The attack struck an army barracks close to the border with Burkina Faso. Togo has, until recently, been spared the jihadist violence that has ravaged its northern neighbours Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger for over a decade. SITE late on Monday quoted a statement by Jama’a Nusrat ul-Islam wa al-Muslimin (JNIM) saying that “fighters on July 20 took control of a Togolese army barracks in Dapaong in the northern part of the country, killing six elements and seizing many weapons”.

The Hawks and other specialized units raided the farm in the Limpopo province after a tip-off of suspicious activity there. Elite police units raided a crystal meth lab hidden in a remote farm north of Johannesburg, police said Tuesday. "The consumer base for meth in South Africa appears to be significantly greater than initially imagined, marking it potentially among the largest meth consumer markets in the world," the report says. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime said in a 2023 report that South Africa is an appealing hub for illicit drugs destined for other countries. The crystal meth bust in South Africa comes about two months after police in Spain said they had seized 1.8 tons of crystal meth that Mexico's Sinaloa Cartel was trying to sell in Europe, the country's "biggest-ever seizure" of the narcotic.

The insect, known to some as the prickly pear cochineal, has devastated vast areas of plantations and caused concerns about its economic impact since it was first discovered in the country in 2021, farmers and agricultural experts say. The bug sucks the sap from cactus pads, causing yellowing and eventual death of the plants.

blinking-dot Live updates Live updates,Israel war on Gaza live: Israel blocks Palestinians from 80% of Strip: UNMultiple UN agencies decry Israel’s latest orders to evacuate Khan Younis, with Palestinians asking ‘where to go?’

Several provinces in the south of Angola have been earmarked to benefit from a solar project aimed at increasing access to electricity and potable drinking water. It will be made possible through a recently approved $1.6 billion direct loan from the Export-Import Bank of the United States (EXIM Bank). “The project will increase access to electricity and potable drinking water in several provinces in Angola that previously had little access and will promote improved health, education, and social wellbeing,” said the EXIM Bank. EXIM Bank is the official export credit agency of the United States with the mission of supporting American jobs by facilitating US exports. Solar energy systems to be rolled out across rural AngolaSouth African Cabinet Minister Parks Tau addresses the pressing issues of power and water securityFAQs about electricity in AngolaWhat is the electricity access rate in Angola?

Profile EYGlobal accounting and consulting firm Ernst & Young (EY) has announced it will locate its soon-to-be established new MENA regional headquarters in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The new regional headquarters for the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region will be located at the King Abdullah Financial District (KAFD), Riyadh’s premium business district and home to numerous other multinational companies. The formal inauguration will take place later this year at a ceremony with EY leaders and top Saudi officials. In line with Saudization requirements in the consulting industry, EY is investing heavily in local talent. EY’s new MENA regional headquarters in Riyadh.

A German-controlled cargo ship must pay a financial guarantee over a fuel oil spill off the port of Ceuta, a Spanish enclave in North Africa. Spanish media said the port captain has detained the 15,300-dwt Tony Stark (built 1993) pending the payment of a €120,000 ($130,500) guarantee. Named after Marvel’s Iron Man comics and film character, the Antigua & Barbuba-flagged vessel has to hand over €100,000 for the alleged pollution.

In June, the residents of Tiaret, a small town in western Algeria’s interior high plateau region, decided to make their discontent known. After sustaining weeks of cuts to the town’s water supply, hundreds of people demonstrated in front of a local administrative building. The cuts were due to a lack of water in the nearby Bakhedda dam. Faced with a lack of water, some residents in Tiaret were forced to postpone the traditional slaughtering of a sheep that marks the religious holiday’s celebration. In response, angry residents temporarily blocked the road to the airport with burning tires to protest weeks of rationing in the city.

The exclusion of the Polisario separatists from international events bringing together the African Union and international partners is irking Algeria whose foreign minister Ahmed Attaf made a desperate plea to the African Union. Ironically, Attaf, whose country mobilizes all its resources to back the Polisario separatists, said the African Union has been created “to unite instead of dividing.”His plea mirrors the waning support for the Polisario separatist thesis within the African Union, as Algeria’s voice becomes inaudible and its influence weakens, including in its immediate Sahel neighborhood. Under pressure from Algeria, the African Union admitted in the 1980s the Polisario, an entity lacking all the attributes of a state, within a context marked by ideological fervor that is now anachronistic. So far 37 African states back Morocco’s autonomy plan for the Sahara territory where 40% of African states have already opened consulates. Morocco has always stressed that the membership of Algeria’s Polisario proxies within the African Union stands as an aberration in total disregard for the UN process and for Morocco’s historical rights as a country that was divided by two colonial powers.

King Mohammed VI has spurred a national program that puts the promotion and generalization of social safety nets at the heart of the country’s development model and as a lever of social cohesion. Under orders from the King, the government has gradually rolled out a social protection program that includes mandatory health coverage for all Moroccans and financial assistance to vulnerable households. The allocated budget to this social effort is significant representing 8% of Morocco’s GDP at 9 billion dollars. King Mohammed VI is also the chairman of the board of directors of Mohammed V Foundation for Solidarity which has been at the forefront of support for most vulnerable segments of the Moroccan society since 1999. The current social protection momentum is thus a continuation of the achievements under the king-spurred National Human Development Initiative (NHDI), which has been instrumental in improving the country’s human capital and addressing critical gaps in its development trajectory.

With just over 4,000 megawatts supplying nearly 220 million people, the electricity access deficit stands at about 40% nationwide. Our team of development economists, geographers and sociologists studied how mini-grids fit into the picture of electricity access expansion in Nigeria. Of interestNigeria: Solar mini-grids greasing the palm oil industry for growthThe provisions were made with the aim of directing investment towards “unserved” rural areas. More importantly, the shift in strategy doesn’t resolve the problem of affordability in rural areas, which became glaring under the isolated supply model. There is a need to broaden the Regulation for Mini-grids 2016 and the Electricity Act 2023 to unlock substantial public spending for rural electrification.

NATO appoints envoy for Middle East, North Africa and the SahelA NATO flag flies in the wind during the "National Guardian 2024" exercise as part of the "Quadriga" series of Bundeswehr exercises at the Oberlausitz military training area. Robert Michael/dpaNATO on Tuesday appointed a special representative for the defence alliance's "southern neighbourhood," meaning the Middle East, North Africa and the Sahel. The new envoy is Javier Colomina, who previously served as NATO's special representative in the Caucasus and Central Asia. NATO member Spain also has some territory in North Africa, particularly the cities of Melilla and Ceuta. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said in a statement: "The Middle East, North Africa and the Sahel regions are important to our Alliance.

The following would apply to small-scale energy structures, medium-scale energy structures and utility-scale energy structures:The City may approve a consent use application for a medium-scale energy structure or utility-scale energy structure, where a site development plan is submitted to the City for approval. An approved site development plan constitutes the development rules for a renewable energy structure. An energy structure is considered abandoned when the structure fails to continuously operate for more than two years. Kadri Nassiep, Executive Director of Energy at the City of Cape Town, on the municipality’s energy planFAQs on renewable energy/electricity in the City of Cape TownWhat is the City of Cape Town solar incentive? Cape Town nets R36m in carbon credits for waste to energy projects

Financial close has been reached on the first phase of the Ummbila Emoyeni wind farm in Mpumalanga, the first part of an eventual renewable energy cluster of farms. Plans for the eventual renewable energy cluster include a 150MW solar energy facility. The Ummbila Emoyeni Wind Energy Facility will include up to 111 wind turbines to the maximum hub height of up to 200m. The renewable energy cluster will also include a battery energy storage system of 200MW/800MWh. Of referenceBuilding human capacity for clean energy jobs across AfricaEach renewable energy facility will be constructed as a separate stand-alone project.

A Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS), Lancashire County Pension Fund provides retirement benefits to approximately 189,000 employees and over 300 employers in the public sector across the county of Lancashire, North West England. “We are delighted that Lancashire County Pension Fund renewed our 13-year partnership,” said James Wright, Head of Asset Owners, Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) at Northern Trust. We look forward to continuing our collaboration and support to Lancashire County Pension Fund to deliver benefits for their members.”“As a leading asset servicing provider to UK pension funds, Northern Trust has a deep understanding of the LGPS sector, our scheme and more importantly our people,” said Sean Greene, Head of Service Pension Fund at Lancashire County Pension Fund. “Throughout the 13 years, Northern Trust has supported us in times of transformative changes with its client-centric and solution-driven approach. Northern Trust Corporation, Head Office: 50 South La Salle Street, Chicago, Illinois 60603 U.S.A., incorporated with limited liability in the U.S.