You are watching Africa 54, your daily news and feature magazine-style program, from the Voice of America. Host Esther Githui-Ewart and a team of correspondents zero in on the big stories making news on the continent and around the world with context and analysis.
Top Stories:
Central African Republic President Faustin-Archange Touadera has won a second term in office, according to provisional results from the country's electoral commission. The national election authority says that Touadera was re-elected in the first round of the presidential vote on December 27 with almost 54 percent of the vote. Anicet-Georges Dologuele came in a distant second with 21 percent of the vote and Martin Ziguele finished third with 7 percent, according to the results announced. The vote, and its aftermath, have been marked by violence and the formation of a rebel coalition, amid calls from the opposition to delay the vote. The results must now be officially validated by the constitutional court, which will field appeals.
Scientists in Nigeria are learning more about the COVID-19 virus variant that has emerged in the country. Nigerian scientists spent the holiday season in laboratories working on genetic sequencing to learn more about the country's COVID-19 variant. According to the world health organization, the new variants that have emerged as COVID-19 infections are on the rise in 47 African countries. Nigeria has confirmed more than 86 thousand COVID-19 cases, with over twelve hundred fifty deaths, according to the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. With COVID-19 variants emerging in Nigeria and South Africa, the WHO says Africa needs to do more genetic sequencing. Such lab work is being conducted by virologist Sunday Omilabu, the director of the center for human and zoonotic virology at the Lagos University College of Medicine and Teaching Hospital.
Schools across Kenya are now fully reopened, but some parents fear that crowded classrooms could pose a danger to their children.
A British judge has rejected the United States' request to extradite WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange to face espionage charges, saying it would be "oppressive" because of his mental health.
Voters in the southern U.S. state of Georgia will play a crucial role in determining the balance of power in the U.S. for the next two years when they head to the polls Tuesday. VOA's congressional correspondent Katherine Gypson reports from Atlanta, Georgia, on the two U.S. Senate runoff elections.
People around the world turned to technology to help them get through the pandemic, but in some keyways tech fell short.
The coronavirus pandemic has changed the way people work, dress and relax. Fashion was one of the first to adapt to the new house-bound reality, making sweatpants the new American go-to attire. Nina Vishneva has the story, narrated by anna rice.
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