Vol 56 No 18 | GUINEA BISSAU The old demons return 10th September 2015 Just as the country begins to recover from military rule, the governing party’s cracks re-open, bringing back instability The governmental crisis has rapidly become a constitutional crisis as the battle lines are drawn between supporters of President José Mário Vaz and those of the Prime Minister...
Vol 56 No 18 | SENEGAL Timis under scrutiny 10th September 2015 The USA may be stepping into the controversy over a mining tycoon and a presidential brother The operations of entrepreneur Vasile Frank Timis in Senegal have come under scrutiny from the United States Department of Justice, Africa Confidential has learned. US federal prosecutors are...
Vol 56 No 18 | MALI GATIA digs in 10th September 2015 Fighters of a pro-government militia, the Groupe d'autodéfense touareg imghad et alliés , have agreed to withdraw from the northern town of Anéfis but appear to be in...
Vol 56 No 18 | NIGERIA On the road 10th September 2015 Expected in Paris on 14-15 September for a regional security conference, President Muhammadu Buhari will attend a series of bilateral meetings with President François Hollande, Foreign Minister...
Vol 56 No 17 | LIBERIA Ellen calls the shots 27th August 2015 The President is unpopular but she dominates the country's political scene and will influence the selection of her successor in 2017 It hasn't all been plain sailing. President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf's government was rocked by the social and political side-effects of the Ebola epidemic, with some in the country openly...
Vol 56 No 17 | GUINEA Swiss probe in Conakry 27th August 2015 An enquiry into Guinea's most notorious mining deal has been stepped up. Swiss investigators travelled to Conakry in July to interview key witnesses in the Simandou mining rights...
Vol 56 No 16 | NIGERIA Fighting graft, Buhari-style 6th August 2015 The administration’s anti-corruption campaign has yet to launch and questions are growing about the APC’s ability to deliver Two vital promises were made during President Muhammadu Buhari’s trip to Washington last month. Firstly, Nigeria would actively seek to recover some US$150 billion of stolen funds reckoned...
Vol 56 No 16 | GUINEALIBERIA Whose line is it anyway? 6th August 2015 Two major mining companies are locked in combat over access to the railway line to export iron ore The giant iron and steel producer ArcelorMittal has dragged Guinea and Liberia into its quarrel with Sable Mining over access to the rail export route. The line runs...
Vol 56 No 16 | GUINEA The Sampil truth 6th August 2015 Questions remain about the nature of Sable Mining’s relationship with the government of President Alpha Condé. Questions remain about the nature of Sable Mining’s relationship with the government of President Alpha Condé. How an inexperienced iron ore mining company with limited cash managed to...
Vol 56 No 15 | SENEGAL Sall and the separatists 23rd July 2015 Casamance has long been one of the government’s worst headaches. A new approach promises change President Macky Sall prides himself on his regional profile and holds the presidency of the Economic Community of West African States to prove it. The antithesis of the grandstanding...