Category: Africa

Source: APO

.

Emergency Relief Coordinator Tom Fletcher has allocated US$1 million from the UN Central Emergency Response Fund to support the cholera response in Cameroon’s Far North Region.

The funds will help the UN and its humanitarian partners provide support in cholera prevention, treatment, and safe water and sanitation.

The allocation targets 230,000 people in the Far North Region, with a focus on children, as well as refugees in Minawao camp and communities at high risk near borders.

As of 12 August, more than 1,250 cases and 31 deaths had been reported across nine health districts. The outbreak, which began in late June, continues to expand geographically and has already exceeded the scale of recent cholera outbreaks recorded in 2019, 2022 and 2024.

The outbreak is affecting remote and insecure areas that become harder to reach during the rainy season, increasing delays in access to treatment. Conditions in Minawao refugee camp, which hosts more than 81,000 refugees and where 80 cases have already been recorded, further increase the risk of transmission.

The 2026 Cameroon Humanitarian Needs and Response Plan, which calls for $319 million, is just over a quarter funded

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

Source: APO

.

The U.S. Mission to Nigeria hosted a speaker program August 10-13, 2026, as part of the Freedom 250 initiative, bringing U.S. Speaker Dr. Gregg BeVier, an expert in livestock development to speak to Nigerian agribusiness leaders and government officials.  This program underscores the United States’ priority of increasing two-way trade and investment opportunities between the United States and Nigeria.

The initiative featured three complementary events:  In Abuja, Dr. BeVier spoke at the All-Africa Conference on Animal Agriculture, with support from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Foreign Agriculture Service and engaged government officials from the Federal Ministry of Livestock Development and the Livestock Reforms and Implementation Committee to discuss how American private sector agricultural partnerships can drive livestock development.

Dr. BeVier connected with audiences across the 30 American Spaces in Nigeria to discuss opportunities for youth to engage in livestock productivity improvements.  He also joined several other U.S. animal husbandry companies at the U.S.-Nigeria Livestock and Feed Connect event, a curated business-to-business event bringing American and Nigerian livestock businesses together to discuss potential partnerships.

Advancing Shared Prosperity

This program was designed to advance U.S. prosperity by supporting a more favorable business climate in Nigeria, with a focus on the agricultural sector as part of the flagship Commercial and Investment Partnership.

The program builds on longstanding exchange initiatives, including the International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) and the Young African Leaders Initiative (YALI), and will create new networks for future engagement, including potential Fulbright and IVLP opportunities focused on agricultural finance and trade.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of U.S. Embassy and Consulate in Nigeria.

Source: APO – Report:

The Southern Region’s education office has presented certificates of recognition and monetary awards to 65 exemplary female teachers selected from the region’s 12 sub-zones.

At the ceremony, attended by the Minister of Education and the Governor of the Southern Region, it was reported that the main criteria for the awards included professional ethics, commitment to work, lesson planning and implementation, relations with parents and the community, and personal efforts to develop professional capacity.

Mr. Hibtizgi Kidane, head of the region’s education office, expressed his expectation that the award-winning teachers will serve as role models and play their due part in enhancing the quality of education.

Dr. Halima Mohammed, Minister of Education, said that although the participation and capacity of women in education are encouraging, greater efforts are needed to achieve better outcomes. She also called for the recognition program to include all exemplary teachers.

There are 3,943 female teachers working from the pre-school to high-school levels in the Southern Region, accounting for about 55% of the region’s total number of teachers.

– on behalf of Ministry of Information, Eritrea.

Source: APO

.

The United States Consulate General in Lagos is pleased to announce the arrival of its new Consul General, Mr. Brandon Hudspeth.  Consul General Hudspeth begins a three-year tenure as the senior U.S. government representative across the 17 states of southern Nigeria.

Mr. Hudspeth, an accomplished diplomat and a career member of the Senior Foreign Service, succeeds Consul General Rick Swart who retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in July.  Mr. Hudspeth is serving in Lagos for the second time having previously been the Political-Economic Section Chief from 2020 to 2022.

“I am honored to return to Lagos as the U.S. Consul General,” Consul General Hudspeth said.  “I know firsthand the strength of the U.S.-Nigeria partnership and the extraordinary energy, ingenuity, and entrepreneurial spirit that Nigerians and Americans share.”  Consul General Hudspeth noted that he looks forward to reconnecting with old friends, building new partnerships, and working alongside Nigerians to expand trade and investment, drive innovation, strengthen collaboration in the technology and creative industries, and create new opportunities that advance shared prosperity for both countries.

Consul General Hudspeth brings two decades of diplomatic experience spanning Africa, Asia, Latin America, and Washington.  Most recently, he served as the Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in Windhoek, Namibia.  His earlier assignments include serving as Director of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement at the U.S. Embassy in the Philippines, where he led U.S. civilian assistance programs supporting law enforcement, rule of law, counter-narcotics efforts, and maritime security cooperation.  He also served as Political-Economic Section Chief in Bamako, Mali; Nonimmigrant Visa Chief in Havana, Cuba; and Political-Military Officer in Kabul, Afghanistan.  In Washington, D.C., he served in the Department of State’s Operations Center, on the Secretariat Staff supporting the Secretary of State, and as a Desk Officer in the Bureau of African Affairs.

A native of Texas, Consul General Hudspeth is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Morehouse College, where he received a Bachelor’s in Political Science and Economics.  He earned a Master of Public Policy from Harvard University’s Kennedy School.  He was also a Distinguished Graduate of the National Defense University, where he obtained a Master of Science in National Resource Strategy.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of U.S. Embassy and Consulate in Nigeria.

Source: APO

Ugandan legislator, Hon. Naome Kabasharira has urged African countries to treat cybersecurity as a national security priority, warning delegates at the 55th CPA Africa Region Conference in Malawi that the continent’s rapid digital growth is outpacing its cyber defences.

Hon. Kabasharira (NRM, Rushenyi), who made a presentation on “Cybersecurity Threats, Digital Misinformation, and the Role of African Parliaments in Protecting the Digital Future,” argued that Africa’s growth in mobile money and artificial intelligence is creating new vulnerabilities that state-sponsored actors and organized crime networks are increasingly seeking to exploit.

“I urge African governments to strengthen regional and international cooperation because cybercriminals operate without regard for national borders; we need timely information-sharing and coordinated law-enforcement action amongst ourselves to build a collective defense against digital threats,” she said on Friday, 14 August 2026.

The lawmaker said Africa’s cybersecurity preparedness remains uneven, urging parliaments to modernise laws to combat emerging threats such as AI-enabled cybercrime, ransomware and identity theft.

Kabasharira called for greater investment in infrastructure, including funding for Computer Emergency Response Teams, digital forensic laboratories and cybersecurity workforce development, alongside stronger data protection frameworks that give citizens rights over their personal information and hold organizations accountable for data breaches.

She further addressed the growing danger posed by AI-generated content and deepfakes, which she said are eroding trust in government, the media and democratic institutions.

Hon. Kabasharira called on African parliaments to enact fair laws governing new technologies that protect citizens from false information without discouraging innovation.

“The result can be a broader erosion of trust in public institutions, the media, and democratic processes,” Kabasharira said, adding that an effective response must combine proportionate regulation with sustained digital literacy and public awareness campaigns.

Concluding her remarks, Kabasharira told fellow delegates that Africa’s prosperity is closely tied to the security of its digital ecosystems.

She urged parliamentarians to position themselves as central actors in building cyber resilience across the continent, ensuring that technology continues to serve as a driver of prosperity, inclusion and democratic progress rather than becoming a tool of exploitation.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Parliament of the Republic of Uganda.

Source: APO

The Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary-General for West Africa and the Sahel (UNOWAS), Leonardo Santos Simão, today presented to the Security Council the latest report of the Secretary-General on the activities of the United Nations Office for West Africa and the Sahel (UNOWAS). The report provides an update on key developments in the region, the activities of UNOWAS, the Cameroon-Nigeria Mixed Commission, and the implementation of the United Nations Integrated Strategy for the Sahel.

Addressing the members of the Security Council, Mr. Simão focused his speech on three major trends observed in the region: “the concerning security situation, the renewal of the dynamics of dialogue and cooperation, as well as the democratic developments underway in the region.”

With regard to the security situation, the Special Representative said that “the threat posed by terrorist and other non-State armed groups remains acute”, particularly in the central Sahel and northern Nigeria, while rapidly expanding to the coastal States of the Gulf of Guinea. He noted that these groups are “adapting their tactics”, using “advanced technologies, such as drones, means of communication and cryptocurrencies”, and maintaining increasing links with “transnational organised crime”, with the aim of consolidating their territorial and economic control and “eroding people’s trust in the authority of the state”.

The Special Representative recalled that “the human cost of this violence is devastating”, stressing that millions of people remain displaced across the region. He also warned that “humanitarian access remains severely limited,” while “funding shortfalls are reducing the scope of life-saving assistance.” He added that “women, children and young people continue to bear the brunt of insecurity, rights violations and limited access to essential services” and that “attacks on schools illustrate the heavy toll that insecurity takes on the future of entire communities”.

Despite these challenges, Leonardo Santos Simão noted “a new impetus in terms of dialogue” in West Africa and the Sahel. He welcomed the consultations undertaken between ECOWAS and the countries of the Alliance of Sahel States (AES), the mediation initiatives led by several States in the region as well as “the growing role of the African Union in promoting dialogue, rapprochement between the parties and strategic coherence”.

He said UNOWAS “remained fully committed to encouraging and supporting these developments for dialogue and cooperation.” He cited the reopening of the Kamba border post between Niger and Nigeria, the recent diplomatic exchanges between several countries in the region as well as the decision of Mali and Algeria to normalize their bilateral relations. “These are some examples of regional efforts to promote dialogue leading to cooperation among countries in the region,” he said.

Turning to the political situation, the Special Representative said that “despite multiple challenges, democracy is taking root in the region”, as evidenced by “peaceful elections, reforms and continued progress towards accountable governance”. However, he recalled that, in several countries, “the need to ensure stability, accountability, the rule of law, respect for human rights and inclusive governance remains essential”.

Leonardo Santos Simão also insisted that “security responses alone will not be enough”. To sustainably address the root causes of instability, “investments are needed in the social, economic, and environmental foundations of peace.” He recalled the initiatives carried out by UNOWAS in the fields of water diplomacy, maritime security and dialogue between young people and the authorities on new drugs, while stressing that he had seen in northern Togo “the positive impact on security of an approach combining security measures, development and humanitarian interventions”.

Finally, the Special Representative welcomed the progress of the Cameroon-Nigeria Mixed Commission in implementing the 2002 judgment of the International Court of Justice, saying it was “an example of how patient and principled engagement can transform potentially conflicting issues into a framework for cooperation”.

In conclusion, Leonardo Santos Simão reaffirmed that “UNOWAS remains fully committed to the implementation of its mandate in the service of peace, constitutional governance and regional cooperation in West Africa and the Sahel”.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of United Nations Office for West Africa and the Sahel (UNOWAS).

Source: APO

The Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare reported that nationals residing in various countries have made monetary contributions to augment the National Martyrs Trust Fund and support the families of martyrs.

Accordingly, nationals in Edmonton, Canada, contributed 127,606 Nakfa; nationals residing in Logan, Utah, in the United States, contributed 3,440 dollars; nationals in Copenhagen, Denmark, contributed 75,579 Nakfa; and nationals in Örebro, Sweden, contributed 36,486 Nakfa to augment the National Martyrs Trust Fund.

Likewise, members of the “Hilinawi Mekete” association in Germany contributed 5,040 Euros; members of the cooperative association of former Corps 491 residing in various European cities contributed 3,300 dollars; members of the cooperative association in southern Sweden contributed 2,100 Euros; the Eritrean community in Gjøvik, Norway, contributed 32,211 Nakfa; nationals in Ostvik, Sweden, contributed 26,300 kronor; and a national residing in Angola contributed 7,800 Nakfa in support of the families of martyrs.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Ministry of Information, Eritrea.