Germany has apologised for its role in the slaughter of Herero and Nama tribespeople in Namibia more than a century ago, and officially described the massacre as genocide for the first time, as it agreed to fund projects worth over a billion euros.

Namibia says Germany has agreed to fund projects worth 1.1 billion euros over 30 years to atone for its role in genocide and property seizures in its-then colony more than a century ago, Namibian media reported.

News24 has appointed seasoned journalist Lynsey Chutel to head up its Africa desk.

President Cyril Ramphosa travelled to Maputo to meet with leaders from Botswana, Zimbabwe, Malawi and Tanzania to discuss the violence in Mozambique.

Tens of thousands of people fled the eastern DR Congo city of Goma, choking highways, after the local governor warned in a dawn broadcast of a possible new eruption of the volcano Mount Nyiragongo.

Nigerian rescue workers pulled more than three dozen bodies from the water after an overcrowded river boat sank leaving more than 150 people missing and feared drowned.

Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari appointed a new chief of army staff on Thursday after the previous top-ranking commander and 10 other officers died in a plane crash last week.

Mali's ousted interim president and prime minister have been freed after they were detained by the military and later resigned, an aide to the vice president has said.

Namibian President Hage Geingob and First Lady Monica Geingob have tested positive for Covid-19.

Congolese authorities have ordered the partial evacuation of Goma, a city that has been rocked by hundreds of earthquakes and seen large cracks appear in the earth in the aftermath of a volcanic eruption on its doorstep over the weekend.

Mali's interim president and prime minister have resigned, two days after they were arrested by the military, an aide to the vice president has said, deepening a political crisis and potentially setting up a standoff with international powers.

Southern Africa's leaders are meeting in the Mozambican capital to discuss the insurgency in the north of the country, which could spill over regional borders.

Three people were killed when an illegal gold mine collapsed in southern Ghana and rescuers were trying to reach at least a dozen more trapped inside.

Leaders of the southern African regional bloc SADC will hold an extraordinary summit in Maputo to discuss the violence engulfing northern Mozambique.

More than 20 000 people are homeless and 40 still missing in the aftermath of a volcanic eruption in eastern Congo.

Dozens of people are missing in northwest Nigeria after an overloaded boat ferrying around 160 passengers sank in the Niger River, a local official said.

Zambian President Edgar Lungu has banned campaign rallies ahead of elections scheduled for 12 August, saying large gatherings risked spreading the Covid-19 virus.

Mali's interim president and prime minister have resigned, two days after they were arrested by the military, an aide to the vice president said.

Germany will recognize colonial-era mass killings in Namibia as genocide and offer 1.1 billion euros (about R18 billion) in aid as a gesture of atonement, Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said.

The eastern Democratic Republic of Congo city of Goma has been shaken by a flurry of shocks from the nearby Mount Nyiragongo volcano, four days after its eruption, badly damaging several buildings.