Children and women run among a cloud of dust at the village of El Gel, 8 kilometres from the town of K'elafo, Ethiopia, on January 12, 2023. The last five rainy seasons since the end of 2020 have failed, triggering the worst drought in four decades in Ethiopia, Somalia and Kenya. And the next rainy season, from March to May, is also expected to be below average. According to the UN, drought has plunged 12 million people into “acute food insecurity” in Ethiopia alone, where a deadly conflict has also ravaged the north of the country. (Photo by Eduardo Soteras/AFP Photo)





An African woman gets her hair braided at a tin hair salon in Kibera, the second largest slum of Africa in Nairobi, Kenya on January 19, 2023. Hair salons established in tin shops are popular among customers who look for cheap and fast service. African braids and other hairstyles, which are made in the desired color and length and are popular all over the world, are offered to customers by the hairdressers in Kibera. Some women prefer the hairstyle called “coronavirus” where the hair is braided like antennas. (Photo by Gerald Anderson/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)





Construction workers lay concrete outside the Cathedral Notre Dame du Congo in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo Saturday January 28, 2023. Pope Francis will be in Congo and South Sudan for a six-day trip starting Jan, 31, hoping to bring comfort and encouragement to two countries that have been riven by poverty, conflicts and what he calls a “colonialist mentality” that has exploited Africa for centuries. (Photo by Jerome Delay/AP Photo)





A man wears a traditional Kankurang mask during the Kankurang Festival in Janjanbureh on January 28, 2023. The Kankurang Festival is a yearly event to showcase the unique cultural expression of the Kankurang and other traditions of West Africa. (Photo by Muhamadou Bittaye/AFP Photo)





Men wearing the Simba mask, a famous Seneglese culture attire of handmade cloth, dance along the streets during the Kankurang Festival in Janjanbureh on January 28, 2023. The Kankurang Festival is a yearly event to showcase the unique cultural expression of the Kankurang and other traditions of West Africa. (Photo by Muhamadou Bittaye/AFP Photo)





Members of various Human Rights Defender (HRD) groups hold a protest against the brutal killing of renowned human rights lawyer, Thulani Maseko at his home in the kingdom of eSwatini (formerly known as Swaziland) in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi on January 30, 2023. Thulani Maseko, a political activist and fierce critic of authorities in the tiny landlocked nation, was gunned down through the window of his home last Saturday by unknown attackers. (Photo by Tony Karumba/AFP Photo)





A mother accompanies her child to school on a street of Harare, Zimbabwe, Tuesday, January 31, 2023. (Photo by Tsvangirayi Mukwazhi/AP Photo)





A group of people gather to protest against the killing of rightist activist Thulani Maseko, in Nairobi, Kenya on January 30, 2023. (Photo by Gerald Anderson/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)





Electoral campaign posters are at a crossroads ahead of Nigeria's presidential election in Lagos, Nigeria on January 31, 2023. (Photo by Temilade Adelaja/Reuters)





A woman walks past to a banner welcoming Pope Francis to Democratic Republic of Congo, at the “Palais de la Nation” in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Tuesday, January 31, 2023. Pope Francis starts his six-day pastoral visit to Congo and South Sudan where he'll bring a message of peace to countries riven by poverty and conflict. (Photo by Gregorio Borgia/AP Photo)





People cheer at Pope Francis as he arrives in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Tuesday, January 31, 2023 to start his six-day pastoral visit to Congo and South Sudan where he'll bring a message of peace to countries riven by poverty and conflict. (Photo by Gregorio Borgia/AP Photo)





Honour guards look on as Pope Francis attends the welcoming ceremony at the Palais de la Nation on the first day of his apostolic journey, in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo on January 31, 2023. (Photo by Yara Nardi/Reuters)





A choir girl sits as Pope Francis celebrates a mass at Ndolo Airport during his apostolic journey, in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo on February 1, 2023. (Photo by Yara Nardi/Reuters)





Worshippers gather at Ndolo airport for a Holy Mass with Pope Francis in Kinshasa, Congo, Wednesday, February 1, 2023. Francis is in Congo and South Sudan for a six-day trip. (Photo by Jerome Delay/AP Photo)





An artisanal gold miner pans for gold at the Karakaene gold mine on February 1, 2023. Karakaene has one of the largest artisanal gold mining sites in southeastern Senegal, close to the border of Mali. The town in recent years has more than doubled in size with the recent gold rush, allegedly attracting migrant workers from 19 different African countries. Most of the gold is extracted and sold off in Mali where the price is higher. One gram of Gold in Senegal can go at 31000 CFA (51USD) and in Mali above 40000 CFA (67USD). (Photo by John Wessels/AFP Photo)





Pope Francis watches a performance as he attends a meeting with young people and catechists at the Stade des Martyrs during his apostolic journey, in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo on February 2, 2023. (Photo by Luc Gnago/Reuters)





A sister wears headwear showing a picture of The Last Supper, as she and a group of the Catholic faithful from the town of Rumbek arrive after walking for more than a week to reach the capital for the visit of Pope Francis, in Juba, South Sudan Thursday, February 2, 2023. Pope Francis is due to travel to South Sudan later this week on the second leg of a six-day trip that started in Congo, hoping to bring comfort and encouragement to two countries that have been riven by poverty, conflicts and what he calls a “colonialist mentality” that has exploited Africa for centuries. (Photo by Ben Curtis/AP Photo)





South Sudanese traditional dancers prepare to welcome Pope Francis during his visit in Juba, South Sudan on February 3, 2023. (Photo by Thomas Mukoya/Reuters)





A man holds a picture of Pope Francis as a crowd gathers to welcome him upon his arrival at the Juba International Airport in Juba, South Sudan, on February 3, 2023. Pope Francis arrived on a three-day visit to South Sudan on February 3, 2023 to promote peace and reconciliation in the world's youngest country, riven by the scars of civil war and extreme poverty. (Photo by Tiziana Fabi/AFP Photo)





Rebecca Mwenda, wife to Josphert Mwenda who was murdered alongside human rights lawyer Willy Kimani and taxi driver Joseph Muiruri, faints during sentencing of the convicts at Milimani Law Courts, Kenya's capital Nairobi Friday February 3, 2023. A former Kenyan policeman has been sentenced to death for the murder of a human rights lawyer, his client and a taxi driver. Frederick Leliman and three other police officers were charged with the murder of lawyer Willie Kimani and two others in 2016, in yet another case of police brutality and extrajudicial killings in Kenya. (Photo by AP Photo/Stringer)