Although the people of Sierra Leone never formally agree to be a “protectorate" - the legal requirement for a country to become the protectorate of another country is the consent of the local people - Britain unilaterally declares Sierra Leone its protectorate. (pic: Kissy Road in Freetown)

Britain declares Seychelles a Crown Colony. Since 1814, Seychelles has been governed as a protectorate of Britain’s Crown Colony Mauritius. (pic: A replica of the clock tower at London's Victoria Station is installed in Seychelles capital Victoria in 1903)

Southern Rhodesia (Zimbabwe) is connected with South Africa across the Limpopo River with the opening of the Alfred Beit Road Bridge. The important transportation link runs from Musina, South Africa to Beitbridge, Southern Rhodesia.

South Africa’s Development Trust and Land Act goes into effect, creating “reservations” for the country’s black majority. The law also empowers local governments to buy up all “black spots” (black-owned land surrounded by white-owned land).

The 1 Transvaal Air Squadron of the South African Air Force, created in 1920, is renamed as the 1 (Fighter-Bomber) Squadron in preparation for World War II. New aircraft are acquired and crews are trained to fly them under Maj. N.G. Niblock-Stuart.

Egypt’s worst aviation disaster to date occurs when the engine of a Lockheed Constellation catches fire and falls off a flight from Cairo to Rome. The crew attempts to crash land in the Libyan desert, but the plane crashes prematurely in Ali El Natrun, Egypt, killing all 55 on board.

The first car, a VW Beetle, rolls off the assembly line at Volkswagen’s automobile plant in Uitenhage, South Africa. Small, easy to maintain and thrifty on petrol consumption, the Beetle will be widely used in sub-Saharan African cities supplied by the plant in the next decades.

An All-African Conference called by Democratic Republic of Congo Prime Minister Patrice Lumumba (pic: standing, left) to gain support against rebels and secessionists in the Congolese civil war concludes in failure. No African heads of state come to Léopoldville (Kinshasa), and no military aid is pledged.

Tunisia’s national airline Tunisair enters the jet age as it acquires a French-built Caravelle passenger jet that seats 90.

The Italian movie The Battle of Algiers is premiered at the Venice Film Festival. A mostly non-professional group of actors relive the Algerian War for Independence against France (where the film is banned for showing French soldiers committing atrocities). The neo-realistic film will earn critical praise and international awards, and will become a cinema classic.

Botswana’s first independent daily newspaper Mmegi wa Dikgang begins publication after 15 years of attempts at regular publication. In 1989, the country’s leading newspaper shortens its name to Mmegi, which means “Reporter” in Setswana.

South Africa pulls that last of its troops out of Angola, where they have assisted rebels against Angola’s communist government.

The University of Namibia is established by act of parliament. The main campus is located in Namibia’s capital Windhoek.

The Sigiri Bridge opens in Kenya, spanning the Nzola River at Budalangi, Busia. During construction in June 2017, the mid-section of the bridge collapsed spectacularly (pic). The contractor accepted responsibility, and after a government investigation, construction was completed.

A peace agreement is signed by Sudan’s government and rebel groups in Darfur to end the War in Darfur, begun in 2003.