Africa

Contact CPJ Africa

Twitter: @CPJAfrica
Facebook: CPJAfrica
Africa Program Head:
Angela Quintal

Africa Program Coordinator:
Muthoki Mumo

Senior Africa Researcher:
Jonathan Rozen

Tel: 212-465-1004
Fax: 212-214-0640

Knight Foundation Press Freedom Center
P.O. Box 2675
New York, NY 10108 USA

  
Journalist Peter Maseke Mwita (left) walks out of Central Police Station in Mombasa in handcuffs on January 2, 2026.

Kenya court due to rule on cybercrimes law as another journalist faces jail

Nairobi, February 26, 2026—Journalist Peter Maseke Mwita has a keener interest than most in Friday’s upcoming ruling on the constitutionality of Kenya’s cybercrime law — legislation that could see him jailed for up to 10 years over a mistaken WhatsApp message. On February 27, a three-judge court of appeal bench is due to rule in…

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Addis Standard

Ethiopia revokes Addis Standard’s license amid escalating crackdown on independent media

Nairobi, February 24, 2026—The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Ethiopian authorities to immediately restore the registration of independent outlet Addis Standard after the Ethiopian Media Authority (EMA) revoked its online media registration certificate effective February 24. “This is not regulation — it is retaliation,” said CPJ Africa Director Angela Quintal. “By weaponizing vague‘national interest’…

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Bulawayo24 reporter Gideon Madzikatidze

Zimbabwe journalist in detention for a week for alleged defamatory report on corruption

Lusaka, February 24, 2026—The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Zimbabwean authorities to release journalist Gideon Madzikatidze who has been in detention since February 18, on charges of cyberbullying and broadcasting without a license, over an article alleging bribery by a local business. “Zimbabwean authorities should not use licensing regulations or cybercrime provisions to censor…

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Videographer Arnold Ndal (from left), photographer Angel Ngwe, reporters Randy Joe Sa’ah, and Nalova Akua

Cameroon police probe journalists investigating secret US migrant deportations, seize equipment

Dakar, February 23, 2026—The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Cameroonian police to drop a criminal trespass investigation into four journalists who were detained for five hours and had their equipment seized last week, three of whom were reporting for the Associated Press (AP) on the secret deportation of African migrants from the United States….

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Senegalese commentator arrested for remarks about student’s death

Dakar, February 19, 2026—The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Senegalese authorities to release news commentator Abdou Nguer, who was arrested on Wednesday for challenging a public prosecutor’s statement on the cause of a student’s death. “Detaining a news commentator for his remarks on legal proceedings of public interest sends an intimidating message to the…

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Teixeira Cândido

‘I literally felt naked’: Angolan journalist Teixeira Cândido targeted with Predator spyware

Angolan journalist and lawyer Teixeira Cândido wants to know who targeted him with spyware, and he wants justice. “First and foremost, we must seek to find out who the entities are that have acquired these spyware tools,” Cândido told CPJ, as findings published by Amnesty International’s Security Lab show that a malicious link sent in…

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Ethiopia's Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed Ali delivers a speech during the annual African Union Summit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on February 14.

Ethiopia revokes Reuters journalists’ accreditation following investigative report

Nairobi, February 16, 2026—The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Ethiopian authorities to restore the accreditation of three Reuters journalists who were barred from reporting after the news agency published a report alleging that Ethiopia was secretly training forces fighting in neighboring Sudan’s civil war. On February 14, Reuters reported that the Ethiopian Media Authority…

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Modou Fall

Senegalese news commentator arrested, accused of spreading false news

Dakar, February 12, 2026—The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Senegalese authorities to release Modou Fall, news commentator at the privately owned channel Sen TV, after he was arrested Wednesday in Dakar, the Senegalese capital, on false news accusations for remarks he made about a crackdown on student protests. “Senegalese authorities continue to criminalize news…

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Carlitos Cadangue

Mozambican journalist and son shot at in ‘murder attempt’

New York, February 6, 2026—The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Mozambican authorities to investigate a shooting described by journalist Carlitos Cadangue as an attempted assassination of himself and his son, following threats over his reporting. “The attack on Carlitos Cadangue and his son is a horrifying reminder that Mozambique is increasingly unsafe for journalists,”…

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Youssouf Sissoko, publishing director of the privately owned weekly L'Alternance,

Malian journalist in prison awaiting trial for offending Niger’s military leader

Dakar, February 6, 2026—The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Malian authorities to immediately release Youssouf Sissoko, who was detained on Thursday for publishing a commentary piece criticizing neighboring Niger’s president’s comments about a jihadist attack. “In recent years, Malian authorities have drastically reduced the media’s ability to criticize their actions and they are now…

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