IMF approves $4.3 billion to help South Africa fight Covid-19

Ghana is committed to managing its debt without assistance from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta said, expressing his confidence that government measures were moving the country in the right direction.

After struggling through the early years of the pandemic to get enough Covid-19 vaccinations, Africa's first factory to produce the doses says it may have to stop because it hasn't had enough orders. Also, a former Congolese policemen gets a death sentence for murdering human rights activist Floribert Chebeya in 2010. And sanctions on Mali have hit neighbouring towns in Senegal. Within one month of the embargo, exports to Mali have fallen by close to a quarter.

Known as the burial place of Achilles, the barren Black Sea rock has become the site of fierce combat between Ukraine and Russia. Snake Island has strategic and symbolic importance dating to the Soviet era.

New data shows China's economy cooled sharply in April, as many cities including Shanghai suffered Covid-19 lockdowns. Industrial output dropped nearly 3 percent compared to a year before, while retail sales slumped 11 percent. Meanwhile, global wheat prices jump after India announces a ban on exporting the grain due to damage from a heatwave. Finally, we see how tourists are returning to Barcelona. The development is good news for local businesses but could revive tensions over mass tourism.

Since North Korea reported its first official coronavirus case last week, the WHO has warned it might spread rapidly in the unvaccinated country. Ruler Kim Jong Un wants the military to turn the tide.

Japan's GDP fell at an annualised rate of 1 percent in the first three months of this year as the Omicron variant of the coronavirus hampered consumer spending. Rising commodity prices also weighed on businesses in the world's third-largest economy. Plus, as unemployment remains stable in France at 7.3 percent, a steelworks factory in the northern city of Dunkirk is offering a cash bonus to employees to encourage them to recruit family members.

Semakaleng Mathebula is South Africa's first Black hot air balloon pilot and one of few women participating in the niche sport, which traditionally has been the domain of the white and privilege.

In France, coming out of the closet and living openly as a member of the LGBTI+ community can be a significant psychological, emotional and social challenge. Until just 40 years ago, it was also a legal one. In 1982, the age of consent was lowered from 21 to 18 for homosexuals in France, making it the same for everyone. This landmark law paved the way for important civil liberties, including the legalisation of same-sex marriage in 2013. But there are still obstacles to be overcome. To find out more about the ongoing fight for equality, we speak to Sébastien Tüller, LGBTI+ legal advisor for Amnesty International France.

The world is facing its worst food crisis in history. Millions of tonnes of wheat are stuck in Ukraine, worsening an already precarious situation for many countries that depend on exports from the region. IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva tells FRANCE 24 Business Editor Kate Moody that only "very strong international mobilisation" will save the lives of millions of people. Also in our update from Davos: EU member states move towards an embargo on Russian oil, but with no consensus on the timeline.

March 17, 1992: This date will forever be remembered in South Africa as the day when whites voted to end the apartheid system that privileged them and oppressed others. The country has seen momentous change since then — but is still wracked by injustice and poverty.

Wei Fenghe slammed US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin's "smearing" accusation that China was causing regional instability. He said Beijing would do whatever it takes to ensure reunification with Taiwan.

US authorities determined COVID-19 vaccines should be given to children under 5, the only age group that is still ineligible for the jabs in the country.