NPR News -Africa

January 7, 202410:12 AM ET
Enlarge this imageAnton Koen, a former police officer who now runs a private security firm that specializes in tracking and recovering hijacked and stolen vehicles, prepares to go out on patrol east of Johannesburg, South Africa, on Tuesday, Nov. 28, 2023.

Denis Farrell/AP

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Anton Koen, a former police officer who now runs a private security firm that specializes in tracking and recovering hijacked and stolen vehicles, prepares to go out on patrol east of Johannesburg, South Africa, on Tuesday, Nov. 28, 2023.

Denis Farrell/AP

JOHANNESBURG — Thamsanqa Mothobi was going about his life in Johannesburg when he was carjacked and taken to an informal settlement where robbers accessed his mobile banking apps.
“They had guns and demanded the PIN codes for my apps. They increased the withdrawal limits in my accounts and emptied them. I was only released in the early hours of the morning,” the father of th..

Enlarge this imageSouth African Paralympian Oscar Pistorius leaves the Pretoria High Court on June 15, 2016, after the third day of his resentencing hearing for the 2013 murder of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp. Pistorius was released from Pretoria prison on Friday after serving nearly 11 years.

Gianluigi Guercia/AFP via Getty Images

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South African Paralympian Oscar Pistorius leaves the Pretoria High Court on June 15, 2016, after the third day of his resentencing hearing for the 2013 murder of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp. Pistorius was released from Pretoria prison on Friday after serving nearly 11 years.

Gianluigi Guercia/AFP via Getty Images

JOHANNESBURG — Before his shocking arrest and conviction for murdering his model girlfriend, Oscar Pistorius was South Africa’s golden boy — and an inspiration to many around the world.
Pistorius, who had his lower legs amputated as a baby, had become a..

January 2, 20249:18 AM ET
Enlarge this imageAlexis Mukwedi tested positive for sleeping sickness during a two-day mobile screening in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. He had complained about nervous tics and fatigue.

Xavier Vaheed-DNDi

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Xavier Vaheed-DNDi

Alexis Mukwedi tested positive for sleeping sickness during a two-day mobile screening in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. He had complained about nervous tics and fatigue.

Xavier Vaheed-DNDi

Acute sleeping sickness – the treatment is almost as horrific as the disease.
But now there is encouraging news about an oral medication – one that’s also been used for chronic sleeping sickness to great success.
Symptoms for both forms of sleeping sickness start with fever and aches. Then things get worse. The parasite that causes the disease will start to disrupt sleeping patterns and cause aggressiveness and psychosis – that’s how it got its name.
For many years, therapy fo..

December 31, 202311:51 PM ET
Enlarge this imageCongo’s President Felix Tshisekedi waves to his supporters after casting his ballot inside a polling station during the presidential elections in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo, Wednesday, Dec. 20, 2023.

Mosa’ab Elshamy/AP

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Mosa’ab Elshamy/AP

Congo’s President Felix Tshisekedi waves to his supporters after casting his ballot inside a polling station during the presidential elections in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo, Wednesday, Dec. 20, 2023.

Mosa’ab Elshamy/AP

KINSHASA, Congo — Congo’s President Felix Tshisekedi has won reelection with more than 70% of the vote, the country’s election commission said Sunday as opposition candidates and their supporters questioned the validity of the results.
The preliminary results of the Dec. 20 election were announced in the capital, Kinshasa, amid demands from the opposition and some civil society groups for the vote to be rerun due to mas..

December 31, 20237:16 AM ET
Enlarge this imageTen-month-old Ahmin Esas, who was born with clubfoot, shares a moment with his mother and brother in the family’s home near Battambang, Cambodia. As a single parent with limited means, his mother, Pho Sok overcame many challenges to ensure her son could receive the treatment he needed.

Tommy Trenchard for NPR

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Tommy Trenchard for NPR

Ten-month-old Ahmin Esas, who was born with clubfoot, shares a moment with his mother and brother in the family’s home near Battambang, Cambodia. As a single parent with limited means, his mother, Pho Sok overcame many challenges to ensure her son could receive the treatment he needed.

Tommy Trenchard for NPR

A ten-month-old girl, with a first flush of silky black hair and bathed in warm light, giggles as her cackling big brother gives her a hug. Her mother, Pho Sok, hoists the happy baby and beams at both children.
The little girl in this photo, taken near Battambang,..

December 30, 20239:39 AM ET
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@jazephua,@dollievision, @mrbeandamatematica/Screenshots by NPR

@jazephua,@dollievision, @mrbeandamatematica/Screenshots by NPR

TikTok in 2023 wasn’t just about girl dinners or cottage cheese inspo.
The annual roundup of the most popular content of 2023 is a testimony to the global appeal of the short-form video. They come from everywhere — like Sean the Sheepman’s sheepherding border collie in Scotland and Kirby Quimado cooking up breadrolls in the Philippines. And here’s another thing about TikToks: Even though there are plenty of serious-minded videos, the most popular ones are often goofy and in-your-face with earwormy music.
Of course there are exceptions to every TikTok rule. No creator got more eyeballs on a single video than Nydollie Deng with a simple but stunning makeup routine.
Here’s a sampling of the global TikToks that dominated in 2023.
Nyadollie Deng: viral makeup artist for women of colorThe most popular TikTok of..

December 29, 20235:07 AM ET

The dream of the Pan African Village, a rural settlement for returning diaspora in Ghana’s Cape Coast, has become a source of bitterness.

December 28, 20235:05 AM ET

More than six million people have been displaced, and medical services have been wiped out in many areas. Thousands have died.

December 27, 20235:00 AM ET
Enlarge this imageA new report focuses on Wagner’s operations in Sudan, Mali and the Central African Republic.

Vladimir Nikolayev/AFP via Getty Images

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Vladimir Nikolayev/AFP via Getty Images

A new report focuses on Wagner’s operations in Sudan, Mali and the Central African Republic.

Vladimir Nikolayev/AFP via Getty Images

A new report details how the Wagner mercenary group uses gold mining in Africa to funnel money to the Kremlin.
According to The Blood Gold Report, Wagner has laundered some $2.5 billion to Russia since its full-scale invasion of Ukraine last year in an effort to support its war effort.
This is in spite of global sanctions that have shut off the Russian economy from much of the world.
The report was produced by the Consumer Choice Center, as well as Democracy 21 — a non-profit that tracks corruption and advocates for government transparency.
Jessica Berlin, a political analyst & co-author of ..

December 25, 20237:01 PM ET

It’s been 10 years since South Africa’s first democratically elected president died. Nelson Mandela’s former chef describes how how the anti-apartheid icon liked to spend Christmas Day.