Africa’s year has started with the escalation of Somalia’s national conflict into a regional then an international one. The US attacks on suspected Al Qaida militants in southern Somalia follow Ethiopia’s ousting of the Islamic Courts regime in Mogadishu and Kismayo. Somalia’s latest chapter is just beginning: if Ethiopia’s occupying troops are not quickly replaced by a credible international peacekeeping force, a more deadly conflict could follow. Beyond this new frontline in the war on terror, 2007 will be a frenetic election season for Africa with polls due in Senegal, Mali, Morocco, Mauritania, Nigeria, Kenya, Sierra Leone, Congo-Brazzaville and Gambia. Expect the closest of contests in Nigeria and Kenya. Ghana will celebrate both the 50th anniversary of its Independence from Britain and the 200th anniversary of the law barring British involvement in the slave trade. President John Kufuor will chair the African Union summit in Accra in July. As the African Development Bank prepares to hold its AGM in Shanghai in May, there is a reminder that Africa’s critical new economic axis with Asia is taking off just when African economies are growing at their fastest for three decades.