- Algerian Constitutional Council has declared Abdelaziz Bouteflika the winner of the 2009 presidential election having snatched more than 90 percent of the total vote out of 75 percent turnout. His re-election earned him senior most position in the country for the third time in a row.
Mr Bouteflika who was first elected in 1999 then again in 2004, was to have stood down at the election, but proposed an amendment to the constitution that abolished the term limits in November.
The runner up in the 9 April elections was Ms Louisa Hanoune, the only woman candidate and leader of the Trotskyite Workers' Party who won only 4.5 percent of the total vote.
President Bouteflika rival candidates and opposition parties responded with anger to the results saying there was widespread rigging in all 48 provinces of the country.
Ms Hanoune affirmed that Mr Bouteflika did not win 90 percent of the votes, disputing her 4 percent saying she has received more then 30 percent of the total vote.
"The violations that took place on 9 April affect the credibility of the presidential election and made it look like the elections that are held in the banana republics," she said.
Other opposition officials have also questioned the voter turnout tally, accusing President Bouteflika and Interior Minister Yazid Zerhouni of inflating the numbers. The argument also stems from announcement by several oppositions partie’s withdrawal from the elections.
The General Secretary of the Socialist Forces Front Karim Tabou, said that the turnout did not exceed 18 percent while General Secretary of the Rally for Culture and Democracy, Said Saudi, which boycotted the election also said that the turnout was only 25 percent.
The 71-year-old president has overseen a return to relative peace, though there has been a series of suicide bombings over last two years blamed on militants linked to al-Qaeda.
afrol News - It is called "financial inclusion", and it is a key government policy in Rwanda. The goal is that, by 2020, 90 percent of the population is to have and actively use bank accounts. And in only four years, financial inclusion has doubled in Rwanda.
afrol News - The UN's humanitarian agencies now warn about a devastating famine in Sudan and especially in South Sudan, where the situation is said to be "imploding". Relief officials are appealing to donors to urgently fund life-saving activities in the two countries.
afrol News - Fear is spreading all over West Africa after the health ministry in Guinea confirmed the first Ebola outbreak in this part of Africa. According to official numbers, at least 86 are infected and 59 are dead as a result of this very contagious disease.
afrol News - It is already a crime being homosexual in Ethiopia, but parliament is now making sure the anti-gay laws will be applied in practical life. No pardoning of gays will be allowed in future, but activist fear this only is a signal of further repression being prepared.
afrol News / Africa Renewal - Ethiopia's ambitious plan to build a US$ 4.2 billion dam in the Benishangul-Gumuz region, 40 km from its border with Sudan, is expected to provide 6,000 megawatts of electricity, enough for its population plus some excess it can sell to neighbouring countries.
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