Africa Daily

It’s like something out of a Shakespearean drama. A strongman in power. A cousin threatens his position only to end up dead. But this is Chad, 2024 – and the strongman is Chad’s military leader, Mahamat Déby. Recently his most vocal critic, Yaya Dillo, who was also his cousin, was killed in a shootout with security forces. So what is the relationship between different members of this powerful family? And as the country gears up to Presidential elections on the 6th May – meant to return the country to constitutional rule - does Chad even have a viable opposition anymore?Guest: Beverley Ochieng, Presenter: Alan Kasujja

“As an ordinary Zimbabwean I have to be worried when my president is sanctioned, because an investor who is in Dubai will think twice before coming to Zimbabwe” – Dr. Alexander Rusero, Zimbabwean political analyst. The United States has imposed fresh sanctions, replacing a broader programme that was introduced more than two decades ago. Those targeted include president Emmerson Mnangagwa who is accused by President Joe Biden’s administration of corruption and human rights abuses. Others on the list are First Lady Auxillia Mnangagwa, Vice President Constantino Chiwenga and Defence and War Veterans Affairs Minister Oppah Muchinguri. In a statement the United States says, “We continue to witness gross abuses of political, economic and human rights”. The White House further says, the targeting of civil society and severe restrictions on political activity have stifled fundamental freedoms. But Zimbabwe’s ruling Zanu-PF has denied America’s claims. So, where do these developments leave ordinary Zimbabweans? Alan Kasujja speaks to Zanu-PF spokesperson Tafadzwa Mugwadi and political analyst Dr. Alexander Rusero.

Nollywood is Africa’s biggest film industry. Many will associate it with lots of drama, addictive story-telling, the glitz and glamour of the red carpet. But a story that’s increasingly being told now is of financial hardship. John Okafor, who was also known as Mr Ibu, died a few weeks ago, last year he posted a video on Instagram asking his fans for help with his medical bills. And he isn’t alone, many other household names in Nigeria have posted videos on social media asking for financial support as they struggle with the challenges of being older actors. So why’s this happening in a multi-billion dollar movie industry? In today’s Africa Daily, Alan Kasujja speaks to the President of the Actors Guild of Nigeria, Emeka Rollas.

Apologies: only part of this podcast was initially published because of a technical fault, but this has since been rectified. _______________________________________________________________________________"They thought that paying fees for girls to go to school was losing money... We would not get husbands to marry us. People say that going to school is just building prostitution." When Marthe Wandou was growing up in the village of Kaélé in northern Cameroon, she was the only girl to get to university. Most of her female classmates left to get married – and local people ridiculed her parents - especially her Dad – for sending their daughters to school. She studied law, but returned to her home state and set up a foundation called Aldepa which works to support girls and women - especially in making sure they stay in school. So what are the obstacles girls still face when it comes to their education? And what are women like Marthe doing about it?

Zambia’s President Hakainde Hichilema has declared a national because of the prolonged drought. He says 84 districts out of a total of 116 in the country have been affected.The President said almost half of the land used for planting crops had been affected by severe dry conditions.There are also fears that the country will struggle to meet its electricity demands, as most of its energy comes from water sources.So how are Zambians coping with this situation? Alan Kasujja speaks to Zambian journalist Kennedy Gondwe.

The podcast explores the controversies and delays surrounding the African Games, reflecting on past memorable performances by athletes like Mary Onyali Omagbemi. It discusses the challenges of organizing the event, the unity required for its success, and the future of the games amidst declining standards.

“If the Islamist extremist groups succeed in entrenching themselves in Cabo Delgado, they will launch attacks in different parts of the continent” – Professor Adriano Nuvunga of the Center for Democracy and Human Rights Just as Mozambique's authorities thought Cabo Delgado province in the north of the country was beginning to stabilise, trouble started again. Insurgents linked to the group, Islamic State have launched new attacks on the area in recent weeks. As a result, more than 70 children are now missing. The authorities say they were separated from their families as thousands of people fled to a neighbouring province. According to Doctors Without Borders, over half a million people in that province remain displaced as of December 2023. The insurgency in gas-rich Cabo Delgado, launched by the IS-linked local al-Shabab militia, is now in its seventh year. High levels of poverty and disputes over access to land and jobs have contributed to local grievances. Today Alan Kasujja attempts to understand what it will take to end the conflict in Cabo Delgado.

In many parts of the continent, landing a job at a multinational company is a big deal – it promises growth and stability. But what happens when things go wrong? You get made redundant. Do you know what rights and protections you have?That’s the scenario that staff members in Ghana’s Twitter office found themselves in back in November 2022. Musk tweeted that "everyone" would get three months' severance pay. But it turns out, "everyone" didn't seem to include the Ghanaian staff.Alan Kasujja caught up with Carla Olympio, founder of Agency Seven Seven, the firm backing the Ghanaian staff fighting for their rights under Ghana's Labour Act of 2003. After a year-long battle, the agency successfully negotiated a redundancy settlement for the affected staff members.

“I think this community of BRICS is looking after each other and for sure it’s going to open more doors” – Gert Blignaut, South African beef exporter In August 2023, we brought you an episode on South Africa hosting about 70 heads of state from different parts of the world. They included China’s Xi Jinping, India’s Narendra Modi and Lula da Silva of Brazil, whose nations, along with Russia, form part of a bloc known as BRICS. Founded in 2009, this group aims to promote economic co-operation and increase trade among its member states. Russia’s Vladimir Putin couldn’t attend because of the International Criminal Court warrant of arrest against him, because of claims relating to the on-going war in Ukraine. At that two-day meeting held in Johannesburg, it was announced that Egypt, Ethiopia and several other developing economies were joining the bloc from the start of 2024. And this year, South Africa started exporting beef to Saudi Arabia, one of the countries who’ve been invited to join BRICS. So, what do these developments mean? Is Africa starting to see the benefits of aligning with BRICS? Does America and its western allies have a credible economic rival? Or is it all a pie in the sky? To answer these questions, Alan Kasujja sits down with South African beef exporter Gert Blignaut and Professor Patrick Bond from the University of Johannesburg.

“You just learn that the people who are against you… will always exist and they’ll always use every opportunity they can to amplify mistakes and actually very often try to portray them as deliberate. That’s part of the learning I’ve had to go through.” Being the mayor of Freetown is a tough job. Yvonne Aki Sawyer grew up in Sierra Leone but then went to the UK to study as a student. She stayed, built up a well-paid career in finance, got married, had kids. But after Ebola hit Sierra Leone in 2014 she took a sabbatical to help and became the director of Planning for Sierra Leone's National Ebola Response Centre. In the years since, she’s been voted in as mayor of Freetown twice – running on a ticket dominated with environmental concerns. But she’s also been investigated for corruption and accused of misappropriating public funds - allegations she denies and says are politically motivated. In a frank conversation, she tells Alan Kasujja about her attempts to work with the government, how women support women in Sierra Leone, and denies she’s drunk the political Kool-Aid. “My life is very different to what it was (in the UK)… I certainly don’t earn a fraction of what I used to earn… I am here because this is my heart,” she tells Alan. You can see the Africa Eye film about her work – and the pretty brutal election campaign she went through - “Mayor on the Frontline: democracy in crisis’’ on the BBC News Africa Youtube page.