Newscast - Africa

The Independent National Electoral Commission is asking the Presidential Election Petition Court to vary the orders which were earlier granted to the candidates of the Peoples Democratic Party, Atiku Abubakar and Labour Party (LP)’s Peter Obi to inspect materials used for the last presidential election.
The electoral body is praying to the court to vary the order which restrained it from tampering with materials used for the election.
The commission says it needed to reconfigure the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System for the next round of elections.

President Muhammadu Buhari has urged developed and developing nations to grant duty-free and quota-free market access for products from the world’s 46 least-developed countries to ensure their integration into regional and global value chains.
The President criticised the current structure of the global financial system which places an unsustainable external debt burden on the most vulnerable countries.
He cautioned that such debt burdens would make it extremely difficult for LDCs to meet the 2030 Agenda for Seventeen Sustainable Development Goals.
President Buhari underpinned the need for reforms of the international financial architecture that prioritizes the need of Least Developed Countries.

UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak says asylum seekers arriving in Britain on small boats through the English Channel will be prevented from staying.
Under pressure from his own lawmakers to find stop the arrival of asylum seekers in Britain, Sunak has made stopping small boats one of his five key priorities.
Home Secretary Suella Braverman says that the only way into Britain would be a “safe and legal route.
Sunak says the new powers are a step towards fulfilling his pledge to “stop the boats once and for all.

UN member states have finally agreed to a text on the first international treaty to protect the high seas, a fragile and vital treasure that covers nearly half the planet.
After years of negotiations, negotiators from more than 100 countries completed the UN treaty – a long-awaited step that environmental groups say will help reverse marine biodiversity losses and ensure sustainable development.

Ethiopia's Tigray People's Liberation Front rebels have denied establishing a transitional administration in the northern region in accordance with the peace agreement signed in November last year.
A local news website reported that the TPLF had finalised the process of forming a 28-member interim regional administration, which needed approval by the federal government.
TPLF spokesperson Getachew Reda however says the Tigray interim administration would only be established after mutual consultations between the parties to the Pretoria agreement.

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa will announce changes to his cabinet on Monday, his spokesperson Vincent Magwenya said on Sunday.
The changes were widely expected after Mr Ramaphosa was re-elected as leader of the ruling African National Congress party in December.
Mr Ramaphosa is expected to name a new deputy president following the resignation of David Mabuza.
Mr Ramaphosa is also expected to fill the newly created position of electricity minister as the country battles a power crisis.

The National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, Mr Iyorchia Ayu, will lead some governors elected on the platform of the party on a protest march to the Independent National Electoral Commission headquarters, Abuja, over the outcome of the February 25 presidential election.
The development has, however, sparked apprehension in the Federal Capital Territory as residents feared the march may result in violence following the anger over the conduct and outcome of the polls.
The PDP and Labour party rejected the outcome of the election, with both laying claims to victory and vowing to challenge the result in court.

The Central Bank of Nigeria has disbursed N114.17bn to beneficiaries under its 100-for-100 Policy on Production and Productivity since the commencement of the intervention.
The CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele, stated that the funds were expended on 71 projects across healthcare, manufacturing and agriculture sectors.
He says under the 100 for 100 Policy on Production and Productivity, the Bank has disbursed the sum of N20.78 billion to nine projects in healthcare, manufacturing, and services.
The CBN fixed the maximum loan amount that a participant could get at N5bn.

The Federal Government has approved the disbursement of N308 billion worth of Promissory Notes to 199 exporting companies under the Export Expansion Grant Scheme.
The Executive Director of the Nigeria Export Promotion Council, Dr Yakusak, commended the Federal government and the National Assembly for their prompt response in approving the payment of the outstanding claims to the beneficiaries.
The NEPC’s head of corporate commissions, Ndubueze Okeke, shows that the sum of N193, 456, 239, 386.40 was approved for 133 beneficiaries of the scheme in respect of EEG outstanding claims for the period of 2017 to 2020 while the sum of N108,317, 269, 008.76 was approved for 35 beneficiaries in respect of EEG backlogs of claims for the period of 2007 to 2016 respectively.

The top US commander in Africa has downplayed the recent joint naval exercise by Russia, China and South Africa in the Indian Ocean.
General Michael Langley says America offered much more valuable security partnerships to African countries but would not force them to pick nations to corporate militarily with.
Gen Langley described the joint naval exercise as a power projection by Russia and China.
South Africa has denied the training amounted to an endorsement of the war in Ukraine.
Gen Langley also warned of the growing involvement of Russia’s Wanger Group in conflicts across Africa, saying they were a destabilising force.