Today in Africa — January 22, 2026: Uganda’s Kizza Besigye’s Health Deteriorates in Detention, 35 Million Nigerians Face Hunger

Every day, OkayAfrica shares a roundup of news we’re following but haven’t published as full articles. These short updates cover what’s happening on the continent — in culture, politics, and beyond. For more on stories like these, be sure to check out our News page, with stories from across the regions.

Uganda Opposition Figure Kizza Besigye’s Health Deteriorates in Detention

Detained Ugandan opposition leader Kizza Besigye is in a “worrying” health condition after falling sick in custody, his wife Winnie Byanyima told Reuters, citing a high temperature, stomach pain, dehydration, severe leg pain, and an inability to walk. Besigye, 69, has been held for more than a year after his arrest in Kenya, extradition to Uganda, and treason charges that his family and allies reject as politically motivated. Byanyima said he eats little and remains weak, and that a doctor suspects a bacterial infection, though test results are pending.

Byanyima said prison authorities denied requests to move Besigye to his private doctor for proper treatment and monitoring, warning that delays could be life-threatening. She added that he is being held in solitary confinement in a small, hot room and forced to sleep on a thin, bedbug-infested mattress. Besigye missed a court appearance yesterday, Wednesday, January 22, due to his condition. The government denies persecuting opposition figures, while prison officials did not respond to requests for comment. The developments come days after President Yoweri Museveni was declared the winner of a fifth term, a result contested by opposition candidate Bobi Wine.

Ugandan police have also detained opposition lawmaker Muwanga Kivumbi, a vice president of Bobi Wine’s National Unity Platform (NUP), over alleged election-related violence that authorities say left at least seven people dead after the January 15 vote. Police said Kivumbi would be charged in court, accusing him of organizing attacks on a police station and a vote-tallying center, claims he disputes. Kivumbi told Reuters that people were killed inside his home while awaiting results for his parliamentary race, calling the incident a “massacre” in which 10 people died. The arrest adds to opposition claims of a wider crackdown, with hundreds of NUP supporters and officials detained before and after the election, allegations the government denies as Museveni extends his rule toward 45 years in power by 2031.

UN Warns 35 Million Nigerians Face Hunger as Aid Funding Shrinks

Nearly 35 million Nigerians could face hunger this year, including 3 million children at risk of severe malnutrition, the United Nations warned today, Thursday, January 22, citing a sharp drop in global aid funding. Speaking in Abuja at the launch of Nigeria’s 2026 humanitarian plan, UN coordinator Mohamed Malick Fall says the long-standing foreign-led aid model is no longer sustainable as needs continue to rise, especially in the conflict-hit northeast.

Fall says conditions in Borno, Adamawa, and Yobe states are worsening, with increased violence and a surge in suicide bombings that killed more than 4,000 people in the first eight months of 2025, matching all of 2023. The UN now aims to raise $516 million to support 2.5 million people this year, down from 3.6 million in 2025, after funding shortfalls forced cuts to food aid for hundreds of thousands of children. While resources are stretched, Fall says Nigeria has begun taking greater ownership of the response through local food funding and early flood warnings, even as humanitarian needs remain severe.

Senegal Coach Defends AFCON Walk-Off, Apologizes as CAF Weighs Sanctions

Senegal coach Pape Bouna Thiaw says emotion and a sense of injustice drove his decision to order his players off the pitch during Sunday’s tense Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) final against Morocco, an action that has drawn widespread criticism. In an Instagram post today, Thursday, January 22, Thiaw says the walk-off followed a late VAR-awarded penalty for the hosts and was never meant to disrespect the game, calling it an emotional reaction to what he felt was an unfair moment. Senegal later returned to the field, Morocco missed the penalty, and the match went to extra time.

Senegal went on to win 1–0 and secure their second AFCON title in three editions, a victory that has sparked celebrations back home since the team returned to Dakar on Monday. Thiaw praised his squad and apologized to anyone offended by the protest, saying football is driven by emotion. Players were rewarded with bonuses of more than $130,000 and plots of coastal land, while the Confederation of African Football is expected to decide in the coming days whether to sanction Senegal over the walk-off.

Floods Kill at Least 13 in Mozambique as Damage Mounts Across Southern Africa

At least 13 people have died in severe flooding across Mozambique over the past two weeks, with authorities and aid workers warning the toll is likely to rise as floodwaters recede and access improves. Heavy rains have caused rivers and dams to overflow, affecting more than half a million people and cutting off parts of the country, including sections of the capital, Maputo, where homes and businesses were submerged. The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) says many of those feared dead are children, while officials describe the flooding as the worst since 2000, though early evacuations may have reduced casualties. The extreme weather has also hit neighboring South Africa, where floods forced the temporary closure of Kruger National Park, causing damage estimated at more than $30 million, even as no lives were lost there.

Guinea-Bissau Sets December Vote After Coup Halted Elections

Guinea-Bissau has set December 6 as the date for new presidential and legislative elections, months after a military coup derailed the country’s last vote. The date was announced by presidential decree on Wednesday, following the late-2025 overthrow of President Umaro Sissoco Embalo by army officers calling themselves the Military High Command, who installed Major-General Horta Inta-a as interim leader. The coup came a day before election results were due, with armed men seizing ballots and destroying servers holding vote data, forcing the electoral commission to abandon the process. The takeover drew condemnation from the Economic Community of West African States, which urged a return to constitutional order and the completion of elections.

Drone Strikes Near al-Obeid Kill Civilians as Sudan’s War Deepens Education Crisis

Drone attacks have intensified around al-Obeid, the capital of North Kordofan, as Sudan’s war between the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces pushes deeper into central regions, residents say. Weekly strikes have hit areas in and around the army-held city since late October, after the RSF consolidated control in Darfur and shifted toward Kordofan, killing civilians in multiple incidents, including a November 5 strike on a funeral in nearby al-Luweib that residents say killed 65 women and children. Satellite imagery reviewed by the Yale Humanitarian Research Lab shows new burial mounds, damage to al-Obeid’s power station, and defensive earthworks around the city, as displacement across Kordofan rises. The violence is compounding a wider humanitarian collapse in Sudan, where charity organization Save the Children says more than eight million children have been out of school for roughly 484 days due to closures, damage, and displacement, prompting UN warnings of a “lost generation” as attacks on civilian infrastructure continue.

South Africa School Bus Crash Death Toll Rises to 14 as Driver Faces Murder Charges

Two teenage girls died from their injuries today, Thursday, January 22, raising the death toll to 14 from this week’s school bus crash in South Africa’s Gauteng province, authorities said, as the minibus driver was charged with murder. The privately operated bus was carrying 16 students to schools south of Johannesburg when it collided with a truck around 7 a.m. on Monday, killing 12 children at the scene. Seven people were hospitalized, including five students, the driver, and a truck passenger, with two children still receiving care. Prosecutors upgraded charges against 22-year-old driver Ayanda Dludla from culpable homicide to 14 counts of murder, three counts of attempted murder, and driving without a professional license. He appeared in the Vanderbijlpark Magistrate’s Court today, declined to seek bail, and the case was adjourned to March 5 for further investigation.

Rwanda to Pilot AI Tools in Clinics Under Gates-Backed Health Initiative

Rwanda will begin testing artificial intelligence tools in more than 50 health clinics as part of a new $50 million initiative by the Gates Foundation and OpenAI aimed at supporting 1,000 clinics across Africa. The program, called Horizons1000, is designed to improve efficiency and decision-making in overstretched health systems without replacing clinical judgment, Rwandan health officials said. Rwanda currently has about one health worker per 1,000 patients, well below global recommendations. While officials say the technology could expand access to care and reduce administrative burdens, local digital experts have raised concerns about language barriers, noting that AI tools must work in Kinyarwanda, spoken by most of the population, to be effective.