<p><em>Content provided by APO Group. CNBC Africa provides content from APO Group as a service to its readers and does not edit the articles it publishes. CNBC Africa is not responsible for the content provided by APO Group.</em></p>
<p>African Union Member States (55) reporting COVID-19 cases (4,812,313), deaths (130,025) and recoveries (4,351,816) by region:    Central (172,873 cases; 2,781 deaths; 159,001 recoveries): Burundi (4,650; 6; 4,198), Cameroon (77,982; 1,270; 72,926), CAR (7,085; 97; 6,665), Chad (4,927; 173; 4,742), Congo (11,658; 153; 10,591), DRC (31,386; 782; 27,654), Equatorial Guinea (8,476; 113; 8,146), Gabon (24,365; 150; 21,791), Sao Tome and Principe (2,344; 37; 2,288)    Eastern (647,406; 12,678; 536,199): Comoros (3,949; 146; 3,719), Djibouti (11,523; 153; 11,354), Eritrea (4,022; 14; 3,812), Ethiopia (270,944; 4,139; 235,850), Kenya (170,041; 3,124; 116,018), Madagascar (41,184; 828; 40,028), Mauritius (1,356; 17; 1,181), Rwanda (26,878; 352; 25,542), Seychelles (11,145; 40; 9,936), Somalia (14,647; 768; 6,717), South Sudan (10,688; 115; 10,514), Sudan (35,289; 2,600; 27,949), Tanzania** (509; 21; 178), Uganda (45,231; 361; 43,401)    Northern (1,453,109; 43,808; 1,276,107): Algeria (128,198; 3,586; 89,292), Egypt (259,540; 14,950; 190,254), Libya (184,815; 3,116; 171,279), Mauritania (19,407; 462; 18,377), Morocco (518,458; 9,135; 506,443), Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (739; 46; 691), Tunisia (341,952; 12,513; 299,771)    Southern (2,066,519; 64,531; 1,933,721): Angola (33,607; 745; 27,529), Botswana (56,313; 831; 50,494), Eswatini (18,587; 672; 17,855), Lesotho (10,825; 326; 6,434), Malawi (34,323; 1,154; 32,598), Mozambique (70,697; 835; 69,232), Namibia (54,268; 807; 50,053), South Africa (1,654,551; 56,293; 1,551,520), Zambia (94,430; 1,275; 91,443), Zimbabwe (38,918; 1,593; 36,563)    Western (472,406; 6,227; 446,788): Benin (8,058; 101; 7,893), Burkina Faso (13,424; 166; 13,248), Cabo Verde (30,122; 261; 28,163), Côte d&#39;Ivoire (47,195; 301; 46,591), Gambia (5,990; 178; 5,767), Ghana (93,775; 784; 91,853), Guinea (23,110; 161; 20,840), Guinea Bissau (3,760; 68; 3,511), Liberia (2,179; 86; 2,033), Mali (14,262; 516; 9,559), Niger (5,409; 192; 5,080), Nigeria (166,254; 2,071; 156,546), Senegal (41,296; 1,138; 39,932), Sierra Leone (4,140; 79; 3,128), Togo (13,432; 125; 12,644)Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC).</p>
<p>Media files</p>
<p></p>


Coronavirus: African Union Member States reporting COVID-19 cases as of 29 May 2021, 9 am EAT

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<p>ECOWAS delegates paid a visit to Mali following the ousting of the interim President, Prime Minister and Defence Minister by the interim Vice President. But can the regional body use its influence to deliver normalcy? Dennis Amachree, CEO of Zoomlens Security Solutions joins CNBC Africa for more.</p>


Mali unrest: Can ECOWAS influence deliver normalcy?

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<p>Mali’s military rulers have appointed the country&#8217;s former Minister of Defence, Bah Ndaw, as the transitional president, while the head of the August 18th coup Colonel Assimi Goita was appointed as the vice-president. The announcement came on the eve of Mali’s 60th Independence Day celebration which takes place today. Tajudeen Ibrahim, Senior Vice President and Head of Research at Chapel Hill Denham joins CNBC Africa for more.</p>


Mali@60: What does the future hold for Mali after military coup?

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<p>Moody’s has downgraded Mali&#8217;s foreign and local currency long-term issuer ratings to Caa1 from B3, and changed its outlook to negative from stable. Aurelien Mali, Vice President and Sovereign Analyst at Moody’s joins CNBC Africa’s Wole Famurewa for this conversation.</p>


Moody’s downgrades Mali’s ratings to Caa1 with negative outlook

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<p>It’s the final day of the performance review of Nigeria&#8217;s cabinet; one key priority area for this administration has been security.</p>


Cabinet Retreat: Evaluating Nigeria’s security scorecard

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<p>West African leaders stressed the importance of keeping to term limits at Monday&#8217;s one-day summit in Niamey.</p>


West Africa 2020 elections: How to enforce the tenets of democracy

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<p>Leaders from some West African countries will travel to Mali in search of a resolution to the on-going crisis in the country.</p>


How should ECOWAS respond to the Mali crisis & trade disputes in West Africa?

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<p>The Economic Community of West African States has suspended Mali over the ousting of its President Boubacar Keita on Tuesday. Meanwhile, Soldiers who staged Keita’s removal and forced resignation have said they plan to form a civilian transitional government that will organise new elections. In neighbouring Cote d&#8217;Ivoire protesters have continued to march against President Alassane Ouattara’s third term bid. Nonyane Gaimin, Macro Adviser and Strategist at K-Frontiers Solutions joins CNBC Africa for more.</p>


K-Frontiers Solutions on West Africa’s economic outlook

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<p>West African leaders have begun a virtual extraordinary summit to negotiate an end to the deepening political crisis in Mali. This comes after presidents from Nigeria, Ivory Coast, Senegal, Ghana and Niger held talks on Thursday last week that ended in a stalemate. Onyekachi Adekoya, Managing Director of PR24 Nigeria joins CNBC Africa for more.</p>


ECOWAS holds extraordinary summit on Mali’s political crisis

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<p>A one-day summit by West African leaders from Nigeria, Ghana, Cote d’Ivoire, Senegal and the Niger Republic ended in a stalemate after the leaders met with Mali’s President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita and Muslim Cleric Mahmoud Dicko and other opposition leaders to negotiate an end to the political crisis in the country. Protesters took to the street on the 5th of June demanding a better economy, an end to corruption, a stronger fight against jihadist groups and irregularities in the local election results. Dennis Amachree, CEO of Zoomlens Security Solutions joins CNBC Africa for more.</p>


Mali political crisis: No deal reached after Five ECOWAS leaders intervene

Mali political crisis: No deal reached after five ECOWAS leaders intervene

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<p>The G5 Sahel military alliance comprising of Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania and Niger are due to hold talks with French President Emmanuel Macron and Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez today in the Mauritanian capital of Nouakchott. The summit is a follow-up to talks in the French city of Pau in January that gave a political reboot of war against the jihadists. Dennis Amachree, CEO of Zoomlens Security Solutions joins CNBC Africa for more.</p>


Assessing the security situation in Africa’s Sahel region


<p>In the wake of the global COVID-19 crisis, the <a href="https://www.cnbcafrica.com/videos/2020/04/07/how-the-imf-is-responding-to-africa-amid-the-covid-19-crisis/">International Monetary Fund (IMF)</a> Executive Board has approved immediate debt service relief to 25 poor and vulnerable countries.</p>



<p>Nineteen African countries will receive immediate debt service relief, including Benin, Burkina Faso, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Congo, D.R., The Gambia, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mozambique, Niger, Rwanda, São Tomé and Príncipe, Sierra Leone and Togo.</p>



<p>The following statement provides more details:</p>



<p><strong>April 13, 2020</strong></p>



<p><strong>Washington, DC –</strong> Ms. Kristalina Georgieva, Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) issued the following statement:</p>



<p>“Today, I am pleased to say that our Executive Board approved immediate debt service relief to 25 of the IMF’s member countries under the IMF’s revamped Catastrophe Containment and Relief Trust (CCRT) as part of the Fund’s response to help address the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.</p>



<p>“This provides grants to our poorest and most vulnerable members to cover their IMF debt obligations for an initial phase over the next six months and will help them channel more of their scarce financial resources towards vital emergency medical and other relief efforts.</p>



<p>“The CCRT can currently provide about US$500 million in grant-based debt service relief, including the recent US$185 million pledge by the U.K. and US$100 million provided by Japan as immediately available resources. Others, including China and the Netherlands, are also stepping forward with important contributions. I urge other donors to help us replenish the Trust’s resources and boost further our ability to provide additional debt service relief for a full two years to our poorest member countries.”</p>



<p>The countries that will receive debt service relief today are: Afghanistan, Benin, Burkina Faso, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Congo, D.R., The Gambia, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Haiti, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mozambique, Nepal, Niger, Rwanda, São Tomé and Príncipe, Sierra Leone, Solomon Islands, Tajikistan, Togo, and Yemen.</p>



<p>For more coverage on COVID-19 visit: <a href="https://www.cnbcafrica.com/covid-19/">https://www.cnbcafrica.com/covid-19/</a></p>


IMF approves immediate debt relief for 25 countries amid COVID-19 crisis

IMF approves immediate debt relief for 25 countries amid COVID-19 crisis. shutterstock_94083223

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<p>In 20 years, Ylias Akbaraly successfully transformed the family Group into one of the most successful companies in Madagascar and in the Indian Ocean; the group has grown from 20 to over 3,000 staff with representative offices in Mauritius, Morocco, Seychelles, Mali and Paris. As Africa looks to capitalise on entrepreneurship to spur economic growth, Ylias shared insight on what makes him tick.</p>


African tycoon Ylias Akbaraly on his success, plans for expansion

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<p>The Norwegian Refugee Council says close to 50,000 people have fled their homes in northern and central Mali this year, due to inter-communal clashes and a rise in armed groups and military operations. Domitille Galli, Head of Programs at the Norwegian Refugee Council joins CNBC Africa from Mali for this discussion.</p>


Armed conflict spikes civilian displacement in Mali

<p>BAMAKO (Reuters) &#8211; Malian President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita won re-election with 67 percent of the vote in a run-off against opposition rival Soumaila Cisse, the Ministry of Territorial Administration said on Thursday.</p>
<p>The victory hands Keita a second five-year term in the mostly desert West African country where militant violence and claims of fraud by the opposition marred the poll.</p>
<p>Keita’s now faces the giant task of lifting Mali out of a spiral of Islamist and ethnic violence in the center and north where attacks worsened in the months leading up to the vote despite the presence of U.N. and French troops.</p>
<p>Threats by jihadist militants forced nearly 500 polling stations &#8211; about two percent of the total &#8211; to stay closed during Sunday’s run-off, the government said. One election official was killed in northern Niafunke, in Timbuktu region.</p>
<p>It also meant voter turnout of over 2.7 million people was a muted 34 percent of the electorate.</p>
<p>Cisse has accused the Keita’s campaign of ballot stuffing and tweaking electoral rolls to secure the win, accusations Keita denies.</p>
<p>Despite the bitter rhetoric leading up to Thursday’s results, however, the streets of Bamako and other main cities remained calm this week. The country exports gold and cotton.</p>
<p>Reporting By Tiemoko Diallo; Writing by Edward McAllister; Editing by Matthew Mpoke Bigg</p>


Mali’s President Keita will serve a second term after winning a re-election, what you need to know…

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<p>As Mali heads to the polls next month, there has been a series of protests across the capital city of Bamako in opposition to President Keita&#8217;s re-election bid.</p>


Clashes intensify as Mali readies to vote

<p>OSLO, May 24 (Reuters) &#8211; Remote areas in poor nations need far more investment to undercut recruitment by militant armed groups, in a shift from development policies focused most on cities, the head of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) said.</p>
<p>Achim Steiner, visiting Oslo for a May 23-24 conference on preventing violent extremism, told Reuters there was no purely military way to defeat groups such as Islamic State (IS), Boko Haram or Al Qaeda.</p>
<p>UNDP, a U.N. agency with about $5 billion in donor contributions a year, was seeking to boost investments in remote rural areas to help end poverty and marginalisation, for instance in the Sahel region in Africa.</p>
<p>“A traditional development economist might a few years ago have looked at how to invest a million dollars in supporting small and medium-scale enterprise (in) the capital city, maybe one or two other cities in the country,” Steiner said.</p>
<p>“Today if we want to deal with the phenomenon of exclusion, of potential radicalisation, we will look at who will have the greatest added benefit,” he said.</p>
<p>That could mean investments in remote rural areas prone to cross-border incursions by militants, “that traditionally would not have been at the forefront” of development spending”.</p>
<p>“Even now with a peacekeeping force in Mali there are parts of the country that are essentially not stable and secure &#8230; even a country like Nigeria has struggled to contain Boko Haram,” he said.</p>
<h3>THREAT REMAINS HIGH</h3>
<p>Investment for people in rural areas “may be education, it may be access to health services, it may be access to microfinance so that they can invest in their own businesses,” he said.</p>
<p>The success of such investments were harder to gauge than a cost-benefit analysis of a business set up in a city, he said.</p>
<p>But it might have hidden long-term benefits, for instance averting a need to deploy an international military force that could easily cost hundreds of millions of dollars a year.</p>
<p>UNDP said there were contradictory trends in the struggle to contain militants.</p>
<p>“Even though violent extremist organisations such as Al-Qaeda, Boko Haram and IS are losing territorial control, (the) threat of fragmented and persistent insecurity remains high,” it said in a statement about the Oslo talks.</p>
<p>“Deaths caused by terrorism decreased by 13 percent from 2015 to 2016, representing an overall global decline by 22 per cent since 2014,” with declines in nations including Afghanistan, Nigeria, Pakistan and Syria, it said.</p>
<p>At the same time, “there is an increase in the number of countries that recorded at least one terrorism-related death, from 65 countries in 2015 to 77 countries in 2016,” it said. (Reporting By Alister Doyle, Editing by William Maclean)</p>


Mali

Coronavirus: African Union Member States reporting COVID-19 cases as of 29 May 2021, 9 am EAT

Mali unrest: Can ECOWAS influence deliver normalcy?

Mali@60: What does the future hold for Mali after military coup?

Moody’s downgrades Mali’s ratings to Caa1 with negative outlook

Cabinet Retreat: Evaluating Nigeria’s security scorecard

West Africa 2020 elections: How to enforce the tenets of democracy

How should ECOWAS respond to the Mali crisis & trade disputes in West Africa?

K-Frontiers Solutions on West Africa’s economic outlook

ECOWAS holds extraordinary summit on Mali’s political crisis

Mali political crisis: No deal reached after five ECOWAS leaders intervene

Assessing the security situation in Africa’s Sahel region

IMF approves immediate debt relief for 25 countries amid COVID-19 crisis

African tycoon Ylias Akbaraly on his success, plans for expansion

Armed conflict spikes civilian displacement in Mali

Mali’s President Keita will serve a second term after winning a re-election, what you need to know…

Clashes intensify as Mali readies to vote

Could this be the solution to combating violent extremism in Africa?

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Mali

Coronavirus: African Union Member States reporting COVID-19 cases as of 29 May 2021, 9 am EAT

Mali unrest: Can ECOWAS influence deliver normalcy?

Mali@60: What does the future hold for Mali after military coup?

Moody’s downgrades Mali’s ratings to Caa1 with negative outlook

Cabinet Retreat: Evaluating Nigeria’s security scorecard

West Africa 2020 elections: How to enforce the tenets of democracy

How should ECOWAS respond to the Mali crisis & trade disputes in West Africa?

K-Frontiers Solutions on West Africa’s economic outlook

ECOWAS holds extraordinary summit on Mali’s political crisis

Mali political crisis: No deal reached after five ECOWAS leaders intervene

Assessing the security situation in Africa’s Sahel region

IMF approves immediate debt relief for 25 countries amid COVID-19 crisis

African tycoon Ylias Akbaraly on his success, plans for expansion

Armed conflict spikes civilian displacement in Mali

Mali’s President Keita will serve a second term after winning a re-election, what you need to know…

Clashes intensify as Mali readies to vote

Could this be the solution to combating violent extremism in Africa?

News Tips

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