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La ministre de la Transition écologique Monique Barbut a présenté, mercredi, sa démission à Emmanuel Macron qui "ne l'a pas acceptée", et elle a décidé de "poursuivre sa mission à la demande" du président "qui l'a assurée de son soutien", a annoncé son cabinet à l'AFP.

Les familles Soglo et Vieyra commémorent, samedi 25 juillet 2026, le cinquième anniversaire du rappel à Dieu de l'ex-Première dame du Bénin Rosine Vieyra Soglo. Une messe d'action de grâce sera célébrée à cette occasion pour le repos de son âme.

La célébration eucharistique se tiendra, samedi 25 juillet 2026 à 11 heures, à la chapelle Saint-Joseph, située à l'étage de la paroisse Saint-Michel de Cotonou.
L'ancien président Nicéphore Dieudonné Soglo, la famille Soglo et la famille Vieyra invitent parents, amis, proches et toutes les personnes ayant connu ou admiré l'ancienne Première dame à se joindre à eux pour ce moment de recueillement et de prière. Cette présence constituera un précieux témoignage de communion, d'amitié, de fidélité et d'affection à la mémoire de Rosine Vieyra Soglo.

Rosine Soglo, de son vrai nom Rose-Marie Honorine Vieyra, est décédée le 25 juillet 2021 à Cotonou à l'âge de 87 ans. Epouse de l'ancien président Nicéphore Dieudonné Soglo (1991-1996), la défunte a été huissière de justice et une figure marquante de la vie politique béninoise.

Fondatrice de la Renaissance du Bénin (RB), elle a marqué plusieurs générations par son engagement politique et son action en faveur de la démocratie. Son souvenir demeure vivant cinq ans après sa disparition. Elle a également fondé l'Association Vidolé (ou ONG Vidolé), organisation caritative pour la protection des enfants et le soutien aux femmes et aux nouveau-nés.

Les incursions répétées d’hommes armés en provenance du Soudan du Sud inquiètent de plus en plus les populations vivant le long de la frontière dans le territoire d’Aru, en Ituri. Face à cette menace transfrontalière grandissante, la société civile et les notables locaux alertent également sur une montée de la criminalité dans les principaux centres commerciaux de la région.

Credit: Luke Dray/Stringer via Getty Images. Source IMF

By Martin Schindler, Nikola Spatafora and Andrew Tiffin
WASHINGTON DC, Jul 22 2026 (IPS)

A farmer in Kenya gets weather and planting advice on a basic phone. A teacher in Nigeria uses a chatbot to help students catch up in math. South Africa’s revenue authority uses data analytics to better target tax audits. These are not futuristic examples from Silicon Valley. They are early signs of the broader transformation that artificial intelligence (AI) could bring to sub-Saharan Africa.

AI will reshape the global economy. The question for Africa is whether it rides the wave or gets left behind.

Transformative potential

Our research shows AI’s promise, but it also points to significant risks and challenges. At current levels of preparedness, we estimate that AI will add just 0.2 percent to the region’s GDP over the next decade—little more than a rounding error. However, if countries can put the right foundations in place to accelerate adoption and extend the impact of AI beyond today’s digitally connected firms, the gains could rise to about 4 percent over the decade—nearly half a percentage point of additional growth a year.

That extra growth is critical given Africa’s vast jobs challenge. By 2030, sub-Saharan Africa will account for roughly half of new entrants into the global labor force. But the issue is not only the number of jobs needed—it is also their quality. Most workers are still in informal microenterprises or smallholder agriculture, where productivity is far below that of formal firms.

For the region, AI’s main promise is not about replacing office workers, but boosting productivity across the economy—helping informal firms manage inventory, enabling farmers to increase yields, and supporting mid-sized firms to transition to formality and export readiness.

The risk is that the opposite happens. AI adoption in sub-Saharan Africa currently lags well behind every other region. If richer economies race ahead while African firms and governments lag, the productivity gap between the region and the rest of the world will only widen.

A different reality

Aid flows have always fluctuated. But this episode stands apart.

The recent cuts are large and broadly simultaneous across countries. They are driven by donor decisions rather than changes in recipient economies. And they come at a time when traditional buffers are weaker: multilateral institutions and NGOs, which have often cushioned past declines, are themselves facing funding constraints. While non-traditional donors, such as China and the Gulf States, have grown their aid presence in the region, the magnitudes are not able to cover the reduction in traditional donors.

The cuts are also difficult to manage because they follow six years of successive shocks—including the pandemic, tighter global financial conditions, and food and energy crises—that have already eroded fiscal space.

Delivering on AI’s promise

Two priorities for AI adoption stand out.

First, countries must build the foundations for broad adoption.

AI depends on reliable electricity, affordable broadband and data infrastructure, and workers with digital skills. That means investing in power and connectivity, supporting regional data infrastructure where viable, and strengthening digital and AI literacy through education and training. Countries in Africa do not need to develop the world’s most powerful AI models. But they do need the capacity to adopt, adapt, and scale AI quickly.

Second, build trust—and scale.

AI can widen inequality if its benefits are concentrated among large firms, skilled workers, and urban hubs. It also creates risks around privacy, cybersecurity, misinformation, and dependence on foreign providers. Governments need clear and practical rules on data, competition, consumer protection, cybersecurity, and the public sector’s use of AI. Regional cooperation will also be essential. Many African economies are too small to build AI ecosystems alone. But together they can create the scale needed for infrastructure, data standards, regulation, and markets.

AI in Africa is not just a technology policy issue—it is central to the region’s growth strategy. Africa does not need to win the race to build cutting-edge AI models, but it must find ways to use AI widely, cheaply, and safely. The window is narrow. Over the next debate, Africa’s young and growing workforce will either find more productive jobs, or watch the global productivity gap widen further. The outcome will not be shaped in Silicon Valley, but in the choices made across governments, schools, farms, and firms from Dakar to Dar es Salaam.

Martin Schindler is an advisor, Nikola Spatafora is a senior economist, and Andrew Tiffin is a deputy division chief, all in the IMF’s African Department.

IPS UN Bureau

 

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Les essais cliniques de nouveaux médicaments destinés à lutter contre la maladie à virus Ebola de la souche Bundibugyo se poursuivent en Ituri. D’après la coordination provinciale de la riposte, ce mercredi 22 juillet, les équipes de la riposte continuent le recrutement des participants dans le respect des protocoles scientifiques établis, avec l'objectif d'améliorer la prise en charge des patients infectés et de renforcer la protection des personnes exposées au virus.

Découvrez les favorites, le format et les horaires de coup d'envoi de la Coupe d'Afrique des Nations féminine 2026, reportée au Maroc et qui débutera le 26 juillet.

Découvrez les favorites, le format et les horaires de coup d'envoi de la Coupe d'Afrique des Nations féminine 2026, reportée au Maroc et qui débutera le 26 juillet.

A new Act for an old problem In December 2025, the European Commission (EC) proposed the Biotech Act, a legislative proposal intended to make Europe a more competitive place to research, develop, and manufacture biotechnology, with a particular focus on health.1 Its most consequential element for patients is a revision to the EU Clinical Trials […]

Hegseth had requested some $67 billion in supplemental funding for the Pentagon

Tensions between Addis Ababa and the Tigray Region are gradually mounting. Mis­calculations could even trigger another large-scale war, although the parties involved may not directly seek one. Since the war in northern Ethiopia ended in November 2022, no new, stable political order has emerged. Tigray remains suspended between war and peace. Responsibility for this lies with both the Ethiopian government and its partner in peace, the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF). Having lost power in the national government in 2018, the TPLF has yet to find a new role for itself; in­stead, it has been marked by internal power struggles and characterised by authoritarian tendencies. Conversely, the Ethiopian government has not done enough to facilitate the return of internally displaced persons and restore Tigray’s territorial integrity. A renewed outbreak of hostilities could draw in Eritrea, Sudan and other regional actors. Germany and the European Union (EU) should firmly commit to crisis prevention in order to avoid further escalation in the already tense Red Sea region.

À Venise, la visite de l'ambassadeur des États-Unis en Italie, Tilman Fertitta, ne passe pas inaperçue. Vendredi 17 juillet, lors de la fête du Rédempteur, près de 400 militants ont déployé une banderole de 117 mètres de long, soit exactement la longueur de son superyacht, le Boardwalk. Un message aux couleurs anti-Trump et anti-milliardaires américains. Pour cause, la tournée du magnat texan d'origine sicilienne suscite de nombreuses critiques.

Parliament approves use of acetamiprid and flupyradifurone under pressure from farming lobby

DIW Energiewende-Monitor: Photovoltaik fällt hinter steigende Ausbauvorgaben zurück – Wärmepumpen und Elektrofahrzeuge gewinnen Marktanteile, kommen aber zu langsam voran – Strompreise zeigen wachsenden Flexibilitätsbedarf – Großbatterien wachsen Die Energiewende in Deutschland kommt weiter voran, ...

In today's edition: military mobility, IRIS², UK defence secretary

Spain’s proposed ‘AI secrecy law’ is putting transparency, taxpayer rights and algorithmic accountability at the centre of Europe’s tax debate

Better e-waste collection, stronger recycling markets and a coherent regulatory framework will be essential if Europe is to strengthen its supply of critical raw materials

In today's edition: electrification goal, gas stockpiling, unsold clothes

La mort d’Abderrahim Fakir, un quadragénaire d’origine marocaine, dimanche à Bologne a suscité une vague d’indignation, alors que dans le même temps une partie de l’exécutif prend fait et cause pour un bijoutier ayant tué deux cambrioleurs.

The AI Act’s strong enforcement powers are set to kick in on 2 August

In today's edition: McGrath US trip, Digital Markets Act, EU Inc