June 01, 2022
Zimbabwe: How to Judge Candidates' Social Protection Promises Ahead of 2023 Elections
Zimbabwe is heading for general polls in 2023 amid an ongoing macroeconomic crisis. In the decade starting from 2001, the state-led economy started to show signs of strain.… Read more »
South Africa: Hunger Problem Is Turning Into a Major Health Crisis
One in ten South Africans go hungry every day. As a result malnutrition levels are high. Malnutrition has three simultaneous dimensions: undernourishment, micronutrient… Read more »
South Africa: Tribute to Renowned Economist Francis Wilson
In 2016, South African economist Francis Wilson was awarded an honorary doctorate by the University of Cape Town. Nominators of a person for this highest honorary degree get to… Read more »
Southern Africa: Enforcing Competition Would Ease Food Price Hikes in East and Southern Africa
Small and medium-scale farmers and agri-businesses in east and southern Africa are getting a raw deal. To succeed they need fair and integrated regional markets. Research by the… Read more »
May 31, 2022
South Africa: Here's How Much Learning South African Children Lost in the Pandemic
When a state of disaster was declared in South Africa in 2020 in response to the COVID pandemic, a hard lockdown was instituted and schools were shut. This was followed by varying… Read more »
South Africa: ANC Policy Papers Touch On Key Issues Facing Agriculture and Land Reform in South Africa
The latest policy discussion document published by the African National Congress (ANC) presents a positive change from the ambiguous agriculture policy the South African governing… Read more »
Africa: Hotter Kalahari Desert May Stop Hornbills Breeding By 2027
Rapid climate change has the potential to strongly influence the physiology, behaviour and breeding success of animals. Research is showing that increasing temperatures, for… Read more »
May 30, 2022
South Africa: What It Will Take for Ailing Power Utility to Keep Going
The chief operating officer of South Africa's electricity utility, Eskom, warned in May that the government should urgently start building new generating capacity. He was referring… Read more »
May 29, 2022
South Africa: Marine Life in a South African Bay Is Full of Chemical Pollutants
The adage "out of sight, out of mind" has long summed up humans' attitude to dumping personal and industrial waste. In a 1974 Scientific American article, the… Read more »
May 27, 2022
South Africa: Spirit of Ntu - South African Piano Maestro Nduduzo Makhathini On His 10th Album
Nduduzo Makhathini is a prolific South African pianist, improviser, healer, educator, scholar and storyteller. He possesses a gift that enables him to articulate a distinct and… Read more »
May 25, 2022
South Africa: Foreign Companies Exiting Russia Echo Pressure Campaign Against South Africa's Racist Apartheid System
McDonald's provided many Russians with their first taste of capitalism three decades ago. Now, the global fast-food giant is exiting the country. Starbucks is also on its way out. Read more »
May 24, 2022
Southern Africa: Urban Planners Face Huge Corruption Pressures - Some Answers
Corruption is commonly defined as the abuse of entrusted power for personal gain. Read more »
South Africa: We Tested Plants Used for Contraception. Here's What We Found
In sub-Saharan Africa, 91 per 1,000 pregnancies are unwanted. This is around three times the rates of unintended pregnancies recorded in Europe and North America. Read more »
May 23, 2022
South Africa: How a Desire to Help Led Me to Track Covid Numbers and Make Sense of Them Through Graphs
As COVID took hold in South Africa, daily case numbers grew. But the numbers people were seeing online or on news channels did not tell the full story of the pandemic. Ridhwaan… Read more »
May 22, 2022
Angola: Ruling Party Faces United Opposition in Upcoming Poll. But It's Pushing Back
The election of Angolan President João Lourenço in 2017 raised hopes of a shift from the authoritarian and corrupt era of his predecessor. This was thanks to the new,… Read more »
South Africa: Covid Is No Gamble - Physics-Inspired Simulations Predict Waves in Four Countries
As a physicist, I am trained to look for patterns in data. For example, the motion of the tiniest particles may seem random, but it contains patterns and symmetries. Read more »
May 20, 2022
South Africa: What to Expect for Covid in South Africa
In light of the approaching winter months combined with the recent lifting of the national disaster act, South Africans have anxiously been watching an increase in COVID… Read more »
May 16, 2022
Africa: Ethnic Poverty - Dividing and Excluding People Keeps Them Poor
Sub-Saharan African countries are the most ethnically diverse in the world. Within each African country there are more ethnic groups than there are in most of the world's… Read more »
Africa: Xenophobia Does Not Tell the Full Story of Migration in South Africa
The dominant story of migration in South Africa is that of xenophobia. The subject is regularly in the news with the focus on both incendiary political rhetoric and acts of… Read more »
South Africa: Land Reform - What the Real Debate Should Be About
Land reform in South Africa is an emotive and politically fraught subject. That's because land was at the heart of the dispossession of Africans by colonial settlers. Successful… Read more »
July 15, 2021
South Africa: Fossil Tracks and Trunk Marks Reveal Signs of Ancient Elephants On South Africa's Coast
Hundreds of thousands of years ago, South Africa's Cape south coast looked very different. Some of the species that roamed this area are now extinct; others evolved over the… Read more »
June 12, 2019
Botswana: Court Ruling Is a Ray of Hope for LGBT People Across Africa
Botswana's High Court has ruled that private consensual sex between adults of the same sex is no longer criminal. The decision gives hope to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender… Read more »
June 02, 2019
South Africa: How Technology Could Help Rural South Africa Turn Sunshine Into Income
The way energy is produced and distributed is changing rapidly as the industry moves away from carbon-based energy production. Technological development in the production of… Read more »
January 30, 2019
Zambia: We Revealed the Value of Zambia's Wild Yam. Why It Matters
Wild harvested crops are a vital source of food in much of the world. Some common wild edible plants in southern Africa include wild mushrooms, such as Termitomyces titanicus,… Read more »
June 28, 2017
South Africa: ANC Policy Papers Point to a Party in a Panic About Losing Power
The documents released ahead of the upcoming policy conference of South Africa's governing African National Congress (ANC) expose a panicking party that sees enemies everywhere.… Read more »