KAMPALA (Reuters) - A Ugandan academic was released on bail on Wednesday after spending more than a month in jail on charges related to posts she made on Facebook criticising the country's leader of three decades, Yoweri Museveni.

JUBA (Reuters) - South Sudan's sacked former army chief Paul Malong has left the capital Juba for his home state, its defence minister said, raising concerns over his next move as a civil war drags on.

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - Lawyers for South African President Jacob Zuma on Wednesday sought to appeal a High Court order directing him to provide reasons for his decision to fire finance minister Pravin Gordhan in a cabinet reshuffle, eNCA television said.

TUNIS (Reuters) - Tunisia's President Beji Caid Essebsi on Wednesday ordered the army to protect facilities linked to phosphate, gas and oil production after protests aimed at disrupting output broke out in the south of the country.

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - A South African woman seeking advice on Twitter about buying a driver's licence got more than she bargained for on Wednesday when her inquiry caught the eye of police minister and prolific tweeter Fikile Mbalula.

ACCRA, May 10 (Reuters) - Higher transport costs helped drive Ghana's annual inflation rate higher to 13.0 percent in April from 12.8 percent the previous month, the statistics office said on Wednesday. The government of President Nana Akufo-Addo wants to slow inflation to 11.2 percent by the end of the year as part of its drive to restore macroeconomic stability under a three-year aid deal with the International Monetary Fund.

LONDON (Reuters) - Britain needs to strike a trade deal with Turkey and South Africa as well as with the remainder of the European Union when the country leaves the bloc, Ford's Europe chief said on Wednesday.

ACCRA, May 10 (Reuters) - Ghana's annual consumer price inflation rose to 13.0 percent in April from 12.8 percent the previous month, the statistics office said on Wednesday. The government of President Nana Akufo-Addo has targeted a reduction of inflation to 11.2 percent by the end of the year as part of its drive to restore macro economic stability under a three-year aid deal with the International Monetary Fund. (Reporting by Kwasi Kpodo; Editing by Matthew Mpoke Bigg)

DAR ES SALAAM (Reuters) - Tanzania's president John Magufuli said his government will enforce a new rule requiring mining firms to list on its bourse by August as part of measures aimed at increasing transparency and spreading wealth from the country's natural resources.    Major foreign-owned mining companies in Tanzania that will be affected by the requirement to list on the Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange include Acacia Mining Plc, AngloGold Ashanti and Petra Diamonds.

LUANDA (Reuters) - Thousands of people have fled fighting in Democratic Republic of Congo over the past month and sought refuge in neighbouring Angola, a provincial governor said, an exodus that is straining resources in villages along the border.

CAIRO (Reuters) - An apparently mentally unstable man caused panic among passengers on a airliner heading for Cairo from Jeddah in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday when he threatened to blow up the aircraft, airport sources said.

JUBA (Reuters) - The president of South Sudan has replaced army chief Paul Malong with a general who is a member of an ethnic minority, the defence minister said on Tuesday, after a slew of resignations by senior generals alleging tribal bias and war crimes.

BANJUL (Reuters) - Gambia's central bank governor and three other senior bank officials who served under ex-strongman leader Yahya Jammeh were dismissed from their positions on Tuesday, the governor and government officials said.

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - Four out of five lions that escaped from South Africa's main national park this week have been captured, the South African National Parks (SANParks) organisation said on Tuesday.

NAIROBI, May 10 (Reuters) - The following company announcements, scheduled economic indicators, debt and currency market moves and political events may affect African markets on Wednesday. - - - - - EVENTS: *Kenyan telecoms firm Safaricom releases its full year earnings results. *Ghana and Rwanda release their consumer inflation data for April. GLOBAL MARKETS Asian stocks edged higher for a third consecutive day on Wednesday as investors focused on strong corporate ea