Africa Intel - Африканские новости

🇿🇼 Mnangagwa appoints Tagwirei to Senate amid Zimbabwe succession contest Zimbabwean businessman Kudakwashe Tagwirei was appointed to the Senate by President Emmerson Mnangagwa, placing him at the centre of the country’s succession battle. On 18 August, Speaker of the National Assembly Jacob Mudenda announced that Mnangagwa had appointed 10 additional senators under Constitution Amendment No. 3. Tagwirei, a close ally of Mnangagwa and a presidential aspirant, now enters the upper house as succession tensions continue within the ruling establishment. The appointment was announced on 18 August and published by The Africa Report on 19 August. #Zimbabwe 🔸 Source @africaintel

🇪🇹 US judge allows Trump administration to end TPS protection for Ethiopians A US federal judge has allowed the Trump administration to proceed with ending Temporary Protected Status for Ethiopians, according to an allAfrica report published on August 20, 2026. The decision clears the way for the termination of protections that had allowed eligible Ethiopians in the United States to remain and work legally. Temporary Protected Status is granted to nationals of countries facing armed conflict, environmental disaster, or other extraordinary conditions. The ruling comes as the administration moves to roll back TPS designations affecting several migrant communities. #Ethiopia 🔸 Source @africaintel

🌍 IMF and World Bank debt framework reforms for Africa described as interim step African Business reported on 20 August 2026 that proposed reforms by the IMF and World Bank to the Low-Income Country Debt Sustainability Framework would distinguish public debt stress from debt sustainability, add a domestic debt risk module and provide more granular treatment of high risk ratings by time horizon and vulnerability type. The article says the current framework remains widely used for African sovereigns despite mixed financing structures that combine concessional lending, non-concessional bilateral finance, domestic bonds, regional development bank borrowing and market access. The piece notes that 39 of the 70 countries on the IMF’s September 2025 LIC-DSF list were African. It also says that in 2019, before Covid-19, 64 countries globally had public debt above 60% of GDP, only a third were African, but all 12 countries classified by the IMF and World Bank as high-risk or in debt distress were African. #Africa 🔸 Source @africaintel

🌍 Australian bureau warns 2026-2027 El Niño could be strongest since 1950 The Australian Bureau of Meteorology said forecasts point to a strong to very strong El Niño that could peak among or above the highest levels observed since 1950. Data released for July showed the Southern Oscillation Index at -29.1, far below the sustained -7 reading typically associated with El Niño, raising the risk of heat and drought in some parts of Africa and extreme flooding in others. Oxford Economics Africa said Southern Africa, parts of the Sahel and East Africa face significant risks to agricultural output, water supply and power generation. The report noted that maize production fell by more than 50% in some countries during the 2023/24 El Niño, while the World Meteorological Organization also flagged the possibility of a positive Indian Ocean Dipole intensifying dry conditions in the Sahel and Southern Africa. #Africa 🔸 Source @africaintel

🇳🇬 Nigeria's plan to tax crypto transactions could undermine adoption, industry says Nigeria has introduced stamp duty on certain cryptocurrency transactions and withholding taxes, according to industry players who say the measures could undermine digital asset adoption in one of the world’s most active retail crypto markets. The move affects a market where Nigeria has been a major centre for retail crypto activity, with the latest reaction coming from industry participants rather than an official policy response in the available report. #Nigeria 🔸 Source @africaintel

🇳🇬 Nigeria plans army expansion amid widening security crisis Nigeria is seeking to expand its armed forces as it faces multiple security threats including Boko Haram insurgency in the northeast, mass kidnappings in the northwest, separatist violence in the southeast, communal conflict in the Middle Belt and piracy in the Gulf of Guinea. The Africa Report said the move would increase operational reach and ease pressure on overstretched formations after more than a decade of sustained deployments. The article, published on 31 July 2026 at 06:00 GMT+1, said successive governments have increased defence spending, acquired new weapons and launched repeated offensives without achieving lasting strategic stability. It said Nigeria’s insecurity also reflects deeper institutional weaknesses beyond military capacity alone. #Nigeria 🔸 Source @africaintel