Forty-five people have been arrested in west Africa over the past three months in operations targeting drugs trafficking and the financing of terrorism, said global police body Interpol on Thursday. Interpol,

Three countries under military rule have officially left West African regional bloc Ecowas, after more than a year of diplomatic tensions. The withdrawal of Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger is a huge blow to Ecowas, which at 50 years old is considered Africa's most important regional group.

Thousands of people rallied Tuesday in Niger and Burkina Faso in support of the withdrawal of their countries from the Economic Community of West African States, ECOWAS, which is due to take effect today.

Earlier this month, soldiers swooped by helicopter into a vast mining complex in western Mali and made away with three tonnes of gold -- all done on the orders of the military government.

ICE NY cocoa (CCH25) today is down -107 (-0.92%), and March ICE London cocoa #7 (CAH25) is down -131 (-1.43%). Cocoa prices today dropped to 1-week lows as weekend rains in the Ivory Coast and Ghana eased the dry conditions caused by the seasonal Harmattan winds and sparked long liquidation in cocoa.

That is why the International Trade Centre (ITC), with the support of the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA), has set up a SheTrades West Africa project to change mindsets, and therefore opportunities. This project is active in Côte d’Ivoire, Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone, and also incorporates the shea and cassava value chains.

Niger’s defense minister says the junta-led West African countries of Niger, Burkina Faso and Mali have created a joint force that will soon be deployed in the restive Sahel region against rising extr

East African countries have plenty to offer Western miners in the coming years, notably the relative absence of strongarm tactics seen in parts of West Africa. That, along with East Africa’s deposits of critical minerals needed for the global energy transition, will make it an increasingly attractive option.

Pretoria’s foreign policy focus on multilateralism, development and reforming global governance will be seriously tested by geopolitical division.

The imminent withdrawal of Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso from ECOWAS marks a historic shift in West African economics, forcing a dramatic reorganisation of traditional trade routes and potentially increasing costs for millions.

The study found that household wealth or the use of menstrual products, such as sanitary pads or tampons, were not related to menstruation-related absence.