Sudan to hand Bashir to ICC for Darfur crimes: top official

Yahoo – AFP, Jay Deshmukh and Abdelmoneim Abu Idris Ali, February 11, 2020

The International Criminal Court has charged Bashir with genocide, crimes against
humanity and war crimes in Sudan's western region of Darfur (AFP Photo/ASHRAF SHAZLY)

Khartoum (AFP) - Sudan has agreed to hand ousted autocrat Omar al-Bashir and others to the International Criminal Court for alleged war crimes in Darfur, a member of Khartoum's ruling body said Tuesday.

The Hague-based ICC has charged Bashir and three of his former aides with genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes in Sudan's western region during a brutal conflict from 2003.

"Those who have been indicted by the ICC, they have to go there," Mohamed Hassan Al-Taishay, a member of the ruling sovereign council said, without mentioning their names.

His remarks, quoted in a statement issued by the sovereign council in Khartoum, came as a government delegation met rebel groups in the South Sudanese capital of Juba.

Taishay said the talks focused on justice and reconciliation in Darfur, where the United Nations says about 300,000 people have been killed and millions displaced since the conflict erupted.

Taishay said they had agreed several mechanisms for achieving peace in the region.

"First, all those who have been indicted by the ICC should appear before the ICC," he said.

"Second, a special court be set up to investigate crimes committed in Darfur."

The conflict in Darfur, the size of France, erupted when ethnic minority African rebels took up arms against Bashir's then Arab-dominated government, accusing it of marginalising the region economically and politically.

The ICC has charged Bashir with genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity for his role in the conflict.

Bashir was ousted by the army last April following months of mass protests 

against his rule (AFP Photo/ASHRAF SHAZLY)

It has also indicted three of his former aides, Ahmed Haroon, Abdulrahim Mohamed Hussain and Ali Kushied.

"We cannot achieve justice unless we treat the suffering of the victims because this is a truth that we can't escape from," Taishay said.

"In Darfur, crimes against humanity and war crimes have been committed."

Bashir has denied the charges.

Bashir was ousted by the army in a palace coup last April after months of protests against his iron-fisted rule of three decades.

He was detained following his ouster and has since been jailed on corruption charges.

Anti-Bashir protesters, residents of Darfur and rebel groups from the region have consistently demanded that the ousted ruler be handed over to the ICC.

For years before his ouster and despite the ICC indictments, Bashir had regularly visited regional countries as well as Russia and China.

Days before the protests erupted in December 2018, he visited Syria's President Bashar al-Assad in Damascus, becoming the first Arab leader to do so since the Syrian conflict began in 2011.

In 2018, Bashir helped broker a tentative peace deal in South Sudan after five years of intense conflict in the world's newest country, which won independence from Khartoum in 2011.

Malawi president appeals to keep job after court cancels his election

Yahoo – AFP, Jack McBRAMS, February 7, 2020

Malawi President Peter Mutharika, whose re-election last year has been annulled
by the country's constitutional court (AFP Photo/AMOS GUMULIRA)

Blantyre (Malawi) (AFP) - Malawian President Peter Mutharika on Friday filed an appeal against a landmark court decision that overturned his 2019 election victory, accusing it of bias against him, documents showed.

Malawi made history on Monday when the top court ruled in favour of an opposition bid to cancel last May's presidential election results over allegations of rigging.

In his appeal papers, Mutharika said the judges had "erred in law" in concluding that his re-election was "undue" and he asked the Supreme Court to reverse the judgment which also ordered new elections.

After six months of marathon hearings broadcast on public radio, the judges had declared Mutharika was "not duly elected" over what it called widespread irregularities, especially "massive" use of correction fluid on results sheets.

It was only the second time that a presidential election has been cancelled by a court in sub-saharan Africa, after Kenya in 2017.

But Mutharika, 79, said the judges' findings were "grossly biased" against him and a "miscarriage of justice".

A protest last year against the contested election results, which have been 

annulled (AFP Photo/Amos Gumulira)

Lazarus Chakwera, the leader of the main opposition Malawi Congress Party (MCP), who came a close second to Mutharika, complained that he was robbed of victory.

Mutharika was declared the winner of the May 21 election with 38.5 percent of the vote, with Chakwera losing by just 159,000 votes.

It is the first time a presidential election has been challenged on legal grounds in Malawi since independence from Britain in 1964.

The normally stable country was hit by protests throughout last year over the election result, and on Friday the activists threatened the electoral commission with "the mother of all demonstrations" if they don't step down in the next week.

In separate court papers on Friday, the Malawi Electoral Commission chairwoman Jane Ansah sought an order "suspending the enforcement" of the Constitutional Court ruling, pending the hearing and determination of an appeal.

Opposition leader Lazarus Chakwera celebrates the court's decision to annul 

an election in which he lost to the president by 159,000 votes (AFP Photo/

AMOS GUMULIRA)

'Biased'

The court ordered a fresh election within 150 days -- as well as an investigation into the conduct of the electoral commission.

But Ansah accused the Constitutional Court of acting in "excess of its jurisdiction".

She said organising an election would require more time -- at least 261 days -- suggesting October 28 for the new polling date.

In its historic ruling, the court also ordered a number of legislative changes including that a candidate should be chosen by more than 50 percent of the ballots cast.

Under the current first-past-the-post electoral system for choosing a president.

Mutharika rubbished that court's order to parliament to change the laws saying that matter was never raised by the opposition in their petition, and that the order went against the "doctrine of separation of powers".

Ansah said she believes that "by ordering the legislature to convene and pass (new) legislation, the court acted in excess of its jurisdiction and had infringed on the independence and immunity of parliament."

The southern African nation made history on Monday when its Constitutional 

Court ruled in favour of an opposition bid to cancel May's presidential vote

 fresh polls. (AFP Photo/Jean Michel CORNU)

'Mother of all demonstrations'

The court also castigated the electoral commission, ordering an investigation into the "competence and conduct" of its seven members and staff.

Ansah said the court acted in "excess of its powers" by ordering such a probe and that "having condemned them already, any such enquiry would be sham".

Meanwhile the activists who led the long-running protests following the contested vote last year have given Ansah and her team of commissioners an ultimatum -- resign by Friday of next week or face a fresh round of demonstrations.

"They (commissioners) are going to see the biggest or the mother of all demonstrations in Malawi," Gift Trapence, vice chairman of the Human Rights Defenders Coalition (HRDC) told a news conference in the capital Lilongwe on Friday.

He warned that protesters would "shut down" the electoral commission offices, adding "this time we are actually prepared to even do vigils in their (commissioners) homes.":

Sudan army agrees Burhan-Netanyahu meeting will boost security

Yahoo – AFP, Abdelmoneim ABU IDRIS ALI, February 5, 2020

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says he and the Sudanese leader
"agreed to start cooperating leading to normalisation" after decades of boycott
(AFP Photo/SUMY SADURNI)

Khartoum (AFP) - Sudan's military announced Wednesday it backed a surprise meeting held between the country's leader and Israel's premier in Uganda this week, saying the opening would help boost national security.

General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, chairman of Sudan's ruling sovereign council, met Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Entebbe on Monday in a meeting that was not pre-announced.

Israel remains technically at war with Sudan, which supported hardline Islamists -- including, for a period, Al-Qaeda -- during the rule of autocrat Omar al-Bashir, who was ousted during mass protests last year.

On Tuesday, Burhan briefed the sovereign council and key ministers about his meeting, saying he met Netanyahu "to protect the national security of Sudan".

The military's support for Burhan on the matter came after top officers met at army headquarters in Khartoum.

"There was a meeting at the army headquarters today, and those present... were briefed about the visit ... and its impact on Sudan's national security," military spokesman Brigadier Amir Mohamed Al-Hassan told AFP.

"The army is in favour of this (Burhan-Netanyahu) meeting as it is in the interest of Sudan's national security."

On Wednesday, Burhan met Sudanese editors to explain why he met Israel's premier.

Burhan told the editors "the main thing that pushed him to take the decision to meet ... (Netanyahu) was to secure some key benefits for Sudan," said Hassan, without elaborating.

"He said that brave decisions were needed in order to change the current situation in Sudan, to ease the economic pressures on Sudanese people, and also to change the internal and foreign policies of Sudan."

'Positive direction'

Soon after Monday's meeting in Entebbe, Netanyahu's office said the Israeli premier believed that post-Bashir Sudan was headed "in a positive direction".

It said he and Burhan had "agreed to start cooperation leading to normalisation of the relationship between the two countries".

Sudan has long been part of a decades-old official Arab boycott of Israel over its treatment of the Palestinians and occupation of Arab lands.

In the wake of the Six-Day War of 1967 in which Israel occupied the Palestinian territories and seized the Golan Heights from Syria, Arab leaders held a historic meeting in Khartoum to announce what became known as the 'three nos' -- no peace, no recognition, no negotiations with Israel.

The Palestine Liberation Organization called Burhan and Netanyahu's meeting "a stab in the back of the Palestinian people".

In a statement carried on official news agency WAFA, Palestinian chief negotiator Saeb Erekat accused Netanyahu and his US allies of "trying to liquidate the Palestinian cause".

Bashir was ousted by the army last April after months of nationwide protests against his iron fisted three-decade rule.

Sudan is now ruled by a joint military-civilian sovereign council headed by Burhan, which is tasked with overseeing the country's transition to full civilian rule.

Former Kenyan president Daniel arap Moi dead at 95

Yahoo – AFP, Nicolas DELAUNAY, February 4, 2020

Former Kenyan president Daniel Arap Moi, seen here in 1998, has died
(AFP Photo/ALEXANDER JOE)

Nairobi (AFP) - Former Kenyan president Daniel arap Moi, who ruled the country with an iron fist between 1978 and 2002, has died aged 95, President Uhuru Kenyatta announced Tuesday.

Moi's 24-year rule saw his country become a one-party state where critical voices were crushed, corruption became endemic and tribal divisions were stoked and turned bloody.

"It is with profound sadness that I announce the death of a great man of an African state," Kenyatta said in a statement.

He ordered a period of national mourning until a state funeral is held, on a date not yet announced.

The former president died "in the early morning of February 4 at Nairobi hospital in the presence of his family," Kenyatta said.

'Chequered career'

Moi fought off rivals in a bitter contest to take the top job in 1978, succeeding Kenya's first president, Jomo Kenyatta, when he died.

The speaker of Kenya's national assembly, Justin Muturi said that Moi was an "astute politician", who "employed pragmatic nationalism to keep the country together for the 24 years that he led our nation."

"He will be remembered for his great efforts towards consolidating peace and tranquility within the Horn of Africa and largely the East African Region, at a very difficult time for the region and the African continent," Muturi added.

His son Gideon Moi, a senator, confirmed Moi died at 5:20 am (02:20 GMT). "He passed away peacefully," he said. "I was by his side and, as a family, we have accepted (his death)."

One of the defining scandals of Moi's presidency was the loss of $1 billion from the central bank through false gold and diamond exports.

A report by Britain-based risk consultant group Kroll in 2007 claimed Moi's family and clique laundered money on a global scale, buying properties and companies in London, New York and South Africa and even a 10,000-hectare (25,000-acre) ranch in Australia.

'Discipline'

Vice-President William Ruto, who comes from the same Kalenjin people as Moi, mourned his "legendary personal discipline" and said that his "life and work touched every one of us in lasting, impactful ways."

Those targeted by his regime included human rights and environmental activists, including the writer Ngugi wa Thiong'o and the future Nobel Peace Prize winner Wangari Maathai.

Moi was however praised for keeping Kenya a relative haven of peace during a chaotic period in east Africa which saw the genocide in Rwanda and civil wars in Burundi and Somalia.

His later return -- under significant pressure -- to multiparty elections in 1992, and peaceful handover of power to opposition leader Mwai Kibaki in 2002 also won him some praise.

Former opponent Raila Odinga, who spent several years in jail under Moi, referred to the late leader's "chequered career", but also spoke of his decision to finally restore multiparty politics.

"Moi and I reconciled after the political differences of the 1980s and early 90s, and we were able to work together to bring more reforms to the country," Odinga said.

In recent years observers have criticised the "rehabilitation" of Moi as the elderly former president often received visits from President Kenyatta, his opposition rival Raila Odinga and any politician seeking his blessing ahead of elections.

Kenyatta revived "Moi Day" in honour of the former president in 2017, after it was scrapped in 2010.

Angola vows to bring back billionaire dos Santos over graft claims

Yahoo – AFP, in London, January 20, 2020

A trove of leaked documents allege that Isabel dos Santos, the billionaire daught
of Angola's ex-president, amassed her wealth by plundering state funds (AFP Photo/
FERNANDO VELUDO)

Luanda (AFP) - Angolan prosecutors vowed on Monday to use "all possible" means to bring back Isabel dos Santos, the former president's billionaire daughter, after thousands of leaked documents revealed new allegations she siphoned off hundreds of millions in public money.

Dubbed Africa's richest woman, dos Santos is accused of using her father's backing to plunder state funds from the oil-rich but impoverished southern African country and -- with the help of Western consulting firms -- move the money offshore.

She stopped living in Angola after her authoritarian father Jose Eduardo dos Santos, who ruled the country for nearly 40 years, stepped down in 2017 for his anointed successor Joao Lourenco.

She now spends her time between London and Dubai.

"We will use all possible means and activate international mechanisms to bring Isabel dos Santos back to the country," prosecutor general Helder Pitra Gros told public radio.

"We have asked for international support from Portugal, Dubai and other countries," he added.

The 46-year-old dos Santos is already being investigated as part of an anti-graft campaign launched by Lourenco, who has vowed to root out corruption.

Prosecutors last month froze bank accounts and holdings owned by the businesswoman and her Congolese-Danish husband Sindika Dokolo, a move dos Santos described as motivated by a groundless political vendetta.

Gros' remarks came after a trove of 715,000 files dubbed the "Luanda Leaks" on Sunday revealed how the eldest daughter of the former president allegedly moved the vast sums into overseas assets.

The award-winning New York-based International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) behind the release alleged the international system has allowed powerful individuals like her to move assets around the world, without questions.

Prosecutors have already frozen the bank accounts and holdings owned by dos 

Santos and her Congolese husband Sindika Dokolo (AFP Photo/FERNANDO VELUDO)

"Based on a trove of more than 715,000 files, our investigation highlights a broken international regulatory system that allows professional services firms to serve the powerful with almost no questions asked," the ICIJ wrote.

The group said its team of 120 reporters in 20 countries was able to trace "how an army of Western financial firms, lawyers, accountants, government officials and management companies helped (dos Santos and Dokolo) hide assets from tax authorities".

'Highly coordinated attack'

Dos Santos took to Twitter to refute the claims, launching a salvo of around 30 tweets in Portuguese and English, accusing journalists involved in the investigation of telling "lies".

"My fortune is built on my character, my intelligence, education, capacity for work, perseverance," she wrote.

Born in Baku, Azerbaijan, and educated in Britain, dos Santos -- scornfully nicknamed "the princess" -- was named Africa's first female billionaire in 2013 by Forbes, which estimates her current wealth at $2.1 billion.

Her lawyer dismissed the ICIJ findings as a "highly coordinated attack" orchestrated by Angola's current rulers, in a statement quoted by The Guardian newspaper.

Dos Santos herself told BBC Africa the file dump was part of a "witch hunt" meant to discredit her and her father.

She headed Angola's national oil company Sonangol until her father's successor forced her out after becoming president in 2017.

"Red flags really went up when she was appointed head of the state oil company at a time when her father still had significant influence," said Daniel Bruce, who heads the UK branch of anti-corruption campaign group Transparency International.

Former Angolan president Jose Eduardo Dos Santos ruled for nearly 40 years 

before stepping down in 2017 (AFP Photo/Adalberto ROQUE)

"You could see there were major conflicts of interest starting to emerge," he added.

Dos Santos said on Wednesday that she would consider running for president in the next election in 2022.

Western consultants

The ICIJ investigation said Western consulting firms such as PwC and Boston Consulting Group were "apparently ignoring red flags" while helping her stash away public assets.

"Regulators around the globe have virtually ignored the key role Western professionals play in maintaining an offshore industry that drives money laundering and drains trillions from public coffers," the report said.

Its document trove included redacted letters allegedly showing how consultants sought out ways to open non-transparent bank accounts.

London-based firm PwC was among those advising her businesses.

The consultancy said it had "immediately initiated an investigation" in the wake of the "very serious and concerning allegations."

"We have also taken action to terminate any ongoing work for entities controlled by members of the dos Santos family," it added in a statement.

The Boston Consulting Group did not immediately respond to an attempt to get comment by AFP.

One confidential document allegedly drafted by Boston Consulting in September 2015 outlined a complex scheme for the oil company to move its money offshore.

The investigation also published a similar 99-page presentation from KPMG.

"UK firms... have played a role both in helping her to amass this fortune but also to invest the proceeds of these suspicious deals," said Bruce.

"There are questions to answer," he added. "Particularly for those who helped her acquire property."

Dos Santos and Dokolo have invested in several luxurious London houses and amassed an impressive collection of valuable artwork.

Her husband, a well-known collector of African arts, developed that passion from his billionaire banker father Augustin Dokolo Sanu.

Van Oord involved in Luanda building plan that involved human rights abuses: Trouw

DutchNews, January 20, 2020

Luanda is a mix of new and old. Photo: Depositphotos.com

Dutch dredging group Van Oord may have been involved in human rights abuses and corruption in Angola in connection with the development of an urban development project near the capital Luanda in 2013, Trouw reported on Monday. 

The paper says its own research on the ground and documents leaked to the international investigative journalists’ group ICIJ suggest that some 3,000 families were driven from their homes to make way for the development. 

ING and Atradis, the Dutch government’s credit insurance agency, were also involved with the project, Trouw says. ING lent the equivalent of €360m to the Angolan state and Atradis acted as guarantor. 

Van Oord and ING told Trouw in a reaction that they would now focus on compensating the locals who have been made homeless and that they were completely unaware people had been forcibly moved. 

Trouw says Van Oord worked on the project together with Isabel dos Santos, daughter of the former president of Angola. According to the ICIJ, she has become the richest woman in Africa by exploiting family ties, shell companies and being involved in unscrupulous deals. 

Legal experts told the paper that Dutch companies are often lax in the research they do before getting involved with controversial partners such as Isabel dos Santos, who had been the subject of rumours about possible corruption for years.

Fragile truce agreed in Libya after nine months of fighting

Yahoo – AFP, Imed Lamloum, January 12, 2020

Fighters loyal to Libya'S UN-recognised Government of National Accord (GNA) keep
a look out on the roof of a building in an area south of the Libyan capital Tripoli (AFP
Photo/Mahmud TURKIA)

Tripoli (AFP) - Both sides in Libya's conflict agreed to a ceasefire from Sunday to end nine months of fighting, following weeks of international diplomacy and calls for a truce by power-brokers Russia and Turkey.

The oil-rich North African country has been wracked by bloody turmoil since a 2011 NATO-backed uprising killed long-time dictator Moamer Kadhafi, with multiple foreign powers now involved.

The UN-recognised Government of National Accord (GNA) in Tripoli had been under attack since last April from forces loyal to eastern-based strongman Khalifa Haftar, which on January 6 captured the strategic coastal city of Sirte.

Late on Saturday, Haftar's forces announced a ceasefire starting at midnight (Sunday 00:00 local time, Saturday 2200 GMT) in line with a joint call by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin.

GNA head Fayez al-Sarraj, who met Erdogan in Istanbul on Sunday, confirmed the ceasefire had taken effect.

The UN mission in Libya welcomed the announcements and called on all parties "to respect the ceasefire" and support efforts to launch an inter-Libyan dialogue.

Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (R) shakes hand with the head of Libya's
Government of National Accord (GNA), Fayez al-Sarraj (L), at their meeting in Istanbul
(AFP Photo/Mustafa Kamaci)

European embassies in Tripoli, in a joint statement, urged Libya's rival parties "to seize this fragile opportunity to address the key political, economic, and security issues underlaying the conflict".

The Arab League likewise urged Libya's factions to "commit to stop the fighting, work on alleviating all forms of escalations and engage in good faith aimed at reaching permanent arrangements for a ceasefire".

Neighbouring Algeria, at the centre of a flurry of diplomatic activity on Libya, called for a "swift return to the process of national dialogue to reach a political solution".

Putin held talks on the telephone Sunday with Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte and French President Emmanuel Macron, who both voiced support for a planned international conference on Libya to be held in Berlin, the Kremlin said.

Since the start of the offensive against Tripoli, more than 280 civilians and about 2,000 fighters have been killed and 146,000 Libyans displaced, according to the UN.

Fighters of a battalion loyal to Libyan General Khalifa Haftar pictured in the eastern 

city of Benghazi in December 2019. Both sides in Libya's conflict agreed to a 

ceasefire that started early Sunday (AFP Photo/Abdullah DOMA)

Diplomatic offensive

Sarraj stressed the GNA's "legitimate right ... to respond to any attack or aggression" that may come from the other side, while Haftar's forces warned of a "severe" response to any violation by the "opposing camp".

Artillery fire could be heard shortly after midnight in the capital, before quiet settled over the southern Tripoli suburb where pro-GNA forces have been resisting Haftar's offensive.

The GNA, however, stressed that "any ceasefire initiative cannot succeed without the withdrawal of the aggressor from where they came", from the country's east and south.

Turkey's defence ministry said: "The belligerents have been trying to respect these truces since they came into force... and the situation has been calm apart from one or two isolated incidents."

Libya analyst Wolfram Lacher said that the calm on the ground reflected a success for both Turkey and Russia.

"The widespread observance of the ceasefire until now is a stunning demonstration of newfound Russian and Turkish influence in Libya," he said.

The truce comes after a diplomatic offensive, led by Ankara and Moscow, which have established themselves as key players in Libya.

Fighters loyal to Libya's Government of National Accord take advantage of a 

ceasefire to rest in an area south of the capital Tripoli (AFP Photo/Mahmud TURKIA)

Ankara despatched troops -- in a training capacity, it said -- to the GNA in January.

And Russia has been accused of backing pro-Haftar forces, which are supported by the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Egypt, all regional rivals of Turkey.

Erdogan and Putin called for a truce at a meeting last Wednesday in Istanbul, and Turkey later asked Russia to convince Haftar, who had initially vowed to fight on, to respect it.

Fears of a 'second Syria'

Europe and North Africa have also launched a diplomatic offensive to try to prevent Libya, with the increased involvement of international players in its conflict, from turning into a "second Syria".

European governments, including former colonial power Italy, fear that Islamist militants and migrant smugglers, already highly active in Libya, will take further advantage of the chaos.

The US embassy in Libya, in a statement Saturday, voiced its "serious concern about toxic foreign interference in the conflict".

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan
met last week in Istanbul (AFP Photo/Alexey DRUZHININ)

It said "Russian mercenaries" had backed Haftar's Libyan Arab Armed Forces, while "Turkish-supported Syrian fighters" had backed the GNA.

"All responsible Libyan parties should end this dangerous escalation and reject the destructive involvement by foreign forces," the embassy said.

On Saturday, Putin and German Chancellor Angela Merkel at talks in Moscow threw their weight behind the Berlin conference being organised by UN special envoy Ghassan Salame that could be held in the coming weeks.

Putin on Saturday again denied Russia had deployed mercenaries to Libya.

Sixty years on, Africa still seeks right model for growth

Yahoo – AFP, Marie WOLFROM, December 29, 2019

Socio-economic changes in sub-Saharan Africa since 1960 (AFP Photo/
Thomas SAINT-CRICQ)

Paris (AFP) - As 1960 dawned, sub-Saharan Africa braced for historic change: that year, 17 of its countries were destined to gain independence from European colonial powers.

But six decades on, the continent is mired in many problems. It is struggling to build an economic model that encourages enduring growth, addresses poverty and provides a future for its youth.

Here are some of the key issues:

A lack of opportunity for Africa's swelling ranks of youths could spell trouble (AFP 

Photo/PIUS UTOMI EKPEI)

Youth 'explosion'

Africa's population grew from 227 million in 1960 to more than one billion in 2018. More than 60 percent are aged under 25, according to the Brookings Institution, a US think tank.

"The most striking change for me is the increasing reality of disaffected youth... a younger population that is ready to explode at any moment," Cameroonian sociologist Francis Nyamnjoh told AFP.

"They are hungry for political freedoms, they are hungry for economic opportunities and they are hungry for social fulfilment ."

Joblessness is a major peril. Unemployed youths are an easy prey for armed groups, particularly jihadist movements in the Sahel, or may be tempted to risk clandestine emigration, often at the cost of their lives.

The continent's population is expected to double by 2050, led by Nigeria, Ethiopia and Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

Even if poverty rates have fallen across much of Africa, the continent is still beset 

by enormous inequality (AFP Photo/RODGER BOSCH)

Poverty and inequality

The proportion of Africa's population living below the poverty line —- less than $1.90 (1.7 euros) per day —- fell from 54.7 percent in 1990 to 41.4 percent in 2015, according to the World Bank.

But this average masks enormous differences from one country to another, exemplified by Gabon (3.4 percent of the population in 2017) and Madagascar (77.6 percent in 2012).

"The inequalities between countries are as extreme as in Asia and the inequalities within countries as as high as in Latin America, where landless peasants coexist with huge landowners," said Togolese economist Kako Nubukpo.

Christophe Cottet, an economist at the French Development Agency (AFD), pointed out that inequality in Africa is "very poorly measured."

"There are notably no figures on inequalities of inherited wealth, a key issue in Africa."

Shanty communities are not unusual in African cities as housing fails to keep 

pace with the population (AFP Photo/PIUS UTOMI EKPEI)

Mega-cities and countryside

Recent decades have seen the expansion of megacities like Lagos and Kinshasa, typically ringed by shantytowns where people live in extreme poverty, although many medium-sized cities have also grown.

More than 40 percent of Africans now live in urban areas, compared with 14.6 percent in 1960, according to the World Bank.

In 1960, Cairo and Johannesburg were the only African cities with more than a million residents. Consultants McKinsey and Company estimate that by 2030, about 100 cities will have a million inhabitants, twice as many as in Latin America.

But this urban growth is not necessarily the outcome of a rural exodus, said Cottet.

"The population is rising across Africa as a whole, rather faster in towns than in rural areas," said Cottet.

"There is also the problem of unemployment in towns -- (rural) people have little interest in migrating there."

Attempts by African countries to get around fiscal constraints didn't always end well, 

such as this Zimbabwean man who decorated his hat with worthless currency 

(AFP Photo/ZINYANGE AUNTONY)

Lost decades of growth

Growth in Africa slammed to a halt in the early 1980s, braked by a debt crisis and structural adjustment policies. It took two decades to recover.

Per-capita GDP, as measured in constant US dollars, shows the up-and-downs, although these figures are official and do not cover Africa's large informal economy: $1,112 in 1960, $1,531 in 1974, $1,166 in 1994 and $1,657 in 2018.

"If you do an assessment over 60 years, something serious happened in Africa, with the loss of 20 years. But there is no denying that what is happening now is more positive," Cottet said.

The IMF's and World Bank's structural adjustment programmes "broke the motors of growth," said Nubukpo, whose book, "L'Urgence Africaine," (The African Emergency) makes the case for a revamped growth model.

The belt-tightening programmes "emphasised the short term, to the detriment of investments in education, health and training."

Nearly all of Africa's cotton is exported without having been processed (AFP 

Photo/Khaled DESOUKI)

New thinking needed

Africa has a low rate of industrialisation, is heavily dependent on agriculture and its service sector has only recently started to emerge.

"We have not escaped the colonial model. Basically, Africa remains a producer and exporter of raw materials," said Nubukpo.

He gave the example of cotton: 97 percent of Africa's cotton fibre is exported without processing -- the phase which adds value to raw materials and provides jobs.

For Jean-Joseph Boillot, a researcher attached to the French Institute for International and Strategic Affairs, "Africa is still seeking an economic model of development."

"There is very little development of local industries," he said.

"This can only be achieved through a very strong approach, of continental industrial protection -- but this is undermined by the great powers in order to pursue free trade.

"The Chinese, the Indians and Westerners want to be able to go on distributing their products."

Sub-Saharan Africa has half of the countries deemed to the world's most corrupt 

by Transparency International (AFP Photo/Jekesai NJIKIZANA)

Governance problem

Lack of democracy, transparency and efficient judicial systems are major brakes on African growth, and wealth is concentrated in the hands of a few, said the experts.

Of the 40 states deemed last year to be the most world's most corrupt countries, 20 are in sub-Saharan Africa, according to Transparency International.

"Africa is not developing because it is caught in the trap of private wealth and the top wealth holders are African leaders," said Nubukpo.

"We must promote democracy, free and transparent elections to have legitimate leaders who have the public interest at heart, which we absolutely do not have."

Nyamnjoh also pointed to marginalised groups -- "There should be more room for inclusivity of voices, including voices of the young, voices of women."

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"The End of History"- Nov 20, 2010 (Kryon channeled by Lee Carroll) - (Text-Version)

" .... Africa

Let me tell you where else it's happening that you are unaware - that which is the beginning of the unity of the African states. Soon the continent will have what they never had before, and when that continent is healed and there is no AIDS and no major disease, they're going to want what you have. They're going to want houses and schools and an economy that works without corruption. They will be done with small-minded leaders who kill their populations for power in what has been called for generations "The History of Africa." Soon it will be the end of history in Africa, and a new continent will emerge.

Be aware that the strength may not come from the expected areas, for new leadership is brewing. There is so much land there and the population is so ready there, it will be one of the strongest economies on the planet within two generations plus 20 years. And it's going to happen because of a unifying idea put together by a few. These are the potentials of the planet, and the end of history as you know it.

In approximately 70 years, there will be a black man who leads this African continent into affluence and peace. He won't be a president, but rather a planner and a revolutionary economic thinker. He, and a strong woman with him, will implement the plan continent-wide. They will unite. This is the potential and this is the plan. Africa will arise out the ashes of centuries of disease and despair and create a viable economic force with workers who can create good products for the day. You think China is economically strong? China must do what it does, hobbled by the secrecy and bias of the old ways of its own history. As large as it is, it will have to eventually compete with Africa, a land of free thinkers and fast change. China will have a major competitor, one that doesn't have any cultural barriers to the advancement of the free Human spirit.. ...."

The Recalibration of Awareness - Apr 20/21, 2012 (Kryon channeled by Lee Carroll) - (Text version)

“… The Future of the Illuminati

Now, I want to tell you something that you didn't expect and something I've reported only one other time. What about all of the money that the Illuminati has? There are trillions and trillions of euro in banks, under their control, waiting. What are they going to do with it and where are they going to use it? It's still here. They're waiting.

This group is waiting for something to happen that they know is going to happen, for they see it coming as much as I do. However, I would like to tell you something that they don't expect. With awareness comes generational shift. Those in charge of this money will not always be elders. The indigos eventually will have it.

They are waiting for something to happen in Africa - the building of a new civilization, a continent that has nothing to unlearn. Once Africa is cured, once it's ready, a new civilization can be created from the ground up. Africans will be ready to learn everything about building a foundation for the most advanced civilization ever and will do it with the most modern and inventive systems available. Eventually, this new continent will even beat the economics of China.

This is the prediction and always has been, and the Illuminati's money will fund it. Did I say the Illuminati will fund it? [Kryon laugh]The Illuminati's money will fund it, but there is a difference from the past, dear ones. The ones who inherit the positions in the Illuminati will be a different consciousness. Listen, they are not suddenly going to be the ones who have the good of everyone in their hearts - hardly. They want to make money, but what they will see instead is a way to make a great deal of money through this investment. In the process, it will automatically help hundreds of thousands, and they will be at the beginning, the foundation, that builds the new Africa. The new African states of unification eventually will create a continent stronger than any of the others, and it will have one currency. The resources alone will dwarf anything in the world.

"Wow, Kryon, how long is that going to take?"

The Humans in the room control that and those listening later and reading. When you leave this room, what are you going to do? Go home, report this, rub your hands together, and wait for it to happen? It won't. For the Humans in the room and the old souls hearing and reading have got work to do, and I've told you this before. You've got work to do.

There's an alliance that you're going to have to create with one another and with another group - the young people of Earth. The youth of this earth are changing the way things work. Can you see it? You're not supposed to sit around and watch them either, because they need you, old soul.

It's time for you to align with the indigos and the concepts of the youth of the planet. Do not think for a moment that their age shows their wisdom. These two attributes are not commensurate with one another; they're not linear. These young people may be older souls than you are! Don't think that because they've got technology that you don't understand that you can't be one with them. Their technology is social networking, the very thing we are talking about, where everyone can talk to everyone. The new consciousness on the planet starts in two areas - the children and the old souls.. …”