Burundi Leader, Stifling Attempted Coup, Cracks Down on Media

Burundi’s President Pierre Nkuruziza, who narrowly avoided his removal from office by a citizen-backed military coup, has turned against the media that closely reported the day to day protests.

Kenyans Attack Food Insecurity with Urban Farms and Sack Gardens

In the midst of one of Africa’s largest slums, vegetables are growing.

Saving a Generation, Within a Generation

Leaders from over 30 countries have come together for a two-day retreat May 14 and 15 at U.N. headquarters to reinforce their commitments to improve the health of women, children and adolescents around the world.

Burundi President, with Shrinking Pool of Support, Faces Ouster

The days of African presidents rewriting the constitution to crown themselves Presidents for Life may be coming to a close but Burundi President Pierre Nkurunziza appears to have missed the signs of this historical shift.

Texans Propose to Adopt Threatened African Rhinos

Thefts, murders and mutilation of Africa’s wildlife, from white rhinos to elephants with their prized horns and tusks, are at an all-time high, say conservationists who are keeping track of the poaching of species by fortune-seeking hunters.

Popular Nigerian Author Calls on Americans to ‘Reject Silence’

Nigerian author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, co-curator of a spectacular World Voices week with over 100 African writers, closed the May 4-10 event with an admonition.

A Nightmare Comes to a Close in Liberia as MDs Declare It ‘Ebola-Free’

With no new infections in 42 days, Liberia has been declared free and clear of Ebola by the World Health Organization.

EU to Focus on Human Smuggling Amid Mediterranean Crisis

Speaking at the U.N. Security Council, Federica Mogherini, High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs, called on the international community to take urgent steps to end the Mediterranean crisis and dismantle the human smuggling rings that facilitate it.

Falling Food Prices May Benefit Lower Income Countries

Despite a minimal reduction in global production, the world food import bill is about to reach a five-year low in 2015, pushing international prices for agricultural commodities down even further, the Rome-based U.N. Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) forecast on May 7.

Kerry Brings Promise of 45 Million Dollars for Kenya’s Massive Refugee Camp

At a meeting with Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry this week pledged an extra 45 million dollars for the U.N. which is sheltering over a half million refugees fleeing civil unrest, terrorism and violence in Somalia and South Sudan.

Popular Nigerian Writer Headlines at Blockbuster World Voices Fest

Prize-winning writer Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie is hoping to break down some stereotypes at the upcoming World Voices Festival sponsored by the PEN America free expression group.

Close to a Thousand Nigerian Girls Freed, Many Malnourished or Pregnant

Boko Haram, fleeing to a new hideout, has abandoned hundreds of women and girls in the Sambisa forest where the high school girls from Chibok were initially taken over one year ago. It is not certain, however, that the freed girls and women were part of the 200 plus kidnapped victims of Boko Haram, officials say.

Video of Police Beating Black Soldier Sparks Protests by Israel’s Ethiopian Jews

A video that caught an Israeli police officer and a volunteer shoving and punching a black soldier in uniform outraged members of the Ethiopian Jewish community and set off a clash Sunday between Ethiopian Jews and police in central Tel Aviv.

Deadline Looms for NGOs to Apply for ECOSOC Status

The NGO Branch of the Department of Economic and Social Affairs at the United Nations is calling on non-governmental organisations to apply for Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) consultative status in order to be considered by the 2016 NGO Committee.

Nigeria’s Anti-Corruption Pledge Resonates in Far-Off Zambia

Nigeria’s president-elect is already making waves with his pledge to attack corruption, starting with the missing 20 billion dollars allegedly swiped from the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation during the previous administration.

Anti-Foreigner Discrimination ‘Fostered in South African Schools’

A practice of denying admission to South African public schools of children without visas or whose parents are refugees from other African countries is creating a foundation for the current rash of xenophobia, critics of the practice say.

Chaos Grows in Burundi as President Defies Advice to Step Down

Burundian President Pierre Nkurunziza, overriding objections to an ill-advised third term, now faces a growing popular movement to oust him after his term ends this coming June.

Moving Indigenous Land Rights from Paper to Reality

Frustrated with decades of marginalisation, and of seeing their rights respected only on paper, Indigenous peoples are calling for major recognition from the international community.

Peace Is Not a Boy’s Club

Governments have long pledged to bring more women to the peace table, but for many (if not most), it has been little more than lip service.

UNDP and Turkey Partner on New Regional Hub

On Thursday, the United Nations and the government of Turkey launched a new Istanbul Regional Hub, which provides support to the countries and territories in which the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) works in Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS).

East African Environmental Activist Wins Major Prize

On Earth Day, Apr. 22, Kenyan activist Phyllis Omido takes the stage in Washington DC to receive the Goldman Environmental Prize for her efforts to defend her community from lead poisoning and force the closure of a lead smelting plant that was emitting fumes and spewing untreated acid wastewater into streams, poisoning the neighbourhood – including her own baby.