Africa Daily

Over the past few years, people in South Africa have been questioning the role corruption has played in their country's recent fortunes. In June, the Zondo commission - an inquiry named after it's chairperson Chief Justice Raymond Zondo - reported widespread corruption during the presidency of Jacob Zuma. It found that ANC leaders, including former and current government ministers, allegedly participated or encouraged looting at a massive cost to the country. Mr Zuma is standing trial on allegations of corruption which he denies. But the ANC has expressed its appreciation to the commission and said it would engage with its findings and take steps to address them. Chief Justice Zondo also suggested that electoral reform is needed to stop corruption in the future. He wants South Africans to directly elect their president, rather than voting for a political party which picks the head of state. So, could this be part of the answer?#AfricaDaily

Coconuts. Such a versatile product. You can eat them, you can drink its fresh sweet juice. You can even use it on your skin and hair. But as Alan has been finding out they can also be made into coco-peat and they can produce energy. So a very handy crop.And this is why Nigeria, despite growing plenty of them, last month, the country launched a coconut planting initiative in the southwestern town of Badagry in Lagos. It's part of a drive to promote the fruit as a cash crop and help the country become self-sufficient, as today Nigeria still imports 70% of the coconuts it needs from countries like Ghana and the Ivory Coast.Alan Kasujja sits down with BBC Business reporter Ijeoma Ndukwe to find out why Nigeria is nuts about coconuts and how the country can become self-sufficient in coconut production?

A decades-long civil war has killed thousands and displaced millions in the eastern parts of the Democratic Republic of Congo. Neighbouring countries such as Uganda, Rwanda and Burundi have also been sucked into the conflict. DR Congo accuses Kigali of sponsoring the M23 rebels, which have recently escalated the conflict after a period of calm. Rwanda denies this, but President Kagame recently acknowledged he was preparing for the worst…with many people suggesting he meant a possible armed confrontation. However, on Wednesday leaders of the two countries met in Angola and agreed to de-escalate the situation. So is there hope of bringing the conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo under control?

Earlier this year, Ons Jabeur, from Tunisia, became the first Arab woman and African woman to win a WTA 1000 title - a major title in the women’s game. Now at number two in the world, she is the highest ever ranked African player. She’s been in great form and is playing her first ever semi final at a grand slam – and not the least at Wimbledon - widely regarded as the most prestigious tennis tournament. Although the continent has had several tennis players reaching the highest levels of the sport, such as Kevin Anderson and Amanda Coetzer, Africa has often had few stars in the tennis world. Now, there are several promising juniors on the rise. Angella Okutoyi from Kenya recently made history at the Australian Open junior grand slam event, while Isabella Kruger from South Africa is on a winning streak in this year's junior Wimbledon. But requiring funding, facilities and equipment, tennis remains a difficult sport to access for many. Alan Kasujja speaks to sports journalist Reem Abulleil and Secretary General of Tennis Kenya, Wanjiru Mbugua-Karani to find out how how Africa can produce more tennis stars.

For many years people in South Africa have been dealing with rolling blackouts. But in recent days the outages have increased to six hours per day, causing unprecedented disruption. The state-owned power company Eskom has blamed the most recent ‘load shedding’ on striking workers. On Tuesday afternoon they reached an agreement with unions that could ease the supply issues, but warned that things could take time to get back to usual. In the meantime, South Africans must live with the disruption and plan their days around power availability. The BBC’s Mo Allie says that the frustration is having an impact on people’s mental wellbeing. #AfricaDaily

Across the continent, Covid-19 cases rose by 36% on average last week. Those figures might have sounded scary a couple of years ago. But the World Health Organization expects Covid related deaths to drop by 94% this year. Many countries have dropped restrictions related to the pandemic. In Botswana though, a mask mandate remains in place. The US Centre for Disease Control raised concern about the number of cases there in June. So, is Covid-19 still a serious threat for Africa? And when might Botswana be able to drop it’s last restrictions? #AfricaDaily

In June 2022, the US Supreme court overturned “Roe v Wade”, a landmark case which legalised abortion in 1973. It came after a young woman challenged the criminal abortion laws in Texas. Her case was heard on appeal in the US Supreme Court. The court ruled that a woman's right to terminate her pregnancy was protected by the US constitution.But now nearly 50 years later, America’s most senior legal body has overturned that right, which means laws in individual states will now determine whether women have access to abortion. There has been a huge reaction to the decision in the US and around the world, including on the continent. But should US court decision matter to people in Africa? What impact could it have on the debate on abortion on the continent? Host: Alan Kasujja Guests: Rhoda Odhiambo, BBC correspondent Ann Kioko, anti-abortion campaigner at Citizengo Nelly Munyasia, Reproductive Health Network in Kenya Mallah Tabot, International Planned Parenthood Federation Africa

In 2018 Nigeria were crowned champions of the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations, the continent’s biggest football competition, for the ninth time. And they have only been to the tournament 11 times. With the 12th edition getting underway in Morocco from July 2, after it was postponed in 2020 due to the pandemic, the defending champions start their quest for a tenth title. Nigeria go into the tournament as firm favourites and the Super Falcons have proven themselves as the queens of women’s football on the continent. On the eve of the first whistle of the tournament, Alan Kasujja kicks off with a burning question - why has Nigeria’s women football team dominated in Africa? Host: Alan Kasujja Guests: Janine Anthony, journalist and Jean Sseninde, former Ugandan women football player

Hope has been a midwife in Cameroon’s anglophone region for 27 years. Recently, she worked with a mother to quadruplets and sadly, only two of the babies survived. Providing care to the mother and babies was made even more difficult by the ongoing security crisis. The region has seen years of violence between separatist militants and government forces. For people living there, it has made every aspect of life more challenging. So, how are people coping in Cameroon’s anglophone region?#AfricaDaily

For more than 20 years she’s been co-chair of the world’s largest private foundation, The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, which works with projects aiming to fight poverty, inequality and infectious diseases. For years the foundation has poured billions of dollars into global health, education for girls among many others. And at a recent gathering in Kigali, The Bill and Melinda Gates foundation committed money to a $4 billion pledge to help eradicate malaria and neglected tropical diseases – NTDs - which haven’t received as much attention in the past. In a wide raging interview, Alan Kasujja speaks with Melinda French Gates to learn more about the causes close to her heart, who she is and what drives her. Host: Alan Kasujja Guest: Melinda French Gates