February 14
Africa: African Football Won the 34th Afcon, With Côte d'Ivoire a Close Second
The 34th Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) came to an end in Côte d'Ivoire with millions of viewers around the world shouting at TV screens, and an astonishing performance by… Read more »
Africa: Why Banning Gym Selfies Could Do Us All a Lot of Good
Taking selfies to document daily life is now a completely normalised activity across all ages and demographics. 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 »
Africa: 'Analog Uncanny' - How This Weird and Experimental Side of Tiktok Is Forging the Future of Horror
Director Kyle Edward Ball's feature film debut, Skinamarink, achieved unexpected commercial success last year after going viral on TikTok. Read more »
Ethiopia: Donkeys Are Unsung Heroes in Ethiopia's Humanitarian Crisis - and They Could Do Even More With Better Support
Conflict and drought in the Tigray region of northern Ethiopia has triggered a humanitarian crisis. The Ethiopian government says 16 million people across the country are facing… Read more »
South Africa: 17 Million South Africans Live On Communal Land - New Study of a Rural Valley Offers Insights On How to Manage It
The Tyhume River, flowing from the forested Amathole Mountains in South Africa's Eastern Cape province, gives its name to a valley of 20 villages on communal land. Much of the land… Read more »
Kenya: Kelvin Kiptum - the Kenyan Runner Who Redefined What It Takes to Win Marathons
Kenyan athletics has lost Kelvin Kiptum, the marathon world record holder who was destined to be the first person to run the race in under two hours. The runner, aged only 24, died… Read more »
Africa: The World's Coral Reefs Are Bigger Than We Thought - but It Took Satellites, Snorkels and Machine Learning to See Them
The world's coral reefs are close to 25% larger than we thought. By using satellite images, machine learning and on-ground knowledge from a global network of people living and… Read more »
Africa: Why Having Human Remains Land On the Moon Poses Difficult Questions for Members of Several Religions
Sending human remains to the Moon on the first commercial lunar lander, Peregrine 1, on Jan. 8, 2024, along with scientific instruments, caused a controversy. Read more »
February 12
Kenya: Kenya's Sex Workers Have Solutions to Their Problems, but International NGOs Aren't Hearing Them
In Kenya, rights organisations run by sex workers have gone into numerous partnerships with international organisations over the past decade. In recent research, I set out to… Read more »
Africa: The SAN People of Southern Africa - Where Ethics Codes for Researching Indigenous People Could Fail Them
There is a long and often complicated history of researchers studying Indigenous people. In 1999, the education scholar Linda Tuhiwai-Smith, in her book Decolonizing Methodologies:… Read more »
Africa: 100 Years of Radio in Africa - From Propaganda to People's Power
Radio is thriving across Africa. Exact figures are difficult to come by because audience research differs across countries. But studies estimate radio listenership to be between… Read more »
Africa: Migrating Animals Face Collapsing Numbers - Major New UN Report
The world's travelling animals - marine turtles, whales, sharks, elephants, reptiles, wild cats, birds, and even insects - have entered a period of sharp decline, new research has… Read more »
February 11
South Africa: Medicinal Plants Help Keep Children Healthy in South Africa - 61 Species Were Recorded
In 2021, almost 33 of every 1,000 South African children under five years old died. Read more »
Morocco: Morocco Dinosaur Discovery Gives Clues On Why They Went Extinct
66 million years ago, the last dinosaurs vanished from Earth. We're still trying to understand why. New fossils of abelisaurs - distant relatives of the tyrannosaurs - from north… Read more »
Kenya: Mungiki, Kenya's Violent Youth Gang, Serves Many Purposes - How Identity, Politics and Crime Keep It Alive
Kenya has scores of youth gangs known for their violence and links to the politically powerful. None is more infamous than the Mungiki movement, with a past membership estimated to… Read more »
February 09
South Africa: Ramaphosa Aims for Upbeat Tone in Annual Address, but Fails to Impress a Jaundiced Electorate
This year's State of the Nation Address - delivered annually in February by South Africa's president - was bound to be stuffed with electioneering messages and slogans. The country… Read more »
Africa: It May Be Too Late to Stop the Great Election Disinformation Campaigns of 2024 but We Have to At Least Try
Global liberal democracy faces a near unprecedented list of digital threats in 2024 as the increasing exploitation of AI and the rampant spread of disinformation threaten the… Read more »
February 08
Africa: Secrets of Soil-Enriching Pulses Could Transform Future of Sustainable Agriculture
From lentils to chickpeas, and even the humble baked bean, pulses are perhaps best known as an alternative, plant-based source of protein. These plants are environmental heroes:… Read more »
Africa: The Rise of African Prophets
Over the last 20 years there's been an unprecedented increase in charismatic Pentecostal prophets - or men of God as they're called in Pentecostal parlance. Across Africa their… Read more »
Tanzania: Tanzania's Elections Are Vulnerable to State Abuse - Urgent Law Reforms Are Needed
Tanzania's electoral law reform is overdue for an overhaul. This was made most apparent by the 2019 local elections and the 2020 general elections. The results were big wins for… Read more »
Africa: 'It Needs to Be Talked About Earlier' - Some Children Get Periods At 8, Years Before Menstruation Is Taught At School
Managing menstruation in public can be challenging at the best of times, but imagine being eight years old and having to deal with your period at school. You might need to change… Read more »
Nigeria: Nigeria's Street Food - Tasty but Toxic? Expert Shares Advice to Make It Safer
In the lively streets of Nigeria's cities, where delicious street food is a daily delight, a wide variety of food can be bought and consumed instantly. From the sizzling suya snack… Read more »
Nigeria: Nigeria's Popular Wara Cheese Has a Short Shelf Life
Cheese is a highly nutritious food produced in hundreds of varieties around the world. It's all made by fermenting milk but the results range widely in flavour, texture and end… Read more »
Africa: Anger, Sadness, Boredom, Anxiety - Emotions That Feel Bad Can Be Useful
Remember the sadness that came with the last time you failed miserably at something? Or the last time you were so anxious about an upcoming event that you couldn't concentrate for… Read more »