Pope Leo XIV Urges Justice and Freedom in Equatorial Guinea Pope Leo XIV continued his African tour with a Mass in Equatorial Guinea. He addressed a Mass that drew some 100,000 people, including Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, the country’s leader and the world’s long-serving president. Leo, who is on an 11-day tour of Africa,…
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia — When Africa’s Heads of State and Government gathered in Addis Ababa on 14 February 2026 for the African Union’s 39th Ordinary Session, they did more than adopt another resolution. They made a choice: to place at the centre of the agenda the most fundamental, life-sustaining and strategic resource our continent possesses:…
On 25 March 2026, a high-level interagency coordination meeting took place at Ukraine’s Presidential Office, chaired by Kyrylo Budanov. The subject was the expansion of Ukraine’s presence on the African continent — and it was the first such meeting in the country’s history at this level. Priority countries have been identified. Coordination mechanisms agreed. A…
The Trump administration and the AU have started a bold journey that could ‘flip the script’ on decades of development cooperation. The United States (US) and the African Union Commission (AUC) have announced a new plan to secure investment inflows and develop trade in Africa. The Strategic Infrastructure and Investment Working Group (SIWG) formed on…
Oslo — “All illicit financial flows are immoral, with deeply negative effects on people and planet.” As humanitarians scramble for cash, high-profile calls for “innovative finance” are proliferating – often with the intention of tapping the private sector to further aid policy objectives. A new report, however, takes an arguably more effective approach, highlighting the…
HIV remains one of the biggest public health challenges in sub-Saharan Africa, a region that accounts for approximately two-thirds of about 40 million people living with HIV globally. Young people continue to account for a large share of new infections, with an estimated 370,000 new infections occurring among those aged 15-24 in 2024 alone. This…
Nairobi — Cybercrime networks are scaling rapidly across Africa, reusing infrastructure, digital platforms and cross-border tactics to outpace fragmented enforcement systems. Increasingly, these groups operate like coordinated enterprises, exploiting gaps between jurisdictions to expand fraud operations far beyond national borders. A recent crackdown under Operation Red Card 2.0 shows how that trend is being challenged….
A snapshot in time: The state of malaria Last year’s World Malaria Report reflected the hard-won gains of countries across across the globe: between 2000 and 2024, sustained investment in malaria prevention and disease control averted 2.3 billion malaria cases and 14 million deaths. But the report also revealed concerning realities: drug and insecticide resistance…
Malabo — “It is always a joy to see places around the world where the Church is growing,” said Pope Leo XIV at a press conference on the flight from Luanda to Malabo in Equatorial Guinea, the last country on his first trip to Africa as Pope, where he was greeted with exuberant joy by…
The Chairperson of the African Union (AU) Commission, H.E. Mahmoud Ali Youssouf met this afternoon with Walter Parrs, Chargé d’Affaires, a.i. at the U.S. Mission to the AU. Their discussion focused on African Union-United States cooperation, where Mr. Parrs outlined progress in the agriculture & animal health programme, commending effective collaboration with the AU Commission….
