Daily News on the Issues Affecting Africa for May 6th

Continue reading for a summary of recent news stories relating to some of the most pressing issues on the continent. We draw on a wide range of respected news sources, both from Africa itself and around the world. The themes of today's In the News post are updates on Boko Haram's role in the kidnap of Nigerian schoolgirls, increased Chinese involvement in Africa, the upcoming World Economic Forum in Nigeria, the role of religious and ethnic tension in African conflicts, relative harmony in the Maghreb, HIV in Malawi, and increasing access to internet across the continent.

Pressure mounts for U.S. to help find kidnapped Nigerian schoolgirls
The United States is offering its help, but making clear that the Nigerian government must take the lead in finding more than 200 schoolgirls kidnapped by the Islamist militant group Boko Haram. Officials told CNN the Obama administration is sharing intelligence with Nigerian authorities and could provide other assistance, but there is no planning to send U.S. troops. – CNN
To read more, please visit the CNN site here.

Boko Haram threatens to 'sell' kidnapped Nigerian schoolgirls
The leader of the Boko Haram Islamist group claimed responsibility for the abduction of 276 schoolgirls in northern Nigeria last month and threatened to sell them in a video obtained by AFP on Monday. "I abducted your girls," the group's leader, Abubakar Shekau, said in the 57-minute video. Boko Haram, which means "Western education is sinful", has been waging a bloody insurgency to establish sharia law in northern Nigeria. – France 24
To read more, please visit the France 24 site here.

Chinese premier proposes to upgrade China-Africa cooperation in six areas
Chinese Premier Li Keqiang proposed Monday that China and Africa earnestly boost collaboration in industry, finance, poverty reduction, ecological protection, people-to-people exchanges, and peace and security so as to create an upgraded version of their all-round cooperation. Li outlined the proposal in a speech delivered at the headquarters of the African Union in which he expounded China's Africa policy and reaffirmed Beijing's commitment to further deepening the China-Africa comprehensive cooperative partnership. – Xinhua News
To read more, please visit the Xinhua News site here.

13 heads of state, 1000 delegates for WEF in Abuja
No fewer than 13 heads of state and about 1,000 delegates are expected to participate in the World Economic Forum, WEF, on Africa beginning tomorrow in Abuja. Ms. Elsie Kanza, Director, Head of Africa, disclosed this at a pre-event briefing on the WEF, yesterday, said the number was one of the largest the forum had witnessed in the many years it had been hosted in different countries. – Vanguard
To read more, please visit the Vanguard site here.

Ethnic cleansing in Africa
The sectarian violence between Christian and Muslim militias and civilian mobs that has plagued Central African Republic for the past several months has tipped into a full-fledged campaign of ethnic cleansing of Muslims from the capital Bangui and the southern part of the country. Efforts to stem the mayhem have so far failed, and the country is on the brink of a de facto partition as Muslims flee toward the country's northern borders. With 2.2 million people in dire need of humanitarian assistance, donor countries must act quickly to finance the $274 million in emergency aid the United Nations says is urgently needed. – New York Times
To read more, please visit the New York Times site here.

Maghreb unity as regional panacea
Maghreb states face the same economic and security challenges. Proponents of the Maghreb Union say it's time to work together to finally get them fixed. Dr. Mohamed El Adel chairs the Tunis-based Maghreb Forum for International Co-operation, which hosted a Nouakchott conference on April 5th about the regional integration strategy. Magharebia met him to learn more about how his group's new approach to the long-dormant Maghreb Union plan may finally get results. – Magharebia
To read more, please visit the Magharebia site here.

Child Labour and HIV/Aids Affecting Fishing Industry in Malawi
The Ministry of Agriculture through the Department of Fisheries has acknowledged that child labour and HIV/Aids are affecting the fishing industry since most of the fishermen are dying of HIV/Aids pandemic. Speaking with Malawi News Agency (Mana) assistant district fisheries officer in Mangochi, Francis Phiri, said most of the people who are fishing in Lake Malawi are children who are supposed to be in school and that they spend most of their time fishing thereby contracting HIV/Aids in the process. – allAfrica
To read more, please visit the allAfrica site here.

Fibre-optics and Africa's increasing internet access
While Africa's growth in mobile and internet access has been rising faster over the last decade than any other region of the world, the continent is still playing catch-up. The continuing investment in infrastructure, dropping costs, rising incomes and demographics, however, will lead to a far greater growth over the next decade. – The Africa Report
To read more, please visit the Africa Report site here.