June 29, 2023
Nigeria: Nigeria's New National Security Bosses - 5 Burning Issues They Need to Focus On
Nigeria's President Bola Ahmed Tinubu recently appointed new military service chiefs alongside a new national security adviser and inspector general of police. Read more »
June 27, 2023
Nigeria: Mobile Money System Has Dark Side Even Though It's Convenient - New Study Explores Risks
Financial services play vital roles in supporting economic activities. In Nigeria, though, a significant number of people don't have access to essential banking services. Read more »
Nigeria: Illegal Organ Trade Is More Sophisticated Than One Might Think - Who's Behind It and How It Could Be Controlled
Every now and then the trade in human organs makes national, even international, news. Read more »
June 22, 2023
Sierra Leone: Sierra Leone Has Been At Peace for 20 Years After a Brutal Civil War - What Went Right
Sierra Leone's June 2023 parliamentary elections are the fifth since the end of the civil war in 2002. Read more »
Sierra Leone: Sierra Leone Elections - Survey Reveals What Voters Care About Most
Sierra Leoneans go to the polls again on 24 June, in the country's fifth post-conflict electoral contest. Read more »
June 20, 2023
Sierra Leone: African Leaders in Sierra Leone Played a Key Role in Ending the Transatlantic Slave Trade
Freetown, the capital of Sierra Leone on the west African coast, was named for the freed slaves who were returned to Africa by British members of the movement to end slavery.… Read more »
Nigeria: Nigeria's New Foreign Exchange Policy Is Good News - but It Can't Work Wonders for the Economy On Its Own
The Central Bank of Nigeria recently announced changes to the way the country's foreign exchange market will work. Foreign currencies can now be bought and sold at rates determined… Read more »
West Africa: Last of West Africa's Legendary Wax Cloth Traders Has Left Her Mark
Dédé Rose Gamélé Creppy, who has died aged 89, was one of west Africa's most influential wax cloth traders. She was the youngest, and the last living,… Read more »
June 19, 2023
Nigeria: Health Workers and Absenteeism - Study Shows How Personal and Political Relationships Protect Offenders
Absenteeism of health workers contributes to poor quality of care. A study in Uganda, for example, showed that it reduced the likelihood of people using primary health centres by… Read more »
June 18, 2023
Ghana: Customary Land Governance Holds in Ghana but Times Are Changing and Not for the Better
Ghana went into colonisation with two broad types of customary land arrangement. In one, a traditional leader was the custodian of the land and gave his followers equitable access… Read more »
June 15, 2023
Africa: Nigeria Is Africa's Leading Rice Producer, but Still Needs More
Rice is one of the staple foods globally, ranking third after wheat and maize in terms of production and consumption. It contributes over 20% of the total calorie intake of the… Read more »
June 14, 2023
Nigeria: Nigeria's Response to the Sudan Crisis Is Lacking - It Could Play a Leading Role in Bringing Peace
Hostilities between rival military parties in Sudan had claimed more than 600 lives by May 2023. Read more »
June 13, 2023
Senegal: Senegal's Internet Shutdowns Are Another Sign of a Democracy in Peril
Senegal's government began blocking several digital platforms - including Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram, Telegram and YouTube - in certain areas on 1 June. Days later, it extended… Read more »
June 11, 2023
Nigeria: Nigeria Needs to Take Climate Action - 4 Urgent Steps to Start With
Climate change is not just a buzzword or a topic for political debates. It is a real and pressing issue that affects every aspect of our lives. The effects of climate change are… Read more »
May 31, 2023
West Africa: West African Countries Show How Working Together Over Decades Builds Peace and Stops Wars Breaking Out
Africa is often portrayed as a continent ravaged by war, terrorism, poverty and political instability. But over the past five decades few violent conflicts have occurred between… Read more »
June 08, 2023
Ghana: Ghana's Informal Mining Harms Health and the Land - but Reforms Must Work With People, Not Against Them
Artisanal small-scale mining has been practised in Ghana for over a century. In 2018, small-scale miners generated 2.1 million ounces of gold, accounting for 43.1% of total gold… Read more »
June 07, 2023
Ghana: Ama Ata Aidoo - the Pioneering Writer From Ghana Left Behind a String of Feminist Classics
Prolific author and former Ghanaian education minister Ama Ata Aidoo passed away on 31 May 2023 at the age of 81. News of her death reverberated around the world, proof of her… Read more »
June 05, 2023
Nigeria: Hepatitis B Is a Life-Threatening Liver Infection - Our Machine Learning Tool Could Help With Early Detection
More than 296 million people worldwide live with hepatitis B, a potentially life-threatening liver infection caused by the hepatitis B virus (HBV). Most don't know they are… Read more »
West Africa: Census Data in West Africa Is Badly Out of Date - 5 Reasons Fresh Population Statistics Are Crucial
West Africa, an area composed of 16 countries, is one of the fastest growing regions in the world. The region has a population of over 350 million, a five-fold increase since 1950… Read more »
Nigeria: 'Peter Pan' Enahoro, Nigerian Journalist and Publisher, Was Not Afraid to Speak His Mind
There are some people whose lives intersect with yours even if you never meet them in the flesh. One of these was Peter Osajele Aizegbeobor Enahoro, the Nigerian journalist who was… Read more »
June 04, 2023
Nigeria: Tinubu's Administration Must Address Nigeria's Deteriorating Security Situation
Nigeria's new president, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, has promised to make security a top priority of his administration. In his inaugural speech he promised, among other things, to provide… Read more »
June 01, 2023
Nigeria: Cycling Could Be a Boon for Lagos - but People Fear for Their Safety On Bikes
With an estimated 16 million residents, Lagos is the most densely populated state in Nigeria. It's under immense pressure to transport its huge population. According to a global… Read more »
May 31, 2023
West Africa: West African Countries Show How Decades of Working Together Build Peace, and Stop Wars Breaking Out
Africa is often portrayed as a continent ravaged by war, terrorism, poverty and political instability. But over the past five decades few violent conflicts have occurred between… Read more »
May 30, 2023
Ghana: Ghana and the IMF Have Struck a Deal, but Hard Choices Lie Ahead
In mid-May 2023 the International Monetary Fund (IMF) finally approved a US$3 billion 36-month arrangement with Ghana. It immediately disbursed the first tranche of US$600 million. Read more »
May 29, 2023
Ghana: Accra's Market Fires Are Devastating to Informal Traders
Ghana's informal urban markets play a key role in the country's economy. They employ more than 80% of the people who work in the informal sector. They create livelihoods for… Read more »