The coup enjoys a high degree of popular support in Niger.
EPA-EFE/Issifou Djibo
A geopolitical struggle for valuable resources such as uranium is behind the wrangling over Niger.
Supporters of the military junta wave Nigerien and Russian flags at a demonstration of support for the coup.
EPA-EFE/Issifou Djibo
All eyes are on Nigeria where west African countries are discussing the possibility of military intervention to reverse the coup.
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New research shows densely populated countries in Southeast Asia and West Africa could harvest effectively unlimited energy from solar panels floating on calm tropical seas near the equator.
Coup leader General Abdourahamane Tchiani appearing on Niger state television to announce the takeover.
Associated Press/Alamy Stock Photo
The coup in Niger has the potential to further destabilise the whole of west Africa.
Cameroonians want an end to the six year old armed conflict.
Wikimedia Commons
The Cameroonian government’s pursuit of military victory is likely to prolong the war.
Nigeria’s President Bola Tinubu, new ECOWAS chairman.
Kola Sulaimon/AFP via Getty Images
The new ECOWAS chairman must focus on strengthening democracy and security in west Africa.
West African cuisine makes significant use of fermented condiments.
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Fermented foods are a key component of west African cuisine. Making them safer for consumption should be a priority.
Guineans living in Ivory Coast wait for their turn during a census on March 26, 2010 in Adjame, a popular district in Abidjan.
SIA Kambou/AFP via Getty images
Many countries in West Africa do not have up to date census surveys.
From left; Prime Minister of Cote d'Ivoire Patrick Achi, President of Togo Faure Gnassingbe, President of Benin Patrice Talon, and President of Ghana Nana Akufo-Addo.
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Africa has been relatively peaceful in terms of inter-state violent conflicts.
Forced return of irregular African migrants from Europe is affecting political relationships in the two regions.
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The forced return of migrants by European states has ignored pressures and interests of African countries of origin.
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By generating new high-resolution maps, researchers found cocoa plantations were causing far worse forest destruction in West Africa than previously thought.
Small arms and light weapons recovered from bandits in Jos, north central Nigeria.
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A lack of political legitimacy can lead governments to illegal purchases of small arms and light weapons.
Many children help out on family farms in Africa.
Nana Kofi Acquah/Flickr
Children working on family farms is often mistaken for harmful child labour.
The artist El Anatsui at 70 in 2013.
Pius Utomi Ekpei/AFP via Getty Images
A major new show at the Tate Modern in London in October will further cement his fame as one of the most important African artists in the world.
An armed soldier at a polling station during the counting of votes in March 2018 in Freetown.
Issouf Sanogo/AFP via Getty Images
Though public opinion surveys offer some hope, there are several concerns for democracy’s consolidation in West Africa.
Scabies and other skin diseases are still common in Togo.
Wikimedia Commons/Flickr
Neglected tropical diseases of the skin are stigmatised, and may affect an individual’s quality of life
A satellite image of Lake Bosumtwi. It filled a meteorite impact crater.
USGS/ NASA Landsat/Orbital Horizon/Gallo Images/Getty Images
It’s time to get more Ghanaians interested in this fascinating, important aspect of science.
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The Wagner Group has become a tool to further Russian objectives in Africa without attracting the scrutiny that regular military units would.
A flooded street in Lagos, Nigeria.
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The two West African countries can help each other avert flooding disasters.
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Nigeria’s Lekki Deep Sea Port is also its largest, and will boost the country’s ability to process imports and exports.