Somalia’s federal government has lifted a months-long flight ban to the Doolow airport in Gedo region amid longstanding political tensions with Jubbaland. The Interior Ministry said Sunday that domestic flights could resume to Doolow, nearly five months after Mogadishu grounded traffic to the southwestern town of Jubbaland State. The airport was shut down on December 23, 2024, following an incident in which a Halla Airlines flight on the Mogadishu–Kismayo route was allegedly diverted and forced to land in Doolow without clearance. Federal officials called the landing a breach of Somali airspace laws. Interior Minister Abdullahi Sheikh Ismail Fartaag said the reopening decision followed a federal security review and fresh guarantees from local Doolow authorities…But the row over the airport has exposed deeper rifts between the central government and the Jubbaland regional administration, which had accused Mogadishu of using the ban to punish communities seen as politically aligned with President Ahmed Madobe — whose controversial re-election in 2019 is still not recognised by the federal government. Residents in Gedo had decried the airport closure for cutting off critical medical and trade routes. (The EastAfrican)

The governor of Upper Nile State, Gen. James Koang Chuol, confirmed Tuesday that the South Sudan People’s Defense Forces (SSPDF) have taken full control of areas in Nasir County near the border with Ethiopia, previously held by the White Army, a loose band of armed Nuer youths. Speaking to Radio Tamazuj, Chuol said the border areas, including the payams of Jikmir and Burebiey, were brought under SSPDF control Monday. He stated that troops from Nasir town captured the last remaining villages along the border, cutting off supply routes from Ethiopia to Akobo and Nasir…Gen. James Tongyik Wang, an opposition commander who was near the South Sudan-Ethiopia border, confirmed to Radio Tamazuj that the SSPDF controlled Burebiey and Jikmir payams and the border with Ethiopia…Conflicts in eastern parts of Upper Nile State began last year between the SSPDF and the White Army but intensified earlier this year. (Radio Tamazuj)

Since Sudan’s devastating war erupted in April 2023, over a million people have fled to neighbouring Egypt seeking refuge. Both countries have laws banning female genital mutilation (FGM), but despite this, Sudan and Egypt have some of the highest rates of FGM globally. A timely new study, Female Genital Mutilation Amongst Sudanese Migrants in Greater Cairo: Perceptions and Trends, by Equality Now and Tadwein for Gender Studies, provides valuable insights into how migration and exposure to new cultural environments and social networks are influencing FGM practices amongst Sudanese families in Egypt.

In-depth interviews revealed positive attitudes toward abandoning FGM. Younger, educated individuals and women with personal experiences of FGM harm voiced some of the strongest opposition to continuing the practice, while men often cited FGM’s negative impact on marital intimacy as a key reason for discontinuation. 

However, FGM is viewed by some as a means of maintaining cultural identity and status, and as essential for social acceptance. Many interviewees thought families who embraced FGM in Sudan would likely continue it in Egypt. (Press release)

Edelman Africa launched its Regional Advisory (ERA) team, comprised of senior industry veterans and communications advisors spread across North, East, West, Central and Southern Africa to assist existing and potential clients build their businesses and navigate the continent.

This move, together with Edelman’s established network of vetted partners that span the entire African continent and offer on-the-ground tactical support across all 54 countries, positions Edelman Africa as the most connected communications advisory on the African continent and the leading provider of communications advisory across the regions.

To build upon Edelman Africa’s already established teams in both Southern and East Africa, the regional advisory team will be co-led by two external advisors handpicked for their decades of experience across their respective regions: Kwame Senou, Executive Director of The Holding Opinion and Public (THOP) in Cote d’Ivoire and Kamal Taibi, Founder & CEO of Stratëus Group in Morocco. (Press release)