January 29
Africa: Afcon 2023 - Africa's Diaspora Footballers Are Boosting the Continent's Game - but They Are Also Creating Challenges
The Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) is approaching its conclusion in Ivory Coast and speculation is rife about which team will be the ultimate winner. It could be one of the… Read more »
January 28
Africa: Ruling By UN's Top Court Means Canada and the U.S. Could Be Complicit in Gaza Genocide
The International Court of Justice has issued a ground-breaking decision in South Africa's genocide case against Israel, ordering Israel to comply with six provisional measures to… Read more »
Nigeria: Lagos City Planning Has a History of Excluding Residents - It's Happening Again
In Lagos, a megacity with a population estimated at 21 million, the state government has been building a satellite city, known as Eko Atlantic. At the same time is has been… Read more »
Malawi: El Niño - Malawi's Harvest of Maize - Its Staple Food - May Fall By 22.5 Percent This Year
Maize is the preferred staple of most of southern Africa. In Malawi it supplies two-thirds of national calorie intake. Nine out of 10 farming households produce maize and devote… Read more »
North Africa: Banksias Are Iconic Australian Plants, but Their Ancestors Actually Came From North Africa
Few plants conjure up the Australian bush better than banksias, whose beautiful flowers are irresistible to honeyeater birds, small marsupials and nature lovers. Read more »
January 27
South Africa: Jacob Zuma, the Monster South Africa's Ruling ANC Created, Continues to Haunt It
Former South African president Jacob Zuma is endorsing the uMkhonto we Sizwe (MK) Party, the latest rival to the governing African National Congress (ANC) for the upcoming national… Read more »
South Africa: Matric Results - South Africa's Record School Pass Rates Aren't What They Seem - What's Really Happening in the Education System
South Africa's matric (grade 12) class of 2023, which wrote final school-leaving exams late last year, has been hailed by the country's minister of basic education for achieving… Read more »
January 26
Africa: Certain Indoor Air Pollutants Can Be Absorbed Through the Skin - Here's What You Need to Know
Even though most of us will spend a majority of our lives indoors, that doesn't mean we aren't still exposed to air pollution. Indoor air contains a wide array of pollutants… Read more »
Africa: Humans Are Going Back to the Moon to Stay, but When That Will Be Is Becoming Less Clear
A 2019 Time magazine cover portrayed four astronauts running towards the Moon. Pictured alongside the headline "The Next Space Race", one of the astronauts carried an American… Read more »
South Africa: The Two Faces of Jacob Zuma - Former South African President Campaigns to Unseat the ANC He Once Led. Who Supports Him and Why?
Former South African president Jacob Zuma's political comeback builds on support from marginalised and angry constituencies within or close to the governing African National… Read more »
Africa: Afcon's Decision to Allow 24 Countries to Play Is Paying Off - and Having Dramatic Repercussions
By the end of the group stage, the 34th Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) was one of the most exciting and memorable Afcon tournaments in recent memory. This was particularly true of… Read more »
Africa: 5 Key Talking Points As Afcon Enters the Knock-Out Phase in Côte d'Ivoire
Judging from media and online activity, this has been the most talked about Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) in many years. That's not just because the tournament, held every two… Read more »
January 25
Africa: The Emergence of Jn.1 Is an Evolutionary 'Step Change' in the Covid Pandemic. Why Is This Significant?
Since it was detected in August 2023, the JN.1 variant of COVID has spread widely. It has become dominant in Australia and around the world, driving the biggest COVID wave seen in… Read more »
Africa: One in Twenty People Has No Sense of Smell - Here's How They Might Get It Back
During the pandemic, a lost sense of smell was quickly identified as one of the key symptoms of COVID. Nearly four years later, one in five people in the UK is living with a… Read more »
Uganda: Cecilia Atim Ogwal - a Fearless Ugandan Politician Who Spoke Her Mind and Challenged Conventions
Cecilia Barbara Atim Ogwal, one of Uganda's longest-serving female legislators, passed away on 18 January 2024 at the age of 77. Read more »
Africa: Africa's Savannah Elephants - Small 'Fortress' Parks Aren't the Answer - They Need Room to Roam
Africa is home to about 410,000 savannah elephants (Loxodonta africana), most of them living in southern Africa. Over 290,000 elephants (70%) are spread across 103 protected areas… Read more »
Sudan: The African Union Is Working On Peace in Sudan - Expert Explains Why It's in Everyone's Interests
The African Union has recently named a team to work on a peaceful end to Sudan's civil war. The team will engage Sudan's feuding military factions alongside civil society and… Read more »
January 24
South Africa: South Africa's Genocide Case Against Israel Is the Country's Proudest Foreign Policy Moment in Three Decades
On 11 January 2024, South Africa hauled Israel before the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on the charge of violating the 1948 Genocide Convention. This was for Israel's… Read more »
Namibia: Learning to Read in Another Language Is Tough - How Namibian Teachers Can Help Kids
In a classroom in Namibia's northern Oshikoto region, a teacher has written English vocabulary words on the chalkboard. She asks her learners to read them aloud. When they stumble… Read more »
Nigeria: Nigeria Has a Democracy Deficit - Corruption and a Lack of Welfare Policies Are to Blame
Democracy refers, at a minimum, to a political system that guarantees some involvement in decision-making. It gives citizens opportunities to choose and replace their leaders or… Read more »
Africa: Five Books About the Covid Pandemic to Look Out for in 2024
Vi-fi, short for virus fiction, describes contemporary fiction that features the devastating events of world-changing outbreaks and epidemics. Rooted in science fiction, vi-fi… Read more »
Somalia: Somaliland Has Been Pursuing Independence for 33 Years
Somaliland declared itself an independent state in 1991. It used colonial boundary lines to separate itself from Somalia. More than three decades later, however, it has yet to gain… Read more »
January 23
Africa: The Top Risks From Technology That We'll Be Facing By the Year 2040
Bewilderingly rapid changes are happening in the technology and reach of computer systems. There are exciting advances in artificial intelligence, in the masses of tiny… Read more »
Liberia: Liberia Transferred Power Peacefully Again - 3 Reasons the Calm Is Holding, and One Red Flag
Joseph Boakai was sworn in as Liberia's 26th president on 22 January 2024. Boakai secured a six year term of office after defeating incumbent president George Weah in a keenly… Read more »
Africa: How Long Does Immunity Last After a Covid Infection?
Nearly four years into the pandemic, Australia, like many other countries, is still seeing large numbers of COVID cases. Some 860,221 infections were recorded around the country in… Read more »