Africa’s political leadership mounted a robust response helped to mitigate impact of Covid
As omicron continues to make its impact across the globe, scientists in Africa are rapidly learning more about the new coronavirus variant. Omicron was first identified in southern Africa in November. Dr John Nkengasong, the director of Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, told The World’s host Carol Hills...
Why the return of refugees and internally displaced people is such a thorny issue in South Sudan
South Sudan’s government wants millions of people who fled the country’s devastating civil war to return home ahead of national elections tentatively scheduled for 2023. But some humanitarians worry that returns could be risky as violence continues to flare around the country despite a 2018 peace agreement and the subsequent...
Fatal accidents: Some universities in China don’t place enough emphasis on lab experience for students
Very few countries in the world keep detailed records on numbers of university lab accidents. But in many countries, deaths seem to be rare, except in China. In the United States, for example, the Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board listed only one fatality related to a chemical incident at...
China has never learnt from Wuhan University accident as lab safety concerns mount after another fatal blast
Deaths caused by university lab blasts have some scientists in China concerned about a lack of oversight and standardised safety protocols, especially in teaching labs. The deaths of two people following a laboratory explosion at a Chinese university in October have raised alarm among researchers. The full circumstances that led...
Five new non-permanent members take up their positions on UN Security Council
The UN Security Council got five new members on Tuesday as Albania, Brazil, Gabon, Ghana and the United Arab Emirates formally took up the posts they won in an election in June. Gabon and Ghana each have been on the council three times before and the UAE once. The 15-member...
Dutch lord of human trafficking ring arrested in Nairobi following tip off by Interpol at The Hague
Kenyan police arrested a man sought in connection with human trafficking since 2017 in a joint operation with Dutch authorities and Interpol. 53-year-old John Habeta was taken into custody at Schiphol International airport in Amsterdam on December 25 after his arrest in Kenya. Kenyan police arrested Habeta in Nairobi on...
Overwhelming evidence of deep-seated graft in South Africa presents biggest test for president to take action
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa is challenged to take decisive action against the corruption that has been documented in a judicial report presented to him and made public, experts say. The damning findings by the state commission of inquiry – chaired by the country’s deputy chief justice and which gathered...
Covid management: Too many projects on health and disease in Africa are pursued in silos
Africa’s Covid-19 management proved that building regional control and capability will be key to containing future disease outbreaks. This means strengthening national public-health institutions, such as the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and the Zambia National Public Health Institute in Lusaka. It also means strengthening and empowering the Africa CDC...
Health experts forecast: How Africa averted 70 million Covid infections, three million deaths
Africa’s achievements, especially in the early phase of the Covid-19 pandemic, are at least part of the reason the continent was able to mitigate the first and, to some degree, the second waves of the Covid-19 pandemic. As of December 13, 2021, around 8.9 million cases of Covid-19 and nearly...
As rest of world grapples with soaring numbers of Covid infections, Africa praised for coordinated response
In the early months of the Covid-19 pandemic, Africa’s rapid and coordinated response, informed by emerging data, was remarkable. Now, in 2022, as vast vaccination campaigns have enabled the global north to gain some control over the pandemic, Africa lags behind. Since the 1960s, when many African countries gained independence,...
