African bank approves $7m for mini-grid investment
The African Development Bank has approved a $7 million grant from the Sustainable Energy Fund for Africa (SEFA) for countries to set up a mini-grid acceleration initiative to meet the needs of the continent’s fast-evolving renewable mini-grid industry. The Africa Mini-Grid Market Acceleration Programme (AMAP), which aims to boost energy...
US environmental agency in urgent need of repair after four-year Trump mess
For many scientists at the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the past four years working in President Donald Trump’s government have felt like an eternity. Largely sidelined, they could only watch as his administration dismantled science advisory panels, disregarded scientific evidence and weakened pollution regulations. Expectations are high that the...
Angola oil minister poised to take over Opec presidency
The election of Angola to the rotating presidency of the conference of ministers of Opec is expected to thrust Angola Minister of Mineral Resources, Petroleum and Gas Diamantino Pedro Azevedo to the forefront in the efforts to stabilise the volatile oil market in the new year. The assumption of the...
Mozambique on track to becoming a hub for natural gas development in Africa
Mozambique is a country full of amazing opportunities. I have had a chance to engage with the energy industry in the country and also with a lot of local companies, civil society and young people. It was exciting to talk with young people who understand that innovation and hard work...
First ever peek inside Mars reveals a crust with three cake-like layers
NASA’s InSight mission has finally peered inside Mars – and discovered that the planet’s crust might be made of three layers. This is the first time scientists have directly probed the inside of a planet other than Earth and will help researchers to unravel how Mars formed and evolved over...
FDA scientists endorse Moderna coronavirus vaccine
Scientists at the Food and Drug Administration endorsed the Covid-19 vaccine developed by Moderna as safe and efficacious a day after the first doses of a competing vaccine from Pfizer and BioNTech were delivered across the United States. The FDA reviewers said that the two-dose vaccine “was highly effective” in...
US coronavirus crisis: One person dies every 36 seconds
More than 303,500 people have died from Covid-19 in the United States. It is the latest sign of a generational tragedy – one still unfolding in every corner of the country – that leaves in its wake an expanse of grief that cannot be captured in a string of statistics....
Technology experts foresee utility-like criticality for data centres in 2021
As the world moved online seemingly overnight in the face of the Covid-19 pandemic, the criticality of data centres and the unrelenting reliance on them across all walks of life became an enduring storyline of the crisis. This reality will manifest in new ways in 2021 as the data centre...
20,000 activists petition Kenya to reject US plastics export deal
Despite publicly retreating on the push to force Kenya and by extension to allow trade plastics and petrochemical products, American Chemistry Council (ACC) is said to be quietly lobbying Washington to force concessions for exports during ongoing bilateral trade agreement negotiations between the two countries. The push by ACC has...
Biden positions US to retake lead role in climate agenda as he prepares for office
When Joe Biden won the US presidency earlier this month, it seemed like a huge opportunity to restore the country’s position as a leader in the fight against climate change. But whether he’ll be able to deliver on his climate agenda – the most aggressive ever put forth by a...
