Africa Here and NOW

We speak to Ghanaian academic and political analyst, DR MICHAEL AMOAH, about his country's impressive record of holding orderly elections that lead to peaceful transitions of power. It's a record that's all the more impressive when compared with many of Ghana's neighbours.So JOHN MAHAMA returns to power - he served one term in 2012-2016 - and we discuss his to-do list. First up, we hear, he needs to try to cut a better deal with his country's creditors. Ghana is labouring under the worst economic conditions for a generation. Everyone commends the early concession speech by MAHAMADU BAWUMIA.PATRICK's in Paris from where he gets a close up view of France's political woes and reminds us of its troubles abroad. More and more of its former colonies are turning away and rejecting a French military presence on their territories. The latest to send French troops packing are Chad and Senegal who follow in the footsteps of Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger.TIFFANY WOGNAIH, Senior Associate at global consulting firm, J.S.Held, tells us about the demands for more revenue from the mining sectors in the Sahelian Three - Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger. Following the well publicised arrest of western company executives and a warrant for the arrest of the CEO of a Canadian firm, Tiffany says the investment environment is dramatically altered. While western investors may be wary of future projects, Tiffany suggests that interest from the so-called Middle Powers like Russia, Turkey and Iran could fill the gap.DONU's fascination with Namibia continues. She approves wholeheartedly of the election of the country's first woman president - NETUMBO NANDI-NDAITWAH - or Triple N as she's known. We hear how Triple N's celebration could be short lived - there's an awful lot to do, not least dealing with the outcome of the parliamentary election that is being contested by the main opposition party.

As climate talks enter their second week in Azerbaijan's capital, Baku, MICHAEL USI, Malawi's Vice President, says it's time to get serious about past pledges.And Kenyan pastoralist CHARLES EKALELE tells us why those pledges matter. Changing weather patterns in Turkana County are making people in his community poorer.Africa's Last Colony. As the US, Spain and most recently France add their support to Morocco's claim over Western Sahara, we ask has the Polisario Front given up on its idea of self determination for the Saharawi people? We speak to the Polisario's man in Washington DC, MOULOUD SAID.DONU has words of advice for KEMI BADENOCH, whose rise to the top of British politics is still absorbing many Nigerians who say she has turned her back on Nigeria.PATRICK admits he does take time off work, sometimes. He raves about London's Jazz Festival.

We ask political analyst, ADAM MFUNDISI, about the challenges ahead for Botswana's new president DUMA BOKO. He tells us the country is in 'an undeclared recession' brought about by lacklustre diamond sales and corruption.Sudan's war is having horrifying effects on the country's people. The UN has called it 'the world's greatest modern-day famine' with at least 1.5 million people on the brink of starvation. Food is being used as a weapon of war by both sides. More than 10 million people have fled their homes, many to camps where there are no schools. People are speaking of a lost generation of Sudanese children. Amidst all this despair, we ask political economist, JAWHARA KANU, are there any prospects for peace?DONU opines on fellow Nigerian KEMI BADENOCH, who's been elected to lead the UK's Conservative Part. What do other Nigerians make of her achievement? And how might Prime Minister, KEIR STARMER, deal with her? 'She'll make mincemeat of him' reckons DONU.And PATRICK reflects on the 50th anniversary of one of the 20th Century's most significant sporting events, the Rumble in the Jungle in Kinshasa. He reminds us that the 3 day extravaganza had an impact far beyond boxing.

Africa here and Now's PATRICK SMITH has rocked up in Gaborone to gauge the mood in diamond-rich Botswana as people prepare to vote. He finds that this month's election could present the most serious challenge to the ruling party's almost 60 years in power.Have the books been cooked in Mozambique's election? The stakes are high, a $150billion gas project is on the cards.Somaliland- the breakaway republic which has no international recognition - is in the eye of a growing storm in the Horn of Africa. A new alliance between Eritrea, Egypt and Somalia threatens to isolate Ethiopia. But it's tiny Somaliland that's central to the current tensions. Its deal with Ethiopia to offer a stretch of its Gulf of Aden coastline in exchange for official recognition has upset everyone in the region. We find out more with PROFESSOR EID ALI AHMED, a senior advisor to the government in Hargeisa.The well-being of Cameroon's 91 year old president has been on our minds; a recent rumour that he had died went viral. The Yaounde government rubbished the rumours and decreed that Cameroonians be banned from discussing the health of their leader or risk prosecution. Africa Here and Now's DONU KOGBARA shares her thoughts on nonagenerian leaders and Orwellian decrees.And why did Tarzan, the legendary apeman, have no African friends despite being raised in an African jungle? That's the kind of question being considered by BARBARA ANGOPA on her new podcast HOLLYWOOD AFRICANS. Along with her co-host, AMAKA UGWUNKWO, Barbara dissects the way black people are portrayed in the movies. Check out HOLLYWOOD AFRICANS, available on all major audio platforms.

Talk at this year's General Assembly about reforming the UN has gathered pace. Meeting in the shadow of war: Sudan, Ukraine and the Middle East, the idea of changing the makeup of the Security Council took on more urgency. Support for Africa to get two permanent seats on the Council has grown. We asked Kenya's former UN ambassador, MARTIN KIMANI, if and when that's likely to happen. Ambassador Kimani, now Executive Director of NYU's Centre on International Cooperation, explains the responsibilities of being a Security Council member, and questions whether any African country is sufficiently prepared.Galamsey has become a byword for corruption in Ghana. The word 'galamsey' is derived from the phrase 'gather them and sell' and refers to the increasingly widespread practice of illegal gold mining. Thousands of hectares of farmland have been destroyed, reducing Ghana's cocoa harvests dramatically. The country's waterways are being polluted to the extent that some have predicted that Ghana may soon have to import drinking water. And people are getting sick, poisoned by the heavy metal bi-products of irregular mining. Ghanaians have been protesting against what they see as the connivance of politicians in galamsey and just weeks before the next presidential election. We speak to DR YAO GRAHAM, Coordinator of Third World Newtwork-Africa.During the years of apartheid, many South Africans were forced into exile abroad from where they continued their fight against the racist regime. And many of them died abroad, unable to return to the homeland for which they had so tirelessly fought. Now, in a joint operation between the governments of South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe the remains of almost 50 freedom fighters have been repatriated. DUMA NOKWE, a lawyer and former ANC Secretary General, died in Zambia more than forty years ago. his daughter, NOSIZWE NOKWE, tells us about the emotional return of her father's remains.#Africa#amplifyafrica#africanunion_official@AMBMKimani@YaoGraham

The complex web of hostilities in the Horn deepen as Egyptian troops prepare to enter Somalia on peacekeeping duties. Ethiopia makes clear its opposition. Some are warning of a coming proxy war fuelled by Ethio-Egyptian animosity. We get the views of Mogadishu-based journalist MOHAMMED SHEIKH NOR.How would a second Trump administration deal with Africa? A question for former Trump Africa ambassador J.PETER PHAM.Nigerians always have something to say about their president's comings and goings. Just back from China and a royal rendezvous at Buckingham Palace, PRESIDENT TINUBU is getting under the skin of his country men and women for his 'imperial style' and the size of his presidential convoys. DONU explains.And PATRICK reveals details of his misspent youth as he heartily welcomes the launch of the iconic US magazine, ROLLING STONE's new edition devoted to African music and culture.

Can Africa's leaders gathering in Beijing for the Forum on the China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) get more out of the relationship than in the past? Historically, China has imported African raw commodities with little or nothing added to the value of the metals and minerals. Now, with demand on the rise for Africa's vast supply of critical metals and minerals that are vital for the transition to net zero carbon emissions, the continent's leaders could demand greater benefits for their own economies. We ask COBUS VAN STADEN, of the China Global South Project, what to expect.Oxitech, a British biotech firm, has begun releasing genetically modified mosquitos in Djibouti in a bid to curb the surge in malaria cases there. We ask the firm's CEO, GREY FRANDSEN, whether it is actually possible to create a 'friendly' mosquito.ASMAA HAMZAOUI has become Morocco's first female master of gnawa music - a genre that dates back centuries and was introduced by West African slaves. Asmaa tells us how she's been received by her fellow gnawa masters who are, and always have been, men. And for those who are unfamiliar with gnawa, Asmaa explains it and we see her perform with her all-female band, Bnat Timbuktu.DONU tells us about the Africans who have volunteered to fight in the Ukrainian army against Russia.And PATRICK has been to Portugal to assess the official review of its colonial past, and the movement to counter that rosy narrative with a far less flattering account of Lisbon's exploits in its former colonies.

Legendary Ghanaian artist, ABLADE GLOVER, talks exclusively to Africa Here and Now on the occasion of his 90th birthday and the opening of his 10th exhibition atLondon’s October Gallery, Inner Worlds, Outer Journeys. He takes us through seven decades of loading his palette knife with oils to create dense, mainly urban scenes. He explains his love of Accra life and the hustle and bustle. His work has been described as extracting order from disorder. “I seem to study the aesthetic of the chaotic phenomenon” he’s reported to have once said. Ablade recalls that it was independent Ghana’s first President, KWAME NKRUMAH, who helped him get his first scholarship to study in the UK. Not only famed for his vibrant paintings, Ablade Glover is renowned for encouraging and inspiring younger artists. His gallery, the Artists Alliance, on Accra’s seafront, is one of the great spaces in which their work is featured.