Togo - one of Africa's smallest and poorest countries - is preparing to vote in a tightly policed election, widely seen as a test of its democratic progress.

Why is security so tight?

The authorities are making efforts to avoid a repeat of the violence which blighted the 2005 poll. The government has been sending teams around Togo to explain to the people the causes of election violence and how to avoid it.

In addition, some 6,000 security forces (3,000 police, 3,000 gendarmes) will be deployed across the country. The security forces - who voted on 1 March - have received sensitivity training in dealing with the public.

They will be backed up by a multinational force from the Economic Community of West African States (Ecowas). The country successfully staged a parliamentary election in 2007.

How does the system work?

The constitution provides for the election of the president in one round by a simple majority of the votes cast. All citizens aged 18 and over are eligible to vote. Polling stations will be open from 0700 to 1700.

Candidates must be at least 35 years old and only have Togolese nationality. They must pay a deposit of some 44,000 dollars, an amount that has been criticised by some opposition parties.

The process is overseen by the Independent National Electoral Commission (CENI), which is made up of ruling and opposition politicians, members of civil society and the administration. CENI receives financial support from the EU, Germany, France, the US and the UNDP.

Source: BBC News Africa

Uganda's main opposition party has accused President Yoweri Museveni of preparing his son to succeed him.

The president's son, Lt Col Kainerugaba Muhoozi, who already commands a special forces unit, has now been given control of the elite presidential guard.

"He's making the Ugandan presidency a monarchical affair and is clearly anointing his son to succeed him," said opposition spokesman Hussein Kyanjo. Several of Mr Museveni's relatives hold senior positions in his administration.

KEEPING IT IN THE FAMILY? Gen Caleb Akandwanaho - Mr Museveni's brother - senior presidential advisor on defence Sam Kutesa - brother-in-law - foreign affairs minister Janet Museveni - wife - minister for Karamoja region Lt Col Kainerugaba Muhoozi - son - commander of special forces Natasha Karugire - daughter - private secretary to the president Hope Nyakairu - relative of first lady - finance under secretary at state house Justus Karuhanga - first lady's nephew - president's private secretary for legal affairs

His wife was appointed to the cabinet last year. Army spokesman Felix Kulaigye dismissed the criticism of the latest appointment.

"Muhoozi didn't commit any crime by being the son of the president. He's an individual Ugandan with rights including contesting for the presidency if he wants," he said, reports the Reuters news agency.

Lt Col Muhoozi, 36, was appointed head of the special forces unit in 2008. He has had military training in both the UK and US, reports the AFP news agency.

Mr Museveni, in power since 1987, is expected to seek re-election next year. He changed the constitution to be allowed to stand in the 2006 polls. Mr Kyanjo's Forum for Democratic Change said those polls were rigged - charges denied by Mr Museveni.

Source: BBC News Africa 

BEEAFRICAN.COM and The Association Of Citizens and Friends Of Liberia (ACFLi) hosted a valentine and New Year dance party in California. The BeeAfrican Network Inc donated $300.00 dollars free gifts including $75 dollars gifts cards, 10 free African movies, 10 free African Music CD, flowers, candy, and also an award certificates.

Ms. Olivia Karzon, the 2009 ULAA Queen and also The Senior Youth Coordinator for BeeAfrican Network Inc presented a BEEAFRICAN.COM award certificate of outstanding leadership to Mrs. Bendu C. Hunter, President of ACFLi and award certificate of Proud African Mother of the year to Mrs. Janet Strother.

 WATCH VIDEOS  AND  VIEW PICTURES Exclusive On BeeAfricanMedia Live

Also Mr. Munieh B. Konuwa of BOIMA TAX SOLUTION INC donated $50 dollars gifts cards to the non-profit organization. The dance party was fun, about 100 plus people attended the ceremony. Mrs. Marie Maddy and Mr. Gus Wolo was the MC of the night, and ACFLi chairman of the board, Mr. J. Siaka Konneh was among the judges.

About The Non-profit organization (ACFLi)

The Association of Citizens and Friends of Liberia (ACFLi) is a 501 (c) (3) non-profit organization. The mission is to provide humanitarian services and understanding among Liberians and Friends of Liberians in the area of social interaction and culture. For more information about ACFLi, please visit www.acfli.net is managed by BeeAfrican.com.

Source: lartin@thelyc.org

Further talks are urgently needed between Ivory Coast's main parties to resolve the country's political crisis, a mediator has said.

The government and the independent electoral commission were dissolved by the president more than a week ago, sparking anger and protests. More talks are expected in Ivory Coast between the president of Burkina Faso, who is mediating, and parties.

The opposition has demanded the reinstatement of the electoral body. After mediation talks on Sunday with President Blaise Compaore of Burkina Faso, the two main opposition leaders reiterated their refusal to take part in any new government unless the commission was reinstated.

Henri Konan Bedie and Alassane Ouattara said a meeting of all the main political leaders was needed urgently to resolve the current crisis.

Fraud accusation

Ivory Coast Prime Minister Guillaume Soro is scheduled to announce the new government, but this has already been postponed several times as the prime minister seeks to resolve the stand-off between the opposition and the president.

President Laurent Gbagbo dissolved both the government and the independent electoral commission on 12 February, accusing the body of fraud. The opposition says the move was illegal and part of a strategy by President Gbagbo to further delay elections - first scheduled to take place in 2005 but postponed six times.

In protests on Friday in the town of Gagnoa, five people were killed when the security forces opened fire on the crowd.

Source: BBC News Africa

The African Union has condemned a coup in Niger, where soldiers have detained President Mamadou Tandja.

AU chief Jean Ping said he was watching developments "with concern" after a day of gun battles culminated in a takeover led by Colonel Salou Djibo. West African bloc Ecowas "roundly condemned" the coup and dispatched a mission to talk to the plotters.

But one opposition activist told the BBC the soldiers were "honest patriots" who were fighting tyranny.

Heavy artillery

Mr Tandja provoked a political crisis last August when he changed the constitution of the uranium-rich country to allow him to remain in power indefinitely.

NIGER Chronic poverty Population 14 million, 61% live on less than $1 a day Resource rich Huge reserves of uranium, Chinese firms digging for oil Politcally unstable History of coups, assassinations and on-off rebellion by nomadic Tuareg people in the north   Source: World Bank

The Economic Community Of West African States (Ecowas), which suspended Niger after Mr Tandja's actions, said it had "zero tolerance" for any unconstitutional changes of government.

"We condemn the coup d'etat just as we condemn the constitutional coup d'etat by Tandja," Ecowas official Abdel Fatau Musa told the BBC's Network Africa programme.

He said the group had already sent a team to Niger and would maintain sanctions "until constitutional order is restored".

The BBC's Idy Baraou in the capital, Niamey, said on the morning after the coup, people in the city were going to mosques and shops as normal.

He said there was not an obvious military presence on the streets, but heavy artillery had been deployed around the presidential palace.

While state radio has been broadcasting military music overnight, state TV station Tele Sahel is continuing with live programming from a traditional wrestling championship.

Freedom fighters?

In a televised address on Thursday evening, a spokesman for the plotters announced that the constitution had been suspended and all state institutions dissolved.

The junta, which has called itself the Supreme Council for the Restoration of Democracy, imposed a curfew and closed the country's borders.

NIGER JUNTA Col Salou Djibo Coup leader Col Djibrilla Hima Hamidou Involved in 1999 coup Col Goukoye Abdul Karimou Junta spokesman Col Amadou Harouna

The plotters said their aim was to restore democracy and save the population from "poverty, deception and corruption".

The move came after gunfights around the presidential palace reportedly resulted in several fatalities.

Soldiers captured Mr Tandja while he was chairing his weekly cabinet meeting, a government source told the BBC. Little is known about coup leader Col Djibo, except that he controls 40% of the military arsenal as commander of "military zone 1", in charge of Niamey, Dosso and Tillaberi regions.

Another of the plotters, Col Djibrilla Hima Hamidou, was junta spokesman during the last military takeover in 1999. The president was assassinated during that coup, but civilian rule was restored within a year.

One opposition activist, Mahamadou Karijo, whose Party for Democracy and Socialism has been bitterly opposed to Mr Tandja's rule, praised the soldiers for fighting tyranny. "They behave like they say - they are not interested in political leadership, they will fight to save the Nigerien people from any kind of tyranny," he told Network Africa.

History of instability

The government and opposition had been holding on-off talks since December to try to resolve the country's political crisis.

Mr Tandja, a former army officer, was first voted into office in 1999 and was returned to power in an election in 2004.

His current whereabouts are unknown, but soldiers are thought to be holding him at a military base on the outskirts of Niamey.

Niger has experienced long periods of military rule since independence from France in 1960.

It is one of the world's poorest countries, but Mr Tandja's supporters argue that his decade in power has brought a measure of economic stability. Under his tenure, the French energy firm Areva has begun work on the world's second-biggest uranium mine - ploughing an estimated $1.5bn into the project.

China National Petroleum Corporation signed a $5bn deal in 2008 to pump oil within three years.

Source: BBC News Africa

Kenyan Prime Minister Raila Odinga will ask former UN chief Kofi Annan to intervene in an increasingly bitter power struggle, his office has said.

Mr Odinga is at loggerheads with President Mwai Kibaki over who has power over cabinet affairs. On Sunday, the prime minister suspended two ministers suspected of corruption - only for Mr Kibaki to overrule him.

The BBC's Will Ross in Nairobi says many Kenyans have been left wondering who is in charge of the country. He says people fear that the wrangling will end any hope of winning the fight against corruption, and many Kenyans have lost faith in all politicians.

School money stolen

Mr Kibaki and Mr Odinga - bitter political rivals - joined together in a unity government to end violence that swept the nation after the 2007 election. But now, both men have accused each other of overstepping their constitutional remit.

"The legal provisions on which the prime minister acted, do not confer him the authority to cause a minister to vacate his or her office," the president's office said in a statement.

But Mr Odinga told the BBC's Network Africa programme he had not sacked the ministers, he had merely suspended them - which he was entitled to do.

"I think that what I've done actually has been within my constitutional powers, and that the president does not have the powers to countermand what I have done," he said. Mr Odinga's office now say they will ask Mr Annan to intervene.

The former UN secretary general mediated the power-sharing agreement between Mr Kibaki and Mr Odinga. The two ministers at the centre of the spat - Agriculture Minister William Ruto and Education Minister Samuel Ongeri - both turned up for work on Monday and say only the president has the power to discipline them.

A recent audit into a maize scandal revealed that $26m (£16.5m) had gone missing. And more than $1m was stolen in an education scam. Mr Odinga said there was enough evidence implicating the two ministers for an investigation, so they should be suspended.

Source: BBC News

Ivory Coast's President Laurent Gbagbo has dissolved the government and electoral commission, casting doubt on when long-delayed elections will occur.

Prime Minister Guillaume Soro has been asked to form a new government. Mr Gbagbo accused the electoral commission of fraudulently trying to add more than 400,000 people to the definitive electoral roll.

The opposition says most of them are from ethnic groups in the north, who were unlikely to support Mr Gbagbo. In the past two weeks, presidential supporters have been trying to use the courts to remove thousands from the electoral roll, accusing them of being foreigners.

Ivory Coast, which is the world's biggest cocoa producer, is slowly recovering after being cut in half by a civil war for several years. However, attempts to hold elections have been repeatedly postponed.

'Final actions'

In a recorded message broadcast on Friday, President Gbagbo announced that Ivory Coast's government had been dissolved.

He also said he was disbanding the election commission, saying its director Robert Beugre Mambe had been "running an illegal operation". Mr Mambe is a member of an opposition party.

"I want a government that serves the interests of the Ivorian people and not the orders of political parties," Mr Gbagbo added.

"The mission of this new government will be, under the authority of the president and the prime minister, to complete the final actions necessary to bring Ivory Coast out of its political crisis."

The opposition says most of the people who were disqualified by the election commission were from ethnic groups in the north of the country, who were unlikely to support Mr Gbagbo in any vote. Elections, last scheduled for 29 November 2009, have been postponed six times.

President Gbagbo was elected in October 2000 for a five year term. On Wednesday the Prime minister Soro, the leader of the ex-rebels, suspended judicial rulings on voter-enrolment because of rising tensions.

The former rebel New Forces seized northern Ivory Coast in 2002. They are now sharing power with Mr Gbagbo under a peace deal.

Source: BBC News Africa

South African President Jacob Zuma has apologised for fathering a child with a woman who was not his wife.

"I deeply regret the pain that I have caused to my family, the ANC (African National Congress), the alliance and South Africans in general," he said. The daughter of a World Cup chief gave birth to a baby girl last year believed to have been fathered by Mr Zuma.

Mr Zuma, aged 67, is a Zulu, a group which practises polygamy. He has three actual wives and at least 19 children.

Pressure

"I have over the past week taken time to consider and reflect on the issues relating to a relationship I had outside of wedlock," Mr Zuma said in a statement, admitting that it "has been a subject of much public discussion and debate".

ZUMA'S WIVES Thobeka Madiba-Zuma - married, January 2010 Nompumelelo Ntuli - married, January 2008 Sizakele Khumalo - married, 1973 Home Affairs Minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma - divorced, 1998 Kate Mantsho Zuma - died, 2000

"It has put a lot of pressure on my family and my organisation, the African National Congress," the statement said.

Earlier this week, the president confirmed that he was having a relationship with Sonono Khoza - the 39-year-old daughter of World Cup official Irvin Khoza.

He said the matter was "intensely personal" and dismissed as "mischievous" criticism from activists who said his actions had undermined official HIV/Aids campaigns. Mr Zuma was praised last year when he announced major changes to the country's Aids policy, which included increasing the roll-out of anti-retroviral drugs.

But opposition parties now say his behaviour contradicts the government's stance on HIV prevention - preaching regular condom use and faithfulness to one partner. South Africa has the highest number of HIV infections in the world - more than five million people.

This is not the first time that the president's sex life has been under the spotlight. In 2006, while being acquitted of rape, Mr Zuma admitted that he had made a mistake by having unprotected sex with a woman he knew to be HIV-positive. Like Ms Khoza, the woman was also the daughter of a family friend.

Mr Zuma has been married five times in all, most recently in January, and is also engaged to another woman. He has 19 children according to his office, but it is not clear if that includes the baby born last October.

Source: BBC News Africa

A Rwandan politician who stirred up controversy with comments on the genocide recently has been attacked by a group of men at a government office.

About 10 men set upon Victoire Ingabire and her driver as they waited for papers to register their party for next year's election.

She escaped unharmed but her driver was said to have serious injuries.

Ms Ingabire, a Hutu, was criticised last month for highlighting crimes against Hutus during the 1994 genocide.

Some 800,000 people were killed in 100 days of violence in Rwanda - most of them Tutsis, but many moderate Hutus were also massacred.

Police spokesman Supt Eric Kayiranga said Ms Ingabire had jumped the queue at the local government office in Kigali, Rwanda News Agency (RNA) reported.

He said a group of local men attacked her because they were angry that a person who "negates the genocide" could be served before them.

But she dismissed the police version of events, saying there had been no-one waiting at the office.

"When we arrived, I saw the men who attacked us seated near houses which neighbour Kinyinya Sector. I greeted them from afar," she told RNA.

"They followed me hurriedly inside the sector office, grabbed my bag and continued roughing up my driver as I fled to the car and drove off."

She says she will now write to President Paul Kagame asking for protection.

Ms Ingabire, who recently returned to the country after 16 years in the Netherlands, has been an outspoken critic of the government.

Mr Kagame's Tutsi-dominated former rebels took power to end the genocide.

Source: BBC News Africa

The Nigerian man suspected of trying to blow up a US plane on Christmas Day is now co-operating and providing "useful" information, US officials say.

Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab had stopped talking to investigators but started again "last week", officials told US media.

Mr Abdulmutallab, 23, is accused of trying to blow up a flight to Detroit with a bomb hidden in his underwear. He has denied a charge of attempting to murder 290 people.

The BBC's Steve Kingstone in Washington says that with Mr Abdulmutallab apparently talking again, officials say it is conceivable a plea bargain might be now reached.

Constitutional rights

An official quoted by Reuters news agency said: "Abdulmutallab is talking and has been talking since last week providing useful, actionable and current intelligence that we've been actively following up on."

When questioned on the subject, FBI director Robert Mueller told the Senate Intelligence Committee that the intelligence was valuable and that Mr Abdulmutallab was still being questioned.

The interrogation of Mr Abdulmutallab has caused controversy in the US. The suspect had been talking to FBI agents before he went into surgery for burns on his legs but afterwards refused to talk. Agents then read him full rights under the US constitution, guaranteeing he would not have to give incriminating evidence.

Some politicians argued he should have been treated as a military detainee. A senior law enforcement official told the BBC that some of Mr Abdulmutallab's family had visited him in the middle of last month and that that had played a role in him beginning to talk again.

In his earlier comments Mr Abdulmutallab said he had been trained by al-Qaeda-linked militants in Yemen. Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, which is based in Yemen, claimed responsibility for the failed bomb attack.

Mr Abdulmutallab caught the flight to Detroit from the Netherlands, after connecting from a flight from Nigeria.

Source: BBC News Africa

Malawi’s Bingu wa Mutharika has been chosen to take over the rotating presidency of African Union on the first day of the group's summit in Addis Ababa. Bingu wa Mutharika will succeed Libya's Muammar Gaddafi.

REUTERS - Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi failed in his attempt to stay on as chairman of the African Union for another year after African leaders on Sunday chose Malawi’s president to succeed him.

Gaddafi was elected chairman of the 53-nation AU at its annual summit last year, despite strong opposition from some African leaders, and diplomats said he was seeking another term.

The chairmanship is usually decided on a regional, rotating basis and this year was the turn of southern Africa.

Leaders, on the first day of their summit in Addis Ababa, selected Malawi’s President Bingu wa Mutharika to succeed Gaddafi.

Gaddafi used his farewell speech to again urge African leaders to begin the process of political unification.

“The world’s engine is turning into 7 or 10 countries and we are not aware of that,” Gaddafi said. “The EU is becoming one country and we are not aware of it. We have to get united to be united. Let’s be united today.”

Source: Reuters

A diplomatic row has broken out at the African Union over attempts to extend Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi's chairmanship of the organisation.

The role rotates every year on a regional basis and southern Africa has picked Malawi as its candidate.

But Tunisia has now floated a proposal before a heads of state summit next week suggesting Col Gaddafi stay on.

The BBC's Uduak Amimo in Addis Ababa says some diplomats have been angered by the pressure.

A Malawian diplomat told our correspondent the country would not give up its candidature without a fight.

But she says it is a delicate issue and diplomats at AU headquarters in Addis Ababa are reluctant to speak on the record about the negotiations.

US of Africa?

Mozambique's deputy foreign minister said it was southern Africa's turn to chair the organisation and insisted the rules would be followed.

"Personally I am confident that the candidature of Malawi is going to be endorsed by the whole African Union," Eduardo Koloma told the BBC's Network Africa programme.

On Thursday, Libya's foreign minister in Addis Ababa said Libya's vision for a "United States of Africa" needed more time and energy to be completed.

Our reporter says Libya is one of the continent's heavyweights and is one of member countries that bears the financial burden of contributions to the AU.

Analysts say the AU is in a difficult position: its budget is $170m (£104.6m), but it needs an extra $1.3bn for its programmes.

The organisation needs a country chair with strong financial muscle, which Libya clearly has, our reporter says.

But it also needs to be seen to be respecting its own rules and processes, as well its smaller member countries.

Source: BBC News Africa

The new interim prime minister of Guinea, who is charged with organising elections that will see the end of military rule, has taken office.

Jean Marie Dore was appointed by the general in charge of Guinea, Sekouba Konate, after the military government agreed to step down.

He made a brief speech setting out some big objectives. Reforming Guinea's armed forces was top of the list.

But it is no small order in a country controlled by the military for decades.

The current government took power in December 2008 after the death of Lansana Conte, himself an army man who staged a coup 24 years earlier.

Mr Dore said he would organise elections and prioritise the economic revival of Guinea, which is the world's largest exporter of bauxite and is rich in other minerals.

Huge task

Still to be formed is the transitional government that Mr Dore is in charge of.

It is meant to have 20 members drawn from political parties and civil society and 10 members from the military. 

Mr Dore said he hoped that the transitional authority would be in place by the end of the month.

The task ahead is huge.

Guinea has never had a democratically-elected government and the goal is elections in six months.

The international investors in Guinea's massive mineral wealth are still in place, even if output has dropped amid the chaos of the past year.

Convalescing in Burkina Faso is the man technically in charge of the military government, Capt Moussa Dadis Camara.

He has been incapacitated since an assassination attempt in December.

Though sidelined by events, he is still an influential figure and is one of a group of soldiers that the United Nations holds responsible for the shooting of more than 150 opposition demonstrators in September last year.

The new government will have to negotiate a treacherous path between creating a stable present and seeing justice done for crimes in the past.

Source: BBC News Africa

The Nigerian cabinet has been ordered by the federal court to decide within 14 days if ill President Umaru Yar'Adua is fit to lead the country.

The president has been in Saudi Arabia for two months, receiving treatment for a heart condition.

The court ruling directed the cabinet to pass a resolution about whether he "is incapable of discharging the functions of his office".

The president's absence has raised concerns about a power vacuum.

The Federal High Court ruled that cabinet should hear testimony from five doctors, one of whom should be the president's personal physician.

If cabinet decides that the president is not fit to carry out his duties, the vice-president would take over, the court ruled.

President Yar'Adua is being treated for inflammation of the lining around the heart and has a long-standing kidney complaint.

The court was responding to a law suit brought by opposition activist Farouk Adamu Aliyu.

He had asked for the judges to sack the president over his failing health and for failing to abide by the provisions of the constitution.

On Thursday, more than 1,000 people gathered in Lagos to protest against Mr Yar'Adua's prolonged absence.

Some carried placards saying: "Enough of the offshore president and a people's constitution now."

The protesters argue that when the president left the country to go to hospital he did not hand executive powers to his deputy, as required by the constitution.

Source: BBC News Africa

Guinea's military junta has named a civilian prime minister to steer the country towards elections but the troubled country's future remains shrouded in uncertainty.

Under intense international and domestic the army has agreed to leave power in six months but there are reports of division within the military.

We don't yet know how capable the politicians are   Richard Moncrieff International Crisis Group

"The army has to be persuaded to back the road map and to return to barracks," says Richard Moncrieff of the International Crisis Group.

If any part of Guinea's fractious armed forces does not accept the transition, things could go badly wrong. But already there are signs of change, according to residents of the capital, Conakry.

"The soldiers are still around, but they're not patrolling like they were before; they've lost their swagger," said one man in the capital.

Soldiers abused

In the end, the brutality of the military junta was its undoing. Despite being the world's largest exporter of bauxite, Guinea was not high on the international agenda.

All that changed on 28 September when soldiers killed more than 150 opposition demonstrators.

Jean-Marie Dore has a huge job on his hands

The world was outraged and called for the army to step down. Sanctions followed.

Among those injured on 28 September was Jean-Marie Dore, a veteran opposition leader and the man named as the new prime minister.

Far from being cowed by the violence, Mr Dore and other members of the civilian opposition where hardened in their resolve.

In the weeks after the September killings, there was fear of the army's brutality, but also contempt. Families of soldiers were openly abused in the streets of Conakry.

The army was under pressure from all sides, with the international community calling for the junta to step down and for those with blood on their hands to face justice.

Pragmatist

On 3 December, Capt Moussa Dadis Camara was seriously wounded when shot by an aide who feared he would be forced to take the blame for the September killings.

Capt Camara is recovering after being shot in the head

Capt Camara was flown to hospital in Morocco and nothing was heard from him for weeks.

Defence Minister Gen Sebouka Konate assumed leadership of the junta.

Though a central power in the military government and a key figure in the coup that brought it to power in December 2008, Gen Konate has turned out to be a pragmatist.

During the negotiations between the powers of the military government in Burkina Faso - where Capt Camara is convalescing - it is reported that Gen Konate was imploring his fellow soldiers to realise that the military government had virtually no support in Guinea.

Criminal charges

Even before the Burkina Faso negotiations that saw the army sign its way out of power, Gen Konate had offered the opposition the post of prime minister.

But the choice of prime minister has brought to the fore the divisions within Guinean society, with politicians and trade unions at loggerheads.

CAMARA'S RULE 23, 24 December 2008 Strongman President Lansana Conte dies, Capt Camara takes over, promises 2010 election 15 August 2009 Says he may stand for president 28 September Soldiers kill protesters in Conakry, reports of atrocities and rapes October US, EU, African Union and Ecowas impose sanctions on junta 3 December Capt Camara shot in the head in apparent assassination attempt 4 December Flown to Morocco for surgery 12 January 2010 Capt Camara leaves hospital in Rabat and is flown to Burkina Faso 15 January He agrees to let Gen Konate remain in charge 21 JanuaryJean-Marie Dore officially appointed prime minister   Unearthing truth of 'bloodbath'

Jean Marie Dore has been categoric that what happened in Burkina Faso was an agreement between members of the military government.

"No agreement between us and the military was concluded in Ougadougou, but there are some starting points for a rapprochement between the Forces Vives (opposition) and the CNDD (the junta)."

It is not yet known much power the new prime minister and the other civilian members of the transition government will have. But Jean Marie Dore has a reputation for toughness and will not want to be taken for a ride.

"We don't yet know how capable the politicians are," says Mr Moncrieff.

"They have shown resilience and a willingness to stick to a coherent line - we'll have to wait to see if they can provide a road-map to get Guinea out of this crisis."

So far there is not much more in place than an optimistic plan: elections are to be held in six months.

No member of the military or of the transition government will be allowed to stand.

"We're really hoping that the agreement holds - we are waiting for it to become real and to see it working in concrete ways," says Akoumba Diallo, a Guinean journalist.

Before long, the heat of international justice for the September killings will be added to Guinea's combustible mix of military rivalries and ethnic tensions.

The UN says the exiled Capt Camara and two aides bear direct responsibility and others bear secondary responsibility.

The International Criminal Court is to send a team to Guinea in February.

The military might swallow losing power, but the threat of criminal charges is another matter.

Source: BBC News Africa

Senegal's president says he will offer free land and "repatriation" to people affected by the earthquake in Haiti.

President Abdoulaye Wade said Haitians were sons and daughters of Africa since Haiti was founded by slaves, including some thought to be from Senegal.

"The president is offering voluntary repatriation to any Haitian that wants to return to their origin," said Mr Wade's spokesman, Mamadou Bemba Ndiaye.

Tuesday's earthquake killed tens of thousands and left many more homeless.

Buildings have been reduced to rubble, the distribution of aid is slow, and people have been flooding out of the devastated capital, Port-au-Prince.

"Senegal is ready to offer them parcels of land - even an entire region. It all depends on how many Haitians come," Mr Bemba Ndiaye said.

"If it's just a few individuals, then we will likely offer them housing or small pieces of land. If they come en masse we are ready to give them a region."

The spokesman emphasised that if a region was given, it would be in a fertile part of the country rather than in its parched deserts, the Associated Press news agency reported.

Source: BBC News Africa

Guinea's wounded leader Capt Moussa Dadis Camara has agreed to let his deputy lead the country while he recovers from an assassination attempt.

In a statement, the military junta said Capt Camara, who is convalescing in Burkina Faso, would support the transition to civilian rule.

Earlier, interim leader Sekouba Konate had threatened to resign in a row with supporters of Capt Camara.

He had opened talks with the opposition while Capt Camara was in hospital.

The announcement follow talks with Burkina Faso's president, who is mediating talks to resolve the country's crisis.

The declaration said Capt Camara was "willingly taking a period of convalescence".

According to AFP news agency, the junta leaders have also agreed to form a unity government followed by polls in six months.

Capt Camara had been receiving treatment in Morocco following an assassination attempt by his former aide-de-camp on 3 December.

When he left hospital on Tuesday, he reportedly thought he was going to Conakry, only to find himself in Burkina Faso.

BBC West Africa correspondent Caspar Leighton says both the international community and the Guinean opposition see Capt Camara's absence as the best hope for an orderly transition to civilian, democratic rule.

Earlier on Friday, Capt Camara's staunchest supporters were pressing for him to return to Conakry.

But our correspondent said this seemed to push Gen Konate to threaten to resign and accuse Capt Camara's allies of wanting to start a war in Guinea.

CAMARA'S RULE 23, 24 December 2008 Strongman President Lansana Conte dies, Capt Camara takes over, promises 2010 election 15 August 2009 Says he may stand for president 28 September Soldiers kill protesters in Conakry, reports of atrocities and rapes October US, EU, African Union and Ecowas impose sanctions on junta 3 December Capt Camara shot in the head in apparent assassination attempt 4 December Flown to Morocco for surgery 12 January 2010 Capt Camara leaves hospital in Rabat and is flown to Burkina Faso

Capt Camara seized power in a coup in December 2008 after the death of long-time ruler Lansana Conte.

At first he promised a return to civilian rule, but soon dropped hints that he would stand for president himself.

That led to a pro-democracy rally on 28 September in the capital, Conakry, at which rights groups say more than 150 people were killed when the military opened fire.

A recent UN report on the stadium massacre said Capt Camara should face trial at the International Criminal Court over the brutal suppression.

Gen Konate has offered the post of prime minister to the opposition.

Source: BBC News Africa

South Sudan leader Salva Kiir is to seek re-election in that post rather than tackling Omar al-Bashir for the national presidency, his party says.

The SPLM will instead field a northern Muslim, Yassir Arman, in the national elections due in April.

The BBC's James Copnall in Khartoum says this is where the party's priorities lie - in the south.

The SPLM ended its two-decade war with the north in 2005 and joined a unity government but tensions are high.

A referendum is due next year on whether the oil-rich south should become independent.

Our correspondent says the south and the north have been divided for many years on cultural, religious and ethnic grounds, among others, and the south is likely to vote to secede from the north.

I'm confident the SPLM would win in the south, and at the national level   Yassir Arman SPLM presidential candidate   Critical year ahead for Sudan

The April poll will be the first genuine multi-party national elections since 1986.

Our correspondent says more than three-quarters of the population live in the north, so it is likely that a northern candidate will win the election.

Mr Kiir also does not have the broad national support the late SPLM leader John Garang enjoyed, our reporter says.

Mr Arman is already the SPLM leader in the north but President Bashir, who faces an international arrest warrant over alleged war crimes in Darfur, is considered likely to be re-elected.

Mr Bashir was officially nominated for the presidential poll on Tuesday.

Mr Arman told the BBC's Network Africa programme he was up to the challenge.

"I'm confident the SPLM would win in the south, and at the national level."

Under the peace deal, the SPLM already runs the semi-autonomous south.

The elections have been described by the UN as some of the most complicated ever.

All Sudanese will vote for a president, parliament and state governors, while southerners will also vote for their regional president and parliament.

Our correspondent says that if re-elected as southern leader, Mr Kiir would be well placed to become leader of the new country, if the south does vote for independence.

After years of conflict, Southern Sudan is one of the poorest areas of the world.

Last year, some 2,000 people died in conflicts in the region, which the SPLM say are being stirred up by allies of Mr Bashir in order to destabilise the region ahead of the elections.

Mr Bashir's National Congress Party has denied the charges.

Source: BBC News Africa

Nigerian judges are hearing three cases aimed at clarifying who rules in the absence of President Umaru Yar'Adua, still in hospital in Saudi Arabia.

Judges are to decide whether government actions taken since Mr Yar'Adua left in November are legally binding.

Government critics say the president acted illegally when he failed to hand power formally to his vice-president.

But a court ruling on Wednesday backed the government, saying the constitution did not require such a transfer.

Mr Yar'Adua has been receiving treatment for a heart condition since late November.

His prolonged absence led to rumours that he was brain damaged or even dead.

'Meaningless' ruling

It is not clear when the judges will deliver their rulings.

The BBC's Caroline Duffield in Abuja says even senior cabinet ministers seemed to be mystified, openly admitting they did not know when he would return.

YAR'ADUA ILLNESS TIMELINE 23 November 2009: Goes to hospital in Saudi Arabia 26 November 2009: Presidential doctors say he has pericarditis - inflammation of the heart lining 23 December 2009: First court case filed called him to step down 30 December 2009: Chief justice sworn in. Lawyers say this is illegal in president's absence 5 January 2010: Two more court cases filed and a human rights group wants president declared "missing" 12 January 2010: President gives first interview since going to Saudi Arabia

She says Nigerians are watching the court cases very closely after all the uncertainty and political anxiety of recent weeks.

Analysts said Wednesday's ruling appeared to preserve the status quo - that Vice-President Goodluck Jonathan was in charge, but could not be regarded as official head of state.

But human rights lawyer and opposition activist Femi Falana, who is bringing one of Thursday's cases, dismissed the ruling as "meaningless".

"Jonathan cannot act for Yar'Adua because no functions have been formally and directly delegated to him by Yar'Adua," the AFP news agency quoted him as saying.

Mr Falana is asking the court to annul all decisions taken by the cabinet during the president's absence.

In another of Thursday's cases, the Nigerian Bar Association is demanding that power is handed over formally to Mr Jonathan.

And in the third case, a rights group wants Mr Yar'Adua declared "missing".

Mr Yar'Adua has not been seen in public since he was taken to hospital in November, but he gave an interview to the BBC on Tuesday saying he was recovering and hoped to be able to resume his duties.

Doctors say he is suffering from acute pericarditis - inflammation of the lining of the heart.

He also has a long-standing kidney complaint.

Source: BBC News Africa

The wounded leader of Guinea's military junta, Capt Moussa Dadis Camara, has arrived in Burkina Faso from Morocco, where he was receiving treatment.

Capt Camara had been in hospital in the Moroccan city of Rabat after being shot in the head by an aide in December.

The west African country has been under military rule since December 2008 when he seized power in a bloodless coup.

After a recent visit to Capt Camara, the interim leader Sekouba Konate said his life was not in danger.

Camara 'lucid'

An advisor to the president of Burkina Faso told the Associated Press that Capt Camara had travelled to the country "to finish his medical treatment".

An unnamed source in the office of Burkina Faso President, Blaise Compaore, told AFP news agency that Capt Camara, who has not been seen in public since the attempt on his life, was "lucid and speaking".

Western diplomats have been putting intense pressure on the country's military junta to restore power to civilian rule, some suggesting that Capt Camara should not return to Guinea because it would destabilize the country.

Burkina Faso has recently hosted talks aimed at helping resolve Guinea's crisis.

A renegade soldier, Lt Toumba Diakite, has said he shot Capt Camara after he was told to take the blame for a massacre in September.

Rights groups say more than 150 people were killed when the military opened fire on protesters in a stadium in Conakry on 28 September.

Source: BBC News Africa