Gabon

AFPCopyright: AFP

Town hall-style meetings on how to tackle Gabon's high cost of living have ended with plenty of recommendations but no clear plan of action.

The central African nation imports a lot of its food and one popular suggestion has been to scrap all taxes on food imports.

Other recommendations included scrapping VAT on all basic necessities, raising import taxes on luxuries like champagne and cigarettes, ending police racketeering, as well as boosting local agriculture and quarries.

This national forum was held in all nine of Gabon's provinces and the capital, Libreville, ending on Thursday.

"There are, among the proposals that have been made, some that can be applied immediately and others that will have to be spread out," said Prime Minister Alain Claude Bilie-By-Nze.

A half-brother of Togo's President Faure Gnassingbé, who has been in prison since 2009 over a failed coup attempt, has been evacuated to Gabon because of his deteriorating health, one of his lawyers has confirmed to AFP news agency.

Kpatcha Gnassingbé, who suffers from diabetes, was being treated in a hospital in Gabon, Zeus Ajavon said.

"We have asked for his evacuation several times, because of the deteriorating state of his health. We appreciate this gesture," he added.

In 2011, Togo's Supreme Court sentenced Kpatcha Gnassingbé, the former defence minister, to 20 years in prison for plotting a coup against his half-brother.

He was arrested in 2009 as he sought refuge in the US embassy in Togo's capital, Lomé.

He had been in the military wing of a hospital in Lom since June 2021.

He has received no reply to his requests for a pardon, Mr Ajavon told AFP.

The death toll from last week's ferry accident in Gabon has risen to 21, local officials say, after divers recovered more bodies.

The vessel named Esther Miracle was carrying 161 passengers from the capital Libreville to Port-Gentil when it sank on Thursday close to the coastal village of Nyonie.

"All passengers were wearing life jackets," said public prosecutor André Patrick Roponat, who assured that rescue teams were still exploring the boat "to see if other bodies are trapped".

According to the lead search officer, 350 soldiers, patrol boats, shuttles, diving robots and radars were deployed for the operation.

But for the families of the missing victims, hope of finding their loved ones alive is fading.

"My four children have not been found... the families are only losing hope," lamented a mother interviewed by the BBC.

The authorities have suspended operations of the vessel's owner Royal Cost until further notice.

Reports say the ferry, which started operations in November last year, was overloaded and was likely carrying livestock too.

BBCCopyright: BBC

Gabon has begun three days of national mourning following a ferry accident that left six dead and around 20 others missing.

The Esther Miracle ferry, a mixed passenger and freight vessel, sank off the coast of the capital, Libreville, on Thursday night.

The government has since suspended four officials and the public prosecutor has announced the opening of an investigation.

The search continues to find the missing people

Civil society organizations plan to file a complaint against the Gabonese state and the ferry owner, Royal Coast Marine (RCM).

President Ali Bongo announced three days of national mourning in a brief address on national television on Monday evening. Festive and sporting events are suspended during the morning period.

The ferry operated between Libreville and oil city of Port-Gentil. Its wreckage was detected at a depth of 30m, according to Gabonese authorities,

Rescuers are hunting for survivors after a ferry sank of the coast of Gabon, leaving two people dead.

Royal Cost Marine (RCM), the company that owns the Esther Miracle ferry, said on Facebook that the vessel sprang a leak as it was travelling from Port-Gentil to the capital, Libreville, in the early hours of Thursday morning.

In a message posted on Thursday afternoon, the firm said 121 people had been rescued so far and taken to hospitals in Libreville.

The AFP news agency quoted officials as saying 151 passengers and crew had been onboard, meaning 28 people are still missing.

RCM said operations to find further survivors were continuing.

"The search is continuing but if at nightfall we don't find anyone, we will sadly have to consider the strong probability that those missing have died," AFP quotes public prosecutor Andre Patrick Roponat as saying.

Relatives of those on board are gathered by the quayside in Libreville waiting for news, AFP reports.

"My daughter called me in the middle of the night to say that something was going on," a man in his 50s is quoted as saying.

"She said: 'Dad, we're sinking', and then there was no more," he said.

RCM's Facebook page has photos of the Esther Miracle's inauguration at a ceremony in November last year:

AFPCopyright: AFP

All political terms in office in Gabon will now last five years, President Ali Bongo announced on Monday.

Until now, presidents officially served seven-year terms and senators served six-year terms.

But Mr Bongo, who has led the country since his father's death in 2009, has not made any statements regarding a new limit on the number of terms a president can serve.

As things stand presidents, MPs and senators can run for office as many times as they like, RFI explains.

President Bongo's announcement came during talks between the government and opposition, which were called to discuss election matters ahead of polls expected later this year.

More on Gabon:

• Why ex-French colonies are joining the Commonwealth
• Who is Ali Bongo, president of Gabon?

AFPCopyright: AFP

Gabon's Foreign Minister Michael Moussa Adamo has died after suffering a heart attack during a cabinet meeting on Friday.

The 62-year-old died despite "despite efforts by specialists" to revive him, a government statement said.

"He was a very great diplomat, a true statesman. For me, he was first of all a friend, loyal and faithful, whom I could always count on," President Ali Bongo tweeted.

Mr Adamo was a well-known television broadcaster before joining politics.

He had served in several government roles, including as Mr Bongo's special advisor, before becoming foreign minister last year.

The Gabonese opposition leader, Guy Nzouba-Ndama, has been placed under house arrest five days after he was detained at the Congolese border with suitcases packed with about $2 million (£1.8 million).

His arrest was filmed and the opening of the suitcases posted on social media.

Mr Nzouba-Ndama - a potential candidate in upcoming presidential elections - has been charged with violations of import controls and cooperation with a foreign power.

His party, The Democrats, say the accusations are politically motivated.

The 76-year-old was for 19 years the speaker of the National Assembly and a loyal ally of the former president, Omar Bongo, father of the incumbent Ali Bongo Ondimba.

Getty ImagesCopyright: Getty Images

The Barcelona footballer Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has been the victim of a violent robbery in his home.

The club said four armed men had broken into the Gabonese striker's house early on Monday, and forced him to open a safe.

The men made off with the jewels that were kept there.

There have been several break-ins in footballers' homes in Spain, but most of them have taken place when the stars have been playing.

PACopyright: PA

Former French colonies Gabon and Togo are set become the latest countries to join the Commonwealth, which is made up of 54 nations most of which were once part of the British Empire.

They will be the first new members in more than a decade - the last one being Rwanda, which joined in 2009.

Rwanda is currently hosting the biennial meeting of heads of Commonwealth states.

Mozambique, which also did not have links to the British Empire, joined in 1995.

Togo's Foreign Minister Robert Dussey said French-speaking Togo’s inclusion into the Commonwealth would “help it develop closer ties with English-speaking countries, opening up new horizons outside of France's sphere of influence in West Africa.”

Since joining in 2009, Rwanda has praised the Commonwealth for helping the country with election support, combatting corruption and creating a stronger judicial system.

Togo and Gabon are expected to be admitted later on Friday.