Vol 59 No 25 |
- CONGO-KINSHASA
A state-funded campaign war chest, fraud and intimidation make the President’s dauphin the heavy favourite on 23 December
Expectations of electoral chaos, fraud and intimidation lead many to conclude that Emmanuel Ramazani Shadary, one of President Joseph Kabila's ultra-loyalists, will be declared the winner after the...
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The country is fast becoming a locus for confrontation between Russia and France as the UN mission’s mandate expires
Because of Russian disagreement, the mandate of the UN's Multidimensional Integrated Stabilisation Mission in the Central African Republic was not renewed in November. Russia had objected to France's...
Vol 59 No 23 |
- CONGO-KINSHASA
Violence is escalating in the east, as UN leaders come under fire for not engaging with neighbouring countries responsible for it
With elections right around the corner, armed groups in the east are ramping up their attacks on government forces and United Nations peacekeepers. Meanwhile, a split in the...
France's failures in CAR opened the door to Russia. Now, Paris wants to win back a central role, but the government is hostile and the Kremlin has plans
The visit of the French foreign minister, Jean-Yves Le Drian, to Bangui at the beginning of November was supposed to signal Paris's decisive re-engagement with its former territory....
The country is not safer, more stable or any clearer about the succession despite an apparently decisive election victory
Few were surprised when President Paul Biya, 85, defeated his two main challengers – Maurice Kamto from the Mouvement pour la renaissance du Cameroun (MRC) and Cabral Libii...
As the ruling party prepares to claim a landslide victory, the country’s regional and linguistic divides are getting out of control
The national elections on 7 October could be the worst yet in Cameroon and will further weaken President Paul Biya's claim to legitimacy. But Biya's Rassemblement démocratique du...
Vol 59 No 20 |
- CONGO-KINSHASA
Opposition parties question the reliability of the new voting machines as leading presidential candidates are barred
With barely 10 weeks until presidential, legislative and provincial polls, Congo-Kinshasa's political class and electoral commission (the Commission électorale nationale indépendante – CENI) are yet to agree on...
In the midst of jihadist violence and a separatist insurgency, Africa’s oldest leader stands for a seventh term
The country's 6.5 million registered voters have a chance to end 36 years of President Paul Biya's rule at the presidential polls on 7 October but the odds...
Vol 59 No 17 |
- CONGO-KINSHASA
While stacking the election odds in favour of his candidate, the President is promoting men to cope with militia violence
Many oppositionists believe that the nomination of Emmanuel Ramazani Shadary to stand in the presidential election in place of President Joseph Kabila means the continuation of the two-term...
Vol 59 No 17 |
- CONGO-KINSHASA
Kasaï Central is scarred by famine, militia, cult and government violence, none of which is likely to ease before elections take place
Until the Kamuina Nsapu revolt erupted two years ago, the province of Kasaï Central had been peaceful. All that changed when the Kamuina Nsapu militia, led by a...
Vol 59 No 16 |
- CONGO-KINSHASA
The President finally named a successor at the eleventh hour and ended the third-term controversy. Storms still lie ahead
The drama over who will be allowed to run in the presidential elections due in December has dragged the political system to the brink as growing armed conflict...
Vol 59 No 16 |
- CONGO-KINSHASA
While Kabila steps down, his successor will have to cope with neighbours with agendas, and the myriad militias they support
Congo-Kinshasa's most important neighbours lie to the east: Burundi, Rwanda, Uganda and Tanzania, all of whom have played key roles in the country's ructions over the past three...
President Denis Sassou-Nguesso is no stranger to Washington's K Street, where all the major United States lobbying firms are found, having previously hired lobbyists to campaign against so-called...
A deceptive lull has descended on Bangui while peace talks are mired in confusion. Meanwhile, chaotic public finances are causing alarm
Just two months ago Bangui was on the edge of the abyss as violence escalated and nobody seemed to have a grip on the situation. Now, the city...
Vol 59 No 12 |
- CONGO-KINSHASA
Big mining companies loudly rejected the new mining code. They don’t know if they’ll sue, shut their mines in protest, or lump it
Prime Minister Bruno Tshibala Nzenze signed into law regulations which overhaul the regime governing the mining sector on 9 June, making real the worst fears of Glencore, Randgold...
Neither the President nor the UN forces have a grip on deteriorating security. The killing of a priest in his church illustrates the growing disorder
Faustin-Archange Touadéra stepped into the presidency in February 2016 on a wave of goodwill, seemingly ready to face the challenge of national reconciliation. Now, he is booed whenever...
Vol 59 No 10 |
- CONGO-KINSHASA
Conflict minerals are being laundered for export, it is claimed, exacerbating Hutu-Tutsi tension in the unstable east
The closure of a coltan mine at the beginning of the month sparked protests and has focused attention on the continuing struggle to keep conflict financing out of...
More than 100 civilians, at least 43 members of the security forces and an unknown number of armed militants have reportedly died since Cameroon's Anglophone crisis turned violent...
Vol 59 No 6 |
- CONGO-KINSHASA
Escalating violence is being fuelled by smuggled gold, which often ends up in the hands of a leading Belgian refiner
Diplomats and United Nations officials are becoming increasingly worried by the risk of another 'great war' as bad as that which devastated the country between 1998 and 2003....
President Denis Sassou-Nguesso seems in several minds about what to do with the opposition. Some face show trials after years of incarceration, while others may go on their...
Vol 59 No 5 |
- CONGO-KINSHASA
The President is brutally repressing dissent, ignoring and sometimes encouraging ethnic violence in a bid to prolong his rule
A leader determined to hold on to power against a growing band of opposition activists while militia fighters mobilise in the hinterland are all pushing Congo-Kinshasa closer to...
Vol 59 No 4 |
- CONGO-KINSHASA
A row between government and mining companies over profits and taxes could escalate the country’s crisis
Western mining companies – led by Glencore and Randgold – are readying for battle with President Joseph Kabila over the government's plans to hike taxes and royalties on...
The details of an attempted coup against President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo over the Christmas period remain unclear amid contradictory reports from government and other sources. On 24...
Vol 59 No 1 |
- CONGO-KINSHASA
Credible elections are no more likely this year than last but worsening living standards could trigger open revolt
The year begins with a distinct sense of déjà vu from a year ago. Postponed elections, originally supposed to take place in late 2016, are now promised for...