Emmanuel Macron is currently on an African tour – Egypt, Kenya, Ethiopia – with the stated objective of rebuilding relations between France and the continent on an economic basis. In Nairobi, at the close of the “Africa Forward” summit business forum, he announced 23 billion euros of investments for Africa, including 14 billion French, public and private. The priority sectors are energy transition, digital and AI, agriculture and health. These investments should, according to the Élysée, create more than 250,000 direct jobs in France and Africa.
This Wednesday, May 13, Macron goes to Addis Ababa for his first visit to the headquarters of the African Union, where he will meet the President of the AU Commission and the Secretary General of the UN Antonio Guterres, in order to support efforts to resolve the continent’s crises. A meeting with Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed is also planned.
On the sidelines of the Nairobi summit, a sequence caused a reaction: the president spontaneously went on stage to call to order a noisy audience who was disrupting the intervention of a Ghanaian fashion designer. “It’s a total lack of respect”he said, before being applauded by the audience. The episode sparked criticism on social networks, with LFI MP Danièle Obono accusing him of “behave like a colonist”while Nicolas Dupont-Aignan deplored that he “put him to shame until the last day of his mandate”.
2 – The Senate examines the Rodwell-Barnier bill
This Wednesday morning, the Senate examines in committee the bill aimed at “strengthening security, administrative detention and preventing the risk of attack”, after its adoption by the National Assembly on May 5 with 345 votes for and 177 against, supported by the majority and the right, rejected by the left. The text, carried by the Ensemble pour la République (EPR) deputy Charles Rodwell, was born from the tragedy of Philippine Le Noir, murdered in September 2024 in the Bois de Boulogne by a Moroccan national convicted of rape, released from a CRA after 90 days for lack of a consular pass – document issued 48 hours too late. Other cases have since illustrated the same flaws, including the Mulhouse attack in February 2025, committed by an Algerian under OQTF released under the same conditions.
The text targets several categories of foreigners in an irregular situation: those convicted of terrorism, for whom detention would increase from 180 to 210 days, restoring a system censored by the Constitutional Council in August 2025, but also people convicted of particularly serious crimes and misdemeanors, and more broadly those presenting a serious risk of committing the act. It is this expanded scope which has crystallized the criticisms of the left, in the name of fundamental rights and the presumption of innocence. Rodwell assures that he worked closely with the Council of State to legally secure the editorial staff. According to a CSA survey from April 2026, 82% of French people say they are in favor of this extension.
3 – Princess Kate Middleton’s trip to Italy
This Wednesday, May 13, the Princess of Wales arrives in Reggio Emilia, in the north of Italy, for a two-day official trip devoted to early childhood. This is his first solo trip abroad in almost three and a half years, his last was in December 2022, in Boston, and the first since his cancer diagnosis and chemotherapy. On her arrival, Kate will receive the Primo Tricolore, the municipality’s highest distinction, presented by Mayor Marco Massari: it is the Italian tricolor flag born in Reggio Emilia on January 7, 1797, at the origin of modern Italy.
The trip is part of the Royal Foundation for Early Childhood, which Kate created in 2021. She is coming to study Reggio pedagogy, an educational philosophy born in this city, which places human relationships and the environment at the heart of child development, prioritizing learning over results. Along with the Montessori method, it is one of the most widely taught in the world.
The princess will meet teachers, parents, children and local officials. This trip also accompanies the publication of a report from his foundation on the development of children under five, warning in particular of the harmful effects of “technoference” – these interruptions in parent-child interactions caused by screens. The British press unanimously welcomes this return to the international scene as “a historic moment”.
4 – Sentencing for Erik Fleming, intermediary in the death of actor Matthew Perry
This Wednesday in Los Angeles, Erik Fleming, intermediary in the ketamine supply chain leading to the death of actor Matthew Perry, will receive his sentence. He is one of five people who pleaded guilty in the case. Matthew Perry, the unforgettable Chandler Bing of the series Friendswas found unconscious in his spa on October 28, 2023 and died at age 54 of a ketamine overdose. The actor, who had struggled with addiction for years – he had spent more than $9 million on withdrawal treatment – had relapsed in the fall of 2023 after undergoing supervised therapy sessions using the legal anesthetic.
In addition to Fleming, four other people have already been sentenced: Jasveen Sangha, nicknamed the “queen of ketamine” in Hollywood circles, was sentenced to 15 years in prison last April. Dr. Salvador Plasencia, who sold the drugs at exorbitant prices to the actor, was sentenced to 30 months. Dr. Mark Chavez, his supplier, to 8 months of house arrest. Perry’s personal assistant, Kenneth Iwamasa, is also expected to know his fate soon.
5 – The good news of the day
A museum entirely dedicated to the Beatles will open its doors in 2027 in London, at 3 Savile Row, the same building where the group gave their last concert, on the roof, in January 1969, a few months before their separation. This is also where it was recorded Let It Be. Baptized The Beatles at 3 Savile Row and approved by Apple Corps, the Beatles’ company, the place will offer collectibles, a reconstruction of the recording studio in the basement, a shop, and above all access to the roof which has remained intact since 1969, where fans will be able to relive the atmosphere of the legendary 42-minute concert, interrupted by the police due to complaints from the neighborhood.
Paul McCartney, 83, said ” impatient ” to see the project succeed: “These walls hold so many precious memories, not to mention the roof. » Ringo Starr, 85, the only other surviving member, said simply: “It’s like coming home. » The ticket office is already open. In 2028, four biopics each devoted to a member of the group, directed by Sam Mendes, will extend this homage to cinema.
