Infos: CHAN 2023: Time for Algeria
The Nelson Mandela Stadium in Baraki southeast of Algier – Copyright © africanews AFP By Rédaction Africanews and Pierre Michaud Last updated: 16 hours ago Algeria The 7th African Nations Championship (CHAN) begins tonight in Algeria with an opening match between the Local Fennecs and their neighbours Libya. An opening match will take place in
by-redaction-africanews-and-pierre-michaud
The Nelson Mandela Stadium in Baraki southeast of Algier –
and Pierre Michaud
Last updated: 16 hours ago
The 7th African Nations Championship (CHAN) begins tonight in Algeria with an opening match between the Local Fennecs and their neighbours Libya. An opening match will take place in the brand-new Nelson Mandela stadium in Algiers.
There were a lot of people on Thursday evening in the Algerian capital to inaugurate the Nelson Mandela stadium, named after the continental icon. CAF President Patrice Motsepe was particularly moved to honour his late compatriot. At his side, FIFA President Gianni Infantino was present as a few months earlier for the previous edition in Cameroon.
The enclosure located in Baraki, southeast of Algiers, will have taken almost 20 years to come out of the ground. Launched in 2009, the construction knew several years marked by long stoppages before being delivered.
This evening, the stands will be packed and Patrice Mostepe will be able to officially launch a CHAN that he announces as "the most successful in history".
"Algeria has world-class facilities," he said at the inaugural press conference. " CAF attaches particular importance to this competition dedicated to local players and that is why we have increased the prize money for the competition, in order to encourage African nations to promote the local player and develop football in our continent".
Patrice Motsepe carefully avoided the subject of the pending participation of Morocco, finally validated in the evening. The absence of the double title holders would have undermined his ambitions for the tournament.
The Atlas Lions will once again be the favourites as the competition brings together 18 nations for the first time, divided into five groups.
5 groups, 18 nations
In the first, Algeria will be favorite. In addition to playing at home, she remains on a prestigious victory during the first Arab Cup organized by FIFA at the end of 2021 in Qatar with a team very close to the one that will be aligned for this CHAN. The Fennecs will have to mark the occasion this evening against Libya led by the Frenchman Corentin Martins. The Knights of the Mediterranean regularly shine at CHAN, which they won in 2014. Ethiopia and Mozambique, absent from the last editions, should not worry the two North African teams.
The "group of death" of this CHAN is undoubtedly group B, with three formations among the most competitive on the continent. Twice titled in the past, the Congolese Leopards leave with a slight lead in the forecasts but will have to be wary of the Ivorians and the Senegalese. The two West African giants are taking advantage of the expansion of the format to make their return to the tournament and arrive in Algeria with great ambitions. Uganda seems poorly equipped to create surprises.
In group C, we should find a rejuvenated Morocco compared to previous editions but which will rely on the recent sporting exploits of its elders (consecrated during the last two CHANs and, of course, the first African semi-finalist of a Cup of the world for the A's). It will be more open between Ghana, Sudan and Madagascar, again invited to a continental banquet after their participation in CAN 2019.
The last two groups only have three teams, which will limit the possibility of making up for a bad result. Above all, only one formation will be able to validate its presence in the next round.
In Group D, it is hard to imagine Angola or Mauritania depriving Mali of first place. The Local Eagles have reached two of the last three finals of the event.
Group E seems to him promised in Cameroon even if the Congo could play the role of a spoilsport. The Indomitable Lions, organizers of the last edition, will rely on two players seen in Qatar for the World Cup: the formidable striker Souaibou Marou, who will leave Coton Sport de Garoua for the South African Orlando Pirates after the tournament, and Jérôme Ngom, author of the decisive pass on the goal of Vincent Aboubakar, synonymous with a prestigious victory against great Brazil in Doha.
CHAN's awards
2009: DR Congo
2011: Tunisia
2014: Libya
2018: Morocco
The complete calendar
January 13: Algeria-Libya (Group A), Nelson Mandela Stadium (Baraki) in Algiers
January 14: Ethiopia-Mozambique (Group A), Nelson Mandela Stadium (Baraki) in Algiers
January 14: DR Congo-Uganda (Group B), Stade du 19 mai 1956 d'Annaba
January 14: Ivory Coast-Senegal (Group B), Stade du 19 mai 1956 d'Annaba
January 15: Morocco-Sudan (Group C), Hamlaoui Stadium in Constantine
January 15: Madagascar-Ghana (Group C), Hamlaoui Stadium in Constantine
January 16: Mali-Angola (Group D), Miloud Hadefi Stadium in Oran
January 16: Cameroon-Congo (Group E), Miloud Hadefi Stadium in Oran
January 17: Mozambique-Libya (Group A), Nelson Mandela Stadium (Baraki) in Algiers
January 17: Algeria-Ethiopia (Group A), Nelson Mandela Stadium (Baraki) in Algiers
January 18: DR Congo-Côte d'Ivoire (Group B), Stade du 19 mai 1956 d'Annaba
January 18: Senegal-Uganda (Group B), Stade du 19 mai 1956 d'Annaba
January 19: Morocco-Madagascar (Group C), Hamlaoui Stadium in Constantine
January 19: Ghana-Sudan (Group C), Hamlaoui Stadium in Constantine
January 20: Angola-Mauritania (Group D), Miloud Hadefi Stadium in Oran
January 20: Congo-Niger (Group E), Miloud Hadefi Stadium in Oran
January 21: Mozambique-Algeria (Group A), Nelson Mandela Stadium (Baraki) in Algiers
January 21: Libya-Ethiopia (Group A), Annaba May 19, 1956 Stadium
January 22: Senegal-DR Congo (Group B), Stade du 19 mai 1956 d'Annaba
January 22: Uganda-Côte d'Ivoire (Group B), Nelson Mandela Stadium (Baraki) in Algiers
January 23: Ghana-Morocco (Group C), Hamlaoui Stadium in Constantine
January 23: Sudan-Madagascar (Group C), Miloud Hadefi Stadium in Oran
January 24: Mauritania-Mali, (Group D), Miloud Hadefi Stadium in Oran
January 24: Niger-Cameroon, (Group E), Miloud Hadefi Stadium in Oran
January 27: 1st group A – 2nd group B, Nelson Mandela Stadium (Baraki) in Algiers
January 27: 1st group B – 1st group D, Stade du 19 mai 1956 d'Annaba
January 28: 1st group C – 2nd group A, Hamlaoui Stadium in Constantine
January 28: 1st group E – 2nd group C, Miloud Hadefi Stadium in Oran
January 31: winner quarter 1 – winner quarter 4, Stade Miloud Hadefi d'Oran
January 31: winner quarter 2 – winner quarter 3, Nelson Mandela Stadium (Baraki) in Algiers
Match for third place
February 3: Miloud Hadefi Stadium in Oran
February 4: Nelson Mandela (Baraki) Stadium in Algiers
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Congolese officials and the Director of Infrastructure in the World Bank's Africa West region, on January 24, 2023. – Copyright © africanews Clearrf By Rédaction Africanews and Laudes Martial, correspondent in Brazzaville, The Congo Last updated: 27/01 – 22:48 Republic of the Congo The view of a cybercafé is commonplace in The Congo. Gloire Ness
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Congolese officials and the Director of Infrastructure in the World Bank's Africa West region, on January 24, 2023. –
Clearrf
and Laudes Martial, correspondent in Brazzaville, The Congo
Last updated: 27/01 – 22:48
The view of a cybercafé is commonplace in The Congo. Gloire Ness a 21-year old from Bacongo in Brazzaville managesa small business.
On a daily basis, he has to deal with issues ranging from blackouts to poor access to Internet.
"The difficulties primarily from the Internet connection. Customers often say it's a little slow. It's not the quality we want. Still you've got to deal with it anyway."
In order to positively impact at least 2 million Congolese, the Digital Transformation Acceleration Project was launched Tuesday (Jan. 24). Local authorities took out a multi-million dollar loan to fund it. The World Bank contributed 100 million dollars for a five-year period.
According to the project managers, the Congo will benefit in the near future from a grant of 15 million euros (10 billion CFA francs) from the European Union (EU).
"The World Bank is pleased to contribute to the financing of this strategic pillar as part of its Digital Economy initiative for Africa, which aims to support countries in their digitalization efforts," Franz Drees-Gross, the Director of Infrastructure in the World Bank's Africa West region said.
The project aims to ramp up the government's ability to providing more efficient digital public services and to increase access to Internet for underserved populations.
The community aspect includes what are called "dead spots", that is to say areas where economic operators, based on their specifications, are not bound to provide bandwith coverage because it is not profitable for them. Therefore, the State, which has the obligation to provide universal service, must ensure the connectivity of all citizens," project coordinator Francis Seck Mangouani explained.
The Digital Acceleration Project launches as another one is currently being deployed. For several years now, the Congo has been trying to improve its interconnection with other countries in the sub-region, notably Gabon, Cameroon and the Central African Republic.
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Congo Brazzaville infrastructure
In this photograph taken Tuesday July 19, 2011 armed soldiers stage a night patrol at an isolated outpost in the Kruger National Park's Sabi River valley. – Copyright © africanews Denis Farrell/AP2011 By Rédaction Africanews and AP Last updated: 26/01 – 13:39 Sudan A new report on African governance released Wednesday (Jan. 25) finds much
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In this photograph taken Tuesday July 19, 2011 armed soldiers stage a night patrol at an isolated outpost in the Kruger National Park's Sabi River valley. –
Denis Farrell/AP2011
and AP
A new report on African governance released Wednesday (Jan. 25) finds much of the continent is "less safe, secure and democratic" than it was 10 years ago, citing a surge in military coups and armed conflicts.
The democratic backsliding now threatens to reverse decades of progress made in Africa, according to an index of governance compiled by the Mo Ibrahim Foundation that notes 23 successful and attempted coups since 2012.
"This phenomenon of coup d'etats that was common in the '80s seems to have become fashionable again in certain parts of Africa," said Ibrahim, a British billionaire born in Sudan who is using his fortune to promote democracy and political accountability in Africa.
His foundation's report cited eight successful coups just since 2019. Mali and neighboring Burkina Faso have seen two each during that time, further destabilizing a part of the world already under siege by Islamic militants.
Pervasive security problems
The report's authors also found overall security problems pervasive: Over the past decade, nearly 70% of Africans saw security and rule of law decrease in their countries, they said. More than 30 countries declined in this category, according to the index.
South Sudan ranked at the bottom, followed by Somalia, Eritrea, Congo, Sudan, Central African Republic, Cameroon, Burundi, Libya and Equatorial Guinea.
Government violence against civilians and political unrest increased across Africa since the COVID-19 pandemic began, the report says, with governments using restrictions to clamp down on dissent.
"Although this trend predates the pandemic, existing antidemocratic tendencies have been accelerated by the introduction of restrictive measures and emergency provisions that have been left in place for an extended time period," it said.
The index did chart improvements in some economic, education and gender equity categories, Ibrahim said. However, the report only analyzed data through the end of 2021 so did not take into account the full impact of the global COVID-19 pandemic.
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Mo Ibrahim Index
In this photo taken Friday, Oct. 5. 2018, people sit under campaign election posters of President Paul Biya, in Yaounde, Cameroon. – Copyright © africanews Sunday Alamba/Copyright 2018 The AP. All rights reserved. By Rédaction Africanews Last updated: 25/01 – 14:24 Cameroon's Anglophone Crisis The Cameroonian government has denied that it asked any country to
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In this photo taken Friday, Oct. 5. 2018, people sit under campaign election posters of President Paul Biya, in Yaounde, Cameroon. –
Sunday Alamba/Copyright 2018 The AP. All rights reserved.
Cameroon's Anglophone Crisis
The Cameroonian government has denied that it asked any country to mediate in its conflict with separatists trying to form a breakaway state called Ambazonia in its minority English-speaking regions. The latest comes after Canada last week said it had received a request to work on a peace process.
In a statement issued on Monday, Cameroon said it had "not entrusted any foreign country or external entity with any role of mediator or facilitator to settle the crisis".
In response, a spokesperson for the Anglophone separatists, said they had taken note of the government's latest statement while Ottawa on Tuesday said it was in touch with both sides in the conflict, maintaining that it's statement still stands.
Since 2017, factions of secessionist militias have been battling government troops in the two English-speaking regions of Cameroon.
The conflict with government troops has left at least 6000 people dead and nearly 800,000 people displaced according to the Canadian government.
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