Africa Daily

Earlier this week we heard on Africa Daily from people struggling to manage as the cost of essential food items and fuel rockets in Nigeria. Inflation is now close to 30% and many stores have stopped displaying prices for the goods on sale - because prices are increasing so fast. Some people have begun hoarding food.Protesters have taken to the streets in cities around the country calling on the government to intervene - but the unions cancelled a second day of strikes on Wednesday - giving the government two weeks to meet their demands.So what has the government said in response? And what are they likely to do?For Africa Daily, Alan Kasujja talks to the BBC’s West Africa reporter Nkechi Ogbonna - and we hear from Nigeria's Finance Minister, Wale Edun.

“Society calls us waste pickers but I am a reclaimer, I don’t collect waste,” says Luyanda Hlashwayo, who for the last 12 years has made a living by sifting through household garbage to find recyclables for sale.It is estimated there are 15-20 million people worldwide who, like Hlatshwayo, depend on the informal waste sector for livelihood.Their work is dangerous and they are paid poorly.Through the Africa Reclaimers Organisation which he helped found, waste pickers from South Africa and Kenya are discussing ways to improve their working conditions and livelihoods, as they continue to push for recognition as formal stakeholders.In this episode of Africa Daily, Alan Kasujja talks to Hlatshwayo and Winnie Wanjira who has been a waste picker at one of the largest landfills in East Africa.

“South African deployment of soldiers to DRC is out of order. It must be withdrawn with immediate effect. Not that South Africa is not supposed to deploy in DRC. We [are] supposed to deploy in the DRC and be in the forefront. We just don’t have the army” – Julius Malema, EFF leader The war in the Democratic Republic of Congo is affecting several African nations. Just recently, Africa Daily produced a podcast demonstrating how tensions between Burundi and Rwanda are tied to the conflict in the DRC. And now, it’s South Africans who’ve been affected. Local opposition parties insist that their nation’s army lacks the intended weapons, drones and mortar groups to protect them. It comes after two of the troops were killed in a mortar strike in eastern DRC. They were part of 2, 900 soldiers deployed to that country for a peacekeeping mission. So, is South Africa up for this operation? Why does president Cyril Ramaphosa’s government feel so strongly about having a presence in the DRC? What’s in it for them? But also, who decides which countries should be part of such missions?

It’s been 10 months since fierce fighting between the Sudanese army and the parliamentary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) broke out. A civil war that continues to heavily impact Sudan and its civilians. Earlier this month, the United Nations appealed for just over $4 billion to fund humanitarian operations in the country and neighbouring countries hosting refugees. They’ve described human suffering of epic proportions and say nearly nine million people have been displaced. More recently, Sudan has been plunged into an internet blackout. The blackout has left people in the country unable to access essential services, like transferring money. To find out more on the situation, BBC Africa Daily’s Alan Kasujja spoke to Suliman Baldo who is the founding director of the think tank Sudan Transparency and Policy Tracker and Buthina who was born and raised in Khartoum, Sudan’s capital. She had to relocate when the war started and now works for an international organization supporting local groups on the ground.

In Nigeria, consumers are struggling. The cost of many basic necessities like rice, yams and even onions, have doubled since last year. It follows the decision by the government of President Bola Tinubu to remove a subsidy on fuel, and to devalue the naira – which had cost the government billions of dollars. But while the policies were aimed at increasing foreign investment, they’ve seen costs rocket for consumers in Nigeria. People have reacted in a variety of ways: from protests, to food hoarding, to prayers and fasting in the hope God might just intervene.For today’s Africa Daily, Alan @Kasujja speaks to a Tolani and Femi Sarumi, who work respectively as a travel agent and estate surveyor, to find out how they’re coping – and talks through the background to the crisis with business analyst, Endurance Okafor.

World marathon record holder Kelvin Kiptum will be buried on Friday in his village in south-western Kenya. The 24-year-old died in a road accident two weeks ago alongside his Rwandan coach Gervais Hakizimana.Kiptum’s death comes after several tragic incidents which have claimed the lives of Kenyan athletes in their prime. In today’s Africa Daily, Alan Kasujja talks to former Boston Marathon champion Wesley Korir and asks if athletes are faced with greater risks outside the field of play.

“This is a cycle in Congo. It’s been almost 30 years this has been happening again and again and again. And (it) is devastating to see the same civilian populations are moving again and again.”Goma – the largest city in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo - has an official population of 2 million people. But more than half a million displaced people are now also living there, following a spike in fighting between the Congolese army and the Tutsi-led M23 rebel group around the town of Sake - just over 20 kilometres away.Sake is on the main road that connects Goma to the rest of the region – meaning the city is all but cut off for supplies by road.Aid agencies say if the rebel group were to move into Goma it would be an even greater disaster for the local population.But how likely is that, and what is M23’s goal?Presenter: Alan Kasujja @kasujja. Guests: Eric Batonon, the Norwegian Refugee Council’s country director and security analyst Alex Ntung.

Afrobeats and Amapiano are two of the most popular genres in Africa and both genres are now also being recognised and appreciated worldwide. This year's prestigious Grammy awards gave us 'Best African Music Performance’ for the first time. Out of the seven nominees- four were from Nigeria- Davido, Burna Boy, Asake and Olamide and there were two artists from South Africa, Musa Keys and the winner Tyla. The only other country represented was Arya Starr from Benin but even she lives in Nigeria. A lot of people raised the question of why this award didn’t recognise artists from other parts of Africa if it's an award created to celebrate music across the whole continent. So why does Nigerian and South African music seem to be dominating music from other parts of Africa? Guests: MC Yallah, ePianoh and Keiitumetse Maako

Back in 2015, Burundi closed its border with Rwanda, amid internal violence that erupted from the disputed re-election of then President Pierre Nkurunziza. At the time, Burundi accused Rwanda of supporting the protesters and encouraging the perpetrators of a failed coup. But the two governments seemed to put that behind them, following the election of Évariste Ndayishimiye as Burundi’s president in 2020. Two years later, the crossing was reopened and trade was back on track. But at the start of this year, diplomatic ties between the two nations suffered a new blow. Burundi, once again, shut the entry points, accusing its neighbour of hosting and training a rebel group known as RED-Tabara. This armed militia claimed responsibility for a deadly attack near Burundi's western border with the Democratic Republic of the Congo. So, what will it take to end tensions between the two nations? Guests: Rwanda’s government spokesperson Yolande Makolo and political analyst Kwezi Tabaro Presenter: Alan Kasujja

“This is a time for us to stand very tall and stop aid in Africa. We need to find a way of nurturing our natural resources that we have in Africa and really claim back this beautiful continent that we call the Mother Africa” – Nthabeleng Likotsi, South African entrepreneur Today Alan Kasujja sits down with award-winning South African entrepreneur Nthabeleng Likotsi, to discuss how she and her team are building a mutual bank. Her country’s central bank, SARB, recently granted her organization a license to officially run their organization. It took nearly a decade for Nthabeleng to secure this crucial document because businesses first have to tick all the boxes. Her organisation, Young Women in Business Network, is the very first black women owned financial services company of its kind to be granted such a permit in her country. Nthabeleng’s is a story of relentless optimism, perseverance, the ability to learn all the time and most importantly, having the courage to pursue your dreams. The lessons don’t only apply to business. As our listener, you could use them to start anything. It could be a small initiative that helps your community or anything that makes a difference in the lives of your loved ones.