September 21, 2023
Africa: How Well You Do At School Depends On How Much Your Teachers Know
Countries in sub-Saharan Africa have made remarkable progress towards reaching universal school enrolment in the past 25 years. Across the region, 8 in 10 children of primary… Read more »
South Africa: Zulu Land Dispute Highlights Insecure Land Tenure
The recent fallout between the Zulu king, Misuzulu, and his now late traditional prime minister, Mangosuthu Buthelezi, over the running of the Ingonyama Trust highlights a… Read more »
Africa: Invasive Alien Species Are a Serious Threat to the Planet - 4 Key Messages for Africa
Climate change has negatively - and irreversibly, in some cases - affected ecosystems around the globe. Sadly, though, it is not the only phenomenon that's altering our natural… Read more »
September 20, 2023
Africa: Five Golden Rules for Effective Science Communication - Perspectives From a Documentary Maker
Over the past three years, people from all walks of life have learned a great deal about different branches of science. The COVID-19 pandemic introduced many of us to information… Read more »
Somalia: Somalia's Voice of Hope - a Tribute to Axmed Naaji, Legendary Singer and Trailblazing Composer
Somalis are natural-born critics, yet for over six decades Axmed Naaji Sacad (Ahmed Naji Sa'ad) was almost unanimously revered. A household name in urban Somalia, the popular… Read more »
Ghana: Suicide in Ghana - Society Expects Men to Be Providers - New Study Explores This Pressure
Suicide is a complex behaviour that is widely regarded as a significant public health issue across the globe. It is influenced by psychiatric, psychological, biological, social,… Read more »
Africa: Your Unique Body Odor Could Identify Who You Are and Provide Insights Into Your Health - All From the Touch of a Hand
From the aroma of fresh-cut grass to the smell of a loved one, you encounter scents in every part of your life. Not only are you constantly surrounded by odor, you're also… Read more »
Africa: AU and G20 - Membership Will Give Africa More Say On Global Issues - If It Speaks With One Voice
After seven years of advocating for full membership, the African Union (AU) will join the Group of 20 "most important industrialised and developing economies". It becomes the… Read more »
September 19, 2023
Africa: Chatbots for Medical Advice - Three Ways to Avoid Misleading Information
We expect medical professionals to give us reliable information about ourselves and potential treatments so that we can make informed decisions about which (if any) medicine or… Read more »
Africa: Renewables Are Cheaper Than Ever Yet Fossil Fuel Use Is Still Growing - Here's Why
Wind and solar are the world's fastest growing energy sources and together generated 12% of global electricity in 2023. The amount of energy produced by wind and solar is expected… Read more »
Africa: Why Invasive Ants Are a Silent Threat to Our Ecosystems
Invertebrates are often described by experts as the "little things that run the world", and ants are certainly one of the top contenders for this role. Ants help ecosystems to… Read more »
Africa: Nipah Virus Outbreak in India - What You Need to Know
There has been an outbreak of the deadly Nipah virus in Kerala, India. Five people have caught the virus, two of whom have died. Read more »
Africa: Chronic Pelvic Pain Affects Up to 26 Percent of Women - Our Latest Research Brings Us Closer to Better Treating It
Chronic pelvic pain affects between 5% and 26% of women worldwide. It can be associated with conditions such as endometriosis (where tissue resembling the lining of the womb is… Read more »
South Africa: South Africa's Smallholder Vegetable Farmers Aren't Getting the Finance They Need - This Is What It Should Look Like
Fresh efforts are being made to increase the share of black ownership in South Africa's agricultural sector. This follows decades of missteps and badly designed interventions that… Read more »
South Africa: South Africa's Destructive Storm Surges - Geoscientist Reveals the 3 Factors That Drove Them
A series of powerful tidal surges battered coastal areas in South Africa's Western Cape, Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal provinces over the weekend of 16 September. One person died;… Read more »
September 18, 2023
Africa: Racial Trauma Has Profound Mental Health Consequence - a Black Clinical Psychologist Offers 5 Ways to Heal
Since European expansion into the Americas, white people have demonized Black people and portrayed them as undesirable, violent and hypersexual. Originally, the intent of this… Read more »
Sudan: Genocide Fears in Darfur Are Attracting Little Attention - Have Nations Abandoned Their Responsibility to Protect Civilians?
Mass atrocities are once again plaguing the people of Darfur, Sudan, with talk of a genocide taking place. Read more »
Nigeria: Nigeria's Slick Netflix Epic, Jagun Jagun, Explores a Rich Past That Also Reflects the World Today
Netflix's recently released film Jagun Jagun (The Warrior) is set in pre-colonial Nigeria and follows the story of a feared warlord named Ogunjimi. While playing out in the past,… Read more »
Kenya: Kenya's New Urban School Meal Plan Is Ambitious - It Could Offer Lessons for Scaling Up
More than 250,000 children in public primary schools in Nairobi will receive regular subsidised school meals provided by the county government. The Dishi Na County programme is… Read more »
South Africa: Corruption in South Africa - Would Paying Whistleblowers Help?
Whistleblowing is an important tool in fighting corruption. In South Africa, the commission of inquiry into state capture recommended that the government should provide financial… Read more »
Uganda: Wild Animals Leave DNA On Plants, Making Them Easier to Track
The world is losing animals at an alarming rate due to habitat degradation, climate change and illegal human activities in the wildlife protected areas. In fact, it is estimated… Read more »
September 17, 2023
Uganda: Aging Uganda President Rides On the Memory of His Past Heroics
President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni - Africa's fourth-longest-serving head of state in 2023 - has cemented his place in history. He brought an end to two tyrannies: in 1979 his… Read more »
Nigeria: Resistance to Antibiotics in Northern Nigeria - What Bacteria Are Prevalent, and Which Drugs Work Against Them
Antimicrobial resistance - the ability of microorganisms to resist drugs that have been developed to control them - is a severe problem in African countries. The continent has the… Read more »
September 15, 2023
Africa: We Are Poised to Pass 1.5°C of Global Warming - Four Ways to Manage This Dangerous Time
For three decades, the goal of international climate negotiations has been to avoid "dangerous" warming above 1.5°C. With warming to date standing at around 1.2°C, we… Read more »
Libya: Libya Dam Collapse Happened Because of Bad Management, Not Bad Weather
More than 11,000 people have been killed and tens of thousands are missing following the catastrophic dam collapse in the eastern Libyan city of Derna on 12 September. The dam… Read more »