CC BY 4.0, Wikimedia Commons 1980 The Republic of Zimbabwe (formerly Rhodesia) came into being, with Canaan Banana as its first President and Robert Mugabe as Prime Minister, marking the end of white-minority rule.
IndependenceOn this day — April 18 in African history
Real events, births and milestones from Africa and the diaspora.
CC BY 4.0, Wikimedia Commons 1980 
Stevan Kragujević — CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons 1954 Gamal Abdel Nasser seized power in Egypt, becoming the country's de facto leader and later its president, reshaping Egyptian and Arab politics for decades.
Politics
Foreign Ministry of the Republic of Indonesia — Public Domain, Wikimedia Commons 1955 Representatives of 29 newly independent Asian and African nations convened in Bandung, Indonesia, for the first Asian-African Conference, a landmark moment for pan-African and anti-colonial solidarity.
History
Wang Yu Ching, Taiwan Office of the President — CC BY 4.0, Wikimedia Commons 2018 King Mswati III announced that Swaziland would officially change its name to Eswatini, meaning 'land of the Swazis,' to mark 50 years of independence.
Culture
CC BY, Wikimedia Commons 1973 Haile Gebrselassie, Ethiopian long-distance runner who won two Olympic gold medals and set numerous world records, was born in Asella, Ethiopia.
Birth
Clinton Groves — GFDL, Wikimedia Commons 1972 East African Airways Flight 720 crashed during a rejected takeoff from Addis Ababa's Bole International Airport, killing 43 people.
Disaster