Focus on Africa

Hopes of finding eight miners trapped more than 700 metres underground in Burkina Faso are fading after rescuers today  found a second  safety chamber empty. We hear the frustrations and despair of some of the men's wives. Also, Nigeria's chief accountant has been arrested in connection with a $190 million dollar fraud case involving money laundering and diversion of funds. And how South Africa is...

The fuel prices emergency is hitting households across the continent, from Egypt to Tanzania, Uganda to Nigeria and South Africa. The airline industry has also been affected. So what can governments do? Also, in Somalia, dozens of candidates have registered for the presidential race in six days. We hear who's challenging the incumbent, Farmajo. Plus, how South African singer, Nomfundo Moh, has mad...

There's been a major attack on an ATMIS forces base in Somalia. Al Shabab militants have claimed responsibility, and there are fears about the death toll. The UN Secretary General speaks after visiting camps in Nigeria's Borno state housing hundreds of thousands of victims displaced by Boko Haram and Islamist insurgent attacks. Meanwhile,  one NGO decries the closure of camps which have left IDPs...

A  damning report alleges that ex South African President Jacob Zuma put interests of his corrupt associates ahead of those of his country. Also, why have a group of Turkish nationals who've been running a high performing high school in Liberia been expelled from the country? And Kenya bids farewell to its third president Mwai Kibaki at a State funeral in Nairobi.

Today: Mounting concerns about the rise in police brutality and disappearances in Kenya. Also, a BBC investigation uncovers the ugly and dangerous side of Egypt's beauty industry. (Image: Kenyan activists protest against police brutality in Nairobi. Credit: EPA)

Angola's government has suspended the salaries of more than 5,000 doctors, describing their strike action as illegal. Malawians no longer have to pay tax on sanitary pads – as a 16.5% levy has been axed. The World Food Program says its food trucks have entered rebel held areas in Ethiopia’s war-torn region of Tigray for the first time since December last year.

In a move which has been described as "historic", the Democratic Republic of Congo has officially been admitted to the East African Community (EAC) trade bloc. Seven passengers have died after gunmen attacked a busy train between Nigeria's capital, Abuja, and Kaduna city, hospital sources have told the BBC.

Malawi kicked off a polio vaccination campaign targeting up to three million children under the age of five. To mark the International Day of Forests, we find out about the health of the second largest tropical rainforest in the world: the Congo basin in Central Africa.

Did Ethiopian government forces kill MSF charity workers in the Tigray region last year? Also, the American Ambassador to the United Nations on why African countries cannot remain neutral in the war in Ukraine. Plus, Tanzania's President, one year into office - how is she performing? And of course, our Resident Presidents on the use of Swahili at the AU.

President Cyril Ramaphosa has said that South Africa has been approached to play a mediation role in the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. Nigerian customs officials say they have intercepted 1,390 sacks of donkey meat in the north-western state of Kebbi near the border with Niger. At least 750 civilians were killed in the northern Afar and Amhara regions in the second half of last year, Ethiop...

Kenya’s President Uhuru Kenyatta has ordered the authorities to re-register all motorbike taxi operators - locally known as boda-bodas - following public outrage over an attack on a woman in her car in the capital, Nairobi. Plus, Nigerian women push members of parliament to reconsider gender laws. In Ukraine, we hear from a Cameroonian student who is one of many still stranded in the besieged city...

Eritrea was one of only five countries in the world to vote against a UN resolution deploring Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and supporting sanctions. Kenya's deputy president says it's up to the people of Kenya to make up their own minds on the fallout between him and President Uhuru Kenyatta. Plus singer, songwriter, and record producer Davido talks about what it takes to stay at the top of his pr...

As the fighting continues in Ukraine, thousands continue to pour out of the country. We hear about the situation at the Polish border. A court in the Democratic Republic of Congo has temporarily removed control of a huge copper and cobalt mine from its Chinese owners. Plus, we hear from an avid listener who tunes into the BBC everyday despite not speaking English.

The trial of Paul Gicheru, a Kenyan lawyer accused of bribing prosecution witnesses of the International Criminal Court has started in The Hague. The arrest of Nigerian "super cop" Abba Kyari on drug-trafficking charges has laid bare the "public bickering" between two of Nigeria's law enforcement bodies, an analyst told the BBC. Commander Abba Kyari is accused of trying to recruit fellow officers...

A Sudanese politician who had been a member of the dissolved joint civilian-military government has been arrested. Some Chagossians evicted from the islands 50 years ago returned in a trip organised by the Mauritian government. The Mauritian flag has been raised for the very first time on the Chagos Islands in the Indian Ocean. Plus hear from Nigerian singer and songwriter Adekunle Gold, he explai...

A teachers' union in Zimbabwe has gone to court to challenge the government's decision to suspend thousands of staff who have not been going to work, citing low pay. The UN is warning that South Sudan could spiral back into civil war because of delays in implementing the 2018 peace deal that brought nearly six years of conflict to an end. This week our resident presidents are talking about democra...

Uganda’s Information Minister Chris Baryomunsi has told the BBC the government is investigating allegations that novelist Kakwenza Rukirabashaija was tortured while he spent a month in custody. Parliament in Libya has unanimously approved a new interim prime minister in a move that threatens to spark a new power struggle in the country as there already is someone else who holds that position. Plus...

Scientists in South Africa have made a copy of the Moderna Covid vaccine, a move which they say could help boost vaccination rates across Africa. West African regional bloc Ecowas will deploy troops to Guinea-Bissau to help stabilise the country after this week's attempted coup. The first AU summit since the pandemic began in 2020 kicks off in Addis Ababa this weekend. What's on the agenda?

The president of Ghana has warned that West Africa is in great danger as a result of recent coups in the region. A 20-year study on the use of treated mosquito bed nets in Tanzania has found that children who sleep under them at an early age are more likely to survive into adulthood. There are concerns over the possible environmental impact of an explosion on an oil production vessel off the coast...

The West African regional body Ecowas has suspended Burkina Faso's membership following this week's military coup. The UN World Food Programme (WFP) is warning of extreme hunger in northern Ethiopia. Aid agencies face severe challenges delivering supplies to Ethiopia’s Tigray region, where government forces have been fighting rebels for more than a year. Rwanda will re-open its border with Uganda...

Rescue teams in Ghana are searching for survivors following a huge explosion that killed at least 13 people. Scientists say the plant enset, an Ethiopian staple, could be a new superfood and a lifesaver in the face of climate change. Plus, our Resident Presidents offer their satirical take on the winter games due to start in China in two weeks.

Many people are feared dead after a huge explosion near a mining town in western Ghana. Police say a vehicle carrying mining explosives collided with a motorcycle near the town of Bogoso. Liberia's President George Weah has declared three days of mourning following the death of 29 people in a stampede during a church service held on a football field in the capital, Monrovia.

President Cyril Ramaphosa of South Africa opens a brand new Covid vaccine plant in Cape Town, which could be a game-changer in the fight against the pandemic. Meanwhile, Cameroon's plan to get people vaccinated using their love of football isn't going too well. Also: an MP from Somaliland argues against  independence from Somalia. And the Ghanaian artist, activist and humanitarian, Rocky Dawuni an...

The leader of the Tigray People's Liberation Front has called for an immediate ceasefire in the year-long war with Ethiopian government forces. Also, Sudanese protestors are teargassed as they continue protests against the army and try to mark three years since Omar El Bashir was ousted. Plus, new measures are enforced around the continent as governments try to protect civilians as Omicron cases r...

The opposition leader in Benin, Reckya Madougou, has appeared at the country's Economic Crime and Terrorism Court on charges of financing terrorism. The Ghanaian government has said that from midnight on Sunday all visitors to the country need to be fully vaccinated against coronavirus before being allowed to enter.