00:02Hello and welcome to the special anniversary edition.
00:05We are celebrating a decade of news commitment and African voices with African News,
00:10the Pan-African channel which for the past 10 years has been telling Africa's story to the world
00:16and giving a voice to a continent in the midst of profound transformation.
00:23Follow live on Neuron News the launch of African News, the new Pan-African News channel.
00:31A new voice rises in Africa.
00:35Join us on Wednesday 20th April, 1800 CET.
00:40Live on Neuronews and neuronews.com.
00:49Yes, with great pleasure.
00:51But already, I'm here to introduce the very latest bulletin.
01:00Natalie Wackham is African News Deputy Editor-in-Chief and one of the channel's pioneers.
01:07Hello, Natalie.
01:08As we've just seen, you were there when the channel was launched alongside Michael Peters.
01:13What a journey it's been.
01:15Quel chemin parcouru.
01:16Ah oui, quel chemin parcouru, 10 ans moins jeune, 10 années plus tard.
01:22Je pense qu'Africa News a progressivement réussi à trouver sa place dans le paysage médiatique africain.
01:27On a l'avantage d'avoir ces informations en anglais et en français.
01:31On a l'avantage que ce soit fait de façon continue.
01:34Donc ça, c'est un point très positif à mon sens.
01:37Il y a quelques années, on se félicitait déjà d'avoir un réseau de correspondance pour pouvoir couvrir autant que
01:44peut se faire le continent.
01:45Mais aujourd'hui, ils sont vraiment capitaux pour nous dans la mesure où les médias traditionnels aujourd'hui souffrent assez
01:51de la propagation des fake news.
01:54Donc ils sont là pour s'assurer de la véracité des informations qu'on dirige à l'attention de nos
02:00téléspectateurs ou même de nos lecteurs.
02:01Alors on peut également penser qu'après avoir coché toutes les cases, certaines cases positives, il y a également des
02:09cases négatives comme le fait, par exemple, qu'Africa News, on la lance depuis l'Afrique, notamment la République du
02:17Congo, Pointe-Noire, pour être précis.
02:19Et pour des contraintes économiques, la Chine a dû être relocalisée en France, ici à Lyon.
02:25Donc on a dû se séparer avec beaucoup de tristesse de toute l'équipe qui avait commencé ce projet.
02:33Il faut aussi voter que c'est difficile, par exemple, d'avoir cet équilibre dans la couverture de toute l
02:39'Afrique, puisque comme je dis, il y a certains pays qui sont plus ouverts, accessibles à l'information que d
02:44'autres.
02:44Et dans un contexte de médias international, comment réussis-tu à se faire sortir ?
02:50Dès le départ, ça a été clair. Il fallait rendre visible l'information africaine. Il fallait la rendre accessible aussi
02:58bien en Afrique qu'à l'international.
03:00African News offre la possibilité à la diaspora africaine de rester connectée avec ce qui se passe sur le continent.
03:07Et autre chose dont on peut également être fier, c'est qu'Africa News n'a pas de couleur politique.
03:12On n'a pas d'agenda, d'agenda quelconque avant que l'agenda de tel président ou tel président.
03:17Et on est fiers quand même d'avoir réussi à assurer ça au cours de ces différentes années.
03:22You've just mentioned social media. Is there a real need to reinvent yourselves?
03:26Yes, social media do represent competition.
03:29But our role remains essential because upstream, there is fact-checking and context.
03:36That is something you do not necessarily find on social media platforms.
03:40And in your role as a relay of information, what major political changes have you noticed across the continent in
03:46recent years?
03:47You have countries where things are very stable, where little or almost nothing happens.
03:53Others where political alternation is a reality.
03:56And then countries where changes have occurred very rapidly.
04:01I am thinking, for instance, of what happened with the alliance of Sahel states,
04:05where coups followed one another and led to political change.
04:09Ultimately, it really depends on the regimes in place, on the response of local populations,
04:14and on whether or not there is a genuine desire for change.
04:18We will now take a look at how political news has unfolded across the continent over the past 10 years.
04:24From West Africa to North Africa, renewing the political class is far from straightforward.
04:30Across the continent, some countries have maintained institutional stability,
04:34while others have faced political tensions and shifting international losses.
04:38In countries such as Senegal, Ghana, and Botswana, democratic institutions have largely held firm,
04:44with regular transfers of power in some cases.
04:47Elsewhere, tensions remain over constitutional rules and political competition,
04:50notably in Zimbabwe, Cote d'Ivoire, and Cameroon.
04:53In North Africa, politics is still shaped by the aftermath of the Arab Spring,
04:57with outcomes that now vary widely from one country to another.
05:01In Egypt, the transition gave way to a strong presidential system.
05:06In Tunisia, democratic process was followed by more recent setbacks,
05:10and in Algeria, the Iraq protest movement of 2019 showed strong public demand for change.
05:17But without major institutional reforms, on the international stage,
05:21partnerships are becoming more diverse,
05:24with growing involvement from players such as Russia and several Gulf states.
05:29At the same time, the relationship between citizens and institutions is changing,
05:34driven by digital platforms and wider access to information,
05:38raising expectations around governance.
05:40Now reforms of political engagement are also emerging among younger people,
05:45of an outside traditional party structure from Senegalian and Mar movement
05:50to the ANSAR protest in Nigeria.
05:53Taken together, these trends continue to reshape Africa's political balance.
05:59Africa has just endured 10 years of major security challenges.
06:03The alarming rise in insecurity, characterized by conflicts and repression,
06:07has undermined national stability and deeply affected the lives of millions of people across the continent.
06:13Over the past decade, Africa's security landscape has come under growing strain.
06:19Political violence has nearly doubled, driven by civil wars, jihadist attacks,
06:23local conflicts and government crackdowns that have made life more dangerous for millions.
06:29The Ibrahim Index of African Governance shows declining security in many countries,
06:36especially Burkina Faso, Mali, Ethiopia, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Sudan, Niger, and Nigeria.
06:42A major shift has been the rise of the Sahel as the new global center of terrorism,
06:48with Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger accounting for a large share of terrorism deaths worldwide.
06:53Violence that began when the Longcola Prize and Boko Haram's insurgency in Nigeria
06:59has spread into a wider band of jihadist, communal, and criminal activities
07:04stretching from the Atlantic to the Red Sea
07:07and moving south towards coastal states like Benin, Togo, and Kodifua.
07:12In East Africa, Al-Shabaab remains active in Somalia and continues attacks in Kenya.
07:17Eastern DRC and northern Mozambique also remain major crisis zones.
07:22Meanwhile, military calls in the Mali, Guinea, Sudan, Burkina Faso, Niger, and Gabon
07:28have failed to bring the promised security deal.
07:32Some countries, including Ghana, Senegal, Botswana, and Mauritius,
07:35have remained relatively stable, highlighting the importance of stronger institutions and governance.
07:41Experts estimate economic growth in Africa at around 3-4% in recent years,
07:48an overall positive dynamic despite recurring crises,
07:51though with significant disparities from one country to another.
07:55Africa has experienced an acceleration of its economic and digital transformations over the last decade.
08:02According to the International Monetary Fund and the African Development Bank,
08:07growth has remained around 3-4% despite crises,
08:12but fragile and very uneven across countries.
08:16This evolution is driven by strong population growth and rapid urbanization,
08:21as well as an increasingly connected youth.
08:24In this context, digital usage has expanded significantly,
08:28particularly via mobile devices,
08:31which have become central to exchanges and services.
08:34One of the most dynamic sectors is fintech.
08:38Companies like Flutterwave and Paystack in Nigeria have attracted international investment.
08:44In East Africa, Kenya is emerging as a hub for digital financial services.
08:50At the same time, cultural industries, particularly music,
08:54are benefiting from digital distribution and gaining international visibility.
08:58In terms of development, significant challenges remain,
09:02particularly the financing of infrastructure such as energy and transportation.
09:07The debt burden remains a constraint for many countries.
09:10Finally, economic integration is progressing but remains incomplete,
09:15despite initiatives such as the African Continental Free Trade Area.
09:20For this special 10th anniversary edition of African News,
09:23we turn to culture.
09:24Artists have made the continent resonate during this period.
09:27Among them, Fali Ipupa, the Congolese star
09:30and former member of the Quartier Latin Group.
09:33As he celebrates 20 years of a solo career this year,
09:36he took the time to record a special message for us.
09:39Hey, African News.
09:4110 years.
09:42It's been done and it's worth it.
09:44We're together.
09:45As we say,
09:46Mbotama Elam.
09:48Talk us.
09:51We're together.
09:51We're together.
09:57We're together.
09:58We're together.
09:59We're together.
09:59We're together.
09:59We're together.
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