Capturing Nigeria’s Style Revolution
For his latest project, Nigerian photographer Oye Diran looked to his old family photos for inspiration. He was especially taken by the elegant clothing his parents used to wear, including his mother in classic Nigerian iro and buba style (a wrapped skirt and tailored top) — often paired with a gele (headwrap). Diran went on […]
Sudan Celebrates First Year of Reform
Thousands of Sudanese took to the streets of the capital Khartoum on Wednesday to mark the first anniversary of the dispersal of a major protest camp, in which scores were killed. More than 100 protesters were killed last year when security forces dispersed a sit-in demanding the handover of power to a civilian government near […]
Farmers and Miners in Ivory Coast Embrace the Use of Drones for Light Work
Until recently, stock checks and growth reports are done on foot. But a drone has shown that it can go all this in record time. “With a drone today we can calculate the stockpile of gravel that’s been produced. The customers said if it’s true, we don’t see how a drone can do that, yes […]
What’s Driving Child Marriages in Ghana
Ghana is one of the many countries worldwide in which child marriage – marriage below the age of 18 – happens. A survey conducted in 2018 indicates that just over 19% of girls are married before they turn 18 while 5% are married before their 15th birthday. These numbers were lower than four years previously. […]
Rwandan Suspect Told to Face the Music
A French court ordered Rwandan genocide suspect Felicien Kabuga on Wednesday to be handed over to a United Nations tribunal for trial, rejecting arguments that he should be allowed to remain in France because of his health. U.N. prosecutors accuse Kabuga of bankrolling and arming ethnic Hutu militias that killed 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus […]
A Safe Space for Somalis to Vent
Somali atheists in the diaspora are running a Facebook group to challenge their community’s Islamic beliefs, but they often receive death threats. The popular Facebook group, which has more than 80,000 members, is predominantly led by atheists, or “ex-Muslims”, as they refer to themselves. It was initially inspired to create a safe space for religious […]
Developing Digital Apps for Ethiopia’s Healthcare
In Ethiopia, mobile applications are spreading fast to help health care workers and the public fight against COVID-19, which has claimed 12 lives in the country and affected about 1,100 people. Ethiopian web developers have designed seven apps that do everything from virus tracing to sharing data and patient information among health workers. While the […]
Lesotho’s Former First Lady Arrested
Police in Lesotho have arrested the country’s former first lady over the 2017 murder of the then-estranged wife of recently resigned Prime Minister Thomas Thabane. Maesaiah Thabane, who was out on bail, is suspected of orchestrating the shooting of Lipolelo Thabane in the capital, Maseru. Lesotho’s court of appeal last week revoked her bail on […]
Senegalese Lab at the Forefront of COVID-19 Hit by the Virus
For months, researchers at the Pasteur Institute in Dakar, a prestigious biomedical research center in Senegal, have been working to produce a low-cost, rapid, at-home test for the coronavirus — the kind that countries across Africa and elsewhere have been most eager to have. Now the coronavirus has infected a cluster of staff members at […]
Banjul Wants Washington to Answer for Mysterious Death
The Gambia has demanded the US investigate the police killing one of its citizens, a former UN diplomat’s son. The shooting of Lamin Sisay, 39, in Atlanta last week prompted anger in the Gambian community, who have described it as another example of the police brutality against black Americans that has prompted country-wide protests in […]
