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1896

The Pasteur Institute of Dakar is established as a research facility, in Saint-Louis, the capital of French Senegal. The director, Emile Marchoux, a student of microbiologist Louis Pasteur, has been stationed in Saint-Louis as a naval doctor. The lab's first research focuses on a dysentery epidemic. In 1913, the facility will relocate to Dakar after the capital is moved to that town, and will be upgraded to institute status in 1924. In 1927, the Yellow Fever virus will be isolated for the first time at the institute. The institute will become the leading research facility for public health in West Africa, and will play an important role in Senegal’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020 (pic).

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1896

1898

The weather is a challenge to Southern Africa’s unpaved urban streets. The winds of the early southern hemisphere winter turn Market Street in Johannesburg, South Africa into a dust storm blinding the African rickshaw pullers and their white passengers, frightening the horses, and making the city centre look like the Kalahari Desert

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1898

1911

Portuguese colonial authorities issue Game Regulations for Manica and Sofia provinces in Portuguese Mozambique. The regulations allow “Kaffir arms (assegais, harpoons, etc.” to be used, and sets the hunting season from 1 November to 30 April. This is not a strict conservation act. These animals are allowed to be shot in and out of season without a license: “Lion, leopard, lynx, panther, hyena, jackal, wild-boar, wolf, crocodile, cobra, wild cats, porcupine, baboons, monkeys and in general the whole cat tribe.”

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1911

1927

Africa’s first trade fair, the Tripoli International Fair, is created by the Italian government as an annual showcase to be held in Italian Libya. Until its suspension during World War II, the trade fair will be a major international event, drawing dozens of countries and thousands of exhibitors.

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1927

1964

The radio station The Middle East Network begins broadcasting, from Cairo, Egypt, transmitting 24 hours a day.

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1964

1988

Peace talks aimed at ending the South Africa-Angola Border War begin, sponsored by Cold War superpower rivals the U.S. and the Soviet Union, which have provided aid to both sides but are now weary of the conflict.

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1988

1989

On his latest papal tour of Africa, Pope John Paul II arrives in Zambia, to be greeted by hundreds of thousands of Catholics. His flight is the only time a Concord supersonic jet lands in Zambia.

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1989

1994

Now a democratic state, South Africa resumes full membership in the U.N.’s World Health Organisation. Tomorrow (May 4) the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) will invite South Africa to rejoin that organisation.

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1994

2018

After Uganda’s ipso facto President for Life Yoweri Museveni slams Ugandan doctors, who are on strike at government hospitals because of low pay, saying “I am working for low pay." He uses a phrase from U.S. President Donald Trump and calls the doctors “enemies of the people." Social media erupts with posts about Museveni’s considerable wealth. Kampala’s The Observer newspaper reports that Uganda's 2016/17 government budget paid Museveni and his family US$63 million. An entry-level doctor in public healthcare earns US$300 a month.

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2018

Births

1946
Mo Ibrahim

Sudanese businessman and good governance activist, in British Sudan. Using the fortune he acquired through his businesses, he created the Mo Ibrahim Foundation in 2006. Since 2007, the foundation has awarded the Mo Ibrahim Prize for Achievement in African Leadership. The Ibrahim Index of African Governance is a respected annual assessment and ranking of how all of Africa’s 54 country governments are achieving or falling short of good governance.

1979
Genevieve Nnaji

Nigerian actress and director, in Mbaise, Nigeria. For her contributions to Nollywood, she was inducted by the Nigerian government in 2011 as a Member of the Order of the Federal Republic. In 2018, her first film as a director, Lionheart, was the first Netflix production made in Nigeria, and became Nigeria’s first submission to the Academy Awards (Oscars).

1989
Cina Soul (Christie Quarcoopome)

Ghanaian singer and songwriter, in Kokomlemie, Ghana. Performing in both English and Ga, she has a diverse vocal range that she uses as she performs Soul, R&B, and Highlife music.