insert_link Africa South Sudan floods: the first example of a mass population permanently displaced by climate change? Abandoned homes in South Sudan. rameesha bilal shah / shutterstock By Liz Stephens, University of Reading and Jacob Levi, Charité – Berlin University of Medicine Enormous floods have once again engulfed much of South Sudan, as record water-levels in Lake Victoria flow downstream through the Nile. More than 700,000 people have been affected. Hundreds of thousands of people there were already forced from their homes by huge floods […] todaySeptember 12, 2024 23
insert_link Africa Fire safety tips at home: the risks and how to avoid them By Rhoda Afriyie Mensah, Luleå University of Technology In many African communities, fire hazards are a concern due to the materials used for building and daily activities such as cooking and heating. The risks are increased by the use of highly flammable materials in homes and the absence of fire prevention measures. A major fire in a Johannesburg building in 2023, for example, claimed dozens of lives […] todaySeptember 12, 2024 13
insert_link Africa Nigeria is the world’s 2nd biggest plastic polluter: expert insights into the crisis By Wale Fatade, The Conversation Plastic pollution is a major problem in Nigeria. Recent research identified the country as a plastic pollution hotspot, second to India. India emits 9.3 million tonnes of plastic into the environment each year – one fifth of the global total. Nigeria emits 3.5 million tonnes annually. Just how big is the issue and what can be done about it? The Conversation Africa […] todaySeptember 12, 2024 11
Environment The fascinating secrets of plant reproduction that scientists are still uncovering The anthers are where pollen is produced. The Camera Dad By John Doonan, Aberystwyth University and Maurice Bosch, Aberystwyth University You might think flowers don’t have much choice about who they mate with, given they are rooted to the ground and can’t move. But when scientists from Nagoya, Japan used powerful microscopes to study the fertilisation process, they were surprised to find the female part of a flowering […] todaySeptember 10, 2024 11
insert_link Africa Mysterious African manatees inspire a growing chorus of champions By Petro Kotzé, via Mongabay As a young student, Aristide Kamla had “big plans” when he traveled to Lake Ossa in Cameroon to conduct his master’s degree fieldwork with the little-known African manatee. He was hoping for a manatee count and a management plan to come out of the expedition on the roughly 4,000-hectare (10,000-acre) lake. But securing grants was difficult for this budding researcher, so his first funder […] todaySeptember 10, 2024 26
insert_link Environment The Environmental Investment Fund and NORED Launch Solar Mini-Grid Project in Puros Under TIDRET Initiative The Environmental Investment Fund and the Northern Electricity Distributor have agreed to build a 300kV solar mini-grid in Puros, Kunene Region says The Brief. This initiative, part of the Towards an Inclusive Design of the Renewable Energy Transition project, will supply energy to 164 households and around 500 people. Scheduled to start in October 2024 and finish in about six months, NORED will oversee the plant and implement a social […] todayAugust 29, 2024 16
insert_link Africa Uganda police detain 21 activists over oil protest Police in Uganda have detained 21 environmental activists for demonstrating against ongoing oil developments in the west of the country. The campaigners argue the multi-billion-dollar oil project will have dire consequences for the local communities and the environment. Michael Baleke reports from Kampala. News Central Africa reports Total Energies and the China National Offshore Oil Corporation are conducting drilling activities in Lake Albert. The lake is believed to hold […] todayAugust 27, 2024 30
insert_link Africa DRC adds new investor to power its deepwater port ambitions By Bonface Orucho, bird story agency The Port of Banana project, a deepwater project in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), has gained fresh momentum with the addition of a new investor, sparking renewed optimism for the port's long-awaited completion. The British International Investment has committed up to US$35 million alongside DP World for the strategic project expected to become a key driver of trade and economic […] todayAugust 22, 2024 16
insert_link Africa Sierra Leone’s women farmers use a custom called bora to access land – but it’s making them more vulnerable By Bankolay Theodore Turay, University of Lagos Bora – a type of thank you gift – is a Sierra Leonean custom of respect that is often used in relation to land. For instance, informal farmers pay bora to landowners to be able to farm on their land. But bora has changed over the years and is having a negative impact on women, who are responsible for much of […] todayAugust 21, 2024 13