ADF

ADF STAFF Soon after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, a Russian cargo plane idled on a runway in Khartoum, Sudan. According to CNN, the plane’s manifest claimed it was loaded with cookies. When inspectors boarded the plane to confirm its contents, they found some cookies. But beneath the cookies, they also found one ton of smuggled gold bound for Russia to help finance its war in Ukraine. Russia’s mining and smuggling operation in Sudan is tied to the Wagner Group, mercenaries that have become Russian President Vladimir Putin’s tool for exerting anti-democratic influences on the continent. Since the invasion of Ukraine,…

ADF STAFF The slaying of South African park ranger Anton Mzimba, who was gunned down while working on his car outside his home on July 26, shocked and saddened the nation. Mzimba, 49, was the head ranger at Timbavati Private Nature Reserve in Mpumalanga. The 534-square-kilometer protected area is home to rhinoceroses, elephants, lions, cheetahs and leopards. “Intelligence-driven information revealed that there had been numerous threats against his life and that his murder was in retaliation for refusing to provide the local rhino poaching syndicate with the exact locations of rhino,” the Wild Heart Wildlife Foundation said in a statement.…

ADF STAFF Africa has eclipsed the Middle East as the main focus of worldwide terror groups who are determined to expand their reach. That’s the conclusion of experts who have examined increasing attacks on the continent that have coincided with a spike in Africa-related web and video content produced by terror groups. “This year, so far, the Islamic State has claimed more than half of its attacks in Africa,” Jihad Analytics founder Damien Ferré tweeted in July. He said the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Mozambique and Nigeria are seeing expansion into new areas and an upsurge in attacks…

ADF STAFF Restoring security was the main justification used by coup leaders in Burkina Faso and Mali when they seized power. New data shows they are not delivering on these promises. In fact, both countries at mid-year were on pace to experience their deadliest year since the Sahel conflict began a decade ago, according to the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED). In Mali, violence by extremist groups is on pace to increase by 70% in 2022, and civilian deaths from extremist violence in the first quarter of the year were higher than any preceding year, according to…

ADF STAFF A decade after it was declared a supermarket for illegal arms traffickers, Libya once again has become a source of illegal weapons flowing into conflicts across the Sahel and neighboring coastal states. “The high demand for arms and ammunition has given traffickers an opportunity to continue their lucrative trade,” researcher Hassane Koné wrote in a recent analysis for the Institute for Security Studies. As was the case during Libya’s first civil war in 2011, terrorist groups are buying poorly secured weapons through smuggling routes that cross the Sahara into Niger and Mali. From there, weapons are distributed to…

ADF STAFF Tens of thousands of residents fled the town of Bunagana in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) when M23 rebels seized it in June. “They are all over, the streets are full, others have gone to churches, they are under trees, everywhere,” Ugandan district commissioner Shaffiq Sekandi told Reuters news service of the refugees. “It’s a really desperate situation.” Bunagana, a major commercial hub on the border with Uganda, remains in the hands of M23 months later. The rebels, named after a failed peace deal signed on March 23, 2009, trace their lineage from Congolese rebel groups…

ADF STAFF Over the past decade, China has loaned more than $17 billion to Ghana for a variety of infrastructure projects from hydroelectric projects to broadband internet systems. As China’s lending has grown, so has Ghana’s debt, putting the West African country at the top of a recent list of countries at risk of default. The analysis of Bloomberg’s Sovereign Debt Vulnerability Ranking at visualcapitalism.com listed 25 countries by their debt burden and default risk. Thirteen countries on the list are in Africa, spanning the continent. Ghana leads the African countries on the list because of two factors: Ghana’s government…

ADF STAFF Illegal fishing is decimating South Africa’s once-thriving stocks of abalone, rock lobster and other marine species. As in other coastal nations, vessels engaged in illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing in South Africa routinely sail into prohibited waters, catch huge amounts of fish — often with illicit gear — then transfer their catches to large, factory-size vessels farther out at sea. IUU fishing costs the nation billions of rand, harms ecosystems critical to the survival of marine life and leaves artisanal fishermen with empty nets. Illegally caught marine resources in South Africa often are exported to Hong Kong.…

ADF STAFF Africa’s young population can be or a source of instability or a springboard to prosperity. Experts say it’s up to the continent’s security and political leaders to harness this “youth bulge” to create a better future. “We need to ask ourselves, ‘Can Africa seize the opportunities being presented?’ Or do African youth constitute a ticking, demographic time bomb?” said Dr. Joel Amegboh, an assistant professor at the Africa Center for Strategic Studies (ACSS), who researches “youth peace and security.” The term “youth bulge” refers to a demographic pattern in which a large share of the population is composed…

ADF STAFF A growing number of foreign-owned vessels with a history of illegal fishing are flying Cameroon’s red, yellow and green flag. An Associated Press (AP) investigation found that 14 vessels hoisting Cameroonian flags are owned or managed by companies in Belgium, Cyprus, Latvia and Malta. Each vessel switched flags to Cameroon between 2019 and 2021. At least six of the vessels and their owners are known to underreport their catch, fail to declare where it goes and disclose who benefits financially from it. Foreign fishing boats commonly “flag in” to African nations, meaning they use and abuse local rules to flag…