Monthly Archives: January 2024

24, January 2024

Clash of the Titans: Nigeria to face Cameroon in AFCON last 16 ⁰

The Super Eagles of Nigeria will face the Indomitable Lions of Cameroon in the Round of 16 of the African Cup of Nations on Saturday.

The fixture was confirmed after the Cameroonians rounded off the group stage with a pulsating 3-2 victory over the Gambia on Tuesday night.

By the win, they finished Group C with four points behind Senegal while Guinea who lost to the Teranga Lions also on Tuesday qualified for the knockout as one of the best losers.

Super Eagles reached the knockout stage after beating Guinea Bissau 1-0 on Monday.

The team finished Group A with seven points behind the surprise package, Equatorial Guinea.

In the game at the Stade de la Paix, Cameroon scored twice with time ticking away to snatch a dramatic win and one that eliminated Ghana from the tournament.

In an amazing finish in Bouake, Ebrima Colley scored on 85 minutes to put Gambia 2-1 up only for Joseph Gomez to concede an own goal before an added-time Christopher Wooh goal won a thriller.

Although Cameroon are 80 places above the Gambia in the world rankings, they came under considerable first-half pressure and were lucky to be level at 0-0 by half-time.

Source: Punch Nigeria

24, January 2024

Francis Ngannou capable of ‘massive upset’ against Joshua ⁰

Francis Ngannou can cause a “massive upset” by defeating Anthony Joshua in their heavyweight showdown in Saudi Arabia, according to veteran promoter Frank Warren.

British boxer Joshua heads into the March 8 fight looking to back-up his commanding stoppage-win over Sweden’s Otto Wallin in December as he continues his quest to become a three-time world champion.

But Warren believes Joshua will have his work cut out in a 10-round bout against the 37-year-old Cameroonian fighter Ngannou.

Best known as a mixed martial artist, Ngannou stunned many observers with an early knockdown of Tyson Fury, promoted by Warren, before suffering a controversial split-decision loss to the World Boxing Council heavyweight champion in October.

And Warren believes Ngannou’s punching power could pose problems for another British boxer in the 34-year-old Joshua when they meet in Riyadh.

“Joshua’s come into this after his last fight against Wallin,” Warren said Wednesday.

“He’ll be a big favourite going in, but I know that if he gets caught on the whiskers (chin) then this fella (Ngannou) could cause a massive upset because he can whack.

“It’s going to be interesting to see how he takes the fight and to see if he fights on the outside or the inside. Ngannou’s game is getting on the inside. He’s a big man, he’s strong.”

Joshua’s victory over Wallin was his third win of 2023 but Warren said his two defeats by Ukraine’s Oleksandr Usyk, the man who deprived him of the World Boxing Association, International Boxing Federation and and World Boxing Organisation belts, were proof of an enduring vulnerability.

“The two fights to Oleksandr Usyk, we can see what they are,” said Warren.

“People have seen him (Joshua) wobble a few times in fights, that happens with him. I’m not saying there’s a confidence issue, but there wasn’t that when he was such an emphatic fighter.”

Fury and Usyk will clash for the undisputed heavyweight title in Saudi Arabia on February 17.

The winner will be crowned the heavyweight division’s first undisputed champion since Lennox Lewis, who held all the major belts from 1999 to 2000.

Source: AFP

24, January 2024

Historic Mauritania victory condemns Algeria to shock AFCON exit ⁰

Former champions Algeria crashed out of the Africa Cup of Nations on Tuesday after losing 1-0 to Mauritania, who are 75 places lower in the world rankings.

Captain Mohamed Delllah Yaly scored after 37 minutes in Bouake for the Group D outsiders, who will fill one of four places reserved for third-placed finishers in the mini-league stage.

Angola defeated Burkina Faso 2-0 in the same section and topped the final standings with seven points. Burkina Faso (four) and Mauritania (three) also advanced to the knockout stage.

Champions in 1990 and 2019, Algeria came to the Ivory Coast among the favourites to win the African football showpiece only to depart without winning a match.

After draws with Angola and Burkina Faso, they were stunned by Mauritania, who had never won a Cup of Nations match in eight previous attempts spanning three editions.

The winners were constantly on the back foot, especially in the closing stages, but showed defensive resilience to pull off a famous victory.

Former Manchester City winger Riyad Mahrez arrived in west Africa as the standout Algerian, but poor performances in his first two matches saw him relegated to the bench for this match.

“It’s a fact that these have not been his best matches with Algeria, but don’t kill him too soon,” pleaded coach Djamel Belmadi before facing Mauritania.

The absence of Mahrez did not affect the Desert Foxes unduly for much of first half as they camped in Mauritanian territory seeking to break the deadlock.

Wild celebrations

Houssem Aouar connected with a low cross midway through the half and his sidefooted goal attempt flew narrowly wide.

Against the run of play, Mauritania took the lead on 37 minutes just after goalkeeper Anthony Mandrea conceded a corner having used his leg to block an Aboubakary Koita shot.

Algeria failed to clear the corner and when the ball returned to the area, Iraq-based captain Dellah Yaly struck the ball into the net off a post.

It was not the cleanest of strikes, but that did not matter as wild celebrations erupted after the underdogs took the lead in a Cup of Nations match for the first time.

Algeria responded by putting pressure on the Mauritanian defence again and Hicham Boudaoui was not far off target with a shot from just outside the box.

Belmadi turned to Mahrez, now playing in the lucrative Saudi Pro League, at half-time, bringing him on in place of Aouar to confront tall, well-organised opponents.

Koita squandered a chance to double the lead just before the hour mark, dribbling into the box before blazing over to the relief of Mandrea.

Almost immediately, Bodda Mouhsine was guilty of equally wild finishing from close range, after a Koita free-kick was deflected into his path.

At the other end, a perfectly weighted Mahrez cross led to a Boudaoui header being superbly tipped over by goalkeeper Babacar Niasse, who later foiled Aissa Mandi from point-blank range.

Source: AFP

23, January 2024

Martin Luther King Jr’s youngest son Dexter Scott dies of cancer ⁰

Dexter Scott King, the youngest son of Dr Martin Luther King Jr, has died at the age of 62, the King Center in Atlanta said.

Family members said he died after a battle with prostate cancer.

“He transitioned peacefully in his sleep at home with me in Malibu,” his wife, Leah Weber King, said in a statement.

Dexter King was an activist and served as chairman of the King Center and the president of the King Estate.

Born in Atlanta in 1961 to civil rights leaders, Dr King and Coretta Scott King, Dexter Scott King was named after Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Montgomery, Alabama, where his father served as a pastor for the first time. He was just seven when Dr King was assassinated.

Dexter King’s brother, Martin Luther King III, said he was “deeply saddened” by the loss of his sibling.

“The sudden shock is devastating,” he said in a statement. “It is hard to have the right words at a moment like this. Please keep the entire King family in your prayers, and in particular Dexter’s wife, Leah Weber.”

His sister Rev Bernice King said words “cannot express the heart break” she felt from losing another sibling. Her sister, Yolanda King, died in 2007, a year after her mother.

King attended Morehouse College in Atlanta, Georgia like his father. He later became a lawyer, a role which he used to help protect the King family’s intellectual property.

The third of the Kings’ four children, Dexter had an “uncanny resemblance” to his father, whom he played in the 2002 movie The Rosa Parks Story, the King Center in Atlanta said.

“He devoted his life to the continued perpetuation of his father’s legacy,” the Center said.

In a statement, civil rights leader Rev Al Sharpton said he sent his condolences to the family, adding “May he RIP, may his legacy live”.

Source: BBC

23, January 2024

Late drama as Indomitable Lions advance to last 16 and Black Stars go out ⁰

Cameroon scored twice with time ticking away on Tuesday to snatch a dramatic 3-2 win over Gambia, secure an Africa Cup of Nations last-16 place, and eliminate Ghana from the tournament.

In an amazing finish in Bouake, Ebrima Colley scored on 85 minutes to put Gambia 2-1 up only for Joseph Gomez to concede an own goal before an added-time Christopher Wooh goal won a thriller.

Defending champions Senegal beat Guinea 2-0 in the other Group C match to finish with nine points and Cameroon edged Guinea for second place on goals scored after both collected four.

Guinea also qualified for the knockout stage as one of the best four third-placed teams while pointless Gambia head home.

Victory for five-time champions Cameroon meant four-time winners Ghana were eliminated after finishing third in Group B on Monday with only two points.

Apart from group winners and runners-up, the best four third-placed teams from the six sections qualify for the round of 16 and at least four of them will have more points than Ghana.

Hosts Ivory Coast, who suffered a stunning 4-0 defeat by Equatorial Guinea on Monday, will survive if Zambia and Tanzania lose their final Group F matches on Wednesday.

Karl Toko Ekambi was restored to the starting line-up by coach Rigobert Song after playing in a draw with Guinea and being an unused substitute in a loss to Senegal.

Although Cameroon are 80 places above Gambia in the world rankings, they came under considerable first-half pressure and were lucky to be level at 0-0 by half-time.

Goalkeeper Fabrice Ondoa, recalled in place of Manchester United shot-stopper Andre Onana, parried a hard close-range shot from Ali Sowe to safety in the early stages.

Fast tempo

He rescued Cameroon again after 35 minutes, grasping the ball after a Yankuba Minteh header after a corner appeared goal-bound.

Ondoa was in action again soon after, diving to push away a snap shot by Musa Barrow, who either scored or created the four Gambian goals at the 2022 AFCON, where they were quarter-finalists.

Although the opening half produced no goals there was plenty to entertain a 24,000 crowd with the tempo surprisingly fast given the temperature was 34 Celsius (94 Fahrenheit).

Winger Georges-Kevin Nkoudou was prominent early in the second half as Cameroon finally applied continuous pressure.

He had a genuine penalty appeal after a tackle from behind ignored by the Ethiopian referee, then rattled the woodwork with a close-range drive.

Cameroon were barely recognisable from the team that struggled in the opening half and they broke the deadlock on 56 minutes through Toko Ekambi.

The Saudi Pro League star soared between two Gambian defenders and stayed just onside to powerfully head a Nkoudou cross past goalkeeper Baboucarr Gaye.

Gambia refused to panic, however, pushed forward and levelled on 72 minutes when Ablie Jallow stroked a cross wide of Ondoa and into the net.

The match was being fought at a frenetic pace and Toko Ekambi burst into the area and watched in despair as his shot rebounded off the crossbar.

Then came the sensational climax with three goals in six minutes before Cameroon set up a last-16 showdown with Nigeria on Saturday.

Source: AFP

22, January 2024

Five killed in Boko Haram raids in Far North ⁰

At least five people were killed after the terror group, Boko Haram, raided two civilian communities in the Far North region, local and security sources said on Sunday.

The militants raided Ldubam Bah village of the region at about 7 p.m. on Saturday, killing four civilians, a security source in the region said.

At about 8 p.m. on the same day, the militants attacked Mavoumai village of the region, killing one person and injuring a girl, the source said.

“The bodies were buried early Sunday. Our brave soldiers will hunt them down,” the source added.

Local media reported that villagers were fleeing from the villages where the raids were carried out.

Boko Haram has been operating in the region since 2014.

Source: Xinhuanet

22, January 2024

Nigeria beat Guinea-Bissau to seal AFCON last-16 spot ⁰

A first-half Opa Sangante own goal gave Nigeria a 1-0 win over Guinea-Bissau on Monday as the Super Eagles clinched their place in the last 16 of the Africa Cup of Nations.

Sangante emphatically turned a Moses Simon cross into his own net in the 36th minute, after feeling compelled to intervene with Victor Osimhen lurking behind him.

The result means the Super Eagles qualify in second place in Group A with seven points, behind Equatorial Guinea whose 4-0 destruction of hosts Ivory Coast leaves them with a far better goal difference.

Nigeria, who drew 1-1 with Equatorial Guinea in their opening game, have since been efficient if not spectacular, defeating the Ivorians 1-0 with a William Troost-Ekong penalty before this result.

Jose Peseiro’s team will now stay in Abidjan for a last-16 tie on Saturday at the Felix Houphouet Boigny Stadium against the runners-up in Group C, which will be Senegal, Guinea or Cameroon.

Nigeria’s domination had been sterile before the goal came, but they should have added to their lead after the break.

African player of the year Osimhen and substitute Zaidu Sanusi both had goals disallowed for offside in the second half, while Calvin Bassey had a penalty appeal turned down and Ola Aina blasted a good chance over.

Franculino Dju had a goal ruled out at the other end for Guinea-Bissau, who were already eliminated before this game and finish with three defeats.

Shock winners away to Nigeria in qualifying last March, they have still never won a game in 12 attempts across four appearances at the Cup of Nations itself.

Source: AFP

22, January 2024

Liberia’s new president Boakai sworn in with pledge to ‘rescue’ Africa’s oldest republic ⁰

Liberia’s new president, Joseph Boakai, was sworn into office Monday after his narrow win in a November election. Boakai, who at age 79 is the country’s oldest sitting head of state, promised to unite and rescue Africa’s oldest republic from its economic woes.

“Partisanship must give way to nationalism,” Boakai told citizens and foreign delegation members who attended his inauguration ceremony in Monrovia, Liberia’s capital. He listed improving adherence to the rule of law, fighting corruption and renewing “the lost hope” of citizens as his priorities.

The ceremony, however, ended abruptly after Boakai, who wore traditional Liberian attire for the occasion, began to show signs of physical distress while speaking. Officials led him away from the podium after he unsuccessfully tried to continue his address.

A spokesperson for Boakai’s political party said the president’s weakness was caused by heat and had nothing to do with his health.

Boakai has dismissed concerns about his age, arguing that it came with a wealth of experience and achievements that would benefit the country.

He won a tight run-off election to defeat Liberia’s youngest-ever president, George Weah. Public goodwill toward soccer legend-turned-politician Weah waned as he neared the end of his first six-year term. Critics accused him of not fulfilling campaign promises to fix Liberia’s ailing economy, stamp out corruption and to ensure justice for victims of the country’s back-to-back civil wars between 1989 and 2003.

Boakai, who earned a university degree in business administration, has been active in Liberia’s national politics since the 1980s, when he served as the agriculture minister. Starting in 2006, he spent 12 years as vice president under Africa’s first democratically elected female leader, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf.

He lost his first run for the presidency in 2017 to Weah, who took over from Sirleaf in the West African nation’s first democratic transfer of power since the end of its civil wars. Boakai touted his second presidential campaign as a rescue mission to free Liberians from what he described as Weah’s failed leadership.

His promises notwithstanding, any positive changes from the new Liberian leader are likely to come slowly considering how different Boakai’s agenda is from his predecessors, according to Ibrahim Nyei, a researcher and political analyst at Liberia’s Ducor Institute for Social and Economic Research.

“It is not going to be a walk in the park for the Boakai administration,” Nyei said. “The new leadership will have to review concessions agreements signed by Weah and Ellen’s governments to establish which one works in the interest of Liberia (and) seek new international partners that will help address some of the country’s challenges.”

Monrovia resident Ansu Banban Jr. said he thinks Boakai will improve the lives of citizens. “I do not expect anything less than good from the president,” Banban said.

Boakai has a public reputation as a “hardworking and humble politician” whose personality and political experience suggest he “may show more dedication toward combating corruption than previous administrations,” said Zoe McCathie, a political and security analyst at Africa-focused Signal Risk Consulting.

“Nevertheless, it is unlikely that Boakai will be able to fully address this matter due to the entrenched nature of corruption within Liberian politics,” McCathie said. “Achieving sustained economic growth is expected to be an uphill battle for the Boakai administration (because) of the Liberian economy’s lack of diversification and dependence on imports.”

Source: AP

22, January 2024

Biya regime launches world’s first nationwide malaria vaccination programme ⁰

The world’s first routine vaccine programme against malaria has started in Cameroon, in a move projected to save thousands of children’s lives across Africa.

The symbolic first jab was given to a baby girl named Daniella at a health facility near Yaoundé on Monday.

Every year 600,000 people die of malaria in Africa, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).

Children under five make up at least 80% of those deaths.

Cameroon is offering the RTS,S vaccine free of charge to all infants up to the age of six months old.

Patients require a total of four doses. Health officials say these will be given at the same time as other routine childhood vaccines to make it easier for parents.

It comes after successful pilot campaigns in Kenya, Ghana and Malawi – where the vaccine caused a 13% drop in malaria deaths in children of eligible age, says Unicef.

The jab is known to be effective in at least 36% of cases, according to US researchers, meaning it could save over one in three lives.

While the rollout is undoubtedly a relief and a life-saver, its relatively low efficacy rate means that it is not a “silver bullet”, argues Willis Akhwale at End Malaria Council Kenya.

But for medics it is an important additional tool in the fight against malaria alongside mosquito nets and malaria tablets. Using all three together potentially gives children 90% protection from malaria, one UK-led study estimates.

“We have a capacity to considerably reduce the number of cases and deaths from malaria and accelerate the elimination of the disease,” Cameroonian doctor Shalom Ndoula, who helped to lead the vaccine rollout in his country, told BBC Newsday.

Development of the RTS,S vaccine has taken 30 years of research by the British drug-maker GSK.

The World Health Organization, which approved the vaccine, hailed the launch in Cameroon as a historic moment in the global fight against the mosquito-borne disease.

There was another breakthrough earlier this month, when Cape Verde became the first sub-Saharan African country in 50 years to be officially declared malaria-free by the global health body.

‘Safe, effective and free’

Fears and doubts among some Cameroonians about the safety and efficacy of the doses have raised concerns about vaccine hesitancy.

“When people say we are being used as guinea pigs, that’s not particularly true,” Wilfred Fon Mbacham, who is a Cameroonian king and also a professor of public health biotechnology specialising in malaria, told BBC Newsday.

“We as scientists have to do much more to educate the public on what it is, and the benefits it has, so that we can calm their fears.”

Vaccination official Daniele Ekoto at Monday’s launch told the BBC she was reassuring mothers after administering doses to their children, insisting that “it’s a vaccine that’s safe, effective and free”.

But for others the benefits are obvious.

“I decided to vaccinate my child to avoid malaria. It’s a bad thing and when it affects a child, they can easily die,” one mother told the BBC at the same vaccination centre in Soa, near Yaoundé, where Monday’s launch happened.

In 2021, Africa accounted for 95% of malaria cases globally and about 96% of related deaths.

“I have prayed and waited all my life for this vaccine”, Mr Mbacham told the BBC.

The WHO says Cameroon records about six million malaria cases every year, with 4,000 deaths in health facilities – most of them children below five.

Six-month-old children in 42 districts with the greatest rates of morbidity and mortality will receive four doses until the age of two.

Twenty other countries aim to roll out the programme this year, according to the global vaccine alliance, Gavi. Among them are Burkina Faso, Liberia, Niger and Sierra Leone.

There is already a big demand for doses, but only about 18 million are available for allocation before 2025, according to Gavi.

It falls short of what is needed by the countries the vaccine alliance has recommended for approval.

The anticipated rollout of a second jab – R21 – developed by Oxford University, is expected to significantly increase the number of doses available for use.

This is to be manufactured by the Serum Institute of India, which aims to make 100 million doses per year, so long as it successfully passes the regulatory approvals following its recommendation for use by the WHO last year.

Source: BBC

21, January 2024

Africa Cup of Nations: Morocco held by DR Congo ⁰

Morocco will have to wait to clinch a place in the last 16 of the Africa Cup of Nations after being held to a 1-1 draw by the Democratic Republic of Congo on Sunday, with Silas Katompa Mvumpa earning the Leopards a deserved draw.

Achraf Hakimi had given heavily-fancied Morocco an early lead in San-Pedro, in the south-western corner of Ivory Coast, and Cedric Bakambu missed a penalty for the Congolese before the interval.

But substitute Silas, of German Bundesliga side VfB Stuttgart, swept home the equaliser on 76 minutes to ensure a share of the spoils.

Having beaten Tanzania 3-0 in their opening game, Morocco are on top of Group F with four points, with DR Congo on two points after starting by drawing 1-1 with Zambia.

Tanzania and Zambia were due to meet each other in Sunday’s other game, before 2022 World Cup semi-finalists Morocco take on the Zambians in their last group outing on Wednesday with the aim of wrapping up a spot in the knockout stage.

The Atlas Lions beat DR Congo 5-2 on aggregate in a play-off to qualify for the last World Cup, and they looked to be on course for a comfortable win here when they went in front inside six minutes.

Hakimi was left unmarked at a corner from the Moroccan left, and the Paris Saint-Germain full-back duly dispatched a sidefoot volley low into the net.

The Leopards were awarded a penalty late in the first half for a Selim Amallah handball following a VAR check, but Galatasaray forward Bakambu’s kick hit the post and went wide.

Nevertheless, they remained a threat on the break in the second half and two substitutes combined as they drew level inside the final quarter of an hour.

Meschack Elia cut the ball back from the right side of the box for fellow substitute Silas to score, as DR Congo came from behind to draw for the second game in a row.

Morocco, chasing just a second AFCON title and a first since 1976, still know they will top the group by beating 2012 champions Zambia next.

Source: AFP