Africa 54 - December 29, 2021

You are watching Africa 54, your daily news and feature magazine-style program, from the Voice of America. Host Esther Githui-Ewart & a team of correspondents zero in on the big stories making news on the continent and around the world with context and analysis. Top Stories: Somali Prime Minister Mohamed Hussein Roble spoke by telephone with Molly Phee, U.S. assistant secretary of state for African affairs, about the political situation in Somalia, security and elections, amid an escalating row between Roble and the President. On Tuesday, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke with Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta Tuesday to discuss regional security issues of mutual interest, including the situations in Ethiopia and Somalia. On Somalia, Blinken noted the U.S. opposition to the attempted suspension of Prime Minister Roble, and they agreed that all parties should refrain from escalatory actions and statements. As South Africans celebrate the life of anti-apartheid hero Archbishop Desmond Tutu, who died on Sunday, his daughter Nontombi Naomi Tutu a reverend herself, on Tuesday recalled the day her father stepped in to save a young man from being burned alive by an angry mob as one of her proudest memories. The man had been accused of being an apartheid collaborator and was doused with petrol and only moments away from being burned to death when her father, the late Archbishop Desmond Tutu and other clergy intervened to save the man. Rescuers were working to retrieve the dead and injured from a gold mine in a remote area of Sudan on Wednesday, three days after it collapsed killing at least 32 people, a mining official said. As of Wednesday morning, 32 bodies had been recovered from the mine in West Kordofan in addition to three people rescued with injuries.The mine collapsed on Sunday evening, when according to witnesses about 40 people were believed to be inside it at a depth of more than 20 meters. A Prerecorded Skype interview with Loukman Ali, a Ugandan screenwriter, film director, and producer, about his new deal with Netflix: A report released earlier this year by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) says the film industry in Africa could be a new game-changer. With projected revenue of about 20 billion dollars, the industry will likely create 20 million jobs. In Uganda, "The Girl in the Yellow Jumper," produced and directed by Loukman Ali, started streaming on Netflix this Christmas Holiday. For more, Africa 54's Technology Correspondent Paul Ndiho spoke to Loukman Ali, a Ugandan screenwriter, film director, and producer, about his new deal with Netflix. Hundreds of children in Kenya's malaria-prone western region were inoculated with doses of the newly approved Mosquirix malaria vaccine on October 7th. Mosquirix has been 30 years in the making. Experts hope the fight against malaria might gain considerable ground following the WHO's recommendation that RTS,S - or Mosquirix - a vaccine developed by British Drug maker GlaxoSmithKline should be widely given to children in Africa. Trinh Since an artist garnered $69 million earlier this year for digital artwork tied to blockchain technology, artists and fans have taken an increasing interest in so-called non-fungible tokens. The Arlington Philharmonic is a professional symphony orchestra in Virginia that promotes the value of classical music. #Somalia #Roble #Kenya #DesmondTutu #SouthAfrica #Sudan #Uganda