September 22, 2022
Africa: Someone in My House Has Covid. How Likely Am I to Catch It?
Throughout the pandemic, one of the biggest COVID risks has been sharing a house with someone who is infectious. Read more »
Africa: When Should You Get the New Covid-19 Booster and the Flu Shot? Now Is the Right Time for Both
At this point in the COVID-19 pandemic, nearly everyone has experienced the panic and uncertainty that come with having mild COVID-like symptoms - such as a cough and sore throat -… Read more »
Africa: Desalinating Seawater Sounds Easy, but There Are Cheaper and More Sustainable Ways to Meet People's Water Needs
Coastal urban centers around the world are urgently looking for new, sustainable water sources as their local supplies become less reliable. In the U.S., the issue is especially… Read more »
South Africa: Why Courts Are Quick to Declare Dishonest Directors of Non-Profit Companies Delinquent
The Johannesburg High Court in South Africa recently declared a dishonest director of a non-profit company delinquent. This case shows how important it is for non-profit companies… Read more »
Africa: Covid-19 Can Cause Lasting Lung Damage - 3 Ways Long Covid Patients' Respiration Can Suffer
"I just can't do what I used to anymore." Read more »
September 21, 2022
Africa: Six Recent Discoveries That Have Changed How We Think About Human Origins
Scientific study of human evolution historically reassured us of a comforting order to things. It has painted humans as as cleverer, more intellectual and caring than our ancestral… Read more »
Africa: The Scourge of Sexual Volence in West Africa, Unveiled
When Zougba's husband fled the jihadist violence crippling Burkina Faso, she soon found herself with her young son, daughter and other women on the road in a mission to join him.… Read more »
Africa: Covid Pandemic Created Immunisation Gaps. Over Half a Million African Children Are At Risk
The COVID pandemic exposed the fault lines in health systems and national routine immunisation programmes around the world. Read more »
Nigeria: Nigeria's Universities Can Find Funds and Produce Job Creators - Here's How
Industrial action by Nigeria's university lecturers has entered its seventh month. The strike is one of the longest by academic staff in Africa's most populous country. Read more »
South Africa: 12% Percent of Working Women Are Domestic Workers - Yet They Don't Receive Proper Maternity Leave or Pay
Most of the world's domestic workers - (76%) - are women. They mainly do housework like cleaning, washing clothes, cooking and childcare, usually in private households. Domestic… Read more »
Kenya: Kenya Has Breached Its Public Debt Ceiling - How It Got There and What That Means
Kenya's newly elected president, William Ruto, has earned more legal space to borrow for his grandiose economic plan after parliament recently raised the country's public debt… Read more »
September 20, 2022
Africa: Three Reasons Why the US Federal Reserve Bank Holds Africa in Its Hands
Inflation is a global problem. At the end of August, it was 8.3% in the US and 9.1% in the Euro area. It is 20.3% in Nigeria, 25% in Malawi, and over 30% in Ethiopia and Ghana. Read more »
Kenya: Why Has Kenya Not Abolished the Death Penalty? Habit and Inertia
In recent months two African states have announced their intentions to abolish the death penalty - Zambia and the Central African Republic. Read more »
Africa: African Ubuntu Can Deepen How Research Is Done
Many academic studies have been centred on Western theories and methodologies for a long time. This approach to research is broadly defined as "universalist". It assumes that… Read more »
South Africa: South Africa Is Surrounded By Sea but Doesn't Have a Plan to Protect It - Three Steps to Get One
South Africa is surrounded by 2,798km of coastline. Yet, oddly, the country doesn't have a coherent maritime strategy underpinned by a related national strategy to safeguard its… Read more »
Africa: How to Disagree Without Making Enemies in the Age of the Pandemic - Tips From a Psychologist
Have you ever been mocked or abused for your views on COVID? If so, you're not alone. Anyone wishing to engage in an open dialogue surrounding the pandemic can often encounter a… Read more »
September 19, 2022
Africa: Young Cold-Blooded Animals Are Suffering the Most As Earth Heats Up, Research Finds
Climate change is making heatwaves worse. Many people have already noticed the difference - and so too have other animals. Read more »
Africa: South Africa's Farm Exports Are an Economic Lifeline - With Weak Spots
International trade has been at the core of South Africa's agricultural progress since the early 2000s. Since 1994, the country has excelled in opening up new markets, as evidenced… Read more »
Africa: Even Mild Covid Raises the Chance of Heart Attack and Stroke. What to Know About the Risks Ahead
A concerning report recently published in Nature Medicine suggests even a mild case of COVID can increase the long-term risks of serious cardiovascular diseases such as stroke,… Read more »
Africa: Supply Chain Management Needs a Rethink - Covid Changed Everything, or Did It?
COVID-19 has laid bare the vulnerability of the supply chain model that has dominated the way African firms have organised their production. In this model firms rely on multiple… Read more »
East Africa: Tanzania and Zambia Want to Upgrade the 'Uhuru Railway' - But Can They?
Half a century ago, the Tanzania-Zambia Railway (Tazara) stood out as a crucial symbol of Africa's struggle for independence. The 1,860km-long railway connects Kapiri Mposhi in… Read more »
Nigeria: Akin Mabogunje - Nigerian Urban Geographer Who Mapped the Origin and Trends of African Cities
I was introduced to Professor Akin Mabogunje's work when I joined the Department of Estate Management at the University of Lagos in 2011. As a new junior lecturer, I had to read… Read more »
September 18, 2022
Africa: Did Covid Harm My Immune System? Am I Now At Risk of Other Infectious Diseases?
So you've had COVID and have now recovered. You don't have ongoing symptoms and luckily, you don't seem to have developed long COVID. Read more »
Kenya: William Ruto Vs Media - Democracy Is At Stake
It's a long-standing Kenyan tradition to offer congratulations in paid print and TV messages to an incoming president. The bulk of these messages are put out by government agencies… Read more »
Nigeria: Nigeria's Endless Lecturer Strikes - Insights From Some Essential Reads
One thing that is synonymous with public universities in Nigeria is strikes. Since 1999, the public university system has lost about 57 cumulative months to industrial action. This… Read more »