Focus On Africa [World Service]

Al Shabab militants have raised their black flags in another village to ridicule the government.

Campaigning ends in Ethiopia ahead of Sunday's parliamentary elections.

Tens of thousands of Kenyans have gathered in the central town of Nyeri to watch history being made as an Italian nun, Sister Irene Stefani becomes the first person to be beatified in East Africa.

Focus on Africa is the BBC's review of the day's events across the continent.

Today we bring you a special edition of the programme ahead of Nigeria's presidential elections.

It has been a turbulent week for Africa - ongoing events in Libya and Ivory Coast have again put Africa's democratic credentials on trial.

Nigeria is Africa's most populous nation and seen as the most important for the region's stability and prosperity, and what happens on polling day on Saturday is being watched and monitored throughout the world.

Presented by Sophie Ikenye and Bilkisu Labaran.

It is one month since the devastating floods and fire that killed over 150 people in Ghana's capital Accra. The fire and subsequent explosion took place at a petrol station where people had been sheltering from the rain. Over 150 people were killed and dozens injured. Millions of dollars’ worth of property were destroyed.

Ghana is said to be one of Africa's model countries - with relatively decent institutions and infrastructure. So what went wrong? How prepared was the city for the perennial floods? What about the response by the emergency services? Could the disaster and its aftermath been handled differently?

A few days ago, chaos erupted when the authorities attempted to demolish a slum in Accra nicknamed Sodom and Gomorrah - saying the illegal dwelling had blocked the flow of flood waters, causing the recent disaster.

Some have blamed the city’s problems with population growth on rural-to-urban migration, which led to overcrowding in some areas. Some say it is due to poor city/urban planning; all issues that resonate across the continent. So how prepared is your city to deal with disasters such as what happened in Ghana? And what solutions would you propose?

We explore the issues with some city authorities and planning experts, as well as an audience of local people and some of those people directly affected by last month's incident.

(Photo: Soldiers and rescue workers patrol the remaining structure of houses following a gas station explosion in Accra, Ghana, June 2015. Credit: AP)