Good Afternoon folks! 😁😁

Delighted to have you here. And if you joined us this week, it’s great to finally connect with you… so here we go!

Welcome to The Friday Briefing, your weekly brief on geopolitics.

This is our second newsletter. It’s still a bit of a test, so if something does go wrong be sure to let us know… but anyway, we plan to send out your brief every Friday lunchtime 12pm GMT.

Our goal is to provide you with a balanced and insightful overview, allowing you to stay informed without being overwhelmed with information. But above all, we understand the value of your time. With our summaries, you can quickly grasp the major events shaping our world, deepen your understanding and be on your way in no time!

Our starting point…yes…Africa, but our vision extends beyond the boundaries of a single continent.

I’m sure many of you will find this newsletter useful, but please don’t hesitate to follow us on our Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn pages.

Oh don’t forget, feel free to leave behind any feedback, suggestions or further ideas you would like us to run with 🙂 

^{Why Africa? maybe because we don’t hear much…}

Back in 2013, the 42nd President of the United States tweeted the above tweet, “Just touched down in Africa…” ⬆️

Although Mr Clinton’s tweet was true, despite the brazen mistruths our leaders spout these days, he nonetheless could’ve worded it a lot better.

But the tweet tells us a lot more. It exposes an attitude that many of us may have towards Africa, either through ignorance or laziness or maybe because we don’t hear enough about African countries in our national news media.

This is a continent as diverse as it is complex, a continent home to over 1.4 billion people and 54 countries, making it the second-most populated continent in the world.

Events in Africa aren't isolated, they hold global importance too. Political transitions, economic developments and conflicts in Africa have ripple effects that stretch far beyond its borders.

And yes, while we begin with Africa, we’re dedicated to expanding our weekly round-ups to other continents in due course, taking our mission to new frontiers by connecting the dots between nations and continents.

So stay tuned! 👌

^{So, what’s been happening this week? 23 Oct - 27 Oct}

• Nigeria’s supreme court upholds Tinubu’s victory

• Liberia’s Ballon d’Or winning President braces for a second round of elections

• Ethiopia’s Prime Minister’s denies any invasion talks following controversial comments last week

• King Charles III to visit Kenya on a first state visit to the Commonwealth

• Niger President’s lawyers deny escape attempt after military foils plan

• World Bank approves $1Billion loan to South Africa

• Sudan ceasefire talks back on in Saudi Arabia

^{What does this mean?}

Nigeria’s Supreme Court refused to annul the political opposition challenges which argued that the vote was flawed and that Tinubu was not qualified to seek or hold the presidency.

Despite the Election Petition Court upholding Mr Tinubu’s victory last month, the opposition parties insisted Nigeria’s highest court should quash the judgement once and for all.

During a televised hearing in the capital Abuja, the Supreme Court dismissed the challenges of both the Peoples Democratic Party and the Labour Party in their entirety affirming that Tinubu’s victory followed due process. The election was the most closely followed election since the end of the military rule in 1999, with very strong candidates.

Mr Tinubu was with 37% of the votes, against 29% for Mr Abubakar and 25% for Mr Obi respectively. Thursday’s ruling did not come as a surprise to Nigerians because no presidential election in Nigeria has ever been annulled by a court.

Did you know…

Nigeria is home to over 200 million people making it the most populous country in Africa and the seventh in the world. With an abundance of resources including oil and gas, it boasts the largest natural gas reserves on the continent and is Africa’s largest oil and gas producer.