East Africa’s Problem with Abductions

Abducted. Picture compyright © by The Africa Review

East Africa has a problem with abductions, with Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania reporting thousands of cases. This issue stems from a colonial legacy of arbitrary police power and has been perpetuated by post-independence governments using law enforcement to maintain power. Abductions, often carried out by police and militias, instill fear and silence opposition, creating a culture of impunity.

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African Liberation Day: Pambazuka remembers Lumumba

Lumumba Street, Hungary

Pambazuka Magazine has an article on the former DR Congo president: “From Lumumba to Today: Congo’s Struggle for Dignity and Decolonization”. Gaëtan-Dauphin Nzowo remembers Patrice Lumumba’s struggles for the freedom and dignity of Congolese and all African peoples and the tasks for the remaining works of the revolution Lumumba represents.

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Botswana leads a digital revolution in Africa

Botswana leads digital revolution in Africa

Geneva. – Botswana is quietly leading a digital revolution in Africa, UNICEF reports. The African country is connecting hundreds of schools, reshaping public markets, and providing new opportunities for its youth to pick up the necessary skills that will allow them to thrive in a digital economy. 

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Bold government leadership means Botswana is connecting its schools to the internet at a faster rate than many other countries and finding new ways to leverage these connections. 

UNICEF says, it played an early role in this success when it partnered with SmartBots, Botswana’s flagship digital transformation project, reshaping the procurement and delivery of access to the internet. 

The southern African country has hardly looked back. Just a few years ago, connecting a single school in Botswana could cost BWP 279 (US$ 21) to BWP 15 (US$ 1.5) per Mbps.  Today, those same schools receive 100 Mbps for about USD 150—a 93% reduction in monthly costs.

“SmartBots isn’t just about connecting schools—it’s about creating a more efficient, inclusive digital economy,” says Kudzani Briggs, who leads Giga’s operations in Botswana.

At the heart of this work is a simple idea: when young people can access the internet, they gain the skills to participate in, and help shape the digital world.

Collaboration began with the connection of six pilot schools, then 100 more in remote and underserved areas. This effort yielded critical lessons and helped the government hit a major milestone: 700 schools and 400,000 students benefiting from reliable internet access at the end of 2024.

Giga has also supported the Government of Botswana to map schools and adopt a market-shaping approach to procurement. UNICEF provided the data, tools, and benchmarks, enabling Botswana to consolidate demand across ministries, coordinate procurement, and create a more competitive market for connectivity.

Botswana isn’t stopping at schools. With more than 700 already connected, the government is now extending the same model to health centres and community facilities. By sharing infrastructure across sectors, this integrated approach improves affordability and amplifies the impact of public investment.

That leadership is especially impressive given Botswana’s structural challenges. With just 4.5 people per square kilometre, it is the least densely populated country in Giga’s nine-country market assessment. Still, the government has committed to connecting every village with more than 500 residents, and has financed 100% of infrastructure deployment through its national broadband provider, BoFiNet.

Three key innovations made this possible:

  • Aggregated demand increased competition and drove down prices.
  • Technology-neutral tenders enabled satellite, wireless, and fibre providers to compete on equal terms.
  • Real-time mapping and monitoring, developed with Giga, brought transparency and built supplier confidence.

Looking ahead, Botswana is now tackling a new challenge: keeping connectivity affordable and sustainable, especially in rural regions. International bandwidth remains expensive, and operating costs (OPEX) such as monthly service fees and maintenance, continue to strain budgets. 

Although over 90% of the population is within reach of mobile broadband, only 49% are active users, which points to fundamental gaps in affordability, device ownership, and perceived value.  However, progress continues. In early 2024, Starlink launched services in Botswana, offering high-speed satellite internet at approximately USD 48 per month for 150 Mbps. While not a silver bullet, the arrival of a new provider—particularly one targeting remote areas—illustrates how increased market competition can put downward pressure on prices and expand access. As more players enter the sector, this kind of disruption has the potential to benefit all technologies and service models, reinforcing affordability as a realistic goal for national education systems.

Botswana also benefits from high digital literacy. Ranked as the fourth most innovative economy in Africa, the country’s youth and workforce are well-positioned to capitalise on expanded internet access and digital learning opportunities.

Still, challenges remain. Remote schools will require innovative financing, and long-term success will depend on continued public-private collaboration. But the foundation is strong—and the direction is clear.

“Botswana has shown that this isn’t just about getting schools online,” says Briggs. “It’s about shaping a market that works for governments, businesses, and,most importantly,young people.”

As African countries race to connect half a million schools by 2030, Botswana offers more than a success story. It offers a scalable model,and proof that with the right leadership, and smart procurement, transformative change is within reach.

As one of the world’s largest buyers of goods and services for children—procuring over USD 5.2 billion across 162 countries in 2023—UNICEF brings a powerful advantage to the table. Through Giga, this procurement expertise is applied to connectivity, helping governments pool demand, standardize tenders, and open the market to a wider range of providers.

Source: GIGA

EU: Protecting the High Seas, but not Africas Coastal Waters

Karte von Kaiwahine22, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

The European Commission on Monday presented a proposal to integrate the international Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction’ (BBNJ) Agreement, which aims to protect the ocean, tackle environmental degradation, fight climate change, and curb biodiversity loss, into EU law. This should help the Member States with the implementation in their national laws.

Signed by the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, on behalf of the European Union in September 2023, this Agreement – also known as the Treaty of the High Seas – “will help reach the goals and targets set under the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework“, the EU Commission says. “This includes protecting at least 30% of the ocean by 2030 and increasing benefit sharing from genetic resources and digital sequence information”.

The EU does not mention, that the agreement does not protect the coastal waters for example at the African west coast, where local fishermen are without work, because the European fishing industry is emptying the waters.

Map: Kaiwahine22, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

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Israeli airstrikes destroy last restaurant in Gaza City

Foto Design byThomas Dix. Copyright © boldtpublishing.com

“Israeli Airstrikes Decimate the Last Restaurant in Gaza City in Nightmarish Bloodbath”, reports Journalist Rasha Abou Jalal on Wednesday from Gaza. She speakes about “horrific scenes from a massacre at a beloved restaurant and a bustling market—destroyed by a triple Israeli airstrike”. She is a very brave person and deserves our support.

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Census of slaves in Angola, Cape Verde and Mozambique

UNESCO World Register Africa

Angola, Cabo Verde and Mozambique submitted 79 slave registration books, created mainly between 1856 and 1875, to the UNESCO register “Memory of the World”. Issued by decree of the Portuguese Crown, these records documented all enslaved and freed individuals in its overseas territories, laying the groundwork for the abolition of slavery in 1869.

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At a time when slavery had opponents around the world, and the United Kingdom was striving to ban it, these books provided detailed records, including names, sex, birthplace, age, physical traits, occupations, and information on slave owners, according to UNESCO. This provides a privileged view of the situation of slavery, given the fact that a large part of the enslaved Africans were forcibly expatriated from ports there.

It became part of 74 new items of documentary heritage inscribed on the Memory of the World International Register in 2025.

=> Source: UNESCO

 

Port Sudan: Three Days of Attacks

Drones believed to have been launched by paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) are said to have struck a fuel depot and an army base in Port Sudan on Tuesday. “The UAE has ONCE AGAIN in the span of a couple days, targeted the last functioning civilian airport in Port Sudan. Another drone strike targeted warehouses near Port Sudan’s port ,less than an hour after the previous attack an observer wrote on X.com.

The Guardian reported, that drone strikes hit Port Sudan airport and an army base in the third day of attacks. The day before, a dossier of alleged Sudan war crimes was handed to the Metropolitan police.

ECOWAS: Meeting in Ghana over exit of Niger, Mali, Burkina Faso

ECOWAS Logo

Accra. – The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) meets in Ghana on Tuesday an Wednesday to discuss the withdrawal of Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso. In a statement issued on Tuesday, ECOWAS told the public member states will discuss the modalities of the countries’ withdrawal and its implications for ECOWAS agencies in the countries.

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The three junta-led countries made their official exit from the bloc earlier in the year. ECOWAS had issued guidelines on its relationship with the three countries and transitional measures, which it said would be reviewed and finalised as the year progressed.

The bloc maintains its free trade policy, visa-free movement, residency, and other rights within ECOWAS states and with the three countries. It will “set up a structure to facilitate discussions on these modalities with each of the three countries.”

“Key items on the agenda include the modalities of the withdrawal process and the implications for ECOWAS Institutions and Agencies operating in the three countries. The session will also address other related matters of regional importance,” ECOWAS said.

Three weeks ago, the junta-led states, under the Alliance of Sahel States (AES), imposed a 0.5 per cent import duty on goods from ECOWAS. The levy applies to all goods from ECOWAS countries entering any of the three nations, except for humanitarian aid.

The policy countered ECOWAS’s intention of ensuring free movement of goods between its members and the AES countries despite their official exit from the bloc in January.

EU: €282.5 Million for Chad and Sudan crisis

The Commission has announced today €282.5 million in EU humanitarian aid to address the needs of the most vulnerable people in Chad, Sudan and neighbouring countries. Commissioner for Equality, Preparedness and Crisis Management, Hadja Lahbib is today in Chad, where she is visiting several EU-funded projects in the country, including those assisting Sudanese refugees.

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