Focus on Africa

The president of Botswana Duma Boko in an exclusive conversation with the BBC has shared his view about the state of diplomatic ties between African countries and France, as the "Africa Forward" summit kicks off in Nairobi.
And, around the world, about 100,000 seabirds are unintentionally killed each year by fishing gear, including 10,000 in South Africa. In response, the conservation charity, BirdLife set up an Albatross Task Force, and by putting bird-scaring lines on fishing boats, they’ve managed to cut the number of albatrosses accidentally killed by 90 percent.
Presenter: Charles Gitonga
Producers: Keikantse Shumba and Blessing Aderogba
Technical Producer: Herbert Masua
Senior Producer: Bella Twine
Editors: Priya Sippy and Maryam Abdalla

We thought you might enjoy listening to the latest season of the BBC’s global investigations podcast World of Secrets: Searching for Soldier Dad.
In this first episode of the season, we meet Cathy. Cathy is 10 years old when she starts asking questions. Why don’t I have a father? The secret her mum Maggie is forced to reveal changes everything.
Years later, when lawyers and a geneticist turn up in their hometown in Kenya to take DNA samples, Maggie hopes they can help her finally learn the truth.
In this investigation, we follow as a team of lawyers and a leading geneticist travel to Kenya to help locate the British soldiers who fathered children then vanished. We witness the groundbreaking legal and scientific detective work used to find the missing dads.   
What’s at stake is more than the reputation of the British army and the UK’s post-colonial legacy. The mixed-heritage children have in some cases been ostracised by their communities and denied a chance of British citizenship since birth – something which could transform their lives.
Searching for Soldier Dad is a BBC Long Form Audio production for the BBC World Service. Listen to the full series, wherever you get your BBC podcasts.
Please note, the image being used is for illustrative purposes only and the child depicted is a model.
Presenter: Ivana Davidovic
Series Producer: Josephine Casserly
Sound design: Tom Brignell
Executive Producer: Matt Willis
Commissioning Senior Producers: Katy Davis and Anne Dixey
Commissioning Editor: Jon Manel

We speak to South African influencer and software developer Masheane Sefuthi, who has been on a journey to ‘whiten’ his skin; public health advocate Amira Adawe, who has been campaigning against these harmful products; and Kenyan media personality Kush Tracey, who has spoken about reversing skin bleaching after years of struggling with it.
Presenter: Charles Gitonga
Producers: Fana Negash, Basma El Atti and Layla Mahmood
Technical Producer: Maxwell Onyango
Senior Producer: Carolyne Kiambo Jotham
Editors: Priya Sippy and Maryam Abdalla

For a while now, Sudan's military government has been accusing Ethiopia and the United Arab Emirates of working with the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in the Sudan war that entered its fourth year in April. Both the UAE and Addis Ababa have refuted that claim. An investigation by the Reuters news agency in January showed the presence of a secret training camp in Ethiopia allegedly used to train thousands of RSF fighters. We speak to a Horn of Africa expert.
Also, bicycles are fading away in many parts of urban Nigeria, but in the northeastern rural community of Mishara, they remain a symbol of love and commitment to marriage.
Presenter: Nkechi Ogbonna
Producers: Bella Twine and Ayuba Iliya
Technical Producer: Maxwell Onyango
Senior Producer: Charles Gitonga
Editors: Priyanka Sippy and Maryam Abdalla

As medical experts work to contain the spread of hantavirus on board a stranded cruise ship in the Atlantic ocean, we hear from a representative of the World Health Organisation in Cape Verde. What's hantavirus, how does it spread and what happens to those on board the MV Hondius luxury cruise liner?
Also, seven years after the enactment of the law promoting inclusion for persons living with disability in Nigeria, advocates say implementation remains weak.
Presenter: Nkechi Ogbonna
Producers: Rukia Bulle, Bella Twine and Ayuba Iliya
Technical Producer: Maxwell Onyango
Senior Producer: Charles Gitonga
Editors: Priyanka Sippy and Maryam Abdalla