This archive report was first published on 4 December 2019.
Published on December 4, 2019, a significant development in the region is the resumption of talks between Egypt, Ethiopia, and Sudan over Ethiopia's Grand Renaissance Dam. The talks, aimed at resolving a long-standing feud, are set to take place in Washington next week.
The urgency of the meetings comes as the January 15 target to resolve the dispute draws closer. Observers at the Cairo meeting indicated that Egypt and Ethiopia were closing ranks on the period it would take to fill the $4 billion, 6,400 megawatt dam.
Meanwhile, in Gabon, a widening investigation into graft has led to the arrest of two former ministers, Tony Ondo Mba and Noel Mboumba, along with the former chief of staff to President Ali Bongo Ondimba, Brice Laccruche Alihanga. The arrests follow President Bongo's return to the country after months of treatment abroad for a stroke.
The World Food Programme (WFP) has also responded to Zimbabwe's hunger crisis, announcing plans to provide 4.1 million Zimbabweans with cereal, pulses, and vegetable oil in food aid. The crisis has been exacerbated by drought, with about half of the country's population facing hunger.
Tragedy struck in Sudan when a fire triggered by an explosion in a gas tanker tore through a factory in the Sudanese capital, killing 23 people and injuring over 130. Preliminary reports indicate that necessary safety equipment was missing at the site, and inflammable materials were improperly stored, fueling the fire.
Heavy rainfall in the West Nile region of Uganda has caused the River Nile to burst its banks, cutting off a major highway connecting the country. The Uganda Red Cross society has reported that the floods have covered the vegetation along the Pakwach road on the Pakwach-Arua highway.
