Africa

Lilongwe, Malawi – Since he was young, Enock Dayton has made a living from bananas. The 30-year-old was born and raised in Molele, in the southern Malawian district of Thyolo, which was at the heart of local banana production until a plant virus devastated crops more than a decade ago.

At his stall at Mchesi market, in Malawi’s capital Lilongwe, Dayton serves customers from the bunches of green bananas that he has. “I started this business when I was young, and we had farms where we were growing bananas and we would take trucks and bring them here and sell them to individuals,” he told Al Jazeera.

But in 2013, the deadly banana bunchy top disease wiped out almost all the crops in the country. Farmers were asked to uproot their banana plants to avoid the spread of the virus; hundreds of thousands of people were affected.

Bananas are Malawi’s fourth biggest staple crop, after maize, rice and cassava, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).

The United Nations body – which is working with other organisations to help revive banana farming in the country – said in 2023 that with “the right investments and strategic support, the banana sector has the potential to provide greater benefits in food and nutrition security and commercial value for growers, transporters, consumers and food processors”.

But in the meantime, to maintain their businesses in the absence of sufficient local produce, farmers and fruit-sellers like Dayton turned to neighbouring Tanzania to import the crop and complement their own meagre local supplies. In 2023 alone, for instance, Malawi imported more than $491,000 worth of bananas, with the majority of that – 5,564,180kg (12,266,920lb) – coming primarily from Tanzania. The remainder came from South Africa and Mozambique.

But this year, that arrangement came to a sudden halt. In March, Malawi said it was temporarily banning the import of some farm produce, including bananas, from Tanzania and other countries. The government said this was to help support local industries and stabilise the country’s foreign exchange shortage, which has led to challenges that include the inability to import some necessities, like pharmaceuticals.

But Malawi might have underestimated the effect of its bold move, observers say.

In retaliation, in April, Tanzania banned the entry of all agricultural imports from Malawi, responding to what it described as restrictions on some of its exports. That ban also extended to South Africa, which for years prohibited the entry of bananas from Tanzania.

This was bad news for Malawi, observers say, as it is more on the receiving end of trade between the neighbours. According to data from the Observatory of Economic Complexity (OEC), Malawi exports less than $50m worth of products to Tanzania, including soybean meal, soybeans and dried legumes, while it imports hundreds of millions of dollars in the form of mineral fuels, oil, distilled products, soaps, lubricants, cement and glassware, among other products.

In its response, Dar es Salaam went a step further, extending its trade ban to the export of fertiliser from Tanzania to landlocked Malawi. It also threatened to stop goods en route to Malawi from passing through Tanzania.

By land, Malawi depends on Tanzania, Zambia and Mozambique for the import of goods. As it lacks direct access to the sea, Malawi utilises seaports in Tanzania and Mozambique. But the instability of the Mozambique route – due to insecurity caused by conflict, recent post-election violence and truck drivers facing harassment – made the deadlock with Tanzania a bigger challenge for industry. Businesses that rely on the import of farm produce started crying foul as their trucks of groundnuts and other produce stood in line at the Songwe border.

Malawi also found itself in a tricky situation as it depends on Tanzania for its harbours to import fuel.

Soon, even Kenya found itself entangled in the conflict as cargo from Malawi, which has to travel through Tanzania, was also stopped en route.

The ensuing row shone a light on Malawi’s precarious geographical location, as well as regional agreements aimed at facilitating trade, the efforts by individual nations to follow the rules, and the macroeconomic imbalances in a nation designated as one of the poorest in the world.

After weeks of tensions, this month, a high-level meeting between Malawi and Tanzania appeared to have brokered the differences, paving the way for the lifting of the bans between the two countries, according to a spokesperson for Malawi’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

‘Symptom of a huge challenge’

For Ernest Thindwa, a political commentator based at the University of Malawi, the recent trade dispute does not exist in isolation – and should also be viewed from a political lens.

Both countries are heading for polls this year, first Malawi in September and then Tanzania in November. Within an election environment, the dispute says something about the attempts by both countries’ leaders to display patriotism and a sense of empowerment to their citizens, the analyst said.

“The current administration [in Malawi] wants to be seen to be delivering and they want to be seen to be responding to people’s concerns,” Thindwa told Al Jazeera. “And certainly they need to make sure that local producers are protected, which has become more urgent as we go towards elections.”

Thindwa said that both Malawi and Tanzania are signatories to regional and international trade agreements, the frameworks of which entitle them to take measures to protect their trade interests when they deem necessary.

However, he questioned the timing of these moves, asking why the initiatives by Malawi were not implemented earlier if they were indeed to protect local industries.

Answering his own question, he said, “Because then it might have not been an agent in terms of attracting votes.”

“What you would call subsistence or smallholder producers … would be significant for the government in terms of trying to win votes from such social groups,” he observed.

Meanwhile, in Tanzania, something similar was at play in its decision to retaliate, Thindwa said.

“The incumbent administration in Tanzania wants to be seen to be responding to the needs and interests of its citizens. So the administration in that country, in Tanzania, also wanted to project an image that it cares for its people. That’s why it responded rather quickly.”

Broadly speaking, Thindwa noted that the trade dispute points to overall challenges African countries face – in terms of promoting internal trade, and trading more within Africa than with other continents.

Citing the example of Angola, he said that despite it having oil, countries within the Southern African Development Community (SADC) bloc continue to import oil from the Middle East.

“There is Angola there,” he said. “Why can’t they put together a regional project, for instance, and invest in the capabilities to make sure that the end product is being produced in Angola and Angola serves the region, to be much cheaper for the region? And it will make sure that the resources of the region remain within the region.”

Such examples show that “in spite of these trade protocols, Africa still struggles to encourage trade between member states”, he said.

“So the case of Tanzania and Malawi is just a symptom of a huge challenge Africa faces in terms of promoting internal trade.”

Tensions eased

In a statement on May 9, Malawi’s Ministry of Trade said Malawi and Tanzania had held bilateral discussions in Tanzania regarding the implementation and resolution of its prohibition order.

After that, a letter from the ministry, addressed to Malawi’s Revenue Authority, read: “In this regard, I wish to advise that you facilitate the clearance of exports and imports of goods between the Republic of Malawi and the Republic of Tanzania. This, however, does not exempt importers from complying with legal and regulatory requirements, including obtaining the relevant licences and certifications from regulatory bodies.”

After the talks, Charles Nkhalamba, Malawi’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson, told Al Jazeera the neighbours had signed “a joint communique” to resolve the dispute between them.

The “high-level discussions” were a result of “robust diplomatic efforts” by the foreign ministries of both countries, he said in a message on WhatsApp, adding that Tanzania also “acknowledg[ed] the economic circumstances that necessitated the import restrictions”.

During the meeting, both parties agreed in principle on the importance of continuous engagement and communication on all matters impacting their bilateral trade relations, Nkhalamba added.

Weeks earlier, Tanzania’s Ministry of Agriculture also released a statement acknowledging that Lilongwe had reached out to Dar es Salaam to resolve the problem and stating that “Tanzania is lifting a ban on export and import of agricultural produce to and from Malawi”.

In principle, the trade war between the neighbours appears to have stalled for now.

But experts told Al Jazeera that practically speaking, it will take time for the logistics to be sorted out and for things to return to normal for sellers left in limbo when their supplies dried up.

At the market in Lilongwe, Dayton is eagerly awaiting the trucks of sweet bananas from across the border, so he has enough to sell to his customers.

He is grateful for the cross-border trade, and the arrangement that has over the years helped business people like him make money selling the crop from their neighbours.

But he also had mixed feelings as he reminisced about their lost opportunity to grow their own crops.

“The amount of money we used to have when we grew our own bananas is different from what we’re earning now,” Dayton said. “While we were growing and buying them at a cheap price … we were making a lot of money, apart from the transport [costs]. The ones from Tanzania are quite expensive.

“We need our bananas back.”

A decade ago, Dayton was a casualty of a natural disaster that made his garden back in the village dormant. Now, he feels that he is a casualty of the decisions made by authorities in offices far away.

“What we want is a stable supply of bananas in this market,” he said. “It’s good because it provides for our families and the customers as well.”

Human rights groups say politicians have been forcibly disappeared in recent days

Mali’s military government has dissolved all political parties after accusations from rights groups that opposition figures have been arrested.

Assimi Goita, who seized power in two army coups in 2020 and 2021, validated the decision after it was broadcast to Malians in a televised statement on Tuesday.

The parties were disbanded after demonstrations this month, demanding the country returned to democratic rule.

Protesters gathered on May 3 and 4, carrying placards with slogans reading, “Down with dictatorship, long live democracy,” in a rare public rebuke of the military government, which had promised to hold elections in 2022.

A national conference held in April recommended extending Goita’s presidency until 2030, drawing condemnation from opposition figures and human rights groups.

In response to another protest that had been planned on Friday, the military government issued a decree suspending all political activities across the country.

The move forced opposition groups to cancel the demonstration, and the government has now tightened its grip further.

The clampdown has coincided with reports of disappearances of opposition figures. Human rights groups said several politicians have been forcibly disappeared in recent days.

On Thursday, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said Abba Alhassane, the secretary-general of the Convergence for the Development of Mali (CODEM), was “arrested” by “masked gunmen”.

That same day, El Bachir Thiam, the leader of the Yelema party, was reportedly seized by unidentified men in Kati, a town outside the capital.

On Tuesday, a CODEM member speaking on condition of anonymity told the Reuters news agency that the party had lost contact with Abdoul Karim Traore, a youth leader, and feared he too had been abducted.

Malian authorities have not commented on the reported arrests.

Goita first seized power in August 2020 amid escalating attacks from armed groups affiliated with ISIL (ISIS) and al-Qaeda’s regional affiliate Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM).

In July 2020, protests against the former civilian government were violently repressed with at least 14 people killed during a crackdown by security forces.

The military then ousted the elected government, citing its failure to tackle the armed groups.

In December last year, HRW reported that Malian soldiers alongside Russian Wagner Group fighters “deliberately killed” at least 32 civilians and burned more than 100 homes in central and northern Mali.

A group of white South Africans granted refugee status have arrived in the US. The Trump administration says white South Africans suffer oppression. The welcome for white South Africans contrasts with an aggressive deportation policy for other ethnic groups.

Loren Landau, a professor at Oxford University, explains the message the US Trump administration is trying to send to the world by granting some white South Africans refugee status. The first group of 49 people is set to land in Texas on May 12.

Tidjane Thiam’s campaign has been halted as presidential candidates are not allowed to hold dual citizenship.

Ivory Coast’s main opposition leader has said he is resigning as party leader but would still lead the fight to win the election, after having been barred from standing in an October presidential vote.

“In the interest of the party, I’ve decided to place my mandate as president of the party in your hands, the activists,” Thiam said in a speech published on social media on Monday.

“This decision does not change the commitment I made in December 2023 to personally lead our party to victory in October 2025.”

President Alassane Ouattara, 83, who has been in power since 2011, has yet to say whether he plans to run again but has said he is eager to “continue serving my country”.

Tidjane Thiam’s campaign for the presidency of the West African country has been mired in tussles over his nationality, as presidential candidates are not allowed to hold dual citizenship.

Thiam was born in the Ivory Coast and renounced his French passport in March to enable his run for the top job. However, a court in Abidjan struck him off the electoral list last month, saying the 62-year-old politician had lost Ivorian nationality when he acquired French citizenship in 1987.

Thiam also faces a legal case against his election as head of the Democratic Party of Ivory Coast–African Democratic Rally (PDCI) after a party member also contested his Ivorian nationality at the time he was chosen.

PDCI deputy president Ernest N’Koumo Mobio assumed the party’s interim leadership following Thiam’s announcement. He appealed for “cohesion, serenity and discipline” and called a party meeting early Monday due to “the urgency linked to the political situation”.

Three other opposition figures have also been excluded from the presidential race, including former President Laurent Gbagbo due to court convictions.

Thiam alleged irregularities on Monday. “While we had the right to hope for inclusive, transparent and peaceful elections, it is clear that the unjustified removal of the PDCI candidate is part of the logic of eliminating the leaders of the main opposition parties to ensure tailor-made elections and a certain victory,” he said.

The authorities regularly reject claims of any political intervention in the electoral process, saying decisions are taken by an independent judiciary.

Army aircraft were reportedly hovering above as the killings took place, showing command control of the operation.

At least 130 civilians belonging to the Fulani ethnic group were killed by Burkina Faso’s army and allied militias near the western town of Solenzo in March, Human Rights Watch (HRW) has said.

The killings took place amid a major weeks-long military campaign by special forces that resulted in “widespread civilian deaths and massive displacement” of the Fulani pastoralist community in the region, the rights group said in a report on Monday.

It added that an Al-Qaeda-affiliated group called the Jamaat Nusrat al-Islam wa al-Muslimin (JNIM) then carried out a series of retaliatory attacks, hitting villages that the armed group perceived as having assisted the military.

Ilaria Allegrozzi, senior Sahel researcher at HRW, said in a statement the “the viral videos of the atrocities by pro-government militias near Solenzo” that cirinitially circulated “told only part of the story”.

“Further research uncovered that Burkina Faso’s military was responsible for these mass killings of Fulani civilians, which were followed by deadly reprisals by an Islamist armed group,” Allegrozzi added.

“The government needs to impartially investigate these deaths and prosecute all those responsible.”

‘Many women and children died’

HRW had reported in March that the government’s involvement was likely due to video evidence online.

At that time, the government strongly denied the allegations, saying in a statement it “condemned the propagation, on social media, of images inducing hate and community violence, and fake information aimed at undermining social cohesion” in the West African country.

Burkina Faso’s government and army did not immediately react to Monday’s report, which alleged that the Burkinabe army “led and participated in the massacre of more than 130, possibly many more, ethnic Fulani civilians by pro-government militias”.

The rights organisation’s report is based on interviews with witnesses to the attacks, militia members, journalists and civil society members.

Witnesses quoted by HRW said hundreds of government troops and drones, as well as a pro-government militia called the Volunteers for the Defense of the Homeland (VDP), were involved in attacks on Solenzo and other towns in the western Boucle du Mouhoun region.

The witnesses said most of the victims in Banwa province were women, children and older people.

Military helicopters and drones surveilled the area, “indicating direct command control of the operation”, HRW said.

A 44-year-old Fulani herder, who lost eight family members, told HRW that thousands of families from more than 20 villages were forced to flee to neighbouring Mali in search of protection.

“However, we couldn’t reach Mali without crossing villages [that were] occupied by the VDPs and the army. The VDPs shot at us like animals, while drones were flying over our heads. Many women and children died because they could not run,” he said.

Military rulers took power in Burkina Faso in 2022, but they have largely failed to provide the stability promised, as more than 60 percent of the country is estimated to be outside government control.

The military has also turned to mass recruitment of civilians who are deployed in poorly trained militia units, leading to worsening tensions between ethnic groups.