Terrorism: Mozambique crisis to get worse by June without international intervention
The threat to Mozambique isn’t just about gas. It isn’t just about money or security or power or territorial integrity. The conflict in Cabo Delgado is wrecking people’s lives on a vast scale. More than 700,000 people have already fled their homes in northern Mozambique and the count is still...
Mozambique in need of urgent support to overcome terrorists and restore hope
“You may kill me with your hatefulness, but still, like air, I’ll rise”. Maya Angelou was so right. These profound words do ring true today when we look at the recent cowardly attacks by terrorists on defenceless Mozambicans. There’s so much at stake in Mozambique, where the separatist militia known...
Africa’s Free Trade Area carries hopes of wonder drug for struggling economies
Created by the Free Trade Agreement in 2018, the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) came into effect on January this year. Expectations are high that the new economic and trading bloc will open up borders for more intra-Africa trade. Since the World Trade Organization creation, the AfCFTA is the...
Science needs data and evidence from the arts to effectively roll back coronavirus
One key issue is who is being called on to aid recovery. Governments have sought expert advice from the beginning of the pandemic, but that expertise tended to come from people in science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) – despite it being clear from the start that human behaviour, motivations...
Social media: What would happen if users were rewarded for reliability and accuracy?
In 2020 alone, social-media shares, likes and similar interactions with misleading online news doubled to 17 per cent of all engagements. This staggering growth has consequences: polarisation, violent extremism, racism and resistance to climate action and vaccines. Social-media companies have taken some steps to combat misinformation by using warnings and...
New plastics law likely to have severe unintended consequences in Mauritius
The government of Mauritius have proposed bold new measures to curb plastic waste. While the intentions behind the mooted regulations are commendable, we are firmly of the view that the proposed new policies for the management of PET Plastic Waste, if implemented as per the timelines, logistics and technicalities, could...
Oil prices soar as analysts debate whether it’s a blip or start of a new supercycle
Since November 2020, oil prices have risen by 70 per cent, hitting $70 per barrel in March. A united Opec+ (comprising the 13 Opec members plus 10 other big oil exporters), fast-recovering economies, the snowstorm in Texas and rising geopolitical tensions in the Middle East – the recent Houthi attack...
Energy industry is going to be the bedrock of Africa’s road to recovery
African Energy producers and the governments are facing an unprecedented economic crisis caused by coronavirus, unemployment, economic recession and energy poverty and energy transition concerns. The African Energy Chamber’s Road to Recovery: How the African energy industry can reshape itself for a post-Covid comeback offers a common-sense strategy for the...
Public debt to grow by nine per cent of gross domestic product worldwide
Global government spending to combat Covid-19 and its economic fallout – $11.7 trillion just in the first six months of the pandemic according to the International Monetary Fund – means public debt will grow by nine per cent of gross domestic product on average this year worldwide. In the United...
Lockdown: Fewer cars on roads, but number of fatal accidents spikes
Although there are fewer cars on America’s roads since the pandemic began, the number of fatal car crashes has increased. Early nationwide data support this counterintuitive finding: Even as daily trips from households fell significantly, preliminary data show that 28,190 people died in motor vehicle traffic crashes during the first...
