First Former African Head of State to Stand Trial Before International Tribunal in Africa

Oumar Ba discusses the historic trial of the former president of Chad Hissène Habré: For the first time in history, a former head of an African state will stand trial in Africa, before an internationalized tribunal, the Extraordinary African Chambers in Senegalese Courts. The EAC is an ad hoc court...

Vigilante Justice on the Rise in Senegal

Sada Tangara, a photographer and blogger based in Dakar, Senegal posted a photoreport on the rise of vigilante justice on the streets of Dakar, capital city of Senegal. He explains the genesis of his project and why this type of popular justice is prominent in Dakar [fr] : Il faut...

A Low-cost Solution to Heal Cataract in Sub Saharan Countries

One of the main causes of blindness in sub saharan countries are cataracts. A group of french physicians has developed a surgical kit called “Phacokit” to treat at low-cost individuals suffering from cataract  and help them recover their eyesight [fr]:  Pour vaincre la cataracte, principale cause de cécité, notamment dans les pays pauvres,...

10 New Documentaries at the Luxor African Film Festival

Tom Devriendt lists 10 documentaries to look out for at the Luxor African Film Festival: The third edition of the Egyptian Luxor African Film Festival again has a wide-ranging programme scheduled for next month. Selected films will be showing in different competitions: Long Narrative, Short Narratives, Short Documentaries and Long...

Château-Rouge: A Prominent African Food Market in Paris

In order to find ingredients for African cuisine in Paris, the go-to place is still the Château-Rouge area located in the 18th District, specifically in the Rue Dejean street market [fr] that operates every day except Monday. The African Expatriate explains why the market is such a draw for many...

A Growing Job Market for Young People in Senegal: The Fishing Sector

To combat rampant youth unemployment in Senegal, a new initiative geared toward job creation in the fishing industry was created. Ibrahima Lô, one of the lead on the project, explains [fr] : Nous avons un déficit de personnel. Tous les deux ans, il peut y avoir un recrutement de volontaires....

A Call for African Leaders to Stand with the Central African Republic

As the situation in the Central African Republic (CAR) drastically worsens [fr] (935 000 IDPs as of today), Thione Niang, the Senegalese head of the GIVE1Project and Mehdi Bensaid, a Moroccan MP, calls from the African continent to stand up and show support to the victims of the  conflict in CAR [fr]:  Nous ne...

Ousmane Sow Becomes First Black African Member of France Academy of Fine Arts

Senegalese sculptor Ousmane Sow was admitted on December 11 into L'Académie des Beaux-Arts de Paris [Academy of Fine Arts of Paris].  Africa-top-talents.com reports: Une belle consécration pour ce sculpteur sénégalais connu pour ses séries de sculptures monumentales consacrées aux ethnies africaines (noubas, peuls, masaï, Zoulou). « Mon élection a d’autant plus de valeur à mes...

“I Am a German Street Vendor in Dakar”

Being a street vendor is not an easy job, especially in Senegal. Yet this is the choice that Sebastian Prothmann, a native of Germany, made after he arrived in Dakar, Senegal a few months ago. The following video shows Prothmann at work [fr]: Prothmann explains in an interview for the...

The FIRE Awards Winners for Internet Development in Africa

The FIRE programme awards, an initiative of AFRINIC, acknowledge the actors from the African region who strive to provide solutions to internet development for the African Continent. The 2013 FIRE Awards Winners are :  Nikohapa Ventures Ltd for their customer engagement platform (Kenya) HSoft Africa, Ltd for an adapted mail-order pharmacy (Benin...

#EauSecours: The Hashtag Poking Fun at Water Shortage in Dakar, Senegal

Dakar, the capital city of Senegal, has been plagued with water shortage for the past 15 days [fr]. Senegalese on social media are coping with this dire situation with humor and patience. The hashtag #eausecours (#H2OUT) is currently used on Twitter and Facebook to poke fun at the ongoing lack of clean water,...

Meet Aminata Touré, the New Iron Lady of Senegal

Aminata Touré was introduced as the new prime minister of Senegal after Abdoul Mbaye was dismissed by president Macky Sall [fr]. Assirou News states that [fr] Touré is a human rights activist and a former coordinator for the UNFPA. Boubacar Kante reports that she is also known as Senegal's “Iron...

Senegalese to France: Dignity Before Visa

I decided to decline using my entry visa to France [..] I am waiving it off on behalf of the thousands of Senegalese citizens who deserve respect, a respect that they are often denied at the French consulate. Those are the words written by Bousso Dramé in an open letter...

Children Back in Guinea Bissau After Senegal Fire

The blog of the Association of Friends of Children (AMIC) reported [fr] that 20 ‘talib’ children from Guinea-Bissau who had been caught in a raging fire at an Islamic school in the capital of Senegal, Dakar, in early March, have now been handed back to their families. As Rising Voices reported back in...

African Presidents Active on Social Media

Dapa Arnaud gives a list of the 10 most active african presidents [fr] on social media. At the top of the list is  president Paul Kagame in Rwanda: In place since 2003, the president of Rwanda is the most active on the internet.  According to the Ecofin agency, Paul Kagame interacts...

Hissene Habre Victims’ Long Road to Justice

Jacqueline Moudeina writes on Pambazuka.org about the inauguration of a special tribunal in Senegal, to bring Hissene Habre, former dictator of Chad, before the courts [fr]: “Being a victim, is a condition in which we languish without the ability to recover, as long as justice has not been served. The...

Concern over Subterranean Water in the Sahel

We are told that miners do everything to waterproof the soil and ensure that waste does not contaminate subterranean water. But it must be recognized that there is always a risk, as they can never be completely sure that they are not contaminating subterranean pools. Moreover, with the impact of...

Senegal: Ensuring Efficient Telephone Use by the Government

Aliou Fama reveals [fr] that Macky Sall, President of Senegal, has decided to put the members of his goverment on a strict regime, in order to reduce government telephone bills: Ministers’ telephone credit is now capped at 500 000 FCFA (EUR 762,25), with that of technical advisers limited to 150...

The “Black Peril” According to One Moroccan Weekly

General-Secretary of La Francophonie Wants a Seat for Africa at the UN Security Council

Abidjan Net writes [fr] that General-Secretary of La Francophonie Abdou Diouf demanded at the opening of the 2012 Francophonie Summit [fr] that the African continent be granted a seat at the UN security Council. He argues that the current situation allows for some nations to be blamed for human rights violations whereas others nations are getting...

The Breakthrough of Films in Local Languages in Sub-Saharan Africa

Nicole Gillet, General Delegate of the Festival International du Film Francophone de Namur, now in its 27th edition, was interviewed by Falila Gbadamassi [fr] on afrik.com: In the past, Senegalese films were in French. Since then, things have changed. They want to produce films with local actors, in their own languages,...