

Focus on Africa
BBC World Service
Two essential stories to round off your working day. Explaining the big topics and news from Africa, the people behind them, plus an African perspective on global stories. Hosted by Nkechi Ogbonna. Five days a week, ready by late afternoon, Monday to Friday.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Mar 20, 2024 • 27min
Senegal: President Macky Sall refuses to apologise
Outgoing president Macky Sall has refused to apologise for the political uncertainty he created when he tried to delay the country's presidential elections. In this special edition on Senegal, we ask if the Senegalese still trust their president? Do they believe in his credibility as leader? Also, ahead of the country's election on Sunday, how engaged are young people in the electoral process?

Mar 19, 2024 • 32min
Kidnapped in Nigeria: A personal testimony
Yet another kidnapping in Nigeria's Kaduna State, where gunmen abducted around 100 people including women and children, that's according to local authorities. We hear a very brave and harrowing interview from a young woman who was taken by Boko Haram back in 2013, but had a lucky escape. Also Niger's military junta asks remaining US troops to leave the country. Why were they there in the first place and what would their absence mean for an already unstable region?And how did customers at a bank in Ethiopia, withdraw millions of dollars they didn't actually have in their accounts?

Mar 18, 2024 • 27min
Why were Malawian women abused in Oman?
A BBC Africa Eye investigation uncovers how dozens of women from Malawi working in Oman, have suffered abuse. The investigation reveals how a WhatsApp group was used to rescue at least 50 of them. How and why were these women abused?Also, how African countries can use 'soft power' for their benefit.And why people in Botswana took to social media to criticise the 2024 Miss World contest

Mar 15, 2024 • 33min
Will the Rwandan elections be free and fair?
The Rwandan government says elections will be free and fair. But how democratic will they be if an opposition leader has been banned from standing?At least sixty-two Cameroonian national football players have been suspended for lying about their age. So why does lying about your age matter?And a young innovator in Sierra Leone designs a robot which he says will preach peace to the world.

Mar 14, 2024 • 32min
Health workers in Kenya go on strike
Kenya's health workers defy a labour court order and go on a nationwide strike. They are protesting the delayed employment of thousands of medical graduates. How Egypt's galloping inflation is adversely affecting students and ordinary citizens.And is hosting the African Games worth the price tag for Ghana which is in economic doldrums?

Mar 13, 2024 • 26min
Why are Congolese refugees protesting in Rwanda?
Congolese nationals who are now refugees in Rwanda have been protesting. Some of them fled the eastern DRC more than twenty years ago because of the ongoing conflict there. Why are they protesting and what are their demands? Also, why did one adult and eight children die after eating turtle meat in Zanzibar?And if you're interested in a career as an Afrobeats dancer, Izzy Odigie shares the secrets of the trade!

Mar 12, 2024 • 34min
How the recruitment of a Ugandan national to Myanmar turned into a nightmare.
A Ugandan IT specialist, who was trafficked to Myanmar, shares his personal testimony with us. Francis Kamugisha was trafficked to a scam camp in Myanmar but he managed to escape. We'll hear his compelling story. Also, why is the main opposition party in South Africa, the Democratic Alliance, calling for international observers ahead of the country's next general election? And good news for Ghana's film industry as the government says, it wants to offer tax incentives to film makers

Mar 11, 2024 • 29min
Why do child abductions keep happening in Nigeria?
Almost three hundred school children have been kidnapped in the past few days in Nigeria's Kaduna State. The recent kidnappings surpasses the abduction of almost two hundred and seventy six Chibok girls, by Boko Haram in 2014. Why do children keep getting abducted? What's going on? Also how the ongoing Red Sea crisis is affecting Ramadan celebrations in East Africa.And why are fans of Nigerian Afrobeat star Asake, upset with him?

Mar 8, 2024 • 29min
Can African women's pay gap be bridged?
On International Women's Day, we ask is a lack of safety and easily available childcare affecting working women's progress at work?Could blanket large-scale tree planting projects across Africa be damaging to the environment?And heavyweight boxer Anthony Joshua fights ex-UFC champion Francis Ngannou in Saudi Arabia. Could a major upset be on the cards?

Mar 7, 2024 • 28min
Will sanctions against Zimbabwe's leader work?
The US accuses President Emmerson Mnangagwa and other senior officials in Zimbabwe of corruption and human rights abuses. But will these sanctions work?More than 70 children are missing following recent jihadist attacks in Mozambique's northern Cabo Delgado province.And how the migrant who inspired an Oscar nominated film survived his harrowing journey?


