Couto’s language is enriched by his country’s idioms, voices — and possibilities. “We are still in the process of creating one nation,” he said, made of “different languages, different beliefs.”

After $580,000 was stolen from a sofa of President Cyril Ramaphosa, his head of security skirted regulations, but the president did not, according to a preliminary report by a corruption watchdog.

The government moved elections scheduled for Saturday back by a week, saying it needed more time to reset digital voting machines at the center of fraud accusations.

The storm, which has killed 21 people already, has hit several countries in southeastern Africa and is on track to last longer than the record of 31 days.

Almaz Negash lives in California, but never forgot her native Eritrea. Now she heads a group that brings together dispersed Africans, philanthropists, entrepreneurs and business leaders.

As African migrants are swept up in a widening crackdown, critics say President Kais Saied is openly mining a deep vein of discrimination and prejudice against dark-skinned people in Tunisia.

President Emmanuel Macron has embarked on a four-country visit as he slashes the French military presence and says colonial-era habits and attitudes must die.

Bola Tinubu, declared the winner on Wednesday in the presidential election, has boasted of making the careers of major politicians. Now he has to deliver for a divided country facing multiple emergencies.

Peter Obi was until recently a secondary player in Nigerian politics. By switching parties and appealing to the digitally savvy, he overturned the old order.

Eritrean troops have been accused of war crimes in the northern Tigray region just weeks before a peace agreement was signed last year.

Despite scandal and controversy, David Mabuza remained in office for five years, only leaving once he had lost power within the governing African National Congress party.

Mr. Tinubu, a former governor of Lagos and the ruling party candidate, campaigned using the slogan “It’s my turn.” He promised to address widespread insecurity and economic woes, but he faced concerns about his fitness for office.

Two parties say that the presidential vote in Africa’s biggest democracy was marred by fraud and violence, and they called for the head of the election commission to step down.

A campaign in the Horn of Africa is now the most active element in the “forever wars” the United States has waged since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.

In Nigeria’s presidential election on Saturday, voters are desperate to elect a leader who can unleash their youthful country’s potential and chart a new course after years of dashed hopes.

For years, Nigerian politicians have been accused of buying votes. The lawmaker, the police say, was caught with dollar bills and a list of possible recipients.

Nigerian voters say that insecurity is the most important issue in this week’s presidential election. One man who was kidnapped said, “You can only survive on your own in Nigeria.”

Nigeria’s government changed the currency design before the presidential election, causing shortages and wreaking social havoc.

Mr. Atsu, a Ghanaian national who played for the Turkish club Hatayspor, had been among the thousands of people missing. He was 31.

The race is wide open in the presidential election in Nigeria, Africa’s most populous nation and a struggling economic powerhouse. Youth looking to evict the old guard are cheering on Peter Obi, a surprise third-party candidate.