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Nigeria’s Former Power Minister Sentenced to 75 Years in Landmark Corruption Verdict

A Nigerian court has handed down a landmark 75-year prison sentence to Saleh Mamman, the former Minister of Power, after finding him guilty of laundering 33.8 billion naira (approximately $24.7 million) through fraudulent contracts linked to government-funded power projects. The verdict, delivered in absentia on Wednesday, marks one of the most significant corruption convictions in […]

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Togo’s Opposition Rallies: New Coalition Vows to Challenge Gnassingbé’s Grip

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A broad coalition of Togo’s main opposition parties and civil society organisations has held its first official meeting in Lomé, announcing a coordinated push to challenge President Faure Gnassingbé’s 20-year grip on power.

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Islamic State Claims Fatal Attack on Nigeria Football Pitch, Death Toll Rises to 29

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At least 29 people were killed and several others injured when gunmen attacked a football viewing party in Gombi, Adamawa State, northeastern Nigeria, on Sunday evening. The Islamic State group has claimed responsibility for the assault, which targeted young people watching a football match on a pitch in the town. Security sources told local media

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France’s Sahel Retreat Opens Door for Islamists — Togo Is Now on the Front Line

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The void left by France’s military withdrawal from the Sahel has filled with something far more dangerous than a strategic vacuum — it has filled with armed men. Three years after Paris began winding down its counter-terrorism operations across Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger, the ideological and operational space once held by French forces has

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Burkina Faso Nationalises Its $607M Cotton Giant in Bold Bet on Agricultural Sovereignty

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Burkina Faso’s military junta seizes the $607M Dioxin cotton company in the name of sovereignty. Critics warn the state may not know how to run it.

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Sierra Leone’s Democratic Experiment: Can the 2026 Elections Become a Model for Disability Inclusion?

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Sierra Leone’s Accessible Elections Act 2025 could finally bring 200,000 disabled citizens into the democratic fold. Whether the 2026 elections deliver will test the region’s commitment to inclusion.

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Ghana’s IMF Journey: From Crisis to Recovery as West Africa’s Anchor Stabilizes

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Nairobi | April 15, 2026 Ghana’s economy, once on the brink of sovereign collapse, is charting a cautious but credible path toward recovery, backed by a landmark International Monetary Fund programme and renewed confidence from international creditors. The West African nation, which defaulted on its external debt in 2022 amid a catastrophic cost-of-living crisis, has

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Benin Votes: President Patrice Talon Steps Down After a Decade, Succession Race Heats Up

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Benin votes in a landmark presidential election as Patrice Talon steps down after a decade that saw both economic transformation and systematic democratic erosion.

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Nigeria’s Healthcare System at Breaking Point: Resident Doctors Strike, Funding Gaps Widen

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Nigeria’s resident doctors are on indefinite strike over unpaid salaries and systemic underfunding. With hospitals shuttered and patients dying in corridors, the healthcare crisis has reached breaking point.

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Senegal’s Gold Rush: How the Mining Sector Found Its Momentum

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While the Sahel burns and West African democracies wobble, Senegal is quietly building something different — a gold sector that has grown from a minor footnote to a major driver of national export revenue in less than a decade. Production in 2025 reached 10.4 tonnes, cementing gold as the country’s primary mineral resource and attracting

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Benin Opposition Crisis Deepens Days Before Crucial Presidential Election

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Benin is heading into one of its most consequential presidential elections in years — and its main opposition is in disarray. With just days left before polls open on April 12th, the political landscape in this West African nation has been dramatically reshaped by court rulings, electoral exclusions, and a popular backlash that has filled

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Senegal Signs Law Doubling Homosexuality Penalty to 10 Years: A Dark Day for West African Human Rights

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Senegal has formally signed into law a bill that doubles the maximum prison sentence for same-sex relations from five to ten years, in a move that human rights organisations have condemned as a catastrophic retreat from the principles of individual liberty and human dignity. The law, passed by the National Assembly in March with an

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