HE Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al-Thani held a phone call on Sunday with HE Minister of Foreign Affairs of the sisterly State of Kuwait Sheikh Jarrah Jaber Al Ahmad Al Sabah.
During the phone call, they discussed cooperation relations between the two countries and ways to support and enhance them, in addition to Pakistan’s mediation efforts between the United States of America and the Islamic Republic of Iran.
The phone call also addressed coordination efforts to support mediation aimed at reducing escalation, in a way that contributes to promoting security and stability in the region.
HE Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs expressed the importance of supporting the ongoing mediation efforts to reach a sustainable peace agreement.
The Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the State of Qatar, the Arab Republic of Egypt, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, the Republic of Türkiye, the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, the Republic of Indonesia, the Republic of Djibouti, the Federal Republic of Somalia, the State of Palestine, the Sultanate of Oman, the Republic of the Sudan, the Republic of Yemen, and the Lebanese Republic condemn in the strongest terms the illegal and unacceptable step taken by the so-called “Somaliland” region in opening a purported “embassy” in occupied Jerusalem. This constitutes a flagrant violation of international law and relevant international resolutions, and represents a direct infringement on the legal and historical status of occupied Jerusalem.
The Ministers reaffirm their categorical rejection of any unilateral measures aimed at entrenching an illegal reality in occupied Jerusalem or conferring legitimacy on any entities or arrangements that contravene international law and relevant United Nations resolutions. They reiterate that East Jerusalem has been occupied Palestinian territory since 1967, and that any measures intended to alter its legal and historical status are null and void and without legal effect.
The Ministers further emphasize their full support for the unity, sovereignty, and territorial integrity of the Federal Republic of Somalia, and their unequivocal rejection of any unilateral measures that undermine the unity of Somali territory or infringe upon its sovereignty.
SADC sets regional roadmap for resilience amid global geopolitical shocks
Southern African Development Community (SADC) Foreign Ministers have committed to a coordinated regional response aimed at strengthening economic resilience and shielding member states from escalating global geopolitical and economic disruptions.
This follows the SADC Ministers of Foreign Affairs Retreat held from 22 to 24 May 2026 in Skukuza in the Kruger National Park, where ministers assessed the impact of intensifying global tensions on trade, energy, food security and financial systems.
The retreat was convened in line with a decision taken at the SADC Council of Ministers meeting in March 2026, also held in South Africa, to reflect on evolving geopolitical developments and their implications for the region.
Delivering the outcome statement, South Africa’s International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO) Minister Ronald Lamola said ministers had noted the growing risks posed by global instability, including the ongoing Middle East conflict, climate-related pressures, and disruptions to global supply chains.
“Ministers underscored the impact of intensifying geopolitical rivalry, including the current Middle-East conflict, climate-related pressures, and disruptions to global trade, energy, tourism, and financial systems, and noted that these factors are driving higher food and fuel prices, exchange-rate volatility, and increasing risks to food and energy security across Member States,” the statement read.
Ministers further reaffirmed their commitment to collective action to strengthen regional integration, enhance policy coherence and advance sustainable development across SADC member states.
They also committed to strengthening regional institutions and coordinated diplomacy to ensure a more unified SADC voice in global engagements.
The retreat deliberated on five key thematic areas, including financing regional integration, investment, public debt management and domestic revenue mobilisation; industrialisation, value chains and trade; infrastructure, transport and logistics; free movement of people, goods and services; energy, oil and gas; and agriculture and food security.
According to the outcome statement, ministers identified priority measures for collective action aimed at accelerating regional cooperation and implementation across these sectors.
“Ministers reaffirmed their shared commitment to strengthening regional solidarity, enhancing policy coherence, strengthening regional institutions, and deepening cooperation in order to build a more resilient, self-sustaining, and competitive SADC region,” the statement said.
They further agreed that the outcomes of the retreat should serve as a practical roadmap to strengthen accountability, coordination and implementation across member states.
The retreat also recommitted the region to advancing SADC Vision 2050, which sets out a long-term aspiration for a common future characterised by economic well-being, improved living standards, social justice, peace and security.
“The Retreat concluded with a renewed commitment to advancing the SADC Vision 2050, which envisions a Common Future within a regional community that ensures economic well-being, improved standards of living and quality of life, freedom, social justice, and peace and security for the people of Southern Africa,” the statement read.
The meeting concluded in Skukuza against the backdrop of the Kruger National Park’s vast wilderness, with ministers leaving the retreat having adopted what is expected to guide the region’s collective response to global uncertainty in the years ahead. – SAnews.gov.za
Leaders of the Republic of Croatia, the Swiss Confederation, the Republic of Singapore, and Palestine have sent messages of congratulations to the people and Government of Eritrea on the occasion of the 35th Independence Day anniversary.
In their messages, President Zoran Milanovic of the Republic of Croatia, President Guy Parmelin of the Swiss Confederation, President Tharman Shanmugaratnam of the Republic of Singapore, and President Mahmoud Abbas of Palestine conveyed their best wishes for good health to President Isaias Afwerki, as well as peace and prosperity to the Eritrean people.
They also expressed their countries’ readiness to enhance friendship and cooperation with Eritrea.
President Guy Parmelin of the Swiss Confederation said that the good relations between the Swiss Confederation and Eritrea, based on trust and mutual respect, enable the two countries to tackle challenges together and provide a solid basis for continued cooperation in areas of common interest.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Ministry of Information, Eritrea.
Western Cape pushes ahead with recovery efforts following severe weather
Recovery and mop-up operations are continuing across the Western Cape following severe weather incidents that caused widespread damage to infrastructure, disrupted electricity supply and affected hundreds of roads across the province.
The recent weather events have officially been classified as disasters, highlighting the extent of the impact on communities, infrastructure and service delivery.
Providing an update on ongoing recovery operations, Western Cape Premier Alan Winde acknowledged the frustrations experienced by residents as efforts continue to restore services.
“We understand the frustration many residents are feeling. It has been an exceptionally difficult time and we, along with all role players, apologise for any inconvenience. We thank residents for their patience. Officials have been working tirelessly under extremely difficult conditions to restore power and other critical services as quickly and safely as possible,” Winde said.
According to the provincial government, Eskom has restored electricity to 80% of affected customers.
However, restoration efforts have been hampered by difficult terrain, vandalism and cable theft.
The Western Cape Government strongly condemned acts of vandalism and theft, saying they continue to aggravate the situation.
In the Cape Winelands District, repairs to the main power line between Boskloof and Romansrivier are progressing, while teams are also attending to faults in Chavonnes, Hexrivier, Rawsonville and Witzenberg.
In the Cederberg area, repair teams are replacing and restringing damaged poles and conductors in Citrusdal. Work in Algeria is expected to begin once repairs in Citrusdal and Lutzville have been completed.
Several areas in the Garden Route District, including Blanco farms and Harkerville, also remain without electricity as restoration efforts continue.
Construction work in Lutzville in the Matzikama region is progressing, while recovery operations are ongoing in Elgin, Papiesvlei and Stanford in the Overberg region.
The province said about 400 roads were affected by the storms, with more than 60% already repaired and reopened.
Humanitarian relief efforts have also intensified across affected communities.
Non-governmental organisations funded by the Western Cape Department of Social Development are working with relief organisations and government entities to provide meals, blankets, mattresses, water, baby packs and clothing to affected residents.
On Friday, Winde visited the Mustadafin Foundation in Cape Town, where volunteers have been distributing warm meals and disaster relief packs.
“The work this foundation and others do is inspiring. Thank you for your selflessness,” the Premier said during the visit.
Winde also visited the National Sea Rescue Institute Volunteer Support Centre in Cape Town, commending rescue personnel involved in search and rescue operations during and after the storms.
“These brave women and men think little of giving their time and expertise, often risking their own safety to help others. You are truly extraordinary,” the Premier said.
The Provincial Disaster Management Centre continues to coordinate the province’s disaster response and recovery operations. – SAnews.gov.za
South Africa pushes for People-Centred Biodiversity Action ahead of COP17
South Africa has concluded its National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (NBSAP) Consultative Conference with renewed calls for inclusive, community-driven biodiversity implementation that advances both environmental protection and socio-economic development.
The two-day conference, held in Boksburg, Gauteng, from 20 to 21 May 2026, brought together more than 400 delegates from government, civil society, academia, Indigenous Peoples and local communities, youth formations, the private sector and development partners.
Convened by the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment, the conference forms part of South Africa’s programme leading up to the International Day for Biological Diversity (IDB) 2026 Global Flagship Event hosted by the country on 22 May under the theme “Acting Locally for Global Impact.”
The gathering marked a key step toward finalising South Africa’s revised National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan, the country’s main instrument for implementing the Convention on Biological Diversity at the national level.
Deputy Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment, Narend Singh, said the conference underscored the importance of inclusive participation in shaping the country’s biodiversity future.
“The successful conclusion of this Consultative Conference gives South Africa a strong foundation for the next phase of biodiversity implementation. What emerged clearly is that biodiversity action must be people-centred, locally driven and adequately supported.
“As we move toward finalising the NBSAP, communities, municipalities, young people, traditional knowledge holders and all sectors of society must remain active partners in protecting nature while advancing livelihoods, resilience and sustainable development,” Singh said.
Delegates welcomed the department’s efforts to ensure broad participation and alignment with the principles of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework through what was described as a whole-of-government and whole-of-society approach.
A strong emphasis was placed on ensuring that biodiversity policies deliver tangible benefits at community level, particularly through job creation, sustainable livelihoods and improved local participation in conservation efforts.
Among the key recommendations emerging from the conference was the need to strengthen financial and institutional support for municipalities, which delegates identified as critical to the implementation of biodiversity and service delivery.
Participants also called for stronger collaboration with the South African Local Government Association to support conservation and sustainable use initiatives at grassroots level.
The conference further highlighted the importance of directing accessible financial resources toward communities to support locally led conservation projects and nature-positive economic opportunities.
Delegates stressed that investment in skills development, project preparation and biodiversity enterprises would be essential to unlocking funding and creating sustainable economic opportunities.
Youth participation also featured prominently in discussions, with delegates reaffirming the importance of creating opportunities for young people in biodiversity leadership, innovation and employment.
The role of Indigenous and local knowledge systems in conservation, restoration and biodiversity stewardship was also recognised as a critical component of South Africa’s biodiversity strategy.
Following the conference, the draft NBSAP will be revised to incorporate stakeholder inputs received from communities, traditional leaders, traditional healers, youth formations, academia, civil society and the private sector.
The revised document will then proceed through intergovernmental processes before being released for a 30-day public comment period. Thereafter, the final strategy will be submitted to Cabinet for approval.
South Africa aims to submit the completed NBSAP to the Convention on Biological Diversity ahead of COP17, scheduled to take place in Yerevan in October 2026. – SAnews.gov.za
SANParks tightens security after tourists found dead in Kruger National Park
South African National Parks has announced plans to strengthen security measures in isolated areas of the Kruger National Park following the tragic discovery of two tourists who went missing in the park last week.
The bodies of the tourists were discovered on Friday near a river area in the northern section of the park after a search operation was launched when the couple failed to return to their camp on Thursday evening.
Speaking to members of the media on Sunday at Skukuza, SANParks Head of Communication and Spokesperson, Reynold Thakhuli, described the incident as unprecedented in the park’s history.
“I would like to extend our condolences to the family and affected friends as well. It is indeed a tragic incident. We’ve never really seen this kind of incident in the 100 years of the Kruger National Park. This is the very first time that we are seeing something of this nature,” Louw said.
According to preliminary investigations conducted by park rangers, the tourists’ vehicle remains missing. However, tyre tracks suggest that the vehicle may have exited the park through a fence into neighbouring Mozambique.
“The vehicle has not been found, but our rangers have done some preliminary investigations, and it has been discovered that tyre tracks are actually pointing us to the car having exited the park through a fence in Mozambique,” Thakhuli said.
He added that the vehicle did not leave through any official gate.
“We’ve got technology within the park. We have seen it as it came in, and we’ve seen it on the days that they were here in the park, but we have not seen it since Thursday when they disappeared,” he said.
Thakhuli said the incident has prompted SANParks to reassess security in remote sections of the park despite existing surveillance systems.
“We have really high-class security technology that we are using within the park, but this incident has actually given us another process that we need to embark on in terms of ensuring that even those areas that are isolated, we can have some security there,” he said.
He confirmed that SANParks would later issue a statement outlining mitigation measures aimed at improving security across the park.
Thahuli said SANParks executives and police representatives met with the victims’ family on Saturday and pledged continued support throughout the process.
“We were told that the couple are people who really loved the Kruger, and it’s people who would not really get out unnecessarily into areas that are dangerous,” he said.
The family is expected to visit the park on Monday, where SANParks will assist with arrangements, including the transportation of the deceased.
“We’re really going to be supporting the family throughout the entire process,” Thakhuli said.
Meanwhile, Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment, Willie Aucamp, said he had been briefed on the incident and had engaged SANParks leadership to ensure continued cooperation with the investigation being conducted by the South African Police Service.
“On behalf of SANParks and the Department, we extend our sincere condolences to the family of the victims during this difficult time.
“The SAPS and SANParks have located and notified the family of this tragedy,” Aucamp said. – SAnews.gov.za
The Africa24 Group (https://Africa24TV.com) will bring you full live coverage, from 25 to 29 May 2026 in Brazzaville, of the 61st Meeting of the Board of Governors of the African Development Bank and the 52nd Meeting of the African Development Fund, the AfDB Group’s main annual statutory event.
The Kintélé International Centre will host more than 3,000 participants: heads of state and government, finance and planning ministers, delegates from the AfDB’s 81 member countries, central bank governors, private sector representatives, international financial institutions, philanthropists, civil society, academics and the media.
The 2026 Annual Meetings are the first for Dr Sidi Ould Tah, who took office as the ninth President of the African Development Bank Group in September 2025. One of the first major achievements under his leadership is the seventeenth replenishment of the African Development Fund (ADF-17), which took place in December 2025 in London and raised a record $11 billion.
Under the theme ‘Mobilising resources on a large scale to finance Africa’s development in a fragmented world’, the proceedings aim to develop an innovative financial architecture for Africa in the face of geopolitical shifts.
“Mobilising resources on a large scale to finance Africa’s development in a fragmented world”.
Africa needs long-term financing for energy, food security, climate change adaptation, infrastructure and job creation for a growing and anxious population. Furthermore, the continent’s development financing gap stands at $400 billion per year. Africa holds approximately $4 trillion in savings in pension funds, sovereign wealth funds and other similar savings mechanisms; under the New African Financial Architecture for Development (NAFAD), spearheaded by President Ould Tah, these resources will be mobilised for investable projects with a socio-economic impact.
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Distributed by APO Group on behalf of AFRICA24 Group.
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Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Lisette IJssel de Schepper, Chief Economist Bureau for Economic Research, Stellenbosch University
It is forgivable to think that an oil shock mainly hurts at the petrol pump. After all, that is where households feel it first. But when my colleagues and I at the Bureau for Economic Research started digging through South Africa’s fuel data, a different story emerged – one that says as much about the country’s infrastructure failures as it does about global geopolitics.
As we began modelling the likely impact on the South African economy, it quickly became clear that diesel would inflict even more pain on the economy than petrol. (Our insights are based on ongoing analysis that has not yet been published.)
There are two reasons for this.
Firstly, diesel underpins the South African economy’s cost structure. It powers the systems that keep the economy functioning: freight transport, food distribution, mining operations, agricultural machinery, generators and large parts of the country’s logistics network. Higher diesel prices therefore raise the cost of transporting goods, distributing food, operating mines and running backup generators during electricity disruptions.
This means the dominant economic impact of the Gulf war on South Africa is not simply that households are paying more at the pump. The impact is also being felt through higher logistics, freight and operating costs as they feed through supply chains into broader inflation.
Secondly, the price of diesel has spiked markedly more than the price for petrol. Relative to the first quarter of 2026, diesel prices in the second quarter increased by almost 60%, compared with about 25% for petrol.
Our calculations suggest that higher fuel prices could add roughly R45 billion (US$2.7billion) – just over 2% of quarterly GDP spend – in additional fuel costs to the South African economy in the second quarter of 2026 alone. Nearly 70% of that additional cost burden would come from diesel rather than petrol.
The main conclusion we draw from our insights is that South Africa needs to fix its fundamentals and shore up buffers so that it is better placed to withstand external shocks when they strike.
South Africa’s shift in fuel consumption
To understand why diesel matters so much today, it is important to recognise how fuel consumption has changed.
Over the past two decades, diesel consumption has steadily overtaken petrol consumption in the South African economy.
In 2005, petrol accounted for close to half of total fuel consumption, while diesel accounted for roughly a third (see figure below). Today, diesel accounts for almost half of all fuel consumed nationally, while petrol’s share has declined steadily.
Source: Department of Mineral Resources & Energy
Part of the explanation is relatively benign. Petrol vehicles have become significantly more fuel-efficient over time, allowing households to travel further on less fuel. Weak household income growth, higher fuel prices and expensive vehicle financing have also constrained discretionary driving and slowed petrol demand growth.
Diesel, however, is different. Diesel is primarily an operational input into the economy rather than a form of discretionary consumption. As such, its increased use reflects deeper structural changes in the South African economy:
More freight has shifted to roads and trucks as the state-owned transport monopoly Transnet’s rail capacity has deteriorated. These freight trucks run on diesel.
Use of diesel accelerated sharply during the severe power-cut years between 2022 and 2024. This was particularly evident in businesses in the mining, manufacturing and agricultural sectors as well as hospitals, shopping centres and data centres. All have increasingly come to rely on diesel generators to keep operating.
During the worst periods of load-shedding in 2023, Eskom relied heavily on diesel-fired open-cycle gas turbines to help keep the lights on when the coal fleet failed. At times, Eskom’s diesel usage was estimated to account for 20%-30% of national diesel demand. Fortunately, that dependence has eased considerably as electricity supply stabilised and diesel-fired open-cycle gas turbines usage declined.
Still, diesel has quietly become South Africa’s shadow infrastructure system – the fuel that has compensated for failures elsewhere in the economy, from electricity generation to freight transport.
This means South Africa’s vulnerability to oil shocks cannot be easily remedied just by getting consumers to ditch their fossil fuel-guzzling SUVs in favour of electric vehicles. Vulnerability is embedded in the diesel-intensive systems that move goods, power operations, and keep the economy running.
The impact
South Africa has always been vulnerable to oil shocks because it imports virtually all of its crude oil. But the nature of that vulnerability has changed. As domestic refining capacity has declined as several domestic refineries closed between 2020 and 2023, fuel (rather than crude) imports have increased. This means South Africa has become exposed not only to higher oil prices, but also to disruptions in global fuel supply chains themselves.
This creates the risk that external and domestic shocks will begin to reinforce one another. A global fuel disruption on its own is painful but manageable. But fuel stress becomes considerably more destabilising.
The impact is likely to be felt in a number of ways.
Firstly, in the country’s agricultural sector. South Africa is unlikely to face an immediate food supply crisis as domestic agricultural production conditions remain relatively favourable. Nor is there an immediate risk of food inflation as consumer food inflation began moderating earlier this year, supported by ample supplies of grains, fruits and vegetables.
Nevertheless, the sector will be affected. Fuel accounts for a substantial share of food distribution costs in South Africa’s highly road-dependent transport system. Wandile Sihlobo, chief economist of the Agriculture Business Chamber of South Africa, notes that roughly 80% of South African grain is transported by road. Higher diesel prices, therefore, feed directly into the cost of moving food across the country.
Farming is also highly diesel intensive. In addition, fertiliser prices have spiked as a result of the closure of the Strait of Hormuz. These price hikes will squeeze margins across farming and food distribution long before they fully appear in supermarket prices.
The second major impact will be on the government’s finances.
In April 2026, the government introduced temporary fuel levy relief of R3 per litre (or $0.18/litre), before extending and expanding the support specifically to diesel. By May, diesel levy relief had effectively increased to R3.93 per litre ($0.24/litre), temporarily reducing the general fuel levy on diesel to zero.
The total relief provided between April and June is expected to cost the fiscus roughly R17.2 billion in forgone tax revenue. Since this exceeds the roughly R10 billion contingency reserve available in the current budget, the fiscal cost will need to be absorbed either through stronger-than-expected revenue or expenditure adjustments elsewhere.
The third area of impact is inflation. The cost of fuel shapes inflation expectations because it is highly visible and purchased frequently. Even temporary fuel spikes therefore risk de-anchoring inflation expectations. This is particularly important in the South African economy, where the Reserve Bank has spent several years cementing its credibility to aid the move to a lower inflation target. This depends on inflation expectations continuing to fall towards 3%.
This helps explain why policymakers are concerned not only about fuel prices themselves, but also about the possibility that higher fuel costs may become embedded in broader pricing behaviour and wage expectations.
The bigger lesson: resilience matters
South Africa did not consciously choose to become more diesel dependent. It happened gradually, one workaround at a time. It spent years building diesel into its coping mechanisms. When rail failed, the country used trucks. When electricity failed, it used generators and open cycle gas turbines.
Those adaptations kept the economy moving, but they also quietly increased South Africa’s exposure to global fuel shocks.
The lesson from the current crisis is, therefore, not simply that oil prices are volatile. It is that resilience matters – just not the kind of home-grown resilience which depends on costly workarounds just to keep the lights on and the goods moving.
– Iran war is exposing South Africa’s dependency on diesel: what went wrong – https://theconversation.com/iran-war-is-exposing-south-africas-dependency-on-diesel-what-went-wrong-283516
Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Marew Abebe Salemot, Researcher in Political Sciences and International Studies, Debark University
When conflicts break out, most people around the world rely on international media to understand what is happening. These reports do more than inform. They shape how crises are interpreted, which actors are seen as responsible and where global attention is directed.
In complex situations, what is left out can matter as much as what is included.
Ethiopia is a clear example of this problem. Since 2020, the country has experienced multiple, overlapping conflicts.
The war in Tigray (2020-2022) has been one of the most widely reported, drawing sustained global attention because of its scale and humanitarian impact. But at the same time, violence has broken out and continues in Ethiopia’s Amhara and Oromia regions, causing severe consequences for civilians and deepening regional instability.
Our research set out to understand how these conflicts, which targeted ethnic groups, have been reported by the international media, and how the media understand the country’s current complex crises. As a team of media scholars, we analysed news coverage from four major global outlets – BBC from Britain, CNN from the US, Al-Jazeera from Qatar, and CGTN from China – over a five-year period from January 2020 to March 2025. We collected 1,412 stories from the four outlets on Ethiopia’s complex conflict.
To further assess how they frame the conflict and the nature of their reporting, 60 stories were systematically selected from each media outlet, yielding a total sample of 240 conflict-related articles. This allowed us to track patterns in attention, framing and sourcing.
We found that the coverage tended to present Ethiopia’s crisis through a narrow lens, centred largely on one conflict: the Tigray war.
More than three-quarters (77.2%) of all the stories we analysed focused on the conflict between the Ethiopian government and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front. Conflicts in Amhara (at 2.7%) and Oromia (at 0.4%) appeared only marginally in coverage.
This risks producing a partial understanding of a much more complex reality.
Ethiopia’s conflicts are not easily reduced to a single narrative. They involve multiple actors, regions and historical trajectories. Capturing this complexity is challenging, but it is essential. When global media coverage is too narrow, it risks shaping responses that address only part of the problem.
Based on our findings, we recommend that there needs to be a more balanced approach to reporting. Secondly, a greater emphasis must be placed on context, which would include explanations of the historical and political background of conflicts.
A more comprehensive approach would not only improve understanding. It would also contribute to more informed and balanced international engagement with one of the most important and complex regions in Africa today. This matters because Ethiopia is a key player in the Horn of Africa. Instability here has implications for regional security and international diplomacy.
Our findings
Our analysis revealed three major trends in the media coverage of conflict in Ethiopia.
The first was that the Tigray conflict received significantly more media attention than other conflicts in the country. The war, which began in November 2020 between Ethiopian federal forces and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front, drew widespread international attention because of its scale. The conflict was marked by mass atrocities, civilian displacement and famine conditions. An estimated 800,000 civilians were killed.
Although violence persists across several regions – particularly Amhara and Oromia – the war in Tigray dominated reporting, accounting for 77.2% of total news coverage. This means conflicts were not subjected to the same level of scrutiny or narrative. Humanitarian suffering in Amhara and Oromia was far less visible in our dataset. This does not mean it was absent on the ground. Rather, it suggests that some forms of suffering were more likely to be reported than others.
Second was a lack of context. We identified what we term “episodic reporting”. Around two-thirds of the stories we analysed focused on immediate events – including military clashes, political statements or humanitarian emergencies – without providing much background or context. This meant that complex political dynamics were often reduced to simplified narratives. Long-standing tensions related to governance, federalism, identity and power were rarely explored in detail. Instead, the focus remained on visible crises and urgent developments.
Third, that coverage was predominantly negative towards the Ethiopian government. Sources critical of the government were used far more frequently than those offering alternative perspectives. While critical reporting is an essential part of journalism, the imbalance in sourcing suggests that some voices were amplified more than others.
The implications
This imbalance in the reporting has broader implications. Media coverage plays a significant role in shaping international agendas.
Media reports could assist policymakers, humanitarian organisations and international institutions to assess crises and determine priorities. In this regard, the Tigray war alone was discussed over 10 times at the UN Security Council.
In this sense, visibility can translate into political and humanitarian action. Conversely, conflicts that receive limited coverage may not attract the same level of concern.
What needs to be done
Improving this situation requires a number of steps.
Firstly, a more balanced approach to reporting is needed. International media need to widen their scope and pay closer attention to underreported conflicts. This does not mean reducing coverage of major crises, but rather ensuring that other significant developments are not overlooked.
Secondly, context needs to be given. Explaining the historical and political background of conflicts can help audiences understand not just what is happening, but why. Without this context, reporting risks reinforcing simplified narratives that do not capture the full picture.
Thirdly, audiences themselves play a role. Recognising that media coverage is selective can encourage more critical engagement with news. Seeking out multiple sources and perspectives can help build a more nuanced understanding of complex situations.
– Global media networks simplify Ethiopia’s conflicts: insights from 5 years of data – https://theconversation.com/global-media-networks-simplify-ethiopias-conflicts-insights-from-5-years-of-data-282776
