Africa Live: 1-7 April 2024

For the latest updates, go to bbc.com/africalive

That's all from the BBC Africa Live team for this week.

Until we're back, there'll be an automated service here, plus you can get the latest news on or website or listen to our podcasts - Africa Daily and Focus on Africa.

A reminder of Friday's wise words:

Quote Message: A man who hangs around a beautiful girl without saying a word ends up fetching water for guests at her wedding." from An Alur proverb from Uganda sent by Nnamdi Udoye in the UK

A man who hangs around a beautiful girl without saying a word ends up fetching water for guests at her wedding."

Click here to send us your African proverbs.

And we leave you with this of Tyla signing autographs for fans in South Africa - it's one of our favourite photos of the week:

AFPCopyright: AFP

Jade KamchamnanCopyright: Jade Kamchamnan

Rotimi is a busy man.

The Nigerian-American has a successful career as an actor and is best known for roles in US TV dramas Boss and Power.

But he’s also a musician with a string of hits under his belt, and it’s music that is his first love – not including his lady, that is….

His latest release is a catchy Afrobeats number called Sade featuring fellow Nigerian Mayorkun and South African rapper Nasty C.

"Me, I’m proper African American and so I wanted to bring the Afrobeats vibes, the R’n’B vibes, the Amapiano vibe all in one record, it was just me, who I am. These guys just helped complement it beautifully," he said.

Rotimi says it was when he finally became at ease with his mixed identity that he became able to make great music.

"I’m half Igbo, half Yoruba, and also being light skinned it was tough growing up, even coming back [to Nigeria] because they called me white man.

"It was always about proving [myself], until I said I have nothing to prove to anyone. I am who I am. Once I lived in that space, that’s where the records came, that’s where the In My Bed came, that’s where Love Riddim came, and all these big records."

The acting came about as a way of funding the music. Rotimi’s manager noticed he was natural on camera during video shoots and suggested he put himself forward.

"I got thrown into acting, a broke, hungry kid who just happened to be gifted in something he didn’t know he was gifted in. Power and all these things wasn’t my goal, it was always music, it’s always been music," he said.

Luckily, being the only child of ambitious parents has given Rotimi the drive and experience to do multiple things at once.

He’s had to work superfast in studio because of the time demands that come with being in a long-running TV show:

"I would go to set and they’d be like 'your call time is 6am', and I’d be finished at 11pm at night, and the label’s like 'listen bro' you have two hours to give us something'. In those two hours I would make a hit like In My Bed, records that happen to be platinum records now."

Rotimi now has to fit his partner, Tanzanian singer songwriter Vanessa Mdee, and their two small children into his schedule. The couple met when they were performing at Essence festival and it was love at first sight.

"It was like a movie, the lights get dim, and she’s sitting on a pool table, she kind of looks at me and it’s like oh, what is going on!"

Rotimi knew he was smitten when he found himself juggling the eight-hour time difference with East Africa and hanging on the phone late into the night.

"'No, you put the phone down! No, you put the phone down, you hang up', I’m doing all that stuff… What the hell? I’m a player baby, I don’t do all this, I’m a sex symbol!"

Rotimi and Vanessa Mdee very deliberately share their lives on social media because they are conscious of the need for role models.

"We both know there’s not a lot of examples of black strong love and being able to be in the industry like this and have a family and represent these things. We feel like it’s a responsibility for us to show that it can be done - and still be fly and still be cool, and still be sex symbols, baby!"

Rotimi’s sense of responsibility extends to his music career,

"I’m able to tour the Caribbean and I have a concert in Amsterdam, and doing an Australia tour and have one of the biggest records in Nigeria, so like to represent Africa around the world is the goal."

He adds: "The challenge now that you have a little leverage is to know how to say no, and to not sacrifice your morals, knowing how to discipline self, knowing how to block out negativity from people. Getting up every day and trying to better and better and better."

Listen to Rotimi’s conversation with DJ Edu, on This is Africa on BBC World Service and partner stations across Africa, and online here.

The self-declared republic of Somaliland and Somalia's semi-autonomous Puntland region have condemned the Mogadishu government's move to close two Ethiopian consulates.

On Thursday the Somali government expelled the Ethiopian ambassador after accusing the diplomat of meddling in the internal affairs of the country and infringing on its sovereignty.

The expulsion was sparked by a controversial port deal between Ethiopia and Somaliland which has fuelled diplomatic tensions for months.

Things were further heightened after an Ethiopian delegation met with Puntland officials in Addis Ababa earlier in the week.

The two Ethiopian consulates that Somalia ordered to close are in Hargeisa and Garowe, the capitals of Somaliland and Puntland, respectively.

"The embassy shall remain open irrespective of what Mogadishu says," Rhoda Elmisaid, Somaliland's deputy foreign minister, told the Reuters news agency.

Both Puntland and Somaliland said they will not respect the decision.

Mohamud Aydid Dirir, Puntland's information minister, told the Voice of America's Somali radio service: "Somalia's decision will not work."

In January, Ethiopia signed a deal with Somaliland to lease a 20km (12 miles) strip of coastline, so it could build a navy base.

Somalia described the deal as an act of aggression over its territory, which Ethiopia denies.

The World Food Programme (WFP) says it has completed its first delivery of aid to the Darfur region of Sudan since February.

The situation in one of the areas worst affected by the conflict between the Sudanese army and the paramilitary RSF is reported to be dire.

Throughout the year-long civil war the UN has repeatedly appealed to the two parties to allow better access to aid agencies.

Almost 25 million people need assistance.

The WFP convoy from Chad carried enough food for one percent of that total, 250,000 people.

World Health Organization officials describe the situation in Sudan as catastrophic, with many parts of the country still witnessing high levels of violence.

BBCCopyright: BBC

One of Nigeria's most popular celebrities, a transgender woman known as Bobrisky, has pleaded guilty to four counts of naira abuse.

Bobrisky appeared at the Federal High Court in Lagos on Friday dressed in a black outfit and a black scarf over her face and head.

Bobrisky was also charged with two counts of money laundering which the court dismissed.

Bobrisky was accused of "spraying" bank notes, meaning she threw them in the air in a sign of appreciation, at various social events.

"Spraying" is commonly done at Nigerian weddings and celebrations.

This is technically an offence as the notes then fall to the ground where they can be trodden on. The maximum punishment is six months in jail, however prosecutions are rare.

Last month, Bobrisky sprayed nairas at the premiere of Ajakaju, a keenly awaited film by actress and producer Eniola Ajao, at Film One Circle Mall.

Videos of the "spraying" at this event were circulated widely on social media.

She was also charged with doing the same at other events over the past year.

Her lawyer Ayo Olumofin argued that Bobrisky was a first-time offender and should be treated as such.

"We have confidence in the court and justice will be done,” he said.

Bobrisky will remain in the custody of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

In February, actress Oluwadarasimi Omoseyin was sentenced to six months in prison for spraying and stepping on new naira notes.

Moses Kollie GarzeawuCopyright: Moses Kollie Garzeawu

The Liberian government says it has discovered over 40,000 illegal civil servants in its system.

The director general of the Civil Service Agency (CSA), Josiah Joekai told the BBC details of the civil servants were entered incorrectly or not at all into the Personnel Action Notice (Pan).

The Pan process is a mandatory requirement for employment.

There are at least 70,000 civil servants in Liberia and more than 50% are currently illegal because they did not do the Pan process, he said.

Mr Joekai said the process comprises the full details of individuals who are entered on the government employment roster after completing evaluation and credential checks.

Mr Joekai revealed that some people were placed on the civil service payroll through text messages, telephone calls, emails and WhatsApp, between 2019 and 2023.

The CSA boss said that since these workers cannot be held responsible, they are affording them a grace period of 90 days to register properly.

Those who fail to complete the process will be fired.

President Joseph Boakai's government says it intends to reduce what it called a bloated payroll and reduce the government wage bill. It says it wants a smaller and more efficient public service.

It is not clear how the new scheme will be greeted by the Liberian population.