https://www.scmp.com/rss/519159/feed en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Jevans Nyabiage Jevans Nyabiage China is rolling out hundreds of activities across Africa, including study trips and AI competitions, as part of what experts have described as a “soft power” charm offensive designed to deepen its influence across the continent. In moving beyond its traditional focus on infrastructure and high-level finance, Beijing is expanding its engagement through the 2026 China-Africa Year of People-to-People Exchanges – an initiative dedicated to cultural and social diplomacy. Announced by Chinese Foreign... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3340092/how-china-stepping-africa-charm-offensive-boost-cultural-ties-deepen-influence?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3340092/how-china-stepping-africa-charm-offensive-boost-cultural-ties-deepen-influence?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 18 Jan 2026 12:00:18 +0000 Ushar Daniele Ushar Daniele As climate change fuels more frequent floods and storms across Southeast Asia, forests and wildlife are being pushed to their breaking point, with conservationists and scientists warning of a worsening impact on ecosystems due to a lack of oversight and countermeasures. In late November, cyclone-driven rains battered Indonesia’s Sumatra island, triggering floods and landslides that killed more than 1,000 people, left hundreds missing and forced hundreds of thousands from their homes, according... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3337344/southeast-asian-floods-set-threaten-more-wildlife-due-climate-change?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3337344/southeast-asian-floods-set-threaten-more-wildlife-due-climate-change?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 23 Dec 2025 03:00:12 +0000 Jevans Nyabiage Jevans Nyabiage Chinese companies and miners in Africa are facing severe security threats from armed groups in search of gold, driven by soaring global prices for the precious metal. Multiple attacks and kidnappings targeting gold miners have been reported from Ghana, the Central African Republic, Mali and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) in recent months. In Mali – one of Africa’s top gold producers – the Chinese embassy has repeatedly warned its citizens against operating gold mines in the country... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3321419/global-uncertainties-drive-chinese-rush-african-goldfields-despite-risks?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3321419/global-uncertainties-drive-chinese-rush-african-goldfields-despite-risks?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 11 Aug 2025 05:22:33 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse The International Criminal Court on Thursday convicted a former top Central African Republic football official and a militiaman nicknamed Rambo for war crimes committed during the country’s civil war in 2013 and 2014. Ex-sports minister Patrice-Edouard Ngaissona was a senior leader of mainly Christian militias as the country slid into civil war, while Alfred Yekatom, a former MP, commanded them on the ground. The ICC sentenced Yekatom to 15 years behind bars for 20 war crimes and crimes against... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/africa/article/3319555/icc-convicts-rambo-and-ex-sports-minister-central-african-republic-war-crimes?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/africa/article/3319555/icc-convicts-rambo-and-ex-sports-minister-central-african-republic-war-crimes?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 25 Jul 2025 05:33:31 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Twenty-nine students taking their high school exams in the Central African Republic died in a stampede sparked by an exploding power transformer, the health ministry said on Thursday. Just over 5,300 students were sitting the second day of the baccalaureate exams at the time of the explosion early Wednesday afternoon in Bangui, the capital of the deeply poor nation. In the ensuing panic, supervisors and students tried to flee, some jumping from the first floor of the school. The injured were... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/africa/article/3315989/stampede-central-african-republic-leaves-29-students-dead?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/africa/article/3315989/stampede-central-african-republic-leaves-29-students-dead?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 26 Jun 2025 15:23:20 +0000 Jevans Nyabiage Jevans Nyabiage For over two decades, Chinese companies have been known to demonstrate a notable risk tolerance, often venturing into overseas markets that Western counterparts avoided. This is evident in the conflict-ridden yet mineral-rich Democratic Republic of Congo, where Chinese mining enterprises had in the past decade made vast investments as foreign-owned companies exited, positioning the country as the world’s largest producer of cobalt and second-largest producer of copper. This pattern of investment... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3315136/growing-risks-chinese-companies-conflict-ridden-african-nations?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3315136/growing-risks-chinese-companies-conflict-ridden-african-nations?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 23 Jun 2025 02:00:10 +0000