Latest news with #Ivorian
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
France withdraws from Senegal, ending its permanent military presence in West Africa
DAKAR, Senegal (AP) — The French military completed its withdrawal from Senegal on Thursday, its last West African country with a permanent troop presence, amid waning regional influence in recent years. France has faced opposition from leaders of some of its former colonies in Africa over what they described as a demeaning and heavy-handed approach to the continent. The French military handed over Camp Geille, its largest base in Senegal, along with a nearby air facility, to the Senegalese government during a ceremony in the capital, Dakar. Gen. Pascal Ianni, head of French forces in Africa, said the handover marked a new phase in military ties. 'It is part of France's decision to end permanent military bases in West and Central Africa, and responds to the Senegalese authorities' desire to no longer host permanent foreign forces on their territory,' he said. Senegal's military chief, Gen. Mbaye Cissé, said the withdrawal supports the country's new defense strategy. 'Its primary goal is to affirm the autonomy of the Senegalese armed forces while contributing to peace in the subregion, in Africa, and globally,' Gen. Cissé said. The ceremony marked the completion of a three-month withdrawal of roughly 350 French troops from the West African country, which began in March. France's military had been present in Senegal since it gained independence from France in 1960, under military cooperation agreements between the two countries. The withdrawal followed a call by Senegal President Bassirou Diomaye Faye last year for all foreign troops to leave, citing Senegal's sovereignty as incompatible with hosting foreign bases. Senegal's new government has taken a hard-line stance on the presence of French troops as part of a larger regional backlash against what many see as the legacy of an oppressive colonial empire. France has said it is planning to sharply reduce its presence at all its bases in Africa except in the eastern African country of Djibouti. It said it would instead provide defense training or targeted military support, based on needs expressed by those countries. France has suffered setbacks in West Africa recently, including in Chad and the Ivory Coast where it handed over its last military bases earlier this year. They follow the ousting of French forces in recent years in Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso, where military-led governments have turned to Russia instead for military support. Around 350 French servicemen are still present in Gabon, where the army has turned its base into a camp shared with the central African nation, in the Ivory Coast, where some 80 French servicemen advise and train the Ivorian military and in Djibouti, the last African country where France has a permanent military presence, with around 1,500 troops. Solve the daily Crossword
Yahoo
a day ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
RB Leipzig seal Andrija Maksimović capture
Serbian international Andrija Maksimović's move to RB Leipzig has been confirmed much earlier than originally anticipated. The Bundesliga outfit unveiled their new addition on Tuesday. The 18-year-old joins the German Red Bulls on a €14m transfer. It's been a busy day in Saxony after Leipzig also confirmed the signing of Ivorian talent Yan Diomande earlier. The blockbuster deal that shall see Belgian winger Johan Bakayoko join the German club should be confirmed before too long. 'We have closely followed his development are confident that he is already ready for the next step,' RB sporting director Marcel Schäfer noted of his new signing. 'Andrija is a technically skilled midfielder who can play both in the center and on the wing. Not only does he have good vision and excellent ball control, he also takes outstanding set pieces. He is a top talent in both his position and age group.' 'Kosta Nedeljkovic, whom I know from Belgrade and the Serbian national team, told me a lot of positive things about the club and the city,' the player himself added with reference to his decision to join the club. 'That reinforced my decision. RB worked very hard to sign me and impressed me by outlining clear sporting prospects.' GGFN | Peter Weis
Yahoo
a day ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
RB Leipzig sign Ivorian talent Yan Diomande
RB Leipzig have today announced the signing of Yan Diomande (18) from Leganés for a reported €20m. The Ivorian winger has signed a contract until 2030. 'I'm really happy that my future lies in Leipzig,' Diomande told the club's website. Advertisement 'It's a great honour for me to be able to play for such a fantastic club. There are plenty of examples that show RB Leipzig is the perfect place for young players to develop at a high level. The club wants to play fast-paced attacking football – that fits my style perfectly. I can't wait to meet my teammates and the entire staff, and to be out on the pitch with them soon.' Marcel Schäfer, Leipzig's Managing Director, praised Diomande's skillset. 'We've brought in an outstanding young talent and we're very happy that he sees his future at RB Leipzig,' said Schäfer. 'He's a left winger with outstanding pace, strong dribbling, athleticism and a real eye for goal. On top of that, he never gives up on a ball and plays with great team spirit. With these qualities, he fits perfectly into the type of football we want to play this season. 'As much as we're looking forward to working with him, we also need to give Yan the time and space to settle in – both in Leipzig and in the Bundesliga – so he can learn, grow and develop step by step.' Diomande scored two goals and provided one assist in 10 La Liga games last season. GGFN | Daniel Pinder
Kuwait Times
2 days ago
- Business
- Kuwait Times
I Coast farmers hope tech tempts jaded youth back to fields
ABIDJAN, Ivory Coast: Stopwatch in hand, dozens of Ivory Coast students raced against the clock to design robots for the farms of the future in the world's top cocoa-producing nation. With each team facing off to draw up the best bot blueprint, the competition is part of a broader push to tempt the west African nation's large population of young people, disillusioned with farming life, back to the plough. Though farming has long been the pillar of Ivory Coast's economy, many young Ivorians have turned their backs on fruit-picking and tree-felling, discouraged by the hard labour and the slow pace of progress. 'I come from a family of farmers,' 20-year-old student Pele Ouattara told AFP at the event in Abidjan, Ivory Coast's largest city. 'My passion for robotics grew out of my desire to improve the conditions in which my parents used to farm,' he added. On a rival team several meters away, fellow student Urielle Diaidh, 24, feared that Ivorian farming 'risks dying out with time if modern technologies aren't adopted'. Dominated by the cultivation of cocoa, rubber and cashew nuts, nearly half of Ivorians with jobs work in agriculture in one way or another. Yet the country's farms have been slow to modernize. Less than 30 percent of farms are mechanized, according to the National Centre for Agronomic Research. And although three-quarters of Ivorians are under the age of 35, the sector is struggling to refresh an ageing workforce. Surrounded by a flurry of tiny white robots on their circuit rounds, digital transformation engineer Paul-Marie Ouattara said he has seen 'a real enthusiasm from young people' for bringing agriculture into the 21st century. This 'agriculture 4.0' that the competition wishes to promote is 'improved, enhanced through new technologies, whether they be robots, drones, artificial intelligence, or data processing', the 27-year-old said. All these 'will help the farmer', insisted Ouattara, who works for a private business which sponsored the contest. Young people have not wholly given up on farming, however — just on the old way of tilling the land. At the Ivorian digital transition ministry, Stephane Kounandi Coulibaly, director of innovation and private sector partnerships, said he had seen a boom in agricultural start-ups. Most of them were founded by young people, he added. The 'agritech' trend mirrors that already in motion across the continent, including in Benin, Nigeria and Kenya, with Abidjan hosting a forum for African start-ups at the beginning of July. Ivory Coast's world-leading cocoa growers, who produce 40 percent of the global supply, are also climbing aboard. 'We have noticed the appearance of new technologies since four or five years ago,' said Thibeaut Yoro, secretary-general of the national union of cocoa producers. Yoro hailed how those shiny new gadgets helped lighten a 'strenuous' job still riddled with 'archaic practices'. 'We dig, we hack through the bush, we harvest with machetes,' he said, with planters suffering from 'back aches and fatigue' as a result. 'These are things which could be changed with new technology,' the trade union leader argued. Who can afford those mod cons is another question altogether. A pesticide-spraying drone with a capacity of 20 liters (five US gallons) can cost nine million CFA francs, or around $16,000. That is nine times what the average farmer, owning one hectare (two-and-a-half acres) of cocoa trees, would make in six months. To reduce those costs, out of the reach of most farmers, a number of Ivorian enterprises offering equipment and technology for hire have sprung up. In the verdant countryside outside of Tiassale, around 125 kilometers (78 miles) outside of Abidjan, Faustin Zongo has called in a contractor to spray his field of passion fruit plants with pesticides. Thanks to the drone, the job took 10 minutes per hectare to complete, for the cost of around $27. Using traditional methods, 'it would take two days for each hectare', the farmer said. By his side, Nozene Ble Binate, project manager for Investiv — the company Zongo hired — said that using up-to-date technology made farming 'more attractive'. 'More and more young people are returning to the land and reaching out to us,' the 42-year-old said. Back in Abidjan, Jool has made a business of offering ranchers software-powered analysis of their crops, with prices starting under $100. The start-up's 32-year-old founder, Joseph-Olivier Biley — the son of farmers himself — boasted of his tool's ability to 'know what to plant, where and how' and to 'detect diseases before they strike'. With it, farmers could expect yields 'optimized by more than 40 percent', Biley told AFP at Jool's offices, on the outskirts of the Ivorian economic capital. At the digital transformation ministry, Coulibaly, the innovation chief, said the west African country plans to build a centre for manufacturing state-of-the-art inventions and training farmers in their use. That would mean Ivorian businesses would no longer have to import their technology from abroad, often from China, he added. — AFP
Hans India
2 days ago
- Sport
- Hans India
Kolo Toure joins Pep Guardiola's backroom staff at Man City
Manchester: Manchester City have confirmed the permanent appointment of Kolo Toure to Pep Guardiola's backroom staff. After performing the role of first team assistant coach during the Club's FIFA Club World Cup campaign this summer, the 44-year-old will remain in the position on a full-time basis. It comes after the Ivorian – who helped both Arsenal and City to Premier League success during an illustrious playing career - enjoyed a hugely successful season serving as Assistant Lead Coach with City's Under-18s last term. Working alongside Lead Coach Oliver Reiss, the former Ivory Coast defender helped pilot the City youngsters to the Premier League Under-18 North title, our Under-18s then narrowly edged out 1-0 at Aston Villa in the National final. Alongside Reiss, Toure also guided the young Blues through to the FA Youth Cup final before they were pipped to the trophy by Villa. Toure also boasts extensive coaching experience away from City, having initially worked with the Ivory Coast national set-up before then spending time at both Glasgow Celtic and Leicester City as part of Brendan Rodgers' coaching team. Before joining the City Academy coaching set-up, Kolo also undertook a brief spell in charge at Wigan Athletic. Commenting on Toure's appointment as first-team assistant coach, Director of Football Hugo Viana said, 'We're delighted to permanently add Kolo to our first team coaching staff. 'Not only does he bring his immensely precious experience at football's elite level, but he also has a deep connection with Manchester City and a deep knowledge of the Club. 'We've also been hugely impressed with his work and success with our Under-18s, and by adding him into our senior staff permanently, this will only strengthen the transition for players in our Academy into the first team. 'As we already saw throughout his time with Pep Guardiola, Pep Lijnders and James French this summer, his massive personality of optimism and positivity is hugely infectious and we're already looking forward to his work moving forward."
