February 02, 2023
Africa: Guinea Worm - a Nasty Parasite Is Nearly Eradicated, but the Push for Zero Cases Will Require Patience
A painful, parasitic disease that once infected 3.5 million people per year is tantalizingly close to being eradicated. Read more »
Ghana: Water ATMs Are Changing the Way People Can Access This Vital Resource
Universal, safe and reliable water access is a pressing need in the global south. One-quarter of the world's population don't currently have access to clean drinking water. In… Read more »
South Africa: Remote Working Improves the Lives of Women Managers - But At a Cost
The COVID-19 pandemic has led to a question that would have been unthinkable a few years ago: do we really need to be in the office all the time? Read more »
South Africa: Travelling While Black - 7 South African Travelogues You Should Read
Travel writing in Africa is often associated with colonial ventures of the past or white adventure pursuits of today. But Africans themselves have long produced captivating travel… Read more »
Africa: Vitamins and Supplements - What You Need to Know Before Taking Them
If you were to open your medicine cabinet right now, there's a fair chance that you'd find at least one bottle of vitamins alongside the painkillers, plasters and cough syrup. Read more »
Africa: ChatGPT Is Great - You're Just Using It Wrong
It doesn't take much to get ChatGPT to make a factual mistake. My son is doing a report on U.S. presidents, so I figured I'd help him out by looking up a few biographies. I tried… Read more »
Africa: The 'Kraken' Subvariant Xbb.1.5 Sounds Scary. But Behind the Headlines Are Clues to Where Covid's Heading
The XBB.1.5 subvariant, known informally as "Kraken", is the latest in a menagerie of Omicron subvariants to dominate the headlines, following increasing detection in the United… Read more »
Kenya: The Body Choosing Kenya's Election Commission Is Being Overhauled - How This Could Strengthen Democracy
Kenya has new rules for choosing the people who run its elections. Read more »
February 01, 2023
Africa: City Planners Are Questioning the Point of Parking Garages
For the past century, the public and private sector appear to have agreed on one thing: the more parking, the better. Read more »
Africa: Covid Still a Global Emergency, WHO Says, but We're At a Transition Point. What Does This Mean?
As we enter the fourth year of living with COVID, we are all asking the predictable question: when will the pandemic be over? Read more »
Nigeria: Nigerian Elections - 5 Major Challenges Facing the Country's Next President
Nigerians will soon determine who their next president will be in a general election. Polling is due at the end of February and inauguration is scheduled for 29 May 2023. Read more »
Benin: Angelique Kidjo - the Diva From Benin Could Win a Record Sixth Grammy Award
Angelique Kidjo, the energetic singer-songwriter and activist from the Republic of Benin, represents a rare African phenomenon. Read more »
Zambia: Direct Support to Small Scale Farmers Reduces Poverty - What Zambia Is Doing Right
Over half of Zambia's population lived below the national poverty line in 2015. In rural areas, where 89% of households are engaged in agriculture, the poverty rate was even… Read more »
South Africa: South Africa and Russia - President Cyril Ramaphosa's Foreign Policy Explained
January was a busy diplomatic month for South Africa. The country hosted Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov and US treasury secretary Janet Yellen. Josep Borrell,… Read more »
Seychelles: Seychelles Is Becoming Overwhelmed By Marine Plastic - We Now Know Where It Comes From
More than 1,000km southwest of Mahé, the main inhabited island in Seychelles, lies a ring of coral islands called the Aldabra Atoll. The islands are a Unesco world heritage… Read more »
Kenya: George Magoha Was a Force for Better Education in Kenya. but He Had His Flaws
The death of former Kenyan education minister Professor George Magoha, 71, closes a vibrant chapter in education policymaking and leadership. It was a chapter marked by unmatched… Read more »
Africa: People With Light Skin Are At Higher Risk of Skin Cancer. How to Reduce Sun Exposure
Most skin cancers are caused by too much exposure to the sun - specifically solar ultraviolet (UV) radiation or rays. These can damage the cells in the skin and cause them to… Read more »
January 31, 2023
Nigeria: Plastic Pollution in Nigeria - Whose Job Is It to Clean Up the Mess?
Take a walk or drive through the streets of most Nigerian cities, and you will see plastic waste everywhere. The country's rivers, lakes and ocean are also full of discarded… Read more »
South Africa: South Africa's Dysfunctional Universities - the Consequences of Corrupt Decisions
What happens when those responsible for managing universities cannot trust each other to act with integrity? In a nutshell, as I discuss in my new book, Corrupted: A study of… Read more »
Namibia: New Film Under the Hanging Tree Examines How Namibia's Genocide Lives On Today
Under the Hanging Tree is a new film written, directed and produced by Perivi Katjavivi, a young, up-and-coming Namibian filmmaker. Read more »
Ghana: Accra Is Congested, but Relocating Ghana's Capital Is Not the Only Option
Capital cities play an important role in the socio-economic development of every country. People generally move to cities where there are opportunities. Read more »
Senegal: Ousmane Sembène At 100 - a Guide to the Life and Work of the 'Father of African Cinema'
The impact of filmmaker Ousmane Sembène's work should not be understated. His films, made in the neorealist style, were concerned with working-class people and tended to use… Read more »
Africa: Long Covid - a Range of Diets Are Said to Help Manage Symptoms - Here's What the Evidence Tells Us
Most people who contract COVID recover within a few weeks. But for some people, symptoms can develop later, or persist for a long time after the initial infection. A recent review… Read more »
January 30, 2023
Africa: Pope Francis in DRC and South Sudan - One of His Most Challenging Visits Ever
On 31 January, Pope Francis departed from Rome to central Africa, to visit the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and its neighbouring state South Sudan. The visit was previously… Read more »
Africa: Inequality in Access to Basic Services Is a Major Problem in Sub-Saharan Africa - but Progress Is Being Made
Economic activity and development are unevenly distributed across regions of the world and within any country. In other words, where someone lives can determine their economic and… Read more »