Formalising Informal Trade – Good for African Women?

Women constitute the largest share of informal traders in Africa–about 70 per cent in Southern Africa and more than half in other parts of this vast continent made up of 54 states, home to over 1,200 billion people.

In a “World of Plenty,” G7 Must Fight Famine

World leaders must step up and take action in fighting famine to prevent further catastrophic levels of hunger and deaths, said Oxfam.

Africa – More than Just Conflicts, Corruption, Disasters

Natural and man-made disasters, armed conflicts, widespread corruption and deep social inequalities have been so far a dramatic source for most news coverage when it comes to Africa, the world's second-largest and second-most-populous continent on Earth, which hosts 54 states spreading over 30 million square kilometres that are home to over 1.2 billion people.

Nutrition Key to Developing Africa’s “Grey Matter Infrastructure”

Developing Africa’s ‘grey matter infrastructure’ through multi-sector investments in nutrition has been identified as a game changer for Africa’s sustainable development.

“Horrific” Increase in Worldwide Displacement

Over 30 million people were newly internally displaced in 2016 by conflict and disasters, according to a new report.

Agony of Mother Earth (II) World’s Forests Depleted for Fuel

Humankind is the biggest ever predator of natural resources. Just take the case of forests, the real lungs of Mother Earth, and learn that every 60 seconds humans cut down 15 hectares of trees primarily for food or energy production. And that as much as 45,000 hectares of rainforest are cleared for every million kilos of beef exported from South America.

Africa and India – Sharing the Development Journey

Africa, like India, is a continent of rich and compelling diversity. Both continents share a similar landscape, a shared colonial history, and similar economic and demographic challenges. This helps both India and Africa work especially well with each other.

Agony of Mother Earth (I) The Unstoppable Destruction of Forests

The world’s forests are being degraded and lost at a staggering rate of 3.3 million hectares per year. While their steady destruction in many Asian countries continues apace, deforestation of the world's largest tropical forest - the Amazon - increased 29 per cent from last year’s numbers. And some of the most precious ecosystems in Africa are threatened by oil, gas and mineral exploration and exploitation.

Kenya’s Drought: Response Must Be Sustainable, Not Piecemeal

 

A malnutrition emergency Food security in Kenya has deteriorated significantly since the end of 2016. UNICEF reports a significant increase in severe acute malnutrition. Nearly 110,000 children under-five need treatment, up from 75,300 in August 2016.

Using Agriculture and Agribusiness to Bring About Industrialisation in Africa

No region of the world has ever moved to industrialised economy status without a transformation of the agricultural sector. Agriculture, which contributes 16.2% of the GDP of Africa, and gives some form of employment to over 60% of the population, holds the key to accelerated growth, diversification and job creation for African economies.

Concerns Arise Over Freed Nigerian Abductees, Thousands Still Missing

Following the release of over 80 missing schoolgirls, human rights groups have expressed concerns about their rights and future.

Falling Between the Sun-Scorched Gaps: Drought Highlights Ethiopia’s IDP Dilemma

Displaced pastoralists gather around newly arrived drums of brown water as a water truck speeds off to make further deliveries to settlements that have sprung up along the main road running out of Gode, one of the major urban centers in Ethiopia’s Somali region.

Collective Amnesia in Famine Response and Resilience-Building

The emerging drought-induced humanitarian crisis—prevailing in countries from Niger in West Africa to Somalia in East Africa—and conflict-driven famine conditions in South Sudan, Somalia, and Northeast Nigeria, have become a regular phenomenon.

The Very Survival of Africa’s Indigenous Peoples ‘Seriously Threatened’

The cultures and very survival of indigenous peoples in Africa are seriously threatened. They are ignored, neglected and fall victims of land grabbing and land dispossession caused by extractive industries, agribusiness and other forms of business operations.

Kenya Is Doing Its Part to Battle Drought, We Must Too

After three years of drought and failed harvests, Kenya is in the grip of a national crisis.All eyes are on neighbouring Somalia and South Sudan – where the needs are indeed greater and more acute – but we must not forget the nearly 3 million Kenyans whose lives have been blighted by these extreme conditions.

Indigenous Women: The Frontline Protectors of the Environment

Indigenous women, while experiencing the first and worst effects of climate change globally, are often in the frontline in struggles to protect the environment.

Long Way to Go for Indigenous Rights Protection

Despite progress, many gaps remain in international indigenous rights protection, said representatives during an annual UN meeting.

Indigenous Peoples – Best Allies or Worst Enemies?

It all happened on the very same day—4 April. That day, indigenous peoples were simultaneously characterised as fundamental allies in the world’s war on hunger and poverty, while being declared as collective victims of a “tsunami” of imprisonments in Australia. See what happened.

With an Eye on Electoral Violence, Kenya Keeps Tight Rein on Media

As the clock ticks down to Kenya’s general elections slated for Aug. 8, a move by the Kenya Communication Authority (CAK) to make journalists adhere to guidelines on election coverage has elicited fear that the government could be trying to control how they report on the polls.

Reclaiming the Bandung Spirit for Shared Prosperity

"The despised, the insulted, the hurt, the dispossessed—in short, the underdogs of the human race were meeting. ... Who had thought of organizing such a meeting? And what had these nations in common? Nothing, it seemed to me, but what their past relationship to the Western world had made them feel. This meeting of the rejected was in itself a kind of judgment upon the Western world!."—Richard Wright, The Color Curtain [University Press of Mississippi, 1956].

“The Ocean Is Not a Dumping Ground”

An internationally renowned scientist, Ameenah Gurib-Fakim became Mauritius’s sixth president on June 5, 2015 – and one of the few Muslim women heads of state in the world.