Africa: Former CIA Analyst Now Top U.S. Africa Official at State; Dealmaking Dominates as Conflicts Spread

[allAfrica] Washington, DC -- The Africa Bureau at the State Department has a new top official, Nick Checker. Unlike his recent predecessors who were career diplomats, he has been at State for only four months, having served for the previous decade as a military analyst at the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). He spent part of last 2025 working in the White House as deputy executive secretary on the National Security Council (NSC) staff. Source

Africa: AAI "Following the Gold Road" online conference and Afropop's "Mali Gold" Playlist

[Afropop] New York -- We're pleased to announce the launch of the Africa-America Institute's State of Education 2026 Conference - ''Following The Gold Road--Global Medieval Africa in the Time of Ghana, Mali, and Songhai.'' Source

Congo-Kinshasa: Surge in Conflict-Related Sexual Violence Urgent Support for Survivors Needed After US Aid Cuts

[HRW] Kinshasa -- Urgent Support for Survivors Needed After US Aid Cuts Source

Botswana: Botswana On FMD High Alert

[The Patriot] The Ministry of Lands and Agriculture has issued a stern alert over the heightened risk of foot-and-mouth disease entering Botswana following reports of escalation in neighboring South African provinces close to the country's borders. Source

Uganda: Govt Suspends Top NGO Chapter Four Over Security Concerns

[Nile Post] In a move that has sent shockwaves through Uganda's civil society sector, the National Bureau for Non-Governmental Organizations (NGO Bureau) has suspended the operating permit of Chapter Four Uganda, a leading human rights organization, with immediate effect. Source

Nigeria: Palantir Co-Founder Backs Nigerian Startup Terra in $11.8m Round

[Daba Finance] Palantir Technologies Inc. co-founder Joe Lonsdale has led an investment in a Nigerian defense technology startup expanding drone manufacturing as security risks intensify across Africa. Source

Liberia: Suspended Top Security Aide Jailed At Monrovia Central Prison Over Chilling Gang Rape Allegations Involving Minor

[FrontPageAfrica] Monrovia -- Peter Bonn Jallah, a suspended Special Assistant to the Director of Liberia's National Security Agency (NSA), has been charged, forwarded to court, and remanded to the Monrovia Central Prison, following a harrowing police investigation into allegations of gang rape, statutory rape, and kidnapping involving a minor, a case that has sent shockwaves across Liberia and drawn intense scrutiny to the country's security apparatus. Source

Kenya: Police Arrest 15 After Chaos At Church Event Attended By Gachagua in Gatundu

[Capital FM] Nairobi -- Police have arrested 15 suspects following chaos that erupted during a church service attended by former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua in Gatundu, Kiambu County. Source

Malawi: Is Vice President Jane Ansah Being Punished for Her Loyalty to APM?

[Nyasa Times] President Arthur Peter Mutharika's decision to move the Department of Disaster Management Affairs (DoDMA) from the Office of the Vice President to the Office of the President and Cabinet (OPC) has triggered serious political questions that government has failed to convincingly answer. Officially, the shift is being sold as an administrative move meant to improve coordination and speed up disaster response. But in Malawi's political reality, such changes are rarely innocent. Source

Nigeria: Where's Our President? - Obi Questions Tinubu's Whereabouts

[Vanguard] Former Anambra State Governor and Labour Party presidential candidate in the 2023 election, Peter Obi, has questioned the whereabouts of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu amid what he described as deepening economic hardship, insecurity and leadership silence in Nigeria. Source

Africa: Trauma Tax is Africa's Hidden Economic Burden

[allAfrica] As 2026 opens, conflict remains a permanent global condition, not an exception. More than 185,000 political violence events were recorded in 2025, directly exposing 831 million people--16% of humanity--to violence. The new year has brought no respite: Venezuela's government collapsed in a U.S. military operation, Russia deployed hypersonic missiles near Ukraine's NATO border, and Sudan marked its 1,000th day of war. Source

Africa: AU Officials Call for Stronger Solidarity As Africa Confronts Rising Security, Political Challenges

[ENA] Addis Ababa -- African Union (AU) officials have underlined that unity and close collaboration among Member States are indispensable to confronting the continent's mounting security, political and economic challenges. Source