Africa highlights: SA train tsar sacked over 350% pay rise, feted Ebola fighter dies

The Liberian government has confirmed the death in childbirth of a nursing assistant who was among those named Person of the Year by Time magazine in 2014 for helping to fight the Ebola outbreak.

Salome Karwah died two weeks ago, but news of her death has just become public knowledge, according to Tolbert Nyenswah, the man who headed Liberia’s Ebola fight and who now heads the country’s newly established National Public Health Institute. 

Ms Karwah contracted Ebola but recovered, making her immune to the illness. She went on to become a nurse and treat others suffering from Ebola. 

This is the link to Time's original article - Ms Karwah is pictured top left:

More than 4,000 died in Liberia during the West Africa Ebola outbreak from 2014-2015. 

People became infected with the virus from direct contact with someone with Ebola through broken skin, or the mouth and nose, with the blood, vomit, faeces or bodily fluids. 

Mr Nyenswah said that earlier this month Ms Karwah underwent a C-section at a hospital close to the Ebola centre where she was admitted two years ago:

Quote Message: Normally if a Caesarean section is conducted, the person is supposed to stay in the hospital for seven days and monitored to see whether there are complications.

Normally if a Caesarean section is conducted, the person is supposed to stay in the hospital for seven days and monitored to see whether there are complications.

Quote Message: But to my understanding, that protocol was breached; she spent less than that in the hospital and was discharged and when she was facing complications her husband took her back to the hospital for further care.

But to my understanding, that protocol was breached; she spent less than that in the hospital and was discharged and when she was facing complications her husband took her back to the hospital for further care.

Quote Message: This was an unfortunate situation with this person who had survived Ebola to have died from childbirth in a major hospital."

This was an unfortunate situation with this person who had survived Ebola to have died from childbirth in a major hospital."

Mr Nyenswah said the authorities were investigating reports that healthcare workers refused to treat her for fear that she may still have been able to pass on Ebola. 

“The investigation is not concluded, so I wouldn’t want to jump the boat,” he said.

The biggest problem facing Ebola survivors remains stigmatisation. 

Ms Karwah leaves behind four children, including her newborn. 

Binocheet Giquello courtesy of Druout auctionsCopyright: Binocheet Giquello courtesy of Druout auctions

Geologists in Morocco have denounced the planned auction of a 66-million-year-old skeleton of a marine reptile in Paris and demanded that the remains be repatriated, AFP news agency reports.

The nearly nine-metre-long (30ft) plesiosaur, a marine reptile with a long neck and turtle-like flippers, was discovered near the Moroccan city of Khouribga.

The skeleton is set for auction on 7 March at the Drouot auction house in Paris. 

"The plesiosaurs were among the most emblematic 'giant primitive beasts' which have intrigued scientists and amateurs for centuries," Drouot said in its auction catalogue, adding that the creatures had probably inspired the legend of the Loch Ness monster in Scotland. 

But the Association for the Protection of the Geological Heritage of Morocco (APPGM) has described the skeleton as a "unique patrimonial treasure". 

Alexandre Giquello, auctioneer and president of Drouot, rejected criticism of the sale and said that the creature was "reconstituted in Europe from four fossils legally bought at the Frankfurt Trade Fair" by Italian collectors, AFP adds.

The skeleton is expected to reach almost $500,000 (£400,000) at auction. 

Moroccan authorities are yet to make an official comment.

AFPCopyright: AFP

Millions of South Africa's most vulnerable citizens may miss their social security payments next month.

The government’s contract with Cash Paymaster Services (CPS) comes to an end on 31 March. 

The long-standing contract with the private company has not been renewed because a court ruled four years ago that the original tender process was unlawful.

The benefit payments mainly go to pensioners and the disabled. About 1.6 million of 17 million recipients use commercial bank accounts but the vast majority rely on CPS to receive the payments.

People queue at CPS points countrywide to receive their benefits in cash. 

The South African Social Security Agency (Sassa) says it has yet to organise another service to distribute the grants from 1 April. 

Not long after Sassa’s Zodwa Mvulane had informed a parliamentary committee on public accounts about this, it was announced that the agency was applying to the Constitutional Court for permission to renew the contract for a further year. 

The chairman of the public accounts committee expressed his extreme unhappiness at the handling of the matter. 

He also criticised Social Development Minister Bathabile Dlamini for failing to turn up to the hearing. 

Universal Pictures via APCopyright: Universal Pictures via AP

The horror film Get Out, which stars British-Ugandan actor Daniel Kaluuya, has topped the US box office in its opening weekend, making more than $33m (£26.5m).

In an article today the UK Guardian says the film “ dares to reveal the horror of liberal racism ” in the US.

Lanre Bakare writes that the film, by US comedian Jordan Peele, “has dealt with race in America in a refreshing, funny and unflinching manner.

“The number of things Peele manages to reference is stunning: The taboo of mixed relationships, eugenics, the slave trade, black men dying first in horror films, suburban racism, police brutality.”

Quartz news website describes it as a “horror film about a young black man who falls victim to his girlfriend’s white suburban family”.

Hopes are fading for a five-year-old South African boy who fell down a mineshaft outside Johannesburg on Saturday (see earlier post). 

Rescue teams have called off their search for Richard Thole until tomorrow, though they will continue working with diggers to widen the shaft overnight, local media report. 

The boy's mother, Nombeko Thole, has been speaking to local media about her ordeal and how she first discovered what had happened to her son:

In a separate interview, the TimesLive website quotes her as saying:

Quote Message: I can't sleep at night just thinking about where my child is now. He is all alone in there.

I can't sleep at night just thinking about where my child is now. He is all alone in there.

Quote Message: When his friend came to tell us we saw the shock on his face. His eyes were wide open and red.

When his friend came to tell us we saw the shock on his face. His eyes were wide open and red.

Quote Message: I can't cope because it's hurting to think my child is dead. I just want his body so that we can bury him."

I can't cope because it's hurting to think my child is dead. I just want his body so that we can bury him."

BBC correspondent Nomsa Maseko has sent photos from the scene, where crowds of locals have been gathering to follow the rescue operation:  

BBCCopyright: BBC

BBCCopyright: BBC

AFPCopyright: AFP

The Ugandan government says more than 30% of its population is facing a situation of acute food insecurity. 

It comes after a long period of drought in many parts of the country, and in several neighbouring states. 

People are finding it harder to access food because of poor harvests, crop disease and higher food prices. 

The government has promised to help people in need, but some have accused it of being slow to act. 

The Karamoja region in the far north-east of Uganda is the worst affected, with parts of the east and south-west afflicted too.  

Last week, the UN declared famine in some areas of neighbouring South Sudan, the first time it had done so anywhere in the world in six years.

AFPCopyright: AFP

The removal of the age limit will allow Adama Barrow’s choice for vice president, Fatoumata Tambajang, to be sworn in.

She is believed to be older than the previous age limit of 65.

Removing the age limit could have broader implications too.

Former President Yahya Jammeh used it to block the elder statesmen of the opposition, Oussainou Darboe, from running against him.

In fact, one of the reasons Mr Barrow became the consensus opposition candidate is because the veteran opposition leader was too old to run. 

Now the change in the law opens up the possibility of Mr Darboe – named foreign minister in Mr Barrow’s government – running for president in future elections.

AFPCopyright: AFP

King Mohamed VI of Morocco, who was due in Mali for an official visit last week, cancelled his trip at the last minute because of a diplomatic rift between the two countries, Jeune Afrique magazine reports . 

Mohamed VI is said to be unhappy about the role Malian officials have allowed Algeria to play in the pursuit of a solution to the fight against rival armed factions in northern Mali.

Morocco has heavily invested in Mali in recent years, funding economic projects and health infrastructure as well as providing training for Malian imams in a move to stem Islamic fundamentalism in the country. 

Morocco had therefore hoped the government of President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita would put an end to Algeria's role as a mediator and invite it to take over. 

But Mali did not only remain close to Algeria, which is Morocco's main rival in North Africa in its bid for more influence across the continent; it also maintained its recognition of Western Sahara, the disputed former Spanish colony Morocco says is part of its territory. 

According to Jeune Afrique, Mohamed VI cancelled the visit out of frustration with the Malian leader for not repaying his generosity. 

AFPCopyright: AFP

Parliament in The Gambia has removed the age limit for the president and vice-president.

It was previously 65. 

Supporters say it is a way of righting a wrong that was put in place by the former President Yahyah Jammeh.

Critics say it is tailored to suit the convenience of Fatoumata Tambajang who was named vice-president despite documents showing that she was born in 1949, making her ineligible.

Read more:  Adama Barrow - From estate agent to Gambian president

The Islamist militant group Ansarul Islam has said it was behind the attacks on two police stations in northern Burkina Faso on Monday night.

The group has been active in the north for several months and was responsible for an attack in December that killed at least 12 soldiers near the Malian border.

A senior official, Mohamed Dah, told the AFP news agency that a female police officer was injured in the raids.

He said the assailants travelled by motorbike to attack the police posts in two villages.

Ansarul Islam is headed by Burkinabe Muslim preacher Malam Dicko.

Burkina Faso is currently hosting Africa's biggest film festival Fespaco, in the capital, Ouagadougou, amid tight security:

afCopyright: af

BBCCopyright: BBC

The Mauritanian parliament is discussing constitutional reforms, including changing the national flag, which is currently a gold crescent moon and a gold star on a green background. 

The proposed new design would add two red bands, to represent the blood Mauritanians have shed and are ready to shed to defend their country. 

Other possible modifications being discussed include closing the senate, and changing the national anthem. 

Several opposition politicians have criticised the proposed reforms. 

One Twitter user posted a mock-up of what the new flag might look like when the reforms were first suggested:

Read more about Mauritania

AFPCopyright: AFP

A former police colonel in Algeria has been sentenced to death for the murder of the country's police chief, Ali Tounsi. 

Chouaib Oultache shot the commander dead in his office in during a meeting there seven years ago.

A court rejected Oultache's claim that there was a heated dispute and that he had to defend himself when the police chief threatened him with a letter-opener. 

According to the AFP news agency, Mr Tounsi was named police chief in 1994 when the bloodshed in Algeria between armed Islamist groups and security forces was at its peak.

During his time in office, he focused on boosting counter-terror operations.

AFPCopyright: AFP

Guinean President Alpha Conde has sacked three ministers, including his education minister, following violent protests over a teachers' strike last week in which seven people were killed.

Schools were closed for three weeks as teachers, supported by their students, demanded better contracts for junior staff.

The protests turned violent when demonstrators clashed with the security forces in some suburbs of the capital, Conakry.

The government agreed to a deal to end the strike last week.

APCopyright: AP

Trevor Noah’s name is trending on Twitter in South Africa today after the Wall Street Journal reported that the South African comedian had bought a $10m (£8m) penthouse flat in New York.

The Daily Show host reportedly finished the deal on Monday for the three-bedroom apartment in Manhattan.

Some have been sharing pictures of the penthouse and using memes to congratulate the comedian:

Others have been defending him from criticism that he should use his money to aid causes back home:

AFPCopyright: AFP

Durban may be unable to host the 2022 Commonwealth Games because of financial constraints, South Africa's sports minister has said.

"We gave it our best shot but we can't go beyond, if the country says we don't have this money, we can't," Reuters quoted Fikile Mbalula as saying.

He said a final decision would be made by the Commonwealth Games Federation.

Durban was awarded the games in 2015 after being the only city to make a confirmed bid.

In December, South African officials had said the country was "fully committed" to hosting the event.

Read the BBC New story for more .

AFPCopyright: AFP

Hundreds of you have been getting in touch on the BBC Africa Facebook page over a story we shared from Uganda's government-owned New Vision newspaper ( see previous entry ). 

It quoted research, which the BBC has not verified, endorsed or otherwise confirmed (some of you are angry we shared the story at all), which ranked African countries according to who spoke the best English. 

Uganda, perhaps suspiciously as some of you have pointed out given the source of the story, came top, with Nigeria failing to even make it into the top 9 countries listed. 

We asked you: Which country speaks the best English in Africa? And does it matter in any case? Here's a selection of some of the comments people have been posting:

Nuel Nsikan Akpan  in Calabar, Nigeria: "English is good but it ain't no ground to bury your mother tongue."

Mubita Likando Mundia, Nigeria :  "The reason we speak English it's the common businessman's language. The gains are a lot. I don't know how you will be able to explain nitrogen or an atom or electron beam in an African language... We shouldn't belittle our languages but rather embrace linguistic diversity." 

Sipho Skepu , South Africa: "We are so diverse in Africa we can hardly understand each other without using English. I'll speak my native Xhosa a little to see who will understand: '[We've blanked out the phrase Sipho used after a Xhosa-speaking colleague told us it was very rude]. Translate that fellow African!" 

Mohamed Ali,  Uganda: "It makes no sense. It is a colonial mentality. Japan, China, Germany, Israel etc are innovation leaders and they don't know good English, except a few."

Mainza Paddy : "Who cares about English? You came to colonise us and now you want to make English superior in our continent. In Zambia we have our languages; English is a foreign language."

Karabo Makwetla , South Africa: "I agree, but learning our African languages is equally as important. I understand English has become the global language of communication, which I think is not a problem. But learning our African languages rebuilds our African heritage, something we as Africans are intentionally and unintentionally brushing off."

APCopyright: AP

Somalia’s new President Mohamed Abdullahi "Farmajo" Mohamed has declared the drought to be a national disaster and appealed for emergency aid to avoid a “humanitarian tragedy”. 

According to the UN, more than 6.2 million people - more than half of the country’s population – are in need of assistance.

It says some 363,000 acutely malnourished children are in need of critical nutrition support. 

President Mohamed also asked the local business community and those in the diaspora for assistance. 

A source at Tunisia’s foreign ministry has told the BBC it respects the conclusions of a British inquest into the killing of British tourists at the beach resort in Sousse in June 2015. 

Judge Nicholas Loraine-Smith said the Tunisian police’s response to the terror attack was "at best shambolic and at worst cowardly”. 

The ministry source said the coroner's comments were based on a Tunisian investigation by a local judge that reached similar conclusions.

A more comprehensive response by the institutions concerned would be issued once they had reviewed the full report, it said. 

Earlier, the Tunisian ambassador to the UK, Nabil Ammar, said his country had been unprepared for such an attack and it was unfair to blame police.

"How can you imagine that police deliberately wanted people to die?" he asked BBC Radio 4's Today programme.

Since the attack, he said security in the country and in hotels had improved, and Tunisia was now considered as safe a destination as London.

AFPCopyright: AFP

AFPCopyright: AFP

No former African leader has claimed the $5m (£4m) Mo Ibrahim prize this year - the sixth time in 10 years that it has not been awarded.

The prize is supposed to be awarded each year to an elected leader who governed well, raised living standards and then left office.

It was launched by Sudan-born telecoms entrepreneur Mo Ibrahim in an attempt to encourage African leaders to leave power peacefully. 

He said:

Quote Message: “As I emphasise each year, a very high bar was deliberately set when the prize was launched in 2006.

“As I emphasise each year, a very high bar was deliberately set when the prize was launched in 2006.

Quote Message: We recognise and applaud the important contributions that many African leaders have made to change their countries for the better

We recognise and applaud the important contributions that many African leaders have made to change their countries for the better

Quote Message: But the prize is intended to highlight and celebrate truly exceptional leadership, which is uncommon by its very definition."

But the prize is intended to highlight and celebrate truly exceptional leadership, which is uncommon by its very definition."

Though some have mocked the failure to award it yet again:

The candidates the Mo Ibrahim Foundation considered for the 2016 prize were all former heads of state or who had left office between 2014-2016 “having been democratically elected and served their constitutionally mandated term”. 

During this time, Nigeria’s Goodluck Jonathan left office in May 2015 after losing elections, Tanzania’s Jakaya Kikwete handed over power in November 2015 after two terms in office and Malawi's Joyce Banda left office in May 2014 after defeat in elections.

The prize was last awarded for two years' ago:

• Namibia’s Hifikepunye Pohamba – 2014
• Cape Verde’s Pedro Pires – 2011
• Botswana’s Festus Mogae – 2008
• Mozambique’s Joaquim Chissano – 2007
• South Africa’s Nelson Mandela, inaugural honorary laureate in 2007

Their $5m prize is spread over 10 years, with a further $200,000 a year for life.