Africa Archives - Page 91 of 145

Kenya defends cost of jet for President Ruto’s trip

Kenya's government has defended the cost of President William Ruto's trip to the US. The price of hiring the luxury private jet in which he and his delegation travelled is estimated to be $1.5m, according to Kenya’s private KTN TV station. More than 30 people, including a popular comedian, are reported to be accompanying the president, who landed in Atlanta, Georgia. Update Africa News reports that President Ruto and First […]

22 May, 2024

Africa

bird basketball roundup: Ghanaian manager takes charge of WNBA team, new tournament in Kenya

By Silalei Shani, bird story agency Ghanaian-American Ohemaa Nyanin has recently been named the General Manager of San Francisco-based club, Golden State Valkyries, a team playing in the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA). Nyanin assumed office on May 13 making her the first GM of the recently formed team. Golden State Valkyries is the 13th franchise in the WNBA following the league’s first expansion since 2008. […]

22 May, 2024

Africa

UK-Rwanda migrant deal challenges international protection law

By Cristiano d'Orsi, University of Johannesburg In late April 2024 the British parliament passed a law – the Safety of Rwanda Act – enabling it to transport migrants arriving in the UK to Rwanda. When the legislation was approved by parliament, there were 52,000 asylum seekers who could potentially be sent to Rwanda. The law has been condemned by a range of UN actors, human rights […]

22 May, 2024

Africa

Kenya is badly prepared for floods: four steps to reduce devastation and deaths

By Augustine Kiptum, University of Sussex Floods in Kenya in April/May 2024 led to the deaths of over 250 people and caused damage estimated at 4 billion Kenya shillings (US$35 million). Not for the first time, Kenya’s lack of preparedness was apparent as flooding rampaged through rural and urban landscapes. There was also confusion as to who would deal with the disaster – the national […]

22 May, 2024

Africa

Massive African “Gigawatt” wind projects to dwarf existing facilities, as private power companies and “wheeling” take root

By Conrad Onyango, bird story agency Huge new wind power project under development in Egypt and Kenya will see independent power producers access national grids to sell power to private customers in other parts of the country, or region, accoding to a new report. "Wheeling" refers to the practice of allowing privately generated power to flow through the national grid to willing buyers in a seller-buyer model. […]

21 May, 2024

Africa

Why Nigerian companies topped Africa’s fastest growing list in a difficult year

By Conrad Onyango, bird story agency In early 2023, when Nigeria began rolling out its newly designed currency notes, the country was hit by a cash crisis. The reason? Nigeria’s apex bank had put a cap on the maximum amount of hard cash that individuals and corporations could withdraw as part of wider efforts to tame money laundering. While this scarcity of hard cash worsened […]

21 May, 2024

Africa

“Silent disease” outed at African Hepatitis Convention

From the left: Mark Sonderup, Danjuma Adda, Mark Heywood, Elaine Saayman and Yolaan Andrews during a session at the African Viral Hepatitis Convention on Saturday. Photo: Liezl Human By Liezl Human, via GroundUp The African Viral Hepatitis Convention this past week has put a spotlight on the need for eliminating hepatitis B and C, a disease which has infected millions of South Africans and can cause liver cancer if […]

21 May, 2024

Africa

Morocco turbocharges its e-sports economy

By Bonface Orucho, bird story agency Morocco's e-gaming scene is booming, fueled by a growing youthful community, dynamic esports events, and strong government support. From May 24th to 26th the North African country hosts its first gaming expo at the Sofitel Jardin des Roses in Rabat Gaming City. Aymane Mehdi, a software engineer and e-gamer involved in organizing the expo said the event offers a “sneak […]

21 May, 2024

Africa

Snakebites can destroy skin, muscle, and even bone – exciting progress on drugs to treat them

By Steven R. Hall, Lancaster University and Nicholas Casewell, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine The World Health Organization estimates that 1.8 million to 2.7 million people are envenomed by snakes annually, resulting in upwards of 138,000 deaths. In sub-Saharan Africa alone, snakebite annually kills between 20,000 and 32,000 people, though a 2022 paper suggests this is likely a gross underestimate. Africa is home to […]

21 May, 2024