Data suggest Covid vaccines may have contributed to Germany’s 2023 surge in excess mortality
This study provides moderate-strength evidence of an unexpected, statistically robust association between vaccination rates and excess mortality in Germany’s third pandemic year – without establishing causality.
Lobby raises red flag over rise in pollution in Kenya despite ban on single-use plastics
An environmental lobby group wants Kenya government to shield the country from adverse effects of using single-use plastics. Speaking in Nairobi during the launch of Refill and Reuse Festival to Single-Use Plastics Festival last week, Greenpeace Africa Project Officer Hellen Dena said the country needs to transition to sustainable packaging...
Africa challenges rich world to walk the talk in fight against climate as it hosts its first G20 summit
Rich countries agreed at last year’s United Nations climate summit to pool at least $300 billion a year by 2035 to help developing countries deal with the impacts of climate change and weather disasters. But independent experts said much more – an estimated $1 trillion a year – was needed by 2030.
Breaking point of global Anglican in offing as conservative coalition firmly reject homosexuality and liberal theology
Primates of Africa’s two largest national provinces, Nigeria and Uganda, have joined their Rwandan counterpart in endorsing the measure, according to Bishop Paul Donison, Gafcon’s general secretary. So have smaller churches ranging from Myanmar to the Americas.
How archivists risked their lives to save Timbuktu’s famed manuscripts from al-Qaeda but threat remains
For students like 24-year-old Baylaly Mahamane, the manuscripts offer fresh insights from traditional practices. One text describes doctors crushing white wormwood leaves to soothe the stomach, blending millet with mutton to stop vomiting and packing swollen feet with clay and henna.
How implication of President Trump in paedophile crimes has switched off MAGA interest in sex trafficker Epstein files
Many right-wing figures on social media dismissed the entire document release as a hoax because of a single email from Epstein to Ghislaine Maxwell, who is currently serving a 20-year sentence for sex trafficking.
How Kisumu is coping with demand for housing that’s now driving by rapid urbanisation in Kenya
The government has responded to this through affordable housing programme under the Big Four Agenda to deliver up to 200,000 affordable units per year through public-private partnerships and a housing levy. Numerous housing projects are underway in major cities like Kisumu and Eldoret, among others.
Why hacking fears loom over multimillion-dollar plan to make mobile voting happen
Computer scientist and voting expert David Jefferson is also unimpressed. Although he acknowledges that Kiniry is one of the country’s top voting system experts, he sees Tusk’s effort as doomed.
Why Sahel’s Great Green Wall is a non-starter: International funding often prioritises ‘Western imaginary of Africa’
Originally conceived by Thomas Sankara, Burkina Faso’s late revolutionary leader, the Great Green Wall was launched in 2007 by the African Union. Its goal: to slow desertification in the Sahel region by planting a “wall” of trees 8,000 kilometres long and 15 kilometres wide – from Senegal to Djibouti.
Verdict on broken trust: Political commentator Russell Brand explains why UK health workers skip flu vaccination
In October 2021, as governments worldwide mandated Covid-19 vaccines, New York physician assistant Deborah Conrad was fired for reporting vaccine-related adverse events to the federally run Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System or VAERS.
