Africa (except North Africa)

Johannesburg, Jun 18 (PTI) Recalling the contributions of Zambia's first president and champion of African independence Kenneth Kaunda, the Nelson Mandela Foundation has said his life holds for reflection on how democracy should be measured and how it can be deepened.

Kaunda, 97, died on Thursday in Lusaka, the capital of Zambia.

Kaunda was admitted to a military hospital on Monday and he was being treated for pneumonia.

17 June 2021; MEMO: Ethiopia reiterated its intention to proceed with the second filling of its Grand Renaissance Dam, stressing that there will be no changes to the schedule.

16 June 2021; MEMO: Ethiopia has begun constructing a new dam on the Didessa River, a tributary of the Blue Nile, reported the Ethiopian News Agency (ENA) yesterday.

ENA indicated that the construction of the dam, launched on Sunday in the city of Gida Ayana in the East Wollega, Oromia State, will develop the country's irrigation infrastructure.

MOGADISHU, June 16 (Xinhua) -- The Somali military has said it killed nine members of al-Shabab during security operations in the southern region of Middle Shabelle.

The militants were killed on Tuesday when Danad commandos of the Somali National Army (SNA) conducted sting offensive operations at Marere, Sabun, Barow, MadinaAde and Galeef villages in Middle Shabelle.

"Al-Shabab militants suffered heavy casualties," SNA commanders told military radio on Tuesday evening.

ACCRA, June 15 (Xinhua) -- The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) is considering setting up a platform for national security advisors and early warning centers to enhance conflict prevention in the sub-region, a senior official said here Tuesday.

Jean-Claude Kassi Brou, President of the ECOWAS Commission, said at the opening of the 46th Ordinary Session of the Mediation and Security Council of the sub-regional bloc that these initiatives were critical due to the worsening insecurity situation in West Africa.

(Reuters) --- At least 15 people were killed on Tuesday in a suicide bombing as recruits lined up outside an army camp in the Somali capital Mogadishu, a Reuters witness who counted the bodies at Madina Hospital said.

Officials at the hospital confirmed the dead were killed in an attack earlier in the day at a checkpoint outside the General Degaban military training camp in the capital.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility. Islamist group al Shabaab frequently carries out bombings in the Horn of Africa country.

14 June 2021; MEMO: African journalists have called on the African Union and governments to condemn Israel's deliberate targeting of journalists and news media organisations and hold Israel legally accountable for crimes committed against media workers during its recent attacks on the Gaza Strip and elsewhere in occupied Palestine.

(Reuters) --- Lagos-based entrepreneur Ogechi Egemonu was selling more than 500,000 naira ($1,219) worth of watches, shoes and handbags on Twitter per week.

Now, with the site suspended by the Nigerian government, Egemonu does not know how she will cope.

"Social media is where I eat," she told Reuters. "I depend on social media for my livelihood."

Scores of small and medium-sized businesses across Africa's most populous nation - and largest economy - are reeling from the indefinite suspension of the social media site.

KIGALI, June 14 (Xinhua) -- Rwandan Minister of Health Daniel Ngamije on Sunday affirmed the central African nation's capacity to prevent a third wave of COVID-19 despite a rise in infections in the past two weeks.

There are currently 17-20 people testing positive per 100,000 tests in the country, Ngamije said during the Rwanda Television's talk show.

MOGADISHU, June 12 (Xinhua) -- Somalia, the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and the International Labour Organization (ILO) said Saturday that they have agreed to scale up efforts to end child labor in the African country.

On the occasion of the World Day against Child Labour, they said in a joint statement issued in Mogadishu that ending child labor can only happen through a collective systematic approach with a strong understanding of the root causes and a legal framework that prohibits children from entering the workforce at an early age.