World Tour - Senegal celebrates

MARY REICHARD, HOST: Coming up next on The World and Everything in It: WORLD Tour with our reporter in Africa, Onize Ohikere.

ONIZE OHIKERE, REPORTER: Australia to reopen borders—We start today in Australia.

After almost two years of strict border closures, the country will once again welcome visitors, starting February 21st.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison made the announcement Monday. Australians welcomed the news.

AUDIO: About time. It's exciting. It almost feels like the end of a period of hermit kingdom-ness ending. I'm just really excited. Opportunities is what we want. The opportunity to leave the country and come back is great.

Since March 2020, Australians have been barred from leaving the country. Only a handful of visitors have been granted exemptions to enter.

According to the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the strict lockdown has cost businesses an estimated $2.6 billion dollars.

Only a handful of countries remain closed to tourists due to the pandemic. They include Japan, China, New Zealand, and several Pacific Island nations.

Queen Elizabeth begins jubilee year—Next we go to Europe.

AUDIO: [Cannon fire]

The sound of ceremonial cannons rang out over London on Monday to celebrate the 70-year reign of Queen Elizabeth II.

Lt. Colonel James Shaw oversees the British Army’s ceremonial events.

SHAW: Today we’re marking Her Majesty’s accession to the throne, but from here now we’ve started the Jubilee year and it’s now the build-up to the Platinum Jubilee weekend in June.

At 95, Queen Elizabeth is Britain’s longest serving monarch. In a message to the nation, the queen renewed a pledge she made during a broadcast on her 21st birthday: “that my life will always be devoted to your service.” She signed it, “Your servant, Elizabeth R.”

Cyclone devastates Madagascar’s agriculture—Next we go to East Africa.

AUDIO: [Wind noise]

Madagascar is cleaning up from a deadly cyclone that raked over the island nation on Saturday. It was the second storm to hit the country in the last few weeks.

Cyclone Batsirai killed 20 people and displaced 55,000 others.

It hit the island’s sparsely populated agricultural heartland, raising fears of a long-lasting humanitarian crisis.

Three-quarters of Madagascar's population lives on less than $2 per day. Due to a severe drought, more than a million people are suffering from acute malnutrition.

Tunisian PM dissolves judicial council—Next, to North Africa.

Tunisian President Kais Saied dissolved the country’s judicial council on Sunday.

AUDIO: [Man speaking Arabic]

Following a meeting with the prime minister, Saied said he would never interfere with the judiciary. But he claimed the council was full of corruption and said he needed to put an end to “this farce.”

Critics denounced the move as another blow to democracy. Liz Throssell is a spokeswoman for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights.

THROSSELL: The country has made tremendous progress in recent years and this is why it's important to flag that these latest developments are so concerning.

Tunisia established the judicial council in 2016 as a way to ensure the independence of the judiciary. Saied took control of the country’s government in July and has increasingly concentrated all authority in the presidency.

Senegal celebrates Afcon win—And finally, we end today in West Africa.

AUDIO: [Sound of cheering]

Hundreds of thousands of soccer fans packed the streets of Dakar on Monday to welcome Senegal’s national team back home.

The Lions won the Africa Cup of Nations on Sunday, beating Egypt 4-2 in a penalty shoot-out. It was Senegal’s first championship win.

The government declared Monday a public holiday to celebrate.

That’s it for this week’s World Tour. Reporting for WORLD, I’m Onize Ohikere in Abuja, Nigeria.

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