Vol 65 No 24 | ZIMBABWECOMMONWEALTHBRITAIN Zimbabwe readmission ‘is off’ 28th November 2024 The UK won’t support Zimbabwe’s readmission to the Commonwealth, we hear, although it could threaten its charm offensive on the continent Commonwealth Secretary-General Baroness Patricia Scotland’s plan to re-admit Zimbabwe has run into resistance from Britain’s Labour government, diplomatic sources have told Africa Confidential. It was felt that taking...
Vol 65 No 22 | COMMONWEALTHBRITAIN Race tightens as African contenders vie for top post 25th October 2024 Questions about accountability have surfaced in a lacklustre campaign to run the Commonwealth Ghana’s Foreign Minister Shirley Botchwey, Lesotho’s former Trade and Finance Minister Joshua Setipa, and Gambia’s former former Foreign Minister Mamadou Tangara are the top three candidates in the...
Vol 65 No 21 | AFRICABRITAIN Austerity hits foreign policy reset 17th October 2024 A row over shrinking aid funds will complicate the launch of the promised new Africa strategy Budgetary cuts, domestic priorities and personnel wrangles have dominated the early months of Britain’s new Labour government – to the detriment of its planned ‘reset’ of foreign policy....
Vol 65 No 14 | AFRICABRITAIN What price an Africa agenda? 4th July 2024 If, as expected, Labour secures its first stint in office for 14 years following Britain’s general election on 4 July, one of its foreign policy challenges will be...
DISPATCHES Vol 65 No 12 | RWANDABRITAIN Whitehall's migrant deal with Kigali set to collapse 29th May 2024 The Labour Party, currently 12 points ahead in opinion polls, has promised to scrap the Rwanda asylum plan if it wins the general election The British government's migration deal with Rwanda is now highly likely to collapse without a single asylum-seeker being deported, after Prime Minister Rishi Sunak confirmed that no flights... READ FOR FREE
DISPATCHES Vol 65 No 12 | KENYABRITAIN Inquiry into claims of British army abuses goes public 29th May 2024 The National Human Rights Commission says 43 complaints of human rights abuses have been filed against British troops in Nanyuki The parliamentary inquiry into human rights abuses committed by British soldiers is set to intensify this week. The National Assembly will hold a series of four public hearings... READ FOR FREE
Vol 65 No 10 | UGANDABRITAIN Parliamentary speaker flounders in corruption saga 8th May 2024 Facing British travel bans and asset freezes over state theft scandal, Speaker Anita Among claims she is being targeted for her anti-LGBTQ+ stance When asked about her involvement in corrupt schemes, Anita Among, Speaker of the parliament in Kampala, usually argues she is being singled out by foreigners for her energetic...
DISPATCHES Vol 64 No 25 | RWANDABRITAIN London moves to salvage 'cash for asylum seekers' deal 6th December 2023 British ministers divided over whether new treaty with Kigali will clash with international obligations Britain's Home Secretary James Cleverly signed a revised treaty with Rwanda's Foreign Minister Vincent Biruta on 5 December in a bid to rescue the cash-for-asylum-seekers agreement between London... READ FOR FREE
Vol 64 No 20 | EUROPEAN UNIONAFRICABRITAIN Western governments send mixed signals on aid and trade 28th September 2023 Brussels, London and Washington are jostling for Africa's green minerals with China but cutting funding Wrongfooted by a spate of military putsches in Africa amid deepening financial woes in the region, western policymakers had promised a policy reset. Instead, new rows have blown...
Vol 64 No 17 | NIGERIABRITAIN Courting Diezani 24th August 2023 Under investigation by Britain's National Crime Agency (NCA) for a decade, Nigeria's former oil minister Diezani Alison-Madueke was charged on 22 August with several bribery offences. Alison-Madueke has...