insert_link Opinion Pieces Even with a 30% quota in place, Indonesian women face an uphill battle running for office By Sally White, Australian National University In the 2019 general election, Indonesians voted more women into the national parliament than ever before. After the first election of the post-authoritarian period in 1999, women’s representation was a paltry 8.8%, so the rise to 20.9% in 2019 seemed worth celebrating. Indeed, women activists had worked long and hard to reach this point. Disappointed with the results of the first […] todayFebruary 9, 2024 11
insert_link Opinion Pieces The zero draft to create a pact for the future has landed. The hard part begins. By Florence Syevuo and Dan Perell The zero draft of the Pact for the Future — the agreement to seal September’s much-anticipated Summit of the Future — was introduced recently by the co-facilitators, Namibia and Germany, to fellow members at the United Nations. The draft is the fruition of careful consideration, balancing an array of diverse aspirations from all 193 member states. It is built on the proposals made in Secretary-General António Guterres’s Our Common Agenda and related […] todayFebruary 9, 2024 10
insert_link Lifestyle Anger, sadness, boredom, anxiety – emotions that feel bad can be useful A bad feeling can trigger behavior that leads to something better. Rawpixel/iStock via Getty Images Plus Heather Lench, Texas A&M University Remember the sadness that came with the last time you failed miserably at something? Or the last time you were so anxious about an upcoming event that you couldn’t concentrate for days? These types of emotions are unpleasant to experience and can even feel overwhelming. People often try to […] todayFebruary 9, 2024 31
insert_link Africa The rise of African prophets: the unchecked power of the leaders of Pentecostal churches By Josiah Taru, Rice University Over the last 20 years there’s been an unprecedented increase in charismatic Pentecostal prophets – or men of God as they’re called in Pentecostal parlance. Across Africa their unchecked influence has spread into social, economic and political institutions. Pentecostalism is one of the fastest-growing strands of Christianity on the continent. In Zimbabwe, for example, the Prophetic Healing and Deliverance Ministry claims its membership […] todayFebruary 9, 2024 41
insert_link Africa The growing role of telco operators in driving financial inclusion through accessible mobile-first financial services. By Robert van Breukelen, COO at Itemate Solutions Africa remains a hotbed of mobile innovation. Telco operators across the continent are stepping in to fill gaps left by lower levels of development in key areas, including banking and financial services. A 2022 report estimated that just over half of Africa's population remained unbanked. The same report found that banks across the continent are investing in digital transformation […] todayFebruary 8, 2024 19
insert_link Opinion Pieces Using AI to monitor the internet for terror content is inescapable – but also fraught with pitfalls shutterstock. metamorworks/Shutterstock Stuart Macdonald, Swansea University; Ashley A. Mattheis, Dublin City University, and David Wells, Swansea University Every minute, millions of social media posts, photos and videos flood the internet. On average, Facebook users share 694,000 stories, X (formerly Twitter) users post 360,000 posts, Snapchat users send 2.7 million snaps and YouTube users upload more than 500 hours of video. This vast ocean of online material needs to be constantly […] todayFebruary 7, 2024 16
insert_link Opinion Pieces Irish referendum: how the Catholic church shaped Ireland’s constitution to define the status of women By Caitriona Beaumont, London South Bank University It has been 87 years since feminist and activist Hanna Sheehy-Skeffington declared that the new 1937 Irish constitution was based on a “fascist model, in which women would be relegated to permanent inferiority”. Several clauses were labelled “sinister and retrogressive” by women’s groups who feared gender bias embedded within the constitution would restrict Irish women to their domestic roles as wives […] todayFebruary 7, 2024 12
insert_link Health / Medical Screen time can seriously harm your eyes: here’s how to avoid it Ground Picture/Shutterstock Jacobo García Queiruga, Universidade de Santiago de Compostela and Belen Sabucedo Villamarín, Universidade de Santiago de Compostela Every day, more and more patients are seeking medical attention after spending long days in front of computer screens. The most common symptoms include irritated or itchy eyes, and a sensation of dryness or sand on the surface of the eye. These are the tell tale signs of dry eye disease, […] todayFebruary 7, 2024 13
insert_link Lifestyle The vital role of talent development and management By Stephanus Vries, Old Mutual Namibia Human Capital Manager, Old Mutual Namibia In the ever-evolving landscape of business, where competition is fierce and innovation is the key to success, the importance of talent development and management cannot be overstated. It's actually the key that makes successful organisations stand out from the others. Talent development is about developing potential and promoting progress, not merely about filling jobs. Leaders […] todayFebruary 7, 2024 6
