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[1/6] Ballots are displayed at a polling station, after polls closed, on the day of the national election, in Freetown, Sierra Leone, June 24, 2023. The race is expected to be close between the incumbent and the All People's Congress' (APC) Samura Kamara, who narrowly lost to Bio in the last election in 2018. The main opposition APC also said their election representatives were attacked and intimidated in three districts, highlighting the tense backdrop to the vote. Inflation soared to its highest level in over 20 years in 2022, while the national Leone currency slumped 60% in value. Bio and Kamara reported small-scale attacks on their supporters ahead of election day, while the APC's recent questioning of the independence of election officials has raised tensions.

Persons: Cooper Inveen, Sierra Leone, Julius Maada Bio's, Samura Kamara, Abu Koroma, We've, Kandeh Yumkella, Mohamed Rahman Swaray, Kamara, Alessandra Prentice, Angus MacSwan, Ros Russell, Marguerita Choy Organizations: REUTERS, Reuters, Provisional, APC, World Bank, Thomson Locations: Freetown, Sierra Leone, FREETOWN, Sierra, Leone, Ukraine

☆ Sierra Leone : Tensions mount ahead of high-stakes elections
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-23 | by ( Stephanie Busari | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —Sierra Leone is gearing up for crucial presidential elections on Saturday amid growing discontent and calls for change from its citizens. Sierra Leone has also faced devastating epidemics, including Ebola in 2014 and the Covid pandemic. President of Sierra Leone and Leader of Sierra Leone People's party (SLPP), Julius Maada Bio, addresses his supporters during his final campaign rally in Freetown John Wessels/AFP/Getty ImagesTwelve candidates are challenging Maada Bio, 59, in the general election, including the leader of the opposition ‘All People Congress’ (APC) party, Samura Kamara. ‘The people are tired’The mood in the country is tense as the country prepares for the high-stakes elections. Sierra Leoneans are concerned about several issues, including economic management, food shortages, healthcare services, infrastructure development, and education.

Persons: Julius Maada, Freetown John Wessels, Samura Kamara, Kamara, ‘, Mohamed Konneh, John Wessels, Sierra Leoneans, ”, Aminata Fanta Koroma, Kadira Rodhe Kamara, Bio, Ishmael Beah, ” Beah Organizations: CNN —, Getty, Congress, Police, European Union, International Monetary Fund, CNN Locations: CNN — Sierra Leone, Sierra Leone, Freetown John, Freetown, United Kingdom, United States, Ireland, Germany, France, Sierra

☆ Sierra Leone opposition leader decries lack of access ahead of Saturday's vote
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/3] Supporters of Sierra Leone's opposition leader and presidential candidate for the All People's Congress (APC) party, Dr. Samura Kamara, wipe rain drops from his campaign poster in Freetown, Sierra Leone June 23, 2023. REUTERS/Cooper InveenFREETOWN, June 23 (Reuters) - Sierra Leone's main opposition candidate said on Friday the lack of election campaign access to some strongholds of the ruling party and unsupervised distribution of ballots could open the door to rigging. "Our biggest concern going into this election is the lack of access of the opposition party to the southeastern part of the country, and we're talking about seven districts," Kamara said in an interview on Friday. "So that makes a worrying situation where you're opening a door, you're opening a window, even if you're not doing so, you're opening a window for great suspicions of rigging," Kamara said. Asked if he'll accept the outcome of Saturday's vote, Kamara said, "It's not me.

Persons: Sierra, Samura Kamara, Cooper Inveen, Julius Maada, Kamara, he'll, Bate Felix, Richard Chang Organizations: All, Congress, REUTERS, People's Congress, Thomson Locations: Freetown, Sierra Leone, Cooper Inveen FREETOWN, West

☆ Sierra Leone prepares for a tense election
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-23 | by ( Reuters Editorial | ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

PoliticsSierra Leone prepares for a tense electionPostedSome election-related violence has created a sense of trepidation in Sierra Leone as people prepare to vote in a presidential election on Saturday, amid frustrations over the economy. David Doyle has more.

Persons: David Doyle Organizations: Sierra Locations: Sierra Leone

Around the world we talk a good game about the importance of education, but we rarely act as if we mean it. Here’s an unlikely exception: Sierra Leone, one of the world’s most impoverished countries. If Sierra Leone can do this, other countries can — and surely the United States can emulate that same determination to help every child learn. This education revolution in Sierra Leone is the brainchild of President Julius Maada Bio and his youthful minister of education, David Sengeh. A Harvard graduate, Sengeh was working for IBM when President Bio asked him to come home and help his country — but now they face a test.

Persons: Julius Maada, David Sengeh, Sengeh, Bio Organizations: Harvard, IBM, Nationwide Locations: Sierra Leone, —, United States

☆ Frances Tiafoe becomes third Black American to reach men’s top 10
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-19 | by ( Ben Church | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —Frances Tiafoe has become just the third Black American to break into the men’s top 10 after winning his third career title in Stuttgart on Sunday. Speaking to reporters after his nail-biting 4-6 7-6(1) 7-6(8) win over German Jan-Lennard Struff, Tiafoe said he was “super emotional” after moving to 10th in the world rankings. “I’m a guy who shouldn’t even really be here doing half the things he’s doing,” Tiafoe said. “Hopefully, I can ride that for a long time.”Tiafoe has been heralded as the potential future of men’s tennis in the US and he’s starting to fulfil those expectations. His father, Constant Tiafoe, started working at the Junior Tennis Champions Center in Washington, D.C. back in 1999 and eventually moved into one of its vacant storage rooms while working around the clock.

Persons: Frances Tiafoe, Arthur Ashe, James Blake, Lennard Struff, Tiafoe, “, ” Tiafoe, Frances, Constant Tiafoe, Marijan Murat, –, ”, Taylor Fritz – it’s, Mardy Fish, John Isner Organizations: CNN, American, Sunday, Sierra Leone, Junior Tennis, Center, AP Locations: Stuttgart, Franklin, Washington ,

☆ Sierra Leone opposition calls for election chief to resign
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Samura Kamara, head of the All People's Congress (APC) party, said he wanted the chief electoral commissioner and all regional commissioners of the national election body to be replaced by "an independent internationally accredited team". "The Sierra Leone People's Party (SLPP) is gravely concerned about the deliberate attempts by the All People's Congress to disrupt the peaceful elections and reverse the democratic gains Sierra Leone has made," it said in a statement on Thursday. Sierra Leone's chief electoral commissioner Mohamed Kenewui Konneh also rejected Kamara's accusations and said none of his team would resign. Kamara said that if the officials did not resign within 72 hours, the APC party would meet and "decide the next steps". On Tuesday, dozens of young people were arrested following opposition protests in several cities calling for the electoral commissioner to resign, local media reported.

Persons: Leone's, Samura Kamara, Kamara, Julius Maada, Bio's, Sierra, Mohamed Kenewui Konneh, Umaru Fofana, Cooper Inveen, Nellie Peyton, Alex Richardson Organizations: Congress, Reuters, Sierra Leone People's Party, All, Sierra, Sierra Leone's, Thomson Locations: FREETOWN, Sierra

☆ Five nations elected to U.N. Security Council, but Belarus denied
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

UNITED NATIONS, June 6 (Reuters) - The United Nations General Assembly elected Algeria, Guyana, Sierra Leone, Slovenia and South Korea to the U.N. Security Council on Tuesday for two-year terms starting on Jan. 1, 2024, while Belarus - allied with Russia in its invasion of Ukraine - was denied a spot. Algeria, Guyana, Sierra Leone and South Korea ran unopposed for a spot on the 15-member body, which is charged with maintaining international peace and security. The Security Council is the only U.N. body that can make legally binding decisions such as imposing sanctions and authorizing use of force. Guyana received 191 votes, Sierra Leone 188, Algeria received 184 votes, South Korea 180. "The Russians have always argued that a lot of states support Ukraine in public at the U.N., but sympathize with Russia in private.

Persons: Richard Gowan, Michelle Nichols, Will Dunham Organizations: UNITED NATIONS, United Nations General Assembly, . Security, South Korea, Belarus, United, United Arab Emirates, The Security, General, Sierra, Slovenia, Soviet Union, Thomson Locations: Algeria, Guyana, Sierra Leone, Slovenia, South Korea, Belarus, Russia, Ukraine, South, Albania, Brazil, Gabon, Ghana, United Arab, Britain, China, France, United States, General Assembly, Soviet

☆ In Sierra Leone, Reasons for Hope - The New York Times
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-03 | by ( Nicholas Kristof | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

FREETOWN, Sierra Leone — One of the misimpressions people have about the world is that it’s going to hell. Just about the worst thing that can happen to anyone is to lose a child, and historically, almost half of children died before reaching adulthood. We happen to live in a transformational era in which 96 percent of the world’s children now survive until adulthood. That arc is visible here in Sierra Leone, a country that remains heartbreakingly poor — yet where the risk of a child dying is less than half what it was 20 years ago. You may have heard of Sierra Leone as “the most dangerous place in the world to give birth.” No longer true: Deaths in pregnancy and childbirth have plunged 74 percent since 2000, according to United Nations figures.

Persons: humanity’s, —, ” Organizations: United Nations Locations: FREETOWN, Sierra Leone

☆ Reaction: Biden, McCarthy debt ceiling deal
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

WASHINGTON, May 27 (Reuters) - U.S. President Joe Biden and top congressional Republican Kevin McCarthy have reached a tentative deal to raise the federal government's $31.4 trillion debt ceiling, ending a months-long stalemate. DEMOCRATIC REPRESENTATIVE TED LIU"Tonight, I have been informed that there is an agreement in principle between the White House and House Republicans. This was a House Republican manufactured crisis. REPUBLICAN REPRESENTATIVE BOB GOOD "I am hearing the 'deal' is for a $4 trillion increase in the debt limit. "If we didn't reach a deal … the average American person would clearly see a hit ... we had to reach some kind of conclusion here."

☆ Opinion | To Be Gay in a Country Where It’s Still Illegal
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-27 | by ( Nicholas Kristof | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

I’m traveling in West Africa on my annual win-a-trip journey, a global reporting expedition on which I take a university student to highlight issues that deserve more attention. By Maddie BenderFREETOWN, Sierra Leone — When Abdul was a teenager and coming to terms with being gay, he was attacked by a group of men. He reported the incident to the police and was told that an arrest could be made — of him, for homosexuality. Sierra Leone is one of more than 30 African nations (over half the continent) that criminalize same-sex relations. While most of the gay people I spoke with there did not seem to fear being arrested, they said discrimination against them was widespread in housing, employment and family life.

☆ In Sierra Leone, 50 Cents Can Change a Life - The New York Times
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-20 | by ( Nicholas Kristof | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

MAKENI, Sierra Leone — Brace yourself for a gross fact: Some 1.5 billion of the world’s people have worms living in their bodies, weakening them and occasionally disfiguring them. Yet eliminating the worms is one of the most tantalizing and inexpensive of health fixes. Think of it this way: For the cost of keeping a single American dog dewormed, we could free more than 100 children abroad from the burden of worms. My student winner is Maddie Bender, a recent graduate of Yale University — the trip was delayed by the pandemic — and I brought her to rural Sierra Leone because what’s happening in these villages underscores how cheap it can be to register progress: Children can be dewormed for about 50 cents each. At a typical two dewormings a year, that’s $1 annually, compared with almost $140 a year for the Heartgard deworming medicine that my dog gets.

☆ Genome data sheds light on how Homo sapiens arose in Africa
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-18 | by ( Will Dunham | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

WASHINGTON, May 18 (Reuters) - Our species arose in Africa more than 300,000 years ago, with the oldest-known Homo sapiens fossils discovered at a site in Morocco called Jebel Irhoud, located between Marrakech and the Atlantic coast. A new study tapping into genome data from modern-day African populations is offering insight into how this may have unfolded. The research indicated that multiple ancestral groups from across Africa contributed to the emergence of Homo sapiens in a patchwork manner, migrating from one region to another and mixing with one another over hundreds of thousands of years. The findings did not support a longstanding hypothesis that a single region in Africa gave rise to Homo sapiens or a scenario involving mixture with an unidentified closely related species in the human evolutionary lineage within Africa. "By building models of how these transmissions occurred, we can test detailed models that relate past populations to present-day populations."

These areas, which we've dubbed " jump zones ," span the globe, covering 6% of Earth's land mass. That's 57% more people living in jump zones than two decades earlier, increasing the odds that a deadly bat virus could spill over. The world's jump zones have lost 21% percent of their tree cover in almost two decades' time, double the worldwide rate. Almost one-third of that expansion would be in existing jump zones, where spillover risk is already high. Though those countries require mining companies to assess potential environmental harms that new concessions might cause, none require companies to evaluate spillover risk.

Prince Albert of Monaco said in an interview with People magazine that he and his wife, Charlene, would be attending. King Felipe VI of Spain, who ascended to the throne in 2014 after his father’s abdication, will attend, according to the Spanish news media. Crown Prince Fumihito of Japan and Crown Princess Kiko, on behalf of Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako, will attend, according to the Japanese news media. Credit... Clodagh Kilcoyne/ReutersSeveral members of Britain’s government will attend, as will about 100 heads of state from around the world, according to Buckingham Palace. British RoyalsImage Prince Harry, center, will be present at the coronation, though his wife, Meghan, and their children, will remain in California.

☆ Best rice dishes: 20 delicious specialties from around the world
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-04 | by ( Terry Ward | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +16 min

And while famous rice dishes such as sushi, fried rice and paella are among the most prominent in the global spotlight, there are so many more rice recipes out there to put on your radar – and seek out on your travels. Wali wa kukaanga, KenyaWali wa kukaanga is Kenya’s answer to fried rice, and translates to just that in Swahili. So it’s no surprise that the Polynesian island country’s most popular rice dish, alaisa fa’apopo, has ties to the coconut, too. Thai fried rice (Khao Pad), ThailandThai fried rice uses the layering of flavors that's characteristic of the country's cuisine. ArenaCreative/Adobe StockWhen it comes to fried rice, the Chinese version tends to steal the spotlight.

The Justice Department’s April 20 letter includes guidance for state and local police, prosecutors, judges and probation officers. Joanna Weiss, co-director of the Fines and Fees Justice Center, told me that the DOJ's voice is critical on these issues. The earlier memo included a section that laid out the principle that courts must not use bail practices that incarcerate people solely because they can’t afford a fee. The Justice Department didn't address my specific questions about why the section on bail was nixed. Lauren Jones, legal director at the National Center for Access to Justice, told me that there's clear overlap between cash bail practices and justice system fees.

☆ Africa needs more help with climate change, debt and food crises
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-15 | by ( Joe Bavier | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

WASHINGTON, April 15 (Reuters) - Africa is struggling with the triple shock of rising debt burdens, an ongoing food crisis and climate change fallout and needs more help from international institutions and wealthy nations to cope, African finance ministers said on Saturday. "African countries are really victims. The trio were speaking on behalf of the continent's finance ministers. The African finance ministers, meanwhile, called for a G20-backed framework aimed at helping countries restructure burdensome debt to go further. Two African countries - Zambia and Ghana - have already defaulted on their sovereign debt since the start of the pandemic.

WASHINGTON, April 14 (Reuters) - Zambia last week gave its bondholders a "concrete proposal" for the restructuring of some $3 billion in eurobonds, the ministry of finance and national planning said on Friday. "We continue to engage actively with our bondholders and proposals are being exchanged," the ministry told Reuters in a statement. The proposal "represents our commitment to finding a resolution that is acceptable to all parties and within the parameters set out by the IMF debt sustainability analysis." Zambia defaulted on its overseas debt in 2020 and is working on a restructuring with bilateral creditors and private bondholders, but talks have dragged amid a lack of consensus on how to provide debt relief. Internationally we need to pool our voices together for a stronger response ... We need a stronger response on a global stage."

☆ Viktor Bout, the 'Merchant of Death' arms dealer exchanged for Brittney Griner, says he fears for Trump's life and urged him to flee to Russia
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-14 | by ( Matthew Loh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Arms dealer Viktor Bout, nicknamed the "Merchant of Death," is asking Trump to flee to Russia. He sent Trump a telegram, warning him to escape charges in New York and that his "life is in peril." Bout said Trump would find "safe haven" in Russia, where he could rebel against "globalists." They would sooner end your life than let you stand in their way," Bout's message read, Russian state media first reported. A photo of Bout's telegram, posted by Russian state media on the messaging app Telegram, shows the message was addressed to Trump's Mar-a-Lago club in Florida.

☆ Uganda’s anti-gay bill is the latest and worst to target LGBTQ Africans
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-06 | by ( Aditi Bhandari | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +14 min

Same-sex activity in Africa is punishable by … Map of the 32 African countries where same-sex activity is illegal. Same-sex activity in Africa … Map of the 22 African countries where same-sex activity is legal. In 1993, Guinea-Bissau became the first African country to legalise LGBTQ activity when it adopted a new Penal Code that didn’t include any laws criminalising it. Country Constitutional protection Broad protections Employment Hate crime Incitement Marriage or civil union Adoption Angola No Yes Yes Yes Yes No No Botswana No No Yes No No No No Cape Verde No No Yes Yes No No No Gabon No No No No No No No Guinea-Bissau No No No No No No No Lesotho No No No No No No No Mozambique No No Yes No No No No Sao Tome and Principe No No Yes Yes No No No Seychelles No No Yes No No No No South Africa Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes YesNote: Broad protections include laws protecting against discrimination in at least 3 of 4 categories: the provision of goods and services, housing, healthcare and education. Namibia and Mauritius criminalise same-sex activity, but around 35% of respondents said they would dislike having a gay neighbour.

☆ Standard Chartered agrees to sell business in Jordan
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-26 | by ( Hadeel Al Sayegh | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

DUBAI, March 26 (Reuters) - Standard Chartered (STAN.L) plans to sell its Jordanian business to Arab Jordan Investment Bank (AJIB) (AJIB.AM), the two parties said on Sunday, as the emerging markets-focused lender presses ahead with plans to exit seven markets in Africa and the Middle East. All Standard Chartered Bank employees in Jordan will be transferred to AJIB, it said an emailed statement. AJIB said the purchase falls within the Jordanian lender's strategy to grow its market share in the country, which continues to grow after it acquired HSBC's banking business in Jordan in 2014 and National Bank of Kuwait's banking business in Jordan in 2022. Standard Chartered in April 2022 said it plans to leave seven markets, consisting of Angola, Cameroon, Gambia, Jordan, Lebanon, Sierra Leone and Zimbabwe. Reporting by Hadeel Al Sayegh, Editing by Louise Heavens and Elaine HardcastleOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Putin is just the third head of state to be indicted by the International Criminal Court while still in power. The ICC accuses Putin of responsibility for the war crime of deporting Ukrainian children - at least hundreds, possibly more - to Russia. TRAVEL ABROADThe ICC's 123 member states are obliged to detain and transfer Putin if he sets foot on their territory. Kenya's President William Ruto and his predecessor Uhuru Kenyatta were both charged by the ICC before they were elected. Former Kosovo President Hashim Thaci, one of Milosevic's adversaries in the 1990s Balkan wars, left office after being indicted for war crimes by the Kosovo war crimes tribunal in The Hague.

After Russia invaded Ukraine, the West formed what looked like an overwhelming global coalition: 141 countries supported a United Nations measure demanding that Russia unconditionally withdraw. South Korea Indonesia Israel Thailand Japan Saudi Arabia Philippines Afghanistan CambodiaBy contrast, Russia seemed isolated. Eritrea “Russian actions are being distorted” North Korea Russia Belarus Syria Eritrea “Russian actions are being distorted” North Korea Russia Belarus SyriaBut the West never won over as much of the world as it initially seemed. But like many other African countries, South Africa appears careful to balance its growing ties with Russia against maintaining a relationship with the West. Others that provided Ukraine with military support have declined to impose economic sanctions on Russia.

☆ Actors Idris and Sabrina Dhowre Elba on how their parents inspired their activism
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-17 | by ( Sophie Kiderlin | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Actors Idris Elba and Sabrina Dhowre Elba say their parents were driving forces behind their own activism today, which focuses on food security. For Sabrina Dhowre Elba it was her mother that shaped her drive to give back, she said. "For me, my mother is everything," Dhowre Elba told CNBC. A trip to Sierra Leone also inspired her due to the stories she heard from locals, Dhowre Elba explained. "Why I go on field visits so often with the organization is because you really remember that small things can make such huge changes."

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