on this edition of Africa 54, Sudan agrees to pay millions of dollars in compensation to the families of 17 sailors killed in an al- Qaeda attack on the USS Cole, 20 years ago; Chinese officials say another 242 people have succumbed from the respiratory, flu-like Coronavirus, pushing the death toll to over 1,300 people since December; Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation announces 100 million dollar fund to 2019 Coronavirus response.

A54 Business: The tiny southern African mountain nation of Lesotho made history in 2017 by becoming the first on the continent to issue licenses for the production of medical cannabis. It made history again, when it signed tens of millions of dollars’ worth of deals with foreign investors to develop the lucrative marijuana industry and to manufacture the complete products in Africa.