West Africa

Thousands of people have taken to the streets daily across the country in one of the biggest shows of public anger in 30 years, posing a major challenge to President Muhammadu Buhari amid an economic slump made worse by the coronavirus pandemic.

Polls opened in Guinea on Sunday as citizens trooped to polling units to cast their votes in a controversial and high-stake election. In the build-up to Guinea’s election protesters have marched against President Conde’s third-term bid, describing it as unconstitutional. Samson Itodo, Executive Director of Yiaga Africa joins CNBC Africa for more.

Nigeria's tech ecosystem has received more headlines, with the recent deal between U.S firm Stripe and Nigeria’s payments company, Paystack. For start-ups, how can they get the best from an M& A transaction? Babajimi Ayorinde, Partner TNP-An Andersen Collaborating Firm joins CNBC Africa’s Kenneth Igbomor for this conversation.

Experts have described the deal between Paystack and U.S firm Stripe as one of the largest Mergers and Acquisition deal in Nigeria’s fintech industry one which they say shows that the industry is moving in the right direction. Joining CNBC Africa’s Kenneth Igbomor for a conversation on the future of Nigeria’s Fintech space are; Collins Onuegbu, Executive Vice Chairman of Signal Alliance and Kayode Akindele, Partner at TIA Capital.

The International Monetary Fund says it expects sub-Saharan Africa’s economy to decline 3 per cent with a 4.3 per cent contraction in Nigeria’s GDP, while Ghana’s economy to grow by 0.9 per cent in 2020 after recording a 6.5 per cent growth in 2019. Bismarck Rewane, CEO of Financial Derivatives, and John Gatsi, Dean of the School of Business at the University of Cape Coast Ghana join CNBC Africa for this conversation....

LAGOS (Reuters) - Nigerian protesters demanding an end to police brutality returned to the streets on Wednesday, saying they were unconvinced by the creation of a new police unit and a pledge not to use violence against demonstrators. Slideshow ( 5 images ) Protesters have staged daily marches nationwide for a week, calling for an overhaul of police forces. Police have responded to the demonstrations with beatings, tear gas and gunfire, which human rights group Amnesty International said had killed at least 10 people. The protests have prompted a raft of announcements. The Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS), a police unit that demonstrators have long accused of beatings, killings and extortion, was officially disbanded on Sunday. On Tuesday, police agreed to stop using force against protesters. They also announced the formation of a new unit, the Special Weapons and Tactics team (SWAT), to “fill the gaps” left by the disbanded SARS. ADVERTISEMENT But protesters said on Wednesday they feared the new unit will simply be a rebranded version of SARS. Hundreds gathered on Wednesday in the capital Abuja, as well as megacity Lagos and Warri - both in the south - to press their calls for police reforms. “What they do is... give them new uniforms, call them a different name, but they are still the same people in these police forces,” said blogger Folu Oyefeso, in Lagos. ADVERTISEMENT Demonstrators in Lagos, who gathered despite heavy rain, sang, danced and chanted. Many held placards, including one that read “Stop killing our dreamers. #EndSARS now”. Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, in a statement on Wednesday, urged protesters to wind down demonstrations, saying that the gridlock caused in recent days had disrupted businesses still reeling from the coronavirus pandemic. “People are just coming back to businesses. It would be unfair for those businesses not to be able to get back on their feet again,” he said.

Nigeria's government says estimates show that Compressed Natural Gas could cost as much as 97 Naira per litre. Nigeria is exploring possible affordable alternatives to Premium Motor Spirit and plans to install gas facilities at petrol stations. Adeoye Adefulu, Partner at Odujinrin and Adefulu joins CNBC Africa for more.

Demonstrators also alleged that police shot dead another man while marching in the southwestern city of Ogbomosho on Saturday. Police did not respond to requests for comment on the allegations.

She now uses her phone to order stock delivered by vans or tuk tuks to her narrow kiosk in the frenetic Lagos district of Mushin, where she sits surrounded by stacked-up goods, ranging from drinks and tinned food to detergent.

The WTO, under fire by the U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration which froze its appeals body by blocking its appointment of judges, aims to find a successor for Azevedo by early November. It is also trying to navigate worsening U.S.-China trade relations.