Muhammad Rauf Pasha, appointed by British colonial authorities as Governor of Equatoria (in Ethiopia), becomes ambitious, and occupies the northern Ethiopian city Harar. He tells the British that he and his soldiers are on a “scientific mission.” The British have no problem with his aggression, and will appoint him as Governor of Harar.
The Berlin Conference dividing Africa into European colonies has officially recognised France’s claims in Congo, and 30 French companies are given giant grants of land belonging to the Congolese peoples. The Congolese are virtually enslaved to work rubber and timber plantations and hundreds of other tasks, such as physically transporting French colonialists in a country that has no roads.
South Africa’s two Boer Republics, the Orange Free State and the Transvaal Republic, under the leadership of Paul Kruger (pic), declare war on British-held Cape and Natal colonies. The declaration begins the Second Anglo-Boer War, which will end in a Boer defeat in 1902.
The Southern Hemisphere spring planting season is underway, and a new type of machine to plough and do farm work has been imported into South Africa in time for cultivation. It is Southern Africa’s first tractor, a 1904 gas-powered Ivel.
Indian barrister Manilal Maganlal Doctor, sent by Mahatma Gandhi, arrives in Mauritius to fight against discrimination faced by the Indio-Mauritius community. He will do battle in court and in a newspaper he starts, while also bringing international attention to the community’s plight in the hands of British colonial authorities.
Central African Airways starts a Sunday Excursion trip that proves to be one of the best deals in the history of air travel: Round-trip from Salisbury (Harare) Southern Rhodesia (Zimbabwe) to Livingstone in Northern Rhodesia (Zambia) for £10 (equal to £387 in 2023). The air fare includes an excursion boat trip on the Zambezi River to see elephant, hippo and crocodile, a boxed lunch on a bus to see Mosi-oa-Tunya (Victoria Falls), and tea at the Victoria Falls Hotel.
A new Rwandan Supreme Court is inaugurated as the country reconstitutes itself after civil war and the Tutsi genocide.
The Hollywood movie Captain Phillips is released, retelling the factual story of the 2009 seizure and hostage taking of a cargo ship off Somalia by Somali pirates. American actor Tom Hanks (pic: right) stars, but Somali actor Barkhad Abdi (pic: left), in his film debut as the pirate leader, draws attention and critical praise.
The Julius Nyerere Peace and Security Building is dedicated at the headquarters of the African Union in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. A statue of Nyerere, Tanzania’s first president and devoted pan-Africanist, is placed in front.
South Africa's new national biodiversity assessment finds the country has the world’s 2nd highest number of unique species. In all, South Africa has 70,000 animal and 8,000 plant species. However, one-third of all ecosystems are at risk of irreparable damage from human activity.
Mauritian writer, in Port-Louis, Mauritius. He wrote entirely in French, and was rewarded by France with the Chevalier de la Légion d’honneur in 1934 for raising the standards of Mauritian writing at a time when Mauritius was a distant colonial backwater (pic). The honour was followed by others: the Officier de la Légion d’honneur in 1956, and the Commandeur du Mérite Agricole in 1966. His 1950 book Isle De France-Ile Maurice was his most noteworthy, and was awarded the Prix Thorlet by the Academie Francaise.
South African singer and songwriter, in Johannesburg, South Africa. Top selling albums in 2011 and 2013 secured her place on the music channel Channel O’s “Top 10 African Female Singing Sensations.” She sings in the English and isiXhosa languages, in the soul, R&B and House genres.
