March 18
Africa: 76% of Africa's Energy Could Come From Renewable Sources By 2040 - Here's How
Over half of Africa's people - about 600 million - lack access to even the bare minimum of electricity. The tough question to answer is how access can be extended without adding to… Read more »
March 17
Africa: Something Felt 'Off' - How AI Messed With Our Human Research, and What We Learned
All levels of research are being changed by the rise of artificial intelligence (AI). Don't have time to read that journal article? AI-powered tools such as TLDRthis will summarise… Read more »
March 15
Africa: Undersea Cables for Africa's Internet Retrace History and Leave Digital Gaps As They Connect Continents
Large parts of west and central Africa, as well as some countries in the south of the continent, were left without internet services on 14 March because of failures on four of the… Read more »
March 14
Burkina Faso: Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger Hint At a New West African Currency - What It'll Take for It to Succeed
On 11 February 2024, the head of Niger's ruling military junta, General Abdourahmane Tiani, spoke of the possible creation of a common currency with Burkina Faso and Mali. "The… Read more »
Nigeria: Inflation in Nigeria Is Still Climbing While It Has Slowed Globally - Here's Why
Just as Nigerians were gradually digging out from the devastating effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, they were hit by high inflation. Read more »
March 13
South Africa: Are You Sitting Too Long in Your Office Job? South African Study Offers Some Health Tips
Sedentary behaviour can result in chronic health conditions such as obesity and heart diseases, bad news for the millions of office workers who are forced to sit behind their desks… Read more »
March 11
Africa: Fintech Is Sold As the Answer to Africa's Problems, but Digital Money Services Have Downsides Which Media Often Overlook
The online financial products and services known as "fintech" have become deeply embedded in the economic and social life of many African countries over the past decade. Read more »
South Africa: Technology to Protect South Africa's Oceans - Experts Find That a Data-Driven Monitoring System Is Paying Off
Nine years ago South Africa put in place an innovative information management system designed to monitor and protect its seas. The country is surrounded by the Atlantic and Indian… Read more »
March 04
Africa: Cost-of-Living Crisis - Experts Share 3 Survival Tips
The price increases for essential goods such as food, petrol and household utilities are a global concern, but the region most hurt by the surge in food prices is sub-Saharan… Read more »
March 06
Nigeria: Botched Economic Reforms Plunge the Country Into Crisis
Nigeria, Africa's largest economy, is facing an economic crisis. From a botched currency redesign to the removal of fuel subsidies and a currency float, the nation has been plunged… Read more »
West Africa: West Africa's Coast Was a Haven for Piracy and Illegal Fishing - How Technology Is Changing the Picture
The Gulf of Guinea - a coastal region that stretches from Senegal to Angola - is endowed with vast reserves of hydrocarbon, mineral and fisheries resources. It is also an important… Read more »
March 04
Kenya: Kenyans Use Humour to Counter Unpopular State Policies - Memes Are the Latest Tool
Seemingly disillusioned with the country's leadership, Kenyans have taken to new ways of expressing their anger and frustration with their government. Read more »
March 03
South Africa: Big Companies, Like Nestlé, Are Funding Health Research in South Africa - Why This Is Wrong
In 2021, the director of the African Research University Alliance Centre of Excellence in Food Security at the University of Pretoria was appointed to the board of the… Read more »
February 29
South Africa: South Africa's Business Students Want Their Own Industry Superheroes and Success Stories in the Syllabus - Study
In the past few years there's been much discussion globally about the need to decolonise education. Decolonisation is the process of undoing the impact of colonial thinking and its… Read more »
February 28
Africa: Why Developing Countries Must Unite to Protect the WTO's Dispute Settlement System
The World Trade Organisation's dispute settlement mechanism has, for decades, provided stability and predictability to the resolution of disputes between member countries. As… Read more »
February 27
Africa: Africa Needs China for Its Digital Development - but At What Price?
Digital technologies have many potential benefits for people in African countries. They can support the delivery of healthcare services, promote access to education and lifelong… Read more »
Cameroon: Benefits of Using Cleaner Cooking Fuels Are Blunted in Urban Areas Where Outdoor Air Is Polluted
Household air pollution from cooking, heating and lighting with fuels like wood, charcoal and kerosene poses a substantial global health problem. Read more »
February 26
Mozambique: Mozambique's Unstable and Expensive Power Supply Is Devastating Small Businesses
Inside a small bakery in Maputo, the morning's batch of 150 loaves of bread has just gone into the oven. But there's a problem: the electricity has gone out without warning for the… Read more »
February 22
Africa: Africa's Debt Crisis Needs a Bold New Approach - Expert
It hasn't been easy for African states to finance their developmental and environmental policy objectives over the past few years. Read more »
February 13
Africa: Why Is Free Time Still So Elusive?
There have been massive gains in productivity over the past century. Read more »
February 20
Nigeria: Lagos - Drugs, Firearms and Youth Unemployment Create Lethal Cocktail
Lagos is the most populous city in Africa and a regional economic giant, having west Africa's busiest seaport. It is the centre of commercial and economic activities in Nigeria. Read more »
February 16
Africa: Extraction of Raw Materials Could Rise 60 Percent By 2060 - and Making Mining 'Greener' Won't Stop the Damage
The United Nations' flagship Global Resources Outlook report is the portrait of a juggernaut. Due to be published later this month by the UN's International Resource Panel, it… Read more »
Africa: State-Owned Energy Companies Are Among the World's Most Polluting - Putting a Price On Carbon Could Help
Existing measures to cajole companies to decarbonise, with subsidies for renewable energy and carbon taxes, have failed to prevent global emissions rising. Does state ownership,… Read more »
February 18
Mali: Slums and Guns in Bamako - What's Driving the Illegal Weapon Trade in Mali's Capital City
As west Africa urbanises, many cities have become interconnected through trade, travel and technology, and crime has increased in complexity and scope. The proliferation of arms in… Read more »
South Africa: Corruption and Clean Energy in South Africa - Economic Model Shows Trust in Government Is Linked to Takeup of Renewables
South Africa relies heavily on energy from coal-fired power stations, which emit large quantities of carbon. But making the transition to greater use of renewable energies, such as… Read more »