TB Preventive Treatment: the Need for Choice

Before COVID-19 came along, the two most lethal infectious diseases were HIV and tuberculosis (TB). Even though HIV still lingers, with 1.5 million people contracting the infection every year, epidemiologists point to the availability of many HIV prevention options as a primary reason for the decreasing caseload.

Education is a ‘Life-Saving Intervention’ in Emergencies, says South Sudan’s Education Minister

In times of crisis, education is an essential component of humanitarian intervention packages, South Sudan’s Minister of General Education and Instruction Awut Deng Acuil told IPS in an exclusive interview.

Pharma Giant’s TB Drug Decision Welcomed, But Not All Developing Countries Benefit

In a surprise move, pharma giant Johnson and Johnson (J&J) has agreed not to enforce some of its patents on a lifesaving TB drug, making generic versions available in many low- and middle-income countries (LMICs).

Eswatini: Election with No Democracy on the Horizon

Eswatini heads to the polls soon, with elections scheduled for September. But there’s nothing remotely democratic in prospect. The country remains ruled by King Mswati III, Africa’s last absolute monarch, who presides over Eswatini with an iron fist. Mswati dissolved parliament on 11 July, confident there’s little chance of people who disagree with him winning representation.

New Machine Learning-Based Model Boosting Africa’s Preparedness and Response to Climate Change

Scientists have recently unveiled a first-ever weather forecasting model using artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning solutions to help vulnerable African countries build resilience to climate impacts.

Transforming Africa’s Food Systems: Challenges & Opportunities

 
Q: As the African Union Special Envoy for Food Systems, what is the scope of your mandate and what should Africans expect from you? The role of special envoys of the AU is primarily to tackle a critical issue for which the AU needs support. A special envoy does not seek to replace or take over the responsibilities of the AU or the AU Commission (AUC). Instead, their role is to support and enhance their work by bringing additional value.

Leveraging Africa’s Renewable Energy Potential: A Call for Global Partnership

Africa is caught in the crosshairs of climate change. Despite contributing just 3-5% of global carbon dioxide emissions, the continent will endure climate change’s destructive impact, including more severe storms, rising temperatures and erratic rainfall in the years ahead that threaten the well-being of hundreds of millions of people.

Black Sea Grain Initiative ‘Paused’ But Africa Must Live Beyond Foreign Dependence

As Russia paused the renewal of the Black Sea Grain Initiative, the United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres reacted with regret saying the global south would be badly affected.

Human Rights Concerns Ahead of Zimbabwe Polls

Zimbabwe holds general elections next month amid growing human rights and press freedom concerns in what analysts say could mar conditions for undisputed poll results.

Supporting Conflict Prevention & Social Cohesion in Mauritania

Deep in the heart of Southeastern Mauritania lies the district and town of Bassikounou, nestled on the border with neighboring Mali, over 1,200 kilometers from the capital city of Nouakchott.

East African International Students to Benefit from Single Qualification Framework

East African international students could soon easily study in neighbouring countries after the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) proposed a new qualification framework to mitigate the difficulties faced when seeking education across borders.

Grey Market Charcoal East Africa — Why Prohibitionist Interventions Are Failing

At Kampala’s Nakawa market, Lovisa Nabisubi scoops charcoal from a bag and packs it into tins ready for customers. Her bare hands, feet, and clothes are stained black from hours of dealing in this popular household fuel which some equate to “black gold” not just in Uganda but in most of East Africa.

Cloud Lingers over Sierra Leone’s Election

People went to the polls in Sierra Leone on 24 June to pick a president, parliament and municipal representatives. Results were quickly announced and the president sworn in for a second term. But a cloud of doubt lingers.

Vaccination Is the Best Bet Against Drug-Resistant Superbugs — Experts

The first thing you notice about eight-month-old Manahil Zeeshan is how tiny she looks on the adult-size hospital bed at the government-run Sindh Institute of Child Health and Neonatology (SICHN) in Korangi, a neighbourhood in Karachi.

Greener Pastures Not So Green for Zimbabweans in the Diaspora

They have high-paying jobs, a high standard of living, and almost everything they need, but for Zimbabweans abroad, all that glitters is not gold. Twenty-eight-year-old Gift Gonye, based in Germany, is one such Zimbabwean, and he is apparently not satisfied with his life abroad.

Tuberculosis: A Disease of the Poor Begs For Rich Funding

The United Nations General Assembly is convening a high-level meeting on Tuberculosis (TB) to get a political commitment for increased funding for programmes and research to end an old disease that today kills more people than AIDS and COVID.

Land Beneficiaries Lament Worsening Poverty in Resettled Areas

Located between two heavily-deforested mountains, Nakadanga Trust in Machinga District in southern Malawi looks lifeless. It is isolated away from all other original communities. Here, the houses are made of mud bricks and they are grass thatched. There is no source of potable water in the area. There is no school nearby, no health centre and no shops for groceries.[related_articles]

Celebrity Chefs Enlisted to Put Climate-Hardy Millets Back on the Menu

Get yourself a nice big pot full of water, dice some onions and throw in the meat of your fancy, followed by chopped tomatoes, tomato paste, dried okra powder, garden eggs and chilli peppers.

African Women Seek to Boost Innovation and Creativity in Agribusiness

Adeline Umukunzi, a 28-year-old woman mushroom farmer in Musanze, a district located about 100 km north of the capital Kigali, said women have often been the unseen faces of agribusiness in Rwanda. "Women have always played a vital role in agriculture, but behind the scenes. We are starting to see more and more female faces in agribusiness," she told IPS.

Questions Arise About Youth Commitment to Democracy After Nigerian Elections

As Nigeria’s newly-elected president Bola Tinabu seems to be making his mark by undoing many of his predecessor’s policies - another battle is being waged in the courts between him and one of his rivals Peter Gregory Obi.

Food Beyond the Reach for Millions in Horn of Africa

Four months pregnant, Ayan was close to dying of starvation when she arrived at the Kabasa camp in Dolow, on the border between Somalia and Ethiopia.