Africa Business Radio

The Kremlin says it is alarmed by a Western push to supply Ukraine with high-tech weapons that it claims are being used by Kyiv to provoke Moscow. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov’s comments come amid weeks of escalating tensions between Russia and Ukraine, with both sides accusing one another of mobilising military units along their shared border. Peskov says Kyiv is itself building up its forces and being helped to build up its forces by being supplied with a significant amount of weapons, including modern high-tech weapons. He added that the number of provocations is growing significantly and these provocations are being carried out with weapons being supplied by NATO countries.

Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed says he will now lead his troops from the battlefront as the year-long conflict moves closer to the capital, Addis Ababa. Mr Abiy in a statement says he will mobilise to the front to lead the defence forces. It came after the ruling Prosperity Party's executive committee met on Monday to discuss the war. The defence minister told local media after the meeting that security forces would be embarking on a different action over the conflict. Special envoys from the African Union and the US have been trying to broker a ceasefire in recent days but there has been little progress so far.

Covid cases in South Africa are on the rise ahead of a predicted fourth wave. The country has recorded 1,886 new virus cases since Saturday and 22 deaths from coronavirus. Health Minister Joe Phaahla has urged more people to get vaccinated. Mr Phaahla says the uptake of vaccines has gone down in recent days. The government says it has no plans to enforce a hard lockdown during the wave. The fourth wave was predicted to start next month through January.

The panel of inquiry set up by the Lagos State government to unravel the immediate and remote causes that led to the collapse of a 21-storey high-rise building at Ikoyi has given tomorrow as the deadline for the submission of memoranda by members of the public and relevant stakeholders. The Chairman of the panel, Mr Toyin Ayinde, explained that the panel was given 30 days to complete its task. He says the panel has been holding formal interviews with witnesses in order to identify the roles played in the activities that led to the collapse of the building. He says the panel also received the report from the consultants who conducted verticality tests on the remaining structures standing in the premises of the collapsed building, saying results of the tests on the construction materials were still being awaited.

The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission pledged to support the Nigerian Gas Expansion programme of the federal government to improve domestic utilisation of gas for power, industrialisation in order to deepen Liquefied Petroleum Gas penetration in the country. The federal government had said that the programme was envisioned to lift millions of Nigerians out of poverty through the establishment of gas-related outlets that would serve the public when fully realised. The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Mr Timipre Sylva, explained that natural gas presents an opportunity for the nation to use gas as a catalyst for its socio-economic renaissance. The Commission’s Chief Executive Officer, Mr Gbenga Komolafe, stressed that the NUPRC being a product of the Petroleum Industry Act 2021 responsible for technical and commercial regulation of upstream petroleum business was fully prepared to ensure that Nigeria’s gas resources are fully harnessed.

The Central Bank of Nigeria says it was working with key stakeholders in the payment system ecosystem to boost the adoption of its digital currency known as the eNaira. The CBN Director, Information Technology Department, Mrs Rakiya Mohammed, explained that the apex bank was neither competing with the Deposit Money Banks nor other actors in the Nigerian payment system environment. She says the CBN remained open to suggestions and innovation aimed at adding value to the eNaira and improving the user experience. The CBN director urged the payment service providers to find more innovative ways to support members of the public in the onboarding process and use of eNaira.

Vice President Yemi Osinbajo says more resources are required for higher institutions of learning to invest in research, He says the country should focus on how to endow research because ultimately, research is what puts us on the world map of intellectual achievement and attainment. He made the call for more resources to be devoted to research, adding that universities like UNILAG, ought to be at the frontline of scholarships and intellectual achievements. The Vice President stated that the country needs to be able to put some resources behind research, especially scientific type research where benefits can be seen immediately.

President of the Senate, Dr Ahmad Lawan, says governors, who were uncomfortable with the choice of direct primaries as the mode of electing candidates by political parties, should have dialogued with the National Assembly and other stakeholders as against their combative approach, which failed to yield result. Lawan says the matter was now out of the control of the legislature the moment it was transmitted to the president for assent. The Senate President says the National Assembly had done its job by transmitting the recently passed electoral amendment bill 2021 to Buhari and that the expectation was for him to sign it into law.

The Chairman, Senate Committee on Army, Senator Ali Ndume, has reiterated calls for increased funding for the army. Ndume says the increased funding was critical as the army was engaged in unconventional war across the country. Ndume says because of the situation of the country the army is drafted into unconventional war everywhere in 32 states, there is the need to really properly fund them. He added that there is a tremendous increase in their overhead personnel however the capital aspect of it is grossly inadequate.

The Chairman, Senate Committee on Army, Senator Ali Ndume, has reiterated calls for increased funding for the army. Ndume says the increased funding was critical as the army was engaged in unconventional war across the country. Ndume says because of the situation of the country the army is drafted into unconventional war everywhere in 32 states, there is the need to really properly fund them. He added that there is a tremendous increase in their overhead personnel however the capital aspect of it is grossly inadequate.

President Muhammadu Buhari has approved February 2022 for the conduct of the national convention of the All Progressives Congress. Chairman of the Progressives Governors’ Forum and Kebbi State Governor, Atiku Bagudu, told State House correspondents that the meeting was to brief the President on the decision of the Progressives Governors Forum when the members met on Sunday night. Bagudu says the Governors resolved that the convention should hold in February 2022 and the same suggestion was proposed to the President for approval. He, however, stated that that party’s leadership has yet to decide on a specific date to conduct its national convention.

The Independent National Electoral Commission and civil society organisations called on President Muhammadu Buhari to sign the Electoral Act Amendment Bill. The Executive Director, Policy and Legal Advocacy Centre, Clement Nwankwo, asked Buhari to use the weekly Federal Executive Council meeting to sign the bill while the INEC National Commissioner, Festus Okoye said assent will help improve its preparations for future polls. Nwankwo says it is expedient for the electoral act amendment bill to be signed for the overall benefit of Nigerians.

Health Minister Ong Ye Kung says returning to stricter COVID-19 curbs in Singapore will be a last resort as the city-state partially eased limits on social gatherings and dining out under its calibrated reopening approach. Ong says the international travel and tourism hub would continue to open travel lanes with more countries for vaccinated visitors. Ong says it was too difficult to put a timeframe on when Singapore would reach a new normal but he hoped the country’s high vaccination rates and the current roll-out of booster shots meant it would continue to ease restrictions.

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko says it was absolutely possible his forces helped people cross into the European Union, but denied inviting them to the country. European governments have accused Belarus of artificially creating the crisis by bringing in people from abroad and taking them to the border with promises of an easy crossing into the bloc. Polish border guards said there were attempted crossings from Belarus by two groups of migrants and refugees on what is the eastern border of the European Union and NATO.

Colonel Ahmad Hajian, the commander of the Naval Type 412 Zulfiqar in the southern Parsian county in the Hormozgan province says Commandos with the naval force of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps have seized a foreign tanker in the Persian Gulf for smuggling diesel. He says through intelligence monitoring and in a coordinated operation, our navy succeeded in seizing a foreign ship with 11 crew members in our country’s waters. Hajian promised to act decisively against any attempts to smuggle fuel through the sea in support of Iran’s economy.

Afghanistan’s Taliban authorities issued a new religious guideline that called on the country’s television channels to stop showing dramas and soap operas featuring women actors. The Taliban also called on women television journalists to wear Islamic hijabs while presenting their reports. The ministry asked the channels not to air films or programmes in which the Prophet Mohammed or other revered figures are shown. It called for banning films or programmes that were against Islamic and Afghan values.

President of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Felix Tshisekedi has demanded a ban on issuing and trading mining permits until the country’s mining registry has been audited, a measure aimed at combatting fraud within the sector. Tshisekedi told ministers he wanted to end the squandering of mining assets by unnamed political actors and officials involved in the administration of the mining register, which records mining concessions. Tshisekedi told ministers that the recommended clean-up will increase the contribution of the mining sector to the state’s budget and help, as a priority, the people benefit from the mineral wealth of our country.

The Ethiopian authorities have asked people who have equipment that could have a military application to register their ownership. The country's Information Network Security Agency on Facebook said that it is known that Ethiopia is in a campaign for survival while referring to the year-long civil war with Tigrayan forces. The Information Centre says among the items that should be registered are Binoculars, GPS devices, Satellite phones and internet equipment and Drones. It added that People have 15 days to inform the agency.

The Kenyan government plans to introduce a directive next month to prevent citizens who haven't been vaccinated against Covid from receiving government services. Health Minister Mutahi Kagwe says unvaccinated people would be banned from public transport, local airlines and train services. Kenyans will also require proof of vaccination in order to visit government institutions for education, immigration, tax and other services. The directive will come into force on 21 December. Kenya has a target of vaccinating 10 million people by the end of December. So far less than 10% of the population has been vaccinated.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken says he is encouraged by the deal to reverse the military takeover in Sudan. It comes after the reinstatement of Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok on Sunday, following last month's coup when he was put under house arrest. Mr Blinken has called on the authorities not to use excessive force against peaceful protesters. He tweeted that the authorities should now conclude the return to a civilian-led transition.