For the next 50 years, carvers of the Kongo Kingdom in Central Africa, under the guidance of spiritual practitioners, will produce fantastical and sometimes nightmarish figures called minkisi. These imaginative works of art function as spiritual mediums to empower divination rituals.
Electric trams are finally put into operation in Johannesburg, a decade after Cape Town starting running its electric trams. The delay is due to the resistance of Transvaal President Paul Kruger, who wanted to keep horse-drawn trams operating so that farmers would have customers for their grain.
South Africa’s own currency, called the rand, replaces the British pound that has long been legal tender. Cape Town’s founder Jan van Riebeeck appears on banknotes issued in R1, R2, R10 and R20 denominations. The rand will soon be used throughout Southern Africa.
Lagos folk pose for a postcard dated today and showing the Carter Bridge in the background, as Nigerian authorities decide to dismantle the 1901 bridge, named after the British Governor-General Gilbert Carter, The bridge will be redesigned for modern automobile use.
Somalia joins the Arab League.
The Second Battle of Amgala is the first major victory for Polisario, representing the Saharawi people of Western Sahara, against Morocco, which claims the territory. In 1975, the International Court of Justice ruled that the Saharawi people must decide on their independence. The Moroccan garrison at the Amgala Oasis is destroyed by Polisario fighters, according to reports.
Tunisia hosts the Africa Cup of Nations (24th edition). Finnish electronics company Nokia becomes the corporate sponsor, and the name officially becomes the Nokia Africa Cup of Nations (also known as AFCON 2004 or CAN 2004). Africa’s top football tournament will be won by the host country, as frequently happens. Tunisia’s team wins the title for the first time.
South African Oscar Pistorius, a celebrity paralympian, shoots dead his girlfriend, model Reeva Steenkamp. He will tell police that he mistook her for an intruder. At a sensation trial that will follow, he will be convicted of Steenkamp's murder.
Kenya’s largest shopping mall, Two Rivers Mall, opens in Nairobi. 35,000 shoppers arrive the first day.
The first case of a deadly disease that has become a global pandemic, originating in China, is confirmed on African soil. In Egypt, a patient is diagnosed with Covid-19, reports the Ministry of Health.
Nigerian economist and global development experts Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala becomes the first woman and the first African to serve as Director-General of the World Trade Organization.
Egyptian squash champion, in Gezira, Cairo, Egypt. The “first truly dominant” player in squash history, he won the British Open men’s title six consecutive times (1933 to 1938) and won the British Amateur Championship six times (1931 to 1937), a record that has never been matched.
Kenyan bank robber turned writer, in Thuita Village, Murang’a District, Kenya. After prison time spent for his crimes, he turned to fiction, first with the novel My Life of Crime in 1980. His books were popular with Kenyan youth, and he used his book income to support the rehabilitation of child criminals and to offer opportunities to Kenya’s urban street children.
One of Ghana’s most popular broadcasting personalities, in Kumasi, Ghana. The hit shows that she has hosted include Okay FM's morning show Yewo krom and the UTV Ghana's programme Kokooko. She is founder of the domestic violence support group Leave2Live Foundation.
