Voters in Johannesburg go to the polls on Wednesday for South Africa's local elections, and for many of them the main issue is coming out of their taps, or failing to. According to Africanews, the country's economic capital and largest city has had nearly two weeks of disruption to its water supply, with severe outages and low pressure in parts of the city. That leaves basic services at the top of residents' concerns as they choose who will run their municipalities. These elections may turn less on national loyalties than on whether local government can keep the water running.
Elsewhere on the continent, the state of democratic competition is under scrutiny. A European Union report described by The Brussels Times flags inequalities in Zambia's election campaign and calls for urgent electoral reform. In Cameroon, Business in Cameroon reports that opposition figure Tchiroma is standing by an election boycott he announced before his party was suspended. In Dakar, lawmakers showed they are willing to push back on the executive, because Senegal's parliament voted against a revised budget bill, as CNBC Africa reports. Press freedom in Ethiopia has taken a blow too. Human Rights Watch says the authorities have suspended an independent newspaper, which other reports identify as the country's oldest independent title, with its registration suspended indefinitely.
Diplomacy and security filled much of the rest of the day. Egypt's foreign minister spoke with his Iranian counterpart amid fears of renewed fighting in the region. According to Arab News, Cairo urged flexibility and restraint, and the Egyptian Gazette describes the call as focused on de-escalation. On Western Sahara, Atalayar reports that the UN has summoned Moscow and Algiers to explain the veto that ended the mandate of the MINURSO mission. In a commentary, Pan African Review argues against renewing MONUSCO's mandate in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, saying the mission has failed to stabilise the country.
Military ties are being rebuilt and extended too. The Central African Republic's military chief held high-level talks with the leadership of the Rwanda Defence Force, according to mod.gov.rw. Ethiopia and China pledged to deepen military and strategic cooperation, ENA English reports. Tunisia received about $1m worth of counterterrorism equipment, according to Latest news from Azerbaijan. In Libya, The Libya Observer says 15 trucks carrying essential goods were seized in Tripoli over a suspected smuggling attempt. There was a notable success in international law as well, because Kenya's Phoebe Okowa has been elected a judge of the International Court of Justice for a nine-year term, as The Star, Kenya reports. In London, King Charles III told Commonwealth leaders that the transatlantic slave trade was a "monstrous injustice", though he stopped short of an apology while the UK prime minister considers one, Africanews reports.
North Africa supplied most of the day's economic news. The IMF highlighted Algeria's progress in diversifying its economy, according to Algeria Press Service, and the same agency reports major strides in the country's national climate action framework. Egypt's hospitality sector keeps drawing investors. Adeer International and its partners are targeting $2bn in hospitality investments, Daily News Egypt reports, and Hotel101 Global has entered Egypt, which is its first market in Africa, according to markets.businessinsider.com. Cairo is also in talks with Samsung about producing ultrasound and mobile X-ray devices locally, Daily News Egypt adds. Further south, the fuels distributor Oryx has sold its Zambia business, Quantum Commodity Intelligence reports. Meanwhile, International Relations Review calls overfishing in Senegal an avoidable tragedy.
One of the day's more hopeful stories came from health. The New York Times reports on the maternal drape, a plastic pouch that costs about 80 cents and is helping to save thousands of women from dying in childbirth, including in Nigeria. It is a simple tool aimed at one of the world's most stubborn health problems.
In sport, the Angola Ladies Open reached its third round, with matches such as Justina Mikulskyte against Maayan Laron, covered by tennismajors.com. Senegal is preparing to host the CAF Beach Soccer Africa Cup of Nations, and CAFOnline.com has announced the procedures for the tournament's final draw.
