Newscast - Africa

A subsidiary of Apple supplier Foxconn Technology Group has closed two factories outside of Shanghai after new COVID-19 cases were reported on site.
The factories operated by Foxconn Interconnect Technology Limited, also known as FIT, are located in Kunshan, Jiangsu Province, a small city situated between Shanghai and the historic Suzhou.
FIT’s website says that it supplies components for companies that specialise in wireless and Internet of things products, including its own brands Linksys, Belkin, Wemo and Phyn.
The South China Morning Post reported that operations have been suspended at two factories in Kunshan since last Wednesday and employees have been confined to their dorms.

French President Emmanuel Macron defeated his rival Marine Le Pen in presidential elections, projections showed, prompting a wave of relief in Europe that the far-right had been prevented from taking power.
Centrist Macron was set to win 57.0-58.5 per cent of the vote compared with Le Pen on 41.5-43.0 per cent, according to projections by polling firms for French television channels based on a sample of the vote count.
The outcome, expected to be confirmed by official results overnight, caused immense relief in Europe after fears a Le Pen presidency would leave the continent rudderless following Brexit and the departure of German chancellor Angela Merkel.

The World Health Organization reports a new Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
This latest Ebola outbreak started in Mbandaka, a densely populated city with road and air links to the capital, Kinshasa.
The WHO's Africa emergencies manager, Fiona Braka, says the delay in medical care is a concern.
She added that it is very important to quickly identify all the contacts and that the necessary isolation and monitoring are done to ensure that all those that are potentially infected are identified quickly.

The United Nations has called for an investigation into the reported killings of at least 168 people in clashes in the Darfur region of Sudan.
The UN special representative Volker Perthes condemned the violence in Krink region of west Darfur, during which homes have been set on fire, hospitals attacked and goods looted.
Several non-governmental organisations said an individual dispute sparked the fighting between Arab nomads and members of the Massalit minority in Krink.
The International Committee of the Red Cross has warned of a rapidly deteriorating humanitarian situation and called for the injured and sick to be allowed to seek help.

The Nigeria Governors’ Forum declared that the worsening insecurity in the country and currency depreciation were taking a toll on the business environment with the attendant negative impact on productivity and taxable income.
The NGF also alluded to the perceived weak social contract between citizens and the government, saying it continues to threaten the legitimacy of taxation.
The Director-General, NGF, Mr Asishana Okauru observed that Nigeria was still recovering from a combination of adverse fiscal and macroeconomic conditions which had exerted strong pressure on the fiscal sustainability of governments at national and sub-national levels.
Okauru stated that the adverse fiscal pressure had been primarily due to over-dependence on Federation Accounts Allocation Committee transfers which are constantly threatened by the increasing volatility in oil prices and mounting subsidy payments.

Lagos State Governor, Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu, inspected the ongoing construction of the Lagos Rail Line project and said the first quarter 2023 target for commencement of operational service was sacrosanct.
Sanwo-Olu says the state was on track with its effort to complete work on both the blue and red lines rail projects, which are intra-city, to strengthen the intermodal transportation system.
The governor, however, warned those that had started vandalising the barricades around rail lines to desist from the act, saying the tracks are hazardous.
The governor said the blue line rail would be running on electric tracks with Electric Motor Vehicle and warned citizens to keep off the train lines.

The former Senate President, Bukola Saraki says the choice of Leadership Nigerians makes in 2023 is critical to the nation’s economic development.
He says 2023 is very important to the nation because where the country is now, the nation is consumed by insecurity.
He says Nigeria needs a president who understands the economy, a president that can unite all Nigerians.
Saraki says North Central should be allowed to produce the next president.
He thanked Northern elders for their foresight in arriving at a consensus, calling on the party members to work together for the progress of the PDP.

President Muhammadu Buhari mourned the victims of an explosion that rocked an illegal refinery in Imo State and also ordered an intensified clampdown on illegal refining sites across the country.
President Buhari described the explosion as a catastrophe and a national disaster.
The President says the responsibility for the loss of lives and property must squarely lie with the sponsors of the illegal refinery, who must all be caught and made to face justice.
The President ordered the armed forces, security, and intelligence agencies to intensify the clampdown on illegal refineries.
He also urged community leaders, the police, and the secret service to never allow the occurrence of the heart-breaking incident in any part of the country again.

The founder of a notorious Russian mercenary force has been added to a European Union sanctions blacklist.
Yevgeniy Viktorovich Prigozhin was added to the list of individuals sanctioned by the EU for his role in undermining the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine.
The Council of the European Union says Prigozhin is the founder and unofficial head of the Wagner Group, a Russia-based unincorporated military entity, responsible for the deployment of Wagner Group mercenaries in Ukraine.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson suffered a blow to his authority when lawmakers ordered a parliamentary investigation into his past denials that he broke coronavirus restrictions by attending illegal gatherings during the pandemic.
Johnson faced criticism from his Conservative party and an influential former ally called on him to quit over what has become known as the Partygate scandal, which has caused widespread public anger.
The investigation will look into whether Johnson knowingly misled the Parliament of the United Kingdom.
Johnson vowed he would not quit and intended to fight the next general election still likely at least two years away.