NPR News -Africa

June 25, 20244:30 PM ET

The war between two armed groups in Sudan has been going on for over a year and has engulfed much of the country. About 12 million people are internally displaced, there is a potential for famine in many parts of the country and there are again fears of genocide in Darfur. The International Rescue Committee has put Sudan at the top of their emergency watchlist and their report says that the international community has failed in Sudan. We talk to the IRC country director about the dire situation.

June 25, 20241:08 PM ET

Kenyan police open fire on protestors as they storm parliament, in wisdespread demonstrations against sweeping tax rises.

Protesters scatter as Kenyan police spray water canon at them during a protest over proposed tax hikes in a finance bill in downtown Nairobi, Kenya, on Tuesday.

Brian Inganga/AP

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Brian Inganga/AP

NAIROBI, Kenya — Several people were killed and hundreds injured as thousands of demonstrators stormed Kenya’s parliament to protest a controversial tax bill on Tuesday.
Police responded with tear gas, rubber bullets and live rounds.
At least three of the dead were shot as protesters overwhelmed police as they entered and set fire to parts of the parliament buildings.
Addressing the nation, Kenyan President William Ruto called the storming of parliament promised to prevent it from happening again “at whatever cost.”
The protests forced lawmakers to flee the legislature where earlier they had debated and passed the unpopular bill.
The legislation proposes to significantly increase the cost of goods and services in Kenya to help pay off fore..

June 25, 20244:41 AM ET

NPR’s Leila Fadel talks to Eatizaz Yousif of the International Rescue Committee about the group’s latest report, which says there is limited time to avert a catastrophe of historic scope in Sudan.

June 22, 20246:40 AM ET
Bruce Onobrakpeya, a towering figure in modernism, in his home/studio in Lagos, Nigeria. At 91, he has his first Smithsonian solo show.

Manny Jefferson/for NPR

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Manny Jefferson/for NPR

Bruce Onobrakpeya’s home and studio, partly shielded by trees, sits discreetly along a frenetic side street in Mushin — a working class neighborhood of Lagos, dense with small manufacturing businesses, artisanal workshops and old detached houses.
But on a generous plot, his three-story, concrete modernist home where he’s lived since 1976 is a quiet wonder. Towering sculptures with bronze heads resting on bodies assembled from vehicle parts, loom over the gate. They depict a row of traditional monarchs, dressed with coral beads and holding copper staffs.
The compound is an museum in its own right. The concrete yard is covered in sculptures, paintings and a range of murals, some which he describes as “plastographs” ..

June 20, 20244:51 PM ET

A growing number of children in the U.S. are being targeted in sextortion schemes— a scam in which a cybercriminal obtains and then threatens to release nude or sexually compromising photos, blackmailing victims for a ransom. And sadly dozens of young victims have died by suicide in the last few years. Cybercriminals are often based abroad and it is a particular problem in Nigeria. Our correspondent in Lagos, Nigeria tells us about the issue, about the tragic case of one 17 year-old victim who took his own life, and about what the FBI is doing to combat the problem.
If you or someone you know may be considering suicide or is in crisis, please get support. In the U.S. you can call or text 988 to reach the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline.

June 14, 202412:04 PM ET

More children are targeted by sextortion and dozens have died by suicide in the last few years. Many of the cybercriminals are based abroad, particularly in Nigeria.

June 16, 20247:58 AM ET

In the Democratic Republic of Congo, three Americans are among dozens of people on trial for a failed coup attempt. NPR’s Lauren Frayer talks to independent journalist Emmet Livingstone.

June 14, 202412:44 PM ET
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa raises his hand as he is sworn is as a member of Parliament ahead of an expected vote by lawmakers to decide if he is reelected as leader of the country in Cape Town, South Africa, Friday. At right is Pemmy Majodina, a lawmaker with his African National Congress party.

Jerome Delay/AP

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Jerome Delay/AP

CAPE TOWN, South Africa — The African National Congress party has signed a deal to form a coalition government with the main opposition, party officials announced Friday after weeks of fevered negotiations.
Dubbed the government of national unity, this marks a seismic shift in South African politics, which has been dominated by the ANC since the end of apartheid 30 years ago. It aligns the party of the late legendary leader Nelson Mandela with its rival, the white-led, pro-business Democratic Alliance (DA) party. The coalition also includes the smaller Inkatha Freedom Party.
Will i..

June 13, 20247:18 AM ET
South Sudanese who fled from Sudan sit outside a nutrition clinic at a transit center in Renk, South Sudan, May 16, 2023. Fighting in Sudan has displaced 10 million people, according to U.N. figures.

Sam Mednick/AP

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Sam Mednick/AP

Almost 120 million people worldwide were forcibly displaced in 2023, the 12th year in a row that figure has risen, according to a new report by the United Nations’ refugees agency.
That means 1 in 69 people on the planet have been forced from their homes, either displaced to other parts of their own country, or across an international border. Just a decade ago, that comparable ratio was just 1 in 125, meaning the proportion of the global population has almost doubled.
There are multiple factors driving these annual increases, Kelly Clements, the deputy high commissioner for the U.N. refugee agency, UNHCR, told NPR. “We’ve got wars and conflicts that wage on without a solution in places like Afghani..