insert_link Africa Ramping up response to curb Zimbabwe cholera outbreak Forty-six-year-old Goodluck Moyo* from Chitungwiza, a town just outside the country’s capital, Harare, started feeling unwell after his day shift at work. “I suspect it was the water I drank while at work,” he says. “I got worse rapidly. I was rushed to the 24-hour clinic in my area, where I was put on a drip.” He was later referred to the cholera treatment centre at Chitungwiza General Hospital […] today24 January, 2024
insert_link Africa African startups turn to debt as equity powder dries up By Conrad Onyango, via bird story agency In 2022, when funding from venture capitalists began to dry up in Africa, Treepz, a shared mobility startup, was faced with a difficult decision... throw in the towel or grow the business without new investors. As part of their decision to keep going, they changed their core business model. “Towards the end of 2022, we knew the funding draught would happen […] today24 January, 2024
insert_link Africa Liberia transferred power peacefully again: 3 reasons the calm is holding, and one red flag By Charles Wratto, Babes Bolyai University Joseph Boakai was sworn in as Liberia’s 26th president on 22 January 2024. Boakai secured a six year term of office after defeating incumbent president George Weah in a keenly contested November 2023 poll with 50.9% of the votes cast. The west African country of 5 million people reached a major milestone on 17 November 2023, when Weah, of the Congress for […] today24 January, 2024
insert_link Africa Education has a huge role to play in peace and development: 5 essential reads Children’s education is frequently disrupted in conflict-fraught areas. Daniel Beloumou Olomo/AFP via Getty Images Natasha Joseph, The Conversation Nelson Mandela was a famous advocate for the value of education. In 1990, the man who would become South Africa’s first democratically president four years later told a high school in Boston: “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” The United Nations agrees. In 2018 […] today24 January, 2024
insert_link Africa U.S. remains committed to Africa US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken has begun a four-nation tour of the continent in Cape Verde. Blinken will also be going to Ivory Coast, Nigeria and Angola. The AFP news agency reports that he told his audience in Cape Verde that “we are all in when it comes to Africa". The US has contributed around $150 million to Cape Verde through various programs, including expanding the capital's port, road […] today23 January, 2024
insert_link Africa Kenyan universities are very short of professors: why it matters and what to do about it Ishmael Munene, Northern Arizona University A Kenyan vice-chancellor recently went public about the scarcity of university professors. There are fewer than 1,000 professors for the country’s 68 universities and 562,925 students. That is an average of around 563 students per professor. South Africa has around 4,034 professors and 1,112,439 students – around 275 students per professor. Professors occupy the highest teaching rank in the university. They reach this […] today23 January, 2024
insert_link Africa Ghana wants to make importing food like rice and tomatoes more costly: expert explains why it’s a bad idea By Sylvanus Kwaku Afesorgbor, University of Guelph Ghana, like many other developing nations, relies heavily on imports of food and consumer goods to feed its population. For instance, Ghana imports 55% of the rice that is consumed locally. The country’s import dependence is primarily a consequence of the production of low-value primary products without substantial value addition. To forestall over-dependence on foreign goods, the government has proposed a trade […] today23 January, 2024
Africa Africa’s cashless revolution is on, banking on virtual cards By Bonface Orucho, bird story agency International card companies are vying for Africa's fast-evolving electronic payments market as middle-class incomes rise and the quest for cashless transactions intensifies. UnionPay International, a subsidiary of China's Union Pay, is the latest entrant in the African card payments market, warming up to face-off with Visa and Mastercard. Notably, UnionPay International is partnering with the Standard Bank Group, the largest bank in […] today23 January, 2024
insert_link Africa Fintech and energy illuminate DR Congo’s nascent startup ecosystem By Conrad Onyango, via bird story agency The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), one of the world’s most resource-rich countries, is carving out a new prosperity niche as it emerges on the global tech scene. Known for its green metals, cobalt and copper, and the world's second-largest rainforest, the newest member of the East African Community is having a moment in the startup ecosystem. In 2023 the country raised […] today23 January, 2024
