Climate & Energy Resilience: Malawi switched on its first utility-scale solar battery (20MW) to cut blackouts and protect hydropower-dependent supply as El Niño threatens river flows. Extreme Weather Warnings: South Africa’s KwaZulu-Natal faces Yellow Level 4 disruptive rain risks, while more snow-and-rain alerts loom across provinces, including Eastern Cape. Conservation Leadership: SANParks graduated senior and emerging conservation leaders to strengthen inclusive, future-focused protected-area management. Heat, Cooling and Inequality: A new report warns extreme heat could add ~430,000 deaths a year by 2050, with many affected regions lacking electricity for life-saving cooling. Food Prices & El Niño: South Africa braces for possible grocery pressure as El Niño-linked harvest risks return, even as some forecasts suggest maize may hold up. Water as a Financial Risk: Alexforbes says 99% of South African business holdings face future water risk, pushing investors to treat water insecurity as a core financial issue. Governance & Civic Space: Uganda’s Protection of Sovereignty Act tightens foreign funding rules for civil society, raising alarms for civic space. Early Warning Tech: Ethiopia’s meteorology institute is using China’s AI multi-hazard early warning system to improve drought and flash-flood alerts. Modern Slavery Data: Ghana is reported to have 91,000 people trapped in modern slavery, highlighting ongoing human rights and social protection gaps. Critical Minerals Push: Ghana’s “24-hour economy” pitch links energy, ports, digital systems and mining governance to industrialisation.