Category archives for: Features

A ‘New Cold War’ Looms in Africa as U.S. Pushes Against Russian Gains

The U.S. is reprising its playbook in Ukraine, where it has used classified information to expose plans by Russia. Next target: Chad. DECLAN WALSH The United States recently warned Chad’s president that Russian mercenaries were plotting to kill him and three senior aides and that Moscow was backing Chadian rebels massing in the neighboring Central […]

How violence robs Nigerians of their votes

Violent groups known as ‘political thugs’ have been used by the established political parties for decades to influence the electoral process. As Tobi Olayinka set out to vote on Saturday morning in Nigeria’s Lagos state, she took along a backpack filled with food and drinks and an umbrella against the sun. The 31-year-old first-time voter […]

Have More Sex, Please!

MAGDALENE J. TAYLOR Sex is good. Sex is healthy. Sex is an essential part of our social fabric. And you — specifically — should probably be having more of it. Americans, in the midst of a loneliness epidemic, are not having enough sex. Across almost every demographic group, American adults old and young, single and […]

Female genital mutilation rates peak in Kenya during school holidays – an alternative option offers a solution

TAMMARY ESHO Female genital mutilation is a practice deeply rooted in cultural traditions around the world. The World Health Organization defines it as comprising all procedures that involve removal of parts of the external female genital organs for non-medical reasons. The cut is practiced for various reasons. Some communities use it as a rite of […]

Ghana needs a “one-term sacrificial” president

KOFI AYIM That Ghana is up the creek without a paddle is indubitably undeniable, and the only way out of the current socioeconomic conundrum facing the 65-year-old country is for its leaders to sit up straight. The current economic challenges require some unpopular decisions that may not sit well with a cross-section of the populace […]

Two Worlds, Same Sufferings, Different pains

KOFI AYIM It takes an average of 10 hours – depending on tailwind – for a typical Boeing 767 aircraft to fly nonstop from New York City, U.S.A., to Accra, Ghana, for 5,111 miles. On arrival the ambient temperature contrast between the two cities is huge. While Accra is almost always warm and hot with […]

Is France losing ground in Africa?

Gabon and Togo’s recent decision to join the Commonwealth seemed like a blow to France – but was it? PETER FABRICIUS On the face of it, France seems to be losing ground in Africa. It was forced out of Mali and appears to be losing popular support elsewhere in the Sahel. And then last week, […]

Africa’s whistleblowers pay a high price for their courage

Silja Fröhlich Whistleblowers uncover corruption and help bring the truth to light, often benefiting society in the process. But in Africa they face dismissal, violence and murder. Extensive legislation seldom offers real protection. Babita Deokaran was shot dead in broad daylight outside her home in Johannesburg on August 23. She had just dropped her daughter […]

Can Synthetic Palm Oil Help Save the World’s Tropical Forests?

Numerous startups are creating synthetic palm oil in the lab, hoping to slow the loss of tropical forests to oil palm cultivation. But palm oil is the most widely used vegetable oil, and producing a synthetic version on a large scale remains a daunting challenge. JAMES DINNEEN Tom Jeffries and Tom Kelleher met at Rutgers […]

Why China is becoming a top choice for Ghanaian PhD students

NATASHA ROBINSON & DAVID MILLS “China wasn’t my first option for a PhD. Honestly, in Ghana the perception about China or the Chinese system, Chinese products, Chinese whatever, it is not very positive.” Dr. Courage Simon Kofi Dogbe is one of the thousands of Ghanaians who recently got their PhDs from universities in China. In […]

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