August 01, 2014
West Africa: Ebola - Softly, Softly On Bush Meat
Medical teams struggling to curb Ebola in West Africa have been discouraging bush meat consumption, believed to have caused the outbreak, but some rural communities dependent on… Read more »
October 02, 2008
Cote d'Ivoire: Toxic Waste Criminal Investigations May Indict Higher-Ups
Ivorian government lawyers have said they may pursue criminal investigations against the Netherlands-based oil trader Trafigura, which owned the oil waste dumped in open-air sites… Read more »
October 01, 2008
Cote d'Ivoire: Who is to Blame for Dumping Toxic Oil Sludge?
A trial is under way in Abidjan of local officials accused of conniving in the dumping of toxic oil sludge in August 2006 and causing over a dozen deaths, and illnesses to tens of… Read more »
August 19, 2008
Cote d'Ivoire: UN Warns Toxic Waste Still a Threat
Two years after an illegal toxic dumping operation in the Ivorian capital Abidjan created a widespread medical emergency and political scandal, UN contamination expert Okechukwu… Read more »
June 02, 2008
West Africa: Sahel is 'Ground Zero' for Climate Change
The Sahel region of West Africa is "ground zero" for vulnerable communities struggling to adapt to climate change, the UN Secretary-General's Special Adviser on conflict, Jan… Read more »
September 14, 2007
Cote d'Ivoire: Thousands of Toxic Waste Victims Could Miss Out On Compensation
Thousands of people poisoned by toxic waste illegally dumped in Cote d'Ivoire in August 2006 might receive no part of a US$198-million settlement because they sought treatment in… Read more »
July 31, 2007
Kenya: Climate Change And Malaria in Nairobi
Malaria is the most common disease in Africa's largest slum, Kibera, in Nairobi, say health workers, but at a cool altitude of about 1,700m, the capital city has long been… Read more »
June 21, 2007
West Africa: Flood Season Starts But Not Where It Should
As seasonal rains start to fall across the Sahel, climatologists warn that the region is entering a cycle of unpredictable heavy rains that could destroy crops and leave thousands… Read more »
May 08, 2007
Nigeria: Who Owns the Land?
Prince Wegwu and his family own land in the Niger Delta with 31 oil wells on it. Oil companies pump out thousands of barrels of oil a day and yet Wegwu says neither he nor his… Read more »
April 20, 2007
Malawi: Small Farmers Hit By Changes in the Climate
Small-scale farmers in Malawi are becoming aware that they are bearing the brunt of climate change, which has been adversely affecting productivity, according to a new study by an… Read more »
December 14, 2006
Nigeria: Fishing Turns Dangerous
Waibite Amazi, 42, says life was much easier when he was a boy growing up in the 70,000 sq km labyrinth of marshes and mangrove forests in Nigeria's southern delta. Read more »
November 23, 2006
Mauritania: Another Step in Democratic Transition
Provisional results from historic legislative and municipal elections in Mauritania indicated on Thursday that opposition parties that had defied the country's previous… Read more »
November 10, 2006
Africa: Only Conflict-Free Diamonds, Please
Ghana, implicated in trafficking conflict diamonds, has been given a three-month reprieve by a global watchdog set up to eliminate the trade in so-called blood diamonds. Read more »
October 24, 2006
South Africa: More Heat Less Light At Nuclear Facility
James Mcephe, 69, is not the man he used to be. His skin is painfully itchy and bleeds after the slightest knock; his eyes are afflicted by a burning sensation that makes it… Read more »
September 19, 2006
Cote d'Ivoire: French Executives Arrested in Toxic-Waste Scandal
Authorities in Cote d'Ivoire have arrested two senior French officials of a Dutch-based commodities company in connection with a toxic waste scandal that has shaken an already… Read more »
September 18, 2006
Cote d'Ivoire: Clean-Up of Toxic Waste Begins
International waste removal experts in protective suits and masks have begun cleaning up toxic waste that was dumped in several areas of Abidjan in a scandal that has further… Read more »
Gabon: Poverty Amid Plenty As Unemployment Booms
Patiently scraping the scales off fish at the Pont Nomba market in Gabon's capital, 19-year-old high-school graduate Etienne Biyoghe said he once dreamt of an office career.… Read more »
September 04, 2006
Africa: Gender Inequality Driving HIV - UN Aids Envoy
Gender inequality and the inability of women to negotiate safe sex are behind the continued spread of the pandemic, according to Stephen Lewis, UN special envoy for HIV/AIDS in… Read more »
January 31, 2006
Central Africa: Tension Increases in Ongoing Land Dispute Along Burundi-Rwanda Border
A land dispute that resulted from a river changing its course due to heavy rains some 50 years ago continues to vex neighbouring agricultural communities along the Burundi-Rwanda… Read more »
December 07, 2005
West Africa: Climate Change Impacting Hard On Semi-Arid Sahel Nations
Three decades of increasingly patchy rains and drought are taking a heavy toll on the people of the Sahel nations, the semi-arid countries strung along the southern fringes of the… Read more »
November 10, 2005
Nigeria: Problems Persist in Oil-Rich Delta 10 Years After Activist's Death
Ten years after the execution in Nigeria of writer and environmentalist Ken Saro-Wiwa, his non-violent campaign has been replaced by an armed protest against oil companies… Read more »
June 01, 2005
Nigeria: Obasanjo Appoints Independent Mediators to Reconcile Shell And Local Ogoni Community
The Nigerian government has appointed independent mediators to end a dispute between transnational Royal Dutch/Shell and the local Ogoni community, which forced the oil giant to… Read more »
May 24, 2005
Angola: Poor Still Waiting for Peace Dividend to Trickle Down
Angola needs up to $30 billion to rebuild its war-shattered infrastructure over the next decade, according to a World Bank official, but analysts are warning the basic needs of the… Read more »
October 29, 2004
Malawi: Girls Clubs Spearhead Gender Equality
When 20-year-old Maureen Kumwenda formed an all-girls club in the local township of Area 18 in Malawi's capital, Lilongwe, she faced a lot of resistance from her community. Read more »
July 19, 2004
Mauritania: Mauritania: Mauritania Government Appeals for Aid to Spray Locust Swarms
[ This report does not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations] Read more »