the same risk — whether the feeder stays up. Treating reliability as a side issue misses the manufacturing plot. Wed, 28 Oct 2026 15:20:00 +0200 Zanele Nkosi Opinion https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/sahel-grid-stabilisation https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/sahel-grid-stabilisation An AfDB-backed interconnection spanning Burkina Faso, Mali, Mauritania, Niger and Chad aims to stitch fragile grids together — without pretending a single Sahel-wide power treaty already exists. Wed, 28 Oct 2026 15:10:00 +0200 Fatou Diallo Climate & Energy https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/opinion-afcfta-freight-on-the-ground https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/opinion-afcfta-freight-on-the-ground Opinion: Summit declarations on preferential trade will not clear a truck at a sticky border. The next credibility test is non-tariff barriers, payments rails and corridor discipline — measured in hours, not communiqués. Wed, 28 Oct 2026 14:50:00 +0200 Zanele Nkosi Opinion https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/maghreb-solar-auction https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/maghreb-solar-auction From a Moroccan pre-qualification round to Tunisian licences and Algerian Sonelgaz awards, North Africa’s solar pipeline is moving — with storage starting to appear in tender design. Wed, 28 Oct 2026 14:12:00 +0200 Rania Benali Climate & Energy https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/cape-port-expansion https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/cape-port-expansion Transnet’s Phase 2B landside works aim to lift Cape Town container throughput toward 1.4 million TEU a year — while exporters still wait on when deeper berths will actually arrive. Wed, 28 Oct 2026 13:30:00 +0200 Thabo Molefe Business https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/afcon-qualifiers-weekend https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/afcon-qualifiers-weekend With Matchdays 3 and 4 of the TotalEnergies CAF AFCON PAMOJA 2027 qualifiers due in mid-November, the November window — not last weekend’s sparse October leftovers — is the table-mover African football is watching. Wed, 28 Oct 2026 12:40:00 +0200 Sipho Dlamini Sport https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/addis-au-summit-brief https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/addis-au-summit-brief After the 39th Assembly in February 2026 prioritised water security and Agenda 2063, Addis remains the room where African leaders translate conflict files into institutional process — slowly, and on the record. Wed, 28 Oct 2026 12:05:00 +0200 Lemlem Bekele Politics https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/lagos-power-reform-watch https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/lagos-power-reform-watch After the Electricity Act 2023 opened the door to state regulators, Lagos’s LASERC is building a local market rulebook while NERC keeps the national grid and interstate trade — a split that will define Nigeria’s commerci Wed, 28 Oct 2026 11:50:00 +0200 Chinedu Eze Climate & Energy https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/lagos-book-fair-pan-african https://africanbulletin24.com/stories/lagos-book-fair-pan-african The 25th Nigeria International Book Fair in May 2026 drew young publishers and educators from across the continent — a reminder that Africa’s reading market is trying to organise itself beyond national warehouses. Wed, 28 Oct 2026 11:15:00 +0200 Wanjiku Kamau Culture