May 11, 2023
West Africa: West Africa Has a Small Weapons Crisis - Why Some Countries Are Better At Dealing With It Than Others
Research has found that globally, small arms and light weapons increase the likelihood, intensity and longevity of conflict. Read more »
Africa: African Scientists Are Working to Pool Data That Decodes Diseases - a Giant Step
Infectious disease outbreaks in African countries are, unfortunately, all too common. Ebola in the Democratic Republic of the Congo or Uganda; Marburg virus in Guinea or Equatorial… Read more »
May 10, 2023
South Africa: South Africa's Cold Weather Has Arrived - Some Tips On How to Stay Warm and Safe
Research shows that the world is undoubtedly warming. And, as the global average temperature keeps rising, heatwaves are increasing in their frequency, duration and intensity for… Read more »
Namibia: Namibia and South Africa's Ruling Parties Share a Heroic History - but Their 2024 Electoral Prospects Look Weak
Namibian president Hage Geingob used his recent state visit to South Africa to also address a meeting of the national executive committee of the governing party, the African… Read more »
Africa: China's Population Has Peaked and Is Now Falling - Opportunities and Risks for Africa
China will no longer be the world's most populous nation. India's population will overtake it this year at an estimated population of 1.42 billion. Read more »
Africa: Media Freedom and Democracy - Africans in Four Countries Weigh Up Thorny Questions About State Control
In July 2022, BBC Africa Eye released a documentary on gang activity in northwestern Nigeria. The programme, The Bandit Warlords of Zamfara, examined the raids on villages,… Read more »
Sudan: Sudan's People Toppled a Dictator - Despite the War They're Still Working to Bring About Democratic Change
While Sudan's generals have unleashed indiscriminate destruction and occupation on wide swaths of the capital, Khartoum, neighbourhood resistance committees and pro-democracy… Read more »
May 09, 2023
Africa: Many People Are Tired of Grappling With Long Covid - Here Are Some Evidence-Based Ways to Counter It
A patient of mine, once a marathon runner, now gets tired just walking around the block. She developed COVID-19 during the 2020 Christmas holiday and saw me during the summer of… Read more »
Africa: Tips on How to Reduce Your Exposure to Africa's Hidden Air Pollution Pandemic
Rapid urbanisation in Africa is worsening air pollution levels. There are economic as well as health consequences. Read more »
Africa: RSV - We Finally Have a Vaccine for This Deadly Virus
The first vaccine against respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) has been approved by the US Food and Drug Administration. The vaccine, named Arexvy, will be given to people 60 years… Read more »
Egypt: Cleopatra's Skin Colour Didn't Matter in Ancient Egypt - Her Strategic Role in World History Did
Cleopatra, queen of Egypt in the years 51-30 BC, is back in the news thanks to a controversial docudrama series on Netflix called Queen Cleopatra. Much debate has raged about her… Read more »
Nigeria: Kidnapping in Nigeria - Criminalising Ransom Payment Isn't Working - Families Need Support
Kidnapping for ransom has become a national security threat in Nigeria. How it's done varies from targeted individuals, to indiscriminate kidnappings and mass kidnapping in schools… Read more »
Kenya: Kenya Cult Deaths - a New Era in the Battle Against Religious Extremism
More than a hundred people in Kenya - among them children - have been found dead close to a small village in the south-east of the country. It's believed that most of the deceased… Read more »
May 08, 2023
South Africa: Farmers in South Africa Face Power Cuts and a Weak Rand - but a Number of Factors Are Working in Their Favour Too
Winter is an important season for South African agriculture, with some of its key field crops being produced during the cold months of June, July and August, and maturing after… Read more »
Kenya: Kenya's Starvation Cult Left Hundreds Dead - a Psychologist's View On How to Support People As They Process Tragedy
In early April 2023, Kenyan police discovered a mass grave linked to a Pentecostal church in the coastal town of Malindi. By the end of the month, at least 110 bodies had been dug… Read more »
Nigeria: Remote Teaching in Nigeria and South Africa Got a Covid Wake-Up Call - How to Capitalise On It
Universities had to deal with many anxieties and uncertainties during the early days of the COVID pandemic. One of these was how to move all of their teaching online. For some, the… Read more »
Nigeria: Flooding in Nigeria Is On the Rise - Good Forecasts, Drains and Risk Maps Are Urgently Needed
Nigeria is one of the most flood-prone countries in west Africa. Many areas experience annual flooding. This happens during heavy rainfall and one of the reasons is poor drainage… Read more »
Kenya: Kenya's Starvation Cult Left Over 100 Dead - a Psychologist's View On How to Support People As They Process Tragedy
In early April 2023, Kenyan police discovered a mass grave linked to a Pentecostal church in the coastal town of Malindi. By the end of the month, at least 110 bodies had been dug… Read more »
May 07, 2023
South Africa: Mental Health - Almost Half of Johannesburg Students in New Study Screened Positive for Probable Depression
Depression is a mental health disorder characterised by a persistently low mood or loss of interest in activities. It causes significant impairment in daily life. Possible causes… Read more »
Ghana: Ghana's Regions - Why Creating New Territories Has Caused Problems
Ghana split four administrative regions between June 2017 and February 2019 to create six new ones. The process proceeded calmly in some regions, but was so contentious in others… Read more »
East Africa: Children's Book Revolution - How East African Women Took On Colonialism After Independence
As independence from British colonial rule swept across East Africa in the early 1960s and freedom was won in Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania, parents and teachers worried about what… Read more »
May 05, 2023
Africa: Queen Cleopatra - Experts Save This Poorly Scripted Netflix Docuseries
The trailer for Netflix's new four-part documentary series, Queen Cleopatra, was deliberately provocative. Promoting the show as executive produced by actress Jada Pinkett-Smith,… Read more »
East Africa: Sudan Conflict Will Have a Ripple Effect in an Unstable Region - and Across the World
Sudan, Africa's third largest country by land mass, shares borders with seven countries in an unstable region. This means that Sudan's current conflict will have economic, social… Read more »
Africa: The Empire Sings Back - the Deep History Behind South African Soprano Pretty Yende's Triumph
Among the invited artists at the coronation of Britain's King Charles III is the South African soprano, Pretty Yende. Coronations are not events that take place often. What makes… Read more »
May 04, 2023
Ghana: History Classes Help Students Develop Curious Minds - but Teachers Aren't Equipped to Nurture This
There are two camps when it comes to teaching children: one says teachers should focus on guiding students to find things out for themselves. This approach makes learning… Read more »