Africa Update Report with Advocate Sipho Mantula, Researcher: Thabo Mbeki African School of Public & International Affairs: Unisa

15 January 2026

1.    Uganda – Kampala

Uganda decides today: What’s at Stake in Uganda’s 2026 Presidential Election

Polling process and what are Ugandans are voting for.

Ugandans head to the polls on Thursday, 15 January 2026. Polling stations open at 07:00 local time (04:00 GMT) and close at 16:00, with voters already in line at closing time permitted to cast their ballots.

The Electoral Commission has registered approximately 21.6 million voters, an increase from 18.1 million in 2021, with women making up about 53% of the roll.

 Voter turnout has declined in recent cycles, falling below 60% in 2021 from around 70% in 2006.

2.    South Sudan – South Afrika- African Union Committee of Five ( C5)

Minister Ronald Lamola in his capacity as the chairperson has arrived in Juba, leading a High-Level African Union Ad-hoc Committee of Five (C5) Visited to South Sudan yesterday until today.

The visit serves as a precursor to a Peace and Security Council (PSC) Meeting of the African Union, scheduled for 19 January 2026, which will assess the situation in South Sudan.

 It also precedes the 39th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government and the proposed C5 Plus Summit, which will convene on the margins of the AU Assembly from 14 to 15 February 2026.

3.    Lesotho – South Afrika 

Former President of the Republic of South Africa, Mr. Thabo Mbeki, paid a courtesy call on Prime Minister Mr. Ntsokoane Matekane in Maseru yesterday. 

The Press Attaché at the Prime Minister’s Office, Mr Thapelo Mabote, said Mr Mbeki is in Lesotho at the invitation of His Majesty King Letsie III to deliver the Memorial Lecture commemorating the 30th anniversary of the passing of His Majesty King Moshoeshoe II .

He added that Mr. Mbeki will also attend a prayer service marking the commemoration on January 15, 2026, to be held at the Thaba Bosiu. 

4.    In our historical archives, it was on this day 15 January 1996 when King Moshoeshoe II, the paramount chief of Lesotho, was killed in an accident

King Moshoeshoe II of Lesotho died in a car accident shortly after he reclaimed his royal throne in 1995. The car he was travelling in rolled down a cliff on a mountain road on the way to Maseru, the capital city of Lesotho. After four months of investigations the police reported that the King's driver was under the influence of alcohol and that caused him to lose control of the vehicle.

4.1 In our historical archives, it was on this day 15 January 1966 when Nigerian first Prime Minister Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa was killed in Nigeria’s first military coup

Abubakar Tafawa Balewa was the first Prime Minister of Nigeria after it gained independence. He served his term as Prime Minister from 1957 until he died in 1966 when he was kidnapped and killed in the country’s first military coup.