She’ll speak to Africa  ambassadors in Pretoria about it – as he predecessor Lindiwe Sisulu did five months ago.

South Africa’s High Commission in Abuja and consulate in  Lagos have been temporarily closed because they came under attack from youths angered by the xenophobic violence in Pretoria and Johannesburg.

South African diplomatic missions in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Zambia have received similar treatment.

African countries are using boycott – the same tactic employed during the anti-apartheid struggle – to express their displeasure.

Nigeria has shunned the World Economic Forum hosted in Cape Town.

Madagascar follows Zambia in refusing to play a friendly fixture against Bafana Bafana.

Air Tanzania has suspended flights to South Africa.

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Her statement does not indicate how long their doors will be shut.

The security situation in Nigeria is somewhat unpredictable, says foreign minister Naledi Pandor because of youths attacking the diplomatic missions and South African businesses in retaliation for violence against Nigerians in South Africa.

She says she’ll speak to African ambassadors in Pretoria next week about the burning and looting of foreign-owned businesses in Pretoria and Johannesburg and attacks on foreigners that have left five dead.

She says South Africa has provided extra security for its diplomatic missions as has in the Nigerian authorities in keeping with customary diplomatic practice.  

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President Cyril Ramaphosa says attacks against foreigners are totally unacceptable.

Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari has  sent a special envoy to his  to South African counterpart Cyril Ramaphosa to express concern about the xenophobic attacks.

South African businesses in Lagos have been attacked by youths in retaliation for attacks on Nigerians in South Africa.

Zambia’s called off a friendly football match against Bafana Bafana and urged Zambian truck drivers to avoid travelling on South African roads white foreign lorry drivers are being attacked.

Ethiopia has advised its nations in South Africa to close their  businesses during the violence and avoid wearing expensive jewellery.

AU Commission head Moussa Faki has condemned violence against foreigners in South Africa.

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28-year-old Faye Mooney died alongside a Nigerian man. They were shot by man who abducted three people

The charity Mercy Corps says it is utterly heartbroken at the killing of Faye Mooney who had worked for two year as a communications specialist for the organization committed to fighting  hate speech and violence.

Mooney was traveling from Lagos to Kaduna.

Her family call her an inspiration and have paid tribute to her courage and belief in a better society that took her to places others fear.

Police will not speculate on the motive for the killing.

Kidnappings are rampant in Nigeria where both locals and foreigners are taken, mainly for ransom.

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The Nigerian military claims the newspaper endangered national security by reporting on the fights against Islamist extremist Boko Haram.

Daily Trust was among many news outlets that reported on Boko Haram overrunning a military base in Northeast Nigeria.

Armed soldiers raided its offices in Maiduguri, the centre of the Boko Haram’s theatre of operations and in the nation’s capital Abuja and commercial capital Lagos.

They seized computers and arrested journalists.

The Committee to Protect Journalists deplores this attack on press freedom.

It calls for the release of the journalists and the return of equipment.

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Having infamously scrambled for the continent 120 years ago, Western leaders are today seeking to dance here.

British Premier Theresa May twice skipped the light fantastic during her three-nation safari.

She danced her robot mash with Cape Town schoolchildren and with boy scouts and girl guides in Nairobi.

French President Emmanuel Macron boogied with musician Femi Kuti at the New Africa Shrine in Lagos last July.

Neither posed any immediate threat to Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers.

But it showed the lengths they were prepared to go to make friends in Africa.

May was in South Africa, Kenya and Nigeria. She sought to reassure the African heavy hitters that Brexit will not affect their economic ties with Britain.

Macron’s visit was billed as more culture than policy.

But his return to Lagos, where he spent six months as an intern in 2002, was obvious.  He wishes to keep the lines of communication in good order.

Angela Merkel was also in  Africa in the last week of August. She did not pack her dancing pumps for Senegal, Ghana and Nigeria.

Her preoccupation was securing deals with her hosts curbing the stream of irregular migrants from African into Europe.

All  these leaders mentioned Africa’s enviable economic growth and the market potential presented by its growing young population.

But they dared no raise hopes either at home or at their African destinations.

There is a new player in the modern scramble for Africa – and it is one that dwarfs them.

China’s dominance of the African market will be demonstrated at the Forum for China Africa Cooperation (FOCAC).

Meeting in  Beijing, it is expected to feature a number of eye-watering offers from China to help Africa’s infrastructure deficit.

At the previous FOCAC in Johannesburg, this amounted to $60 billion.

Chinese leader Xi Jinping has recently embarked on his own safari.

He stopped  Senegal and Rwanda before arriving in South Africa for the BRICS summit. Then he visited Mauritius on the way home.

China’s belt and road programme, designed to give Beijing better access to foreign markets, dominated.

Africa, providing strategic resources, played a major part in transforming China to the world’s second largest economy.

It does business differently from Africa’s traditional partners.

It does not impose values like observation of human rights and rule of law.

It provides credit freely. Approaching $100 billion dollars has been loaned by China for building African roads, railways, ports and major buildings.

Critics say Beijing’s constructing an elaborate death trap.

Beijing responds that the critics are none other than the former colonialists, who have an axe to grind.

Who can blame cash-strapped countries being attracted to China’s credit honey pot.

South Africa is among the latest, taking a $2,5 billion loan for ESCOM.

All above board and properly thought out, is the assurance from President Cyril Ramaphosa. 

Question: could that loan have been secured safely and on better terms  from the more rhythmic recent visitors? 

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Five suspects, including a policeman and a quarantine officer, were arrested for allegedly facilitating their travel.

ends intro 

Nigeria’s  government agency fighting trafficking says the victims were found while trying to board a plane from Lagos to Moscow.

The children, who were unaccompanied, are now in a shelter for victims of trafficking which run by the National Agency for Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons.

Five other potential victims, also children, were stopped from boarding a flight to Russia when staff noticed they had one-way tickets.

According to the UN’s agency for migration, most of the potential sex trafficking victims arriving in Italy by sea are Nigerian.

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His six-day safari has included  Madagascar, Zambia, Tanzania, Republic of Congo and Nigeria.

Minister Wang Yi has followed five predecessors who visited Africa during their first foreign trip each year.

After seeing Wang yesterday, Nigerian Foreign Minister Geoffrey Onyeama ordered Taiwan to move its trade mission from the capital, Abuja, to the commercial hub, Lagos.

China pledged to invest $40 billion into infrastructure in Africa’s most populous country.

Wang says China will actively practice the values of friendship, justice and shared interests proposed by President Xi Jinping and aid African countries to seek independent and sustainable development

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The Ogoliland area hit by numerous damaging oil spills has been struck  by a wave of militant attacks.

A Muslim from the north of Nigeria, President Muhammadu Buhari is criticised for ignoring the predominantly Christian south.

Last month he cancelled a visit to the commercial capital Lagos.

Hours after announcing that Buhari’s sending Vice President Yemi Osinbajo to Ogoniland the Niger Delta Avengers militant group, which has claimed several attacks on Chevron and Royal Dutch Shell facilities, issued a warning to oil firms that their facilities and personnel will bear the brunt of their fury.

The Avengers have accused Buhari of ignoring local problems.

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A doctor in the Niger Delta who knew he was infected with the virus continued to treat patients.

Nigeria’s Ebola outbreak was initially restricted to the commercial capital Lagos.

It was brought in by a man from Liberia.

Now there’s tension in the oil hub of Port Harcourt where a doctor, infected with the virus transmitted it to at least two patients he continued to treat.

More than 250 other are at risk as a result of this.

Nigerians fear the virus could spread even further.

Seven people in that country are among the 2 000 killed by Ebola in the latest outbreak which is the worst the world has experienced.

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