Africa Today
Africa news and analysis from the BBC's Focus on Africa. The Africa Today podcast contains the day's top stories from African news - available to download Monday to Friday from 1630 GMT.
20 Episodes
Sierra Leone facing a youth drug crisis
Sierra Leone faces a rampant drugs abuse crisis which President Bio describes as an existential threat to the countrySomalia and Turkey sign an agreement to collaborate on oil and gas explorationAnd we look at how a shortage of condoms is impacting HIV and AIDS cases in South Africa
Is Ghana allowing child marriages?
An underage girl has been placed under police protection in Ghana after it emerged she had been married to a 63-year-old traditional high priest. There was public outrage after footage of the customary wedding went viral. The office of the priest defended the marriage, saying it was only ceremonial. What's…
Gabon: A national dialoge to 'help heal wounds'
Gabon has opened up, what it calls, an inclusive national dialogue. Catholic Archbishop Jean-Patrick Iba-Ban who is leading the initiatve, said it should heal the wounds inflicted on the people of Gabon by former leaders who were more interested in power than the people they were called upon to lead…
How South Africa is stepping up efforts to curb illegal crossings
South Africa opens a new border authority to curb illegal crossings from neighbouring countries. We hear from the BBC team that visited a town on the border with Zimbabwe. Ghana's new health minister has published a new book on the lessons learnt from the Covid pandemic in his country, and…
Why are changes to Somalia's constitution causing concern?
Somalia's parliament has approved several constitutional changes which the government says are necessary to establish a stable political system. So what are the changes and why is it causing concern? Also why was Stanis Bujakera, a well known journalist in the Democratic Republic of Congo detained? And what's it like…
‘Please see our humanity’ A transwoman on her fight for safety and dignity
One of the first people to publicly declare herself a transwoman in Nigeria 20 years ago and who had to flee the country, tells us about her experience to stand up for the rights of transgender people. As Uganda launches the country's first interest-free commercial Islamic bank, we take…
Why has Togo changed its constitution?
Togo's parliament has voted for a new constitution which resulted in people taking to the streets in protest. The changes mean, parliament now has the power to elect the President for a single six-year term. It all sounds good in theory, so why are critics concerned? Also why do the…
The Gambia: Personal testimonies on female genital mutilation
Gambia's parliament is considering a bill, to reverse a ban on Female Genital Mutilation. If passed, Gambia will be the first country in the world to do this. Some Gambians say the ban violates their rights to practice their culture, others disagree. We'll hear from two women who share different…