SENEGAL

The military has taken over the West African country of Guinea-Bissau, in a coup d'etat on Thursday, a few weeks before the country's presidential elections.

The chief of the junta in Mali had promised to restore civilian rule and call new elections, but has so far not done so.

Representatives from the Economic Community of West African States, or Ecowas, said they would decide Monday what action to take against Mali's ruling junta, which missed a deadline for ceding power to civilians.

The big winner tonight is the Senegalese people, Macky Sall said of Sunday's run-off election. He defeated 12-year incumbent Abdoulaye Wade, a political mentor to Sall before the two had a falling-out.

Senegal's President Abdoulaye Wade conceded defeat to his rival Macky Sall in a presidential election runoff. Admitting his defeat in the election, Wade called and congratulated Sall, Senegal state television reported.

Samsung Electronics Co aims to double its share of the sub-Saharan smartphone market to 20 percent by next year, as it focuses on affordable handsets, the head of its Africa business said on Thursday.

A “lethal mix” of drought, regional wars, high food prices and widespread poverty has conspired to create this debilitating crisis.

Elderly Wade, 85, gained 34.8 percent of the vote, failing to secure an outright majority in Sunday's presidential elections

Senegal President Abdoulaye Wade who is looking for a third term in office will have to face a runoff in March. Wade could get lead over his rivals in a tight presidential race, but failed to get outright majority in the Sunday presidential elections. The 85 year old Wade could garner only 32 percent of the votes.

Obansanjo, who has mediated conflicts elsewhere in Africa, is trying to calm tensions as protestors angry at incumbent President Abdoulaye Wade's candidacy.

On the fifth day of violent protests ahead of Senegalese capital Dakar's controversial presidential poll, two young men have already lost their lives, indicating a bad turn of events and intensifying demonstrations in an otherwise peaceful city. Protesters demanded on Sunday that Senegal's 85-year-old President Abdoulaye Wade step down, and were on the streets of the heart of the capital, throwing stones at police and erecting barricades.

Senegal security forces clashed with protesters in Dakar and surrounding suburbs Sunday in the fifth straight day of demonstrations against President Abdoulaye Wade's candidacy in a Feb. 26 election.

Viadeo, the world's second-biggest online networking site for professionals after LinkedIn, said on Friday it had opened a regional branch in Morocco as it seeks to expand its presence in the increasingly-wired Arab world.

With a taste for Jimmy Choo shoes and Hermes handbags, Choice Okoro's idea of shopping is a world away from her mother's.

Mainland China and 21 other countries will finally launch sales for Apple's most advanced smartphone, the iPhone 4S, on Friday, Jan. 13. The phone will be available in black and white and will sell at the same prices as in the U.S.

Apple fans in China mainland and other 21 countries are going to be crazy after hearing this - iPhone 4S, Apple's hottest handset so far, will reach their shores on Friday, Jan. 13, ending various speculations about local launch dates, that lasted for several months.

Youssou N'Dour is running for president of Senegal. The singer will try to capture the youth vote in an effort to upset the 85-year-old incumbent Abdoulaye Wade.

Youssou N'Dour, the Senegalese music star, has said he will stand in the presidential election scheduled for late February.

Food prices may ease in 2012 due to a slowing global economy, though no drastic drop from high levels is expected, the new director-general of the U.N.'s Food and Agriculture Organisation said on Tuesday.

Tom Petty, The Eagles, Foo Fighters and John Mayor will be headlining the 2012 New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Fest-- one of the most anticipated music events of the year.

African immigrants in the region are enveloped by fear.