African News
Africa Rice Center (AfricaRice), a pan-African Center of Excellence for rice research, development and capacity building, has appointed Mr. Moustapha Gaye as new Country Representative to Liberia and Coordinator of the EU-funded Seeds4Liberia Project, led by AfricaRice. Mr. Gaye comes to the position with over 30 years of international development experience, eighteen of which have…
UN Secretary General António Guterres with UNEP Executive Director Inger Andersen. PHOTO/UN/FILE. By PATRICK MAYOYO [email protected] Current emissions trajectories look set to warm the world by as much as 2.8°C (5.04°F) above pre-industrial levels by 2100, according to a report released by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). The UNEP assessment of available new climate…
As the 11th Conference of the Parties (COP11) to the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) approaches, calls for reform are growing louder. Independent scientists, journalists, civil society groups, and the tobacco industry are all demanding a seat at the table. The conference, set for November in Geneva, is expected to reinforce restrictions in line…
The National Counterterrorism Centre (NCTC), Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA), on Tuesday reaffirmed Nigeria’s commitment to continental peace and collective security. The ONSA made this known at a “Capacity Building Workshop and Preparatory Meeting for the Retreat of the Peace and Security Council (PSC) Committee of Experts of the African Union (AU)”,. In…
The establishment of such a panel ‘would be a permanent legacy’ of South Africa’s G20 presidency, says the G20 Inequality Committee. The establishment of such a panel ‘would be a permanent legacy’ of South Africa’s G20 presidency, says the G20 Inequality Committee. The G20 Inequality Committee, appointed by President Cyril Ramaphosa, has urged the formation…
Nairobi — Low insurance penetration and high premiums are leaving millions of Kenyan and other African farmers exposed to climate shocks, industry players have warned, highlighting a growing disconnect between agriculture’s contribution to GDP and its insurance coverage across the continent. Speaking during the Africa Reinsurance Climate and Insurance Workshop, Phocas Nyandwi, Regional Director at…
The DRC’s 2020 household survey reveals how VAT shapes everyday life–and fairness. Introduced in 2012, VAT offers stable revenue, yet multiple rates and exemptions mostly benefit higher-income households. Tax expenditures cost about 0.82% of GDP, exceeding social safety net spending. Poor families devote more to taxed essentials: about 41% of their spending faces the 16%…
On a bright Tuesday morning in Wakiso District, laughter fills the schoolyard of Divine Mercy Junior Primary School. Boys and girls chase one another across the dusty compound, their blue-and-white uniforms fluttering in the breeze. In one corner, a group of pupils crowd around their teacher, acting out a short drama. One boy snatches a…
SADC Mission Says Tanzania’s 2025 Poll Fell Short of Democratic Standards Observers from the Southern African Development Community (SADC) said intimidation, arrests, and an internet shutdown prevented citizens from freely exercising their democratic rights during Tanzania’s 2025 general election. In its preliminary report released on 3 November, the SADC Electoral Observation Mission (SEOM), led…
Global health experts believe it is high time the World Health Organisation (WHO) reconsidered its Tobacco Control Policy, the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC), which they say has failed to reduce smoking rates, diseases, and deaths over the past two decades. At its inception 20 years ago, the WHO FCTC outlined strategies…
